Tired. Annoyed. Those were the two emotions felt by Kensaku when him, Niala and Kannon returned home from their trip to Kirigakure no Sato. What had initially started out as a trip to explore the Elemental Nations was cut short when word reached them that they had been requested to return home by the orders of the Tsuchikage. The timing could not being more aligned with Kannon’s sudden desire to return home as well. Personally, he did not want to go back, wanting to explore the lands with his sister, away from everyone, away from Kannon. Alas, such a desire would not be met with them being ordered to return home.

Maybe it was for the best that they did return? After finding out the relationship with Niala and Kannon had involved into something physical, something he wishes he could forget or was blissfully unaware of, Kensaku could not look at his sister the same way again. Not because he was disgusted with what she did. No, his issue was with the person she had done it with. While he was okay with her dating Kannon, even approving it, he did not like that it was him that got the privilege. He wanted someone else to. Someone who knew her better than anyone else. Someone like - - -

Because of those feelings, Kensaku figured that returning home, so he could at least get away from Kannon, would be ideal. The trek home was one were silence was prevalent. He kept his distance from Niala and Kannon, only talking to them it was necessary with all the other times having him wander off, giving the couple time for themselves, and getting into trouble that would have shocked Niala and his parents, not like their opinions mattered at the given time.

When the trio arrived home, a feast was waiting for them, as well as their parents. It being a joyous occasion for them all, except for Kensaku who only prevented to be happy with everything. Not even the prospect of eating some of his favorite food was capable of making Kensaku feel anything but annoyance. He had hoped there would not be much talking done, that the parents would not ask them about their adventures, but, the hope was quickly dashed. The parents were asking them what all they did in Mizu no Kuni. While he wanted to say ‘nothing’, or ‘caught Niala and Kannon having sex’, Kensaku kept those comments to him, instead, spinning a believable lie with crumbs of true sprinkle in for them to believe. If they did not believe it? So be it, not like they could force him to tell the truth anyway.

As much as he might want to deny it, Kensaku knew he had changed, and not exactly for the better. No longer was his mind silent anymore, being filled with different voices, many of them being faint as a whisper, with only one, the one who has an obsession with Niala, being louder than any storm. Cracks in his psyche had always been there. They had formed something after evacuating from Sunagakure no Sato doing the village destruction, but, up until recently they never made themselves full known. The first indication of them being when he created his first puppet, Fuhyō, and connected the strings to it for the first time. He felt himself taking a backseat as someone else, another aspect of him, took the wheel, and came to life through the puppet. Though, even in that incident, it did not become prominent. It was only after stumbling over his twin and Kannon, hearing their lovemaking, that the voice became loudly. So, if he had to thank anyone for the voices manifesting louder, it would be those two.

Though the conversation lasts well into the night, Kensaku excused himself earlier than the others, claiming that he was not feeling well. The truth of the matter being something entirely different. Luckily, no one questioned him, bidding him goodnight, something which he returned, and scurried into his room, where he stayed for the remainder of the day. Not realizing the actions of the following day would change the relationship he had with Niala for the better.

There were many emotions one could experience after having their crying sister find them, and telling them that their father had kicked her out and nearly hit her if the hand was not stopped by their mother. That, she watched their father attack their mother, who defended well and managed to subdue the man. That she had learned, from their mother, that the man who they had thought was their father was not. He being just some second-rate nobody with his brother being their real father. A father they might have a chance to know with the brother having likely died while defending Sunagakure no Sato. Sadness. Worry. Anger. Hatred. Shock. Those were, but a few emotions felt when things came to light. It was at this moment that the issues he had with Niala seemed so little in comparison, and he felt bad for distancing himself from his twin.

When they had arrived home, more changes were occurring. They were no longer be living in the house any longer. They would be permanently living in the former home of their uncle, their mother’s brother. It being a better solution than staying in the house with so many bad memories, thanks to that man. The move went off without a hitch, though, Kensaku did pull Kannon aside to give the samurai boy a stern talking to, making it clear what would happen to him if he did anything to make Niala cry. This being not a threat but a promise of an untold amount of pain.

