The Testament of True Warriors – Uzushio will Prevail
Uzu no Kuni - Uzushiogakure no Sato – Whirlpool Ruins – 0530 Hours
The rasps for air were clearly agitated and weak, the source of noise broken and sounded as if it was from years of misuse. A fragmented, mutilated slab of rock was abruptly pushed up and away from a person. Uzumaki Kenshin attempted once to shift himself to his knees, but a series of hacking coughs erupted through his chest and he suddenly thought otherwise. His body felt thoroughly sore and pained, as if he hadn't moved in . . . well, an extensive amount of time.
Kenshin tipped his head back against the ground and could only gaze hazily up at the blue sky, where a few birds glided by aimlessly. Damn, he reached a hand up to touch his head, I feel like a Kunai was stabbed into my head. Kenshin swallowed and grimaced at his dry throat.
And then the memories came rushing back.
Uzu no Kuni – Uzushiogakure no Sato – Umibe Apartments; Second Floor – 0230 Hours
"Masami! Get up right now!" Kenshin resisted the urge to throw her over his shoulder and bolt for the Entry Gate, but he calmly reserved his nerves. He knew he couldn't do that. Masami needed to leave Uzu no Kuni this second or there wouldn't be enough time.
"Ken-Kun?" Masami rolled over on the disheveled bed, his shirt that she wore to bed wrinkled and very large on her. She managed to pull herself into a sitting position and rubbed her eyes blearily. "What's going on? What time is it?" She blinked over at their clock: 2:47 A.M.
Kenshin was busy grabbing a pair of his short Shinobi pants and a regular long-sleeve shirt to endure the chilly fall air. They were all dark colors. He needed her unseen and stealth to his enemies, and well, he knew Masami was no Shinobi. She had no training and would definitely make many unnecessary noises, but he was sure she could make it with his assistance – they did not live too far from the Entry Gate. "Masami! Now, put these on!" He threw the clothes at her heedlessly and reached underneath their bed, grabbing a paper tag that he used for threatening emergencies.
"Ken – tell me what's going on –"
"Not now, Masami! Dress!" He barked. Kenshin clenched his jaw tight and grabbed a kunai from his pouch, swiftly cutting a deep incision into his forearm. He heard Masami make a small protesting noise at his proceeding movements, obviously upset by him injuring himself. Kenshin finally clutched a worn brush from his hip pouch.
Kenshin studied the blank tag before him. In the experienced twenty-five years of his life, he knew what exactly to draw on this. The tag was easily C-Rank by using a simple Security Tag. But, that was the humorous concept about being an Fūinjutsu Master; it's that the most ordinary, effortless Fūinjutsu Seal to him was like an S-Rank technique to others. For instance, he could count how many people that could use a Security Seals with his fingers. Kenshin dipped the base of the brush into the blood dripping from his forearm and began drawing against the tag with the foremost of elegant calligraphy. He knew how significant it was to never make a single mistake when drawing a seal, because it was as if the whole thing could reverse and slam the property of the technique right back at you – which was not fun, at all.
He glanced up sharply when a nearby explosion rocked the right side of their apartment building, their bedroom windows cracking against the heat of the discharge. Masami flinched and yelped at the screeching noise, her pale green eyes widening as she clumsily walked over and gently pulled back the curtain to peek outside. "Masami! Get away from it!" He grasped her wrist and jerked her over to the front door.
Her face was now carefully blank, a frown marring on her delicate face. ". . . What's happening, Kenshin?" The sobriety of her tone had him frustrated head to toe, but he could not deny her question when she used his full name.
"Iwa," he stated quietly. "Iwa."
Unshed tears gathered in her eyes as she recognized the Security Seal that he was presently pressing on her forehead. "You – Kenshin . . . I'm leaving, aren't I?"
It was a simple and obvious inquiry on her part, but her subdued tone had him mentally reeling back. "I'm not coming with you," he said slowly, bringing his right hand up into a single tiger seal. "Sekyuritishīru: Akutibēto (Security Seal: Activate)." He watched with a detached expression as the runes on the paper glowed briefly before the words and tag itself seemed to sink into her skin and become invisible to the naked eye.
"K-Ken – You can't stay here!" Masami was panicking with fear as she grabbed the front of his shirt and yanked him down to her shorter height. "It's too dangerous!"
"Masami," Kenshin peeled her fingers away from his shirt. "Thus is the life of every Shinobi, you understood that the day we both said 'I do'. I must protect my village."
The tears she had been stalling finally broke free and rushed down her pale cheeks. "Y-Y-You c-can't l-leave m-m-me!"
Another explosion rocked the apartment and Kenshin cursed, swallowing deeply as he grabbed Masami's face into his hands and gave her a departing, deep kiss that very well may have been his last. He was no fool, he knew the chances of surviving were slim and even though he knew how much he wanted to leave with Masami, he knew his loyalties and devotions. Furthermore, if he knew he could guarantee his wife's safety, then that would be his last wish.
Kenshin released her and brushed her tears away with his thumbs. "Listen to me carefully. The Security Seal will provide you strength and silence from the enemies, I am going to be killing off anyone I deem a threat until we near the Entry Gate. When you see it, I want you to run, Masami," he forced her chin up so that her eyes were on steel dark blue eyes, "I want you to run."
She shook her head. "N-No – I-I can't . . ."
"Yes, you can."
"Please, Kenshin, don't make me leave y-you here."
Kenshin grabbed the knob of their front door and twisted once, looking back at her anguished face. "Sometimes people are forced to make burdensome choices, but in the end, you will be happy. Because you know it may have been difficult, but it was the right thing to do." Without another word, Kenshin handed her a single, sharp Kunai and yanked open the door, revealing air that was potent with charcoal smoke and rancid with blood.
He shunshined right in time to cross blades with an Iwa-nin, who hatefully sneered with blood splatters on his face. Kenshin snarled at his thoughts. That blood was from a fallen Uzumaki, his kindred. Adjusting a good grip on his Nodaichi, the familiar handle seemingly comfortable and at ease in his clasp. The blade was an ebony black, steel, with a crimson red hilt. "You Uzumaki bastards," the man hissed out but then grinned maliciously. "Too bad we already have most of you wiped away."
