Clash at the Barracks [EVENT MISSION]

Age : 32 Posts : 1495

Literally everything hurt. Mana had been messed up pretty rough throughout her life, that was mostly because her enemies were not the people one should be crossing if they wish to keep drawing breath in this world. Just like Niku – a woman with the ability to form weapons at her will, something like that was dangerous, if Mana was the only one to die there that day it would still be a favorable outcome for the Alliance. Still, what the magician hated even more was getting healed. Getting injured was bad, it made those resonating pain points that sent painful impulses throughout the entire body, getting stabbed was even worse.

As bad as dying was, getting healed was actually even worse. When one was dying they actually felt pretty alright, sometimes all of the pain disappeared, it felt like the body was floating away and there was this desperate desire to just close one’s eyes and fade away. However healing… Slow healing was fine, the kind of healing that takes time to patch one up, Usushiko’s healing was the worst. It literally overflowed the body with chakra healing everything up immediately and that sort of healing was really painful. In a way that pain was a fair reminder to stay awake. Surprisingly enough this wasn’t even close to being the worst state that Mana’s been in. When being impaled on a spear isn’t the worst day of your life, something needs to change…

Mana’s eyes widened up, she hugged Usushiko’s fluffy ear as she always did when the rabbit kept her from dying. She just liked the feeling, since the titanic animal didn’t show too much opposition he probably felt alright about it too. “You’re an idiot, Nakotsumi…” he uttered a bit more silently than the last time. Mana smiled, her lips twisted from both pain in her gut and happiness. “That spear… That woman stabbed too early, there was still some of that avatar there and it pushed the point lower, from your heart to your gut, if I wasn’t here you’d be spending your life digesting your food through a machine. Next time you pull this bullshit…” Usushiko spoke when Mana heard Meiko’s voice.

“Yeah… Surprisingly enough this isn’t the worst beating I’ve taken… Sorry, my Avatar slipped through all that sickness, her spear went through it…”

Mana replied on the link, her voice was probably still too weak to talk, at that moment she passed the state of dying back into the state of being badly hurt. That was the worst state to be in, easily! The pain and everything in one’s own body failing was the worst. Still, this was the life Mana has chosen. She’d get stabbed a thousand times over if only she could have saved all those people… Mana’s eyes turned away in sadness, she barely contained her tears as she looked into the unconscious Niku and everyone assembling around her.

“Who do you think I am? Some sort of hatchling? She’ll be walking around in a moment…” Usushiko grunted out an answer to Kiyomi’s question. He was right, he was the most capable medical force Mana has ever seen, his medical abilities rivaled those of Guru Ayushi – being able to heal near life threatening injuries in just several moments. Still, it was very irresponsible for Mana to do this to him, he liked her, making one’s friends always see you in this condition. It tore the magician’s heart and made her embarrassed of her own weakness. She still wanted to protect everyone from everything, even the feeling of seeing her beaten up.

“I’m sorry guys. I’ll train harder next time, I’ll save everyone next time… No one else will die. Just… I’m sorry…” she replied on the link with a soft and weak voice. The magician started feeling her strength returning – Usushiko must’ve been getting close to healing her completely. He then stopped abruptly. “Hmph, if I heal you, you won’t learn anything, live with this pain and live in shame, heal those wounds naturally, that’ll show you… Bakatsumi…” the rabbit grunted out as he disappeared in a cloud of smoke leaving Mana downed. The magician smiled, she knew what the rabbit did. He healed her just enough to leave her alive and alright to move around but not enough to heal her completely – so that she felt the pain and learnt her lesson, so that she’d be more careful next time.

Mana slowly sat back up and stood up, staggering around a bit but walking. Usubane rushed to her help to keep her upright. “Darn that bastard Rabbit God! I’ll pound his stupid head, Mana-sama, I promise! He has no right to do this to you!!” Usubane started shouting out of the blue, her funny reaction forced the magician to giggle, pain came up from her gut forcing her to clench the aching spot and grunt. She saw Rukasu holding a weapon to Niku’s throat, the man asked for a reason not to kill her – honestly he probably had every reason to kill her, the guy said that he loved Mana, that woman almost killed her twice that day.

