The jounin facing her suddenly began backing up and readying themselves. Her eyes had lifted from the floor, and she was glaring at them as if she were a wolf, an animal wanting to devour them. Her clouded, dull blue eyes had begun to burn, bleeding first into purple, and then into blood red. She could feel the Aohane trying to take control of her body, trying to break free from its invisible cage by ripping apart her mind. Shirotaka sensed the change in her as well, and knew that she was ready to unleash the seal as soon as he gave the order. But the other jounin had noticed the change as well, and they also knew of the Aohane, perhaps even more so than Shirotaka. Their village had been attacked by it eighteen years ago, and they knew of its power. As if they were one organism, they all moved in the exact same movement, drawing kunai from their weapon's pouches and taking a step back as they braced themselves. Shirotaka smiled.
"Let us out right now and I will not make her release it," he said, turning towards the Raikage. He seemed to have lost some of his former calmness, and was glaring at Shirotaka angrily.
"What are you doing in the Cloud?" he asked, narrowing his eyes. "What are the Akatsuki planning right now?"
There was a moment of silence before Shirotaka gave a short laugh, turning to face the Raikage fully. "As if I'd tell you."
"Heh, that's to be expected. But you, Tsukimi, what made you turn to these people?"
Shirotaka was unable to respond because this time the question had been directed at Raine. But she seemed to be completely lost in a world of her own, still glaring at the somewhat unnerved jounin before her.
"Why would you do that to your brother?"
No response. If possible, her eyes seemed to grow wider and more wild.
"He still loves you, you know that, don't you?"
The word 'love' seemed to break her trance. Her blood red eyes blinked and she lowered her head until her long hair hid her pale features. But the Raikage had been wrong when he began to think he had gotten through to her. She twitched, before she began shaking slightly. She was laughing. When she lifted her head, her eyes had lost some of their killing intent, but they retained their blood-red colour as she stepped away from Shirotaka's back, turning to face the Raikage. Her laughing died away, leaving the room in silence again.
"I remember you now," she said quietly, grinning as she examined the Raikage's face. "You were mother's right hand man, the one who helped her with all of her experiments!" The Raikage's face darkened slightly as she said this, but he remained quiet.
"You're an asshole," she stated simply, her grin fading as she looked innocently up at him. "You deserve to die. Sugi doesn't give a damn about me. Mother was the only one. Father didn't care. My brother, Naruto, doesn't care. Why would Sugi care?"
"Because he is your brother."
"Don't even bother trying to get through to me with that crap," she said harshly, suprised at the amount of emotion in her voice. She did not know what it was, but there was some type of emotion there. More than she had shown in three years. "You just son't get it, do you? I am no longer alive. I died three years ago. This is simply an empty, emotionless shell. Everything you say to it will bounce off. The word 'love' is no longer part of my vocabulary."
"Raine," said Shirotaka quietly. She turned to face him. "Let's get out of here. We have spent too long talking." She nodded and stepped forwards further, facing the door and taking a step towards it, watching as the jounin gathered in front of it. She could almost feel the Aohane clawing at her mind, and it showed in her movements that she was struggling to keep it under control. It seemed as if, with every step, she was fighting for control over her movements. She finally managed to stop her advancing. Her fists were clenched and her eyes unfocused, and she was shaking ever so slightly. The Raikage seemed about to say something, before Shirotaka shifted slightly, whipping out two, large daggers.
"Release it, Raine!"
Chakra crackled around her originating from the base of her feet less than a second after the words left his mouth, as if it had been building up for years, trying to force its way out. She winced slightly as it burned her skin with the amount that was coming out, but she kept releasing it until she felt the seal dissolve. As the first Jounins charged her, she grinned and dashed forwards to meet them. Black armour glinted in the dim light and blood spattered across the far wall before three jounin followed, slamming into it with their eyes wide and sliding to the ground, dead.
