Page 91 of Dragon 7

And then there was Rin.

Rin stood apart from the rest of us. One full foot of clearance on every side. His Shuten-dōji mask faced the field. His white clothing gleamed in the dark like a signal flag. His braids hung down.

Two braids tonight. Interesting.

One braid always meant Rin would fight at distance.

Vials.

Darts.

Poisoned blowpipes from cover.

What did two braids mean?

Definitely more danger.

Both braids gleamed with an unnatural sheen. Poison coated every strand. Wicked hooked blades capped each tip.

Rin has upgraded.

He must have planned to fight close. Anyone who grabbed a braid in the chaos of close-quarters combat would most likely go down.

Hard.

Fast.

In agony.

And then Rin would kill them while they were on their knees gasping.

Anyone who touched Rin’s bare skin would have the same problem.

Satoshi stood to Rin's left at exactly the correct safe distance. He had measured it with that ex-military exactness. He filed the radius and obeyed it.

Kaoru gave Rin a single nod across the dark. “Eh, don’t die tonight, man. Remember. We’ve got a couples date night coming up in a few days. My girls and your new Deja. I’ve got the best sushi restaurant to take them to with excellent karaoke.”

Rin returned the nod. “I’m excited.”

“Just don’t have Deja teaching my two sweeties anything.”

“I can’t control Deja. Without a doubt, she’ll be a bad influence.”

“Hmmm. Well. . .maybe I’ll like my ladies having me on a leash.”

“There is a joy in giving up control to a gorgeous woman.”

Some of the other Fangs chuckled.

I tested my Hannya mask, making sure it was secure on my face.

Akiro’s men would be searching for Kenji, Reo, and me in the fight, hoping to take us down for the victory.

The lollipop went sweet against the roof of my mouth.

I lifted my eyes to the field.

Just like planned, the Scales broke from their positions of defending the landing space against Akiro’s men, and ran toward us like terrified cowards.