The clock ticks.


She woke up in the middle of the night, but it felt like she hadn't gotten any sleep at all. Wiping her eyes tiredly, Misoka got out of bed, her gaze drifting across the room. It was simply, but nicely furnished.. as though Bokuden had always meant to be prepared for any guests.
While she was standing there, letting her eyes wander, the reason why she'd woken up crossed her mind. That man. A cold shiver crept down her spine. She should never forget that she was still being chased by them. But how could she? They always succeeded in making their grim reminders.
With a bad feeling in her stomach, Misoka got dressed and opened the door to the hallway. For a moment, she stopped and listened. Silence. It convinced her that Bokuden and Satomi were still sleeping soundly in their beds.
On tiptoes, she opened yet another door and went outside into the darkness of the night, which was only illuminated by the dim moonlight.
It was crazy. Incautious. Careless.
However, something told her it was still necessary. A gut feeling - no, more than that, like a strong certainty filling her heart. Something was wrong. And that man knew the answers.

The wind played with her hair as she took one step after another towards the tower of Heaven she had been to yesterday. Despite the darkness, she could see quite well and more than once, she wondered whether the soft sparkle in her eyes was the cause for that ability. All she knew was that the glowing effect would increase over time. Perhaps, her eyes were a bit useful after all.

When she reached her destination, she waited for a while until she heard the sound of rustling again. Had he known she was coming?

"Get out." Misoka spoke up. "I'm here."

And then, as if he had only waited for her to say this, the man stepped out, flashing her a crooked smirk. "Is this curiousness, I wonder? Or just plain stupidity?" His voice was sharp, his words taunting.

Misoka kept a straight face. "What do you have to say?" She looked him over, surprised that he didn't seem to have any strong weapons with him. Most of the Karisuma clansmen usually had at least a sword with them. Then again... he didn't seem to be of her clan. His facial features were not smooth, but very coarse. A wry nose. Felted, black hair.
"You're a messenger, aren't you?"

He got closer, completely unimpressed by her questions. "Well spotted. I do have something to tell you."
He stopped right in front of her and bent down, so close that she could smell his bad breath on her face. Misoka's heart pounded, but she didn't want to do him the favor to back away. There was no chance he would be successful in intimidating her.
"Talk then."

He didn't answer at first, but instead ran a hand through her hair. "So beautiful," he muttered. "I wish I'd gotten other orders." The lust in his eyes made clear what he meant.
Misoka clenched her teeth, trying hard to restrain herself from lashing out. "Stop it. And speak."

A cold laughter escaped the man's mouth before he got a hold of himself and finally told her what she wanted to know. "Go home or your father will be executed. He's currently staying in his nice little prison cell. Message from the leader."

And then Misoka snapped. It was too much, too sudden, it was everything she had never wished to happen - They had her father, the only real family she'd got left.
With a loud cry of rage, she tackled the man and sent him flying a couple of meters. He must've been surprised by her extreme reaction because he'd been far too slow to dodge her attack.
"How did you find him?! What about Razor?!" Misoka called out, quickly closing the distance between them and pinning him on the ground. The surprised expression faded from his face as he looked into her own. "Now isn't that cute. A daddy's girl, huh?" His lips formed another crooked smile. "Razor? That boy who had tried to protect your father? How sweet that he thought to stand a chance against them. He must've been head over heels for you."
"Shut up!!" She lifted her fist and struck a blow, but this time, her enemy was prepared. Quickly, he rolled away and sprang up.
"Now, now, take it easy. It's not like you can't save him." Then he broke out laughing once again, leaving her grow even colder with anger and pain.

Bokuden laid on his bead in silence, staring up at the ceiling for what had seemed like hours. He had always had problems sleeping and thoughts of the night before had not exactly made his sleep more peaceful. Satomi was sleeping on her pillow located at the foot of his bed, her breathing almost like a cadence that sounded through the room. Satomi’s ears perked up and she raised her head as she heard sounds coming from down the hall. “The girl is up,” Satomi whispered in a faint enough voice that only the two could hear, “She’s leaving. What do you want me to do?”

Bokuden raised himself out of his bed as he began reaching for his equipment. “Follow her,” Bokuden answered as he hurriedly dressed himself, “Stay out of sight. I’ll be there shortly.” With a nod to confirm that she understood the order Satomi ran out of the house and trailed Misoka. “What the hell are you thinking?” Bokuden thought to himself, “What was the point of ANY of this if you were just going to walk out?”

