A minute passed in silence, and then there was the rustling of leaves and breaking of twigs. A tall, well-
built figure emerged from the wilderness. He wore dark baggy warrior breeches and a sleeveless, black
armour vest; a leather mask covered half of his face. Youthful hair fell to his shoulders.
Yorokobi: "Who are you? Identify yourself!"
Stranger(loudly): "I feel no warrant to be known to weak men- who are about to die."
Yorokobi: "You sound pretty pompous for a bandit and smuggler. Tell me what artifact did you make use
of, to teleport? Black market items are banned in these lands. We will confiscate and produce it before
our Overlord. If you submit willingly we will let you live, but be prepared to spend a long time in the
dungeons."
The stranger exploded into laughter as if the mention of the dungeons was a familiar limerick. It was
adolescent laughter that gave away his youth. Yorokobi estimated him to be in his twenties, perhaps
about his age. A life wasted, he thought. But he kept his ideas to himself.
Chief Bursar Uno, peeking from the deck, had seen all that had transpired. He abandoned his luxurious
breakfast and ran into the cabin after instructing his mercenaries to join the fight. The deck guards of
Yorokobi's squad also joined their Captain.
The stranger put on a sombre face as he surveyed the eleven defenders- six Karasuma warriors led by
a Captain and four hardy mercenaries from Karasuki. He thrust his hand into the air, and a large
weapon apparated in his grip. It was a seiton technique. Yorokobi spied the weapon- a pitch-black,
four-foot-long, double-edged axe; there was something primaeval about it.
The sun slipped behind a cloud, and the morning went dim. The stranger placed the axe’s head on a
shoulder and taunted the defenders with an open fist.
Yorokobi: "It seems you have a death wish. Very well."
The Captain uttered a low whistle. Five guards took positions around him in a battle formation—two on
either side and one behind. And together, they started advancing at a slow pace. The remaining guard
sprinted to his left and disappeared into the woods.
Yorokobi barked an order, and the formation guards activated quick kitsu sequences.
Fui-kitsu water wolf!!
Four water wolves splashed into the battlefield and dashed forward on a collision path with the target.
The battle formation also spurred on. This will be over in a few moments, Yorokobi thought.
The stranger stood motionless until the wolves were frighteningly close to him. Abruptly, he breathed in,
muttered a few inaudible words, and banged the head of the axe on the ground. Almost instantly, a ten-
foot wall of fire erupted in front of him and raced ahead- evaporating the wolves and moving onwards
towards the squad. It grew in expanse as it sped towards them, taking the form of a winged beast. It
rumbled and growled. Yorokobi's heart did a double-take. What enormous raiki must this individual
possess to summon such an over-powered offence? He had never seen such a queer fire beast. Was it
a dragon? But the Captain was battle-hardened. He immediately made a counter. A simple water wall
won't work, he concluded.
Fui-kitsu triple water wall!
Water walls swept forward like sea waves, colliding against the fire onslaught and vaporising instantly.
Chisssssssshhhh! Chwissshhhh! Chwussshhhhh!
The raging fire-beast diminished but was still alive. It spread its wings and advanced for the kill. The
Captain had to think fast- he amassed copious raiki and invoked his most powerful fire defence.
Fui-kitsu cloudburst!
A thundercrack sounded, and a downpour of rain flooded the field for a few seconds. The fire beast
leapt for the last time and died in a fracas of steam and smoke. A layer of mist and vapour sloped into
the air like a tornado. Yorokobi spied on his adversary. He still stood in the same position, unmoving.
Was he as strong as a Kin Lord? Who was he really? No matter. It will be over soon. Karasuma
warriors were excellent assassins.
A silhouette emerged from the dark of the forest into the foliage behind the stranger. It was the guard
who had run off into the woods at the beginning of the battle. He dived off a branch, headlong- a
dagger pointed at the back of his target. Yorokobi saw the stranger move for a second; it was a flicker.
Or was it too fast for his eyes to see? And the next moment- the assassin guard fell behind him- his
body cleaved into two. The stranger had swung his axe in a split second and returned to his position.
The assassin never had a chance.
Yorokobi clenched his teeth and uttered a growl of anguish. The layer of mist and foam descended
from the sky. The terrorised Captain searched for his opponent. In the translucent atmosphere of
vapour, he could see a pair of glowing eyes. And without a doubt, they were yellow. An Ishigami?
Impossible!
Yorokobi paid some attention to his surroundings. The mercenaries had fled and were trying to unlock
the ship. He had to keep the stranger occupied long enough for the Chief Bursar to escape. His
mission was paramount.
He felt his raiki reserves returning and made them surge for a final attack.
Doi-kitsu storm explosion!!
The attack hit the target and blasted a hole in the ground. As the dust settled, Yorokobi found that the
stranger was nowhere in his line of sight. How could he dodge at such a short distance? Everything
was happening too fast for him to understand. There were sudden thuds around him. Without looking,
he could tell that the heads of his squad members had been lopped off. He felt a presence behind him,
and he tried to swing his sword back in an arc. But his arm wouldn't work. He looked, horrified, at the
ground and saw- his arm had been chopped off like a vegetable- in a splatter of blood. At that moment,
he realised that if he did not use his ocular powers, he would die.
The Captain's eyes flooded with pink and became rouge. Behind him, the axe came for his head but
missed. He was already off the ground. The rootlets of a nearby alder tree had come to life, bound his
feet, and catapulted him into the air. Chlorokinesis. Yorokobi was shot a hundred feet into the air as a
projectile, far from the battlefield. As his body hurtled upwards, the sun came out from behind the
clouds, and the Captain saw the stranger jump onto the ship. Chief Bursar Uno will not have another
breakfast ever again. It was his last thought- before the pain of his injury took over, and his rouge eyes
went dark. His body dropped into the frothing rapids of the Reisui river. And disappeared.
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