The Return of Back Wind

Back Wind was born to a family of covert specialists. He was born without magic, bred to work for the king, and taught the ways of the ninja. At an early age he had to develop his personal fighting style. Something that couldn't easily be mimicked.

As a child he suffered from an intolerance to the staple food in the area. It was something he had to eat in some form at every meal, a bean called stipe. His belly would swell with gas when he ate stipe, which he would expel during his classes. That was when an idea formed.

At first he just thought it was funny. Using his gas to defeat people in training left them insulted, easy to anger, and easy to make mistakes. He didn't realize, however, just how effective it would be once his experience crystallized and formed his job.

Wind Breaker. It was an intimidating name for a job with an asinine set of skills. Skills that, strangely enough, complemented his ninja training well. Only two aspects made his job harder when he needed to stay out of sight. The noise and the smell.

Through his excellent service to the king, he was given a codename, Silent But Deadly. It was a moniker filled with irony, as to use his job skills made him anything but silent. He could, of course, get by with a mild squeaker on occasion, but the power afforded to the skills of Wind Breaker was usually explosive.

He wasn't used to losing fights. He had his share of failures, but he's never lost in combat when breaking out his "Fire Ball" technique. So, you could assume that when Kael had absorbed the impact and sent him flying, he didn't take it too well.

The blast itself was far-reaching, but it sent him flying even further. He had caught himself and used up his gas to fly halfway back before running out. Now, after walking through the night, he has made it back to Aldam... And what does he see?

The border jumper! Walking about town, learning about its defenses and weaknesses. He was talking to Daddy before he walked away as if nothing were awry.

"How deep does this spy ring go?!" He thought to himself.

That's right. Back Wind had yet another problem. A problem that was usually solved by his partner's presence. For how good he was at his job and for all of his intelligence, Back Wind had a habit of jumping to immediate conclusions.

The border jumper, Haruto, stood in the middle of the road. He was speaking with that crazy Aki Eldenwood, the Unlucky Alchemist. What possible use could an Ellw spy have for her? Leaving her to her own devices is danger enough to the humans.

He had to learn of their plans but was out of gas. He removed his ninja uniform, hiding it in one of their many hidden caches around the village. Now in his civilian clothing, he drew closer to his prey.

Passing by a food cart, he grabbed a bag of fried stipe beans. He leisurely popped them in his mouth two at a time, looking as inconspicuous as possible. He watched his target and Aki as they moved from the street to the tailor's shop.

Rodney handed the border jumper a folded set of clothing. Aki seemed to argue with the floating eye for some reason and then paid for the clothes. Back couldn't understand why she was paying for him.

No way! Was Aki being blackmailed? That fiend must have her in his dirty clutches. That's right! Nobody in his village was a spy. He must be using his job to control them somehow. But what was it?

The spy and his hostage left the shop, with Aki frustratedly scolding the floating eye about adding things without asking. Adding things without asking?! What is this sick pervert adding to her?

He followed the group slowly as they walked from store to store. She was giving the spy a tour, granting him information about the town's layout, hiding places, and shortcuts. What did he have on her?

Talk of the woolermelon farm came into the conversation. The spy mentioned something about magic. That's it!

The spy wasn't a human from Artvallen! He was an Ellw, using magic to disguise himself. That would mean that his job was one of the four cardinal traditions of the Ellw. He's using mind manipulation and illusions, so he must be a Thought Scribe. That would also explain why he's carrying a stick. It's his staff!

The danger had escalated quickly, and Back was the only one who could do anything about it. He was the only one who had realized what this monster was. His current plan was to continue tailing him, isolate the Ellw, and silence him before he could cast any spells.

Aki pulled at her captor's arm, leading him around the corner to the woolermelon patch and out of sight. Back tried to follow but was stopped suddenly. A cute girl, arms covered in tattoos, stepped up to him.

"Hey, Back. You doing some shopping?" Cici asked.

"Oh, hey. I can't really talk right now." Back said, nervously.

"Oh, yeah, sorry. It won't take but a minute." She said, ignoring his hurried tone. "I was just wondering, is Turn around? You said you'd talk to him for me."

Back couldn't concentrate on her words as he peered over her head. "Huh? What about Turn?"

The realization hit him as he spoke his name. Turn was supposed to apprehend the suspect while he fought with Double Impact. Did the Ellw beat him? Is that why he was free?

"I'm sorry, Cici!" Back squeaked suddenly before sprinting off. "Turns death shall be avenged."

He shoved the rest of his fried stipe in his mouth, chewing violently. He slowed his pace as he neared the corner, sidling up to the building. He peered around to see the killer and his hostage pointing at a woolermelon.

As the farmer exchanged the fluffy white fruit for a coin, the killer began to rub it against his body. His hair began to frizz, and he poked Aki in the arm, shocking her with the static. Back's mouth hung open at the sight. Now he was torturing her, right out in the open?

That's it! Back leaned against the building, holding his knife behind him. He would wait for them to round the corner. When they passed him, he would slit his throat. Easy, neat, and quick.

They were at the edge of town. Unless they were leaving, they had only one way to go. The two rounded the corner, just as he had expected... then stopped.

"Hey?" Haruto asked. "Aren't you that panther ninja guy?"

Back looked at him, fear plain to see on his face. He began to sweat bullets. The Thought Scribe was ready for anything. He must've read his thoughts!

"You are, right?" Haruto asked. "I could tell because of your tattoo."

Back looked at his arm and flexed naturally. He had been identified by the enemy. He should have listened to Turn. A ninja really shouldn't have a tattoo... No matter how cool it is.