Naruto: Dragon's Maw
Chapter 49
Blanket disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, Ninja Gaiden or DOA
AUTHOR'S NOTE:
Okay, things are starting to heat up a bit as the DOA 1 arc continues. Here is chapter 49. Enjoy!
[ ] Signifies hand signs
Last time:
The byakugan princess smiled and asked, "So is anything going on except the fights? I was hoping we'd get some leads on Raidou by now."
"Well, Subaru Kimiko is here covertly investigating DOATEC as a reporter." explained Kasumi. "She is organizing a network. Apparently Defense Secretary Ishigami Ken sees DOATEC as a threat given how much monetary power they have."
"So the JSDF is involved also." said Hinata. "What are they looking into?"
Kasumi shrugged. "Subaru wasn't entirely clear about that. Apparently DOATEC is headhunting the better fighters to train their armed mercenaries. Subaru indicated she hopes that one of her contacts will join DOATEC's trainers and give her some inside information."
"Have you been approached?" asked Hinata.
The brunette shook her head. "Fortunately no. It would mean that DOATEC has a personal interest in me and we don't need that kind of attention on our clan."
"I could have seen Kimiko trying to enter herself." said Hinata humorously. "Her ego gets her into trouble."
Kasumi nodded. "I thought the same thing but apparently fighting dinosaurs taught her some humility."
"Will wonders never cease?" asked Hinata rhetorically. Both girls burst into giggles.
"But we're still no closer to finding Raidou." said Kasumi seriously.
"I'll try to track down Kimiko and set up an information exchange Kasumi-chan. She may have information on Raidou." said Hinata. "You just concentrate on fighting."
Kasumi nodded and said, "It's still a long way to the top…."
….
DOATEC TriTower Headquarters, United States
Deep in the bowels of the immense DOATEC TriTower a discussion was being held between Doctor Lisa Hamilton and Director Victor Donovan. Behind them was a large glass cylinder that was approximately four feet in diameter and ten feet tall. It was filled with a transparent liquid and within it was a nude young woman floating suspended in the fetal position. Victor smiled at the cylinder and said "Kasumi ἀ *①; such a masterpiece. To think that blood we took from Uzumaki Kasumi to 'check for illegal drugs' resulted in this." He admired the long copper brown hair of Alpha and asked, "How long till her memories are programmed Doctor Hamilton?"
Lisa looked at her clipboard and replied, "Within three more days Kasumi ἀ will be completed, memories and all."
"Excellent!" exclaimed Victor. "Once Alpha is ready we can get Project Epsilon started as well. You've outdone yourself Lisa."
"Thank you sir." said Lisa. "Kasumi will be ready on schedule and we can start testing her for any possible defects."
Victor left the chamber in a good mood leaving Lisa alone with the clone of Kasumi.
'I wonder what ninpo you will know.' thought Lisa. 'Will you be able to use Uzumaki Clan techniques? I hope you live up to your potential.'
As Donovan went back up the elevator he thought aloud to himself, "Fame Douglas, your days are numbered…."
….
City of Tokyo, Honshu, Japan
Uzumaki Maya arrived in her old home city of Tokyo and was hit by a wave of nostalgia. The sights, the smells, the crime…. She was on her way to the Tokyo Dome Hotel where Ayane was staying. 'It seems like a lifetime ago that I used to run around in the Bunkyo Ward doing police work.' thought the former detective wistfully. It was then that she heard gunfire….
Inspector Otaki Seburo*② of the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department was having another long night. A drug bust had gone south and Otaki now had a shootout on his hands. He saw his life flash before his eyes as a bullet flew straight at his head. Otaki had no time to avoid it and felt the icy hand of death grip him solidly in place. He saw his wife and family flash before his eyes as the bullet closed in on him. The Police Inspector had no time to react or even think when a blade appeared from nowhere and deflected the bullet. A slim kunoichi in an all black Uzumaki uniform pushed him out of the line of fire after she blocked the initial bullet. She said, "I can't have you dying now Otaki."
Otaki's eyes widened and he saw Maya's twin tail haircut as she looked at the shootout from over the fender of the Police car. The Inspector said, "Ma-Maya?"
Maya turned around and showed her violet eyes. They were crinkled showing she was smiling. "Our secret old man. Nothing in your reports. You want me to take them out? I spot seven shooters."
The Inspector looked wide eyed before he got a grip on himself and said, "Can you do it?"
Maya nodded and said, "In a heartbeat; just have your men cease fire for thirty seconds."
Otaki saw his men were ducked down behind their vehicles and radioed, "Hold you fire and lay low for thirty seconds! We're making a shift in tactics."
He nodded at Maya who had already vanished into thin air. The Uzumaki kunoichi moved faster than Otaki and his men were able to track and within seconds the drug runner's guns had all fallen silent. The Inspector's men were puzzled and Maya reappeared behind Otaki. She said, "They won't cause any more trouble. Stay safe old man." The violet eye kunoichi winked and vanished before Otaki's eyes.
The Inspector straightened up his coat and put his hat back on as if nothing had happened. He said, "Alright men, let's check for survivors…."
….Within a few minutes it was confirmed that all seven shooters were dead by decapitation.
'Was that really you Maya…?' wondered the balding Inspector.
….
As Maya roof hopped towards the Tokyo Dome Hotel she heard Ayane's voice above her. "Having fun Maya-chan?" asked the red eyed kunoichi. "Playing with the Police outside of a contract is a bit outside the rules."
Maya looked up at her sister-wife and blushed behind her mask. "It was my old friend Otaki. I couldn't just let him die…."
Ayane patted Maya's shoulder and said with a chuckle, "I understand; just don't go playing vigilante for free even if Tokyo does need it."
The former detective said, "Thanks for understanding Ayane-chan."
Ayane nodded and said, "Let's go to the hotel and you can tell me the news that had to be passed along in person."
Maya nodded and smiled ferally under her mask. "Just wait till you see my new sword."
Ayane raised an eyebrow and said "I can't wait."
….
Tokyo Dome Hotel
Ayane and Maya slipped into Ayane's room on the 22nd floor through the window. The violet haired kunoichi said, "I've soundproofed the place; we can talk safely."
Maya slid into a chair to relax. "Nice room! It's got double beds and flat screen television. Kind of overkill for an individual competitor though."
Ayane shrugged. "I'm not paying for it so I took a double room no questions asked. Let DOATEC foot the bill." Ayane closed the window drapes and said, "So what information have you got? I have a lot to share myself."
The two kunoichi discussed things long into night about the Yawarakai-Ti and the mission to Sasebo as well as Ayane's adventures running into the JSDF Agents.
"I wonder if others have been contacted by the JSDF." said Maya. "We need to coordinate quickly if they have. So you say DOATEC is looking for people to train their troops?"
Ayane nodded. "That's what Agents Kojima and Akari told me. I haven't been asked or anything but I'm keeping an eye out just in case. They want an inside person."
"If the situation wasn't so dire it would be a golden opportunity to look inside DOATEC's operation." said Maya.
"That may be the case but that's not our mission." said Ayane in an iron tone. "Killing Raidou is our purpose."
Maya silently agreed….
….
City of Sapporo, Hokkaido
Naruto was nearing Sapporo after an 18 hour train ride from Osaka. "This is taking forever. Next time I'll take a flight." he thought aloud.
The blonde heard a soft laughter beside him. It was a waitress. She was quite stunning with her brown hair in a bob cut and soft gray eyes. She said, "These trips do tend to get long don't they Uzumaki-san? Let me get you something to eat." She reached into her food cart and said, "Here we go." Naruto's eyes widened as she pulled out a 9mm with a silencer and fired three rounds into him. The waitress put the pistol back in the cart and smiled as Naruto slumped over. "Easy as pie." she said sounding pleased with herself.
