Chapter Seven: Valley of the Four Seasons
The Ryouga & Ukyou Chronicles, Volume One
© 2004 horiuchi_tetsuro_1@yahoo.com
Ryouga Hibiki and Ukyou Kuonji are not my creation and are both copyright of Rumiko Takahashi. I’d like to thank Takahashi-sensei for her great series. I once again claim no credit for their creation, however, some of the characters are my creations (aka Migi & Hidari, Ryu, Prince Ito, Ukuji, Kangeio, Shogu) and I do claim them, so there!
I
"Get the hell away from me, you crazy freak!" someone shouted in the darkness. The loud, deep voice pierced the idle blackness of the midnight countryside like a shotgun blast.
Hiroshi groaned and peered out of his sleeping bag. From his position, the area of sight was mostly blocked by the firepit, but he knew the voice. Angry and groggy, he rolled over and tried harder to forget where he was. His mind drifted back to that mysterious girl in the hospital, and the very unusual way she’d so deeply affected him. It was like she was almost...well, money. Nothing else could have affected him in such a manner. Well, he could think of one certain girl, but then again he had to remind himself he was miles from Nerima. Miles away from her and her sisters. And her schemes. And her eyes, and... Hell, he was out in the middle of nowhere with a group of freaks, psychopaths, and everything else in between. Re-examining his status, Hiroshi wasn't surprised to discover he was, by his own admission, the only sane person for miles. His thoughts were cut short as something heavy stomped into his gut, knocking the wind from him. His eyes tearing with pain, he began to shout something, but went wide-eyed when he heard the sounds of metal slicing through the air behind him. Hiroshi rolled sloppily out of the way just as Ryu’s katana swished by. He was chasing Ryouga. Again.
"I don’t want my hair cut NOW, you psycho!" Ryouga shouted. "Why don’t you do this during the DAYTIME!?"
Naturally, Ryu didn’t answer.
Ryouga snarled at him through gritted fangs. He leapt to his own sleeping bag, which was neatly cut near the pillow, and grasped his umbrella firmly by the heavy stock handle. He brought the thing up to block another sword blow, and Hiroshi watched in both amazement and terror as the shimmering blade sliced it clean in half. The recently detached end clunked to the ground with a sickening thud. Hiroshi remembered that umbrella, too. The thing must’ve weighed a freaking’ ton. Ryouga shared his same stunned face. Without allowing him to utter another word, Ryu held his blade high into the air with one hand.
"No mere umbrella is standing in way of this!" he declared triumphantly. "Is ancient samurai sword of the hairdresser of the legendary Tokugawa shogunate themself ! Folded 1000 times by master smith of dragons in legendary valley in...um...in China!!!"
Hiroshi ignored this outrageous claim, having himself noted with much concern that Ukyou was now stirring from sleep. Her sleeping bag being right next to Ryouga’s, she was getting an earful of the Chinese hairdresser’s boasts. Nearby himself sat Daisuke, cross-legged on top of his own sleeping bag, apparently eager to watch the fireworks that were sure to come. Hiroshi shrugged. Some people jumped out of planes, too. Maybe Daisuke just liked tossing himself into danger. Or at least, his physical body. Hey, that was his deal. Hiroshi rolled back over and went to sleep just as Hurricane Ukyou came to.
"WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON HERE!?" a shrill, somewhat feminine voice shattered the night sky. Ryouga and Ryu both turned in that direction. Daisuke sat back and watched the show. The wilderness seemed to die, as silent as it had become in that instant. Although, distantly, Ryouga thought he could hear a wolf bay at the moon. An ill omen, to be sure. Ryouga bet Ryu was thinking the same thing.
"Oh...Ucchan..." Ryouga said nervously. "I...um...well,...I..."
She stood, staring at him impatiently in her long white T-shirt with that unusual bird on it and the words "Piyo Piyo!" written cryptically above it. Ryouga blushed at the sight of her. His eyes unconsciously traced a path up one of her silky, bare legs. Her hands were balled in fists on her slender waist. Ryouga, sweating profusely, pointed an accusatory finger at the emotionless samurai beside him.
"It was him, Ucchan!" he shouted, panic and mock sincerity both apparent in his words. "He’s a maniac! He tried to kill me!" After a moment he added, "Please don’t kill me!"
Ukyou exchanged her hateful, tired glare from Ryouga to the garishly-clad samurai. Ryu’s face was, as standard, emotionless.