Only after everything was moved in and unpacked that more things began to change between him and Niala; the ordeal with the man having hurt his twin more than he thought possible, and because of this he comforted her. Though, the comforting with be two-fold, for he was also hurting, and Niala knew this and sought to ease his silent suffering. In the end, both of them was able to help one another deal with their issues, and they came out better from it.  That night, Kensaku slept peacefully.

Before the tiniest sliver of morning rays could slither through the cracks of the dark blinds, Kensaku’s eyes snapped open.  He quickly adjusting the darkness enveloping his room. A glance at the clock told him that it was just 4 a.m in the morning. Groaning, he sat up in the bed, knowing well that he would not be able to fall back to sleep, especially now that he is up. The linens were tossed from his body which was hidden amongst the room’s darkness. Slipping on a pair of slippers, conveniently placed on the side of the bed he normally wakes up on, he walked across the room and switched on the light. His room becoming illuminated. A headache was forming from the sudden intense light.

Only when the light had been turned on that one could see he lacked clothing, except for the boxers he wore. Knowing that sleep would not accept him anymore, Kensaku walked into the bathroom and got ready for whatever the day might bring. Emerging out of the shower fifteen minutes later, he slipped on a pair of boxers, dark brown cargo pants, and a light brown t-shirt with a sleeveless black mesh shirt underneath. He did not bother in putting on shoes, at least not yet. Now dressed, and still having plenty of time for himself, Kensaku sat down at his desk. There being various blueprints and notes for future puppets, jutsus, weaponry, armory, etc. things he had thought of doing his time in Kirigakure no Sato. The ideas coming from the different stores visited. Dripping the quill pin into the inkwell, Kensaku began working on a project.

Kensaku did not know how long he was haunched over the desk but that quickly changed when he heard a loud exclamation coming from his twin’s room. The project he had been working on was quickly forgotten with him exiting his bedroom in a hurry and walked towards Niala’s. With it still only been the three of them home, Kannon and Chiyoko having not returned, Kensaku did not have to worry about Niala’s door being locked. Therefore, he just turned the doorknob and stepped in.

“Are you okay?”, He asked, immediately seeing her sitting on a chair, looking at her foot, and several droplets of blood on the floor. Moving to get a better look, he was cautious upon noticing the broken pieces of what looked like a teacup. “How did you manage to do that?”, He questioned, tiptoeing around the broken cup, pushing it to the side to give a better path to walk, though not before grabbing a nearby bath towel “Up you go!”, Kensaku said, lifting Niala up in a bridal’s carry, and walked her towards the plush bed. Placing the towel on the bed first, balancing Niala with one arm, he laid her on the bed, the injured foot being on the towel.

Kensaku winced when Niala cursed, only imagine the pain she might be in at the moment. “Is there anything I can do?”, He asked, wanting to help her as much as he could. Seeing how there was seemingly nothing he could do, he watched as Niala was about to pull out the shards of glass, until she was interrupted by their mother calling for them. There apparently being a scroll for them. “What wonderful timing. . .” He mused out loud, watching as Niala took a deep breath in preparation for what needed to be done. He did not look away as he watched her remove the pieces of glass from her foot. However, he did place a comforting hand on her shoulder.

“Let me.”, Kensaku spoke, after adjusting the three pieces of glass on the towel so that they won’t be in the way, and ran the clean edge of the towel along her foot, cleaning up the blood on her foot, “There. Go wash up, I can pick up the broken glass.” Waiting until she does so, he turned and grabbed a nearby trash can, and carefully began picking up the broken pieces. The pieces that were on the towel was disposed up as well, along with dumping said towel into the dirty laundry basket. Having done that, Kensaku idly sat on his twin’s bed, waiting for her to come out of the bathroom from doing whatever it was she was doing.

“You ready?”, He inquired, seeing her exiting the bathroom, and following her downstairs. There being no need for him to return to his room, for if this was a mission, the stuff he needed was already on his person. Walking down the stairs, Kensaku shrugged his shoulder at the question asked, “I do not know. We will see soon though.”, He spoke, focusing more on the delicious smell of food being prepared by their mother.

