Shinobi 2: Training to be Ninja
Outside of Tokyo stood a lush green forest, a forest that had rested on the land long before Tokyo came to be. Within the ancient forest rested old trees. Mature trees. Trees that have been around since the beginning. Trees that have been around… since blood was first spilled in the name of good and evil.
Ages have passed since the ancient trees first bore witness to bloody battles that took place so, so long ago. Humanity has changed since then. As time passes, human lives are so short compared those of the ancient trees, humans gain more and more knowledge compared to that of their fathers. Tasks that were once thought to be simply a fool's dream can now be done by simply pushing a button.
Even so, the ancient trees see no difference in the humans today compared to the humans of yesterday. Though they gain knowledge, few humans have the wisdom properly use that knowledge. In the eyes of the ancient trees, the endless, bloody battle between good and evil is still simply that. An endless, bloody battle. A battle that will only succeed in destroying both sides of the conflict.
There is however, something different today. Deep within the lush green forest, that was completely silent only a couple of days ago, echoed a sound that was quite familiar to the ancient trees. A sound that hadn't greeted the ancient trees in a long, long time.
It was the sound of the Igasaki Ninja training themselves for the upcoming battle.
Dashing through the trees deep in the forest, Nagi dropped to the ground below, sword in hand, before pulling out his Goton Shuriken, a Shuriken that was among the things given to him and Fuuka by a rather strange old man they meet in an underground base in the forest.
KI NO JUTSU!
Inserting the Shuriken into his sword, as if he was preparing to transform, he rests the back of the blade on his shoulder before putting his finger on the Shuriken.
"Shuriken Ninpou! Ki no Jutsu!" cried Nagi, spinning the Shuriken before pointing his sword at a straw dummy that stood in front of him, put there for training purposes.
*Silence, followed by a gentle wind*
"Eh?" questioned Nagi, scratching his head in confusion. Did he do everything Ok? His sword even flashed a different color for a split second. He could have sworn-
MOKUMOKU JA!
Suddenly, from behind Nagi, Fuuka, who was also there to train, came tumbling out of the forest as if she was being pulled by the leaves that littered the forest grounds.
"Fuu-chan!" cried Nagi, running to his sister's side "I'm so sorry! Are you alright?"
Fuuka looked up at Nagi from the ground, her usually well kept hair full of leaves and her soft face covered in dirt, and gives him a smile.
"I'm alright" says Fuuka, coughing up a couple of leaves "Don't mind! We're training remember? Stuff like this is going to happen."
Nagi smiles before helping his sister up off the ground "I guess you're right. Why don't you give it a try this time?"
Fuuka nods before pulling a Shuriken just like the one Nagi was using.
TSUCHI NO JUTSU!
"Shuriken Ninpou! Tsuchi no Jutsu!" cried Fuuka, pointing her sword at the same dummy Nagi attempted to hit with his Jutsu.
DONDON JA!
Without any sort of warning, the ground in front of Fuuka exploded in a cloud of dirt. When the dust cleared, Nagi saw his sister standing there with a look of shook decorating her face.
"Fuu-chan!" cried Nagi, running to his sister's side "Are you alright?"
It wasn't until she coughed up a cloud of dirt that Fuuka answered "I'm fine Nagi. Don't worry, that didn't even hurt."
"If you say so…"
Fuuka takes her Shuriken out of her sword, switches its setting by shifting it to a different side, and reinserts it into her sword.
KIN NO JUTSU!
"Shuriken Ninpou! Kin no Jutsu!" cried Fuuka a second time before spinning her Shuriken.
KINKIRA JA!
After a brief silence, Fuuka and Nagi begin to hear a sound that reminds them of a sound associated with money. Not long after that, a golden tub falls out of the sky and bangs Fuuka, who just go done coughing up dirt, on the head.
"…Ow" said Fuuka, crouching down on the ground in pain "Ok, that really hurt…Maybe you should give it a try Nagi."
"Are you sure?" questioned Nagi, waiting until he got his sisters OK before inserting his Shuriken into his sword again.
MIZU NO JUTSU!
"Shuriken Ninpou! Mizu no Jutsu!" shouted Nagi, once again aiming for the training dummy that had yet to be even so much as scratched.
JABUJABU JA!
From out of nowhere, a splash of ice-cold water flew through the air. For the Fourth time, poor Fuuka was its target. She wasn't surprised in the slightest when she was hit cold water. Of the four attacks, give or take, Fuuka was hit with during the training session, the Mizu no Jutsu was certainly the preferred one.
