Mina stepped inside a huge room with a tatami floor, followed by Momo closely trailing her back. Her eyes scan the place warily; there are 5 old men sitting comfortably on their chairs at the front while a few men in suits standing guard on their back. For the ninja, she had met the elders countless times as Myoui-dono’s . However, this was a first for the young woman to be called to a board meeting with the Myoui’s elders. It took her almost 3 years to be summoned to meet them face to face after her father’s death, the reason would be to observe her reliability with the assigned missions they gave. They didn’t even wish their condolences directly, using Takeru as the messenger as well as the bringer of errands by the elders.

Momo stood in her usual place, at the corner away from their sight. But her eyes are trained only on Mina, noticing the hardened look of the woman as she studies the faces of the once so called great leaders of the clan. Momo knows how much the young master despised them, her eyes showing nothing but disdain to the elders.

“As agreed before the passing of the preceding head of the Myoui clan, you are to be the next successor of the family.”

The others nodded among themselves, their gaze fixed on the woman kneeling in the middle of the room. Her rather stout but lean female built along with those pair of determined but calm eyes already showed enough for the elders to be impressed by her appearance. Her squared shoulders, upright posture and unwavering eyes demonstrate great discipline and self-restraint; a feat not many possessed.

“However, there is one more requirement you need to fulfill.”

A man in thick, rimless spectacles stepped up to the middle of the room, giving a deep bow before presenting a folder to Mina.

“Our informant had found a breach of information regarding our illegal business transactions. It seemed to have reached the hand of a well-known prosecutor, Kim Jung Woo, who had taken down the Park clan two years ago. It would be of great harm to the clan if the root of this problem is not dealt with sooner.”

Mina intently listened, trying to decipher their riddling words to the purpose of today’s meeting. She hadn’t heard of this from any of her men. It was a shocking surprise that something as threatening as leaked information was overlooked. Unless…

“A mole…” She muttered, before raising her head to the elders in realization. “You want me to take care of the mole within the clan.”

“You caught on fairly well.” One of them said, “But that’s not the only thing we are concerned about.”

Of course, they are talking about the prosecutor. With a solemn nod, Mina bowed her head.

“They will be handled in due time.”

“Good. You may take your leave.”

She leaves the room with trepidation; finding the mole would be a snap of her finger, Mina knows her way with the members of the clan and makes them beg for mercy on their feet. What troubled her was the prosecutor. When they said to “take care of”, means to end them; for good. But he is a man with family, it’s not in her morals to involve innocent people. However, she finds it rather odd for this problem to surface at this moment, as if it was already staged by someone with ulterior motives. Just as she was dreading the outcome, she sensed a presence in her room.

“I did not summon you.”

She stated while making herself busy with some documents on the table. Momo appeared from the shadow, a deep scowl apparent.

“Tell me the truth. The orders are to annihilate the mole, along with the Park’s family. Am I right?”

Mina raised her head with a blank expression. “And what if you are?”

“I’m against it.” She firmly said, “Can’t we do something to prevent this?”

“Of course.” Mina continued flipping some pages, “By not including you in this mission.”

Momo was startled, her mind not able to process the words. “What do you mean?”

“I don’t need a coward as my assassin. You are relieved from this task, if you are that worried.”

As she was about to take another folder, a hand slammed on top of it. She let out a sigh, finally meeting eyes with the fuming ninja.

“Are you out of your mind?”

“I would be if I didn't accept this mission.” Mina glared back, “There’s a reason why I’m sitting in this chair right now.”

Momo let out a scoff, shaking her head in disbelief. “So this chair is more important than anything, huh?”

Mina clenched her jaw, pressing her lips together in a straight line. She can’t give the answer, not when there’s a lot of stakes being involved with this mission.

“I need to do this, Momo.”

“What about our promise?”

A line formed on her forehead, eyes meeting Momo’s disappointed pair. The promise… of course, there’s no way she would forget about it. Not when it was the reason she could get a hang of herself in the moment of losing her sanity when that day happened…

 

There was chaos everywhere.

People are running and fighting for their lives, trying to hide themselves in the huge mansion belonging to the newly-established Tao clan. They were under the Myoui’s protection, until the young master found out about their illegal business of smuggling children for ion and organ harvesting. Such a vile act was never accepted; it was against the Myoui’s principles. And for Mina, the punishment deserving for these despicable creatures is death, and nothing else.

As the others were rescuing the kids to safety, Mina and a few of her trusted comrades began the massacre of killing every member of the Tao clan. For the young master, she only has her eyes on the leader, the erted old man who always gets on her nerves with his suggestive comments of her body. Her eyes gleamed with killing intent when she found him crouching at the corner, pathetically hiding himself under his men’s legs.

She killed his protectors with ease, her katana slashing across their necks with one swing.

“Y-You!”

“Yes, it’s me.” She took a menacing step forward, cornering the man trembling, shaking, from her menacing presence with fresh, bright blood smeared over her white top under the ed blazer. “Miss me?”

“Eek! Don’t come near!”

“Eh? Wasn’t that what you desire from me?” A creepy smirk appeared on her face, causing the man to shriek as he staggered to run away.

“Ara… where are you going?”

Mina trailed after him, the katana resting over her right shoulder. Turning into a room, her eyes narrowed into slits when she saw the man holding a kid as his shield.

“You want to kill me? You have to kill the boy too!”

He laughed, cackling like a crazy man from her frown. His brilliant mind had surprisingly predicted her weakness from the sudden ambush; innocent children. It was satisfying to see the disappointment on her face, knowing he had hit a jackpot. However, his eyes widened when Mina raised the sword above her head.

“You really have a brain of a fool, don’t you?”

“W-What? Oy! You’re gonna kill the kid!”

Mina kept her glare at him, the boy’s presence had disappeared from her view. Even his cries fall into deaf ears as Mina smirks at the coward man.

“Don’t worry, he’s sacrificing himself for greater good.”