"Ryu... " she said in a suddenly sweetly demeanor. "Did you attack Ryouga?"
Ryu shook his head defiantly. It was an obvious 'no'. Ukyou frowned, but tried to remain calm. After all, she was the most ordinary, organized person in the group. It wouldn't be too well for any of them if she went into a frenzy now. Idly, she wished Kasumi was here. Or a near replica, at any rate.
"Lying psychopath!" Ryouga shouted, pointing at his sleeping bag. "Look what you did to my pillow! Involuntary sepukku!"
Ryu snorted derisively. "I was attempting to cut the hairs while you was sleeping. It not my fault if pillow do not possess sufficient skills to dodge strike."
"Sufficient skills to..." Ryouga said, stunned. He held the limp bedtime accouterment in front of Ryu’s emotionless eyes. "It’s a PILLOW! It’s not alive, Ryu! It has sufficient skills to do NOTHING! It has the reflexes of a TABLECLOTH!"
Ryu’s expression didn’t change. Ryouga sighed and looked over at Ukyou. She shrugged. He groaned and threw his hands into the air, admitting defeat. He tossed the pillow aside, the wounded object bleeding feathers onto the grassy field under their feet. There was silence for a moment.
"Honestly." Ukyou said in a huffy voice, turning back to her own sleeping bag and slipping under the cover. "I don’t know how I put up with either of you."
"Neither do I." Daisuke said smoothly as Ukyou rolled over on her side and found herself face-to-face with the dark-haired boy. Before she could say anything, he continued in his best cassanova-esque voice.
"What do you say we ditch these children and go someplace of our own, hmm?"
Ukyou smiled her best 'cute girl' smile. Daisuke’s heart began to visibly patter with anticipation. She glanced around her to see everyone’s reaction. Hiroshi was snoring loudly by this time. Ryu was now locked in some deep meditative trance. She grinned slightly when she saw Ryouga. He was bright red, and his fists were clenched in silent fury. His teeth were gnashed together tightly. She congratulated herself, but at the same time noted to herself that she felt happy that she could evoke such a reaction in him with a simple smile. It made her kind of...powerful. She’d have to remember that. As for now, she refocused on Daisuke with the same sweet look.
"Daisuke, sugar," she said sweetly. Daisuke leaned closer, sweat beading on his brow.
"Get a life!" she shouted, and Daisuke winced against the ringing in his ears. He shied away, scampering back to his own sleeping bag, muttering something. Ukyou giggled. Behind her, she thought she actually heard Ryouga breath a sigh of relief. That made her giggle even harder. This feminine charm stuff had never been her strong suit, but she was beginning to see that it had its moments.
After a few minutes, Ryouga curled back up into his own sleeping back, cursing his luck bitterly. She thought she may have even heard "Accursed Saotome" once or twice. Well, she supposed, old habits never really die. After a few moments, she inched closer to Ryouga, cuddling up against him, pretending to be asleep as best she could. As far as she could tell, he didn’t seem to mind. Satisfied, she allowed herself to be swept off into the wonderful land of blissful slumber once more.
II
Ryouga frowned as his eyes hardened into slits, trying to pierce the veils of heavy fog that seemed to line the area around Ukyou’s valley. Behind him, Ryu was looking around, emotionless expression, his arms crossed, hands tucked neatly into the sleeves of his garish kimono. Hiroshi, wearing another black school uniform, stood beside him, along with a similarly clad Daisuke. Ryouga noted with mild annoyance the lovely okonomiyaki chef tugging his arm, her state of emotion obviously excited.
"Come on, you big idiot!" she said, tugging his arm. "I know where I’m going! I’m telling you, it’s this way!"
Ryouga sighed. "I know, but still. It’s a big valley, and you said yourself that you haven’t been here in a long time."
"Ryo-chan," she said impatiently, but there was an ironic tone in her words that Ryouga detected. "Are you questioning my sense of direction?"
"No, not at all!" Ryouga said nervously. He just had a feeling. Call it apprehension, call it nervousness, call it what you will. There was just something that wasn’t right about this place. He couldn’t place it, exactly, but whatever it was he didn’t like it. Nevertheless, Ukyou seemed so happy to be home. He had no intentions whatsoever to ruin that for her. Gathering his resolve, he extended his hand.
"Lead the way, madam." He said in his most gentlemanly tone. Grinning widely, Ukyou took his hand and began to practically drag him towards the heavy mists. He had to run to keep up with her. Hiroshi shrugged and glanced at Daisuke, who had a similar reaction. Then, the two of them sprinted off to catch up, with Ryu not far behind them. The mists slowly parted, and soon enough the group found themselves standing in a lovely field of wild flowers. Sporadic trees grew around them. Distantly, birds were chirping. The air was temperate, with a slightly warm breeze dancing through the clear blue sky. Ukyou frowned at this spectacle. Ryouga noted her confused look with some dismay.
"Um, Ukyou," he said nervously. "Are you okay?"
Ukyou looked around, as if desperately searching for something. An unrecognizable look crisscrossed her lovely face. This did nothing more than to further impact Ryouga’s own confusion.
"This isn’t my valley!" she shouted, causing everyone to flinch. Well, every one save Ryu. He simply took the shout as if it were a tone of voiced used frequently in normal conversation.
"What do you mean, this isn’t your valley!?" Hiroshi shouted. "It has to be! You lead us to it!"
"Calm down, moron." Ryouga said angrily. Hiroshi saw the anger in him, and fell silent. Wisely, Daisuke said nothing. Ryouga turned back to Ukyou and looked her dead into the eyes. They were shimmering with that emotion that he so loathed to see, especially in...her. Sadness.
"Ukyou, are you sure?" he said sternly. "It has been a long time, after all."
Ukyou was silent for a moment, then turned back and looked out into the sprawling, almost springtime landscape. She sighed with slight remorse and another warm breeze tossed her long hair lazily to the side. Maybe Ryouga was right, she thought. Maybe she wasn’t as good at recognizing her home as she’d thought. It had been a long time, after all. Plus, she did want to see her father so desperately. She could only imagine how lonely he must be, especially without her mother there anymore. Ukyou sniffed back a tear at the thought of her deceased mother and turned back to the four men.
"Well, I suppose a look around couldn’t hurt too much." She said. Ryouga smiled. She took his hand and began to stroll through the lazy green fields, adorned with various patches of lovely flowers of all make and type.
"Well, I certainly hope you live here." Daisuke said as they walked. "This place is beautiful." Ryu looked over at him with a face that slightly deviated from emotionless. It was slightly stunned. For Ryu, it was a major change.
"Daisuke-san, I was having no idea." He said. "I is assuming you was a mostly shallow man."
Daisuke chuckled. He prided himself on his ability to enjoy the finer things in life. Things like beauty, for instance. Particularly, beautiful women. He found it to be quite a pity (and an annoyance) that very few beautiful women shared his...unique outlook. He watched a nearby butterfly, bright yellow like the sun, flutter past him. He turned to Ryu and smirked.
"Better watch it, hairdresser." He said smugly. "You’re showing a dangerous amount of emotion. Is the anti-humanity generator on the fritz?"
Ryu grumbled something about "dishonorable" and resumed his normal state. Daisuke smiled inwardly. He liked to know he still had the knack for putting people in their place. He may not be much of a martial artist, but his mind was as keen as any sword’s blade. Well, except when women were involved. Of course, being that he used to hang around Ranma so much, that was usually the case.
The four of them decided to stop at a small, picturesque stream in a cherry blossom grove. Ukyou set up the okonomiyaki grill and began to prepare lunch. She looked at her companions ("the boys" as she sometimes jokingly referred to them as) and wondered if they ever got tired of okonomiyaki day after day. Hiroshi didn’t complain, but she secretly suspected he was getting sick of it. Daisuke didn’t say anything, either. Then again, besides hitting on her or making a rude comment, he never said much anyway. Ryouga seemed thrilled that someone was cooking for him at all. Strangely, this seemed to made her feel somewhat pleased, but she couldn’t quite get at why. And Ryu...well, he was just Ryu. There was really no other explanation necessary in her mind. She began to hum idly as she flipped the sizzling okonomiyaki.
Ryu stared out across the horizon, deep in meditation. There was definantly something amiss in this valley. It was not Ukyou’s homeland; The simple fact that they’d been traveling all day and not come across a single dwelling or living thing justified that for him. Then, the question posed itself for debate. Where were they? If memory of this area of Japan served him properly (and naturally it would), there were no other valleys between the place Ukyou called home and Nerima. Well, there was Yomogi valley, but this was definantly not the valley of Moxibustion. The absence of burning hot boulders indicated that fact to him as well. As the most obviously level-headed member of the group, he decided, he must uncover this secret. Turning his gaze from the spectacle of the horizon, he began to walk towards Ryouga, who seemed to be speaking with that girlfriend of his. Their little chat would have to wait. Ryu had important business.
