"Can you see anything?" asked Red, as his breath crystallized in the cool night air. Yuffie shook her head. She had a pair of binoculars in her hands.
 "It's too dark to see anything."
 They lay, crouched, on the crest of a small, tree-covered hill. A short distance away was the excavation site. Farther still was the great snowy bulk of Mt. Onasuke. The camp was lit by powerful spotlights, and a tunnel could be seen going deep into the mountain.
 "That must be where the gate is," said Yuffie, then she gasped softly. "There's a guard down there," she announced, pointing at a man, strolling casually, with a rifle slung over his shoulder.
 "I"ll handle it," whispered Red, then he silently crept down the hill, through the bushes. When he reached the bottom he lay down in the foliage that bordered the path on which the guard patrolled. His tail was straight as an arrow; his muscles were like taut bowstrings. His razor-sharp claws slipped out of their sheathes. Slowly, his lips parted, revealing gleaming, carnivorous fangs. His hunter's reflexes would have to pay off; if the guard managed to sound an alarm, then they were both finished.
 The guard whistled tunelessly as he ambled down the path, completely unaware of the savage predator in the bushes........
 The tattoos on Red's hind legs rippled as he pounced, a blood-curdling roar erupting from his throat. The man shrieked and flew into the bushes on the other side of the path as Red brought him down. There was another roar from the bushes, then a weak cry. Red walked out of the bushes, looking exhausted.
 Yuffie crashed through the underbrush as she ran down the hill towards him.  "Ouch....." she said, pointing to the body in the bushes.
 "I didn't kill him.......just scared him silly," replied Red. "I abhor senseless bloodshed, you know that."
 Yuffie shrugged. "Pretty convincing," she said. "I looked at the place while you were in there. The tunnel's this way." She began to walk cautiously down the path. Red followed her, then froze dead in his tracks.
 Yuffie glanced back. "What's wrong?"
 "Did you smell that?" he asked. "No," she replied. She gestured towards the tunnel. "C'mon, let's get going."
 He nodded, absentmindedly. The scent was quite undescribable. It made him feel slightly dizzy, and he couldn't get it out of his head. But it also made him feel......happy, as if he was in a loved one's company. He heard a rustling in the bushes. Suddenly, he was on full alert again.
 "Who's there?" he said cautiously. Nobody answered. He stepped forwards, scanning the bushes for any signs of movement. There! There were two bright green eyes hovering in the bushes, surrounded by fire-red fur.......
 "Hey!" he called. The green eyes narrowed.
 "Go away! Leave me alone!" she hissed, then she scampered off.
 "Please, come back!" he called again, desperately, but she was already long gone. He felt crushed, and hopeless. She......she had been so close. What really got to Red, however, was the fact that she had seemed to be afraid of him.
  Why? I mean her no harm........
  With that, and feelings of hope and hopelessness, he proceeded towards the tunnel.

Why can't they just leave me alone!?
 She crouched behind a large shrub, overlooking the human's camp. She saw the male climb out of the bushes where the human lay, stunned.
  What a weakling, she thought. He could have killed him, but didn't.
 She saw the girl run down the hill, towards the male. The talked, then began to move on. Suddenly, he stopped, and looked back.
 "Who's there?" he called.
 He's smelled me......Sita, you're so foolish! Why did you have to sit here!?
 Then, their eyes met. Her claws slid out, as anger rushed through her body.
 The male smiled. "Hey!"
 "Go away! Leave me alone!" she shouted, then she turned and sprinted away.
"Please, come back!" called the male. She ignored him and kept running, and only when she felt it was safe did she stop, panting. Over the next rise was a small cabin, with a plume of smoke coming from the chimney. Warm, friendly light glowed softly from inside. She padded towards it. Through the window she could see an old man sitting in a rocking chair, with an expression of worry on his face. She pushed the door open. The man turned to look, then he stood up and put his hands on his hips.
