Tales of a Ninja Magician: Of Games of Body and Soul

Obsession

Thumb burst through the hospital door, not the one that Mana and the burglar had entered through but one that lead to a small alleyway leading to an important vein of the city, pulsing with movement and inhabitants.

"I don't think it's such a good idea. You can't just burst into the place and start punching people." The tone of the woman was different from before. She was no longer teasing or being playful, Thumb was genuinely concerned. Whom for exactly Mana couldn't be sure. Her buzzing and tired mind couldn't be sure of anything lately. The pulsing veins in the side of her head demanded chakra input to remain functioning properly but Mana was purposefully denying them it. Was it Mana's instinctual phobia of needless augmentations or some other reason that made the girl behave this way, she could not entirely remember.

"I've tried anything but that. Yes, if I do this right and if I do this how I always do things, I shall succeed. But when I do things how I've always been doing them, other people suffer. Good people." Mana tried shutting the woman down. The searing pain in her mind did not let her put together a better answer so she went with the outer layer of the feelings that bubbled inside of her chest.

"You cannot do this alone, that's why you've put together the team, isn't it? Where will you even find... That man?" Thumb almost broke her taboo in fear of Mana doing something either very smart or very stupid.

"I have my ways." Mana cut it down again.

"Oh, please. You won't torture anyone, of all people I know that the best. Stop lying to yourself. All you're going to do is get yourself killed or hospitalized in there." Thumb persisted. "I know how powerful the other Rings are, most importantly, how cunning they are. You can't do this alone."

"You don't know anything about me. You've only seen the shell of what I can do, only what I've allowed you to see." Mana turned back at Thumb, meeting her panicking gaze with a contrasting one of her own. The magician may have been delusional to think so, she acknowledged that much even in her hazy mental state, but she was beginning to think that it was not her or the youngbloods that the burglar woman was protecting by being this cautious. "You insisted on coming with me. I know you're afraid to head to the den of your predators but it was your call to follow me around whole day. You are more than welcome to head back to the Security building."

"Why are we standing about? How will you even know where to find that man?" Thumb placed her hand on Mana's shoulder.

"I'll ask them." The magician replied leaving the last part ominous, a pair of moments after she left it hanging in the air, the little capillary leading into the busy town street filled with people of questionable intentions. Some were all muscle, some looked all grace and speed yet all of them were entirely composed of murder and violence in varied ratios of the two.

"Who are they? Do you think they're after me?" Thumb took a couple of cautious steps back.

"I don't know nor do I care. They've been following us for a while, since Heiho Square at the very least. I could sense them but they were too minor a concern to stop our progress then." Mana turned against the handful of thugs rushing into the alleyway so she could stand against them face to face.

One by one, the bandits spread out to both sides, letting a tall and intimidating figure approach through the middle. One with the smallest chakra signature of them all, strangely. It was a tall and incredibly well-trained physically individual. He wore nothing but a tank top underneath an unzipped military vest that was supposed to keep away an injury from simple swords, kunai, and shuriken at bay. The vest was far too short for the man, which was why it was worn so loosely and was in a constant state of tension, moments away from tearing.

"Is this one of the Rings?" Mana looked back at Thumb.

"Are you fucking kidding me right now?" Thumb flipped out on Mana.