49 49: Locked In, Locked Out

Mimi didn't realise something was strange until she was miles away from the town.

She'd barely calmed down since being chased around the whole place so she was still on edge, twitching and glancing at every little sound she heard in the forest she was running through. But even her enhanced stamina had its limits, and with the sun high in the sky for what felt like the first time in her new life, she decided to stop and relax in a vast clearing near the forest's edge.

But as she sat down on a small rock to eat one of her stashed meat skewers, her nose caught something. She was currently downwind of the town she had come from, and as the wind blew past her, she noticed the trace scent of humans behind her.

Standing up from the rock she turned to face the source of the scent in the woods behind her, but she couldn't see anyone. She could still smell them, though.

There were two of them, one was a boy, the other was a girl. They smelled young, which made no sense to her since it was only adults that were chasing her before.

She was still terrified, of course, since she was out of energy to continue running.

"H-Hey! I know you're there! C-Come out!"

She winced at the sound of her own voice. She'd hoped that would be a little more intimidating, but she couldn't stop herself from stuttering.

Still, she got a response.

"Oh wow, she actually noticed us! The wind's blowing behind us, so maybe she caught our scent? I'm sorry I didn't think of that, Onii-chan!" A feminine voice spoke.

A masculine voice responded as Mimi saw two silhouettes stand up from the thicket and begin walking towards her.

"Nah, don't worry about it, Pakura-chan. If her noticing us would've threatened us at all, my Danger Sense would've told me to approach from a different angle."

As they reached the clearing's edge they left the shade of the trees and stood out in the open in front of her. She gasped and began to slowly back away. She recognised his face from Renji's posts in the Group Chat.

'Oh no... oh no no no no no-'

"Y-You! You're that murderer! The one who k-killed the other boy in Suna!"

Mishima's eyes widened for a second before he narrowed them and seemed to glare intently at her for a moment. Mimi felt a slight twitch in the back of her mind and Nekomata spoke to her.

"[Mimi, I just felt a slight nudge from another System. I believe he just Appraised your info. That's the same Skill you have for reading the properties of an Item or the job of a human.]"

A moment passed before Mishima's glare ceased and he chuckled at her while reading a screen she couldn't see.

"Ah, I get it now! You're one of the extras. I'm surprised to see you're older than me, really. You're shorter than Pakura here and yet you're over a year older? I'm guessing it's the catgirl-ness you've got going on. Cute look, by the way; I think you'll fit in nicely." He said with a cocky smirk on his face as he pulled an object out of his Inventory. He kept it clasped in his fist, so Mimi couldn't see what it was.

He started walking towards her again as she continued backing away.

"What a-are you doing? Are you going to try and k-kill me like you did to Renji?!"

"Pfft, what? No. I've got something much better in mind for you, kitten."

He opened his hand and let the object he was holding hang from his fingers. A black band of fabric that Mimi immediately used her own Appraisal Skill on. Her face paled as she read the abhorrent collar's information and she tried to turn and run, but felt a pair of hands grip her wrists from behind.

While she was distracted by Mishima advancing on her, Pakura had circled around and slipped behind her. And now the brainwashed girl was holding Mimi in place.

'Oh god oh god oh god! H-He's going to put that thing around my neck?! W-What do I do?!' Mimi panicked inside her mind as she struggled against Pakura's grasp, to no avail. The shinobi girl was far stronger than she was, and easily restrained her.

"[Mimi! I... You have to make a choice. The Item in your Inventory is ready and waiting for you to use it but... you know...]" Nekomata called out to her as a last ditch effort.

"Haha, your struggling face is even cuter than I'd hoped, kitten. I'll be sure to enjoy that much more once I finally enter puberty again! I've been waiting way too long to finally have some fun, you know?" Mishima jeered as he reached out towards her neck.

But Mimi didn't hear him. She was entirely focussed on Nekomata's words. Her gaze darkened for a moment as she completely stopped moving.

