A Lethal Weapon - ALW Saga Book 1 [REWRITE]

Chapter 25

Hanako wandered through the Hospital halls until she reached the room she was looking for. She knocked on the door and let out a sigh while she waited for an answer.

"Come in." She heard Kazuki's faint voice and entered the room, closing the door behind her.

"How are you feeling?" she asked as she walked to the side of his bed. Kazuki only watched her every movement while he sat up on his bed.

"Better, guess I never thought this girl could give me such a beating." Hanako chuckled at this.

"Was it better or worse than the beating I gave you?" Kazuki arched an eyebrow.

"That wasn't a beating. That was cruel. You manipulated my mind in a Genjutsu; you didn't even leave a scratch," he countered as he observed himself. "But Hyori, she did give me a beating, physically."

"Look, Kazuki." Hanako sighed. "You got out of there alive, that's what matters. You'll have a chance to take the exam again."

"I know, but I have to train harder. Get stronger." Kazuki frowned. "After all, I'm the only one in the team who didn't make it to the final round."

"That Takeshi and I did, doesn't mean we'll become Chuunin right away," Hanako said as she observed the white ceiling. "This final round will be the hardest of all."

"You'll make it." She heard him say and looked down at him. "I'm sure of it." Hanako smiled.

"Thank you, Kazuki..." she muttered before turning her back to him and walking to the door. "I have to go."

"I enjoyed your visit," he said. "Maybe next time I see you, you'll already be in the arena waiting for the third exam to begin." Hanako stopped before the door as she placed her hand on the handle.

"Probably."

"I hope you win and become a Chuunin." She looked at him sideways.

"Yeah... Me too." After saying this, she opened the door and walked out of the room. She noticed the hallways were strangely empty and decided to wander around for a bit in case something was wrong. She closed the door to Kazuki's room before starting her tour towards the unknown —she's rarely been at the hospital.

She paced for a couple of minutes until a metallic sign next to a door called her attention. "The morgue?" The brunette neared the door and laid her hand on the handle. "I shouldn't..." She looked up and down the hallway in case the nurses might be around. There was no one. She focused her chakra just to make sure. No one. Curiosity got the best of her, and she entered the room, quickly closing the door behind her. The room was dark but thanks to her Sharingan, she found the switch and turned on the lights. There were a bunch of corpses, covered with a thin white blanket, placed over metallic exam stretchers. The girl walked past them until one of the corpses called her attention. She pulled the blanket over to reveal Shun's pale and passive frame.

"This is..." she muttered, taking her hand to Shun's neck, noticing some strange seals all over it. "This can't be..." Shun's body started turning a grayish color, as if it were transforming into stone. Hanako's eyes shone red as she observed the corpse, trying to get a better perspective of what was going on in his body —that's when she noticed the fine layer of chakra that was covering it, originating from the unknown seals. There, right in front of her, Shun's body turned into ashes, leaving a mound of dust that soon started to pour down from the pallet to the floor. Hanako backed away and stared at her at hand, which still held remains of the ash that once was Shun's body. She dusted herself quickly, turned off the lights and rushed out of the room only to bump right into someone just outside the door. They both fell to the ground, Hanako on top of the passer-by.