Sorry, it's late. Added much on to this one! Enjoy the changes.
Chapter 10: Battle for Sunagakure
Sabakuno Aiki sat on the ground and panted heavily. Gaara stood a few feet in front of him, arms crossed. "Giving up all ready?" It had only been a few days after they had returned but Aiki immediately wanted to begin training. He had come to Gaara and begged him to teach him to control his powers. Relunctantly, his father had to agree.
They were practicing manipulating the earth. Something that Gaara learned to control out of necessity. His sand reacted many times based on his emotion and unconscious thoughts. Aiki had more control over that but still was only able to fully tap his powers in a rage. The boy shook his head and stood up. "Just getting started," he answered. He pulled his hand together forming a triangle with his fingers. The ground in front of Gaara rumbled and began to swirl. "Tsuchi ana no jutsu!" The ground stopped swirling. Aiki and Gaara moved over to the dent in the ground. A small hole, about a foot deep had formed.
"It's getting there," Gaara said to encourage him. Aiki still seemed concerned. "What's wrong?"
"Do you really think Mommy is gone… for good?" he asked quietly. Gaara examined him for a few moments before sighing deeply.
"I don't know. I hope so but if she comes I'll kill her for sure, so just don't worry about it. The Shuukaku is larger than she is and more powerful." He stood from his kneel and filled the hole with sand. "I better to go help Kankurou with his research. He's probably fell asleep again."
Aiki nodded and stood up as well. "Can I go play?" Gaara nodded and the boy zipped off. Fumi and Mokumaru were at the playground with a dozen other kids. They were navigated a metal cage of some kind with the half-demon arrived. "Hey, guys!"
"No way! Done with training?" Mokumaru piped up brightly. Aiki nodded. "Lucky. You get to train with Gaara." This garnered a few looks from the other kids.
"Bitter?" Fumi teased?
"NO!...Just…sayin'-" was his unconvincing answer. Aiki laughed but he felt uncomfortable with so many watching him suddenly. Their expressions were uninviting and severe. They were suspicious of him and something else he couldn't place. Mokumaru distracted him by putting an arm around his shoulders and smiling, something the reassured him completely.
Gaara shielded his eyes from the bright sunlight as he exited Kazekage's. Kankurou had fallen asleep and research took longer than expected. The sky was a rusty red, the sun a gleaming yellow gem in a cloudless sky as it fell. His sandals made little sound on the stone stairs. Kankurou had arranged a home for him close by, he was eager to show it to Aiki. His search was not long but he stopped short of greeting them.
Mokumaru was standing in a defensive posture, his eyebrows furrowed in anger. Fumi had her hand on her fan as she stood beside Mokumaru and before a group of five or six other Suna children. Aiki was hiding behind his cousins, finger in his mouth.
"I said leave him alone!" Mokumaru yelled, balling up his fist. "He didn't do anything!"
"My mom said he's a demon just like his dad! His dad broke my dad's arm when they were little and he didn't even do anything!" retorted the leader, boy about Mokumaru's age, wearing a red spotted bandana that drooped over one eye.
"So what? I bet your dad was being a jerk and if you don't shut up then you'll end up with a broken face." Fumi snapped, lifting her miniature three-starred tessen.
The boy didn't seem phased. He adjusted his posture, arrogantly regarding them with the air of someone who knew all of their dirt. "You're family is so screwed up. The Fourth is your great grandfather, right, the one responsible for Sunagakure's great failure in the war. And now, I heard that you're Dad isn't even good enough to be Kazekage!" This was the final insult before Mokumaru pounced on the boy and punched him in the eye. Aiki gave a little yelp but Fumi more than eagerly entered the fray. She grabbed some girl by her ponytail and was ready to give her a black eye when sand burst up and several hands made of sand tore the fighting children apart.
Gaara walked up, wearing a stern face, arms crossed. Fumi's shocked expression melted into one of vicious glee. "You'll get it now. I bet Uncle Gaara's gonna Sabaku Sousou you!" She took her hands and made a squish motion that made the girl she fought go snow white.