'...You're right, Nekomata.'

With a small flash of light, a bright blue, ornate object appeared in her hand. This was the only System-made item she had ever earned. She'd received it as a reward for completing the Quest to purchase medicine for her mother.

Mishima glanced at the light for a moment before grabbing her by the shoulder.

"Are you really trying to fight back, kitten? Wouldn't you rather have fun with us inste-"

Mimi cut him off as the object in her hand glowed brightly enough to force him to blink for an instant and his Danger Sense warned him of a minor threat.

She locked eyes with him when he opened them again. 

"I would rather die."

*Ka-chunk*

The sound of a heavy lock opening resounded throughout the area as she turned the Item - revealed to be some kind of key - clockwise in the air. Pakura's grip was strong, but it only held her in place, and did not restrict the rotation of her wrists.

Mishima tried to hurry up and slip the collar around Mimi's neck, but his Danger Sense suddenly spiked and he hastily commanded Pakura to retreat.

*Boom!*

Blue light filled the clearing, swirling around Mimi's form as Mishima was thrown back by the blast.

- - -

"Ugh..."

Mishima sat up, holding his head in his hands. When had he fallen unconscious?

His eyes slowly cleared up as he looked around the clearing. Surprisingly, there was very little damage anywhere. He'd expected the catgirl's Item to be some kind of explosive weapon, but evidently, that hadn't actually been the case.

But now, he could clearly see what it actually was.

"Oh, you're awake already? I'd hoped that the blast would've at least done some damage..."

He heard the tired voice of his target speak to him and he looked to the center of the area. It was hard to miss, honestly.

In the middle of the clearing, in the spot where the catgirl had used the Item, there she sat. A spherical, semi-transparent barrier of blue light contained a large area around her. In the center of the warded area, a large floating whirlpool of energy slowly spun. She was sitting on the floor in front of the whirlpool, locked behind the barrier. 

Mishima used his Appraisal on it.

[Object: Chunin-level Dungeon Portal]

[Description: This is a Portal to a Dungeon containing Chunin-level threats, opened by a Dungeon Key. Surrounding the Portal is a barrier containing the Dungeon's prep room. The prep room cannot be left once entered, at least until such a time as the Dungeon is cleared. Currently there is one person inside the prep room.]

[Dungeon Raid Party: 1/4.]

[Time until forced Dungeon entry: 71 hours, 55 minutes, 21 seconds]

He scowled and slowly rose to his feet.

Mimi tilted her head at him questioningly.

"Did you just read the Dungeon's information?"

"Yeah, I did. So, you're stuck in there? That makes this easy then."

He walked right up to the barrier but was shocked to find his face bounced off it when he tried to walk through. 

"Ow, fuck!"

Mimi smirked tiredly. Mishima rubbed his nose as a System message appeared in front of him.

[This barrier cannot be passed without an invitation from the Raid Party's Leader.]

- - -

"Too bad. I'm stuck in here. You can't touch me." Mimi shrugged.

She was feeling oddly calm right now. It was satisfying to watch the green-haired idiot panic after he tried to enslave her, but that wasn't the reason why her nerves had settled. 

No, it was mostly because she was now resigned to her fate. This Dungeon's threat level was far beyond her power, and in roughly 72 hours, she would be forcibly pulled into it.

That is to say, in three days time she would be pulled into a situation that she had no hope of surviving. She was going to die.

It was a strangely peaceful feeling.

"[You can contact them now, you know. The others.]" Nekomata said.

'You're right. I could. But it's not like anyone's going to get to a random place in the middle of nowhere within three days anyway. Why would they even come here? I have nothing to offer them in return for saving-'

"[That is incorrect.]" Nekomata cut her off before she could slip into self-deprecation, "[They may not need a reason to come here and help you at all. I'm sure many of them would help you even with no tangible reward.]"