"Are you alright Fuu-chan?" asked Nagi once again, his well intended words coming across as a tad annoying to Fuuka, who was quite irritated at this point.
"I'm tired of this" was all Fuuka said as she slowly fell to the ground in exhaustion.
"You're tired already? But training has only just started?"
Looking up into the trees above, Nagi and Fuuka saw the old man from early standing on a branch. The old man smiled before jumping down to the ground, landing without any problems.
"It's you…" said Fuuka, Nagi unable to make out her feelings about the old man's arrival.
The old man doesn't say anything to answer her, he simply holds out his hands to reveal a couple of water bottles and a couple of towels for the teenagers.
"Arigato" said Nagi, taking the items and giving one of each to Fuuka, who accepted them without a word.
After sitting in silence for a bit, the old man humming to himself with his eyes closed, Fuuka was the one who finally broke the silence.
"Are you sure you made the right choice?" questioned Fuuka "Picking us to be Ninja I mean."
"The blood of the legendary Igasaki ninja runs through your veins" says the old man, his eyes still closed "I didn't have a choice to begin with. I simply reminded you of something long forgotten by the Igasaki family."
"I see…" says Fuuka, twirling her water bottle around in her hands "Where do you fit into all of this then? By that I mean…Who are you?"
The old man smiles before opening his eyes "I haven't told you my name yet have I? My name is Yoshitaka Igasaki, an Igasaki ninja who, a long time ago, guarded the Kibaoni shrine."
"A long time ago?" questioned Nagi, who was now listening in "How long ago?"
The old man begins to stroke his chin as he thinks "...Who knows? A couple hundred years ago…maybe?"
"A couple hundred years ago!?" shouted Nagi and Fuuka.
"Give or take."
"How are you here right now?" questioned Nagi "Did you master some sort of secret forbidden technique that makes you live forever?"
Yoshitaka chuckles before answering Nagi "Nothing like that boy. When the seal placed on the Kibaoni family weakened, I was sent down from the heavens to train the current generation of the Igasaki family so that they may once again seal the Kibaoni family."
Sent down from the heavens? Needless to say, Nagi and Fuuka didn't pay that explanation at all. Even so, he seemed pretty adamant about his answer so they didn't push the matter further. Maybe he'll tell them the real reason one day? But until then…
Reaching into his jacket pocket, Yoshitaka pulls out a really old looking pocket watch. He frowns before turning back to Nagi and Fuuka.
"It's about time for me to go" says Yoshitaka, returning the pocket watch to his jacket "But before I go…"
Yoshitaka holds his hand up in front of Fuuka, who is still wet from the Mizu no Jutsu.
"Shuriken Ninpou! Kaen no Jutsu!"
From out of Yoshitaka's hand comes a wave of fire. While Fuuka was also the target for this Jutsu as well, this one was more of a benefit then the others. The warm, gentle fire was very relaxing and did well to warm Fuuka up after being hit with the ice-cold water.
"So warm" says Fuuka, putting her hands up in front of the fire to dry herself.
"The fact that you two can use the Shuriken Ninpou is proof enough that you two are destined for great things" says Yoshitaka, finishing the Jutsu "Don't feel so bad about not being skilled at Ninpou right now. You've only just started, it'll take some time for you to become stronger."
Nagi and Fuuka both begin to contemplate his words when he finishes speaking.
"Addio!" says Yoshitaka before disappearing in a flash, leaving the two teenagers alone in the forest once again.
"And one more thing" Yoshitaka's voice echoes from an unknown location "Always remember that you two are a team. Even if you are weak individually, together, you will have the strength to overcome any obstacle."
After Yoshitaka's words, the forest once again goes silent, leaving Nagi and Fuuka alone to once again contemplate his words.
The moon shined bright in the sky as a hooded figure walked silently through the city. Walking, not running, at a quiet but brisk pace, it wasn't long before the figure turned a corner to walk down a dark, tight alley.
Finding himself in front of an old metal door, the figure knock on the door four times exactly before waiting. It wasn't long before the door opened slighty, revealing a figure who, though he had his face covered just like the hooded figure, was much taller and, if one looked closely, one could see he was more muscular then the hooded figure, at least a bit anyway.
"Whatcha want kid? Shouldn't you be in bed at this hour?" the tall man asked, making no effort to hide his boredom.
The boy pulled off his hood, revealing the face of a teenage boy with black hair.
