All was still as Sero would listen and wait. So still was the world and he that it was as if time had stopped and all but her had become a statue locked in place. The only sound was her breathing, shallow as it was it came back and forth as if defying the stillness that threatened to engulf her entirely. He could hear her mulling it over as she drew closer and closer to the conclusion that all that could withstand his presence came to. Her heart would gradually increase as it had begun to slow before. Ba..dum....ba daum...bad dum badum...badum...badumbadumbadum until it was like a drum. Music that would fill the distance between them. Life in a place where all else was void. So little could be done or said besides she would flee or she would stay. She began with a slow start. Lacking conviction at first. She caught herself though. As if suddenly aware that her voice was still something that could be heard. She called him as he wished to be called and continued to seek asylum within the manor. To go beyond that even into a territory that few returned from as sane as when they came. To learn from him.

Sero would tilt his head finally. The first time he had moved as she thought. It was as if he had not breathed or blinked in those moments. As if he had little need for either. Slowly as she finished speaking a thin smile would spread across his thin lips before his left hand stretched out to the dark doors she had knocked on prior. They would creak open and draw attention as the world seemed to move once more. Like wind sucking into an empty void. Leaves from the garden blew slightly into the dimly lit doorway. One moment Sero would be there and as suddenly the world came back with her request he was gone again. A swirl of mist all that remained where he had once stood. However an echo...as if in the far distance of a chuckle could be heard. Like something was amused with her decision and wished to enjoy this new toy. Now she stood alone again. Outside of the manor with her puppet and the doors wide open waiting for her. As if the entire manor breathed it waited for her to step forward. The crippled woman with her steel spider legs. To be welcomed into the darkness.

If she would enter into the long entry it would appear as a stone floor with arching ceilings only two stories tall. A hallway leading into the manor. Leaves scattered about from her entrance before the doors would slam behind her. Unable to be opened from within. If she progressed through the entry it would open up into a massive room. Four stories high with stairs leading up either side of the room to the second story and from the second story more stairs would lead up. A door was to her left, to her right and between the stairs leading straight. It was the door between the stairs however that would slowly creak open to reveal light within. Just a sliver of light poking through. So inviting in the quiet, seemingly deserted manor. It was an easy thing to see how others thought this place haunted. Even as she stood there alone though she would feel it. Eyes all around her...hear the distant whispers as if people were far away, deep in the shadows as they watched and spoke of her. The beast awaited and she had but to reach out and open the new doorway. To accept her fate and place her soul in his hands.

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Sero would watch from deep within the shadows as she progressed into the manor. Her metallic legs clicking as she moved along. Like a spider in armor she would seem to marvel at the manor and at the same time dozens of eyes were upon her. Watching her every move. Waiting to see if someone so normal might be able to survive in the monster manor. She seemed innocent in a place where such things could not be. So Sero had a ploy in plan to see if she would manage to survive his home. A place for monsters and here a human wished to learn. So he had asked her if she wished to learn of death and she had accepted. Each step forward was her own choosing. He was not forcing her to progress down the rabbit hole. She was curios though so he never had to do so. How interesting these people were. Driving themselves deeper into madness if only to discover something they didn't even know to understand. She would soon though. He had just the event planned for her. Survival was a basic instinct and if she had a strong enough instinct he wouldn't need to step in. She needed to experience this for herself.

Even as she was making her way to the cracked open doorway with the light shining through Sero was already lifting his hand from his hidden position in one of the secret passage ways. His chakra focusing out as he let his eyes roll back. Somewhere in the throne room was a hidden chamber. Within it a single cement box with a metal door resided within. Light shining through the slight slot big enough to slide a plate within. A mechanism shifted and the door would crack with dust sliding off of it as it creaked open. Within the husk of a man was curled within a corner. Hair draped around his face as he was just in tattered rags. Blood marking the majority of the floor and walls and fingernails stuck to pieces of the door. His fingers weren't the only things missing pieces. Along his legs, arms and torso was simply chunks of flesh missing. As if it had been carved off a little bit at a time. Some wounds older than others. The door open and their face twitched up. Sunken eyes with most of the skin missing. Lips gone revealing teeth with no cover. It took him a moment to register the door was open but as soon as he did he would grab the stained straight razor off the floor and dash out the door.

