Dead or Alive Fiction: Kasumi - The Mist Catchers (1 Viewer)
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TheCrimsonRisk
Ryonani Teamster
- Joined
- Jun 10, 2010
Mirimudo's Journal - Operation: Mist Catcher, Day 42
A trip out to the woods would be good for me. Ishaya could not have picked a more remote area to hide away our prize and it made for a change of pace from the dank, dark dungeon we had arranged. There was no elegant way to put it: after all the torture, degradation and humiliation, the cave stunk. It was a wretched, evil place and it had been our home for the last forty days. I had to get out.
Not only was the area devoid of civilization, there was nary a living creature in sight. I found the idea of Ishaya personally hunting down and slaughtering every creature to ensure our privacy amusing in a morbid way. I'd certainly witnessed her commit some heinous acts in our brief time together. Enjoyed them even.
Serendipitously, I came across a stray deer. Indigenous to this area or...? I followed it, careful not to cause alarm. I fantasized wrestling it down and snapping its neck with my bare hands, skinning it and triumphantly returning with a carcass to feast on with Ishaya and Kasumi. A few scraps for the prisoner at least. Before I could make my move, I sensed the presence of another. Not Ishaya. A man.
By the time I moved to the source of the disturbance, he was long gone. He'd covered his tracks well and though I could, it would be a waste of time to follow him. I glanced down into the dirt and leaves and saw that he'd already accomplished his mission. A message for me. The foliage was aligned into symbols only readable by experienced trackers like myself. Three words, one question:
Where is she?
Three words that rattled me more than any of the runaway kunoichi's desperate sentiment. "Where is she?" There was no mistaking that it was from the Mugen Tenshin. I violently scattered the leaves, erasing any traces of the message. Why would they ask this? They had to know, but...
Ishaya. She had told me that this...all of this was part of the mission. And I chose to believe her. Even when it was obvious that what we were doing couldn't possibly be of any interest to the clan, I followed. I wanted to. Every punishment, every perversion...I did so willingly. I sat in the woods for some time, dealing with this blunt reminder of the truth. They wanted her back. It was my job.
*****
The day before, we'd left Kasumi in another new position. Using natural materials and rope, Ishaya had devised a bondage apparatus designed for both security and discomfort. A dowel-like wooden stick was placed behind her knees and her legs were bent back around it. We hung the stick from the ceiling, causing Kasumi to rest upside down. Ishaya's instructions were to bind her arms together so the elbows almost touched, putting extraordinary strain on her shoulders. I then tied the wrists to the bar so that her back would bend as well. The finishing touch on the bondage was a filthy rag that Ishaya stuffed into Kasumi's mouth. Ishaya took great pleasure in hearing her scream, but the muffled sobbing was certainly refreshing.
Kasumi's eyes locked onto me as soon as I entered the room. I walked around, to see if she would avert her gaze but she didn't. Scattered around the room were various tools and devices that we'd used in our interrogations. I picked up the quarterstaff, a weapon we usually broke out when transitioning between cruelties. Still she stared, though I could hear her heartbeat pick up. I moved over to a dull rod that we had heated to extreme temperatures and placed against her skin. Her chest was pulsating. Faster. Faster.
It wasn't until I cracked my knuckles loudly and stomped over to her, fully erect, that she could no longer stand to look at me. I placed my hands at her sides, clumsily caressing the magnificent creature before me. My prominent bulge hovered in front of her face almost touching it. One of the few lines we hadn't crossed yet. I held her.
After some time, I let go and crouched down so we were face to face. So much anguish and I'd hardly laid a finger on her. My hand covered her eyes. Don't look at me.
Kasumi. Ishaya. Ayane. The Mugen Tenshin.
"Tomorrow". It was all I could think to say. "Tomorrow."
A trip out to the woods would be good for me. Ishaya could not have picked a more remote area to hide away our prize and it made for a change of pace from the dank, dark dungeon we had arranged. There was no elegant way to put it: after all the torture, degradation and humiliation, the cave stunk. It was a wretched, evil place and it had been our home for the last forty days. I had to get out.
Not only was the area devoid of civilization, there was nary a living creature in sight. I found the idea of Ishaya personally hunting down and slaughtering every creature to ensure our privacy amusing in a morbid way. I'd certainly witnessed her commit some heinous acts in our brief time together. Enjoyed them even.