Mana turned at Mugen and smiled out with pain with a thumbs up, “I have no problem with handing her over to Kumo, it’s her home after all, if there’s any place she should be held in it’s home. Also you guys managed to contain her well once, I trust you’ll be able to do so again. I… I’d just… Could you maybe give her a chance? Like… I’m not saying not to kill her… Just… Consider all the opportunities, if my voice means anything at all, life imprisonment beats execution.” After saying that came the hard part. She still had to convince Rukasu not to slit her throat and start more trouble. Then there was Hiruzen raging over Satsuki’s death. He probably came first – he was the more dangerous threat at the moment after all.

“Strider-san, today we aren’t enemies, I thank you for your assistance with this but don’t cross the limit. If you kill Rukasu here and now you’ll be nothing else but same what Niku was before joining Parabrahma – “Comrade Slayer”, Rukasu paid for his crime, he stayed his time and I didn’t let Satsuki-san’s corpse get swallowed by a snake, I pulled her out and granted her a proper burial myself. Her relatives forgave both me for failing to save her, even if I did not forgive myself yet, and Rukasu after he served his time. If you wish to pursue him for something he already paid for, you’re out of line, that’s not justice, that’s just you being what Hiruzen never wanted himself to be – just a weapon. What Rukasu is doing right now is nothing different from what you wanted to do – Niku almost killed me so he’s out for revenge for someone he loves, that being said, I’d rather die than let him kill Niku, I’ll do everything I can to stop that, as I’d do for anyone else, even you…”

Mana then breathed out, all this sadness, remembering Satsuki was hard on her injured body. She still grieved that day and never really forgave herself. She was still beating herself over it and wanted to prevent any innocent deaths, that day told the magician that she wasn’t strong enough, that she needed to grow stronger if she wanted to prevent any deaths, since that day Mana trained day and night, she didn’t rest for a moment and drove her own body to destruction, and yet… So many people still paid the price for something they weren’t involved in. Mana knew what Hiruzen was talking about – Red Scorpion was a desert safehouse for any high-status figures travelling through Wind Country, she was grateful for the information and nodded to him before he left. Protection Service knew of Red Scorpion safe-house, whenever an important figure travelled through the Wind Country it was the place they were supposed to stay in case of sandstorm or bandit attack.

Mana then came up to Mugen and bowed her head to him, falling on her knees from the pain trying to lower her head in the process. “I’m sorry, Mugen, I wanted to protect every man and woman in this complex, I really did, I tried my best but… So many of your villagers died, you have every reason to hate me for this, I hold myself responsible for every one of those deaths and I’ll keep pushing myself in order to prevent anything like this in the future. If you’d be willing to heed my advice and leave Niku alive in prison, I’d be more than willing to aid with her interrogation, my genjutsu is probably the best in the world and I’ve already interrogated a Parabrahma member before.” After that apology was done Mana finally turned to settle the one last thing that day. The Sun was already moving towards the horizon.

She slowly approached Rukasu, the magician could feel Usubane trembling in rage, the rabbit wanted to bash the young man’s head into the dirt for how much suffering he caused to Mana. She’ll probably never completely forgive him. “Rukasu…” Mana said softly as she placed her hand on his shoulder. “There are a hundred of reasons why she should stay alive, remember what I’ve told you? No one in this world is expendable and useless, every life is important and sacred. I suppose none of that really matters to you so I’ll try to keep it simple. If you kill her here, nothing will have changed, you won’t be a hero in the eyes of the world, you’ll be just a cutthroat who only involved himself to kill someone. But if you leave her alive, prove that you can leave people alive and restrain yourself – they’ll have no reason to say that, you’ll start walking the path of a hero.”

