Mai Otani Saiai
Naiyori Speaks: Hm. This is a fanfiction that I hope will be able to make people laugh and cry, the title was even enough to make me tear up. Anyway, I hope you guys like it! Rate and Review!
Disclaimer: I own NONE of the original InuYasha characters or the storyline. They are fully possessed by Rumiko Takashi, Thank you, Rumiko-sama!
Author Claim: Rakuen is fully developed and personalized by yours truly. That means I made her; get it? Yeah. So no stealing!
Translation: The title translates to "My hollow Beloved"
Note: This takes place about before the the InuYasha series. Therefore, the Shichinintai (Band of seven) will be the only originals who appear.
Chapter One: Ano issho
Screams of terror filled the small village as people fled for their lives. The normally peaceful village had been turned into a chaotic mess within minutes of the assassin's arrival. Many were killed and many others fatally wounded. Once the village was almost completely annihilated the assassin looked upon the quiet anarchy of the now almost completely silent village with deep blue eyes. Smiling an unmistakable crooked smile the assassin rested his weapon, a massive halberd upon his shoulder with a content smile. "Two hundred." he said with a laugh to his voice. He turned to go onto the next helpless village, his long black braid trailing behind him slightly.
As he reached the edge of town he noticed a few stragglers. Laughing he sauntered over to them and they shrunk back in fear. Delightedly he slashed away at them. There was one left now. A girl who stood before the assassin with a defiant glare. She knew of this assassin; Bankotsu was the name he had announced at many villages before and the name had traveled through worried villagers.
Bankotsu laughed at the girl, standing there like that in front of him. A measly little girl, no older than fifteen. "Does a mouse dare stand in front of the great Bankotsu? You're going to die, girl. Two-hundred and five, that's that number you'll be on my list." smirking he lifted the halberd from his shoulder. The girl did not flinch.
Swinging the halberd towards the girl's body, he stopped the mighty blade just inches from her neck and still the girl did not flinch, but stared at him with defiant emerald eyes.
"Why aren't you afraid, girl?" Bankotsu questioned inching the blade so just the very edge rested against her skin, drawing a fine line of blood. "I'm a second away from killing you and you don't run, panic, nor even flinch." Bankotsu was speaking in an annoyed yet sort of interested tone.
"Why?" he questioned, staring into those defiant eyes.
"Because, I care not if I die. You already destroyed my village. I have nothing left. And now you're going to destroy Me." the girl smirked, "So go ahead, kill Me." the girl spat, clenching her fists.
Bankotsu's smirked turned to a look of puzzlement as he stood there, his halberd resting against the neck of who was supposed to be his two-hundredth and fifth victim, and she wasn't the slightest bit afraid. Bankotsu's expression was solemn as he carefully withdrew his large blade from the girl's neck. "You've earned your life, girl..." he said, not a single shred of emotion tingeing his voice as he rested the halberd on his shoulder once again and walked past the girl who had unknowingly saved her own life.
For a moment the girl stood there dumbfounded. She really thought her life was going to come to an end, and yet she had just escaped with nothing but a single inch-long scar. "Ariagato..." she spoke the word in relieved tone.
Bankotsu stopped in his tracks and glanced over his shoulder. "You're welcome." he stated and turned once again.
Without hesitation, the girl followed the assassin, the assassin who had just spared her life.
For several hours now, the girl had followed the assassin with very few words exchanged. She had left her village; not that there was, or for that matter had been there. She had left her family when she was ten, six years prior to that day's event and had moved to the now destroyed village on her own. She worked there as a healer and shared a small home with a generous old couple.
It was night now and she was still following. She wasn't quite sure as to why she was following him. There was a neighboring village she could have gone to, but something about this blue-eyes assassin captivated. And there was a questioned nagging at her. What had he meant by 'Two-hundred and five, that's that number you'll be on my list.' She'd was about to ask him when he spoke.
"Why are you following me, girl?" he asked without even turning around, he hadn't any of the times he had even spoken one word.
"Because I can." she answered simply.
"You know I could turn around right now and swipe your head off." he stated
"I know." she answered
"And you're not afraid?" he questioned
"No." she answered bluntly.
"What's your name, girl?" he asked.
"Rakuen." she answered.
The short and blunt conversation ended there and the two walked in silence once again.
They had walked for another hour after that short conversation, until Bankotsu had suddenly stopped. and said: "This is where I stop for the night." and had sat down, his back against a tree
And he slept.
Rakuen stopped as well and decided to rest, against a large rock opposite to the assassin.
And she slept
In the morning Rakuen was awake quite early, she always woke up early. But now she was hungry from all the excitement and walking from the day before. There was a small stream, rich with fish near the assassin and the girl's campsite. And Rakuen knew how to light a fire.
