Whelp, for those of you who loved this the first time I'm pretty sure you're gonna love it even more the second time. Yeah I know, why the heck am I trying to do two stories at once, well, this is one of my personal favorites out of the few stories I did do and I felt the need to post at least the prologue. I don't know how often I'm going to update this story, just that Sail the Ocean Blue is going to be my top priority (I have the ending planned out and everything for that one!)
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto that belongs to Masashi Kishimoto and the quote for the summary belongs to John Geddes, from A Familiar Rain. Haven't read it but I thought the quote expressed the story well.
So my readers, after many cuts, fixes, breaks, tears, stress and stroke of genius I give you the first chapter of Hidden in the Mist. Enjoy.
Prologue: Acknowledged
The water swirled as her pale hand dipped completely below the surface and her fingers curled. Bringing her hand back up, she caused small waves by running her fingers over the water's surface. It felt like silk in her hand. The large fish that lived in the pond began to swim towards the top, their slightly buggy eyes watching her fingers move. Their colorful scales reflected the noon high sun while their long tails swept like fans behind them. When one of the bigger ones became brave she watched it get incredibly close before pulling her hand out and dangling it above the water. The fish continued to swarm below her fingers, looking up expectantly.
Orbs of the hottest pink remained half lidded, reflecting the rest of the boredom that haunted her pixie features. Her belly was pressed against the smooth wood of the dock; unable to touch her due to the plain white iro-muji that covered her slight form. The orbs of pink swerved around the pond; she was alone except for the fish. The young girl turned her attention back to the creatures and allowed her body to relax while closing her eyes.
The black behind her eyelids was all she saw for the first few minutes. However, small specks of silver light began to flitter through the darkness. The silver specks flickered in and out before they began to settle and form outlines. The deck she saw was rough lines as she passed the forever moving surface of the pond and the legs of the deck sunk into the bumpy surface of the pebbled bottom. The girl concentrated on the water and watched as the blackness behind her eyes began to shift and twist while just focusing on the water. Every wave, every ripple she saw as silver lines. She was able to see where the fish were soon after due to the movements they were causing.
The young child's mind quickly became bored with the fish swimming. Stretching out her reach she left the pond and began to follow a beetle as it worked its way over the thin line blades of grass. When the bug became stuck at a stick, she continued her reach until she went past the grassy plain and to the lean trunks that made up the forest that lined the small island. The girl moved her hand to run her fingers through the smooth water even as the world continued to change behind her eyelids. The whistling of birds had her following up the curved line of a trunk in hopes of finding a few of the twittering creatures.
Finding the person in the tree was not something she had been expecting. Almost losing her concentration, the girl traveled up the person by leaving the limb they were standing on through their feet. The person was like the visitors that came to the island. The other women called them 'men' but this one seemed younger. Bent over the limb, his hands resting on bents knees, the person was facing her home. Curious, the girl focused harder on the figure. It was to her astonishment that the person's entire body skyrocketed in their hurry to stand and their head shot to face her.
The girl cried out when she felt a strong rush of pain. The pain attacked her from all sides of her mind forcing the girl to lose her concentration and pull back into herself. The girl scrambled to her feet, the bare flesh getting bit by a few loose splinters. Small pants of terror fueled the girl as she spun around on her toes and ran.
Her body was covered in sweat. Every muscle in her body was twitching with exertion; thighs shaking as a powerful heat tried to melt them from her bones. However, despite the pain she refused to move. Her hands were raised in the air and remained still due to concentration not skill. She could feel the eyes of her onee-san staring at her, waiting for any sign of weakness in her form. The girl refused to give it to her.