Kenshin frowned intensely before jumping back to create enough room for him to gather the right amount chakra. "I'm afraid you have interfered with the wrong country, Iwa," his eyes narrowed to slits, and he promptly snapped out his hand, palm first. A chain of pure white chakra shot out and wrapped around the man's throat, cutting off the snide remark he was forming on the tip of his tongue. "Because you yourself have stumbled on one of the Six Seals of Uzu no Kuni," Kenshin couldn't help but form a twisted grin on his face as the man pale drastically. "Unfortunately for you, I'm Six." He then closed his fingers around the chain and yanked, following with the sound of tearing flesh and an incapacitated head hitting the ground.
He shunshined once more on top of a building, eyes examining below him as he felt the civilian source of chakra that belonged to Uzumaki Masami. She was hunkered down in an alleyway, softly treading toward another street that moved her closer to the Entry Gate. He was thankful that her midnight black hair hid her away rather than the Uzumaki bright red hair, a trait that he was cursed but also blessed with.
Kenshin sharpened his eyes profoundly when he heard a short, shrill whistle. That sound was an alert of defeat. He attempted to cool his uprising anger. That basically meant that they had given up. Given up? They were Uzumaki; they did not just 'give up'! Compressing his hand tightly onto the hilt of his sword, Kenshin gritted his teeth together. Iwa was going to damn-well pay for this.
"Come out, Naomi," he demanded coldly. Kenshin's frigid blue eyes cut to the left of his vision, searing into a red-headed woman who was hauling a man on her back. She had dried tears stained against her cheeks, her green eyes red-rimmed. She gently set the man down, and Kenshin recognized Uzumaki Isamu straight away. The left side of his face was marred with a vicious slash, rendering that eye absent. He was clutching left arm, which was wounded severely as far as Kenshin could see.
Naomi and Isamu were twins, Jounin of Uzu no Kuni and very well the laughing stock of the whole village. Not because they had no skill, they were sufficient enough for their rank, but because everything they said was either sarcastic or 'hold-you-sides-until-you-can't-breathe' hilarious. But the humorous brother and sister were gone, replaced with two fearful, serious Shinobi and Kunoichi. "Uhhhh," Isamu moaned out a pathetic sound, sweat causing his red hair to plaster against his forehead. "Shit."
"Report, Naomi.," Kenshin grabbed a roll of thick gauze from his medic kit pouch and began dressing Isamu's facial wound the best he could – which wasn't as professional as he would have liked. Kenshin had only taken one Medic and Remedial Class as an Academy student, which he now exhaustively regretted.
"Uzukage-Sama is dead," she explained mournfully. "It – It was too much, y'know? We hadn't even sensed them coming – I, I don't see how they invalidated the Protection Barrier Seal." Her grip tightened on her brother's hand. "Kenshin, you helped designed the seal yourself! How did they break it?"
He knew she blamed him to a certain degree, and he blasted himself with curses – mostly because he had no idea how to answer her desperate question. "They didn't," he thinned his lips out into a harsh line. "There's no way they could have . . . The Seal is impenetrable."
"Obviously not," she spat out.
"Naomi, Naomi," Isamu patted her hand in his and closed his eyes wearily. "Do not blame our brethren. There is a reason for this, and I think I know how."
"What's your opinion?" Kenshin asked lowly, finishing off the bandaging on his head with a secured knot.
"I think that we were sloppy," Isamu grinned quickly before wincing. "We weren't careful with concealing our techniques, and someone decoded them." The man shrugged and heaved in a ragged breath. "We were arrogant in our abilities."
Kenshin did not reply back to his reasoning. The twenty-five year old closed his eyes and checked Masami's chakra source. Good, she was almost at the Entry Gate. "Continue with your report, Naomi."
"When Uzukage-Sama fell, Sector D and C were almost completely invaded with Iwa-nin . . . Sector B is still ours but not for long. Sector A, where we are, have mostly been cleared out because me and Isamu went all AWOL on their ass. We were meant to be on the outskirts prepared for directing the Civilians away from the Island, but we let the Chunin handle our jobs. We thought it would be –"
Naomi was cut off by Kenshin smacking her in the back of the head. "You idiots," he glared. "You willingly deserted your post?"
"I –"Naomi swallowed thickly. "Yes?"
Kenshin scowled at that thought. He was about to chew both of them out, but then he remembered the situation Uzu no Kuni was in and closed off his superiority thoughts toward his subordinates. He was still thinking this was an all-natural day. He couldn't lounge around in the Jounin lounge with his comrades anymore. He couldn't take the newly graduated Genin to Michishio (High Tide) Cliff to show-off how to jump off the large bluff into the ocean that was a two hundred feet drop. He couldn't go home tonight late on accident from his duties and kiss Masami goodnight.
"You both should leave here, quickly," Kenshin gestured his head toward the Entry Gate. "Right now."
"No!" Naomi widened her eyes at his words. "You think we are just going to leave you here?"
"We're not cowards," Isamu growled as he pushed himself into a standing position, all it did was lack his strength and usual grace.
Kenshin was about to command them to leave as their superior, but then a scream echoed through the notably quiet streets of Uzushiogakure no Sato. Kenshin felt his heart clench tightly as he felt Masami's chakra spike dangerously as if she was distressed or frightened. All three Whirlpool Shinobi tensed with alert before the trio left via Shunshin. Kenshin appeared right next to his wife, who was backing herself up against the wooden wall of Mina's Florist Shop.
Prior to her, there was at least two dozen Iwa Shinobi and Kunoichi, all looking solemn and blank. Kenshin wrapped his arm around Masami's waist and smoothly slid her behind him. Shielding her must not have been the best move because now the leader of the group, who was standing tense, smiled grimly. "I apologize for this . . . The Uzumaki Clan must perish, don't you understand? You tip over the balance scale of power. I'm only fulfilling Kami's wishes on restoring equity."
"Yeah, or your damn Tsuchikage's hankerings," Naomi hissed.
The leader sighed calmly and shook his head at them. "I didn't expect you to understand."
"You probably shouldn't attempt and make peace with your enemies," Kenshin blinked blandly at the Iwa-nin and relaxed his stance, collectedly securing his hand around his Nodaichi. "Uzushiogakure no Sato will always prevail."
"You say that now," the Captain stated with an undying determination.
And then the next second there was complete and total chaos.
Kenshin felt as if another battle of the Second Shinobi World War was repeating, on both sides of them, Whirlpool and Iwa Ninja clashed in a battle of blades, jutsu, and Fūinjutsu techniques. Kenshin immediately, at seeing the Shinobi and Kunoichi confront each other like starving wolves, backed Masami into Mina's Florist Shop so that she was out of the crossfire for now. He grimaced at Mina, a good friend and the owner of the shop, laid sprawled out on the dark blue tile floors, a slash at her throat causing blood to puddle beneath her prone body.
