The Will to Escape - (Unfinished)

[Alanok]

Hello everyone. Sorry about the delay, I were uncertain on whether I should post this or not. Well, but I said I would, so… As I promised, here is the TWtE series. As I said in the last episode of Diaries of Fear, it is unfinished. If you do not know what I am talking about please check the message in the ending of the Episode 18, Arc 3. Everything bellow this message (except the ‘spoiler list’ in the end) was already written some time ago.


What is this? A short project, shorter than ‘Diaries of Fear’ by comparison, which happens in the same universe of ‘Diaries of Fear’, the DoF Universe (or whatever way you want to call this reality). A story about the first villain that a certain SLO character met.

Think in this as an expansion pack. Ok that is a bad analogy, but you got the idea. If you liked the main series, maybe you will like this one as well.

The Will to Escape – Arc 1

Episode 1 – A Place to Hide from Sorrow

Date of log: 12 years before first meeting Osoreito. Hokorigakure (dust)

Nigeru and her sister were walking in the desert during nighttime, heading to an unfinished hideout. It was incredibly cold, as usual. Both of them had lost their parents some time ago and were looking for a place to hide from danger. Nigeru did not knew well the reason that leaded her parents to end killed, since she was a little kid.

As they travelled to an abandoned place that her sister found in the past, Nigeru could not avoid perceiving the discomfort imposed by the cold place. She turned to her sister and started to complain:

_Are we close? It is cold here.

_Yes, if I remember right.

_Are we close? It is…

_Yes, if I remember right.

_Are we c…

_Yes, if I remember right.

_Are…

_Silence.

They eventually approached the place. A hideout in the middle of the desert, a bunch of wooden structures hidden in a cave. The place was empty of humans for a long time, spiders made it to the place, leaving webs all over the entrance. Only the fittest creatures can survive the desert for long.

They made sure the place was empty, examining the rooms and corridors. Nigeru’s sister brought supplies like food and water to stay in the place during some time. They were afraid that the same persons that killed their parents could want to kill them as well, even though they have nothing to do with their parents’ obscure dealings. Her sister was older and smarter, deciding to flee in despair with Nigeru as soon as she found dead corpses of the family in their house.

They had nothing to start a fire with, so the alternative way to warm them during the night was using old fabric from the place. Her sister started to clean the fabric from the dust, then wrapping Nigeru in it.

_Where is dad and mom? I want to go back home.

_We cannot go back. Dad and mom are not here right now.

_But this place is weird. I want to go.

_I am here with you, nothing ‘weird’ will harm you.

_I cannot sleep.

_I know. I will tell a story then, but you better not get used, this will not happen every night.

Her sister started to tell stories from when Nigeru had not born yet and the family traveled, visiting nearby villages. She talked about Morigakure and the trees that can reach the sky, deep in an endless forest. Nigeru yawned, looking motionless at her sister. She then talked about crazy groups in Morigakure and their obsession about protecting trees, usually charging a fine for anyone who damage a tree.

Some times Nigeru laughed, other times she silenced, hearing attentively the stories. She fell asleep, to her sister felicity. At first, Nigeru’s sister had trouble to sleep due to paranoia and stress, but eventually fell unconscious like a rock. During the morning of the next day, Nigeru woke up alone, looking around the room for her sister.

Nigeru walked, stepping in the old wood bellow her feet. She was starting to get worried about her sister when she decided to look in the entrance. Her sister was there sitting with crossed legs and looking the horizon from inside the cave. After noticing Nigeru’s presence, she got up and said:

_How about it? I got rid of the spider webs. The entrance is more welcoming now.

_Why do not we go home now? I want to go now.

_No chance. That place is dangerous now. You will stay here and do as I say.

_You are not my mom, stop telling me what to do.

_Your parents are not around, I am older than you are and I am the responsible here.

Her stubbornness was evident, as she did not properly understood the circumstances in which she was stuck. Taking care of Nigeru was always a headache, even for her parents, but eventually her sister had to make her aware of the situation.

During the following years, both of them lived in the hideout. Eventually, they needed to resupply food and water. The place became a home once they cleaned it and spent some days there. Nigeru’s sister became the responsible for what remained of the family and struggled to sustain both of them, needing a source of money urgently.


