And it is finally done! I must say I've been struggling all week to get homework done just so I could sit done and write this chapter. It is definitely one of my favorites by far. I just hope you all like it as much as I do. As promised, our favorite heroine is in for it this time. Anyways on with the story!

~*Fiery Spirit*~

"Better!" Kuma praised as she attacked the girl as Tonya dodged.

The two were in the mountains today sparring with wooden swords. It'd been a few weeks since the departure of the four ninjas who'd been so close to her. Since then she'd thrown herself into training, only stopping to eat and rest briefly before asking Kuma to work with her again. In the short amount of time she'd improved greatly on the few skills she'd learned on the road and had even picked up a few new ones as well. While she couldn't use any special skills, her physical self had grown much stronger. She at least now looked somewhat like a real ninja as she managed to hold her own against Kuma for the most part. Remembering that she couldn't even dodge Kuma's attacks let alone block them as she was doing now.

"Much better, much better. You've improved greatly." Kuma huffed as Tonya bowed in respect.

"It helps that you're always pushing me." She smiled as Kuma laughed.

"Very well, that'll be all for now. We should head back now. The sun is setting and you're not quite ready for night time training." Kuma said as Tonya nodded.

Taking the trees the two quickly made their way back to the village. Tonya herself was finally feeling optimistic about her role. She wasn't just a ninja princess in title anymore. While she wasn't as strong as any of the others, she could call herself a ninja now. And with the new title she'd also updated her wardrobe. Taking the kimono she'd first chosen on her arrival to Iga, she'd shortened it and fixed the edges to where it was now a half kimono. She'd made herself a pair of tight black shorts and had her shins wrapped in black cloth, as well as part of her feet. She'd also finally taken to wearing sandals on her feet since her skills had improved so much. She'd cut the sleeves off the kimono and had donned black arm bands that went to her elbow and down to her hand where they wrapped around her middle finger like a ring. Around her neck she proudly showed off her family treasure as it caught the dying rays of the sun.

The two landed near the village and walked the rest of the way. The children ran out to greet them with Fang playing babysitter. Since Tonya had begun her training the wolf spent most of his time either hunting or playing with the children to occupy his time while waiting for her to return for the day. Tonya greeted them all as the children asked her about her training as they walked with the girl. She told them all about her day as they hung on her every word. Even though she was a princess, her love for the young ones hadn't changed.

"Princess you are so good with them all. I can barely keep them in check let alone hold their attention like you do." A beautiful female ninja smiled. She was a new arrival from one of the other clans and had offered to tend to the kids every so often.

"Well I used to do the same thing with the kids in my old village." Tonya smiled as she watched the children chase after Fang in fun.

"I can't wait till I get married and have one of my own." The woman sighed as she stood beside Tonya.

"Oriku I'm sure you don't have a shortage of suitors. You'll find yourself a man." Tonya complimented as the woman giggled.

The two separated as Fang followed Tonya back to the Hattori House. Tonya was kicking herself internally as she remembered her words to the woman. Dredging up a certain memory she'd done her best to forget as she headed to her room. But no matter what she did it seemed that it would always come up whenever she had free time to think about it. The girl scratched her head as she growled in frustration of it all before falling over backwards.

"All it was, was a drunken mistake." Tonya sighed as she stared at the ceiling. "Just a mistake. He wouldn't want someone like me. Not when there are women like Oriku in the world."

The girl pushed herself up as she made her way to the bath. Figuring a good hot soak would do her some good. As she submerged herself in the water, her mind began to drift. She wondered how the others were and if they were ok. Hanzo had told her multiple times that if they hadn't heard anything then it meant good news and that she shouldn't worry. But whenever she closed her eyes she could see their smiling and laughing faces and worry took over her again.

"I hope they come back soon." She pulled herself out of the bath and redressed quickly as she went to join the others for dinner.

Composing herself she went to greet the new arrivals. It was the same thing over and over. They meet, they praised the princess, and then say that with this unity they can surely defeat Nobunaga and bring peace to the world. While she was polite to her guests, internally she was tired of the same old shtick. Once dinner was done she thanked them for joining the cause and then retired to her room. Or would have if she hadn't spotted a little girl wandering alone.

"Princess?" The girl called as Tonya walked over to her. There was fear in her eyes as she remained rooted to the spot.

"Sweety are you ok?" Tonya asked as she knelt down in front of the girl.

"Move and the girl dies." A cold voice said as Tonya glanced past her.

