Dead and Cold (Free, Private)

[Kairyuu]

Finding out about yourself could be an amazing thing for some people. They would ‘wander the earth’ and learn all about who they truly are on the inside. Some would use psychoactive aids in their search for self; some might seek theological or spiritual help in it. Enzeru was looking for something a bit more concrete, however. He stood in front of one of the tunnels leading into the lake, the first one he’d seen that wasn’t collapsed and frozen over. Through the tunnel, then through the ice itself would lay the ANBU HQ. The barracks he lived his life in from child to man. He didn’t like the idea of going there, but someone had set fire to the hospital and the offices of a sennin who would have had the paperwork.

Enzeru wore his special armor made by Sousuke for the trip. He looked rather intimidating he thought, what with the multiple safety precautions that were in place to protect him from this place. If there was a hell, this was it. So cold that even through all of this his swear would freeze. So dark that even his sight couldn’t see more than a few hundred feet. And the wind was unnaturally still. Everything about this land was wrong, and more so to one who lived here before all of this and knew what the place was like. The tropical paradise of black sand and clear waters was now white and black and frozen. It was almost like an angry deity cursed the land.

His blue eyes take in the passage before him, dark and cold and completely insane to go through. But they had to. He had to. And he knew better than to tell Kimi not to. Enzeru turns back to look at her. A woman of immense strength and yet so vulnerable in her own ways. And behind her the twins, her tigers that seemed to love her as much as Enzeru himself did. And behind them a man in odd attire for the surroundings. White hair cut to the chin, half of a leather jacket, leather pants that ended in metal-soled boots and a leather dress with buckles adorning it. His skin was a neutral gray color, which matched the eyes that stared past the girls to Enzeru. The two swords crossing behind his back were not showy, but obviously deadly. Worst of all, just the sight of him brought dread to Enzeru’s mind.

”Kimi, get out of the way.” The words were not yelled, sound carried easily in this place. But the man was simply unsettling. More than that, he was familiar. As he pulls a sword free, it seems to simply vanish for a moment before the passage now behind Enzeru collapses in on itself. And then his mouth opens, and a beautiful and terrifying voice speaks.

”Aijihiya. You were told not to test the wall. Why do you always fail to heed us? Why do you always force me to restart the cycle?” The other sword comes free now, the intent of the man quite obvious. And a memory begins to jog within the hidden part of his mind. An angel who brought the swiftest mercy to others. Death.

”Kimi, run.”

Spoiler

 

[Hoshirei]

Journeying in this forlorn wasteland was certainly something for the record books. If she was not basically part cat, there would be absolutely nothing for her to see, but even with her enhanced vision what she could see was not impressive. If not for the specialized suits they all wore, they would most certainly be frozen solid. She could only hope that they would find whatever it was they were seeking. Her suit was not only meant to keep her warm, but fashioned to sink into a tattoo if she ended up "going Kashiro". That was some tricky seal work.

They arrived at the entrance to what was once Enzeru's quarters and he paused for a moment. A few moments later, Kashiro stirred and became more alert than he had been. Something wasn't right. Katsu and Kora started getting antsy and shifting in their suits. Enzeru turned back to look at them, and she smiled at him softly. His words were followed quickly and the trio dashed to the side, settling into a ready position. Kimi and Kashiro got a good look at the man- no not man... creature?- before them. Kashiro had this niggling feeling that he recognized this person. They were dangerous, bordering on having to add the phrase "to the extreme".

His caution was confirmed when the being spoke the same name Kashiro called Enzeru. Before Enzeru could even finish the word "run", they were dashing away. Their journey kept the two in the trio's sight, though putting distance between them. Once Kashiro felt them at a safe distance, they paused and crouched low to the ground. Kashiro transitioned to the fore and growled into their transponder.

"Remember, my friend, I am here if you need me. We are far enough away to remain safe, but I can cover the distance in two bounds if you need our aid."

 

[Kairyuu]

As the girls all ran to safety Enzeru turns to fully face the thing approaching him. The words spoken were soft, but the voice carried. Cycle? What cycle was this person talking about? The hunter was apparently the hunted in this game of cat and mouse, however, and not in a position to ask many questions. As the other being slowly stalks towards him, Enzeru pulls his metal bow free from the sling it fits in and readies an arrow. Who was this person? A name was at the fringe of his mind, trying to gain entry but unable to. And closer the man came. Enzeru gives no warning. He pulls the string back as far as he can, an incredible feat of strength considering the draw power he’d built this one for. The arrow, once released, flies at the thing almost too far to see.

It’s knocked out of the air by one of those swords, moving with only a flicker before appearing exactly where it was. Two more arrows follow and the same feat is repeated before the man is close enough to move one of those deadly blades. The string is severed with a sound like thunder, and a shallow cut opens on Enzeru’s cheek, the sword going through the armor like paper. It wasn’t made for defense, but survival. And with this cut in it, it would do a poor job at either. The hunter begins to backpedal as the bow is dropped. His hands move to his sides and come up with two revolvers. Six shots each, two pistols, twelve bullets flying as fast as the shinobi can shoot. And each one deflected off those unreal weapons as the thing comes ever closer.

”Come Aijihaya. You can do better than that. Where is your treasured weapon? Where are the famed hands of the slayer?”

Hands of the slayer was a new one. Apparently this guy thought he had something more powerful than his jury. The revolvers slide back into their holsters and for a moment Enzeru considers grabbing Judge, but if the jury was useless the larger single shot would likely do no better. This was bad. The sound of his gunfire was likely already drawing the wrong kind of attention. The radio wasn’t playing that sickening tune of despair yet, but that didn’t mean there was nothing out there waiting.

”I can see you’ve not learned your lesson yet, though. Do not think I missed the presence of that corruption when his host ran off. You are my main target, and telling her to run was brave, but she is the secondary now. The one who brought our brother to this sorry state cannot be allowed to escape once more. Say your goodbyes now, my brother.”

The man finally stops, likely because of the sudden blue glow bathing the area as Enzeru’s eyes, those blackened orbs of corruption, begin to give off a light of celestial color. It might also have been the growl that was coming from the hunter. It might even have been the fact that rocks, crystals, water, snow itself; all of these were flying around the shinobi now. And they were coalescing before him into something. A windstorm was drawing the powdered oxygen from the ground itself into this mess, a fact that Enzeru seemed to not notice since he was busy removing his armor. He didn’t know what was going on, but he did know the armor would interfere with him being able to feel this man before him suffer for threatening Kimi.

 

[Hoshirei]

Kimi, and by extension Kashiro, was having a hard time not stalking back and forth the whole time. They did pace a bit, to keep moving, but the movements were small, and kept low to the ground. They kept their ears pealed, listening to the radio to be sure that they wouldn't have to find cover somewhere. They were near a small wave, frozen as it curled over, which would give them adequate protection should they need it.

They heard something that sounded like the soft sound of a bow firing followed closely by pistol fire. There was a moment of silence, and then the air seemed to shift. Something was happening. Kashiro pulled Kimi's focus to the direction from whence they came. He seemed to be anticipating something, but it was the kind of anticipation that held you still until the event finally happened.

Kimi whispered to the air, wishing the wind to carry it to Enzeru, "I love you, Enzeru."

 

[Kairyuu]

”Oh good, at least now I’ll have a reason for my presence. I was waiting on you to do something like this.”

Everything was bunching up before Enzeru. It was similar to when the crystal bow was formed, but he seemed to be drawing in even more than then. The other was waiting for something, possibly from what he said for this thing to finish. If he was content to wait, Enzeru could wait just a moment before ending this threat. The snow crushes it all together, steam rising as some sort of reaction goes on inside of the massive ice ball before him. And then it stops, floating there as if waiting on him to pull whatever was in it out. The ball wasn’t that large, but he shoves both hands into it to grasp whatever formed this time.

Ice cold fire races up his arms as something snaps over his hands. Tingling follows, his arms going numb for a moment before regaining feeling and giving that pins and needles feeling as if they were recovering from a long moment without blood flow. He pulls himself free of the ice, now going to slush from whatever that was. Crystal encase his hands, a bluish-black glove of diamond. Diamond that flow to fit his hands no matter how he moves them. But the moment to study a small miracle of chemical makeup was not now. The other man was once again approaching.

”See Aijihiya? You can do it. You always do. And it never helps. But at least you give me a fight.”

”A fight? I’m going to destroy you.”

Those terrible swords move, each one so far that the eye seems to always be a few moments behind their actual position. This person was good, he was a master of his craft. But Enzeru didn’t live this long by being an easy target. He pedals backwards as the man comes closer, his hands moving each time to just barely knock those blades aside. The crystal gloves weren’t thick, and seemed lighter than they should be. And far more durable. The fight goes one sided for a moment, Enzeru simply defending against what is obviously a superior foe. And with each heartbeat the image of Kimi is in his mind.

Once more those blades move, Enzeru moving to block. But by sheer fortune he manages to catch one, gripping the weapon tight and moving to keep it between him and his opponent. His adversary was smart, he made no moves that could cause Enzeru to make him hurt himself. But he couldn’t stop Enzeru from stepping around him more easily. Or from finally kicking him back. And then Enzeru forms the beginning of a set of seals for a jutsu. And stops, astonished, as the fire symbol and win symbol cause an arrow of each element to fly from the air before him at his foe, who blocks each. But unlike his normal arrows, this seems to cause some difficulty for them. A step backwards each time as Enzeru forms more seals, arrows of various elements flying from him to his foe and sending the man back each time.

It would only be natural to think he had the upper hand, which made it more bitter when one of his arrows is reflected back at him, sending him sprawling. And then he was there, blade coming down and stopping inches from his neck.

”Tell me Aijihiya. Do you have any last words you want me to give her before I remove her own curse?”

He was beaten. This man was simply too much for him. He let him get to the most powerful Enzeru could remember being before casually brushing him aside, a hurricane before the tornado of Enzeru’s wrath. But around them was Kirigakure. His home. Hell. And the music from the radios was playing. Enzeru allows himself a wry smile.

”Yes. Tell her… to RUN! The last word shouted as Enzeru swings a foot out, catching them off guard and getting a cut along his forehead before both are on the ground. And the hand seals for fire are formed. And formed. And formed.

” Mi vidos vin en infero vi bastardo!”

Arrows of fire slam into the ground around them, the oxygen going up like wildfire and ice melting away to open a hole to the cold water below. But even more important, it was a giant signal flare for the denizens of this land. Enzeru channels chakra to his feet, the hunter running from the blazing inferno with his clothes steaming where the blazing hot fire hit the cold water that soaked through the cloth suddenly.

He was like the prodigal bat out of hell as he chased after his beloved, the other staying behind and defending against things not even his mind could comprehend properly. But he would return. Death did not stop. Oujouittou did not fail.

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[Hoshirei]

The anticipatory feelings snapped when they heard a shout pierce the silence. Enzeru's voice carried and told them to run. A giant blast of fire followed and though they wanted to wait for him to join them, they had promise to follow his requests. With that promise in mind, they turned tail and ran.

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