Mana’s head sunk down, she was tired and beaten, she had no time nor strength to convince Rukasu, she probably only had several words of strength left in her. Through sheer force the magician lifted her head up, “If being a hero doesn’t matter to you… Think of me, you said you love me. Do you know what kind of effect will it have on me if you kill her? I’ll blame it all on me being too weak, as I always do, I’ll blame myself for it again, telling myself that if I didn’t involve all of you into this Niku would still be alive and I’ll reach the conclusion that I must fight all of those battles alone. That’ll make me sad, angry and miserable, I’ll push all of you away from me again like I used to do as a kid. People who love each other don’t do those sort of things to those they love. I guess though, ultimately it’s up to you, you’ve ruined my life once and I forgave you, now you have the chance to make another choice, show me how much you’ve changed…”

Mana then suddenly passed out from the pain without finishing the speech, Usubane placed her body on the ground and checked the pulse, “Ugh, I’ll carry Mana-sama back to the hotel. Her injuries don’t need medical attention – Mana-sama needs rest, if any of you bastards want to fight me over her, bring it on!” Bane yelled out lifting Mana into the air with one hand and shaking her fist at everyone. The rabbit then turned around and started moving around the mountain, Usubane’s goal was not the safehouse, it was Kumogakure, the hotel room where Mana has been staying all this time.

“You handled it, Mana-sama, just rest now…” Usubane whispered, Mana could swear she could hear the rabbit’s voice in her dream.

[EXIT]

Age : 34 Posts : 718

The first to respond to Mugen had been Hiruzen, and the man's voice made his identity clear to the Kumogakure genin. He'd looked into that name while he was nursing the injuries from the skirmish they had. Mugen felt that the stories embellished the Uchiha's greatness, making him out to be soem kind of inhuman demon. However, after experiencing a taste of his overwhelming martial prowess first hand, Mugen had to count himself lucky that Hiruzen was content to leave the beaten Niku in his hands without a fight. Mugen visibly relaxed once Mana gave her blessings on his insistent request to leave Niku in Kumogakure's hands, but the boy remained standing guard over the criminal's body. He had been able to glean from this gathering that there were two or three "factions" or camps of thought surrounding how to deal with Niku. Thankfully, it seemed like all of them were coming to a state of agreeance on the matter.

In response to Mana's words, Mugen would nod and speak on her request, "I'll pass your wisdom on to my superiors...but it will probably have more impact coming from you. The daimyo and the village by proxy, both owe you a debt for your help today. I'm the famous magician can leverage something." It was odd to see someone as powerful as Mana act so soft and gentle. She could have easily thrown the weight of her reputation to snatch custody of Niku away from Mugen. Then Mana would have been able to decide her fate. But instead, she chose to modestly ask of a genin what she could have taken by force. Mugen grew a bit of respect for Mana's virtues and made a mental note to ensure he did not forget to pass on her recommendation to honor her request. It was then that Mana addressed Hiruzen by the name "Strider" and Mugen turned his attention back to the wandering traitor. He supposed that he owed Hiruzen a debt. The man hadn't killed him when there was more than ample opportunity, another blunting to the edge of the rumors about his brutality. Even so, for the highly loyal Mugen, it put a bad taste in his mouth to think that he owed his life to a nukenin that abandoned his beloved Kumo.

As the Kumo genin wrestled with his thoughts, he noticed Mana forcing herself up and moving towards him. "You should be laying dow-" The sennin stubbornly approached him and attempted to bow her head in humility only for her weakened knees to buckle. Mugen would catch her before she completely fell to her knees and set her down lightly bringing one of her arms around his shoulder in case she was about to faint and fall face first into the floor. But Mana's consciousness held, and she professed a deep sorrow over the shinobi that died today. Truth be told, Mugen hadn't even stopped to think about the number of Kumogakure shinobi that had been in the destroyed barracks. There were too many unknowns about the ordeal for him to get a clear picture of what might of happened in his mind. But Mana certainly seemed to think that it was her fault things ended up the way they did.