Her smirk turned into a grin, her free hand joining the other hand gripping the hilt.

“NOOO!”

 

SLASH!

WOOSH!

 

The same time she swung the blade, a figure zoomed pass her. The man was already lying lifeless with his own blood flowing from the large gash on his chest, but the kid was nowhere to be found.

“Are you okay?”

"Y-Yes..."

She snapped her head to the familiar voice, the question brought Mina back from her trance. She was met with Momo’s concerned eyes, terrified as she cradles the crying boy in her arms, and that’s when she realized what she had done.

Mina locked herself in her room for days, ignoring Sana’s call to eat or Tzuyu’s report of the clan’s well-being, as well as Takeru’s unannounced visit to the mansion. She stared out the window, the flurry of rain pattering against the glass seems to bring calm to her cluttered mind. Then, she heard the adjacent window being slid open, but paid no heed to the intruder.

“I’m not suited for this, am I?”

“No one is, but you already made it this far.”

Her lips slightly raised, but it didn’t match with her furrowed eyebrows. There’s sadness and sorrow, Momo perceived. The latter didn’t approach her, there’s still this thin layer of wall protecting Mina, keeping herself away from others sympathy.

“The reflection,” She touched the glass, “It’s not me. It feels like a stranger, looking down on me - mocking me for the person I am now.” Her hand balled into a fist, tendons standing out near her jawline. “I don’t know who – I can’t recognize myself anymore.”

The crack in her voice was the cue for Momo to close their gap, wrapping her securely in a back hug. She stared back at their reflection, finding a lone tear sliding down Mina’s face.

“You’re still Mina.” She whispered, gently into Mina’s ear.  

“The serenity in your eyes.” She stared deeply, with fervent desire into Mina’s reflection.

“The fragrance of your hair.” She inhaled, taking in Mina’s sweet smell of summer.

“The softness of your skin.” Fingers lightly brushed along Mina’s arm, shoulder, neck, chin, gently tilting her head to one side.

“The taste of your lips.” She whispered againts Mina’s lips before closing in for a kiss; the latter's breath hitched, body tensed, but soon relaxed when she felt a swipe of tongue asking for permission to enter.

They pulled away to breathe, both slightly panting as eyes bore deep into the other; a pair quivering with desperation, another filled with assurance and love.

"Every inch of you is still my Mi-tan, the one that I love."

Mina turns around, fully facing Momo while showing her shaking hands. “But these hands… The old me wouldn’t kill people like that, like what I was about to do to that kid.”

“Let’s stop, then? No more killing – taking lives away.” She grasped Mina’s hands, giving a kiss on both knuckles. “If we are forced to, let me be the one to carry out the deed. That’s my sole purpose in the family, right?”

Mina leans on Momo's hand cupping her cheek, cherishing the warmth from the kind-hearted ninja; her one and only ninja.

“Save me, Momo-rin…" She looked up, desperate.

The ninja smiled, pulling Mina into her arm again. It’s been a while since she last heard that endearing nickname.

“You will be fine, I promise.” She kissed Mina’s forehead, sealing her promise to the young master. “I got you, Mi-tan.”

 

*

 

Momo was furious.

She thought mentioning the promise would somehow make Mina change her mind. The whole thing about the new mission sounds fishy and the ninja could tell that something was bound to happen to the young master. Instead, she was chased out of the room, with reason that this mission is the last stepping stone for her to get to the top, no matter how shady it is.

Bull.

There must be another way for Mina to be the successor without involving herself in any of this nonsense. If only her brain could think of one...

“Oh, look who’s here.”

As she turns a corner, she was met with the grin of the least person she wants to see. She continues stomping down the hallway, wanting nothing more than to ignore his unwanted presence.

“Hey, where are you going? I need to talk to you.”

She didn’t turn around. She has no business with this man, unless Mina ordered her to, which was deemed impossible since she was prohibited from getting anymore assignments after their heated discussion just now.

“I know what’s going on between you and Mina!”

Her feet stopped. A snort soon followed, his loathsome presence getting closer to her back. He motioned for Momo to follow him inside one of the meeting rooms, the ninja conceding with his demand. He threw an envelope, a few pictures sliding out presenting a younger Mina and Momo hanging out together, but her gaze hardened when a few was of them kissing inside her shack.

“To be frank, I have no ill-will towards your "secret" relationship.” He solemnly said with a shrug, “Let’s just say, I managed to take care of the informant before these pictures reach the elders.”

Momo glared back, trying to hold herself from throwing a kunai directly between his eyes. If the pictures leaked out, the fate falling to the pair would be devastating; Mina will be banished to another country while the ninja will have a huge sum of bounty on her head. She has to play along with his games if she wants to save both of them.

“What do you want?”

He snorted, followed by a string of chuckle that raised goosebumps on her skin. A folder was slid on the table with a bolded name on top of it.

“Kim Jung Woo.” He stated, prompting Momo to open the folder without delay from the well-known name of the prosecutor. “A betrayer from our clan had been giving him detailed information of our illegal transactions, and that includes my business record.”

Momo looks up at him with wary eyes, “You want me to do the job for you?”

“Typical assassins.” The man rolled his eyes with a loud sigh, “Not everything can be solved by killing. I just need you to retrieve the information related to my illegal operation, that’s it.”

She furrowed her eyebrows, “That’s it?”

“What? I don’t like soiling my hands with unnecessary bloodshed.” He sneered with a dramatic rubbing of his fingers, “You can do whatever you want with him, but my order is to get that record from him and destroy any evidence related to my involvement with the deals. As simple as that.” 

Momo weighs the predicament of this mission, but all she sees is the upper hand she would get from it. It was as if killing two birds with a stone; not only Takeru’s business deal, she would destroy the clan’s information on her own. It’s a long shot, but this might be the way to thwart Mina’s plan to execute the innocent family.

“I’ll do it.”

The ninja takes the folder and the pictures, before leaving the man smiling to himself like a mad man. He turns around to face the window, a phone clutched on his ear.

