Cruel Summer

Da Missions:

It starts when Arutemisu is asked to clean out the attic.

His father has a whole host of scrolls tucked away up there, which he never seemed to touch, but when Arutemisu runs a finger along the paper, there’s no dust at all. Nevertheless, he starts scrubbing the floor, cheerfully humming a tune that’s been stuck in his head all morning. He heard a woman singing it in the street and now it’s been playing on a loop in his mind.

The attic isn’t just some overstuffed, cramped space that’s been abandoned and forgotten about, like the attics in his friends’ houses. His father has made it nice, like the rest of the compound. He had to push a thick, fancy rug back in order to clean the dark wooden floor, making it shine underfoot. The walls are decorated with paintings and wall-hangings, including his mother’s favorite poem, which she wrote out by hand personally after hearing it read aloud.

In his mother’s neat, flowing writing: 'I knew a girl with copper veins, who broke away and took great pains, but lifted up her silt-soaked heart, and bought herself a fresh start, hung from the wall on scroll-paper, curling up at the ends.'

Arutemisu keeps humming, absently pushing the rug further up, eyes on the poem before him. His mother always says she wrote it just before they adopted Arutemisu. She still calls her son her ‘fresh start.’ She never really talks about what came before.

The melody cuts off when his hand touches a warm spot on the floor. He frowns, pushing the rug all the way back to examine the space. One of the wooden planks is pulsing gently with warmth. Arutemisu is familiar with the sensation. It’s what happens when you imbue a surface with chakra. It lives off that energy, ebbing and flowing like a tide. If it’s particularly strong chakra, it can last decades. This feels… old.

Arutemisu scrapes his nails gently against the wood, frowning to himself. If he didn’t know any better, he’d say something was invisibly sealed under the floorboards, and then covered by a rug. He could pry up the floorboard and take a look, but whatever it is might be rigged to explode when uncovered, unless you keyed in the right chakra signal. He likes his face the way it is. Unexploded.

However, Arutemisu didn't have the time as he had a couple of serious missions to attend to. Exiting from the attic, he looked outside the window and into the distance. The sunrise from behind the cliffs as light rays consume the darkness. The clear blue sky spread widely with no clouds to cover the magnificent view that the morning brought upon Konohagakure. With the change of scenery, the night guards changed with the morning guards as everyone began their morning routines. A peaceful morning was like no other, calming and tranquil, Arutemisu couldn't ask for a better way to get his start. He walked towards the kitchen as he was wearing his normal attire. 

Upon arrival in the kitchen, he turned off the stove that he set on low while working in the attic, letting the teapot calm down from its boiling point. Arutemisu looked around the cabinets until he found the teacup and a bag of apple tea. He poured the water into the cup, ripping the plastic around the tea as he grabbed it by its string and began to dip it on his mug.

Arutemisu was going into the village to meet at the newly opened tea shop. He first passed the new training grounds as the radiant sky formed overhead, with the sounds of clashing steel and fists in the background, as the training grounds were especially lively on that particular day for a reason Arutemisu was unaware of. 

The missions ranged from confronting gangs, stopping raids, and dealing with criminals. A different type than having to find a cat. The recurring gentle breeze kissed his face, which is usual for any space in the Land of Fire. As he entered the business district, the gust was carried with the scent of cooked food and smelled of different dishes as the day had begun for most restaurants. The streets started to fill as people started proceeding about their days. Taking a sip of the tea he brought with him, he approached the Tea Shop. He was taking a seat outside of the shop on a wooden bench. Arutemisu then proceeded to wait for his team to appear.

Zarina found herself, once again, face-to-face with the tombstone that laid her ‘brethren’ beneath it. It took her a long time to come to accept his death, she couldn't quite accept the fact that he was gone, always wishing for some reason that he could come back. Zarina knew that would never happen, so she just had to accept the fact that their memory was now locked inside the Hyuga's heart. The songs he would sing, hum, were like art but also like a protector that would never let the terror in. Now those songs were never to be heard again. 

A single tear slowly fell down her porcelain cheek and onto the ground beneath her. It was time to go. It was mission day, which she had the luxury to be one of the members to partake in the mission. She was expected to meet up with her team and hunt down a few traitors and deal with a couple gangs. It was going to be an all-day event for her and her team.

It was a cool day in the secluded village that is known as Konohagakure. Blue skies and massive clouds were overcast as she strolled through the village. Small mom n' pop shops started their daily routine as they began to open up for business. With a small wave and a smile towards all those she passed; she took in the different smells that came from the stores that operated as restaurants. While there was a magnitude of different foods located right here in Konohagakure, the amount of ramen was unparalleled. Well, could you expect anything different from the ramen capital of the world?

Rolling her eyes at the thought, she continued on her way. She was almost to the tea shop that they are all supposed to meet at. As she passed along, she gained a few catcalls from the older men that still lingered around in the unit's even when old age was close enough to lay claim to their life. She laughed off their whistles and calls as she soon found herself just outside the main entrance to the Tea Shop.

“Hello, Arutemisu.  A good day, is it?” Zarina greeted the heterochronic teen as she sat next to him on the bench.

“It is especially with what they got us doing.” Arutemisu snickered as shifted in his seating position.

“Right, at least it won’t be boring,” Zarina spoke.

“You got that right,” Arutemisu paused momentarily before speaking again, “how many more have we got meeting us here? One? Two?” He questioned.

“I believe Xena Uchiha is joining us, I’m not certain about the other one,” Zarina said.

“Ah, okay, okay.” Arutemisu finished.

TWC: 1,202

As the sun began to rise over the Uchiha clan district, Tenshi Uchiha stirred from his sleep in his humble apartment, the first rays of light filtering through the curtains to gently illuminate his room. His long silver hair cascaded over the pillow, and his deep red eyes slowly opened, adjusting to the light. Today was going to be a busy day; he had several A Rank missions to fulfill, and he knew he had to be well-prepared.

Sitting up, Tenshi stretched his lean frame, the muscles in his arms and back flexing as they began to be used for the first time today. He swung his legs over the edge of the bed and stood, his feet barely making a sound as they touched the wooden floor. His bedroom was decently sized, adorned with some subtle Uchiha clan emblems here and there, although he had only kept them up due to how much they meant to his mother.

Walking into the ensuite, Tenshi glanced at the mirror hanging on the wall. He couldn't help but notice the slight fatigue in his eyes, a testament to the training he had been undergoing lately. With a soft sigh, he splashed some water on his face, instantly feeling the refreshing coolness washing away the drowsiness. It was not enough though, he decided to get into the shower, allowing him to properly wake himself up. This was a bit too much of a success though, as the hot water randomly went out and he jumped in surprise as he was hit by an ice cold stream instantly.

Tenshi's daily routine was simple and efficient. He tied his silver hair into a neat ponytail, allowing his handsome face to show through. His black coat, pants, and boots were his signature attire, perfectly suited for combat. He checked the pouch on his belt, ensuring he had enough equipment for his missions. As he donned his forehead protector around his right arm, he took a moment to contemplate the symbol etched onto it, a constant reminder of the sacrifices his clan had made.

He sighed it reminded him of the uneasiness he had felt recently about the Uchiha within Konoha. The once greatest clan in the Shinobi world had felt... off to Tenshi. They did not seem to be as glorious as he had been led to believe as a child, mostly happy to restrict themselves to a life of mediocrity within the safety of the walls of the village hidden in the leaves. This was not enough for the young Genin though, he wanted to experience more, to be able to see the world and live some excitement.