Mugen shook his head and spoke, "You forget. We are shinobi. Every man and woman that died, did so giving their lives for the mission. That is what a shinobi is. Do not weep for the fallen, you'll stain their memory." Mugen felt strange telling this to an older shinobi who was far more famous and experienced than he was. It was almost embarrassing and made him worry that he was being idealistic. "...The best way to honor them...is to return home and smile. We shinobi fight so others can live in peace."

With his little speech done, he gave thanks to Mana for helping bring one of the criminal's responsible for all this pain to justice before letting her go to address Rukasu. Mugen tried not to eavesdrop despite being right next to the conversation. It didn't take long for him to realize that it wasn't much of his business. The only part that mattered to him was whether or not Rukasu planned on killing Niku even after Mana forbade it, and things didn't seem like they would go in that direction. Mugen would still stand guard over Niku's battered body anyways and he remained there until the support team from Kumogakure arrived to bind her and take her away. Thus ending Mugen's role in the mission to repel Parabrahma's attack on the lightning daimyo.

-Exit-

Posts : 811

This was quite the predicament. Just the idea of having to hold a bloodthirsty Hiruzen at bay was enough, add Rukasu to the mix was even worse. The 'Snake King' arrived moments after Meiko did and wasted no time in placing a blade to the unconscious woman's throat. The moment he moved in, Meiko swiveled on the spot, extending her right arm towards Rukasu while her left raised up defensively in Hiruzen's direction. There, she remained unmoving, as though she were too late to stop Rukasu's actions. While for many people, that would be true. However, those who knew of Meiko's abilities and with the observational skills would realize that she could materialize a weapon at any moment to stop Rukasu's impending execution. Her right hand was at such an angle that any weapon summoned would place itself underneath Rukasu's blade.

Hiruzen was the first to speak. While he understood the value of the information Niku held, he was against keeping her alive in prison. Keeping her alive would be simply akin to torture rather than a mercy. While Meiko had followed Mana's belief that every life should be preserved, deep down, she knew that she did not believe it as much as Mana did. The red head could understand the truth to Hiruzen's words and honestly agreed with him. Some people were just too far gone to save, yet still, blood begets blood. It has to end somewhere, right?

With Rukasu's arrival, Hiruzen's demeanor changed from annoyed to restrained fury. Meanwhile, Rukasu was addressing Mana regarding Niku's life. Essentially he gave the wounded woman an ultimatum, either she produces an answer he finds satisfactory, or he kills her. He said he would give Kiyomi some time to probe Niku, but who knew how long that would take and if there were any safeguards against such careless actions. Hiruzen immediately countered with a threat, one Meiko knew he would carry out, even if she stood in the way. There was nothing in her arsenal that could stand up to another attack on the level she witnessed during her descent. And at this range, there was no chance of dodging while remaining unscathed.

Satsuki Uchiha, it all came back to her again. The poor victim that they had failed to save from Rukasu's mad bloodlust. Mana blamed herself for it, yet Meiko was just as much at fault. She had an opportunity to bring down Rukasu, yet let him escape. Prioritizing the life of another young Genin she barely managed to rescue from the same fate. While distant, she had still been a relative of Hiruzen's and that was something he would never forgive.

"Hiruzen... We... Not all of us have forgiven him. What he has done is unforgivable..." Meiko wished to speak more, yet felt the words clumping in her throat. All she could choke out in the end was "I'm sorry..."

At this point, Mugen and Kiyomi finally caught up to the group. The young Genin requesting that Niku be placed under the authority of the Kumogakure government. Honestly this was the best option. Kumogakure could safely contain Niku's jutsu, giving a proper environment for interrogation. On top of that, they would surely execute her at the end of it all, ensuring the woman does not suffer for the rest of her days.

Speaking up again, Hiruzen gave them all a small bit of information from the Parahambla member he had taken down. Red Scorpion. It was a phrase Meiko was unfamiliar with, but would keep it in mind. Finding the strength to speak again, Mana began addressing the various parties one by one. First and foremost was Mugen, since there was the danger of sparking an international incident should Niku not go into their care. While Mana agreed to hand the woman over, she at least wished to find a possible alternative to execution. At the very least, have it considered.

