The seductive Kunoichi Fuuka is back from the dead! She wants to take revenge on the blond-haired brat who dared to expose her best-kept secret and defeat her in battle years ago. Much has happened since then but the story of the attractive woman, whose beguiling charm had brought many strong opponents to their knees, also continues...
Fuuka's Last Kiss
Chapter XVIII - Trust
"You have damaged a woman's most important feature - and now you're going to pay for it!" - Fuuka
Where am I?
Water dripped from the ceiling. The surroundings were barren and pale. Everything seemed bleak and colourless. Her ankles felt cold and wet. She looked down and noticed that they were under water.
What is this place?
Fuuka found herself in the middle of a corridor. She was alone - not a soul but her. Nothing about this inhospitable, unfamiliar place seemed natural to her. Hesitantly, her legs started to move.
The sound of the water, set in motion by her tentative steps, echoed in the narrow passage. Although the splashing of water was a familiar sound, her ears were very sensitive to it. The sound made her increasingly uncomfortable. It grew louder with each step she took, but it was not only the sound of the water. Her heart was also pounding and beating louder and louder in her chest, and even the sound of her increasingly hurried breathing was almost deafening to the Kunoichi. Her steps became faster and faster and only after a while did she realise that she was already running. She forced her legs to stop - and she paused for a moment. She propped herself up against the wall with both hands, closed her eyes and concentrated on her breathing to calm herself. But it didn't help. Her tension continued, turning more and more into plaguing nervousness.
What is going on here?
Then, a loud, deafening bang, and Fuuka's eyes snapped open. She looked around, but nothing. Then another bang, and Fuuka realised that the source of this sound was far from distant - it was coming from right below her. Another drop of water sought its way down and each time it hit, it sounded to Fuuka almost as if a paper bomb was exploding beneath her. Only now did she notice that her skin felt very warm, just like her whole body - she was sweating profusely. The beads of sweat that formed on her face slowly slid down from her forehead to her chin, gathered there and when they formed enough mass, gravity eventually pulled them down. But this process seemed to be getting slower and slower. The next water bomb took what felt like an eternity to hit, but it caused a tremor inside her that immediately turned into a stabbing pain in her chest.
"Ahh!"
Fuuka winced. It took a moment for the pain to recede and her senses to settle down again. Fuuka's legs started moving again. It grew warmer and warmer, and her steps felt heavier and heavier, until the long corridor through which she marched finally led her to an imposing room. Exhausted, she entered it and was disappointed that - at first glance - there was nothing conspicuous in it, but the heat seemed to come from this place, judging by the high temperature. Dense vapours lay like mist in the air and partially obscured her view. She took a few more steps into the room and let her gaze roam to find something until she could make out the silhouettes of straight lines leading vertically upwards in front of her. As she gained a clearer view, Fuuka noticed that they were in fact bars of metal reaching up to the ceiling, which itself was very high. The swathes gradually cleared and Fuuka found herself standing in front of a huge lattice gate. In the middle of the gate she saw a white seal. Suddenly the heat in the room increased - exponentially, until it reached a level that became unbearable for Fuuka. But even from that point, the temperature increase did not stop, and Fuuka felt as if her skin was burning.
"AAAHHH!"
Fuuka's legs slumped and her knees hit the ground. Even the water that was still spreading underneath her could not cool her down. Immediately afterwards, she heard a deep and terrifying growl that made the water vibrate and her body tremble. Completely frozen with fear, she looked into two large, red, animalistic eyes that suddenly pierced out of the shadows.
"AAAAHHHH!"
The heat inside her took the form of roaring flames in her consciousness - and she felt as if not only her body but also her mind was now catching fire. The luminosity of the eyes that looked menacingly down at Fuuka increased - as did her pain, and Fuuka realised that it was the wrath of this being - this monster - that raged in her mind and was causing her to suffer this hellish torment.
"AAAAAHHHHHH!"
The monster's eyes narrowed - and suddenly time seemed to stand still.
"You can't fool me - I can see your true self."
As Fuuka heard the monster's booming voice, the deafening noise her heart was making in her chest stopped. For a moment, the organ no longer pumped blood through her body. Shortly after, the attractive young figure of hers dissolved, and her body took on almost the same features that characterised her surroundings - her bony frame was also gaunt, and her colourless little eyes tremulously crossed the gaze of the huge figure behind the bars, still shrouded in shadow. Fuuka's breath caught, and no more air reached her lungs as the flames in her head spilled over and spread to the surrounding area.
