Bonds of the Hōjō

by EpicZL

The Hōjō are known for their strong family bonds. How far will Ren Hōjō, the adopted son of Ujiyasu, go to protect his loved ones and keep his family together despite the hardships that he is bound to face. (OC x Lady Hayakawa) lemons later on.

17. The Next Generation

Hello everyone, here we are again with chapter 17 of Bonds of the Hōjō! I hope everyone is staying safe and healthy with everything going on. So just relax, and enjoy the chapter!

Chapter 17: The Next Generation

(Odawara Castle Main Keep, Kanto)

"I see. The reports were true then. That Nobunaga is really something else," Ujiyasu said. His eyes were trained on the scroll in front of him. He had called in a meeting with all of the Hōjō generals and officials present.

Standing before his desk was Ryuto and Kotarō, who had just returned from their mission. Both were covered in dirt and scratches from their previous fights, and it was obvious that they were both exhausted after their nonstop trip back to Odawara.

"Yes. We saw it up close. The Oda forces absolutely decimated the Takeda. It was a bloodbath," Ryuto said, his gaze low upon remembering the sight of scattered corpses of the Takeda cavalry covering the fields.

"Baba, Yamagata, Naitō, Hara, Tsuchiya... so many others. Shingen's old guard, and the cavalry he had built up over the years, gone just like that," Ujiyasu sighed as he put down the scroll, his expression somber.

"It's so hard to believe... They stood at the top for so long, yet now..." Tsunashige shook his head.

"I know, but never mind that for now. You two did a good job, we now know what the Oda are capable of. Not only that, but you two made a great decision to help the Takeda," Ujiyasu said. Kotarō chuckled before shaking his head.

"It was only thanks to the little birdie here. It was his call to save them," Kotarō said, motioning to the younger ninja beside him.

"I see... Good work then, Ryuto. Your call was great. You have given us valuable time," Ujiyasu said. Ryuto looked to the side uncomfortably.

"It was nothing. I just did what I thought was the best choice for the Hōjō. That's all," Ryuto said, keeping his gaze to the side. From his seat behind him, Ren smiled at the ninja's attitude. Seeing this, Ujiyasu remembered a conversation he had with Kotarō a while back.

(Flashback)

In a small room filled with practice dummies and an obstacle course with an innumerable amount of traps, a large number of Fuma ninja's watched in awe at the sight before them. A rapid stream of crimson red shot through the area. Ryuto flew effortlessly through each and every trap, all the while leaving the practice dummies in a pile of tatters with his lethal strikes. Upon landing back down on the other side, the other ninja's were completely dumbfounded by his speed and accuracy. He turned around, giving them all a cold look which intimidated even them, who were supposed to be Kanto's best. He walked past them silently before taking his seat, allowing the others to awkwardly resume their training. Kotarō watched the entire scene as he leaned against the door from the outside. Looking to his side, he saw Ujiyasu approaching him.

"So, how is the stray kid that you brought in?" Ujiyasu asked.

"He's got talent, a lot of it. As expected of a former Black Viper," Kotarō said, smirking.

"Is that, right? Aren't they the ones who tried to take over the capital from the shadows?" Ujiyasu asked.

"That's right. Thanks to the little birdie here, they are pretty much just scraps blown away by the winds of chaos now," Kotarō said.

"I see. I suppose it's to be expected. From what I hear, they did some pretty dark stuff. Of course making someone that young do such things would come back at them," Ujiyasu said.

"Yes, but years of those jobs have left their mark. His eyes are too dark even for a ninja. He doesn't understand what it means to have emotions or be human. It'll only hold him back in the future," Kotarō said, uncharacteristically serious.

"Heh, that's odd coming from a ninja don't you think? Then again, you're not exactly a normal ninja," Ujiyasu said, making Kotarō chuckle.

"Hehe, I merely go with the winds of chaos. I will always be as unpredictable and wild as them. I think the kid has the potential to be the same as me, but he can't as long as he won't embrace his emotions," Kotarō said.

"He can become like you, huh? I don't know if that's any better than how he is now, but it looks like you've taken a real shine to the boy. So what are you going to do?" Ujiyasu asked. Kotarō flashed him a devious smile that he knew all too well. He knew he wasn't going to like whatever was going to come out of his mouth.

"How about letting him go with the kid you picked up all that time ago?" Kotarō suggested.

"Ren? You can't be serious," Ujiyasu said, frowning.

"Why not? We can let our two strays get along. That kid of yours will be joining in battle soon. It'll be a good opportunity for the two of them," Kotarō said.

Ujiyasu didn't seem convinced. He was strongly against the idea of the ninja being by his adopted son's side especially given his background. Kotarō could sense this, and got serious.

