Still not much to say. Umm… how are you guys, anyway? Hope you're good. Anyway, no Ryu! Again! This is a tragedy! This is BAD. Where's he gone? I should be answering that, not you, but… oh well… I'll live… I think. Hope you enjoy!

This? This is his legendary experiment that he had been working on for years?

She stared back with malice at the clones. Figure after figure was curled up in tank after tank. She knocked on one of the tanks. The girl uncurled to look at her with big amber eyes.

"For god's sake, Donovan. Put some clothes on these poor clones,"

Donovan was fiddling with the readings on one of the tanks. "They need to be like this,"

Yeah. For you to get something more then nothing, I bet. You dirty old bastard.

"Give me one. With some clothes, preferably,"

Soon enough, she and 'Kasumi' were walking down the street, the clone staring ardently at the clothes shops with big amber eyes.

"No," she instructed the clone much like one would instruct an animal. "You have other things to do rather then look at clothes,"

Everyone walked past, not suspecting a thing. Her hair was back to its original colour, as were her eyes. 'Chieko' was wanted around the city; however it had seemed that the 'tall, slender woman of Asian descent' had simply disappeared without a trace.

What fools. They cannot even tell the difference between their own race and another.

As they continued walking, she heard something suspicious behind her and spun around.

Footsteps were heavy against the path as what looked to be a suspiciously familiar person ran off. Mentally cursing the fact that she was wearing high heels, she followed immediately, the Kasumi clone close behind her.

Considering he was a ninja, he wasn't using stealth. She could hear his feet breaking down bracken and crunching over leaves as he ran into the forest. She followed…

…only to come face to blade with a deadly-looking katana.

She looked over at the ninja who she had pursued through the city streets, hoping to see some sort of recognition there. But all she got was a cool stare from those… chocolate eyes.

No, it wasn't him.

A simple mistake had cost her dearly.

Slate grey eyes drifted deliberately slowly back to the katana-wielder. She had met him briefly in the last tournament, if her memory served her correctly. Hayate was his name.

'Kasumi' was behind, in a fighting position.

No time for talk. As Hayate held the blade unwaveringly at her throat, the other ninja lunged. The clone lashed out immediately, grasping the ninja's neck and pinning him to the ground, before letting fly with a powerful punch to his head. However…

By the time she heard the rustling of movement, it was too late. Hayate's blade had moved and was now neatly pierced through her clone's neck.

The clone stiffened briefly, before collapsing on the other ninja, soaking his clothes in crimson blood. The other ninja pushed the dead weight of the girl off him, standing up and making a face at his bloodied attire.

She quietly pulled out a gun, clicking off the safety, hiding it behind her back.

"Our task is finally complete. She can bring dishonour to our clan no more," Hayate said to the other ninja, who nodded. With one last glance at her, they departed.

"Kill my clone and I will bring your damn clan dishonour," she whispered, pulling the trigger twice. Once at the other ninja. Once at Hayate himself.

Both ninjas spun immediately. However, their reaction was slow, an opportunity upon which she sprung.

The other ninja fell to the ground, his head an exploded mess of blood and brains. She had managed to hit him directly in between the eyes as he turned around, a perfect shot, if she did say so herself.

Hayate, however, managed to just duck the bullet before it struck him. The speed of the bullet caused it to go through the thin tree trunk and out the other side.

A whistling through the air, and the next thing she knew was a searing pain in her gun-hand. She dropped the gun, looking down at the shuriken imbedded in her hand. The wound was not deep, but crippled her hand sufficiently.

Note to self. Never again take on a ninja.

Pulling out the shuriken from her own flesh, she threw it back with lightning speed at him, catching him in the leg. He stumbled with the impact, throwing several more shuriken her way, which she managed to avoid. Dull 'thunks' were heard behind her as the shuriken imbedded themselves into the trees behind her head.

Finally, luckily, he ran out of shuriken.

She pulled out her gun slowly, meticulously with her left hand. He tried to stand, couldn't. With satisfaction, she noticed that she had thrown it hard enough, unlike him, who had been caught by surprise, for it to be irretrievable without the right sort of medical equipment which they didn't have. She smiled coldly. With any luck, he won't be needing it, either.

"You arrogant fool," she hissed as he pulled himself to his feet with the aid of a tree. "You didn't even do what you wanted to do. That was just a clone,"

Hayate's eyes widened to a point that would have been comical in any other situation. "A clone?"

"Yes, idiot, a clone. You failed in your task. And what's more, you're not going to get to complete it, either,"

Golden brown eyes narrowed at her. "What-"

The bullet struck him in the stomach, sending him careening backwards into a tree. She holstered the still-smoking gun, glaring once more at the fallen ninjas. Hayate wasn't dead, but he would be soon.

So much for that plan. Damn useless clone.