That was when Naruto puffed into smoke. It was a shadow clone. She felt the blonde grab her throat from behind in a brutal chokehold with his right hand and felt a kunai knife point pressed against her left kidney. Naruto whispered, "Let's discuss this outside." and he body flickered them outside to the roof of the train. The young woman's illusion shattered showing her in a black and gray stealth suit with her slim midriff exposed*③. It was obvious that she was kunoichi trained when she spun out of Naruto's grip and flipped backwards and away from him. She drew her 9mm into position and fired off several shots.
Naruto dropped his henge and drew another kunai in an instant. He easily deflected the bullets with the pair of kunai knives. She drew a black carbon steel chokuto and charged him. Naruto barely had time to drop his pair of kunai and draw the Kusanagi to block with. Her eyes widened in fear when Naruto's tsurugi scored her chokuto nearly cutting it in half. The kunoichi folded into the splits as her chokuto broke and ducked down below the deadly arc of the Kusanagi that would otherwise have beheaded her. She growled angrily and said, "You haven't heard the last of Hien Tsuin you butcher!" Then the lithe kunoichi threw down a smoke bomb and vanished in a teleport.
Naruto sensed she was no longer on the train and thought to himself, 'Why would one of the Hien Clan be after me? They are our friends and retainers. I need to look into this immediately….'
….
Sapporo Station
An hour later Aoi was awaiting Naruto at the train station. The blonde ninja soon arrived and he and Aoi kissed each other passionately. He said, "Aoi-chan; I've missed you."
She smiled happily and kissed him again before she said, "I've missed you too Naruto-kun. I'm glad you're here."
The young couple went back to the Mecure Sapporo Hotel where Aoi was staying to have some dinner. "So this is French food….It's okay I guess." said the blonde ninja.
Aoi smiled and said, "If we ever go to France this will be it so get used to it."
Naruto chuckled. "I'll keep that in mind. "I watched your last fight on wifi. You did well."
The redhead grinned. "It was a tough fight. She was wearing concealed body armor so I had to resort to pummeling her face. I have another fight tomorrow."
"I'll be here for it." replied Naruto.
….
Mecure Sapporo Hotel, Aoi's Hotel room
Naruto was discussing the attack on him during the train ride to Sapporo with Aoi. "She said her name was Hien Tsuin. Strangely she used a gun."
"A gun toting kunoichi?" asked Aoi. "I can see using rifles for long range but a pistol? It's fairly useless in a ninja fight. We need to contact the Hien Clan back home and see who this girl is."
The orange loving blonde unsealed his laptop and signed in to the local area network. After safely encrypting the signal he called the Uzumaki Clan House.
Hien Chiharu picked up the line. She smiled at the screen and said, "Naruto-sama, how may I be of service?"
"Hello Chiharu-chan." said Naruto. "I'm afraid something rather urgent has come up. Is there a member of the Hien Clan named Tsuin? A kunoichi by that name tried to kill me earlier today."
Chiharu looked alarmed. "Oh dear, did she carry a pistol?"
Naruto nodded. "She was very fast with it but I deflected all the shots."
The Hien kunoichi face palmed and said, "Thank goodness you are unharmed. She is Madoka-chan's older sister. Let me get Akihito and Akito. Maybe they will have a solution to this problem."
Akihito soon came on the screen and said, "So Tsuin is alive after all. She was out on a mission when the Hien Village was destroyed and never returned. We all thought she was dead. Did she say anything to you Naruto-sama?"
"She called me a butcher and said I hadn't heard the last of her….she also mentioned her name." explained Naruto.
Akihito sweat dropped. "We tried to break her of the habit of announcing who she is. On the positive side you've identified her. My question is why she would call you a butcher. Tsuin must have been deceived by somebody."
"Perhaps she's confused about the destruction of the Hien Village." suggested Aoi.
Akihito scratched his chin and said, "It's well within the realm of possibility Aoi-sama but that still doesn't explain why she would conclude Naruto-sama was behind it."
Aoi narrowed her eyes and said, "The Hien Clan was allied to the Black Spider Clan were they not?" Seeing Akihito nod she said, "Odds are my old clan set her against Naruto-kun for revenge. It would be no loss to them and might get rid of one of their strongest enemies."
Naruto shook his head, "We'll have to straighten her out before we're forced to hurt her."