"Your son is a talented one. He knows his way in battle, so you don't have to worry about the birdie harming him, not that he would try anything anyway. But most of all, he's like you, Ujiyasu. He has a kind heart that cares for others. Fighting for someone like that may be what needs to come on to his own. Please, Ujiyasu," Kotarō pleaded sincerely. Over the years, Ujiyasu was all too used to Kotarō's strange personality. To see him so sincere and serious like this was truly rare which he had only ever witnessed a few times before. To his companion of countless years asking him like this, Ujiyasu was unsure. Sighing, he shook his head in annoyance.

"Fine! But you keep an eye on that boy of yours. Anything that happens is on you, got it?!" Ujiyasu said, annoyed. Kotarō's smile returned to his face, as he chuckled and nodded at his master.

(Flashback end)

"(I guess you were on to something, huh Kotarō?)" Ujiyasu thought, as he gave a quick glance to Kotarō, who had a knowing smirk on his face. Shaking his head, he turned back to Ryuto.

"Either way, well done on your mission. You two go and get some rest. Give your men a break too," Ujiyasu ordered.

The two ninja's bowed to him before heading out of the room. On the way, Ryuto gave a quick glance to Ren, who smiled back at him and nodded his head. Closing his eyes, he had an uncomfortable expression on his face before leaving. Once the two closed the door behind them, Ujiyasu turned his attention to the rest of the people in the room. They all awaited anxiously for his next words.

"Alright, I think everyone here gets the situation we are in now. What are everyone's thoughts?" Ujiyasu asked. Kai's father, Ujinaga, who sat beside his daughter was the first to speak up.

"I think we all agree that the Oda's momentum is great. With the Takeda now in shambles, the Anti-Oda coalition is finished. It won't be long before he sets his sights on Kanto," Ujinaga said in a grave tone. Tsunashige shook his head.

"Yes, you are right that the Oda is certainly a threat, but I don't think we are in immediate danger just yet. The Takeda may be crippled now, but they're not dead yet. A clan like that won't go down so quickly. They should be able to last for some time yet. Especially since the Uesugi are still active. They are far too great a threat for Nobunaga to press the Takeda further. This should give the Takeda some time to recover, and give us more time to prepare," Tsunashige said.

"What about the Tokugawa? Their forces border us. What if they decide to take us on?" Kai asked.

"I wouldn't worry about them. The Tokugawa's forces aren't strong enough at the moment to take us on without the Oda's aid. Besides, Ieyasu is notoriously cautious. He wouldn't make any risky moves without proper preparation," Tsunashige said.

"I agree with Master Tsunashige. At the moment, we still have some time to prepare. We should take the time to prepare all of our defenses in case anything happens," Ren said.

"All right then. We'll do as you two say. I'll prepare everyone's assignments soon. You all better remain vigilant at all times. I don't want anyone letting their guard down, you hear me?" Ujiyasu ordered.

"My lord!" they said in unison.

After handing everyone their assignments, all of the generals left to go to the locations of each of their orders. Before going to his, Ren began heading towards a different destination. Making his way through the castle, he eventually reached the area designated for the Fuma clan. There were multiple residential areas surrounding a large open clearing in the middle which was used for their training. Upon being shown in by two of the ninjas guarding the entrance, he eventually reached a certain resident. Sliding open the door, he found Ryuto without his usual ninja garb on which left his chest bare. His muscles weren't as defined as Ren or Kotarō, however he was still fairly buff, having lean muscle which suited a ninja like him. He had several bandages wrapped over certain parts of his chest, stomach and arms. His skin was noticeably pale with various small scars scattered around his stomach, chest, and arms. He also lacked his mask and head covering which fully revealed his face. His short silver hair was in full display, hanging over his surprisingly handsome face. His deep purple eyes widened upon seeing his lord at his doorstep.

"My lord? What are you doing here?" he asked, taken off guard by his sudden arrival.

"Sorry to bother you. I know you just got back from an exhausting mission, but I just wanted to check up on you," Ren said in a soft tone.

"Don't worry, my lord. It's nothing. A little rest is all I need," Ryuto said before motioning for his lord to take a seat. Sitting down across from Ryuto, Ren couldn't help but chuckle a little.

"You know, we've known each for a decent amount of time now, but this is the first time I've seen you without your mask," Ren said. Ryuto looked away with an embarrassed expression on his face.

"Well I am a ninja. Besides, I'm not exactly comfortable showing my face around..." Ryuto said, keeping his gaze on the ground. Seeing his usually stoic ninja making such an expression was an amusing surprise to Ren.

"I suppose so. Anyway thanks for the great work you did at Nagashino. It really helped us all out greatly. Honestly, I was actually pretty surprised when I heard you went out of your way to help them. Seems so unlike you to do something outside of your orders," Ren said.