Sauntering towards her was Oriku with a sneer on her face. In her hand she held what looked like webbing. It extended from her hand all the way down to the little girl. The webbing was wrapped around her neck tightly as Tonya now understood her fear. With one pull Oriku could snap her neck with ease. The woman walked over as Tonya slowly stood up, holding her hands up as well.

"What do you want?" Tonya asked as Oriku giggled.

"Why you of course my dear. And I suggest you come along quietly otherwise this little girl here will die. And it won't be painless I can promise that." Oriku sneered as Tonya nodded.

"Very well. I'll go with you. Now release her." Tonya said as Oriku nodded.

Her webbing unwound from the girl and rewrapped itself around Tonya. Binding her arms to her side as Oriku knocked the little girl out. As Oriku led her out of the village, Tonya spotted something dark moving amongst the shadows. It was Fang. Searching for a way to help her. Tonya shook her head as the wolf stopped. Turning her head slightly she mouthed 'Not yet' to the wolf before turning around as Oriku was just enjoying her moment of triumph. As they reached the edge of the village waiting ninja picked the girl up and quickly stole away into the night with the only symbol of hope their enemies had.

_._._

By the time the sun was rising the girl had been swept far away from the village and deep into enemy territory. From what Oriku had told her, they were now at Nobukatsu's castle. She'd been thrown into a cell upon arrival and had yet to hear anything as her arms remained bound tightly. Tonya was leaning against a wall as she hoped that Fang had managed to keep up so that he could lead help to find her. Oriku's face flashed in her mind as Tonya growled to herself for being so stupid.

'I'll get you back, just you wait.' She promised herself as the cell door creaked open.

"Stand up. The lord wishes to see you." A samurai said as Tonya pushed herself up.

She walked with her head held high as the samurai led her through the castle and into a big room. Sitting half-dressed was Nobukatsu himself as women laughed and hung on the man as he drank wine and ate from their hands. Upon the arrival of the girl Nobukatsu banished the women as Tonya was forced to her knees.

"So you're the fabled ninja princess I've heard so much about." He chuckled as he squatted down in front of her. "Hmm. You're actually not that bad looking up close. Even for such a plain girl."

"And you're not so bad yourself, for someone who's nothing but a chicken shit coward." Tonya sneered as Nobukatsu slapped her across her face.

"How dare you!" He snapped as Tonya spat blood out before locking eyes with him.

"Oh I dare. The only reason you live is because I didn't use a strong enough bomb the first time we crossed paths." Tonya smirked as the young lord's eyes widened.

"So it was you who killed my men that time?" He asked as she easily held his gaze. "Hmm…it would seem you're stronger than I gave you credit for. Tell me girl, what would it take to have you join us? You could easily have power, money, fine clothes, or perhaps you'd like to become my wife?" Tonya spat in his face as Nobukatsu bolted back up.

"Even if you were decent looking I'd sooner die than betray those who believe in me." She snarled as he wiped his face clean.

"Fine. I want her taken to the torture room and strapped up. I'll have fun breaking this one." He said as the samurai drug her to her feet once more.

The girl was forced into a dark room and had her arms chained to two separate pillars. Tonya wondered what was going to happen as they removed her kimono, leaving her back bare. A cracking could be heard as she glanced over her shoulder to see Nobukatsu grin like a demon before snapping the whip forward. It felt like fire was tearing into her flesh as a scream escaped her lips. She could feel her blood slowly falling down her back as Nobukatsu swung the whip forward again. Time and time again the whip stripped away flesh as Tonya screamed in pain. She could hear him laughing over her screams as she began to grow faint. After what felt like an eternity he stopped and walked over to her, lowering his face to hers.

"Ready to give in yet girl?" He sneered as Tonya weakly raised her head.

Gathering the last of her strength she head butted him as hard as she could, knocking him over on his back. Nobukatsu snarled as he stormed past the girl and out of the cell. The samurai locked up the cell as the room fell into silence. Tonya just hung by her arms as she faded in and out of consciousness. She knew that she wasn't going to die. He wouldn't allow it just yet. He would want to torture the girl a bit before killing her. Especially after the insult she'd delivered him tonight. She just hoped that she could last that long as her eyes closed, her body too worn out to remain awake anymore.