Reaching the kitchen, Hanae looked at them in a knowing manner, Kensaku rolling his eyes and shaking his head, “Good morning, mom.” He spoke, the greeting being returned, “Where is this scroll?” Hanae pointed towards a scroll laying on the kitchen table. Walking towards the table, Kensaku grabbed the scroll, and unraveled it, “Seems like we got to protect some merchants safely to the border.” He said, handing the scroll to Niala, giving her a chance to read it, “There is a chance of bandits attacking, so we need to be prepared for that. “ The mission seems like a simple one, but, nothing in the shinobi world was simple that much was a fact. “Do you have everything on you, sister?”, He inquired, sitting down at the table with a plate being placed in front of him and his twin, courtesy of their mother.

“You two can talk about the mission after eating. For now enjoy the meal and this time together.” Kensaku nodded at their mother’s words. A smile small tugging on his face as he took a bite of the food, “Niala, how did you sleep?” Taking their mother’s words to heart, he started up an idle conversation.

---

2059

Kensaku did not even know why he bothered in asking Niala if she had everything ready for the mission. For, much like him, his twin had a tendency always to be prepared at the moment noticed. It would not come to a surprised if she had her stuff already pre-prepared the night before, in case they had an unexpecting mission the following morning, like this one. Their mother did drill into the importance of always being prepared ahead of time, in case something goes awry. It would keep them from having to scurrying to find their equipment and the likes.

Seeing how he did not see a moment when she could have gathered her puppets and items this morning. He will go on the assumption that she had already packed up her equipment the following night and simply had to grab it before exiting the room. It would be the same thing that he has done, and always has done, to keep himself having to scramble to find the needed equipment. With the only thing, he having to do was to grab the scroll(s) upon walking out of the building. During it that way saves a lot of time and relieves a lot of unnecessary stress that comes with an unexpected mission.

At their mother’s words, the corner of Kensaku’s lips tugged into a smile. Leaving it to their mother to put their priorities in order. While there was a mission waiting for them, sitting at the table, eating breakfast, was not the place for such jargon. What should be focused on was enjoying the comfort of one another, and spending time as a family. Taking a bite of the delicious food, Kensaku realized the atmosphere was something neither of them had when he was around. The man was militaristic, and breakfast talks usually pertained to the missions, or other shinobi related topic, never was it like this. . . never was it peaceful?

Taking another bite of the food, Kensaku shook his head, “You need to start getting more rest, sister.” He spoke, his eyes filled with concern as they stared at Niala, “It is good that you are making strides in your goals, but don’t work too near exhaustion. I don’t want you to accidentally make a mistake out on the field due to being tired.” While he was the last person to be lecturing another when it comes to overworking themselves, his own habits being as bad as Niala’s, he still felt the need to. She was his sister, and therefore, he cared about her well-being. The last thing he wanted was for her to be exhausted to the point of making a mistake that could prove fatal or jeopardize the lives of another. Heaven forbids something like that happened, he would never forgive himself.

Chewing and swallowing a piece of food, he discreetly tossed a glance at Niala’s directly, having held she was surprised to have slept throughout the night. The look of worries in his eyes returned, and his head tilted to the side. Was she having trouble sleeping? If so, why? Could she be dealing with nightmares or something? Why is she keeping it a secret? Why hasn’t she confided in at least him? Why . . . ”You are one to talk, considering who all resides in here.”, The ever increasingly familiar voice shut up the rest of his thoughts. How could he question her when he was hiding something as well?

Any more musing was cut short when Niala questioned him, “I slept well. Woke up around 4 am, and could not fall asleep. So, I put the finishing touches on my new puppet. Now the only thing missing is adding modifications, but the puppet has enough equipment already to make it battle-ready.”, He wonders if there would be a chance for him to use his newest puppet? Hopefully, there will be some opposition on the mission, would give him a chance to test out the puppet in a combat scenario.