“Everything is going accordingly.” He smirked, “Let the plan commence.”

 

*

 

It was easy breaking into the house of the famous prosecutor, unexpectedly. It’s a decent, two-storey stand-alone house located quite far from the suburb. It looks like an easy job, but it doesn’t help ease the apprehensiveness she felt after stepping foot inside the building. She scans the place; it exudes a warm and homey feeling typical of a small happy family living in. Her eyes fall on the shelves, catching a frame of the prosecutor happily smiling while hugging both his wife and small daughter.

She can’t imagine taking away the lives of these innocent people, when all they lived for was happiness. A sad smile etched on her face, wondering when will she get to experience this kind of life with the person she loves...

The ninja makes her way upstairs when she finds no presence on the ground floor. She feels a weird sensation all over – a premonition that something bad is about to happen. Lightly treading along the dark hallway, she reached the door in the end; the master bedroom according to the map given by Takeru. Just as she twists the knob open, she is suddenly manhandled by a group of men.

The ninja managed to escape their clutch, countering their attacks with a round kick. She takes out a tanto blade as an arm clutch her neck, stabbing the hand in the process. She proceeds to dodge and slash the incoming kick, the guy writhing in pain from his bleeding leg. Just as she was about to land the final blow, the room suddenly brightens.

Her eyes widen at the sight of the prosecutor and his wife being subdued by another group of men wearing masks. Their hands were tied, mouth gagged with a cloth as the wife cried with muffled scream. Momo turned to the sound of clapping from another corner, her glare hardening from the familiar face; the leader of the Park clan, a rival to the Myoui.

“As expected from the Myoui one and only ninja assassin.” He leans back, arms crossed across his chest with a taunting sneer. “I really missed those pairs of killing eyes. Makes me shiver in excitement, you know?”

Momo gives him a scorn look, eyes silently observing the room for a plan. But the man already predicted her move, making a tutting sound.

“If I see one slight movement from you, I’ll slit the woman’s throat.”

The couple screamed through their gagged mouth, protesting with tears flowing down their faces. Momo slowly releases the tanto in her hand, her stance relaxing before she too is restrained by two of his men.

“I bet you have already noticed by now how everything was thoroughly planned.” Park takes a few daunting steps closer to the prosecutor, a hand reaching out to unsheathed a knife from his lackey’s belt. “I’m rather surprised to see you easily fell for Takeru’s trap.”

He brought a knife to the prosecutor’s neck, “I was given instructions to handle this family.” The knife dangerously flees against his skin, before it points to Momo. “And have my fun with you, assassin.” He cackled, but Momo is still keeping her calm. “Must be to be a loyal lapdog to the family, only to be stabbed in the back by the people you served.”

He really knows his ways to provoke her, but Momo is trying to keep her calm; she needs to come up with an escape plan to save this couple quickly. She already had her suspicions with everything; it was too strange for Takeru to suddenly request her to fill in for the assignment when he would usually put the burden on Mina. He has direct orders from the elders – he would have heard of this from them. But, of course, who else would be the mole if it wasn't the sly man himself.

“Now, as for you.” He addressed the prosecutor, motioning his man to loosen the gag. “I've always have me eyes on you after you bring the clan down years ago. It feels nostalgic to meet again, eh?"

The man widen his eyes, finally aware of the familiar leader of the park clan he had caught in the past.

"You're lucky I'm here for other business, though." He scoffed, fingers playing with the sharp blade. "Hand me the documents.”

“W-What are you talking about?”

Park got closer to him, only to have the knife pointed to his wife’s eyes. “Say that again, I’ll gouge her pretty eyes out and make you chew it.”

“N-No! Please, don’t hurt us!”

“Heh, if you behave like a good boy, then I’ll consider that request.”

“Really? It’s – it’s under my pillow!”

“For real?” He tilts his head to his lackey, one of them ransacks through his bed and exactly as he said, an envelope containing a few folders and a pendrive can be found.

“Damn, the troubles we had to go through for these, only to find it under his pillow.” He scoffed, before taking out a gun and pointing it to the crying wife.

 

BAM!

 

“N-No!!!” He looked at his wife, shocked from seeing a bullet blasting through her forehead. “Y-You said you wouldn’t h-hurt us!”

“Yeah, she died a painless death right?”

“You...!”

The barrel lands on his forehead, the prosecutor cowering in fear. “Any last wish?”

“Don’t k-kill me, please... I-I have a daughter. She needs me... p-please!”

Park cocked an eyebrow, a menacing grin reaching his ears. “A daughter, huh...”

“Yes! Please... spare me!”

He laughed, before turning to his men. “Find her, I want to make an eye trophy collection from the whole family.”

“W-What? No! Please, no!”

Seeing the guys distracted from snickering at the prosecutor’s ill fate, Momo seized the opportunity to act. She snatched a gun from the enemy, shooting down the men holding her hostage. Gunshots began blasting everywhere, but not even a single bullet managed to graze the ninja. She glides through them with perfect agility, grabbing her tanto on the floor before slitting open their throats while avoiding the stray bullets.

She stands in the middle of dead bodies, her breath shallow as she turns around to face the leader. However, Park suddenly shoves the prosecutor towards her. The ninja cushioned his fall with her body, only for a few shots to land on his back.

Alarmed, Momo quickly grabs a large vase on the floor and haul it to Park. The vase smashed over him, rendering him unconscious. She hurriedly turns her attention to the prosecutor, checking for his wounds. But it was too late already; his pulse is feeble, weakening by the seconds. She heard him mumble a few words, crouching lower to put her ear closer to his mouth.

“M-Minju... Please, s-save Minju...”

His breath stopped, the ninja clenching her jaw from anger. Without wasting time, she zoomed out of the room in search of the kid before the henchmen could.

In another room, a muffled sobbing sound can be heard from inside a wooden wardrobe. The six years old girl tried to control her breathing inside the dark closet, but it worsened when she heard heavy, running footsteps getting closer. She heard the door of her room being slammed open, her breath hitched.

