Welcome everyone to my new story! I am so excited to write this Samurai Champloo fanfic! This idea has been in my head since I finished re-watching the series for the thousandth time. There are a few notes that I do have make clear before you read on. After doing some research on the time period of the anime and of the actual events, I concluded that anime was set in 1814-1815. However, my story is set in 1832 which is a loooong time from the anime's timeline. Also, I have stretched some things in my characters (i.e women actually being trained in the ways of the sword) that would probably not likely to happen in actual life. But, it's a fanfic so it makes more sense! MWHAHA. I hope you enjoy this fanfic! Read and Review! :)

(P.S. I do not own Samurai Champloo, just my characters that I created for this fanfic. If I did own it, there would have been a second season and a movie XD)

Prologue

The sky was a bright blue that rivaled the clear ocean that was miles away. Puffy white clouds slowly made their trek across silently promising the inhabitants down below that it was not going to rain any time soon. Silhouettes of birds that fly through could be seen as they journey to their homes or fly off to find food for their hungry bellies. The beaming summer sun shone upon the fields of wildflowers, grasslands and trees that thrived beautifully under the perfect weather. The gleams of the sun made every color vibrant and pleasing to the eyes which provided the viewer with a life-like painting in front of them. It was breath taking. A gentle wind rolled through the healthy green trees that waved their hellos through their leaves at any passerby. There was a breeze that coursed through the trees made the sun's heat bearable to walk through.

The village that lives in this area, is small but the residents live in the outskirts a few minutes away from the central village. The area and village are mostly known for providing beautiful flowers and bountiful amounts of vegetables and fruit. Many travelers pass by to get rest and restock on their supplies before heading out. The village can be noisily during its festival season and especially during the mornings when the food markets open up to housewives and servants from other villages close by that need ingredients for meals that they plan to cook with. The closest daimyo was not for a few miles away, but generally left the small village alone unless they needed men to draft into their army. A small dojo was established in the more secluded part of the forest, but most of the young boys and men were interested in learning the ways of the Samurai and some of the sons of samurai were sent there to train. It was a peaceful atmosphere that was provided. It was enough for people with a past to hide behind and live freely.

A tall lean man with his little girl seated on his shoulders are walking along the dirt path and are enjoying the tranquility of the scenery. The little girl's grey orbs stared up at the sky and tried to see the hidden pictures in the puffy white clouds. From all the bumps and edges of the fluffy formations, she could not see even a goofy looking face like the one's her father would make to cheer her up. A small sigh escaped her lips as she laid her head on her father's wild, untamable hair.

The man heard the noise that his daughter had made and tapped her leg, "What's wrong girlie?" He took out the wheat stem from his mouth and tossed it on the ground. His geta clacked on the ground at a steady pace. The girl's fingers roamed her father's scalp and lightly tugged on his thick tresses. Her silence was unsettling to him since being her mother's daughter, could barely keep her mouth shut and was fascinated with every little thing that came her way. "Oi, I can't read ya mind, you gotta talk," he tapped her leg again to get her attention.

"I am just upset daddy," she replied in a quiet manner. Her chin rested on the top of his head. "That stupid jerk did not have to push that girl down," she mumbled out.

His brows cinched together in confusion. He stopped in his tracks and put down the basket of needed items and hoisted the girl off his shoulders. He set her small frame in front of him and got down on one knee. He placed his calloused hands on her shoulders and stared at her. Grey eyes reflected off of grey eyes. "That's big talk coming from you. If mom heard you talk like that, she would flip her head." His lips gave off a smirk. "But lucky for you, daddy does not give a damn about swearin'."

She raised her head at his words and gave him a soft smile, however, her sour mood of what she witnessed earlier still plagued her. "I know, but they did not have to be a big meanie head!"

His grin turned into a little chuckle as his daughter got hyped up on a scene she saw at the market while they were out shopping. "Okay, okay, don't get your kimono in a twist, just tell me wha' happened."

She let out a frustrated sigh as she fiddled with the hem of her sleeve, "Well, when we were at the fish stall, I looked around and saw this boy who looked like he was my age, and he had an ugly face! It was scrunched up and looked like he smelled something sour." She demonstrated the boy's face by scrunching up face the same way, which got a laugh from her father. "A girl ran by him and accidentally bumped into him and dropped her doll, when she went to pick it up, he snatched it from her and pushed her to the ground. She was crying and pleading with him to give the doll back. But he just raised it over her head and kept it from her when she tried to get it. Before I could run over there and get the doll back from him, we had to leave." She dropped her head and her arms were at her sides.

The man scratched his goatee in thought after his daughter finished with her tale. "Well, shit girlie, you should have told me before and I would have let you go and kick his ass." He again but his hands on her shoulders and looked at her. He could feel that his same fighting spirit was in the girl and could not wait till she was old enough to gain skill to use it. "You did good though that you wanted to help the other girl. Sometimes you gotta walk away from battles, even if it pisses you off." The little girl nodded in understanding. She grabbed his tanned hand and gave it a squeeze.

He still noticed that she was still a little upset and looked around for anything that will stop her moping. He knew his silly faces would not work in this situation, so his eyes scanned their surroundings. He noticed that the field next to them had wild flowers. He spotted some bright flowers and looked back at the girl. "Don't move," he said sternly as he got up. She looked up and her eyes followed his tall form. He disappeared into the field of flowers.

A few minutes passed and he arrived with some strands of grass in his wild hair and a bouquet of wild flowers of different colors in his other hand. Her grey eyes were wide with delight and she ran towards her fathers lean frame. "They are so pretty!" He put the flowers in her face and she took them and smelled their sweet scent. She took a pretty pink and red flower and tucked it on top of her ear and grinned at her father. The grass stems in his hair made her giggle.

"What are you laughin' about?" He picked up the basket and put his hand on his hip.

"You have grass still in your hair," she smiled at him and stood next to him. He felt around his hair and felt the smooth texture of the grass and pulled out the stray grass strands. "Glad it got a laugh outta you."

With her free hand she took his large hand and laced their fingers together. They proceeded at a steady pace down the dirt road, until their house came into view. At the first glimpse, the girl chirped up. "Last one home is a rotten dumpling!" She let go of her father's hand and raced down the road as fast as her legs could carry her. Her father just stared at the girl who was running home and gave a small smile. He knew he could out run her any day, but he decided to let her win this time and continued in the same direction. The things I do for them, he thought. "Hey brat! I ain't no rotten dumpling!" He jogged behind her all the way home.