Disclaimer. All characters and general content belong to Togashi Yoshihiro, although I do claim ownership for my OC, Rin, and all other noncanon locations(which there will be a lot of), fights and characters I may end up creating. This fanfiction will be rated M for violence, gore and many other explicit scenes I will more than likely produce from my deranged mind.
You have been warned.

Hope you enjoy and don't forget to review c:

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Chapter three
First Impressions

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Her lungs were ablaze. They were burning as if someone forced burning coal down her throat and choked her as they did. She let out another puff of air as she sprinted through the vast plains of a nameless land. It had been a good several hours since she bolted from Swaldani City and it was no longer visible in the distance if she chose to look back. She didn't. The metropolis had been nothing but trouble, but that was not uncommon. Trouble tended to follow closely on her trail, although most of it was self-inflicted.

She let out a sigh, coming out as an exhausted whiff. She almost regretted going there, considering all the unnecessary inconveniences she was forced to go through. Almost. She glanced at the bag draped over her shoulder, swaying in the cool, night air as she ran through the open field. A small sheepish smile graced her features at the thought of what the aforementioned parcel contained and, as always, after an accomplished heist she felt that all she suffered through had been completely, undeniably worth it.

She felt her reserves running low, slowly dissipating with each push of her feet against the grassy surface. She was pretty much running on willpower alone now and she was feeling it. It wouldn't be long until her legs gave out on her, the rest of her body following suit closely behind. She scanned the area, her brows furrowing in concentration as she tried to keep her vision sharp. She heard it before she saw it – a small stream of water cradled by sharp rocks with an old apple tree bowing its head over it. It wasn't exactly secluded; she was, after all, in a vast field, but the grass was tall enough so she wouldn't be spotted unless someone was specifically looking. And there was food(apples) and water. A bonus.

She dragged her sluggish body to the stream and let herself collapse into a sitting position. She gingerly cupped the water and brought it to her mouth, savoring the delicious liquid. After drinking her fill, she leaned back on her arms, throwing her head back slightly and stared at the sky. She stayed there for a while, listening to the sweet lulling of nature until her loudly thumping heart and tense muscles started to somewhat relax.

Once her body started to calm, however, she felt a shiver go down her spine resulting in goosebumps all over. She clamped her mouth shut to prevent the clatter of her teeth. It was cold. She didn't notice it before, but now that she wasn't on the move she could feel it crawling up her body. It was early spring and although the days were rather warm, the nights tended to be somewhat chilly. She pushed herself up on her shaky legs and padded towards the apple tree. There were several raised roots poking out of the ground, creating a quite sizeable niche between them. This gave her an idea. She turned back towards the field, unsheathing one of her daggers and swiftly cut a portion of the high grass. She tucked the dagger back in its sheath and picked up the hay, moving back towards the mouth of the tree. After stuffing the hole and contently admiring her handiwork, she toppled onto the grass exhaustedly. She removed her coat, only to use it as a feeble blanket and curled into a ball. She thought that due to the cold sleep was a long time coming, but after only a few minutes her eyelids started to droop and she was whisked away into a dreamless sleep.

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Even though the rain had let up a long time ago, that didn't stop Phinks' constant grumbling and trivial whining. When he was about to let loose another string of profanities, Feitan had had enough. He discarded the filter on his emotions and the effect was immediate. The dark aura of sakki which rolled off of him in suffocating waves and the cold, angry glare he pinned his companion with made Phinks' mouth clamp shut instantly, although his eyes were also taking on a dangerous glint. Before it could escalate further, however..

"No fighting between members." Shalnark reprimanded the two with a condescending tone. He sent Feitan an apologetic smile which was received passively.

"Che." Phinks snorted and looked away.

They had slowed their pace somewhat after two hours of perpetual exertion. The initial excitement that came with the hunt had slowly evaporated and now they were left on edge. The scenery wasn't much entertainment either: grass, grass, a tree, higher grass, two rocks, more grass. They hadn't passed a single town, let alone something smaller – like a settlement.

Phinks groaned, making Feitan's eye twitch ever so slightly before his mask was back in place again.

"I got to hand it to this woman, she sure can run. Do you think she's aware of us?" Phinks asked skeptically.

Shalnark pondered on it for a moment before answering. "No.. I don't think she is. There is only a single trail and she isn't going in circles or doing anything else to mislead possible pursuers. I believe she was confident that the bodies wouldn't be found immediately not to mention the weather was bad enough to wash away any possible trace rather quickly." He analyzed. "She has been pushing herself pretty hard though, I have to admit." He gave a wry smile. "She kept her pace as fast as or faster than us the whole time, but she should have reached her limit by now."

As soon as those words left his mouth, Feitan suddenly dashed forward, determined glint in his eyes. Shalnark gave a victorious grin.