"Oh…Its you" for a brief moment, the tall figure's voice betrayed his surprise. It wasn't long at all before his voice returned to the previous, dull tone "Come on in…"
The tall figure steps to the side, allowing the hooded figure to walk by. He doesn't get very far before he can hear the tall figure's voice again.
"Try not to cause any trouble…Kyuemon-sama."
Balling his hand into a fist, Kyuemon did his best to ignore the deep, hearty laughter, which seemed to echo in the small room, coming from the figure as he walked down the hallway. It wasn't long before he reached his destination, a small underground bar behind another old door.
As soon as Kyuemon opened the door and entered, the entire bar went completely silent. All music stopped, all conversations halted, and all the heads in the room turned to the young boy who entered the room. As Kyuemon expected, they knew who he was.
As soon as Kyuemon pulled his hood back over his head, the boy was sure it was just a coincidence, all activity in the bar resumed. It was as if somebody pushed play on a DVD.
Kyuemon began to look over the room, searching for the person that he was looking for. Despite the fact that all the people in the bar looked human, Kyuemon knew better. He knew for a fact that every person currently in the bar was actually a Youkai.
The old drunk dressed as a business man, the robe wearing old man currently gawking at the scantly-clad woman, who also looked human, as she danced, and even the barkeep who was running around in circles providing drinks for all the patrons.
After scanning the crowd for some time, Kyuemon saw the person he was looking for sitting at a small table at the back of the room. Dodging through the crowd, ignoring the dirty looks he was being given as he walked, Kyuemon soon found himself standing before Youkai Ittan-momen, the leader of the Youkai in the area.
"Well…Isn't this a surprise?" asked Ittan-momen in a mocking tone as Kyuemon approached him "The son of Kibaoni Gengetsu himself! To what do I own the pleasure of your visit?"
Swallowing his pride, and ignoring the chuckle from Ittan-momen and his companions, Kyuemon bows before speaking "Greetings Ittan-momen. Forgive me for disturbing you on this fine evening but I have come to ask for you assistance."
"Oh? My assistance? For what?"
"For reviving the Kibaoni clan."
Once again, the bar goes completely silence. This time, Kyuemon can even hear the sound of glass crashing to the floor and people muttering amongst themselves. With a single snap of Ittan-monen's fingers, the play button was hit once again.
"Revive the Kibaoni clan? How…interesting. And just how do you plan on doing that?"
Reaching into his cloak, Kyuemon pulls out a strange looking gourd.
"That Gourd… Didn't the Igasaki family steal that when they sealed away the Kibaoni family?"
"Yes…However, I was able to steal it back when I destroyed the Igasaki mansion."
A low gasp can be heard from the crowd, Kyuemon's words echoing through the bar.
"You destroyed the Igasaki mansion…"
It wasn't long before the sound of laughter filled the bar.
"So what?" Kyuemon heard from the crowd "The Igasaki family it a joke nowadays."
"Ya!"
"I suppose the Kibaoni family's is a thing of the past now too aren't they?"
"Yep!"
Kyuemon, his fist tight with frustration, could barely resist the urge to lash out in anger. Even drunk off their asses, there was no way he would be able to hand so many Youkai at once. Not to mention…
"The Youkai have spoken boy" says Ittan-monen says, holding his empty sake bottle out for a waiter to replace it with a fresh one "Two families, once the most powerful families in all of Japan, are now nothing more than laughing stocks."
Laughter continued to echo through the bar as Kyuemon, waiting until he was calm enough to speak without his gritted teeth muffling his words, returned the Gourd back to his cloak "I'm…sorry to disturb you."
Bowing to Ittan-monen, Kyuemon ignored the continued laughter that ringed through the bar as he walked outside. They think the Kibaoni clan joke do they? I'll show them… I'll show them all!
Back at the bar, which had once again returned to business as usual, a rather whimpy looked man crouched beside Ittan-monen, who was drink a brand-new bottle of sake.
"Are you sure it's wise to get on the bad side of Kyuemon-sama? If he has that Gourd, then it possible that he actually can revive the Kibaoni clan."
"I'm sure he can but it won't matter much" says Ittan-monen in a nonchalant tone "It will take a lot of negative energy to properly undo the seal on the Kibaoni family. Even when he does release a member of the family, they'll be significantly weakened from being locked away for so long, meaning it will take even more fear energy to get them back to full power. With the power I possess now, there is no way that anyone will be able to defeat me"
Ittan-monen lets out a deep, maniacal laugh "The time of the Kibaoni family has long passed. Now, now it is my time to rule!"
"Hey mommy! Look at this!"
A middle aged woman smiled before walking over to her daughter, who was currently crouching down to look at white flowers that were growing in the park.