“Come out, come out...” One of them called out, “We know where your father is. Come with us so we can bring you to him, kid.”

She squeezed her eyes shut, remembering her father’s advice to not come out unless they call her name. The sound of banging and toppling things began filling the room, startling the girl as she chokes on her sobbing. Then, there was a loud gasp, followed by a strangled cry. A series of loud bangs reverberated along with horrifying screams, prompting the girl to crouch on the floor with hands covering her head. The commotion lasted for a while, then it was silent. It was eerily quiet, she had to take a peek in between the opening slits of the wardrobe to see what happened.

However, the closet was suddenly snatched open, revealing a figure clad with black clothing and a mask covering their lower face. The little kid cowers from the unknown person, hiding herself behind the safety of her small arms.

“Minju?” The girl lowers her arms, peeking at the source of the gentle voice. “You’re Minju, right?”

She hesitantly nods, catching the relieved sigh followed by an eye smile.

“I’m Momo.” The person pulls down the mask, revealing a face warmly smiling back at her. “I was asked by Mr Kim, your father, to get you to safety.”

Tears start running down her face at the mention of her father. She didn’t know why, but she felt compelled to hug this Momo, and she did. The ninja was startled, but she slowly reciprocated, patting the crying girl to calm her down.

“Listen, there are bad people here and I need you to follow my instructions so we can get help. Can you do that?”

“Okay.” Little Minju firmly nodded with a sniffle.

“Let’s go.” Momo offered a hand, the girl gladly takes it with a tight clutch.

The ninja safely leads them to the front door of the house, but when she opens it, she is met with the blinding headlights of cars surrounding the porch. She pushed Minju back inside, but as she turned around, a rain of bullets landed on her back.

 

*

 

Mina had just finished checking the reports of their monthly financial status in her room when she realized the ninja’s lack of presence for the whole day. At first, she thought it was related to her adamant decision to accept the mission, but she knows Momo. The girl wouldn’t last a day of getting mad at her. Her mind told her to give it a rest and let Momo be; the woman would need some time to clear her head. But her gut feeling is telling her to search for the ninja. She followed her instinct, fortunately.

She looked into every room, every hallway, at the rooftop, the usual oak tree which is her favourite spot to stalk on Mina, but she found none. Even the window where Momo would sit lazily with her kitsune mask is vacant.

“Myoui-sama, is everything alright?”

Her attention on the window was interrupted as the tall bodyguard approached her. She gives a nod to the bow, wondering if Tzuyu knows of the ninja’s whereabouts.

“Have you seen Momo?”

Tzuyu made a pondering face, remembering the last time she saw her sparring partner. “I haven’t see her at all today.”

Mina slowly bobs her head, resuming to walk towards the door leading to the backyard. Tzuyu didn’t ask anymore questions, instead resorting to follow the young master in case her help was needed. They reached Momo’s shack at the back of the mansion, the door seems to be unlocked. Mina stepped inside, taking in the unchanging view of the same old, small and worn out shack functioning to store firewood. Momo had made her own small space at the corner, consisting of a conjoined table and a wooden bed; the only furniture found among the stack of chopped logs.

She found a small note on the square table, her name written at the bottom. She flips it, one side of her lips lifted from the messy cursive writings.

 

I only want the best for you, nothing else.

Forgive me?

 

The endearing way of the ninja’s subtle apologies through these small notes always gets her fuzzy, just like the first time she received them from the ninja. She finds it cute, and despite Momo’s inclination of showing her love through action rather than speech, she still put an effort to write her feelings on paper and give it for Mina to read. She still has those letters, hidden inside a small silver box where all of her blissful teenage memories were kept safe.

Her eyes fell on an old book stacked over a pile of papers, probably acting as a paperweight. She takes the book that looks rather familiar, the title on the hardcover caused a smile to surface. It was a book stolen from their library, also a favourite fairytale of Mina when she was just a child unbothered by the meaning of life. She feels nostalgic all of a sudden, her childish wish was to be reborn again and live happily with the people she cherished. What a naive mind she had before...

As she flips through the pages, an envelope falls. Her forehead scrunched from the familiar writing of her father, the letter addressed to Momo. Without thinking, she takes out the paper and reads it.

 

Momo,

If only there is a way to gain forgiveness for all the sins I’ve done, I would have searched the whole continent for it. That is how I felt towards you and Mina. That fateful day we met for the first time, I never saw you as a person, but merely a tool for my selfish desire. Mina was a lonely child growing up, always reserved and spent time playing on her own. The day I brought you home, was also the day she started glowing. By then, I already knew how much you will affect my daughter’s life.

To say I never loved her, was an understatement. She is my precious daughter, the only family I had after I lost my wife. The day she died, was the day Mina was born. I made a pledge when I saw my daughter for the first time, that I would protect her from harm and from bearing the fate I used to shoulder.

They said I am a fearless leader, but they didn’t know the coward hiding behind this facade. I am nothing but a coward, a useless man who possesses nothing, but a ticket to become something worthy through marriage. We are alike in more ways than you expected Momo, for I am, was, a hired assassin for the family. But Mina’s mother was a woman of many charms and a passion for knowledge, skilled in every subject she learned, cherished and sought after by many. Only for her to choose me, a mere assassin without a family name.

She wasn’t fond of becoming the successor, her only wish is to live a life of freedom, away from the shackles of the cruel tradition this family holds. She was nothing alike the master I served, for she is a woman of wisdom, a living mother Theresa, and the woman who showed me love. I still remember the promise she made me swear to; to give her a life and a family that doesn’t belong to a Myoui. A far-fetched dream, but still a liberating dream, nonetheless.

Through many obstacles and hardships, I had proven my worth to her, to her family, and became the head of the clan in a matter of time. I was planning to change the ways of the Myoui; still a respectful clan but void of the cruelty and animosity it is feared for. Then, came the exciting news. The Myoui were elated when she was bearing a child, our marriage soon commenced without any objection from the elders. But the night Mina was born, was considered the night of the damned. My Mina was frowned upon by the whole clan, as they lost a very precious and dear family member, in place of her precious life.

