The master of the chakra string, seven bells strode with the core of his group toward the land of Kirigakure, the land was washed with water as he waltzed across the bridge toward the land which was once his home, he could remember the old days, of stalking the forests here, it was only a couple dozen miles from here where he had murdered the two members of his squad which would have been used to start a war. That was the first instance of aid he had ever given to this land of murderous ninja and killers. The country which had for aeons mercilessly hunted down their families as they attempted to flee the bloodshed was as close a place to home as any.

The ninja walked with his daggers each behind his back, sheathed as he held the now blood drained head of one member of the murderous Schichiouza, the one who had killed the past Mizukage, which Seven bells had been rather fond of, his nature was somewhat of a mystery, though he seemed to be under a lot of pressure, Sero was not afraid to get his hands dirty, though it was a shame that the city had to be burned to the ground for him to come into his station. He had done well in service for the city, though as his time had been lifted, he had mopped up yet another mess for the city. The bridge before him seemed to have no end, his two lieutenants were lagging behind, though it mattered little, the monster of a man's dark hair and ritualistic robes made little sound as they crossed the running waters.

Upon the brow of seven bells was the obvious sunagakure headband with a long single slash through the centre of it, the metal had aged but still showed his status as a missing ninja clearly upon his belt for the world to see, as if he was not worried in the slightest about the people he would be fighting with, or the people who would get in his way. It was not too long before the master assassin could hear chatter in the distance, over the four days of travel it had taken to get here from the blood country, he was happy to hear the voices of his comrades, his brothers in murder, the ninja of the mist. Their voices fell silent as they could no doubt see or sense the ninja coming toward them...

Quiet, there's someone coming from the mist...

Seven bells could hear the whispers of the Special Jounin ranked scout, looking over them as if they were just anyone coming out of the mist, travellers or passer bys, it was acceptable, he was naturally stealthy, he could not blame the inferior ninja of the land to be able to uncover his true identity at but a glance through the mist of the land. It was a shortcoming due to their weakness, but one that he could forgive. It was not the grandest of trespasses.

"Hark, ninja of Kirigakure, I simply come with a message for your Kage, and to say hello, look around, and maybe help you with your missing ninja problem. My name is Seven Bells, you wont know who I am, so let me pass, and we can go about our days normally..." Seven bells spoke with blood on his tongue, looking forward to the near future, but when some of them began to look a little bit, off put by his natural menace, the SS rank shadow of a man rose to fold his arms, anticipating a hold up. He did not look like for a moment he was going to be fun to deal with, and the missing ninja tags on each of his fellows, two of which were from Kirigakure, with known bounties on their heads identified them as an immediate threat to the boarder ninja.

We're going to have trouble here master... one of the two ninja beside him began to speak, a blonde woman, with a blade at her back, looking over the group of the boarder patrol, which as they began to gather were almost a dozen strong, between jounin rank and chuunin rank. Seven bells bit his lip, but did not yet look hostile, he was waiting for any one of the people amongst them to look like they were going to attack, burying the chuckle in his throat as he actively attempted to resist any notion of attack.

She knew he saw it. The drop of expression, the way her eyes shifted slightly to gaze longingly at the half emptied cup of tea, her fingers reaching out to just brush the smoothed clay sides. She wanted to stay here. Curl up inside in front of the fire with a good book, listening to the sudden, harsh cracking and popping of the fire, as it intermingled with the constant, gentle humming of the rain. She would be lulled back in to the blissful world of dreams within minutes.
  But in the end, Tenmei simply nodded and slowly stood up, stretching the hours from her legs before disappearing behind the wooden door. She was gone maybe two minutes....three. When she revealed herself once more, she was dressed in her usual attire with her bag slung lazily over her shoulder. It was a peaceful day, the cloud like fog was hanging protectively low over the buildings.
All she could do was hope that this day would be over fast.

"Let's go"

---------------------------------------

Seven bells huh?

The special Jounin could not believe his luck when he had been signed to border patrol for the third time that week. Spending all day by the water, talking to the fishermen, checking the permissions of the occasional ninja who would pass on their way to the mission. There were worse tasks a shinobi could be assigned to, that was for sure.
Today, he was told that there would be four others accompanying on today's shift. Two were Genin and the other two were Chunin....including the one who had supposedly place first in the exams. Oddly enough that wasn't the only rumour going around about the Sotsuji girl. A couple months ago she had burnt the skin off some people in the streets, and done a B rank mission as well with only a small wound to show for it. She was dangerous. Probably more dangerous than anything they would come across along the bridge today.

"Quiet, there's someone coming from the mist..."

He didn't need to hear what they had to say, to know that these travelers were trouble. The smell of their clothes, the blades in which they so openly carried. Even in their voices was enriched by a lacing of malice that sent a shiver, scattering up his spine. He needed no other warning. This special jounin would die before he allowed these people to approach the Lady Mizukage and put his village at risk.
And he would make sure they knew it....
Oh yes. The special jounin didn't make any attempt to be subtle. Drawing his knife right in front of them, he took a step forward, glancing back to his company out of the corner of his eye, making sure they were well prepared for the chaos he was about to bring on them.
This was his town, his village. They would all die here.

"Im sorry. I can't allow you through. In fact.....I can't allow you take another step. You made a mistake coming here"

No more words needed to be said, the man rushed at the intruders, aiming to slice the leader through the chest, ending it quickly, with the two younger shinobi, following suit. It had began.

-------------------------------

"What the hell.....is going on?"

As they had headed over here, Masanori had taken the time to brief Tenmei on her responsibilities while working on the bridge. What she needed to do, what she needed to look out for. He had mentioned nothing of the fighting that was going on right in front of her eyes.
Before she had a chance to stop him, Masanori had grabbed out his sword and charged in with blind rage, joining in the massacre that unravelled in front of her eyes.....
But Tenmei....she wasn't about to stand back and hide. Keeping her distance, she waited for the right moment when the taller, muscular man was free from his attackers. When she had a clear shot towards him....Tenmei kicked her leg in arc, sending the wave of heat right towards Seven bells, making it come straight for his chest.

She had never missed before.
Behind the mist, just out of range. Masanori had seen what she had done....and had seen the consequences.

