Little Serenity

Hoshi was the first to speak. "Ryden!" She glaced at Zo, "I have to show you something I found in this city! It's really a wonderful place, isn't it?!" Hoshi grabbed Ryden's wrist and ran down a street away from Zo and Hiei. "Hoshi? Why is your hand trembling?" "I- I'm just hungry. This place is... a cafe! I was waiting to show it to you and then we can have something to eat, eh?" She laughed nervously. Her shoulder was still twinging from where Xaru had touched her. "Is this the place?" Ryden asked, pointing to a cafe. Hoshi looked up. Xaru was sitting on top of the roof. He waved maliciously at her. "NO! I-it's not! Keep going!" Hoshi ran as fast as she could, Ryden still keeping up with her. Hoshi hadn't been able to feel Xaru before, but now she could. She could feel his malicious energy bearing down on her, laughing at her attempts to save Ryden's life. Hoshi collapsed to the floor, heaving for breath. "Wha- what's wrong Hoshi?!" Ryden stood her up, her legs didn't seem to work. She had hyperventilated. She knew Xaru was watching her and laughing. For once, she just didn't want to be such a rookie. She regained her footing. "Okay, now that you're fine, let's find this cafe you've been talking abou-" Ryden turned and was cut off. Xaru stood in the middle of the street, smirking at Ryden. "Hoshi, get back." "No, I can't! I won't!" "Didnt' you just hear me?!! GO! GET OUTTA HERE!" "How pathetic," Xaru sighed, walking slowly towards them, "You trying to save his life, when you knew I would get to him." Hoshi gritted her teeth in anger and fear. Xaru laughed. "Get out of the way, you don't want to get hurt." "I won't move!" "Stubborn, are you? Well, we'll just have to rectify that." Xaru put on a pair of gloves. They looked similar to Hiei's gloves, but they were definately not the same. A feeling of dread washed over Hoshi. "Now... move or I shall make you move." "Hoshi! Get out of here!" Ryden pushed her away, but she returned to her spot between Xaru and Ryden. "I know that you could never kill me. You find me too, 'interesting.'" "Kill you no, but... there are other things worse than death." Xaru was now so close to Hoshi, she could see her reflection in his armor. "This is your last chance, MOVE!!" "Stop it Hoshi!" "NO I WON'T MOVE!!!" Hoshi and Xaru stared off for a few seconds, not sure of what to do. Hoshi tilted her head up defiantly, and spat in Xaru's face. "That's for causing pain to us all." "YOU INSOLENT DRAGOON WOMAN!!!" Xaru backhanded Hoshi into a building, through the glass and across a few tables. She came to rest, feeling negative energy pumping through her entire being. Suddenly, she could hear voices in her head. [i]CURSE OF THOR! CURSE OF THOR! CURSE OF THOR! CURSE OF THOR!!!![/i] "No... no stop!!! Make it stop!!!" Hoshi rolled around on the floor. The Curse of Thor spell dancing around the room. She was casting it uncontrollably. At this rate, she could kill everyone in the entire city! Hoshi did the only thing she could think of: she ran outside to pummel Xaru with the spell. Around five rounds were circling around her. "WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO ME?!!" Xaru laughed. "What is worse than death you ask? Not being able to be around anyone, because the moment you see someone, you kill them with your strongest spell!!" Xaru removed the gloves. "Now, Ryden, we can commence our fight. I think Hoshi's light show will prove interesting for our match, considering that she's trying to kill YOU!" Hoshi stood there, crying, wishing the spell would go away, but the chant would not stop in her mind. Lightning was dancing all over Gnarwood. Suddenly, she had an idea, "Ryden!!" "What?!" "I know a way that we could stop this! Please do this for me!" "I'll do it. What is it?!" "Knock me unconscious!" Ryden considered for a moment. "You want me to HIT YOU?!!" "Just do it! Or I'll never speak to you ever again, got that?!!" Ryden sighed, "Alright, I'll do it." Hoshi nodded and stood still and straight. Ryden swifly hit her behind the neck. She could feel darkness creeping up on her. Xaru looked at her incredulously. "Take that, you son of a-" Hoshi knew no more.