"So Pretty! And they're even white, your favorite color" says the Mother, crouching down next to her daughter.
The little smiles and nods before looking back at the flowers, practically mesmerized by the beauty of the plants. So much so that she, and her mother, failed to notice a Youkai creeping up behind them. Hearing something behind her, the mother turns around just in time to be tossed into the sea.
"Mommy!" cried the little girl, watching as her mother was tossed into the water as if she was a rag doll.
Turning around when she heard laughter, the little girl was greeted by to the sight of Youkai Kappa, a Tsukumogami created from a Fire extinguisher based off of a Youkai known as a Kappa.
"Greetings little girl! Would you like to go for a swim on this fine day?"
The little girl could only cry as she was tossed into the water by the Tsukumogami. As she swam over to her mother, Youkai Kappa simply continued to laugh as Hitokarage threw more people into the lake. As he laughed, Kyuemon approached him from behind, the Gourd in his hands.
"Is this really necessary?" questioned Kyuemon, watching a middle aged man fly through the air before landing face first in the water.
"With all due respect Kyuemon-sama, you said that as long as I gathered Negative Energy, I could have as much fun as I want. Am I not doing what you requested my lord?"
"I suppose you doing a fine job" says Kyuemon, turning his back on the Youkai "Just don't screw things up when the Igasaki Ninja arrive."
"You have my word Kyuemon-sama" begins Kappa, bowing to the boy "I shall make sure that the Igasaki Ninja die today!"
Kyuemon nods before walking away, the Ground still tight in his hands. With Kappa holding off the Igasaki Ninja, this left Kyuemon free to search for a very important item.
It was sometime after noon when the cry of the Gamagama Gun, a tool given to Nagi and Fuuka by Yoshitaka that could inform the duo when a Youkai attack is occurring, began to echo through the Igasaki house.
Grabbing their gear, both teenagers hesitating before grabbing the Goton Shuriken, Nagi and Fuuka rushed outside, deeper into the city. While they didn't know the exact location of the Youkai, the sound of people screaming and the sight of them running away was more than enough to track him down.
After running for some time, the teenagers found themselves in a small park resting near the water. The park appeared to be completely empty, no doubt thanks to the Youkai was in the area not long ago, even so, something felt very… off to Nagi.
"AHHHHHHH!"
Looking into the sky, Nagi watched in horror as a young boy, no older than 10 years old, was flung from a nearby building. Wasting no time, Nagi jumped into the air and caught the boy.
"Are you alright?" questioned Nagi, Fuuka running to his side.
The boy nods before pointing at the building he was thrown off of "A Kappa is the one who threw me down here! He's up on the roof!"
Nagi and Fuuka thank the boy, who quickly runs off, before racing to the building and making their way to the room. Upon reaching the top, they were greeted to the sight of Youkai Kappa, along with several Hitokarage, staring at the sea below.
"Where did the kid go?" questioned Kappa, shielding his eyes as he scanned the area "I didn't throw him that far…did I?"
One of the Hitokarage simply looked at Kappa as if to shrug.
"Do you think I didn't throw him far enough?"
Again, all Kappa got from the Hitokarage was another shrug like look. Despite the grunts little, if any, sign of understanding what he said, the Kappa nodded, as if in agreement with something.
"I suppose your right. Maybe I should-"
"HEY!"
Hearing something behind him, Youkai Kappa turned around to see Nagi and Fuuka, swords drawn, prepared for battle.
"What are you doing hurling people off of buildings!?" questioned Fuuka, pointing his sword at the Youkai "Knock it off!"
"Well, well, well" said Youkai Kappa, walking toward the ninja along with the Hitokarage "If it isn't…who are you again? Ya know what, that isn't important. What is important however is that you interrupted my game of…"
"Do you even know what you're doing right now?" questioned Fuuka.
"Of course I know what I'm doing! I'm playing a game of…toss the human away!"
"Human beings aren't game pieces!" says Nagi.
"Sure they are! You just need to know the right game to play! Let me show you one of my favorites! Hitokarage!"
Drawing their weapons, the grunts let out strange sounding battle cry before charging at the teens. Meeting the grunts half way, Nagi and Fuuka were quickly engaged in a battle with the Hitokarage.
Jabbing his sword into the ground to block a sword slash aimed at his legs, Nagi kicked the grunt away before rolling behind another one, slashing at his back. Back flipping over a sword slash aimed at his upper body, Nagi countered by slashing at the Hitokarage's legs, causing him to fall to the ground.