Satomi followed Misoka to the Tower of Heaven only to see her meeting with some unknown man. “What was this all a set up? Get Bokuden to trust her and then meet up with this man to feed him information?” Rage built up inside of Satomi as she contemplated attacking both of them at that moment, but instead remained mindful of Bokuden’s order. It didn’t appear as though she would have to wait long either, as Bokuden arrived almost immediately after. They heard everything. About the messenger, his lustful remarks, Misoka’s father, Razor… Bokuden heard it all.

Bokuden had heard entirely enough of the whole conversation, but didn’t enter into it just yet. Bokuden was furious, but remained hidden. There was more to be learned here, Bokuden could deal with the two of them afterwards.

Without hesitation, she leaped to her feet and attacked him. Again and again. The first blow was a full success and wiped that annoying smirk off his face, the second had him falling down and the third must've broken his nose.
And she didn't stop. It was great to give free reign to the rage burning inside her; so much easier than exploring her feelings of fear and helplessness.
The man groaned in pain and struggled hard to break free, but she only tightened her grip. There was a reason why taijutsu suited her so well as second specialty. She wasn't heavily muscled; she only knew how to put the right amount of chakra into her fists.
Another scream left the man's mouth as his eyes widened in panic.
"S-Stop it! Let me go!" He stammered, struggling again.
"What? Did they tell you I was weak? Easy to handle?!" Misoka hissed and kept punching him, not sure how far she wanted to go. If she went on like that, he would soon be unconscious. And then...? Was this helping her father in any way?
She bit her lower lip so hard that she could taste blood and tears sprang to her eyes.
"Don't. Under-esti-mate. Me."
Sending punches towards him in between her words, she finished him off with her last blow. His screams ended abruptly as a hit on his head rendered him unconscious.
Misoka withdrew her fist, panting, but nowhere close to satisfaction. So what if she hurt this idiot? So what if she thought about killing him? The Karisuma leader would still see the message as delivered and kill her father eventually.
Suddenly it occurred to her that she didn't know how much time she had left. She gasped and shook the man's shoulders, but he didn't open his eyes. Why hadn't she asked him before? Why had she acted on impulse? Shinobis weren't supposed to let themselves be driven by emotion.
Her throat got tight and she couldn't move. "Damn." She choked out. "I'm so screwed."

Bokuden watched as Misoka proceeded to viciously pummel the man, each punch filled with seemingly more anger than the last. The emotion flowing from Misoka was evident as tears swelled up in her eyes and she released more frustration with each pant and swing. Bokuden decided that enough was enough and moved at full speed to Misoka's location, fast enough to get to her before she realized he was there. He appeared directly behind the panting Misoka and wrapped his arms around her in a hug, wrapping up her arms and pulling her towards him and back away from the unconscious man. "That's enough," Bokuden spoke to her in a whisper, "Killing him now won't change anything." Bokuden could feel Misoka's heavy breathing and her body shaking slightly from the overwhelming flood of emotion that was flowing out. The anger he had felt towards Misoka her actions immediately subsided as he embraced her. "Just please, calm down."

Misoka flinched as a pair of strong arms suddenly embraced her from behind and pulled her away from the man. Her eyes widened in shock and she turned her head, looking into Bokuden's face. Confusion and surprise left her speechless. Why was he here? He shouldn't have followed her... he should've - She began to struggle against his grip, but soon enough she let her arms go limp. Her eyes fixed on the unconscious shinobi messenger, she whispered,"Since when..are you.." She trailed off as the strength to speak faded. This was the moment she had feared the most. The time after the anger had subsided, the moment when there was only this hollow emptiness inside her. Bokuden must have heard her walk away after all... he must have heard everything.
"Just please, calm down." The desperate tone in his voice sent a shiver down her spine. Her heart kept pounding and pounding; she was afraid it might burst. There were too many reasons why she could not calm down, too many questions in her head she had no answers to.
With clenched teeth, she swallowed down the tears she didn't want to spill and buried her face in her hands. Breathe. Slowly. In. Out.
It wasn't too late. Her father wasn't dead yet. She could still wait for that man to wake up and give her more information. Yes. She should stay calm now.
Seconds, minutes had passed by when her breathing finally slowed down.
"I'm sorry, Bokuden." She said quietly. "I had the feeling I..." Her throat tightened again. She just couldn't explain herself right now. "I'm sorry. I am so sorry." This wasn't only directed at Bokuden. Her father was in danger because of her. Razor..the funny boy she had met in Suna and who had been devastated about her leaving. He had sworn to protect her father although she would never return his feelings.
So many people had been hurt because she was too much of a coward to face her fate.