Akihito nodded. "Tsuin is incredibly gifted with the blade. She uses a pistol to throw people off. She will be a very powerful kunoichi some day."
….
DOATEC TriTower Headquarters, United States
Kasumi ἀ was awake and was being put through exhaustive testing by Lisa Hamilton. The clone was demolishing one opponent after the next. Alpha's combat capabilities were on par with Kasumi which was outstanding as far as Lisa was concerned. Kasumi ἀ also knew basic ninpo but for whatever reason she couldn't grasp ninjutsu or other chakra techniques. Alpha knew the hand signs but was frustrated that she had no access to her chakra. She also seemed to have an aggressive and deadly streak that the original Kasumi did not. Victor Donovan thought this was fine but Lisa wasn't so sure. Being too eager to fight could cloud one's judgment after all….
Alpha was eating her lunch with Lisa and she said, "Project Epsilon is to capture my nii-san Hayate. Why don't we lure Naruto-kun to us instead? He isn't crippled and Naruto-kun is healthy much more powerful. He is a prime specimen. Naruto-kun needs to join us."
"We've discussed this before." said Lisa. "While we can clone Hayate of the Mugen Tenshin Clan we cannot do the same with Uzumaki Naruto."
"Naruto-kun should be here with me." said Kasumi ἀ with a tone of finality. "He is to be mine."
….
"Alpha is fixated on Uzumaki Naruto you say?" asked Victor. "This is unexpected."
Lisa nodded and said, "We've attempted to condition it out of her but it seems to go right to her core. I'm afraid that she wouldn't be able to fight Uzumaki Naruto effectively if a confrontation were to arise."
Donovan frowned. "We knew she had a certain fondness for Hayate but Uzumaki Naruto could be a real problem. Does she consider him her husband?"
Lisa rubbed her chin nervously. "At this point I'm not sure. She considers Hayate her 'brother' and the original Kasumi her 'bad sister.' When Uzumaki Naruto is brought up her entire mood brightens up. I think she considers him her soul mate or the likes."
"What if we try to wipe out her memories of Uzumaki Naruto specifically?" asked Victor.
Lisa shook her head. "The problem is many of her fighting abilities and the chances of her learning Uzumaki techniques are tied to those memories. She would still be extremely formidable without them but-"
Victor Donovan cut her off. "Lowering Alpha's combat potential is the last thing we want to do. I will try to talk to her since she latched onto me as her 'Father.' We want to impress upon her that Uzumaki Naruto is a target and not her boyfriend." Donovan rubbed his forehead as if to ward off a migraine. "I wonder if all teenage girls are this difficult…."
….
Mecure Sapporo Hotel, Hokaido, Japan
Naruto woke up in Aoi's hotel room lying there with his redheaded wife curled up in his arms. They'd made love for hours the night before and then woke up and had some fantastic morning wake up sex. Aoi had fallen back to sleep after that. Naruto looked down and saw her auburn hair fanned out over her back. He always loved Aoi's downy soft red hair. She usually wore it tied back but Naruto thought it looked beautiful when it was down. He gently rubbed her back and felt Aoi's soft skin.
She smiled in her slumber and whispered "Naruto-kun…." in her sleep.
The blonde smiled softly and decided to just enjoy holding his wife for the time being. Naruto knew she had a fight tonight but there was no harm in sleeping in….
….
Aoi woke up about two hours later. Her hazel eyes were bright and full of contentment. She saw Naruto was dozing lightly and the redhead woke up her husband with a loving kiss. Naruto reciprocated after a few seconds and when they parted both lovers were smiling. The blonde said, "Good morning Aoi-chan. How are you feeling?"
"Mmmm….I feel wonderful." said Aoi in a sultry tone. "How are you lover?"
Naruto leaned in and kissed her again. "I'm very happy." said the blonde with a toothy grin. "I love my beautiful Aoi-chan."
She giggled and said, "And I love my Naruto-kun. What do you say we get up and have a late breakfast?"
….