 "Sita! Where have you been? I was worried about you!" he berated.
 She waved her front paws. "Geez, Grandpa! Relax." She lay down on the floor, catching her breath. "You'll never guess what I saw....."

 There were far more guards as they got closer to the tunnel, but they managed to avoid them easily. Red could move silently among the crates and barrels that were stacked against the sides of the buildings, and Yuffie moved stealthily across the rooftops.
 Red caught a trace of scent, definitely a human. He smelled of sweat and alcohol, and the reek of it stung Red's nose. It also brought his mind back to the female in the bushes.......
 Why was she afraid of me? I'm so confused..... I'm not even sure she was a female at all!
 He scolded himself. Of course it's a female! Then why would the scent be so strong? That's enough, get back to the task at hand, Nanaki. You can do this.....
 His thoughts were interrupted by a tiny lock of his own hair drifting to the ground in front of him.
 What the......! Move!
 He caught a black blur of motion behind him, then, abruptly, the barrel beside him fell apart into multiple pieces.
 "Yuffie, there's somebody here!" he hissed. "I can't see him!"
 He dodged to the side as a man clad in black leapt down from the tall evergreens above him. His razor-sharp sword split the air as he slashed at Red.
 "Master Shoki will not allow intruders!" exclaimed the ninja, his bright red eyes flashing.
 Shoki....... thought Red, terrified. Mother's.....!
 He slid his claws out. "Yuffie, where are you!" he muttered.  The ninja jumped back up into the trees.
 "How......how did he do that?" said Red, still on guard, running forward as the ninja appeared behind him, slashing vertically. Red thanked his hearing; if he hadn't heard him fall behind him, he would have been sliced in half.
 The sword slashed down at him, then abrubtly clattered to the ground with a clang as something knocked it from the ninja's hand.
 "Leave him alone." said Yuffie, her eyes as cold as steel. In her hand she held a throwing star. In her other hand she held a sword, similar to the ninja's, only shorter.
 "Master Shoki will not allow failure. Will you make your friend's death quick and painless, or slow and gruesome?" questioned the ninja, with a voice that sounded empty and dead.
 "Neither, if I can help it," said Yuffie, as she dropped from the roof, then she hurled the shuriken at the ninja.
 He narrowed his eyes, then extended his hand towards his fallen weapon. It jumped back into his hand. Effortlessly, he stopped the shuriken in midair, slicing it in half.
 "What was that?!" exclaimed Red.
 "Die!!!!" screamed the ninja. His sword met Yuffie's in a shower of sparks. His eyes burned brightly as he slowly, but surely, began to push Yuffie to the ground.
 That's enough!
 Red pounced onto the assassin's back, raking him with his claws. Black blood flew everywhere, as the assassin screamed, a sound that made Yuffie shudder.
 Then, Red jumped off him, and the ninja fell to his knees. His back was nothing but a few tattered shreds of flesh.
 "M..master, I-I have f-failed you.........avenge me....." with his last ounce of strength, he jerkily turned his head towards Red. "The m-master is f-far stronger that I....You will s-surely perish.....just like your m-mother!" Then he collapsed, and burst into flames.
 "What.......was he?" asked Red, dumbfounded.
 "You've just had your first encounter with an Onikage. Let's just hope we never have to fight two of them!"
 "He's right, Yuffie. We're both going to die out here."
 Yuffie took a step back. "What are you saying!?"
 "We're both doomed to die!!! Whether it's by Shoki or one of his minions, we're going to die!!"
 Yuffie had never seen him so terrified before. He began to shake, his eye darting back and forth.
 "That's enough!" she yelled, slapping him across the face. "Don't think that I'm not scared either, because I am! I'm terrified! But I don't let my fear get in the way!!"
 Red's mouth hung open. "I'm......sorry, I don't know what came over me. I'll be all right," he said flatly.
 "Red, I'm sorry too, I just forgot what Shoki did to you...."
