The VENOM Squad: Nephila

The door suddenly creaked open which disturbed the two.

"Mr. Ton," said Dr. Rooney as he took off his mask. "What brought you here?"

The richest man, Mr. Ton, did not reply to him immediately. He simply had his hands behind his back and looked around the laboratory.

"What do you want this time?" Dr. Baker asked when he sensed the presence of Mr. Ton behind him.

"As you all know," Mr. Ton stated. "My precious Saber Squad is nowhere to be found in the Land of Dawn."

"You want us to create another squad to look for them?" Dr. Baker guessed which made the old man smile.

"Exactly," replied Mr. Ton. "Of course it won"t be for free. Ask any amount you need in doing the task and I shall provide it no matter how much it costs."

There was a deafening silence after that. Dr. Baker and Dr. Rooney looked at each other and nodded.

"It"ll cost much more than you think for lives are at stake here," Dr. Rooney added.

Mr. Ton stood up and heads to the exit. But before he left, he said, "The squad shall find the Saber squad or else at the next sunrise, this laboratory and your bodies shall disappear without anyone noticing."

The two scientists sighed in disappointment for they knew from the very start that they"ve got no other choice but to follow Mr. Ton"s wishes.

"This project," Dr. Rooney stated with a soft voice.

"It"ll be the most inhumane project we"ll ever have," Dr. Baker said as he stares at the huge experimental tube where the living doll is currently in.
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Hanzo, Hayabusa and Hanabi failed to track down the location of Kenshin so they went back to the rent house and found Yukimura cooking dinner.

"Welcome back!" she greeted happily as she prepares the table. "Huh? Where"s Kagura?"

"Yukimura," Hanabi called out, "By any chance, do you know where Kenshin hides?"

Just by hearing that question, Yukimura got to grasp the situation.

"He does not really hide, though," she replied. "He comes here in Mizuyama like a commoner yet after his transactions, he"ll go back to Magical City."

"How far is that city from here?" asked Hanzo.

"It"ll take a week for you to go there now that the Land of Dawn is off-limits. You"ll have to make a detour in order to reach the city," replied Yukimura. "We"ll discuss more as we eat."

They all sat down on the table and had their dinner as they talk about their next plan.

"So it"s true that the Land of Dawn has been invaded," Hayabusa stated.

"Yes," Yukimura agreed. "It"s been deserted a month ago. I"m quite sure Kenshin took the detour in the Land of the Giants. It"s the fastest route to reach Magical City."

"It"s settled then," Hanzo said. "I shall have three horses and we"ll head to the Land of the Giants tomorrow at dawn."

"What about me?" asked Yukimura while showing her puppy eyes on Hanzo.

"You"ll stay here of course," the ak.u.ma ninja said. "Our deal is for me to take you out from the brothel house. I haven"t said that I"ll adopt you."

"But if you leave, then, I"ll be forced to go back to the brothel house. I cannot find a job here for I am known to be a brothel woman," Yukimura explained.

Hanabi was about to volunteer on bringing her to the Scarlet faction village but she backed out when Yukimura said, "Take me to your home and make me your wife. I shall do all things properly. Just take me."

Hayabusa snickered at the woman"s proposal. Hanabi stared at Hanzo, waiting for his response. And for an unknown reason, she kept wishing that Hanzo should turn her down.

The ak.u.ma ninja gazed at Yukimura and shrugged.

"Fine, we"ll take you to the Shadow faction village," he replied, "But scratch that option of you being my wife."

Unconsciously, Hanabi breathed with relief which made the three look at her. She came to her senses and realized what just happened so she lets out an awkward laugh.

"I was just tired, that"s all. Don"t mind me," she said.

"Hanzo," Yukimura continued, "Don"t you really want to be betrothed to me?"

"Just say yes," Hayabusa encouraged. "You wouldn"t have to waste time looking for a wife. She"s already in front of you."

Hanzo clicked his tongue in annoyance which was a signal for Yukimura to stop bugging him.

Hanabi finished her dinner and went to her room. Before going to bed, she decided to go up the roof for some fresh air. She made herself comfortable and looked at the night state of Mizuyama. The lights from afar seemed to be stars for her. The cold wind caressed her skin. She closed her eyes and the memories of what happened recently involving Kenshin came rushing back to her. But what made her blush in no time was the moment she opened her eyes and saw Kenshin peacefully sleeping. That very moment, she thought that he is just a normal guy, not a black marketeer, not an enemy.

Hanabi slapped both of her cheeks to stop thinking weird things. She was even more startled when someone spoke behind her.

"Are you going crazy?" asked Hayabusa who is just sitting two meters away from her. Hanabi did not say a word for she knew that both he and Hanzo hold a grudge against her for what happened to Kagura.

"I know you know very well as to why Hanzo is not very welcoming," Hayabusa stated. "The three of us grew up together in training. We attended the same school and was trained by one great teacher. He seemed to have learned our teacher"s att.i.tude."

"I do understand that," Hanabi replied. "But wasn"t it unfair that he is not giving me any room for improvement?"

"That is not unfair at all," Hayabusa said. "He is just testing you on how you would deal with such situation."

Hanabi scoffed and said, "No, he is just being too personal. He does not like me, that"s that. There is no need for you to explain his side. I ain"t a dense fool to not feel what he really wants."

Hanabi left after saying that. Hayabusa smiled at her and said, "A woman of rarity, huh."

The scarlet ninja heard Yukimura and Hanzo talking with each other at the dining table. With curiosity, she decided to stay for a bit and eavesdrop. But she suddenly felt gooseb.u.mps when Hanzo suddenly stopped talking.

Hanabi gulped and rolled her eyes.

"He"s got some strong sense," she thought as she goes inside her room.

Meanwhile, Kagura and Kenshin had a stopover to rest for the night.

"Let me go, you freak!" Kagura struggled as she tried to reach and grab Kenshin. But the heavy metals tied on her feet stop her from doing so. She could not even summon her Seimei Umbrella for Kenshin had forced her to use a magical bracelet that hinders her to summon her power.

"Struggling is not really a wise choice, little girl," said Kenshin. "If only I had that other girl as a hostage, you wouldn"t be here."

"What do you want exactly?" Kagura asked.

"I want to have some fun," Kenshin replied bluntly. "I do not want anything in particular."

"Then, who are you working for?" asked the onmyouji.

Kenshin simply shrugged and did not reply. He stood up from his sit and decided to go back to his room but Kagura heard what he just said despite saying it with a low tone of voice.

"I kind of want that ninja as a prize?" Kagura repeated what she heard from him.