50: Trailing Steam

A sort of numbness, a buzzing sensation spread over Kana's skin, seeping into her bones as she made her way down the passageways of the medical suite. Shoulders slumped, in her hands dangled a few towels and nightwear robes - preparations for the hotspring bath she eagerly sought. Perhaps it would be more accurate to say she felt she needed one.

The route back to her quarters had taken her though the barrier sanctum, where Kaoru and Hisao had both been gesturing frantically, discussing something. Something Kana hadn't the mental energy to focus on after the ordeal she went through.

But that wasn't the same for Fuzō's parents, who halted their conversation soon after she exited the hidden passages. Hisao rather obviously flinched at the girl's arrival, but Kana couldn't figure what his problem was. He rather conspicuously averted his face too, despite it already being hidden behind his veil.

Kaoru on the other hand rushed to her side, wiping the still-wet blood trailing from the corners of Kana's mouth with yet another handkerchief from somewhere.

And while Kana could hear Kaoru asking questions, 'What happened!?' and 'Are you alright?' and the like, the girl could barely focus long enough to comprehend them.

How to even start explaining? With the way she was feeling, Kana didn't even want to think about it. Instead her mind kept wandering back to why Kaoru had so much embroidered cloth on her person at all times. That was easier to think about.

In the end, all Kana managed to say was, "Unlocked the mask... felt really weird, really... tired?"

After that a sort of uproar sounded from the adults, which Kana basically tuned out, wincing at the volume. Something about 'prodigy' and 'effort' and 'exhaustion'. Whatever it was about, Kana felt herself unable to care for once.

Perhaps she ought to be concerned, but the numbing buzz pulsating outward from around her heart was just so warm and soothing that it made it very difficult to concentrate on anything else. Her chakra reacted to it too, intensifying the effect.

Was something wrong with her?Maybe..? But she felt neither panic nor crisis - only a sense of unease at worst. That and the discomfort of exerting oneself. Just trying to assess her own condition was difficult.

Kaoru had then immediately escorted Kana back to her designated room in the medical suite, speaking to her the whole time. No rather, she repeated the same words multiple times until Kana finally acknowledged them - an exchanged promise to talk more about 'urgent matters' after Kana rested. The veiled woman hurriedly departed soon after, leaving Kana to her own devices.

By 'rest', Kaoru probably meant 'sleep', but that wasn't exactly normal for Kana anymore either. She could attempt to, sure, but she felt a sort of restlessness about attempting to sleep right away. Because sleep brought dreams, and Kana harbored a worrying fear of what... nightmares might appear. Thoughts of the recent disturbing phenomenon still danced around her mind, and she at least wanted to try and relax her sluggish body first. The springwater had never failed to improve her mood in the past.

Thus led to the present, as Kana embraced a rising urge to soak herself in the steaming waters of the suite's private hotspring.

Sliding open the wooden entry door, the by-now-familiar scenery of the bathing chambers greeted Kana's hazy eyes along with a thin wall of ambient steam.

Barely sparing a moment to shed all her clothes, she plopped her towels and garments onto a nearby wooden reclining chair before practically collapsing straight into the main spring's bubbling basin.

There were several pleasant and healing features present in these baths, from saunas to incense fountains, but Kana hadn't a mind to peruse them today. She just wanted her entire body submerged in the hot bubbling water, hot enough to redden her skin, one of the only sensations she knew for a fact could take her mind away from unpleasant matters.

If no one was around, she needn't even surface for air, allowing her to prolong the relaxing effect for as long as she wished.

For now, the plan was to stay submerged long enough for her mind and body to cease feeling so muddled. As she floated underneath the water's surface, hair billowing around freely with the rippling water, her imagination wandered to bring her away from her worries.

Instead of concrete ideas, she instead imagined beautiful colors, hues of golden-white and amethyst swirling around and blending together. While it lasted, she almost felt as if she had two heartbeats echoing in her ears, beating strongly enough to pulse through her entire body.

With her senses dulled to the outside and stimulated within the hotspring's embrace, time passed peacefully for Kana, blissfully unaware.

A strange sensation of foreboding stirred Kana out of her relaxation, and before she knew it she had already resurfaced.

A feeling like that of alarm, but more like a calling instinct. Quickly as it came, the odd feeling passed, leaving Kana a bit dazed.

Something she noticed subconsciously? She had always been able to trust these sorts of senses in the past.

Blinking the water from her long dark-red eyelashes, she lifted her arms to comb saturated locks of hair away from her face. Judging by the reddish tinting of her skin, she had soaked for several hours at the minimum.

Further proof was the absence of the bleariness and numbness she felt from before. Her mind was clear and she felt fine.

But, her heart though...

In a tiny region - just a minuscule amount, really - when her chakra circulated through the pathways around her heart, it seemed to flow a bit differently than usual. More... brightly? Vigorously? Enough to notice, for sure, but if anything it was actually an improvement.