Eating the last pieces of food, Kensaku glanced at the clock hanging on the wall, noticing the time, “We should get going. It is no telling when the merchants will show up. They could already be there for all we know. The mission did not give us a timetable. You ready to go?”, Kensaku asked, getting up, and walking into the kitchen, scraping out any food residue, and putting the plate into the sink. Moving towards their already standing mother, he embraced her in a hug, and felt her kiss him on forehead; the same thing being done to Niala, “You too be careful, okay? Watch after one another.”, Hanae spoke, looking at both with pride in her eyes along with concern. Missions are never straightforward, unknown variables can easily find their way into the mix. She just hopes none of that was the case this time around.

Like always, Kensaku paused at the door, waiting for his sister. Opening the door, he followed her outside, not before waving at their mother, and closed the door behind him. The morning sun caressed his exposed flesh, the warmth being a welcoming feeling amongst the chilly temperatures. Looking around, making sure no was in the vicinity, Kensaku moved in front of his twin, and gave her a soft kiss, “I love you.”, He whispered with a smile on his face. His heart pounding at doing such art in public, though, lucky for them both, no one was around to see the taboo art. He did not know why he did it, just felt like it was the right thing to do at the moment.

As much as he wanted to kiss her again, he could not risk anyone catching them, “Come on, love.”, The last part being barely a whisper, loud enough for only she to hear, “Let’s get this mission over with.” What was not said was him wanting to talk to her about the earlier comment, wanting to know what has been preventing her from sleeping, and wondering why she never came into his room doing those times? When it comes to her, his doors were always open. She did not need a reason to come into his room whenever she desired.

Walking down the street with Niala, his fingers accidentally brushing against hers, Kensaku hopes the merchants will be relatively decent people, and that none of them would try anything with his sister. He might just fail the mission if someone tried anything. He did not care if the mission will end up in a fail, so long as he protects Niala.

---

1109[3168]

Kensaku’s heart fluttered upon feeling the kiss being returned by his sister. There was some reservation in doing such a daring act in public. An act that many would find tabooish and disgusting. Anyone could have seen the siblings sharing a kiss, one only lovers should share amongst each other. For the fleeting second, he did not care about the possible repercussions. He had been craving to take Niala’s lips against his, wanting to feel the love she also had for him. He would have done it in the privacy of their room, but, with her being injured, and their mother waiting for them, time was not on his side then. So, he had to wait until an opportunity presented itself, and it did when they stepped outside.

Catching a glimpse of her smile, Kensaku smiled as well. His thoughts swirling around the woman beside him, and what they shared. Their relationship was anything but ordinary. The pair having an unbreakable bond that crossed the lines of siblings awhile ago. It was undoubtedly going to happen considering the mutual attraction the two shared with one another; their attempts of hiding it through dating others were futile, and only made their bond stronger. While the rest of the world knows nothing about their secret, their mother surely did. And the thought of how she found out, and the actions afterward, left a noticeable blush on his face. Before his thoughts could dive further, Niala’s voice grabbed his attention.

”So, there is something wrong.”, He silently mused, Niala having mentioned wanting to talk to him after the mission was completed. That she would have said something sooner, but, could never find the right time to do it. “Alright, I do believe we should have the house to ourselves when we get back. I think our mother has to work today?” Tilting his head, he tried to recall if their mother had to work together. “If not, we can talk it either of our rooms. The silence seals will be enough to keep anyone from eavesdropping on our conversation.” He suggested. The silent seals being something their Uncle had install into the house for various reasons. The twins were made known about them, along with how to activate and deactivate them when needed. The two put the seals through the test a few times already. So, both of them knew that the seals would work.

Seeing how Niala was, seemingly, going to open up to him about what had been bothering her, Kensaku thought about his issues. Should he tell her about the multiple personalities residing in his head? Let her know that they tend to take over when he uses a puppet? How would she react to the piece of knowledge? Would she still accept him as her brother and lover? Or would she shun him? No, why was he doubting Niala? Why did he think that she would shun him for his problems? “There is also something of importance I want to talk to you about once we get home. Something I have been dealing with for some time now that I believe you need to know about.”, He admitted. It was time to talk to her about his multiple personalities.

