Archer75: Sorry for the very late update, I can't seem to find my head lately. Still I manage to finish this chapter, hope you'll like it.


All her senses are in alert, feeling ans smelling everything. She can hear even the drop of a dew from a leaf. She raised her gun, listening intently, feeling the movement on the ground…There! Her pulse rose, without inhibition she pulled the trigger… the bullet found its target.

"Alright! That was so cool it always amaze me how you do that. The guys are gonna love the meat of this thing?" Takeda carried the gazelle by his shoulder.

Natsuki put her gun back to her holster. Without saying a word she turned around and moved away.

"Hey wait for me…You don't say much you know that?"

Natsuki stopped "and for a man you talk too much" she said coldly before moving ahead living Takeda behind.

"Hey! Man…She's really pretty when she's cold like that, no wonder they called her ice." He followed her back to their camp.


Natsuki found a place where she could meditate away from the others, especially Takeda.

"Hey!"

Or not…

She felt him sit next to her.

"So tell me…What made you?" Takeda asked.

"What made me what?" She answered coldly.

"What made you become like this...like us?"

"You mean a mercenary?"

"Well...yeah. Like that."

"What made you like that?" She asked in return.

"Oh- me? My master decided he no longer needs me so here *SHRUG* I am. What about you?"

"I tried to kill my master's fiancé"

"What! Why the heck would you do that? Are you crazy?"

"You know why I did that?"

"Why?"

"Because-" She turned to his direction "he asked too many questions" She said coldly.

"Uh-uhurm (clearing throat) I-" his voice rose an octave, it sounded like a squeak "I-uhurm…need to work on-on something…Yeah I-I need to go."

She felt relieved when she felt him rush back to camp.

But It didn't last a minute before she felt another presence around.

She sigh…"Why am I not surprised? Why can't you people just leave me alone?"

"I need you to come with me."

She felt something in his voice. So she didn't say anything and follow him. She can tell by the direction their taking that they are moving back to camp.

They were almost at the camp when her nose caught a familiar scent…she froze on her track. "I know that scent." She followed her nose and moved closer to the scent and by the direction she's taking she knows its leading her back to their camp. She can hear the voices of her comrades and she can hear new voices…familiar voices…she greeted her teeth; she can feel her muscles contracted in cold anger.

As swift as the wind she turned to man behind her and pushes him against the tree. "Why?" she said in a low trembling voice.

The man gasps with the lack of air "you grew faster and stronger than I thought *smirk*" he's not surprise by her reaction. "Are you gonna hold me like this all night or your gonna let me talk?"

Natsuki took a deep breath and tried to control her anger she let him go. She didn't say a word but waited for his explanation.

"We found them on our way back to camp. They are being attacked I can tell by the way those vampires were dressed they were assassins. They needed help so we did what we always do…Stick our nose to other people's business."

"You know who she is, you know what I've been through, why did you bring them here?" She said with an accusing voice.

"One of them is wounded."

Natsuki froze.

"The wound is not deep but the arrow the hit her is poisoned. We both know it won't kill her but-"

"Who's wounded?"

He smiled "concerned?"

"I don't give a fuck about her...just tell me."

" Your statement s very contradicting well *shrug his shoulders* when you think about it this a good chance for you. You can watch-oh I mean listen her suffer for awhile, you can do whatever you want with her we'll not gonna stop you, we'll hold her friends for you."

"Do you have any cure?"

"Well we ran out of some of the herbs that we need for the cure, and it's not easy to acquire. It's on the other side of the mountain."

"What do you need?"

"I told you-"

"Just tell me!"

"I was thinking to send someone else to-"

"I'll go..."

Sigh "Fine. You're familiar with their texture and scent though it wont be easy coz you can't see, but hey i know you got many skills, but you have to be careful we both know what you're capable of but we also know your limitations." He gave her the name of the herbs that he needed and instruction on where and how to get them. He watched her bolted out immediately after giving instructions about everything.

He shook his head."You can never run away from what you feel kid. Well…" shrug his shoulders "we'll just have to see what happened next."

His almost near the camp when he heard the sky rumble…"Hmmm this night is getting more interesting by the minute."