Moments before, Ryouga rolled onto his side, looking from the lovely tops of the cherry blossom trees above him to the lovely girl humming nearby. He listened to her for a few moments, blissfully ignorant of everything else around him. She always hummed when she cooked, and he always listened to her, whether or not she realized it. When she hummed, it had a weird effect on him. It was kind of like a spell or something that enticed him. Her voice was melodic, soothing. It was beautiful. Suddenly, the sound he so loved to hear ceased. Frowning, he opened his eyes. Ukyou was looking at him, smiling slightly. He vied desperately for something to say.
"So, that’s what you were listening to." She said, looking him over. Ryouga’s mind cursed bitterly as he felt himself go crimson. He placed an ear to the ground and chuckled nervously. He couldn’t let her know...What if she didn’t...He racked his mind for an excuse.
"Um, no..." he said, his throat cracking. "I, uh...I was...I...was..."
She eyed him with a "go-ahead-and-say-it-stupid" expression. She seemed slightly amused by his pathetic cover-up attempt.
"...I was checking for...geothermal...instabilities..." he said half-heartedly. "Yeah, that’s it. Heh heh heh..."
Ukyou frowned. Her expression shifted to the all popular "How-stupid-do-you-think-I-am" look. Nevertheless, Ryouga persevered. He patted the ground reassuringly, grinning.
"Well, checks out fine." He said confidently. "We won’t be expecting any natural disasters during lunch."
"Oh." She said, and he could see she was trying not to laugh. "Well, that’s always good."
"Yep." Ryouga said. "Sure is."
Thankfully, it was at that time Ryu walked up to them. He bowed respectfully to Ukyou before kneeling beside the still laying Ryouga.
"We must have conference at once, Hibiki-san." He said gravely. Ryouga looked around and then back.
"Well, go on." He said. "We all have a right to hear it."
Ryu was about to begin when suddenly Daisuke pointed up into a nearby cherry blossom tree. The group all simultaneously looked up.
Laying casually on one of the upper branches, his back pressed against the trunk, was a man of about seventeen or eighteen. He wore a black tuxedo, complete with bowtie and red cumberbun. In his right hand, gripped between his thumb and forefinger, was a delicate red rose. He looked down at the five of them with an almost imperialistic attitude. His hair was short and blonde, neatly combed, and he was handsome by any supermodel’s standards. To any other girl, he was absolutely gorgeous. Well, to almost any girl.
"Who the hell are you?" Ukyou demanded, wondering how long he’d been watching them. More disturbing, however, was the fact that no one had noticed him until now. The boy chuckled, and Ukyou noticed his voice was very light, almost feathery. Somewhat feminine, she noted with dry humor. Inside, she had the distinct feeling he wasn’t a comedian.
"Gashi, shingaisha." The man said snobbishly. "Welcome to the valley of Shurkashuuton Tengoku. I am Nobara Gekidoku, the master of Spring, this region of the valley."
Ryu’s face paled to a deathly pallor when Nobara spoke the valley’s name. Hiroshi, always observant, whispered fiercely to him.
"You know something about this, don’t you?" he whispered fiercely. "What’s wrong?" Ryu said nothing. He could only watch and hope that the inevitable wouldn’t happen.
"Well, Gekidoku-san, what is it we can help you with ?" Ukyou said, trying her best to act polite. However, there was something sinister about him. It was a feeling that put cold shocks into her spine. He looked down at her with his imperious, Kuno-like glare. It brought back bad memories to her.
"Ah, but it is I that can help you, my dear woman." He said, hopping down from the tree and landing tidily in the clearing. He still clutched the rose in his right hand.
"Oh really?" Ryouga snapped, stepping up to stand next to Ukyou. She thought it kind of odd. It was almost like he was trying to...protect her. "And why would we need help?"
"Did you not hear me the first time, impudent shingaisha?" Nobara sneered. Ryouga felt his normally paper-thin patience stretching to the breaking point. The only thing that held him back from the edge was the reassuring feminine hand that was suddenly on his shoulder. Good old Ukyou, he thought. She was like a tether line. She could always bring him back from the edge.
Nobara continued on, eyeing them all. "This is the valley of Shurkashuuton Tengoku. All of you are trespassing. Outsiders are strictly forbidden. To walk on our soil is to insult our honor."
