Amidst the dark green of the trees, a young man is standing, his short golden brown hair being blown by the wind. He turns at the sound of footsteps, almost inaudible to the ear of any mere mortal, but this young man is no mere mortal. He is one of the best ninjas in the land, and he knows it. Even standing on a cliff in the forest with no chance of a stray person wandering in, he stands tall and proud. The footsteps belong to one he knows very well, one with auburn hair that hangs down his back, one with sparkling emerald eyes which are so rare among those of the Japanese descent, one with the fabled Dragon Sword holstered to his back. One of very few whose skills could beat the young man's own.

"I'm glad to see that you made it here safely," he says tonelessly, turning around fully to face his friend, honey brown eyes flashing with a deeper, darker emotion as he does so. The other man shakes his head slightly, sending the tail of auburn hair over his shoulder with the motion, seemingly ignoring, or simply not noticing the look in his friend's eyes.

"Thank-you for your concern. But I can see that your mind rests with other matters. Hayate, what is the problem that has required my assistance so hastily?"

Hayate pauses for a moment, before speaking. "I want you to dispose of Kasumi for me, Ryu,"

"But… she's your sister," The usually stern face of the shinobi standing before him is expressing mild confusion. "You will, or I will have a fair amount of difficulty catching her. She has slaughtered many of your men that you have sent after her. What makes you think that I will succeed? And haven't you already discussed the task of locating her in the first place with Ayane already? Wasn't she the person that you allocated for the task?"

A mixture of scepticism and disgust fills Hayate's face at his friend's question. "My patience has all but been used up for the likes of that half-breed. I have given her chances time and time again, but once too many has she failed me. She has been banished from the Mugen-Tenshin clan, so that she may not further disgrace their name,"

Only one with keen eyes would have noticed the slight change in expression of the super ninja as Hayate mentioned the word 'half-breed'. "Regardless of her parentage or her shinobi blood, she is still as good a person as any to do it, if not more so, because of the blinded rage that she carries for your sister-"

"Hayabusa," Hayate says simply. His friend starts and looks up at him, so that cool emerald green meets honey brown fire. "Do not tell me how to do my job. It is the laws of our clan to keep everybody unless they do something which directly damages the wellbeing of the clan. Ayane has done this on more then one occasion, and I have been more then lenient with her on those accounts. That and the fact that keeping a half-breed for so long has made the clan more vulnerable to resistance. After all, who wants one of less then pure blood?"

The super ninja drops his gaze to the ground, staring blankly at the soil, trying to keep offending emotions off his face. Hayate pauses for a moment, and is about to speak, before Ryu suddenly puts his head up and speaks. The cool green gaze that meets Hayate's own is far from the anger lacing the young shinobi's words.

"So what are you asking me to do? Dispose of the last remaining family member that you have? Your parents have been long gone. You have banished Ayane out into the world where she could easily get killed for what she is, or in your words, what she isn't. You are asking me to eliminate the remaining one of your family. Do you know what you are asking of me?"

"Go, get out of my sight. If I did not know, then why would I be asking it of you? Don't disappoint me, Ryu, the results could be painful," Hayate says simply, before vanishing in a swirl of leaves. Ryu is left there standing after him. His eyes narrow at the memory of him calling Ayane a half-breed, as though she were a type of mongrel as opposed to a normal human being. The sudden change of events that had led to this outcome is still puzzling the young ninja as he tries to come to terms with the situation. Far away in the distance, a scream of pain is heard, echoing through the isolated forest. He knows that voice almost as well as his own.

Hurry, he thinks to himself distantly, vanishing in a swirl of emerald green leaves. Hurry, or I might be too late.  

Unlike most of my stories, this one is still in progress, as in really in progress right now. As in, only a few chapters done after this, unlike the decent amount I have before posting. Tell me if this is worth continuing, because feedback at this stage will be crucial as to whether I continue writing this story or not! Thanks :)