Kana shook her head slowly, gathering up lengths of her hair behind her and wringing the water out as she proceeded to exit the bath.

Perhaps one of the many experimental projects she tried out regarding the changes to her body had caused this, as she had often speculated might occur. The nutrition concern in particular came to mind. Kaoru and Fuzō had both emphasized that 'putting flesh on her bones' was crucial for her health.

Or it could be related to the events of yesterday...

A hint of a grimace bent Kana's lips at the thought.

No matter the reason, she could sort it out later. Continuing as she was would surely reveal the cause in time.

After channeling a gentle mix of Fūton and Katon through her hands, she directed the resulting warm breeze to dry off her hair more thoroughly, re-affixing her hairclasp into her usual half-up style once she finished. Her hands lingered on the familiar silvery metal, caressing the sigil and feeling its contours as she had done countless times before. It's presence was reassuring. Perhaps... perhaps it was finally time to raise her concerns about it's origin more directly.

The demonic mask's messaging abilities... would surely soon enable that. Try as she might, Kana couldn't get thoughts of what she might learn out of her mind.

With a drawn-out sigh and a rueful shake of her head, Kana draped a towel around her neck and threw on the thin but soft sleepwear robes. Though they were just for sleeping in, the robes were still finely crafted with an elegant appearance, again more like a priest's robe than anything else. The wide cloth belt which adjusted the waist-width was even a bright red hue that exactly matched the formal robes Kaoru always wore. The belt sported the clan's swirling whirlpool emblem on the front as well.

And while the outfit was thin and lightweight, it was probably the most comfortable thing Kana had ever worn. After all, even extreme temperature changes hardly bothered her, so being lightweight was no problem. The softness was what she appreciated most.

Since the rest of her clothes and sandals were dirty from training, she dumped them all into the storage scroll she kept hidden within a pocket of her overcloak. Stored all save for said overcloak of course, which she draped over her arm.

Kana always made sure her belonging traveled with her, taking anything she felt she wanted to keep or might need. Most of which were stored in the various pockets of the large grey cloak. It was a habit and mentality she hardly even thought about anymore, but one she felt was worthwhile nonetheless.

So it was that she stepped out into the hallways in her sleepwear, flimsy wooden indoor sandal-slippers dully clacking against the stone floors in the silence.

And it was silent indeed, almost...

Kana squinted, eyes flickering back and forth down the dim passageways. As her wariness grew, she flexed her fingers and gradually put up her guard.

After a quick bit of pacing, she arrived back at the doors to her section of the suite, finding her room empty as she'd left it.

The cool night air trailed around her ankles from behind, fluttering the trim of her robes. The air... flowing in from a window left open across the hall... Fuzō's room?

Draping her towel on a rack by the door to her room, Kana turned and tread silently over to the opposite doorframe, waving her hand against the crack at the bottom of the door. Sure enough, the cold air was flowing in from there.

Wouldn't Fuzō be asleep at this time? Was it alright to let the cold into the room while the wounded woman was still weak from her injuries?

Gripping the doorframe with a poised tension, Kana eased the sliding door open with careful silence, peeking inside.

The light of the moon silhouetted the furniture inside, flooding in through the open windows on the side wall.

Scanning the room with her gaze, Kana eyed the bed where Fuzō usually slept off her exhaustion. It was empty, the covers drawn over sideways like its occupant had simply gotten up.

Strange, where did she go? Kana knew it would be difficult for Fuzō to move by herself. Her stamina was vastly limited, and a medic on the staff here was always there to assist if she expressed a desire to move.

Pushing the door open all the way with a clank, Kana glided her way past its threshold into the room fully.

A pair of crutches leaned against the wall by the bedside, but Fuzō wasn't even able to use them to move by herself yet. Instead she had a chair with wheels ...stored in the closet, was it?

With a silent bound, Kana appeared before the closet door in the darkness, throwing it open.

It was empty, the wheelchair nowhere to be found.

The window curtains fluttered behind Kana with the nightly breeze, rustling her gown again and punctuating the emptiness of the room.

Very strange indeed, but Fuzō had apparently gone somewhere... at this time of night.

Well, she wouldn't be able to move the wheelchair on her own, so at least she went with someone, presumably the staff assigned to help her.

Kana closed the closet behind her, walking towards the window to do the same. When Fuzō did return... she wouldn't want the room to be chilled by the frigid nighttime air.

While still somewhat ill at ease, Kana told herself not to be concerned as she peered out the glass windowpane over the courtyard below. The slightly yellowish grass of the lawn there rustled quietly with the winds too, glinting in the moonlight... also devoid of any human presence.

Well, perhaps Kaoru would know why. She mentioned before that there was something urgent to talk about.

Sliding the door to Fuzō's room closed behind her, Kana spread her fingers over the soft wooden grains of the door's carved panel, tracing its wavy patterns as she thought idly.

Yes, even at this time of night... Kaoru had told her to come see her as soon as the girl had finished resting. But where?