Mina was too innocent for the world, but that is what makes her weak to the cruelty of it all. I planned everything from scratch; make Mina the strongest mentally and physically, to be the greatest heir to the Myoui blood she has, in hopes she can achieve the dream her mother once wished for, in my place. Everything was for the sole purpose of protecting Mina from the family. Oh, how wrong I was because it wasn’t protection that she sought, but love.

I was too blinded with my ideals, I forgot the actuality that Mina is only a human, a living woman with emotions. Just like her mother, longing to feel love. I was too engrossed on protecting her from the world, only to see her succumb to the same unlucky fate I was in. Perhaps, the curse was me. I was the one who brought the curse to the Myoui, to my wife, to my daughter... But I can live through the curse, and hopefully, die with it, free the curse from leeching off of my daughter’s already ill fate.

When the time comes for me, I will bury along the guilt of my cursed being. I will bury along the sins I’ve done to my daughter, and never be spoken again, neither by me, or you. There’s only one thing I asked of you, and only you can do this better than me.

Bring her the happiness she deserves, the one I couldn’t provide as a man called father. Please, I beg you as a father, not a master, to take care of Mina in my place.

Mina deserves to be loved, and this is my blessing for both of you.

 

Even when her father died, Mina didn’t shed a tear. Right now, a stream of tears flowed down her face as she silently cried, finally being revealed the truth behind her father’s detestable action. Momo’s words keep repeating in her head – that her father never said it, but he showed his care through action. She despised herself for falling to his trick, again and again. For more than 25 years, she had been fooled by her father to hate him, and she was the one at fault.

Partly, it was Momo’s fault too because she kept this from her, being an accomplice of his.

She takes a deep breath, furiously wiping her tears with her hands, only to see a handkerchief being offered by Tzuyu. She usually detests the bodyguard’s stoic expression, but right now, she’s grateful to see her straight face. After calming down, she takes the letter and slips it into her blazer’s pocket, wanting to use it as blackmail for Momo to come clean with her during their interrogation later.

Suddenly, she heard the sound of rustling leaves.

Tzuyu motioned for her to lay low as she peeks out the window, a gun in hand. The bodyguard saw a figure outside, followed by hushed whispers by the door. She gives a nod to Mina who’s already prepared to take out her gun from the holster. Tzuyu slowly unlatches the lock, the wooden door automatically swings open, revealing men clad in suits standing outside.

The tall woman steps out first, feeling strange about their sudden appearance. “Is something the matter?”

All of them turn to the voice, exchanging glances before raising their guns towards them. Surprised by the sudden act, Tzuyu springs forward to shield the young master from their preposterous behaviour.

“What’s the meaning of this?” Mina addressed them, eyes as calm as ever.

One of them, a man in glasses, steps forward. Mina recognized him, her eyes narrowing from his uncanny presence. He was the one who handed her the details of her assignment in the recent family meeting.

“It’s an order from the elders.”

“What?”

“You are hereby to be detained for suspicion of treason to the Myoui clan, misuse of power, as well as laundering the slush funds for personal use.”

Instead of being shocked, Mina was rather calm with the accusations she received. She had already foreseen the outcome of her first, perhaps the last, meeting with the elders. Mina had a clue who was actually behind the terrible plan going on, and Momo’s sudden disappearance just adds up to her suspicion.

She lets out a loud sigh, raising her hands to surrender. The man with glasses orders his henchmen to detain Mina, only for the woman to stealthily tap Tzuyu’s shoulder twice. Acknowledging the signal, she points her gun to a combustible barrel located a few metres away, the barrel exploding as she shot it down with her sharp eyes. Tzuyu quickly pushed Mina inside, slamming the door shut to avoid the rain of bullets falling on them.

Mina made a mental note to thank Momo for making the backyard as her training area, the ninja had made a weekly routine to teach her bodyguard the tricks and tips to survive an enemy ambush as Mina watched from the second floor. Right now, she hopes Momo has something stored up in the shack for them to escape the barrage of bullets outside. It’s just a matter of time before the whole place collapses and traps them inside.

“Any plan, Chou?”

Tzuyu looked around the place, her eyes lit up when she found bottles of kerosene hidden at the corner. She figured Momo used them to light up her oil lamp. Bless the ninja for sticking to her traditional ways of living, Tzuyu mused.

“Chou, they’re coming closer!”

The tall woman takes a piece of cloth she found laying by the bed and starts tearing them up into long strips. She placed the strips into each bottle, before snatching a lighter by the windowsill.

“Myoui-sama, we’ll run out of here when I give you the go.”

“Affirmative.”

Tzuyu observes the situation outside from the slits of the wooden door, finding the men crowding in groups of three. She lights up one of the bottles, silently counting in her head before opening the door and throwing the bottle in their direction. They heard the screams and yells, the men running around to put out the fire engulfing them. Not wasting time, she ignites another bottle, throwing it in another direction. Again, everyone was running in panic as they tried to escape the spreading fire. Tzuyu sets fire to the last one, giving a nod to Mina to get ready. As she threw the last bottle to another group, the gunshot ceased.

“Myoui-sama!”

They hurriedly ran out of the shack, making a beeline to the mansion. They decided it’s best to go to the garage to escape as the house is probably swarming with the elders’ hitmen hunting for their heads. Just as they reached the garage, they heard a shriek resembling a squirrel.

“Let go of me!”

Tzuyu’s blood boiled from seeing a guy manhandling the head maid, a hand pulling Sana’s brown hair to stop her from running away. The tall woman strides menacingly towards her target, ripping the hand off with a strong twist, causing the man to yelp in pain.

“Didn’t your mother ever tell you to treat women with respect?”

A hard kick landed on his groin, followed with a knee straight to his gut and a roundhouse kick on his face.