Finally, when her body was seconds from giving out on her onee-san spoke to her,
"Rest." Instead of crumbling to the floor like she wanted to, the girl let out a deep breath and lowered her arms. She moved stiff legs that were half asleep and remained standing while turning to face her onee-san. The older woman sat on a kneeling pillow, a long pipe releasing smoke as she sucked on the tobacco stick. Her long black hair was pulled up into a tight knot at the top of her head and her kimono was a simple one. The girl's body continued to shake as she knelt down in front of her onee-san. Her small hands, almost gray in color due to their pale nature, came to rest in her lap on top of her own kimono. "For one so young, you are coming along magnificently hangyoku." Pink orbs looked up through dark eyelashes and into the smiling face her mentor. "We are finished today, hangyoku. Go about your chores now." The girl bowed to her onee-san before getting up and leaving the room through the rice-door.
Other women, some dressed in highly decorated and expensive outfits while others were dressed like her onee-san, went about the house. While most of them were more than happy to talk amongst themselves, very few actually paid attention to the girl as she made her way through the halls of the okiya. The sounds of the shamisen and flutes echoed through the halls as women either played or practiced.
Due to the little attention paid to her, the girl was able to go out to the pond without anyone questioning her. There wasn't any comment on why she wasn't doing her chores. The only one who ever enforced that upon her was her onee-san and even then the woman rarely paid attention. Once reaching the water, the girl sat down and removed her shoes. Already the fish were up and nibbling at the surface. The young girl dipped her toes into the cool water, watching the nearby sakura tree lose its pink petals that floated on the pond's surface.
"You found me." The girl's head turned on her neck and looked behind her. A girl stood behind her, younger than the others she lived with but still older than herself. Long black hair fell over the girl's slight shoulder and long bangs framed an oval face. Large brown eyes stared out from above a pale nose. The girl frowned as she looked upon the stranger's outfit; a pale green kimono without sleeves was tied loosely with an obi. The straw sandals that were worn down tremendously told the girl that this was definitely a stranger to her island. The stranger walked closer to the dock, her footfall making no sound. "What's your name?" She didn't respond.
The brunette stranger stopped next to her before giving her a soft smile. She could see the stranger's teeth were straight and white.
"Can you not tell me your name?" Blinking magnetic pink eyes the girl looked up at the strange girl. It was strange to hear a voice directed at her.
"…I am known as hangyoku." She didn't notice that her own voice was scratchy from disuse. The stranger tilted her head to the side causing brown locks to fall over one shoulder and bare a slender neck.
"That's a title, not a name." Pink eyes bore into brown. "…do you have a name?"
"…I am known as hangyoku." The girl turned away from the stranger deciding that she wasn't worth her time any more. The fish were nibbling on the bottom of her feet and had been for a while. It tickled slightly. She wondered what she would do today. Pink eyes rose from the water and the fish to look out into the forest. Boredom was beginning to grab hold. She would probably end up following around one of the others. They hated when she did it but left her to it as long as she didn't bother them. To many complaints had ended with everyone suffering. After dinner she would perhaps see if she could find new type of bug.
"I am not suppose too be talking to you," the strange girl stated. "He says I shouldn't talk to anyone while I'm here." Her thoughts ended abruptly due to the stranger's voice. She looked over her shoulder at the strange girl in green. Usually when she turned from people they walked away; then, most didn't even bother talking to her either. Why this strange girl was still talking to her was a complete mystery to the young hangyoku. "But you found me. How were you able to do that?"
The sound of footsteps had her looking away from the stranger. One of the maikos, her face dolled up in the heavy white paint and outlining, was frowning as she walked towards the young hangyoku. The girl watched her take the small, controlled steps that were both forced and practice as the tight kimono that covered her body restricting her movements.
"Who were you talking to?" the maiko demanded harshly, her voice matching the cold eyes within the white face. The hangyoku raised one of her circular eyebrows up her forehead before turning to look at the stranger next to her.
The girl blinked once when she found no one. Confused, the girl began to look this way and that. There was only she and the maiko.
"Don't play stupid, girl!" the female snapped out like each word was a physical discomfort for her. "I heard you talking to someone. Now who was it? You know you're not allowed to speak to anyone but those of this island. That was obviously a boy's voice."