As Nagi battle his batch of Hitokarage, Fuuka proceeded to do the same her batch. Twirling to the side several times to evade lunging grunts, Fuuka countered by slashing each Hitokarage with her sword. Before the grunts had a chance to regain their footing, Fuuka pulled out her Gamagama gun and proceeded to destroy each of the grunts.
Aiming her gun at Youkai Kappa, Fuuka fired shots at the water Youkai as she charged at him, dual wielding her gun and sword. Dodging each one of Fuuka's gun shots, the Youkai had no trouble keeping up with Fuuka as she attempted cut him down with her sword.
Blocking a strike from Kappa, Fuuka attempted to counter a sword jab aimed at his chest. Kappa, easily blocking the jab, countered by knocking Fuuka away, closer to the edge of the roof.
"This guy is tough" thought Fuuka, using her sword as a crouch to stand up. While she wasn't badly hurt, it would take her a while to get used to getting hit like that "Wait! Maybe if I use…"
Pulling out her Goton Shuriken, Fuuka takes a deep breath before inserting the Shuriken into her sword. With his grunts defeat, Nagi watched as Fuuka prepared to spin her Shuriken.
"Shuriken Ninpou! Kaen no Jutsu!" shouted Fuuka, spinning her Shuriken.
Mera Mera Ja!
…
"Eh?" questioned Youkai Kappa, scratching his head "Was that suppose to be an attack?"
Before Fuuka had a chance to answer, she noticed a rather strange smell in the air. It smelled like…something was burning. Now that she thought about it, she also notice a small amount of smoke start to fill the air.
Looking down at her clothes, Fuuka noticed that her skirt was on fire. It wasn't very big at all, but still.
"HOTTT!" shouted Fuuka, jumping up and down as she tried to pat the fire out. Nagi and Kappa could only watch as the teenage girl continued to jug in place, struggling to put out the tiny fire. After what felt like a long time for Fuuka, the teen was finally able to put the fire out.
"Thank goodness" says Fuuka, falling to the ground exhausted "I suppose I still need a lot of practice, don't I?"
"Anyway…Surprise attack!"
Before Fuuka has a chance to defend herself, Youkai Kappa lets out a powerful jet of ice cold water. Letting out a scream, more from shock then pain, Fuuka is defenseless as she's tossed off the roof and down to the ground below.
After crying out his sister's name in fear, Nagi pulls out his transformation Shuriken as he runs to the edge of the roof after his sister. Knocking Youkai Kappa off the roof as well, Nagi's transformation into KiNinger is complete as he jumps over the edge, falling after his sister.
Pulling his sister into his arms, KiNinger uses his body as a barrier between Fuuka and the hard ground below. While his armor sparked a bit upon impact, he was mostly unhurt by the fall.
"Nagi! Are you alright!?" questioned Fuuka, running to her brother's side.
"Am I alright? I'm the one who should be asking you that" says KiNinger, pulling himself off the ground "I'm the one wearing armor here."
"I suppose you're right" says Fuuka, a sigh escaping her lips "I'm still worried though."
"As long as you not hurt" says KiNinger, looking at the ground next to him. During the fall, both Nagi and Fuuka's Goton Shuriken fell to the ground. As they picked up their Shurken's, KiNinger began to think about the words of the Yoshitaka.
"Always remember that you two are a team. Even if you are weak individually, together, you will have the strength to overcome any obstacle" KiNinger repeated to himself, tightening his grip on the Goton Shuriken.
"Eh?" questioned Fuuka, pulling out her ShiroNinger Shuriken.
"Jii-san's words from before" says KiNinger, repeating the words "Think back, I think I know how we can use the Goton Shuriken.
As KiNinger whispers into Fuuka's ear, Youkai Kappa was pulling himself to his feet "You bastards! You'll pay for that!"
Transforming into ShiroNinger, Fuuka stood next to KiNinger as Youkai Kappa charged at them, anger over righting any sort of logical thinking.
Inserting their Goton Shuriken into their swords, KiNinger and ShiroNinger looked at each other and nodded before preparing to attack.
"Shuriken Ninpou! Kaen no Jutsu!" said KiNinger and ShiroNinger, spinning their Shuriken at the same time before jabbing their swords into the ground.
Mera Mera Ja!
From the tip of each of their swords, a blast of fire erupted and began to rush toward Youkai Kappa. As the two blasts of fire raced toward the Youkai, they met each other half way, fusing into an even bigger blast of fire.
Youkai Kappa, seeing the giant fireball racing toward him, could only scream as he was swallowed by the fire, exploding shortly after.
Kyuemon let out a sigh as he pulled out his mallet. Once held by the Kibaoni family as treasure, the Igasaki clan took the mallet upon sealing them away long ago. Thanks to Kyuemon however, the mallet was back in the hands of its rightful owner.
Needless to say, this mallet was no ordinary mallet. Using powerful dark magic, this mallet had the power to make anything that was hit with its spell grow into a giant. Using this dark magic, however, took a lot of power. Because of this, Kyuemon could only use it on special occasions.
"I hate to was so much power of a weakling like him" says Kyuemon "But I still need him too buy me some time."
"Yojutsu: Hidaihansoku Jutsu!"
Swinging the hammer at the air, Kyuemon watched as the dark spell launched from the hammer and raced toward the fallen Youkai. Unfortunately, Kyuemon had no time to watch the continued fight between his Youkai and the Igasaki Ninja.
Just as he finished launching the spell, he sense a strong power coming from the forest. It was quite similar to that of the Igasaki ninja. Dashing through the forest toward the power, Kyuemon smiled as his body was enveloped in purple fire.
Unfortunately for ShiroNinger and KiNinger, their victory was short lived. Shortly after destroying Youkai Kappa, not only was he revived, but he was beginning to grow to giant size. It wasn't very long before he was towering over the entire city.
"What the heck?!" shouted ShiroNinger.
"Here I go again!" booms Youkai Kappa before beginning stomp all over the city. The teenage super heroes watched in horror as the giant Youkai began to walk towards a tall building, stepping on cars and landmarks along the way.
"We've got to stop him!" shouted KiNinger, running toward the monster "He'll destroy the city at this rate."
Ignore his sister's call, KiNinger ran to a nearby building and jump on top of it before chasing after the giant monster. Pulling out his Gamagama gun, KiNinger began to shoot at Kappa as he chased after him, the tiny shots have little to no effect on the towering Youkai.
Left with no other option, KiNinger draws his sword again and grips it with both his hands. Taking a deep breath, he lets out a cry as he charging towards the edge of the roof and jumps into the air, attempting to cut down Youkai Kappa.
Despite putting all his strength into his attack, KiNinger fails at doing little more than scratch the Youkai. His attack does however succeed in getting the monster attention.
"Eh? You're not dead yet?" questioned Youkai Kappa, watching KiNinger land on the roof once again "Well I can take care of that."
Raising his hand up in the air, Youkai Kappa brings his giant fist down upon the young ninja, attempting to crush him.
"WATCH OUT!"
From out of nowhere, ShiroNinger comes running toward her brother. Before he has a chance to say otherwise, ShiroNinger pushes her brother out of the way of the attack, leaving her to get crushed by the fist instead.
*SMASH*
"FUUUUKAAAA!" shouted KiNinger, running to the pile of ruble that his sister laid on top of. Though her armor protected her from receiving fatal damage, she still barely had the energy to move.
"Are…You…alright?" asked Fuuka, forced out of her armor by the attack.
"How can you ask that right now!" questioned KiNinger, pulling his sister into his arms "Why did you do that?"
Fuuka coughs up a bit of blood before answering her brother "You're my little brother Nagi. I could just sit there and let you get hurt like that."
Tears were beginning to fall on the inside of Nagi's visor, barely able to keep himself from crying his eyes out. Was there no way to stop this giant?
Laying his sister, who passed out shortly after her words, up against a tree, KiNinger tightened his grip on his sword as he looked at the towering Youkai Kappa, who laughed as he smashed another building.
He had to defeat that Youkai. Failure wasn't an option. Not just for him. Not just for Fuuka. But for this city as well.
Meanwhile, at the Hidden Base of the Igasaki Family, a faint yellow light was beginning to fill the room. After rumbling a bit, the chest resting on the table opens up, revealing several Nin Shuriken of different types.
Enveloped in a soft, yellow light, one of the Nin Shuriken floats out of the chest and hovers in place for a bit before flying off to the battlefield.
Racing through the city, the Shuriken eventually finds KiNinger, who catches the Shuriken with a confused look.
"Eh?" questioned the boy as he looked over the Shuriken. How did this get here? He didn't have much time to think about it however, as Youkai Kappa was still attacking the city. KiNinger had no idea what this Shuriken did, but it was his only hope.
The Shoukan!
Taking a deep breath, and crossing his fingers, KiNinger prayed for a miracle before spinning the Shuriken.