Serendipitously, I came across a stray deer. Indigenous to this area or...? I followed it, careful not to cause alarm. I fantasized wrestling it down and snapping its neck with my bare hands, skinning it and triumphantly returning with a carcass to feast on with Ishaya and Kasumi. A few scraps for the prisoner at least. Before I could make my move, I sensed the presence of another. Not Ishaya. A man.
By the time I moved to the source of the disturbance, he was long gone. He'd covered his tracks well and though I could, it would be a waste of time to follow him. I glanced down into the dirt and leaves and saw that he'd already accomplished his mission. A message for me. The foliage was aligned into symbols only readable by experienced trackers like myself. Three words, one question:
Where is she?
Three words that rattled me more than any of the runaway kunoichi's desperate sentiment. "Where is she?" There was no mistaking that it was from the Mugen Tenshin. I violently scattered the leaves, erasing any traces of the message. Why would they ask this? They had to know, but...
Ishaya. She had told me that this...all of this was part of the mission. And I chose to believe her. Even when it was obvious that what we were doing couldn't possibly be of any interest to the clan, I followed. I wanted to. Every punishment, every perversion...I did so willingly. I sat in the woods for some time, dealing with this blunt reminder of the truth. They wanted her back. It was my job.
*****
The day before, we'd left Kasumi in another new position. Using natural materials and rope, Ishaya had devised a bondage apparatus designed for both security and discomfort. A dowel-like wooden stick was placed behind her knees and her legs were bent back around it. We hung the stick from the ceiling, causing Kasumi to rest upside down. Ishaya's instructions were to bind her arms together so the elbows almost touched, putting extraordinary strain on her shoulders. I then tied the wrists to the bar so that her back would bend as well. The finishing touch on the bondage was a filthy rag that Ishaya stuffed into Kasumi's mouth. Ishaya took great pleasure in hearing her scream, but the muffled sobbing was certainly refreshing.
Kasumi's eyes locked onto me as soon as I entered the room. I walked around, to see if she would avert her gaze but she didn't. Scattered around the room were various tools and devices that we'd used in our interrogations. I picked up the quarterstaff, a weapon we usually broke out when transitioning between cruelties. Still she stared, though I could hear her heartbeat pick up. I moved over to a dull rod that we had heated to extreme temperatures and placed against her skin. Her chest was pulsating. Faster. Faster.
It wasn't until I cracked my knuckles loudly and stomped over to her, fully erect, that she could no longer stand to look at me. I placed my hands at her sides, clumsily caressing the magnificent creature before me. My prominent bulge hovered in front of her face almost touching it. One of the few lines we hadn't crossed yet. I held her.
After some time, I let go and crouched down so we were face to face. So much anguish and I'd hardly laid a finger on her. My hand covered her eyes. Don't look at me.
Kasumi. Ishaya. Ayane. The Mugen Tenshin.
"Tomorrow". It was all I could think to say. "Tomorrow."
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- Joined
- Sep 24, 2011
Operation Mist Catchers - Day 43. Ishaya's Journal.
I am beginning to notice a discordance of sorts with Mirimudo. Yesterday, he washed Kasumi's clothing. He claimed it smelled and was beginning to become extremely unpleasant. It is true that it may have been somewhat dirty, but I.. I don't know. I sensed an ulterior motive behind it. But what it was, I cannot say. Having no grounds to deny him this given his reasons, I nodded and let him complete his task.
At supper, when we had finished, and the kunoichi was given what was left, I noticed a larger portion than usual. Again, nothing I can claim is an issue, but... I am uneasy. About something. And I don't know what.
This whole situation has been one big roller coaster of the mind. I have felt more in the last 43 days than I have in the last 25 years. I blame the ninja we captured. Is it really her fault, or is she just an easy scapegoat? I firmly believe it is her doing. It was her that caused me the greatest joy, knowing I had potentially the most skilled ninja in the land wrapped up in various submission holds, making her mewl like a kitten. It was her that drew anger out of me all those days ago with her seemingly indomitable will, that we did eventually shatter. It was her that now draws distrust from me. Distrust of my own. Of my own!
No. I must believe Mirimudo is acting in good faith. So it was that I paid her a visit again, sharply unhooking the chain that held her aloft and letting her drop to the floor roughly.
She landed on her feet, but her legs buckled and collapsed. Before she could even protest, I had her hair in my hand, yanking her head back so he would look me in the face. Into my eyes. Verbal and spiritual abuse could be every bit as good as physical.
