. . "Shrouded In Darkness"@en . . . "A clear moon shined bright on buildings built on shifting sands. Sands of time progressing forever forward. The village remained hush in a majestic unheard song. As if Sunagakure itself mourned in her absence. Words rode among the winds in Suna, transforming news into wildfire. Birds of prey cawed her name, an eternal dance for their elegant lady. Insects peacefully awaiting her return. Somewhere nearby she lied in a bed. Her eyes sealed shut as her bodied rejuvenated. The Kazekage's Curse. Kazekage's died young. Point blank. No one could trace the curses point of origin. But it happened. Frequently. Now, Samiya fought for her life in a distant, heavily guarded and sealed room. Some speculated an ancient civilization that had fallen in ancient times after its leader was assassinated. And until avenged, Sunagakure's leaders would befall his fate. But that became nothing more than a tale mothers told restless children. Stars sparkled bright over his office, a shooting dot streaking across obsidian pallets. He stood, adorned in Kazekage attire, in utter silence. His office's light had been off for a few hours, choosing to use the moons immense light to illuminate his office. He loved nights like this. It reminded him of the nights his father crafted in his mind during his dreams. But his robe's silk composure felt very real, or would have felt. His eyes were locked on the Moon. His Kazekage hat covered his face completely. A boy with a folded umbrella in his hand. Behind him, a woman stood proud. White hair that fell past her shoulder and empty eyes. Eyes of soullessness. Devoid of all life and emotions. But to him, she lived. She was just The Quiet Type. Akagi closed his eyes for a second before taking a deep breath. \"I can not believe this happened. Of all people, and of all times.\" He locked eyes with the radiating moon once more. Silver energy circulating around him. \"I have no idea,\" Akagi answered his inanimate sibling. To him, he felt her alive. Living and thriving inside. But in truth it was a different piece of himself. Like his other silver family members. She was just shy. \"But they say her condition is controllable. We just have to wait it out. The village has taken kindly to my approval as Provisional Kazekage. Being my parents child does come with some privileges. Royal blood once ran through my body. And although they do not know me, they trust in my skills in protecting this village.\" He sighed. \"She's probably waiting for me at home..But I have urgent business to attend to.\" Akagi looked out his window to empty streets. Caravans covered, awaiting for shops to reopen. Their masters sleeping with their families. A peaceful, silent night. Only street animals roamed in utter silence. He stood their, awaiting for his guest to arrive. Usually business was to be conducted during the day. But this...This was personal. It was there in the darkness of the night that Hibiki walked through the streets that the moon gazed down on, walking alone, hidden beneath a sheath of another guise, make up, a change of visage through refined shape changing. Her hair a plain and simple brown, braided into many braided dreads, her expression covered with the feint glimmer of scarred tissue, an addition to her fake, a looming grin breaking the seamless silence of the Sand Village. Glinting eyes of orange, burning in the shadows, she made her way towards the very Kazekage she wanted to see, well, temporary Kazekage. Her robes that concealed her billowing lightly, opening the door of the palace, knowing she was to be met here. Making her way through each and every hall of the Kazekage's 'palace'. Feet pitter pattering across stone floors, shuffling the dust around. It was times like this that Hibiki felt more at peace during the night, even despite this grim time where Samiya, friend struck by sickness, plans had been halted, and many things were laying in the flux of the wait for her health's return. Something that she had been working on in her meantime, time was of essence, and despite how patient she was, Hibiki was never a woman that liked to be kept waiting on her desires. Fingertips brushed against the door that lead to Akagi's chambers, the warm wood parting, just a touch, as she entered, she pulled the hood that covered her visage, revealing her solemn expression. \"It's been awhile since we talked Akagi-kun...\" voice gliding in the empty air, waiting for his reply, thoughts whirring like a clockwerk. Akagi kept his attention locked forward. As if a demon caught his attention. But with her entrance, Rat gazed her body. Head to toe, noting every little detail. Sending information through a red string connected to his finger. Their vision shared, a trait he only established with Rat due to her gift of blood. Akagi and Samiya shared a generation, but Akagi was trained and kept by his parents. Their combination of skills turning him into an absolute puppet master. Controlling Mind, Body and Soul. But he lacked their blood. His blood had been splattered against the walls of his home. Ruthlessly murdered. Till this day, his parents murderer walked free. Probably spending time with their children. But Akagi, strangely lacked care. He loved his parents as his. And if he saw his biological parents, they would receive first-name treatment. \"It has, although I find it sad that we only contact one another under such circumstances, Hibiki-sama.\" Akagi's dark voice echoed all around. But his voice held a certain elegance. A adolescent light tint of innocence. He spoke with a proper tongue, opposing his father's rough demeanor. \"I am sure you have things to attend to, as do I. I hope you do not mind my sister joining the meaning. But do not worry, she doesn't talk much.\" Rat stared at Hibiki with her empty, lifeless face. A face without existence. Without love or emotions. Those who knew him, understood the truth. The truth of his siblings. \"We have no idea what is wrong with her...\" Akagi's voice cracked. A split second break. \"I, myself, was on a mission when she fell ill. When I returned, they alerted me of her condition, and the Elders decision for me to hold her seat.\" Akagi dipped his hat, looking through empty streets. His lively village in eternal slumber. He could hear its breathes coming in and leaving. His heart beating around a lifeless doll. \"I am sure word as reached various villages by now.