Japan

Prologue-

O.C's POV

'I am left with no one... my family... slaughtered. And now... my beloved... has left again for the war...'

A solitary figure sits silently in the shrine of her abandoned home. Memories flash through her mind as she recalls how her family had been slaughtered by ruthless bandits. Images of her father being cruelly beaten and her mother and younger sister being violently raped imposed her thoughts. These horrific visions replay over and over, haunting her, driving her mad. Feelings of her hopelessness resurfaced as she remembers how she had watched their deaths while hiding under the floorboards of parents' bedroom. Their screams of agony echoing in her ears.

Looking down, the young woman's gaze falls upon her reflection in a pond previously used to grow many beautiful water flowers before her home was ruined. Tears falling from her eyes, she sees the image of herself being marred by the small drops of water, creating tiny ripples in the pool.

'How could I have been so weak and helpless? Maybe I should have died along with them.'

Sickened at the sight of herself in the pool, the young woman gives out a high pitched shriek and slams her hand into her reflection, hoping to erase the sight of her weakness.

Laughing to herself quietly, she suddenly remembers the past few months after her family's deaths, when an half-conscious young man had stumbled upon the ruins of her once grand and luxurious home. Seeing his injured state had snapped her from the state of depression that she had been in after the "incident" and brought her to tend to his wounds.

Months had passed, the young man's wounds had healed and along with it, their relationship had developed. She had fallen in love with this young samurai and he had fallen in love with her. He was her warrior, her Yuki. But the time came when he would finally leave her and return to the war.

And so, here she was now, sitting in the very spot where they had said their goodbyes.

"War is the only thing left for me now." the girl whispered quietly to herself in the rain. "But first! I must learn how to fight, or else I will get myself no where by blindly gallivanting into battle."

She stood up. Her long, black hair swinging around her waist and her beautiful brown eyes flashing with determination. With a strong voice, she proclaimed, " I, Hitomi Sanako, will no longer be weak and helpless! I will seek out my love and become stronger!"

Inside a small foresty village was a dojo next to a beautiful stream. The day was quite beautiful and very tranquil. No creature would ever dare to desecrate such peacefulness that the Buddhists worship. The day went on like this until a sudden sound of clashing and shouting had interrupted.

"Come now Sanako! Where is your fighter spirit?" A man shouted, watching as his student let herself get hit by the training dummy.

"I am sorry Okino-sensei! I will try harder next time!" the young woman by the name of Sanako replied with exhaustion.

"Where is your head nowadays? You are acting like the novice that you were 3 years ago when I took you into my dojo." Okino questioned, while trying to attack his student, to test her awareness.

"Well.. it's just that. I think I'm almost ready. For several years now I have trained and now I think I am finally ready," she said while parrying with her katana.

Okino abruptly stopped their training session and looked at Sanako sadly.

"Do not think you are going to leave old Okino behind just yet. Have you decided where you are going after you are over and done with in this dojo?" Okino asked.

He studied her face as she tried to think. He loved her too much for her to just join the war fighting on the wrong side, without a rational reason. She was like a granddaughter to him.

"I do not know. I will become a rurouni for now. I might even try to find him." She said quietly, looking at her bare feet.

Curiously, Okino asked, "You're love for him is strong, Little One. Yet you had only known him for several months before he left. How are you so sure that this is not some childish infatuation?"

"I do not know. But.. there is only one way to find out. And that is by finding him. To see if he still loves me, or even remembers me." she said, sadly.

"Do not give up hope. Come. We must finish today's session. Then, we will decide where you will go first." Okino said wisely, hoping to comfort his saddened student.