"Look at you," I sneered at her. "This is who everyone revered as the most skilled ninja? The would-be leader of the Mugen Tenshin? You are no leader. You're a disgrace. You have fallen to me."
I let her go and began to slowly walk around her. She hung her head, not trying to fight me. Smart. I continued.
"For 43 days, you've been mine to do with what I please. 43 days that you have been unable to be the heroine. To be the gleaming paragon of virtue. I took that from you, ninja. My companion took that from you."
Now I got close to her, dropping my voice to a whisper.
"The Mugen Tenshin... took that from you. And that must just eat at you."
I resumed my pacing, bringing my voice back up.
"It did not have to be this way, of course. You could simply have come back. You were given an extremely rare chance. I believe it may be the only one of its kind. Traitors to the Mugen Tenshin are usually murdered, gruesomely. We extended you the invitation to return. You did not. This has all been brought upon yourself. You have been bested, ninja... by myself. I will be the next leader of the Mugen Tenshin after my capture of you becomes known. And you.... we will make you wish we had killed you."
She stayed on her knees, head hanging. I left her on the floor, bound. She was going nowhere in such a state anyway.
I am beginning to notice a discordance of sorts with Mirimudo. Yesterday, he washed Kasumi's clothing. He claimed it smelled and was beginning to become extremely unpleasant. It is true that it may have been somewhat dirty, but I.. I don't know. I sensed an ulterior motive behind it. But what it was, I cannot say. Having no grounds to deny him this given his reasons, I nodded and let him complete his task.
At supper, when we had finished, and the kunoichi was given what was left, I noticed a larger portion than usual. Again, nothing I can claim is an issue, but... I am uneasy. About something. And I don't know what.
This whole situation has been one big roller coaster of the mind. I have felt more in the last 43 days than I have in the last 25 years. I blame the ninja we captured. Is it really her fault, or is she just an easy scapegoat? I firmly believe it is her doing. It was her that caused me the greatest joy, knowing I had potentially the most skilled ninja in the land wrapped up in various submission holds, making her mewl like a kitten. It was her that drew anger out of me all those days ago with her seemingly indomitable will, that we did eventually shatter. It was her that now draws distrust from me. Distrust of my own. Of my own!
No. I must believe Mirimudo is acting in good faith. So it was that I paid her a visit again, sharply unhooking the chain that held her aloft and letting her drop to the floor roughly.
She landed on her feet, but her legs buckled and collapsed. Before she could even protest, I had her hair in my hand, yanking her head back so he would look me in the face. Into my eyes. Verbal and spiritual abuse could be every bit as good as physical.
"Look at you," I sneered at her. "This is who everyone revered as the most skilled ninja? The would-be leader of the Mugen Tenshin? You are no leader. You're a disgrace. You have fallen to me."
I let her go and began to slowly walk around her. She hung her head, not trying to fight me. Smart. I continued.
"For 43 days, you've been mine to do with what I please. 43 days that you have been unable to be the heroine. To be the gleaming paragon of virtue. I took that from you, ninja. My companion took that from you."
Now I got close to her, dropping my voice to a whisper.
"The Mugen Tenshin... took that from you. And that must just eat at you."
I resumed my pacing, bringing my voice back up.
"It did not have to be this way, of course. You could simply have come back. You were given an extremely rare chance. I believe it may be the only one of its kind. Traitors to the Mugen Tenshin are usually murdered, gruesomely. We extended you the invitation to return. You did not. This has all been brought upon yourself. You have been bested, ninja... by myself. I will be the next leader of the Mugen Tenshin after my capture of you becomes known. And you.... we will make you wish we had killed you."
She stayed on her knees, head hanging. I left her on the floor, bound. She was going nowhere in such a state anyway.
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TheCrimsonRisk
Ryonani Teamster
- Joined
- Jun 10, 2010
Mirimudo's Journal - Day 44
"Where are you taking me?"
*****
If you're reading this, know that I never meant to defy the clan. All I did, all I am is Mugen Tenshin. Catching the runaway kunoichi was the greatest achievement of my life. Keeping her, my biggest regret.
They didn't warn me, but then again, how could they know? How could any of them know the danger in holding onto that which was never meant to be contained? An infectious spirit...more dangerous than any poison our assassins could concoct. Incurable.