Sadly, this would likely only happen in the instance of some type of conflict, and a Great Shinobi War would not be a good outcome. Too many would lose their lives for no reason, and in the end, very few would actually be able to consider themselves winners. But such was the life of a Shinobi. They lived to serve and protect their villages, at the risk and cost of their own lives. Shaking his head, Tenshi went downstairs to make himself some breakfast, poached eggs, smashed avocado, bacon and salmon over toast, he felt like spoiling himself a little bit today.

After eating breakfast, Tenshi made his way out the front door of his apartment and into the cool air of the day. He was greeted by the sounds of an increasingly loud Uchiha district, something that he and his team mate, Okisho, had not grown fond of at all. The increased traffic had been due to many outsiders moving into the district at the approval of the clan elders, yet another thing that annoyed Tenshi about his clan. The Uchiha district had gone from a place of genuine culture and family, to just another suburb that was being flooded with the rich. The thought of living amongst the Uchiha must have amused them, Tenshi was furious about the situation, his people were not just some commodity to elevate the status of others...

He shook the frustration from his head, thankful to see other clan members who were also beginning their day, and acknowledging them with nods and polite smiles. Though the Uchiha were known for their stoicism, Tenshi had always been a bit more approachable, earning the respect and trust of his fellow shinobi with relative ease.

As he left the safety of the clan district, Tenshi's thoughts shifted to the missions that awaited him. He had heard a lot about A Rank missions growing up and in the academy, they were challenging and often dangerous, but he embraced the responsibility willingly. Protecting the village and its people was his duty, and he would fulfill it with unwavering determination. He had also complained often about the missions he had received in the past. From collecting flowers to helping out with Ichiraku Ramen, they did not feel like missions fit for a Shinobi. He was glad that the village had finally entrusted him with this.

Continuing to walk towards the meeting point, it occurred to Tenshi that he had no idea who he was going to be working with today. He had received his scroll the night prior and it only detailed the missions themselves and that he would be joined by others. I wonder if Himari or Okisho will be joining me on this one? Hmm or maybe even sourpuss... His thoughts were interrupted when he arrived and saw to figures talking as they waited.

Sourpuss it is!

Tenshi raised a hand in greeting as he approached Arutemisu and his companion, a Hyuuga girl. "Hey there Aru, long time no see! How are you doing today?" He then turned to the Hyuuga and gave her a warm smile, "It is a pleasure to meet you, my name is Tenshi Uchiha."

---

WC: 975

There was a metallic taste in his mouth. It was so familiar, but from where? He noticed the air smelled similar to the iron from his dad's forge too. But not quite like it. The smell of iron made him feel like home, calm, in control. This smell and taste made him uneasy, maybe even... excited? He suddenly realized why was it so familiar. It was blood. The darkness faded, and he saw himself, from the outside. He was covered in gore, his hair stuck to his head and was mostly red-black instead of the usual ginger. His face was all red, freshly painted, except for his eyes and his teeth. Why was his teeth showing? Why was he grinning like that? He only realized he had his sword drawn and bloody when watched himself lift it above his head and strike down against someone. He couldn't see the face. He screamed at himself to stop, but the sword didn't slow down. It couldn't. As the blade came down, it bit hungrily into the skull and didn't stop until the body was split into two. Kouga saw himself smile through it all, with his teeth showing. They didn't stay white for long in the end. What was happening? Why was it happening? He tried to shout at himself to no avail, when suddenly, a sound. It was loud and sharp, and he opened his eyes and sit up, heaving, in sweat. It was only a dream. He turned his alarm off. He felt thankful it ended, but this wasn't his first gory nightmare since Kyukazu appeared in his head.

"You're awake, boy. Did you sleep well?" - and he heard that laugh of his, that hadn't an inch of warmth in it and made Kouga's blood feel cold inside him.
"Speak of the devil." - Kouga thought.
"A flatterer aren't you?" - came the witty answer in that raw and unforgiving voice.

He had no time for this, he realized. He had to get ready. He finally got an interesting mission after months of guard and patrol duty. Hunting traitors, gangs and criminals was a huge step forward for him to prove himself. And the traitor part was somewhat reminiscent of what he always wanted to do, the work of an ANBU. The first time he saw one of the masked hunters in his dad's forge as a small child, he was intrigued. He nagged his old man until he told him everything about them, every story he ever heard of them. Then he kept on nagging him. His father had quite the patience with him, he realized.

"Ah yes, your precious little dream. So *disgusting*. But it would make you bloodying my vessel more often, so I might even help you achieve it. Or maybe I won't. Maybe I'll turn you into a mass murderer missing-nin, always on the run. So many possibilities."

Kyu looked to be deep in thought, and Kouga has given up telling him how he made his own choices and won't be doing any mass murdering, so tried his best to ignore the spirit. He also knew this always angered him, and he enjoyed reversing the roles, and getting inside his head for a change. His morning maintenance routine was pretty good at drowning out thoughts and voices anyway. He could just give it his undivided attention, it was almost meditative. He checked his bo staff, from top to bottom, looking for any weakness or rot of the wood, but found nothing, so he cleaned it with an almost dry cloth. He took Korei in his hands, the blade almost as long as he was tall. He was always gentle with the sword, at least when he could.

"... how dare you..."

Kyu was still going at it or so it would seem. Maybe he was going at it again. He used the cloth to clean the blade too, and started sharpening its only edge with a whetstone. The screaching sound of water stone on the metal made most people cringe, but to Kouga it was soothing. Once he was satisfied with the edge he checked the senju wood hilt, depicting a fox tail, for any wear. One of his finest works, even if he said so himself. He found nothing out of the ordinary there either, so he cleaned it and started his breathing exercises. Without proper breathing technique sword strikes were weaker, so he never slacked off. Kyukazu stopped talking, he realized. This barely ever happened. He spotted the fox-like spirit in the corner, he appeared to be sulking. Hah, how the mighty have fallen. He had to get going though.

"Come, Kyu, we might get some blood on you today." - Kouga said, feeling a bit guilty about ignoring the spirit. As he said the word "blood", a moment form his nightmare flashed before his eyes, the balde entering a skull, blood and brains all over the place. He shivered.
"Did my dunce of a little boy finally grow some balls? Now that, I like." - and there was that wretched laugh again. Seemed like the spirit wasn't offended after all.

He left his room, and made his way to their kitchen and quickly downed a bowl of rice with raw eggs on top. He needed the energy for today. Once he was done he said his goodbyes and exited their house. As he stepped outside, the chilly morning wind kissed his face and grabbed into his low ponytail. He took a deep breath. He enjoyed the cool air, though he enjoyed most of every weather, come to think of it. He had to get to a newly opened tea shop of all things. He wasn't really big on tea, and the shop was in the richer part of the village as well. His family wasn't poor per se, but they weren't rich either. He always felt out of place in the wealthier parts, especially when he had to enter one of the bigger clans' district. His little tours with Zunair helped a lot, but the anxiety wasn't completely gone. After a bit of searching he managed to find the place based on the mission instructions. He found three ninjas already at there. He instantly recognized the black haired kunoichi, who he shared a dance not even that long ago. They didn't know each other that well otherwise though, so Kouga opted for a pretty restrained and casual greeting.