Plodding down the halls in silence once more, Kana felt herself glancing at the empty corridors and rooms she passed. Something still felt... off, but not in a way that she could easily identify.

Eventually she arrived back at the barrier sanctum, where Hisao and Kaoru spent most of their time. She met no one along the way, not even a sign of anyone else. No sounds of footsteps. No one checking the lamps.

The main entry to the sanctum opened to Kana as usual, an access she was granted the privilege of wielding once Kaoru had gifted her the demonic mask.

However the inside of the barrier sanctum lay empty, and no one sat atop the carved barrier formula on the stone platform, something which was normally never allowed by protocol.

As Administrators, either Kaoru or Hisao were supposed to be present to monitor the barrier at any particular time. Such was their responsibility, their unenviable burden. Though Hisao shared the larger portion of that burden while Kaoru's attentions were directed to Fuzō's condition.

Still, this was concerning.

The barrier formula still glowed a faint blue, showing it was active, but Kana didn't know enough to ascertain its condition in detail.

Kana felt an urge to find Kaoru, and fast. Where else would she be?

It only took a moment of considering before Kana figured another place to check. After all, Kaoru and Kana had previously been working in the communication chamber, training to unlock the demonic mask's abilities.

If they had something to talk about, she would likely be there, right? To check on the aftermath of whatever it was that had happened there.

Even if she wasn't there, Kana felt nervous enough about it herself. Something told her to check it out for herself, now that she had cleared her head. What had happened there... Kana felt an instinctive urge to check whether it had really happened at all.

Her sharp senses rarely led her astray... like that foreboding feeling from earlier.

Rushing now, Kana opened one of the hidden wall panels and leaped delicately down the steps of the hidden corridors.

As she descended, that feeling returned. With it, an overwhelming urge to inspect that place, to see for herself that something had truly changed. That the darkness could no longer leak out and reach her, that it was under control. Kana barely understood what these feelings even were, but still she hurried, calm even though her heartbeat accelerated.

Soon she flew past the doorway to the communication chamber, which was also worryingly devoid of Kaoru's presence.

But that was incidental now, for Kana had an even more pressing worry on her mind.

Unfurling her storage scroll from the pocket of the overcoat still draped over her arm, she extracted the demonic mask.

Without it, the room would only appear as it was to her ordinary physical vision.

But as she went to equip the mask, she hesitated, steeling her nerves against what she experienced before. Her limbs tensed, the palm holding her cloak digging into the fabric as she brought the mask over her face.

From there, like before, a form of doubled vision extended over the room.

But unlike before, the demonic face carved into the stone wall sat dormant, still firmly encased in a layer of ethereal white energy.

With a troubled and ragged sigh, Kana let out the breath she was holding in her lungs, some tension leaving her shoulders.

The darkness within the eyes and maw of that demonic face hardly looked so imposing anymore, rather like a pebble clamped in a vise. Barely a shadow in the sunlight, not alarming in the slightest. Kana didn't know where this imagery came from, but she was nonetheless relieved somewhere in the depths of her heart.

But there was something else... in her double-vision Kana could see it peeking out from the still somewhat-slackened jaws of the stone relic.

A faint light, not like the one that had cloaked her when she came here before, but instead a different and familiar whitish-green. Familiar, familiar? Like she had felt when she met Fuzō all that time ago.

Insatiably intrigued, Kana placed a palm against the stone relic's mouth, willing it to pry open a bit further so she could inspect the light better. It did so slowly, following her will with only minimal effort on Kana's part. The demonic face seemed as if it no longer possessed even a trace of its own will from before. Soon, the light within its maw gradually enlarged to take up more space in the void, taking a slightly vague turquoise color as it did.

Now this, this was more in line with what Kaoru had told her to expect, Kana mused belatedly. It was said that within the otherworldly darkness of the relics, light entered from the stone maws like two ends of a tunnel. Finding the right tunnel was to connect two different places.

Was this... was this how messages were sent? Her mind was now fully occupied by this newfound wonder, previous concerns suddenly superseded.

Kana reached out with her chakra, feeling as if she could touch or otherwise grasp the light at the other end. It felt so near, even when it was doubtless quite far.

She felt the edges of her chakra graze this other light, this other end of a tunnel, feeling as it weren't so far away after all. But still nothing happened. Just a sensation of making contact.

So Kana pulled and stretched her chakra a bit farther in, threshing forward with her willpower and grasping a firm hold on this other place.

But what now? Nothing else seemed to happen for a minute or two. The familiar light, she had woven a path to it with her chakra, but she still felt nothing change.

A bit puzzled, Kana tugged a bit harder, inquisitively.

The other end tugged back, harder. Much harder. Rebounding.

In the blink of an eye, lasting an impossibly short duration, the baffling emptiness of the void washed over her.

The only sound that rang out in Kana's ears was the shriek of porcelain cracking, her mask.

With it, a thin trail of blood ran down Kana's cheek.