Episode 2 – Divine

Date of log: 9 years before first meeting Osoreito. Hokorigakure (dust).

During three years, Nigeru’s sister worked doing shinobi tasks, eventually finding in the world of crime an opportunity to make easy money. She would go any length to give her sister a comfortable life, even walking an illegal path. She usually left Nigeru alone for hours and days, doing dangerous missions skillfully.

Nigeru was playing alone, as she usually does since there is no company. Her sister came back, to her surprise, hugging her immediately. She brought a journal from Hokorigakure to Nigeru, as she usually brings books or magazines for her entertainment. That was the first time Nigeru read the ‘Dusty Journal’.

The title says “Man with Mental Disorder Sets Home in Flames”, and bellow, “The man was supposedly trying to put milk in a bowl with cereal when he brutally pierced his hand with a knife. It is uncertain how the fire started, but the man jumped from the second floor and the officials found him fatally burned, with a knife pierced in his right hand and glue in his left leg. Read more in page 6”.

_Whoa, putting milk in a bowl is harder than I thought – commented Nigeru.

_We are going to hang out around today. Leaving you alone here all day is something that always let me worried.

_Sure.

They went through the desert. Nigeru believed they would just hang out a little bit and maybe visit the village. After hours traveling bellow the hot sun, Nigeru said with a tired face:

_This is a travel for business, is not it?

_Ah, you are smart like your brilliant sister.

_The village was to the other direction. We have been traveling for hours to some other place.

_We already passed by some buildings in the middle of nowhere. The location is nearby. My meeting will not take long, I swear.

As they approached a part of the desert, a masked man appeared. He were wearing green clothes and the mask had two horns. The man said:

_Is this girl your sister, Hashita? She is wearing green clothes, so it is clear that she have good taste.

_I am taking my sister around to show the place. Here Nigeru, this is my friend Green Devil. He offered me great jobs these last days.

_Hello kid – said him while rubbing his hand in Nigeru’s hair.

_Hey, stop – said Nigeru – my hair will end all messed up this way.

_Ha. Did not the wind and the sand did that already? – Said Green Devil.

_Take the scroll you asked for – said Nigeru’s sister.

_Ah, this belong to me. Thank you.

_Doing jobs for the ‘Eight’ and the ‘Box’ can surely bring profit.

_Indeed. We both can profit from this business. Now, allow me to leave.

Nigeru and her sister prepared to return. In the desert, among the buildings weirdly placed in the middle of nowhere, something attracted Nigeru’s attention, who then asked her sister about what was that. It was an orphanage. High in the walls of the building, close to the roof, letters announced the name of the place. “Kinder 511”.

As they approach the place, they saw across the metallic fence a scaring number of kids, all slightly younger than Nigeru. Some of them were asking for coins or food, all of them had dirty clothes. The place was still inside the desert of Hokorigakure, but somewhat close to the border that leads to Haigakure. Approaching the place it was possible to hear voices inside the building, “Ah, buyers, we can get rid of these useless pieces of meat”.

_What is this place? – asked Nigeru’s sister.

_Hello, I am Emil – said an old woman, then pointing to an old man – and this is my husband, Sebe. In this land of no one, we are the owners of this orphanage.

_This place look… in bad condition.

_The place is overpopulated. There is orphans from corner to corner. Are you interested in our product?

_P-product… – she stared in the fence direction again, seeing a kid with fabrics wrapped in a bloody leg, sitting on the ground and playing with the sand – these children are a business?

_It is harsh times. Good will alone cannot keep this place active.

_Some of these kids are hurt. What that one have? – Asked her, pointing to the kid she saw.

_Ah, why? You are interested in that broken piece… we are going to sacrifice it this weekend.

_Sacrifice?

_Yes. We do not have the money to get medicine. Besides, it helps to prevent everyone from starving. We sacrifice an ill piece every month. If you want it you can buy.

_Ugh. How much do you want?

_It is five hundred each piece.

“It is five hundred each piece”, the words would haunt her forever. That day she adopted a little girl, saving her from the inhuman conditions in which she lived. Nigeru questioned her decision, saying that she could never help every single kid. She answered that although the world is rotten, every single spark of hope can make more than enough difference in someone’s life and help to change the world. At that age, Nigeru could not care less, though.