"Our?" Daisuke suddenly chimed in. "Sorry, flower man, but I only count one of you."
"We four are as one." Nobara sneered cryptically. Daisuke felt a cold chill run down his back. That wasn’t an answer he normally liked to hear.
"Then legend is true." Ryu said under his breath. "Shurkashuuton Tengoku, Valley of the Four Seasons..."
Hiroshi glared at him, scowling.
"Hah!" he shouted triumphantly. "I knew it! Come on, spill it, freakshow!" Ryu ignored him, glaring up at Nobara with eyes of ice cold seriousness.
"Ah, perhaps there is one among you who is not a complete fool." Nobara said imperially. He straightened the cuffs of his tuxedo jacket, appearing bored.
"We’re sorry." Ukyou said, trying desperately to salvage a peaceful resolution. Her touch could calm Ryouga somewhat (why, she didn’t know), but she could feel him tensing up. He was preparing to strike.
"We’ll leave. We didn’t mean to trespass on anything." She offered her best smile.
Nobara gave her a look of such distaste she was afraid he was going to spit on her. "It’s not that simple, my dear."
Ryu’s eyes widened. Hiroshi and Daisuke exchanged worried glances. Ryouga’s brow furrowed in a vain attempt to understand. Ukyou frowned and wrinkled her nose.
"I...I don’t understand what you mean." She stammered, readying herself for the fight she felt was coming on. "We already apologized. Isn’t that enough?"
Chuckling, Nobara raised the flower to his face. "No." He whispered. "It is not." With that, he raised the rose to his mouth and blew. A flash of blinding powder shot forth from it, seemingly out of nowhere. It engulfed "the boys", who began to choke and gag. Ukyou watched as Ryu, Hiroshi, Daisuke, then finally Ryouga succumbed to it, each collapsing in a heap on the beautiful spring grass. Nobara chuckled and grasped her arm roughly.
"Come along, my dear." He said softly. "You belong to us now."
Ukyou struggled to wrench free of him, but his grasp was surprisingly strong. He held her fast, but not without sufficient exertion on his part.
"No need to be difficult..." Nobara said as he struggled with her. "It’s the law of the valley..."
Ukyou scowled hatefully at him and reached back for the spatula holstered on her back. "And what kind of ridiculous law is that!?" she shouted. She grasped the handle and prepared to bring her weapon to bear, when suddenly Nobara whipped the delicate rose at it. To her amazement, the stem stretched, wrapping around her weapon like a whip. With a slight tug, Nobara wrenched it free and tossed the spatula aside. The rose returned to its normal, deceptively fragile form. Nobara had yet to release her. Without her weapon, all she could do was struggle in vain. She could see that he was becoming... annoyed.
Just then, a groan stopped them both. Ryouga had struggled to his feet, and was now glaring at the tuxedo clad boy with hate seething through every pore of his body. Ukyou breathed a sigh of relief. Nobara appeared both shocked and impressed.
"Hmm, this is unusual." He said arrogantly. "That was supposed to keep you unconscious for three hours. You’re tougher than you look."
"Let...her...go..." Ryouga said, the anger raging in his tone. Ukyou had never heard him this angry. It frightened her. Nobara still held on, apparently unimpressed.
"Afraid not, boy." He said, chuckling evilly. Ryouga noticed him look into the trees and smile widely. Suddenly, something very light fell on his shoulder. He reached up and took it, glancing at it. The texture was dry, cracking, pretty much dead. It was a nice light shade of brown, as most things of its kind would be if they were in its position.
It was a leaf.
Another fell nearby, slowly floating earthward from in the tree directly above him. And another. And another. Slowly, Ryouga looked up and his expression shifted from rage to despair...and rage. Standing in the tree were three other figures.
The first was a man of about Ryouga’s height and build, wearing a white collared shirt like many people wore back at Furinkan high. This individual, however, wore a bright red vest over it, and it was unbuttoned. He had black slacks and polished brown shoes on, and his light brown hair was short and combed back neatly. He snarled, looking as full of anger as Ryouga himself, if that were possible.
The second was a woman in a flimsy gauze-like outfit. Her skin was pale and her hair was long and flowing. It was a shimmering silver color, and her eyes were icy blue. The air around her was colder, for some reason. Ryouga couldn’t understand why (and didn’t really want to), but it did.