She gave a short laugh and flicked up the front of her helmet in order to see more clearly. The transformation was only half complete, and she began rapidly releasing her chakra from every point in her body, feeling the extra power overwhelming her and nearly taking over her mind. The battle was completely silent, no shouting or calling out, as she and Shirotaka threw jounin after jounin off their backs, trying to clear a path to the doors. Raine gave a small shout and threw two jounin off her, falling into a crouch and looking up curiously as several dark, blue feathers rained down around her. She could feel added weight between her shoulders and she shifted slightly, stretching out one of the two long, dark-blue wings. The leading edge was plated in the same type of lightweight metal that covered most of her body, and at the joint, the metal curved outwards into a short, serrated dagger. She had forgotten what it felt like to be so powerful. But the seal was not fully released- if it was, she would not be the one controlling her actions. If it was fully released, the Aohane would be the one in control, and at the moment, it was only partially in control. But, there was still the slight possibility that the Aohane could overwhelm her against her will. If that happened, even Shirotaka would be fighting against her. She could not let that happen.
Before she could move properly, a yellow and white shadow collided with her, the incredible force amlified by the fact that it was completely surrounded in electicity-like, yellow chakra. She skidded back, grunting as she dug her gloved fingers into the wooden floor to stop herself, the wood splintering as she skidded to a halt. Shirotaka was beside her in an instant, breathing heavily, but unscathed. There was a break in the battle as she looked up at who would be her next opponent.
"Aren't you a bit too old to be fighting me, Raikage-sama?" she asked mockingly after regaining her lost breath. The yellow shadow had been the Raikage himself, who was now standing at the head of the group of jounin. There was a flash of yellow as he threw off his Kage robes, revealing a completely black shinobi uniform, with several weapons pouches attached to his waist. Is he...? Raine's grin faded slightly, but it remained as she looked over at her former Kage. Is he really going to take this seriously? This may prove troublesome even for us. But Shirotaka... She looked to Shirotaka, who was radiating anger and dangerous vibes towards everyone. Herself included. Keh, Shirotaka is the one who matters. I'm lower in the rankings, and if Kariudo finds out his right hand man is dead, I'll be joining Shirotaka in Hell.
"Shirotaka-san, I'll make an opening. You get past the Raikage and head out the door," she said, all humour gone from her voice. And besides, she thought, smiling faintly again, I used to be a Cloud-nin. I know how to deal with them better than a shinobi from another country. Cloud-nin think very differently from other shinobi. They fight only for themselves, and rarely for their comrades.
Before anything could be said on the Raikage's or Shirotaka's part, she was up in a flash of black armour, and beside the Raikage. She brought her wings around in an arch, the serrated daggers nearly catching the Raikage as he ducked and attempted to trip her. He was more of a taijutsu master than a jutsu user, but he did know a few very powerful jutsu. But those jutsu, if used in such a small space as this, would demolish the building, or kill the other jounin. She shook her head, jumping back and trying to control her body. It had been the Aohane that had attacked the Raikage. Make a path, she thought, forget about him. Just get rid of the shinobi in the way.
She flipped back as the Raikage charged again, heading towards the door and taking flight in the small space. Two of the jounin jumped her just as she brought her wings down, and she knocked the first away, using the other to start her off in a spin. She shot towards the door, tearing past the other jounin at an unprecidented speed, but the Raikage hit her hard in the gut, knocking her off course. She wouldn't give in though, and her orbs, nearly forgotten by the Cloud-nin, formed a point in front of her as she crashed into the wall beside the door. The orbs did little to protect her, but they managed to shatter the wall as she hit it and tumbled to the ground, jumping up quickly as Shirotaka dashed towards her. She moved quickly, jumping out of the way as he dashed beneath her and out into the rainy afternoon. The jounin seemed about to persue him, but she landed between them and the Akatsuki, wasting no time in jumping back into their ranks.
The cover on her heltmet had fallen back over her eyes, protecting it as a number of kunai bounced off of her armoured body. The jounin had no time to pursue Shirotaka, as she was deep in their midst, slashing in all directions with the dagger-like projections on her gloves and elbows. Several dark shadows surrounded her as the other jounin found a chance to go after Shirotaka, and she found herself facing the Raikage again. Great, she thought, looking at the dark shapes crowding her. Anbu.
"Not so fast," she growled, raising her wings and dropping to the ground. The Anbu moved with speed to rival her own, attempting to pin her to the ground, but she brought her wings down hard, catching one of their number just below his jaw and slicing open his neck as she launched into the air. There was a sharp pain in her left leg, and she sunk back to the ground, realizing there was an Anbu still attached. Keh, these things are like ants. There are so many. But... She narrowed her eyes, kicking the Anbu from her leg and taking to the air again. But they are not fighting seriously. The Kage is holding back, he has done very little to restrain us... They are trying to tire us out, huh? Why? She chuckled and circled once, before dropping towards the Raikage with killing intent. Trying to capture us, are you, Raikage-sama?