Next it was on to Hiruzen. Still insisting on referring to him as Strider, she moved in to defend Rukasu. Stating that he had paid for his crime and that she had at least given Satsuki a proper burial. Truth be told, as Mana spoke, Meiko felt fear shooting through her spine. Meiko could feel the fury eminating from Hiruzen right now. No words would ever sate the hatred he felt for the 'Snake King'. Right now, Meiko worried that that Mana's words would only enrage the Uchiha further.

Somehow, Hiruzen managed to keep his rage in check, if barely. Making a final threat towards Rukasu and any who would get in his way during their next encounter. Now Meiko could tell that his anger had spread beyond the 'Snake King' to everyone present. Any good will she might have had with the Uchiha was gone now. There was no telling what might happen during their next encounter. With his threat in place, Hiruzen vanished in a cloud of smoke, revealing his nature as a mere shadow clone. It was terrifying to think, even as a clone, he held that much destructive power.

With Hiruzen gone, Mana turned her attention back to Mugen, somehow managing to walk over and bow before him. Apologizing for the shinobi lost from Niku's attack. Mugen was quite forgiving and surprisingly accepting of this reality for a boy his age. He understood tha a shinobi's life is that of sacrifice, and that if one life can be given to save many others, it would be given. This was the reality Mana was fighting so hard against. One Meiko wished would one day come true, although the doubt still lingered in her heart.

Finally, it came down to Rukasu. At this point there was little Meiko could do. She kept herself in position to stop Rukasu's blade should he find Mana's answer unsatisfactory. Their mission was complete and all that was left was essentially clean up duty. Hopefully, Rukasu would take Mana's words to heart and lower his blade. If not, the red head would have to take action. Should he try to kill her, regardless of Mana's words, Meiko would summon forth a weapon to deflect his blade and force him back before grabbing Niku and flying off. The skies were likely one place the criminal would be unable to get to her. Should he choose to let her live, Meiko would end up doing the same, just with less urgency. The red head could transfer the woman the fastest and safest of anyone in the group. It would be easy enough for her to unite with the Kumogakure forces and place the woman in a secure location long before she ever regained consciousness.

Once everything had calmed down however, she certainly needed to speak with a few people if possible.

[Exit]

Age : 33 Posts : 544

This mission was both far easier and harder than she thought it would be. The crazed woman was taken down without any deaths ,in their team at least, and only Mana had been severely injured through mostly her own bravado. It was hard to deal with the fact Rukasu had been thrust upon them and she just had to deal with it. The man should be killed for his actions, but Mana was such a bleeding heart goodie goodie that she was ignoring how blatantly evil the man was. Serving less than a life sentence for murdering a child was beyond her comprehension. If the situation hadn't been desperate and Mana hadn't been there then she'd have attacked the man.

Then of course Mugen was proving to be a sharp little diplomat. He was right about Kumogakure should be the one getting custody. Kiyomi had no argument against it since it could put a damper on relationships between the two villages. Her face neutral she merely agreed with him. She'd get the information first at least. Then of course Rukasu started having his hissy fit. Very fitting of the snake king.

Hiruzen had every right to be angry. How anyone let the man live was beyond her. "Rukasu you are simply hired muscle on this mission. In fact the only reason I haven't turned your mind to mush is the fact Mana is vouching for you and the mission called for your assistance. If you go outside those orders I'll kill you Mana watching or not. Hell, I'm pretty sure all of us minus Mana would attack you. So shut the hell up and contain your insane thoughts and sit there quietly." She glared at the man with her black chakra seeping out showing her annoyance with the fool.

She ended the link with Rukasu and extended it to Hiruzen and only Hiruzen would hear these next thoughts. If you want to kill him go right ahead. I won't interfere. He should be dead how he got off so easily for killing a child is beyond me. The right of vengeance is yours since he killed one of your clan members. Provided the foolish man didn't attack her or Niku then once the containment team arrived she'd leave with Meiko to go rest or perhaps join another battlefield. It had been a rather stressful mission and she'd be glad when it was over. She was going to have to try and talk to Mana about giving up the shinobi life for she clearly wasn't up for it anymore. She was too soft and it was killing her.