The third one was the one that Ryouga focused on. He had short black hair and wore a deep blue cloak that covered his entire body. Brown, dried leaves, like those that littered the forest floor in autumn, seemed to fall about him from the middle of the sky, because Ryouga saw no other place they could have come from. They certainly added to the dramatic effect, if nothing else. The three jumped down to stand next to Nobara, the cloaked boy standing slightly ahead of the rest. Desperately, Ukyou struggled harder as the angry boy in the vest took her roughly by the arm. His grip was monstrously strong. With a flick of his wrist, she surmised, he could tear her arm out of its socket. Actually, he could probably tear her torso from her legs. Well, whichever one gave first. Nevertheless, she fought. She struggled. She...failed.
"Oh, and who’s this?" Ryouga chuckled, eyeing them over. "Kind of unfair, but if you don’t mind fighting at a disadvantage, I think I can oblige you."
"Hear me, intruder!" the man in the cloak said in a strong, demanding tone. "I am Prince Ito Akikaze, master of Autumn and ruler of this valley. We are taking this girl as reparations for your insulting intrusion. It is our law, and I will not see you blatantly disregard it."
Ryouga felt the raw fury rip into his psyche like an explosion. He curled his fist and shouted at them, his voice fire.
"Never!" he shouted with fury unlike any Ukyou had ever seen. "To hell with your laws! I won’t let you take her away from me!"
"Ryouga..." Ukyou said breathlessly. The rest of the group seemed unimpressed.
"I believe myself a fair man." Ito said calmly. "You and your other companions will be allowed to leave. But she must stay. The laws are absolute. If you try and stop us, I will destroy you." After a few moments, he added, "She is mine, now."
That did it. Ryouga charged at them, hatred and anger raging uncontrollably with in him, tearing at his mind like a wild animal set free. Ito raised his arm into the air, apparently annoyed.
"Such heroic nonsense." He said, and his eyes began to glow white with a surging of inner energy. Ukyou knew from her years as a martial artist what that meant, though she lacked both the skill and dedication to ever utilize it: A chi-based attack. She called out to Ryouga, desperately wanting to warn him. To protect him. But, he couldn’t hear her. He was beserked...a madman. She could only watch, helpless, as the leaves that had gathered in a pile at Ito’s feet began to glow as well, swirling around him in a column. She watched in amazement as the spiraling sculpture twisted and moved, almost serpent like. In fact, it even resembled a dragon.
"Feel the wrath of the ultimate skill of Four Seasons martial arts, the Dragon Column Technique...." Ito said sinisterly.
The swirling mass, which was now a brown dragon-like column of dead leaves, suddenly lashed out at the charging Ryouga as he leapt at Ito, inches from his throat. The leaves smashed into him, each striking like a saw. Ryouga fought the urge to scream in agony as thousands of tiny razor-thin cuts opened on his body, while the force of the strike smashed him against the trunk of a tree, where he slumped, head spinning and on the brink of passing out. He tried in vain to stand, to fight, but his legs lacked the strength of his will. He reached a now sliced and bleeding hand out, trying to grasp her image, to protect her, to save her.
"Ukyou..." he whispered, and slumped into dark, silent unconsciousness. Ukyou began to struggle, tears welling in her eyes. She had to get away. Ryouga was hurt. Badly. It was as bad as when Hidari had nearly killed him so long ago. She had to be by his side again, to comfort him. If not her, then no one else would. She turned to Ito with absolute hatred in her hard blue eyes.
"Let me go. Now." She demanded. Ito said nothing. His expression reminded her somewhat of the now unconscious Ryu. Disdainingly, she noticed the samurai was drooling. Of course.
"Take her back to the tower." Ito said to the man in the white shirt and vest. "I will arrive shortly."
"Of course, Lord." The vested boy said, grabbing her other arm and dragging her off. Nobara and the ice woman followed. Ito watched the struggling girl with distaste. He had often wondered what the founders of Shurkashuuton Tengoku were thinking with all of their ridiculous laws. But, they were the laws. Unbreakable. Undeniable. He was obligated by duty and honor to uphold them. He glanced down at the bleeding and broken body before him. Surprisingly, the bandannaed boy had lived.
It was admirable.
"Take my advice." Ito said, knowing his words wouldn’t register. "Leave now, before you force me to do something I don’t want to."
With that, he left the four bodies where they were, leaving a trail of dead leaves in his wake as he strolled away. Distantly, a songbird chirped in the cherry blossom trees.
End of Chapter 7.