"Tenmei. Get out of here!! Go get the Mizukage. Warn the village
Don't worry about me"

Then Tenmei saw it too. She need not be told anymore.
As fast as she could, the female turned her back and bolted down the length of the bridge, with Masanori's screams ringing in her ears.

Seven bells smirked as he saw what seemed to be some form of resistance brewing amongst him, Jounin and Special Jounin rank ninja began to ready themselves, for an assault as one of them drew a weapon, insinuating to his comrades, though the master knew even they would be too much for these men to handle. His eyes looked over the battlefield to be as he scanned the faces of each and every one of those who was about to make an attack, though in the corner of his eye, a flash, then suddenly movement was in front of him, one of the special jounin charged him at breakneck speeds, the flash at the corner of his eye expanded into something bigger and brighter, roaring and flickering before dulling as the intense wave of heat threatened to crash down upon him.

But his more immediate threat was the Jounin. Seven bells reached out as he approached him until just as the ninja would have aimed a stab for his neck... hesitated. With a flourish of blue from his fingertips the ninja who charged him's weapon and wrist were caught in the web of strands which flowed from Seven Bells' hands, pulling him close and using him as a shield to block most of the heat based attack which came his way. The ninja cried out in pain as the mysterious and murderous stranger caught some of the heat to the side of his face, his eyes fluttering with the pain, but almost the pleasure of the strike as well. relishing the experience.

I would have liked this to go swimmingly, but it seems like I must resort to self defence.... In a one of Seven bells chakra strings whipped back retracting to his hands, while in it was a blade, gripping it tightly in his fingers in one swift moment there was a flash of light at shoulder height. The hostage fell to the ground, as his knees hit the bridge the concussion sent through his body was enough to drop the ninja, his body cut in two horizontally just under the shoulders, causing both of his arms to drop and the top portion of his body including his head to lop off and separate in a slight spurt of gore. His heart and lungs cleanly cut through.

There was a moment of pause, as the ninja smiled and drew his other knife, a moment of hesitation. Before seven bells ordered his other two comrades to attack the other members of the bridge guard. Just under a dozen men began fighting as the lunatic of a man heard the crying strike of a young ninja hurl for his face. The Chuunin struck the older man who did not so much as stumble backward before calling out a warning to his friend. The one who had burnt him... The knife wielder's smile widened as he looked at the boy, raising his blades ready to attack. But as the boy prepared for his assault jumping toward seven bells there was another sudden flash, as a steel female looking puppet appeared between them.

A final moment of hesitation before the puppet struck, ten blades from its hands extending on chains so fast that the boy would not be able to react to its movement. Shredded by the force the Hozuki was impaled and thrown across the bridge as the battle continued. Poor hero... The master thought to himself for a moment, as his eyes wondered where the girl who had been so brave to strike his mow smouldering and burnt face, she'd run, but for what? A warning... now, that would simply not do... Looking to the direction seven bells simply as far as the fight was concerned, disappeared, without a trace or piece of evidence in his wake.

As Tenmei ran, she would come to a short, the man from before would be standing there, looking at her, smiling, as he held one knife in his hand and levelled his eyes at her, wanting to know her reaction, would she too hesitate to strike him now that she did not have distance on him. But then realisation struck his eyes, they widened at her stance, her knife, the way the air moved around her body and across her skin. Well, well, well, if it isn't one of the Sotsujii clan... I remember clearly thinking you all died in Yuki, but apparently not... You... you're the girl who won the chuunin exams recentky aren't you? Tenmei... Yeah, that was her name... your, name... So, it looks like greatness really does run in the female genus of your family. Seven bells chuckled. Lets see if you face up to the skills of the other mirage fire-fisted witch...

But before Seven bells was able to begin his attack, there was three flashes of shadow, as two Jounin rank ninja and a Special jounin ranked ninja managed to separate themselves from the main battle to back Tenmei up. Each of them looked a little bit tired, but each of them also ready for a fight. Their eyes burned with resolve as the special Jounin, a female sensory ninja looked down to Tenmei, If you're going to fight, Don't hold back on your chakra, exhaust it in the hopes of striking a hit, dont worry, this guy can't take all of us... She said with a reassuring smile to the killer's disdain. Sighing, he re-summoned his puppet to be ready to fight... drawing massive sums of chakra into his other hand, a bell beginning to take shape from the raw immense amount of chakra which was beginning to resonate in the real world.

On your guard! The sensory ninja shouted... He's summoning an INCREDIBLE amount of chakra in his left hand... just under exceeding one quarter of his body's maximum... The Jounin readied themselves with S rank chakra infused weapons, glowing white with Fuuton energy, holding the front as the sensory ninja prepared her own chakra, hand seals forming for her next attack...

Three distinctive sounds.


It was so quiet by the water. Peaceful even. 
The shimmering, glistening blanket of water shone like a distorted mirror, as it swelled up under the bridge, gently lapping up against the wooden supports, like a delicate cat tongue, subtly degrading the splinters with each tender licking. The soft whispers of wind as it whistled like a broken pipe through the cracks of the planks, the lulling of unsteady heart beats intermingling with the gasps of quickened breath....the peace, the sleepy air of heavy mist. The gentle perfection of a summer day....shattered, by what came next. 

One

He was being cocky. The Special Jounin in charge of today's chores. 
Drawing his knife right in front of the intruders, glancing back as to not think them a challenge, his grim features setting in to determination that only accentuated his obvious arrogance
Tenmei was standing behind a short way behind him when it happened. He had run towards the taller Shinobi, his hand gripping the blade so tight, desiring to slice open the threat's chest, ending it now.....but then he stopped. All of a sudden, his hand was no longer moving, his feet were no longer moving, and Tenmei couldn't only watch helplessly as her the superior member of her village was cut by a ruthless array of second degree burn, leaving his skin red and mottled with milky yellow blisters....
Then she saw it: Barely second's glimpse but it was still there. A stray ray of light caught against the man's hand, illuminating the hair width lines that held her companion at bay.....then he fell. 
He fell.....and then he fell. 

A tearing? No. Swishing? Not quite.


What....just happened?