Later…

Tonya groaned in pain as her open wounds stung. Her head throbbed from when she'd knocked it into Nobukatsu's. But she was alive. And she had to keep hope. She refused to be broken by the pathetic man who dared to call himself a lord. She shifted herself into a somewhat more comfortable position as she thought about all the other times her life had been endangered. Each time she'd had Saizo, Sasuke, Kotaro, and Goemon there to bail her out. But not this time. She was on her own.

"I can't lose hope. I have to stay strong. I promised myself that I would become stronger. To protect all that I care about." Tonya told herself as she brought her head up.

A howl could be heard as she widened her eyes. She let out three loud whistles, hoping that the walls weren't sound proof. Tonya waited in silence as she prayed that her call had been heard. But as time passed she began to think that it may've just been some stray wolf in the woods. Before her hope could disappear, she could hear grunts coming from the hall as something heavy slammed into the walls. Scratching could be heard at the door as Tonya turned her head to see it swing open. And standing in the light was the last person she expected to see.

"Musashi?" She asked in amazement as the samurai turned to her call.

Fang rushed in and around to her face as he licked it, glad to see that she was ok. Musashi was horrified at the sight before him as he looked upon her back. Lash after lash overlapped each other as her back was a bloody mess. He could only imagine the pain she must be in as he quickly released her from her bonds. Her body fell forward as she barely managed to catch herself. Letting out a cry of pain as she struggled to keep herself up right.

"Who did this to you?" Musashi asked as his voice shook. The rage clear as day on his face.

"Nobukatsu. When I didn't submit to his will he decided to try and break me." She explained as she pulled her kimono back on.

"We have to get those treated quickly. Tonya, what are you doing?" He asked as he stood up with the girl. He was amazed she could move at all, let alone stand up.

"No. I'm going to finish what that bastard started. I'm going to show him why he should fear me." Tonya said with conviction as Musashi stepped in front of her.

"Your back is in shreds. You've lost a lot of blood. And you still wish to go after this man?" He asked as she turned her steely gaze on him.

"I'm warning you now if you try and stop me I won't go quietly." Tonya promised as Musashi was amazed at how tough she'd become. He sighed in defeat as the girl broke gazes with him.

"At least let me bandage up your back before we go on this suicide mission." He said as Tonya's face relaxed.

Telling her to stay put, Musashi quickly snuck around and found a first aid kit to tend to the girl. Tonya slid off her kimono as Musashi went to work. Doing his best to be gentle as he listened to her muffled cries as she bit down on a piece of cloth. Once he had the antibiotic smeared on he applied the bandages, being careful to not pull it too tightly as he would layer over layer. He tied it off at the bottom as she fixed her kimono and stood.

"Do you have any extra weapons on you?" Tonya asked as he shook his head.

"No. But I passed a weapons room on the way down here. We can stop there and stock up." Musashi said as he took point.

The two snuck through the compound quietly as they made their way to the room. The samurai was impressed with how far the girl had come as he watched her look over the various pieces, picking out a few here and there. In the end she took up two small kodachis, a few bombs, and finally a bow and quiver full of arrows.

"Are you sure you wish to do this?" Musashi asked as she nodded.

"If I can stand I can fight. Just don't hesitate whenever I yell at you." Tonya said as the two took off.

Remembering the route the samurai had taken her earlier, Tonya led Musashi through the castle. It wasn't long before they were spotted as a samurai turned to call for help. Tonya quickly let an arrow fly as it struck him in the chest. Musashi now understood why she'd told him not to hesitate. Put a bow in the girl's hands as she was deadly. As they made their way up to a window, Tonya tied a bomb off to an arrow as she climbed out and lit it. She shot her arrow at a storage shed as the bomb exploded and set the shed on fire. She loosed two more to nearby buildings before ducking back inside. Creating a distraction for them as they rushed up to where Nobukatsu was.

"Intruders in the east wing! Quick get back up her—" his call was cut off as Musashi slashed open his throat. From there on out they had to fight their way up.

As Musashi and Fang charged the enemy and tore into them, Tonya watched their backs as she loosed arrows down the halls. Quickly shouting out commands to Musashi before letting an arrow fly so that he could dodge. In a small area, the three had the advantage since the samurai couldn't surround them. When Tonya was nearly out of arrows she switched to her kodachis and began tearing into the enemy, her wounds barely hindering her as adrenaline pumped through her system, temporarily numbing the pain as she took down one man after another. Not sparing them any second thought, knowing that if she afforded any mercy they would cut her down easy. Even Fang was taking down his share as he took huge chunks out of the men, disabling them before moving on to another one. The samurai were easily picked off one by one as they finally made their way to the room of Nobukatsu. But as they kicked in the doors, they saw that a certain lord was missing. Tonya rushed to the window to see him running on the ground, sneaking away like the coward he was.

