"She should be here..." Double-D hummed as he checked his wristwatch.

Earlier, Murasaki had actually gotten out of her room to visit Double-D and ask him on a date. Despite the awkward feelings left from their accidental kiss during the previous training session, Double-D was too polite to say 'No'. Now, the sock-hatted boy was currently waiting for the Reclusive Shinobi to arrive.

"Ano...Double-D...?"

Perking up at the familiar voice, Double-D turned to see Murasaki, who was wearing a purple turtleneck with sleeves too long for her hands, form-fitting black pants that hugged her curves nicely, and black open-toed shoes.

"You're looking quiet...Lovely, today, Ms. Murasaki." Double-D awkwardly said as he looked at himself and how he was mostly wearing a bright red dress shirt, black slacks, and his regular cyan shoes.

"And you look like one of the main characters in my favorite Dating Sim..." Murasaki replied, blushing as she noticed how Double-D made the business casual look work for him.

"So, I heard that you wanted to go to this pizza joint nearby. According to the map, it's pretty close from here." Double-D said as he looked over his phone. Murasaki gave a small smile and nodded as the two arrived at the pizza shack in question, finding a booth table and taking seats across from each other.

"So, would you care to tell me more about yourself, Ms. Murasaki?" Double-D asked as the purple-haired girl looked down shyly.

"Can you just call me Murasaki, please? I-I don't really like the Ms. added to it..."

"I see, I apologize."

The two sat in silence, even after placing their orders to the waiter. However, before Double-D could try to speak up again, Murasaki actually spoke first.

"To be honest, I never wanted to be a Shinobi in the first place. My family is a very prominent evil shinobi clan...And they wanted both me and my sister to become the next heads of the clan."

"I see. But here you are now, as a Shinobi. I understand how hard it must be, being thrust into a life you don't want." Double-D said sympathetically. "Initially, when my family moved to Peach Creek, I was reluctant to leave, but now, I've been blessed with truly dear friends that I wouldn't trade for anything else."

Murasaki giggled. "I'm glad you're so close to your friends...I wish my sister and I could have been able to have that childhood..."

"Care to explain?"

Murasaki nodded sadly. "One day, Father forced me to go out to train with my sister. Back then, I only had Bebeby to keep me secure but then, on the day, my sister took Bebey and tried to rip her up. I blacked out and then when I awoke, I saw my sister, beaten black and blue."

"Good lord. Do you think your body acted on basic instinct while you locked up due to stress?" Double-D asked as Murasaki shook her head.

"No, when I came to, Father told me that I had awoken the family bloodline technique; The Root of Calamity. It's when you are overcome by strong emotion and awaken destructive energy inside you."

"I see..." Double-D hummed, captivated by Murasaki's tale.

"Despite my family praising me for awakening the bloodline ability, I could never forgive myself for hurting my sister...so I shut myself off. Then, when a Hebijo practitioner came and took Bebeby as part of a test, I lost control again and maimed him. I could never forgive myself for hurting an innocent man like that, so I shut myself away. It'd be better if a monster like me didn't trouble the world..."

Murasaki was shocked when Double-D placed his hand over hers, giving a gentle and understanding look.

"Don't say that about yourself, please. Did you manage to make amends with your sister?"

Murasaki nodded, blushing at Double-D holding her hand. "Y-Yes...I-It was thanks to Asuka and Miyabi that I was able to speak with her again after so many years."

"Then that should be enough. Your sister forgives you, doesn't she? Because she loves you above all else. Well, aside from Miyabi."

Murasaki giggled at Double-D's joke as their pizza soon arrived.

"Double-D-Kun...why are you being so nice to me?"

"Because when a person like you is hurt, sometimes, all they need is a friend to listen to," Double-D explained. "Lewis B. Smedes said it best; "To forgive is to set a prisoner free and discovered that the prisoner was you."

"You mean..."

"Yes, forgiveness is the act of not just setting the one being forgiven free, but also freeing you by forgiving yourself."

Murasaki's cheeks glowed red as she gazed into Double-D's sky blue eyes, glimmering with empathy. The two proceeded to speak with each other some more, enjoying their pizza and talking about more light-hearted events.

After parting ways with Murasaki for the evening, Double-D headed back to the house, got showered, brushed his teeth, and went to bed. A few hours into his nap, he felt something soft press against him and sighed as he figured it was Ed or Jimmy.

"Ed or Jimmy, please, can't you sleep in your own bed for once-Huh?"

However, what he didn't expect were two pillowy mounds to be in his face when he turned around and noticed Murasaki looking at him with a loving look in her eyes.

"M-Murasaki?!"

"I felt lonely without you, Double-D-Kun...please, can I stay the night with you?"

Double-D said nothing...because his eyes had rolled into the back of his head and blood was oozing out of his nose.

"D-Double-D-Kun?"

Next Time: Eddy Hits The Big Time!