The gurgling and gushing that followed that sweet, indescribable sound ricocheted through her mind and in to her stomach, retying the knots of her nightmares. It took all of her will power not to watch as the iron rich pool spread over the wood, getting caught in the cracks and dripping through to the unsettled water below. He was just there....he was just there and now he was gone. Cut in to pieces so fast, he had not even had a second to pray for the mercy they all wish they could have....At least is was quick. 
No one one but the attacker would seen in his eyes when he realised what a mistake he had made. 

Two.

It took the female a minute to register the words, but she knew straight away it was Masanori's voice that called out to her. The sweet boy that often stopped by to read and drink tea with her, she had never expected it would come to this.
In a flash, he passed her, the words of warning still hot in her ears. Get away. Warn the people that danger was knocking at their door and breaking through the windows. 
He met the danger too quickly. Out of the corner of her furious silver eyes, she watched the shower of blood explode from his chest, the ribbons of flesh staining the salt infused wood as it fell in a sloppy mess around the strange female's feet. A piece of her heart fell away in that moment. And when she heard that jarring thud. The sound of dead weight hitting the strained floor.....
Tenmei would miss her friend dearly.

Three

It was hard to tell which was louder. 
The pounding in her chest which echoed in her ears, through her thoughts, blurring the lines between consciousness and guilt. Or her footsteps. The heavy, hollow pitter-pat as she sprinted down to the other side, moving as fast as the throbbing in her muscles would allow. with the mist pulling her back, tearing at her like a child's arms not wanting to let go. She ached. Her mind ached. The Sotsuji so wanted to turn around and go back to him. What sort of a friend was she to just leave him lying there, bleeding what remained of his soul, out to that watery chaos below them. But she couldn't. She wouldn't.
Her feeling's were nothing but a whisper in the howls of reason that thundered around her mind. He would not tell her to run if he wasn't sure that these people were dangerous. He would not tell her to hide if he didn't know that these people would tear her apart.

Stop.

Her feet reacted before her mind did. 

This man....he was fast. Wicked fast. As she ran, Tenmei turned only slightly. A tiny flicker of her gaze to see if she was being followed of if she had broken free. Gotten away without being seen....
No such luck. It was all he needed. By the time she turned back around the murderer was there in front of her, towering in her shadow in the same way her father had done when she was little. It was unnerving. He was unnerving. An intimidating presence that held her attention away from the other two that came up behind her. Did they expect her to take the lead?  She was only a chunin. Just as he had been. Masanori was a stone on the side walk, kicked away with an almost careless effort. It could have been her......
   The realization hit like a moving log truck, and the result was instantaneous. The rage that she had bottled up since the first round of the exams. The anger towards the people, the kages, the reasons for having to fight brothers, sisters and friends. She would kill him for taking a life that didn't belong to him.

But oh she was calm. 
Not a breath out of place, not a clenched fist. 

 "You seem to have me at a disadvantage" She had began, her eyes tinged a warm glow of orange as the heat inside her slowly built within her centres, spiralling out slowly.
  "You know my name and what I have done, yet I know nothing of you. Who are are you what did you hope to accomplish by coming here? What did you expect to gain by killing him....them?"

'Mirage.....what a lovely name. Can you remember?
Pay attention little candle, this man knows much'

It was only a pale memory but it was there all the same.
She had started reading her father's journal about a month ago now. Before, when Solsitce, her friend and Mizukage had been reading to her, she had discovered a side to her father that she had only dreamed of in the past. A stronger, carefree side. She had never pictured him being so reckless. But as time slipped on and she read more on her own, Tenmei had learned of other things including the stories about her mother.....  
Never having known the female figure, it was hard at first, for Tenmei make a connection. But after every page, after every word, she grew to recognise the woman and eventually, the young female found herself longing for her to be alive once more. So she could get to know her properly. Learn all she had known. Back in the day, she was strong. A sanin in fact. And while her name was something relatively unknown, Most people called her Mirage.

"It's okay. I miss her too"

The voices behind her were so quiet compared to the ones in her mind. And even then, they were starting to be drowned out by the heat that roared like a volcano behind her ears.
She could see what he was doing. Feel the amount of chakra he was drawing in. But while he drew on them, she drew on her own, creating an expanse of heat that billowed out like a searing volcanic cloud, lingering around her being with the intention to burn all those that would dare come near her. He would feel it. They all would feel it's warm kisses as it reached out to lick at their skin. 
He was right, she was a Sotsuji and she would show him why. So while the chakra, the heat built up in her leg, Tenmei gripped her knife tight and tensed her muscles, waiting with those fierce silver sunset eyes. 

"What do you know of mother? How did you hear about her?"

Seven Bells was almost ecstatic with her response, he could almost not handle the amount of melodrama, though he oh so lived for it, the scene begged for him to play the part of the revealing villain, ex-positioning his inner most desires and wants, as well as how he knew more of her family than she did, but, that was just the tip of the ice-burg. The girl was not dead, and he wanted a reason for her to see him again, The Jounin preparing their attack used what little time of their dialogue to rest and recuperate even in one case revitalise some chakra. Looking to the man with disdain as he placed a hand on the shoulder of his puppet, his chakra strings attached to each of the puppets limps, he made it look at him and move as if it were a real person.

Seven bells looked to the others with a wicked smile, knowing their hesitant nature, before looking back to the girl with somewhat of a more reserved look, looking at her fury, and anger and rage, it was amazing to see someone he considered to be so close to him, were she not sided with the others who had decided to take up arms against him, he would have outstretched an arm like he had done with so many others and asked her if she would gift him the pleasure of joining his crew, those silver hate-filled eyes were some of the most beautiful things he had ever glanced with his own, it was like looking into a mirror, but tapping his nose to the first part of her speech knowingly, he was going to keep some things for himself.

I'll not bother you with talk of dinosaurs, but, the day I met your mother would have almost been twenty three years ago, probably at the height of her career. She was disgustingly uncorrectable and just. A putrid combination of perfection and persistence. He said as if he was writing a love letter... She was tasked at one point with hunting me down after I killed a Daimyo, her flames ignited the skies in revolting plumes of amber magnificence, we each bled... but... in the end, she was like all the all the others... He trailed off, his memory thick and bore heavily on his shoulders, raising his arms up in a shrug as the puppet continued to mimic him as he sighed. The Jounin looked like they had had enough.