Bankotsu awoke to a sudden popping noise, the sound of a pinecone splitting in a fire. Opening his eyes he saw the girl tending to a fire, two fish cooking over it.
"What are you doing?" he asked in a puzzled tone.
"Cooking." she replied with a snide smile.
Bankotsu rose to his feet and stretched, leaving his halberd leaning against the tree he had slept against and walked towards Rakuen, crouching on the opposite side of the fire. "If I leave now, will you still follow?" he asked looking at Rakuen through the hot flames.
"Yes." she said turning the fish so they would be cooked evenly.
"Why?" he asked, smirking.
"Because I can." she smirked back.
Crossing his arms Bankotsu laughed slightly, sitting on the ground where he had been crouching. "You're strange, girl." he declared with a nod as if to reassure himself of what he had just declared.
"As are you." Rakuen stated taking one fish off the fire and holding it over the fire to the assassin. "Eat it." she demanded bluntly.
Bankotsu raised his eyes. "Gutsy are we?" he asked although he took the fish and began to eat. Wow, this girl could cook, although he didn't admit it and rather ate it without thanking her.
Rakuen took the second fish and ate it herself, and then she threw dust on the fire and made sure it was out.
Bankotsu had now risen and retrieved his halberd from its spot leaning against the tree, set it on his shoulder, and had started walking. Rakuen fell in a few yards behind him, still following as said.
"You know, girl, If you follow me you will see many more villages massacred by my blade, my aim is to kill as many people and demons as humanly possible."
"I know." Rakuen answered.
"And that doesn't bother you?" he asked raising an eyebrow to himself.
"No." she answered shrugging.
"You're strange." Bankotsu repeated shaking his head. What was with this girl? He knew well enough that not all females were like his.
"What's your name?" it had been Rakuen this time who had asked for a name. He knew hers and even if he didn't use it she deserved the right to know his name as well, yes?
"Bankotsu." he answered with a slight chuckle.
"I've heard that name before." Rakuen said as she walked, watching the assassin's black braid sway as he walked. "The people in my village often spoke of you in vile ways. They heard of the other villages you depleted, and in the end were killed by the very villain they detested." Rakuen said thoughtfully, she was speaking more to herself for Bankotsu was more interested in the two monks approaching, heading the opposite direction down the path.
Smiling politely the monks stopped to say a friendly hello... obviously they had never heard of Bankotsu before, that or they had and just didn't recognize the man who stood before them for as soon as they had stopped they had fallen to their feet. "Two-hundred and six." Bankotsu said looking at the two slaughtered men.
Rakuen looked the dead men, and then at Bankotsu. "Why do you count the men you kill?" she asked curiously as the halberd was returned to Bankotsu's shoulder.
"I aim to kill one-thousand humans and one-thousand demons." he shrugged beginning to walk again, of course
Rakuen also began to walk, leaving the dead monks to be eaten by carrion crows and other scavenging beasts. "That is an odd thing to aim for." she said thoughtfully. "Though I suppose would be a noble goal for an assassin such as yourself." she nodded reassuring herself.
"It's not glory I'm after... Its power." he said with a sudden malicious tinge to his voice. "Once I kill that amount of humans an demons, my Banryu," he lifted the halberd slightly to tell her he was referring to it as Banryu "Will become all-powerful!" he exclaimed with a slightly maniacal laugh.
"I see..." Rakuen said leading off slightly. "Where are you headed anyway?" she asked quickening her pace, now daring to walk a few feet directly to Bankotsu's left side.
"Nowhere, really. I wander looking for people to kill, or for people who will hire me to kill." he answered shifting his Banryu to his other shoulder. It was not heavy to him; however, his arm did grow sore holding it in place so it was a nice relief to switch shoulders so his one hand could have a rest.
"You don't have a home, or somewhere you usually stay?" Rakuen asked. They were actually having a bit more of a distinct conversation now, rather than the exchange of a few random words or statements.
"Not really, I do have a small place up in the mountains. I only go there if I'm hurt so I can heal in peace and then come down again strong as ever to kill more." he answered casually.
"I don't have a home either. I left my real village when I was young." She said with a slight shrug. "It was boring there, and I didn't like my parents so I left." she said simply. Although those had not been the only reasons she left.
"I killed my parents. They were my first two killings." he said in a somewhat proud tone. He really was a twisted man.
"I figured." Rakuen nodded. "It sounds like something you would do."
"How would you know something I would do? You've known me for barely a day." he said with a slight chuckle. This girl really was odd... but she was sort of and interesting person to have around. And it was nice for Bankotsu to have someone to talk to.
