Sorry to those who read this chapter before I fixed it. I was trying something different to do scene breaks, but it didn't work.
Chapter 21: Conflict
The soft sound of approaching steps echoed down the dark hallways, lit only by the occasional burning torch. Two shadows stretched across the stone floor as two figures marched by with a purpose.
Orochimaru took long, confident strides following the man in charge of the facility down the narrow corridor. He had come to the research center run by one of his subordinates, Akame Misuke. He was a competent leader, and very adept in genjutsu and science. As he continued to follow Misuke, Orochimaru grinned at the prospect of using even half of a Kousou sword.
"Orochimaru-sama, we have arrived," said Misuke with a slight bow. Orochimaru entered the large lab room, noticing several sound nin working on various tasks.
"Where is the sword?" asked Orochimaru, barely keeping himself from shaking in anticipation. Misuke nodded and walked over to a large steel cube. He pressed his thumb against a pad and punched in several numbers into an adjacent computer. Orochimaru licked his lips as the steel cube opened on the top and a small platform arose. And atop the platform: Hanzatsu.
Orochimaru rushed over and grabbed the small knife, feeling its weight and even its power emanating from such a small source. "And you say you can get it to work?" he asked.
Minato nodded before motioning to several sound nin. He took the knife from Orochimaru and placed it in between two metal forks, holding it in the air. The forks then moved robotically into a glass cylinder where seals were drawn in a circle along its edges.
"Observe Orochimaru-sama." Misuke calmly pressed a button and purplish chakra ran across the forks into Hanzatsu. The sound nins in the room worked furiously on the computers and their efforts began to show. The purple chakra began to darken, and slowly, the knife began to accept more chakra. Misuke pressed a couple of buttons on the control panel and a small rock was dropped into the cylinder. It fell into the cylinder, where it began to slow down. It reached the center of the cylinder before the chakra entering the cylinder finally became so dark that it was completely black. At this point, the rock completely stopped moving and just hung in midair.
Orochimaru licked his lips as he watched wide eyed at the demonstration.
Misuke cleared his throat. "And now, the released form." He nodded to one of the sound nins in the room and began to type into the control panel at a very rapid rate. The chakra input began to be so great that sparks erupted from several of the nearby machines. But Orochimaru paid no attention to that. No, his attention was on the rock as it traveled upwards. Defying the laws of physics, the small rock began to move towards the top of the cylinder until it finally reached the top. Then, it was over. The chakra stopped flowing through Hanzatsu and the pebble fell to the bottom.
"You see, Orochimaru-sama, the sword has a time-altering effect. We can quite easily manipulate its unreleased form and slow time; even stop time with some effort, but the released form we can only maintain for a few seconds. As you saw, it has the ability to reverse in time, with enough chakra."
Orochimaru's yellow eyes gleamed in the dimly lit room. Yes…soon he would have the power to crush Konoha once and for all. And for that to happen, Kousou must be destroyed.
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Sunlight streamed through the window of the village inn, basking the single occupant of the most expensive room in a morning glow. The occasional chirp of birds pierced the otherwise peaceful scene, but the man did not seem to mind the mild annoyance. His eyes opened suddenly, flashing towards the now open window.
"Ohayo," he said softly as he rolled out of bed. He pulled his robe on and tied the knot in front. "Would you like a drink?" he asked as he poured himself a small saucer of sake. He picked up the saucer and turned around, facing the visitor who sat calmly on the dresser. His white trench coat basked in the morning sun and his bronze gauntlets shone brightly.
"It's eight in the morning, informant-san."
The man sipped his sake calmly and nodded after finishing. "I suppose you're correct. I do, however, appreciate you allowing me one last drink," he said as he lightly placed the saucer back where it belonged.
"Of course. I'm no monster."
With a soft chuckle, the informant reached into the desk drawer. "I know that bribing you is pointless," he said as he showed the white clothed man a large stack of money. "But I would like to hire you."
The red haired man raised his eyebrow. "What makes you think that I will fulfill my task after you have…passed?"
"I know a lot about you…Shiranai Genju. And I know that you're bored. I assure you that the target I'm assigning is...worth your time."
Genju narrowed his eyes. He knew his name... "Continue."