"Fight properly," she growled from under her helmet, taking on an odd tone of voice. A voice that was too large for her. The Raikage looked up just in time as she descended on him, almost caught off guard. But something else happened she had not expected.
Two gaint, thick-bodied snakes suddenly sunk their teeth into the exposed parts of her body- her stomach, neck and the back of her knees- their bodies stretching taught as they stopped her inches from the Raikage's face. She fell to the ground from more shock rather than pain, and the moment she hit, the bodies of the snakes tightened threateningly around her, crushing her dark-blue wings to her sides and rendering her body useless.
"Stop it, Tsuki!"
"S-Sugi?!" What the hell is going on?! The seal on her stomach felt cold and dead. She had used too much chakra, but the form of the Aohane remained around her, hovering like a mirage. The snakes tightened.
In the hole she had created in the wall stood her brother, a snake coming from either sleeve as he restrained her. The battle had stopped, and she was exaughsted. Sugi had an indecisive expression on his face, as if he didn't want to hurt her, and as if he wanted to restrain her for his Kage. He chose the latter, and the snakes tightened with incredible force, squeezing the breath from her as the Aohane's form fell away completely. There was a dull snap as something, most likely a rib, snapped. The pain broke something in her mind and for a moment, she returned to her former self.
"Aniki!"
That was all it took for Sugi to release her, for him to hear his sister's voice crying out in distress. The snakes vanished and she slumped to the ground, clutching her side as her eyes hardened again, and she prepared to fight. But before she could stand, there was a familiar flash of yellow, and something connected with the side of her head with so much force that it nearly sent her back against the other jounin. They moved quickly and she slammed into the wall, sining to the ground and immediatel clutching her head. Something was wrong- the blood was everywhere and she felt dizzy. Damn Raikage, she thought, growling inwardly as voices shouted around her. But her mind began buzzing and her arms became too heavy to hold to her head, so she simply slipped to the ground and stared out before her with half-closed eyes. But even keeping her eylids open became too much of a task, and she finally gave up, slipping into the darkness.
--------------------------------
Raine sat in the corner of a small cell, light streaming in through a single barred window. But no light could reach her. Her dull blue eyes were wide open and her head slightly lowered as she simply glared at the far wall. She could barely move properly, as her injuries had not been treated by the Cloud-nin. The fangs of the snakes had penetrated deep, but had not hit anything vital apparently, as she was still alive. Even if just barely. She had woken only moments before, and had not moved from her original postion, with her back to the corner of the cell and her knees pulled up loosely to her chest. Her broken ribs and her head were throbbing with such an intense, incredably overwhelming pain that she thought it would drive her insane. But those were not the only things driving her mad.
They had taken the Ikichi. She had woken on the floor and pushed herself up, before realizing there was no familiar weight around her neck, no cold chain where it should have been. She was their prisoner, and she was dying. With every breath her body screamed at her, ripping through her nerves like fire and threatening to overwhelm her. She felt like screaming or running head first into the wall to kill herself, both of which were impossible. Her throat was to dry and hoarse to raise it to a scream. And, as for running into the wall, she was chained to this corner with hardly any length of chain. There were shackles around her wrist and ankles, and her neck was surrounded by a thick metal chain. And, to make matters worse, the lock in the door turned.
The Cloud-nin had come in twice before to check on her, but there had been only two or three. This time, there were six Jounin. She would have jumped up and killed them immediately if she had been able to. She had tried the first time, only to find that the seal on her stomach had been completely sealed with a seal she had never seen before. An oddly designed seal that consisted of two triangles, one upside down and the other rightside up, placed overtop of eachother to form a six-pointed star shape that was layed over her two Four Season's seals.
"Bastards," she spat, her usual welcome. One of the jounin stepped forwards, dangling a key in front of her, and she heard the others shifting. They were carrying ropes. She let out a low growl and narrowed her eyes further.
"Raikage-sama is going to speak with you, so-"
Before he could finish his sentance, she launched herself at him, the chains jerking her back as she stopped inches from his face. He didn't flinch in the slightest, only raising his hand and punching her hard in the stomach, where she sunk to the ground, her entire body screaming in pain.