Masami let out a forlorn groaning sound at her close friend and grabbed Kenshin's hand, squeezing with tears in her eyes. He quickly put her in the backroom of the store where Mina would form pottery for flowers and trees. "Stay here," he told her sternly, straightening his back to Shunshin towards the battle arena outside the door.
He was glad when Masami didn't reply to him with an answer, only hiccupped in her grief-stricken state as she huddled against the corner. Kenshin eyed her with a pensive expression before flickering outside. He was instantly met with ravage roars and pained screams, followed by the discharge of jutsus. Kenshin gripped his sword as he swiftly grabbed an Iwa-nin from the back by his flak jacket, piercing his right lung from behind with swift movements. He watched with cold eyes as the man unleashed a gurgling sound before collapsing from weak knees.
Kenshin pulled an explosive tag into his hand and analyzed until he saw a cluster of Iwa-nin jumbled up together. He clutched the one in the middle by his flak collar and ducked under the arm that sailed over his head, throwing out his arm to smack him in the chest with the note and kick him in the face, causing the Iwa-nin to fall backwards against his comrades. With the mi (snake) hand seal, he whispered, "Kibaku Fuda:Akutibu (Explosive Tag: Activate)," and rapidly bounced back to avoid the impact of the explosion.
He swiftly sheathed his Nodaichi and grabbed a Rock Kunoichi by her long brown hair, disregarding her screech of protest as she swung an arm out with a kunai between her fingers. Kenshin safety avoided the wild severe and snagged that wrist, wrenching the kunai away and twisting his arm around her throat in a headlock.
Sensing the burst of chakra right behind him, Kenshin whirled around with the woman in his arms just in time for the Iwa-nin to miss the Whirlpool Shinobi and stab the woman on accident, who opened her mouth in a silent scream as the light faded from her dull brown eyes. Kenshin immediately dropped her and launched himself at the Iwa-nin who had stabbed her himself, seizing the man's throat he channeled chakra to his index and middle fingers and swiftly drew a seal onto the man's forehead. "Sokushi shīru: Akutibēto (Instant Death Seal: Activate)." The Iwa-nin crumpled like a sack of rocks, his heartbeat promptly forgetting to continue beating fluently.
"No! Oh, no! Naomi!" Isamu's tormented cries drifted over to Kenshin and he swiveled his head to see Naomi struggling for life in the grip of the Leader Iwa-nin from before, his kunai lodged deeply into her throat. Isamu was charging recklessly toward the leader, his previous wounds forgotten as he drew his Tanto from its sheath.
Blood dribbled down Naomi's chin, her eyes rolling to the back of her head as life slowly waned from her limp body. "Naomi," Kenshin whispered morosely. He snapped out of his doleful thoughts and quickly ran towards Isamu, who was angered with rage and turmoil. "Isamu! Halt!" The Uzumaki Clansman paid no attention to his superiority demand, raising his sword to kill the leader in one sweep of his short blade. "Isamu! Stop!"
Kenshin felt his eyes widen when an Iwa-nin shunshined behind Isamu, grabbing the Whirlpool Shinobi's hair with profound strength and looping an arm around to cut his throat in a clean stroke. "NO!" Kenshin shouted, but it was far too late. The Kunai broke through flesh, blood sprayed, and Isamu's last words were gurgles while his eyes stayed on Naomi's dead form.
Kenshin felt his throat tighten with sorrow, but he refused to give in to grief. He clenched his teeth and threw out his right hand, observing stonily as a chakra chain burst from his skin and grabbed the leader by his outstretched arm that was fixing to kill another Uzushiogakure no Sato Shinobi, tugging him enough that it forced the leader to sprawl out on the ground.
Kenshin raced forward as he cut off the connection, pinning the leader down with his knee and unsheathing his Nodaichi with graceful motions. "Have a wonderful time in Hell," he growled out before severing the man's head from his body without a second thought. Kenshin surveyed the area around him to see what their status was.
After a few seconds of searching, the answer was obvious: Uzushiogakure was falling.
They were losing.
Losing.
"Kumiko!" He bellowed. Kenshin could make out the woman's slim, tall form throughout the crowd of battling Ninja, and he was satisfied when she heard his shout. Uzumaki Kumiko slipped out between Shinobi and Kunoichi, sprinting her way so that she was by his side. Unlike most Uzumakis', Kumiko did not have the fiery red hair they were known for. Her dark brown hair was in a bun, familiar dark blue eyes slanted. Her family lineage was more Senju than Uzumaki, supposedly. "Cover me," he commanded quietly and she nodded and began fighting any Iwa-nin that dare came ten feet before Kenshin.
He grabbed a blank tag from his hip pouch, as well as his brush and rolling up his sleeve to his progressively bleeding wound he had afflicted to himself back at his apartment. He began drawing calligraphic designs along every inch of the note, sweat gathering at his temples as he cautiously performed the grave technique. The only problematic issue with this seal was that you had to channel chakra while making it, which meant if you did make a small mistake, the seal would more than likely converse and cause heavy damage to the Fūinjutsu user.
Finished with the seal, Kenshin began gathering a massive amount of chakra, alerting many Shinobi and Kunoichi around him of his intentions. Fortunately for him, the Uzumaki Clan knew the possibility of being caught in the crossfire and rapidly shunshined to the sidelines of the battlefield. Moving through a blur of hand seals, Kenshin roared, "Jūryoku shīru: Akutibēto (Gravity Seal: Activate)!" and then slammed his palms into the tag and watched the property of the Fūin Technique occur moments later.
The designs on the seal stretched out on the ground and radiated an amazing pure white, causing the other Ninja to shield their eyes from the luminous light. Kenshin grunted with exertion from the colossal amount of chakra it took from his reserves. He smirked though, when he saw most of the Iwa-nin drop from the forceful momentum of the Gravity Seal. Kenshin cut off the connection, but still kept his hands on the Seal, so that the gravity stayed intact.
The Uzumaki Clan members rushed onto the scene, cutting and killing any Iwa-nin they laid their eyes on that were immobile from the seal Kenshin had performed. Many of them sent him praiseful smiles that made his heart surge with hope. Maybe, maybe they could survive this. Seeing that they had won this battle for the count, Kenshin stood from his couch and burnt the Gravity Seal after its usage. No sense in leaving around Fūinjutsu that Iwa could get their hands on.
