After saying our farewells to Shizune and after I was made to swear that I wouldn't put my hands on the girl, I dragged Kuroka and Hannah away from that hellhole. We walked in the opposite direction, watching the setting Sun. It was getting late.
I had Kuroka hugging my left arm while Hannah was on my right side, looking around to see where we could go to have some fun. The arousal diluted a little after such a wholesome moment, so we were looking for somewhere where we could entertain ourselves.
"Fufu, it is funny how afraid Tsunade is-nya. Master, let's join Shizune~ let's make her into a cute pet".
"Stop being naughty, Kuroka", I felt exasperated that my pets think I am capable of such profane acts. Shizune was off-limits even if I actually wanted to try something.
"She looks pretty and has big breasts, you don't want her?"
"You talk like I would make any woman with big breasts mine, Kuroka".
"You don't-nya?" (Kuroka)
"You don't, baby?" (Hannah)
I admit, all of my women have big breasts... but that's a coincidence!
"Let's go and have some fun, master-nya. I am sure I can change your mind~"
Hannah and Kuroka took me along on a delightful journey. Kuroka led the way and showed us real fun in the village in a way that looked like she had been living here all her life. Kuroka was naturally outgoing, and a lot of the villagers found her gorgeous with those ears. So she asked around, and we got to eat delicacies, purchase goods and even attend local meetings.
When the night was falling, I encouraged us to go back to the Senju Manor, but Kuroka still didn't have enough. The Village's nightlife was surprisingly good.
"There is a Karaoke nearby-nya, do you want to sing, Hannah-chan?~"
"Uhm, let's go!"
We found a karaoke, look and behold. It was quite backwards, with small rooms and scrolls for singing. There were no microphones either; people had to sing with their vocal cords... but nevertheless, it was quite busy.
Hannah and Kuroka dragged me in quite eagerly, whispering sweet nothings about the 'unprecedented fun' we were going to have. I wouldn't have normally followed Kuroka, but she had made our date quite wholesome and showed me her purity, also, did well... she was clever. She manipulated Hannah and therefore... I fell into the trap.
They began singing with their lucious voices... by the end of it, they were using a microphone.
To summarise: After a lot of pleasure, loud moans that drowned the singing, fluids of all kinds staining the room, a humongous lewd stench that spread through the shallow corridors, we got kicked out of the Karaoke and banned from ever coming back.
It was the Sun God's first stain, and I was determined to never listen to Kuroka's input ever again.
**
**
Konoha Academy Training Grounds.
Despite the progressively darkening environment, a boy could be seen training and dancing with shuriken, which continued to impact the dead centre of pieces of wood arranged in different directions, serving as targets.
Sasuke Uchiha trained; that's all he ever did. And even though he made it look easy, he seemed not satisfied with his performance.
Once he landed, having struck all the targets, he caught, out of the corner of his eye, a shining white feather that glowed in the night. Immediately, he turned around, and there she was.
Azrael was there with all her wings on display. He noticed one of them was shining a lot more than the rest, as if reflecting the moonlight with a lot more clarity.
Seeing the dark figure with those gigantic twelve wings, Sasuke felt small. He couldn't see her with the same eyes that he usually did. The Archangel smiled and concealed ten wings, still looking majestic with just two.
She came up to him and patted his head lightly. Normally, Sasuke would have slapped her hand away, protesting that he was no little kid. But the boy was out of words.
"Fear is good for you, Sasuke... it will protect you from constantly seeking death".
It was then that his foolish ambition of ever defeating her was just that: a foolish dream.
"Tsunade told me you lot went on a mission. How was your mission?" She asked neutrally, he gaze fixed on nowhere in particular, just wandering the darkening forest around them.
"Just hunting a criminal, barely a B-Rank mission" he answered, tilting his brows and following her gaze.
"Azrael, you're back... and... how was your mission?" He asked her, recalling who she went to hunt on her last mission.
"I saw him... your brother".
!!!
His heart stopped for only a minute before it started pumping madly once again. His fists clenched.
"And...? Did you–"
"He's alive. Your brother is quite strong, Sasuke".
"..."
'Did he beat her?' He asked inwardly, filled up with complex emotions that he couldn't process in time. Was it pride? was it jealousy...? was it anger...? He didn't know.
"You couldn't do it. Just give up and let me do it!" He answered back, thinking she had already lost her chance.
It had to be him.
Azrael lowered her gaze and smirked. She reached for her back and instead of taking her scythe, Sheol, she took the Soul Stone Ember. The gigantic, blunt and heavy magnifying glass that looked like carved purple jade with golden embroidery. Completely unbefitting of her, one could tell it belonged to someone else.