Nova would push open the door to the throne room and within would be a large room with a huge open floor spanning the length of the majority of the manor. Torches lining the sides in between stained windows depicting war scenes. At the end of the hall was another set of doors and a throne in the center. A large chair made of marble with cushions as dark red as blood. It looked like a great ball room with rows of chairs on the sides. This Sero certainly fancied himself some sort of royalty. Still if she moved inside far enough once more the door would lock behind her. Shutting with a slam. From behind the throne something creaked and the torches in the room seemed to snuff out. Bringing shadows further up along the walls as the only dim light streamed through the painted windows. Sending a cascade of colors along the room. The tormented man and his razor stepped out from behind the throne as the trap door he had stepped through slammed closed behind him. His sunken eyes would search around him in a panic before locking onto Nova. Staring at her as his teeth would split open and a roar of tormented rage would erupt forth. His stained razor catching the light and glinting. She would feel one thing from him. He intended to kill her .

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The man would finish roaring as he stared at her. She had locked herself into a shell but he didn't seem bothered by it. If anything his eyes stared at her and seemed to twitch with madness. He was malnourished and there was no light of a soul left in those eyes but he felt dangerous. If she had never felt it before she would know the sensation of someone attempting to kill her. He would charge forward as something clicked into place within the puppet. As he did he would seem to have water peel off his form and split from him forming a perfect clone of himself. Only one but it moved as he did. They ran forward with the two switching back and forth with who was in front. A disorienting sensation for anyone looking directly at her. However before she could split away their next tactic would be coming into affect. For how malnourished he was he seemed to be taking this fight seriously. He was going to take out the only obstacle between himself and the exit. He was going to gain his freedom back if not his sanity. One metal spider was nothing to his freedom and life. Why else had he fought so long to live?

Sero on the other hand watched from above. Bare feet walking along the rafters as he crossed overhead. He had a small piece of jerky in his hand. Seasoned to others tastes but for him it was just more nutrition for his body. Calories to be processed as needed. In his other hand however was a dark black bow and at his hip a quiver of arrows. He was testing her will power but had not intention of allowing her to die. The man was not leaving that room alive. Still he rolled his neck and took another bite to finish the food before reaching the halfway point in the rafters hidden in darkness. Dull grey eyes watching as the manor seemed to whisper its desire for a sacrifice. It had housed the madness in the man for long enough. It wished for the flesh the soul hid within. He would not deny it this. However it had to wait. There was a trial underway here. One of his lessons putting a girls health on the line. At the very least he wished to see if she would try and kill the savage man.

As Sero observed and the whispers continued the man and his clone had suddenly split apart well before they were a threat to Nova. They split apart and ran to opposite sides of the room before their feet took them up the walls to the left and right of her. Flanking her as was normal for him against his targets. From there they would both cross their shaving razor across their chest and grip the handle tightly. Chakra flowing into the blade before both of them would suddenly whip out the blades down and towards her from both sides. From her left came a wave of raiton designed to shock anyone caught within it. A little slower than the slice of water rushing forward from her right. It was a combo jutsu. The water was meant to soak her at the very least and then the raiton would gain added power from hitting a soaked target. He was an experienced hitman. Still the raiton was only moving from ten meters away at ten meters a second while from the opposite side the suiton slice was moving at fifteen meters per second. The raiton wave was one meter wide by one meter tall while the suiton slash was one meter tall and only a quarter of a meter wide.

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Sero would watch from his position as they charged forward and began running along the walls. He had recalled this particular tactic being used against himself. They had been much faster at the time though. Keeping up with Sero himself for the most part. They had been but blurs in the main hall as the man had engaged him. Slices of water and waves of raiton flying back and forth as he tried in vain to hit Sero and trap him. He had been over eager though. At the time using a katana but this razor seemed to be much the same for him. However the mans endurance hadn't been as impressive as Sero's at the time and he had quickly worn himself out. Still Sero was impressed that after weeks of sleep deprivation and pain with hardly any food the man was still capable of using jutsu and moving. Few could survive that treatment as the madness overtook them. However even in his depraved state of mind he appeared to be the man was still moving rather well. Perhaps he would have to step in and save the new girl. Perhaps not. It would all be revealed in time. For now he simply sank into the shadows of the rafters and observed.

She would launch herself backwards avoiding the suiton slash but only just barely. Only evading the raiton wave by sheer luck. Her puppet was quick to react as she kept her distance for the moment. Moving up the wall and launching something from her puppet. A net by the look of it. The net flying into one of the two and slamming him to the ground. He was quick to attack but his body didn't seem to care much for defense. He was caught in it and dragged to the ground. There he gasped for air before letting out a roar and rearing up against the heavy net that seemed to bind him. However as she watched he would slowly begin to liquefy around the net. Pushing his whole body through it as his liquid body was still a part of his capability. Something that even Sero had almost been caught off guard by. However even though he was still capable as he pulled free his right arm stayed behind. An incomplete hydrafication. He rose to his feet clutching his straight razor and panting. Now with only his left arm holding it. His right arm twitching on the ground.

