“All right, we’ll talk about it after this stupid tournament. For now, push it from your mind.”
Iruka pursed his lips but gave a reluctant nod. “Yeah. Okay.” He looked out beyond them. “You take the left. I’ll take the right.”
“Deal.” Aimee gave him a reassuring pat on the shoulder before they both took off after Taiga, moving swiftly through the night.
And as they sprinted across the shifting sands, the quiet of the night was broken only by the sound of their steady footfalls.
Their first encounter came swiftly. A team from Kaze Haven, three shinobi moving through the shadows, ambushed them from behind a large outcropping of rock. Taiga expertly drew their attention, being a big, loud idiot, and they went straight for him.
But he was ready. With a wide grin plastered across his face, he dove headfirst into the fight, dodging a barrage of kunai and countering with a powerful strike that knocked one of the shinobi flat on hisback. Aimee and Iruka flanked the others, quickly disarming them and securing their placards.
Taiga held the discs aloft. “Three down!”
“Don’t get cocky,” Aimee warned, though she couldn’t help the small smile tugging at her lips.
The second encounter proved to be more challenging. A team from Ten Haven had spotted them first, launching a coordinated attack with elemental blasts that forced them to dive for cover. Aimee and Iruka quickly regrouped, circling around to catch the attackers off guard while Taiga charged straight at them.
“Five in total!” Taiga cheered. “We’re killing it!”
Aimee laughed, the tightness in her shoulders easing as they moved further through the terrain. The night was quiet, and Renji felt like a distant memory. He had to be far behind them by now if he even bothered to leave the cave at all.
“Yeah, we’re doing all right.” For the first time that night, she allowed herself to relax.
Then, cutting through the stillness, a distant scream echoed across the desert, raw and full of fear.
“That didn’t sound like a battle scream.” Taiga gripped his kunai tighter. His eyes darted to Aimee. “It sounded more like...like what happened at the canyon.”
Aimee ground her teeth, the memory of the giant snake flashing through her mind.
“Do you think the beast is back?” he asked.
“I don’t know.” She didn’t want her team anywhere near that monster again. “But if it is, we should avoid it.”
Taiga shook his head. “No. If someone’s in trouble like that, we have to help.”
“We only survived the last encounter by luck,” Iruka interjected. “Who knows why it didn’t attack us.”
“It doesn’t matter.” Taiga stomped his foot. “It’s the right thing to do. I’ll go alone if I have to.”
Pulling down her sashira, Aimee ran a hand through her hair. There was no reasoning with him when he got like this. “Fine.”
“Aimee—” Iruka began, but then he stopped, considering Taiga’s words. “Fine. You’re right, Taiga. Somebody’s got to do the right thing around here.”
“Okayyy.” Aimee raised her eyebrows, surprised by his change of heart. “Glad we’re all on the same page.”
She lifted her fist. “But we go in together. Eyes open. Blades at the ready.”
Taiga immediately raised his fist to meet hers. “Eyes open.”
“Blades at the ready,” Iruka echoed, pressing his fist against theirs.
United, they turned and began running.
As they approached the source of the scream, a wave of nausea washed over Aimee. The desert sand was littered with grotesque remains, limbs scattered like broken branches, and large patches of crimson soaking the earth. The coppery stench of blood filled the air, thick and suffocating.
At the center of the carnage stood Renji, his jaw hanging at an unnatural angle as he worked it back into place with a sickening crack. His eyes gleamed with dark, unsettling hunger, and as he extended an abnormally long, forked tongue, he licked the blood from his face and fingers, savoring every drop.
“Delicious,” he moaned. “I feel so much better now.”
