The sky that night was dark, the moon casting little light upon the narrow streets and alleyways of the grimy city of Moudiff. Tourists and passers-by often thought of the town as having frequent thunderstorms, just over the mountains, but anything more than a cursory inspection would reveal this as false; all the locals knew to stay indoors at night, for the city was wild and dark at night, and would drag the uncautious down into its gutters, riddled with the gunshots of a violent underbelly that fed on fear.
The night was for hunters, and that night, three of note prowled the streets, rooftops and the underground, hunting and being hunted. The lone wolf's stride was carefree, confident in her own ability without caring to impress. The six thugs that had mistaken her attitude for foolishness now found themselves, like they had done to so many others, bleeding into the bloodstained drains of the cramped alleyway, the contemptuous laughter of their slayer the last thing their senses would perceive.
The other two hunters watched. They'd been contracted to track down a certain group of individuals that had made a mockery of some powerful gang. Such petty squabbles among the gangs of the world were trite affairs to them, but money was, as ever, always of interest. But money was only to live. Like Miyabi and Imu, the two were of the elite ninja of Hebijo Academy, and as the epitome of their school, they were ever eager to bestow fresh victories upon it. Pride was one of the ways of evil.
Below the pair, the wolf composed herself, wiping the dripping blood from her twin blades against the clothing of one of the slain men. It was a waste of time to be dealing with the fools and weaklings of this city.
"I know you're there," she called, carelessly flourishing her sword as she looked up at the long rifle that was aimed at her. "You're real aggressive, you know? You'll give me nightmares if you keep glaring at me like that."
The girl dropped down with catlike grace, easily landing on her feet after the fifteen metre fall, an irritated scowl on her face.
"So what's an assassin like you want with little ol' me? Call me Lappland, by the way." She stood non-threateningly, her swords resting easily in her grip to either side of her.
"Ryobi. I heard you were looking for Texas."
Lappland visibly tensed, her face falling from a jovial smile to a hard stare as she viewed Ryobi with suspicion. "What do you want with Texas?" she demanded.
"Well, we were just supposed to kill her and her friends," Ryobi stated, "but how would you like it if I got a little imaginative? Maybe I'll blow her legs off, then I'll kill all her little friends in front of her." Ryobi's mouth quirked up in a savage smile. "And I'm starting to think that I don't like your face, either. So maybe I'll take it off you and send it to her."
Lappland froze, her diseased mind spinning as Ryobi's threats chiseled their way into it. It was such an obscene thing to her, to even think that someone would dare threaten her Texas, much less to her face. Part of her knew she was being baited. Part of her knew she could close the distance between Ryobi and her before she could fire her weapon. But the part of her that won out was, in the end, the crazy part, the part of her that didn't work quite right, that didn't process these things the way it was meant to. It was funny. It was so outrageous, so obscene, that Lappland had no other recourse but to laugh.
Now, it was Ryobi's turn to be stunned. There weren't a lot of people who had that reaction when staring down a gun. "What's so funny?"
It was a good half a minute before Lappland even began to compose herself. Ryobi grew impatient. Aiming her gun at Lappland's thigh, she fired. The bullet tore through the air, but Lappland was no longer there. With a yelp, Ryobi brought up her rifle to block Lappland's brutal overhead strike, and found herself looking into the unsettling eyes of a maniac.
"You're gonna die!" Lappland cackled. "I'm gonna kill you, and show your body to Texas, and then she'll have to pay attention to me!"
Ryobi stepped back, careful not to let Lappland pin her against the walls of the alley. She fought desperately, but for every strike she blocked or dodged, another would find its mark, shredding her supernaturally protective uniform.
A hammer blow smashed against Lappland's back. Recovering instantly, she stepped back, a sword warding off both Ryobi and her new assailant. Unlike Ryobi, she hadn't sensed the new girl's attack at all, not even with her superhuman senses. She darted around Ryobi, keeping both of them in front of her.