Racked by physical and mental pain - and disgusted with herself - Fuuka's hair moved away from her old and weak shell before it crumbled to dust and dissolved into the water. Her long hair floated in the air until two bright, yellow points of light, like eyes, emerged - Fuuka's true self. Her long hair moved out and around the yellow dots in an unnatural way. She looked defiantly at the monster, whose piercingly bright red eyes seemed just as threatening and intimidating as before.
Then her hair caught fire.
"AAAAAAAHHHHHHH!"
Fuuka's eyes snapped open and her upper body rose from the bed she was lying on. She gasped. She realised how much she had been sweating - even her hair, from all the moisture it had soaked up, lay heavier on her head.
That dream again.
Then someone yanked open the door to her room.
"Is everything all right?"
It was Sai. Concerned, he looked into Fuuka's face.
"What happened?"
Apparently the last anguished scream she had let out wasn't just in her head.
"Nothing. It's nothing."
Fuuka pointedly did not look in his direction and answered his curiosity with silence. Sai interpreted this in his own way, closing the door behind him. Fuuka's features darkened, she looked angry by his actions.
"Hey, what are you doing? Did I allow you to enter?"
Sai seemed unconcerned and looked at her with the same expressionless face he usually and always presented.
"Do you want me to leave?"
"Uh..."
Fuuka faltered. She was surprised that she couldn't answer that simple question immediately and clearly - even to herself. She didn't want Sai to see her in this state. She didn't want to look weak; on the other hand, she dreaded the idea of being left alone with her thoughts.
"Tzz - do what you want."
"Tell me."
Sai grabbed the four-legged wooden chair that lay beside a dresser and pushed it in front of the bed.
"Huh?"
"Tell me about this dream. It's not the first time you've had it."
"What? How would you know?"
"My room is right next to yours. I get every single sob and moan you let out, and lately there have been quite a few."
"Don't you have something more important to do and be concerned about?"
"Well, I'd like to get some rest, but it's not so easy when my neighbour just starts screaming in the middle of the night."
Fuuka couldn't help but hint a slight smirk.
"Makes sense."
"It can sometimes help to let others know what you're feeling - what's going on inside your head, you know?"
She hesitated. Never in her life had anyone taken a serious interest in her feelings, or taken the time to listen to her when she wanted to articulate them. Letting another person share what she was feeling and thinking was alien to her. She kept them to herself - kept them hidden and secret. Fuuka looked into Sai's pitch-black eyes for a moment, reflecting the light of the candle that stood on the small table beside her bed. She felt a need inside her - the urge to surrender to him and reveal herself.
What is this feeling? There is something strange about this boy. Or is it me?
She choked this need down her throat - just like the words she actually wanted to say.
"I already told you; it's nothing. I'm just having bad dreams - everyone has nightmares sometimes, right?"
Fuuka drew her eyebrows close and gave him a suspicious look.
"Why do you even care?"
Sai closed his eyes and smiled. It was a cold but honest smile.
"We are comrades after all. Comrades look out for each other - care for each other, don't they?"
Fuuka looked at him almost in disbelief. She had never cared for the feelings of her comrades, at least never really. The other way round, it was the same. Why should she care? What united Furido, Fuen and Fudō back then was a common goal - the destruction of Konoha. Nothing more, nothing less than that. That was why they had joined forces - they had needed each other. Neither emotional attachment nor friendship held the group together. But a scene crept into her mind. The moment had been completely incidental, utterly insignificant to her, but for some reason she couldn't help but recall it:
Fuuka was standing on a pile of rubble that had once been a building. She smiled as she watched two Konoha-Nin being surrounded by a group of undead bodies, then they were overpowered – overwhelmed by their sheer numbers - then eaten alive. Furido stood over her - his imperious, gleeful laughter magnifying the smile on the Kunoichi's lips, and she continued to enjoy the sight before her. Fuen had summoned an army of undead that were now attacking the Hidden Leaf - but that was only the first part of their plan. They had no time to waste.
"Furido, it's time," Fuuka said.
"Ah, much as I'm enjoying the show... Yes, the four of them should be ready by now - and Sora."