Misoka's eyes widened in shock as she turned around to lock eyes with Bokuden. Seemingly unsure of what to do in the current situation she struggled in an attempt to free herself from Bokuden's embrace, but he wouldn't release her until he felt that her anger had eased a bit. Eventually she stopped struggling and allowed her arms to hang without resistance. "Since when..are you.." Misoka began to say weakly before her voice just seemed to give out.

Completing her sentence wasn't necessary, Bokuden understood the intent of what she was trying to express. "From the beginning," Bokuden said as he loosened his arms which were still wrapped around Misoka, allowing her to move her arms around once again. He could feel her heart beating even more pronounced then before and placed his hands onto her shoulders, allowing her to bury her face in her hands as she fought back tears. There was a long silence after that as Misoka attempted to recompose herself, breathing in deeply and in rhythm.

"I'm sorry, Bokuden. I had the feeling I...I'm sorry. I am so sorry." Misoka spoke quietly, still struggling to get her words out. Not saying a word Bokuden used his hands that were rested on Misoka's shoulders to turn her around to face him. "Don't," Bokuden said before gently placing his left hand on the small of her back and his right hand on the back of her neck. He took a step towards her and then pulled her to him the rest of the way, embracing her and gently pulling her head into his chest. Bokuden tilted his head downwards towards hers and said soflty,"Don't apologize. You don't have to explain anything right now. I trust you."

Suddenly she felt herself being pulled into a gentle embrace by Bokuden who then told her not to be sorry. Her first impulse was to back away - She wasn't used to close physical contact, especially with men. Then, however, she kept still as she listened to the words Bokuden said to her and somehow... he could give her comfort. For a while, they sat there in complete silence; not an awkward silence, though, but a convenient one which helped Misoka relax further.
They had her father. She needed more information and she knew where to get it. Keep a clear head - That's what she had to do.
"Thank you. I feel a bit better now." With a soft smile, Misoka slipped out of his embrace and got to her feet. The anxiousness hadn't left her completely - it was still visible in the way her fingers trembled - , but the look on her face was far more determined than before.
"I know how confusing this must seem to you, Bokuden." She folded her arms only to let them go limp again. A short pause followed while she searched for the right words. "I need to take that guy with me. When he wakes up, I'll make sure he answers all the questions I have. He's not really strong.. I think.. either my clan believed I was a weak little girl or they just didn't care about his safety."
Hesitantly, Misoka met Bokuden's gaze. "I don't know if I'm still welcome in your house..."

After the two had remained in their silent embrace for a short while Misoka pulled herself away, still trembling a bit, but her anger had subsided at least, and began to speak, "I know how confusing this must seem to you, Bokuden."

"Not as confusing as you think," Bokuden answered immediately, "I told you, I heard the whole thing." Bokuden looked over into the shadows where Satomi was still hiding and motioned with his head for her to come out. She obeyed, walking out to where the unconscious man laid and awaited Bokuden's order before proceeding to do anything.

"I need to take that guy with me. When he wakes up, I'll make sure he answers all the questions I have. He's not really strong.. I think.. either my clan believed I was a weak little girl or they just didn't care about his safety. I don't know if I'm still welcome in your house..."

Bokuden looked over to Satomi and gave her a quick nod which she returned. A blue glow emanated from Satomi before disappearing into a puff of smoke. Once the smoke cleared Satomi could be seen standing in her werewolf form, her long tail wrapped around the body of the unconscious man and restricting any movements he might make should he awake. Once he was sure that Satomi had secured their captive Bokuden turned back to Misoka. "There you go again with the lone wolf act," Bokuden said as he let out a sigh and stared up into the sky. "We need to take that guy with us," Bokuden continued, shifting his gaze over to the man before looking Misoka in the eye again, "Of course you're still welcome in my home... provided that this kind of thing doesn't become an everyday occurrence. I don't care that there are people after you, I can fight off anyone they end my way, but you need to tell me about these kinds of things and not just run off in the middle of the night alone. Whether you like it or not, you aren't alone in this anymore. I've never made a promise I didn't intend to keep Misoka, a promise I've made to you is no different."

Bokuden's eyes shifted away and a slight tinge of red showed on his face as he hesitated to speak again. "And... sorry about grabbing you like that. It wasn't... I was just... It was an in the moment kind of thing and it just seemed like the right thing to do at the time. I'm sorry if it made you uncomfortable at all, it wasn't my intention."

