the book opens

[Tou-kun]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=cellspacing,0px,true][atrb=cellpadding,0px,true] He could feel himself choking. He could feel the sensation in his toes fading and cold beginning to pinch at them. This was death. This was dying. This was what all those years of training were amounting to. Here and now, on this field of battle, he'd brought shame upon all the things of import to him. On clan; on village. Shame was raining down on them all. His vision began to blur, and darkness began to swarm in from the sides of his eyes. His head began to swim. And the last thing he could see was the black of the man's cloak, the grass-like insignia adorning the back of it and his striped hat. The evil of his grin as he turned. Then darkness. 怨霊選集: 先棒を粉砕 (Onryō Anthology: Shatter the Cat's Paw) "The mission will take us into Momodani," she began, her hands placed firmly atop her wide hips. The jinchūriki of the Nibi no Nekomata stood before the brown-haired youth as the leader of his platoon into the Peach Valley. Clearing her throat, she continued: "We have one objective and it regards the acquisition of a certain criminal who allegedly hatched a plot to assassinate the lord of Momodani. We are to bring him to the village for trial." "Sounds like a lot of effort for us to have to go through," Ittō began, taking in a deep breath as he stood from his kneeled position. "Why would Kumogakure be so interested in this criminal as to extradite him here and not allow Momodani to deal with it themselves?" "Dunno, Ittō-kun," she dismissed his question, crossing her arms under her gargantuan breasts as her blue hues drifted lazily over to the gates of the village and the mountain pass that would bring them into the valleys of Kaminari no Kuni. "But it is not our place to question the words of the Daimyō and the words he would impart on us through his chosen Raikage, is it?" "Hai, Teruko-sama." Ittō nodded as he pushed his question down into the depths of his belly knowing it had no place being asked. He followed her as she walked out the gates down into the depths of the world below. (TO BE CONTINUED) TAG: NONE 959 WORDS © MOO OF OTE