Breaking her should have been child's play. Every time Ishaya and I made that ponderous walk to the dungeon, we were confident that today would be the day that she couldn't take anymore. We could make her cry, scream, beg, condemn her loved ones, embrace her enemies...anything we wanted. We had won. But Ishaya hadn't seen the private moments that Kasumi and I shared. Moments that I dared to claim for my own selfish and savage impulses.
It had been good. I relished having an angel with which to do whatever I pleased. Kasumi. After our interrogations, I wanted to bury my head in your aching breasts. Lick your wounds. Lie to you. I could do it whenever I wanted to. But I would hear you calling me in the middle of the night, a physical impossibility after torture sessions that had left you screaming until your voice was hoarse. I contemplated sleeping in the dungeon. Conversations with Ishaya are completely lost to me, drowned out by the thought of your whispered moans. I'm certain she could tell.
Kasumi. I kneel, watching you sleep. For the first time since our paths crossed, you seem at peace. I want to rip your heart out. Tears form at the corners of my eyes. The cold, black night forces a shiver from both of us. I don't dare start a fire for fear that we are discovered. I consider moving behind you, draping my arms over you, but think better of it. As it is, I can only draw my face close to yours, pulling at the cloth covering my mouth. My breath will have to suffice for warmth.
We will move soon. Twelve hours I estimate we've been traveling, though time blurs. Where we are going I can't say. I won't. I had allowed the various possibilities to battle each other as I lay awake last night and I cannot say I am following through with the utmost conviction.
Would it be best to bring her back to her allies? After what she'd gone through, she may never trust anyone again. They couldn't understand what had happened to her. What we'd put her through. That same environment that embraced her might now be absolutely repulsive. We have made a mockery of kindness and hospitality.
What of "Mist Catcher"? I laugh quietly to myself. A sham. I followed orders, never questioning the purpose of hunting Kasumi. Honor? Politics? Revenge? Perhaps I should thank Ishaya for intervening when she did. Somewhere along the way, I found my own reasons to carry on.
Just let her go free. One swipe of the blade and her bonds would be no more. She was a survivor. Anyone could see that. She could go her way and I could go mine. That would be so simple. I could wash my hands of the whole affair. Start anew.
They won't find us. Even if they do, I've...no man can judge me. Not until they've experienced the unbridled satisfaction of having you, Kasumi.
I stopped writing to move stray hairs out of your face, prompting you to wake up and whisper. It's faint at first. I block out everything else to listen.
"Where are you taking me?"
The time for sleep is over. Bundling you up as snugly as I can, I sling you over my shoulder and rise. It only takes a moment for me to scan the area and assess that we are in no immediate danger. Moving swiftly, but carefully, I orient myself using an alignment of trees and return to the treacherous path.
"Where are you taking me?"
*****
If you're reading this, know that I never meant to defy the clan. All I did, all I am is Mugen Tenshin. Catching the runaway kunoichi was the greatest achievement of my life. Keeping her, my biggest regret.
They didn't warn me, but then again, how could they know? How could any of them know the danger in holding onto that which was never meant to be contained? An infectious spirit...more dangerous than any poison our assassins could concoct. Incurable.
Breaking her should have been child's play. Every time Ishaya and I made that ponderous walk to the dungeon, we were confident that today would be the day that she couldn't take anymore. We could make her cry, scream, beg, condemn her loved ones, embrace her enemies...anything we wanted. We had won. But Ishaya hadn't seen the private moments that Kasumi and I shared. Moments that I dared to claim for my own selfish and savage impulses.
It had been good. I relished having an angel with which to do whatever I pleased. Kasumi. After our interrogations, I wanted to bury my head in your aching breasts. Lick your wounds. Lie to you. I could do it whenever I wanted to. But I would hear you calling me in the middle of the night, a physical impossibility after torture sessions that had left you screaming until your voice was hoarse. I contemplated sleeping in the dungeon. Conversations with Ishaya are completely lost to me, drowned out by the thought of your whispered moans. I'm certain she could tell.
Kasumi. I kneel, watching you sleep. For the first time since our paths crossed, you seem at peace. I want to rip your heart out. Tears form at the corners of my eyes. The cold, black night forces a shiver from both of us. I don't dare start a fire for fear that we are discovered. I consider moving behind you, draping my arms over you, but think better of it. As it is, I can only draw my face close to yours, pulling at the cloth covering my mouth. My breath will have to suffice for warmth.
We will move soon. Twelve hours I estimate we've been traveling, though time blurs. Where we are going I can't say. I won't. I had allowed the various possibilities to battle each other as I lay awake last night and I cannot say I am following through with the utmost conviction.