'Boy?' the girl wondered, already allowing her eyes to close and the outlines to begin. Her reach stretched out past the pond, through the grass and towards the forest while also heading back towards the buildings that housed her. Her reach instinctively went for the brightest of the lights that shown and the hangyoku found the stranger. Up in a tree like he, she now knew, had been the first time she saw him. Her surprise at him being male was forgotten in the wake of being snapped at by the young maiko. The girl quickly became bored with her words and, with small movements fell into the pond. The water engulfed her entire being, water bubbles escaping from her mouth and from underneath her body.
At least in the water there was peace and quiet.
The boy came two more times in the next few days. She never spoke to him yet he seemed more than happy to keep a conversation by himself. His voice was always soft, his words always gentle and even though he was the only one talking she never felt like he talked too much like some of the women she lived with. When he showed himself it was usually because she had found him hiding in the trees and he only showed himself when she was alone. This in itself wasn't strange since most of the men on the island preferred to have their presence kept quiet. The girl found his presence something to be ignored at first but his calm nature and coaxing conversation eventually had her listening to him. When he didn't bulk under her stare she found it more entertaining to listen.
The day was coming to a close and the setting sun found the girl by herself on the wrap-around porch that surrounded the entire building. Her small legs hung over the side of the porch, swinging back and forth as her toes dug into the grass. Half lidded eyes watched the grass sway in the gentle breeze. The wind tugged at long blue hair, gently playing with strands in a half-hearted attempt to braid them.
Boredom was a constant in the young girl's life when not training to become like the older women. Her passive thoughts wondered if the boy would show up; at least then she would have someone to listen to. As was per usual with the six-year-old when she was bored, she began to let her conscious slip and let her unusual ability to reach out and show her the world. She was able to go through the house while she sat upon the porch. Women were getting ready for the night and the males it brought; though, some were already busy. Her reach continued through her toes when she became bored with the compound. It went through the dirt showing her the hidden life that thrived under her toes. Embracing each blade of grass, it rushed through the ground.
When the hangyoku opened her eyes again the world was blanketed by the darkness of night. A light chill played with the wind, coming in from its long voyage across the sea for rest like the rest of the world. A sliver of moon broke the darkness with its tiny children. The girl looked up the black sky and bright stars. She wondered what it would be like to reach with her ability to them, to have it run from one diamond of light to the next. Surly then she wouldn't get as bored as she did now. After years of roaming the island around her, she had every tree, plant, rock and stream memorized. From one stretch of ocean to the next she had memorized in her flourishing mind. Her pink eyes moving to the moon, the girl wondered what it'd be like to explore that. Would the dirt be brown under the snow that obviously covered its blank fields? Would she find little critters like those under her feet going about their lives without ever seeing the sun? Without ever seeing the stars?
The girl moved to her feet, sleep beginning to claim her conscious. Light patters echoed through the busy compound. She dodged running servants, giggling women with their faces painted the same color as the moon, and older women leading the males that always made her home come to life with so much noise. None stopped to ask her where she had been; none bothered to notice her. She didn't bother to notice them either. Walking away from the loud crowd and busy halls, she continued on to the path that led to her room. Slowly the noise began to die down, leaving only the crickets and light music.
And the muffled noise of someone's screams.
Curious, the hangyoku paused in her tracks and turned to look around with her eyes still half closed. It wasn't necessarily unusual to hear the occasional scream within her home; especially when the males were here. Sleep far from her mind now, the girl closed her eyes and reached. The floors and walls filled her sight as she casted out her presence. The silver lines that always reminded her of the starlight built a picture within her mind. It took a short while to find the source of the screams. The girl's feet began to lead her in their direction. Two men, one holding the other against a wall, where hidden within one of the guest rooms. She stopped at the door that led into the room with the men. She focused all of her energy on the men in hopes of getting a better picture of them.
