Mirror, Mirror.
Reina was angry. Furious in fact as angry did not begin to cover how she felt at that moment in time. She could literally feel her blood boiling away beneath her skin. Her Uncle had gone too far this time; she could handle the small, petty remarks about her lack of ambition in the political forefront and all the jibes about her rank in the shinobi hierarchy. But this time? This time he had gone beyond the limits of unbelievable.
"I hereby call the commencement of this meeting between us, the Hitori clan and our esteemed guests and representatives of the Fujimoto clan. Welcome and thank you for attending this meeting on such short notice." Atsushi smiled politely, bowing lowly before kneeling at the head of the square table, the other members mimicking his actions, Reina included. Atsushi folded his arm into the sleeves of his yukata, the collar starched and pressed to perfection as he looked over the clan's members, his eyes meeting Reina's for the briefest of moments.
He smirked, she glared.
"Now, I have called this meeting as I have a proposal. One that if approved would link and bind our two clans, strengthening an already strong and faithful bond." He paused acknowledging the nodding heads about the room, all but one that is. Reina scowled fiercely at him, her golden orbs burning with a determined defiance that was inextinguishable.
"I propose a betrothal between our clans, between a suitor of your choice and my niece, Reina Hitori. With a union such as this, our clans will have a formidable alliance." Atsushi smiled charmingly, a beautifully precise and perfected act. The elders of the Fujimoto clans whispered amongst themselves, occasionally glancing and observing the young female, whose fists were quivering in pure rage. Reina closed her eyes and inhaled deeply, trying to calm herself before her temper got the better of her. She could feel the agitation coursing through her veins alongside her chakra, her kekkai genkai unknowingly flittering on an off.
All eyes were now on the chestnut haired girl, the air around her occasionally popping and crackling unexpectedly. Atsushi had seen this all before, the elemental particles in the air such as oxygen and hydrogen heating up and changing their form violently as Reina's temper continued to escalate.
"Reina…"Atsushi warned, standing from his place at the head of the table, making his way towards her, pushing any fear from sight as not to appear weak in front of his peers. Numerous pairs of eyes stared at the pair, the air becoming thinner and sparser yet filling with unimaginable tension. Reina was oblivious to her uncle closing the distance between them, her breaths were deep and long as she continued to try and reign in her anger.
"How dare you make a mockery of our clan in front of our guests…" Atsushi hissed lowly reaching out to grab the collar of Reina's jounin jacket. But, before he could grab at the khaki fabric Reina's eyes snapped open, sweeping his outreached hand and grabbing a hold of his wrist and twisting it behind his back forcing him to kneel. With his face pressed against the cool mahogany table Atsushi groaned in discomfort, attempting to move from the hold only to find her grip tighten, twisting his arm further up his back, close to breaking it.
Reina looked up from her writhing uncle, met by fearful and shocked faces.
"I apologise for this outburst, however you see. Atsushi-san, although my Uncle is not the head of my clan, he in fact is of the Himura clan, the maiden clan of my Grandmother. She is the Matriarch of the Hitori clan, and as you may have noticed, I am the only female in this room thus the leader of this clan is not here." Reina spoke calmly, twisting her uncle's arm a little as she spoke, being sure to annunciate the fact that he was not the leader of the clan, nor would he ever be. Atsushi continued to writhe beneath Reina's grip, the vein on his temple pulsating crimson with indignation.
"Now…if you all will excuse me I have matters to attend to, again I apologise for this eruption I hope that I have not tarnished our reputation and will happily meet again under difference circumstances to discuss the relationship between our clans." Reina paused, gazing across the room, the clan members standing and bowing before departing, leaving the room brimming with unbridled tension. Reina turned her gaze back down to her uncle, leaning down and muttering in his ear lowly.
"Try and barter me off like cattle again? I swear to Kami I'll not only ruin your political career? But I'll drag your name that far through the mud that not even that dog Danzō will want to be associated with you. I promise you that."
"HA! You think that you a puny classroom assistant can do all that?! Can you even call yourself a ninja with that occupation? You wouldn't be able to rally the connections to even put a scratch on me, let alone ruin me. You're pathetic." He retorted, practically cackling in triumph at seeing the slight sliver of hurt pass by her eyes. It felt like someone had taken a tight grip of her heart and squeezed without hesitation or remorse. She wouldn't let this insignificant rendition of a man put her down, she had worked hard to get where she was today, and he had no right to say otherwise.
"You…just wait…" She whispered; her voice uncharacteristically cold and devoid of emotion. Without warning Reina thrust Atsushi's arm further up his back forcefully, not even flinching upon hearing the humerus dislocating from his shoulder and sound of the radius fleeing from the pit of the elbow. Atsushi screamed out in agony, using his free arm to claw at the polished table, his nails digging into the grain. Reina released the now immobile and inoperable limb after giving it a concluding curl, almost as if giving a dagger a final twist before walking away and glancing back at the squirming man.
"You're the one who is pathetic…at least I picked on someone my own size unlike you." Their eyes met for a final time before she disappeared from the room, leaving him to wallow in his misery and loathing towards her. He had crossed the line, she merely overstepped the line he had drawn in the sand and outdid him.
And he had, had this coming for a long time.
She hadn't been this riled in a long time. Her thoughts were blurred, incoherent sequences of colour and sound; nothing calmed them, and all she wanted was a bit of peace, a mere moment in time where nothing mattered. It was like somewhere someone had turned a radio on and not tuned it into a station, the static crackling constantly and no matter which way you turned the dial; the buzzing would simply carry on regardless. Reina inhaled deeply, finally removing her arm from over her eyes, squinting at the bright sunlight that bombarded her sight.
"Urgh…too bright…" she mumbled, closing her eyes once more.
"Well I didn't take you for the type to be skiving from school Reina. You normally give people detention for doing that." A deep, but smooth voice spoke from above her. She knew that voice all too well. Despite the sun beating down and temporarily blinding her, Reina jumped up from her place in the grass, an instantaneous smile spreading upon her pale features, the previous encounter with her uncle dispersing as if it had never happened.
"Neji!" She exclaimed, throwing herself at the young Hyuuga male, all four limbs wrapped around him like a koala. Neji smiled a rare smile, supporting her with ease as she held his face in her hands, inspecting him as if it was the first time she had laid eyes upon him.
"I take it you missed me then. It was destined in the stars that you would." He chuckled lowly, the sound vibrating around in his throat. She smiled and rolled her eyes, accustomed to the astrological spiel.
"So Mr-Newly-Appointed-ANBU Captain how was it? Was it all that you imagined it to be?" Her eyes were alight with keen interest. He nodded, settling himself and her down back into the grass carefully; she perched in his lap, listening attentively, he having her full attention.
"For the first time Reina, I felt like I belonged, like I was achieving something with my wretched, cursed life. It felt like I had finally earned the respect that I have been fighting for, for years. It was destiny." He tore his lavender hued gaze from the lake, violet meeting gold once again. Reina smiled brightly up at him, carefully outlining the faded scuffs on his snowy skin questioningly.
"The target was a fire jutsu expert, and they got too close for comfort." She nodded, continuing to trace his singed skin.
"Good thing they didn't singe your luscious locks. Heaven forbid that, that would happen, I mean your admirers would be heartbroken if you had to cut them." She teased, carefully winding his chocolate locks around her fingers. It was his turn to roll his eyes now as he wrapped his arms around her, holding her firmly to his chest and leaning his chin upon her head gently. Reina inhaled his scent, burying her face into the fabric of his shirt; the peacefulness that she had been previously yearning for enveloping her fully. Neji's lips twitched, the corners tugging into a small, sentimental smile; it was a rarity that this happened, normally he kept his face as blank as the ANBU mask that he wore. However it was around this young woman that he was able to relax, a mutual thing between the pair.
She was his valium, and he her escape.
Moments of satisfied silence passed between the pair, both enveloped in the company of the other. It was Reina who broke the peaceful silence, speaking hesitantly up at Neji. She didn't look him directly in the eyes; to her those eyes of his could see everything about her and it unnerved her at times.
"Neji…Can I ask you a favour?" Neji nodded, not even asking what the favour was. Reina smiled a little, breathing out in quiet relief.
"Do you think I could spend the night with you tonight? I kind of did something which I'm really not in the mood to face right now…" This caught the young male's attention, a glimmer of curiosity passing over his expression. He needed not to ask what, Reina huffed a little as he quirked a brow.
"I…" she paused, taking a small breath.
"Ikindadislocatedmyuncle'sarmbecausehetriedtoarrangeabetrothalwithanotherclan…" She finally exhaled, a now nervous laugh passing her lips at seeing the expression plastered on his face. Neji arched his brow again, leaning back on his elbows as he watched the blubbering girl with slight amusement.
"Well, well, well…Hitori Reina, look at you going all vigilante against Atsushi. I cannot say I predicted that in your horoscope. Are you sure you wouldn't consider taking the ANBU exam? I mean if you're going to be dislocating arm's on a regular ba~" Neji didn't get the chance to finish his sentence as he found himself with a mouthful of grass, the occasional dandelion poking out.
A gleeful laugh passed Reina's lips, her eyes sparkling with unbridled delight, having not been this at ease and free in a long time. She stood quickly and dashed off away from the now standing Hyuuga, the blades of grass and dandelions falling to the floor as he spat them out, wiping his tongue with his yukata sleeve.
"Reina…" Neji growled, an underlying tone of playfulness lacing his words as he sprinted off after her, locking her in his sights. Reina dodged and ducked the branches as she endeavoured to avoid capture, occasionally activating her kekkai genkai and to pass through the larger obstacles in the woods. With his byakugan activated, Neji followed Reina with ease even when she passed through boulders and tree trunks; her chakra pattern was still visible, it glowing a pale gold, matching her eyes perfectly.
But then something happened. Neji couldn't see Reina.
He halted, the chakra flowing to his feet as he clung to the tree trunk, frantically looking about in search of the young kunoichi. Even when using his 360 degree vision he couldn't find her chakra pattern, it was the strangest thing. Then, from nowhere Neji felt himself sinking, being absorbed by the tree, the bark slowly enveloping him. Despite his efforts, Neji was now waist deep inside the tree, his arms rendered immobile. It was then that his byakugan picked something up; he squinted not quite sure if his eyes were deceiving him. There, amongst the tree's qi was a faint outline, the longer he stared, the more distinguishable it became.
"Reina?" He called out uncertainly, the shape now oh so familiar to him. It was then that Reina appeared from below him, walking up the trunk and straddling a branch in front of him, her legs dangling freely in the air.
"Hai Neji, you rang?" She taunted, leaning forward on her hands on the branch. He scowled a little, unable to figure out how she managed to disappear from sight, especially how she vanished from his byakugan.
"Ne, Reina…can you please get me out now?" Reina nodded, her eyes glimmering once more as her chakra flowed more freely and without restraint around her body. She reached out, firmly gripping the shoulders of his yukata before carefully pulling, his body slowly resurfacing from the tree trunk. Once free Neji joined Reina upon the tree branch, eyeing her skeptically before speaking.
"Reina…how did your chakra trail vanish?" He asked curiously, having not experienced such a thing before now. At first she didn't answer, simply tracing the grain of the wood.
"Well…I've been practicing with my bloodline; after reading about the Sage's I realise that with using my kekkai genkai I could sort of adapt their technique?" She paused watching his expression before continuing. "I am able to acclimatise my chakra to match the periodic compounds of my surroundings, if that makes sense, sort of like a chakra camouflage?" He nodded, impressed that she is able to maintain such a high control over her bloodline, she truly had mastered her abilities, yet didn't even know it.
"But…" She hesitated once again, this time, insecurity tinging her voice.
"But what…?" He interjected. She glanced up at him, her body language oozing a lack of confidence and self-worth.
"But I've been working on something for years now…and I'm so close to perfecting it but…" She looked him in the eyes, they brimming with unshed tears. She didn't need to say anything else, he knew what she was going to say and he wasn't about to let her say it. Pulling her close he held her against him, he could feel her quiver a little in attempt to hold back the tears. Reina tensed a little before relaxing completely against him, wrapping her arms around his sculpted torso.
"Reina…" he murmured into her hair. "You are the only one holding yourself back, once you realise your potential you can master any jutsu or technique…You just need to realise what you're capable of" Neji pondered to himself for a brief moment before whispering softly. "I once said that these eyes of mine show many things. One thing that they've shown me is that people's limitations are set, fixed and unchangeable." He paused, admittedly ashamed of his past words, knowing that destiny, fate and a person's abilities are changeable, that with each day a person unconsciously changes, becoming stronger and more resilient.
"But now I know that I was wrong. Reina, you are capable of so much and yet you don't even know it." Neji continued, his inner sentimental side allowing him to stroke her hair affectionately away from prying eyes. Reina let out a sigh of relief, a wave of respite washing over her as she curled further into his arms, not wanting the brief affection to end. She smiled to herself, lifting her head from the comforts of his embrace, leaning in slowly and pressing her rosy lips to his pale cheek, leaving them there for a few, brief moments before tearing them away, the soft smile still present on her lips. Neji parted his lips to speak but no words passed his mouth; instead he could feel the skin of cheek heat up after her lips had departed.
