DollFace

Chapter Sixteen

Blood, Sweat and Tears

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Shikamaru flipped through the worn out pages of old files. Clouds of dust rising with each page turned. His heart rattled in its cage, sweat beading more and more on his forehead. He was beyond exhausted. Worn out, much like the paper in his grasp. He really didn't want this to be true.

Not at all.

His dark irises caught a picture. It was a little girl with long, ebony hair and big bright almond eyes. She was smiling happily, clutching a bouquet of chrysanthemums. He immediately recognized her, glancing at her name. Kim Aya.

The girl from the arch...

He glossed over the report, searching for hints, anything. Anything at all. He grew desperate. His face twisted in a grim expression as he continued reading.

Her heart was missing.

He soon found another unfortunate one. Ando Kai. His heart was ripped from his chest as well.

A drunkard, Takashi Shiro, was found dead two years ago on a Monday morning, with his heart missing.

Haruno Mebuki was found dead in her home with her heart missing as well.

And they were not the only ones either, but the most notable. Over the course of two years over twenty bodies have been found without a heart. Many who were reported to have mental issues, most commonly schizophrenia and depression. And they were just the people who were identified.

He couldn't believe his eyes. "So they were gifted as well?" The words left his lips almost immediately after.

He looked through it even more. They all had links to the same killer.

The Spectre.

His face morphed into a frown. He knew exactly who it was.

He remembered her smile. Perfectly white teeth curved into a wide, menacing grin.

He remembered the fight.

He remembered her supposed 'death.'

He remembered seeing dried tears on her face each time..

He regretted not stopping her, helping her.

Maybe all of this could've been resolved?

If I only knew....

He shut the files and left the building, walking briskly through the crowd with his head hung low. He needed to stop her, but how? Just how powerful is she now? Now that she stole so much from others. How can a mere mortal stop a demon. He was nothing more but a waste of space now.

You're pathetic. He chanted over and over in his head like a mantra. A man who speaks of friendship and will of fire, but can't even save a friend. His fists were balled and jaw clenched.

"Bullshit."

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He noticed something was off the minute he stepped into to Nara Compound. Not a single soul wandered around. It was dark, and cold. To some extent it looked abandoned. An eerie feeling lingered in the air. A feeling of dread in the pit of his stomach but he brushed it off. His shadow has been quiet the entire time, but its presence was very much there.