"Hey Zarina, long time no see." - he saluted the girl with a wave, then he turned to the other two figures. One was a white haired, red eyed, albino looking young adult, and the other a black haired, heterochromatic boy looking not much older than himself. He bowed respectfully while introducing himself: "My name is Kouga Hinomatsu, nice to meet you."
"BOWING TO THESE NOBODIES? WHERE IS YOUR PRIDE, BOY?"
"I know respect is a foreign concept to you, Kyu, but in my experience if you show some, others will do the same to you."
"And in my experience if you show respect, others will exploit that weakness. But suit yourself, crawl in the dirt like the worm you are. And when you are finally ready to become the predator instead of the prey, I'll be here."

WC: 1207

Arutemisu was approached by the new male, a sense of evilness washed over the Anbura. Something was amiss with him. His outward appearance hymned bright and sunny, but an aura of dread surrounded him. It was almost as if he had an evil shikigami lurking over his shoulder, watching every step he made. Walking up to the swordsman, where their chests almost touched, Arutemisu would answer back to the individual, “likewise, Kouga. But something is off about you. An aura of darkness is radiating off of you, I wonder why?” Arutemisu finished as he activated his Uchugan.

Peering into this world and the next, everything becomes clear to the Anbura. Things that are invisible to the naked eye, become visible to the wielder of the Uchugan. Looking down, a darkness radiated off of the sword that Kouga was carrying. Almost taking an opaque form, Arutemisu heard the spirit that occupied the sword begin to speak. A smirk formed underneath the bondages that covered his mouth as he began to communicate to the spirit with his Uchugan.

“Unfortunately, demon, the only prey here is you. Your soul is sealed and locked within a blade that at any point could break and condemn you back to the netherrealm. Therefore, how about you show some respect before I send you back to the astral plane, worm.” Arutemisu spoke sternly to the spirit of the sword. While he was used to speaking and dealing with spirits of all kinds, this was the first where he dealt with a tormenting spirit that has occupied an intangible object.

Turning his gaze back towards the redhead, he began to speak as his eyes softened, “I hope the possession that has been bestowed upon your sword hasn’t been entirely too heavy on your shoulders. Maybe my words will have some remnants of weight pulled off of them.” Arutemisu said in a soft tone before turning his vision towards the entirety of the group.


“Hello, Tenshi Uchiha. I am Zarina Hyuga, a pleasure,” she said with a soft smile and an even gentler gaze. Bowing her head to one of the members of the pillar clans, she showed a sign of respect before razing her head back up. “I hope your reputation precedes you,” she said, noting that she has heard about him before. Whether it was from Arutemisu, or her cousins Onabi and/or Himari, that is for him to find out.

Just as she finished her introduction with the Uchiha, a familiar voice rang out, invoking her to turn towards the sound. “Ah, Kouga. It has been a minute. How are things? I hope all is well with you,” she said with a sincere gesture and a warm greeting. Bowing her head out of respect, she watched out of the corner of her eye as Arutemisu stepped up towards the redhead. Watching carefully, she saw that the conversation he began had to be serious as he activated his doujutsu. Avoiding the conversation, she turned towards the Uchiha. “So, you can summon dragons. That is quite spectacular,” Zarina spoke as she maneuvered herself closer to white haired individual. Dabbing in small talk, the conversation didn’t last long as Arutemisu finished his talk with the redhead.

“Alright team, shall we get going?” Arutemisu said as he walked a few feet away from the group.

“Yes,” Zarina spoke as she walked up next to the Uchugan user.

“Let’s go,” he said, then started taking off for a walk with Zarina following suit.

“So, if you all read the contents of the mission, it appears that defectors of the Leaf Village have grouped up together as a band of bandits, wreaking havoc upon the districts…especially, particularly one clan of the Noblesse and their blood supply.” Arutemisu stopped, almost as if something was disturbing him. Zarina felt empathy towards the young Anbura, knowing his past with the Kyuketsuki Clan that had kidnapped him and his sister when he was a child. While he still deals with that trauma, it shows the growth that he has accomplished knowing that not every Kyuketsuki is the same.

“Also, their last known whereabouts were located in the forest, near the outer wall. So, we should check there and see if we can find any clues.” Zarina spoke up as the group continued to their destination.

“Right,” Arutemisu said.

TWC: 2,004

Tenshi chuckled at Aru's response, "Ahh, always a pleasure. I hope you've been well since we last saw each other." He then turned to respond to Zarina, the Hyuga girl had a far kinder demeanour than her counterpart. Tenshi found that it was always hit or miss with their clan. They were either kind and gentle or harsh and cruel, he was yet to meet anybody in between the two extremes. One thing he did know, however, was that they often always possessed extraordinary talent as Shinobi.

"Oh I have a reputation? Well I sure hope it is not one that I earned through Aru over here, I am sure he would prefer to make up some fairy tails or fancy half truths when possible. Speaking of, are the two of you acquainted with one another?" Before their conversation could continue, a voice called out from behind him. Tenshi had not seen this red haired and half starved looking man before, but clearly he and Zarina were already familiar with one another.

Turning around, the young Uchiha would return the greeting, giving a respectful bow before rising up once more. "Hello there Kouga, my name is Tenshi Uchiha. I am looking forward to working with you today." Suddenly, the newcomer began talking to... himself? No? His... sword? Whoever it was, Kouga was not having a pleasant conversation. Things got weird when Arutemisu joined in on the oddness, activating his ocular jutsu and speaking of demons and a blade.

"Speaking to swords now Aru? That is rather... unusual. Even for you." Regardless of his sly jabs, Tenshi decided to activate his three tomoe Sharingan, staring at the sword as well. He began to understand why things were getting weird, there was an unusual aura around the massive blade. It was dark, sinister even. It screamed of death to Tenshi, something no normal blade. With a sigh, the young Uchiha deactivated the Sharingan before speaking.

"I am not sure what the silly blade is saying, but feel free to tell it to keep its mouth shut, we have work to do." Zarina seemed to be the only one trying to avoid the odd situation, turning her attention back to Tenshi and mentioning his dragons. He smiled as she approached, it appeared that word spread very quickly around this large village. "Yes indeed I can. I have formed a bond with a large flight of Ancient Red Dragons, hidden in the nearby area. They are as awe inducing as they are fearsome, but I am yet to unleash their true power. I hope to one day do so. I must ask, who is the mysterious informant that has told you so much about me?"

Arutemisu would then bring up the fact that it was time for them to get moving, they did have a mission to complete after all. Walking up beside him, Tenshi would maintain pace as they moved. "Spooky eyes, portable walkway holes, and now you can speak to swords. Look at you go Sourpuss, you never fail to surprise me with your antics." He smiled for a moment, before his face changed, his eyes more serious.

"But in all seriousness, these missions will be quite risky. We all need to be on our best form today, so preferably no disappearing acts like you pulled on our last mission. No random spacing out again either, I do not want to have to pull you out of a fight because your eyes decide to glaze over." Tenshi remembered the last patrol mission they had together, when Aru seemed to have a moment where he was completely unaware of the world going on around him. Not to mention how he had just vanished in the middle of a fight, Tenshi had been concerned for the younger boy's safety.

Almost as if on cue, something appeared to already be bothering Arutemisu. Raising an eyebrow, Tenshi spoke in a hushed voice so only the Anbura could hear him. "Is everything alright?" The two of them often had their moments of bickering, but Tenshi looked at him as a friend, he wondered if the feeling was mutual...

If the entire group continued on their journey, they would approach the edge of the outer wall, something began to feel off for Tenshi. It took him a short while to realise what was going on, but once he reactivated his three tomoe Sharingan, it became clear as day. There was absolutely nobody around them, which was unusual at this time of the day. More so, he got a prickling feeling at the back of his neck, as if somebody was watching them. Quietly whispering to his three companions, "Everyone, on your guard. We are not alone... WATCH OUT!"