The man that held the other's head about snapped off its neck towards the door. A great energy threw itself into the girl's body causing her to whine and lose her concentration. Confused, the girl looked up at the door just in time to see it get flung open. A hand grabbed the front of the pink iro-muji she had been given to wear that day. The world spun as the girl was thrown hard into the room. Harsh wood was her catcher, skinning skin from muscle and releasing blood. A yelp burst from her light pink lips as a wall forced her skidding body to a halt and her soft head bashed against the trim. Her world still spun as the girl opened her eyes again.
Red splattered across the wood floor. She watched some of the red fall in front of her. Curious, the girl reached out and touched the substance. It was a thick, sticky liquid. She looked up at the two males. One was on the ground, his eyes wide and mouth agape. The red substance leaked from his mouth and the large opening in his throat. His skin was changing colors from a flush color to a harsh pale.
"You must have been born under an unlucky star, brat." It took her a moment to realize the male was speaking to her. They never spoke to her; except, she guessed, the little male. Magnetic pink found the deepest shade of black staring down at her. He stood tall above her. The same liquid covered a strange object in the male's hand. The male started towards her, his long legs easily allowing him to reach her in seconds. "Though, what a brat is even doing in a house like this is beyond me. Thought they fixed child-slave laws. No one will miss a servant." The girl finally felt something about the matter at hand besides confusion and curiosity; annoyance.
"I not servant," she snipped tightly, her dull expression turning to one of tension. "I am hangyoku, not servant." A nonexistent eyebrow was raised as if surprised the small bundle of flesh in front of the male had dared to question what he called it.
"…hangyoku? I didn't know they still had children like you practicing to be 'flowers'." She was already beginning to lose interest in the man before her. The little hangyoku instead found interest in the man that had yet to move from the floor. A pool of red was under the man's head. Finding little use of the male in front of her, the girl shifted to her feet and walked right past him. The male watched her go. The girl placed her hand in the red pool before bringing it up to her face.
'It's the stuff that comes out when you're hurt…' she finally realized, rubbing her hand across the untainted floor. The red liquid spread from her fingers on to the ground. She recognized it only from seeing it after one of the servant girls had cut themselves while cooking dinner. Any mar on one of the working women's bodies was the equivalent to someone painting a black line through a magnificent painting in the eyes of the compound. Curiosity caused the girl to lean forward and look at the gaping hole in the man's neck. Red flesh and muscle glistened while white peeked through the back.
"You don't fear a dead man?" the deep voice of the man behind her rumbled. The girl paid him no attention and began to poke at the hole to see if more of the liquid would come out. The slow leak began to gush lightly before calming again. "Are you retarded, brat?"
She didn't truly understand the word but she had heard it plenty of times before from the other women. And while she didn't understand it, she knew it was an insult. The young hangyoku felt her curiosity leave like the evening tide. Her face lost any sign of emotion while her shoulders slumped slightly. She stood up from the ground, wiping her hand on the skirt portion of her iro-muji; the red stood out harshly against the pink.
The girl hadn't realized that she had forgotten about males. They didn't like her; they didn't acknowledge her unless to speak harsh words like the women. The boy had made her forget. He had lowered her guard without her evening noticing.
The hangyoku didn't like that.
Completely ignoring the male behind her, the girl headed towards the sliding door in order to leave. She shouldn't have let her curiosity get the better of her. After all, why would anyone want to talk to her? They never had before the boy.
The little hangyoku opened the sliding door and took one step out.
'I wonder if he'll come back…' she thought absent-mindedly. The same hand as before caught the back of her outfit and yanked the girl straight back into the room. Darkness was cast upon her again when the man shut the door tight.
"Do you really think I'm just going to let you go, brat?" She stared up at him with her dull expression. The male bent down at the knees and held out the strange item he held in hand. Magnetic pink eyes crawled over the item with renewed interest. This close, she could see it was a metal item that stretched out much like a knife and pointed at the top. The bottom half of the weapon was covered in bandages and was held loosely in the man's hand. "Do you even know what this is?" The girl looked up into the man's dark eyes, before her attention was directed towards the metal again. The red liquid still oozed off the point. Curiosity getting the best of her, the girl reached out and pressed against the side.