"For one-hundred thousand yen, I hire you, Shiranai Genju to kill Hidan of the Akatsuki."
Genju smiled. "Kill? For a man claiming to know so much, you know very little about the man you want me to kill. He cannot be killed."
The informant smiled before turning to pour another saucer of sake. "Ah, and in that lies the true entertainment. Can you, the great Shiranai Genju, wielder of the ultimate jutsu, kill a man who cannot be killed?"
"I can do anything," Genju replied quickly, his temper flaring slightly. "But I want two-hundred thousand yen."
The informant turned around, sipping his sake. "I anticipated you would do that. What good is money to me now?" he asked as he tossed a second stack of money notes onto the bed.
Genju sighed. "Then our transaction is complete. Goodbye." He leveled his palm at the man calmly, turning his face away slightly. A bright ball of chakra appeared at his palm and erupted into a narrow beam, burning a clean hole through his chest. He fell to the ground, eyes glazed over in death.
Genju turned and leapt out of the building, sparing a glance to the forest behind the inn. An enormous crater had replaced the previously lush forest. The trees had been completely incinerated and the dirt itself had melted into a cracked surface of brittle rock. Genju smirked and continued on his way out of the village.
Yes, he'd uphold his end of the bargain. But first…he had another bounty to collect.
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Naruto sighed as he sat in the waiting room outside the Hokage's office. He idly glanced at a landscape picture of the village hanging from the wall as he sighed. Neji, Tenten, Lee, and Chouji had been in there for a long time. He furrowed his brow as he thought about his relationship with Tenten. Lately, it had seemed…strained. Naruto tapped the side of his face as he tried to figure out how to approach this problem.
However, within seconds, the twin oak doors of the Hokage's office swung open. The four Kousou members marched out. Before Naruto could say a thing to Tenten, the four disappeared in four matching flash steps.
Looking quizzically at their retreating forms, Naruto was interrupted someone clearing their throat behind him.
"Eh? Ero-sennin?" Jiraiya stood in front of him, arms crossed and looking very serious.
"Come on Naruto, we've got a hearing with Tsunade," he said as he turned and walked towards the still open doors of the Hokage's office.
"Ehh?! What do you mean 'we'? I have no clue what's going on!"
Jiraiya, however, ignored his young pupil as he entered the office. Naruto watched in confusion as Jiraiya disappeared. "Ehhhhhh?! Hey, wait for me!" he yelled as he ran into the room, slamming the doors behind him.
"Oh good, the idiot's here," Tsunade said rubbing her forehead and rummaging through several documents.
Naruto gaped. "EHHHHH?! What the hell's going on here?! What did I ever do to you Tsunade-obaachan?!"
Tsunade looked up at Naruto, smiling slightly. "Sorry about that Naruto, I'm just a bit stressed. We just sent out a joint Kousou mission to deal with a very sensitive mission."
Naruto perked at the sound of the word 'mission'. "What kind of mission?"
"Classified," Tsunade said in a bored tone of voice. "Now onto this meeting. You said you had something you needed to tell me Jiraiya?"
"Hai. It's come to my attention that one of my informants has been killed."
Tsunade signed a paper and placed it on her 'finished' stack. "Ah, a member of your infamous spy network. How does this affect us?"
Jiraiya crossed his arms. "My informants are ultra-secret. In fact, most of them I don't even know their true names, only aliases. For someone to have tracked one down and killed him…this is a serious threat to us. If the rest of my informants are found and killed…"
Tsunade looked up. "I understand. What exactly do you want to do about it?"
"We need to find who killed my informant and return the favor."
Tsunade narrowed her eyes. "I just sent out four Kousou. How many more do you want me to send on this mission?"
"Naruto's squad and the trackers."
Tsunade leaned back in her chair, glancing out the window. "That will leave only a third of the Kousou here…and if something comes up, Konoha could be extremely vulnerable."
Jiraiya nodded. "I understand, but this is extremely important. Once we eliminate the threat, we will return immediately. The window of vulnerability will be small, and if we hear of an attack, we will return immediately."
Tsunade rested her chin on her hands, staring at Jiraiya. "Go. You have an hour to leave before I change my mind."
"Arigato, Tsunade. Come on Naruto, let's go."
