Good day to you all. Your Lord commands your eyes to read keenly upon this decree of thine excellence! For I, sayeth me, art immaculate in all mine glory! ...Okay, now that my power trip is over and done with, let's get on with business, shall we?

So, it's been a week or so since my last update. I'm not keeping explicit track, obviously. This chapter was a little difficult to write, but it came together surprisingly well. I had actually thought that I would be forced to end it early and have yet another short chapter -10K, or less, as is my new policy.

Onto the reviews!

Pyromania101- Chilling, you say? I'm glad I implanted the correct emotions, then. Yeah, my original version had Tsukune actually beating him without relying on the Sharingan, but I realized two things -one of which I can't explain here, due to later developments- and one of them was that I know this is a fantasy setting, but I want it to be fairly realistic. That includes the fact that Tsukune is amazing, by human standards now, but barely average towards the world of the monsters. He has a lot of things he can and will likely have to improve upon.

I know, the stealing of the kiss was in mildly bad taste, but... compared to what could have happened, I thought it would be a good point to subliminally piss Tsukune off with, and to cause an... infraction, of sorts, upon Moka. I'm glad I made the meeting with our favorite seductress believable, and I'm sure they'll become friends... but here are bound to be bumps in the road. Indeed, they do have that form of empathy, which will come in later. Heh, very astute, my friend. For better details to that question, read below. Just know, you're correct. Hmm, well, I tried to describe a very familiar mangekyou sharingan. Reread the description and all will become clear -I hope. If not, it will be revealed in time, as will all things.

Garra King of the Sand- Thank you for your input. So a six? Alright, I'll try to add a bit more detail into the next fight scene I do. Would you mind, in a private emssage, elaborating on the kind of extra detail I might add? Thank you.

Hypothetical spiritual entity- Thank you, kind sir/ma'am.

Kuro-hebi13- Haha, I'm glad you can't. Now, if I could only get the other 5.9 billion denizens of Earth to be swept up in my web. Epitome of a typical Uchiha, huh? Well, I suppose he is, for now at least. I hope to bring him out of his shell some, but keep him grounded... if you catch my drift.

Orchamus- I'm quite pleased that you would give me all A's on that, and that I was able to keep you on your toes the whole time. I'm quite shocked that it didn't seem jerky, considering that the entire fight scene took me almost a week to write, with three full days of a temporary hiatus due to writers block. Thank you, it was a last minute thing; I was going to have him fight him to the cliff edge, but then I thought about it, went back and gave him a third tomoe after a little tweaking, and... voila.

Ramzal Von Enili- I'm glad I've gotten you addicted to his character development. There is no question of his attainment of the eyes, it is in the name and will be a large focal point in the story. In fact, you could consider them to be a supporting character, if not a main character, in and of themselves. Hmm, I haven't thought about it, but I can't answer you as of now; it would give too much away. I hope you understand.

Major Wallace- Thank you once more, Major Wallace.

SorryNeedAnAccount- Greetings, my friend. I suppose the name is fitting, considering most authors wouldn't recognize you from your speech/type patterns -odd that I would, come to think of it. Sadly, I know exactly what you mean, but I appreciate all of my reviewers... Even those without accounts. You're quite welcome, and thank you for reviewing in the first place. Meh, have you looked at my replies? I ramble far more than necessary, heh.

Huh, to tell the truth, I'm glad you brought that to my attention. I had assumed that everyone reading this would have had a little knowledge of Naruto, and the sharingan. I suppose its a good thing I've been explaining my take on the eye, and thanks to you, will continue to do so without any abridging. Of course, even those that have intimate knowledge will have my new philosophies and ideals thrust upon them, especially because of how this will all... tie together.

The dreams did their job then. They will all come together close to the time that I reveal the 'Voice's true identity and purpose. Of course, that is subject to change, but its where I have it planned, currently. As to his power? I've dropped hints, and part of the repercussions, shall we say will be seen here. Bullshit? I wish, it really is my worst; It took me upwards of a week to write it.

Shadow Angel Beta- Thanks, and they really aren't. It's fairly difficult for me to write them because I get frustrated when I can't describe what I see in my mind, or when writer's block sets in -which is when it happens the most.

Disclaimer: If I own, or profit from any of this, then may god strike me dead! …Well, look, I'm ali- *Dies of natural causes completely unrelated to the ownership of anything in this fanfiction*

Chapter 6: Slighted Feelings

Tsukune groaned and wiped his mouth clean once again as he flushed the toilet for the fourth time that night. He sighed and walked over to the sink and took up his toothbrush after squirting a small wedge of paste on it and proceeded to clean his mouth once more. His brown eyes were blood-shot and rimmed red with the unshed tears he had been holding back.

His stomach churned in an angry growl and struck him with thousands of molten iron needles every other second. A hiss escaped him as he turned right around a dry-heaved once more over the toilet, and then gripped at his sternum as the immense pain from the false alarm radiated outward.

The brunette teen wasn't quite sure what the cause of his sudden sickness, but it had to do something with the odd pain that had begun to burn in the back of his head, estimated to be near where both his ocular nerves connected to his brain, and where his thalamus was located. Yet, it wasn't just that which was bothering him; it seemed that a massive pressure had begun to press in his temples, yet further back- closer to his ears, than anything.

Tsukune groaned and gripped the sides of his head, digging his fingers randomly about his cranium in a fruitless attempt to numb the pain some. He could hardly think with the anxious pain running rampant through his mind, proverbially trashing his mind in a riot. Just as it hit its apex, it did as it had been doing and predictably faded out, leaving him with naught but a dull ringing and a slight swimming vision.

Slumping down next to the doorless, yet divided toilet wall, he placed his hands in his pockets and tried his best to ignore the sickening growl of his stomach as it churned upon itself. In an attempt to take his mind off of it, he began to think back to a few hours ago, right after he had defeated Saizou in what had become mortal combat.

Eight hours earlier found the brunette Sharingan wielder staring down from the cliff as the distinct smell of methane from the red algae, the pure smell of water, and the tinging metallic of blood mixed and wafted upon the air currents as a loft breeze passed through the clearing. His eyes narrowed somewhat remorsefully as he had not planned to truly kill Saizou; getting the fool to surrender and give up, or at least restrain his ways would have been preferred, yet the poor sap had been adamant until the end... 'Such is the price of both arrogance and ignorance,' He thought to himself as he watched the tide slowly rise and obscure the impaled body from view.

The sound of a nervous shuffle caused him to blink and turn from the final resting place of the ill-mannered Komiya. Instead, his attention turned to the skittish and worried looking pink haired young woman, her off-jade eyes shifting about as she attempted to form words in the face of the ever-emotionless Tsukune. After nearly thirty seconds, and getting up to two body-lengths from the brunette boy, she finally spoke, "I-is he...?"

Closing his eyes, Tsukune nodded his head and cast his now coffee colored gaze momentarily over the edge, "Yes, he is..."

Moka just nodded and sniffled a little, though if it was from a sadness, or if she just was sniffing, Tsukune wasn't sure. Feeling his eyes on her, Moka looked back at him and offered him a worried glance, "Are you alright? I know he must've hurt you..."

Taking a breath, Tsukune remained silent for a moment before he answered with a light shake of his head, "No, not enough to be of worry. It will hardly be of note in a few days."

Moka smiled a small smile and proceeded to walk up to Tsukune and look over the edge as well, and immediately had to catch herself as both the vertigo effect caught her and a small urge to vomit wretched at her throat. She was spared from falling only by the now brown eyed boy grabbing her shoulder and holding her steady for a moment.

The pinkette felt her cheeks heat up as a light tinge affected them and she followed the urge to look down and away from Tsukune, though she did manage a slightly stuttered, 'T-thank you.'

Nothing was really spoken between the two as they stood there at the cliff's edge, allowing the uniquely scented breezes to wash over them and brush their clothes and hair around, all the while trying to come to terms with what had happened- in Moka's case, and merely going over the events of everything in his head- In Tsukune's case.

Finally, as the moon's glow got ever brighter, the brunette boy turned to his pink haired companion who had yet to walk off towards her dorm room, and gave a silent sigh. He could tell that she was terrified, and while tired from the day's tribulation, she was both worried of the trek back and for him. With an absent shake of his head, Tsukune decided to do something that he just might regret far more than giving her the tomato juice, "Come, let's get you back to your dorm room."

Moka quickly turned to him and blinked owlishly, her lips pursed together with a little fang barely peaking its tip out from beneath her upper lip. Finally she smiled and nodded, "Thank you...Tsukune-san"

He nodded his head and motioned with his arm as he began to walk in the direction of the dorm rooms at a fairly slow pace. The teen looked up at the moon, hanging high in the sky, and felt a pang of something in his heart, causing him to stuff his hands into his pockets. He thought back to his youth a few years earlier and the time that his life had changed for the better; the day he killed Ishin and subsequently liberated Matsuri from his influence.

His thought troubled him as, in retrospect, it seemed as if everything that happened had been almost... planned. It was a preposterous thing to think of, and even more so to believe, but... it fit. He was born to his parents who lived a happy, stress-free life with his mother and father, both of whom were in business- his mother running an at-home job in which she would do something regarding logistics for Gynryuu Shipping Co. and his father who worked as a high-up executive for the same company.

Then, on that fateful day he had been brought home by Matsuri only to see the police in front of his house. Gods, what he had seen inside of that house had been- He was brought out of his thought by Moka taping him on the shoulder, "Ano, Tsukune-san, why did you help me... both times?"