"NARA FUMI!" he barked. "You're father's going to do worse than that to you." The sand retreated, dropping the kids. "All of you go home. Mokumaru, Fumi, Aiki, come with me." He turned and began walking away. The son of the current Kazekage was red with shame and smoldering anger. He gave the bandana'd kid a dirty look before shuffling away. Aiki immediately shrank into his puppy form and scuttled behind his father, tails tucked solidly between his legs. Fumi simply looked annoyed. She paused to look back. The kids were still standing in their spots, wondering what they should do. She grinned and raised her hand in the motion she saw Gaara use in practice. She mouthed the words "Sabaku Kyu" but was yanked back by her collar. Gaara 's black ringed eyes were glaring down at her. "Not funny," he said with a slowness that spoke of his inner anger. Fumi needed no more encouragement to become the world's model child in obedience.
Soon the three kids were seated in Kankurou's office. The second oldest Sand Sibling was hiding a smile as he watched Gaara stand before them like they were his disobedient students. Shikamaru yawned from his post against the wall, happy for once that someone else was doling out discipline. Temari was seated beside him, legs crossed, head resting on her first.
"Firstly…Mokumaru, you should know better than to fight your own people. Even if they do make you angry, you can't go and start raising your fists against your comrades," Gaara scolded.
"They said that Dad didn't make a good Kazekage!" He muttered without looking up.
Kankurou nearly choked. "What? They said that? Did you kick his ass?" Gaara turned around and gave him a filthy look. He cleared his throat and settled in his seat. "Oh…uh…'cause if you did, I'm very disappointed."
"I just punched him in the face." Gaara turned back to face Mokumaru, Kankurou gave him a wink and thumbs up. His son smiled but immediately hid it for fear that he'd get his dad in trouble too. Temari whapped her brother on Gaara's behalf.
"Secondly. Fumi… Don't go around using me as a threat. I would never Sabaku Sousou anyone that didn't deserve it. It's bad enough people are afraid of me, without you going around convincing them that I'm a murderer-for-hire."
Fumi was still indignant. She felt fully justified in threatening that brat on behalf of her cousin."She did deserve it! You didn't hear all the stuff they called Aiki!" She balled up her fist and glared at an invisible opponent. "Ooooo, it just made me so mad! I could just-" She punched her palm a few times.
"Oi!" Shikamaru snapped and looked at her with exasperation. "Calm down. So freaking violent, just like your mother." She sighed and averted her gaze in anger. Her mind was still on vengeance.
Gaara turned to Aiki. The boy gave him a severe case of puppy-dog eyes. "Maybe you should stay inside for a while. Not many people like me, so... it might be tough for you for a while." Aiki nodded.
A shinobi entered the room and bowed. "Sorry, Kazekage, but a sandstorm is heading this way. It'll probably hit us so the city is going into alert." Beyond the walls, they could hear the wail of the sirens alerting the citizens to board up their windows and evacuate the streets.
"Well, I guess the fight wasn't all bad," Shikamaru commented. "But this sandstorm is a little troublesome. We won't be able to go home in this."
Kankurou gave a concerned groan. "Yeah but Kiba already left for Konoha. Do you think he'll be all right? This sandstorm is a bit out of season."
"Kiba's pretty fast. And his senses are sharp. He probably smelled the sandstorm before we even knew about it. I'm sure he's fine," the ponytailed ninja assured the leader of Sunagakure.
Gaara put his hand on Aiki's head. "Let's get you something to eat."
Mokumaru's eye went wide. "Whoa, Uncle Gaara's gonna cook?"
Fumi hopped out of her seat. "I want onigiri! With extra tuna and mayonnaise, please?"
Mokumaru made a disgusted face. He hated mayonnaise with a passion. "Rice with red bean paste! And seaweed sprinkles!" It was Fumi's turn to look ill.
The kids ran out to the kitchen, eagerly awaiting their lunch prepared by their favorite uncle. Shikamaru scratched his arm in confusion. "Gaara, I didn't know you could cook."
"Are you kidding? I'm a worse cook than Temari," he admitted. Aiki tugged on his shirt.
"I like Aunt Temari's cooking."
Kankurou slammed his fist on his desk. "Damn that Kirae! I knew she screwed him up but I had no idea that she ruined his sense of taste too! He's in a sad state, Gaara." Temari whapped him again but perhaps this time she put more heart into it.
The younger man gave a short laugh before leaving the room. Fumi was already on the kitchen counter trying to measure out the rice necessary amount of rice to make her rice balls and Mokumaru's meal. "Lesse…3 cups should be enough." She closed the lid to the rice cooker after adding the rice and water and pressed the power button.
