Up above the tree tops Nana hugged Yuki’s neck as the two looked around to make sure their direction was correct. “Yuki, is it just me or does the ridge seem to be surrounded by a red mist?”

“No, I see it too. Hopefully, it is nothing too bad, or else we will end up stuck in this forest for a long time. I want to go home and take a proper bath and take care of my tail.” Yuki was hoping her poor tail would not get all messed up again.
    
“When then the time comes I will brush it for you,” Nana whispered. 

    “Then I will shine your scales in return,” Yuki replied with a big smile. She liked having someone who knew her secret. Someone she could trust with her life. This was enough to give her a sense of security in this world that was filled with people who could kill you at any moment.

“I will be looking forward to it!” Nana grinned. She liked being pampered every once and a while.

- - -

While the two girls chatted up in the air, back at the sect, Elder Shoji was standing in front of the elder council along with the sect master in the head seat. Next to him was Kenji who was unrecognizable. “As you can see, This young man was beaten to a point that he almost died. If I did not save him he would have been killed. That disciple Yuki wanted to kill her own sect mate, a brother from the same sect. He had followed her out of worry since she was going out on her first mission but in return….”

“Can you shut up?” Elder Nishikawa stood up from her seat and walked over to Elder Shoji. 

“Wha?” Elder Shoji did not expect Elder Nishikawa to be so forward with her remark. But he quickly composed himself as he smiled at her and said: “I do not know why were you stopping me from speaking. Is it because it is your disciple that I am speaking about? You do know that even if they are your personal disciple. The sect rules are the sect rules.”

“You are also forgetting something, Elder Shoji. Even if it was Yuki who did this to this pervert, it would not matter. Do you know why?” Elder Nishikawa asked with a smile that sent a shiver down Elder Shoji’s spine. Seeing how he had no answer, Elder Nishikawa continued: “It is because the sect master already ruled that my Yuki can do as she pleases to  Kenji here if he continues to follow her around and bother her. Even if she decided to kill him it would not matter. Plus! You are mistaken in saying that it was Yuki who put him in such a state.”

“This…. What do you mean by that!? Are you saying I am blind?” Elder Shoji realized that Kenji was a bad tool so he did not care about him anymore but he refused to be looked down upon. Even if he was lying he could not allow it to be exposed here and lose more face than he already has.

“That is because Yuki would have just killed him. Why would she waste effort on beating him into this state? It is not the way she does things. I am sure the Grand Elders can contest to Yuki’s mentality.” Elder Nishikawa looked over at the old men.

“Mm…. If it is that girl she would rather just kill. She already skinned him alive once which was actually her being nice but now that she has the sect’s approval she would not hold back any longer and just kill him. I mean if she was willing to go and pull a sword on us old men, why would she beat the young man there?” One of the Grand Elders replied.

“You! You are just taking her side!” Elder Shoji yelled out. He was not going to let this slide easily.

The Sect Master cleared his throat silencing the room. “Elder Shoji, I had long already given disciple Yuki permission to do as she saw fit with this young man. Even if she was the one who beat him into such a state, which I highly doubt since from what I have heard she is a straightforward person, it would not matter. I suggest you drop the issue here and now.”

Gritting his teeth, Elder Shoji cupped his hands and bowed his head. “As the Sect Master says.”

“Good! Now take this trash out with you when you leave. Do not let him dirty or meeting hall!” Elder Nishikawa snorted before turning to the sect master and bowing her head. Only then did she leave. 

Elder Shoji dragged Keji back to his mountain peak with anger written all over his face. He really did pick a useless tool. “Since you are of no use you can just go to hell!”

Kenji could not even cry out as he watched Elder Shoji, in his fit of rage, slam his palm down on top of his head. His life was snuffed out just like that. By the very man who he had made a deal with. If he had just stopped his foolish actions he would not have died so young. But sadly for him, he would never get a chance to change his ways.

“That bitch! Fine!  I can’t do anything to her myself but I can try to deal with her in another way. Since you love your disciples so much, I will see how you feel when they all die!”