Sighing with a slight amount of irritation as he didn't enjoy his thought to be interrupted, though he soon cooled himself and took a breath, "It's a simple thing, really; I couldn't sit back and allow something to happen to an innocent woman..."

The girl flushed slightly and smiled, both at the gesture and the fact that he referred to her as a 'woman', and not a 'girl', as most people tended to do. Her off-jade eyes gained a subtle glow of happiness and calmed down from their frantic skittishness and unknown to them both, she moved closer to him.

"Tell me," Tsukune finally said after a while of the two walking in semi-comfortable silence, "Why is it that you feel the need to be friendly to me? I've really done nothing to earn your company, and not to be rude, but I'm not exactly looking for it, either."

For a fraction of a second Moka's features fell into dejection as the words Tsukune had said made their way into her ears, but she quickly perked up a little upon the thought that, perhaps, he may be on the path to becoming friends with her. Her brilliant green eyes were momentarily hidden from view as she blinked and then her smile was back, albeit a little muted.

Finally, Moka answered, "I just... I've never really... had a friend before."

Tsukune nodded, glancing at her from his peripheral, "Neither have I; not true friends, at any rate."

Moka frowned and wrung her hands together for a moment, thinking up what she was going to say as she lightly bit on her bottom lip and knit her brows. "All I've had," Moka began and looked upwards, lightly rummaging through her memories, "is my father, and sisters; though all but Kokoa are usually too busy for me..."

"What have they to do that is more important than taking a little bit of time out for family?" Tsukune queried the young woman walking in tandem with him. He knew for a fact that such a question could also be asked of his family, though in his case, it was the opposite; it was he who didn't care to spend much time with them... He simply didn't have that social drive that most people had; something he partially blamed upon his past.

He heard her let out a breath and try to stifle a small yawn before she answered, "Well, father isn't exactly the warm and caring type; his only interest seems to be running his business, and getting us to fight and get stronger- I can understand though, being what we are."

Tsukune raised an eyebrow, filing the thought to ask her about it at a later date as she went on, "Kahlua works for my father's company indirectly; she's a... delivery woman and only handles the large and important packages. Then, my other half-sister... she left home a long time ago, though I can't remember why."

"Well," The brunette, sharingan carrier said with little inflection, "You have your sister, Kokoa, do you not?"

He watched as she looked down and her smile faded some. As she took some time, the teen thought about what kind of family hers must be, and of the dynamic that hers revolved around. The way it sounded, it was one of those large, rich families that had little to do with each other... It almost sounded as if every child was just a... a tool to further the father's company- granted, he was thinking in the worst case scenario, he told himself.

"No, no... I wish I did," Moka allowed in a soft voice, a small rainy cloud seeming to culminate over her head, "My sister, she... hates me."

'She hates her?,' Tsukune thought incredulously, blinking thrice and going over it again in his mind before letting out a light breath, "What do you mean, 'She hates me', Akashiya-san? What has she to hate you for?"

He watched Moka shrugged and thumbed the silver and ruby-inlaid rosary resting somewhat in her cleavage, clearly contemplating something for a few minutes. At last, she looked to him and smiled lightly, "Can you keep a secret, Tsukune-san?"

The contemplative, wanting, yet hesitant look within her green eyes would have melted the heart of a lesser man into a pile of goo, yet Tsukune was not affected as drastically, though he did feel his lips tugging into a very minute smile, "I can, and I will."

Moka allowed a tiny grin to escape, then it faded into a regular smile and she closed her eyes, her right hand grasping the cross and holding it up as she looked down onto it, with a reverent look upon her face, "This rosary, it is the reason my sister hates me..." She looked over and saw him about to say something, but motioned for him to wait a moment, "My sister, she doesn't like me because... She doesn't think I'm her sister..."

Brown eyes narrowed as his brows knit together, and his monotonous voice questioned, "Yet you are her sister, correct? So why would she think such a thing?"

"We're half-sisters, all of us," The fanged girl said, closing her eyes and licking her lips, "That never really bothered us, though. You see, Kokoa doesn't think I'm her sister because... My true self is locked within this rosary here, in my hands. I don't remember anything from before it was placed on me, but... Kokoa insists that I'm just a pathetic copy of her true, real sister,... and..."

"And...?" Tsukune repeated, wondering both, what kind of monster the young pinkette walking with him was, and also what this extra clause was. His answer was certainly not what he was expecting, though in retrospect; they are monsters, but still... They're siblings, even removed as they were. A wind carrying a distant foreboding feeling blew lightly.

Moka frowned, "She tries to fight me every single time we set eyes on each other, and... She's got it in her head that if she can kill me, her 'true sister' will replace me." The pinkette's frown grew ever so slightly, "Father doesn't try to correct her either, and encourages her, instead."

"Fools, the lot of them," Tsukune muttered beneath his breath, but the augments that transcended her True Self to this outer persona were such that she easily heard him. The brunette teen meanwhile had no such clue that the pinkette heard him and continued his thoughts aloud, "Logic dictates that to kill one would be to kill the other; to think otherwise is to show your ignorance to the world."

The young woman shook her head, "N-no one is sure whether it would work or-"

"-Perhaps there has not been a study on it, but if your body was damaged to such an extent that you were to expire, so would this, 'True self' of yours... Unless, of course, you share two different bodies; one sealed within the rosary whilst the other is out, a thought which is highly doubtful," The Sharingan host explained with an afterthought. He turned his head to see Moka looking down, a little pink tinging her cheeks, presumably at being seemingly admonished.

In a rather comfortable silence the pair continued their walk, each caught in their own thoughts. On Tsukune's mind was his altercation with Saizou, and the way he had gotten the massive monster to fight far worse than he was earlier, with the fighting prowess of himself when he was ten years old. Easily dodging around the sloppy and slow hits, he managed to lead Saizou to the cliff's edge and kick him off, where he finally seemed to snap out of his daze moments before he faded away.

The other two things on his mind were how he could keep his human identity a secret, and how he could possibly survive this damnable place with what was left of his sanity intact. Beyond that, he was faced with the dilemma of Moka; she seemed nice enough and had yet to really request anything other than his company... though he supposed that if he wanted to be strict and all-encompassing, he would need to to add in the fact that she required protection thus far- a fact that mildly annoyed him. Yet, she was, at least, pleasant to talk to... She wasn't vomiting rainbows everywhere, after all.

Walking in tandem with her first (hopeful) friend, Moka continued to sneak a glance or two from her green eyes' peripherals and each and every time, the tinge of pink that brushed her face would grow a little. The fact that they had managed a conversation, deep as it was considering their lack of even a marginal friendship, without him hinting towards something racy or indecent was astounding to her.

Now, ironically, it was her who was stealing glances and noticing just how his skin seemed to be the perfect mix of weathered and rugged mixed with porcelain; his brunette hair seemed to flop about his head randomly in a manner that some would coin as adorable or amusing. She wouldn't say she was developing a crush on him, not yet, but she would admit that he was an attractive man, and she hoped that he would become her friend... she had no hoped for anything beyond that.

As the two broke out of the path through the dead and graying trees, they both caught sight of the dormitories. Moka released an involuntary breath of relief, knowing that only the most determined or angered would attempt something in plain view.

Turning to look at Moka, Tsukune nodded to her, "Would you like me to escort you to the doors, or can you handle it from here?"

The pinkette looked around, letting her off-jade gaze scan the area as her stomach bundles up in nervous jitters, "A-ano, can you-"

"-Let's go," Tsukune answered and began walking towards the Gothic architecture dorm where a large amount of teenaged girls were walking in and out of, and sat around speaking to one another on various subjects that were all of no import to the brunette teen. Yet, apparently, the fact that Tsukune was approaching the woman's dorm in close proximity to the ever-envied Moka Akashiya was of great importance to those that noticed.

As the duo grew closer and closer to the building, the whispered chatter became greater. Unknown to any of the girls, Moka could easily hear them whispering to each other, and Tsukune had grown rather proficient in reading mouths with his Sharingan imprinting the motions in his synapses.

"Oh great, here she comes," A stout, yet regal looking honey-brown haired girl said as her light green eyes twirled in their sockets.

A young, short and clearly undeveloped fifteen year old blonde girl looked to her friend and sighed, "God, what I'd do to have her body... Look at this, I don't even have tits yet!"

"Bitch, stealing the eyes of our men," A dark brown, bordering black with tints of seaweed green headed, tall girl said as she turned her back to the two and stepped inside, grumbling to herself all the way.

Moka flinched against her will as she tried to not let the words bother her; she had been used to them by a great many people. At least, she told herself, it wasn't as bad as those...humans that had thought her irrational and mentally damaged due to her 'belief' about her heritage. Replacing the sudden sadness was a curiosity when she felt two quick pulse of pressure upon her wrist, and realized it was Tsukune who had done so upon looking down. She eyed him with a quizzical glance and he nodded forward, "Don't let them bother you... Jealousy breeds a hatred like no other, yet it often brings all but the most basic in mentality, or the most arrogant to their knees in motivation."

The odd statement, despite not being highly comforting in it's intent sent a warm wave through her that flushed out the blackness that had drizzled in for the scant moment of sadness she felt. Beyond that, she was no longer really bothered by the glances and comments for the moment. She gave a thankful smile.

"I'll see you in the morning," Tsukune said in a low monotone and was quickly out of sight, yet he had merely walked away. It was a strange occurrence that Moka felt she would need to get used to if friendship with him was to be had. A soft smile graced her pink lips and a soft whisper escaped as she went into the dorm, "Thank you... Tsukune-san."

