The Hated Sin

Thirteen: The Loss of a Friend

The land of fire seemed to take on an ominous feeling as darkness descended and all that surrounded the small sin and her demon were trees and dense forest. Tsumi kept herself alert, expanding her senses to scan the forest that surrounded them for any signs of danger. She stopped suddenly. Black fog crept out from around her, slowly rising until it filled the surrounding forest, making it impossible to see. She shot forward, taking out the single man who hid in the forest. His companions were already gone.
"Bait." She hissed angrily after reading his mind. She killed him swiftly, dispersing her fog and turning around rapidly. She turned left and right, looking everywhere for the one person she vowed not to lose. But he was nowhere to be found. Akio was gone. Twelve days of traveling together; Tsumi knew they were being followed, but whenever she attacked, their pursuers disappeared. The ground beneath her began to dry up and crack. The trees withered and plants died. Tsumi was angry. Livid even. How dare they take him. The one person whom she allowed herself to care for... How dare they take him from her. She pushed every ounce of her chakra out until it felt like she would collapse. Even when she swayed on her feet, she continued pushing her chakra out and around her, searching the entire forest for Akio; but it was as if he merely disappeared. Not even a chakra trace was left behind of him. Still, she didn't give up. Forcing her body further, she pushed out every ounce of chakra she had. Black dots danced around her vision, and before she knew it, she had fallen unconscious. The thud of her head hitting the dry ground was the last sound she heard in the ever silent forest.

-

Tsumi sat up quickly, closing her eyes when the world around her spun. The light was too bright and her head pounded with immense pain, but she payed it no mind. A dog sat next to her, staring at her, as if waiting. She stood and the dog stood too. A tag glinted in the early morning light, clinking against the metal buckle on the collar. It was obviously a summoning; the summoning symbol etched into his dark fur told her so. Tsumi eyed it warily. It could lead her to Akio. She couldn't sense his presence on the dog, but then again, she couldn't sense it in the forest either. With a defeated sigh, she turned already having made her decision.