Naruto shook his head as he followed Jiraiya out of the building. Why was he always involved in the trouble?
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"Zetsu is dead," Pein said plainly.
"What?!" yelled Kisame, dropping Samehada in surprise. "How did that happen?"
Pein glanced at Deidara, who sheepishly made his way into the center of the Akatsuki's makeshift circle.
"He…err…was struck by lightning," he said as he rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment.
Tobi jumped in front of Deidara, striking a pose. "No way! Tobi unlocked his ultimate bloodline and summoned the lightning! Shazam!" he yelled, punching the ground.
Deidara grabbed Tobi by the shoulder and led him back behind him. "Right…anyway…"
"We have a need," Pein said, cutting Deidara off. "Zetsu was our messenger between teams, but now, without him in the picture, we will simply be four two-man teams, separate from each other. We must decide on someone to replace Zetsu."
"Tobi will do it! Ooh! Ooh! Pick Tobi!" squealed Tobi as he raised his hand furiously in the air.
Itachi stared at Tobi before turning his back to the circle of S-class ninja. "Being the messenger for Akatsuki is not within my talent set. I refuse."
Deidara spoke up as well, afraid that he would have to do the menial task of being the messenger boy for Akatsuki. "I…uh, have to babysit Tobi. Unless…any of you want to pair up with hi-"
"Not Deidara," said Pein with finality. Deidara grinned as he waved at Tobi, who was currently waving his hand madly in Pein's face.
"Pick meeeee!"
"Tobi, we're out of here, yeah!" Tobi turned around and followed obediently after Deidara.
"Ok Deidara-sempai! Are you gonna teach me a new move? Ooh! How about Henge no jutsu?!"
"You don't know Henge?!"
As the two voices drifted off, Pein released a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding. "Kakuzu and Hidan are not suited for being the mediator of our squad either, and Konan is too valuable for this task."
Kisame counted his fingers as he prayed he hadn't counted right. "Don't tell me…"
"Yes. Use your water traveling abilities to communicate with the Akatsuki teams. Itachi will act as a solo member. You may leave."
"Ahhh, fuck," muttered Kisame as he stalked out of the dark cave. Itachi followed impassively as Pein turned to Konan.
"Thank God they didn't pick me."
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Naruto leaned against the gates of Konoha watching the people passing by as he waited for his teammate. The laziest bum in all of Konoha, surpassing even the legendary late Copy Nin.
Kiba and Shino sat on a bench nearby with Akamaru lying faithfully at their feet as Naruto tapped his foot impatiently. He felt a hand rest on his shoulder and looked up.
Jiraiya frowned. "Where's your teammate?" he asked, a bit of worry entering his voice.
Naruto growled in annoyance as he crossed his arms. "Late. As usual. Kage bunshin no jutsu!" he yelled as he slammed his hands together.
Ten Narutos popped into existence and dashed off towards Shikamaru's house, pushing their way through the thick crowds.
5 Minutes Later
"Oy! Put me down! Troublesome! Let me sleeeeep!" The procession of Narutos arrived at the gates and disappeared, unceremoniously dropping Shikamaru to the ground in a dusty, wrinkled heap.
Seeing that Shikamaru had no intention of getting up, Jiraiya reached down and lifted Shikamaru by the collar, pulling him to eye level. "You are late."
Shikamaru leveled his gaze at the legendary sannin. "And YOU, are troublesome." Shikamaru sighed. "I guess this can't be helped. What's the mission?"
Jiraiya released Shikamaru, who landed gracefully on his butt, and turned to the rest of the team. "The mission is simple. One of my informants has been compromised and assassinated by an unknown person. We will move out to the village where I make contact with him, investigate the area, and proceed from there. Our target is the assassin. Any questions?"
The group didn't say anything so Jiraiya continued. "Kiba first, then Naruto, Shikamaru, me, and bringing up the rear is the Aburame, got it?"
"Yeah yeah, let's get this over with," Shikamaru said, waving off Jiraiya dismissively.
Jiraiya rubbed his forehead as the group got into formation. "I feel a headache coming…"
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His money he'd stolen had run out far more quickly than he'd hoped. It was time to strike again, lest he starve to death.
