• Chapter One: Ninjas and Wizards


    Kurogane swung his sword, mortally wounding another of Ashura's soldiers. Three more ran towards him, and he rid himself of them without flinching. The ninja smirked. They were too easy, but at least there were a lot of them. They had thought they could ambush him when he was alone, but now they found they were horribly wrong. Red eyes shining, Kurogane got himself into a ready pose, adjusted his grip on Ginryu, and unleashed his final attack.

    “Hama Ryu-O-Jin!!!”

    The remaining soldiers were caught up in the blast. Not one of them had even the time to react. Kurogane glanced around at the crimson-blanketed battlefield and sneered. “Too easy,” he growled, “Too easy! If that b*****d Ashura is gonna send his lackeys after me, he might as well send some that are harder to defeat!” Sheathing his sword, he turned and was about to head back to the castle when something caught his eye from within the forest. Movement? But he had killed all of the other soldiers. Changing direction, Kurogane headed towards the source of the activity.

    Though the sky was dark, Kurogane could still see his surroundings clearly. He could now hear the quiet thumping of footsteps on the forest floor, moving slowly away from him. Something gleamed in the moonlight. Kurogane glanced down at his feet. Blood. But not his; someone else’s. Growling, his eyes narrowed. So one of the soldiers had escaped, but not for long.

    Somewhere off in the distance there was a soft thud. Kurogane’s head shot up, and he ran towards the noise. If that idiot thought he would be able to make it back to Ashura, he was wrong. Skidding to a stop, Kurogane stared at the sight that met him.

    Well, it certainly wasn’t one of Ashura’s warriors. Someone, he wasn’t sure if it was a guy or a girl, was slumped against a tree, bleeding freely. Wait, it was a guy. He didn’t have boobs. Silken blonde hair covered most of his face, but as Kurogane looked closer he saw that the man had an eye patch covering his left eye. Wincing, Kurogane involuntarily gripped his own fake left arm, made by the Celes wizards before the war. The man was wearing a long fur-lined white and blue coat, a high-collared shirt with coattails and closed clasps, and black pants. And he was pale, the dark blood accenting his features even more. It was a direct contrast to Kurogane, who was dressed in black and red, his tan skin covered with the blood of others.

    Kurogane kneeled down closer to the blonde. His eyes were closed, and he seemed to have fainted. If he didn’t have medical attention, he would probably die. Tomoyo-hime would probably find out, she always did, and then she wouldn’t be happy. She had always hated the death of others, even if they were the enemy. Scoffing, Kurogane lifted the blonde man onto his back, and headed off towards the castle.