Walking down the street, Kensaku did not miss how Niala’s fingers twitched each time his hand brushed up against hers. He wondered if she also had the same urged that he did? Was there a compelling need to hold his hand as much as he wanted to hold hers? It certainly would explain the noticeable finger twitching. Oh, how badly he wanted to hold her hand, to give her the contact which both of them craved. They could not do it. The public was not ready for such knowledge . . . for now.

The question proposed was a good one. How did he want to go about this mission? The idea of keeping it subtle seems appealing. It would give the illusion of them being ill-prepared, and make them look like an easier target. If what the Academy taught them was correct, bandits were individuals of opportunity. Who prey on the weak, defenseless, and elderly. By giving them such a target, they surely would take the bait, right? On the other hand, if they do go with that plan, what if they can’t react in time, and the bandits manage to slip between them and hurt the merchants? Could they live with themselves if something like that happens? If not, then wouldn’t a show of force be ideal? Their puppets being out would, hopefully, deter any bandits from attacking the caravan. Though, while it would be helpful for them, it does little to no good for other merchants who travel the same path. They could very well be attacked by the bandits, something that could have been a benefit if they, him and Niala, handle them in the beginning. Mulling over choices, Kensaku came to a decision, “I say we go the subtle route. Upon reaching the merchants, let's remove our headbands. We do not want to let the bandits know that there are shinobi guarding the caravan. They might not attack if they realize such. Furthermore, our puppets will not be out either, and we should appear as defenseless, or novice, as possible. Bandits are opportunistic, so they will most likely attack if presented with easy prey.  As for one of us being in the front and back.” He paused, dreading to ask this of his sister, “As much as I hate this, you being in the back would make a better target. Your small stature, and because you are female. Bandit will see you as ‘weak.’ Will you be okay with this?”

Indeed, he did not want to put his sister into the situation. The thought of something happening to her, because of this decision,  was something he wishes not to think about. As they neared the group of caravans, he allowed Niala to handle that talking. His eyes looking over the men and women merchants, and their caravans. He was thankful the three caravans were not that big nor overflowed with items. While he never met any in person, he knew some merchants tried to stuff everything into their caravan, making it exceedingly heavy and more of a burden for those having to guard it.

Once everything was in order, Kensaku removed his headband, hiding it within his person, and looked at Niala, “Niala, can you come here for a second?”, He asked, tilting his head to a big tree as the merchants went about checking their caravan. “Be careful, okay?”, He spoke, holding her hands in is, “I will be up front, so yell if you need me, okay?” Though the urge to kiss her was there, Kensaku stopped himself from doing such, instead of guiding them from behind the tree, “So, I will take the front and you the back?”, The question being asked in an attempt to make the merchant think that they were making a plan on how to guard the three caravans, instead of doing something else.

With everything in order, Kensaku moved to the front of the three caravans, “Alright, we are going to keep this formation compact. Unless there is an emergency, no one should wander off the path, or stray too far away from their respective caravans. Understood?” Receiving nods of agreement, Kensaku began walking forward with the caravans behind him.

---

1250[4418]






.

It was hard for him to make the suggestion of placing his twin in the back, knowing the bandits would most likely act her because of her small stature and gender. She was an easy target for the bandits who would not be thinking about the possibility of her being dangerous, only what they could do with her. What bandits did to females they capture was not something he, nor his twin, was unaware of. Their mother and uncle did not bother in sugarcoating the truth of the matter from them. They told them in detail what bandits would do to the women they captured. How they manage to break them in both mind and body. Dark and cruel, their mother and uncle wanted the point to be driven home, therefore, took them to visit a survivor of such an encounter, letting them hear it from the woman’s mouth. From the tale, the overprotectiveness Kensaku had for his sister only grew, as well as the darkness who only cared and love for her.