He slipped from shadow to shadow, all but invisible to the civilians who passed mere feet from him. His stomach growled loudly as a small girl passed by, causing her to jump at the sound. He leapt up to the rooftops before the girl could identify the source of the sound, but after the girl had run off, the black clad man admonished himself for being so careless.
As he moved through an alley, he heard the sound of a blade being unsheathed. Instinct alone kept his head on his shoulders as he crouched suddenly. The sound of a blade whistled over his head before colliding with the stone wall in a shower of sparks. The black clad man jumped back several feet before facing his assaulter.
"I have no money and no quarrel with you. Please, let me go."
His attacker simply grinned at him, baring his teeth menacingly. "Yes, that's right scum, beg for your life. You don't even deserve to live you pathetic excuse for a man," he said with a laugh. "What's your name scum?"
"Gento…and yours?" Gento replied respectfully. His eyes had noticed the small insignia marked on his assaulter's left shoulder. The symbol of a dragon, designating that this man was a member of the elite peacekeeping force. But why was this man attacking him?
"Hmph, trash like you don't deserve to know who killed them. You'll just be a notch on my sword in a few minutes!"
Gento tensed as the sword wielding man dashed towards him, his sword coming up in an upwards slash. It was dodged, as well as the subsequent follow up strikes, frustrating the attacker.
"Stay still!" he yelled as he plunged his katana towards the black clad man's stomach. He dodged yet again and ended up within his attacker's guard. The man's eyes widened as Gento seemingly appeared in front of him. Gento spat into his eyes, and kicked him in the stomach before hopping back several paces.
The man doubled over and rubbed his eyes. "You'll pay for that trash! A street urchin like you has no chance against me! I'm the head of the elite police! And this town has no need for scum like you!" he snarled as he looked up at Gento, rage filling his eyes. "You're trash, and trash has to be taken out!" The man's katana suddenly erupted into flames, and the blade glowed brightly in the dim lighting of the alley. Gento's eyes widened as the blade that had been attacking him suddenly became all the more deadly.
"I see your fear! I see you want to run! Go! Run! I'll give you a head start, but I will catch you!" he laughed as Gento simply narrowed his eyes. "I am the wielder of Sun Country's legendary sword! I take the power of the Sun itself and turn it against trash like you!" he laughed as he raised his blade into the air, drunk with power.
The man darted forward, his blade scraping against the wall, leaving a fiery trail upon everything it touched. Gento dodged as the blade came down on his left side, but barely. His black, ragged clothes caught on fire, and he quickly patted his shoulder down before the flames could spread. However, the small distraction cost him, as his opponent took that opportunity to connect a backhanded fist to Gento's face, propelling him into the air.
Gento landed on his back, dust from the filthy ground shooting into the air. He touched his nose and winced. It was definitely broken.
"My name is Sato Tadashi." Gento looked up at Tadashi incredulously, who stood above him with the flaming sword raised up, ready to be brought down on the defenseless Gento. "You should know the name of the man who killed you," he said with a vicious smile.
As Tadashi brought down his flaming sword, Gento lashed out with his foot, catching Tadashi in the crotch. Feeling the satisfying crunch of his heel crushing the Tadashi's privates, Gento rolled to the side as the blade impacted with the stone where his head had just been. Tadashi dropped to the ground on his knees, gasping heavily. Gento swiftly picked up the flaming sword and put the man out of his misery, without saying a word. The sword not only cut flesh, but also burned, as Tadashi's headless body began to burn.
As he faced his fallen opponent, the sound of a single man clapping reverberated through the alley. Gento spun around and hurled the flaming sword in the direction of the sound.
The sound of metal upon metal rang out as a bronze gauntlet caught the flaming blade in midair. There was no sign that the fire was hurting his hand, nor sign that the sword had even scratched his shining gauntlets. "My my, aren't we high strung?" said a mocking voice.
"Are you with that man?" Gento asked cautiously. Gento prepared to kill this man as well. Whatever it took, he would survive. He finally caught a glimpse of the strange man who had appeared at the mouth of the alley. He leaned lazily against the wall and shadow covered most of his face. However, Gento would never forget his clothes. His coat was whiter than anything he'd ever seen, and his gauntlets glowed, the light from the flaming sword reflecting off the golden gloves as if they were flaming as well. Two silver belts made their way around his waist and stomach, and a large gold necklace hung from his neck.
