S:Sorry for the no ch last week school and perticularly the start of finals have had me in a bit of a chokehold
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"Wakey, wakey." A voice sounded, piercing through the current haze of Hiruko's mind, managing to barely register as his body instinctively reacted as it tried to force his mind to wake.
"Where am I?" Hiruko's voice called out weakly as his eyes slowly opened, looking around at the unfamiliar space. Surrounding him was a pitch-black void with no sense of up, down, left, or right; only emptiness, and in that strange space, he sat suspended.
The only source of light stemmed from a bright light that seemed to originate from Hiruko's body, lighting a five-meter radius around Hiruko.
As his senses began to slowly return as he began to awake from his stupor, Hiruko began to notice abnormalities.
His body felt weirdly weightless, as if a mental and physical weight had been stripped from his shoulders. His mind, which had almost fully recovered from its earlier haze, felt a serene-like calm.
"Am I dead again?" He couldn't help but ask himself; he had once heard death was supposed to be peaceful, but due to him not remembering the feeling of his first death, he simply believed it was a sham.
"But this…I could get used to." The words slipped out of his mouth without him knowing as his mind drifted further and further into serenity, his eyes closing slowly as his mind drifted off.
As for his death, the error, the system, he simply couldn't bring himself to acknowledge it, to question it, or to get upset or happy over what him dying again meant. To him, those facts, those questions were simply background noise, noise he automatically tuned out.
"Hey, sleeping beauty, I said, 'Wakey wakey.'" The voice sounded again, this time a hint of irritation seeping in as the sound of light footsteps echoed unaturally throughout the void.
Step, step, step~
As the being whose footsteps those belonged to got closer, the sound got louder, and it was those very footprints that reminded Hiruko of a certain ugly yellow plant. And as the sound of those footsteps increased, so did the memories associated with that sound.
And as those memories increased…so did Hiruko's anger as his once serene mind was filled with thoughts of murder and bloodshed.
Hiruko's eyes snapped open as his teeth gnashed together angrily, and the being seeing this simply stopped its advance.
Not out of fear, no, simply because any further and it would no longer be obscured by the darkness of the void and instead illuminated by the light stemming from Hiruko.
"Who are you?" Hiruko asked. Seeing this, it didn't take a genius to figure out whoever this was was purposely keeping himself just far enough that the light didn't make his features visible.
'Though from what I can make out he's short, maybe even a kid by the sound of his voice,' Hiruko thought; if not for the fact that he knew better, he would be skeptical at the thought a child had anything to do with this.
'I mean, I died and was reincarnated into an anime, and before that I lived in a world with monsters and (&#*&$), so nothing is really surprising,' Hiruko thought with a slight shrug.
"Oh come on, where's the fun in telling you, guess?" the voice said playfully with a small chuckle.
Hiruko hearing this couldn't help but click his tongue in irritation. "What's with all the extra crap? Just say it, idiot. " Hiruko said his patience was breaking as he couldn't help but think, 'I bet if I asked him to explain the power, that brought me here, he'd be jumping at the chance to explain. Tsk.'
The voice hearing Hiruko's qualms couldn't help but laugh as he slowly circled around Hiruko, his steps once again sounding throughout the void as his laugh filled its expanse.
But no matter what, he made sure to stay just far enough to not be seen by Hiruko, which only served to further annoy the latter.
"I'm not playing aroun—" Hiruko started, only to be cut off as the figure who had regained his composure responding back in a more serious manner.
"And neither am I, all I have is time, but I'm no monster, so I'll give you a little hint: think about the system, primarily it's rewards." The voice said as it stopped once again in front of Hiruko after completing a lap.
Hiruko, hearing the word 'system,' felt as if a dam of forgotten memories poured back into his head as he couldn't help but think, 'I knew that system was going to be troublesome.'
As the memories poured in, Hiruko's body shivered slightly as his fist clenched slightly in anger, his jaw tightening. He remembered it all, the pain, the feeling of his body being ripped apart and put back together again and again.
It was as if he felt as much pain as one human could bear, as much as he could bear and then even more and more until his very being felt as if it would collapse.
'And the hunger…don't even get me started…I felt like…a monster, like THEM,' Hiruko thought as his fist tightened even more; if there was one thing he hated, it was feeling like a monster. But after a few moments, Hiruko shook his head.
'I can get absorbed in it, at least not right now,' he thought, though he knew he wouldn't let this go; he couldn't because he refused to be condemned to monsterhood…again.