And so, summoning all of his chakra into one place in his hand, a shining blue bell, similar in size to the the bell of a crier, though infinitely more intricate in design, more like a massively ornate church bell sized down but losing none of the microscopic detail. Arching the arm up, the Jounin around Tenmei were shocked as they began to act, darting forward with their jutsu, one at speeds of which were able to rival his own, but it was too late, the bell rang, and with it each of them hesitated as the chakra strings which attached his puppet disappeared, allowing Seven bells to draw a blade with his other hand. The puppet's eyes lit up blue, the same colour of the strings and turned to look at the jounin. Who stood in awe...

Seven bells touched a hand to his burnt cheek, looking at Tenmei with the devils eyes. Would you pardon me a second while i dispatch the meat, I'll come after you when all of these ones are dealt with. Sevel Bells spoke lightly as politely as he could muster as the assault on his person began again, the effects of the bell not registering as a jutsu, but the special jounin shouted a warning about the puppet, and how there seemed to be chakra pathways lining it, almost as if... as if it were alive. Seven bells Darted in on one of the Jounin, blade in his hand and aiming a strike for the mans' gut with incredible speed and agility, as the puppet rose its arms and fired its ten lethal finger blades for the other.

Hell was about to break lose, and with it the chaotic bonds which once held together reality began to slip as the special jounin would do her best to attempt to assertain his movements before he put them into action, but as well as the puppet, it made things hard, and put stress on the relay. Her eyes darted from one conflict to the other in order to see what was being done.

"....the day I met your mother would have almost been twenty three years ago...."

All the while he was talking, Tenmei couldn't take her eyes off him.
Before today, the only person that had knew her mother...Like had actually known about her: Was her father. But even then, he rarely mentioned the woman's name and when he did, it was always vague and in reference to something else. So...to hear more about her. To hear about her from someone who had met her in person. Well....it had the young female completely enthralled. More than that, Tenmei was dying to know more. She had to know more....
But there it was again. That little voice of reason directing her thoughts like a flickering Neon sign. The whispering logic that spoke a decibel above her feelings to learn about this mystery woman of the past. The way he spoke of her was....disturbing. Disgusting. It only served to fuel the hate that burned hotter than her own chakra.

Tenmei never did handle conflict well.
Before....when her father was alive, everything was so easily black and white. There was good people, bad people. Hate, love, anger happiness, truth lies.....Now, she didn't know what to think. Here he was, insulting her mother with his bitterly vile words, yet he spoke with a voice laced with admiration. As if he were idolizing her. The sickness in her stomach was just like adding poison and matchsticks to her already blazing fire.....and she would use it to burn him.
The female's mind was made up. He would not be allowed to live.

"Would you pardon me a second while i dispatch the meat, I'll come after you when all of these ones are dealt with"

It was only a small gesture: The subtle movement of a dexterous fingers against the angry and weeping welts across his cheekbone. It was enough to harshly yank the chunin out of her trance like state, and bring her back to reality....and from there everything just moved past in a blur until time caught up within itself once more.

The bell: That was what she had heard though only now did she recognise what it was. It reminded her of those precious few days where she was living in Yuki. Even though their house was far away, she could hear the sound, chiming around the empty buildings, calling her to a place she could never go. His bell seemed louder. It bounced around her the reason and logic in her mind, piercing through the mist and waking up the long since dead ghosts. Tenmei didn't know what she found more haunting. The reaction of the jounin to thispeculiar sound, or the fact that she didn't know what would happen now.

The puppet: It was barely noticable at first but Tenmei saw it. The eyes that glowed with an eerie shade of power, the reflection on the strings snapping off and falling away like a forgotten spiders web.
She knew what the bell did now and so did the others...but by then it was too late. It was too late to realise that their movements were different. The oddly looking silver female. The man she wanted to know....they were moving seperately now and this fight just got twice as hard and twice as dangerous.

The fighting: It took one, deep, shuddering breath for time to catch up to where she had taken that step back. But once more by that time, things were still moving ahead of her. But upon this realization Tenmei saw that he made one....fatal mistake. While turning his attention to the other jounin, this character had turned his back on her. The Sotsuji who was radiating so much anger...so much hate that it was burning her from the inside.....and she was going to release it all on his unsuspecting back.
There would be no more slanderous comments coming from this Shinobi if it was the last thing that she did.

'Now is your chance. He knows too much. He is too dangerous. End it while he is still foolish'

"Don't. Turn your back on me"

It was almost feral, the way the snarl ripped from her throat and slipped from her lips like a wild cheetah breaking from it's cage. She took two running steps towards him, rapidly shifted her weight and while she balanced expertly on the ball of her foot, Tenmei spun, kicking her leg in a wide arch that sent a wave of rolling flames towards him with her  Dragon Entail. But oh, she didn't stop there.
The moment her foot was down, Tenmei sprang back up, sending a fiery fist, crashing towards his ribs. If she hit, bones would break and the burns would not be easily healed. He would pay for all he has done.

Tenmei would make this man pay.

The beauty of the battle surrounding them was something that was rare in this day and age, and it seemed for a moment the two jounin once again, were not enough to dissuade the assault of Seven bells and his puppet. His eyes locked on his target as the man almost moved as light to the eyes and reaction speeds of Tenmei Sotsuji, the Jounin who fought Seven bells was one thing, he was fast, Agile Quick enough to be able to evade the basic strikes of seven bells. The dagger that shot for the man's throat was lethal, but the jounin managed to block with a blade. Steel met steel, and Seven Bell's blade dug deep into it, looking for a second like he would cut it in two, but to no avail.

in the moments it took for Tenmei to throw her fire which at last moved many times faster than herself, the airborne wave of flame was dodged in an instant by seven bells as he literally vaulted it being forced to break the combat with his opponent, as well as the Jounin who had seen it coming, landing in the same place he was before as the Jounin rose over Tenmei's wave in order to strike down on his opponent with his blade, though too late, the SS ranked opponent was just as fast as the Jounin, even with his advanced speed and speed natured jutsu, but with the reaction speed to match, which his opponent lacked at.