Feeling a hand rest on his shoulder, Kenshin tilted his head to the side to observe someone very familiar. Uzumaki Masuro was widely known as the Fifth Seal of Uzushiogakure no Sato, his strength and techniques known right just below Kenshin's. He was also Kenshin's younger brother by two years. "Masuro," he breathed and wrapped his arms around his brother, heaving a long breath that was filled with shudders. "Kami, I'm happy to see you."
"I don't get killed that easily, onii-san," Masuro grinned sheepishly, his long red hair undone from its usual spiky ponytail. "You did a hell of a job making that seal under stress, you realize that . . ."
Kenshin waved a hand. "What's done is done. Leave it at that." He reached into his hip pouch and pulled out a small plastic container with different dyed pills inside. He pulled out two Military Rations Pills and slipped them into his mouth, greedily swallowing so that he wouldn't have to suffer through its bitter taste. "Where's the other four?"
Comprehending his meaning, Masuro glowered severely and reached up, rubbing at his face and now looking haggard. "I don't want to answer that question." There. That was said. So Midori, Ryouchi, Satomi, and Taro were dead. Kenshin felt himself grow ten years more and sighed, his eyes downcast as he stopped where him and Masuro were roaming and peered down at Naomi and Isamu. "Man, they were just kids," his two year younger brother muttered underneath his breath gravely, rubbing the back of his neck.
Kenshin and Masuro picked up their two fallen comrades and took them inside Mina's Florist Shop, where they placed them to the side for later burying. "Kushina left for Konoha two days ago, correct?" Flashes of a grinning red-headed child sneered into his mind, her energetic personality having taken a major roll on his life since she had been born as his family who he had dubbed his 'little girl'.
Masuro snapped to attention at the mention of his thirteen-year-old niece. "Y-Yeah . . . Mito-Sama declared her to be the Second Jinchuuriki to the Kyuubi no Kitsune."
"Yeah . . . How do you feel about that?"
"Serious? Are you my therapist now?"
"I've met previous Jinchuriki, Masuro. I'm only asking you a question."
His brother skimmed his fingerless gloved fingers through his feral crimson hair, now looking frustrated and indecisive. "I – I don't know. Mito-Sama was so strong, like you remember when we were kids? We hid under Kaa-san's robes because Mito-Sama's presence was like battling against a tidal wave. Will Kushina-Chan change once the sealing is placed?"
"The Kyuubi will have no effects on her personality, Masuro." Kenshin straightened his back and gazed pointedly at his sibling. "Mito-Sama herself was going to use her dying breath to accomplish the sealing, don't doubt her strengths, Otouto."
"K-Kenshin . . .?" A scared, frightened voice broke through their tense conversation and a small, slim figure passed through the shadows and Kenshin felt someone barrel straight into his chest. Uzumaki Masami embraced him firmly and began wailing into his shirt, in which she attempted to smother it with. He smiled softly and rubbed his hand down her head and into her ash-covered hair. "Are y-you hurt?" She finally gasped out.
"No," he stated a second later. "Though I feel like shit, if that makes you happier."
Masami choked on a small laugh and shook her head, pulling back enough so she could look up at his six-foot-two form. "I-It doesn't." She kissed his cheek before shifting her attention toward Masuro, who was standing there uncomfortably with an awkward expression on his face. "Masaru-kun," she gave him a kiss on the cheek as well and hugged him. "Well. I'm happy that Kushina-Chan left earlier."
" . . . Yeah, me too," Masuro looked way.
The door to the Shop was thrown open as a red-headed younger Chunin stepped forward and looked at the small group. "Masuro-Sama, Kenshin-Sempai, Masami-Sama, Noboku has located a temporary base that we can use for shelter and storage."
"Thanks, Daichi. Where?" Masuro popped a muscle in his neck and rolled his shoulders, preparing himself to make a clean toward the provisional base of operations. Kenshin narrowed his eyes as he heard the location was just at the edge of Uzushiogakure no Sato, alongside Michishio Cliff. It was formerly a vacant warehouse for Clan Storage, but it wasn't overly suspicious and held no Clan Emblems. The only concern for him was that it was in front of a two hundred feet drop . . . but Kenshin was positive Masaru and him could formulate powerful Barrier Seals.
Sealing away the bodies of Isamu and Naomi, Kenshin pulled Masami closer to him and wrapped an arm around her waist, gently telling her to get on his back. He couldn't help but become aware of how fragile she looked, as if one word would break her. Kenshin did not like seeing her in such a shattering state. Even for a Civilian, Masami had always been strong-willed, accepting his duties as an Uzushiogakure Shinobi toward the fact that his main loyalty was to the Village. But now . . . Kenshin didn't even how to comfort her.
"Masaru," he called out to his brother, who was a distance away ahead of him, "I'm taking Masami to the Entry Gate. I'll only be a second."
Masaru hesitated. "Is that a good idea, Ken?"
His eyes and face grew a cold edge. "She doesn't need to see this anymore. Get Daichi and command him to go with her as protection. The boy's just a kid anyways."
" . . . Alright." His brother shunshined away in a flicker.
Kenshin, without further pause, began running toward the Entry Gate. He was content since Masami remained silent through the haste. He wasn't sure what he would do if she would start telling him that she didn't want to go, or he needed to come with her when she knew that wasn't a possibility.
The Entry Gate, as it began looming in the fleeted distance, was about as tall as the large trees beyond it. It was pure crimson-colored steel, thick bars prohibiting intruders from entering without permission. The Entry Gate was locked close with a swirling blue Seal, which was the Uzumaki Emblem. The only people that were able to open and close the gate were Uzumaki blooded. The Entry Gate was untouched, mostly on account of Iwagakure's forces entering from the South of the gate, directly behind the Uzukage's Tower.
"Here." Kenshin let go of Masami's upper-legs and allowed her to stand for herself. He treaded toward the Gate and pressed his palm against the blue emblem, observing wistfully as he channeled his chakra to his hand and the gate unlocked with recognition. "Konoha is a four day trip from here, Masami . . . Hey, look at me," he grabbed her chin between his fingers and angled her head to meet her hazy eyes. "You're going to be fine."