”Do not worry.”, As if summoned the feminine voice, dripping with palpable anger that promised death and destruction to all, whispered, ”Little Niala belongs to us. No one and I do mean no one, will touch her unless they wish for death. She is ours, and we will protect her from everything that wishes to do her harm, even if that means turning our back on the world itself.”. Indeed, Kensaku knew, there is nothing in the world that would stop him from committing atrocity crimes to those who dared to hurt Niala. While a medical-nin he was not, their uncle did pass him on some techniques, unique abilities that would suit his need to torture anyone of dare to harm Niala.

Briefly, his thoughts drifted to his uncle. The man was something unique. Instead of trying to curve the darker aspect, Daremo was nurturing it. Giving it the means to grow stronger, and become more prominent with his mind. The man whispered dark scenarios involving Niala. Poisoning Kensaku’s mind with different ‘what ifs’, and fueling the darker aspect even more. There is a reason behind the madness; Daremo wanted Kensaku to be able to deliver hell to those who dared to harm Niala. The silver-haired man did not want Kensaku to be afraid to get dirty, to do things that could keep men up at night. He wanted Kensaku to be strong enough to save Niala when he or Hanae could not. And, if Kensaku was truthful, the teachings were working.

Speaking of the woman his eyes moved away from looking at the merchant caravans, and focus on her, though, not before making sure none of the merchants were looking at her with perversion. ”Claim her!”, No sooner after she walked behind the tree, and with a quick check to make sure no one was looking, Kensaku crashed his lips into hers. A quick kiss that was raw and full of emotions such a love, desire, and a willingness to transverse hell for her, and it ended with a growl, “You are mine.”, his fingers were brushing up against her cheek, and running across her lips, “I will protect you no matter what.” He wanted her to know there was nothing that he would not do to protect her. She was his, and because of that, he will unleash hell on those who harm her. Feeling her squeezing his hand, Kensaku smiled mirrored Niala’s, “Be careful, my love.” Another quick kiss was planted before he took a step back.

Listening to the words spoken, Kensaku felt a bit more ensured that things will turn out okay. His twin having oblivious noticed his worrying, and sought to ease it through her words, “I will be using the same signals if for some reason they attack head on.”, He spoke. His right hand slipping onto his person to grab the small headset, and discreetly put it on. Moving in front of the caravans, Kensaku began moving forward. Not too far into the trip, he whispered into the headset, “Niala, can you hear me?”, He questioned, wanting to wait to hear back a response which would let him know everything was properly working. It would not end well if the equipment were faulty.

While waiting for a response, Kensaku’s eyes scanned the surrounding area, looking for any signs that might indicate a possible ambush. For the moment everything was relatively peaceful, the only noise coming from the merchants who were chatting with themselves. Upon the halfway mark, Niala’s whistle was heard, and Kensaku felt his heartbeat rise - she had spotted something. A brief paused follow, it is broken by three clicks of the tongue. Three bandits. That how many were in the surrounding area. “Everyone halt. We have trouble.”, Kensaku's voice was loud enough for the merchants to hear him, as his eyes focused on the bandits coming out of the bushes. Of course, upon seeing the weapons, the merchants started panicking, “Keep calm. We will handle this.” No sooner had the words left his mouth, a voice, sounding oddly like Niala, was heard through the headset.

”It is our Naila, but something is different.”, Kensaku had come to the same conclusion as the dark aspect. The tone of Niala’s voice was completely different than what he was used to. Not only that, there was something twisted and evil about the voice. A voice that did not belong to his sweet Niala. ”Maybe???”, Suppressing the aspect’s comment, Kensaku reached for his scroll as the bandits, who showed hesitation moments ago, charged at them with their battle axes. One bandit heading towards Niala, another towards the merchants, and the last towards Kensaku himself.

A puff of smoke obscured the bandit’s vision, as a large serpentine shadow could be seen hiding within. Seeing this, the bandit hesitated in his attack, watching as, what looked like, a giant worm with pincers emerged from the cloud of smoke. Roughly six foot long, and over two meters wide, Nidhogg made his first appearance, and with it, he lunged towards the petrified man. Two foot long mandibles, pierced the man’s size, going straight through any armor that was being worn. With a flick of the massive serpent’s head, the man was tossed towards the bandit advancing on the merchants, slamming against him, and knocking him off course.  