City of Nagoya, Honshu
Kasumi and Hinata were back at the Red Planet Nagoya Nishiki after observing the fights in the morning. "The competition doesn't look as strong as I expected." said Hinata. "There don't seem to be many professional level fighters that could compete with you Kasumi-chan."
The former Mugen Tenshin Princess replied, "This morning's fights were a poor showing. There are some really strong competitors out there."
Hinata propped her chin up on her hand and said, "I wonder where our contact is? Subaru Kimiko may be a little scatterbrained but she's usually punctual."
Kasumi looked at her watch and said, "Kimiko is thirty minutes late. Maybe we should look around."
The indigo haired kunoichi nodded and said, "Get on your combat gear Kasumi-chan. I have a bad feeling."
"What if she just shows up late?" asked Kasumi.
"I'll leave a shadow clone behind just in case." answered the Byakugan Princess.
….
Around noon the two Uzumaki kunoichi were out prowling in the shadows in the streets of Nagoya. After about an hour they found Kimiko unconscious in an alley near the hotel. She was battered and it was obvious she'd been beaten up badly.
"Let's get her to a hospital." said Kasumi.
"There the little witch is!" said a man's voice. "She throat jabbed me earlier."
Another man said in a weak tone, "At least she didn't kick you in the nuts. My balls still hurt!"
The two kunoichi had already blended into the shadows when the men arrived. The pair of men were wearing suits that looked like the DOATEC Tournament guards but they didn't have the badges. Kasumi signaled to Hinata, [They are Tournament bouncers. Do you want to take them out?]
Hinata shook her head from the other side of the ally. [Not yet; they may spill some information.]
"I say we shoot her dead." said the second man as he loomed over Subaru.
The first man replied, "No way, Mister Donovan wants her alive to interrogate. If he found out we killed her we'd be dead."
"Fuck Donovan!" roared the second man as he pulled a machine pistol and aimed it at Kimiko's head.
A pair of kunai came out of the shadows and killed the second man before he could pull the trigger. The first man stared in disbelief before a shuriken pierced his heart….
….
….Kimiko woke up in a comfortable bed in a room she didn't recognize. She smelled fresh scented soap and the lights were dim. She heard Hinata's voice say softly, "Subaru is very lucky she only had external injuries though she was in bad shape. Once she wakes up I'll finish patching her up. With DOATEC's connections a public hospital isn't a safe place for her."
Kasumi's voice said, "Well, I erased the two bouncers with a fire jutsu after I searched them. They have DOATEC identification cards. Why do you think those thugs were after Subaru anyway Hinata-chan?"
Hinata answered, "Kimiko must have found something big. That's all I can figure out. I'm guessing it has something to do with this Donavan person."
The petite JSDF Agent wanted to say something but was too exhausted to move or speak. 'I'm safe….' was her only thought before she fell back to sleep.
….
When Kimiko woke up again she saw a light green glow in the corner of her vision as well as a wonderful view of Hinata's cleavage as the indigo haired kunoichi hovered above her healing Kimiko's injuries. "Oh come to Mama…." thought Kimiko aloud.
Hinata pulled back with a deadpan look on her face and buttoned her top two buttons on her shirt only to hear Kimiko make a whining noise. The Byakugan Princess sighed and said, "I see you are awake Subaru."
"I just wanted to snuggle them." pouted Kimiko.
"I think you got hit in the head harder than I thought Kimiko." said Hinata. "In case you've forgotten I'm straight."
"Awww, you're no fun." said Kimiko. She looked around, "Where are we anyway?"
"We're in the Red Planet Nagoya Nishiki Hotel in Kasumi's room for the DOA Tournament." answered Hinata. "We found you collapsed in an alley with two thugs looking for you."
The JSDF Agent gasped, "Those two could identify me!"
"Not to worry." said Hinata. "Kasumi-chan and I eliminated them. The bodies have been erased too."
"Oh." replied Kimiko dumbfounded. "I guess my cover is intact then."
"Why were they after you and who is Donovan?" asked Hinata.
Kimiko sweat dropped. "So you already heard of Victor Donovan….He's a big wheel at DOATEC and has connections with the Lords of Alchemy. I need to get this information to Defense Secretary Ishigami as soon as possible."
"You'll have to wait until we can get you some new clothes. Your outfit was torn and bloodied. You'd stick out like a sore thumb." said Hinata. "When Kasumi-chan comes back with dinner we'll see about getting you some fresh clothing….unless you want to go out in public in your underwear and bandages."
"That's just mean." pouted Kimiko.
Hinata smiled and said, "I have no idea what strange fetishes you have Subaru."
….
Kimiko was eating dinner and watching the DOA Tournament fights when she saw a live broadcast from Tokyo Dome. She was wearing a yukata from the hotel. "Hey look; it's Ayane-chan!" said the petite brunette.
…..
Ayane was facing off with a kick boxer name Sheila. Sheila had more victories but Ayane was the favored contender.
"AYANE VS. SHEILA, READY? FIGHT!"
The kick boxer immediately tried to throw Ayane to the mat but the lithe kunoichi countered with her own counter throw and bounced Sheila into the ropes. When the kick boxer tried to get up Ayane kicked her down repeatedly and followed up with a series of rapid punches. Sheila was taking a brutal beating when she finally yelled in rage and extended a pair of concealed wrist blades from under her bandages on her forearms and wrists. Ayane's red eyes narrowed as there were screams from the crowd and the yell on the overhead about Sheila being disqualified from the fight.
Sheila was in a rage and wanted to kill Ayane for making her lose. The kick boxer swung her wrist blades with great precision at Ayane's eyes. The violet haired kunoichi leaned back a hair's breadth out of range and didn't even blink. Ayane frowned and kicked Sheila's right wrist hard enough upward to snap the blade loose as well as break Sheila's wrist. Sheila cried out and then the red eyed kunoichi spun and roundhouse kicked the kick boxer's left wrist and sent the other blade flying in two pieces. "Too slow!" said Ayane as she poured the damage onto the now terrified Sheila.
Ayane juggled the kick boxer for several seconds before kicking her demolished opponent into the ropes one last time before spin kicking Sheila out of the ring….
"WINNER, AYANE!"
The crowd went wild. Sheila was hauled out on a stretcher. Cheating and killing was supposedly forbidden but that didn't make it any less popular….
….
Kimiko was wide eyed as the announcers raved about Ayane's performance and people were interviewed about the fight. Kasumi said, "It looks like Ayane-chan was holding back. I'm surprised she didn't roundhouse kick the woman in the jaw to snap her neck."
"That was holding back?" asked Kimiko in shock.
Hinata nodded in between bites and said, "Ayane-chan couldn't risk being disqualified even if it probably would have been considered self defense….Look at that crowd baying for blood. What a bunch of animals."
The petite JSDF Agent was once again blown away by the Uzumaki Clan's level of fighting abilities.
….
City of Sapporo, Hokkaido
Naruto was preparing to watch his wife Aoi on the outdoor big screen as her fight came up but his danger sense went off. He raised his right forearm just in time to block a brutal aerial heel drop aimed at his neck by Hien Tsuin that shattered his henge revealing his black ninja uniform. "This time you won't escape me!" roared the kunoichi.
'Wasn't she the one that escaped the last time?' asked Kurama out of nowhere.
'Good morning sunshine.' thought Naruto to his furry partner. 'Where have you been?'
'I've been dozing.' replied Kurama as Naruto flipped over a foot sweep from the angry kunoichi. 'I didn't figure you'd want me to pop into your mindscape when you were busy with your vixens.'
'I appreciate your consideration.' thought Naruto as he blocked a brutal mid-kick that sent him skidding back. 'Damn she's strong.'
The lithe kunoichi kicked upwards and hit Naruto in the chin but he converted the motion into a spin and countered her which sent Tsuin flying backwards end over end.
The blonde ninja was getting sick of being a punching bag but he was trying to avoid hurting the Hien kunoichi. 'Shame she has no qualms about hurting you.' quipped Kurama.