"Yeah," she whispered quietly, "well what about you, huh? Are you going to be fine?!" Masami finally snapped and jerked back from his hold. When he did not provide a response, she sneered with tears clouding her light green eyes. "Right. You expect me to be all fine and dandy up at that Leaf place – but, but I'm not going to be! Not when I know you . . . you're here! You expect me to sit there and wait for you to come in a body bag!"
Kenshin leveled his gaze with hers and spoke in a tight, impassive tone that he only reserved for during a battle or warzone. "Masami. I'm not coming in anything." The words were simple, and very clear. Kenshin knew for a fact that he more than likely would not survive after everything would be over with, and he also knew that there would be no 'going to Konoha as a refugee'.
Masami choked on her breath and finally did the next thing he had expected her to. She reeled her arm back and allowed her hand to smack against the left side of his face. He hardly even felt the connection, but he did grimace at the sob that broke through his wife's mouth. "How c-can you say that?!" She wailed loudly.
"Shh," he hushed her quickly. They were in a Safe Zone for the time being, but he from experience that those could change at the last second. "Masami, you're going to Konoha – and you're going to find someone else to love, have some kids I know you've always wanted, you'll be fine –"
"Oh, cut with the cliché bullshit, Kenshin!" Masami hissed, her hands curling into fist. "Just stop it."
Hearing a brief source of chakra from behind him, Kenshin revolved his head around to see Uzumaki Daichi drop down from a tree to his far left. The nineteen year-old looked glad and almost reluctant on leaving his home village, but with one look at Kenshin he stood poised at his superior commander. "Daichi," the twenty-five year-old murmured. "I expect you to fulfill your duty to the highest degree, understood?"
"Yes, sir!"
Kenshin turned back to Masami, but only to see her back to him, her silent sniffles almost non-existent as she hugged herself. He heaved a small sigh and reached up, untying the red-clothed Uzumaki Hitai-Tae from his forehead and hugging Masami from behind, resting the headband against her right hand. "I love you," he whispered before kissing the top of her head. "Bye."
And then he shunshined away before she could give a response.
Uzu no Kuni – Uzushiogakure no Sato –Michishio Cliff; Spare Storage Warehouse – 0300 Hours
"Say, Kenshin-Sama, do you remember last year when the Uzumaki Clan held that Annual whatever-thingy about us alliancing with Konohagakure no Sato?" The question was asked by a Kunoichi known as Sanatae Emiko. She was one of the rarer Ninja that weren't Uzumaki related in any sense. Her short blond hair was tied up in a ponytail with her Uzu Hitai-Tae acting as a headband. She wore standard Shinobi dark blue pants and a tight blue sleeveless shirt, showing off her toned arms.
Kenshin was still gazing down at the ocean from on top of Michishio Cliff. A few Uzushiogakure Ninja had come to wrap Isamu and Naomi's bodies in tarps with gravity seals planted on the top before they casted them down into the ocean. Not a proper burial, really, but if you were any Whirlpool Shinobi or Kunoichi, what better way was there then to lie at the bottom of the beautiful ocean for eternity? His lips quirked upward at her words. "The Annual Communion Reception? Yeah, I remember it clearly. I don't think Masaru does, though."
His brother scoffed and crossed his arms. "I remember pushing you off this cliff, you bastard."
"Yeah, and then I remember Masami beating the shit out of you for it."
"Mah, don't remind me. Couldn't walk for weeks after that." Masaru lightly snickered underneath his breath before a forlorn expression overtook his previous cheerful one. "Yeah, Tousen-Teme wasn't happy that we all got drunk right in front of little Kushina . . ."
Tousen . . . Kenshin lowered his head and met Masaru's eyes. An unspoken message passed between them and before Kenshin knew what was happening; tears were streaming down his cheeks. Tousen was Kenshin and Masaru's older brother, who had been Kushina's father. He had practically raised the two brothers' as his own, and they in turn patrolled and guarded Kushina like watchdogs. Kenshin had never expected Tousen to pass away so quickly, as a kid, the man had seemed to invincible. "Kami," he brought his hands up to wipe away the remaining tears. Frustration finally took over his trembling form and he turned and violently kicked the tree next to him, gaining a crack of bark and splinters flying through the early morning air. "Damn it to hell!" He fought to keep a quiet, composed voice.
The Whirlpool Ninja around all visibly flinched at his badly disguised rage and anguish. They all felt it as well. Uzushiogakure no Sato was all but in ruins and many of their close friends and relatives were either dead or almost so. Kenshin clinched his jaw and reached up to run the bridge of his nose. "What are our numbers?" He hated his own voice: desperate, fearful, and even pained. He made have been an S-Class Shinobi from the Village Hidden by Whirling Tides, his infamous moniker known as the Six Sin of Uzushiogakure no Sato. He was praised for his Fūinjutsu abilities as a Master and also his Ninjutsu in the art of Raiton (Lightning) and Fūton (Wind). But he was also a human being, and was also slowly, gradually watching as his home was destroyed by these cowardly Rock dogs.
"There are twenty-six of us, Kenshin-Sama . . ." Uzumaki Minoru muttered, his posture leaning against the large rock that they usually took part in jumping off of and descending the Cliff. Minoru was short for a twenty-two year-old, only standing at five-foot-nine. His red fringe was normal for an Uzumaki but his deep brown eyes set him apart from everyone else.
Masaru chuckled dryly. "Our Nation was at an amount of Ninja of a powerful Army about two hours ago, and now, we're down to twenty-six?" He scowled in revulsion. "We had enough Ninja for fifty Battalions, fifty units! That weighed us with nearly fifteen hundred Ninja!"
" . . . And now we're practically extinct," Kumiko finished cynically. Her dark blue eyes shifted to Kenshin precariously for answers. "What do we do? What can we do?"
Kenshin rubbed wearily at his eyes. " . . . We can fight. That's all we can do."
"Fight? That's all you can tell us? To fight?" Emiko growled underneath her breath. "We need more than fight!"
"Oh, well let me update you on something," Masaru moved forward until he was staring down at Emiko with an intimidating ferocity. "We are Uzumaki, Emiko. You've been here for a while now, I had hoped that you had picked up on the 'Fight now and ask questions later' attitude a long time ago." He narrowed his eyes in an act of resolute but a moment later his mouth cracked into a silly grin. "I'm sorry, I can't be serious – that's kind of Onii-San's job." The other Whirlpool Ninja blossomed smiles as well for his effort of lightening the mood, but Kenshin didn't allow that to happen – it wasn't as if he didn't want them to laugh and carry on like usual, but he was in a somber mood.
