Chapter I

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KiraKira: The Aku is supposed to be in town today.

Midori18: Why?

SeeNoEvil: Probably just to make sure the business fronts are going okay.

Harmony666: I heard it's because their trying to find the Ghost.

Midori18: The Ghost? Seriously?

KiraKira: Yeah, I heard The Ghost came close to killing Kimimaro.

SeeNoEvil: I guess that would explain why there hasn't been a lot of activity from them.

Harmony666: They'll be back with a strong vengeance.

SeeNoEvil: Doubt it.

Midori18: I agree, they're pretty weak.

KiraKira: True, but they that doesn't stop them from trying.

The school day is over for students in the downtown Tokyo area. They rushed out of the old building in flocks ranging in various sizes, excitedly talking about their plans for the weekend. The monotonous subject matter is now regarded of thing of the past, at least until Monday. There will be no studying or productive work for the next two days. It was their time for relaxation and doing things they actually enjoy doing.

It is urged of them to exercise great caution. Tokyo is known for having numerous gangs that have no regard for innocent life; as well as creatures that lust for their flesh and vigor.

One student, a girl who stands out from the rest of the average looking students, slowly walked towards the outdoors. She didn't have any plans that needed to be discussed with others. She didn't have anyone to walk with in comfortable silence.

She was alone.

All she had was her trusty shadow.

It didn't bother her as much as it used to. Many nights she would spend worrying about not having someone there to watch out for her, listen to her problems and find solutions, or to share good memories with.

That was a thing of the past. She could care less about it now. Mortals only bring pain and confusion. They are never quite sure of what they want. It always changes or even worse, they don't vocalize what it is they desire.

It's all trivial matter.

Her shadow lingered behind her to materialize into it's true form. When in its true form, he's a dark angel; a creature that does nothing good for humanity. He walks beside her with a smirk on his face. She sees him out the corner of her eye, but says nothing. "Giving me the silent treatment dear?"

"Why are you here?" Her voice was void of emotion.

He chuckles. "I'm always with you." She rolls her eyes. He never shows himself when she actually desires his company. He frowns for a moment, analyzing the look on her face. "You seem down, what's on your mind?"

"I thought you could read my mind."

"You said you didn't want me to do that anymore since it's invades your personal privacy." He replied in a know-it-all tone.

She rolls her eyes again. "I doubt that really stops you."

"But it does. I respect your need to be all angsty and mysterious." The creature and her share those traits in common. He used to be the same way when he was able to live freely amongst the living.

A sigh escapes her slightly thin lips. "If you must know, we are celebrating Kohana's acceptance into the honor society." Her mood went from neutral to darkness in an instant. Her angel shuddered in delight at the vibe she was giving off. He feeds off her negative vibes, and encourages her to go deeper into those feelings. She indulges them occasionally, loving the natural high she gets from venting in their special way.

"All you have to do is say the word, and she'll cease to exist."

The smallest of smiles appear of her face. "Trust me, I want nothing more than to get rid of her. But-"

He grabs her hands, forcing her to look up into his red iris. "But what? You're afraid of being caught? Nothing is standing in our way; we have nothing to lose."

Her jade orbs are covered by her descending eyelid. "It won't make them love me anymore. They'll spend the rest of their lives grieving for her." The words from her mouth were cruelly bitter and true.

"Then we'll get rid of them too. We don't need them."

"You don't need them." She corrected.

"I am a part of you. I was revived due to your unbinding hatred towards every mortal in this world. We have no use for them anymore. They could have raised you with the love and nurturing you needed, but didn't. So I'm here to fill the void."

She laughs. It was not out of happiness, but cynicism. "You aren't exactly loving." Her angel was never meant to love. Even when he was a living being with his own goals in life, he still didn't love anyone or anything. He always sought revenge, and went to great lengths to obtain it. He is fueled by animosity.

"Aye, but I care about you." Care wasn't the best term to use. He only care about her because he lives off her. Without her, he is nothing more than a vengeful soul looking for a host to help it take its' wrath out on the world.

Nevertheless, she had no snarky comeback for that because it was true for the most part. He could have absorbed her vitality and leave her to rot in limbo. He decided to spare her the unkind fate and instead opted to live alongside her, using her dark aura to sustain himself.

The area ahead of her seems bright, until she reaches it. The sun would no longer shine dimly and what is supposed to be living, appears to be dead or extremely lethargic. The people she walks by carry melancholy expressions. Subconsciously, she knows that she is sucking the life out of everything just to keep herself going.

The only place that always seemed to match her aura, whether she was there or not, was the subway. Perhaps the most unholy place in the entire city. The underground transportation system is a completely different society. Not a lot of mortals dare to travel here alone, if at all. Sakura likes this way because no one bothers her.

The denizens the lurk here are referred to as Jynx, in honor of the horrid fate they bring. They could almost pass as humans, but they have deformities that cause them to look and behave like feral beasts. They have been exiled several decades ago, with the hope that they would die out. But they didn't, they've only gotten stronger. Many would agree that it's only a matter of time before they launch a major attack on humanity.

Several of them peak their head out of the dark areas, hoping for a potential victim. Most of them haven't seen any action for quite sometime. They were dying of boredom and would do almost anything to cure it.

Almost anything.

Some of the Jynx were hesitant to attack her. The vibe she gave off was off putting, even to undesirables such as themselves. The more gutsy of the pack wouldn't let her energy deter them, that is until they caught a glimpse of the figure beside her. They cleared the area quickly. "You scared them." She observes casually.

"I do what I must; It's my job to protect to you."

She nods and props herself up against a column. "You know how many people die in a place like this?" It was more of a statement than a question.