Dare Ja! Dare Ja! Dare Ja Dare Ja Dare Dare Ja!
KiNinger feel to his feet as the ground began to rumble. At first, he feared that it was because of Youkai Kappa, but then he saw that the Youkai in question was also looking around in surprise. Where was the rumbling coming from?
Suddenly, the road in front of KiNinger began to flip upside down, revealing a giant, yellow machine bearing a strong resemblance to a dump truck.
Dumpmaru!
"W-what is this thing?" questioned Nagi "Is this mine?"
Noticing that Youkai Kappa was beginning to regain his foot, KiNinger wasted no time jumping on top of the strange machine and entering it. Once he was inside, the teenager was greeted by the sight of a yellow, throne room like cockpit with a large monitor resting in front of the throne, providing a full view of Kappa Youkai, who was right in front of the mecha.
"Amazing" KiNinger said, looking around the room before sitting down on the throne, sliding his sword into the slot on the arms rest. Cracking his knuckles, KiNinger smiled as he took a hold of the controls.
"Ikuze Dumpmaru!" shouted KiNinger, charging full speed at Youkai Kappa.
Youkai Kappa, his footing regained, proceeded to throw pieces of ruble at KiNinger, who drifted out of the way to avoid being hit.
"Kourin was always better driving games at the arcade" begins KiNinger, pushing a switch on his control panel "But I think I'll manage just fine."
Driving toward the Youkai, Dumpmaru began to hurl giant ninja stars at the villain. Youkai Kappa screamed as the stars connected with him, knocking him to the ground. He didn't even have a chance to get up before he was hit by KiNinger, who knocked back down.
"And now, my Hissatsu!" cried KiNinger, pushing a large button at the top of his control panel. Outside, a large bomb appeared in the back of Dumpmaru. Locking onto Youkai Kappa, KiNinger pushed a button and hurled the bomb at Youkai.
"Uh oh" said Youkai Kappa, watching as the bomb flied towards him.
"Ki… EXPLOSION!" shouted KiNinger as his bomb made contact with Youkai Kappa, destroying the giant in a fiery explosion.
"At least my face doesn't have any cuts or anything."
Nagi smiled as he tended to his sister's wounds, nodding in agreement. He knew how much Fuuka cared about face.
"And my arms aren't broken or anything, so I can still practice" said Fuuka, wincing as Nagi cleaned a wound.
"Yep!...Thanks again Fuu-chan, for pushing me out of the way like that."
"Don't worry about it" says Fuuka "It's an older sibling's job to protect their younger sibling."
Nagi smiles at his sister words. Even if it was her job, he was still happy she did it.
"I should be the one saying thank you here" says Fuuka 'You're the one who took care of that Youkai. If you weren't there, I don't know what would have happened. Good job Nagi!"
"Really? Thank you!"
Neither Nagi nor Fuuka had any idea what would happen in the future. Judging by Yoshitaka's words, their older siblings would eventually come to help fight against the Youkai. Until then, Nagi and Fuuka would do their best to hold down the fort until then.
Beyond that however, everything was a mystery. Even so, Nagi wasn't all that worried. As long as the Igasaki family stood together, he knew that they would always succeed.
Yoshitaka was silent as he looked over the remains of the Igasaki mansion. Once, long ago, this place had been his home. Sitting here for so long, memories that he had long forgotten began to wash over him.
Memories of his mother cooking warm meal on a cold winter day. Memories of him training with his father in the Igasaki forest. Memories of-
"Yo! Igasaki Ninja."
Turning around, Yoshitaka wasn't surprised to see a Kitsune walking toward him, sword in hand.
"Salve, Ciao! Kyuemon Kibaoni."
"I must say, I'm a bit surprise to see you standing here like this" says Kyuemon "You only have so much time, why waste it admire a useless pile of ruble?"
"Who knows" says Yoshitaka "Maybe I just like the scenery? In any case, I doubt you came here to shoot the breeze correct."
Kyuemon aims his sword at Yoshitaka "You know what I came here for."
"I see. Unfortunately for you, I don't know where it is."
Ignoring Yoshitaka's word, Kyuemon charges at the old man and slashes at him. Blocking the slash, Yoshitaka pushes Kyuemon away with his palm before slashing his chest, knocking the Youkai to the ground.
Tightening his grip on this sword, Kyuemon engaged in a sword clash with Yoshitaka, who effortlessly blocked and countered each one of his attacks.
