Behold, the 2nd Asuka x Kuni II fic ever written. This note is just here to tell you that this is a sequel to my other fic 'Collateral'. I'd recommend reading that first just so some things make better sense.
For my beloved zucchini, Smashvillain.
"DOOOORYAAAAAAAAAAAA!"
Asuka fell back to Earth by landing her foot on the face of a stubborn gangster, causing him to tumble to the ground. He went limp beneath her, and she let out a triumphant breath as she dusted her hands off each other.
"Another job, well done," she announced, stepping off of the bruised man and admiring the scene before her. His partners in crime lay defeated on the ground as well, and she barely had a scratch on her.
Sirens rang into existence as a couple police cars drove up to the scene. Asuka placed her hands on her hips, beaming with pride.
"Criminals all softened up for you," she declared when the officers stepped out of their cars. She jerked her head in the direction of the unconscious troublemakers. "You guys can take it from here-ow!"
Two police officers shoved her out of the way as they approached the fallen men, sending Asuka stumbling off the path. When she righted herself, she stomped her way over to them.
"Hey, what's the big idea?!" she asked indignantly. The police were busy handcuffing the gangsters, though one of them did have the time to spare Asuka an annoyed look. This only helped to fuel her temper.
"I help you, and that's the thanks I get?!"
"Step aside, Kazama-kun," said a stern voice behind her. She turned around to face the newcomer.
It was the police chief, Inoue. It had been a while since Asuka saw him, the last time being when they investigated her dōjō after it was trashed by the Kenpo madman. She recalled how unenthusiastic the whole lot of them were in the case, with the sole exception being the detective Lei Wulong.
And she was dead certain their lack of commitment was entirely because of her reputation.
"What're you doin' here?" she asked, not even bothering to be polite. "Petty street crime needs you to come personally?"
Inoue sighed, evidently annoyed from the get go. He looked down at her as he explained "Petty street crime, no. A teenage girl, constantly violating the laws of the city so she can play vigilante, however…"
Said teenage girl folded her arms and stood her ground.
"Maybe I wouldn't have to play vigilante if you guys weren't so inept at your jobs!" she shot back, sticking her chin out defiantly. Inoue's eyes narrowed behind his frameless glasses.
"Unless you wish to spend the night at the police station, Kazama-kun, I would advise that you respect your elders," he warned, his voice low and clear. "Especially when we both know your father wouldn't be able to afford bail."
Asuka saw red. She was getting ready to fire back at him, but was intercepted by another adult stepping between her and Inoue.
"Forgive her, sir. She's young, and just wishes to help the neighbourhood. Surely, you won't hold that against her?"
It was Mr. Sato, the shopkeeper who she had helped a fortnight ago. Inoue let out an irate sigh and ran his hand over his face.
"Get these criminals to the station!" he announced to the other officers, before lowering his voice to reply to Mr. Sato. "Perhaps you should discuss the subject of better manners with the youth."
He paused to look at Asuka, before adding "I wouldn't want her to ruin her future."
Asuka growled in frustration, glaring daggers at Inoue and the police as they dragged the gang members to the police cars.
"The nerve of them!" she yelled as they drove away. "Lecturing me for doin' their job better!"
Mr. Sato put his hands together and said "I understand your frustration, Kazama-kun. Still, picking fights with Inoue-san is not a good idea."
She could only huff in response. She knew he was right, and she hated it.
Her head felt heavy with anger as she walked back to her bike, and none of her usual breathing techniques were helping. She couldn't go home now, even if she was sick of wearing her school uniform. She would, no doubt, just seethe in her room or force herself through some basic forms to calm down.
The fire within her wasn't going to die out. It needed to be put out. Replaced with a better emotion.
She raised her head to the afternoon sky, and didn't have to look long to find the solution.
Tsūtenkaku. That's where she would go.
It had been a while since she last felt the need to take her bike up there. The building's security got tighter every time she snuck to the roof, and they were quick to shove her out if they caught her.
Apparently, her jumping off the top of a tourist attraction was bad for business. Go figure.
As such, sneaking in was only worth it when she really needed the adrenaline rush.
And there truly was no feeling like it.
The view alone was breathtaking, firstly. All of Osaka, laid out before her. About as close to a bird's eye view as she could ever get. The air was much fresher as well, relatively free of the pollutants and weird smells that followed her around on the ground.
Leaping off the Tsūtenkaku was the big event, though.
Being carried by the winds to places unknown, like there was more to the world than just her city, and that she could actually reach those places in her current lifetime.
That feeling was gone once she would touch the ground, but it was still priceless. Still irreplicable.
Sneaking in by herself wasn't the hard part, so much as bringing her bike with her was. Thankfully, it proved to be quite a busy day at Tsūtenkaku. The few guards there had their hands full with the influx of tourists, so Asuka quickly pulled her bike along to the emergency stairway.
The plan was to climb them until she found a relatively empty floor. Then, she'd sneak into an elevator and ride it to the top floor. She didn't want to exhaust herself before she even got to the good part.
She eventually reached the top of the building with her bike, though she couldn't afford to loiter for too long. She was certain she'd have been caught on some security camera, especially since she took the elevator.
Better make her getaway before the guards could catch up to her.
With that goal in mind, she pushed open the door separating her from the roof. She was greeted by a blast of wind, cooling her sweaty skin and blowing her slightly damp hair out of her face. She took a deep breath, savouring the quality of the air, before walking out with her bike.
For the first time, however, someone was already on the roof.
They were wearing a giant white hoodie and sitting nonchalantly on the edge, as if they were watching the view from a little bridge, as opposed to a stunningly tall building.
Asuka hesitated, her grip on her bike tightening unconsciously.
Weird, she thought. Well… first time for everythin', I guess.
It was a tourist location after all. It made sense if some of those tourists would want to see the rest of the tower. That didn't have to ruin her plans. She rolled her shoulders before gently pushing her bike forward.
As if sensing her arrival, the stranger turned around from her spot on the edge.
A blast of wind sailed through the roof, blowing the stranger's hood off and revealing her long, dark hair. Asuka's eyes zeroed in on the red and purple strands amidst the predominant black, standing out brilliantly against the blue sky.
"Oh? And who might you be?"
Their voice, light and feminine, broke Asuka from her reverie. She shook her head and met the stranger's eyes.
"That's my line," she said, gesturing at herself with her thumb. "This is my spot, and I've never seen you here before."
The girl's eyes were strange, the colour hard to describe.
A far cry from the typical browns and blacks she was accustomed to, her eyes resembled clouds, heavy with rain and thunder. It should have been unsettling, but the effect was lessened by how much her pupils seemed to dilate when they looked her way.
I'm staring too much.
"Your spot, hm? Sounds awfully presumptuous," the girl rebutted, nimbly rising to her feet. "Isn't this public property?"
"The rest of the buildin', sure. But this part…" Asuka trailed off when she noticed a small beauty mark beside the girl's rosy lips.
It didn't occur to Asuka that she'd abandoned her original sentence until the girl's head tilted to the side. A wordless question.
Asuka shook her head again and approached the girl. "How'd you get past security anyway? They usually have this place under lock and key 'cause of me."
The girl hummed in response. A fragmented sort of hum that could come across as laughter. Asuka furrowed her brows, unsure what to make of that.
"You'll find there are few places that can keep me out," the girl proclaimed before turning around to face all of Osaka.
Well, that's suspicious.
A memory tickled the back of her mind, and Asuka leaned towards the strange girl.
"Who are you?"
The girl with the storm in her eyes looked up at the sky, her jacket fluttering in the wind. Asuka let go of her bike, her hand reaching forward.
The sound of a door banging open made both girls jump. Asuka turned to the roof entrance in time to see a couple of security guards stumbling out.
"Of course it's you again, Kazama-kun!" one of them exclaimed. Asuka responded with a smirk, which they didn't appreciate at all.
"Nice to see ya too, Yamazaki-san!" Asuka called out in greeting, complete with a mock salute.
"Step away from the edge, right now!" commanded the other guard, his tone dead serious.
Before Asuka could say anything else, the girl zipped in front of her and threw something at the guard's feet. A millisecond later, a cloud of black smoke erupted from the floor and the guards broke into coughing fits.
Asuka had little time to react before the girl was pushing her onto her bike.
"What the hell?!" she yelled after nearly tripping over her bike, practically gaping. "What are ya-"
"We don't have time to waste on arguing," the girl interrupted, gesturing to the smoke cloud. "Now's the time to escape."
She had a point, even if she was an oddball.
Asuka slung a leg across her bike, getting ready to escape. Her grip tightened over the handlebars as an idea popped into her head. She looked over her shoulder and called out to the girl "Grab on."
She seemed surprised at Asuka's words, but quickly jumped onto the back of the bike. Her arms settled around Asuka's shoulders just as Yamazaki yelled out "Stop right there!"
Asuka wasn't entirely sure if this was a good idea, with another person on her bike, but she took off all the same. Asuka only had enough time to shout "Hang on!" before her wheels left the ground.
For one glorious moment, she was suspended in the sky. The air was fresh, frigid enough to hurt her fingers and more rejuvenating than a bottle of water in summer.
For a moment, it felt like she was taking flight, like invisible wings were spreading open to catch the wind. She closed her eyes, letting the air wash over and flow through her very being.
The girl sucked in a breath, and the moment ended.
Gravity began to pull her down. The wind began to pick up.
Asuka opened her eyes.
Within seconds, they began to fall at a deafening speed. Spotting a tall building a few metres away from her path, she yelled "Lean with me!" and pushed her weight in its direction. The girl leaned with her, and soon enough the bike began to approach the first roof. Asuka began to pedal in the air and pulled at the handlebars to prepare for a rough landing.
The landing was indeed rough, the force of it enough to rattle her bones, but Asuka's prior pedalling allowed for the bike to keep going. She barrelled forward with the extra momentum, and the girl let out a yelp of shock.
Asuka ignored her, focusing on charting her path to the ground. When she figured out which building to jump for next, she pedalled to the edge of the roof.
"You're still going?!"
"'Till we reach the ground!" she proclaimed with a wide smile. "Now JUMP!"
Asuka leaped off the building within seconds of announcing it. Their descent was much faster this time, and her passenger almost fell off the bike.
Asuka thought she'd have to help her, but the girl quickly pulled herself back on the vehicle. This time, she wrapped her arms tightly around Asuka's waist, the movement noticeably frantic.
Asuka couldn't help but smirk.
"This is insane!" the girl shrieked when they landed on the next roof. Asuka jerked the bike to the side, changing its trajectory while leaving behind a black streak on the concrete. Running over trash and dodging forgotten furniture as the edge of the new building came closer and closer, the girl let out a terrified squeak.
"Oh no, you were serious-"
"JUMP!"
And jump they did, the girl held on for dear life. Her chest pressed up flush against Asuka's back, a pleasant source of warmth amidst the biting cold of the wind.
That almost makes up for the extra weight.
"Just a couple more stops!" she told her passenger as the bike slammed down onto another roof, this one layered with clay tiles that shattered under her wheels. Asuka winced, quickly moving on before anyone could see.
She scanned the path below for a clear place to jump. The road looked too busy and packed for a smooth landing, but the edge of the roof was approaching rapidly. She felt small hands grab at her sweater vest.
She'd just have to wing it.
When she jumped, she leaned her body sideways to aim for the road below.
"Move, people!" Asuka bellowed as she soared through the air for the last time. Many civilians scattered at her warning, some even having to jump out of the way as her wheels hit the ground. The impact rocked through her body, but the bike kept barrelling forward.
Asuka squeezed the brakes and pulled at the handles, trying to stop the bike while swerving away from streetlights, dumpsters and chairs. It resisted her for a good while, leaving behind skid marks in the asphalt. The smell of burnt rubber filled her nostrils, but she didn't relent.
"Come on!"
Eventually, her bike did a halt, though not without screeching the entire time.
The jerky movement made Asuka fall forward, over the handlebars. The girl wasn't prepared either and crashed into Asuka's back. They remained that way for a moment, until the sharp pain in Asuka's ribs urged her to move.
"Owww…" Asuka groaned out, massaging her sides where the handlebars had stabbed her. Once the pain subsided, she realised how hard her heart was beating within her ribs.
Well, it wasn't the most graceful landing.
But very worth it.
As Asuka took a deep breath to calm herself, the girl jumped off the bike. Her steps were barely audible, like she was walking on air rather than cement. Asuka turned in her seat, giving her passenger a look over.
It was hard to tell how she was feeling, since she was facing away, but Asuka noticed the way she was trembling from head to toe.
Concerned, Asuka dismounted her bike and slowly approached her. "You alright, stormy?"
The girl rubbed both of her forearms furiously. When she spoke, her voice was high pitched and slightly erratic.
"That was… insane…"
She whirled in place to face Asuka.
Her previously silky straight hair was now windswept, sticking up at odd angles. Her pale skin was flushed red, either from her emotional state or the cold winds, and her unusual eyes were wide from pure shock.
"Did that scare you?" Asuka queried, not even trying to hide the mirth from her voice.
"You… are insane...!" was the girl's eloquent response. Asuka threw her head back and laughed heartily.
All that mystique on the roof, clearing away to make room for earnest emotion. She couldn't help but laugh.
"I get that a lot," Asuka said in jest, once she had her fill of laughter. The girl continued to stare at her with those wide eyes. "Still, it's not often I fly someone around Osaka like that. Count yourself lucky."
The girl visibly bristled.
"Lucky?!" she shrieked (though it half-resembled a yelp). Asuka just gave her a toothy grin, and the girl bounded in place, as if she had no other outlet for all her emotion and energy. She threw her hands in the air and twirled in place.
As much as she joked, Asuka understood what a scary experience that must have been. She let the girl with multi-coloured hair have a moment to calm herself down, though not without smiling all the while.
"What a strange creature you are…" the girl eventually remarked, her voice much calmer.
"You're one to talk! All you've done is speak in riddles!" Asuka pointed out, somewhat defensively.
"And you jump off buildings for fun!"
"Well, you have purple and red in your hair and storm clouds for eyes! You definitely edge it out in the 'strange' department!"
Asuka realised her error too late. Both girls froze, leading to a moment of awkward silence. It only ended when the girl uttered in confusion "…Storm clouds?"
It was Asuka's turn to face the other way now in embarrassment. She felt her face heating up, and she hated it.
Why did I blurt out so much?!
She hoped her new acquaintance would just move on, ignoring what Asuka had said, but it seemed her luck for the day had run out.
"…Is that where 'stormy' came from?" the girl asked. Asuka noticed how her tone had changed from before. Surprise had turned into amusement.
Of course she'd find this funny.
"If you would just tell me your name, I wouldn't have to give you a nickname," Asuka deflected with a wave of her hand, trying her best to appear unbothered by her oversharing.
The girl jumped in between Asuka and her bike, taking her by surprise. Her lips were curled into a smile and she narrowed her eyes ever so slightly.
Mischief incarnate.
"But where's the fun in that… birdie?"
Flabbergasted, Asuka stumbled over her next few words.
"Birdie?! At least give me a good nickname! What kind of cutesy name is 'birdie'?! At least I called ya 'stormy'! That's much cooler!"
"You fly through the air, leave a mess behind you," the girl punctuated this by gesturing at the skid marks and debris left in their wake. "…and-"
The girl grabbed Asuka's hand, turning it around so the sparrow decal on her gloves was on display.
"-you have birds on your clothes. I'd say 'birdie' is perfect for you."
Asuka wrenched her hand out of the girl's grasp. "The nerve… I'm takin' my cool nickname back!"
She shoved past the infuriating girl, sitting on her bike and turning her head away. "I'll have ya know, I beat people up for disrespectin' me less than you have!"
"Oh, I'm quite aware of that," the girl said, dragging out the words like she was singing them. Asuka's attention snapped back to her.
The girl's stormy eyes scrunched up in amusement, her hands behind her back in feigned innocence. "I know a lot about you, Kazama Asuka."
Asuka stared her down, trying to make sense of her. "You sure are asking for a beatin', now…"
The stranger smiled and leaned to the side, long hair falling over her shoulder like a waterfall. "Whether I am or not…"
She raised her hands up in front of her, and Asuka was shocked to see her wallet in the stranger's hand.
"… you'd have to catch me first."
Before Asuka could react, the thief ran down the street. Eventually, Asuka's brain kickstarted her limbs into moving. She kicked her bike off the ground, pedalling after the girl while yelling "Hey! Give that back!"
The exertion from jumping off Tsūtenkaku began to manifest in her body, and Asuka was certain she'd be sore in the morning. It definitely hindered her ability to ride at maximum speed, and she thought for a moment she'd lose the thief.
However, the girl didn't seem to be trying extra hard to escape. She often stopped and waited for Asuka around corners and across roads, offering an infuriating smile before taking off again.
Asuka began to wonder what the point of all this was.
Eventually, the chase came to an end when they both arrived at Nakanoshima Promenade. Asuka slowed her bike and turned it to the side, an arm's length away from the girl who stole her wallet.
Said thief still had an impish smile on her face, waving at her with the hand that held Asuka's wallet.
"I'll take that back," Asuka angrily declared, snatching her wallet out of the girl's hand. In response, she brought her now empty hands together and dipped into a mock bow.
"You caught me, it's only fair you get your goods back."
Asuka scoffed, stuffing her wallet back into her skirt pocket. "As if. You were barely tryin'."
"Not true, I was running really hard," she said with a tiny pout. Charming, but it was starting to wear thin.
"Please. You tried harder the first time we met, Kunimitsu."
That one statement from Asuka caused a complete shift in expression. Her smile immediately dropped, and those eyes no longer seemed as big as before.
"Yeah, I can put two and two together," Asuka said, an angry undercurrent to her words. The girl opened her mouth, no doubt to respond, but Asuka turned away from her.
She walked back to her bike, with the intention of going home, but stopped when she caught sight of the river.
The sun had begun to set on the horizon, and its fiery colours reflected beautifully on the water's surface. She hadn't been to Nakanoshima in a long time, but she knew of the sunsets here being especially beautiful.
Her body ached from all she had done today, and the scene before her was mesmerising. Before she could think otherwise, Asuka walked past the thief and approached the railings at the end of the walkway, staring into the water.
Surprisingly, her new acquaintance didn't take this as a cue to leave.
"So, you figured out who I was…" Kunimitsu said, leaning on the railing a respectable distance away from her. "But then… why did you ask who I was earlier? If you already knew?"
Asuka was fed up, and almost didn't want to respond to her questions. But the thief sounded hesitant, almost penitent.
"I was askin' for your actual name, not the title you hide behind," Asuka said, ultimately deciding there wasn't any harm in it. "You abandoned your mask today, I figured it was worth a shot."
"Kunimitsu is my name. As far as you need to know, that is my only name."
A sigh escaped Asuka's lips. Guess they'd be going nowhere on that front.
"Then…at least tell me why you did all this," she said, tearing her eyes away from the serene river to look at Kunimitsu. "Why show up to Tsūtenkaku? Why help me escape the guards? Why lead me here?"
She pursed her lips, evidently conflicted about answering. Asuka stared for a moment, and it was now Kunimitsu's turn to sigh.
"I was curious," she confessed, crossing her arms on the railing and lifting her shoulders in a tiny shrug. "After you stopped me from stealing that sword, I tried to learn more about you. 'Know thy enemy' and all…"
Asuka scowled. "Great, another stalker. Just what I needed."
The thief seemed to take offense to her sarcasm, since she bristled exaggeratedly. "It is not stalking, it's reconnaissance. It is the way of the shinobi, to observe and gather information, until the time to strike arrives."
"All that because I stopped you from committin' a crime," Asuka said with a grimace. "Should I be flattered?"
Kunimitsu turned her nose up in the air. "Hmph! Feel however you wish to. The fact of the matter is, I had never been thwarted on a mission until I faced you. As a professional, I couldn't just accept defeat without aiming to improve."
"Professional?" Asuka repeated, raising her eyebrows. Kunimitsu smiled in response.
"I am not just some petty thief. I am an expert in my craft," she boasted, bringing her fingers together in the shape of a fox head and gesturing Asuka's way. "Of course, I was naturally gifted from the start, but I did not become who I am without trial and error."
"Theft is theft," Asuka stated, refusing to be impressed. "It doesn't matter if you do it for a livin'."