A few moments later, she found the chains replaced by ropes. There were four ropes around her neck, and a jounin each holding one, one in front, to the left, right and back. If she moved, she would not be able to go anywhere. The first joinin pulled her off the ground and pressed a kunai into her back, forcing her to move out of the small cell and into the light of the building she was being kept in.
The man in front tugged hard, almost tripping her as they closed the door behind, leading her quickly up a long flight of stairs and into even brighter light. Her dull blue eyes were partially closed, and she had no energy left to rebel, so she simply followed along as they took her down a hall. A few of the other jounin watched from other rooms as she passed, and she amused herself by sending death glares towards them from the corners of her eyes. They led her into another room that seemed much larger than the others, with a large desk on one end where the Raikage and two others sat. To either side of the desk stood several jounin, and she found her seat immediately- a single chair in the center of the room. Without a word, the jounin forced her in to the chair and fastened her hands behind her tightly, preventing her from moving at all. Now what the hell do they want? She thought, closing her eyes and trying not to think about the pain.
The jounin moved away from her finally, and she remained in the exact same position. Her long hair completely hid her face and her eyes, which were now halfway open. I probably look helpless and weak, she thought bitterly, grimacing in pain as her ribs sung. She coughed once and it started off an intense, and very painful, coughing fit. She felt the wound on her head reopen and a small amount of blood trickle down her temple, dripping onto the shoulder of her Akatsuki cloak before she got her coughing under control. She did not lift her head as the Raikage began speaking.
"Tsukimi, listen up," he said roughly. She remained completely still. "I'm going to ask you some questions. Please answer truthfully."
Her eyes opened fully and she lifted her head slightly, glaring out from her veil of dark hair. The Raikage seemed to falter for a moment, before going on. "Firstly, why are you with the Akatsuki?"
She would have laughed had she been able too, but that would hurt too much, so she simply remained still and grinned slightly. "Things aren't that simple, old man," she said quietly.
"Hm. And what do you mean by that?"
"What I mean.... Is that you shouldn't be poking into my own affairs," she said, her voice deepening to a low growl.
"I see... You are not leaving this room until you give us the answers to all of our questions, but we will continue on then... What are the Akatsuki planning? Why have they been active lately?"
"They'll kill you all."
"What?"
"They'll kill you all. If I don't turn up before that time, they'll kill you all."
"W-what are you talking about?" he asked, faltering slightly. What suprised her the most though, was the fact that she was actually telling the truth.
"Each Akatsuki fights for himself, but they are an organization. If one member dies, the order is disrupted, their power is depleted. Even if they have no personal ties to eachother, they will be forced in to action if a member should... fail to show. You will all be killed."
The Raikage's face darkened, and he leaned to the side to mutter something to a jounin beside him, who began writing on a clipboard. "We still need you to answer the first question, Tsukimi. Why are you with the Akatsuki? What could you possibly see in a group of Missing-nin?" She said nothing. "You were not the type to do something like this. What triggered this? What could possibly make a carefree teenager become an S-ranked Missing-nin?" Still nothing. The Raikage's eyes hardened. "If you do not answer, I will use force."
"I don't care what you do to me. I will not betray my organization."
"What? Loyalty... Loyalty is not a trait found in Missing-nin. What are your motives?"
"I-" she clamped her mouth shut and lowered her head further to prevent herself from saying more. Her world was rocking back and forth and she could not think clearly. The Raikage motioned and two of the jounin stepped forwards, one grabbing her shoulders and the other standing slightly off to the side. I...I... I can't take this kind of thing, she thought, almost pannicking. I'm just not used to it...
"Why are you with the Akatsuki?" he asked again, lowering his voice. She opened her mouth once, before closing it, then opening it again, and finally clenching her teeth shut. She would reveal nothing more. Only a few seconds later, a fist connected with the side of her head and the blood from the wound there dripped on to the floor, the gash enlarged by the force with which he had hit her.
"Tsukimi, answer now. Why are you with them?"
"You'll get nothing from me."
She gasped as the fist hit her again, blood flying from her mouth this time and spattering the floor. She ground her teeth and narrowed her eyes, trying to stay concious.
"Answer!"
There was a flash of metal as the man pulled out a long, curved knife, cocking it beside her head threateningly. She let a low hiss escape her lips, lifting her head to glare at the man, but before he could strike her, another voice called out, and a man stepped out of line to adress the Raikage.
"Wait, Raikage-sama!"