“Next time you touch her, I’ll cut your hands off.”

He slowly nodded, before passing out. Tzuyu exhaled air from her nose, satisfied for giving him a lesson about life. She turns to the head maid, extending a hand to help Sana up, the latter sheepishly accept the hand while silently swooning at the tall woman.

Meanwhile, Mina rushes to the end of the room where a bulletproof hummer is parked. She unlocks it with the double key they hid in a secret compartment, opening the back trunk to reveal all kinds of weapons inside ranging from grenades, small handguns, assault rifles, submachine guns, a bazooka, and most of all, her favourite katana. She instructs them to ride the hummer, her eyes falling on the unconscious man at the corner. She knows the guy, he works for Takeru. He might be a good source of information, Mina thought as she asked Tzuyu to drag the unconscious man inside to interrogate him later.

Sana was still caught awestruck when Tzuyu came to her rescue, taking shy glances at her knight in shining armour taking the wheel, only for it to falter from the shrilling scream at the back.

“AARGHHH!”

The unconscious man had woken up, a combat knife stabbed on his thigh. Mina yanks the blade out, only to pierce the other leg, another painful scream resonates inside the hummer.

“W-What are you doing?!”

“Trying to keep you alert.” Mina deadpanned, eyes emotionless. “Tell me where Momo is right now.”

“I don’t know! Boss never told me about her assignment!”

Her eyebrow quirks up, “What mission?”

He gulped, biting his tongue from the slip of information. Seeing his hesitation, Mina takes another knife from her utility belt before grabbing his hand and laying it on his bleeding thigh, the blade hovering above his forefinger.

“Y-Yah! What are you –”

“Tell me where she is, or this finger is flying out the window.”

“N-No! Are you crazy?!”

“I am, if you don’t give me the right answer.”

“Okay, okay! I only heard some rumors about the assignment –” He paused, but yelped when the knife met his skin. “She’s at prosecutor Kim’s house! B-Boss hired Park to kill his family, and the assassin!”

Mina’s eyes widen from the information. “Park? You mean the Park clan?”

“Yeah, them! I think so, I don’t know!” He babbled, “I’ve done my part, so can you let me off?”

Her eyes narrowed into slits, wondering how the hell he became Takeru’s lackey. Oh wait, both of them shared the similar trait; cowardice.

“With pleasure.” Mina pulled the knife stuck on his thigh, ignoring his scream as she reached over and opened his side of the door before kicking him off the moving SUV.

“That, was scary and hot at the same time.” Sana commented as she glanced back at the young master who gave her a faint smile.

“What’s the plan now, Myoui-sama?”

She may have escaped the family’s rampage, but Momo hasn’t. It would be impossible for the ninja to survive Park’s assault all by herself, knowing how powerful and devious that clan is. Momo has been the one protecting her all this while, maybe it’s time for Mina to do the same. 

“To prosecutor Kim’s house.” Mina stated grimly. “We’re going to rescue that foolish ninja of mine.”

Her head maid and bodyguard both nodded with a knowing smirk on their faces.

“Affirmative.”

 

*

 

Blood can be seen seeping through her black clothing, but she was already numbed to the pain. Despite the chaos going on, Momo tried her best to keep her breathing rate at a normal pace, hoping the calm pumping of her heart can lessen the bleeding. The girl in her arms keeps on crying, frightened by the sound of loud gunshots. She scans the place for an opening or an escape they can use, or at least for Minju to run to, but found none. They are taking refuge behind a wooden pillar that may soon collapse from the amount of bullets it had withstood. She was hoping for some back up to arrive, but who is she kidding… No one knows she’s here, and that Takeru was a betrayer since the beginning. He only wants her dead, so he can have his way with Mina.

Mina…

No, she can’t give up yet. Momo has yet to fulfill Myoui-dono’s last wish and she is still yet to free Mina from the shackle that binds the young master with the clan. She needs to do one last thing before she can be free, before they both can be free.

Even if it’s in her death…  

“Mina, I’m sorry.” She closed her eyes, letting out a loud huff before snapping her eyes open with a new determined look.

Maybe taking cover inside the house is a better idea since jumping along the trees might be deemed impossible with her current state and having a kid latching on her wounded back is not a good idea. She seized the opportunity to head back inside when they were reloading their guns, tugging Minju to the door, only to feel a foot meeting her chin.

Momo shakes her head from the jaw-breaking blow, her blurry eyes tracing the huge figure of Park standing by the door. The gunshots stopped as he raised his hand to order his men for ceasefire.

“That was a really low move back there, assassin.” A kick hit her on the gut. “You can do better than that, eh? Come on! Get up and fight!”

Park grabbed her collar, hoisting her body off the floor with an intimidating smirk and a hand raised. Before a punch could land on her face, she swings her lower body up, bending her legs around his neck before twisting her whole body to propel him to the ground. A loud crack can be heard as his head slammed on the tiled floor, but he is still breathing, looking back at her in anger. Momo quickly gets up and lands an axe kick to his head, but he evades the attack, grabbing her foot and throwing her away.

She violently coughs; a rib of two might be broken from the harsh landing.

“Momo-ssi!”

Her eyes widen when the small kid runs to her side, trying to help her to get up.

“Minju, don’t come here! You have to run away and get help!”

“No! I want to stay with you!”

“But –”

“Papa told me to be kind to people who help you. You help me, Momo-ssi. I have to help you back!”

Momo was stunned, a smile slowly forming at the determined look of the child. She’s naïve, but maybe that’s what the world needs; a little bit of kindness to spare. This kid is such a precious child, and she wants nothing more than to protect her and keep her from harm.

Gaining strength from the girl’s courage, Momo stands up and pats her head. “Thank you.”

The girl grins back, before going inside a bush that acts as her hiding place. Momo turns to the huge man who had recovered from his broken jaw, the guy tilting his neck with a loud crack.

“You’ll pay for breaking my jaw.”