"I guess we have her."

They followed Feitan's lead, swiftly gliding through the grass. Making a sharp turn, they came upon a stream and seeing that the rock replaced grass there, they proceeded to run alongside it. A harder ground was a much preferable surface to run on. After making steady progress in their endeavor, a rather massive, old tree came into sight. Shalnark gave an eager nod to his companions as they meticulously closed in on their target. They took in their surroundings, fully alert for any possible threats and cautiously made their way towards the base of the tree. Not seeing anyone though, Phinks sent the others a curious glance, expression questioning. Shalnark motioned for him to stay quiet and soon enough they picked it up with their heightened senses. Soft sounds of breathing were heard and it took them no time to pinpoint the location of the sounds in question. They silently peered behind the tree, avoiding the knots of roots spiking out from the elevated ground. There, between the roots in a hollow gap, lay a girl, who was curled into a ball and sleeping soundly, as if no dangerous criminals were there, staring at her incredulously.

Her distinct white hair aside, the first thing they noticed was that she was of small stature. Her sleeping position didn't do her much justice either – she really did look like a child; the way she was. She was even shorter than Feitan, although not by much. She donned a simple white, half sleeve dress shirt, buttoned neatly to the neck, a chocolate colored vest and a red neck tie, which was aptly tucked into the vest. She wore short, maroon colored, baggy pants. They ran a black, vertical stripe pattern and they had numerous deep pockets – most likely to hide a variety of different things ranging from hidden weapons to stolen goods. To complete the outfit, she had on a pair of thigh high dark brown, leather boots, which were fastened to her shorts with thick straps. The crumpled fabric she was hugging with both her arms and legs was probably her cloak. They also took note of her weapons; the visible ones at least. She had two holsters on her back, housing two identical pair of daggers and another one, of different kind, on her left thigh, which was currently empty. Last, but not least, there seemed to be some kind of curious, intricate scope-half-goggle over her right eye.

Whatever they were expecting, this was not it. She was completely unguarded, fragile-looking and small. Disappointment was creeping up on their faces, some more adept at concealing their expressions than others. Phinks was not. Despite all his experience in the field, he could not wipe off the blank, dry look from his face. Even Feitan was having trouble controlling his disappointment and irritation at the child, although normal people wouldn't have been able to pick up the subtle changes in his features - the irate glint in his eyes, the slight sneer at the corner of his lips.. Shalnark handled it the best, as per usual. Almost nothing ever broke his smiling poker face.

"Shal.. You positive we have the right person?" Phinks asked dubiously, his eyes slowly roaming over the girl.

"Well, her hair is white, is it not?"

Another awkward silence fell over the three spiders.

"..rld tree, orbis regeplatanus, a rare flora originating from the Dark Contine.. mm.." The girl murmured softly and sighed contently. She pulled her knees closer to her chest and huddled into the cloak, searching for warmth.

Phinks' expression turned even more inane. "..the fuck?"

Feitan glared at the girl icily and then proceeded to unceremoniously shove his boot-clad foot in her face, giving her rosy cheek a not so gentle push. Phinks did his best not to roll over with laughter.

Her brows furrowed and nose wrinkled with discomfort as her eyes fluttered a few times before snapping wide open. She scrambled to a sitting position, hand rubbing her cheek. It took her a few moments to gather her bearings and put A and B together. 'A' being her hurting cheek and 'B' being the black, pointy boot. She scowled.

Feitan noted, that her eyes were one of the most beautiful shades of blue he had ever seen; warm, bright blue, like the sky on a sunny day in midsummer. He hated them. He pinned the female with one of his frostier stares. He took pleasure in the slight, involuntary flinch he caused in her, albeit it was short-lived as she stubbornly refused to lower her gaze.

"When you two have gotten over your love at first sight, maybe we can move on to business?" Shalnark quipped cheerfully as Phinks snickered at the pair.

If looks could kill, Shalnark thought, when Feitan slowly turned his head their way, vein popping on his temple. Phinks tried to swallow his laughter at the situation, but ultimately failing to do so. He clutched his stomach, gasping for air and barely managed to avoid getting impaled by Feitan's umbrella while he jumped back, still snickering.

"So, to what do I owe the pleasure?" The woman huffed, the word pleasure sounding anything but. A faint red tinge of embarrassment colored her cheeks as she regarded the men. She succeeded in gaining their attention, although she felt a little uncomfortable under their scrutiny. These men weren't exactly your average patrons, she could tell. The way they moved their bodies – fluid movements, soft, soundless steps and barely suppressed cloud of sekki.. Their presence screamed danger. And opportunities. She licked her lips.

"You are the Savant, correct?"

Shalnark took her silence as affirmative and continued.

