05:30 am
Underwater Base
Japan
Link, dressed in a black bodysuit, faced off against two other males. The first, a short man with a buzz cut, ran forward, kicking out. Link's legs folded back, his back hitting the floor as the leg swooped over him. Springing up, Link swerved to avoid a punch from the other male, a tall European man, before swiping his feet from under him. The blonde fell with a thud before Link finished it, knocking him out with a kick to the head. Buzz cut advanced and Link moved back, looking for a potential weakness. A knife materialized in his hand. Time to finish this.
05:34 am
Ryokan
Japan
Erika bandaged her newest injuries, ecstatic despite the pain. She'd missed this, the training sessions that left her heart pounding and mind racing. Kameyo had never gone easy on her, but her methods got results. Erika looked up in time to catch the towel thrown her way.
Kameyo was a beautiful older woman in her late fifties. Knee length black hair pulled up into a silky looking ponytail was streaked with gray. Pale skin was showing signs of age, with small wrinkles by the eyes and mouth. Erika remembered how this woman looked a decade ago, a stunning, deceptively delicate looking lady. She had been a wonderful mother, always helpful and insightful. The smile she had once worn was gone now, but her beauty remained. As did her decades of stealth and assassination skills. Her customary kimono had been traded for a red tank top and loose black pants. To this day, Erika had no idea where she stored her weaponry.
Kameyo sat beside her, dark eyes serious. "We will have to return soon." Erika looked up, "We?" "Yes, we. You will not be ready to face your father alone for many months yet, I will fight beside you. Did you really think I would let you go alone?" Erika smirked, pulling a shard of glass out of her leg, "No, you've wanted him dead for too long and this is your opportunity." Her last opportunity, Erika thought, looking at her childhood idol. Age and loss were draining the woman. This would be her last chance to fight Mindleader on anywhere near equal ground. "When do we leave?"
"Day after tomorrow," Kameyo rose, looking down at the child she had helped raise. There were no lingering maternal feelings, too much had happened between their families, but she did not want the green eyed girl dead. "We will be visiting an old friend this afternoon, bathe and change."