Slithering in front of the merchants, Nidhogg looked down at the men who were trying to scramble to their feet. The one who he had injured was desperately trying to stop the flow of blood from squirting out of his punctured sides. A deep, frightening hiss was heard, startling the bandits as Nidhogg lunged once more at the injured bandit. The massive puppet’s fang finding purpose, piercing straight through the bandit’s neck until the mandibles were sticking out on either side. The struggling bandit’s feeble attempts would be futile as death welcomed him only a few seconds later. Like throwing out the trash, Nidhogg tossed the deceased bandit into the bushes, “Animals need to eat as well.” The beast spoke. Seeing the other bandit trying to help his comrade against Niala, Nidhogg moved to block the bandit’s path. Like a serpent, Nidhogg wrapped around the bandit and constricted, his beady eyes looking down at the man who was struggling. “Will you die for me?”, The beast asked, hissing in laughter at the sound of the bandit’s bones popping, and the man screams for mercy. Lowering down his head, Nidhogg carefully placed his mandibles on either side of the Bandit’s head. And, like the claw from those toy vendors, the mandibles clamped down, digging into flesh and bone, and Nidhogg pulled . . . and screams filled the air.

---

1305[5723]

Shinobi always make mention of having a different mode, personality, when it comes to performing missions for the village. The kindness, easygoing, and loving nature vanish instantly, being replaced by something far more cold, calculating, and merciless. It being a way to deal with the stress of the job. To keep their psyche somewhat together while performing actions that would cause many civilians, if they knew, to lose much sleep at night, and questioned who were the real monsters in the world. The skill was something briefly touched on during the Academy years. A measure used to prepare the greenhorns for the world awaited from them. While many developed this secondary personality early on, Kensaku did not.

His did not develop until the completion of his first puppet. The aspect revealing itself when his creation was used to defend Niala against a pompous asshole who wanted her for his own - Hibiki. The teenager did not know what he was getting into nor how close he was to die at that moment in time. It was only thanks to there being the witness that he did not end up as a bloodstain on the doorstep. The second time the personality came up is when he used the puppet in combat. During the time, he talked through his puppet, a distinct voice being used, and different mannerism being shown, as the puppet handled those who threaten Niala. Speaking of his twin, she was the focal point of the giving personality, the only thing it cared about. The childish personality being oddly twisted with a love for Niala that was borderline unhealthy. And while many would believe that would be the only personality formed, they were wrong. Another formed after the incident with Genki, rage incarnate with an obsession dominating those in it’s path, and claiming Niala as his alone. It was this particular personality currently in control.


Nidhogg ignored the whimpers and begging of the bandit within his jaws. The sounds turning into screams as the bandit’s neck was stretched beyond human limits. Mentally, the beast was chuckle at the bandit’s misfortuned. The sounds of his tendons snapping, and bones breaking, was music to Nidhogg’s ears. But, after glancing over at Niala, seeing her having disposed of the last bandit, Nidhogg figured it was time to finish up with his. With that in mind, the large serpent crawled away from the merchants, obscuring from their view. The screams of the last bandit echoing loudly before going quite as the serpent emerged from the bushes, blood covering his top half. Upon moving back over to where Kensaku was, Nidhogg disappeared in a plume of smoke. The white-haired teen eyes blinking a few times, and looked in the direction of Niala, making sure she was okay. Seeing no harm did to her, Kensaku moved back to the front of the merchant caravans and marched them to the country’s border. Thankfully, the rest of the trip was peaceful, and without incident. Once the merchants were dropped off at the border, they thanking the twins, Kensaku walked with Niala back home, though, not before fulfilling a promise from earlier while on the deserted roads.

---

Word Count: 534 | 6257
Mission WC: 4,500 (2,500 + 2,000 for double ryo payment)
Remaining WC: 1757