Tsukune groaned and rolled over as his eyes opened and glanced at the electronic clock, its glaringly bright orange numbers flickered and changed from what they were to display the time as '6:36', causing the brunette to groan once more and curse as he held his stomach which was still groaning and gurgling, though not near as violently as it had been.

"Four hours, and three minutes..." Tsukune deadpanned in a croaking voice, slowly forcing himself to sit upright and wait for the swimming effect that his vision was undergoing to level out. He let out a breath and stood up and immediately shed his gray muscle-shirt and black boxers. It took him little time to change into a pair of dark green boxer-briefs and acquire another gray undershirt which was quickly covered by his button-up shirt and green blazer. His green slacks were next to be put on, followed by the black shoes that he had always worn.

The brunette boy allowed himself a small bowl of cereal for breakfast along with a single piece of toast and prayed that such a meager meal would be fine for his stomach, what with the way it was acting lately. Taking a gander at the clock, he nodded and left his dorm and made his way to the first class of his alternating schedule; Japanese with Fubuki Shinji.

At least, after he makes his way to homeroom, first.

A few hours later, Tsukune blinked and his lips pressed together in a thin line as he left Human Communications, taught by one Ulrich Weisberg- One of the few people on campus who he's seen that wasn't of an Asian descent, in the least. The brunette teen stepped to the side and allowed a few of his classmates to pass him by as he absently walked along the corridors on his way to Chemistry with some mystery teacher.

Ulrich Weisberg was hard to understand with his thick German accent, and was apparently very quick to defend himself if questioned about it. The dirty blond man had yelled at him, mistaking Tsukune for the student behind him after the short teen had asked him to talk slower so he could understand him. Thus, his mood had soured more than it was, though he let not slip his fairly blank facade.

"T-Tsukune-san!" He heard a familiar voice call out to him and closed his eyes for a moment, as he tunred around, "Hello, Moka, how are you?"

The pink haired girl gave a bright smile as she slowed from her light jog to a walk up to him, "I'm great! What about you?"

Tsukune ran a hand through his hair and licked his lips, "I'm fine; not as great as I'd prefer."

As the two began to walk towards the end of the hallway together, Moka went on to speak, "I wanted to thank you for last night, Tsukune-san. You didn't have to take me to my dorms, or even walk with me from the woods..." The girl gave a sweet smile and went in for a hug... Only to find herself having to catch her balance before she ran into the wall. She turned and gave him a confused and almost hurt stare.

Tsukune shook his head, "I'm not in the mood for physical contact Moka-san. Don't take it personally, and you're welcome... I figured that such an... eventful night would leave you shaken; I couldn't leave you to your mental shades on a good conscience."

Moka, slightly put out, nodded and began to walk a little behind the boy, "Ano, remember what we talked about?"

She was hard-pressed but managed to see the small incline of the brunette's head, as well as the low, monotone, 'Indeed, why?' he let out. The shapely, attractive girl smiled some, "I was wondering; you said that you didn't have friends either... why?"

For just a second, the brunette boy went rigid, and the next he was completely find as he took in a breath, his eyes closed, "The reason I don't have friends? …There is no such thing; people only wish to further their own ends—even at the risk of your health. Friendship is nothing but a leech under a better name."

As he turned, he barely noticed that he had left Moka standing still in the hall with her eyes wide and lips slightly parted, "Perhaps you will change my opinion, perhaps you'll prove me right... We shall see."

When he entered the classroom, Tsukune found that he was sitting within a large classroom, though there were decidedly few desks and tables, leading him to conclude that the class was rather small. A small upturn of his lips showed those that would come to know him that he was rather pleased as he took to sit in what could best be the most center desk in the room.

Several minutes passed as more students pooled in, a slow trickle at first, but as the bell neared they increased until the class was almost full. Finally, as the last student entered, who else but Shizuka Nekonome would enter the classroom and give off her cat-like smile, "Alright! Well, I'm Nekonome Shizuka, and I'll be filling in today for this class!"

One of the students raised his hand, and was quickly allowed to speak by the kindhearted, if ditzy cat-woman, "Where is the sensei who's supposed to teach this class?"

The dirty-blond woman's two ear-like tufts twitched as she looked a little forlorn, "Unfortunately, Jinjakka-san has passed on; he attempted to brew a particularly acidic compound and the beaker blew up and dissolved his face..." The teacher frowned and mewled sadly, but quickly perked up, "Until we find a permanent professor, anyone with over a moderate experience in chemistry will be rotating a substitute duty."

The fact that the classes had all been oriented towards monsters, and thus the safety measures for classes such as Chemistry and Gym bothered Tsukune some, but not nearly as much as the fact that a good deal of the chemical compounds that were mentioned by Shizuka were completely unheard of to him; it seemed that, in addition to being separate from the 'Human realm', the 'Monster Realm' had a completely different set of chemical components, and a few elements that were not on the human periodic table.

Such was the thought on Tsukune's mind as he weaved between the masses of students walking up and down through the halls as he made his way through their breadth towards his dorm room. He cared little for the short hour break between classes for lunch, despite his stomach's own protests to that line of thought.

His reasons for heading to his dormitory was a fairly simply one, if slightly annoying; He had forgotten the health notebook which had been given out at the beginning of the class the day prior. If it was not a mandatory facet of the class, he wouldn't have even bothered walking his way all the way up to the building.

A soft wind blew and carried with it a small handful of pollen, which he found out when the burning tickle in his nose sudden erupted and caused a series of sneezes so hard that his purple and blue dots briefly appeared in his vision. After the fourth sneeze, he involuntarily coughed and harked out the remnants onto the grass.

He ignored the several disgusted glances shot by his passing peers and carried on his way towards the dorms. Unbeknownst to him, a certain voluptuous aqua haired young woman was lazing (spying) in the limbs of one of the many tall, dead trees that dotted the landscape, and more than lined the trails leading around the school.

Tsukune quickly rushed into his room and began to ruffle through his belongings. His coffee colored eyes shifted along the room, looking for the book, then twitched to look down at the small bag he was shuffling through every other second. 'It was here last night; I set it on the table... I know I did,' He thought to himself and began to gnaw lightly on his bottom lip.

With haste, he tossed the bag to the side and moved onto the bookshelf and began to thumb through the tiers of reading materiel. Tsukune flared his nostrils and felt his temperature spike momentarily in anger as he found that the book was absent from the case, as well. It took a bit of self-control to not allow a low growl to escape him as he quickly pivoted and jogged over to his bed, hoping it would be there.

He finally hissed aloud in his frustrations, wiping a bead of sweat from his brow as he found the book to be completely absent from his bed, and indeed, his room. Chocolate eyes flashed deadly crimson for a moment before fading as the brunette boy brought his anger back under control through a series of deep breaths. Obscuring his sight behind his lids, he began to cast his thoughts and attention over scouring his memories.

The last time something like this had happened, Izuma had been trying to pull a prank and had hid his wallet from him, as well as its contents of over eight-thousand Yin, which was a combination of found money, allowance, and payment for an odd-job or two he'd taken as part of his training under Asura.

His Step-father had thought the prank funny until Tsukune found it a week later and the black haired man came clean about his deed. It would be the last time the man messed with his money as a prank, especially when he found his bed filled with several scorpions upon retiring the night after due to not 'feeling well'. No, he most certainly wouldn't mess with the money anymore... but a prankster was in Izuma's blood, so it wouldn't be the last practical joke.

So caught up in his concentration was he that he didn't even realize that the balcony window to his dorm room slowly opened and a light gust of wind entered his solitude, carrying a few stray streamers in the form of loose leaves and grasses and an undertone of sweet perfume that wafted about.

Korono Kurumu smiled exuberantly as she daintily stepped into the predestine and clean dorm room. Her soft and bouncy custom-made perfume flowing into the room and doubtlessly filling the lungs of the occupant of the room. She smiled and tried to hold back a soft squeal, though to compensate, she bounced on the tip of her toes a couple of times.

The blue haired girl took a few steps into the room and her smile turned into a light, but supple grin as she noted the lone form standing vigil, his back to her as his brown hair tussled in the breeze that her entrance caused. Her grin slithered into a little smirk as she approached him, whispering to herself "You, Aono Tsukune, are the only person to have ever resisted my charm..."

She approached with as much poise as she possessed, tried not to make a single sound even though such a thing was extremely difficult. Her violet eyes glimmered with an inner light that bespoke of an intent nowhere near benign, and the peaceful gust that billowed in softly gained an ominous atmosphere about it.

"Then," Kurumu continued her monologue as her tiny and stealthy steps brought her closer to her unwary target, "You make a fool of me; you show me those weird eyes of yours and you make me feel fear... For the first time in my life; fear! You will regret humiliating me and weakening the charm I had on them... You'll regret making me second guess my powers and my right as a succubus..."

Her flawless pearl-white teeth glinted as the sinister slimmer in her violet orbs grew stronger with her proximity to her target. This was it! She was going to make him pay for ruining her plan to entrance all of the men and boys at the academy, for destroying her chance at a harem that she'd painstakingly planned out and ruined three days of her vacation to arrive at school early for. Tsukune Aono would pay for making her a fool before her subjects, and most certainly, he would pay for blowing her off!

The aqua headed succubus stifled a laugh, 'My perfume will distract him and mess with his ability to properly defend his mind from my illusions...' The young woman was now but a half-foot from her body touching him... Perfect. She gripped his shoulder and quickly pulled him around to face her. Tsukune let out a surprised grunt as he lost balance and fell, only to be caught and held up by something that felt like a rather squishy pillow.

He blinked and turned his head, a light blush staining his cheeks from the secret perfume, and saw that he was looking right into the beautiful dark-blue eyes of the bluenette he head been approached by the day before. He had barely a second to place the face and memories before Kurumu's eyes narrowed and in a sweet voice, with an undertone of confident glee, said, "Oh, would you look who happened to save you? Now, be a dear, and fall for my 'Charm'!"

Tsukune suddenly felt his will ripped from his mind, and an imposing force began to invade his mental chamber. He felt the control of his body leave him slowly, as if his bodily will were a tub of water and someone pulled the plug..

With what strength he had left, he attempted to push himself from Kurumu, though all he managed was a weak grip on her wrists, where her hands were helping to keep him from buckling under his own weight by supporting his sides. He found that he was unable to channel his energy any longer and thus couldn't activate his Sharingan to dissolve the... whatever the hell had taken hold.

Moments before he became a prisoner in his own mind, he managed a single croaked word, "Why?"

Tsukune could only watch as the cruel glint in her narrowed eyes was completely washed away by a gleeful light and a high-pitched squeal left the pink lips of the succubus as she hugged the limp shell that was Tsukune to her body, the side of his head becoming smothered between her impossibly soft breasts, "Eeeheehee! I've got Tsukune-kun! I've got Tsu~Ku~Ne~!"

After bouncing around and then pirouette, all the while gripping Tsukune's body to her, she smiled, "Oh, Tsukune-kun, do you love me?" The formless spirit that was Tsukune's mind 'watched' in abject horror as his head slowly looked up and stared into Kurumu's own with a semi-dopey smile and begin to nod, "Yes, I love you, Kurumu-chan."

'What the hell is going on!' He exclaimed his inquiry and heard his telepathic message echo through the vague infinity that this mental realm was. He tried to tense his muscles, but only managed to let out a hissing sound upon seeing Kurumu once more press his head into her bosom and gyrate her torso and thereby her breasts around his brown haired mop.

"What do you want to do Tsukune-kun?" He heard Kurumu ask him, and tried to stop himself from answering, but instead could do nothing but allow the reply from his body to slip out, "I want to love you, Kurumu-chan... I want to make sure you're happy."

A proud and satisfied smile accompanied her excited giggle. She blinked as she turned, shoving the arm of her latest charmed conquest in between her breasts as she led the husk of the teen out the room via her own entrance. All the while, the imprisoned young man's mind began to run through plans to free himself from this woman's supernatural whiles.

Across the school, Moka Akashiya had just set down her satchel bag as she once more placed herself at one of the few solitary round tables at lunch. She absently looked over the can of tomato juice that she'd just bought, wiping off a small drop of perspiration with a napkin. The can opened with a light hiss and Moka took a sip, letting the slightly viscous, tangy liquid wash over her tongue and down her throat.

She ignored the loud and raucous conversations that polluted the air in the cafeteria, and instead hummed lightly to herself a small tune that her mother had sang to her when she was a child. Her mind began to go over her day thus far, starting with her waking up from a dream that involved Saizou Komiya attempting to force himself on her, only for her classmate and friend hopeful, Tsukune Aono, saved her by slaying the blonde man.

Then came the realization that the nightmare was no such thing, and was instead reality; that Saizou had tried to do those things, and that the smaller, emotionally detached boy had killed Saizou to save her. He had ended the life of the boy with but the barest shred of remorse, just so that she wouldn't have to experience the horror of what the blond punk had planned for her.

A smile with more meaning and more brightness than her small, peaceful one formed on her lips and her green eyes almost sparkled with tears from both the stress and relief.

Moka then remembered that, despite the coldness he displayed, and despite the stress and damage he had done to himself fight Saizou, he had still walked her to the dorms and along the way, made actual attempt at conversation with her. Moka realized that she had almost let slip what type of monster she was, and had easily given enough clues for him to figure it out... Luckily, there was quite a bit of controversy in the Monster Realm about vampires... Not near as much as in the Human, but enough that it would be an annoying endeavor to confirm.

The humans liked to believe all of these falsehoods about vampires, and a lot of their mythologies were from other monsters that were, at best, inferior cousins to vampires; case in point, the Chupocabera of Middle and South American legend fed on the blood of live-stock by way of a dart-like tongue that burrowed in and drained them dry. Along with that, the Chupocabera burned to ash with all but the most fleeting exposure to sunlight.

Likewise, some of the teir 4 monster sects still believed that vampires were weakened by garlic- granted, it was a special genetically diverse crop when compared to the common garlic. It, in truth, had no effect on vampires and was only effective to ward off another similar creature of the night.

The pink haired girl took another sip of her tomato juice and licked her lips after. She felt that, somehow, she didn't need to worry about Tsukune finding out what kind of monster she was... That he either didn't care enough to search, or that he, through some mechanism of fate, wouldn't search because nothing she said even remotely rang the warning bells in his head... somehow.

The young woman smiled and touched the cool silver metal that made up her rosary, feeling the barely perceivable power that brimmed in a biting frost around the jewel in the center. She could feel it in her bones that whatever lay locked within her rosary would be powerful, indeed... but she was nervous as to what would happen; her sister recounted tales of when she removed hers and lost all but a mildly hazy touch with the world while she went on a rampage.

Is that what her own release would be like? Would she loose all control and kill everything around her? A shiver wracked her body and for a second her teeth chattered.

'I hope not... I don't want to hurt anyone... Especially not,' She trailed off of her worrisome thoughts as a mental image of the blank staring chocolate eyed boy entered her mind.

No, she couldn't live with herself if she hurt anyone without just cause, and even more-so if she managed to injure Tsukune, or worse. The very thought of hurting her potential friend almost brought her to feeling physically ill. However, she felt the unbridled desire to find a way to remove the rosary and finally, for once in her life, have power and not have to sit back whilst everyone picked on her... That power would be infinitely useful to her.

She smiled at the thought of the power that would come and a thought struck her, 'F-father would finally look at me as if... as if I were actually worth the time; I'd finally be strong enough to make him pay attention, and maybe... Maybe I could change the way he treats all of us... Oh, I hope I can.'

Moka sighed hopefully as her fork twirled about the noodles in the bowl of soup she had gotten along with her juice, and took a bite. She grimaced as she found the soup to be overly salty, but bore through it; simply drinking tomato juice wouldn't cure the blackouts that she had to make-up for.

A light pursing of the lips showed Moka's disapproval of a salty piece of chicken that was more saline and less meat, or so it seemed. She coughed and spat the offending thing out into a napkin, balling it up after wiping her lips and hands. That had ruined her appetite and now she needed some mouth wash to get the sheer taste ans texture of salt from her mouth.

Unfortunately, nothing of that kind was available, so she settled for quickly chugging the last fifth of the can of juice and swishing it before swallowing it with a minor grimace.

Right at that moment, a huge troupe of men and a following of contentious women entered the cafeteria. The noise level instantly plummeted and sky-rocketed simultaneously on account of the populous in the large room shutting up and then erupting along with the new arrivals, in much the same way, no less.

The huge following of men was in the form of a bubble, with a great majority of them looking rather.. vague in the face; rather dopey and clueless, as if they weren't... all there. The other fourth looked to be angry and jealous of the rest, and the cause was soon to be revealed to those not in the know... which seemed to be just Moka, by how angry everyone was.

The mass of men parted and standing in the center, with a berth of half-afoot in radius from the edge of the encirclement of men stood the blue-haired busty bombshell known as Korono Kurumu, a haughty glare in her violet blue eyes that was aimed right for the pink haired girl. One hand was held on her hip, the other was behind her back as she inclined her head, "Akashiya Moka!"

Confused, Moka blinked and pointed at herself, "Me? W-what do you need?"

Kurumu allowed a scoff to escape her lips, "You already forgot what I said when I approached you yesterday? Tch, I shouldn't be surprised; your pink hair probably makes you dumber than a blond!"

Immediately Moka was practically hit with the sheer recoil as memories invaded her mind and flashed by, reminding her of the other incident the day before. So caught up and traumatized by the Saizou incident was she, that she had completely forgotten that the blue haired girl had confronted her and was adamant about fighting her.

Moka then remembered that, in an ironic twist to be repeated that afternoon/night, Tsukune had wandered into the fray and caught Kurumu's attention. The succubus had voiced a plan to take 'her boyfriend' away from her, as well as beat her into submission just moments before the brunette teen had walked into the hallway. Kurumu had latched herself onto the cold teen and attempted to use her feminine traits to woo him, and then had attempted to charm him.

The fear, she remembered, when Tsukune rounded on the aqua haired sex-monster and obscured both their faces from view was intense. Yet, she remembered the proverbial grip on her throat and heart release when Kurumu began to physically shiver and Tsukune moved away, shooting a look over to her, and then walked out.

She was reminded that, after he had left, Kurumu had turned to her and tried to shield the fear that was literally etched into her violet orbs. The succubus pointed at her and whispered harshly, "T-this... This is not over, Akashiya Moka!"

Then she walked off, the entourage of charmed men following dubiously behind her, as if her spell had been diminished in strength after the encounter. It made Moka wonder what Tsukune had said and done to shake the confident and ambitious girl so badly.

"W-what do you want, Kurumu?" Moka asked, standing up from her chair and facing the girl with a slightly curious, slightly annoyed look on her face.