\" Hibiki crossed her arms, admiring the workmanship of Akagi's puppetry, analyzing ever single piece of it the moment it had locked eyes with her, knowing how the gears turned, how the life and essence all rang together. A prodigy in her arts, analyzing art was her life. Breaking her thoughts, she listened to Akagi's still words, sighing slightly knowing that the situation would get worse before it got better. \"And this concerns me just as you, my friend...\" drawing close, she went over to his other side and looked to him from the corner of her eye, no aggressive motion, not even threat in her demeanor, she was safe here in the Sand and ready to react even at this moment with a close ally. \"I have talked with the elders about getting medical treatment for her, but they say she's not reacting to outside efforts, I've taken matters into my own hands with further research on something to get her out of her stupor.\" eyes traveling with Akagi's, searching over the place she had grown to call a piece of her home. A small piece, a fraction of the mighty Wind that claimed the dunes and mountains. Lips pursed in thought, \"I fear that this is foul play...\" drenched with dire grim, the reality of the situation was all too possible. \"I-I suspected as much. Samiya-san would never fall to something so pathetic as a sickness. We were both raised better than that. And even so, she would have sought medical help if infected. I know her...\" His voice died out. He stood in silence. Thoughts racing around his inner psyche. But his head remained empty. A whisper pushed sands into a mini-storm. A natural phenomenon. Tonight had been warm compared to other dark hours in the desert. A good omen. A thought struck his mind. A piece of paper left in Samiya's headquarters. Now, only speculations and allegations emerged. To speak an absolute so early would prove foolish. \"Hibiki-sama,\" Akagi froze. Wen his elders informed him of Samiya's condition, they explained she lied in a comatose state. Unresponsive to almost any and all outside influences. Sunagakure's strongest Genjutsu users, straight from his fathers organization lacked a connection. Only someone of exceptional skill could perform such a feat. Even entering and leaving Sunagakure unnoticed, while getting close to Samiya proved nearly impossible. But someone achieved it. And in a moment of triumph and boasting. He left a memento. \"Where our shinobi discovered Samiya's unconscious body, they found a note. The Elder's seemed to hold a shock to what's written on it, but none wishes to pursue such a possibility in fear of international conflict with Konoha. Well I can not sit idly by and wait for another attack. So I called you in to ask for some information containing the name on the note. Hibiki-sama, who is Yami Nara.\" Akagi's eyes remained close. With his name spoken, he sighed, repressing anger. Attacking his village was attacking him. Hibiki's eyes narrowed as she heard the word, lost in thought, brain stewing over the title. Immediately ringing a bell, her teeth grating for a brief second. A title of a noble clan, the likes of the Hidden Leaf. She mulled the name over in her head, over the course of her stay in Konohagakure, in the ambassadorial visits she had never heard the name. But one thing was clear, the current Hokage was a Nara, and if they were somehow connected, then there was play at hands. \"This could be a trap, to get Sunagakure to waste resources on the Leaf, a redirection...\" the plays of politics and sabotage were all too common, and many villages were known for their clever means of misdirection. Hibiki had no desire to jump to conclusions just yet. \"I will weigh all odds, if this is not trickery... then I trust you know the moves to make, I suggest approaching this cautiously, Akagi. The world is rife with lies and deception.\" Crossing her arms tight, the name kept screaming in her head, Yami Nara... The fate of Sunagakure was tied with her honor, apart of her creed. And it would require tending so long as she lived, and she would ensure that no part of her territories fall, not after they had risen so far. \"I can not say the name is familiar, but I will make it so that the name be recognized. If the name is real, it needs to be checked and verified.\" Akagi sat on his desk after taking a heavy breath. A name not even Hibiki-sama can recall. His eyes narrowed, lacking a need for moisture. Wooden flesh gracefully made to mimic skin. Akagi became what he wished. And erased all of humanities greatest weaknesses. A true master of his art unable to be mimicked. Rat kept her eyes locked onto Hibiki, but remained wary of all that surrounded her. Empty eyes usually blood red in the heat of battle. But she is right. This could just as easily be a morons effort in starting an international conflict. Attacking Kazekage-sama while leaving a Leaf shinobi's name would result in me declaring it a move against Konoha. And besides, who would leave their own name at a crime scene. No. Before finding this guy, we have to decide who, or what, Yami is. \"Hibiki-sama, I will send someone to request information regarding this, Yami Nara, from the Hokage. We should be able to decide whether this man is a phony or the real deal. Also, if the Hokage is over protective of such sensitive information, I will automatically assume him to be an accomplice until proven otherwise.\" His voice remained monotone. In the entirety of their meeting, Akagi had yet to look back at Hibiki. Keeping his eyes locked onto Sunagakure. \"Any information I receive, will become yours. And vice versa, I hope. The other elders refuse to follow through with such an investigation. They believe her sickness resembles a natural cause to much to risk a potential conflict. But I know Samiya-san. She was too careful. Too nice to let her body fall to such a level. So, you are my only hand in such a case.\""@en . "A clear moon shined bright on buildings built on shifting sands. Sands of time progressing forever forward. The village remained hush in a majestic unheard song. As if Sunagakure itself mourned in her absence. Words rode among the winds in Suna, transforming news into wildfire. Birds of prey cawed her name, an eternal dance for their elegant lady. Insects peacefully awaiting her return. Somewhere nearby she lied in a bed. Her eyes sealed shut as her bodied rejuvenated. The Kazekage's Curse. Kazekage's died young. Point blank. No one could trace the curses point of origin. But it happened. Frequently. Now, Samiya fought for her life in a distant, heavily guarded and sealed room. Some speculated an ancient civilization that had fallen in ancient times after its leader was assassinated. And u"@en . .