Sugi...? She tore her eyes away from the jounin and they fell upon the form of her older brother. He was speaking quietly with the Raikage, and gesturing towards Raine every few moments. What are you doing, Sugi? Why bother? We're on opposite sides.
The Raikage sighed, folding his hands on the desk and staring at the silent Sugi for a few moments, before nodding to the other jounin. They suddenly began leaving the room, filing out the door she had come through and out of sight. But what suprised her further was that the Raikage was coming towards her. He raised his hands and brought them down covered in chakra that easily cut through the bonds, before leaving as well in silence. What is he doing...?
But she knew he was in no danger. The seal on her stomach that overlayed the two Four Season's seals did not allow her to use any chakra, perhaps a little, but not enough to perform any jutsu. She didn't even have enough energy to lift her arms, let alone stand or attack him. Even if she could, she didn't know if she would. When she lifted her head, she found herself staring at Sugi's feet.
"Get up," he said roughly, not moving. She said nothing, wondering why they had been left alone. "Get up, Tsuki."
"What do you want?" she asked bitterly, as if she had not been listening.
"I'm getting you out of here."
She lifted her head fully, staring into her brother's yellow, slitted eyes intently. "W-what?"
He massaged his face tiredly, as if he would regret what he was about to do. "You are my sister, my own blood, and I can't see you like this. Not after you have been gone for so many years."
"I tried to kill you. I killed the others. I killed many of the Cloud-nin. I tried to kill the Raikage. Why would you want to side with the enemy?"
"I'm not. I'm siding with you, not the Akatsuki... Look, just get up," he said finally, as if his mind could change at any time.
"I can't."
He shifted and she heard a soft jingling, lifting her head again to see a small gold chain with a multi-coloured stone on the end. The Ikichi. Before she could think properly, she was up, out of her chair as she tried to grab it away. But her ribs protested strongly to this, and she ended up clutching them and breaking down coughing again. He grabbed her shoulder and supported her, slipping it around her neck.
"I have fifteen minutes to 'get you to speak'. We have to move now." Before she could voice any of the questions that were running through her head, he had lifted her from the ground, lifting her up on his back and pulling her arms around his neck. He released her arms for a moment, leaving her to cling by herself as he formed a few seals. A moment later, there was a replica of her in the chair and him standing a few feet off. He quickly readjusted his grip on her and turned towards the door, staring at it blankly for a few moments, before sighing, and turning towards the two windows.
"What are you doing?" she hissed, wincing as he opened the window and jumped on to the sill. Why would someone I had tried to kill help me?
"Be quiet," he whispered, landing lightly on the ground in a crouch. He glanced right and left, before dashing to the left and into a narrow alleyway, keeping to the shadows as he carried her towards the edge of the village. Why is he doing this?! I never asked for his help.
She turned her head slightly, looking up at the sky as she felt a raindrop land on her cheek. It was starting to rain. Again. They reached the edge of the town within minutes, and Sugi dropped over the edge of the village walls, landing in the grassy field below and darting behind a large boulder, before letting her slide from his back. She remained still for a few moments, before reaching in to her trenchcoat and removing a cigarette and lighter. But as soon as she put the cigarette in her mouth, it was snatched and thrown away, off to the side by her brother.
"What the hell are you doing?" she asked, staring angrily up at him
"Making your life last longer," he said simply, rummaging in his weapon pouch. He produced a few rolls of bandages and tossed them to her.
"Why do you bother trying to help me?" she asked sharply. "It's not like I asked for it. And when they find out what you did, they'll kill you or imprison you."
"I can talk my way out of anything. I am my father's son, and I've got a snake's tongue, so don't worry."
"...I wasn't," she growled a few moments after the words left his mouth. She pocketed the bandages and struggled to her feet, using the rock behind her for support.
"I have to get back," he said quietly, turning to face her. She scoffed and stumbled forwards, brushing past him and heading out in to the open field.
"Tsuki," he said. To her suprise, she halted, slowing and stopping to hear his words. "If...If I had been you, I would not have chosen this path. I don't know what made you do this, but it doesn't matter. What's done is done, and there's nothing you can do about it. But you're involved with a dangerous group of people. If you continue on with them, you will become one forever, and you will be forced to live your life watching your back. People who don't trust cannot be trusted."
"...Keh. It's not your job to lecture me about what path I choose."
"Then whose is it?"