“Sorry, got no money on me.”

“Why you –”

Park darts forward for a punch, but Momo easily deflects, countering with a side kick to his waist. She lands rapid punches straight to his stomach, causing the man to stagger backwards with blood sputtering out of his mouth. Momo takes out her shuriken and throws them, the man evades each of them with ease, only to get a flying kick straight to his face. He fell on his back, loudly groaning. She takes out her tanto , wanting to end his life for good. However, a shot went through her shin, the ninja falling on her knee from the sudden attack.

She feels a looming presence towering over her as she tries to get back up, only to have her tanto snatched by Park. The ninja looks up, his wide menacing grin welcomes her.

“No! Don’t hurt her!”

“Minju, no!”

As if in slow motion, Park raises the sword to give Momo the last blow but Minju suddenly appeared and stood before her with arms outstretched. Momo yelled for the girl to move, her hand attempting to push the girl away but her injured leg prevented it. However, before the blade could slash the girl, a yell came out of nowhere.

“MOMO! DON’T YOU DARE DIE ON ME!”

 

BAM!

 

The tanto fell from Park’s hand, a bleeding gunshot wound can be found on his left chest. Blood gurgles from his mouth as he slowly falls to his knee, before dropping dead to the ground. Minju let out a small shriek as she buries her face into Momo’s chest, the latter holding her tight in a protective hug.

A black SUV suddenly rammed through the barricades of men as it swerved to a stop before the surprised ninja. Her eyes widen in recognition when a tall bodyguard jumps out with an assault rifle, followed by a woman clad in a maid dress holding a handgun in both hands. Momo’s lips lifted when the person she’s expecting elegantly stepped out with a submachine gun and a katana strapped to her waist.

She watches with admiration as Mina shoots the men down with calm composure. The young master slowly backtracks to her, the calm demeanor quickly morphed into distraught when she turns around.

“Momo…”

She gave Mina a smile, the usual comforting smile she always give whenever Mina found her in trouble. Tears begin to fill Mina’s eyes at the sight of her badly wounded ninja as she kneeled down in front of her.

“Stupid… Why did you do that?” She gently held Momo’s cheek. “Why do you have to do things on your own?”

“I promised you, Mina. I’ll protect you no matter what.”

“I hate you.” Mina grits her teeth as she holds back a sob, tears flowing endlessly down her face. “I hate you and father for doing these things behind my back, for doing stupid things just to protect me!”

Momo’s eyebrows furrowed together, before they lifted in realization. “You… read the letter?”

“Of course I did! It was an obvious place to hide something like that, stupid!”

Momo let out a chuckle from Mina’s deep frown; it’s been a while since she saw her like this.

“So, you forgive me?”

Her eyes narrowed into slits. “You want me to leave you here to death?”

Laughter burst from the ninja, only to receive a slap from Mina, despite the small smile on her face. As the laughter dies down, Momo reaches for Mina’s hand, squeezing it gently.

“I love you, Mi-tan.”

Mina sniffed as she wiped her eyes dry, her smile widening from the confession. “Stupid… I love you too.”

She pulls Momo’s closer, their faces closing in for a kiss, only for a palm to meet Mina’s puckered lips. The ninja points to the small girl in her arm silently watching their interaction with deep fascination shown in her eyes.

“She’s still underage.” Momo whispered, earning another pout from Mina.

“Yah! As much as I love to see your lovely reunion, please remember we’re facing a death sentence right now!” Sana ran towards them, the enemies already taken care of as the place turned quiet. However, they noticed the anxious look of the maid. “We gotta go, the reinforcements are coming.”

Mina exchanged looks with Momo, the latter giving her a nod before passing little Minju to Sana, the maid gladly hoisted the girl up into her arms.

“You leave with the kid first,” Mina ordered as she assisted Momo to stand with her injured leg. “We’ll leave with another car.”

Sana gives them a worried look, “Are you sure?”

Mina responded with a firm nod while Momo pats Minju on her head, catching her attention. “This sister will take you to a safe place, so be a good girl and listen to her. Can you do that for me, Minju-yah?”

“Of course I can!” She smiled, raising her thumb up. Momo chuckles as she does the same, mirroring the kid’s gesture.

Mina caught Tzuyu’s grim expression after Sana returned to her, probably sensing her young master’s intention. She gave the bodyguard a nod, the latter responded with a hand on her chest and a deep bow. They watch solemnly as the car leaves, the headlights diminishing into the darkness.

“Are you sure about this?”

The ninja asked, receiving a smile in return.

“As long as I’m with you.”

As they were drowned in the other’s eyes, they heard a clicking sound followed by something landing nearby. Mina looks on the ground, her eyes widen from a grenade lying by their feet.

“Get down!”

 

BOOM!

 

Mina groans, her ears buzzing from the deafening explosion. It was in the spur of the moment, but she managed to lurched both of them behind a car before the grenade exploded. She suffered a small bruise and a headache, but a gasp leaves when she sees Momo’s still body.

“Momo! Pull yourself together!”

Mina pulls the woman over her lap, slapping her face a few times, only for Momo to cough out blood.

“Mi… tan…”

“Hey, we’re getting out of here. Can you move?”

She scrambles to check Momo’s injuries, but the latter grabs her fidgeting hands, lacing their fingers together.

“Nee…  You need to go…”

“No, I’m not leaving you.”

“Mina… please –”

“Shut up! I’m not leaving you here, Momo!”

A hand cups her cheek, wiping away the tears that Mina didn’t know had fallen.

“I’m going to be fine.” Momo chuckled, “It’s… It’s just a scratch, see?”

A laugh sputtered from Mina’s mouth, amused how Momo can joke even at times like this. She wishes she can be as strong as the ninja, able to smile even in pain. Maybe she can, too. If Momo is by her side, she can smile too, in sadness and happiness.

However, their moment was interrupted when laughter booms. She knows that voice; it belongs to the man who wishes for her downfall, just because of a mere position as the next successor.