"My orders were to do whatever was best for the Hōjō. I simply followed those orders. Although I do admit that if it were me a couple months ago, I wouldn't have made that call. I guess I thought about what you would do in that situation," Ryuto admitted.

"Is that right?" Ren asked.

"Yeah, I guess so. I suppose your softness has been rubbing off on me, and I'm not sure if that's a good thing although in this case it turned out for the best," Ryuto said before looking down. His mind was still focused on his battle with Niyoshi, as well as his final words to him.

"You might be strong... but Tensei... he will no doubt... deal with... you"

He tensed up at the memory of those words. Seeing this Ren got worried.

"Ryuto, what's the matter? Is something troubling you?" Ren asked with concern in his voice. Ryuto looked up at him. The ninja was resolved to keep his encounter with Niyoshi to himself, but seeing his lord look at in such a way made it difficult for him. Sighing, he decided to be honest with the man in front of him.

"Well, my lord. There is actually something. Something that happened during my mission," Ryuto said, his posture slightly uncomfortable

"You don't have to if you don't want to. You can tell me anything, but you don't have to force yourself," Ren said.

"I know, but I think... it would be best to let you know," Ryuto said. Ren nodded at the ninja as he awaited his next words. Taking a deep breath, Ryuto recalled the events that transpired at Nagashino. He told him about his battle against Niyoshi, as well as his final words about a man named Tensei.

"I see... so this Niyoshi was part of that group that you talked about before, and you're worried that they are still around?" Ren asked.

"Yeah. Niyoshi was the second in command of the Black Vipers, as well as one of my former mentors," Ryuto explained

"And this Tensei, I'm assuming he was the leader of the group?" Ren said. Ryuto nodded.

"That's right. He was by far the strongest ninja in the group and my master. From the way Niyoshi was talking, it seems like he's still alive, and possibly more of the group," Ryuto said. Ren could see Ryuto's fist slightly trembling.

"Are you afraid?" Ren asked, concerned. Sighing, Ryuto looked up at the ceiling.

"Honestly a little. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't afraid of that man. His strength and ruthlessness was terrifying. He might even be a match for master. I was hoping that he was gone, but it seems like I can't run away from my past so easily. Sooner or later, I'll have to settle things for good with him and the rest of them," Ryuto said. He felt a hand on his shoulder, and looked down to see his lord looking straight at him.

"You won't have to deal with it by yourself, you know. I can't say I know what you're going through right now, but just know that I'll have your back," Ren assured.

"Why? This has nothing to do with you. There's no point in you endangering yourself because of my problems," Ryuto said.

"But this isn't just your problem. If they have joined the Oda then that means sooner or later, we might have to take them on. Besides, you shouldn't have do something so dangerous by yourself," Ren said.

"I still don't get you at all. You do realize all the things I've done in the past, right? Why would you put yourself through so much trouble for someone like me?" Ryuto asked, frowning. Ren only smiled at the ninja.

"Why? Isn't it obvious? It's because you're important to me. You've saved not just my life, but everyone's so many times now. You're an important part of the Hōjō. You're always putting yourself in danger for our sake, so isn't fair for us to do the same for you. I mean, what is family for, right?" Ren said in a sincere voice.

Ryuto was caught off guard. After having spent so much time on the battlefield and on countless missions, it became easy for Ryuto to discern a person's true character and intentions from their words and aura alone. Greed, ambition, deceit, Ryuto had become all too familiar with people who concealed these traits behind soft words and false faces. Yet, Ren was completely different. Not a single word which came out of his mouth held any insincerity nor deceit. Ryuto could tell that the man sincerely meant each and every word. His aura was warm and calm as well. This made Ryuto's chest feel warm inside which enveloped his entire being. This strange sensation was one which he had kept feeling Ren for a long time. It was so different from anyone he had ever met before coming to Kanto, and it wasn't just from him. Ujiyasu, Hayakawa, Kai, and even Kotarō. In fact, every single person which he had met here since he first arrived was like that, from the soldiers to the common peasants. They had all had a strange warmness and light to them which Ryuto couldn't comprehend no matter how hard he tried. Even so, despite this strange anomaly to him, it just felt... right. It made him feel at ease for the first time in his life when he had always been on edge at every waking moment. Seeing his lord's genuine kindness to him, Ryuto didn't know how to respond, yet he genuinely felt happy.

"Honestly, again with you spouting that weird family ideal of yours. I don't even know how to respond to you even after all this time," Ryuto said, quickly turning his head away to hide the small smile which formed on his face.

"Still thank you, my lord. I'll keep it mind,"

Ren nodded, as he gave him a pat on the pack.

"Good. Now you can take a break. