I waited for a good 5 minutes before going in myself. Hibiki had not come outside to get me. That was a huge red flag for me. Just like with him, if something happened to him on my first mission out someone at the dojo might feel like it was my fault for Hibiki dying. That would not help me get in the good graces of the dojo. I had looked at the picture enough times to know what the woman looked like. Even if I did not, it was in my menu. I saw her and a young man sitting in the cafe section. They were smiling and talking to each other before giggling. That did not mean much of anything to me. Friends hung out together all the time. What was over the line was when the 2 of them began feeding each other the cake using the other's spoon. Saying "Aah" and everything. I looked to see if I had someway to document this. Hibiki had the camera. That was when the young man's eyes slid to me. She turned to look at me. Plain fear was on her face. He stood and said "Your friend came by, but he was not feeling too good. Went to the bathroom. Maybe you should go check on him." A hint.
Disposing of Hibiki in the bathroom somehow had to be impossible. There would be no way to get rid of the body. I rushed to the men's restroom in the back and saw him inside. Clutching one arm with the other hand, he was all scuffed up and bruised. Hibiki was already at quarter health and panting heavily. He was not laughing here. The pain was evident on his face. There were 5 ninja with him. I could tell from their uniforms that they were all from the Hashakuro clan. 7 Black tessellated hollow hexagons on their chest and back gave them away. 2 of them were already downed. Hibiki was wielding a kunai with his uninjured arm. One of the enemy ninja looked at me and said "Forget everything you saw here, kid." I just stepped inside fully and took out my practice spear from the dojo. There was no way that I was going to just leave Hibiki behind to die. "Wrong choice, brat!" he snapped and the melee was on. We fought 2 against 3. We were able to kill them all before Hibiki ran out of health. He was super low though. "Looks like we make a good team." he joked. I nodded as I looked at him.
Even I could tell he was really fucked up. I picked him up and used the rod of the spear as a balance to help carry him on my back. "You don't have to do this. I can walk back. I'm way tougher than I look." I shook my head. "No way. I can carry you. You carried me already. We have to even up the score or we can't be a good team." He chuckled softly and leaned forward on my back. "Fine. Let's be even then." With that, we left the dead shinobi in the bathroom and made our way back to the dojo. It had to be a sight for the average passerby. as we made it by walking. Hikaru was the first one to greet us when we got back inside. "Hibiki! What the hell happened to you!? I knew I should have gone with you! This was supposed to be an easy mission." he said as he rushed over. I told them about the Hashakuro shinobi we fought. "Yeah, figures that happens just as you happen to show up. Give me my brother back." he said angrily. Hibiki chuckled and said "Don't be so mad. Shiro saved my ass out there today. He even carried me all the way back. Without a single Flash Step." I winced.
Failing to remember that I could do that was the reason. Hibiki began to sensually rub my chest. "We could make a great team. You are fine with pairing up with me more often, right Shiro?" he offered. Before I could answer him, Hikaru took a single Flash Step to get behind me and yank his twin off my back. Hibiki winced from the sudden jostling. I asked if they knew someone who could heal. No one at the dojo could. Eiji and Genji knew a guy. He sighed and began walking on his own. "Let's go." There was a guy about 28 blocks away. For a small fee that Genji covered, the man healed all of Hibiki's wounds. He stretched and turned to test his body. When everything he tested was to his satisfaction, we made our way back to the dungeon. Once we got in, Eiji pulled me aside. He looked nervous and was not looking directly at me as he addressed me. "Good job out there, newbie. Hibiki's really a good guy. You have a place to stay tonight?" I did not actually have a place. When I told him, he placed a hand on the back of his neck and sighed. "There's space upstairs if you need it. Get me?"