"So you do remember," Kurumu began with a smirk, her head giving a slight nod, "Now, I'm going to tell you once more; I'm going to knock you into next year, that way you won't show your face anytime soon!"

Moka pursed her lips, and took a step forward, "Why don't you just charm them all, and leave me out of this?" Moka then blinked as a light bulb went off and she cocked her head to the side, eyes narrowing in scrutiny, "Besides, won't you fail at that goal?"

Kurumu took an intimidating step forward and stamped her foot on the ground as her free hand balled into a fist, and her teeth gritting together, "How could I possibly fail!" She then composed herself and placed her hand against her breast, "My plan, as I said yesterday, will prevail... No matter the odds, I will succeed."

Moka pointed to Kurumu and reminded the young succubus candidly, "Tsukune didn't exactly fall under your spell; you'll be missing a guy... Unless, your not counting him anymore."

A gleam seemed to become alight within those violet eyes, a glow that bespoke of taunts and a knowledge that would hurt and humiliate the pink haired girl standing before her. With a hearty and haughty laugh, the succubus allowed a saucy smirk to cross her lips.

"Well then, tell me why," Kurumu said as she began to bring her other arm into view, as well as what it was holding on to, "do I have Tsukune here, by my side? Answer me that, Moka Akashiya!"

Confused, panicked, and not the least of all fearful, Moka opened and closed her mouth numerous times in an attempt to gather her wits and ask just how, where, and when he had been charmed by the seductress... Yet she was unable to do so. Finally, in a tiny, meek voice, Moka asked the only thing she could, "I-is he really...?"

"Fufufu," Kurumu chuckled softly to herself in victory, and brought the young boy's empty eyes to bare before her, "Well, let's ask him, shall we?"

Kurumu leaned in and arched her back some, her breasts mashing against his chest and flattened out some under the pressure as she purred out into Tsukune's ear, yet loud enough for Moka to hear, "Tsuku-kun, do you love me, with all that you are? Would you do anything for me?"

Tsukune's head bowed some and he responded, his voice filled with more emotion than Moka, in the little time she had known him, had thought possible, "Yes, Kururmu-chan... I'd steal all the jewels in the world for you, I'd get my friends to bow before you, I'd do anything and everything you wanted. I love you."

Moka's eyes teared up, her off-jade eyes darkening to deep sea-green in sorrow as she bit on her lip to keep sound from escaping it. As her body was wracked with silent sobs, she did the only thing she knew she could; she ran. She ran as fast as her muscular calves would take her, ignoring the strain as she unconsciously drew out her energy, her youki, from the depths of the rosary and sped herself up.

She ran past all the students who turned and exclaimed about her beauty, or how they wanted to be her boyfriend, how they were disgusted about how she was able to turn every boy's head. She ignored it all and sped past them, let the comments yelling at her to watch where she was going sweep past her, as well. She let the tears roll freely and her breath hitched as she ran through the woods, ignoring the proper path and instead used her instincts to dodge and jump over the roots and limbs that were in her way.

The pink haired girl even ignored the light mist that permeated the sky; the closest to a full-on rain that would likely ever happen on the academy grounds. She rushed as fast as she could to get as far away from the damnable seductress, and the doubtless fate of Tsukune whom had somehow come under her spell.

Her panting breaths grew ragged as she tired; the youki receding from her body and sapping the rest of her energy with it. Her legs instantly began to cramp and an indescribable sharp pain began to prod under her right rib. Moka gasped and grabbed at the pain in a fruitless attempt to soothe it. As she slowed her running to a light job that was barely maintainable, the pink haired girl blinked as she realized just where she was... through her blind running and through her tears, she had managed to somehow find her way over to the men's dormitories.

She whimpered and fell to one knee, gripping her stomach as her lips trembled, "T-tsukune..."

Meanwhile, Kurumu had long abandoned the cafeteria with her recently charmed conquest and had quickly vacated the Academy building . The pair had taken to walking down the dirt path, or rather, Kurumu had taken to guiding the brunette husk by the arm, which was currently bisected visually between her massive breasts.

The bluenette's mouth was running at an impossible speed, asking Tsukune to -in different ways- tell her that he loved her and that she was the 'center of his world', as well as to have him shower her with praise. Yet, mainly, she simply retold him over and over of her conquest over her rival, Moka, and how happy she was that she had bested the pink haired girl.

Tsukune however, was listening to nothing she had to say; he refused to sit idle and merely be trapped in his head. Instead, the mental apparition of himself floated about the infinite realm he found himself in. Deep within the obscure and completely sable chamber, Tsukune found himself to be able to, if he concentrated, see very bland and hardly-there faded crimson markings that ran throughout the realm.

After retreating away from his 'Ocular Conveyance', a segment of this realm that allowed him to see through his own eyes, the brunette's apparition soon found himself completely cloaked in darkness, floating about it as if it were a vast nothingness. Yet, upon finding the faint red grooves and markings he considered the fact that, perhaps it wasn't an infinite emptiness, but instead a chamber of some sort.

With nothing better to do but listen to the infernal woman go on about perpetual subjects that he could honestly care less about, he decided that exploring was a better option.

He floated through the veiled chamber, looking for any identifying markers, or perhaps some kind of a doorway. He quickly counted four walls, then went on to count several more, yet as he was mentally mapping the 'walls', he soon found himself to be right back in front of the Ocular Conveyance, and realized that whatever he was within a dodecahedra, as the floor was also curved in equal panels of dodecagons, as well.

Throughout it all, in order, a panel would have a spiral where the crimson markings would originate and flow out in two direction; down and to the left. In the second panel, it would bisect itself into two and one would turn diagonally upwards (from it's relative position) and enter the next from the side where it would stop in a large blot. The other line would continue on and intersect with another line's second panel, and then end in an ankh-like figure.

There was a single panel that was void of the any of these aside a single line traveling vertically through it. This particular panel was the central-most overhead of the perceived 'middle' of the room. He glared at it, knowing that he couldn't do anything about it in his current form, as he had tried to press on and possibly void himself through the crystalline ebony walls, yet he had found himself incapable of it.

Without a clue as to how to free himself from his prison within a prison, he attempted to close everything out and bring himself into control of his body one more time; all he needed was to activate his sharingan and dispel whatever the hell had forced him here. His vision fogged over before completely shutting off as he willed himself to no longer see what was around him and took solace in the true blackness as he tried to establish contact with himself.

Immediately, he felt his 'body' expand into a more vaporous form and begin to connect into the the small grooves between the panels. His vapor-like form soon came in contact with a viscous-like flesh that lie outside the walls, and immediately he felt a dark and corrupt frost deny his immediate attempt. It felt as though a slush had built up in his body that was tainted and darkened to a deep purple. Yet, an undertone of the cool blockage was a soft wisp that encircled his 'form' and began to make him want to stay in his prison. It began to, not quite whisper in the audible sense, as it penetrated his gaseous essence. It told him that he wanted to stay, that he had nothing more that he could do; that it was for the best.

He was so close to falling, so close to agreeing with the odd intuition that invaded him. He felt so... warm, so comfortable; as if he had been an eternity without sleep, and finally found a bed to lie his weary head. He was so close to assenting to the peace that he felt.

A jolt of what felt like electricity filtered itself into him and he was instantly broken of his contact with the mysterious entity. Tsukune quickly got his wits about him and found that he was till within the chamber, but he had established a foothold with his own conscience; the darkness in the room was gone somewhat, and a small, dim glow adorned each of the crimson lines. Then, a wet cracking was heard from overhead, and he turned to see that the unique panel had vanished.

It didn't take much thought to choose to ascend upwards and hopefully find an easier way out.

To his vast disappointment, the sharingan wielder's apparition found that above the room was just a slightly bright, ebony and crimson-lined trapezoidal hallway that seemed to go on an impossible length. There were no doorways that he could see, nor any passageways that were hidden in the floor or the ceiling.

The patterns on the walls never changed and seemed to follow the exact same formula as the other chamber, except that three times now, about every one-hundred and twentieth of the six-foot segments that mad this hallway, there seemed to be a large, intricate design that got ever more complex. The first was a tribal-like wreath that seemed to be aflame and marked six times with what looked to be angular oak leaves. The second seemed to be a series of spikes that erupted from no-where in the ebony metal amidst a sea of glowing crimson. The final one seemed to be an event-horizontal vision of the moon, what with the craters and all surrounded by black on either side.

As he continued down the ever darkening hallway, an eery feeling began to sink down into what would have been his stomach. An ominous presence was becoming more and more tangible; it's terrible force bearing down on him physically and causing the gaseous body to actually harden and condense together.

He could see the end of the passageway before him; it wasn't close to him by any way and in fact looked to be a good eighth of a mile, or somewhere around four-hundred feet some-odd feet before him. The doorway out of this infernal closed-in pathway looked to be a pearl-white doorway that lacked an luster what-so-ever. There was little to do but to go towards it; he'd come to far.

The walk to the white doorway, however, wasn't an easy one. First it was the pressure that began to compact him tighter, and tighter together; then, as he had continued to travel towards it, the pressure plateaued and instead it began to get warm, extremely warm. The closer he got, the warmer the air around him became until some of his 'form' began to evaporate away.

At long last he made it to the door, lethargic and slow as he had become. It was then that he realized that what stood before him was not a door, but rather some sort of barrier that stood ahead of a widened corridor where a series of three pikes made of the ebony and crimson encrusted markings stood.

Not knowing what to do, Tsukune did the only thing he knew how to do in this form and tried to phase through it. Yet as soon as he touched it a jolt of light red, almost pink lightning struck him and knocked him to the ground...