"Ta-da!" cheered the new girl. "It's time for you to hurt me instead. I won't let my little sister have all the fun. Ryona! I sacrifice myself to the will of evil."
Ryona had kicked her, Lappland realised.
"I'm gonna get eaten by the big bad wolf." Ryona flowed towards Lappland, wielding what appeared to be a pair of double-ended handguns. Lappland made use of her range, closing in and using her blades to turn away the guns whenever they were about to point directly at her. Ryobi was not out of the fight yet, either, and just as Lappland found an opening in Ryona's defenses, she was forced to dart back as a bullet cut through the air where her head had been, sparks flying as it ricocheted off the alley walls. Ryona spun like a ballerina, her whole body pivoting mere centimetres off the ground as she blasted at Lappland's feet while she was off balance. Lappland managed a jump, a sword lancing down at Ryona, and felt as the magic in the shinobi's outfit absorbed the impact of the otherwise clean hit.
Nearly upside down now, Ryona's momentum turned into a kick that Lappland ducked. She sensed Ryobi lining up another shot, and, as it came, she jolted forward, her own Arts allowing her to pierce right through Ryona's protection, sending the girl tumbling to one side. For her part, Ryona let out an ecstatic squeal. She liked that, Lappland thought, before focusing her efforts on Ryobi.
Ryobi counterattacked, swinging the axe blade on the stock of her gun, but the blade was small, and Lappland easily used her forearm to deflect the blunt handle and ran both blades into her opponent.
"Shinobi transformation."
Before Lappland could catch her breath, she heard Ryona's voice from behind her, and, as she watched, the girl took on the visage of an angel, feathered wings sprouting from her back, her clothes now a beautiful white dress.
"You hurt me good." Ryona's voice lacked the excited energy from before, and she now spoke in a slower, more menacing tone. "But you hurt Ryobi, so, I'm going to hurt you a lot now. Hurt you so bad you'll wish I was dead."
Lappland withdrew her swords, the blood of the girl's sister almost palpably warming the air, and turned on Ryona.
"Shinobi-" A violent kick smashed Ryobi's head into the stone wall behind her, and she slumped to the ground before she could continue.
"I promise you, you will regret that." Ice formed on the stones beneath Ryona's feet as she skated on one leg towards Lappland.
Lappland attacked, swinging one sword while keeping the other up for defense. Ryona leapt, throwing herself into a horizontal spin over the blow. A heavy heel kicked the other arm out of the way, and the four barrels of her guns blazed across Lappland's side. Ryona kicked off the wall, shooting her to one side, and, kicking off the other wall, she launched herself above Lappland. Now completely upside down, she launched a rain of bullets that shredded the paving below. Lappland rolled, the lightweight rounds only winging her as the deafening sound echoed through the alley.
She leapt up to meet Ryona, her Arts-infused strike aiming to finish the girl. To her surprise, it was absorbed by the stronger outfit Ryona now wore, but as she fell, Lappland subconsciously noted the subtle differences that would allow her next strike to pierce through. Ryona's landing transitioned into a swift kick that forced Lappland back. Rising, she brought up her guns. Lappland darted to one side, but could feel her injuries swiftly beginning to catch up to her, while Ryona seemed completely refreshed.
Feeling time working against her, she launched herself at Ryona, parrying her guns and delivering a blow to each of her shoulders. Ryona, rather than being forced away, let an ecstatic smile fill her face as she felt the sensation of the blow cutting into her, her mismatched eyes staring down at Lappland. A series of point-blank shots sent Lappland sprawling. She felt so alive.
Ryona caught the sight of her sister as she advanced upon her fallen foe. She wasn't supposed to kill the wolf, she remembered. They needed her, because her sister wanted to hurt her. But Ryobi was hurt, too.
She needed to save her little sister. Picking her up, she drew a scroll, and in a puff of smoke the two shinobi disappeared.