DISCLAIMER: Concurrent with fair dealing clauses of the Copyright Act (R.S.C., 1985, c. C-42) of Canada and fair use clauses in copyright legislation in other nations, this is a work that was created solely for entertainment purposes. Furthermore, it is posted freely on the Internet without expectation or requirement of remuneration.
National Mito Hospital (Mito, Ibaraki Prefecture), after dawn…
"You don't know how much I appreciate this, Sempai."
Standing beside the girl with the tanned skin, shaggy raven-black hair and now tear-filled blue eyes, the older woman currently dressed in the stylish and form-fitting motorcycle racing leathers could only smile. "Don't thank me, Kichimi-chan," Hari Sumiko — Chōkaku — said as she squeezed the shoulders of the current leader of Gogun Senior High School, who was now seated on a chair beside the bed now holding her would-be-boyfriend and frequent sparring partner. "I would do this for anyone, regardless of which school they attend or how they looked on our so-called 'fates.'" The gold-haired tōshi — she was in her early twenties, having dropped out of Yoshū in her third year when she formed the Kōshi Kasshi with her siblings Takara (Chōhō), Harimi (Chōryō) and Hironaru (Chōmansei) — then smiled. "That you called out to me proved to me that indeed, this is truly the time of Jiǎzǐ for us all." That term was what the leader of the Kōshi Kasshi often used to mark the time in a tōshi's life that s/he could finally break free of the chains of the past and live his/her life the way they desired, not as the past dictated. "Of course, I have seen other signs as well."
Kokoni Kichimi — Ukitsu — gazed at her. As a reborn Taoist priest herself, she often found herself drawn into such talk quite easily. "What other signs?"
A knowing smile crossed the older woman's face. "Have you heard rumours of a tōshi calling herself 'Ryūkō Kyōrei?'"
Silence.
"Reitei-sama…?" Kichimi breathed out, her mind quickly translating the local way of saying the name and posthumous name of that particular man. "But, Sempai…!"
"She lives," Sumiko said. "Currently under her real name: Moroboshi Hiromi."
More silence.
"One of Moroboshi Ataru's bioroid sisters, you mean?"
The older woman nodded. "Hai." Sumiko then stared at the woman now examining the still body of the greatest fighter from Yōshū High School. "How is he, Sandi-san?"
The auburn-haired American now leaning over the comatose Futoshi Itsuku — Taishiji Shigi — looked up to gaze on the other women present with her dark blue eyes. Eyes, Kichimi had been quick to conclude, that were MUCH older than one would expect of a girl from the North Riverdale section of the New York borough of the Bronx. "He's starting to feel the power flood him," Sandi McLugh — who was currently on summer vacation before the final year of high school at Ulster Riverdale Collegiate — stated as he gazed down on Itsuku's still "His wound wasn't too bad. Who the devil stabbed this poor man in the back, anyway?" she then asked in very crisp Japanese, aided ironically by her native New York dialect of English.
"Hannō and Ryūyō Seirei," Kichimi said, a snarl in her voice.
Sandi blinked, and then she shook her head. "Typical. In his first life, Liú Yáo eventually fell to Sūn Cè and died after he lost his land. Tàishǐ Cí was spared and switched sides as a result. By trying to kill your lover here, Kichimi, Liú's modern-self was hoping to avoid his past fate at the hands of Minaka's cousin Tsueko."
Kichimi gaped. "You know a lot about us, don't you."
Sandi paused, and then she held out her left arm. "«Get in here, you stupid cow!»" she barked out in English with an Irish burr. "«I need your help!»"
A flash of flame later, a phoenix with dark reddish-brown feathers appeared and landed on the American's arm, cooing with a mixture of annoyance and mock-anger. Seeing such a beautiful creature, Kichimi gaped, her jaw now down on the floor. "«Oh, shut up!»" Sandi snarled. "«It's YOUR damn fault we met up with that wanderer and I got transported across half the damned PLANET to hook up with Sumiko and her friends! And you STILL won't tell me WHY I'm here anyway! Now, we need some of your tears to get Kichimi's boyfriend back on his feet, so give them up! Now!»"
