34 Chapter 34-And So it Ends!

Chapter 34

MIYUKI KATSUGAWA

"You are leaving again," she spoke up worriedly as her lord husband reworked his armor after having taken it off only for a few hours. He was tired, she could tell.

"Yes, I am. The enemy marches towards us with all its might. We have no time to waste," he replied as he tightened his shoulder blade before turning towards her.

She bit her lip.

"But you could stay the night," she pleaded, a bit of desperation in her tone as he inched closer, raised her head by the chin, and looked her in the eye.

"I am afraid that will not be possible. There is much that needs to be done before we can face the enemy, and I must oversee it," he replied, denying her, and she couldn't help but feel saddened that it was her burden that he was carrying. Let alone the conversation she had just had with Lady Chiba, which was a whole other matter.

"The Third Prince himself rides with the army," he suddenly began surprising her with those words.

The Third Prince--Tatsuya, the man responsible for the murder of her brothers.

"If everything goes to plan, the whole war will end with this battle," he said as he pushed back a fringe of her hair and gave her a small smile.

"After that, I am all yours," her face heated up at those words, and she pouted, yet she decided to tease him as well.

"I am afraid that is no longer true. After all, you do have another wife now, and we don't know just how many proposals you will be bombarded with after the battle," she added, and he chuckled at her words.

"From what I recall, it was you, my lady, who accepted the proposal from Lord Chiba, not me," and it was an overstep on her part. One that many a lord would not have tolerated.

"And I apologize once more for my overstep," she said as she lowered her head.

"What's done is done. There is little we can do to change it, but I would prefer it that you trust me over these matters and discuss them before making a decision," he chastised her as he had before.

"I shall, but believe me, what I did was out of my love and concern for you. I held no malicious intentio..." yet her words were cut short as a soft hand landed on her shoulders and lifted her up.

"I know, and I should have explained my reasoning to you in more detail. Let this be water under the bridge," he said, and she nodded.

"Then I shall be on my way," he said, with a small kiss on her forehead. He moved past her towards the door of their room and slid it open, stopping for a second and turning to face her.

"Do you remember the promise I made to you in that garden when you agreed to marry me?" he suddenly asked, and she was reminded of his words from that time, words that had given her a new life.

"I do," she answered.

"Now, I shall fulfill it. Tatsuya Katsugawa shall die by my hands, and your brothers' deaths shall be avenged," and with that, the door slid back as she stood there alone in their room once more as her eyes remained locked onto the door, her body basking in his warmth which still lingered in the room as she whispered into the air, her hands held together in prayer.

"Bless him and keep him safe."

0000

KENSHIRO OUGI

Kenshiro Ougi had always known that he was special. Ever since he had picked up a sword for the first time, he had felt at home. The blade and he were like a single body, two parts of a whole, and he had progressed beyond his peers rather quickly, even overtaking the dojo master within a mere three years.

Praise and appreciation were lavished on him from all sides, his name became famous all around, and Kenshiro stagnated. For years, he was lost in his hubris as he traveled the lands, indulging himself as he continued to humiliate one so-called great samurai after another.

And then he met him. Watashi Masamune, the Great Sword of the West. Ougi had humiliated several of his students in his dojo when the old man had stepped into the dojo, not a hint of anger or fear on his face as he closed the door behind him, and Ougi had thought him to be as weak as the rest.

But he had been wrong. The old man had picked up a blade and had entered the ring, and for the first time in his life, he had felt as if he was staring at a mountain. Fear gripped his heart as their blades clashed, and through their dance, he found himself at the limit of his hubris.

He was defeated, humiliated, yet spared. And saved. His fame as the jounin killer came after that fight. A noble had put up a bounty on his head for the insult he had done to him, and as he was about to leave that man's dojo, injured and shaken, his sword broken, the jounin had struck.

He had thought his life ended until the jounin's head fell down before he could strike him. While all praised him for the feat, it truly was not him who had slain the shinobi. No, it was him.

'There is much to see in the world, young boy. Go and be worthy of the blessings you have been given.'

And ever since that day, his aim had been to live up to his talents so that one day he could walk back into that dojo and conquer the mountain of Watashi Masamune.

Yet he could never do that. That was taken from him and by none other than a noble a decade younger than him. And Kenshiro Ougi refused to believe that. He had seen nobles from all over the province. He was aware of their hubris, their pride, and their lies. It has to be a lie, a drummed-up lie by an upjumped bastard who dared to besmirch the name of Watashi Masamune.

And he will not let that stand.

And as the army rode into the province of Shinoi he could feel himself nearing the truth. These were the lands of Akihito Shirahoshi, the infamous noble who claimed to have felled the greatest samurai of their land.

The other twelve samurai under the Third Prince were nothing special; many of them had been defeated by him years ago, and they all rode in a circle around the Prince with him in front.

An idiocy for this left him exposed, yet the Prince values his pride more than his life, but no matter, he cared little for the Prince and his pride. All he wanted was to face the lord of Shinoi and he would have that soon.

And after riding for an hour, he suddenly raised his hand, stopping the march as he spoke up.

"They are here," and right infront of them was the army of the Jito of Shinoi.

"Tell me, who among them is the jito of Shinoi?" he questioned as one of the thirteen stepped forward with a far eye.

"He is not here, though I believe I spot a massive tent behind the force. He must be there," came the answer, and he scoffed.

'He should have expected that.'

"But, it's him. The one leading the army. It's Shinohara Kato," the man gasped out. He heard several other men gasp behind him at that name, and his own eyes narrowed on the old man standing at the head of the force.

Kato Shinohara, a samurai whose name was second only to Watashi Masamune, yet unlike the other person, he did not have a dojo and often wandered the lands rather than settling down, so he had never truly had an opportunity to clash blades with the man.

Though today was as good a day as any.

"How many samurai are leading the army," he questioned.

"It's six, apart from Akihito Shirahoshi all of them are there," came the answer.

"There is movement!" was added suddenly and he perked as he saw an arrow was shot towards them, yet this was not a simple arrow. No, this was laced with chakra and made out of special metal from what he could.

"Protect the Prin... came the shout as he reached for his blade. Jumping off his horse, he pushed his own chakra into it and murmured in a soft voice.

"Ninpo: Dragon's Demise," and he swung the blade swiftly and felt it cleave the arrow, yet he was surprised to find another arrow right at the tail of the first, heading straight for his head.

He felt a thrill as a smile appeared on his face, and he pushed his chakra into the sword's sheath as he brought it up.

KANG!

The arrow clashed with his sheath, and he felt himself get pushed back as the sound of grunts came in from around him as two of the samurai fell down holding arrows lodged in their necks.

CLANG!

The metallic arrow fell to the ground and he looked and saw that his sheath was damaged quite a bit despite being reinforced by chakra and he was amused.

"This might as well be interesting," he uttered as he closed his eyes and prepared himself for the next barrage of arrows.

"Ninpo: Dragon's Demise."

0000

KATO SHINOHARA

Kato Shinohara was fond of change, the change of seasons, the change of scenery, and the change of times. And it was the rumors of this change that brought him to the province of Shinoi, a land said to be ruled by an oni.

He had thought that it would be another one of those cruel, misguided young nobles, though what he had witnessed upon entering these lands had been nothing short of a surprise. The people were happy and prosperous; even during times of war, they seemed healthier than those of any other region, and there were new tools in their hands for farming. The farms were lush, the people happy and content, and thievery, and banditry nearly nonexistent as apprentices patrolled the streets dutifully.

It was a surprise and refreshing in a time when few lords truly cared for the well-being of the people who provided them with their luxurious lifestyles. And so, his curiosity would carry him to the castle of their lord, and he would find the young lord there, in the yard, sword in hand. He would be surprised once more as he saw the young lord trying to manipulate his chakra.

It was coarse and needed much refinement, yet for a child, that was nearly unheard of, except for in the Hidden Villages. He would observe the young lord for days, watch him train rigorously, stumbling with instructions half-caked, watch him eat simple meals unlike the other nobles, and make plans for the welfare of his lands and people.

He was the epitome of nobility, a true noble in a world filled with others blessed as such who had forgotten their duties.

And so, he would enter his service, a first for him, and it was a decision that he was proud of to this day. He would teach him what he could, guide the young lord in the way of the sword, travel across the region alongside his apprentice, and see the young lord's work all over, and realize that what he was witnessing was change as it occurred.

"Tch," Gin, the younger retainer of their lord, clicked his tongue as his apprentice ran out of the specially made arrows.

"He truly is a monster," the blonde uttered, and there was little need to elaborate about whom he talked about. Even from such a distance, he could feel Kenshiro Ougi's prowess.

"We were only able to take down two of them. That bastard was able to deflect the rest of the arrows," Gin informed them as Tachiyama handed back his bow to a servant.

"I am sorry for my inadequacy," the black-haired apprentice of his apologized as he waved it away.

"There is no need for that. We expected such an outcome. Even two kills is a nice outcome for us and cut the number gap between us by quite some," he informed as he reached for his blade and stepped forward as the enemy forces sped up.

The other five samurai behind him stepped up as well, and the men prepared for the eventual clash.

"Do not falter! Stand your ground, for the life of our lord depends on it!" he shouted as the men roared behind him. He saw that of the eleven that had remained, nine, including Ougi, led the attack.

Gin stood beside him; the right-hand man of their lord stood beside them and looked towards him.

"Are you sure about the plan?" he questioned quietly once more, and he nodded.

"Yes, leave Ougi to me. I leave the rest of the eight to you," he said, taking out his sword and raising it above his head.

"I promise you, Kenshiro Ougi shall not harm a soul as long as I live," and with those words, the ground around him cracked as his grip over the hilt tightened.

"Ninpo: Dismantle!" and then he brought down his blade, swiftly tearing up the world infront.

0000

TATSUYA KATSUGAWA-The Third Prince

The Third Prince sat in his palanquin and watched as the two armies clashed, smiling sardonically.

"It seems the young jito of Shinoi is scared. He famously led the attack against your grandfather's forces but now sits behind his men in fear," his aide, Yakumo, added from the side as the whole clearing was filled with shouts and screams of men.

"He should be, but fear will do him little good. I shall have his head, and then I shall march towards his castle and end it all," he added.

The jito of Shinoi drove his claim from his marriage to Princess Miyuki, his half sister. After killing the up-jumped bastard, he would finish it all by ending her life just as he had ended the life of her brothers.

He was guarded by a hundred men who stood infront of him and two samurai who stood by the sides of his palanquin, a caution against any stray attack that might come their way.

BOOOOOM!

And then he heard it from behind as the samurai shouted.

"LOOK THERE BEHIND US!" he shouted, and his head snapped back, and he watched as the ground erupted in a massive explosion, right behind them as a shadowy figure rushed out of the sand storm.

"Protect the Prince," the samurai guards around him shouted as they rushed infront of him, and he heard a small murmur.

'Ninpo: World Cleaver.'

0000

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