He lifted his gaze, but his eyes were still hidden in the shadow by the large straw hat he – and the others – wore.
"Than now is the time – for us to lend our support, as planned," Fuen said. The woman, who had been instrumental in designing the plan, stood behind him.
"Right," Fudō said.
"Then let's go!", yelled Fuuka.
„Yes, go!"
Fuuka gave the signal, and Furido led the way. The group of four withdrew to move on to the next part of the plan. Now it was all a matter of separating Sora from his Leaf friends and making sure he found his way to Furido unhindered and undisturbed, so that he could claim the hidden power inside him and destroy the village once and for all. Fuuka was aware of the immense power that lay dormant within Sora, but she also knew that this blond-haired brat she had fought before possessed a similar power. Fuuka was sure; they had to have a connection - even if Furido denied it when she had asked him about it. Did he know more than he was admitting? But why should he lie to her? Probably he just didn't know any better. Furido had a mind of his own - but Fudō believed what Fuuka was saying. As the group was about to split up to intercept the Ninja from Konoha one by one, she was held back by Fudō. He placed his hand on her shoulder.
"Hey, Fuuka."
"Huh?"
"Be careful, okay?"
Fuuka looked sceptically at his striking face, as if she didn't understood what he was up to.
"What do you mean?"
"Don't forget what you have told me – you remember, right? That feeling you had while absorbing the boy's Chakra – that 'monster' inside your head you mentioned. If what you say is true he might be more dangerous than you probably think. Don't underestimate him."
Fuuka looked at him in silence for a moment, then turned her gaze away from him.
"I'll be fine."
Then the Kunoichi set out to confront that blond-haired brat - and to get her kiss from him with which she would have made his immense power her own. But the fight turned out differently than she had anticipated and, in the end, it was her who was defeated by the boy.
Was he actually worried about me?
Fudō faded from her consciousness, and Sai's naturally chalky face reappeared before her eyes. He made a puzzled face.
"Is everything all right?"
Fuuka shook her head.
"Yes - yes, I think so."
Sai gave her another smile - warmer than the one before.
"You do carry more with you than you'd like others to know, right?"
Fuuka was silent - she didn't know what to answer.
"Believe me - I know what it's like."
Sai slowly got up from his chair and sat on her bed. Fuuka wanted to protest, but, for some reason, she let him - she wanted to listen what he had to say. She pulled her legs towards her so that the black-haired Shinobi had more space.
"I had problems communicating to others and showing my feelings as well. Over the years, I learned to wear a mask. But I didn't show this mask only to other people. I hid my true feelings, I denied them – I also fooled myself."
"I don't wear a mask - I am the woman I am."
"We all put on masks sometimes to protect ourselves, you know? Whether we're willing to admit it or not."
Fuuka gave the young man a sneer.
"Oh yeah? And what mask are you wearing now?"
"No mask."
"How come?"
"I don't HAVE to fool you, I don't WANT to fool you. I don't want to fool MYSELF."
Suddenly Sai reached out his hand to her. Almost startled, Fuuka slapped it away from her.
„What do you want!?"
"Showing you how I truly feel."
Sai's hand approached her again and she suppressed the reflex of backing away with her head. Her heart was pounding and beating louder and louder in her chest. When Fuuka felt the warmth of his skin on her cheek, she closed her eyes. Then she opened her eyes again - his face was clearly closer than before. She could see the nervous, uncertain expression on her face mirrored in his eyes. When Sai removed his hand from her cheek and reached for her hair, that expression reached a new level.
„What-a!? What do you think you're doing!?"
Fuuka's muscles tensed to the utmost. She could feel her body getting warmer and warmer and the sweat forming on her skin because of the fear she felt. With her mouth open and her eyes wide, she stared into his face – scared. Sai keeping eye contact with her the whole time. His hand slid gently through her hair, and as Fuuka slowly regained her composure, she could also read the message from his dark eyes that he was wordlessly sending out to her: trust me.
Then someone yanked open the door to her room.
"I'm sorry to disturb you, but Fuen is asking for both of you - it is time."
The masked Anbu stood at the doorstep for a few more seconds, but neither Fuuka, nor Sai took their eyes off each other. When he realised he was being ignored, he reached for the door handle again.
"Please hurry up."
The Anbu quietly and carefully closed the door - and Fuuka and Sai were alone again. They enjoyed the moment of their togetherness.