The phoenix squawked, though he was willing to allow a couple of drops to emerge from his dark eyes. Sandi gently caught them on the tips of her gloved fingers, and then she allowed the tears to be smeared on the exposed parts of Itsuku's stomach, right opposite from where the knives welded by his school leader Koro Masarai (Ryūyō Seirei) and schoolmate Magaki Yokusuru (Hannō) had plunged into his back. Once that was done, Sandi took a deep breath, and then pulled the gloves off her hands as the phoenix shifted onto her shoulder. Taking a scalpel from a nearby dressing tray, she pricked her little finger with it and then allowed the drops of blood to land on the place where the phoenix's tears had fallen.
Kichimi and Sumiko gasped as a burst of ki erupted from that place to wrap Itsuku's body with tendrils of energy. His dark eyes flew open as a shocked scream escaped him, and then he cried out in relief as the ki faded away. "Oh, man…!" he moaned as he looked around, and then he stopped on gazing on a pretty Western teenager, currently dressed in a New York Yankees home uniform top over a pair of faded blue jeans. Perched on her shoulder was a lovely phoenix, which made Itsuku's eyes go VERY wide, and then he spotted the intricately carved Celtic cross hanging as a pendant around her neck. A cross bearing a lovely white jewel at the intersection point that radiated the same type of ki that a magatama worn by an A-rank tōshi possessed. "Who…?"
"SHIGI!"
He then yelped as a black-haired typhoon of energy nearly swamped him with a hug. "HEY! Wha-…?!" he began, and then he blinked. "Ukitsu…?"
The leader of Gogun shuddered, and then she began to sob as she moved to shower the wounded tōshi's face with kisses. Itsuku remained still as his mind tried to catch up with what the hell was going on — the last thing he remembered was walking away from his fight with Mago Tsueko — and then he sighed as he moved to hold her close.
By then, both Sumiko and Sandi had stepped out of the room to give them privacy. The leader of the Kōshi Kasshi then turned to bow low to the phoenix perched on the American-born gaiscíoch's shoulder. "Oh, great Donn Cúailnge, this unworthy one thanks you for your gift that restored my friend's beloved back to health," the reborn Taoist priest declared as she gazed respectfully at the immortal being reborn from the living spirit of the swineherd who once served one of the blood descendants of the Tuatha Dé Danann and — in a later incarnation — became the target of a "cattle raid" that pitched his companion's past-self against an ARMY! "Please tell us, Great One, was THIS the reason you brought your defender to the Land of the Wa so she may ride with us?"
The Donn cooed as he shook his head, and then he took flight before he vanished in another burst of divine crimson fire. "Guess not," Sandi mused, an amused smile crossing her face. "Looks like I'll be riding some more with you people."
"Doesn't that bother you, Sandi-san?"
Both women perked as they were joined by Sumiko's siblings. Like Sumiko herself, Takara, Harimi and Hironaru possessed pale golden hair and deep brown eyes; that was the sign in the eyes of their grandfather, Hari Michioka (Chōdōryō), that they were destined to bear within them the souls of the famous leaders of the Yellow Turbans in this lifetime. They were dressed in the normal black form-fitting biker's leathers that was standard uniform for the Kōshi Kasshi, all adorned with the Southern Cross battle flag born by fighting regiments of the Confederate States of America during the American Civil War. The flags were embossed with the golden kanji that was read "Kōshi Kasshi" in each of the crimson fields around the blue saltire cross with its thirteen silver stars. And while they seemed to be like your normal bōsōzoku to the average passer-by, the members of the Kōshi Kasshi had earned a hard-won reputation for social justice that made them akin to the legendary "Merry Men" who once joined together with the fallen English lord Robin of Locksley.