He yelled out the last two words as his intuition proved to be correct. With assistance from his visual prowess, Tenshi turned in time to see three masked individuals leaping down from a rooftop on their right. They were all holding katanas, aimed directly at Kouga, Arutemisu and himself. In the corner of his eye, he noticed another four adversaries leaping down from the the building behind them, all wielding the same weapons. Two of them targeting Zarina and the other two heading towards he and Kouga.

Pulling out his tanto, Tenshi dodged the first strike by quickly dashing to his left before parrying the second which was coming directly for his throat. These would be assassins were clearly not here to play. "Remember, we need them alive!" He would then begin back pedalling as he continued to deflect strikes from both his assailants.

---

WC: 934
TWC: 1,909

As Kouga finished speaking, he realized he accidentally said it all out loud, instead of just thinking it. He instantly regretted his early morning blunder and was ready for the weird looks, but in place of looks he saw weird eyes opening one after another. First the black-haired boy's eyes turned black, with mesmerizing specks of purple white and red, that reminded Kouga of a very strange night sky he once saw on one of his many trips outside of the Konoha walls. Apparently the guy now heard Kyukazu, which was a surprise to be sure, but a welcome one. Of course Kyu couldn't let his insult go unanswered:

"Hahahaha, this guy has a big mouth. Maybe we should cut it down to size."
"*Sigh*. Kyu, shut up. Thank you for the attempt, but I would prefer if my sword and its denizen remained intact for the time being. He is getting more agreeable every day."
"Or maybe you just started to see how wise my advices are."
"Anyway, if I am in need of an exorcism you will be the first I call."

Meanwhile Kouga saw a red flash and heard the sound of a Sharingan activating, one he got quite used to thanks to the time spent with Izuna. He turned towards the Uchiha who at least told him his name, contrary to their companion Kouga realized.

"I don't think I can shut him up, but I can assure you, it won't be a hindrance to the missions."
"At least you know you can't make me do anything."

Kouga listened to the the black-haired shinobi's description of the mission. Defectors. Traitors of the village. He couldn't fathom how could one betray their own home like that. Not even just betray it, but attack it as well. In his eyes, they all were scum. And now, it was his job to get rid of them. The thought filled him with pride, and he was already raring to go. He also felt Kyukazu's excitement. He was so focused, he even forgot to question who put him in charge. The rare moment of agreement felt better then he thought it would. When Zarina gave the command to go, he shuffled next to her, as the other two already were in a conversation.

"So, how have you been? As one of the few Hyugas on my good side, I regret we haven't met in such a long time."
"Oh for the love of all that is sacred, do you always have to do that?"

Well, so much for agreeing with the spirit. After a while a shout from the albino guy put a quick end to their small talk.

"WATCH OUT!"

What was his name again? Tenshi, of course. Kouga went over the five seals with practiced precision: Tiger - Horse - Hare - Ox - Dog. He then drew his hulking sword from its leather scabbard on his back, and pushed his chakra inside the blade. The steel started glowing, taking on an orange hue, while steam ascended from the sword with an audible sizzle. A close range engagement, how lucky. This is his speciality after all. He launched at the closest attacker on their right, pulling his glowing sword along on his left side. He heard a bloodcurdling scream, and realized it came from his own mouth. Upon reaching his opponent... No, his enemy, he let go of a brutal horizontal slash, but the masked attacker decided to jump over it, so he let his momentum keep going all the way to his right side, then lead it into another attack over his head. This time his foe had no time to dodge so he tried to parry with his katana. His mouth twisted into a smile while barely hearing Kyukazu laugh in his head. The slash went straight through the blade as it snapped in half and into the unlucky traitor's head, splitting it clean open.

"Remember, we need them alive!" - He heard the Uchiha shout.

Oops. As he was trying get his blade free from the defector's burned skull, one of the corpse's comrades was already charging at Kouga. He managed to sidestep the first attack, and step behind his sword still wedged in a head. The second slash met with his stuck steel and bounced off, making the attacker lose their balance. Trying to use the opportunity Kouga pushed the wooden handle forward, and with a crack of the skull the blade slid free, but the pommel kept going forward right into his opponent's face. The sound of cracking bones filled the air once more and the traitor fell on his back whimpering. The sounds of battle were the orchestra and he was the conductor.

"YEEES, MORE! FINISH HIM!"

Kouga placed his no longer glowing orange, but definitely black from the baked on blood sword on his shoulder and stepped in front of the downed defector. He looked into their scared eyes, and let their terror seep into him.

"DO IT!"

Kouga raised his blade for the finishing blow... What is he doing? He forced himself to lower his blade and looked around. The battle seemed to be over, so he slowly put his sword away. It hurt to let go of the handle. As he looked to his side, he saw a man, missing half his head and the other half had most of its skin in a weird place, as if it somehow got stretched and burned. The smell of burning flesh still in the air. He felt nauseous. He looked at himself, thoroughly drenched in blood. He did this. He tried to tell himself the traitor deserved it, but it didn't help. He took a look at the one still rolling on the ground in front of him, and only felt pity. No sign of the ecstasy and hatred he had only moments ago.

"You're still weak. Have too much mercy."
"Maybe you're right."

And Kouga started to vomit.

WC: 991
TWC: 2198

Going back a few moments ago before their departure.

“I do not make up any fairy tales about you, everything I say is true,” Arutemisu gave off a pouting expression with Zarina chuckling at the comments.

“Yes, we were in the academy together. We’ve known each other for quite some time. Even so, we basically made an impromptu team with each other, finding our set of skills work quite harmoniously together.” Zarina said with a warm smile. What she said was true as he met Zarina when he came to the village and joined the academy. During those days, he was such a reclusive, introverted person. He was proud of the way he has grown into his own person, even Zarina commented on it, giving him praise. All in all, she was his best friend besides Hebi. She even knows his past.

He’s six when the thread snaps. He doesn’t remember what exactly caused it, but he knows it hurt. He remembers blood trickling from his mouth onto the dirt beneath him. And for a second, all he can think about is how much pain he's in. But then…he isn't. No fear, no pain. As if no dreaded things had ever existed. He decided whatever this was better than how things were before, so nothing changed. Not when he was forced to sleep outside, or when he was so hungry he ate what was left of a dog laying near him one day. One by one, his brothers died, and he thinks he should be sad, but he can’t bring himself to care. Maybe he should feel bad about that.

He learns to just sit and obey, some sick way of appeasing his parents. He sits in the corner unless beckoned. He doesn’t dare look at his food unless they yell at him to start eating. He doesn’t remember what his own voice sounded like. But he still sees. He sees what his father does to his mother. He sees his mother scream at him and his siblings. He sees what food they can find gets smaller and smaller. He sees his ribs through his ragged kimono that’s too big for him. He sees so many around him suffering, but he can’t bring himself to care, no matter how much he tries.

Breaking out of his thoughts, he chuckled at Tenshi’s response to him speaking to the sword. “Well, the more you get to know me. The stranger I get.” A slithering motion, Hebitsukaiza rose out of Arutemisu’s haori, looking around before finally resting himself loosely around Arutemisu’s neck.

Now, they are moving on.

Kouga takes his position next to Zarina to catch up on old times, whereas Tenshi seemed to be worried about the Anbura, per se because of the previous mission. His emotions were and are valid given the sudden disappearance and the fear-attack the Arutemisu had gone through. “No worries, Ten, I was just caught up in the moment,” he spoke as his face turned into a more serious expression.