Mokumaru was in the counters looking for the packet of red bean paste. He learned early on how to make his favorite meal from his mother. Find the packet boil it in water for five minutes, open and enjoy. Sometimes he put the mixture on his ice cream cold.
Aiki climbed into a stool and watched the steam rise out of the vents of the rice cooker. There was a low rumbling as the wall shook slightly. They all looked around as the lights flickered for a few seconds.
"That was fast. Sandstorm's already started."
"If anyone's still out there, they should be fine for a little while longer but they'll want to get inside pretty soon," Gaara commented. Mokumaru nodded.
Fumi looked out the window. Flags, swings, and trees all swayed in the heavy wind. There was a sandy brown tint to the air outside, indicating the now airborne grains of sand flying into the atmosphere. "It does look dangerous out there. But I'm not scared." She turned to look at the rice cooker but noticed Aiki staring intently out the window. "Are you scared?"
The boy didn't say anything but continued to stare. Mokumaru attached a string of chakra to one of his yo-yos. "It's his fist sandstorm. He's probably amazed." They all watched the storm until the rice cooker gave a loud buzz. Gaara put on an apron and with a sigh proceeded to try and make food. Fumi taught him how to properly make the triangular onigiri and fold the seaweed around it. While Fumi's where perfectly shaped, Gaara's took on every shape but triangle. Aiki continued to stare out of the window, something inside of him becoming restless.
Kiba tightened the hood around his body, to shield it from the heat of the sun. Akamaru panted heavily as he padded across the hot sands. They had left the village early in the day to get a headstart on the heat but the desert quickly became unforgiving.
The Leaf Ninja paused long enough to wipe the sweat from his brow when a scent was carried under his nose. He looked down and noticed that Akamaru was growling, hackles raised. Kiba tossed the hood back and sniffed the air more vigorously. "Wolves."
"Not wolves. Dairou," snarled the large white dog. "They're closer than we thought. We have to hurry to Konoha, Kiba."
"…You go. I have to go back to Sunagakure."
This took the dog by surprise. There was very few times in their lives that they had been separated by choice. "Kiba…"
"If she attacks while we're gone, they'll be in big trouble. Only an Inuzuka can stop the transfer of power, Akamaru… I have to keep the kid from becoming the next dairou king."
"I'll go as fast as I can. Kiba… Don't get in over you head. Even if it gets dangerous, no matter what, you have to-"
Kiba pulled the hood over his head and gave his dog a smile. "I know. I know. We've been over this a million times before." He turned back. "Just hurry up. I don't want to do this alone, old friend." Kiba knelt down and hugged his dog, slipping a canteen of water over his neck.
The dog nodded and galloped at top speed down the dune and towards their village of Konoha. A stiff wind stirred up some of the harsh sticky sand, causing Kiba to shield his eyes. The scent was strong on the wind. He headed towards it.
The sandstorm continued for the next two days without any sign of letting up. The village's natural systems for flushing the excess sand out of the streets and sewers were being pushed to their limits. Kankurou stood in his office and looked out the window. Temari was reading an old magazine.
"It's really storming out there," he said after a long silence. "The village is at a complete standstill. Until this thing stops we can't even contact the outside world."
"It's always like this. It is lasting a bit longer than usual but out of season sandstorms are always unpredictable like this," she said dully, not really paying attention.
"I just never realized how much of an effect these things had on people until I became the Kazekage. What a hassle. The paperwork's going to be sky high when this is all over."
Temari grinned brattishly. "Aw, is wittle brother weighed down by responsibility?"
"Aw shut up!"
Shikamaru was walking down the hallway in a kind of trance though he heard the distance shouting of his wife and her sibling. He was bored out of his mind and watching sand flying by the window wasn't as soothing as watching the white clouds swim across the sea of blue sky. He stopped in aimless wandering when he saw Aiki staring out of a window.
"Ah, Aiki. He…ey.." he trailed off. The expression on the boy's face was odd. His eyes were shaking and he was chewing on his lip. Shikamaru walked over behind the boy and looked out the window. It was the same rusty brown blur as it had been for the last two days. He looked down at the boy. His dark-rimmed eyes were fixed on something. The knuckles on his hands were white as he gripped the windowsill.