"With that fool? Ha, I'd rather be caught dead than with him. No no, I was going to kill him and take the bounty on his head, but it seems that I've been beaten to the punch by another bounty hunter."
Gento furrowed his brow. "Bounty hunter?"
"Oh yes, Sato Tadashi, age twenty-eight, wielder of Sun Country's prized sword, " Genju said, holding the flaming sword in front of his face in mild amusement, "Tenshoukou." Genju pushed himself off the wall and walking towards the ragged and dirty man in black.
"He…he attacked me. I had no choice," Gento said, muttering to himself as he silently slid a kunai into his hand. Two more steps and a kunai will be in your throat…
Genju suddenly stopped. "Oho, no need to apologize to me. But, if you're not going to claim the bounty…do you mind?"
Gento said nothing and Genju shrugged and picked up Tadashi's head. "I see. Here's a little something for your trouble then," he said as tossed a gold coin at Gento, who caught let it fall to his feet. "Perhaps you should think about a change in…occupation," Genju said with a grin. "Bounty hunter would suit you." Genju turned to walk away. "Oh, how rude of my. My name is Genju. Shiranai Genju." And with that, he disappeared.
Gento bent down and picked up the gold coin, slipping it into his pocket. "Pleased to meet you. My name is….Shiranai Gento."
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"Holy smokes."
Shikamaru knelt down at the edge of the crater they'd found in the small farming village. Something like this was definitely not natural. They had asked around and found out that there hadn't been any disturbance all day, the forest had simply erupted into light and disappeared. What remained was the large crater which no one could explain.
Naruto stood idly by with Jiraiya, who was standing next to him, arms crossed and face grim. Kiba and Akamaru were sniffing around, trying to find a trail, but the burnt smell of wood and earth was interfering with their acute sense of smell. Shino had already canvassed the area with his kikai bugs and was talking quietly to a single bug who had perched itself on his finger. Shikamaru had settled into his thinking pose as he glanced around at his surroundings carefully.
Naruto sighed. "Ma, Ero-sennin, what can I do?" he asked. So far, he'd been pretty useless. After all, he wasn't a genius like Shikamaru, or a tracker like Shino and Kiba. Why had he even been chosen to come on this mission at all?
Jiraiya humphed and closed his eyes. "Nothing." At Naruto's wide eyes, Jiraiya looked down at his young protégé. "Nothing for now, that is. For now, we leave this mission up to these three. When we finally do track down the bastard who did this, that's when you and I will get to have some fun."
Naruto grinned and pounded his fist into his hand. "Right! We'll show them how great of a team we are, right Ero-sennin?"
Jiraiya laughed as he tussled Naruto's hair. "Sure kid, just don't get in the way."
Naruto growled in annoyance, but suddenly, Shikamaru stood up. "Oy, look at this," he said, motioning for everyone to come over. "There's a hole here."
"So?" Naruto said, quizzically.
"So…this is probably where the attack came from."
Jiraiya rubbed his chin. "Such a small hole for such a devastating attack…who could be capable of such a thing?"
Shikamaru shrugged. "Whoever it was, their attack came from inside this in, judging by this hole."
Naruto nodded enthusiastically, pounding his fist into his hand. "Right! So let's go investigate!"
The group entered the small in, where other investigators had assembled, though only a few. The murder had occurred several days ago and in the small village, it was old news. As they followed one of the employees of the small inn, the group continued to be on high alert. Shino's bugs buzzed continually as they searched for chakra signatures in the inn, while Kiba and Akamaru sniffed the air every few seconds as if a new scent would present itself after only a few steps.
The employee opened the door and allowed them in, before hurrying away. It was bad luck to be in a room where a murder happened, and the presence of ninja only complicated the matter. The civilian inhabitants of the village knew, where there was ninja, there was trouble.
The second the door slid shut behind them, Shikamaru walked over to the far wall, his fingers outlining an identical hole in the wall. Glancing towards the opposite wall, he found no hole.
"This is obviously where the attack came from. Judging by the hole, and the hole outside, the assassin was standing…here," Shikamaru said, pointing to a spot on the ground near the drawers. Closing his eyes in concentration, Shikamaru furrowed his brow. "That means…that the informant was standing here…" he said as he walked over near the night stand. "Sake…" he muttered.
