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Prologue: Early November

Late one November evening, a young blonde woman was climbing up the stair of an apartment complex in Sendai, Japan. She was a strikingly beautiful lady, with long hair done up in two large pigtails on either side of her head, held together with red hair ties. The young woman wore an orange and black tracksuit with matching shorts and black open toed sandals. Her tracksuit was unzipped, revealing a fishnet undershirt and a pair of very striking assets. Her skin was silky smooth, her legs long and slender, and her eyes a deep, shimmering blue. But what were possibly the most striking feature of this lovely individual were the trio of whisker-like birthmarks on both of her cheeks.

What was the name of such a pretty woman, you might ask? She went by Naruko Uzumaki.

Eventually, Naruko had reached the top of the stair and stood in front of an unassuming door marked #701. Pulling her house keys out of her shorts pocket, she unlocked the door and shuffled into her one bedroom apartment. As she entered, she flipped a switch alongside the wall to her left, turning on the lights above her head. Here she lived alone while attending a local college in Sendai. While not the brightest student by any means, few could match her determination and work ethic. Didn’t hurt that her boyfriend Hinata was always willing to lend her a hand with studying, either.

Unsurprisingly, it was pretty messy, just like she’d left it earlier. Textbooks were piled up high on her desk, empty ramen cups that had to be properly disposed of were lying on various pieces of furniture, a bunch of soda cans and various bags of junk food were scattered across the floor. All of these were remnants of the impromptu costume she’d held for her close friends a few days earlier. Naruko had dressed even more provocative than usual, donning a purple succubus outfit, in the hopes of getting a reaction from her boyfriend. While Naruko did feel guilty for effectively making Hinata pass out, the adorable stammering and the blush that extended from his nose across his cheeks and all the way to his ears made it more than worth the effort. The sight of her boyfriend resembling an ice cream sundae, complete with whipped cream and a cherry, instead of the snowman he was dressed as, would forever be ingrained into her memories.

Chuckling at the memory, Naruko didn’t immediately notice that there was there was one thing about her apartment that was out of place. But eventually, she noticed the smell of autumn leaves and realized that there was a breeze blowing through the room. Brushing some strands of hair aside and patting down the top of her head, Naruko began looking around for the source of the night air wafting through the apartment. Before long, she found the culprit: an open window.

‘Did I leave it like that when I left?’ Naruko pondered, before shrugging and making her across the room. But as she closed the window, she noticed something else that wasn’t right. In the reflection of the window, she saw a strange, tall person standing behind her. The stranger was dressed in a long, dark cloak and their face was hidden entirely behind a bulky gas mask and a thick hood.

Startled, Naruko turned around and prepared to shout at the intruder before suddenly losing her balance and collapsing on the floor. Too late, she realized that the room was filling with a thick white fog, coming from a grenade-like canister lying not too far from where her head now rested on the floor.

“Consider this a privilege,” the intruder spoke. The cloak prevented her from seeing any physical indicators that would imply one gender or another. On top of that, the cloaked stranger’s voice sounded garbled, almost to the point of being incomprehensible.

“You have been selected to participate in the Nonary Game,” the voice continued, cold and distorted. “It is a game where you will put your life on the line.”

That was the last thing Naruko heard before she finally lost consciousness.

(To be continued)

Next time on Nonary Game Jinchuriki Edition: Time and Date Unknown