With Zarina, “ah, yes, Kouga. It’s been a while, but perhaps after the mission, we can properly catch up.” She said with a smile.

A few moments later, the group was ambushed. Kouga and Tenshi had three opponents while Zarina and himself only had two. How unfortunate for the unlucky fools; however, it seems one of the men from the shadows of an alleyway jumped on top of the buildings and proceeded to evacuate the area. “Zarina, look. Follow that one and see where he leads. It could be the secret hideout, once you get the exact location. Message me and I’ll teleport us to you,” Arutemisu spoke as Zarina nodded her head and took off after the escapie.

“You four. Your fight is with me now,” Arutemisu said as he formed the seal Tiger -> Ram -> Dog -> Tiger -> Ram -> Dog and a sea of white feathers began falling from the sky. The bandits looked confused and laughed but ultimately succumbed to the fate of the Temple of Nirvana technique. “Well, that was easy enough,” he spoke as he dusted his hands off only to look mortified as he watched Kouga slay two of the bandits.

“What are you doing!?” Arutemisu screamed as he rushed over to try and stop Kouga from killing the final man. In a moment of reflection, it seems this swordsman found some mercy and allowed the man to live, but only by vomiting from his misdeeds. “They were supposed to be taken alive, Kouga, this is wrong.” Arutemisu said as he came to holt before Kouga and man.

“Oh, how so very right you are,” an unknown voice called out as a sense of dread, darkness and fear irked over the battlefield. Turning his vision, he was met with a small, evil looking child. A mixture of a Kyuketsuki, Senju, and an Ushitora. Hebi raised its head and begun hissing at the new intruder.


Per Arutemisu’s request, she went on ahead while the trio fought with the bandits that had occupied the area. She was following a bandit that escaped, seemingly to relay a message to wherever their hideout was. Plus, when she gets there, she will send her exact location to the other members so they can meet her.

The moon was shining high above, the clouds had parted from the previous appraising thunderstorm which never came to be, the winds had ceased their incessant teasing, their blowing seizing up without any reason. There, in the wood area, Zarina was traveling through the trees, jumping high enough to amaze any petulant, ignorant human being and earn recognition of the people burdened with knowledge about the reality of this world's dangers, earning gratitude from their hopeful yet tired gazes, all heavy with burdens unsaid.

The woman had leisurely jumped ahead to the oncoming area, never thinking of it being in any serious danger, otherwise she would hear the terrified screams she had often, unfortunately, had the misfortune of them being reverberated inside her skull. They never left her, but at least it got easier by being ignorant herself, ironic since she was burdened with the same knowledge, but choosing to bind it to the back of her mind. She never disregarded any of the countless people's cries, but never truly acknowledged them either, choosing to trick herself into believing the unseen, the peaceful abode after living temporarily in this cruel world. It was true, maybe it wasn't. Who knew?

It was just after sunset before she started the tumultuous walk inside the compound's complex pathways, all surrounded by differently built buildings. Yet, it was curiously empty, all the ever structurally ordered houses, all void without a sound. Not a single clue had revealed itself to the woman, who was tensing up with fear and forced awareness, as to the reason for their never-ending silence. Not a single person, child or adult, populated the dirt trailed streets occupying this small place. It was too quiet, she had known that people stayed indoors and talked in hushed tones to avoid the carnage brought on by bloodthirsty demons, soothing cries of an ignorant babe, shushing a petulant child or simply arguing with no raised tone.

It was too dangerous, the never ending static silence was defeating, overbearing, unnatural. She could sense it in the freezing air, already unsheathing her alablaster blade in order to combat a lurking enemy nearby, always seeming so near, yet somehow out of reach. But, her heart was pure, the concern dominating her other fears, and trying to glance inside one of the ominous houses, expecting any survivors and trying to guide them to safety before doing anything else.

She slid the door open, her heart beating fast inside her chest, sliding the door open, tensing herself up for a surprise attack or the mournful sight of a family slaughtered in cold blood, their plentiful blood staining the walls, ceiling and especially the floor. She had prepared for any of the expected scenes, but when she opened the door, there was nothing. Not a single piece of furniture in the small wooden room, the walls marred with dust, evidence of the fact that no one had lived here for quite some time, not a single futon either.

She furrowed her brow, confused. Her heart still wanted her to slide the other doors located outside other houses, refusing to believe that the people had just simply disappeared without a trace, no note left behind to explain what they were doing, leaving dear loved ones behind without a reason. She went through with her thorough investigation, something ominous being built up inside her veins when she would notice the same sight that she had witnessed a few minutes earlier. No matter how large or small the houses seemed to be, not a single person seemed to be occupying the bare rooms. Her hold tightening on her blade, trying to concentrate on her breathing, these men seemed to be experienced hunters, leaving not a single trace of their prey behind. There was no way she could go through all of these houses on her own, she needed desperate aid.

She was walking along the repeating trail, houses surrounding her by both sides, enclosed in an almost sacred space where not a single human being, other than her, had breathed out. It almost seemed like it was frozen in time, only thawing when someone dared to step into its cold, unwelcoming abode. She kept walking, trying to instill fake confidence in herself, it helped her from deflating with guilt and disappointment for not arriving any sooner, no matter if it would make a difference or not.

The path was a small one, so it didn't take long before she arrived at the end of its trail, all houses ceasing to exist for the expansive world stretching out with a singular dirt trail leading to other settlements, but it was blocked by a tall imposing man. He was threatening despite the ever present smile on his face, his hands holding his folded up fans and his rainbow eyes glancing at the Hyuuga's form eagerly, without a single ounce of shame.

His mouth was streaked with blood, he was standing beside a pile of corpses, all seeming to consist of men with their eyes blown out wide, their hands covering their throats before they died. She could see the bandit that she followed amongst the victims. He didn't eat them, they looked untouched. Before Zarina could try to glance for a single survivor, the man waved his right handed fan and all of the men froze up with ice encasing their dead bodies. Zarina seemingly froze up too, before she could comprehend the drastic actions taken by the man, the frozen prisons simply shattered into tiny little pieces, all shattering into nothingness, not a single ounce of their body mass left over for a funeral.

"Ah! A beautiful butterfly woman, how wonderful! I'm truly lucky to encounter a lady such as yourself!" He eagerly exclaimed while clapping his hands, he froze up mid-clap and put a finger on his bottom lip, thinking of something with exaggerated sounds of decision-making uttering out of his mouth, before saying, "Ah, forgive my rude manners! I'm Douma and it's an honor to meet someone as lovely as you."

Zarina breathed out, trying to pinpoint his unseen freezing mist which would incapacitate her lungs, destroying them. She recognized the changed air and breathed accordingly to avoid his dangerous attack. "The name is Zarina, and I'm sorry Douma, but unfortunately I have my teammates to go back to." She said with a smile on her face. The multi-colored eyes widened slightly before the effect was instantaneous, his cheerful smile fell immediately, his eyes gleamed with an unsaid warning. 'Don't say anything else' it would relay quietly, the space between them thick with tension that someone could cut it with a knife. They glared at each other, participating in their battle of wills, quietly judging the other to gain some form of advantage to win in this fight. Douma was confident that this woman would never be able to beat him. He did want her to stay fresh while he absorbed her, so his one-shot attacks would be useless. All the while, Zarina remembered her tactics, the way the gentle blade worked and which attack was better for defensive maneuvers. She was smart enough to acknowledge his strength and only hoped that she could compete with this ice demon.