Throwing one final blow toward the Jounin's wrecked blade, the knife collided with the steel in the same location as the prior wedges, causing the Jounin's blade to snap, and from there, everything began to go down hill. Seven bells span as the Jounin prepared to hit the ground before he was able to jump off, flipping his own dagger into the air and gripping the Jounin's broken blade with his bare hand, gripping it tightly and continuing his spin as the missing ninja pivoted on one foot, bringing the broken blade in a reverse grip, the tip plummeting for the Jounin's chest just as his hands came together for the substitution clap. The tip of the blade hit, sunk in to the man's shoulder, deeply, causing pain, blood and finally smoke as the jounin retreated.

The speed of time escalated and with a round off seven bells used the bell as well as the rounding off of his spin to knock off Tenmei's attack as well as halt her movement, bringing his caught knife to her throat before she would even be able to send the electronic signals from her brain to her hand to cause her to so much as flinch instinctively. One of the jounin were wounded, and the other, cried out in agony as the puppet finally managed to grab a hold of him, wrapped in chains having already exhausted his escape jutsu, as well as a rescue jutsu which the sensory ninja was able to attempt. He was caught, the chains of the puppets fingers wrapped around him with the ten hooked and blade like fingers digging into him from all sides.

Finallly the pupped retracted its chains, and they unwound in every direction, shredding the captive like a blender before the chains returned to create the puppet's lethal hands. Its evil blue eyes began to fade, dim, and ultimately go out, as seven bells had failed to toll his bell a second time, ending the jutsu. The jounin he had stabbed did not look like he was donig so well, his own blade wedged awkwardly from his shoulder toward his chest before he was able to substitute slumped near a tree, his heartbeat was beginning to lessen as everything seemed to be coming to an end. All that was left was the sensory witch, and Tenmei...

You know, the part that would kill you is, i was employed by this country, I just came couriering a present for the Kage, a head, of a member of the infamous Schichiouza, yet i was met with blades... and I feel betrayed, I have prevented wars and ended the lives of the enemies of Kirigakure for over twenty years, I have killed missing Kage and wandering ninja who could threaten the entire country, each and every one of them fell to my blade... and now, Daughter of the Mirage... what will you do?

'Watch what he does? Learn his movements'

'How? He is too fast?'

It had been quite a while since Tenmei had felt this way towards anyone....quite a long while. All the emotions were the same; the frustration, the wrathful hate, the rage that threatened to make her lose control. Back then, it was her father who she was angry at. He had just passed away and the hurt young female felt betrayed. He left her, he gave up on her and the child resented him for leaving her to fend for herself. With half the skin burned off her arm and trapped in a coma, Tenmei was lost for weeks, wandering on her own with nothing left except for the spiteful feelings she held for this man.
Still slowly, with much time and help from an old man, she had learned to forgive him and focus on all the good that he had done over the years. How she would not have survived without him.

But there was one major difference. Back then she had near burned the whole house down... Now, Tenmei had control. She knew how to use her heat. Her anger would be her power.

'Don't doubt. If you can see, then feel. Think.
Predict his movements. Don't let your fears over come you. I believe in you...my little candle'

'I'm trying. I am trying okay'

Evey thing was moving so fast, it made her head spin.
Tenmei watched them as they jumped, vaulting her wave easily as if they were children jumping the ripples at a beach. All her attacks...they didn't seem to phase him at all. In fact the momentum aided him to come down on the jounin hard, his knife slicing through the other's steel as if it were a butter stick, then snapping it like a frozen twig in splinter. This display....this act of raw, unadulterated power.... If that is what his knife  could do to solid metal, the female could only imagine what it would do to the much softer, human flesh. 
Her flesh. Stilll, despite all this, Tenmei didn't so much as shudder, skillfully controlling the urges that threatened to rise up with her heat.
Death. Pain. These things were the cause to fear, and she had had suppressed that fear the last time she had been this angry.

Now with her eyes adjusting on his movements, Tenmei could see what he was doing. What he had been up to.... But that was only half the problem.  Seeing meant nothing when she couldn't react.
Tenmei had just finished her kick. And while her eyes followed, her movements were far, far behind. A shift of weight, her shoulder muscles tensing, pulling back on her arm like a wound up spring.... In the time it took her to do this, he had broken the sword, thrown his own knife in the air, stabbed the jounin and ended up with the blade back in his hand and at her throat.
Neither of them could have predicted this shinobi possessed that much speed, nor could they have known about his skill. It was too late and now.....now they were finding out the hard way.

She could barely feel it, the knife was so sharp. Just barely a featherlight tough, caressing the delicate skin that protected her vital arteries, piercing the millimetre drops of condensation that had formed against the pulse. Tilting her chin slightly and steadying her breathing was all she could do to keep the tip from breaking through the final meager defense.....
But then again....he would feel something too. The heat the radiated off her flesh, like a furnace raging at a near five hundred degrees. Even at this proximity it was bound to leave some form of burns. However.... the small victory was short lived as her sights caught on to what was happening with the other Jounin....him and the puppet.

The breath came just in time. Her silver eyes, still holding the pure wrath of the moment he saw her, glanced towards the other jounin who had just been wrapped in the chains of the demonic looking puppet. He was there for barely a second....barely a moment. But the unstoppable force turned him to slick ribbons, showering blood all over the puppet....and the young female who resisted another scream, but settled for clenching her fist and raising her temperatures to even greater heights. Heights that he would feel at his finger tips.
This fight had gone on too long already. People were dying all around her, including one of her only friends.....But despite all this. Despite her anger and her frustration....

Despite everything, the smile returned

"You come to a village wreaking of blood and bearing knives, what do you expect? And then you....you kill them? No one is going to believe that you have good intentions. No one is going to let you in.
And I am going prove it by killing you"

All it took was a breath. One deep breath in, tensing her muscles Tenmei released all the heat she could in one massive wave, using her heat repulsion jutsu. A technique that was new to her as well. One that would coat his skin in third degree burns if he didn't get back in time. But if he did this, and even if he didn't, the sensory ninja who was standing by all this time, rushed at him with their own knife, aiming to plant it solidly in the base of the man's neck.
And all while this was going, the ninja who had been hurt was seeking revenge. He went after the stationary puppet and leaned down to pick it up with his bare hands and toss it in to the water. The metal would sink like a stone and the puppet master would have to fish it out.....