"No, Takara, it really doesn't," Sandi stated as she smiled at the middle sister of the Hari siblings, reaching over to wrap her arm around Hironaru's waist to draw him against her. That made the effeminate boy — he was the youngest of the Hari siblings, having only been a freshman at Yoshū (he was also Harimi's fraternal twin) when Sumiko and Takara had first raised their rebel banner and led a mass exodus of tōshi from all the Seven Schools — blush; he was STILL trying to get used to the raw sensuality that Sandi McLugh could express towards anyone that caught her eye, especially since she didn't seem inclined at this time to pursue a permanent relationship. "In my first life, I interacted with the blood kin of the Tuatha Dé Danann, so I know what magical phoenixes are all about. The Donn feels I have to remain here for a spell. So I'll stay."
"Sandi-chan! You don't have a passport or anything…!" Harimi moaned.
"We simply have to trust that the great Donn will return our friend home when it is time," Sumiko advised. She stared knowingly at Harimi. "What is it?"
The reborn General of Man of the Yellow Turbans tensed, and then she drew out her sister's cell-phone, which she had hung onto while Sumiko had gone in to visit Kichimi. "A text message for you, Onē-san. From Hiromi-sama."
Sumiko gaped as she took the device and stared at the message on the screen:
From: Moroboshi Hiromi
To: Hari Sumiko
Chōkaku-dono, the Blue Sky cannot be without the Golden Sun. I need you.
Silence.
More silence.
Still more silence.
And then…
"The Emperor calls upon us!"
The others all tensed. "Your High King calls you to her side?" Sandi asked.
Sumiko weakly nodded. "H-h-hai…" she sputtered before she paused, and then she took a deep breath. "Send messages out to everyone to ride for Tomobiki! Go!"
The other Hari siblings tensed, and then they nodded before heading outside so they could send out text messages to each of the eleven other team leaders (Hironaru lead Team One), each of whom commanded a force of nearly a hundred riders. As they did that, Sumiko took a deep breath, and then she gazed on Sandi. "This is why you're here," the reborn Taoist high priest stated. "Clearly, Hiromi-sama believes something now threatens all of Earth. She needs warriors at her side to fight it."
"You mean like the monsters her brother once had to deal with?" the Bronx native asked.
"Hai."
Sandi then hummed. "Never once dreamt of being an astronaut."
The leader of the Kōshi Kasshi blinked, and then she laughed. The door to Itsuku's room then opened to reveal Kichimi, who had a worried look on her face. "Reitei-sama texted you, Sempai? What's wrong?" the leader of Gogun asked.
"Your High King has summoned all of Sumiko's kin and friends to her side in Tomobiki," Sandi answered. "She doesn't know why, but since your High King's kin had to deal with those rather rude aliens up to a half-year ago, it's easy to guess."
Kichimi blinked, and then she grimaced. "She needs us all."
"Most likely," Sumiko stated.
The leader of Gogun nodded. "I'll text Chōkei and get Gogun massed together." She then stared at Sandi. "So who are you, anyway?" she asked. "Or rather, who WERE you?! You're an American and you radiate the same level of ki as Ryofu Hōsen! I never knew…"
"I'm not a tōshi," Sandi gently cut her off. "Those such as I call ourselves 'gaiscíoch;' that's the Irish Gaelic word for 'warrior.'" She then smiled at Kichimi. "In my first life, I was Sétanta mac Súaltam of Ulster. Born of a deified High King of Ireland, Lugh mac Ethniu. In that life, I also earned a nickname: Cú Chulainn."
Silence.
More silence.
Still more silence.
Then…
"We'll have to spar sometime," Kichimi said, smiling.
"Go be with your man," Sandi insisted. "He needs you now."
The other woman nodded. "Arigatō, Kūkurin-sama."
"Dō itashimashite, Ukitsu-dono. Don't worry about your High King. She'll understand." Sandi then blinked. "Oh, by the way, Kichimi…"
"What?"
"When it comes time for you to go over to Itsuku's school to properly thrash the backstabbers that put him here, invite me to the party," the New Yorker snarled.
Kichimi grimly nodded. "I will…"
Tomobiki, the Moroboshi home, just before lunch…
"So you have no objections concerning Kikuko-chan marrying Shampoo-chan?"