Hashita:
Appearance: Mature woman with brown eyes and black hair that often wear a shinobi outfit.
About: She is a calm and optimist person. She works doing dangerous missions for secret organizations, usually of the kind that is illegal in some villages. Her biggest hope is to bring a comfortable life for both herself and her sister, Nigeru.


Episode 3 – Family Structure

Date of log: 8 years before first meeting Osoreito. Hokorigakure (dust)

One year passed since Hashita adopted a little girl. She was surprised to discover that the orphanage would sacrifice the girl for having a simple infection. In less than one month, she was healthy already. After asking the girl about her name, she said that it was ‘Kanna’.

During a long time, Nigeru’s relationship with Kanna was troubled. Hashita tried her best to get Nigeru to understand the new situation. Nigeru’s resistance was enough to make her say that Kanna is not and will never be part of her family. Kanna’s presence is something she would eventually have to accept.

It is some random weekend and Hashita is not in a mission. A cute little girl is running around the corridors and rooms of the hideout. Kanna was lively and energetic, different from when she was in the orphanage. She stopped by a room and made a comment:

_Mommy says you are my aunt now, but you look so young to be an aunt!

_I am not your a… – Nigeru remembered all the times her sister scolded her – ah, I do not want to have anything to do with you.

_I like your doll, it is pretty like you – said her right before returning to run around the place.

_Eh! No! Since when are you with my doll? Come back, it is mine.

Nigeru chased her around the corridors while Hashita shouted for both of them to stop. Hashita sighed, realizing that her home has never been so happy. Her biggest dream was to give the three of them a normal life. Her family gave her the will to keep getting the money needed to have the most comfortable life possible.

Hashita’s involvement with obscure jobs was also dangerous. Her life was in constant risk, an unworthy price for the money she initially judged big. She wanted to retire one day and fully engage in taking care of her sister and adopted daughter. She made it a habit to tell Nigeru how important having friends is and even made a list with all the persons she trust, believing to have made many friends during the jobs she took.

That day, during the night, Hashita reunited everyone and told stories, as she did for Nigeru occasionally when she was younger. Everyone was entertained in that cold night, wrapped in blankets. They laughed and were astonished some times. Hashita turned to Nigeru after finishing her last story and said:

_Hey, I am finished. I cannot do this alone, your time to tell a story Nigeru.

_Ah, come on. I do not know anything to tell.

_Anything work, really.

_Ok, I will, hm… How about the blonde dwarf that found a black monster full of eyes.

_Last time I heard a story about a blonde dwarf and a bunch of eyes, the dwarf ended up losing an arm and a leg, and his brother’s soul was stuck in a pile of metal scraps.

_Eh? What?

_Nothing… proceed with the story.

Nigeru told a random story she just improvised in the moment, enough to hold Kanna attention for a few minutes. They eventually went to sleep, tired. Hashita was happy to make good use of her free time, spending it with what was left of her family.


Episode 4 – The Rotten Cannot Flourish

Date of Log: 3 years before first meeting Osoreito. Hokorigakure (dust)

Five years passed in a blink. Hashita managed to make some wealth working with criminals, giving her family a comfortable life. Nigeru were worried that her sister could get hurt, but she usually came back home in one piece, almost every time. Hashita went out to work that day, saying goodbye to Nigeru during the morning and asking her to take care of Kanna.

Nigeru was an adult by now and Kanna was a teen, close from becoming an adult. Hashita barely aged, in appearance. Nigeru saw her sister go into the desert, disappearing in the horizon. She went to check Kanna. She walked a corridor and opened a door, discovering that Kanna was already wake.

Nigeru could still remember when Kanna were still a cute little kid. Now she was different. Kanna’s tanned skin reflected the light of the torches inside the hideout. Her face was looking young and pretty. Nigeru said:

_Good morning, are you done hibernating?

_Aunt. Where is my mom?

_I already said I am not your… gr, I mean. She is in a mission. It may take some days. Until she is back, I am in charge here.

Hashita traveled to Heizugakure...


