Red String of Fate

by OtakuGeisha

Fuu, Jin, and Mugen meet a few new friends. One is running from something, but what is it? As her past unfolds in front of them, they are caught up in her web of despair and secrets. They have to overcome hardships, help this friend save her future, AND find the Sunflower Samurai. But mixed into all this, the two samurai have to juggle love and fulfill their duties as samurai.

1. Chapter 1

Red String of Fate

This is my first Fan Fiction, its a Samurai Champloo fan fiction and I'm pretty excited! I will be adding a new character into this and her name will be Jada.

I do not own any part of Samurai Champloo. Everything about Samurai Champloo belongs to its owners.

Chapter One

I hurriedly grabbed a small bag and started filling it with little necessities. The little things I couldn't live without; because I was never coming back. I took some clothes out of my fathers chest and draped them around my slim frame. I turned to view myself in the mirror, and started chuckling a little. It was a little funny to look at myself, since the clothes didn't fit at all. They were almost falling off, but I tied a sash around my waist, with my shirt over my pants, to keep them both secure. Grasping my long, dark red hair, I twisted it into a bun on the top of my head and kept it in place with a red ribbon. I placed a sugegasa straw hat over to hide my hair and to cast a shadow over my eyes to make me unrecognizable. Heading to my room, I fish out the small amount of the money I had accumulated over the past three months and stashed it in my robes. Looking at the room I lived in for 18 years and reliving all the memories I had created here over those 18 years almost brought me to tears, but I pushed my feelings aside. Now is not the time to get sentimental. I ran to the other end of my little shack and took my fathers wakizashi blade. It was on a sword stand with his Katana. The katana looked so lonely without its wakizashi accompanying it like it always has, but I'm sure my Dad will understand. I tie the blade around my waist and checked to see if I had everything, and when I was sure I had it all, I left my home as quickly as possible.

I walked down the little dirt street. Businesses were bustling with life and there were so many happy people. There was this one shop, to my left, it was doing really well, selling a lot of fruit and herbal plants. I might stop there later if I have time...I love green tea, and they sell the best kind. Looking back at all the people filling the street, It felt as though I was the only soul who was distraught. I began walking, trying to find my way through the crowd of people, when I noticed people were beginning to circle around something. I push my way to the front. I accidentally bump into a tall man wearing a blue silk Samurai's kimono and a sugegasa on his head.

"Oh, I'm sorry." I bow my head and apologize. He doesn't say anything back. He just stands there and looks at me out of the corner of his eye. He looks a little angry... Geez, what's his problem? I turn to face the object of attention that has managed to attract the crowd of people, and I am shocked as to what I see: The Magistrate and his bodyguards were screaming at a man who was on his knees.

"Please, Sir! if you sell my land, my family will starve to death!" He looked up to the Magistrate with fear in his eyes.

"What do I look like, a charity case? Gimme what you have in your pockets, and I'll think about changing my mind." The Magistrate, in a chariot drawn by bodyguards, pointed at the old man as the bodyguards lowered the chariot onto the ground.

The man shakily reached into his pocket to pull out some change and placed it in front of himself. A bodyguard runs over and picks up the money and brings it to the Magistrate.

"Is this enough sir?"

The Magistrate looks at the coins, and makes an ugly face.

"I don't want your spare change!" the Magistrate yells furiously, throwing the coins at the old man. "Yagyu's, Kill this man!" and he pointed at him again.

"Stop. You mustn't interfere." As the Yagyu's were preparing, the Blue Samurai steps forward, but was stopped by another onlooker, who grabbed his shoulder.
"If you do that you're asking for your own death, better let things be, I know its hard to watch." He whispered into the Blue Samurai's ear.

The Samurai jerks his shoulder out of the reach of the onlooker, and begins to walk forward.

"Is this what you spent all those years honing your skills for? Cutting down a man who has done nothing wrong? ...You're pathetic." The Blue Samurai says coldly as he places his hand on his sheathed katana, preparing for a fight. The Yagyu's look at him and they look pretty angry.

"What did you say?!" One spat, and pulls his sword out.

"Say your prayers!"

The Yagyu's charge forward to attack the samurai, the old man hurries over to the crowd of people, to stay away from the feuding Swordsmen. 3 against one, he doesn't have a chance...The Blue Samurai threw his sugegasa in the air, and pulls his katana out with lightning speed...and before anyone realized, one of the Yagyu's was already dead...the blood from the slain bodyguard splashed and right has it was about to hit the face of the Blue Samurai, the sugegasa hat he had thrown in the air a couple of seconds earlier falls and the blood splats onto it instead of his face.

"W-What is this!? What are you fools doing, Kill him!" The Magistrate yells. One of the Yagyu's comes from behind the Blue Samurai and swings his sword down to hit him in the back, but the Blue Samurai turns around and blocks it with his katana. I'm so amazed at the skill, he doesn't have a single scratch and he's up against three, well now, 2 Yagyu's, and he hasn't even broken a sweat...The Blue Samurai then turns and spins so that his back is against the Yagyu's back and slips his katana in between his side and arm and stabs him. Incredible...I stare, my mouth hanging open, I look around and everyone has the same expression on their faces. With his eyes closed, the Blue Samurai pulls his sword out of the Yagyu's back. He turns around and faces the last remaining opponent and opens his eyes. The Yagyu is terrified and hesitant.

"Fool! KILL HIM!" The Magistrate is furious now, I look up to see his face and it's beat red...

'Uh...Yes Sir!" The remaining Yagyu jumps forward and attempts to fake the Blue Samurai out by swinging his sword down, but changes the direction of his swing to a horizontal slash right at the last second, the Blue Samurai is preparing to block this attack with his sword, but the Yagyu changed directions...Oh no...if he hadn't gone to block that attack...his defense wouldn't have been lowered... and I close my eyes quickly. I didn't want to see the Blue Samurai cut down...I hear a sword hit the ground, and I am reluctant to open my eyes.

"Gahhh! GOD DAMMIT!" Hearing these outbursts I open my eyes and see the Magistrate swinging his arms rapidly in rage. My eyes swing over to the right and see the Blue Samurai picking up his sugegasa and walking towards the old man.

"T-Thank you so much, Sir!" The old man says excitedly. The Blue Samurai says nothing, and bends over to pick up the change the old man had proposed to the Magistrate. He shoots the Magistrate a sharp look and turns away, and starts walking towards the middle of the crowd where he had emerged to fight the Yagyu's. He puts his sugegasa back on and walks past me, but stops behind me, our backs facing, and he turns his head slightly.

"Jin." He says, and continues walking.

"...Jin..." I whisper to myself. "W-wait!" I yell as I turn around and put my arm out to grab his before he left...but he was already gone. The crowd begins cheering and slowly disperses.

"Jin..."