Hayashi Chiaki shook her head. "No, of course not." She sighed as she took the offered tea from her host; the matriarch of the Hayashi Clan of Inarichō had come to visit her grandchildren at their present residence to begin preparations for having them finally go to school. "She may not be my granddaughter in spirit — Negako-sama was quite thorough in describing her origins to me, much less how her soul eventually got into my grandson's head — but she is my granddaughter none the less, Moroboshi-san. And if these Joketsuzoku are as dangerous as Shampoo clearly has shown, making peace with them is a smart thing to do." She then smirked. "Besides, given that it is a lesbian relationship, such would drive my daughter-in-law quite insane. And hopefully back into the arms of the woman who clearly loves her above all else."
Moroboshi Kinshō gazed on the older woman, and then she sighed. "You really do hate your son, don't you?" she asked as she prepared tea for herself.
Chiaki shook her head. "It is not hate, young lady," she said, a touch of weariness in her voice. "It is simply a final, ugly realization: That try as I might, try as my husband did, there is NOTHING that can be done to turn my child away from his chosen life's path." She then gazed at Kinshō's husband, who was also enjoying morning tea with them. "I assume you were treated somewhat the same way by your late mother."
Kinshō fought down the automatic twitch in her body on hearing her guest mention THAT person. "She gave up on us, true," Muchi then noted. "But it was for a pretty stupid reason in the eyes of both my wife and I." He paused for a moment before adding, "Our family has always been run as a matriarchy. Leadership passes from grandmother to granddaughter. Never to a grandson. If necessary, a granddaughter-in-law — if she is acceptable to the Matriarch — could take her place." He shrugged. "Of course, Okā-san was long dead by the time Hensō entered our lives, so we felt we had every right to support her desire to marry Ataru." He shook his head. "After our son was born, my wife found out she could never have children again. And there was just no way I would go to bed some strange woman to give Okā-san her heir." He closed his eyes. "I really loved my mother, but there were things about what she wanted that I just couldn't support, Hayashi-sama. And I was afraid that she would do anything to destroy my marriage so that I could find a 'better' woman to be with." A sigh escaped him. "I suppose that's part of the reason we turned around and ended up treating our own son with such indifference at times."
"Yet he still remains here," Chiaki noted.
"Only because his sisters forced a choice on us," Kinshō noted, a sad smile crossing her face. "And I suppose they had a right to do that to us given how quick we were to support Hensō's 'marriage' to him in our quest to better our own lives. They made it very clear that if things became too intolerable for Ataru, they'd move out, then make it publicly known what caused them to leave Tomobiki. And while Tariko-chan and Negako don't have much in the way of a public following, Hiromi-chan…"
"If they heard she was hurt, all those like Hiromi-sama would bring the wrath of the Kami all over you," Chiaki noted, and then she sighed. "Fate places challenges against families to either strengthen them or break them. My family was broken because of Genma's thieving ways and the extent he was willing to go to hurt others all just for his own betterment. Your family was almost broken when you were caught up in something that you didn't really understand until it was nearly too late." She then toasted her hosts. "And you recovered from it quite well. I salute you both."
"Obā-chan?"
Everyone turned as Kikuko walked in, followed by Shampoo. "Ohayō, you two," Chiaki stated as she accepted her granddaughter's embrace, and then she nodded as the Nǚjiézú warrior went to one knee and gave her a classic fist-in-palm salute. "I trust you were able to finally settle matters with Happōsai, Shampoo-chan?"
"Hai," Shampoo said. "We'll ask Hiromi-sama if we could use the transporters on her flagship to beam back to the village so that I can present the things Happōsai-lǎoshī once took from the village back to Hiibā-san and the other elders."
"And where is that man right now?"
"Currently with Negako-dàlǎoshī…"
"Shānpú."
Shampoo paled on hearing that toneless voice, and then she turned around to see Negako about to walk into the kitchen. "H-h-hai…?" she sputtered.
"Do not call me that," the grandmaster stated.
Shampoo gulped as Negako headed into the kitchen to prepare tea. "Ojii-chan is with Negako-onēchan so that he can be finally purged of all the things those horrible priests did to him back in 1888 that turned him into such a pervert in the first place," Kikuko then explained. "He should be alright soon enough."
"And then he can start training Àirén and her siblings properly," Shampoo added.
"Is Ranma still aboard Haida?" Kinshō asked.
The couple nodded. "Hai!" Kikuko answered. "I'm hoping that…"
The front door then opened. "Tadaima!" Hiromi called out.
Everyone turned as the reborn emperor came inside, followed by Sebone Mimōko, Seki Haneko and Natsukimi Mien. "Okaeri nasai, Hiromi-chan," Kinshō said with a smile, and then she blinked. "Where's everyone else? Still up in space?"
"Hai, Okā-san," Hiromi answered as her companions respectfully bowed to her mother. "My friends and I will be going to Hong Kong to retrieve an object we will need to help us when we finally move to deliver our response to the Urusians concerning yesterday's events. Oh, has the damage to Onii-san's room been finally repaired?" she asked.
"The contractors will be here after lunch," Muchi noted. "Is Ataru still up in space with Mimōko-chan's cousin and her girlfriend?"
"Hai, Otō-san," Hiromi said with a smile as Kinshō jerked on being reminded once again that her son now had TWO girlfriends and not just one like 'normal' people possessed at his age. "And they'll most likely stay there for a while."
"So what was this all about, anyway?" Chiaki asked.
"Lum-san arranged for Hensō to fulfill an honourable obligation that has been hanging over their family for quite some time now," the reborn emperor stated. "Kamen, Damasu and Mienai didn't agree to it, so they intended to kidnap Onii-san to make it seem as if he was still married to Hensō. The Urusian Imperials and a small scattering of Lumite worshippers from Phentax Two elected to take advantage of it." As she watched her parents make faces on being reminded of the Niphentaxians, Hiromi added, "As of now, a much more competent leader — Oyuki-san's cousin Pukaze-san — is the acting Regent of Neptune. And hopefully soon, the Imperial leaders on Uru will be eliminated once and for all time. One of them, ironically, being Rei-san's uncle."
Her parents perked on hearing that. "Was Rei involved?" Muchi asked.
"He was about to come through the warp when Onē-san fired into it with her Lawgiver and Kanami-san used her vacuum blades," Hiromi stated as she sensed something approach from the north. "The wound was fatal." On seeing her parents pale on hearing that, she sighed. "Onē-san knows and she's accepting it, but it still hurts her."
"Kanami-onēchan's with her, isn't she?" Kikuko asked.
"Hai, she is. And by the sounds of it, Chōkaku-dono and her friends are now arriving," Hiromi answered as the distant echo of motorcycle engines began to rattle the windows of the Moroboshi home. "Relax and have tea, ladies," she bade the other tōshi, who nodded. "I'll receive them in the dōjō. As soon as we get the clearance from the Chinese embassy, we'll be back aboard Haida and be off to Hong Kong."
With that, she headed back outside through the front door. "What's happening?" Kinshō asked as Negako walked into the living room with a tray full of cups and an extra kettle of hot water, along with tea bags, sugar, sweetener and cream.
"We're going to make sure Hensō gets married," Mimōko said as the grandmaster headed off to take another tray of tea to the dōjō. "Even if we have to damn hell rip her horns off her head and chain her to the altar so she DOES get married!"
"And we'll even have a nice-sized force to make sure there won't be gatecrashers this time," Haneko added as Kinshō began to pour tea.
"Will ten starships, a heavy armoured brigade group and two thousand fighter craft be enough?" Mien then wondered as the three tōshi relaxed.
"It better be," Mimōko noted, and then she smirked. "Then again, we've got Shikuko, Tsueko-san, Torusuke-san, Sonami-san, Ryōko-chan and Kumomi-san on our side."
"And you," Haneko noted.
Her rival from Nan'yō blushed. "Yeah. We'll be…"
"Who's the American woman with the Yellow Turbans?!"
