Ninja


The Kuno estate was a place largely cut off from the outside world. Behind its high walls, the wealthy scions of the Kuno family lived in self-imposed and luxuriant isolation, concerning themselves with whatever might happen beyond only when it intruded.

As it was doing rather violently this afternoon.

"Insolent fiends! You dare to attack the vaunted halls of the Kuno clan? I, Tatewaki Kuno, Blue Thunder of Furinkan High, shall smite thee for this affront!"

Armed with his trusty bokken, Tatewaki Kuno bellowed a warcry as he charged into battle against the creatures - shadow-dark, spindly parodies of ninjas - invading his home. The closest three silently raised their own blades, obviously trusting their live steel to triumph over Tatewaki's fire-hardened wood, but they had underestimated him.

Tatewaki's first swipe smashed clean through the steel blade to strike firmly into its bearer's chest, which visibly crumpled inwards like a cardboard box under a man's boot before the impact strike blew it down the corridor like a human(oid) bullet. The second ninja stabbed at Tatewaki, whose bokken moved like lightning, deflecting each thrust before he brought it down with crushing force on its hood-clad scalp. Even as it crumpled to the ground, black ichor bubbling from under the fabric, the young kendoist was already launching his next attack.

This third ninja weaved from side to side, dodging Kuno's strikes before lashing out in a ferocious stab that almost plunged its sword into Tatewaki's skull. But he twisted aside at the last second, and it skimmed harmlessly past him, though it opened a hair-thin gash in Tatewaki's cheek as it did.

"Wretched creature! I strike! Yatayatayatayatayatayata!"

His bokken surged forth at impossible speeds, jabbing from every angle. The ninja-beast desperately tried to dodge and counterattack, but once Tatewaki made the first successful strike to its collarbone, it was all over. That one blow made it flinch in pain, allowing Tatewaki to rain down more, shattering its ribs before crushing its throat.

The creature fell to the floor with a single gurgling sigh, and Tatewaki stood proudly over the remains, making a triumphant flourish with his weapon.

"Didst thee truly think thou could triumph over the rightful heir to the House of Kuno? What fools thou be!" Scoffed Tatewaki, flicking his wooden blade to dramatically clean it of the ink-like slime adorning it.

"Down, brother!"

At that familiar feminine shriek, Tatewaki reacted instantly and threw himself to the floor the barest instant before a crackling comet of neon-pink energy hurled itself through the space where he had been standing. It slammed into a fourth ninja that had been about to stab Tatewaki in the back, reducing it to nothing but a pillar of greasy smoke in an electrical sizzle, like a bug-zapper times a thousand. Tatewaki cautiously looked up from where he had been covering his hands, and frowned hugely.

"Wicked sister, you nearly struck me that time!" He snapped angrily.

"And you nearly got yourself killed by showboating, so stand up and start fighting, brother dear!" Spat Kodachi, who continued to fire the futuristic-looking rifle she was carrying at the remaining nina-creatures. She vaporized four of them before the weapon began to emit high-pitched chimes that almost sounded like digitized screams of pain. She snarled and then pitched the rifle down the hall like a boomerang, sending it slamming into a fifth ninja-thing with neck-snapping force. It stumbled backwards, crashing into a small knot of its fellows, and then the rifle exploded, vaporizing them all.

"Those fools at the projected energy weapons lab will be hearing from me tomorrow!" Kodachi sneered disdainfully, before withdrawing one of her mother's naginatas and bracing it against the impending charge of the two dozen or more shadowy creatures rallying themselves for a fresh assault.

"In their defense, they've only been working on that prototype for the past three weeks," her brother pointed out diplomatically as he took his place at her side, bokken raised in a similar defensive stance.

The shadowy ninja-beasts began to sprint towards the Kuno siblings... when suddenly a metallic sphere arced out of a previously hidden panel in the roof. It bounced into the middle of the group and then suddenly exploded in a blinding flash of light. The creatures shrieked in agony, stopping dead in their tracks and flailing blindly - an advantage that the Kunos could have taken advantage of... if they weren't equally caught off-guard by the sudden flash-bomb.

Suddenly, a series of rapid staccato 'twhips' split the air, underlaid by sharp groans and muffled thuds. As the Kunos' eyes restored themselves to full function, they looked upon the hall again and saw that they were the only ones standing, with all of the ninja-things fallen. All of them... save for a single new figure standing amidst the carnage.

"My apologies, Master Tatewaki, Mistress Kodachi. There was a particularly stubborn knot of them attempting to make their way into the family vaults. It took me longer than I anticipated to finish cleaning them up."

The sole survivor amongst the massacre was a seventeen year old girl, clad in a simple black bodysuit, which had been reinforced around the limbs with steel plating over rigid fabric. Shoulder-length platinum blonde hair in a loose ponytail framed a heart-shaped face that would have been quite beautiful, were it not for the silken mask across her mouth and the fact only her right socket bore its native dark grey-blue orb, the left being covered by an eyepatch held firmly around her skull by a black leather strap. She held a collapsible crossbow in her right hand, and after the briefest, most perfunctory of bows,she checked the area before collapsing her weapon..

"Tch. Well, I suppose your little stray does have her uses, brother dear," Kodachi declared, dismissively lowering her blade and looking at the corpses, which were already dissolving into puddles of smoking inky-hued slime. "I will see about having the maids clean up the mess - I'll leave you and your gaijin pet to your business."

Tatewaki watched as his little sister haughtily stalked out of the room, heaving an exasperated sigh. "Forgive her; my sister has ever been ill-suited to sharing my affections. She lashes out at you only because of me."

"It's alright, Master Tatewaki; I know how to handle girls like her," The girl assured him, her weapon disappearing into a concealed holster.

"But still, it's uncouth to act in such a manner; you are my guest here as much as you are my assistant, Rose-hime," he assured her, pulling a pearl-pink rose from an interior pocket of his katana and presenting it to her.

"Please don't do that; it got old back in America," the girl sighed, rolling her single eye... but she still reached out and took the rose anyway, a faint hint of pink coming from under her mask.