'Alright, but they wouldn't do it with such a high threat-'

"[Again, incorrect. There are many reasons why one of them would come here. Firstly, Mishima. They want him dead for killing one of their own. Some of them would probably come here just for a chance to put him down for good. Secondly, the Dungeon. It will surely contain rewards such as Skills and Items, and it will also provide an Urgent Quest upon entering it, which will give them further rewards - including System Experience - if they clear it.]"

'Oh? There are rewards inside the Dungeon?' Mimi innocently asked.

"[???]" Nekomata short-circuited for a moment.

"[You... Have you never played an RPG? Or never read a story with RPG-like elements?]"

'No?'

"[...Oh my.]"

'What? Is that weird? I wasn't much of a gamer back on earth. My parents never gave me time for anything other than studying. Once I had an apartment of my own, only then did I finally start to enjoy things in my free time. That was when I picked up the Naruto manga, shortly before my death.' She explained to her befuddled companion.

"[I... See. Right. Well, now you know. Back to the point, there are many reasons why a fellow Reincarnator would want to come here. So you should tell them.]"

'Alright, I will. But I'm not expecting any of them to show up. We're miles from anywhere and most of the others were born in the big shinobi Villages, which according to the map are generally near the center of their respective country's landmass. I doubt many of them could even get here in time...'

"[I wouldn't be so sure.]"

'Hm?'

"[After all, one of your two wishes is Luck. Perhaps you should lean on that for once?]"

- - - 

[-Global Chat 2.0-]

[-Reincarnator #11: "Hello everyone. I know this message is sudden, as I have very rarely spoken to any of you, but I need your help. I have had an unfortunate encounter with Reincarnator #15, who you may know by the name 'Mishima' and I was forced to activate a dangerous Item in order to protect myself. I am now trapped within a Dungeon barrier which will pull me into a Dungeon in almost exactly three days time. I have very little in the way of fighting capabilities, so this will almost certainly result in my death when it happens."-]

[-Reincarnator #11: "I can offer no certain rewards for your help. The Dungeon contains Chunin-level threats, and should thus provide suitable rewards for helping to clear it, so you will not be walking away with nothing. Plus, you might finally be able to take Mishima down, assuming he remains in the area instead of giving up on capturing me and leaving. I know that might not seem like enough to some people, but it is all I can offer. My location is roughly twenty miles east of Ishigaki Town, near the eastern border of the Land of Rain, in a sizeable clearing within a vast forest. Pictures attached. If you have any further questions, please ask and I will try my best to answer."-]

[-Reincarnator #11: "Oh and... please be careful. I don't even want to know how I'd feel if one of you died for my sake..."-]

Mimi finished up her message by having Nekomata take some mental photographs of Mishima, her map, and the surrounding area. It wasn't much to go on, but she hoped the proximity to the town she'd fled would be enough for people to find her.

'Bleh... that message felt like writing an email to my teachers back on Earth... So official-sounding...'

"[At least you got it out there. Now... all we can do is wait.]"

- - - - -

In a forest on the northern border of the Land of Fire:

"Hm?" A young, glasses-wearing Kumogakure shinobi read the message that appeared before his eyes while pulling his sword from the corpse of a Konoha Chunin and wiping the blade clean.

'Well well well... Land of Rain, eh? So that's where the murderer ended up...' Yuta - Reincarnator Number #12 - thought to himself as he read Number #11's message.

He turned his head away as he heard a loud *crack* in the distance, followed by the boisterous laughter of his companion.

'Sounds like Ryu is finishing up his group as well. He's never going to let me hear the end of this once he reads the message himself. Guess I have no choice but to go.'

Yuta sighed and opened a storage scroll to pull out a map. A quick scan of the local area with his Oracle System's power confirmed that no enemies remained on this battlefield, so he was safe to take a seat on a nearby log and read the map to confirm Mishima's location.