Would it be best to bring her back to her allies? After what she'd gone through, she may never trust anyone again. They couldn't understand what had happened to her. What we'd put her through. That same environment that embraced her might now be absolutely repulsive. We have made a mockery of kindness and hospitality.
What of "Mist Catcher"? I laugh quietly to myself. A sham. I followed orders, never questioning the purpose of hunting Kasumi. Honor? Politics? Revenge? Perhaps I should thank Ishaya for intervening when she did. Somewhere along the way, I found my own reasons to carry on.
Just let her go free. One swipe of the blade and her bonds would be no more. She was a survivor. Anyone could see that. She could go her way and I could go mine. That would be so simple. I could wash my hands of the whole affair. Start anew.
They won't find us. Even if they do, I've...no man can judge me. Not until they've experienced the unbridled satisfaction of having you, Kasumi.
I stopped writing to move stray hairs out of your face, prompting you to wake up and whisper. It's faint at first. I block out everything else to listen.
"Where are you taking me?"
The time for sleep is over. Bundling you up as snugly as I can, I sling you over my shoulder and rise. It only takes a moment for me to scan the area and assess that we are in no immediate danger. Moving swiftly, but carefully, I orient myself using an alignment of trees and return to the treacherous path.
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- Joined
- Sep 24, 2011
Operation Mist Catchers - Ishaya's log. Day 44.
Intuition.
I have mastered the art of relying on this.
It has seen me through tough situations.
I had a hunch.
Just an inkling something was amiss.
That hunch grew into suspicion.
The suspicion grew into doubt.
What brought me there?
Intuition.
The way he moved.
Miniscule inflections in his voice.
Eyes are the mirrors unto the soul.
In those windows, I saw deception.
Intentional? I cannot say.
Did he intend all this time to take the ninja for his own?
Was it a spur of the moment decision?
Did the kunoichi plant the idea in his mind?
Turn him against me?
Against the Mugen Tenshin?
It mattered not in the end.
I suspected something was going to happen. It could not have been clearer to me. With absolute devotion to my task, I took up an early morning scout's crouch in one of the dense trees - a crouch I'd not used for some time, it felt good - and waited.
The morning hours ticked away into the afternoon. Still I waited.
And then I spotted them.
Intuition.
He carried her. Unbound. Free. Carried her as if she were an equal. As if he were her rescuer.
As if?
He was.
He had taken up her cause, instead of ours.
I saw not an ally and an enemy approaching.
No.
I saw two enemies.
It mattered not how long he had served with me. With the Mugen Tenshin.
He was now a traitor. And as such, he must die. Such is our code.
Kasumi is alive merely because I allow it. Because I will bring her back as a trophy of my accomplishment. Of my ability.
Mirimudo?
He was not for much longer.
A fantastic tracker he was. But while I may have been using scout's tactics, I was no scout he was dealing with.
Often times, when you get to the high level of skills that myself and Mirimudo possess, you forget your roots. What brought you here. You tend to rely on those higher tactics.
You think yourself invincible. You think yourself more skilled than you are.
You forget things. Small things. Easy things.
Things that are your downfall.
It is why I continue to practice the basics. So I do not forget where I came from.
He held the ninja, her head resting comfortably against his chest.
He passed under my perch.
I struck.
In much the same way I had originally caught Kasumi by pouncing on her from a great height, I took Mirimudo as well. Except I did not use a simple elbow this time.
Balancing a kunai in one hand, I soundlessly leapt. I came down with great force on a completely unsuspecting Mirimudo. My kunai aimed straight at the back of his neck, my momentum carrying it through him as the first six inches of the point blossomed out his throat on the other side.
He made no sound. He had no time. The steel's journey through his throat took but a tenth of a second, and even before it had gone through him all the way, he was dead.
Kasumi fell from his arms with a cry of surprise and an "oof" as she hit the ground beside his corpse. She looked at him in shock before looking up... in fear.
"No...!" she managed to get out, before I snap-kicked her in the face, whipping her head back fiercely. It dazed her, long enough for me to pick her up by the hair. I pulled her up to her feet, holding her. She was weak, her legs having a hard time supporting her even with my assistance.
I drew back my nunchaku, and aimed for her stomach. She let out an inhuman howl of pain that drove the wind from her lungs, as she doubled over.