[Exit.]

Justu/Sc's active:

Age : 33 Posts : 510

Rukasu knew that his action would cause a reaction, which it did. This reaction almost had everyone on their toes and that was something Rukasu had not plan in the first place. He did what he wanted to do only because he had to make sure he had control of the situation. It was how he wanted it all to end. The criminal watched as everyone had did what they wanted to either prevent Rukasu or watch him make his decision. The Snake King notices a few things but he was not going to move from his spot. He needed his answer and that was what he got plus more. The extra part about everything came from everyone else. As if, they needed to put in their two cents. It was still clear that Rukasu had not changed the minds of the others about him. It did not really matter but the protection of Mana was more important. Still having the blade at Niku's throat, he saw Meiko get in the middle between him and the guy. Rukasu did not know what she had planned but it was clear she would stop Rukasu if he would try anything.

The man in the cloak talked about not killing the women would be a bad idea, but once he spoke, the Snake King's eyes widen. He knew who he was and this was crazy because it was the first time the criminal had seen his face. The way he spoke would never left Rukasu's mind. Since that day long ago when he fought against him, his voice was stern and yet. By now, he should be stronger but Rukasu knew that he had trained very hard to meet that guy once again. Now after all these years the man that treated the criminal like crap was right in front of him, and yet he threatens the criminal with ease. This threat to the criminal came out of nowhere because Rukasu was who he was and he killed his cousin. The criminal thought about it and could not remember until he realized he had killed this girl back in Konoha. The man kept on talking and Rukasu easily getting pissed. His blood was boiling to the point where he wanted to jump up and attack this guy. Rukasu could not stop shaking, as he listened to every word, the snake behind Rukasu was also getting eager to do something as well.

Rukasu wanted to kill that man more than he wanted to kill this woman. However, Rukasu was not going to get his mind distracted. Then Meiko talked about how almost no one here in this area had forgiven Rukasu for the things that he had done. This was something that still pissed him off since he did not care what they would say about him but the one thing that got to him as if a needle pierced his skin was that fact that they all tried to pretend to be nice to the criminal. Rukasu did know that they did not like him and he knew that when the criminal had his motives to kill, they should have done their job. Rukasu could not blame them for being soft but he also hated the way this man named Hiruzen treated Rukasu for what he had done years ago. Rukasu's anger rose as this man left and this proved that the criminal would still have to work harder in order to destroy him.

Then Kiyomi put her two cents in about Rukasu. Everyone here wanted to say something that made the criminal supposed to feel like crap. Yet this angered the criminal to a point where he just wanted to kill them all. Even his snake could feel the blood thirst coming from his body. However, Rukasu knew what he was going to do. He was not the killer he was back then and now Kin, was noticing it as well. Kin knew not to do anything until Rukasu said so and this was something he really wanted to do. Rukasu clenched his teeth, he tried getting Hiruzen out of his mind but it was unbearable to know that this man would threaten Rukasu with no fear.

Mana was now healed to the point where she could walked once again and even Rukasu knew that she was not okay, but if something needed to be done at that moment he needed to make sure it was done right. The blade was still against Niku's throat as Mana addressed everyone else before she had gotten to Rukasu. Once she was done, she walked over to the criminal slowly. "Rukasu..." She said softly as she placed one hand on his shoulders, as her hand felt so warm. He looked at her hand for only a moment wondering what she was going to say. The criminal knew that in the next few moments the criminal would make his move that will decide his future. “There are a hundred of reasons why she should stay alive, remember what I’ve told you? No one in this world is expendable and useless; every life is important and sacred. I suppose none of that really matters to you so I’ll try to keep it simple. If you kill her here, nothing will have changed, you won’t be a hero in the eyes of the world, you’ll be just a cutthroat who only involved himself to kill someone. But if you leave her alive, prove that you can leave people alive and restrain yourself – they’ll have no reason to say that, you’ll start walking the path of a hero.” Mana said as the evil criminal's eyes gazed upon the soft settle eyes looking at each other. He could tell the pain in her heart and this was something he had always noticed. Rukasu started to feel the pain as well, for some reason he did not know what to do but to listen to what she had to say. Then something came across his mind and that was about what Mana had said.