The tables were turning.

Seven bells had gotten sloppy over the years, but perhaps it had stemmed from his attraction to the power of the Sotsuji family line, her, her mother, her apparent father who was also a member of the clan, which, he thought was more than a little suspicious. But when she said that everything leading up to now was his fault, it ignited a fire in Seven bells, which even he could not ignore, the blatant wilful ignorance of the child stung him harder than anything, considering he had likened her to himself it was a personal insult on the grandest scale, and when it came to her using her fire, Seven bells turned away from her looking toward the special jounin which was rushing toward his direction.

Flipping his knife, a seal was placed on its hilt as he grabbed it by the tip like a circus throwing knife, he hurled it for the sensory ninja at top speeds, the knife glided past her head so fast the singing and whistling of the blade as it soared through the air could hardly be heard by human ears. Bells clapped his hands together and substituted with the knife just as it passed her head, the knife appearing in the midst of Tenmei's flames as seven bells in mid flight threw a kick toward the special jounin's back, sending her faster than she had intended straight into the fire of Tenmei's own defence, colliding with the flames and the force brutally as she ricochetted off the orb of fire, burns now covering the better part of her body, not even managing to scream as her form disfigured at the force of Tenmei's hate.

The woman bounced back as Seven bells knife, with a flash disappeared from the sky and reappeared in his hand, a property of the knife which had not been seen before. Though the now red hot steel of the blade seared the hand of seven bells as the rag-dolling Special jounin came toward him, drawing his second knife from behind himself, he ducked to a side striking up with one hand and spinning, cutting her arm and head off as well as separating her above the knees, just so that she fell into as many pieces as possible from one direction. Instantly dead. The Jounin who pushed his puppet into the river did not so much as make Seven Bells flinch as he bore down on tenmei, after her orb dropped he charged at her at full speed before disappearing.

From behind her she would hear a light crackle before there would be a resounding out-flux of Raiton energy only a couple of meters from Tenmei, the force was enough to send everything within the radius of the attack flying in every direction with enough force to smash it hard against the surrounding area, be it a tree or a rock or even the river. The thunder clap technique was ab ability Bells had created to gain distance on his opponents, but it was never thought to be used this way, offensively, as a weapon to send someone flying.

There was little to no wat she was escaping the blast, the SS ranked missing ninja was on top of her, waiting for her in her flight path with those lethal blades, just like he was for the sensory ninja. As Tenmei's flight pattern was trajected that once again he would be behind her, his blades at the ready as he could already imagine the explosion which would finish off this technique, cutting her in half only to have her two pieces to either side of her explode into katon chakra as it was released dramatically, as Seven bells would walk away from the scene, it was perfect... until...

There was the sound of metal being hurled through the air, as fast as Seven bells could move, as fast as his strike to intercept Tenmei, the broken blade, covered in the blood of the wounded jounin who had hurled it ias a weapon in a last attempt to fight off this ungodly opponent, though as it reached him, it expanded with smoke. A blood covered boy wrapped his arms around Tenmei, guarding her from his knife as Seven bells dug the blade in guard deep into Masanori's back, who, out of sheer will chose not to un-form into water, the blade penetrated his body and into Tenmei's, but not so deep that it would cut her in half thanks to the lack of length from Seven bell's daggers.

Though they would on impact seperate Masanori, Tenmei would recieve little but a long gash across her back, from one side to the other, only barely missing her spine as it had nipped into the bone but not penetrated any deeper... Angered, but satisfied, Seven bells looked to the jounin before sheathing his blades, and with one hand sending out his chakra strings to fetch his puppet, who, now connected to Seven Bell's control, leaped from the river to land near the Jounin who by now was only half alive. The puppets eyes lit up bright gold, before each of them fired a laser into the ground, strong enough to, like his blades, divide the jounin in two from heat to pelvis vertically as the puppet swept its beam...

Finally, they were all dead...

At least Seven bells Assumed so. Looking back to what he assumed was the corpse of the sotsuji, a grimace across his face as You didn't even begin to contend with Mirage, what a waste... He spoke loudly as his other two Leutenants cought up to him, each of them seeming to look a little worse for ware, but alove none the same, meaning that the other ninja had also failed in defeating either of them. They asked if their lord was safe, and he replied in kind. I'm fine, but, i think we need to pay the Mizukage a serious visit, there have been changes to this country, and, my patience is wearing paper thin...

Each of them bowed to him as he disappeared with the woman of the two, leaving only the man to look over the battlefield. The mess was astounding, but there was little he was able to do about it, Seven bells had left with his pupped, the crossed out missing ninja headband, formally belonging to kirigakure, was a sure sign of his alliance to seven bells as a missing ninja. Lingering around and looking through bodies for transplantable parts...

Rushing with all haste to the border, directly after hearing the words come from the sensory ninja's mouth, came the squad of shadows. "There is a battle at border station B! He hadn't even paused to give  his orders to the three other ANBU members in the ready room, just issued them as he opened the door. "Get your gear and come. We have work to do." His rank of Commander would ensure that no dissent. His orders would rank only beneath the lord Mizukage's own orders, and would be obeyed instantly. Lucky one of the three members was a trained medical ninja, and would be able to resuscitate any near dead. All of the squad would already be fully prepared to leave as soon as given the orders, as was the nature of ANBU.

The distance between the site of the conflict, while at the borders, would only take a short time to get there with the entire squad going full speed. They would hopefully be able to combat the threat with a majority of the staffing of the station still intact, but if they fear in the messenger's eye was not being exaggerated then they could already be wiped out. He had received reports from that particular man in the past a good deal of times and if he wasn't overreacting then this attack could very well be an invasion being lead by one of the other great Kage. If that was so he didn't expect much to still be standing at the station, let alone living.

