"You will never know true happiness until you have truly loved, and you will never understand what pain really is until you have lost it."
-Anonymous
"Third Desire"
By: FenixPhoenix (Giselle González)
Chapter 6: "Unexpected"
Yuya stood atop an all too familiar hill beside a blooming Sakura tree. Looking down at herself, she noted that her body was adorned by the white kimono again and her golden locks were loosened.
The feeling of halcyon within the atmosphere was still present. Yet, there was something different this time. The feeling of longing and the sadness that had accompanied it on her last dreams were weaker. Granted, they were still there… as if the voice which told her there was something missing in her seemingly perfect life had been replaced by a mere whisper in the back of her head.
"Keep your pace up, servant number one!"
Kyo's voice broke the silence, his words echoing all around. It was as if she was standing inside a small, enclosed space with invisible walls.
"Stupid jerk!" she screamed, unable to contain the anger at being called his servant. Was that all he thought of her? She was still a bounty hunter, one of the best at that… or was she?
"Oh, you haven't developed any curves yet?"
She remembered hearing that before. It was when she had first met him. When he had saved her. When he had felt her…
Yuya shook her head furiously. Blood rushed to her face, coloring her cheeks a deep red. She could hardly stand the heat of the memory. It was too vivid. Too deep. It was etched inside her soul in such a way that she was certain she would never be able to forget it.
"Eh, woman, go buy me some sake."
His orders. His sake. Those were things that composed her daily life with Kyo.
"You are a slow girl."
Servant. Woman. Girl. Never Yuya… Who was she?
"In what room are you staying?"
Was he worried? But worried about who? Her as a servant? As a woman? As a friend? Or was he only emphasizing his control over her? The fact that he should know everything she did and everywhere she stayed.
Who am I?
-o0o-
Onime no Kyo saw three men walking out of the refuge of darkness.
The first one was a big, bald, dark-skin man. He had a bulky figure, wide of back and arms so muscled they looked deformed. His eyes were pitch-black and a devilish smile parted his full lips, making him look feral. A long, steel sword leaned lazily against his shoulder, as if it weighted nothing more than a couple of pounds. He wore a black, opened vest revealing part of his broad chest. His legs were clad on white baggy pants and dark combat boots.
The second one was taller and slender. It gave you the faint impression that his arms and legs could twist and move in uncanny ways -as if his body was boneless. Black locks cascaded down his shoulders and grey orbs bored intently into Kyo's ruby ones in apparent calmness. His hands shot towards his sides, taking out two small daggers from the pockets of his coat. What was below his long trench coat, however, was a mystery.
The last one was of normal height and a little more robust than the second one. His body complexion and height was on par with Yukimura's. He had sandy brown, messy hair, porcelain white skin and piercing hazel eyes. His beauty was somewhat feminine and he seemed to like this, his posture (a hand on his waist) told him as much. He was clad by a sleeveless red coat –strikingly similar to Yukimura's- black tight pants and a turtleneck, long sleeve shirt.
After his inspection, it was easy for Kyo to connect each of the voices he had heard with their respectful owner. The husky voice belonged to the bald man, the feminine one to the 'pretty' boy and the grave one to the man with the long coat.
A group of five men came out from behind the biggest man soon after; faces hidden between shadows and clothes. Yet, amidst all the dimness and the chaos of their reckless movements, there was one think that that stood out. They all had wicked blades, shining like beacons with the rays of the full moon.
Kyo felt the excitement of the battle to come overtaking him. His blood boiled, his heart raced, adrenaline rushed through his veins in preparation for a feast.
Three of the five men who had stepped closer to him broke into a run. They parted ways before they could reach him. One went left, the other one right, while the third one kept charging straight on.
Kyo jumped backwards in time to avoid the blades. He took out the man on his right with one swift movement of his wrist. His blade slashed the man from left hip to right shoulder in a matter of seconds.
'Muramasa' effortlessly found its second victim. The man that had stayed in the middle, was a slash later tumbling onto the floor. A pool of blood spread under him, drowning him in a matter of seconds.
The third man followed his companions to the afterlife soon after. Just before he could get away, Kyo had cleaved him in half, from head to crotch.
"Is this all you've got?" Kyo's voice was sustained in the fine line that divided amusement from irritation. The excitement he'd felt was absent in the wake of disappointment. These men were not good enough! How dare they think themselves his equals! How dare they deceive him into thinking this would be fun!
"That was just a warm up," pretty boy informed. "After seeing your moves… oh, I cannot wait anymore… My sword yearns for your blood, Onime no Kyo."