His mouth widened into a mocking grin slowly, the effect causing shivers up on Zarina's spine, "Well, Zarina. I'm waiting~, this is going to be extremely exciting!" He laughed out loud while throwing his head back and snapped his head back to face Zarina while tilting his head sideways, giving her a lopsided grin, which could only belong to a rabid animal. It almost seemed like he didn't have an ounce of humanity left, despite being human-looking.

Suddenly, in the blink of an eye, the man disappeared, leaving a cold mist behind in his place. The woman closed her eyes and readied her attack, 'Gentle Blade: Moonlight.' She twisted her body to avoid the attack and slashed him in the stomach when he appeared behind her and was about to break her spine. She was pushed backwards from the force and grit her teeth, using her legs to stop skidding and stop a few feet away from him. She didn't leave his form one bit when he would glance at his closing wound without any real worry. He grinned,

"Oh, your form is just as beautiful as you, Zarina~." He flipped his hands open and manifested four icicles by flapping his fans just once. She narrowed her eyes, they were thin, but their piercing power seemed to be extremely high, based on the sharpened tips. He directed a fan towards her, letting the deathly floating icicles pierce her, and she used another of her defensive maneuvers right before they hit her, 'Deflect' The icicles all shattered into tiny pieces by the many slashes, while Douma just smiled and snapped his fingers. Zarina immediately jumped out of the vicinity of the falling ice pieces when she heard the ominous click of his fingers, when they blew up in a cold mist.

The fight was just starting, and he was already playing dirty, luckily Zarina had tons of aces up her sleeves, her intelligence almost unmatched. Douma laughed out loud, leaving himself completely vulnerable, it was a trick. Zarina knew so she obviously didn't fall for it and only narrowed her eyes. Immediately he jumped when he saw she wouldn't take the bait and was landing towards her form, intending on tackling her when she used her attack, 'Gentle Blade: Moonlight.' A rapid strike of upward slashes incapacitated his body by letting his feet chopped off, along with his hands which were holding his fans. It slowed his momentum, so he had landed just a few inches away from her.

Zarina used her opportunity and tried to slash the helpless demon's head with a powerful, 'Gentle Blade: Shadowrush.' intending on ending the battle right there and then by a single powerful sword slash. Right when the graceful, twisted slash was about to decapitate Kyuketsuki-Yuki mixture, Zarina sensed that it was all just, “too easy." Her instincts were screaming at her and she obeyed its command and jumped far away from the body. Turns out it was the right call when the 'fake body' froze into an ice shell and protruded spikes all over its body, which would instantly pierce her straight through her heart.

She grit her teeth, this man was smart. She tensed when she heard the sound of slow clapping and turned towards its source and saw the man sitting on the rooftop while also applauding her efforts, an impressed look on his face. "My, my. Aren't you a sharp one." He mockingly said while Zarina refused to answer his goading actions. He narrowed his eyes, the grin dropping, "It's rude to not answer your friends, Zarina~. Ne, Ne, why don't we end this, and you give up?" His smile reappeared. "It would save a ton of pain and suffering from both of our parts y'know?" He pouted when she only scoffed, "Well, if you say so Zarina-chan. I'm going to enjoy devouring you when we're done with this pointless fight." His serious demeanor showed itself for a split second before he smiled sickeningly, "Cuz that's what I do for all of my female friends y'know?"

TWC: 4,772

Tenshi was in the midst of ducking and weaving around slashes and stabs coming from all angles as his two attackers attempted to end his life swiftly. Tenshi  groaned as he was forced to move about, close quarters combat had never been his strong suit, the physical prowess required was frustrating more than anything else. With his three tomoe Sharingan active, he was always a step ahead of his two opponents' moves though, which allowed him to manoeuvre them all further away from his companion. When the trio managed to reach over 10 meters away from the group, Tenshi began to speak to the two attackers. "Alright morons, I need some information from you and I would prefer it if you could speak now. It would be quite a pain to have to interrogate it all out of you later. You would not believe the paper work that an interrogation entails..." He almost sounded bored of the situation as he dodged one life threatening strike after another.

This sudden care free attitude appeared to enrage his two assailants, one of them roaring out as his attacks intensified. This burst of emotion had been exactly what Tenshi was banking on, emotional strikes had a violent history of ending badly for the person in question. The man, who wore an all black attire with an equally dark mask yelled like a fool as he went for an overhead slash, which resulted in Tenshi dashing low and fast across his body. His sharp tanto slashing right through the man's calf right underneath his knee, separating the rest of his calf and foot from his body. The yell of rage transformed into a cry of pain as he dropped to the floor, a pool of blood forming from his now gaping wound. Tenshi heard the man's ally gasp out in shock, a deep voice muttering words of sorrow at the sorry sight now laying between them. Tenshi's eyes never left those of his now lone opponent's, who was still looking down at his ally.

The man finally looked up at Tenshi, a terrible mistake. The moment the two made eye contact, Tenshi cast his Sharingan Genjutsu on the unassuming fool. The man's vision would instantly go blurry as he felt his legs freeze in place, his entire body unable to move now. Visions of pure terror would cloud his vision, with shadowy beasts wrapping their elongated limbs around his legs, body, and then finally, head. He would feel as if he were submerged underneath a crippling weight, sucking the oxygen out of his lungs. After what would feel like hours for the man, but mere seconds in reality, he too would crumple onto the floor, rendered completely unconscious by the effects of Tenshi's Genjutsu.

Tenshi sighed once more, as he looked at his two downed opponents. In his defence, he HAD given them the chance to come quietly, but sadly criminals often did not have the humility in them to accept such generous offers. "What is with you idiots, are you not able to acknowledge when you are outmatched? Just be grateful that I do not plan on killing you." He walked over to his recently amputated victim, ripping up some fabric from the man's own clothing and using it as a tourniquet around his wound, minimising the blood loss. It would likely be enough to keep the man alive, for now. Tenshi walked 5 meters away as he began to prepare for his summoning technique to bring forth Rellgar, who he would use to transport the fallen foes over to the authorities.

Before he could do anything, the chilling voice of what appeared to be some type of demon child rattled through the air. Tenshi looked up to see the chilling figure standing past his comrades, this new adversary was clearly trouble and would take them all to overcome. Wrinkling his face up in confusion, Tenshi called out to the newcomer, who was at least 30 meters away from him as he himself was 15 meters away from Aru and Kouga. "Oh and now we have you. I don't know what your problem is freako, but we are a little preoccupied at the moment. If you could leave us that would be fantasti- CRAP!" Tenshi barely had a moment to think when he leapt out of the way of an incoming fireball, which hit the ground where he been standing mere moments before. He heard the sound of a man laughing behind him as he turned to survey the situation.

The situation in question was not good at all. Not one bit... 15 meters before him stood two more newcomers, these ones looked far more familiar than the freaky devil child. He did not know their names or faces, but he knew those stares. These were not just any Shinobi, they were Uchiha...


The man on the left was silent and dark, his red eyes fixated on Tenshi's with evil killing intent. The hungered for blood and death, and Tenshi had a feeling that he would not stop until he got what he wanted. The other man had a red scar along the left side of his face, he had been the one laughing, and judging by the fact that he was still lowering one of his arms, he was the one who had shot the ball of fiery death at him just earlier. "Hello there baby Uchiha, I hope I didn't scare you too much with that, please don't wet yourself! Save that for when my brother is ripping your eyes out!" He had a maniacal grin on his face, he was clearly having too much fun with this.