The word hero was still foreign to the criminal but he wanted to feel what it would be like when people call him a hero. That one word struck him just a little but then again he could not make his decision over one word. He knew that by killing her would change the way Mana feel about him but she would also feel as if it was her fault for not saving Niku. Rukasu still angry from what was going on but he could see Mana getting really tired and she needed rest so the criminal listened to the rest of what she had to say. “If being a hero doesn’t matter to you… Think of me, you said you love me. Do you know what kind of effect will it have on me if you kill her? I’ll blame it all on me being too weak, as I always do, I’ll blame myself for it again, telling myself that if I didn’t involve all of you into this Niku would still be alive and I’ll reach the conclusion that I must fight all of those battles alone. That’ll make me sad, angry and miserable, I’ll push all of you away from me again like I used to do as a kid. People who love each other don’t do those sort of things to those they love. I guess though, ultimately it’s up to you, you’ve ruined my life once and I forgave you, now you have the chance to make another choice, show me how much you’ve changed…” Mana said something that hit his heart hard. Eyes started to water as the criminal looked at Mana, he could not believe it but he did make a vow to protect the girl he loves. Rukasu used his free hand and placed it over her hand that was on his shoulder. His heart was beating out of control, as he could not control his emotions at that moment.

"Mana, I do love you and I don't care who hears me. My feelings for you are beyond my own comprehension. I feel angry you or anyone did not kill her and it was something you said a long time ago that killing is something you were against. However you told me it was, no actually you said that I should not kill the innocent but the people that are evil at heart. I was evil at heart and yet I am still here. You wanted to change me and you did well, but at the same time, I did my own soul searching. I ventured the world finding answers and I could not find anything but when I saw you before this mission. I found my true answer, and this answer was something I still needed to know so I followed you to this mission. Your kindness and the way you do things is something so great. I have never met anyone like you and still I want to know more about you. With you by my side, you can help me be the hero I need to be. However, I also would like to help you in anyway." Rukasu paused for a moment as he knew that he would have to answer her quickly since she was about to go away for some time to rest. What was wrong with the criminal he loved her so much and yet he was going to kill someone in front of her. Rukasu could not help it but this urge to kill was insanely high.

The criminal did not understand why but he thought that maybe one day he will be able to do a lot more than he could do now that does not involve killing. Relaxing his hand on the handle, he lifted the blade slowly from the girl’s neck. "I am sorry Mana, and to every that I have caused so much trouble. I can't bring the dead back to life and I am still working on myself. I would like to partner up with all of you once again, and usubane I am sorry. You’re a great fighter and your devotion to Mana is wonderful. Please keep her safe, and Mana I decided not to kill Niku because I want to know what it would feel like keeping someone alive and I would like to learn your path. Mana I will see you again because No matter what happens I will always be there for you. Thank you for showing me the way once again, and this time I will be able to do what needs to be done. I will guarantee that the next time you see me will be a meeting of something new. I will not give up on my new path. I finally figure things out about a few more things. Mana when you are ready to see me I will find you or you can find me." Rukasu said as he put his blade to his side and then he stood up as he watched usubane bringing Mana away.

After his departure, the criminal felt like a new person but at the same time, he felt the same. Rukasu turned around to Kin, jumped on his back and looked at everyone. He did not know what to say but he figured it was best not to say anything at all. He hoped one-day people would see him not as a killer but as a hero. Kin was now off with Rukasu on top as their next destination was unknown but then again it was so clear. Rukasu knew what he was going to do and this was something that will completely change the criminal into something else. "Goodbye My love, I will see you soon." Rukasu said aloud as he knew no one but Kin heard him. Time for change was upon them and change might be the one thing that pushes the criminal to the brink of something better.

[exit]