'South-west, about two-hundred miles to reach the Land of Rain's border... Not too far. We could probably make it there within a day if we rushed, but we would need to conserve our energy to fight Mishima without too much added risk. About a day and a half, then.' 

He was tracing his fingers along the lines of the map when a sudden crash nearby caused him to tighten his grip on the paper.

"HAHAHA, that was awesome! Did you see me, Yuta?! I totally crushed those guys!" Yuta's closest friend, Ryu, boasted with a huge grin as he strutted out of the crater he'd left behind and sat down next to Yuta.

The half-rotted log creaked uncertainly under the boy's weight. Ryu may have only been about nine and a half years old, not even in puberty yet, but he was almost as tall as a fully grown adult man, and almost as muscular too.

Yuta had already confirmed with the boy that none of his wishes had caused this absurd growth, so he had to wonder what the hell this kid's parents were feeding him to make him so unbelievably huge.

"Yes yes, Ryu, you were very impressive. More importantly, read the Chat messages that just appeared. It seems like Mishima has been found." He explained to the big oaf.

Ryu's grin somehow grew even wider as he stared off into space and read the message.

"Whoa, cool! A real life Dungeon! And we can fight Mishima! You're reading the map, right? How far are they? We gotta go, I ain't taking 'no' for an answer!" Ryu pleaded with stars in his eyes.

"About a day and a half's travel. We could get there sooner if we rushed, but I imagine you'd want to be in top form for a potentially dangerous fight-"

"Yep." Ryu said with a sudden and unusual seriousness, even though he was still smiling, "I need to be as strong as possible to fight a whole bunch of Reincarnators."

Yuta paused and quirked an eyebrow.

"What do you mean 'a whole bunch'?"

Ryu shrugged.

"What, you haven't figured it out? You're meant to be the smart one, bro. Remember the day when Mishima killed that other guy? A whole bunch of Reincarnators talked about how they wanted to kick his ass for that, so I bet at least a few are gonna show up at this Dungeon if Mishima really is there." He put a hand to his chin for a moment in thought, before nodding to himself after a few seconds.

"Plus, the Dungeon contains Items and stuff. I don't really care about that - my Training System already suits me just fine - but I bet a bunch of people would want to show up just for that. You and I are already strong enough to beat chunin-level threats, so I bet most of the Reincarnators older than us would be at least that strong too, so it shouldn't be too much of a risk for them to show up and clear the Dungeon, right?"

Yuta slowly blinked at Ryu's verbose explanation.

'Right... I almost forgot that Ryu is kind of a genius. He usually acts like such a moron that it slipped my mind that he knows better than anyone how people think when it comes to weighing the pros and cons of fighting. Once more I am proven right that befriending him when we were freshly-awoken children was the right choice. I really, REALLY wouldn't want to become his enemy.' 

With their conversation over, Yuta and Ryu began their journey westwards. With the Ryu's realisation that others would be heading for Number #11's location, Yuta took the time to periodically pulse his System's scanning ability.

The power of the Oracle-type System was a simple one. It focussed entirely on scanning, recon, detection, clairvoyance, and pretty much anything that could be considered 'scouting' by definition. He could sense the locations of other Reincarnators when he narrowed down his search options, and it wasn't locked to any set range. The closer his targets got, the more accurate the detection became, while the further away they were, the blurrier the vision got.

He had spent the last year since Renji's death working to track down other Reincarnators, just in case they went rogue or otherwise threatened his safety. Thanks to this, when he focussed, he could tell even from hundreds of miles away that a few others really were converging on the Land of Rain.

One was coming from the north, and one other from the south east. Two more were moving from the far east, but if Yuta's estimation of their travel speed was correct, they would be too late to reach Number #11's three day deadline.

He couldn't tell who they were exactly, his System was still rather finicky about long-distance scrying since it was still only Level 2, but still...

He was eager to find out what kind of confrontation awaited them at the Land of Rain. It'd be a day to remember, that was for sure.