"We need your expertise in an, ah, endeavor. I trust you are as capable as the rumors say?"

"Is that why I awoke with a foot in my face?" She sent a baleful glare at the culprit.

"He sometimes has trouble containing his impatience." Shalnark flashed her an apologetic smile.

"Oh that I don't doubt." She grumbled, deliberately avoiding the murderous stare from the man in question. "Either way, what makes you think I am willing to assist you in your, as you so eloquently put, endeavor?"

"We weren't asking. There are.. ways to assure your cooperativeness." Feitan remarked snidely.

A shiver went down her spine at the tone of his voice. She had to shake herself to stop her thoughts going down that road. There was no second meaning to what he said, she knew exactly what he was implying and she made no mistake of assuming the threat was an empty one. She scowled at herself for once again getting tangled up in messes she'd much rather avoid. She should just escape, but she dismissed the thought in a heartbeat. She was still exhausted and although she wasn't exactly weak per se, these men could probably put holes in her faster than she could spell the word escape. And even if she somehow managed to liberate herself of these suave gentlemen, she was sure they'd find her in no time at all. This really didn't leave her many options. Her shoulders slumped in defeat and she let out a sigh.

"So what do you want from me? And may I know the names of my clients?" She asked, lips pursed into a pout.

Shalnark grinned widely. "I'm Shalnark, the gangster you see is Phinks and the lovely gentleman you already had the pleasure to meet more.. intimately is Feitan." His grin turned a little more menacing. "We're members of the Genei Ryodan, you would be wise to keep the information henceforth to yourself."

Her eyes widened by a fraction.

"We need a person with the abilities to exorcise nen. We had one, but certain circumstances lead to him being.. indisposed. So we searched you out and would like to leave the matter in your" He gave a short pause, eyes glinting, "capable hands. This information shouldn't be too hard for you to procure I assume."

She resisted the urge to swallow nervously, instead focusing on processing the tiny bits of information they had supplied her with. She frowned. They were, and weren't asking for much at the same time. The information posed no problem, but what they more than likely wanted from her, was her to lead them to one of these people, multiple ones if the people they sought out refused cooperation and.. things went sour. This job would be a lengthy, time-consuming one. She sighed dejectedly at the prospect of sharing their company for an unmeasured amount of time.

"I'm not doing this for free." She resigned miserably.

"That is of no issue, I'm sure we can agree on a fee that is fit for your services, granted that you will accomplish your part of the bargain. You will most likely be set for life." Shalnark said without missing a beat.

The girl just waved her hand impatiently. "I don't need your money. That's not how deals with me work, besides I have enough, thank you."

The men looked at her curiously.

"Let's see.." She pondered for a few moments, biting her thumbnail gently while she decided. "Alright. For the fee, there are a few things that I demand that you comply with, because otherwise this vacation will be a complete waste of time for me."

Phinks raised his brow at the word 'demand', baffled. This woman was either stupid or had complete confidence in coming out of things alive. That, or she just didn't care much for living to begin with.

"First off, you will not maim or kill me in the duration of our forced proximity."

Feitan's mouth twisted into a half-smirk. "So non life threatening injuries are fine?"

"I am well aware of what I said." She snapped. "And the second thing that I desire out of this endeavor, is to unveil as much as possible about each individual of your troupe. Your nen powers, physical prowess, relations and the troupe's past exploits."

An eerie silence fell over the troupe members.

"Take it or leave it. I do not care too much for individuals and their accomplishments, but this is basically the only thing you have to offer that is of any interest to me. Unless, of course, you'd rather venture to the Dark Continent and fetch me some artifacts?" She asked with mock innocence.

Phinks scowled at her retort, while Feitan's eyes narrowed dangerously. Shalnark just sighed. They should've seen something like this coming. They didn't have much of an option and the chance was still too good to let by. Before Phinks could maul her head off and Feitan's mood became even more volatile, Shalnark took the decision in his own hands.

"We accept your terms, Savant." He replied, smile gone from his face as he was also pissed at the girl's insolence. "But I wouldn't put it past some of us, that your safety will be guaranteed after all this is over."

She just smiled crookedly, eyes cold and dark, like a deep, bottomless ocean. Suddenly she didn't look as young anymore, but much, much older.

"I won't expect any less from you. And please, Savant is such a boorish nickname. Call me Rin."

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To be continued.

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via26 I actually didn't realize that before you pointed it out. I went on google the first thing, and I was like, wow, the dude really has no eyebrows. I was thinking of going back to my story and fixing that minor error in my lack of research, but thought better of it, because.. well. I'm lazy and it would make giving expressions on his face harder and uh. I'm lazy xD Maybe I can at some point turn it into a crack.

Thank you for the review though C: