The first thing Sakura noticed was the blood. It painted the walls of the alleyway like paint, confirming their suspicions. The pile of orcs was stacked in corner, limbs detached from bodies with considerable ease.

They thought that attacks in this area were becoming less frequent, so intelligence figured they could focus on the other fires spreading throughout Tokyo and the rest of Japan. Nobody had looked into reports as to why demonic activity had taken a hit in the area.

Why would they? It wasn't as if any rogue or retired Taimanin lived in the area. If there was a drop off, it would be from natural causes.

Nobody even considered looking deeper until reports filtered through from regular police officers. It wasn't like Taimanin were dealing with dozens of other hot spots at once. They weren't going to look a gift horse in the mouth.

But it wasn't a gift horse. Someone, or possibly something, was running around killing demons in the night. And Sakura was sent to find out more.

That more thus far was not much. This was the third pile of bodies in five days, and most of those were the obvious cases. She'd found several demons, mostly orcs, stashed in dumpsters and other such crannies. No humans, which was a strong sign that they might be human themselves. Though it was clear that the gangs still feared whatever was responsible.

Sakura slipped into the alleyway, looking for any other signs of activity. They weren't hard to find. Underneath the paint of gore, there were grooves cut into the wall. Sometimes on their own, other times in pairs.

That suggested a few things. Mostly that they were human. That didn't narrow things down much, but the cuts were smooth. Sakura's first thought would be some sort of energy weapon.

But there was no indication of any deformation from the heat that would come from such a weapon.

Raising her lingered glove to the bloody mess, Sakura noticed something underneath. Was that?

Water? What was water doing here?

Now that narrowed it down considerably. But it raised far more questions than it answered. There weren't supposed to be any rogue or retired Taimanin in this district. But something like this required a Ninja Art of some sort.

A brief movement on one of the rooftops drew Sakura's eye. It could be nothing. But it also could be something. She was out of leads by this point, having been unable to find anything useful so far.

Springing up the walls, she landed on the rooftop, getting her first view of the possible suspect. The woman, the figure couldn't be anything else, was short. Her short brown, almost black hair swayed with each step, turning around as Sakura landed.

Piercing green eyes glared at her from behind a pair of glasses. The rest of her face was covered by a blue bandana. The jacket she wore looked old, hastily modified that went down to her arms and legs, alongside sweatpants to cover her legs.

In her hands were two blades. One a long katana, the other shorter sword. Blood dripped from the edge, creating an almost menacing appearance, despite the slapped together outfit and her short stature.

Which raised even more questions. She was clearly not some foreign agent. They would not have an agent running around with clothes that almost looked stolen from a laundromat. But that left little in the way of options of who she might be. Or way.

All that was certain was that someone, somewhere, had dropped the ball.

But it also meant she should be able to talk this out.

"Hello, my name is Sakura Igawa. All I want to do is talk," she said calmly, doing her best to keep a welcoming front, as the other woman continued to glare at her. Still her guard remained up. Sakura knew nothing about this woman. She could prove to be as hostile to Taimanin as she was to demons.

Clang!

Sakura raised her guard in an instant, blocking the two blades with her knives, even as her muscles groaned in protest. The woman was strong, pushing her back.

"Leave me alone!" The woman snarled beneath her mask, water forming a thin sheet along her blades. Ninja Art. It had to be. The number of questions kept rising. Who was this woman?

Her next swing was easily telegraphed, Sakura able to step around it with causal ease. The women's movements weren't slow, but they lacked finesse. Without the element of surprise, it was easy to weave her way between the sword swings, even as water shot off them, cutting through the air.

It was clear that the woman was not without talent, but clearly lacked training. While that raised questions, the questions being raised made it possible to hazard a guess.

Lack of training suggested that these powers were something new for her. If they were new, then demons attacking her would be a likely trigger.

That still left several unanswered questions though. She'd have to be some sort of late bloomer. How she might have ended up here, in that context, was painfully clear.

But she clearly had the blood of Gosha village running through her veins.

"I just want to talk!" Sakura shouted, trying to stop the woman from attacking her. But there was a glint in her eye. Fear.

How much did she know? About anything? Where her powers were coming from? How she had them? The truth about demons? Of everything?

She was afraid, having no context for what was happening around her. That fear was going to make it impossible to negotiate with her. Not while she still had her weapons.

Sakura moved, slipping into the shadows.

"What?" The woman gasped, looking around as Sakura emerged behind her, taking Sakura's opponent off guard. And once the woman had lost her momentum?

Sakura launched strike after strike, teleworking from shadow to shadow, sticking with odd angles as the woman struggled to fend off the onslaught of blows.

Soon, Sakura found the opportunity she was looking for, knocking the woman's blades out of her hands. They flattered against the rooftop, as Sakura kicked them further out of reach. The woman herself was breathing hard, trying to keep the remnants of her bandana around her face.

"I just want to talk," Sakura repeated, flashing her the same smile she gave her students.

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

"Hanachi Ansola is not related to any of the Gosha clans," the words only made Sakura frown. "We only have records of her biological mother as well, who is an immigrant from the UFS, and her step-father, who has former connections to Taimanin circles, but never was one himself."

"Step-father?" Sakura asked, looking confused. It had taken a few hours to get the blood test in order. And find the eighteen year olds' parents. Which were none too pleased to find out what their daughter was actually up to during the night. She thought the man didn't look much like his oldest child, but hadn't thought much of it.

"Correct. We don't have anything on her biological father," the man on the other end said, his voice clearly just as confused as Sakura was.

"Nothing?" Sakura asked, to be sure. Hanachi had a Ninja Art. She had to be related to somebody!

"Nothing. Just a giant blank. I'm planning on putting in a proper request, but her birth certificate doesn't have a name, so I doubt even the government knows who her father is. It's possible the mother doesn't know either, as she didnt put down a name," the man responded as Sakura pinched her brow. That could change quite a bit. She intended to get her off the streets and get some proper training in Gosha, but if she wasn't related to a clan, that just became a lot harder.

"I'm going to need to talk to my sister," Sakura muttered to herself.

"If it's about the girl, Asagi seems interested in her being brought to the academy," the man said, as Sakura perked up. "If your report is anything to go by, she has plenty of talent, but lacks formal training. More students like that is exactly what Asagi is looking for right now."

Sakura could read between the lines. The elders were interested too. They had to be. There had to be a catch.

"Hanachi has demands, though," Sakura shuttered at the words. She knew that the young woman would have concerns. Her demands wouldn't be coming from a sense of pride.

But when someone was willing to kill dozens of demons regularly just because they might become a threat to their family? She wasn't going to stand on tradition.

"She wants her family to come with her," Sakura said into the line, not even bothering to phrase it like a question.

"Got it in one," the man said as Sakura bit back a groan. She would do the same thing if she were in Hanachi's shoes, but only recently did reforms put an end to the exile of those who don't have Ninja Arts. And her mother was from the UFS to boot. That alone would face significant push back. It was unlikely that the woman was some sort of agent playing a long game, but that is what some would think.

There was no way they'd agree to those terms.

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

I drove a hard bargain, but I was able to get what I wanted. To hell with leaving my family in that condemned hole. They wanted me because of my powers? Then they were going to have to keep my family safe.

I didn't care too much. Not about this clan nonsense. If this place helped me kill demons better, then I was all for it. Especially my sperm donor. My step-father was a good man. I wasn't going to associate the word with my other biological half.

No, I was going to find a way to stab the bastard in the eye the first chance I got. What he did to my mother was unforgivable.

Move in day was today. For them anyway. For me?

First new day of school. Yay.

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

Gosha was a nice place. No pollution, seemingly little if any crime. It was paradise compared to the corrupt infested den that was Tokyo. And they were just sitting on this while the rest of Japan suffered.

I made my way to the academy, getting glances with each step. Gawking at the new girl, wonderful. Though I doubt they got many new students. Making my way past the main gates only increased the number of stares I received, from far more people than I thought would be there.

Then again, the age range seemed to go from people about my age, down to children. There were some adults, clearly teachers of some description as well.

There was one in particular I was looking for. My new homeroom teacher. One Sakura Igawa. The one who had brought me into this mess. Not that I could be mad, as she was ultimately responsible for helping my family get out of Tokyo at the end of the day.

Which I was thankful for, given how I swung first. I didn't blame myself for that. I'd felt as if someone had been watching me for ages. Just being that bit too slow had messed with me.

"There you are!" Before I could react, I was put into a headlock, the source of the voice a far too familiar one. I flailed my arms in meek protest, trying to knock her off, failing in a way that might be considered cute before I gave in.

"Hello Sakura-Senpai," I groaned. Please, someone take me out of my misery already. "I'm not late, am I?"

"Nope, you're ahead of time. Figured I'd show you where the homeroom is, given how new you are," Sakura's face beamed at me, a wide grin that made her look as if she where my age.

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

"Wow, she's cute."

The words made Yukikaze look up from her notes. Class was just about to start, so it was best to be prepared. If Sakura-Senpai wasn't late again. But when the door opened and her classmates started making comments like that?

The statement wasn't wrong, she supposed. Her short hair was trimmed nicely, a deep brown, going on black in color. A pair of green eyes rested behind glasses that accentuated the roundness of her face. The Gosha school uniform hugged her body tightly, showing off a figure that would be considered modest if she were only a few inches taller.

But who was she? And why had Sakura-Senpai brought her into class? She had to be a Taimanin in training. She wouldn't be here if she wasn't. That being said, Yukikaze knew she hadn't seen her once in her life.

"This is Hanachi Ansola. As of today, she will be your fellow classmate," Sakura-Senpai said over the whispers, confirming that this girl certainly wasn't someone from the village, or any acknowledged clan, for that matter.

"Thank you for having me," the identified Hanachi bowed respectfully. "Please treat me well."

Yukikaze rolled her eyes at some of her classmates already looking their new classmate over. She had more important things to worry about than mysterious new students.