Everyone perked on hearing Shampoo's question, and then they looked outside. By the front gate, Hiromi was now meeting with a group of people all dressed alike in form-fitting black racing leathers with the Confederate battle flag stitched on their arms and backs. Several were standing around a strange woman wearing a jean vest over what appeared to be a Yankees baseball shirt over blue jeans, sunglasses over her eyes. As Mimōko, Haneko and Mien gazed intently at her, they then tensed as the stranger's azure eyes seemed to focus on them for a moment before they shifted back to Hiromi.
"She's good…!" Mimōko breathed out.
"Like us…yet not like us," Mien warned.
"As powerful as your cousin, Ryomō," Haneko warned. "Who IS she?!"
"Alexandra McLugh."
All three women yelped, and then they spun around to see Negako standing nearby. As Kikuko and Shampoo fought back snickers and the older people all grinned on seeing how much the ninjutsu grandmaster had surprised them, Haneko thumbed outside. "How's this possible, Negako-sama? She's clearly a Westerner and she's a tōshi, too!"
"She is the ancient Irish version of a tōshi, Haneko. They address themselves as a group as 'gaiscíoch.' Resurrected time and time again from almost the same period of history as your own past-selves through mesonium crystals that were later implanted on Celtic crucifixes that were passed down as your magatama were passed down from one incarnation to the next." Negako glanced outside. "In her first life, Alexandra was an acquaintance of Shikuko's past-self, Sétanta mac Súaltam of the province of Ulster. Who died young in the defence of his kingdom against an attack launched on their land by the army of Connacht under command of the queen at the time, Medb nic Eochaid." She turned away. "All to appropriate a particularly fertile male bull so she could demonstrate to her husband, Ailill mac Máta, that she was as wealthy as he."
She walked off, leaving three slack-jawed tōshi in her wake. "Ye gods…!" Haneko then breathed out as she gazed outside at Sandi McLugh. "That's…?!"
"Cú Chulainn…!" Mimōko finished for her rival, her voice hushed with awe.
"Was he a great warrior?" Shampoo asked.
Haneko gazed on the Nǚjiézú. "He defeated a whole army practically by HIMSELF, Shānpú!" the best fighter of Seito flatly stated. "That good enough for you?"
Shampoo gaped as Kikuko blinked in disbelief…
To be continued…
WRITER'S NOTES
1) Ikkitōsen character notes:
Ukitsu (Kokoni Kichimi) first appeared in manga episode #29. Like some of the characters from The Romance of the Three Kingdoms, the person that Kichimi is descent from is most likely fictional: Yú Jí. However, Yú Jí is most likely a misinterpretation of a real person, Gān Jí (unknown birth date to 200 C.E.), who was a Taoist sage active in the time period Yú Jí was said to be active in the Romance. Such mistakes are common throughout Master Luó's work, look at the similarity between the two names as they're written in Chinese characters: 于吉 (Yú Jí) versus 干吉 (Gān Jí). In this life, Kichimi is the most skilled and powerful fighter without dragon enhancement known to all tōshi across Kantō; she is often nicknamed "Ukitsu the Genius" because of it. Her relationship with the man she was visiting at the start of this part is inferred by what was said in manga episode #28 concerning the fact that he was the only tōshi that Kichimi sparred with who was never hurt by her; she normally straps hundred-pound weights on her arms and legs to help increase her natural strength.
Taishiji Shigi (Futoshi Itsuku) first appeared in manga episode #9. I nicknamed him the "Righteous Tōshi" thanks to the statement he once made in the fourth episode of the first anime series "A Duel! Taishiji Vs. Sonsaku": "You are not a fighter." He was stabbed in the back by Hannō (Magaki Yokusuru) at the command of Ryūyō Seirei (Koro Masarai) in manga episode #11. People will remember Yokusuru from the very beginning of the manga series; he was the first tōshi that Sonsaku Hakufu (Mago Tsueko) fought before she was prompted by her mother to transfer to the Nan'yō Academy. Itsuku's past-self is Tàishǐ Cí (166-206), a general who fought under several warlords until he came under the control of Sūn Cè after breaking away from Liú Yáo (156-197) after the latter refused to heed Tàishǐ's advice…which reflected in the manga series as Koro Masarai is Liú Yáo's modern incarnation. In the manga series, after recovering from his wounds, Itsuku went to help the joint Seito-Nan'yō force go forth to stop the re-enactment of the Battle of Chìbì; Itsuku personally rescued Chōhi Ekitoku (Haru Asumi) from the Three-Pillared Gods after knocking out Chōkō Shungai (Haru Kazua) with one punch!
As an aside, the part-Polynesian ancestry I attest to Itsuku is speculation on my part given his darker skin than what is normal for Orientals.
Chōkei (Koeru Kagetori) first appeared in chapter #28. He was the second tōshi of Gogun that Tsueko fought when she sought out Kichimi. Unlike other tōshi, he doesn't seem to have a known counterpart among the characters that appeared in The Romance of the Three Kingdoms or any of the other annals of that particular time period. His battle name, when switched to Mandarin, would read Zhào Jǐng, which DOES match the name of an officer of the Táng Dynasty and who lived from 736-796. If Shiozaki-sensei meant for this character to be a reincarnation of that person, the proper battle name would read "Chōkei Taiō" as Master Zhào's style name was "Tuìwēng."
And the people I introduce here:
Chōkaku (Hari Sumiko) is the leader of the Kōshi Kasshi motorcycle gang. Her past-self is Zhāng Jué (also known as Zhāng Jiǎo) (unknown date of birth, died 184), who was a Taoist "great teacher" who supported the sick and infirm during the years of the Xiàolíng Emperor's reign. Zhāng became the General of Heaven in the Yellow Turban Rebellion, achieving early successes against the Hàn Dynasty…only to be thwarted when leaders such as Liú Bèi, Cáo Cāo and Sūn Jiān took to the field. Zhāng's death tore the heart out of the Yellow Turbans…but in this incarnation, Sumiko and her siblings took the lessons of the past to heart and simply walked away from their various schools (the Hari siblings themselves were students at Yoshū, with Sumiko a third-year) when they rose their rebel banners in the summer of 2007. That — combined with a policy of self-defence when gangs of tōshi went out to take them back in — ensured the replay of the Yellow Turban Rebellion succeeded this time.
Chōhō (Hari Takara) is the second-in-command and primary strategic planner of the Kōshi Kasshi. Her past-self was the General of the Earth in the Yellow Turban Rebellion and Zhāng Jué's younger brother, Zhāng Bào (unknown birth date, died 184). He took co-command of the Yellow Turbans after Zhāng Jué died, but wasn't as effective in leading the rebels as his older brother had been. Zhāng Bào would perish in battle against Huángfǔ Sōng (unknown date of birth, died 195) at the Battle of Guānzhōng. In this life, Takara was a second-year student at Yoshū when she quit school alongside her siblings and helped form the Kōshi Kasshi. It is she who formed the overall strategy of self-defence against those tōshi who went out to try to force the "rebels" against the "Fate of the Magatama" back into the fold of the Seven Schools.
Chōryō (Hari Harimi) is the third-in-command of the Kōshi Kasshi as well as the hatamochi ("flag carrier") who carries the group's flag when the Kōshi Kasshi are riding together. Her past-self was the General of Man in the Yellow Turban Rebellion and Zhāng Jué's and Zhāng Bào's younger brother, Zhāng Liáng (unknown birth date, died 184). He split the overall the leadership of the Yellow Turbans with Zhāng Bào after Zhāng Jué died, but despite his obvious skill in leading troops, was defeated and killed by the forces of Huángfǔ Sōng just before Zhāng Bào was killed at Guānzhōng. In this life, Harimi is the effective public relations officer of the Kōshi Kasshi; it is she who controls the group's web page and vets out all e-mails and text messages from other tōshi (such as what Kichimi had to use to get the Hari siblings to the hospital to look in on Itsuku) to ensure they don't fall into a trap they ride out to assist.
The past-self of Harimi's twin brother Chōmansei (Hari Hironaru) is Zhāng Mànchéng (unknown birth date, died 184), who commanded rebel forces in the Nányáng area and was killed by the local prefect there. It is unknown what (if any) sort of family relationship Zhāng Mànchéng had with the Zhāng brothers who commanded the Yellow Turbans. In this incarnation, both Hironaru and Harimi were freshmen at Yoshū when the Kōshi Kasshi were formed. These days — as noted above — he is the leader of Team One of the group.
