Hey everyone! Words cannot express how sorry I am that I haven't been able to update in forever!! School's been evil, but if all goes well, I may have the story done by tomorrow! I'm finishing this as my final for my Creative Writing class, so all should be well! If you want to flame me for being a mean author and not updating, I totally understand, lol. Now, enough of my idle chatter, on with the next chapter!
Punch. Block. Kick. Jab. Back-flip. The match seemed to go on forever as the two girls continued the fight. The brunette ducked as the black haired girl tried to connect a right jab. The brunette then stuck out a leg and swung it, causing the other girls' legs to suddenly switch places with her upper body. She landed on her back with a thud, a small grunt escaping her lips. The black haired girl jumped up to her feet and, using her momentum to carry her, brought her fist towards the other girl's face. Her opponent saw this and rolled away to the side just before her hand hit the ground. The dark haired girl winced and grunted as her hand made a small dent in the semi-soft ground. She looked over to where the other was just as a swift kick connected with her stomach, lifting her off the ground a few feet. The brunette girl stood triumphantly smirking to herself, thinking she had won, and turned to go sit under a tree. The black haired girl stood up slowly as to not give herself away to the other. She swiftly but silently crept up behind her opponent who didn't realize she was being stalked until it was too late. The black haired girl wrapped her arms up and under the others, pulling her into a firm lock. The older girl struggled, but the younger girl held her grip, tightening her grip little by little. With one final effort, the older girl fell to her knees.
"Okay okay!!! I give!!" The younger girl let go and laughed tiredly, moving and sitting down slowly on the grass, while the other got on hands and knees and crawled to her original destination.
"Shinata, you have to work on not letting your guard down. I pulled my kick, but I could tell that it still did some damage." The brunette said to Shinata.
"I could say the same thing Sango. Your weakness, though, is that you assume too much. Plus, you need to learn how to break the locks I put you into." There was a small silence as the two girls caught their breath. On a recent night trip to the slayers village, Sango sought out some new armor to replace her damaged armor. She chose a ceremonial suit that was meant for when she succeeded her father as leader of the taijiya, or slayers. The armor covering her shoulders, abdomen and knees was made from the hide and bones of a powerful demon she exterminated before, making it stronger than her old armor. The newer armor had a golden hue to it, with royal blue bordering the gold. Her sash she wore around her waist was royal blue to match the border. The gold emblem she wore on the left side of her chest was still there, creating some contrast with the dark blue color that was now there. The black body suit she once adorned was now replaced with a white one. Her sword's hilt and handle was gold and white, and the sheath itself was also pure white to match the handle. Shinata, in contrast, had chosen a black bodysuit with sky blue armor covering her shoulders, abdomen and knees as well. Her sash was a midnight blue to match the laces of her boots and the ties holding her armor in place. The sash concealed two small throwing knives and a katana on her left side. Two more throwing knives in her boots completed the outfit. Sango was impressed with Shinata's choice in close combat weapons. Sango herself had never been too accurate with small knives and such. The older slayer smiled at her apprentice and chuckled to herself lightly. This was going to be some adventure.
Sango stood and scouted the immediate area, suddenly becoming quiet. Shinata took the hint and stopped moving.
"C'mon, I sense a demonic aura around here." Shinata picked up her weapon, a small, double ended halberd, and followed closely behind. Adrenaline began coursing through their bodies as they neared the source of the aura. Tightening her grip on Hiraikotsu, Sango tensed up, putting all her senses on alert. Not only would she have to look out for herself, but now Shinata as well. Sango had taught her herself, true, but Shinata still had a lot to learn about the ways of the taijiya. Holding up a hand to stop the young girl behind her, Sango closed her eyes, heightening her hearing.
"Shinata, duck!" That was all the young girl heard before being thrown down onto the ground. A spear came whizzing overhead, just missing Shinata's shoulder, but slicing through the side of Sango's left arm. The older girl had jumped on top of the younger to protect her from the impending danger. Sango bit one side of her lower lip, successfully holding back a loud cry of pain, but drawing blood from the bite. The pure white bodysuit now sported a clash of deep crimson, confirming she had indeed been hit. She slowly pushed herself up off of Shinata and quickly scanned the young girl for injuries.
"Are you okay?" The young girl turned to look up at her teacher and nodded, her face paling a bit when she saw Sango's arm. Realizing they were in for another difficult battle, both girls got to their feet, Sango drawing her katana in her left arm and holding Hiraikotsu as a dual weapon-shield combination. Shinata picked up her halberd and twirled it around her a couple of times, preparing to defend herself just as her sensei had taught her. Another streak of color, and Sango took off in the direction of the movement. Shinata went and inspected the spear that had grazed Sango earlier. It wasn't any different than the spears that the villages around here would use.
'Maybe the demon that threw this stole it from a nearby village.' She wouldn't have to wait long to find out who it came from, for just as she finished that thought, an arrow passed right by her head, clearly missing her. Shinata pivoted around and brought her halberd up to eye level, only to pause in confusion and bring it back down. There in front of her stood a young demon, no older than herself. He was clad in traditional Japanese armor and held a quiver of arrows upon his shoulder. His bow was in his hand with another arrow loaded and ready to fire.
"Uh, excuse me, who are you? What kind of demon are you?" Taken back by her abrupt question, the young demon lowered his bow, a cocky smirk on his face.
"Since you're going to be my bride anyway, I guess I should go ahead and tell you." Shinata's eyes bulged. This demon wanted her to be his bride? That was wrong on too many levels.
"My name is Mizuki of the Fire. As my title implies, I am a fire wielding demon, and I have traveled from afar with my older sister searching for a young maiden to be my bride. So far, all the ones I found have either been killed by my sister for 'not being good enough for me' or have been too young or too old. Tell me, how old are you?" The young apprentice gulped nervously. If she lied and they found out, she'd be killed, but if she told the truth, she could be off again to live with some demon.
"I… well… you see, I'm… uh… 11 years old." The smirk on the boy's face grew wider and he openly chuckled.
"Perfect! I am 13, and you are just the right age for me. Come! Let us be off. It is a long journey back to my homelands. You will grow accustomed to the heat after a few months." A chill ran down Shinata's spine. She was NOT going to let this happen again.
"The only thing I'm going to be accustomed to is kicking your butt around this place. Leave me before you regret it." She warned, bringing her halberd back up. The smirk on the boy's face disappeared and was replaced with a hard scowl. He brought his bow back up, pulling on the string and setting the arrow straight for Shinata's head.
"Fine, you have sealed your fate, but be warned. This is no ordinary bow. Its power and might are backed by the powerful Fire Tribe where it was made."
"I don't care where it was made or who blessed it. All that I care about is finishing you off so I can go help Sango-sensei." Again, the demon boy laughed and smirked.
"Don't make me laugh! My sister is the heir to the Fire Tribe's village! She hasn't lost a battle yet, and defeating a puny human is child's play for her!"
"Wanna bet?" Both kids turned to see a knocked out demon girl being drug by Sango. She was sweating and her arm was still bleeding, but she looked none the worse for wear. The young boy was stunned, and fired the arrow at Sango instead, who easily knocked it out of the way with Hiraikotsu.
"Shinata, you can take him. I wouldn't kill him though. This'll be good practice for when we battle Naraku." Shinata nodded and turned back to face Mizuki and slowly started to spin her halberd above her head. Mizuki quickly aimed another arrow at Shinata and let it fly, only to stare in amazement as the apprentice batted it away with her weapon. She then lunged at Mizuki, who had little time to react. Shinata swung the halberd at him only to have it blocked by Mizuki's bow. Strengthening her grip on her weapon, Shinata suddenly brought the other side of her halberd up, slicing for Mizuki's body. She missed his body, but cut the string on his bow, effectively ending the battle. Turning the blade so the flat end would hit him, Shinata turned towards his head and connected with the back of his neck, knocking him out. His body slumped to the ground, and Shinata let out a sigh, thankful that this ordeal had come to a swift end. A clapping sound filled the air as Shinata turned to find Sango applauding her performance.
"Well done Shinata. I daresay you've improved tremendously these past couple of months." The apprentice smiled brightly at her teacher, excited about her first big victory as a taijiya. Her smile faded when she glanced at Sango's arm.
"Sensei, your arm. It's badly injured." Sango gave her a puzzled look before looking at her own arm. Mouthing an 'oh' in realization, she smiled and looked back to her apprentice.
"It's not as bad as it looks. Just a scratch." They both smiled brightly and turned to the sibling demons they encountered.
"Should we leave them?" Shinata asked.
"Yeah, I don't think they'll cause too much trouble around here. Not with Naraku lurking around." Sango said as she bent down to retrieve Hiraikotsu. Strapping it to her back, she motioned for Shinata to follow, and they set off for a nearby village to rest for the night.
What'd you think? Not a very exciting chapter, but it signifies a turning point in the story for Shinata. She has won her first battle! Please please please, don't forget to leave a review on your way out. And again, you can flame me for being a bad author and not updating in forever, lol.