-o0o-
Sarutobi Sasuke crouched and made quick inventory of his wounds. They were all shallow cuts.
"What are you looking for?" she asked; her face covered by a ninja mask so that only her dark eyes were visible.
"Who is your master and what does he want with my sister?" Sasuke hissed, scanning the area in search for more people. There were none. Good, that worked for him.
"Sakaki Kenji?" She sounded amused, either by his tone or question, Sasuke didn't know. "He's a samurai who goes around the world teaching people that 'price' and 'value' are two different things."
"What does that has to do with Yuya?"
"Nothing… everything," she laughed and then shrugged. "How the heck should I know?"
He wanted to cut her right where she stood, and yet he needed to get information out of her. So killing her –at least for the time being- was out of the question.
"You shouldn't let your guard down," she chided.
Sasuke snapped out of his thoughts. What was she talking ab-! His mind came up blank. What the hell is going on! Sasuke tried to move but couldn't. His body wasn't responding! He looked down and squinted. His blood drained from his face. He was trapped. Black, thin threads were circling his form, tightening around every muscle painfully.
He turned to her. She smirked. He could see it. The left part of her mouth quirking upward under her black mask. Thus, he did the same. Sasuke smirked back.
"Do you really think I would be as foolish as to be caught by this?"
She pulled her arms back, tightening the threads –which were attached to the tips of her fingers- around his body. Sasuke opened his hand, a smoke bomb slipping from it. It detonated as soon as it hit the floor. When the smoke cleared… there was nothing. Green leaves had replaced his body.
From his new hiding spot, Sasuke smiled. You weren't expecting that, were you?
-o0o-
Shinna Yuya'smood was sour. Kyo's voice kept echoing throughout the place. The more she heard his statements the less she wanted to wake up -the less she wanted to see him. It simply hurt too much… to not know who or what she was to him, but to be so damn certain of who he was to her.
He was her savior, her crush. Her love even…?
"What am I to you, Kyo?" she demanded sullenly.
"She is my servant."
"Yes that's who I am. I am your servant and only that… nothing else. Is there no room for me in your heart? Can I not be who Sakuya was in your life?"
"So stay away from my property."
"I am his property. 'His' but not in the way I would like. I do not want to feel this for him anymore!" Tears welled in her eyes. "When did I become this weak…? How did I allow this to happen?"
Suddenly, the child was there, beside her. When had he appeared? When had the toddler without a face slipped his hand inside hers?
The pain in her heart lessened. Another feeling stirred to life, replacing the bleakness from before. It was a nice feeling. Warm and constant. Yuya realized, with sudden enlightenment, why this felt so good. It was because this was the sensation of being loved by someone –of being treasured by this strange kid.
It was the feeling of being happy.
This young boy was part of her, she knew. Deep, deep down inside her soul she could hear his voice calling her, asking her to stay with him. Emerald eyes turned to gaze at the child beside her. His face was no longer a blur. Blond hair now framed his chubby face and his eyes… oh, that color was all too familiar! But what did it mean?
She knelt down in front of him, pulled him to her, and hugged him tightly. And even though tears were forming in her eyes, Shinna Yuya smiled.
-o0o-
Onime no Kyo quirked an eyebrow. It seemed to him that the three 'leaders' were finally preparing to attack. The rest of their soldiers, meanwhile, moved back, creating a human barricade with a stage on its center.
"The curtain has been raised," said creepy man.
"Let the show begin," laughed pretty boy.
The tall, muscular man began to walk in Kyo's direction, his eyes flashing with anger and excitement and one more thing. Blood thirst?
Kyo fell into a stance then frowned when his opponents got distracted by something to his right. Kyo followed their eyes, looking at what lied behind the parting crowd. A man was strolling towards them at leisure, surefooted and relaxed. He was humming a tender lullaby, which was what had distracted everyone. Only when he reached them, did Kyo recognize him.
"What the heck are 'you' doing here?" Kyo snapped, his irritation increasing by the unwelcome appearance of his number one enemy as of this morning.
"My, my," Kenji shook his head. "I do not believe this is fair… three versus one, I mean."
"Oh, what would you do about it, little man?" big guy sneered, a devilish smile splitting his face in half.
"You might as well fight two instead of one," Kenji unsheathed one of his swords. He held it up in front of him as if in invitation. Kyo only wished they were alone so he could accept that and wipe that bloody smile away. But his revenge would have to wait.
To be Continued…