Through The Glass

Prologue

It's been 3 years since the Kurosendo Koneko left Konohagakure, when she was known as Kimochi Kenisha, one of the last of the Kimochi. The reasons of her defection were slowly lost to those in the village, other than those looking for her, and even then, despite those reasons, their only objective was to bring her back to the village.

Who is still looking for her, you ask?

Well, only my friends and I, Rock Lee, her fiancée. And we won't stop until she's back with us. She was confused, distraught, and not in her right mind. Events that had happened drew her toward leaving, and her concern for us caused her to distance herself away. She even considered indirect suicide; asking us to kill her so she couldn't hurt anyone else. But we have made a promise to adamantly refuse.

But that's only if we ever find her. And that's why we're at the only place she said she'd always return to: Soragakure, the resting place of the Kimochi clan as of 7 years ago.

Now I'm going to hope beyond hope that she chooses tonight to pay her respects to the dead.

Koneko's POV

I can't go today; not to the memorial. I can't leave.

I may never be able to.

I bit back a whimper at the pain that coursed through my bare body; the bruises were aging slowly, but the cuts kept bleeding. 'He'd be back soon,' I thought, terrified. Then I furiously struggled against my bindings and finally, after minutes that seemed like small eternities, I got my right hand free, then the left. I untied the ropes around my naked ankles and rubbed them, trying to get the circulation back.

I looked up and stared into the starry sky, the moonlight highlighting my skin. 'I need my clothes and my katanas back, then find Kami-kun.' I slid onto the ground and rolled over, the dew-sprinkled grass feeling slightly refreshing to my battered body. Then I rolled over and got on one knee, then slowly got up, wobbling a little; I was getting a head-rush.

I looked down and groaned. Not only were my cuts bleeding, but also sticky crimson was dripping down from between my legs, just as all the other times he'd visited me. I looked around and saw a pile of clothes by the tree I was tied to, as well as some shoes. I got into them quickly and shoved my feet into the boots. They were about two sizes too big, but they'd have to do until I got to… anywhere but here. The clothes consisted of a green torn camisole, some even darker cargo pants and some female-looking boxers. At least now I had some modesty.

I took a deep breath and called out softly, "Kami-kun?" I heard a growl and turned around, seeing my adolescent wolf summoning chained to a stake, some burn marks on his paws and snout; his jaw was taped shut. I hurried to him as fast as my knees would allow and ripped the tap from his jaw, rubbing his head and back.

"Ahh…. Much better. You alright, Koneko?" I nodded, gesturing to myself.

"As alright as I'll ever be here. C'mon, we gotta go," I whispered while unwrapping the chains from his back paws and backside. He shook as if he was drenched and sighed.

"I saw your katanas around there," his golden eyes gestured to the soft sound of a babbling brook. "Your shard is there too, along with your clothes."

"I think it's better if I don't waste time changing into more comfortable clothes, Kami-kun," I stated flatly, crouching next to him and then army-crawling toward the sound of the brook. He growled in response and followed, his furry butt poking out in the air. When we finally got there, I saw the katanas propped against a rock and my bag of clothes, along with my peridot shard, lying on top of the rock. I motioned for Kami-kun to grab the bag while I got the katanas, looking around wildly for any sign of the man who captured me.

There was none. I sighed and took some beef jerky from a pocket of the bag in Kami-kun's teeth and shared it with him, getting some much needed nourishment into my system. I nodded to him and he complied, glowing like the stars above with a golden sheen.

Then he jumped into my body, his soul fusing with mine. I felt my hair turning black and lengthening, my nails growing and sharpening, and my teeth curving into a predators' shape. My wounds felt less painful now and my body felt rejuvenated.

I smirked. "He can't get us now, can he Kami-kun?"

'No, not anymore. Let's go, Koneko.'

"That's Kurosendo Koneko to you, Mizukamimaru-kun," I said, grinning. Then I put my pack around my shoulders, my katanas in their hilts at the base of my spine, and my body into a sprinter's crouch.

'Ready…'

"Set…"

"Go!"

Then we ran, on the water, through the trees, across fields of grass. We couldn't see straight; it was all a blur. But we didn't care: the farther away we got from that bastard, the better.