'Wait, the ground?' Tsukune thought in surprise and opened his eyes to see that he was a solid human once more and no longer an ambiguous cloud of gas and vapor. He turned and went to touch the barrier once more only for the electrical bolt to lash out and strike him again, except this time, rather than knocking him back, a gust of wind tinted vermillion with light red-pink edges dissipated the lightning and the two vapors lost color and disappeared from sight.

Blinking in confusion, Tsukune made to touch it again, and this time the lightning did not come. Instead, five tentacles of the vermillion energy shot from his hand; one from each finger, and began to absorb the barrier. Almost immediately, Tsukune felt oddly stronger -not by much, though- and watched curiously as the barrier dispersed into nothingness.

When the barrier fell, a new force of greater magnitude hit him and Tsukune suddenly found himself barely evading several spiny and clearly sharp blades that shot down from the ceiling and trapped him within their core. He could only wait, his face the epitome of cool and collected, yet inside he was beginning to run plans of potential escape in an attempt to keep himself from becoming very panicked and very useless.

After nearly thirty seconds -he counted- the pressure seemed to get stronger, yet less malicious at the same time; an odd thing to feel, he decided. At last, a massive black cloud came into view behind the large, wicked and sharp pike-like pillars that blocked the entrance into the larger corridor.

It was then that a familiar feeling became known to the teen. The familiar sensation of what little control he had over his internal energy being restored was felt at the same moment that the little tickling in the back of his head was felt, and with a mental sigh of relief, Tsukune stopped his 'doomsday' scenarios.

The ground beneath his feet rumbled and shifted with unknown power, whilst in his head, he heard, 'This is a most unusual, and admittedly unexpected meeting, boy. What is your purpose for being here?'

As the connection between the voice and the entity which doubtlessly caused the quake in the mental realm was made, Tsukune was amazed upon the realization of just how powerful it was. Taking a breath, Tsukune answered in a slightly confused voice, "I'm not too sure, myself; I can only assume that a girl, Korono Kurumu, managed to trap me in here with a spell... or something to that effect."

A light chill ran through the corridor, and an emotional link from the voice confirmed his suspicions that the chill was, indeed, a feeling of shock, 'A girl did this to you... Tell me, did you have the Sharingan active?'

The brunette nodded his head in affirmation, "The first time she attempted it, yes; I was able to see several off-colored ripples emit out of her eyes through several microscopic secondary ocular organs that exist on the edge of her iris... Wait, how do I know of those?"

A light thump, though not nearly as loud as any time before, came through his head, 'As I told you before, pinwheels of despair can perceive the most intricate details of anything it sees. Of course, it will only reveal such things if you have a clear view, currently. Now, the girl... She is a succubus, a monster who developed in such a way to devour the energies of men through sexual activity.'

Tsukune blinked, a very faint flush on his cheeks, "I've read of them; you know this. Yet I was under the impression that they were a phantasmal beast and came through dreams to sate their desires."

He received a mental nod from the mass of blackness floating several feet away, 'Indeed... That is what the humans have published a succubus and, indeed, Incubus as. This is untrue; The two are very much of the mortal plane and gather a following -a harem, If you will- to sate their desires both of carnal and hunger. Except in a single exception, but it is not needed to be known currently.'

"So, how will I escape this situation in which I've gotten myself in?" Tsukune questioned, arching an eyebrow as he stared languidly at the source of the voice. He had not expected to encounter a succubus, especially not one inhabiting the mortal plane, yet he supposed that such a thing shouldn't have been such a shock. He knew not to believe everything written in books, but thus far, it was his only reference.

'She must be young, and their charm has a unique effect in that, if broken, only one of greater power can bring you under her control,' the guardian of the sharingan stated, and then a loud set of thumps echoed in Tsukune's head, 'With the sharingan active, no illusion will ever hold over you- aside one cast from another who is in possession of the eye, as well.'

Tsukune nodded, filing that unique fact away with the rest of the facts of the eyes, and attempted to channel his energy into his eyes to activate them, yet found that he couldn't, and realized why, quickly. As soon as he gave up, a very weak, but still ever seductive and peaceful feeling enveloped his mind, trying to get him to return to the first chamber, before he shook his head and it dissipated.

'I see,' It said, a soft and contemplative tone now in place of it's usual toneless sound, 'So the compulsion is still blocking you from activating your eyes, hmm? Very well... I grant you this boon.'

Curiously, he watched as a strand of inky, jet black energy shot out of the massive, floating, pitch-black being. As it soared through the air, Tsukune felt his own energy build up in his side -as if by a tidal gravitational pull- and then the light vermillion tint became visible again as it formed a strand which shot out, intertwining around the black one. With bated breath and confusion running rampant, he could only watch as a dark purple crystal seeped from his skin and was transferred to the black tentacle where it seemed to hiss and dissolve.

It took a moment, but the brunette teen then noticed, suddenly, that everything was going extremely slow and with a light grin he realized that his sharingan was active. As his vision began to take on an odd tunnel-vision effect, he heard the tired voice of the guardian speak to him, 'Try to not fall for another trap; I will not be able to help you next time... I must rest.'

In a blinding white flash, Tsukune was once more looking out of his own perspective, yet he realized with shock that he was standing with his back to a tree, holding Moka in a full nelson as she struggled to get free. Across the way, Kurumu, looking a little ragged and with quite the burning pink hand print on her cheek, was panting and looked as if she had just gotten up from being launched across the ground.

"T-Tsukune! Please, let me g-go!" His attention was drawn back down to Moka as she attempted to struggle out of his grip. He grunted, his body still wasn't completely under his control, but he could feel his influence spreading as his arms began to shake some. Across the way, Kurumu laughed at her pointless screams.

"I've told you, he won't listen to you, and no matter how much you beg and plead..." She tapered off and her face contorted into anger, her eyes narrowing, "I am going to kill you, vampire!"

Tsukune's muscles twitched just a bit, conveying his surprise at what the sweet, innocent Moka really was. Suddenly, the thought of perhaps letting her be destroyed entered his mind and stayed for only as long as it took to terminate it. Moka was a nice girl, and she was perhaps... his first friend, first real friend in a very long time. He wouldn't allow Kurumu to hurt her.

"I told you, I haven't done anything to hurt you! I don't want to fight you; just let Tsukune decide on his own and free him... that's all I want!" Moka bargained, though this only infuriated the young succubus more, and then right before his eyes, it happened.

The seething succubus glared at Moka, hate deep within her eyes as she stared into the off-jade of the pink haired vampire's. Her muscles clenched and amidst a low hiss of rage, her beautiful shade of violet eyes shifted and began to elongate vertically, forming something akin to a cat's eye- not quite a slit, but certainly not circular.

"You don't get it, do you!" Kurumu spat out through a series of sporadic breaths and unclenched her fists, showing that her nails were lengthening and developing to become thicker, and more claw or perhaps talon-like. The pink nails had a sheen on them, belaying that they were likely sharper than razor, now, too.

A long spindly purple tail began to slither it's way out from under her skirt, it's purple spade-like end flicking to and fro in agitation. Despite of it's appearance, the fact that it wasn't bony proved that the appendage was at least of some combat use. The aqua haired girl began to yell openly at Moka, venom staining every word, "I'm a succubus! I told you that I need to make every man fall for my charm; I have to sustain myself until I can find my Destined One!"

The two blinked; Tsukune in confusion and Moka in remembrance, "A-ano, but how will you know?"

Kurumu growled low, a sound that would have been adorable if they were not in such a dangerous situation. A ripping sound caught the duo's attention and then Kurumu was completely out of view. The two were only clued in when Kurumu yelled out from high above them, large leathery bat wings with a purple membrane holding her in air, "It doesn't matter; you won't be worrying about it anytime soon!"

The busty seductress gave one strong beat of her powerful wings and she was diving down towards the pair with great speed. Moka struggled to get out of Tsukune's arms, and finally in spite of the light jarring that was loosening his grip, she couldn't get loose. Her eyes looked up, into the skies and estimated Kurumu to be less than seven seconds away from impact,. She closed her eyes, a single tear rolling down her soft cheeks, "Tsukune... I-I'm sorry, I'm not strong enough."

With only a second or two left, the roar of wind as the murderous winged woman approached increased. Tsukune closed his eyes and tightened his grip on Moka as he bit his lip, and began to channel as much energy through his body as he could. With a mental click, his body unjammed and without a thought he jumped to the side by seven feet, rolling with Moka in his arms to brace her from the impact.

"W-what!" He heard Kurumu yell in surprise and frustration, turning in mid air as several of the trees that had been caught by her nails began to fall to the ground, sliced clean in half.

"T-Tsukune! H-how did you... W-wha!" The bewildered vampire muttered out in surprise, clearly expecting to have been dead. Her terrified and confused green eyes shifted rapidly around the area, looking at the devastated greenery, her soft hands gripping tighter to Tsukune's left arm in an attempt to comfort herself.

"You're alive and well, Moka-san... I'll spare you the details, but I escaped her... intricate illusion," Tsukune explained, his head head turned to glare at the succubus and thereby hiding his crimson eyes from the pink haired girl. He stood up and helped the girl in his arms up as well, and immediately tensed as Kurumu flew rapidly behind the two of them.

"Brace yourself!"It was the only warning Moka got before Tsukune's palm rammed into the center of her chest and sent her flying backwards. Luckily, she listened and didn't really get hurt as she landed a few feet behind him, only to see Kurumu dive right at him and swipe him with her claws, screaming at him, "H-how could you!"