A sharp feeling sprouted from the girl's finger causing her to hiss and pull her finger back. The red liquid began to swell at the tip of her finger. With the pain still present, the girl brought her finger close and watched the liquid. It was pretty. Her eyes left her finger in order to look at the man who was still on the ground. The pool of red was large under him. What little light that could, reflected off the crimson surface. She looked back at her finger then up at the metal still in the man's hand. The man hadn't moved his position since squatting.
'Can I make more of the red?' she wondered quietly.
Before anything more could be said on the matter the girl felt another presence join them. The man shifted his weight quickly turning just in time to see the door open. A painted up woman sat on the floor, a plate of tea sitting next to her.
"Greetings sir—" The woman's black eyes went wide as she rose from her bow and saw the current situation. The girl watched the man's arm pull back at a surprising speed with the metal. Something deep in the little hangyoku knew what was about to happen; but, she wanted it to happen differently. Her body taking control, the girl snatched the metal from the man's hand just as it was about to release it towards the intruder. Pulling up into a crouch, the girl tightened her grip on the slightly heavy item. Her small thighs flung her forward in a high leap. Black eyes were wide as they watched the girl fall from the sky like a swooping eagle with its talons extended. Her body collided harshly into the woman's, sending the woman on to her back and trapping her legs underneath her backside. The girl's own feet stomped into the woman's stomach. She threw her arm forward. The flesh gave way with great ease under the pointed end and sharp edge.
Red burst forth like rain and splattered across the girl's front. A scream was gagged out and more of the liquid ruptured from the woman's mouth. She stood over the woman, her hand pressed up against the cooling flesh of the neck. Magnetic pink burned into the face of the woman and watched with silent fascination as the color drained from her face and her deep brown eyes turned to an eerie black. She pushed at the woman's face with her blood covered hand. Her skin was turning tight and unyielding.
"Why did you—" The girl turned back to the male and for the first time since he had seen her the girl's eyes were light up. Blood was splattered across her face and the front of her iro-muji. The hangyoku watched with wary eyes as the man walked to her and her kill. Neither one said anything as the man came and looked down at the opened wound. It looked exactly the same as the one he had placed upon his target's neck. Cold eyes glanced at the blue haired child. She barely came up to his hip.
"Master?" a voice hissed in question. The man looked to the door and his subordinate that now peeked around the side. The man rolled his eyes but motioned for the boy to enter. He watched the girl look towards his puppet. Her round brows popped up her small forehead. His underling's face sudden beamed with something far too close to happiness. "What are you doing here?" the boy asked. The girl blinked once before looking down at her kill. He had had enough.
"We're leaving. Our mission is done." The man barged past the girl, almost knocking her over. She didn't make a noise.
"Master?" the boy questioned. The man didn't answer and kept walking. Brown eyes shifted between his Master's retreating back and the girl. Her dull face stared blankly at him. The boy shrugged once before giving her a small smile. "Bye." He turned to leave but was suddenly stopped by a hand on his sleeve. For the first time since he met the little blue haired child, panic sparked in her eyes. When the boy looked at her she quickly hid the panic. It was like watching a door close.
"Bye?" the girl repeated with a small tilt at the end. He nodded.
"Yeah, bye. We're leaving now that our mission is done." The girl looked up through her long eyelashes at the boy. She released the boy's sleeve. She didn't understand the intense panic she had felt. Males left the island. They didn't stay. They never did. Not understanding, the girl decided that she didn't like the feeling. Without another look at the boy she left the room. She stepped over the woman, not touching the red liquid that surrounded her. She didn't find it pretty anymore. The boy called out softly to the girl. She ignored him. She didn't understand the strange tightness in her chest; only that he had caused it.
She didn't know how long she walked the halls. Her feet walked themselves. She didn't pay any attention to a thing. The pressure in her chest was painful. Her mind was confused; she had never felt this kind of pain before. Usually, she didn't feel anything and she was fine with that.
Magnetic pink eyes lifted up as the young hangyoku stopped walking. A woman was coming towards her. A woman the girl was never supposed to speak to let alone look upon. Her elaborate kimono was a glaucous blue and a silver silk was woven in an extraordinary pattern about the bottom. Her obi was tied in the traditional taiko musubi on her back. Long sleeves covered the woman's hands. The back of her three-layered kimono hung low over her shoulders, showing a portion of her back and the red neckline but still keeping everything covered in the front. Long blue hair was pulled back in to an elegant knot with an ornament clipped above her right ear.
The woman's eyes were straight ahead, never once resting upon the girl. The young hangyoku watched the woman pass her. She was nonexistent to the woman. The girl looked down at her body. The red liquid that had spilled from the woman was still coating half of her iro-muji and portions of her face. The girl knew the liquid meant someone was injured. But this woman didn't spare a single glance for her. The woman passed.
She had never spoken to the woman before; she never actually saw the woman on a day to day bases, only at meetings which everyone was ordered to attend. But as she watched the woman's retreating back, covered in the red liquid and still confused about the boy and man, the hangyoku felt the word come from her mouth even though she didn't truly know what it meant.
"Mother…"
The woman didn't hesitate a single step; she didn't look back; she didn't acknowledge the girl at all.
"Mother," the girl tried again, her young mind giving her excuses as to why the woman didn't stop. She turned her body so that she faced the woman completely. "Mother."
The woman disappeared down the corridor.
She stood within the hall, wiry limbs limp at her side and eyes stuck on where the woman had disappeared. Others that lived in the household flew by the hangyoku in a hurry, their legs flying past her in a blur of fabric. None of them noticed the girl and her blood stained gown.
Her body was acting on its own before her mind could comprehend. Rushing down the hall, her little legs carried her past other women that grumbled at her passing. The girl launched herself from the wrap around porch. Landing wrong, the girl fell to her knees before scrambling back up and continuing into the forest that surrounded her home. Twigs and plants cut at her bare feet as branches grabbed at her dress and hair.
She felt it burst from her feet and thunder across the earth with each footfall. Pictures popped up into her mind in a beautiful white landscape. It flashed through her mind every time her skin touched dirt. She flung her reach out far in desperate flight to find him. When she did reach him the girl's speed picked up impressively. Weaving between the trees and tearing through the undergrowth, the girl burst out of the woods. Her chest was heaving while her heart galloped.
A blade was pressed tight against her throat. She barely noticed the blade, instead focusing on the warm flesh pressed against her shoulder. Ignoring the blade the hangyoku looked up into the soft face of the boy. His expression turned into one of shock but the girl didn't care. With a one-track mind urging her forward, she reached out and snatched at his bare arm. The boy reared slightly, surprised by her sudden movement.
The flesh was soft under her hands and warm. It was the warmest thing she had ever felt. A soft noise bubbled up from the back of her throat as she all but buried her face into the boy's armpit. Her sharp nose was smothered in the boy's scent but she didn't care. The hangyoku filled her lungs while her hands continued to touch and roam every inch of skin she could find on the boy's body.
"What's—" the deep voice of the larger male halted. She pulled her nose out from his armpit only to shove it against his neck and take another deep breath. "What's she doing here?"
"She…found us."
"…do you honestly think that chakra was her?"
"Who else could it be Master?" The girl didn't care what they were talking about. She was obsessed with the feel of the boy's skin. It was the most and the longest she had ever made contact with someone before. Since the boy had yet to throw her from him as if she were rabid, the girl began to run fingers through his hair. The texture stunned her and instantly she was pulling on the strands. The boy let out a noise of discomfort but she was oblivious. "What is she doing?" the boy questioned while she began to push and pull at his nose.
The man didn't answer for a long time, not that she was paying attention. She had found the boy's mouth and was running her fingers along his plump lips. The boy grunted when she shoved her pale fingers in to his mouth in order to feel the texture of his teeth.
She choked and began to snarl when the male pulled her up by the neck of her iro-muji.
"How old are you?" The girl didn't answer and continued to try and free herself from his grasp. A heavy shake had her turning to the man with a snarl. A brow was raised when sharp teeth were gnashed in his direction. Curious, the man reached out and placed his hand within hers. The snarling and fighting stopped almost instantly as she became preoccupied with feeling the difference between his skin and the little male's. Tough texture made her rub hard at the skin. The hair on his thick arm entertained her for a moment before she went back to feeling the rough skin of his knuckles and joints.
"She's little," the boy commented offhandedly. His Master wasn't showing any sign of stress due to holding the girl. Most of that was due to his brute strength but the rest was due to the girl's size.
"Let's go." The girl yelped as she was dropped on to the ground and landed painfully. The panic she had felt before came rushing forward, almost choking her. Without a thought, the hangyoku threw herself forward and ensnared her small hands into the man's pants. The male stopped walking and glowered down at the kid stuck to his leg. He already had one straggler he didn't need another; especially when it was obviously a runt. Bringing up his other leg the male brought it down on the girl and sent her sprawling. The girl didn't stay down for long before she was reattached to his leg.
"I don't think she wants us to leave." He looked down at the girl attached to his leg before at his smiling follower. He didn't like the smile that was shining at him. The girl was beginning to run a hand over the muscles hidden beneath the fabric of his pants while another kept a firm grip. Looking down he watched the girl continue to try and feel as much of him as she could. When she got to close to his private areas he kicked her away again.
Again the girl was attaching herself to his side. She reached up her slight hand, and rubbed it along his bare side. He shoved her away this time. Seeing no end to the constant rejection the girl rushed to the boy's side and began to run her hands over him.
"She's obsessed," the larger male grunted.
"It's like she's never touched someone before," the little male mused, giving her hand to pet and fuss over. The little male watched the larger one kneel. She watched him as well even while she continued to run her fingers over and in between the small male's fingers.
"Geisha don't have children." The male was looking her over from head to toe, his black eyes hard. She lost interested in him after a moment of study and turned her attention to the little male. His palm was rough but the back of his hand was smooth. "Though that'd explain why she's small." The male stood up to his full height before turning around.
"What are we going to do with her, Master?"
"Leave her." The little male watched the larger male begin to walk back towards the water. Tilting his head to the side, the smaller male started after the other after detaching the girl. Before the boy had gotten far he was smothered by the oppressive essence. Panic surged through him as he spun around to face the threat and was slammed into by the girl. Nails dug into his flesh as the girl all but crawled into him. The boy was able to remove the clawing girl from his form and dashed to his master's side.
Almost instantly the powerful wave of chakra from before was back tenfold, crashing around them and clawing at their skin. The boy watched his master stop and they both turned back to the village they had left. The little girl came barreling after them; this time latching on so tight to the boy he felt blood begin to drip under her nails. Her pretty pink eyes had filled with an obsessive panic that caused him worry.
The boy never saw the man move but he felt the impact through the girl. Almost instantly the child was on the ground, eyes rolling back. He watched his master scoop the girl up and tossed her over a shoulder.
"Are we taking her?" he asked, slightly relieved when he saw her still breathing.
"With her ability to find us so quickly and that amount of chakra? I'd be a fool to pass her up. 'Sides, she's already attached." The boy smiled up into the gloating face of his master. He thought it was a marvelous idea. The girl was entertaining. While he lived and died by his master, the man wasn't exactly the most talkative of traveling companions and the young mind of the boy was starved for stimulation that didn't involve a blade. "We've wasted too much time. Let's go."
The rising mist swallowed the bodies of the males, embracing them into their depths and hiding the treasure they had stolen.
Well, there ya go. Beneath is a list of Japanese words that aren't as well known and thought I'd help ya guys out.
Iro-muji—a semi-formal kimono with no-design
Onee-san—older sister
Hangyoku—young girls bound to Geisha houses as children
Shamisen—three-stringed, Japanese musical instrument played with a plectrum called a bachi.
Hanamachi—flower town
Okiya—geisha house