Kenshin bit his bottom lip in contemplation, eyes closing in his ponderings. Iwagakure no Sato outnumbered them in Ninja, but not provisions – they had more supplies, which was a pro in their favor. They could not just charge in without a calculated and thought-out strategy. He knew there was a speculation of creating an Fūinjutsu Seal to kill squadrons of the Iwa forces . . . but Seals to that caliber took a specific amount of time, and neither Masaru nor Kenshin had scrolls with those Seals already drafted. That wasn't an advisable option. They could ambuscade against them, this was their home, and Kenshin fathomed the Uzumaki's knew more of their homeland than Iwagakure did . . .
. . . An idea dawned on his mind. "Kiron," his attention was aimed toward a man at the age of his mid-thirties. He was tall and broad, with silver-streaked short-cropped red hair and faded blue eyes from years of Military service. He was dressed in a Jounin red flak jacket and dark blue Shinobi pants. Kiron was known all-over Uzushiogakure no Sato as a Jounin Instructor at the Uzushio Academy for pre-Genin.
Kiron shifted to his feet at the mention of his name, straightening his legs from sitting down on the ground. "Yes?"
"I am well-aware that the tunnels underneath the Academy connected all around the sewers?" Kenshin hadn't meant it as a question, but it certainly came out as one.
Kiron narrowed his eyes with thoughtfulness. "Ah, yes. I'm surprised you know that. That's Foundation classified, Kenshin." The Uzu Foundation, Kenshin had almost forgot about the proclaimed 'Council' and their 'private meetings' and 'important issues'.
"Yes, well, you'd find that I have a healthy persuasion ability," the comment made some of them chuckle with fond memories of the past, but the mood swiftly switched to somber. "Fine. I didn't know it was Foundation classified; Masaru, I, and Kumiko went down them as kids."
Kiron didn't look surprised in the slightest. "Very well. They were proscribed dangerous after some of them collapsed on a group of curious Chunin snuck down there with a few Sake bottles –"
"They say, 'Curiosity kills the cat'," Emiko smirked as she was received with blanks stares.
"– about a decade back," Kiron continued as if she hadn't spoken. "But you're correct; the Tunnels stretch around all over Uzushio until four different underpasses lead out directly above the ocean's surface." He shrugged as if the conversation was meaningless. "The escape routes are all barred, not with Harboring Seals either, Uzukage-Sama specified that he didn't want anything more to do with those tunnels following that incident."
"That is not an issue," Kenshin rubbed his jaw before turning on his heel and walking determinedly toward the warehouse. "Masaru, I need a four-man unit of our best Espionage Experts – or, anyone comparable. I also need all of the blank paper tags that we can find. You all have ten minutes. Go." No one dared argue with the Six Seal of Uzushiogakure no Sato, the six of them all parted separate ways to fulfill their commanded duties.
Kenshin swept into the warehouse with perseverance, his Prussian blue eyes doing a brief scan over the other Uzumaki Ninja in the building. He approached a transparent metal table near the left of the storage warehouse and spoke aloud, "does anyone here have a competent map of Uzushio?"
Feeling paper press into his hand, Kenshin didn't spare the Shinobi or Kunoichi a glance as he spread the graph across the metal table, reaching into his hip pouch for a spare brush and a rectangular shaped inkwell. Sensing Masaru appear next to him, he examined the four-man Espionage unit. Uzumaki Minoru, he knew was an infiltration expert, which was basically identical, except infiltration was more toward spying tactics while espionage was reconnaissance. Kumiko was next, her wavy brown hair now down and framing her sullen face. The last male there was tall, reaching nearly Kenshin's height; he was known as Tanaka Yori, now formerly one of the Uzukage's Elite bodyguards, a member of the notorious Whirlpool ANBU organization. As far as he knew, Tanaka Yori was a prodigy. Kenshin had once been in ANBU, and the accustomed span of time spent in the Black Ops Organization was only two and a half years, but Yori has been in ANBU for a little over four years. An impressive, dangerous feat it was.
Minoru, Kumiko, and Yori – it was acceptable, now with him as Captain.
He steeled his eyes and eyed them cautiously, easing his fingers around the brush as it dipped into the bottle of ink. " . . . So this is what we are going to do . . ."
Uzu no Kuni – Uzushiogakure no Sato – Subterranean Tunnels – 0430 Hours
"Base located. Visible threats?" Yori's natural silent voice cackled through the recipient speaker located in Kenshin's ear.
"Negative," Masaru answered, though his words faded and grew louder from the winds. "Don't you tadpoles worry your asses off. We have you covered from every angle."
Kenshin pressed his inner-hand against the rough, moisturized dirt against the sides of the burrow. He now understood why Nidaime-Sama had restricted entrance down here, it was hazardously unstable. But that also supported his upcoming plans. He was reassured of backup when he felt Kumiko close to his right side, her shoulder carefully pressing against his upper-back when he would pause for scanning the area. He reached up and pressed his index against the speaker, "Your report, sensor."
"Located base at a distance of fifty meters, two clicks to your right, Captain. Advised discretion. Enemy stands high in count." Minoru's voice diminished after that last word, perhaps unsure.
"Be literal, sensor. I need a number."
"Estimated two hundred. Three foot patrols."
Yori cut in, "Per group?"
"Four."
"Posts?"
"One click from Masaru-Sama's position."
Static blossomed in Kenshin's ear. "Permission to engage silently?" Masaru's questioned was met with silence until Kenshin answered a quiet, "Granted." He knew Masaru would get the job done with little problems, but now they had to get to their rightful locations and wait for the perfect timing.
He was dragged out of his thoughts when Kumiko placed a hand on his shoulder. "You do realize that once this is done, Uzushio will fall. By our hands." There were unshed tears in her blue eyes.
"It can be rebuilt," was his heavy response.
Kumiko casted her gaze downwards and laughed, though it was slightly coated with grief and bitterness. She carefully dropped her hand back to her side. "That it may, but never the same – never."
"Perhaps. It isn't as if we are going to cover up its scars, Kumiko. We'll feel them, hide them away, but never forgotten." His words hardly made sense in his mind, but they seemed to brighten her aura just a little bit.
"And I will follow you," Kumiko smiled grimly. "Uzukage-Sama," she added.
Kenshin made a sound in his throat. "That, my lovely cousin, is considered treason by Shinobi's law."
