Starring:
Date: February 23, 2014
Summary:
Nariko reveals to Hiei that the Ox King's daughter just may be his lost twin sister.
"Revenge of the Ox King - The Yotsuki Revelation"
Nariko's House - Yotsuki Village - Kumogakure
The sun shone throughout the Land of Lightning, not a cloud in sight. Birds flew the air conducting their own fun air manuevers as they sang. It was on this beautiful day that the Young Yotsuki heroine known as Nariko had called Hiei over for lunch. It wasn't your normal lunch, a tense air hung in the Yotsuki household as she paced back and forth in the backyard. She wrung her hands trying to think of what she was going to tell Hiei and how to tell him. She had Mai around, cleaning the house and keeping an eye on the door for when he would come.
Hiei was actually happy to get an invite from Nariko. He had been at home working out in the gym in his basement, polishing his armor, and doing upkeep on his weapons. In essence, he was bored. So when the invite came, he wasted no time in coming over. He stands in front of her door and knocks then settles in to wait patiently until either Nariko or Mai opens the door.
Nariko looks at the door when she hears the knock. Her eyes go wide a moment and bites her lip. There have only been a few times that she got this nervous and this time would become one of them. Mai answers the door, bowing to Hiei by the wall. "Welcome Hiei-san. Nariko is in the backyard." And just as she ended that sentence Nariko walked in and bowed her head to Hiei. "Thank you for coming Hiei. It's always a pleasure to see you." She walks up to him offering her arms out in a hug. "I hope you brought your appetite."
Hiei inclines his head. "Nice to see you again, Mai." He smiles at her before turning to face Nariko. He strides over to her. "Why so formal?" Before grasping her in a typical Yotsuki bear hug. He grins. "You know me. I always bring my appetite. So, what's on the menu? And thanks for inviting me."
Nariko smiled at him and shrugged. "Well, it's not just a regular social call or regular lunch date." She accepts the bear hug and when he lets her go she guides him over to the table where a lot of food, enough to satisfy two Yotsuki, sat waiting to be eaten. "All of your favorites. I asked Mai to make sure there was enough for you to not go hungry." She would fill her plate with food and sit down. "Do you remember when I told you about there are things not even you know that I keep from you for your safety?"
Hiei follows Nariko over to the table and his stomach rumbles just from looking at it. He grins. "What did I do to deserve this?" He pauses, eying Nariko for a moment. "You're up to something. All of my favorite foods? You're either going to give me bad news, or.." And then he goes silent when she says that there were things she was keeping from him for his own safety. He slowly sits down in one of the chairs while continuing to look at her. He nods. "I remember. Nariko..what's going on exactly?"
Nariko smile seems to be sincere, but filled with worry, the lines of her mouth not going all the way up. "You are family. THere is not much else for a reason." She takes a seat next to him, putting a hand on his shoulder. "What I'm about to tell you has not been easy for me to keep and it is just rumor. I don't know everything, but I do have a feeling that what I say is true." She looks down for a moment taking in a deep breath. "When I saw the Ox king's daughter, she looked familiar. Of course, it may not be true, but I have a feeling you may know her as well."
Hiei cants his head towards Nariko slightly and nods. "Yeah, but I told you that I didn't get a good look at her. I saw the dark skin and white hair, but my priorities were elsewhere. I thought that maybe she could have Yotsuki blood somewhere in her ancestry, but what do you mean she looked familiar to you?" He places his hand over Nariko's and pats it. "Just tell me. I can take it. I understand the need for keeping secrets." There were a few of his own that he kept from everyone, but he didn't have any choice about that.
Nariko looked up at him and nodded. "I understand that." She pauses and looks away trying to get the words to form in her mind before looking back at Hiei. "You have to promise me you won't go after the Ox King or his group when I tell you this. I know how you work. You will want to seek vengeance on him for his actions." She takes another deep breath, water filling her eyes. "Hiei, I think his daughter is your sister." She finally told him, now she hoped he wouldn't run or try to leave. She felt a large weight lift from her shoulders.
Hiei stares at Nariko for a long moment before he stands up and begins pacing the room back and forth. "Are you serious? How long have you known? And you didn't tell me?" He begins to rattle off. "You realize this means the Ox King kidnapped Kaoru when we were six. He's the one that came in through her window and gave me this scar." He motions to the scar along the side of his face. "Nariko, I swore…I swore that I would kill the shinobi that took my sister. How can you expect me to not go after him!? The man broke my family. He's the reason why my father resented me for so long. He is the reason why I suffer from nightmares! And you expect me to just let it go!?" He walks over to Nariko to hold her by the shoulders. "I have to get her back."
Nariko takes his hands off her shoulders and stands. "I have only guessed at it since I saw her. I am unsure and don't know. I told you this is rumor. I cannot be sure unless I see her again." She shakes her head and looks at him. "This is why I can't let you go after him. You are too close to it. You have to let us get her. You have to go after him with a strong head. One that isn't distracted by all of that." She looks at the floor then back to him. "I didn't tell you because I knew this is how you would react. I wasn't even sure if I should have told you until I knew more."
Hiei grunts. "You are asking me to let go of something I've been trying to accomplish my entire life. Why would I do that? I swore to my parents that someday I would find her. This is the closest that I've ever been, Nariko." He covers his eyes with his hands and sits down again. "I am so conflicted right now. Part of me wants to hunt down Ox and kill him for what he's done. The other part just wants my sister back. You're right. I'm too close to this. But you've already said that you wanted her dead. How can I trust that you will bring her back instead of just killing her?"
Nariko looks to Hiei, a very serious expression on her face. "She tried to kill you! Why would I let her live if she tried to kill you? You would let her live if she killed me?" She starts to yell at him. "I will do whatever is necessary to bring her back. But if she tries to kill me I may not go easy on her. Right now, I consider her a threat. She used my own genjutsu on me. I won't back down from her." Her eyelids were unable to hold tears back, drops running down her cheeks. "I don't want you to die, but I also want you to have your sister back. I won't kill her if she doesn't force my hand. I will try to bring her back to you." She was upset, the lives of her friends and family had been on the line and she would protect them until the very end.
Hiei shakes his head. "It's obvious that she's not herself. She's been in this man's clutches for eleven years now, Nariko. She probably doesn't remember much. But I'm her brother. Not just her brother but her twin. I can get through to her. All I need is the opportunity. Alright fine, I won't go on the mission to retrieve her..but we can't keep this to ourselves either. For now…I won't tell my parents. I don't want to give them false hope. But I don't want you to die, either. And if it comes down to you or her.." His breath hitches in his chest as tears well in his eyes. "..I choose you." He reaches out to cup her face in his hands. "I know you'll do what you can. Just try to remember that she's also family. For me."
Nariko's eyelids drop over her eyes as he cups her face. "All three of us are family. We will get her back." She looks up at him. "We will get her back if that is her." She takes his hands off her face and looks to the food. "Now, sit down and eat. After all of this I'm sure you'll be getting even more angry if you don't eat." She points at the table. "If you don't I'll punch you in the face." She needed to lighten the mood, giving him a smile as she wiped her cheeks of the tears.