"Enough of the chatter, brother. I want to kill him now, his foolish friends may join him in his fate." The broodier brother appeared to have no interest in playing games, he looked like a very straightforward man. "Well now, the two of you must be a whole lot of fun at the clan gathering huh? Although you have the appearance of losers that we would not let in." Tenshi was talking smack, but he knew all too well how far up shit's creek he and his allies currently were. Having Zarina around would have been a bit helpful right about now.

The broodier Uchiha did not take his snide remarks well, and scowled as he began to advance towards Tenshi, before the other one raised a hand to intercept him. "Now now brother, wait just a moment. We agreed that the son of that bitch Tonari would be mine. You feel free to play with the one that has the spooky looking sword. He looks like a challenge." The broody Uchiha growled something under his breath, but relented and instead focused his attention to Kouga, pulling out a dangerous looking Katana and advancing towards the red headed man.

Tenshi noticed nothing following the scarred Uchiha's words. He had just mentioned his dead mother's name, how did he know who she was? Were they connected somehow? "What did you just say? What do you know about my mother? Tell me now!" He raised his tanto and pointed it at the man, killing intent now raged in Tenshi's deep red eyes. This man clearly had answers that he wanted, and the young Genin would drag them out of his however he could.

The scarred Uchiha simply laughed and pulled out his own Katana. "If you can somehow survive against me, I MAY just spill the beans for you kiddo. Until then, just know this. The only good thing about mommy dearest is the fact that she is rotting in the ground, just like you will be very soon!" Without another word, he dashed at Tenshi, stabbing his Katana forward as Tenshi did the same with his tanto. The sound of clashing steel ringing through the air.

---

WC: 1,312
TWC: 3,221

As the first wave came out, he vaguely heard a voice filled with disbelief scolding him for killing the man. The other voice, constant in his day to day life were berating him for not killing more. But all he could think about was that terribly deformed skull. The life he cut short. He had to have people that cared for him, and he took him away from those people. The thought and the acidic taste was too much, and another round of vomit left his mouth. An unknown voice interrupted his languishing, so he looked up with teary eyes from the puking. He saw the outlines of a small child in front of them, talking to Kouga's black haired comrade. Suddenly Tenshi had to dodge away from a fireball, and promptly two other assailants emerged. That's why there should always be a sensory type in groups like these, he thought. Based on the conversation they had to be Uchihas, so now the clan almost outnumbered the others present. He remembered his father telling him they almost went extinct at one point. It was hard to believe now, when you bump into a bunch of them at every corner. One of them pulled out a katana and started walking towards him. He was in no hurry, his movements were all calm, collected and calculated. Kouga put one hand on Kirei's grip, and the Uchiha's advance, that looked inevitable seconds ago, came to a stop a few meters before him.

"You will die here." - He said as a matter of fact. Kouga felt very much out of his depth, but he wasn't going to go down easy.
"We will see." - Came the answer, though his voice sounded weak. He had to not die, but also he didn't want to kill another person, and without his killer instinct he wasn't sure what to do.

He went over the signs again, and his blade started to glow in its leather scabbard and he pulled it free and placed it between them. Suddenly lightning run through the black haired man's katana, and they started to circle each other. This wasn't going to be the type of fast and loose fight that he could pull off against weaker opponents. This duel will be fast, and whoever makes a mistake first loses. The Uchiha changed direction, and he followed, not wanting to strike first. Kouga's heart beat in his head, time seemed to slow down, every step walking around each other took an eternity. Then it finally happened. The Uchiha lurched forward, trying with a high cut but he ducked out of the way and spun to the right. He let go of a counter strike aimed at his opponent's back, but he gracefully evaded it. His assailant came at him again, this time fainting low before cutting high again. Kouga got caught by surprise trying to parry the faint, and had barely enough time to blunder out of the way. The Uchiha sensed his opportunity and kept on the offensive.

"From the right." - He heard Kyukazu's voice, and indeed it the next strike came from the right.
"Faint left high into a spin, this is your chance." - Without thinking he trusted the fox and pretended to step back from the faint and launched his pommel hard into the back of his spinning opponent, but the spin never happened.

His opponent was standing on his right, his eyes glowing red, his face nonchalant. He saw his move before it happened. If he wanted to get a hit in, he had to get out of his field of vision. The Uchiha launched at him again, and while he blocked attack after attack with Kyu calling the faints, a plan started to form in his head. He had to create some space. After parrying another strike, he tried another pommel counter attack, and predictably the Sharingan user stepped back from it, and Kouga dodged backwards too. Now was the time.

"You ready?" - He asked Kyu in his mind.
"Let's do it!" - Came the answer dripping with bloodlust.

He pushed his chakra into his blade as they practiced, and felt the fox spirit's chakra join his own. He made a slashing motion, and the combined chakra left his blade and he threw Kirei it right behind it. At first it was just a black blob of chakra, but mid-air it transformed into a fox head, with too many sharp teeth showing. The Uchiha slashed the head right in half, and was a bit surprised by the sword, but managed to sidestep it just in time.

"You'll need more to defeat me than that. And now, your defenceless." - Noted his opponent.

There was fear in Kouga's eyes as the other figure slowly walked towards him. He took a shaking step back.

"Any last words?" - He asked without any feeling. And then with a whap Kirei bashed him in the head from behind, and Kouga's left fist simultaneously smashed into his guts while catching the sword with his right. Using his opponent's moment of weakness he slashed at his sword hand, resulting in him dropping his katana, and smashed his pommel into his face for good measure.

"That was close." - he muttered to himself - "Too close."
"Come ooon, kill him. He can't defend himself, let's do it!" - the spirit pleaded, but Kouga was already looking through the field of battle, trying to acknowledge the whole situation.

WC: 905
TWC: 3103

The reason for the disappearance of the population in this area had become clear to her, her guilt intensifying since she had the naive belief that they had escaped before they had been killed by him. "How did this section stay quiet for so long? All of this doesn't make any sense!" She said with frustration, trying to make sense of the situation, not realizing that she had said it out loud for Douma to hear.

"Oh! They were just my loyal servants! But, I got bored with them so, I ate the females and was in process of disposing of the males when you arrived." He explained it as a fact! Not anything serious, just something to be mentioned in passing from his perspective. It boiled her blood, but she kept her composure and didn't recklessly drive in to kill him. No matter how tempting it was.

He jumped towards her when he saw that she was making no moves in trying to go towards him. She used her gentle blade once again when he was close enough to be incapacitated, his chest was slashed almost all the way through while Kanae simply kept her distance, intending on keeping away from him. 'This girl knows her stuff', He acknowledged her tactics, close range would never work on her, she was too prepared. He also didn't want to use any long-range attacks, since most of them would freeze her body and ruin the taste. He was ruminating on his plan of action when Zarina noticed his momentarily distracted face and used her next attack.

'Gentle Blade: Spiral Cloud Passage.' She executed a consecutive of nine powerful attacks all together, so his form would weaken, and she would take the chance and use the form to slash his real body. She changed her tactics when she realized that it was almost going to be impossible to evade him till help. It was already an hour past, and he was ruthless, her attacks were barely able to block him, and her life was in constant danger, since she knew he was holding back. Those nine powerful slashes had caught him off guard, his focus broken in surprise since he thought she would be keeping her distance from him. His appendages were cut off, his torso and back were slashed heavily along with his jaw. They all spewed blood while his limp body flopped forwards onto the ground, the regeneration taking some time.