[sorry for the late reply!! D: I'll make it up to you somehow]


"I tend to forget." An amused smile tugged at the corners of her mouth. After being alone in this disaster for such a long time, she wasn't used to someone telling her he was there for her. A consoling fact, something which strengthened her hope that everything would work out eventually. Bit by bit, her anxiety easened and she nodded to Bokuden. "Thank you." Her voice threatened to crack by the overwhelming emotion she put in these two words. Nothing could express how grateful she felt right now. In the darkest hours one had to live through, it was so essential to have friends. How could she realize this just now?

Satomi walked to them - Misoka wasn't surprised since it was only natural to see the wolf by Bokuden's side. Then his furry companion turned into her werewolf form, an impressing sight, and wrapped her tail around the unconscious man.
"This is... great.. thank you, Satomi." Misoka stammered before turning her attention back to Bokuden.
"I can fight off anyone they end my way, but you need to tell me about these kinds of things and not just run off in the middle of the night alone. Whether you like it or not, you aren't alone in this anymore. I've never made a promise I didn't intend to keep Misoka, a promise I've made to you is no different." He told her and she looked down to her feet. "I'm sorry... it still feels so unreal to have someone helping me in this. But I'll follow your advice from now on."

She gave him a slight smile when a tinge of red suddenly crept up on his cheeks. Then he stuttered something about "grabbing her like that" and how he hoped he hadn't made her feel uncomfortable. At first Misoka only tilted her head in confusion, but then it dawned on her what he was talking about.
Now it was her turn to be embarrassed. "Oh... d-don't worry about it..." She let out a small laugh and scratched the back of her head. "I guess it really was the right thing to do at that moment... I was pretty upset and all... and you somehow calmed me down this way." This sounded terrible, terribly cheesy and weak and... Whatever. Misoka cleared her throat and nodded to Bokuden. "Shall we?" With that, she started walking off in the direction from which she thought she had come from, knowing Bokuden and Satomi would follow or correct her if she was wrong.

While she was walking, Misoka forced herself to push all her worries to the back of her mind. She couldn't be sure of anything at the moment. Perhaps the clan only wanted her to believe a lie and her father hadn't been captured after all. No point in jumping to conclusions. 'You aren't alone in this anymore.' Funny how Bokuden's words, though only said a few minutes ago, kept resonating in her head.

"Oh... d-don't worry about it... I guess it really was the right thing to do at that moment... I was pretty upset and all... and you somehow calmed me down this way. Shall we?" Misoka said before beginning to walk back in the direction of Bokuden’s home. Bokuden couldn’t help but smile at Misoka’s actions. “Shall we?” Bokuden mused to himself, “I guess she did calm down after all.”

Still in her werewolf form Satomi walked up behind Bokuden and awaited his instructions as to what to do with their captive. “Go on ahead and prepare the proper accommodations for our guest,” Bokuden said to her. Satomi replied with merely a simple, affirming nod before running off ahead, leaping directly over Misoka’s head before disappearing into the night. After Satomi had already run out in front Bokuden began walking briskly after Misoka, closing the gap between the two that had been created when she began walking away first. Before he could catch up to Misoka a harsh, frigid wind blew across the area causing even Bokuden to stop in his tracks for a moment. “Well, we are in the mountains after all,” he thought to himself, “I shouldn’t be surprised how cold it is at this altitude.” With all that was going on he had not even realized how cold it had been that night. He immediately took off his coat as he caught up to Misoka and draped it over her shoulders in an attempt to shield her from the cold.

Bokuden remained silent for a short while, walking side by side with Misoka on the way back to his house, slowing his pace down to a casual stroll not in any particular rush to get home. Although he certainly wished that the circumstances had been different for her, but walking along with Misoka like this, even in silence felt… right. There was however something that Bokuden wanted to ask about, but wasn’t sure exactly how he could bring it up. “So… Razor?” he said inquisitively, staring straight ahead as to not show Misoka the look of embarrassment on his face as he spoke.