The small boy shook slightly. Every hair on his skin was on end, shivers running across his skin. Ever since the storm started something was warning him against it. Something told him it was dangerous and as the weather grew in furiousity, the feeling grew constantly. The darkness around his eyes for once was not a sign of his wolfen markings but instead of lack of sleep. To everyone else, the storm sounded as a dull drone that beat against the buildings. But Aiki could hear voices on the wind; whispers, growls, and howls. He tried to ignore them but they were insistent on his attention. He could smell the faint scent of chakra on the air but as far as he could tell no one else noticed. Maybe he was simply going crazy.
As he stared out the window, listening to the unintelligible words on the air, he noticed a peculiar swirl just in front of him. The longer he stared at it the clearer it became. He stared so intently that his eyes began to burn but what he finally saw made him scream and stumble back in fear. For a brief moment he thought he saw the head of a giant six-eyed wolf snarling at him but when he blinked it was gone.
Two large hands fell on his shoulders to support him, still he jumped up in fear. He looked up into the confused eyes of his uncle. The man gave a weak smile. "You know if you're so scared of the storm, maybe you shouldn't stare at it so much."
Aiki didn't respond but shook his head. His heart was still pounding in his chest. He rubbed his eyes and looked back out the window. There was still no sign of the image that he had seen before. He turned back to his uncle. "I…" He swallowed his words and took off down the hall. Shikamaru didn't stop him but made a note to talk to Gaara about it if he ran into him.
Kankurou was just sitting down when one of his aides entered the room. "Hey, Kanku-uuuuh. Kazekage."
"Shinji. What's going on?" Kankurou smiled at the tall, skinny ninja with white bangs that hung in front of his face.
"The sandstorm is finally letting up! In a few hours, we'll be back in business," he reported. He gave a thumbs-up and leaned against the wall. "And, the sand processing guys said they have a lot of stuff for you to sign. Hehe."
Kankurou groaned. "Shut up, will yah. What is with people today… Let me enjoy these last few moments of peace, please!"
"Sure thing. I'll see you tomorrow. That is if you I can see you over that stack of papers!" Shinji barely missed a paper weight hitting him in the skull as he slunk out of the room.
Kankurou sighed with a smile and sat down in his chair. He stared at the hat on his desk and fingered the silk fabric. He could already hear the dying wind and a few people yelling out of the unboarded windows to their neighbors. He picked up the hat and adjusted it on his head. Gaara may hate the hat but Kankurou loved what the hat represented.
No sooner had Kankurou returned to reading a scroll than did Shinji appear back in his office panting heavily. "Kazekage-sama!" Shinji exclaimed, his jocular mood completely gone . "Sunagakure's under attack!"
Kankurou stood up hurriedly, knocking the scroll off of his desk. "What? Is it Stone? Is Sound back?"
"No, sir. It's not another village," Shinji said shaking his head. "I don't know how to explain it but we're surrounded by wolves. The sand is still flying around out there so it's hard for us to retaliate. These things move super fast and they aren't affected at all by the storm."
"How many?" Kankurou asked. He had a sneaky suspicion it was Kirae. He wouldn't let her off as easy as Gaara did. He had no feelings for her except for his feelings of hatred. Karasu would deliver her a quick death.
Shinji looked at his leader with begging eyes. "H…Hundreds… Maybe a thousand. Kazekagesama…"
Kankurou closed his eyes tightly. "She had an army… Dammit. Mobilize all forces. Get people to the bunkers! These aren't normal wolves!" He tossed his hat down on the seat of his chair then slid onto the floor with a dull 'whump'. Kankurou went to his closet to get Karasu.
The alarms split over the storm and cut the air with their sharp wail. Aiki opened the door to the streets and looked outside. He had seen the wind die down but he was still buffeted with a harsh sandy breeze. He opened his eyes just a squint in time to see a large black wolf pounce on a Sand shinobi. His powerful jaw clamped tight on the man's throat before he could scream. The spray of red spattered the ground and mingled with sand. Aiki quickly shut the door. The wolf had two tails.
He felt sick to his stomach suddenly. "Uncle Kiba," he whispered abruptly. Uncle Kiba was in Sand because he knew about the Dairou. He knew that they would attack. The boy felt the fear grip his heart. He had never seen another of his kind beside his mother but suddenly his new home was full of them. And they were all killing the humans, like he had done. They were just as ruthless and bloodthirsty. That was his legacy. He was a murderer.
The memories of the people he murdered in cold blood flooded back to him. Their screams, the smells, the sounds all barraged his senses to the point he didn't realize that someone was calling his name. He gripped his head to keep the pain from consuming him.