"Way to go man." Irima sighed. "But fortunately for you, I've been in worse scrapes than this." Irima looked up at the Barrwolf. "Hey, you up there!" All the barrwolves stopped their descent on Sariyah and Irima. "Listen, maybe you don't know who I am exactly. But, once you find out, you won't want to eat me." Irima smiled slyly, "I am Irima, the Black Quessir." There was a murmur of surprise. "What are you doing?! Didn't you say that you were the White Quessir a minute ago?" Sariyah hissed. "Let it be." Irima glared at him. "Well, we've taken this into consideration and," The barrwolf flashed a mouth full of fangs. "We don't care who you are. Go to it boys!!" Irima sighed as Sariyah readied his sword. "Just get down." She began glowing white. Her blonde hair flowed effortlessly. The barrwolves stopped, looking stupidly at the light. Irima held her staff above her head. "HOLY!!!" It was difficult to describe what happened next. One minute, the barrwolves were attacking the next... they weren't anywhere in sight. "Hey..." Sariyah got up, "How did you-" Irima hadn't been looking at her handy work. Instead, she had planned for the next moment. Sariyah turned his head and Irima whacked the back of it. He crumpled to the ground. "Sorry. I know I shouldn't hurt people but, as a bounty hunter, you just wouldn't understand..." Irima climbed out of the hole and began walking the way that she had run.

Irima froze. [i]At swordpoint. My best bet would be a physical retaliation but... let's see how far I can ride this guy.[/i] Irima held her hands up. "Hey, I don't want any trouble. You've got the wrong girl." "Right. You're Irima the Black Quessir, no?" "But you've got it all wrong. I'm not Irima! It's just a tactic I use to scare off attackers!" Sariyah raised his eyebrow, glaring at her. He couldn't really see her face. She was wearing a black veil over her face. "Remove your veil, and I'll be the judge of whether or not you're Irima." She shrugged and pulled it down over her face. She threw herself at Sariyah and worked up some fake tears. "I know, I'm as beautiful as Irima, but I'm not her!" "What are you talking about?!!" Sariyah pushed her off him, "You don't seem all that pretty to me!" Irima paused, "What?" "You're Irima all right. You've got all that black stuff on. The famed black mage and the bounty is mine." [i]No. I can't hurt him. I just have to escape![/i] She turned on her heel and began to run. Sariyah tackled her, sending her flailing to the ground. "Hey!! Let go! Stop it!!" She drew both her arms over her head and brought them swiftly into Sariyah's stomach. He fell off her and stood ready for another attack. Instead, Irima ran into the dark forest. "Remember my name! It's Irima! The White Quessir!!" "White Quessir?" Sariyah said to himself. "Now she's just being stupid."

Hoshi ran over the next hill, the wind running through her blonde hair. She pulled a few strands out of her face and smiled. "Gnarwood. Totally Winglie free." She sighed, relieved. "Don't be too sure." Ryden gave her a stony-faced look. "The city could have been captured." "I don't see any signs of battle." Hiei smirked. "Seems like that winglie was just a crackpot." "Let's just go already!" Zo tapped her foot impatiently. "Right!" Hoshi broke out at a run towards the large city of Gnarwood. Maybe here she could finally stop fighting, like Ryden had promised. Hoshi looked over her shoulder, slightly embarassed. Everyone else was flying to Gnarwood. Hoshi finally got to the gates. "Hello. My name is Hoshi, the Star of the Lightning. I am travelling with Ryden of the Wind, please let us through." The rest of the travelling group landed behind Hoshi. "Well, that does look like Ryden. Let them through!" The guard signaled to the gatekeeper and he began opening the gates. The city was bustling with activity, with humans and dragoons alike moving back and forth along streets and in marketplaces. Children ran along the streets playing. It seemed perfect. "Good," Ryden sighed, "Nothing happened. Let's go see the commander, shall we?"

The inn was dark. Pitch black almost, except for the candle lamps that cast an eerie glow across the faces of the patrons of the inn. They all spoke in quiet voices, sharing the latest gossip about bounty heads, The Mist, and women. It was the usual stupid lot. "Her name's Irima, the Black Quessir. She carries a sword as big as you are." "Is she an elf?" "Of course she's an elf! She's a master of the Dark Arts. I wouldn't be suprised if she's behind the legendary Mists." "But, she's only a woman, isn't she?" "Never underestimate a woman my friend. It will lead to your downfall most assuredly." "But, why all the fuss about Irima?" "Well," The bartender leaned in closer, "For one, she wasn't exactly hit with an ugly stick. Most men are enraptured by her beauty and then," He moved his first finger across his neck, "She kills 'em. But because of that, she has a huge bounty on her head." He motioned to a flyer behind him. Irima (the Black Quessir) Reward: /\3,000,000,000,000 Dead or Alive, Preferably Alive Responsible for numerous deaths, robberies, etc. along with the fabled Mists "That's a lot of zeros." "Indeed it is." Back in the corner, a man lay in shadow. He shifted slightly, still listening to the conversation between the bartender and the unknown man.

"Alright! I've had enough fighting both of you!" Hoshi uncoiled her whip again. "Hiei, you take gloves lady, I'll finish off the injured one." Hoshi coiled her whip around the injured one's arm and strung her high in the air over a tree limb. Hiei summoned his spear and knocked Rika out. He and Hoshi stood under the injured one and smiled up at her. "Well, it's just you and us stupid dragoons, ain't it?" "CURSE YOU!!" "Yeah, yeah, whatever. Anyway-" Hiei sighed impatiently, "Let me do this?" Hoshi stepped aside. She was on Hiei's good side, sort of, she didn't want to spoil it. "Where is Xaru?! SPEAK!" "I- I- haven't the faintest idea!! Last I heard, he left the destroyed camp!" "Well now he is nowhere to be found. Where has he taken the winglie army?!" "Our- our last orders were to go to Gnarwood! But they've probably been changed!" "Gnarwood..." Hoshi whispered, "That's where we're going isn't it?!" Hoshi turned on her heel and ran out of the forest blindly, not even seeing Zo. "Stupid woman forgot her whip." Hiei knocked the injured winglie unconscious and took Hoshi's whip. Meanwhile, Hoshi, following her own footsteps, made it out of the forest. Ryden was sitting there. "Ryden!!" Hoshi kneeled down next to him. "We have to get to Gnarwood! I fought a winglie who said-" "That's what that spell was about?!" "Yes! Now, they're going to march on Gnarwood, supposedly. We have to get there quickly!" "Wait, you're not mad at me?" Hoshi stopped. "We'll talk later, okay?"

Michiko sat on the bench at the end of the maze, the Chunin watching her carefully. "Jeez, I hope they get here soon. I'm getting bored putting on this act." "What act?" She sighed, "Okay, yeah, I know." She paused. "I really hope that they didn't follow us down that trapdoor." "They're not stupid." "Well... eager is more like it. The maze is built on a thirty foot tall basement, entirely concrete. If one fell from such a distance..." "Right. There's no way out." "Well, yeah, that's mainly it. This maze isn't lethal, just tricky. The countries would have my head if it was fatal." "But at the same time, if they fell into a trapdoor..." "They would fall onto a layer of pillows." The Chunin sweatdropped, "So?!! They would only find the exit once it was presented to them. It's pitch black down there. Only someone with the knowledge of the maze would be able to aim for another trap door and make it..." she sighed. "Let's hope they hurry up and get here, ne?"

"Er... sorry I flipped out Jeffrey. Didn't know that you were in the same situation..." Yanagi stared at the floor. "Hey, it's okay. I can understand how you felt." "Here's the bandages and stuff." Siaga handed Yanagi the bandages and antiseptic. "Thank you." Yanagi trudged up the stairs. There was a room with pink paint. The bed looked untidy, clothes were strewn about, and there were bulletholes in the walls. She shuddered. Sifting through the clothes, she found a sleeveless black turtleneck and a pair of jeans with a hole in one knee. After some searching, she found a pair of scissors and she trimmed her hair. She pocketed them, just in case. She sat down and looked out the window. Something caught her eye. It was a police scout. "Hey... I think I've found something. There seems to be four people inside this abandoned house. They may be the four renegade androids and cyborgs we're looking for." "There are 5 renegades, but the last one shouldn't be too hard to find. We'll be right over there." Yanagi ran down the stairs as fast as she could. She didn't know how she heard the other end of the conversation, but she had. She hit the landing, everyone staring at her. Yanagi pointed to a squad of policemen, weapons aimed. "GET DOWN!!!"

OOC: (yeah, I was barefoot. ^_^) IC: Yanagi clutched the guard's jacket around her body. "I- My name is Yanagi. I'm being chased by these... guards or something! They tried to kill-" she fell to the floor and started moaning. "What's wrong?!" Siaga yelled. "Can't- do- it- no!!!" She fell silent, then sat up. "The guards were shooting at me. I barely escaped out of this... laboratory place. I jumped out of a window and I'm wounded in my shoulder and my side. I need a doctor!" "It's okay. We'll fix you up. I'll call someone to help you." Siaga started looking for a phone. [i]I am an android. They will know.[/i] "No don't!!" Yanagi yelled. Siaga and Ijimeru looked at her, puzzled. "I- it's not too bad. Just a few scrapes. You think there are any clothes around here?" "Yeah... probably upstairs. I'll get you some bandages and antiseptic." Siaga left the room. "Thanks." Yanagi called after her. She looked at Ijimeru. He seemed lost in thought. "You okay?"

Hoshi stood frozen to the spot. She waited as the winglie came closer. Finally, he had discovered Hoshi. Strangely or stupidly enough, he hadn't spotted Hiei. The winglie grabbed Hoshi's arm and pulled her into the clearing. She fell onto her face. "This dragoon probably did it!" "THAT puny thing? No way!" "I haven't had any fun today. Let's kill her." He picked her up by her arms. "You don't want to do that." Hoshi smirked. "I think I do." The gloved winglie snarled. "Fine. Your funeral." Hoshi wrenched her arm free, "THUNDER!!!" Two bolts of concentrated lightning hit the Winglies dead on, stunning them. They both got up. "WHY YOU-!" "Hiei!!" Hoshi lashed her whip out at the gloved winglie's face. "A little help here?!"

Hoshi nodded. "Yeah, I'm with you." She was still angry now that she knew that everyone else knew about Ryden's attack, but it had to be pushed aside for now. She had been really stupid and now she had to make up for it. "Okay, there are some trees over there that we can hide behind. When the group comes into the clearing, we take them out!" Hiei nodded and they both ran to hide behind the foliage. Hoshi readied her whip, concentrating on the moves that she had used against Marie. The voices came closer. "Yeah, who knows where General Xaru is. Rumor has it that he went into hiding." "Hiding? From what?!" "The Dragoon that almost killed him. Yeah, he told the entire camp about the stupid Dragoon who fell on him and jolted his soul awake!" The two winglie girls started laughing. Hoshi's hands formed fists. Hiei held his arm in front of her, signaling her to stay back. The two winglies sat down. "I mean, it's stupid really. How could three dragoons, a traitor winglie, a human, and an injured dragon take out an entire camp?" "Beats me. And from the looks of the camp, only one Dragoon was responsible." "Please. And that guy didn't die?" Hoshi moved to take a step. "Not an inch." Hiei said through his teeth. She stopped. "Listen," he said, "You want me to attack first?" Hoshi nodded, "I'll follow up with a thunder spell." "Alright." The two stood still, waiting for the opportune moment.

Yanagi's eyes fluttered open. She was on a motorcycle, her head was around six feet from the wheel. She panicked. Looking up, she saw Jeffery driving along a road. The bike stopped at an old house. Her eyes could make out three figures in the house. "Hey, you're awake." "GET AWAY FROM ME!" Yanagi scrambled off the motorcycle and ran towards the house. Her vision blurred. She leaned against the house. "What's with her?" Jeffery sighed and shook his head, "Whatever." With that he revved the motor of his bike and took off into the night. Yanagi checked her skin. It was normal again. Maybe she could get help from this house. She crawled over to the door and pounded on it. "Help... somebody please help me...!"

Hoshi stood there, her mouth open for a few seconds, yet she was still walking. She stopped suddenly, fists clenched. "How... could you?!" "What?" Ryden stopped and turned to look at her. "How could you go risking your life while you told me to keep my mouth shut?!! HUH?!!" "What are you talking about?!" "And why did you tell me to ask you what it means AFTER THE BATTLE if you were SUPPOSED TO BE DEAD!!!" Hoshi's anger overcame her. She aimed a few punches at Ryden, who, even though caught off guard, stopped them all. But the onslaught didn't stop. "Hoshi stop!!" Zo cried. "What is that infernal woman doing now?!" Hiei snorted. "Hoshi!" Ryden yelled, "STOP! STOP IT NOW." "NO!! I HATE YOU!! HOW COULD YOU DO SOMETHING LIKE THAT?!!" She aimed a kick at Ryden's head. He caught her leg and flipped her over, coughing and sputtering onto the ground. He opened up one of his many bottles of water and threw it on Hoshi. She yelled in protest and embarassment. "COOL IT!!" Ryden sighed, exasperated. "I wouldn't have said anything if I'd known you were going to go mental!" She gave him a reproachful look. He smiled and extended his hand to help her up. She refused it. Instead, in the blink of an eye, Hoshi stood up and slapped Ryden across the face. He had hardly felt it, but Hoshi's eyes were burning with fury. "How dare you embarass me like that and take advantage of my ignorance." She turned on her heel and ran into the forest, feeling worse and worse with every step. "What happened to Hoshi?" Serena looked at a shocked Zo, Hiei, and Ryden. "I'm not quiet sure..." Zo stammered. Hoshi's footsteps fell heavily on the compressed dirt. She ran as fast as she could, but her heart still felt like it had a hole in it. [i]Why did I say that? Why did I hit him? He was only doing what he thought was right... but he tricked me!! He tricked me into thinking that he would be alright! I won't forgive him![/i] Hoshi stopped in a clearing. It was pitch black and she couldn't see anything. She turned down a path to the right, but that lead to another clearing that looked familiar. "I don't think I've been here but... it seems like it. No, I'm lost!" Hoshi sat down on the ground, looking at the canopy of foliage. "And I can't fly through that. It's too thick. I'll just... wait here until it gets a bit lighter..." Her thoughts were interrupted by the sound of voices and beings crashing through the brush. "Stupid dragoons!! Killed an army encampment last night!" "If only I had been there. They all might be alive now." "Oh please, don't start your bragging again." [i]Stupid dragoons?! Oh no... winglies!![/i]

"Hold it right there, Miss Michiko!" The Chunin held the shurikun closer to her throat. "None of you Genin move an inch! You hear me?!!" "For God's sake, all of you stop!!" Michiko cried. They stopped moving. He WAS an elite ninja... he had heard them coming! "That was good," "Thank you." "Why should we listen to you?!" Kray snorted. "I hold her mission and her life in my hands. Now, if you'll all proceed to the end of the maze, we'll discuss things there. All of you go ahead of me." "No way!" Xion yelled. "We can't trust you." "Then, Michiko dies." The shurikun left a small cut on Michiko's neck. She screamed out in horror. "YOU IMBECILE!!!" "Be quiet." "Alright!" Ki sighed. "Come on, all of you." One at a time, Jiko, Vince, Kiyo, Ki, and Xion passed the Chunin and began to walk. "How do we know you're still there?!!" Kray glared at the Chunin. "Miss Kasanaki will tell me the directions out of the maze and I in turn will tell them to you." Kray turned around and began to walk down the passageway. "Two steps ahead?" whispered the Chunin. Michiko nodded. A second later, Michiko yelled in suprise as she and the Chunin fell through a trap door. "WHAT THE?!!" Xion yelled. Kray pushed him out of the way just as steel bars slid across the opening in the floor. Kray cursed loudly. "What kind of elite ninja falls for a trap?" Ki laughed. "You fool!" Kray yelled, "The chunin plans to come up through another trap door, they could be anywhere in this maze!" "Then we have to split up again!" Kiyo began to run one way. "No!" Vince yelled, "That won't do us any good, we'll all be picked off by him. He has the upper hand now." Jiko paused to think, "You know... he said something about settling this at 'the end'." "That's it!" Xion reasoned, "He was heading for the end of the maze all this time!" "Then let's get outta here already!" Ki yelled. Meanwhile... "It's just trick after trick, isn't it?" Michiko muttered. "Well, what was I supposed to do?" "I thought that I'd picked the worst Chunin to be kidnapped by, you falling for that trap." "Just a detour." The Chunin arrived at the end of the maze. "They now have half an hour to get here before I kill you." "Sure sure..."

Hoshi had thought several times about interferring in the fight, but she thought better of it. Even though she broke down crying everytime she was so much as looked at funny, she considered herself lucky that she could express her emotions freely. Hiei... there must have been something to drive him to be the "man without emotions" everyone had believed him to be. She had known that Hiei had feelings and she had tried to befriend him. However, she had picked the wrong time to do so. "Oh well, it's alright." Hoshi muttered. "Hm?" Ryden looked at her oddly. "Oh, nothing." Hoshi smiled at him, then suddenly remembered something. "Ryden, that phrase that you told me... before you fought Xaru. You said to ask you what it meant when the fight was over... so..." Hoshi bit her lip, "What does it mean?"

Yanagi ran into the forest, clutching her jacket around her with one hand, and holding her bleeding side with the other. Jumping through that window had not been a good plan. Her bare feet were screaming out in agony as she ran into the overgrowth. "Why me? Why me?!!" Suddenly, bright headlights blinded her. She sheilded her eyes and squinted into the light. "IRON MAIDEN PROJECT NUMBER 0395, COME TOWARDS US WITH YOUR HANDS WHERE WE CAN SEE THEM!" "Stop chasing me!! I need a doctor!!" "You see?!" The driver of the car turned to the man with the bullhorn, "She's too intelligent! We need to kill her now before she becomes a hazard to the project!" Yanagi's head felt like it was going to split again. Her hair flashed lavender, but didn't stay that way. [i]No... I can't change into that- that beast!![/i] Yanagi turned into the brush and began to run blindly. She could hear voices ahead and gunshots whizzing past her ears. This time, her skin turned white, her hands erupted in claws, but there were no marks on her skin nor was her hair lavender. "Oh God!! Someone help me!!!" Yanagi ran out into the forest road and stopped. [i]Road. Road means cars and vehicles. Danger. Listen.[/i] There was a roaring noise, like a car, but shriller. [i]Motorcycle.[/i] It came out of nowhere. A motorcycle going so fast, it seemed to be running for it's life. Yanagi tried to move, but her legs didn't seem to want to work. "HOLY-!!!" The rider yelled as Yanagi went flying into the middle of the road. Jeffery stopped the bike and got off quickly to check her, cursing people who stand in the middle of the road. "God, what is her problem?!! I'm in the middle of a getaway here!" He rolled her over. "What the?!! Her skin's totally white! And she's in nothing but a guard's coat. And..." He noticed a blood stain on her coat, "Sure hope I didn't do that!" He heard voices coming from both directions. "Are you an... an android?" The voices were closer. "Okay, no time to waste!" He slung Yanagi onto his bike. "I know an old house where we can hide..."

"You know, some of these guys are pretty dang smart." Michiko chuckled. "You're supposed to be a hostage, act like one." "Oh come on. I can at least have fun with this right?" "Fun with what?!! I'm going to kill you in around an hour and a half!!" "Oh sure. Not if my Genin guard gets to you first." She winked at him. He sighed and sped up, hearing two more Genin following them. He had tripped around five traps already, and the only one who he'd been able to shake was that Kray guy. These Genin were good, too good. "I can't believe they're keeping up with me!" He raved, catching a glimpse of Jiko on the wall. "At least SOMEONE was smart and took the claws." Michiko sighed. "And what are you doing making conversation, huh?" "Well... I have this thing with silence... ANYWAY!!" The Chunin stopped and turned. Jiko, Vince, Kiyo, and Ki all stopped, frozen to the spot, shurikuns and various weapons at the ready. The ninja's one eye narrowed at them. "You are all truly worthy to guard Miss Kasanaki. However, you shall never get the chance!!!" The Chunin pulled blinding powder out of his belt. "Cover." Michiko pulled her turtleneck over her face. He gripped the bottom of the open bag and made a large arc across the entire corridor. Smoke filled the passageway as the sand, ash, and pepper went airbourne. "I- I can't see!!" Jiko exclaimed. "BRILLIANT! Neither can we!!" Ki yelled angrilly, rubbing at his eyes. Meanwhile, the Chunin and Michiko had already turned two or three corners. "C'mon, at least give them a tiny hint. That was kind of low." Michiko frowned. "Why don't you scream or something?" "Well... I'm not really the type to scream, but, okay!" She filled her lungs with air. "GYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHH!!!" "Needs work." "You think?"

The elite ninja slung Michiko over his shoulder and began to run faster, ignoring many of the traps. Michiko noticed a shinobi coming up on them, also not tripping up any of the traps. [i]Dang... gotta improve these later.[/i] "Hey," she leaned toward the shinobi, "One's coming up on you." "Well I'm sorry, [i]miss[/i]." The Chunin sighed, exasperated. "I didn't want to have to hurt anyone but..." He took out a shurikun and threw it against a wire on the floor, which he had jumped easily. The throwing knife cut the wire and a panel slid out of the floor, closing off the hallway, leaving Kray at a dead end. "You're just lucky there's another way to the end of this thing," Michiko growled. The Chunin sighed and continued on his way to the end of the maze with Michiko still slung over his shoulder.

Michiko tapped her foot impatiently and looked at her watch. "Alright time's up! Those of you who HAVEN'T taken your weapons, you may do so even after the others have entered the maze. Now, if you'll proceed to-" She was cut off. The crowd gasped as a man dressed as a shinobi lept onto the balcony and grabbed Michiko firmly so that she could not escape. She gave a yell as he jumped down in front of the maze doors, holding a shurikun at Michiko's throat. "LISTEN UP!!" The crowd was quiet. "IF ALL OF YOU VALUE THIS GIRLS' LIFE, YOU'LL CONVINCE THE WAVE COUNTRY THAT SHE DOES NOT NEED TO GO ON HER MISSION! IF YOU DON'T DO THIS IN TWO HOURS, I WILL KILL HER!!" The shinobi yanked open the door to the maze and disappeared inside. "What are we going to do?!!" Yelled someone from the crowd. "We can't convince the Wave country to cancel her mission!! There's no formal government!" "He'll kill Miss Kasanaki!" "We have to rescue her! All of us!" "SILENCE!!" Moko cried, exasperated. "If all of you go into the maze, I'm sure that you'll be able to make it through all of the traps! That looked like an elite shinobi to me, so he won't set off any of them!" Moko pulled open the doors, "Everyone inside, and please rescue Miss Michiko!!" (Okay, maze is open. ^_^)

There was an explosion. A man dressed in a white labcoat, startled, looked up and saw a helicopter explode. "May- maybe it was just an accident..." However, he knew otherwise. The island had been inhabited by scientists creating Cyborgs and Androids for a few years now and by the looks of things, they had just been born. He typed away furiously at a computer attached to a cylinder filled with blue water. A girl rested in there, serenely, bubbles sometimes floating upwards. Her hair was a raven black. "Yanagi..." The man walked over to the tank and stroked a label on it which read: Iron Maiden Project Number 0395. The man had made her to look like his daughter who had died. He had also given her his daughters name, Yanagi. The man suddenly turned, hearing thundering footsteps coming up the stairs. He rushed over to his computer and saved what he had been writing: the records of the Iron Maiden Project. A group of people suddenly burst through the door. "Doctor! We've come to kill you." They open fired on the man. He ducked behind his computer console. "Why?!!" "You know too much about the project! The project to create females with superhuman powers and mate them with ordinary men! We found your plans to take 0395 away with you so she wouldn't be exposed to the plan!" More gunfire. The scientist ran to the cylinder. "Along with you, we've come to kill [i]Yanagi[/i]." The group laughed at the android's pet name. The group took aim at Yanagi. "NO DON'T!!" The doctor ran in front of the gunfire and, needless to say, was hit in many vital points. With the last of his energy, he pushed a large blue button. "Farewell... my daughter..." He slumped to the floor. A large crack split the cylinder in half. Yanagi's green eyes snapped open. She fell onto the floor like a slimy, slippery fish, coughing and hacking. Several things came into her mind instantly: [i]My name is Yanagi. I am Iron Maiden Project number 0395. I am an Android, capable of all human functions.[/i] She contemplated this while pulling cords out of her body. She held them in her hands, "What are these...?!" She looked down and let out a little yelp, "Where are my clothes?!" "You see?" One of the gunmen whispered to his superior. "She's too intelligent! We should kill her now!" Kill. The word set off alarm bells in Yanagi's head. She gripped her head. She felt like her skull was going to split. Her once chin-length hair erupted to mid-back and turned lavender. "Wha-?! What's going on with her?!!" Her body turned entirely white, black slash-like curls streaming up her arms, legs, and face. Her eyes flashed yellow twice, then stayed that way. Claws erupted out of her fingers. "SHE'S-! SHE'S TRANSFORMED?!!" "This is one of the precautions that blasted man took with her! She has a self-defense mechanism! She's truly an Iron Maiden now!!" Yanagi bared her teeth and roared like a jaguar. She slashed everyone in the room to ribbons. Heaving and panting, her claws receeded as her body told her that the danger was over. Her hair stayed mid-back length, but turned black again. Her body was now the regular pale flesh tone. Yanagi looked at the blood and carnage all over the room. Something told her not to scream. Instead, she took off one of the gunmen's long coats and clothed herself with it. She threw the doctor's monitor out the window, shattering the glass, and was gone.

"Serena! Calm down! Right now you're only a human!" Hoshi stood in front of Hiei and Serena, talking over her shoulder. "I don't hold that against you. I only became a dragoon yesterday, when my neighbor's sister gave me her dragoon spirit that she was saving." Hoshi turned to Marie. "You were with Xaru, were you not?" Marie nodded in defiance, "What's wrong with that, Dragoon?!" "Xaru killed my neighbor who was like a father to me. He kidnapped me, he put Zo, Hiei, Serena, and Ryden in danger. He attacked a defenseless town and slaughtered innocents. I won't forgive Xaru, or anyone who associates with him." "Strong words for one so young and hideous." Marie retorted. "Say what you like," Hoshi uncoiled her whip, "This ends now." [i]Forgive me Ryden, for picking a fight like this. I'll show you that my training was not in vain![/i] Marie charged with her mace, swinging it defensively in front of her. Hoshi looked up and lept into the rafters of the building. Marie, furious flew up just as Hoshi fell down. She let Marie come into close combat with her this time. [i]Her mace is nothing compared to Ryden's sword, it's too heavy! I'll have to wait for the opportune time.[/i] She lept onto Marie's shoulders and whacked her in the back of the head. Falling to the ground, she did a sweep kick to Marie's ankles. The winglie fell to the ground. "Please Hoshi! Don't hurt her!" Zo cried. Hoshi turned to Zo, "I won't! I-" Marie had gotten up and whacked Hoshi in the side of the head, "...promise..." Hoshi could feel consciousness slipping away from her. She crouched on the ground holding her bleeding face, struggling to stay awake. "Some fighter you are! One hit and you're down!" Marie smirked. Hoshi looked at the floor tiles. [i]She's four tiles away from me. That should be enough.[/i] Suddenly, Hoshi's whip lashed out, wrapping around Marie's wrists. The mace fell to the floor. "HUH?!!" Hoshi lept into the air and flew through a rafter. With a swift tug, Marie was swept off her feet and hung in the air, legs kicking. Hiei ran over to Hoshi and grabbed the whip just as she passed out from her head injury.

Michiko tapped her foot impatiently. She hated waiting when she knew she could be doing something. She stalked over to Moko, who handed her a cell phone. She opened it and dialed three numbers. "Is everything ready? I want to get this show on the road!" "Just a few more minutes, Miss Kasanaka. Our men are getting into place." She sighed, "Fine. I will be ready." She snapped the phone shut. "All of you best hurry and chose your weapons, lest you be left behind with the dregs of the best weapons!" (Everyone who signed up please post! I'm going to start the maze test fairly soon... ^_^)

"Gnarwood..." Hoshi continued packing her backpack. After Ryden and her training session, she was feeling a bit apprehensive about leaving. But Ryden seemed to think it was for the best, so she wouldn't voice her concerns. It really wasn't her place. "There... I finished packing everything. Tomorrow we... head out, I guess." "Miss Hoshi!" Someone was at her room door pounding on it. "Yes, you may come in." A blue dragoon burst into the room, panting. "What is it?" "Hiei... is back... thought... you'd want... to know..." The dragoon panted. "Well for God's sake, you didn't have to run all the way up here to tell me that!" Hoshi ran down the stairs. She knew that Hiei had gone out on his own to scout the area, and as much as she hated him, she was concerned. She turned a corner and came upon Zo healing a man that Serena was calling her father. "What's going on here? What happened?!"