Hooking her neck, I dropped backward, snapping her downwards with a DDT. Her beautiful face impacted a tree root, cutting her again and drawing blood. She was limp at this point. She had absolutely nothing left. Her final hope of salvation lay dead before her, at my hands.
Flattening her out on the ground face down, I put her arms over my legs and squatted on her back. Instead of putting my hands around her chin, though, I hooked my nunchaku around her neck, and pulled tight. She choked and gasped, pawing uselessly at the cord around her throat.
I had every intention to kill her. I bore down hard, twisting the nunchaku.
With the last air I was ready to allow her, I heard strangled words.
"I give... I give myself... hckackhach..." She bagan to fade as the hand symbolically tugging on the cord of my nunchaku dropped to the ground.
Had I... had I heard what I thought I had?
I released the choke hold. She gasped for breath, trying to drink in all the oxygen as if it were a limited resource.
"Repeat those words."
Kasumi nodded.
"I... give myself... to the Mugen... *cough cough*... Mugen.. Tenshin... I... take you as my... my family.. my life..."
I could scarcely believe what I was hearing. She was pledging to become a member again.
This was it. This was the moment.
We had do-
No. Not we. I had done it. There was no longer a "we". I needed to remember this.
I had broken her.
I had dominated her.
I owned her.
She had pledged to become a member again. How can anyone say it was anything else?
I smiled. This was... different. It wasn't a wicked smile. True, it was borne of wicked practices, but... for the first time since I was a child, I smiled a genuine smile. I was... I was pleased with myself.
Why should I not be? I not only had the talent to oust Ayane as the heir to the Mugen Tenshin as I knew I did, but I had her half-sister to boot. I was certain she could be used as leverage in some fashion.
"Very good, Kasumi. I accept you as a member of the Mugen Tenshin clan."
I helped the young ninja to her feet. She had to lean against a tree to stay upright.
I was not finished.
"My peers however, must vote on this."
Kasumi looked startled. "Wh-what? What do-"
Her question was left unasked as I spun around, wheel-kicking her in the face. She collapsed to the ground, unconscious again.
I hoisted her body up, slinging her over my shoulder with some difficulty as if she were a sack of flour. I began the march back to Mugen Tenshin territory.
As for Mirimudo, I left his body in the forest. He would be stripped to the bone by predators before nightfall, and his bones would be torn apart or bleach in the sun.
_______________________
This concludes the diary entry series of The Mist Catchers! Thank you very much for your patience as we hammered out these posts. It was fun to write, but alas, that is it? Does Kasumi get away from Ishaya and the Mugen Tenshin? Is she welcomed back... or is she murdered for treason? I'm afraid you will have to imagine that yourself. ;)
Intuition.
I have mastered the art of relying on this.
It has seen me through tough situations.
I had a hunch.
Just an inkling something was amiss.
That hunch grew into suspicion.
The suspicion grew into doubt.
What brought me there?
Intuition.
The way he moved.
Miniscule inflections in his voice.
Eyes are the mirrors unto the soul.
In those windows, I saw deception.
Intentional? I cannot say.
Did he intend all this time to take the ninja for his own?
Was it a spur of the moment decision?
Did the kunoichi plant the idea in his mind?
Turn him against me?
Against the Mugen Tenshin?
It mattered not in the end.
I suspected something was going to happen. It could not have been clearer to me. With absolute devotion to my task, I took up an early morning scout's crouch in one of the dense trees - a crouch I'd not used for some time, it felt good - and waited.
The morning hours ticked away into the afternoon. Still I waited.
And then I spotted them.
Intuition.
He carried her. Unbound. Free. Carried her as if she were an equal. As if he were her rescuer.
As if?
He was.
He had taken up her cause, instead of ours.
I saw not an ally and an enemy approaching.
No.
I saw two enemies.
It mattered not how long he had served with me. With the Mugen Tenshin.
He was now a traitor. And as such, he must die. Such is our code.
Kasumi is alive merely because I allow it. Because I will bring her back as a trophy of my accomplishment. Of my ability.
Mirimudo?
He was not for much longer.
A fantastic tracker he was. But while I may have been using scout's tactics, I was no scout he was dealing with.
Often times, when you get to the high level of skills that myself and Mirimudo possess, you forget your roots. What brought you here. You tend to rely on those higher tactics.
You think yourself invincible. You think yourself more skilled than you are.
You forget things. Small things. Easy things.
Things that are your downfall.
It is why I continue to practice the basics. So I do not forget where I came from.