Jiraiya shrugged. "So? Maybe he wanted a last drink before he died?"
Shikamaru nodded. "Perhaps. But maybe…" Shikamaru trailed off, turning around and opening the drawer in the small nightstand. Pulling out the sake bottle, he uncorked it.
"You want a drink too Shikamaru?" asked Jiraiya, raising an eyebrow.
"Maybe during our celebration. Your informant is obviously quite skilled in what he does, and that's gathering information. Most likely, he knew that the assassin was coming." Shikamaru turned the bottle upside down. A small, rolled up paper slid out of the mouth of the bottle into Shikamaru's waiting hand. "A message from beyond the grave."
Jiraiya nodded. "Smart. He probably had a few notes hidden around the room that he would clue us in on, depending on who the assassin was."
Shikamaru ignored him, instead unraveling the small slip of paper and reading it carefully.
"Well?" asked Jiraiya, a little put off that he'd been ignored. "What's it say?"
"Have you ever heard of someone named… Shiranai Genju?" Jiraiya twitched. "I'll assume that's a yes."
Jiraiya coughed into his hand before beginning. "Yes, I do know of a Shiranai Genju. He's…infamous, I suppose you could say. One of the strongest bounty hunters out there. Rumor has it that he's got an "ultimate jutsu". I guess that would explain the damage outside."
Shikamaru nodded in agreement. "I think it's safe to say that this Shiranai Genju was the killer, based on the clues left here by your informant. This brings us to the next part of our mission though. Tracking down and eliminating the threat."
Kiba stepped forward. "I've got his scent." Akamaru barked. "Oh, and Akamaru too."
Shino adjusted his glasses. "Based on the chakra residue from outside, I too can identify this "Shiranai Genju" should we run across him."
Jiraiya nodded. "Right. Now we begin phase two of the mission. Finding, and getting information from this Genju character. We need to know who hired him to kill my informant. If they can find one of my informants, who's to know if they can find them all."
Naruto pounded his fist into his hand. "Right! Let's go!"
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Neji stood across the clearing, his hair softly blowing in the wind that cut through the tall grass. Lee stood at his side, already set in his Goken stance. Neji sighed and slid into his Jyuuken style, feeling the chakra in his body flow through his arms and into his fingers.
Neji glanced to the side, catching a glimpse of Chouji and Tenten. Chouji had unsealed several of his weapons, and Tenten stood behind him, using the mountain of a man as a protective shield. Sighing in exasperation, Neji looked back in front of him.
Two figures stood before them, completely still, only their robes rustling in the wind. At last, their mission could begin.
Flashback
"It's time for Kousou to begin their mission!" Tsunade said, her eyes intently gazing at the four before her. "Kousou was created as a counter-Akatsuki group, and now is the time for you to begin Kousou's true purpose!"
Tsunade shuffled through several papers on her desk. "We've gotten word that two Akatsuki members will be at the border of Fire Country, near the Temple of Fire. Your mission is to go there, find the Akatsuki, and eliminate them."
Silence filled the room. Even the ever boisterous Lee had been rendered silent by the task set before them. Never before had they actually sought out the Akatsuki for the purpose of destroying the members of the evil group, only to stop them from accomplishing their goals.
Tsunade raised her voice. "Your opponents are S-class missing nin! They will show you no mercy, so you cannot show any yourself! They will not hold back, so neither can you! You will have a numbers advantage! Use that advantage, and work as a unit to defeat the Akatsuki members! Now go!"
Tsunade yelled, slamming her hands down onto her desk. The four before her vanished in four identical blurs.
Tsunade sighed and fell back into her chair. "Good luck…"
"Hello…Kousou," said one of the figures in the black and red robes. Neji swallowed before calming his nerves. Glancing towards the Lee and the other cell of Kousou, he made eye contact with the three others before looking back towards the two figures.
"Kousou…move out."
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Man, long time since my last update, and for that, I apologize. There have been multiple parts in the last few chapters that I've really just gotten stuck on.
On another note, I've got a couple chapters of a new story written; hopefully I'll be able to start the new fic up in a few weeks. Here's to hoping.