Zarina used the ‘Gentle Blade: Moonlight’ in order to end this battle for real before she started panting with exhaustion and making mistakes. Unfortunately, luck wasn't on her side when she saw two ice sculptures, made suspiciously to look like women, were clutching her legs in an almost painful grip, threatening to break them. She used her 'Eight Trigrams: Blade Revolving Hell' and ripped the statues into tiny pinpricks of ice crystals. She had to jump backwards, Douma's regeneration complete, so she could avoid his underhanded attacks in order to kill her.

He slowly stood up, his eyes blown out wide with interest studying her, he was extremely fascinated by her survival instincts. 'Hmmm, Maybe I should turn her into a vampire.' He contemplated while weighing the pros and cons but eventually dismissed the notion by a single want, 'Nevermind, how else am I supposed to taste her? I need her blood.' He licked his lips in anticipation of her soft flesh, slowly being molded into his body, the feeling would be indescribable for him! He would get amazingly stronger than before; it was definitely worth it.

So, he continued with his barrage of unexpected attacks while Kanae barely deflected their effects all the way till sunrise. Zarina didn't get injured once; she knew if she did then her chances of survival would drop to exponentially low levels. She couldn't afford it, so she never instigated the offensive attacks and kept using the defensive maneuvers instead. Meanwhile, Douma was slowly getting frustrated by her avoidance, his anger showing itself by his scowl, a hard feat to accomplish. It wasn't a true emotion since he couldn't feel anything, but it was more like not wanting change to happen. He killed and ate every single female he laid his eyes on; he didn't want to abolish the precedent. But Zarina was nothing if not exceptional. He wanted her strong body; it was necessary for him! His attacks slowly grew deadlier, the use of brute force receding and the use of his kekkei genkai increasing the longer they fought.

Zarina never kept her guard down, no matter how exhausted she slowly became to be, her evasive maneuvers were too notch. She wanted to escape, but she knew if she tried to, then he would take the opportunity to kill her once she was distracted for a split second, and also, she didn't want to escape at the same time since she wanted to avenge the countless people this demon had killed. The last form of flower breathing was extremely enticing whenever she would see an opening that could only be taken advantage of by the dangerous method, but the man was unpredictable and there was no guarantee that her plan would work out. Also, if she lost the function of her eyes, she would undoubtedly die. They fought, and the ten minutes before sunrise came to be extremely important to Zarina. She was panting, sweat covering every single inch of her body, her muscles protesting at a single small motion of her hand or legs.

They stood a few feet away from each other with Douma glancing at her with a smug smile, she was going to start making mistakes and he would undoubtedly take advantage of that. "See Zarina-chan? This is why the Kyuketsuki are always going to be stronger than humans. It's just the way of life. If you were a vampire, we could fight for eternity y'know?" He rambled without a hint of stopping which was exactly what Zarina wanted. So, she tried to keep him talking by yelling,

"You're wrong!’ She said, “we’ll stop all the evilness you all have brought and live in harmony.”

Douma laughed, and readied his stance in order to launch his final attack, "I'm sorry Zarina-chan. But that's impossible!" He was tired of this endless back and forth, he just wanted to eat her and get back to his followers! He didn't want to talk all night with her, and this was, also, proving to become quite the battle. The two sworn enemies stood a few meters apart, both covered in blood, ready to fight to the death.

"Well, Douma," Zarina said in a weak voice, "one of us goes, one of us stays. If I die in battle, I'm dragging you to hell with me." The Hyūga spit out some blood, then smiled at her opponent, absolute hatred apparent in the fire in her eyes.

"You're right about that one," replied Douma, as he threw his fan at her as if it were a spear, striking her in the side, ripping through her flesh with a sickening noise. Zarina yelped in pain and began to stumble backwards. Douma caught her roughly by the arm and she made one final attempt at taking him out. She flipped her sword and swung it at him. Douma grabbed the blade and threw it, lodging it into the ground, blood seeping down his arm. Douma let out a scream and threw Zarina to the ground.

She tried with every little ounce of anything she had to get back up and fight. She was exhausted and wounded, but she managed to stand once again. "You have a lot of fight in you, I like that. Fitting for company like me. Don't you think so? Hehe. I've decided that I'm not going to kill you but take you with me to live for eternity. You'll thank me later," with one quick motion, the bottom two arms of Douma snatched Zarina's wrists and positioned her, hanging helplessly in the air.

She needed to get free, but she didn't know how. Maybe she did? In a last-ditch effort, she swung her lower half back and then forward, connecting her foot to the bottom of the bone manipulator’s shin. Unexpectedly, the man stumbled back and loosened his hold on her wrists. Twisting her body in the air, she used Douma's face as a footing and launched herself towards the ground, ripping herself free from his grasp.

Somersaulting into the ground, she quickly grabbed her sword and turned around. "Gentle Blade: Spiral Cloud Passage!" Zarina blitzed around the Kyuketsuki, dismembering his arms as her attack's flowed within each one as the final slash, finally dismembered the demon's head. "What? HOW! This is how I go," the man screamed as his head bounced around on the ground. Kneeling down, her head began to feel faint. Zarina finally stopped fighting, and she knelt motionless on the ground, bloodied, and bruised from a hard battle. A battle won.

“You did great,” a familiar voice rang out in the air as her injuries began to feel lighter. Looking behind her, she saw Arutemisu with a red glow around his body as began to heal her. 

“Heh, when did you show up? And no need for compliments, I almost didn’t.” She said.

“Just now. We need to get back; I don’t know how the other two are faring. I came to you to see if you need help and to drag you back to help up. As for the compliments, you deserve them all,” Arutemisu chuckled. 

A gasp rang out of Zarina’s throat, “what are you doing healing me, let's get back!” She said getting up as Arutemisu nodded and opened a portal to the same area that he came from with the two walking through. As they exit the portal, they can see the entirety of the battlefield going on. To the right, Tenshin is fighting with an Uchiha. While to the left, Kouga is also battling it out with another one.

“What should we do?” Zarina asked.

“Well, it doesn’t look like the demon child is doing anything yet. Should we help our comrades or should we establish faith in them to deal with their own battles.” Arutemisu followed up with another question. Internal affairs weigh heavy on both Arutemisu and Zarina as they contemplate what to do. However, the child with horns did not wait for them to decide as he created several wooden dragon heads with a single beat to a drum.

“Oh, shit. Incoming,” Zarina said as numerous wooden dragon heads flew, not at the duo, but as well at Kouga and Tenshi with their fighting partners. “You get Kouga, I’ll get Tenshi.” She said as she moved with all her might in the direction of Tenshi as Arutemisu went to create another portal.

As the portal opens, Arutemisu watches Kouga smash the end of his sword into his face. Ouch. Jumping forward, he wraps his arm around Kouga’s chest before jumping back into the portal. “Sorry, I like to be intimate like this, hope you don’t mind,” Arutemisu said as they landed back where Zarina and himself once were, letting go of the red head. He turned and watched the dragon's head smash into where the Uchiha’s body laid.

“Good riddance.”

As Zarina moved forward, she felt her chakra splurge into her sword, creating a cloud-like cloak of blue chakra around the sword. Arriving at the fight, the two Uchiha were still clashing at their swords, unaware of the impending dangers of the dragon heads. “AHHH!” Zarina screamed as she somersaulted into the air as dragon heads came storming down at Tenshi and his fighting partner. Maneuvering her chakra and blade around her, she quickly cut through the three heads and their bodies that were heading towards their destination, defeating them in a quick succession of blows. Landing just meters away from the Uchiha’s, she turned and looked to see if Tenshi was still okay. And hopefully, with the falling debris of wood, he will use it to finish his adversary. 

TWC: 6,793