Weighing what little he knew, he issued his battle plans while in flight. We go to assess the threat, and if the station forces remain we are to neutralize. Otherwise we recover any living and try to slow them." He would prefer to neutralize the threat here and now, but if they could neutralize the station in the time it took for them to get there, it was not likely they could deal with it. His job was to ensure the village's survival, not to throw valuable resources at a threat and hope it died. If it took some time to neutralize the threat as efficiently as possible, then time it took.


As they approached the site, he made the last preparations before battle; performing the dread seal jutsu onto his Katar. With the jutsu sat on the blade, a touch would spell eventual victory for him.

Coming upon the checkpoint with not a single sound being projected by any of the squad, the damage was obvious; four bodies were littered among the area, and a single target looking over the fallen with his back turned. It would be his first priority to neutralize. Motioning to his squad to fan out and see to their part in the battle, the medic would know to immediately get to the bodies since there was only one target; if more showed themselves or the target proved to be more difficult than expected he would join. Not letting his squad foolishly reveal their presence he went straight for the initial surprise attack himself, letting the others prep their own attacks while he started. He aiming his Katar into the center mass of the target with a quick jab while he approached; the small of the back was the intended contact point; all of this masked by the ever useful ANBU armor. Even as his blade neared the target he readied himself to bring forth his clan's signature chakra chains, as a follow up attack.

325/350:

Io, the medical ninja of Seven Bells was unable to see the dangers lurking around him, though he was alert, often checking around himself as his two team-mates left in either direction. Looking up Io stood, conflicted, he had killed five of the other fighters while Seven Bells had dealt to this lot, though it was not like him to leave an intact corpse. He must have enjoyed her... he thought to himself until there was a flicker on the ground near him, a shadow cast by the light of the morning sun, he reacted, but too late. The reaction time of the medical ninja was too slow for the surprise attack, the blade ripped through his side, almost ripping his kidney in half as he had attempted to spin to a side and jump away. Blood exploded from the wound, but with a grimace Io managed to substitute to safety, holding his side with one hand.

Looking back the S ranked ninja eyed up the ANBU which had managed to attack him. He didn't expect Kirigakure's ANBU to be able to react so quickly, though, that being said, many things could have changed. Io chaneled chakra through his body and placed a single dot of power onto his forehead. A pulse of shimmering blue light pulsed through his body healing the wound almost completely... But ANBU didn't work alone, so Io positioned himself in the middle of the open area to ready himself for their attack, his eyes darting to the surrounding trees, and though he could not see them with the naked eye or sense their chakra, he knew there was at least two more ANBU there. They wouldn't risk just sending one.

Seven Bells would not forgive him if he were to lose to this group of rabble, he was a friend and though he did not always agree with his methods, together thay had carved a home into whatever place they were moving through and they had done the right thing under the weight of the world. Stretching his chakra through his body, and into one of his hands, the hand became a wicked looking claw of chakra needles which surrounded the hand entirely like a gauntlet. but they didn't stop there, the chakra spread up his arms and down his back into what he would consider his ultimate combination, the fuuinjutsu brand on his side receding as opposed to spreading slowly due to the healing pulse.

From the man's back two wing like apparatus expanded, wrapping around himself made of the same chakra scalpel like material, slicing through the air. Mass murder technique... The man-spoke somewhat dramatically in an attempt to deter his opponent simply by what appeared to be an instantaneous healing factor which as seen by the dot on his forehead did not appear to be depleting, and the grisly skeletal wing structure like blades surrounding his form in an impressive burst of chakra. The reason he had used so much chakra, was to alert the sensory ninja within Seven bell's group, so much spent so quickly from a familiar force still so close, was like a beacon shining down on their location.

Hopefully the ANBU would take this into consideration, Io eyed down the threat, the wings and the ten inch claws prepared, but the cautious medical ninja was not about to attack his opponent yet, he wanted to react to him if possible, not sharing as much of the same animalistic rage as his friend, the entropic husk of a ninja stared with dead eyes toward the porcelain mask of his opponent, his mind raced into the tactics of most ANBU. They would want to wait, and observe before attacking, meaning that if this was an attack, they had already observed... but they hadn't nearly had the time, meaning this was backup, and they were out manned and out-gunned.

So, the natural course for ANBU would be to report to their Kage and defer to another battle plan... Which worked to their advantage. Seven bells was an ANBU once himself. And so, his forces had knowledge of most commonly used tactics and strategies, not to mention they were updated up to and including the tactics up to Sero's reign as Mizukage, allowing them to have more high grade state training outside the boarders of society. And so he waited... his eyes locked onto his target while his wings flexed for murder.

Chakra 340/400:

As his bladed punch sunk into flesh, the target's reactions proved to be impeccable; already he moved to put distance between them as the seal fully formed on his body, with a substitution jutsu the distance between the two of them was changed from melee to one more suited to med and long ranged attacks. The distance would matter little unless he could remove the seal, his defeat would come soon, and they would be able to extract information from him. Even as their next moves were being enacted he studied every movement, just because there was a good chance of capturing the target didn't mean that information gathering could wait.

Holding back his chakra chains in response to the target's action, he noted the mark appear on the man's forehead as the wound in his side began to mend, and the seal along with it. This turn of events made capturing of the target very unlikely as he would be able to stall and withstand their attacks till his reinforcements arrive. Furthermore the strange wing appendages that appeared from his back would likely cause more problems. His mission wasn't to confront the invaders, only to recover any wounded and gather information.

Motioning his squad to cover their retreat in the classic formation; shock and awe, followed by elimination of any friendly corpses. The medic in the group had already done his part of the information denial, and had gotten what appeared to be the only survivor, ready for removal. They would not leave any potential information behind, even if the hostile did appear to be a Kiri ninja in the past.

Drawing upon his clan's special chakra to launch a binding chain from his off hand, he launched it forth in an attempt to distract, and bind the target while the two other follow up attacks began. As expected from an ANBU squad, the timing of the second attack waves started as the man began to react to the chakra chain; A Vacuum Vortex jutsu from the right, and a Scorched Earth jutsu from the left. Together they would cause a very large blast that would surely cover their retreat even if the blow missed.