 "Forget it, let's just get out of here."

 Errant droplets of sweat stained Yuffie's headband. The air in the excavation tunnel was unbearably hot; she seemed to be suffering the worst. Red was panting noisily, however.
 "These tunnels never end," gasped Yuffie. "How much farther is it?"
 "How should I know?!" he snapped, then he sighed. "Sorry. It's just that I can hardly breathe down here, it's so hot."
 They trudged on, through more and more winding tunnels. Yuffie was having trouble keeping her eyes open. The heat was making her drowsy. She looked down at Red, and noticed he was having the same trouble. Suddenly, he stopped.
 "I smell something. It smells like......" he trailed off.  "Smells like what?" she asked groggily.
 "Blood. I smell blood. Follow me," he said, as he padded down a side tunnel. Only a short distance away lay a man, in a tattered business suit.  "Yuffie, come quick!"
 Yuffie dashed down the tunnel. When she saw who it was, she frowned angrily.
 "Sho-Dai!" she shouted.
 "This is Sho-Dai?" asked Red. Sho-Dai grimaced. He had a huge gash down the front of his suit, and his black hair was messy. He looked up at them. When his gaze fell upon Red, he grinned the most subtle and evil of grins.
 "P-please help.......Shoki's.......heading towards the gate!" he groaned.
 "Shoki!" said Yuffie, then she shook her head. "You're lying! You set me up!" Sho-Dai wheezed painfully.
 "Shoki was controlling my mind......I'm sorry for everything I did......"  He struggled to stand up. "Give me the white stone. I know where we may dispose of it, where Shoki will never find it. Give it to me....." He held out his hand.
 Yuffie folded her arms. "No way! I don't trust you!"
 "Come on, Yuffie! Look how badly Shoki hurt him! He's on our side," said Red logically. After a few seconds, Yuffie reluctantly handed him the stone.
 "All right, but if you try anything, you're dead, got it?" Yuffie snarled, pointing her finger under his nose. He smiled.
 "Follow me....it's not far," then he began to limp down yet another tunnel.
 A few minutes later they entered a vast circular chamber. It was filled with cool air, and Yuffie felt refreshed. Motifs of frightening creatures were carved into the walls. At the far end was a large iron gate. There were two small holes built into the door.
 "The legendary gate....." breathed Yuffie, shuddering at the thought of the demons locked away behind it. Just then, Sho-Dai began to laugh.
 "What's so funny?" inquired Yuffie.
 "Ha ha ha ha! You humans are so naive!" he cackled. He held out the white stone. "Now, the time has come......."
 "What are you talking about?" demanded Yuffie.
 "Is it not obvious?" replied Sho-Dai, as he walked slowly towards the gate. "The Onikage shall awaken once again, and this world will belong to them......." He opened his other hand. There, glittering brightly, was the black stone!
 "You bastard! You tricked us!" she yelled. "I'll show you!" She charged towards him, shuriken in hand. Then, with a wave of his hand, Sho-Dai send her careening backwards. She hit the wall with a thud, the air knocked out of her. She clutched her chest in pain, then she fell into unconciousness.
 "What have you done to her?" asked Red forcefully.
 "Do not concern yourself with her, beast! Prepare yourself!"
 That voice.......!
 At that very moment, Sho-Dai's body began to change. His hands slowly grew claws, his hair lengthened and lightened, and his body became encased in a suit of armor. But the thing that made Red's blood run cold was the face.......
 A pair of glowing red eyes, like coals, behind a terrifying mask. It can't be! he screamed in his mind. Not him!!!!!
 "Now to finish what I started 28 years ago.......prepare to join your mother in the void!" Shoki proclaimed, pulling his katana from its scabbard.
"You'll find I've grown stronger over that time," Red snarled, trying to mask the terror in his voice, as his claws slid out. "In the name of my mother, Sadakko, I will defeat you!"