This is it. I did not even finished the fourth episode. Now I will sum up what was supposed to happen afterwards, in the long term.


Spoiler alert. Long text alert.

Spoiler: show

-Hashita is captured, because Green Devil sold info about her whereabouts to the village’s forces.
-Nigeru notices that her sister is taking too many days to return and decide to go to the village, to resupply food and water. There she finds out that Hashita was captured.
-Some weeks later, the Kage authorized the experimentation of genjutsu on prisoners during interrogations.
-Nigeru went outside the desert, searching for Hashita’s friends, to ask them to rescue her sister.
-A rich, fat and influent leader of some kind of mafia was one of Hashita’s friends. He refused to help without gaining a big reward, bigger than what Nigeru offered. According to him, he only does what return profit and that is selling explosives (a product that is forbidden in some villages and that must be brought from black markets). She eventually makes deals with him, in the future, getting explosives to invade Hokorigakure.
-An assassin with blue clothes and two silver swords was one of Hashita’s friends. At first, he refuses to help, but only because he did not knew the target was Hashita. He then accept the task, mysteriously refusing to accept any form of reward at all and insisting to complete the task alone, as soon as possible.
-Hashita is rescued, to Nigeru’s happiness. To Nigeru and Kanna misfortune, Hashita was in coma, thanks to genjutsu experiments during her interrogations.
-Akarui decides to live with Nigeru and Kanna, moving to the hideout.
-Nigeru needs a job to sustain Kanna, so after training with Akarui she joins the Hokorigakure’s forces (although the Kage only accepted her because he knew about her sister incident and wanted to keep a closer eye at Nigeru).
-The genjutsu experiments on prisoners were abolished (the villagers cheered, thinking it was abolished for being inhuman but it was actually abolished due to its inefficiency)
-Nigeru discover the truth about Hashita’s failed mission: Green Devil was behind her capture.
-Nigeru pretended to accept a mission in Hazegakure to serve the village, but actually just wanted an excuse to search for Green Devil (the Kage and the elders were suspicious of her intentions, but wanted to confirm that she still had a grudge against Green Devil and the village for causing harm to her sister).
-Nigeru kills Green Devil, breaking his bones with taijutsu and even holding his heart in her hand before killing him. She lies to Hanaka, her superior, saying that the mission was a failure because Green Devil started an attack against her. Her comrades gave her the nickname 'Super Green Devil’.
-Nigeru plots a revenge against the village, slowly accumulating money and resources to start a war against the village.
-Osoreito joins the Intelligence Division of Hokorigakure and Diaries of Fear happens.
-Nigeru discover about Kanna’s powers (Hashita asked Kanna to hide her powers from the world, to avoid greedy and sinister intentions from other persons).
-Akarui fell in love for Kanna, but the relationship was disapproved by Nigeru, since she thought it was a distraction for Kanna, who had a crucial part in her plan.
-Hashita dies, triggering the beginning of Nigeru’s procedements to start a war.
-Ultimately, Akarui and Nigeru have a heated discussion, which result in Akarui abandoning Nigeru and leaving the village. (Nigeru told him to stay away from Kanna during the war, since he was a distraction, which triggered Akarui’s anger, since he believed Nigeru to be ungrateful for all his assistance [including rescuing Hashita])
-Nigeru asks Kanna if she really wants to participate in the war, fearing for her life.
-Nigeru’s plan fails. She dies during the war. Kanna dies as well.
-Last episode: Nigeru had written a letter for Kanna, in case Kanna gave up participating in the war. There, she apologize for dispelling Akarui and for including Kanna in her plans. She concluded during the last day before the war, that Kanna should live her life with Akarui instead of risking her life in a suicide mission. She did not hated Kanna for being adopted, but loved her with all her might, for being the only thing left in her life. The final paragraph, of the final episode, would be something on the lines: “Kanna did not had to die, neither did Akarui, but she was too stubborn that day and decided to follow her aunt to the last moment. Courage is not what Kanna lacked that day, what she lacked that day was… the will to escape!”
-(Akarui discovered about Kanna’s death and decided to continue with Nigeru’s plan, concluding that the world was rotten. This is what resulted in DoF Arc 3).

That is all folks!