“Ara, ara… what is this pitiful sight I see?”

Mina turns around, standing tall on her feet with a glare full of hatred to her uncle… No, she shouldn’t call him that. That horrible man does not deserve a title that bounds them together, even if they share the same blood.

“Did you know why everyone bearing the Myoui as their last name had a cruel childhood growing up?” Takeru asked with an air of arrogance, protected by the line of hitmen holding their guns up. “Because love makes you weak! Just like how you are right now, and that damn father of yours!”

Mina grips the sheath of the katana strapped to her waist, her jaw clenching tightly when Takeru mentioned her father.

“That man, he ruined my sister. She was cherished by everyone, being the oldest in our family, the best successor a Myoui could have. But when that man appeared, she faltered. She succumbed herself to the lies and deceit love brings, falling for that lousy man and giving him the position that was rightfully hers – just because he was better!”

“Tch, what a joke he was…” He scoffed, eyes flaring with rage and resentment. “In fact, all of you are a joke! Because of you, my beloved sister died. Because of you, the elders are losing their trust in me. Because of you, the Myoui clan is facing its downfall!” He spat, pointing a gun at her. “There’s nothing more deserving for a disgraceful lot like you than being six feet under the ground, !”

“You and your damn foul tongue.” Mina seethed as she cracks her neck, her stance guarded. “ I’ll cut it to pieces and serve them to the useless elders as breakfast.”

“Heh. You’re just spouting empty words, Mina. There’s no way you can defeat me on your own now, eh?”

“W-Who said she’s alone?”

Mina snapped her head to the voice, bewildered to see her ninja standing on her own. Momo limped to her side with an innocent smile.

“You see, love can be our weakness. But it is also our source of strength. I would have died as a child, if Mina didn’t show me that eager face when Myoui-dono offered to take me in. I wouldn’t be the clan’s most feared assassin, if Mina killed that rabbit as her first assignment. I wouldn’t have found the meaning of life, if Mina didn’t save me when I was locked in the basement. Without Mina,” She turns to the woman staring back at her with adoration, “I wouldn’t know what it feels like to love, and to be loved.”

He loudly cackles, followed by a scoff. “See why I said you guys are a joke? I guess love is worthy enough to sacrifice your own lives too, huh?”

Mina reaches for Momo’s hand, not sparing Takeru a glance. “I’d rather die with her than live my life as a living doll for the Myoui.”

“The hell…?”

They ignore him as he grumbles to himself, Momo raising Mina’s hand and leaves a kiss on her ring finger. “Till death do us part?”

Mina grins her gummy smile, mirroring Momo’s action of kissing her ring finger, to profess her love and vow to the ninja. “Till death do us part.”

They end the vow with a kiss, a deep one, sealing their life-long promise to be together. They pull away when they hear the sound of clapping from Takeru, his face showing deep annoyance.

“Yeah, yeah… vows exchanged, kisses done. Can we get to the killing session now?”

Momo readies her stance as she pulled the tanto from its sheath, while Mina calmly rested her right hand over the hilt of the katana on her waist. They stand side by side, the corner of their lips lifted from the alarming faces of Takeru and his men.

“Ready to kick some , my lady?”

“Been waiting for a long time, love.”

 

*

 

A tall woman clad in a long jacket over a black and blue checkered button shirt with straight cut washed out jeans stepped inside the entrance of the airport lobby, her eyes hidden by the white bucket cap she wore. Her long black hair bobs gently as she trudges through the long walkway, avoiding meeting eyes with a few fascinated by the charismatic aura she exudes. She reaches a public locker, punching in the code she memorized by heart. As the light indicator flashes green, she opens the lid and takes out a thick envelope and a flip phone. She checks the content; a few million won enough to buy a mansion with three flight tickets to Japan. Switching on the phone, she swiftly types a message and sends it to the sole number saved in the contact list.

 

Everything’s taken care of.

 

She counts in her head, and exactly after she reaches a certain number, a message is received.

 

Affirmative. Have a safe trip, C.

 

Her lips lifted at the familiarity of the text, before deleting the messages and switching it off, shoving it back inside the locker.

 

~

 

Sana takes a deep breath, her light brown locks tied in half gently swaying along the breeze. She buries her hands inside her brown jacket, watching the pair of tombstones before her with a smile. She didn’t bring a bouquet of flowers for them, but a plate of jokbal and a bottle of ketchup instead. That’s what they preferred, and Sana snorted at the thought.

“Sana-unnie!”

She turns around, before crouching down to catch the small girl running into her arms. They giggle happily, another figure walking towards them with a fond smile from the scene. Sana greets her with a kiss on her cheek, the woman averting her gaze to the ground to hide her heating face, still not used to the affectionate gesture.

“Chewy-unnie is shy shy shy!”

“I-I’m not, Minju-yah!”

The small girl laughed from seeing the flustered state of her guardian, followed by Sana who nudges the tall woman teasingly. Tzuyu merely shakes her head, chuckling along with the two who teases her as their newly-found favourite hobby.

“Ready to go?”

Sana gives one last look to the graves, before nodding her head. Tzuyu picks up little Minju into her right arm, the other linking with Sana. They walk away from the two graves hand in hand, leaving the place to build a new life together, as desired by their two friends who had sacrificed a lot for love, hoping they will find one too.

 

 

They will find each other,

In life and death,

Until they can love again.

Together, forever.

MYOUI MINA                    MYOUI MOMO

 

 

 

 

---

A/N:

Maybe I will make a gokusen sequeal with Mina as a yakuza teacher, eh? Nope, don't think so.
This is by far the longest (words) and shortest (time) I've ever done for a one-shot divided by three. Just because I'm too excited to finish it teheee. Since I've used up all of my quotas for the year, I shall take a rest and update my on-goings in the coming year. See you next year, guys! *disappears into smoke while coughing wildly*

Thank you for reading! Hope you enjoy this au and gives it a lot a love. Take care and have a nice day! ^^