His clone however jumped and landed next to the puddle. Looking back to the original before back to her and letting out another deafening roar. With that he slammed both hands into the electrified puddle and began to pull. Gradually pulling what appeared to be a great Odachi made out of water with electricity running along the length of it. As the other version of him fought to escape the net the clone jumped from his spot on the ground into the air closing the distance on the three spiders as he took the Odachi and swung it right to left. An arc of lightning energy slamming forward at twenty five meters per second from less than ten meters away and crashing through the stone. It was slower than before but just as powerful. If she didn't stop his swing somehow before it reached her Sero could tell her puppet was toast. He had heard the sounds of something clicking within though. Had she loaded another net perhaps? The attack was too close to avoid it at the speed demonstrated before. Just what would she do he wondered.

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Sero would observe the interaction. Her reflexes were good as were her instincts. However her limited experience was revealed. She had difficulty following all the targets engaging her actively. Such madness could not be allowed to move outside of ones perception. It had to be observed and acknowledged. His grey eyes took in her reactions as if the puppet wasn't there. Her movements, her fighting tactics. She had never been pushed into a life or death situation with no hope of escape or a savior before. He would acknowledge her he supposed but only as a novice. One with need of training on the basics of combat. As far as his eyes could tell she was already done in this battle. The jutsu that was heading for her now was too powerful to defend against or to run from. He had enough power left for that much. His fingers would slip down to collect a black arrow as the clone launched upwards and in that moment he had already notched it and pulled it back at eye level. Ready to eliminate the threat in that moment. However something unexpected happened. He had underestimated her and had not thought that she had the presence of mind for a counter.

She reacted quickly and had loaded the ammo she needed for the situation prior to the engagement. The clone she was facing was a fragile version of what it once had been. The jutsu it had been pulling off just that moment had taken most of its reserves. Combining two elements to enhance each other in a way that was designed to cut through Sero took its toll. Already it was barely able to make that jump and when her razor wire net fired it was too late for it to evade or even defend. Its straight shot from so close was something few could counter in time even if they were prepared. A counter attack in that situation was difficult for seasoned warriors to come by. Her instincts were on another level. A great deal of potential was held within that puppet shell. The razor wire caught the clone and ripped into it dispersing the clone into a water mist that flooded the room. Thick like a curtain only cut away where the lightning water sword had been a moment before. Stopped a mere few inches from the puppet where it had carved its path in the wall.

However as Sero had observed her attention to the opponent engaging her in the moment was simply too focused. She had stopped the immediate threat but lost track of the other half. He had not stopped moving just because he had lost an arm. If anything it had driven him to fight all the harder. He had waited until her attention was held by the others jutsu and began his own run. Switching the straight razor to holding it between his teeth as he ran along the wall to the side and out of direct sight. As the mist spread that he knew was coming he formed his hand seals. He was running out of energy...his body was failing him but if he couldn't get passed this puppet user he could never dream of breathing the free air again. It meant everything to him. So he had purposefully come from the opposite side with a raiton jutsu prepared that didn't bother with obstacles between himself and the opponent. A wave of raiton energy that caused massive pain in the target. He had been mistaken trying to use this against Sero having not known he felt no pain but he wanted to fry this person in the puppet. It would take a massive amount of willpower to move with that much pain. He wanted her to flee her puppet. So he landed behind the puppet in the mist as it ripped apart. Allowing the raiton wave to hopefully rush through the puppet. If it opened she would face his blade. Sero however hoped for something more than a simple substitution. He wanted to see if she could fight through it. If she could manage to turn the tables on the enemy once more. A counter here would end this fight.

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The aggravated man would find his electricity reaching the puppet. Leaving burn marks on the metal face. It was too late to move away. He had her and with her death he had seen no one in his path to freedom. He could taste it. Smell it on her. The fear he had cast upon others in a life that seemed almost forgotten. How long had he been here? Was he even a part of the same world he had been from? He was a new kind of monster now. He was going to fry her in that puppet like toast in a toaster and all would be right in the world. However suddenly as the puppet should have faded away to ash in its place was another net...no the same net as before. It caught the full brunt of the jutsu and before it could even touch him the net turned to ash. Its construction too simple to withstand the raw power. The ash splashing against him as he stumbled. She had gotten away. She had escaped him and now he was almost spent. His jutsu capabilities were well used and what chakra he still had felt faded. Like he might pass out if he used another big one.

