Soundtrack: Taylor Swift - Welcome to New York
The musty air of New York City is starting to get on her nerves.
The city that apparently never slept wasn't as amazing as all the music and magazines and actors said it would be. A lot less clean oxygen. Too crowded. Way too many people giving you suspicious looks, as if you would mug them and demand for cash at any second.
The address of her new employer took about two hours to get to, not even including going through airport security. Thathad taken long enough, what with her armory and weaponry. Not to mention that she was underage, but the Americans didn't need to know that.
Americans.She says this with an unfamiliar tone, even though her mother was American and she knew English perfectly. She'd lived in Japan her whole life; America had been but a dream, a foreign fantasy world, in her mind.
Until now.
The taxi stops, and she pays him accordingly. As he drives away, she composes herself. Her new employer was said to be ruthless, cold, and cruel. Nothing new, but Kano had warned her to tread carefully around him.
He's unstable, bent on revenge. Be careful, Akumu. He's not one to be trifled with.
She knew immediately she should follow his advice, because Kano almost never used her first name, unless in a dire situation or when he meant something.
She was dressed in her assassin armor; a skin tight dark red and black body suit, with fitted metal shoulder plates, torso plate, and knee high metal boots (not the things that a knight would wear; not loud at all when she moved). Hermetal mekakushi(face mask) that started from the bottom of her left eye - or the top of her cheekbones, take your pick - all the way down, covering everything below that location - except her eye patch, the mask had accommodated for that - ending at her chin. Her thick, blackish brown hair was blowing around in the wind, and her right eye had noticeable but notthick black, gold, and red eyeliner. She has a tanto blade in one boot, a gun in another, and a knife hidden behind her hair, on her neck. In her opinion, she looked presentable.
Let's see if this Shredder agrees with me.
•
"I except you all to behave yourselves. This is the most feared assassin in all of Japan. Show her no fear, but grudging respect." The Shredder's cold voice rings around the silent throne room.
Karai knew that his henchmen and herself would not trust this new assassin. The new recruits that Shredder brought never came close to beating the Turtles. What made him think this was the answer?
Worse, this was an independent employee. They'd follow Shredder's demands only for the money he'd agreed to get for them. They were temporary; therefore, could not be given total trust.
"She has arrived," Shredder announces, although there is no one around. Karai keeps her tanto close. The air is tenser, more deadly now.
Then a shape hits her from behind.
Karai stumbles forward, and the intruder moves swiftly away, towards Tigerclaw. He quickly fires his guns, but the figure is too quick for him. It disarms him quickly with a tanto that they seemingly conjured from thin air. It takes her down, too, in not even two minutes.
Time seems to freeze for a moment afterwards. Then the figure comes out of the dark, revealing a girl around the same age as she is.
They all take a moment to examine the girl's peculiar appearance. She wasn't tall, a lot shorter than Karai (then again, Karai shot up like a beanstalk before she turned sixteen). She had dark brown hair that was thick and straight, long bangs on the right side of her face. She had a metal mask, similar to her own, only it was shaped to accommodate for her black eye patch on her left eye. She was pale faced, and Japanese looking, except for the bright aqua green eyes. Karai lowered her gaze to the girl's attire. She sported a skintight red and black body suit with strange metal armor, and metal boots. There were no other visible weapons with the girl other than the tanto.
The Shredder narrowed his eyes. "Excellent," he says, and Karai suddenly feels envious, though she'd never admit it.
The girl finally speaks. "That's the only way I work, Master Shredder," she says in a strange part American, part Japanese accent, taking off her mekakushi,revealing her pale face and pink lips. She then kneels down respectfully in front of Shredder's throne. Karai can imagine Shredder smirking behind the helmet.
"Welcome to New York, Chi-Bara."
Karai sucks in a breath. She'd heard legends in the underground of Japan of a lethal assassin only referred to as the "Chi-Bara". The unknown person had murdered many people in the underground, often when they was hired for the job. They would kill the person when they least expected it, then drew a rose with the blood of the victim on their forehead. It was a mark of pride, and an ironic play of the assassin's name. Chi-Bara. Bloody Rose.
"A pleasure to work with you, Master," Chi-Bara continued, her gaze never leaving Shredder's. There is something strange in her too bright eyes. Almost predatory.
"Of course. Now, down to business." The Shredder is blunt, and straight to the deal. Karai eyes the rest of Shredder's servants. None of the mutants look happy that they will be answering to a girl barely older than Karai herself. Tigerclaw looks the most annoyed, which made sense, because the girl had taken him down effortlessly.
Speaking of which, she didn't even seem fazed by the mutant fish, dog, tiger, or robots that were present. Strange, but respectable; she was cool and indifferent under pressure.
"You want me to execute turtles, Master?" Chi-Bara was speaking, and Karai turns back to the conversation. "Humanoid turtles?"
"Correct. They are an obstacle in my plans to eliminate Hamato Yoshi. Once they are out of the way, killing the rat will be a simple task."
Chi-Bara nods, but Karai can see something shift in her eyes, before they become indifferent and bored again. "Alright, but you'll have to agree to my terms."
The Shredder raises an eyebrow, and Karai is not surprised. No one has asked him for terms before. Bradford was merely his pupil, and he had taken in Xever because he was perfect to command the Purple Dragons. Tigerclaw had also been hired, but had not asked for much in return. So what areyou gonna ask for, Bloody Rose?
"First term. A place to stay," Chi-Bara declares. "I have no home in New York, no ID, nothing. If you can cover the cost of a hotel for myself, somewhere nearby perhaps, that would help me live normally as I think of a strategy to combat these turtles. Second," she pauses for a second, "five thousand dollars, in cash, for each turtle. No money, no deal." She stares defiantly at Shredder, but he does not protest, so she continues. "Third," and she smirks as she says this, "I'd like to keep one of their shells, as a souvenir. If you agree with these terms, I will execute the turtles. If not, no deal." She says this with an air of confidence, as if she knows Shredder will agree.
And he does, immediately. He calls one of his remaining human Foot soldiers to book a hotel for two months, under his name, and to prepay for it. Then, he turns to Xever. "Call your Purple Dragons. Give them their new assignment - I need two million dollars, in cash." Xever nods, and leaves. Shredder turns back to Chi-Bara. "A pleasure doing business with you."
Chi-Bara smirks. "No, Master Shredder," she almost purrs, "the pleasure is all mine."
Karai now knows for sure she needs to watch her back.
•
And that's that! :D This will also be available on my Wattpad account, carlasound.
Hope you enjoyed, criticism welcomed, flames not, love y'all, CIAO!
~Carla