"Perhaps," she shrugged indifferently. "But either way, after all of this done and over with, we all know where the loyalty goes," her eyes met his, "to the leader who saved the Village. A hero. You, the Sandaime Uzukage."
"A hero," Kenshin trailed off and continued roaming down the dark, cavern-like tunnels. "Ridiculous. Have you seen our home? Is that what a Hero does?"
"No. But as you said, it will be rebuilt."
Huh, Kenshin mused with a shroud of doubt. Strange, how Kenshin and Kumiko had grew up together, she still followed and respected him a natural leader. Strange indeed. He continued walking and focusing on their objective at hand.
"Captain, you are at your destination, as are we." Minoru stated.
Masaru sounded as if he was panting for air, "The Patrols have been dismissed. All clear."
Kenshin felt as if his life exploded in front of his eyes with the signification of his plan. He tapped the earpiece once, "I'm only going to say this once, and only once. So listen carefully." An intake of breath on his part. "These aren't regular Explosive Tags, they're modified for battle, and they're stronger. When the tag attaches to the object that you plan to demolish, you have a time rate of five seconds before it detonates. Am I clear?"
He felt how frigid Kumiko was when she chorused with the others, "Yes, sir."
"The escape routes are directly twenty meters to both of our rights, the tunnels will eventually meet and we'll intersect with each other. I have a Seal to open the Gate, so do not worry. Are you ready?"
Minoru sounded breathless, "As I'll ever be . . ."
"We can do this," Yori said to ensure himself.
"I'm ready, Uzukage-Sama," Kumiko smiled wryly from behind him.
"Have the Tags at ready, I will give the command." Kenshin reached into his hip pouch and slid his fingers over the Tags securely. They were called Tatakau (Battling) Tags, they were also Uzumaki Kenshin's creation, his very first, actually. They became widely known when he had first experienced his first Second Shinobi World War battle, in which he had annihilated a whole battalion of Iwa-nin on the lands of Amegakure no Sato. He had also achieved his title of the Six Seal along with the other Seals in that battle alone. He pulled the Tags out and help them gently, but firmly, and sent Kumiko a stern glance from the darkness of the tunnel. "One, two three . . . NOW!" Kenshin reached up and slapped the tags down together, twisting them counterclockwise for the other ones to explode as well.
1 . . .
Kenshin began sprinting as fast as he could down the tunnel, dark blue eyes searching the cavern swiftly and deadly. He
2 . . .
. . . 3 . . .
Kumiko's hand grabbed his, and Kenshin jerked her ahead of him as they neared the intersection where they would meet Yori and Minoru.
4 . . .
A panicked shout sounded behind Kenshin, he recognized Minoru's voice, and sighed with relief. Good, they were close. Kenshin narrowed his eyes as he saw the barred escape route and he rapidly gathered chakra into his hand.
. . . 5 . . .
"Hurry! NOW!"
The sound of a deafening explosion trembled the tunnels and dwindled away the screams of Kumiko. Kenshin reached forward and began drawing the Seal hastily and almost clumsily, the heat of the discharge on his back was beginning to come closer and closer. Kenshin yelled, "Kaijo Fūin: Akutibēto (Unlock Seal: Activate)," when the Seal became effective, and he kicked the bars away and grabbed the back of Kumiko's black mesh shirt, immediately throwing her over his back and the side of the cliff, towards the safety of the ocean. He did the same with Yori and Minoru, albeit they were more aware of the fact unlike Kumiko.
Kenshin pushed himself off the ledge just as fire and chunks of dirt and rocks blasted from the exit of the tunnel. He had only a second to enjoy the sensation of the humid morning air before he dived into the cool ocean water, tepid liquid encasing him and soothing the dirt and grime away from his skin. Beautiful . . . He mused wistfully, the coral reed underneath him exactly like the one beneath Michishio Cliff.
And then he was reeling upwards and gasping for oxygen above surface level, coughing at the water splashing in his face from a cheering Kumiko was expertly swinging herself around in the sea. Kenshin furrowed his brows before following her gaze.
The Uzukage's Tower was in remnants, fire and black smoke licking up at the orange-hued morning sky.
"We did it, Ken!" The brown-haired Uzumaki threw her arms around Kenshin and hugged him tightly, squealing in his ear all the while. "We did it, we did it!"
He only swam there, frozen for a moment from the adrenaline of it all.
And then he encircled his arms around Kumiko's waist and hugged her back.
And he cried.
Uzu no Kuni – Uzushiogakure no Sato –Michishio Cliff; Spare Storage Warehouse – 1500 Hours
Ration bars was more disgusting then sea water. They tasted like a mixture of cardboard and dust – which was not an exaggeration. Kenshin quickly wolfed down the food before he could be hit with the bitter aftertaste.
"I have bad news."
Ah, those words were beginning to replay like a broken record. Kenshin exhaled heavily through his nose with exasperation. It had been a solid three days since the falling of the Uzukage Tower, and ever since then, he had received reports of:
"The Testament of Warriors has been broken beyond repair."
"Uzushio Clinic Center has been reduced to ashes."
"The Shrine of Lost Scrolls is gone, the scrolls are missing."
"The Uzumaki Compound is on fire."
"The Directory of Uzushio has been stolen . . ."
Kenshin was sick of it all. It was as if that bastard Ōnokiwas making a statement by wiping away their prideful momentums of Uzushiogakure no Sato. " . . . What is it now?" He growled out, turning to flash his eyes dangerously at his little brother.
Masaru gulped at the tension bubbling through the air. "Ah . . . Sector A has been overthrown . . ."
Immediately recognizing the location of where the Entry Gate, Kenshin vividly cursed and scowled. "Anything else?"
"No, sir."
"Then just leave . . ."
Kenshin stood there silently when Masaru made no movement to Shunshin or simply stroll away. He could his brother's worry and fear, which made his anger spike to a high level of intensity. Dark blue eyes shifted until he was glaring at the sullen face of Uzumaki Masaru. It was a rare occurrence for his brother to look remotely distress at all, but it was clearly one of those infrequent moments. Masaru opened his mouth, closed it, and then opened it once more before snapping his jaw closed.
Kenshin waited patiently, eyeing the twenty-two year-old with disregard.
"I-want-to-do-the-Confinement-Seal!"
Masaru's worse came out in a hushed rapid tone, causing the words to be jumbled with hisses. Kenshin frowned and furrowed his eyebrows, narrowing his eyes in slight confusion. "Pardon?"
"The Confinement Seal . . . I want you to give me permission to draw the Confinement Seal on you . . ." Masaru's face mirrored defeat. "You know, just as well as I do, that we won't win this War, Ken. I will always fight, to my dying breath, but we won't win – and we need someone to carry on our legacy when this is over."
Kenshin's scowl curled into a snarl. "And you think that I, Uzumaki Kenshin, want to wake up and suddenly find that my family has been murdered and I am alone in this world?"
Masaru's eyes grew wide at that. "Alone? Never alone, Ken."
"Well that's what I'll be!"
"Please, brother – just listen to me. I love all of my family, my friends, my comrades – this is for Kushina . . ." Tears swelled in Masaru's eyes. " . . . I have already discussed this with Kumiko, and she agrees. Fuck, KEN - Kushina doesn't even know her father has been killed in cold blood! What else can we do?!"
"We can win this war, Masaru! We can win this war and go to Kushina ourselves!"
"That isn't going to happen, Kenshin!"
"Like hell it isn't!"
By the time their fierce shouts had ended, the two were gripping the collar of each other's shirts, faces inches apart as they huffed with anger. Kenshin was annoyed more than resentful. He still had hope that Uzushio could return to what it was, it could – it could be rebuilt . . . "You're losing your Uzumaki spirit," he told his brother earnestly. "What happened to 'fight first and ask questions later'?"
"I just told you I was going to fight to my dying breath . . ."
"No, you idiot, you just told me you were going to run with your tail between your legs and leave me here to deal with this myself!"
Masaru froze and almost began to tremble with emotion. "I don't know what else to do," he whispered dolefully. "Please, Kenshin . . . Do this as my dying wish . . ."
Kenshin growled in his throat. "You haft to be kidding me," he bit out. Kenshin released his brother's shirt and stepped away, lips twisting into a grimace as he heard the ragged breathing coming from Masaru. He didn't want to admit to himself that Masaru had a point, but he had made another point clear as well. "When you can tell me, that me doing this is for the best of the Village, not for Kushina, I will take you up on your offer."
He turned on his heels and marched.
Uzu no Kuni – Uzushiogakure no Sato – Border of Sector A and Sector B; The Dragon's Tea – 1500 Hours
"Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit," Kenshin swore underneath his breath with a panicked expression. His hands were stained with thick, crimson liquid, pressing his palm against the wound on the person he was crouching over. He was such an idiot, he was such an asshole – dammit, this was his fault.
Kumiko coughed once, a trail of blood leaking out of the corner of her mouth. "Ah," she gasped and sputtered out words that he couldn't make out from her lungs being filled with blood. "K-K-Ken . . ."
"Oh – I, I . . ." Kenshin reached his crimson stained hands back and fisted his hair, the blood mingling with his own red hair. "I'm so sorry, Kumiko. D-Don't worry, I can heal you!" Kenshin couldn't kid himself as he stared at the fatal wound against her chest. They had been out scouting for supplies, after two weeks of being in that storage Warehouse, the food had quickly dissipated into crumbs and empty wrappers.
And as they had been carefully roaming, Kumiko had brought up the touchy subject of Masami – Kenshin had practically exploded with anger. He hadn't meant to, but the stress of everything had wanted him to vent infuriation at something or someone. Kumiko had stormed away and . . . and that was when the trap had set off. Neither of them had seen it – whoever had set it up had been a subterfuge expert. The trigger she had stepped on had caused two Kunai to unleash at her with violent speed . . .
Kenshin knew no medical jutsu. Nothing.
In fact, on their Genin unit, Masaru had been the Medic of the team, surprisingly. "K-Kumiko . . . Kami, what should I do?" He bent forward and grabbed her head, lifting her up to a bone-crushing hug. "Tell me!" Kenshin begged. The Dragon's Tea Restaurant's white tile was quickly becoming blemished the color of dark red.
"I-It's okay," Kumiko whispered hoarsely, her voice coated with pain and tears. "It's okay . . ."
"K-Kumiko, I'm sorry. I – I –"
"S-Shh . . ."
And then her body went limp.
Uzu no Kuni – Uzushiogakure no Sato - Michishio Cliff; Spare Storage Warehouse – 0630 Hours
The cool feeling of ebony ink against his back brought Kenshin out of his troubling thoughts, which were about Uzushio, about Masami, about Kumiko, about Iwa – about everything. He easily felt Masaru's presence behind him, who was holding a brush with intense concentration as he began conducting the Confinement Seal.
Kenshin, after ten minutes of complete silence, barked out a sudden, bitter laugh. "I can't believe Tousen taught you this Seal – but not me . . . It's as if he knew this would happen . . ."
"Maybe he did," Masaru's voice was raspy with tremors.
"Perhaps . . ." Kenshin shivered when the brush was moved across his collarbone, now sliding over his bare chest. "So how about that reason, Masaru? Ever think of one worthy enough?"
Masaru paused, but the continued with his expertise calligraphy. When he spoke, he was smiling only slightly. "If there was true peace in this world, then none of this would have happened. Peace wouldn't have brought bloodshed and war; peace wouldn't have caused Iwa to attack us. No, peace would have allowed Masami to stay, to have those children she was always cooing about. Peace would have allowed Kumiko to live, it would have allowed all of our family to be alive and with us . . .
But I don't care about peace." Kenshin widened his eyes and met Masaru's fierce gaze. "Peace will eventually come, by someone who faithfully believes and is strong-willed, and I know that is none of us, maybe of our lineage in the future. But when you wake up, I want you to go kill those Iwa bastards, show them the true Uzumaki power and reveal to them the Testaments of True Warriors."
Kenshin frowned before his lips gradually curled into a soft smile. "You speak like a true Uzumaki, you do. . . The Testament of True Warriors, huh? Sounds kind of cliché."
"You tell me, Ken, you are the one who wrote it."
"I did, didn't I?"
Masaru smiled when he finished the last stroke of the brush and crouched, pressing his palm against the middle of Kenshin's chest. "I'm going to activate it . . . Are you ready?"
"Uzushio will prevail."
Masaru nodded with his eyes closed, "Uzushio will prevail."
"Tojikome shīru: Akutibēto (Confinement Seal: Activate)!"
Uzu no Kuni - Uzushiogakure no Sato – Whirlpool Ruins – 0530 Hours
Kenshin wheezed, allowing his head to prop against a rock slab supporting his weak body. The question of the day is . . . How long was I confined?