"I'm not sure, I just know that would be something you would do." she shrugged. Most people by now would think Rakuen was completely out of her mind for trekking after this lunatic... but perhaps Rakuen was seeing something in him that others didn't. Besides, he's was a rather interesting person to carry a conversation with. She would continue to follow him.
For a few hours, they walked without speaking. It's not as if they had something to talk about every single minute, besides, silence was good for them to reflect on whatever it was they decided to reflect upon. But soon enough, they came upon a village.
"Are you going to destroy this village as well?" she asked looking around as people stared at them.
"No. Its too small and insignificant, no one will care. I want people to know I'm killing and destroying." he said with a nod. "That way, they'll send more and more people to try and kill me, thus giving me more important people to kill." he said with a content smirk.
"That's a good logic." Rakuen agreed. "You want the people you kill to be worthy of counting towards your total thousand. Am I right?" she asked looking up at the assassin.
"Exactly." he nodded. This girl was pretty sharp, she knew how to think. And to Bankotsu, that was almost kind of scary.
And so they left the village sparing the people there and continued their trek.
"I now know where I am headed now." he stated suddenly a few hours later. "There is a large village up ahead. They will make great additions and get my some... publicity." he declared with a smirk a few hours later.
"Oh? And where is that?" Rakuen asked, looking over at the blue-eyed assassin.
"To a large city ahead. Many important shogun and generals live there with their families. I will get plenty publicity for killing there.
Rakuen nodded. "It will. Do you think they will send more soldiers from the capital to kill you?" she asked curiously. It would be interesting to watch a single man flatten a whole army with a single blade. Although she did not mention it, Rakuen had an odd feeling in her stomach, like something was going to happen.
"I sure as hell hope they do! That would be a great addition to my list!" He exclaimed with a laugh as he held Banryu above his head and spun it.
Rakuen laughed slightly as the breeze from the spinning of the halberd blew her mid-back length hair that was held in a tight ponytail. "How heavy is that halberd?" Rakuen asked as Bankotsu stopped it from spinning and returned it to his shoulder.
"How heavy?" Bankotsu paused and thought about it for a long moment. "You know, I'm not sure... I've used it for three years now so it's become weightless to Me." he answered with a shrug.
"Can I try to hold it?" Rakuen asked. Yeah, like she'd be able to hold something has huge as that up. Not only was she undoubtedly less strong than Bankotsu, she was also a head shorter than him, so it would be quite difficult to hold it.
Bankotsu thought about it. He knew there was no way she could swing Banryu. Or run off with it for that matter so there was no risk to letting her hold it. "All right. You can try..." he smirked. "But I bet you won't even be able to keep it off the ground." he snickered.
Rakuen stopped as well. "Fine. Just hand it to me and we'll see!" she exclaimed holding her hands out to take the blade.
Bankotsu removed the halberd from his shoulder and placed it into Rakuen's hands. He still had a hold of the halberd so it wasn't at his full weight yet. And then he withdrew his hands, leaving Rakuen with the full weight.
At first Rakuen gasped as the blade was released into her hands and instantly the blade tipped to the ground. "Wow." Rakuen said shocked more at how Bankotsu could wield Banryu so easily rather than at the actual weight.
Bankotsu laughed, taking Banryu back from Rakuen's hands. "I told you." he smirked shaking his head and retuning Banryu to its place.
"Well, you haven't seen what I can do yet." she smirked right back at Bankotsu.
"Oh? And what's that?" Bankotsu asked, beginning to walk again. What kind of powers could such a girl have?
"That's for me to know... and you to find out." she said with a defiant little laugh as she fell into place walking beside Bankotsu.
"You're not half bad, Rakuen." Bankotsu laughed. He had actually used her name. He'd called her Rakuen instead of just 'girl'. And he'd given her what could be called a compliment. Definitely rare to come from an assassin.
"Why thank you. You're not half bad either, Bankotsu-san." Rakuen stated with a little smile. She used his name as well, and had added -san, a respectful sort of thing to call someone.
"Well then. We're in agreement." Bankotsu said with a nod.
"I just have one more question..." Rakuen lead off getting somewhat serious.
"And what would that be?" Bankotsu asked looking over at Rakuen with a sort of curious look on his face.
"Why did you spare me?"
Naiyori speaks: Hahaha! So, I wonder how everyone liked the first chapter. I hope I made it interesting enough. Oh, and please excuse all the choppy conversations Bankotsu and Rakuen had. xD They were just sort of to get things started. Oh, and I wonder if anyone can guess Rakuen's mystery powers. They will probably be revealed in the next chapter which I hope to have up soon! Peace out!
Translation: Chapter one's title translates to "The Meeting"