The group found themselves inside a cave safe and dry from the pouring rain outside.

She can feel her body going numb and weak but she didn't say anything she didn't want to alarm her companions, especially when they are surrounded by unknown company.

"You don't look very well child are you alright?'

She can sense concern in his words but still not enough to trust him completely. It's hard for her to do that this days.

"I will be alright sir. I would like to thank you for your aid you have saved mine and my companions lives. We are in your debt."

"It's alright, we've been through a lot of situations like that." He sat beside her gently check her pulse. "Your pulse is a little fast princess. The poison is spreading fast." He said in a low voice careful not to let anyone here him.

Shizuru was alarmemed, she grab her dagger ready to defend herself with it. "How did-"

"There's no need to be alarmed princess. You and your friends are safe in here. My men and I have nothing against you and your men."

"How can we be sure? And how did you know who I am?" She's still not willing to take the man's word.

"I have been around with a lot of nobles for a long time my lady, I know one when I see one. And that" pointing at the hilt of her sword "can never hide who you are. You always carry the symbol of your kingdom with you."

"You know too much for a bandit" her voice grew colder and full of suspicions.

The man didn't say anything about her last statement "One of my men volunteered to get the herbs that you need my lady she'll be back before dawn tomorrow I suggest you rest well for tonight you'll be needing your strength."


The rocks are getting slippery, she almost got all the herbs that she needed, except for the last herbs growing at the top of this side of the mountains. She'd been grabbing and sniffing the leaves that her hand can grab. The temperature's gone colder and the breeze a little harder indicating that she's almost at the top of the rocky mountains. "It's gonna be around here somewhere." She pulled herself higher and continue sniffing every leafy that she could grab on. "Nice Natsuki now you're like a dog sniffing every freakin leaf in this freakin pile of rocks." She move a little more higher and finally found what she's looking for "finally". She assess how far she could be from the ground before letting go and letting her body fall, she slightly bent her knees when she land to lessen the impact of her fall "free fall-I always love doing that…" she move swiftly taking her way back.


"Someone's coming" said the assigned guard for that night

"Who is it?"

"I still can't tell from this weather…wait it's one of us, its ice, she's coming in fast."

'She's always good in tracking I thought it would take her awhile to find us here especially with this weather."

It didn't take long before the subject if their discussion stood before them dripping wet and with the necessary herbs at hand.

She said nothing, after handing the pouch with the herbs she moved inside the cave but away from the group.

"Aren't you gonna ask how she is?" he said over his shoulder.

"You already have what you need. Asking unnecessary questions would be pointless." She continue on her way.

"You know sometimes I forget that she's blind." Said the guard.

"Her sight might be gone kid, but she's not blind. She can see way better than all of us combind."


Even when she's far from the others she can still clearly hear their voices. She can't find the voice she wanted to hear, she focus on a different sound. Though most of the people inside the this cave are like her aside from the insects and small animals lurking in there they also have 3 humans with them bounty hunters to be exact and since she's already familiar with her companions own heart beat she looked for something new...not entirely new, just something she haven't heard for a long time…There she found it…It's beating is a little erratic and she can also her breathing hard. "He better work on those herbs fast or…" wow-stop there or else what? That woman in there is the one responsible for what and where you are right now…Why did you even bother getting those herbs for her? She said to herself "Why indeed?"


It's getting hard for her to breath the posing is slowly breaking through her system. She wanted to send Tate to look for a medicine but she know it would be hard for this kind of weather and it wouldn't be safe for her and Mai to be left there alone with this unknown individuals.

The side of her lips rose a little, the last this happened to her someone was looking after her, keeping her warm and safe…

Well there's no need for lurking in the past. She find it hard to keep her eyes open anymore, no matter how hard she tried. She find it weird though little by little she started to feel comfortable and believe it or not somewhat safe…not completely but safer than before"Hmmm weird indeed."


She heard her muscles and her breathing relaxed though its still heavy but she felt it relaxed. She finally manage to rest.

"The fates can play rough sometimes. Just when I was thinking about giving up revenge. Here you are…Why do you always make it hard for me Shizuru. Until when are going to make me suffer?"


Archer75: Reviews please, thank you for reading…