Kunimitsu clutched at her chest and gasped. An overly dramatic reaction that had Asuka want to roll her eyes.
"Such a harsh tone," she crooned, swaying in place. When Asuka gave her no reaction, she straightened up and approached her.
"But you know," Kunimitsu said in a hushed voice, like she was disclosing some big secret. She leaned closer to Asuka, who didn't flinch despite her heart rate quickening.
She was close enough that the tips of their noses almost brushed against each other. Asuka felt the warmth radiating from her, but still didn't move.
And then the thief finally finished her sentence. "I think you're a bit of a hypocrite."
Asuka's eyes shot wide open and she immediately shoved Kunimitsu away. All that build up, just for her to say something so blood boiling.
Kunimitsu recovered pretty quickly from the shove, returning to the railings. Though this time, she kept a more respectable distance from Asuka. "Did I strike a nerve?"
"I'm not goin' to tolerate accusations from a criminal," was Asuka's venomous response. Kunimitsu sighed before shrugging her shoulders again.
"The pot calling the kettle black?"
Asuka glared at her, silently daring her to continue. And continue she did.
"You may not be a thief, but you still operate outside of the law to get what you want."
Asuka's anger faltered for a moment. "I don't-"
"Isn't that what you do every time a fight breaks out?" Kunimitsu interjected, raising one of her hands to her chin. Asuka's voice died in her throat.
"I know the police definitely don't appreciate what you do. And neither do some of your fellow townspeople…"
Unpleasant memories flitted through her head. There was truth in Kunimitsu's words, and she hated it. In her discomfort, she moved her arm to swat at the thief, but she easily ducked under it. Kunimitsu placed her hands behind her back again and smiled.
"How long have you been watchin' me?!" Asuka demanded. Kunimitsu took to pacing in a straight line, and answered the question with a long-winded spiel.
"Long enough to learn of your tactics, like I said. If you ask me though, it's definitely unfair how little people appreciate your art, because it is indeed an art! You help keep these undeserving streets safe, all while showcasing your mastery of your martial art, and yet very few among your people shower you with anything even remotely resembling praise. Sure, no one tells me what a genius I am at my job, but at least I get paid for my art!"
She stopped walking to fix a concerned look on Asuka, the sincerity of which was hard to deduce. "As someone who lives on the fringes of society, I still know injustice when I see it."
Asuka groaned in frustration, reaching up to pinch the bridge of her nose.
"Your sympathy warms my heart," she replied sarcastically. Kunimitsu laughed, the sound reminiscent of a babbling brook.
"Oh, I offer much more than just sympathy, birdie."
Asuka eyed her with suspicion, and Kunimitsu jovially walked up to her. In the orange light of the setting sun and her multi-coloured ponytail swaying in the wind, she truly resembled the creature Asuka first associated with her.
"And what does the fox say?"
Kunimitsu leaned forward. "Why don't we work together?"
Asuka blinked in surprise.
"…So that's why ya did all this?!"
"Oh, no, not at all!" Kunimitsu exclaimed, jumping back with a shake of her head. To Asuka's dismay, she started rambling again.
"Originally, I just wanted to understand my enemy better. But you surprised me, impressed me even. That is not a word I use lightly. Your confidence, your adaptability in the face of uncertainty, your stubborn persistence… I realised, you would make a much better ally than an adversary."
Kunimitsu looked at Asuka again, her expression warm and her smile inviting. "The master thief and the vigilante. What a fine match."
She extended her hand, no doubt for Asuka to take. "What do you say, birdie?"
Asuka just stared, starting at the outstretched hand and moving up to Kunimitsu's friendly face. The way she could turn the charm on and make you want to believe her…
It was unsettling.
"No."
Lips the colour of pink ladies, twisted into a scowl.
"I may be a vigilante, but I try to make the world a better place," Asuka said, folding her arms and squaring her shoulders. "You just steal to better your own life. Our similarities are only skin deep, fox."
The thief bared her teeth as she growled. "Better my own life? How dare you-"
She fell silent when Asuka swung her fist at her, only to stop inches before she made contact. Once again, her stormy eyes were wide with surprise, and Asuka couldn't help but miss the moment that had long since passed.