Tsukune's body stood in place, still facing the direction she had just come from before his body began fall into several different pieces. Moka was just about to panic when she noticed two things at once; the first, Tsukune's body faded from view and the second? Laying a few feet away from her was her rosary, no longer connected to the chain hanging from the beaded choker around her neck. She was suddenly all too aware of an intense heat burning under her skin and her vision darkening.

Kurumu floated above the forest, her wings beating lazily to keep her relatively light frame airborne as she cast her oblong violet eyes around the immediate area. She could have sworn she killed... him, but there was no blood on her nails, nor any scent of him on them to suggest she had even cut him.

She felt a burning in her heart and bit back a whimper. She didn't want to hurt him, but... He and the vampire were an obstruction to her plan; they just didn't understand and would likely keep sticking their noses in business that wasn't theirs. She couldn't take that risk, she couldn't afford to take it, no matter how much she wanted to.

Her head swiveled to the left, then to the right, yet no matter where she looked, she couldn't find Tsukune or that bothersome vampire. She narrowed her blunt, cat-like eyes and quickly turned around when a large gust of wind his her, only seconds before a rapidly increasing presence of youki was felt to her immediate left. 'Which one of you two is that?' Kurumu thought, tilting her head a little as her tail gave a sharp flick.

'It won't matter; I'll still get them both,' She reassured herself and shot down towards the source of power. The aqua haired monster was just about to enter the tightly packed, yet bare canopy when the atmosphere around her thickened and literally forced her to slow down. She grit her teeth and beat her wings harder, only to find that the radiating energy was physically pushing against her and seemed to be darkening the sky, very quickly.

In a matter of second, everything had been cast under a crimson light, and in place of the sun was an equally bright moon bathed in a light red that left it looking blood-stained. Before her eyes a massive swarm of bats began to descent from the horizon, beneath the glimmering celestial body, and deep into the woods all the while emitting a deafening noise.

Perplexed, and more than a little nervous from the foreboding sensation that chilled her skin and made the hair on the back of her neck stand on end, Kurumu cautiously began to beat her wings hard enough to move against the reverse force of the youki flowing out of the area. She pierced through the canopy and quickly made to mid-height in the forest when she saw it; a thin, human-shaped cocoon made entirely of bats that had covered the clearly feminine figure.

Without warning, a bright flash of pink light flickered out between the 'cracks' in the cocoon and just as quickly, the bats were launched off and disintegrated by the sheer power of the second pulse of light. As the light died down, an aristocratic structured and rather porcelain-white skinned, silver haired woman stood in place of the bats.

'Who the hell is this woman?' Kurumu thought as she flew closer, feeling that the youki that this woman was producing was, while vastly stronger and more potent, almost identical to Moka Akashiya's own. As she drew closer to this mysterious new woman, two brilliantly crimson eyes with perfectly slitted pupils in the center snapped open and stared into her own.

Her lips pulled into a dry smirk, "Little succubus, you've mistaken myself for prey and you the predator when the situation is quite the opposite."

'No,' Kurumu thought, stopping in mid-air so as to gauge this new woman, 'She may have the same feel in her youki, but this is not Moka.' The thought was justified; she looked like Moka, but far more regal and more like a true vampire would likely look, Kurumu figured. Her voice was more refined and a little deeper, darker and more seductive, and her fangs were larger and peaked out slightly from under her top lip no matter her expression. Beyond that, her hips had gotten a little wider and her breasts were a good cup or two larger... still not quite at her level, she thought in relief.

"Released vampire, or not, you're not getting in my way!" Her confidence returned, Kurumu rushed towards Moka with her claws bared at full speed. She was far too slow and Inner Moka jumped away with superior speed, appearing behind the succubus and landed an extremely powerful kick in the center petite girl's back.

As she began an out of control spin which would inevitably end with her crashing into the ground, the panicked girl struggled to regain stability and absently heard the released vampire taunt her, "You foolish, frail, and pretentious woman! You dare to bare your fangs at m e, much less a vampire?"

by the time Kurumu had crashed into the forest floor, Moka was right behind her, hand on her hip as she took slow, confident strides towards the downed woman. As the aqua haired succubus attempted to push herself up, Inner Moka reached down and took great pleasure in gripping the girl's purple spade-tipped tail and slowly began to apply upward pressure, her smirk spreading with a furious delight, "Maybe I should rip off this tail of yours, first?"

The downed girl's violet eyes glared back -one half-lidded from the pain,- at the silver haired vampire as she viciously tugged on her tail. Kurumu tried to kick Moka away, but the more agile and powerful version of the pink haired girl merely swatted the leg away and tightened her grip, picking Kurumu up and promptly whipping her into one of the decaying tree's trunk, shattering it. The next thing she knew was the feeling of her two leathery wings being gripped tightly and a powerful foot pushing into her back, between the joints of her wings, "Perhaps your wings should be yanked off, instead!"

The murderous hostility that flared within those ruby-red, slitted orbs was terrifying to the succubus, and yet she couldn't do a single thing; the weakest point on the body of her race just happened to be the wings. If not handled very delicately, the pain would be so excruciating that the body would be effectively paralyzed. That was what the bluenette was currently feeling; the equivalent of several thousand needles jabbing into her and striking her with an electrical charge.

"P-please!" Kurumu attempted to say, but only a hissed squeal escaped as she mouthed the words, several beads of tears forming on the corners of her eyes. Her violet eyes clenched shut as she tried to contain the tears and ward off the pain; she wouldn't let Moka see her cry, she couldn't.

"Hahaha! The self-assured succubus begs for her life? Why, why should I give you a chance?" Inner Moka questioned, a venomous undertone flowing out with it as her eyes narrowed and her spiteful smirk grew wider.

Inner Moka would listen to her plea, oh yes, she would. She couldn't imagine what would drive the woman before her, groveling and being driven into pain beneath her foot, to think that anything she said would make her be even slightly willing to spare her after she dared to lay hands on her.

"I-I was just doing it f-for my spe-CIES!" The succubus went to explain, only to degenerate into screams as Moka began to dig her heel into her back and grind it from side to side. The vampire's powerful grip began to stretch the membrane between the bony 'fingers' of her wings to its maximum breadth and the thin skin started to discolor along the connections to said 'fingers'.

"Your species? Ha! Your species is one of dubious scruples and debauchery! Your kind is without honor, and should they die out, it will be at their own hands!" The silver-haired vampire bent down and grabbed the succubus up by the scalp, ensuring that she brought pain to the girl as she pulled her free from under her foot and held her at slightly above eye level, a murderous and taunting gleam in her eyes.

Her arm tensed, ready to toss the girl who was silently pleading with her eyes, into the trees when a new presence entered the fray. It was small, diminutive as it approached and was slow moving. She dismissed it as a minor annoyance that had come to investigate the disturbance in the wood; perhaps one of the Headmaster's aides.

Yet as it drew closer, she began to realize that it wasn't diminutive, rather it was so compact and controlled that it leaked the presence of a minor monster, perhaps a class D, or C at best. It was still no worry for her, a super-vampire, and one of the only class S monsters in existence. Here she had subdued a class B, a succubus, with ease.

Soon, it was within range to be seen and she turned her head to look at the new arrival. Standing in the clearing, his clothes torn and four gashes along his left arm that looked to have been bleeding up until recently -which must have been where the light, delicious smell was coming from- stood a brown headed teen, his head slightly declined enough that his eyes were not visible.

Moka's eyes narrowed as a hazy memory entered her mind, no doubt a bleed over from her other self. She could see a foggy image of a brown haired boy staring passively at her, the barest hint of a smile on his lips as he walked with her down a dirt path in the night. She was about to pass him off as insignificant until Kurumu looked over and took in a sharp, ragged breath and stuttered out his name, "T-Tsukun-ne..."

The name caused Moka's eyes to widen as she realized just who it was that was standing a little under a hundred feet from her and Kurumu. She didn't have the greatest memory bleed from her other side, but she knew he was an aspiring friend that had been taken over by the succubus' charm. A small smile covered her lips, "Ah, Aono Tsukune... You're the one that tried to hold the other me captive so that this wretch could kill her."

The brunette teen took a single step forward, and Moka narrowed her eyes at the perceived act of defiance, "Of course, you were under the control of this woman..." She proceeded to glare at the succubus before she tossed her into a nearby tree.

As she reached down to pick the aqua haired girl back up, she addressed Tsukune dismissively, not looking at him at all, "Of course, I cannot allow my other side to have a charge that cannot protect her properly... You will need to be punished, first."

Without a second thought, the vampire prepared to ram her first through Kurumu's chest as she once more had the terrified girl dangling by her head, fist poised afore the girl's heart. That was when she heard it; a soft, faint voice that came from the boy. It was in his usual monotone, not that she would know, yet it held an edge of danger to it, "Release Korono Kurumu; she has taken her punishment and has

learned her lesson."

Moka blinked and slowly rounded on him, her slit eyes boring into him over the distance between the two. She couldn't believe that this boy was ordering her to do something; much less release the winged girl, especially after he had allowed himself to be charmed which put her other side in danger. That alone was baffling, but that he wanted her to release the one who had forced him to act against his will, it was ridiculous. She narrowed her eyes, "You do not talk to me in such a way; I will do as I deem fit to the situation at hand. You are lucky you are not in her position at the moment, as well."