Unfortunately a crowd was gathering to watch Naruto and Tsuin go at it and neither of them wanted to involve civilians. Seeing the element of surprise was gone Tsuin growled and vanished in a teleport. A second later Naruto disappeared in a body flicker….
.…
Naruto appeared in a nearby tree and once again lost track of the Hien kunoichi. 'She can either teleport further than most or is very good at stealth.' thought Naruto.
'It's probably stealth considering your range as a sensor.' said Kurama. 'That and there have been fairly large amounts of people to hide amongst when she's escaped.'
Naruto and Kurama both heard cheering from the crowd and the blonde turned to the big screen that the Dead or Alive Tournament had been playing on. It simply said, "WINNER, AOI!" on the screen.
Naruto slumped. "Aw, man! I missed Aoi-chan's fight…."
….
City of Nagoya, Honshu
Hinata, Kasumi and Kimiko watched as Aoi pulled off an almost flawless victory on television. Kimiko cheered and said, "That was more like it! No one tried to murder one another."
Kasumi chuckled. "After her last fight Aoi-chan deserved a fairly easy win."
The Byakugan Princess asked Subaru, "So who exactly is this Victor Donovan? You said he was a big wheel at DOATEC but not much else."
Kimiko answered, "As far as I can tell he's the Head of the Development Department for DOATEC and I'm 99% sure he's the one behind the cloning and human experimentation we found evidence of on Em Nenhum Island. I was hacking into the DOATEC mainframe here in Nagoya when they spotted me and I had to run. The people chasing me were following Victor Donovan's orders rather than those of Fame Douglas. I have no idea if Fame Douglas even knows what Donovan is doing. Unfortunately I have very little proof except what I saw on the datafeed. I was intercepted before I could download the information."
"So what is his actual purpose?" asked Kasumi. "Those clones we cut down at the base on Em Nenhum Island were formidable but not that difficult."
Kimoko's eyes were as big as dinner plates. "Not that difficult?! Maybe for super ninjas like you but what about mere mortals like me?!"
"Calm down Subaru." said Hinata, "What Kasumi-chan is saying is the clones we fought weren't superhuman themselves. They were like well equipped Special Forces troops. If this Victor Donovan was trying to create some sort of clone army I'm surprised he didn't go for something more like a cyborg or….something more than just human. He sounds like a madman regardless."
….
DOATEC TriTower Headquarters, United States
Kasumi ἀ was in a standard fighting ring awaiting her latest opponent. So far in her testing Alpha had never been defeated. A hulking man in silver armor carrying a katana stepped in the ring. He took an offensive sword position and said, "I am ready."
Narrowing her eyes at the huge man; Alpha sized him up and said, "I will destroy you."
Lisa got on the overhead and said; "READY? FIGHT!"
….
The battle was quick and brutal and Kasumi ἀ finished off her opponent ruthlessly. The project Lambda clone had his neck snapped at an inhuman angle and his massive body hit the floor looking like a broken ragdoll. Donovan smiled coldly and said, "It seems that even the Hierro Gladius is no match for Alpha even though he had all the theoretical advantages in this fight except speed."
Lisa wanted to snort in dismissal. 'Was there ever any doubt? The Lambda clone had body armor and a katana but was completely demolished and dead in less than two minutes. Kasumi ἀ had been barehanded and defeated him utterly.' "It seems that Alpha's performance is up to our expectations."
Victor nodded and said "I believe Alpha mission ready. Send her to the Mugen Tenshin Village…."
….
POSTSCRIPT:
*① Yes, I'm jumping the gun on Kasumi's cloning. It's supposed to take place in between DOA 1 & 2 but for plot purposes I've moved the timetable up.
*② Remember Maya's old comrade in the Tokyo Police Department from chapter 15?
*③ Her appearance is based upon Rune Balot out of the anime Mardock Scramble.
It seems that Subaru Kimiko can't stay out of trouble. We also have a lost member of the Hien Clan running around trying to off Naruto at the most inopportune times. Kasumi ἀ is on the playing field as a lot of people have requested. We'll see next chapter just how much danger she can get into. See you next time. Blue out. 6/30/18