*Explosive tags... Damn it... Who... Who is it?!*
Setting Chun down, Touye stood up, her expression grave as she stared into the distant woods.
***
"Who's there!"
Touye stared grimly at the woods. She had set countless traps in the area, yet the intruder had managed to bypass all of them, evading her senses and sneaking in this close. If they hadn't leaked a sliver of killing intent just before attacking, those explosive tags would have done serious damage. Even if she hadn't died, she would have been severely injured.
"Tch, you actually dodged... What a sensitive little kitten... Looks like this thirty thousand ryo won't be easy money after all..."
A ninja wearing a Kirigakure forehead protector emerged as he spoke.
*That uniform... A Kirigakure Jonin!*
Touye tensed. Even with two of them, and even though she was no longer as weak as she once was, facing a Jonin... she didn't rate their chances of winning very high.
"You! Who are you!" Chun finally reacted, glaring angrily at the Jonin. She pulled out a kunai, ready to charge.
"Chun!" Touye grabbed her arm. "Don't be reckless! This one... is not going to be easy!"
The Jonin opposite them wore an underwater rebreather, and his attire was that of a standard Jonin. He didn't seem to be a particularly famous or powerful figure, but regardless of his reputation, he was still a Jonin.
"Heheheh, the Dancer in the Snow, is it? I've heard the stories. A recently risen ninja of unknown affiliation, but very powerful and ruthless. None of her targets have ever survived, earning her the name Dancer in the Snow. They say she uses Ice Release... must be a survivor of the Yuki Clan... Just a little kid, and already so famous..."
The Jonin's voice was distorted by the rebreather, but beneath his calm tone, Touye could sense a lurking danger, a hint of madness.
"You're worth quite a lot now, you know. And you're so young! A bright future ahead of you! But... you know what I love most? It's torturing so-called geniuses like you to death! Hahahaha!"
His tone, which had begun as almost wistful, suddenly twisted into a manic frenzy. The deranged display made both girls' brows furrow tightly.
Touye's face was grim. She watched the crazed Jonin, cautiously lowering her stance. Where he couldn't see, she whispered to the girl beside her. "Chun... he's after me. When I draw him away, you get out of here. I'll find you after I shake him off. Remember, don't leave any tracks. Don't worry, I can find you."
The girl, who had been focused on the Jonin, turned to her in shock. "You... you want me to abandon you and run?"
A wave of fury washed over her. "What do you take me for! I would never leave you behind!"
Touye fell silent. Then, in a cold tone the girl had never heard before, she said, "Are you trying to get me killed... you useless thing..."
The girl's heart trembled. *I know... I know she's saying it on purpose, to force me to run, but...* the pain in her heart was real, raw, and bleeding.
"A mere genin like you would only hold me back. Do you think I can escape a Jonin with someone to carry? You're useless. If it wasn't for your incompetence, I wouldn't be hunted like a stray dog..."
"Enough!" The girl crouched down, clutching her head. "I get it... Don't... say any more... I'll go..."
She looked up, her eyes pleading with Touye. "Sister... you'll survive! You will!" It was less a prayer and more of a sob. The girl knew as well as anyone that for Touye to face a Jonin alone, the chances of survival...
She looked up at the girl, who remained silent. After what felt like an eternity, Touye looked back at her and offered a smile as beautiful as a lotus flower, shimmering in the morning sun. "Of course!"
The girl's tears turned to a smile. She hugged Touye one last time, wiped her eyes, and then ran without looking back.
Touye's smile faded the moment the girl was gone, replaced by an expression so cold it could freeze a man's soul.
"Hehehe... what a magnificent expression... So, done with your goodbyes?" the Jonin sneered, slowly advancing. "You've made a promise. How touching... Did you know? I have another hobby. I love to shatter people's promises and vows. Hehehe... I wonder what expression your little friend will make when you don't show up, or when she finds your corpse... Just thinking about it gets me so excited!"
Touye stared at him coldly. "...Pervert."
The Jonin didn't deny it, just chuckled as he continued his slow approach.
The girl took a small hop backward. With a flick of her right hand, an ice blade about 1.5 meters long materialized in her grasp.
The tip of the blade tapped the ground four times, faster than the eye could follow, before pointing directly at the Kirigakure ninja. "Second Dance: White Ripple!"
A wave of frigid air shot out from the blade's tip, rushing unstoppably toward the rogue ninja.
"Oh?" The Kirigakure Jonin looked slightly surprised as the cold blast hit him, but he easily dodged with a sideways flip.
"First Dance: Moon White!"
The long tachi traced a circle in front of her, perfectly framing the Kirigakure Jonin from her perspective.
The moment he landed, the Jonin saw the ground around him begin to glow. A circular pillar of ice erupted from the earth, sealing him within.
Seeing her enemy encased in ice, Touye felt no joy. She knew he wouldn't be defeated so easily.
Sure enough, the ninja trapped in the ice pillar first dissolved into a puddle of water, which was then frozen solid by the pillar's chill.
Scanning her surroundings, Touye suddenly swung her blade behind her. "Icicle Flock!"
Countless sharp, slender icicles materialized in the air, swarming backward like a flock of birds.
Just as the icicles were about to hit the ground, a dark figure shot out from among them. Touye's eyes lit up. She took a deep breath, gripped the hilt of her blade with both hands, and with a great shout, unleashed a wave of blue-white energy. It swept forward like the slash of a sword, freezing everything in its path.
"Ice Dragon's Tail Spin!"
The Kirigakure ninja, now airborne, had no way to dodge. He was struck head-on by the freezing aura and sent tumbling through the air. Touye was about to press her attack when the tumbling ninja threw several kunai, explosive tags attached. Cursing, she was forced to halt her pursuit.