Tsukune began to walk at a normal pace, and as he got closer to the two, Moka began to feel that his concentrated energy wasn't growing very rapidly anymore and allowed a pleased smile to grace her lips as her dangerous ruby eyes tightened at the edges. The boy would, indeed, be punished severely for this act of noncompliance... She would ensure that.

Kurumu tired to turn her head even more to look at Tsukune, a worried look just over-shadowing the anger she felt towards the boy who had not only shattered her second to strongest charm possible, but had conspired with the pink haired blood-sucker to ruin her plan. She knew that the vampire would kill him, and while she felt that her only choice to save her project was to kill him, she didn't want to do it and certainly didn't want her to do it. She took in a breath and attempted to plead and warn him, "T-tsukune! G-go... she'll kill u-"

She was promptly shut up by a quick jab into the stomach that knocked the breath out of her along with a spray of saliva that narrowly missed the aristocratic vampire. Turning her attention from the pathetic bat-girl back to the slowly approaching teen, she gave a sneer, "Do you think yourself capable of stopping me? You haven't the power to fight me as you are now, and you won't even when you show your true form!"

A soft, haunting laugh rolled through the dead forest, carrying with it a chill that almost made the composed super-vampire shiver. Without warning, before her slit eyes, Tsukune's form faded from view. She blinked and looked around in suspicion, her muscles tensing as she dropped Kurumu to the ground and shifted her weight ever so slightly into a basic defense stance.

It was quick and without warning, but her senses finally picked up the light pulses of a small youki that was now directly behind her by perhaps twenty feet. She smirked and quickly turned to face the boy, intent on humiliating him and then punishing him for daring to demand something of her, as well as for falling prey to the blue haired succubus' charm.

She faced the boy and made to walk towards him as he stared right up at her with his coffee colored eyes, cold and calculating. As she got closer, she noticed that the boy showed no signs of fear, nor did he seem to be in doubt over the fact that he would come out victorious. A haughty, mocking laugh escaped her as she reached the ten foot marker between the two.

"Every monster is but a mongrel beast at the foot of a vampire, including you," Inner Moka informed him as she stepped closer and closer to him. Her sultry walk, and the way she swung her hips did nothing to draw the boy's eyes away from her own, though she supposed it was for the best; while enjoying the envy and want would be fun, she'd feel dirty that such a lower species thought they could have her.

Finally, she got within three feet of him and prepared to use her signature attack against him. As she tightened up her leg, and had the words, 'Know your place' on her tongue, an incredible force bore down on her. The shock was such that she actually lost balance and fell to one knee. It wasn't as strong as her own, but it was easily a medium A rank's youki pressure.

"The arrogance you possess is something to be admired; any other being would have been crushed under its weight," She heard the emotionless, monotonous voice of the brunette say and snapped her head up to glare into his eyes as she pushed herself into a standing position. Such an action was a mistake, one which she immediately learned about.

She had only a second to spare as she watched the brown eyes brighten up into a bloody crimson; the same color of her own slitted pair, if not even more-so. His pupil shrunk down and on the cusps of where it had previously been, three tomoe swirled into being and continued to circle the pupil. Immediately, her vision began to swim slightly, "What have you done!"

She was not permitted an answer and instead received a shock as her rosary was placed into her hand which had outstretched on its own, daintily curling around the silver holy item. She tried to look down, but found that her own eyes couldn't escape the gaze that the sharingan had. Tsukune's eyes narrowed just a little, "Place the rosary back on its chain, Moka."

Her eyes widened and she grit her teeth, baring her fangs openly at the brunette boy, "No, you will be punished for this!"

She was surprised when her vision began to blur and her arm started to twitch in an attempt to move on its own. She growled and her free hand clenched into a fist as she attempted to swing at the teen, and was surprised when she missed by a large margin. Again, he spoke, "Akashiya Moka, place your rosary back upon its chain."

The silver haired woman hissed as her nostrils flared. Her muscles started to burn from the strain of fighting between moving to put the cross back on, or to simply hold it stationary. She could feel her youki building in her to try and support her muscles in holding it stable, when his tomoe sped up in their circuit, "Moka Akashiya..."

"Replace..." Her arm started twitching a lot more, and her teeth grit so tight she swore that either they, or her jaw, would break soon from the sheer force she was putting on them.

"The," Her muscles gave in, or perhaps even more fell to his control as her arm slowly moved towards her chest and the loose clasp where the rosary attached to her choker. 'How is this substandard beast able to do this!' She found herself screaming mentally.

"Rosary," Without warning, her chest arched out upon his order, displaying the clasp along with a fair amount of cleavage whilst her arm gained momentum and brought the blessed cross to the clasp of the rosary beaded choker. With a combined horror stricken and hate-filled glare, the silver haired, arrogant and vastly more powerful side of Moka was sealed away, and with it went the perpetual darkness and the bloody moon.

As the girl's hair faded from silver back to pink and her eyes weakly opened to reveal them to be the off-jade of the innocent, sweet girl, Tsukune allowed a small twitch of his lips upwards as he caught the off-balance and severely weakened girl by the shoulder. She blinked her eyes and looked incoherently at Tsukune for a moment before she blinked again, "A-ano, w-wha' happen'?"

He suppressed a small amused snort at her slur, and instead pointed behind her to where the blue haired girl was laid in a tangled mess, likely somewhere between lucidness and unconsciousness. The girl gasped and tried to get up to run over to the succubus, but almost fell on her face in the process. Tsukune grabbed her and helped her regain balance, "Your transformation clearly drains you of energy, you need to replenish. Need I find some water and food?"

She blinked owlishly -as owlishly as someone extremely exhausted can- and a light blush colored her cheeks as she shook her head 'no', "F-food won't help, I don't t-think."

Tsukune cocked his head to the side, "Would you happen to know what would? I remember the girl calling you a vampire, and your other side did the exact same. Perhaps blood?"

The sakura haired girl looked away from him, a nervous look in her jade eyes as she did so. She began to poke her two index fingers together in a vain attempt to bide her time and control her nervousness. After a moment she heard Tsukune grunt in an attempt to remind her to tell him. "Y-yes, blood would help... B-but tomato juice will work, too!" Moka blushed, and added quickly.

His wrist was placed before her as he stared indifferently at her, "You may drink; only enough to get you on your feet."

Off-jade eyes widened in surprise, sparkling with a hidden glee and trembling with a nervousness and worry. She glanced down to the offered appendage and then back up to him, "R-really?"

A nod from Tsukune answered her, "Yes; you are weak. Blood is not only more efficient, I'm sure, but it is closer than tomato juice is currently."

She gave a tiny smile and looked down to hide the rosy blush that covered her cheeks and would likely make its way up to her ears if she did it any harder. She hesitantly moved to his wrist and lightly grazed her tiny fangs against his flesh, causing her to shiver. She quickly buried her fangs into his wrist and began to drink his life's blood and apparently it was delicious, or so the light, airy groans she released belayed.

After a little more than five seconds, she felt his offered wrist being pulled away and released the bloody joint, lightly licking the crimson liquid off of her pink lips. She looked up to see that Tsukune had turned his back to her and was walking over to Kurumu now. She quickly jumped up and caught up with Tsukune who was now kneeling down beside the girl.

"What did I do to her?" Tsukune was partially surprised by the worry that the girl felt, but another half of him expected it from the innocent girl. He blinked and looked at her through his peripheral, "You attempted to kill her. Of course, she tried to kill us, as well... Yet, you were drawing it out."

Moka's eyes stretched open in surprise and fear, and a deep worry developed in them and it was also clear in her voice, "Did... Did I, you know?"

Tsukune gently touched the girl's head, then ran his hands along her surprisingly soft and silk-like leathery wings. He frowned as he reached the joint of the third 'finger' on her left wing. He turned to her, "You didn't; you were close to doing so, however. As it is, the worst you did was over stretch the ligaments in her wing, and cause severe bruising."

The pink headed vampire gave a little whimper of worry for the girl. In spite of everything that Kurumu had done to her, she didn't want the girl to die. Hell, she didn't even really want to hurt her for what happened; all she wanted was for there to be a peace and understanding between the three of them; mainly that Moka wasn't trying to interfere with... whatever she had planned, and that as long as Tsukune wasn't involved sans his own will, it would be fine.

"Come, we're heading to the infirmary. Both of you will be looked at," Tsukune explained as he gently picked up the injured succubus, making sure that her wings were not strained in any way, and began to walk towards the academy infirmary with Moka walking alongside him, strangely jealous of Kurumu's place in his arms, yet not angry in the least.

Alrighty then!

That's over, so... How was it? I hope the entire fight with Kurumu and Moka was somewhat believable. I know it wasn't long, nor was it as awe-inspiring as the fight with Saizou, and it wasn't supposed to be. This was purely to display Inner Moka's debut as the aristocratic, haughty bitch that she is currently, and to display the strength of the hypnotic effect of the sharingan. His eye is rather powerful, but one of the reasons he got her so easily under his control was due to surprise; she wasn't expecting it, at all.

You may have noted that it got choppy -to me- around the cafeteria scene? That's where I began to have the most difficulty and where I thought I may have had to stop prematurely. I'm glad I didn't.

Ah, I won't be updating for about two weeks, possibly longer. My reasons are thus; I try to have a complete chapter between the one that is in progress and the one that is being used as the update, and I currently just finished chapter seven, and need to get eight down and begin on nine before I update again. The second reason is that I am going to a job fair tomorrow (5/23) and may be successful -cross your fingers, loyal readers- so that may impede my writing process, too.

So, what do you think, let me know.