Growing more and more frustrated with the old man, Kyuemon jumps into the air and unleashes a blast of purple fire from his hands onto Yoshitaka. Running his hand over his sword, which began to glow red, Yoshitaka sliced the purple fire in half before countering, a giant fire blast shooting from the tip of his sword and blast Kyuemon.
"Damn you old man" say Kyuemon, pulling himself to his feet. Picking his sword up off the ground, he prepared to attack again until…
"What wrong Kyuemon? Tired already?" question Yoshitaka "I'm just warming up."
Kyuemon simply sighed before lowering his sword, admitting defeat. If he was no match for Yoshitaka in this for, then he wouldn't stand a chance in…that form.
"It appears our time together is over, Igasaki Ninja" says Kyuemon, putting away his sword "You are strong…for now. I know that you will grow weaker as time passess, just as I grow strong. You won't be able to fight for ever."
And with that, Kyuemon disappeared into the forest. Putting away his sword, Yoshitaka takes one more look at the destroyed house before disappearing in a colorful flash.
*Shinobi 2: Training to be Ninja End*
"WELCOME TO NIN NIN YOUKAI TRIVIA CORNER!"
The lights turn on to reveal the same to girls from the last Nin Nin Youkai Trivia Corner. They are setting at a table, with a white board containing, among other things, snap shots of today's Youkai.
"Hi everyone!" says the first girl, waving at the computer monitor "and welcome to the second episode of Nin Nin Youkai Trivia Corner!"
"We hope you enjoyed the reading the latest chapter of the story" says the second girl "But, before you leave, how about some info on today's Youkai?"
Pulling out a pointer, the second girl uses it to draw attention to one of the pictures on the white board.
"The monster fought by the Ninningers today was known as Youkai Kappa, Tsukumogami created from a Fire extinguisher. Youkai Kappa was made in the image of a Youkai known as a Kappa, a mischievous youkai known to be quite the prankster. The types of pranks they pull very between relatively innocent, such as looking up a girl's kimono, or malevolent, such as drowning people and animals."
"Drowning people? Is it really a prank at that point?" questioned the first girl.
"Kappa, despite being pranksters, are actually quite obsessed with politeness. At the top of a Kappa's head is a plate of water that, when spilled, leaves them unable to move until the dish is refilled with from their lake."
If you are ever confronted by a Kappa, make a deep bow. The Kappa will then return the bow, causing them to spill their dish of water, allowing you to escape. In fact, if you refill the dish for them, they will be your servant for all eternity.
"All eternity eh?" questioned the first girl, clearly intrigued by the idea "Say…weren't we suppose to make our debut in this chapter?"
"…I think so" says the second girl "In fact, I think our third host was suppose to make his debut as well. The author is still new to writing a long term story, so he's still getting the hang of planning things out in advance. A chapter like this was just a much better way to follow up the first chapter then the story he originally had planned."
"I see…I'm still disappointed though… I know! Why don't I give the readers a hint as to who we are?"
"And our co-host too?"
"Why not?"
"Alright. I'll give a hit about him, you give a hit about us."
"Ok! You go first."
The second girl thinks for a bit "Our co-host is a boy who, in Shuriken Sentai Ninninger, assisted the Igasaki family in their time of need. He wasn't related by blood to the Igasaki family."
"That's a pretty good hint" says the first girl "But now it's my turn… I can't think of anything."
"I'm not surprised, we didn't have all that many appearances in Ninninger. Anything you said either wouldn't have been a very good hint or it would have given everything away."
"I suppose your right… Let's just say we're a duo of girls who didn't have very many appearances in the show. In any case… Thank you for sticking around for Nin Nin Youkai Corner. I hope you tune in next time!"
The show ends as the girls wave to the computer screen.
Author's Note: Hello everyone! To be honest, I have no idea how this chapter got so long. I thought this chapter was actually going to be shorter the previous chapter, which I thought was kinda long itself to be honest, but it's actually quite a bit longer. It's probably the fight scene's fault that this chapter is so much longer.
I usually do a poor job at fight scenes but this time, when I got to the fight scene, I stopped, to a break, and came back to write it when I was rested. Who knew that taking your time with something actually made it better?
In any case, I wanted to say a couple of things.
#1- All 7 Ninningers will be in this story. That includes the MidoNinger.
#2- While mecha will be in this story, I don't plan on including auxiliary mecha, save for maybe one or two. Only the ones use to form the main giant mechas.
#3- I do plan to include a romance in this story. It won't be for a while, so it's still up in the air, but I do plan for it to happen. I'll leave you guys to speculate as to who the romance will be between.
I think that's everything. I hope you enjoyed the chapter and you come back for more.