"A fair amount I would guess."

"Why? Do they attack humans, I mean."

He chuckles. "Because they're easy targets."

She closes her eyes as she processes that information. Humans are fragile beings. Most of them tend to believe in the good and try to overlook the bad. It's that way of thinking that leads to their demises. "Go." She says.

"Pardon?"

Her eyes are exposed and directed towards her darker being. "Go away. I want to test something." He reluctantly ensconced back into his amorphous form. As expected, she found herself besieged by the fiends that torture vulnerable souls. They just stood there, staring in awe. Almost worshiping her as if she was some sort of goddess. When she took a step forward, they all took a step back.

She smirks and looks at her watch. The sun should be down by now. She points up, making the beings around her look towards the ground where unsuspecting people exist. "Be free." She states plainly.

"Be...free...?" One of them repeats with uncertainty. It turns towards the others, who are mumbling the same thing. A high level intelligence was something they lacked due to being stuck underground for so long.

A human walks down the stairs, not paying attention to the congregation that was happening ahead of her. Sakura sees the girl, points to her. "Be free." She states again. This time the beings understood.

They let out a howl and charged after the girl. She didn't stand a chance against the hungry beasts. Sakura watches with indifference. Had the girl been paying attention, she wouldn't have even step foot in the subway. After they were done with her, they went up to the surface world, ready to cause havoc for anyone who happens to be in the area.

Her cellphone vibrates in her pocket. It was a reminder from a popular site that was established a few years ago by a man named Kyo. He was known as the most powerful criminal mastermind until he retired and passed the title onto his son. Not a lot of people understand what the site's true purpose is. The average person just thinks it's a blog and social network site. Those who do know the actual purpose, keep it on a need to know basis.

Attention! Tonight is the RIOT and it is imperative that you as a valued member show up.

Time: Midnight

Place: The Old Fireworks Warehouse.

Only a handful of members received an invite as such. "You have an invitation, are you going?"

"I have to apparently. They say it's really urgent." She can't stop the feeling of curiosity. When she first received the invitation a few weeks ago, it was vague and didn't seem to be such a big deal. She was planning on blowing it off, seeing how RIOT meetings are never that important. "Guess I won't be going home tonight." She says while stretching out her arms.

"Great, than let's have some fun." Her shadow returns to his physical form.

She smirks. "What did you have in mind?" They head back up to the surface world, where the streets were practically vacant, save a few corpses. A sharp talon points in the direction of a group. Five males, all clad in red clothing. "A two-bit gang?" She questions.

"C'mon, you gotta recognize the big one." The one that looks as if he could afford to skip a few meals, was named Jirobo. He was known throughout the streets as weakest member in the Aku. That well known fact doesn't seem to affect his pride, seeing as he is still arrogant. It doesn't help that the people who do fight him, manage to lose severely.

The idea of taking down one of the most prominent gang members in Tokyo was enticing. However, she knew there was something else to be gained from the fight, aside from diversion. "You got a bone to pick with him or something?"

The corner of his blue venom colored lips turn up in a smirk. "Nope. Just wanna say hi."

Sakura shrugs carelessly and walks towards the group with her angel in tow. The group of men fall silent, observing the duo. They quickly surround the pair, once they were registered as a threat. The fat male laughs. "Sasuke, it's been so long since I last saw you. I still see your reliant on..." He trails off, staring at the girl for a while. He was going to label her has a human, but wasn't sure if that was accurate.

"You know fatty, it's not polite to stare at people." Sasuke says with a smirk.

Jirobo growls. "I've had it with you! I'm about to do the world a great favor by getting rid of trash." For a big guy, he is fairly quick on his feet. He charged towards Sasuke with the intent on tackling him, but he vaporized into a dark cloud of smoke. The orange haired man was thrown off by this. He turns toward Sakura and frowns. "What's so funny, you piece of trash?"

Instead of a verbal answer, she slams her fist against the male's face. He flew backwards into the brick wall, causing a hole in the building. His minions hesitate to attack, a bad move on their part. Sakura grabbed hold of one lackey's arm and twisted it until a sicken crack was heard. She jabs her heel into the others chest, knocking the wind out of him and making him collapse to the ground. The other two ran before they were able to see a similar fate.

"You never cease to amaze me." Sasuke says, admiring her handiwork.

She cracks her knuckles. "I thought they would be more of a challenge."

Before Jirobo could even think about a surprise attack, Sasuke pinned him down with two large snakes he summoned. "What do we do with fatty over here?"

Said male set fire to the reptiles and shot up. His skin turned a reddish-brown color and his sclera turned black. "He's one of you." She says, unfazed by Jirobo's transformation. The now more powerful beast, picked up a large chunk of the earth and hurled it towards the pair. He was surprised at the fact that the girl managed to break it in half with a single punch. She yawns. "Is that all you got?"

Adrenalin surged through Jirobo's veins as he dashed towards the girl. He threw multiple punches, all of which she dodged effortlessly. She tried to switched to offense, but the moment she did, he managed to strike her hard. She slid backwards, but didn't fall. Her body felt slightly drained of energy, all thanks to his ability to absorb verve.

The man had moved onto Sasuke. Her angel was extremely deft in combat. He delivered blows and dodged them effortlessly. It was child's play to him. A low level demon isn't worth a lot of energy. He uses his claws to stab his opponent in the chest. With his other hand he sent the male soaring with a powerful punch in the face.

Satisfied with the damage he has done, he walks towards his host. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine." She replies passively.

He looks over at the pathetic form, writhing in pain. "Pity we couldn't have found someone better."

"Oh well. It killed a little bit of time." Her watch indicated that it was still an hour until midnight. "We better get going."