"This may be the last time we see each other," She asserted, pointing the tool, now weapon, at him.
"What do you mean?"
"Exactly what you heard. The things that I'm going to do are going to change your world, Sasuke".
The boy frowned and held onto his Kunai.
"I'll show you the truth. To you and to the village, before I depart, this will be my last task. So before I go, I will ask you. Do you want to spar with me?"
Death tempts those in a shallow and dark corner into a last game.
Azrael's blue eyes looked beyond cold.
Sasuke's saw his reflection in those jewels, and his own widened. He reflectively held onto his kunai harder and got on guard. This person, no, this creature in front of him, was finally relenting. She was known as the Hokage's closest aide and weapon; he thought that by defeating her, he might be a step closer to defeating 'him'.
But now that he finaly got what he wanted, a duel. He didn't find the strength to step forward. He recalled that image, those twelve wings. It seemed inconceivable that even his brother, whom he believed was quite strong, managed to defeat her.
Something wasn't right. The invitation felt like a trap.
"Don't fall for such an obvious trap, Sasuke".
!!!
The screeches of crows mixed up with the haze of a nightly gale. He heard a familiar voice that elated his blood. It was him.
"ITACHI!"
Nevertheless, rather than face him. The man stood defensively between him and Azrael. The reaper crept up a smile; the temptation had been successful. After all, her eyes had been on her objective all along.
With a swift move, she got Sheol and sliced forth.
*WHOOSH!*
Faster than his Sharigan could catch her movement, Sheol swung and span like a boomerang, tearing the air itself and travelling in an elongated angle that avoided Itachi, heading straight to Sasuke.
The boy didn't catch that immediately; his eyes were fixed on his brother, the man he wanted to kill.
His eyes were so blinded by revenge that he didn't catch onto the threat to his life.
The scythe pierces the soil itself like it was butter, chasing after its objective like a homing missile. Azrael's eyes frowned with a hazy aura, looking at Itachi, expecting something.
With no other choice, Itachi turned around to receive Sasuke's Chidori.
*CHAA!!*
He received Sasuke, his brother, in his embrace and closed his eyes.
Silence reigned. Sasuke felt his heart start to thump erratically. He looked past his brother's shoulder, the floating form of the scythe that just stopped a second before impacting.
*COUGH!*
Blood splurted on his shoulder. Sasuke knew it wasn't his blood; it felt warm against his clothes. His eyes darted down slowly to see his hand penetrating his older brother's flesh, still leaving residual lightning sparks. Nevertheless, Itachi's hug never weakened.
Confusion, sadness...
"N-Nii-san..."
As Itachi's limp body collapsed to the floor, Sasuke heard Azrael's steps approaching. The flying scythe span back into her grasp with a life of its own.
"Do you understand now? There are actions that can't be taken back, Sasuke".
He had done what he wished, he had exacted revenge, he had killed his brother who had massacred their whole clan that night.
But what he felt after was... unprecedented emptiness. With a huge mental shock, with the realisation of the blood in his hands, Sasuke passed out.
Azrael looked at the two silhouettes, two pitiful brothers who had been engulfed in a whirlwind of pain and emotions, all because of greed.
Darkness shrouded the world, a pair of white sheet eyes took over the skies, looking down at the scene with amusement, as if she had just seen the climax of a movie.
"You're a lot more merciless than you look, Azrael-chan~".
"The heart is stubborn, it won't change its way until it sees the consequences of its actions".
"We agree".
The angel stared at the skies, its gaze meeting the two white eyes, "Hasshaku-sama, could you please take them to Tsunade...? I have to go now".
"Are you sure about this? Perhaps this older brother would like to join you in this quest".
"He has already suffered enough. Hurry up, his life is beginning to fade".
The darkness personified waved its hand, and moonlight mist coated both bodies, taking them away from there and onto a surprised Hokage's office. Nevertheless, the Hokage didn't question it. She knew who they were, and she knew who sent them, and she knew what she had to do.
...
"In your never-ending pursuit of justice and truth, will you ever treasure your own life?" The Yokai inquired with a tint of reproach, as if she couldn't stand angels being so stubborn.
"I am treasuring my life more than ever before. Besides, you are watching... nothing bad can happen to me," Azrael stated confidently.
"I am glad you're so confident in my strength~ as for the kids, I think you're bound to be surprised, don't forget... that kid managed to take your wing".
It was supposed to be a secret that she withheld, but Azrael soon realised there were no 'secrets' in this family.
The night personified stood next to her, giggled and joined her in her quest for truth and justice. The quest in which Konoha would see its underlying darkness.
Death and Darkness together, what could go wrong?