"Show me how defenseless you really are…"
Kyoshiro dropped beneath the oncoming hail of kunai and leaped into the air. The katana in her hand glinted as she swung it down on the shoulder of the nearest shinobi, who shrieked as blood spurted from the gash. She drove the katana into another shinobi's stomach, tearing it away without reserve. One by one, the mob fell. The girl's amber eyes glistened thirstily as a drop of blood splattered on her cheek.
A cruel voice broke through the shouts and screams, catching Kyoshiro's attention; it was a voice full of ill-intended amusement. "What bloodlust. It'd be a shame to kill my most gifted apprentice." Golden eyes pierced through the haze. As the dust settled, his pale face began to appear as well with a dominant smirk.
Kyoshiro scowled and, without another thought, broke into a sprint towards him. Years upon years of devotion, memories of betrayal and fear; all of her fury was released in the swing of her katana.
Orochimaru tipped his head to the side, and the blade cut through air. His smirk grew as he reached for the red-head and caught her, with slender fingers, around her neck; her feet flew out from under her and he slammed her backward into the ground. She winced and tugged at his hand, but he had an iron grip. Instead of giving, his hand tightened. Kyoshiro squeezed her eyes shut, attempting to calm herself, as her air was cut off. Her head began to swim. 'No! She thought. 'It can't end this way!'
A hiss escaped Orochimaru's throat. "You may leave," he purred, releasing her. Kyoshiro greedily sucked in oxygen, and then stared cautiously at her former master. "W-what did you say?" she asked hesitantly. Orochimaru sneered and repeated, "You may leave." Kyoshiro watched his eyes, unsure of his proposal. Suddenly, he yanked her towards him, sinking his teeth into the left side of her neck. She shrieked as the already sharp pain from the bite began to increase. It felt as though she'd been branded with a hot-iron. She gripped his shirt sleeves, an electric current shooting from her neck and freezing her in place. Blood began to trickle over her shoulder, staining her shirt.
Orochimaru pulled away from her neck, her blood staining his lips, as Kyoshiro gazed seemingly lifelessly over his shoulder, shock overwhelming her senses. He freed her hands from his shirt, dropped her into the dirt, and leaned down to her. His lips ghosting over her ear, she could feel his breath tickle against her neck as he whispered, "You will come back one day, little one. Until then-" He cut off as his face came closer to hers, and he swiftly pressed his lips against her temple, leaving a small trail of red that nearly matched the color of her hair.
Kyoshiro's body shuddered from his touch, yet she still peered over the Sannin's shoulder as the pain from her neck increased, rippling throughout her frozen body. Orochimaru chuckled darkly and stood. "Goodbye, my dear…." He chuckled once more, echoing into the rising curtain of dust once more as he disappeared into the haze. Kyoshiro could feel her body beginning to shut down, and as her eyes began to close, she caught sight of Risa approaching from the side. Strong, independent, beautiful Risa. The last things she saw before oblivion were Risa's soft green eyes, filled with sorrow for the young red-head, filled with anger toward their master, and filled with betrayal for being left alone once again; Kyoshiro could not stop the violent shudder that coursed through her as she fell into the final black of unconsciousness.
Kyoshiro awoke from the nightmare with a start, her hands flying up to her face as though it might not be there anymore. The same golden eyes from her dream, as in her memory, clung to the back of her mind, insistent. Her red hair was tangled from sleep, her eyes dazed with it. She caught her reflection in the mirror across the room and frowned at herself and her mismatched eyes. The right was her natural shade of amber, but the left... The skin around the curse mark on her shoulder tingled lightly, a permanent reminder of the past. Her left iris had inexplicably turned coal black after receiving the curse mark from her former master, one of the three Sannin, and the leader of the Sound, Orochimaru.
Her fingers curled and tightened around the sheets of her bed until her knuckles shone white. Sweat dribbled down the side of her cheek and fell. The room was quiet enough that Kyoshiro could hear it hit the lavender sheets covering her. She squinted as her eyes began to perceive the bright light that poured in from the open window.
Silently, she slid out of bed, heading towards the kitchen. The deep sink was full of empty bowls and water glasses; she ran a hand over the hair at the base of her neck at the thought of the work to be done later and then pulled down a clean glass from the cabinet above her head, filling it with water. The girl downed the glass, and the cool liquid slowly began to work its way through her body, calming and cool.
With a small shake of her head at the thought of the day's mission, Kyoshiro straightened and headed for the bathroom. The small closet-like space chilled her slightly as she stepped inside. Once the water from the shower had heated, she slid under it and found it to be deliciously warm on her chilled skin. Keeping on with her mental clock, she washed hurriedly. As it came to an end, however, she began to worry once more. She hated herself for worrying, but she couldn't help it. Orochimaru's gaunt face slid in and out of her mind like a bad dream that she could not wake from, and even the sweet, soothing scent of honey shampoo couldn't quell the fear; it only made her nauseous.
She exited the shower with great disappointment, towel-drying her short red hair and brushing it down with her fingers. Wrapping herself in a towel, she hurried back to her bedroom to dress, seeing that her time was now limited. Once in her uniform, the final prepping was to be done with her teammates. And so, she gathered up her gear and wasted no time in getting to the front gate of the village successfully. In fact, neither of her teammates was around as she drew near it, and she nodded silently to Izumo and Kotetsu, who guarded the gate diligently. They both nodded back with gentle smiles, and she turned away.
Kyoshiro sighed, lifting the wolf-like mask from around her neck and placing it over her face, tying the strings with gentle yet steady fingers. The mask had a small red circle around the left eye and three thick red stripes that curved from the bottom of her right cheek, stopping close to the muzzle, resembling whiskers.
The others didn't waste any time in showing up after her. The two brothers, Zero and Masa Kuriyama, approached with contesting expressions, Masa's of disgust, and Zero's of sheepish guilt. She smiled at the sight of her dearest friends, a rare sight for anyone else but them. Masa and his older brother were one of the very few in Kyoshiro's circle of trusted people around whom she let her guard down.
Zero raised his arms joyfully at the sight of his female teammate and wasted no time in crushing her in an embrace. "Hey, Kyo, I've been waiting to see you all day!" Masa yanked him off and shoved him away, quite obviously still boiling over something. Kyoshiro smiled again. "What's going on this time?" she asked. Masa scoffed and stopped glaring daggers at his sibling long enough to grumble, "This ass here tore my weapons pouch, and I don't have a replacement."
"Oh come on, do we even need any more weapons than what we have?" Zero exclaimed. "I mean, with Kyoshiro and myself on a team, we're unstoppable! We might as well be considered weapons ourselves, right?"
Masa exhaled loudly and turned away, exasperated.
"C'mon bro, I said I was sorry. Look, I'll get you another one when we get to Suna, okay?"
"Hmph...fine."
Ugh, I'm completely revising EVERYTHING. I was so excited, because when I first started, I had about 10 chapters! Not bad, huh? Then I went through them, and I was like, "Oh HELL NO." They were too short, so now the number's been cut in half, probably shorter because I removed a LOT of unnecessary word baggage. So, like I've begged before, please review. It will please me...: