| [Jun. 10th, 2013|04:33 am] |
Since they’d ignited their charges, Genma had harried Fukui Ayane for almost an hour, driving her towards the narrowest point of the valley. When Raidou turned up at just the right moment to engage with her and give Genma a breather, Genma took it as a sign from providence. He was catching his breath from a chakra-anchored position on the side of the cliff face, watching Raidou work taijutsu magic with the sword user, when a glint of moonlight on a pale mask further down in the valley caught his attention.
The blue and white boar’s mask was definitely Sato, and the candidate he was engaged with was...
Tall. Dark-haired. And aiming a handful of liver-red, rot-making chakra straight for Sato’s masked face.
Genma didn’t think, he moved.
Tousaki’s jutsu flickered out as Sato fell.
By the time Genma arrived, Tousaki was gone, melted into shadows like he’d never been there.
Genma keyed his mike. “Code three, agent down.” He scanned the area frantically, but the candidate was nowhere to be seen. “Tousaki just did his decomp jutsu on Boar. I’m checking status.”
“Roger code three,” Hajime said. “Watch your back. Any other agents in your vicinity?”
“Crescent Moon’s on my ten. Engaged with Fukui.”
“Roger that,” Hajime said. “Crescent Moon, disengage target and get me eyes on Tousaki if you can. I don’t want Tanuki getting it in the back if this guy’s snapped.”
There was a crackle of static and the sound of a breath being drawn, followed by several sharp clangs, then Raidou’s voice came over the comm. “Disengaged. She’s rabbiting. The hell happened?”
“Tousaki took down Boar with his special. Have you got eyes on him yet?” Hajime asked. “Tanuki, give me a status on Boar.”
Fun had evaporated, replaced with the heart-pounding terror of a real mission. What had Tousaki been thinking? Had he been thinking, when he turned his utterly lethal jutsu on a comrade?
“He’s breathing,” Genma said. Depending on what he found underneath Sato’s still-pristine looking mask, that might not be a good thing. All he could think about was that pig carcass disintegrating into black slime at Tousaki’s touch yesterday. It was painfully ironic that Sato’s mask was a boar.
A chakra presence behind him sent a shiver racing through Genma’s guts, but a quick glance revealed his new captain at his back, wary and on guard. “No sign of Tousaki,” Raidou said.
Genma reached gingerly for the side of Sato’s face and released the strap. “Removing Boar’s mask,” he said, and steeled himself for a nightmare of putrefied flesh.
Sato’s face was completely unharmed.
“What the hell? Did his mask protect him?”
“Say again?” Hajime said.
“He’s okay. Well, not rotted. He’s out, though. Checking for head injury,” Genma said, pulling himself together.
Sato groaned, and his eyes fluttered open. “Shit,” he said thickly. “Bastard got away, didn’t he?”
“How did you even survive that?” Genma asked him.
“Genjutsu,” Sato answered. He groaned again. “Gods my head hurts.”
“You’re a lucky son of a bitch,” Genma said, almost shaking with relief. He keyed his mike open again. “Base, looks like it’s a false alarm. Boar’s conscious. He thinks it was genjutsu. He’s a little concussed, but I think we’re ok here.”
“Roger,” Hajime said. “Crescent Moon, see if you can pick up Tousaki’s trail. Tanuki, once you get Boar set, you can join him.”
“Roger. Tanuki out,” Genma said. He nodded at Raidou. “I’m five behind you.” |
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