"Mine. No one else's." She sighed and winced slightly as she continued forwards as quickly as possible. The temperature was dropping again, and the rain increased. Even now she could smell the winter in the air above the blood she was soaked in.
"Just...Whatever happens, do not use that jutsu," he said to her retreating back. She said nothing, simply walking on in the same direction, leaving the Cloud behind again.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Raine sat high up in a tree with a cigarette between her fingers. It was not lit, and she was simply staring at it. Don't smoke it, don't smoke it, don't smoke it... She growled in annoyance and cast it over her shoulder, crossing her arms across her chest testily and closing her eyes. Her wounds had done little healing, but the bandages had been removed long ago, save for the one that constantly bandaged her left shoulder. She had been wandering around for a few weeks now, looking for any members of the Akatsuki in the villages, but she found no trace of the. Perhaps they had already begun moving. She had no clue.
She was currently somewhere in the Fire country where, luckily, it did not snow, although it was still fairly cold, and it did rain sometimes. At the moment, it was sunny with a cold breeze whistling through the bare branches of the surrounding trees. She suddenly felt a pang of... pang of something shoot through her body, and she instinctively raised her left hand. On the little finger was her Akatsuki ring, with the kanji for "empty" on it. Kariudo is calling, she thought, narrowing her eyes. But he was not calling specifically for me. He is calling for all of us. I suppose he thinks I'm dead.
She lowered her hand and turned her head slightly, her eyes sliding towards the south where Konoha was located. She had a familiar felling, as if this had happened before. There was an explosion. Followed by another, and another, then silence. They've started already...? She pushed herself up on the branch, wincing as her still-healing ribs sent pangs of pain through her torso, and looked towards the south for a few moments.. After she spent a few moments listening to the silence, she decided to climb higher into the tree, reaching the top branches and gazing out across the forest that separated her from the Leaf. There were three thin columns of smoke curling up from the northern side of the village, but that was all she could pick out. She supposed that her techniques would be required at around this time, so she buttuned up her Akatsuki cloak and dropped back in to the forest, landing on a thick branch and making her way at a steady pace towards the village.
The going would have been faster, and easier, had several of her ribs not been broken. And if she were able to better control her chakra. But once she found Kariudo, she knew he would be able to unseal it and she would be able to use her chakra normally again. But, for the meantime, she could not use the Ikichi's orbs, she could not use any jutsu, she could not use the Aohane, and she could not force chakra to her feet to allow her faster movement. But she was making progress.
After only a few minutes of travelling, she could already smell the blood and smoke, but there were strangely no sounds of battle coming from ahead. Perhaps she had missed the action. Ninja battles were meant to be short. No, she thought. Three years ago, in the battle of the Sound and Sand versus the Leaf, the fighting lasted longer than a few minutes. They are probably planning the next moves. Ahead of her, the forest thinned and broke into a rocky canyon that was the transition between forest and village. It was also, apperently, where a battle was about to take place.
She had seen the three columns of smoke rising from the northern side of the village, not the southern. Not, where the three columns had been, there were three giant animals, an orange toad, a blue and white slug, and a giant, purple snake she knew belonged to Orochimaru. But it was not Orochimaru who rode upon its head, but a dark-haired boy; on the toad which she knew had belonged to her father and Jiraiya, she saw her half-brother, looking much different from when she had last seen him. That alone, seeing her brother, told her Akatsuki had not yet set their plan into motion. The slug was being controlled by a young, pink-haired girl who Raine did not know.
But that was their battle. The canyon before her depicted what her own battle would entail. On one outcrop stood a sea of Sound, Moon, Rain, Waterfall, and Grass-nin, all carefully organized, dressed in camouflage, and silent. They were led by four figures, two Sound-nin, the Tsukikage of the Moon, and a Rain-nin. On another outcrop stood the Leaf, Sand, Cloud, Mist and Stone-nin, with numbers only slightly less than those of the opposing side, and headed by three of the five Kages, the Mizukage missing along with the Tsuchikage. But there was another group as well. Eight figures standing in a line with one gap, each wearing a black trenchcoat with red cloud designs outlined in red decorating them. Each with a ring that bore a different kanji. Each with a hiate that had a slash running through it. Each with dead, cold eyes that yearned only for more blood. The middle figure turned, and several heads from the opposing sides turned as well as Kariudo acknowledged her presence.
"You're late, Raine."
