Koharuko

Always, Koharuko goes to the bottom of the falls. They stand where the mist is thickest, just before the sprawling huts of Waterfall City begin, and stare into the churning water. The local fishers think they are reading the currents, predicting the day's catch. Everyone remembers their unnerving calm fighting alongside the frantic energy of Hiro, and assumes this is just another quirk of a seasoned explorer. They offer a quiet nod, their eyes completely hidden. But Koharuko isn't watching the fish. They are watching for the flicker. During that battle, they saw a distortion deep within the cascade, a wrongness in the flow of water that no one else noticed. The enemy above was loud, but the one below was silent. The shades aren't for the sun; they hide the strain of a sentinel watching a prison whose bars are starting to rust.