I'll join! But I may be a little slow at this... never really watched the show. ^_^;; Name: Yanagi Class: Android Weapon: Metal rod that can extend or contract. Also has a blade that can be produced out of the end. Instrument: Violin Description: Yanagi has raven black hair that comes about to her chin and deep green eyes. She wears a sleeveless black turtleneck and jeans with a tear in the left knee. Name: Iron Maiden 395 Ability: Grows claws Description: Glowing bluish-whitish hair and totally white eyes. Her body is entirely black with white curls on her cheeks and all down her arms. Hope this is okay! ^_^

The Shinobi Trials The world of Naruto has been peaceful for some time now. Or at least, that?s what everyone is made to believe. In reality, shinobi are constantly involved in battles over territory and petty issues such as politics. Now, a girl named Michiko, who lost her mother to a shinobi battle, will stop at nothing to rally for peace before the Kage. This is where our story begins . . . Michiko Kasanaki?s blonde hair fluttered in the evening breeze. She sighed, remembering her promise to her father about going to see the Kage for shinobi peace. She slipped on her red kimono robe, feeling chilled. There was a knock at the door. ?Miss Michiko?? ?You may enter.? Michiko?s family had a butler named Moko. He bowed to her. ?Miss Michiko, the man you hired to gather your shinobi guard is here.? ?You may show him in.? The man entered with a few long scrolls of parchment. He looked at Michiko and chuckled a bit to himself. ?Sir, my age has nothing to do with this. You just do your job, and I will do mine.? The man was startled, Moko chuckled to himself. ?You may leave us Moko, I will call you if I need anything.? ?Very good, miss.? He left. Michiko sat opposite the man. ?My name is Yoko Entoya. I-? ?Yes Mr. Entoya, I know why you are here.? ?Well, then, I can cut to the chase. What kind of financial situation are you in Miss Michiko?? ?You are asking me what type of shinobi I want, am I correct?? ?Well, yes-? ?Money is no object sir. My father is a very large economic power on the Wave Island.? ?Well then, you would like Jonin? Or Chunin?? ?Elite ninja or journeymen? Hn, that doesn?t sound like what I want.? ?Your mission is very important, is it not?? ?It is.? ?I would recommend-? ?You recommending anything isn?t going to help me, Mr. Entoya. I would like Genin.? ?GENIN?! JUNIOR NINJAS?! On a mission of this much importance ma?am, I would-? ?Did you hear me correctly Entoya?! I said I wanted Genin!! Not Jonin or Chunin!? She stood up and gave him a cold look down her nose. ?Gather every Genin that will come from every continent to the Wave country. I shall test them myself. Good evening, Mr. Entoya.? The next week, Genin from all over the world, at least, those who would come, gathered at the Kasanaki residence. Murmurs came from the crowd about what they were all doing there. Most had come just to show up their rivals, but others really understood the severity of the mission. Michiko stood in front of the crowd on a balcony in a black cat suit, her hair twisted into a messy knot at the back of her head. ?Welcome everyone to the Kasanaki Mansion. You all know why you?re here, so I won?t bore you with details.? Michiko picked up a heavy crate and threw it off the balcony. Several Genin jumped out of the way. The crate split revealing a whole ninja arsenal. Michiko threw several more crates into the crowd. ?Don?t touch the weapons. If you do, you will be ill-prepared for the task ahead.? Nobody moved. ?Good. Here is your task.? Michiko signaled to Moko, who opened the double doors of the mansion. Inside was something of a maze. ?You are to find the exit to this maze. Be warned, it is full of traps and perils, so be on your guard. The ones who make it to the end will serve me in my guard. ?Now, take your weapons.? The Genin approached the broken crates. Inside were the following: Ninja-to (Ninja sword) Shuriken (Throwing blades, all styles) Kusari-Gama (Chain and sickle) Kusari-Fundo (Weighted chain) Tetsubishi (Caltrops, small spikes used to discourage pursuers) Shuko (Claws, used as a weapon or to scale walls) ?Choose wisely. If you have too much equipment, you won?t be able to use anything quickly. It might be advisable to break into groups and distribute weapons evenly, though I recommend that you all take shuriken.? The Genin moved towards the boxes. (Choose weapons now! No one goes into the maze until I post to do so.)