Chōdōryō or Chōryō Fukan (Hari Michioka) is the current incarnation of Zhāng Líng (also called Zhāng Dàolíng) (34-156), who was one of the Four Celestial Masters in the eyes of some Taoist sects. Zhāng Líng was said to be the grandfather to Zhāng Jué and his brothers, but that has not been proven historically. In this life, Michioka — while not seen as a tōshi per se as his first-self lived many decades before the prelude of the Three Kingdoms period began in 189 — did his best to instill proper Taoist virtues in his grandchildren to make sure that THIS time, the Yellow Turbans would not only succeed in breaking away from the Fate of the Magatama, but would not leave a tonne of broken bodies in their wake. He clearly succeeded.
Finally, Alexandra Lucy "Sandi" McLugh is, as noted here, the current incarnation of Ireland's mightiest warrior and equal to Lǚ Bù in China, Sétanta mac Súaltam. The most well-known hero of Irish myth — who also appeared in various Scottish and Manx myths — Sétanta was the actual son of Lugh (himself the son of one of the Tuatha Dé Danann) and Deichtine (sister to Conchobar mac Nessa, then King of Ulster). Sétanta — when he was a boy — accompanied his maternal uncle and his party to the home of the smith Culann, but was distracted by a game of hurling (an ancient Gaelic sport similar to field hockey) and vowed to catch up later once the game was over. When Sétanta finally got to Culann's home, the host forgot about the boy and sent his fierce watchdog after the "intruder," forcing Sétanta to kill it in self-defence. In repentance, Sétanta volunteered to take the dog's place and thus earned the nickname Cú Chulainn (literally "Hound of Culann"), which is rendered "Kūkurin" in Japanese. When he was seventeen, Cú Chulainn went out to defend Ulster from the army of Medb (queen-consort of neighbouring Connacht) when she elected to get her hands on the Donn Cúailnge (literally "Brown Bull of Cooley") to prove she was as wealthy as her then-husband; this event was depicted in the Táin Bó Cúailnge. Cú Chulainn would die after Medb conspired with Lugaid (the son of Cú Roí, the King of Munster) and other children of those who had lost loved ones to the Hound of Ulster, though he died standing on his feet. In this life, Sandi is a Grade 11 student at Ulster Riverdale Collegiate in the southern end of the Bronx across the Harlem River from Manhattan. Unlike most tōshi, Sandi personally doesn't care a whit about what happened to her past-self. She lives her life according to her wishes, which clearly made her quite acceptable to the Kōshi Kasshi when the Donn brought her over from America to ride with them.
2) As the highest leader in Ireland was often referred to as a "High King," Sandi McLugh would be inclined to do the same when she speaks of Moroboshi Hiromi.
3) The Tuatha Dé Danann (literally "People of the Goddess Danu") are, according to most Celtic myths, the fifth race to invade Ireland, conquering same from the Fir Bolg in the Battle of Maighe Tuireadh (the events of which are covered in the Irish Mythological Saga text Cath Maighe Tuireadh, which is the Irish Gaelic phrase for the battle in question). The Tuatha Dé Danann would eventually be equated to ancient Irish nobles when the tales about them were finally committed to writing a century after Ireland was Christianized, but there are many clues in those writings indicating that the Children of Danu were gods and goddesses, if not some other type of immortal.
As an aside, phoenixes like the Donn Cúailnge in this universe are the same as beings like Fawkes from the Harry Potter series.
4) Robin of Locksley is the proper name often given to the legendary bandit Robin Hood (as witness films such as Kevin Costner's Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves from 1991).
5) Translations: Lǎoshī — Literally "old master" (to ad Dà- before this would then make the term mean "great old master"); Nic — "Daughter of…" (Medb's full name is normally not given in ancient Celtic texts, but since she was said to be the daughter of Eochaid Feidlech, calling her "Medb nic Eochaid" does make sense).