"That's my final answer, thief," Asuka reaffirmed with a hard glare. "Unless you wanna lose again, I suggest you scram."
A myriad of emotions crossed over Kunimitsu's face, before she settled on something that resembled worry.
"Please, think it over a bit more," she insisted, gesturing at the city behind her. "Can't you see your talents are being wasted in a town like this?"
Asuka tried to keep her gaze steady, but her fist wavered.
"I know you yearn for something more than this," Kunimitsu continued, tone softening even further. "Why else would you be such a thrill-seeker? What you long for isn't in this city, it's beyond the horizon. And I know you know that."
Kunimitsu raised her hands to the sky, as if all that was within it was being offered to Asuka.
"We could see so much more, do so much more, than you ever thought possible."
Kunimitsu's pale eyes met Asuka's dark ones. They seemed to grow bigger the longer she stared into them.
"You don't get it, do you?" Asuka muttered, finally dropping her fist. "How can I listen to any offer of yours, when I can't trust you?"
Surprise washed over Kunimitsu's face, which she quickly replaced with her trademark disarming smile. "Haven't I proven I know you-"
"All you've proven is that I was wrong about you abandonin' your mask," Asuka interjected. This statement seemed to finally stun Kunimitsu into silence.
"On Tsūtenkaku, when we were fallin', and when we talked after, I wanted to believe that I was seein' the real you. A human being with genuine emotions. But all you've done since then is just put on a different face every other second. Anythin' to get what you want, huh?"
Kunimitsu averted her eyes, staring at the ground.
"You almost made me believe there was somethin'..."
Asuka felt a dull ache in her throat and swallowed. After closing her eyes for an extended moment, she spoke again. "You see why I can't trust a damn thing you say?"
The thief met her eyes again and took a few steps forward. "But I was telling the truth today. I may have embellished here and there, but I do wish to have you as an-"
Kunimitsu stilled when Asuka's fists clenched at her sides. A warning sign that she only heeded momentarily.
"Birdie," she said slowly, reaching for Asuka's hand. "Today doesn't have to be the end of us."
"There's NO us!" Asuka yelled, wrenching her arm out of the thief's reach. Kunimitsu tried to approach her again but finally backed off when Asuka pointed at her accusingly. "You're a criminal! A bad guy! I may be a vigilante, but I still do what's right! You won't sway me away from that!"
For a moment, Asuka thought she saw the girl she wanted to see on Tsūtenkaku. Contrary to before, she began to resemble a wilting flower with how deflated her posture became.
Despite that, Kunimitsu's eyes gleamed in the dusk light. It was amazing how much orange suited her.
Asuka shoved past her, stomping over to her bike. As she grabbed the handlebars, she looked over her shoulders. "You better hope I don't catch you theivin' in my city aga-"
Her voice froze when she realised there was no one behind her anymore. The thief had vanished without a trace.
Asuka stood there for a moment, frozen still. It was only when a breeze tickled at the back of her neck that she finally broke out of her reverie. A huge exhale followed shortly after.
"Yeah, you better run…" she muttered, not knowing, or caring, if anyone heard her. She abandoned her bike again, walking up to the railing to stare into the water.
Orange and yellow and pink, reflections of the setting sun, all melded into each other on the even surface. Asuka allowed herself to watch the colours shift endlessly with the ebb and flow of the current, folding her arms upon the railing.
She wanted to salvage the day by going to Tsūtenkaku. To soar and reach places unknown. To feel above it all.
And yet, she never felt so grounded before… so unsure…
She rested her chin on her arms, losing herself to the beauty of the evening lights.
A gust of wind carried some leaves onto the river, and the colours scattered.
I can't just end things on a happy note. We must always angst. I'm so sorry Smash.
I really liked writing this actually. The idea definitely morphed as I wrote it, a few ideas got cut and altered, and this ended up being WAY longer than I planned. Skull emoji skull emoji.
The song inspirations for this were 'Sunset' and 'Endless Summer' by The Midnight.
If you liked what I've done with AsuKuni, be sure to let me know. Smash will be really happy if I convert more people to this ship teehee teehee.
See you all next time.
May Peace Be Upon You.