She bit her lower lip a little, looking away shyly, her own cheeks inking with rosiness. A small nervous chuckle passed her lips as she pushed the stray strands of hair behind her ear.
"Reina I~" Neji began.
"Reina Hitori?!"
The pair looked down from the canopy top only to see a chunin waving from the woodland floor, motioning her down. Reina smiled apologetically to Neji who nodded understandingly, giving a small bow from the waist before disappearing in a cloud of smoke, his stoic mask back in place before he left. He would tell her one day, but fate obviously had other plans. Reina sighed, swinging her leg over the branch before pushing off from the tree; the wind whipped through her hair as she free fell from the tree, feeling a sensation of complete weightlessness overcoming her as she neared the ground.
The greenery of the grass neared in the blink of an eye, bracing herself for impact she landed on the ground, the material of her boots squeaking as the leather flexed and stretched as she landed. She stood tilting her head in curiosity at the young chunin, who couldn't be older than fourteen.
"Hai, I'm Reina Hitori, what's the problem?"
The chunin fiddled around in their pouch before handing her a sealed scroll, the insignia on the seal matching that of the interrogation department. Thanking the chunin for their services she opened the scroll, scanning the parchment with curious eyes, only to be taken back by what she read.
She hadn't been expecting that today.
Reina couldn't believe her eyes. In her entire twenty three years on this earth, she had never witnessed such a thing as this. Her stomach churned in disgust yet her face remained as blank as an artist's canvas. With her hair tied up loosely in a bun and her hands gloved in latex gloves she entered the cramped, barred cell, the pungent stench burning her nose and making her eyes water. Ibiki stood beside her, his usual apathetic expression plastered on his face as he too scanned the scene before them.
"What's your initial thought then?" Ibiki muttered, his hands shoved deep into the pockets of his coat.
Reina paced carefully around the blood painted cell, eyeing the symbol that had been painted onto the stone wall. The symbol had been painted in blood, the lines precise and intricate. Reina turned back to Ibiki though her eyes were focused on Touzuku behind him being attended to by a medic team.
"It is definitely the insignia of Jashinism but I didn't take Touzuku as a follower of such a cult, especially to self-mutilate at that." Reina drifted off, intently watching the medics hands glow green over Touzuku's disfigured arm, the floor continuously filling with the scarlet liquid as he groaned in agony.
"Well there is no point interrogating him with the condition he is in, so my time here is pointless…But, he may speak to you so it's worth a try." Ibiki glanced over at the bleeding man pitifully before leaving the cell, Reina left to try and figure out the bloody mess around her. She accompanied the medics and the semi-conscious Touzuku down to the medical wing, the air having changed from an iron tinged scent to an overpowering smell of cleaning agents, the chemical odour bitterer than that of the blood painted cell.
Reina perched beside Touzuku who was heavily sedated, his heart monitor flittering away as he lay motionless, the only slight movement was that of his chest, his breathing faint and hardly noticeable.
"Touzuku?" Reina asked quietly, noting how his eyes fluttered towards her. He lifted his free arm fiddling with the pesky oxygen mask; standing Reina eased the mask from his face, listening attentively as he fought to get his words out.
"Th…the…" He paused gasping for air. Reina held the mask to his face, patiently waiting for him to gather his bearings. He nodded in gratitude as she removed the mask once more before he continued.
"They swapped the book. The Kojiki- they swapped it." Reina frowned, her face crumpled up in confusion.
"Swapped it? Who swapped it?" She asked, pressing for answers.
"The ones who did this…" He replied, motioning to what was left of his mutilated arm. The fear was evident in his eyes, but, out of the blue the heart monitor flat lined. Touzuku's eyes rolled into the back of his head as he his heart stopped beating. Reina's eyes widened, moving the bed so it was flat calling the medical team over. The cardiac arrest team rushed over to try and save the dying man; Reina watched on the side lines, the medics attempting numerous times to restart his heart, but it was in vain, she knew he was gone.
"Time of death, 15.05pm." The medics deserted the now pointless patient, covering his lifeless body with a linen sheet, sheathing what little dignity he had left. Reina sat down in the nearby visitor's hanging her head in her hand's unable to believe the turn of events. She sighed heavily, slouching back into the chair, the now constant static back buzzing away in her head once more. She didn't know whether to take the deceased seriously, after all he did attempt to steal a valuable relic.
But then again, what was stopping him from telling the truth? Could he simply be a pawn piece in a bigger web of deceit? She was going to get to the bottom of this one way or another.