He held the ninja, her head resting comfortably against his chest.
He passed under my perch.
I struck.
In much the same way I had originally caught Kasumi by pouncing on her from a great height, I took Mirimudo as well. Except I did not use a simple elbow this time.
Balancing a kunai in one hand, I soundlessly leapt. I came down with great force on a completely unsuspecting Mirimudo. My kunai aimed straight at the back of his neck, my momentum carrying it through him as the first six inches of the point blossomed out his throat on the other side.
He made no sound. He had no time. The steel's journey through his throat took but a tenth of a second, and even before it had gone through him all the way, he was dead.
Kasumi fell from his arms with a cry of surprise and an "oof" as she hit the ground beside his corpse. She looked at him in shock before looking up... in fear.
"No...!" she managed to get out, before I snap-kicked her in the face, whipping her head back fiercely. It dazed her, long enough for me to pick her up by the hair. I pulled her up to her feet, holding her. She was weak, her legs having a hard time supporting her even with my assistance.
I drew back my nunchaku, and aimed for her stomach. She let out an inhuman howl of pain that drove the wind from her lungs, as she doubled over.
Hooking her neck, I dropped backward, snapping her downwards with a DDT. Her beautiful face impacted a tree root, cutting her again and drawing blood. She was limp at this point. She had absolutely nothing left. Her final hope of salvation lay dead before her, at my hands.
Flattening her out on the ground face down, I put her arms over my legs and squatted on her back. Instead of putting my hands around her chin, though, I hooked my nunchaku around her neck, and pulled tight. She choked and gasped, pawing uselessly at the cord around her throat.
I had every intention to kill her. I bore down hard, twisting the nunchaku.
With the last air I was ready to allow her, I heard strangled words.
"I give... I give myself... hckackhach..." She bagan to fade as the hand symbolically tugging on the cord of my nunchaku dropped to the ground.
Had I... had I heard what I thought I had?
I released the choke hold. She gasped for breath, trying to drink in all the oxygen as if it were a limited resource.
"Repeat those words."
Kasumi nodded.
"I... give myself... to the Mugen... *cough cough*... Mugen.. Tenshin... I... take you as my... my family.. my life..."
I could scarcely believe what I was hearing. She was pledging to become a member again.
This was it. This was the moment.
We had do-
No. Not we. I had done it. There was no longer a "we". I needed to remember this.
I had broken her.
I had dominated her.
I owned her.
She had pledged to become a member again. How can anyone say it was anything else?
I smiled. This was... different. It wasn't a wicked smile. True, it was borne of wicked practices, but... for the first time since I was a child, I smiled a genuine smile. I was... I was pleased with myself.
Why should I not be? I not only had the talent to oust Ayane as the heir to the Mugen Tenshin as I knew I did, but I had her half-sister to boot. I was certain she could be used as leverage in some fashion.
"Very good, Kasumi. I accept you as a member of the Mugen Tenshin clan."
I helped the young ninja to her feet. She had to lean against a tree to stay upright.
I was not finished.
"My peers however, must vote on this."
Kasumi looked startled. "Wh-what? What do-"
Her question was left unasked as I spun around, wheel-kicking her in the face. She collapsed to the ground, unconscious again.
I hoisted her body up, slinging her over my shoulder with some difficulty as if she were a sack of flour. I began the march back to Mugen Tenshin territory.
As for Mirimudo, I left his body in the forest. He would be stripped to the bone by predators before nightfall, and his bones would be torn apart or bleach in the sun.
_______________________
This concludes the diary entry series of The Mist Catchers! Thank you very much for your patience as we hammered out these posts. It was fun to write, but alas, that is it? Does Kasumi get away from Ishaya and the Mugen Tenshin? Is she welcomed back... or is she murdered for treason? I'm afraid you will have to imagine that yourself. ;)
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Somepersoncorn
Potential Patron
- Joined
- Oct 30, 2012
Well damn, I can't say I don't feel sorry for Mirimudo. While Kasumi's torture was great I can't help but feel sorry for Mirimudo and his intentions. Well done gentlemen!
Guy2346
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- Joined
- Jul 4, 2013
I am going to have to agree with Someperson on this one! I loved the series! Every entry was perfect, and explained in amazing detail. I felt as if I was there, watching her being mercilessly tortured. I felt every kick, punch, and knockout inflicted on to her. To say the least, Raden, Crimson, your story-telling skills are unparalleled. Second to none.