"AIKI!" Shikamaru grabbed himn and shook him. The boy's eyes were full of fear and pain. "Aiki you have to get out of here. Come on, I'll take you to the others."
The boy wriggled from his grasp. "No….NO!" He scrambled down the hall a few steps. "Uncle Kiba... Kiba-sama knows how to stop this. He knew all along. That's why he hated me so much, because he knew. We have to find him!"
Shikamaru grabbed him by the arm. "Kiba's already left for Konoha! He can't help us now! Look, if something happens to you it will kill Gaara." He saw Fumi out of the corner of his eye. She was looking for someone or something. "FUMI!" She stopped and ran over to him.
"Dad, what's happening?"
"Fumi, take Aiki with you. Find Mo-kun. He'll know how to get to safety. Take care of your cousins. You're the oldest so you have the most responsibility in this situation."
"Dad?"
"Look, I don't have time. A lot of troublesome things have happened and this is the biggest of them all. Get going." He pulled a kunai from his pocket and looked at the door. There was a large thump against the wooden barriers. Fumi was fixed in place. The second attack knocked the doors down and the large black dairou was standing before them, blood and drooling dripping from his mouth full of dagger-like teeth as he grinned.
Shikamaru turned. "I said get going, dammit!" Fumi grabbed her smaller cousin by his sash and took off. He was barely able to keep up with her until he found his footing. The Leaf jounin turned back to the wolf. "This is why I like deer. So quiet and not nearly as troublesome."
Fumi dashed down the hallways calling our Mokumaru's name. "MO-KUN!" She turned down a hallway and was face to face with a scrawny brown Dairou. The wolf chuckled and licked his chops. The young girl let go of Aiki and grabbed her fan from her sash. "S-stay back."
"Now that doesn't sound very convincing," the wolf said with a sneer. He tensed up and jumped, only it was right into someone's knee. Fumi looked up and saw Shinji standing there, a single brown eye glistening from behind his bangs. The Dairou fell back dazed.
"Mokumaru's already heading to the bunker. I'll lead you there." Shinji was holding a nakinata in his left hand. He walked over to the wolf, which was just regaining consciousness, and beheaded it. "This way."
Fumi nodded and took Aiki's hand again. They didn't meet up with anymore wolves until they got to the trap door leading to the secret path. "This is it. You can hear the voices of the other still. So hurry up." Aiki went down ladder into the dark subterranean path first. Fumi followed soon after when they heard a deep howl. Down the hallway came two more Dairou. "Shit. This is going to be fun. Hurry up so I can replace the seal. If the wolves get down there it'll be my ass on the line." Fumi jumped down as Shinji closed the door. His reassuring smile was the last thing she saw before the door disappeared under the power of the seal.
Shikamaru ducked as the black dairou sailed over his head. The giant dog landed on his feet and whirled around. "Damn, you're agile," the dairou chuckled.
"Same to you," Shikamaru agreed as he stood up, hand in pocket. "Don't suppose, we can agree to disagree and settle this like two men… mammals?"
The dairou rolled his neck, cracking the joints. "Well, now. If I let you live, you'd stop me from killing everyone and if I stopped killing then I wouldn't be doing my job and that'd be a mistake." Shikamaru smirked. The dog closed his eyes. "…This whole war is a mistake…" When he opened his eyes, Shikamaru could not mistake the intelligent soul within. Like him, the wolf would rather be doing something else that did no involve killing, but someone had made him their tool for war.
"Nara…Shikamaru. From Konoha."
"Kurotsuki. Nara-san, please to meet you."
"Which way?" Fumi squinted. The path wasn't lit and the echoes were making it hard to tell where they voices were coming from. "Aiki, can you sniff out which way to go?" There was no answer, only the sound of whimpering. "Aiki?" She reached out for him and he shrank away.
"This… this is my fault…They're here because of me," he whined. She sighed and grabbed him.
"Don't have time for this!" She grabbed him and ran in an arbitrary direction. "If just pick a direction we're bound to run into someone." As they ran down the corridor they heard the sounds of battle above them occasionally, the ground would shake but Fumi kept them on their course.
Fumi finally sank to the ground, panting, after what seemed to be hours after the initial attack. "Geez, where do all of these paths go?"