"Oh.. Thank you. I should've taken my coat with me." She gave him the hint of a smile before the thoughtful expression on her face returned.
They didn't say anything for a while, but the silence wasn't exactly unpleasant.
Satomi had run off ahead with the other man, much to Misoka's relief. It made her angry just to look at the guy and she couldn't afford hitting him again.
He would probably stay knocked out for some time, anyway.
...She should've never attacked him with such force. It had been thoughtless of her.. but at least she'd had so much control over herself that she didn't kill him.
"So... Razor?"
Misoka turned her head to look at Bokuden in surprise as he muttered these two words.
"Razor? He's not an enemy." She paused for a few seconds, pulling Bokuden's coat tighter around her. When she went on, her voice was strained. "Back in Suna, I met him on the training grounds one day. He became the Namizake clan leader, at a very young age, I believe... he's only 16 years old, after all. But who am I to judge?" Her lips formed a thin smile. "I was much more nervous around men than I am now.. but somehow we became friends. When I had to leave, he promised to look after my father. I tried to talk him out of it, it was far too dangerous, but he wouldn't change his mind. He was so stubborn. Well, he still is if they didn't..." She trailed off, unable to go on. A faint voice inside her head told her not to worry. Razor was strong, he could take care of himself. He was a clan leader. Right.
Misoka cleared her throat, hoping to get rid of the painful tone in her voice, and threw a sideway-glance at Bokuden.
"That's another question I can ask that guy. I hope he wakes up soon. A glass of water might help." She smiled and tried to ease the tension though she knew that her jokes were pretty bad.

"I see," Bokuden replied as Misoka explained this Razor's involvement in all of this. That wasn't what he really wanted to know about this boy who was supposedly head over heels about her, but it wasn't his business so he wouldn't push the issue further.

"That's another question I can ask that guy. I hope he wakes up soon. A glass of water might help."

Bokuden couldn't help but return a smile and a chuckle, it was relieving to him to see her a bit more at ease. Bokuden had always had a strange sense of humor anyway. Before long they would once again arrive at Bokuden's house. Satomi had obviously arrived long before them and hidden the man away in the cellar as the shogi screen doors were open in the large, traditionally Japanese styles home. Once inside Bokuden would walk Misoka back to her room before stopping to speak to her once more, "Well, you should get some sleep. We'll have some work to do tomorrow after all, and besides it must have been a while since you've gotten a restful night's sleep in a warm bed. The kitchen is right down the hall and to your right, feel free to help yourself to anything; and there is a bath and shower attached to the guest room you are staying in. Towels and everything should already be laid out," Bokuden explained to Misoka before pausing for a moment. "Hey... Misoka. Promise you'll still be here when I wake up in the morning," Bokuden said with a playful smile before gently grasping her hand, "Don't worry about anything, just get some sleep. I'll help you take care of everything in the morning, when we can actually do something." Bokuden then took a small step forward, pulling Misoka a bit closer to him by her hand, their bodies now just inches away from each other. Lowering his face down to hers he spoke in almost a whisper, "Good night then," before turning his head around to softly kiss her on her right cheek. Letting her hand slide out of his Bokuden pulled his head back to meet her gaze once more before retiring to his room for the night.

[Exit Thread]

Only when they arrived at Bokuden's house and he led her to her room, Misoka realized just how tired she was.
The meeting with that man in the middle of the night... The news she wished she'd never received... All the adrenaline pumping through her veins had vanished. Now that she felt her eyelids drooping, she could almost make herself believe that it had all been nothing more but a dream. A nightmare nonetheless, but not real. Perhaps she would soon wake up, get dressed, have breakfast with Bokuden.
Bokuden...  He explained everything she needed to know as a guest. He told her about the kitchen, towels, shower...
She tried her best to listen to him while her mind kept replaying one word: Sleep. Sleep. Sleep.

Misoka flinched as she suddenly felt Bokuden's hand on hers. That was all it took for her to be wide awake again. What on earth was he doing? Her heart skipped another beat when he came closer. She felt the urge to back away, run, hide in her room - but she couldn't. It was a combination of anxiety and curiousness that made her stay as she was watching Bokuden's every move.
"Good night then." A soft whisper. She automatically opened her mouth to wish him a good night herself, but then he lowered his head and kissed her on the cheek. Misoka froze. That was certainly not what she'd expected.
Her head heated up and she quickly turned around to face the door to her room. Why had he done that?
"Oh.. yeah.. good night to you too." She looked back at him and nodded with a smile as though his strange behaviour hadn't surprised her in the least bit. Truth was, of course, it had and anyone could see the embarrassment stinging in her cheeks. She didn't know what Bokuden wanted to achieve or ... she couldn't believe it was what it looked like.

When she went into her room that night and closed the door behind her, the tiredness returned at once. Sleep. With a relieved sigh, she lay down on her bed and closed her heavy eyes.

[Exit Thread]