The cherry blossoms were in full bloom. Their soft pink petals cascaded across the scene. Karai sighed, savoring the warmth of the sun as the light touched her pale face. She enjoyed winter, but she had a special love for spring. Seeing life return to the Japanese countryside, bright and beautiful, was quite a thing to see.
She unzipped her leather jacket and tossed it aside, revealing her old and faded band t-shirt. The breeze swirled around her muscular arms.
Her father was strict in his training. Normally, she'd be focused on practice. But when she could, she'd sneak away for a moment of peace. She'd gotten so used to life constantly moving forward that she would sometimes forget just how nice it was to stop.
The door behind her slid open and she turned. There stood her mother, wearing her usual sky blue sweater and white pants. Long raven locks fell past her shoulders. Her sparkling, deep brown eyes stared into Karai's, and a soft smile was spread across her round and beautiful face. "Snuck away from practice, I see?" Tang Shen's voice was sweet as sugar. Karai could always find comfort in her mother's words.
"Don't tell Father," she said with a chuckle. "He kept going on and on about honor,"
Tang Shen laughed. "Your father just wants to make sure you grow up to be a good leader for our clan," She sat beside her daughter, and reached for her face to brush a few stray strands of hair away from her eyes. "Even if it means going off on another rant,"
"I know," Karai sighed and gazed back out to the mountains in the distance. "Its just… Boring,"
"Oh, I'm not denying its boring, sweetie. But at the very least, its good manners not to sneak off when you should be practicing your techniques. Especially the honorable ones," She leaned to the side, giving Karai a gentle one-armed hug. "I'll let you get away with it this time, though. Besides," Tang Shen stood up, dusting any and all dirt off the bottom of her pants. "I believe it's nearly time for lunch. I have a craving for omelets. How about you?"
Karai smiled. "Sounds good to me,"
Tang Shen smiled back and turned to walk inside. "Would you like to help?" She stared back at the teenager. "As long as you don't sneak away?"
The girl nodded. "Yeah," she stated simply. Grabbing her jacket again, she stood and ran towards her beautiful and beloved mother. She loved cooking with her. She loved being with her. She was happy she existed.
"Karai! Wake up." The booming voice of her father echoed through the room, snapping the teenager out of her fantasy. She quickly stuffed the picture of her mother back under her pillow and rolled over. In the doorway stood a tall, menacing, shadowy figure, otherwise known as her father. She pushed herself up with a groan.
"Father, it's 8 A.M. On a Saturday. What's so important?"
"Pack your things," His tone was strange. She couldn't really describe it. It was like a dark, intimidating sort of excitement. "We're going to the city of New York."
The girl raised a brow. "America? Today? What the heck for?"
He approached her. His face, scarred and burned beyond repair, greatly contrasted the clean navy suit he wore. Oroku Saki adjusted his tie, staring out the window over his daughter's bed to the city below. "Do you remember the man I told you of?" He paused dramatically. "Hamato Yoshi?"
Karai's heart stopped.
"I heard he lives," he stated. "And I thought it'd be nice to pay him a little visit." He turned back around, walking away. "Pack. Now," He shut the door behind him. She sat slack-jawed. Her brain could just barely process what she just heard. A knot formed in her stomach, and she threw the blankets off her as she rushed towards the bathroom, suddenly sick.