Still he would whip his hand out at the sound of another shot being fired from the ground below. From his hand the straight razor flew out and caught a piece of the razor wire net. The speed it was fired at and the sudden impact on one corner had it spin in on itself and in a tangled mess it flew into the wall slightly to the side of him. With that he stumbled. Another glob of blood falling from his lost limb. His chakra he was using to hold in the blood was fading. He had almost nothing left in the tanks. He had tried so hard to kill her and yet she was still defiant. He could hear her scratching along the floor towards him. However he was too tired to move. He had one thing left for her. He would turn to meet her. Only able to lean at the last second so her downwards stabs landed in his chest instead of his neck. Burying in. His body seemed to go limp into it. All except for his hand. His hand rose up and grabbed one of the legs. His death just around the corner and yet he grinned in a way that even without lips one could tell.

"At least I won't die alone..."

With that he began to glow with energy. His grip locked on her puppet as what was left of his chakra built up in an unstable way. Electricity crackled around the two of them as he held on no matter how hard she fought or stabbed at him. The jutsu was already on its course. His life sacrificed to take her with him. If nothing else he would eliminate his last and final prey. Some girl that wandered into the wrong place at the wrong time. He was maddened by his time here. However suddenly there would be a thunk sound and he would slam sideways into the wall and hang there a moment before he was only supported in the air by her puppet arm he had in a death grip. The energy began to die down from the mans instant death as a black arrow stuck out of his ear and partially out of the other one. Sero himself let his bow fade and shifted in a blur of mist from the rafters to his seat on the throne. Watching her for a reaction.

Sero would watch her. Her stomach contents falling to the floor as she toppled from her first ever experience likely being driven to the point of fight or die. His chin rested on his hand as he let her have it out. It wasn't a reaction he wasn't accustomed to. So much fighting happened within the manor grounds that death was simply common place. What wasn't consumed of the bodies was buried in the nearby woods. Ayakashi had told him to attempt to improve his image so he had stopped hanging the mutilated bodies from the tree's at the entrance to the island. Still as of late more and more capable youth of the current generation had been seeking him out. Each proving themselves more than the last. He had to admit he was impressed with this one too. Truly puppets were highly capable tools of war. More versatile than any one weapon of his own. Perhaps not as capable yet but for a genin it was to be expected. Still time would tell what the other spiders thought of this. A capable metal sister or perhaps still a mockery against them. It would be interesting to see that fight play out. Allow his children to experience the difficulty of reaching her with their attacks.

Still she would seem to finally stop crying and vomiting. He knew the lack of control one had when their body was pushed to vomiting. He couldn't feel it himself but he had pushed himself beyond that point more than once. In his training he had always pushed his body till it collapsed as a child. No one to talk to, no knowledge of childhood wonder or the idea of playing by himself or with anyone. Seclusion aside from random enemies that would sooner see him dead than to assist him. As much of the village had considered him. His first real experience with humankind had been much the same as her own experience just then. Pushed by a force stronger than himself and forced to fight back with everything he had to survive. Die or fight back. That was the choice every shinobi had to make one day. Helping her make that trial under supervision the first time was only going to help her in the future. Still she picked herself up and straightened out. The smell of vomit heavy in the air. Hot against the floor. Still she straightened herself and approached him. Visibly shaken but meeting his gaze now.

"You have now experienced what it means to reside here. Often all manner of beings come here seeking my life or a way to wound me by those around me. It is a mistake on their part. Few ever return once the effort has been made. Fewer still are left within the land of Kiri still to tell the tale. You may choose a room on the second floor and rest there. There will be a training exercise in the next few days for all the students of the manor. I suggest you get to know them in the mean time. As for all this, if you should take only one thing from this, he crossed me. The fate he has now is what happens should anyone do the same to them as well."

With that behind her...in the direction of the body it would sound like some distant scream could be heard. As if it came from the dead man but yet somewhere more distantly. If she looked she would witness the true horror of the manor. It lived as a part of Sero as did much of the island. The mans almost transparent soul was writhing from the body itself. While the body sat motionless the soul screamed as grey hands like the arms of the dead stretched from the floor and slowly began to drag the soul and the body into the floor as if into a pool of oil. Turning dark for a moment before all that was left was the blood on the floor. Even the arm left behind earlier was gone. Nothing remained of the assassin from before aside from the blood and the marks their fight had left on the manor. However one might wish to die outside of the island. There was no way for anyone but Sero to know what had just transpired. What happened to his soul? Something dark was working here and yet she had been invited in. As if he had some mechanization for her future plans of his own. If she were to turn back once more Sero himself was gone. Just a phantom of the island as the rumors suggested.

Exit thread.
4645
S ~> S-1, 1750/1750 Strength
S ~> S-1, 1750/1750 Endurance

1145 Remaining