"To the Great Cavern out side of the village," came Mokumaru's voice. He was in front of them holding a bright flare. "But we can't go there now. The tunnel caved in so have to find the other path out of Sunagakure. There we can head to another village.
"WHAT! And leave Suna to the dogs? You have finally lost it, Sabakuno Mokumaru," Fumi chided him. "We can't just leave. Our parents are fighting out there."
He stared at her expressionlessly for a few moments as if he didn't understand or care about what she said. "I don't know if we're thinking the same thing but…" He smiled excitedly. "Shall we show them what we've got?"
She grinned. "We are the only ones that have fought them before." Aiki made a noise somewhere between shock and a scream. He was still holding his head quivering. Sweat was pouring down his face.
"What's wrong with him?" Mokumaru asked approaching.
"The wolves," was Fumi's answer. "They're here for him."
Mokumaru seemed to think for a moment before forcing his cousin onto his back. "We can't leave him here and he'll just slow us down if we have to drag him." They started running down the tunnels.
"The Kazekage's home was under attack when we left."
"Yeah but that's not important. The people of Sunagakure are in danger." They rounded a corner and continued on. Fumi was unsure of where they were going but trusted that her idiot cousin knew his own village. "If everything should fall, this village will live in the power of it's survivors."
Fumi smirked. "That's poetic. But I'd expect nothing less of someone proud to be the son of the Kazekage." They came to a dead end and stopped. Mokumaru went up the wall and began to examine the wall. "What is it? Is there a trap door?"
"Uuuuh, no." He turned and walked past her nonchalantly. "I screwed up. Come on." It took all the will and resolve, Nara Fumi had not to tackle him to the ground and beat the snot out of him. He was always acting so important even when he screwed up!
Fifteen minutes later…
"Shoulda took a left back there. Whaddya know."
"MOKUMARUUUUUUUU!"
Kurotsuki jumped out of the way of the kagemane. "Getting caught by that jutsu would be a mistake, Nara-san." He panted heavily and galloped towards Shikamaru. He back flipped twice, two thin blades of wind developed and sliced their way towards the human. The blades it but instead destroyed a vase. "If you keep destroying the Kazekage's thing he'll get you." He turned his head behind him.
"Yeah, I know but I'm more worried about my wife in this case. If I get hurt, it'll be troublesome."
The dog lunged at him but Shikamaru held him at bay with his kunai. The fangs of the dog, dripped with saliva but the eyes was where Shikamaru was focusing his attention. They were blue and clear and staring straight at him. "Say…," he said between struggling, "you eyes are like the sky… Do you ever watch the clouds?" Kurotsuki answered by shutting his eyes and pushing back, forcing Shikamaru's back to the wall.
"Don't go trying to understand me human! We're not on the same level," he dashed forward. Shikamaru grabbed kunai from his thigh holster and flung them at the demon but he dodged everyone one. He jumped into the air and came down on his opponent. Warm blood flowed down the shadow ninja's arm. His last kunai was imbedded in the dairou's chest. His eyes were wide with shock, somehow he didn't expect it to end this way.
"You made… a mistake," he said sadly.
Kurotsuki smiled, his blue eyes softening. He coughed, blood spewing forth. Red tears seeped from his eyes. "Nara-san… I don't make mistakes." Shikamaru relaxed his arm as the full weight of the now dead oni on top of him. Idly, his other hand stroked the wolf's head, resting beside him.
"Shikamaru!" Kankurou ran over to him and looked down. "Are you-?" He stopped short when he saw that his brother-in-law was clearly holding back screaming out in anger.
"I'm going to kill her… for making us fight."
Kankurou merely nodded and helped pull the dead demon from on top of him. "We should go, Shikamaru. The town is being overrun… Temari is already out there."
"Right. They children should be in the bunkers by now." He collected his weapons. "Let's go."
By now, Fumi's patience was running on fumes. She vowed that that the next wrong turn was going to result in violence. However, it seemed the Mokumaru was finally correct. He put Aiki down and examined the ladder.
"Here we go," he said climbing up a ladder to a trapdoor. Inscribed on the wood was the kanji for 'weaponry'. He pushed it open and climbed out.
"'Bout time," Fumi muttered. She toed Aiki gently. "Go on, short stuff. I'm right behind you." Aiki looked up and complied quietly. She watched him disappear up the ladder, wondering idly what was going on in his mind and if she would see him transform again under the pressure.