Waiting until the two friendly jutsu to nearly collide onto the target's location before letting his chakra chain dissolve. Quickly performing the Body Elimination Technique onto the corpse that the hostile was inspecting a moment ago, he moved to retreat with the medic as the other two members of the squad follow his example. Despite how small of an engagement their exchange had been, he was able to learn a good deal about his style already; very skilled medic with the ability to not only use corpses to his advantage in some way and also able to counter the dread seal. The large bladed wings would be able to cause high amounts of damage in close combat. What bothered him the most was the head band the man wore; the scratched Kiri head band. Hopefully he would be able to find a record of the man when he returned.

While in retreat, he looked over his squad and their newest member. Her wounds looked to be stable, and the medic carrying her seems to be being heated by the passenger. The two combat aids looked to be to have been drain by their attack, but otherwise undamaged. Supercharging his sight, he looked back onto the scene to watch for pursuit and more information.

225/350:

Io was surprised at the ANBU's attempt at an attack, though not surprised enough to the point that he would be dissuaded from his actions, darting well to the right of the technique the ninja moved directly into the range and effect of the scorched earth technique which washed over his side, but by vaulting up on his bladed wings he took to the air before the damage to his body was too severe only to come down on the ANBU ninja which had launched the attack with a whirling dirvish of blades in reaction to the strike. And like butter Io would cling to him, his speed and strength a cut above that of the average anbu captain dozens of strikes would fall upon the non medical ANBU simultaneously as he attempted to retreat.

The third degree burns covering what part of his arms and back which were not covered already by the chakra scalpels reduced in potency at rapid speeds, within the time it took for him to launch his attack they had already faded to minor second degree burns. Io was a skilled medic, and in the name of disaster the mass murder technique would fall upon this one ANBU, for every step back the ANBU member took, like a hound Io would be there, the wings slashing almost constantly in a passado that only a hellish spider could create. But as the other ANBU and his target included began to fall back, Io decided within that instant he would give chase...

The ninja hot on the tail of his target, he was not about to let these guys get away. leaping into the trees using the Canopy as cover he managed to keep up with the group bounding rapidly and zig-zagging from branch to branch as little but a blur in the tree tops. In a flash of light and a sudden burst of speed he would angle himself down like an eagle perching himself to dive. With skilled movements Io would kick off one branch to plummet at full speed toward the earth at the centre of their formation, on landing his wings would whip outwards and like a blender flurry in such a way that anything close to him would become little but mulch and gore.

But it seemed that after his attack the ANBU were moving quickly, getting closer and closer to Kirigakure territory... Which was somewhere Io dared not to tread alone, after his assault, he would quickly jump back to the canopy of the trees above him, and fall back, leaving behind whatever damage he had managed to perform, fading into the background as he returned to his master at the bridge which had been taken by enemy forces. There were more missing ninja coming, some from other countries, but others from Kiri who were entering the country from across the bridge, a sizable force behind the scenes...

Io after pulling back and running in the opposite direction managed to return to their group, there Gan, Seven Bells, stood unhappy with the way kirigakure had welcomed them as guests into their country. His arms folded looking over at his men, and with a furrowed brow and a malevolent and hateful look in his eye watched over his battalion of missing ninja, each of them were trained by him, each of them were a soldier to his cause, and though they were few in number, together they held the power to shake the earth and dance to the rhythm.

Looking over the chattering lot, Seven Bells, aimed his puppet toward one of the trees, holding its head as if he would a persons in his hand with its eyes facing the tree, activated the puppets primary function. The light, which had been stored in its eyes fired in a powerful projectile, ripping through the tree on a slight diagonal, enough for the tree to be a burden on its trunk and slide off, falling to the ground with an echoing creak and finally a crash. Catching the attention of the other missing ninja as he stepped up onto his makeshift pedestal. His murderous eyes glanced over the people before him, the varied lot of people in this group were united in being outcasts, they were safe under seven bells, but safety was a relative term for a missing ninja, eventually, they were going to get their hands dirty...

Ninja, each of you are united by the scar which we bear on our foreheads, by a cross to bear on our souls for wanting to be free of the ninja world we were born into. Many clans, many creeds, many ages and many sexes. But here we stand as one and equal. Holding up the head of Utau, He continued, shaking it with emphasis holding it by the hair.We've SAVED this country, fought for it! Died for it! And all we asked in return was peace, and now, they're attacking us at OUR borders! I think, I think it's time to pay Kirigakure no Sato a visit, I'll need to take a team with me, a team big enough to make a point... I think they have forgotten after so long how we once slaughtered the hunter ninja, the ANBU of EVERY village who pursued us, how we EARNED our freedom and independence!

Io, Mizuru, you're with me, This epilogue is ending...

The initial plan worked well, with the chakra chain distracting the target so that the other attacks could land. The burns given to the man would give him something to think about, even as they began to heal. Unfortunately his counter attack proved to be deadly, sinking his blades deep into the ANBU's flesh. The man was only able to swing some punches before being pin poked with too many holes to live without medical aid. Releasing his end neared rapidly he did his final duty to Kiri; Information denial. None of them wanted to fail Kiri, but even more so did none of them want to be used against Kiri. In the blink of an eye, the man's body practically disintegrated with his final expressions hidden beneath the mask they all shared. It was a noble as a death as any of them could expect in this line of work.

Their retreat was pursued by the hostile, but thanks to the time that the fallen ANBU member provided them with, their lead was sufficient to give them time to move into friendlier territory where only a fool would risk Lord Mizukage's own personal wrath. The hostile obviously knew that and gave up the chase after it became obvious that his movements were being responded to as soon as they were made, thanks to the ANBU Sensory Range jutsu.

Remaining within range of the group for a short time longer to make better use of his eye sight, Kage No Akira felt a subtle sense of fear as he watched raw solar energy slice through trees with incredible destructive power before he got a look at the severed head that the leader used to rally the group. Not many techniques he was capable of would be able to stand a chance against such a weapon. That puppet would need to be a high priority.

Keeping the sensory boost active to watch for any further pursuers from the large group that gathered to watch the weapon being used, the squad made all haste to give their report. News this bad did not come often, but at least some good came of it all; looking at the ninja their rescued, at least she would be able to help debrief.