"Can you hit him from here?" Musashi asked as Tonya shook her head.

"No. I only have one arrow left so let's make it count." She said as Musashi nodded. "But first."

Tonya lit two bombs and threw them into the room as Musashi scooped the girl into his arms and jumped out the window and on to the roof. Fang right behind them, knowing better than to lag behind. Running along the side they quickly caught up with Nobukatsu as Musashi jumped down and put the girl down, cutting off his retreat. A loud boom could be heard as Nobukatsu looked up to see his castle engulfed in flames.

"But how?" He asked as Tonya smirked at him.

"Simple. An abused animal will always strike back at the one who raised a hand to it." She grinned as she notched her last arrow, clicking her fingers together as she did so.

Before she could fire it a shuriken came flying at the girl. Musashi easily deflected it with his sword as he saw Oriku jump down to face them. Tonya quickly launched her arrow into the air as Oriku's ninja surrounded them. Forcing the two to stand back to back as Fang moved to his master's side.

"Stupid girl. Did you honestly think we were going to let you get away? Here is where your ashes will lie once I throw your lifeless bodies into that raging inferno you caused." Oriku said as she pointed a dagger at them.

"It's a shame I won't get to finish you off Oriku. But at least I'll have taken out one major player." Tonya smirked as the ninja wondered if the girl had lost her mind.

The small girl yanked at Musashi's kimono and drug him to the ground as her arrow came speeding back down. And attached to it was a bomb. Oriku's eyes widened in fear as she called her men back as the arrow drew closer and closer to the ground. Musashi grabbed Tonya as she told him to jump, the man pushing himself out of a crouch as Fang followed. The bomb exploded above Nobukatsu as the shockwave shook everything around it. The three were thrown to the ground as the last of the explosion died out. Glancing back, all they could see were the scattered remains of Nobukatsu. Without a word Musashi helped the girl on to his back as the three of them got out of there.

_._._

"How much longer till we reach Iga?" Musashi asked as he looked at the girl who sat in front of him.

"Another few hours or so. Good idea on getting the horse." She winced as she fought against her pain. "We should be there just at night fall."

Once getting to safety, Musashi had snuck around in the commotion to steal a horse that had once belonged to the now dead lord. He'd returned quickly and after placing Tonya on it, the two rode off. Shifting between running and walking until they were far enough away. Only stopping once to give the horse a break before getting back on the road again.

"Sorry Fang. You've got to be tired. This is the second time you've made this run." Tonya said as the wolf barked in reply as his tongue hung out of his mouth. Just happy to see that Tonya was safe.

"Smart wolf you have there. Following you all the way from the village to that castle." Musashi praised as he glanced at the black wolf.

"What were you doing there Musashi?" Tonya asked as she looked up at the man.

"I was gathering information. I was sneaking around the castle when your wolf found me. Damn near gave me a heart attack when all I saw was a black mass with yellow eyes coming at me." Musashi laughed as Tonya found herself smiling. Hard to believe she could still smile after the night's events.

"Well I'm glad you came when you did. One round of lashings is enough." She tried to joke as Musashi fell silent. Once her adrenaline had worn off all her pain came rushing back with vengeance, leaving the girl useless now as she did her best to fight against it.

The two rode in silence for a time as the warm sun felt good upon her skin. According to Musashi her wounds looked like they were ok for the most part when he'd checked them during their break. She knew it would hurt like hell during her healing process, but she was alive. And in one piece for the most part. The girl was broken from her thoughts as Musashi pulled the horse up as he reached for his sword. Ninja appeared out of the trees and quickly surrounded the two. Tonya softly put a hand on Musashi's arm as he looked down at her. She was smiling as a ninja broke rank and rushed over to them.

"Princess you're ok!" Hanzo said as he ran over to her. "But how? We only learned of your capture this morning?"

"Can I explain as we head back? I just want to go home." She said softly as a smile touched her lips.

Yes I brought Musashi back just so that he could help Tonya take down the evil Nobukatsu. Don't worry he won't be just a side character and he won't disappear again to those who are Musashi fans. Man I was way overdue for a good fight chapter. Feels good to finally have that chapter done. Its been floating around in my head for some time now. Anyways I'm burnt out so I will say so long for now. And hopefully get to work on the next chapter.