After clearing up his thoughts, Hiruko returned his gaze to the darkness as his thoughts churned.
'It's obvious he wants me to play his little guessing game, and assuming he controls this place, me getting out of here is dependent on the fact I do.' Hiruko thought before adding somewhat optimistically, 'This may also be the chance to get some knowledge on my transmigration.' Hiruko thought as a memory from his past life surfaced.
—(Flashback Start)
A young boy sat on a rusty metal bucket; his ashen-white hair sat neatly on his head, tied up in a circular bun. His eyes were wide and dog-like as sparkles glistened in his irises as his gaze looked pleadingly at a figure in front of him.
The figure was a tall young man with olive-colored skin and sharp features; his hair was jet black and tied in a long ponytail as it reached to his butt. Neatly on his nose sat a pair of round black glasses.
His body was obscured with a brown cloak, with his face being the only visible body part.
"Noah, please, I really want to know how you did it," the boy said pleadingly as his hands tugged at the man's cloak.
The man, seeing this, averted his eyes from the boy's pleading figure as the words 'Do Not Break Noah' repeated in his head as he tried not to be swayed by the boy's eyes.
"No, you're still on punishment. How many times did we tell you to stay here where it was safe, where they couldn't get to you? But no, instead you disobeyed our orders and came to the summit, nearly causing our alliance to fall through and putting our lives in danger." Noah chided, irritation filling his voice.
He was mad, not at the boy but at himself, mad at the fact he had to restrict the boy's freedom, mad that he had to yell at him, and mad that he couldn't give him the life he deserved.
'But if it means you're alive, I'll be the vilian or even the devil himself.' Noah thought as he hardened his face, turning his gaze to meet the boys' only to see a scene even he could not ignore.
The boy sat on the bucket, tears streaming down his face as he angrily yelled, "When will you guys stop treating me like a child? I can help too." The boy said he hated feeling powerless watching as the people he cared about went into dangerous situations while he just sat safe and sound in this damp place.
And most of all, he hated how they seemed content with it, happy as long as he remained safe; it made him feel like shit.
The man watching as tears and snot streamed down the boy's face could only watch with a sigh as every defense he set up crumbled as his face slowly morphed into a reassuring smile.
"I know you want to help, and I know how it feels to watch as people protect you and you want to jump in and help…and a time when we need your help…when you'll have to fight. And when that comes, we won't be able to stop you, but…not yet…let us protect you for just a little longer…" the man trailed off, his voice cracking as he pushed up his glasses, the darkness obscuring his eyes from view, but the faint sound of sniffles told the boy everything he needed to know.
"Noah—" The boy started feeling guilt rise in the boy's chest as he began to realize how selfish he had been. But he was soon cut off by another voice that sounded through the dark, damp place.
"You're such a crybaby, Noah." A feminine voice sounded as a figure appeared behind Noah pulling him into a chokehold.
"N-Noelle," Noah said, his voice holding a mix of bewilderment and pain as he desperately tapped his sister's arm, signaling his surrender.
Noelle, seeing this, frowned at her brother's weakness. "You couldn't even last a minute," she whispered as she let go of Noah as he dropped to the floor gasping for air.
"Anyways, that's what you get for making my little munchkin cry," the woman said as she walked over to the boy, pulling him into a protective hug.
The boy, feeling the warmth, melted into the hug as he looked at the woman; her name was Noelle, and she was the twin sister of Noah.
They practically looked identical except for the fact that Noelle had short, curly black hair and didn't wear glasses. And the most glaring difference was the scar that ran across her nose.
Just as the boy was getting comfortable, he felt Noelle's arm's tighten dangerously around his body.
"But he's not wrong; you shouldn't have snuck out." Noelle said her previously carfree tone was gone, replaced by one that held a more dangerous edge.
Noah, on the other hand, who had regained his bearings, looked at his sister with a sense of betrayal. "If you agreed with me, then why did you choke me?" He said angrily.
"Because you hurt my munchkin and I also wanted to," Noelle said, her carefree tone reappearing for a fraction of a second before she returned her gaze, landing on the squirming boy in her arms as he desperately tried to escape.
"You won't do it again, right?" She asked dangerously; the boy hearing this knew despite it being phrased like a question there was really only one answer.
"N-No" He barely managed to get out as he looked at Noelle with a false sincerity; it's not that he planned on sneaking out again, but who knows, he may one day have to.
Noelle could tell the boy wasn't being completely honest, but knowing there was nothing she could do about it, or rather he would hate her if she did.
Noelle simply sighed as she let go. "Good," she said, walking away as her hands clenched, her mind filled with thoughts of locking the boy up against his will as she left the room and a thick air of tension.
Noah, watching this, cleared his throat, earning back the boys' attention and clearing the tension slightly. He said, his face returning to one of seriousness as he looked at the boy.
"Now about your earlier question, when it comes to intellectual warfare, make sure to remember your greatest enemy is your best asset, so get in their head and understand them just as much as they do themselves."
— (Flashback End)
'Well, it's obvious he's prideful; he knows he holds the upper ground, and it seems he wants me to learn about him but doesn't want it to be easy. He wants me to work for it, so the best way to gain is to work since I'll gain something too,' Hiruko analyzed as he began thinking through the clues and situation before and after he passed out.
"You're the one who caused the error in the system; maybe it's the creator or at least the controller?" Hiruko speculated after thinking for a few moments, to which the voice laughed even harder.
"Smart, but your guess is a little too presumptuous. I did cause the error, but it was a one-time thing. I did not create it either, nor can I control it; that power belongs to a... higher being." The voice answered back with a slight chuckle.
'Why admit he doesn't hold all the cards?' Hiruko thought, confusion etched on his face, which only served to excite the figure even more.
"C'mon, ask what's on that little brain of yours." The figure said his excitement was palpable as he egged Hiruko on.
Hearing this, Hiruko realized he was treading on an area this figure wanted him to reach. "Why tell me that you could have made me think you hold all the cards and that everything bows to your whim? "Hiruko asked skeptically, still unsure about what this figure wanted.
"Why? Because it's fun watching your little brain run in an attempt to understand me, but you won't ever be able to because my goals reach beyond anything you could even comprehend," the figure said pridefully as it continued to watch Hiruko.
'So that's who this is,' Hiruko said as a lightbulb went off in his head as he mentally slapped himself in irritation at how long it took him to figure it out. It was obvious as to who this person was—the one person who, no matter how hard Hiruko tried to ignore, was undoubtedly connected to his transmigration.
Who was that person?
It was Hiruko, or should he say the Hiruko before himself? 'Because whether I like it or not, this life is now mine to live,' Hiruko thought resolutely.
"So my transmigration helps you achieve your goal, and the rewards are meant to help fuel that, right...Hiruko?" Hiruko said, his eyes locked on the darkness as a sense of complete and utter surety filled his voice.
"Hah hah, so you guessed," the figure said as it stepped out of the darkness into Hiruko's view. The figure now revealed looked just like Hiruko, except its figure instead of being bathed in a bright yellow light like Hiruko was, was instead bathed in a pitch-black light.
"Of course even an idiot could; there are many arrogant assholes in the ninja world, but the Kumo tribe? Munch, munch? Common, who else but a leech would be handing those out like candy? Plus, I'm in your body; it makes sense I'd guess you first. But what I do wonder is, what is your goal? Why put me in your body? How? And most of all, why tell me all this?"
"Oh, well, two of those I can't answer since I wasn't the one who put you in my body, nor did I reincarnate you. I am simply a bystander that's making the most of his one chance at stardom. As for my goal, it is to make you like me, a monster, maybe... like the ones from your home world.
Hiruko, hearing this, was noticeably taken aback, but soon the surprise was overtaken by anger. "I'll never become like them, and you can't make me."
"Haha, but you have no choice. You want to live, don't you, for your little buddies?" he said with a smirk.
"I do but not like that," Hiruko shot back.
"Maybe, but now you know of my existence; you know I have a certain amount of control, that you're in my body, and most of all that I'm still kicking. I mean, who's to say what else being in my body might cause, how it might affect you? How do you know that right now you're not just traveling down the path of a beast?"
Hiruko, hearing this, clenched his teeth as his fists tightened dangerously. All he wanted to do was punch him, but before he could even get the chance to try, Hiruko got close, grabbing each of Hiruko's balled-up fists with unnatural strength, much to Hiruko's surprise, leaning in close until there was only an inch of space between them. He smiled as he whispered.
"Make sure to keep looking over your shoulder because you never know when a certain person may be there, waiting to cause havoc haha." Hiruko laughed as our Hiruko felt his vision go dark, his consciousness drifting back into the void.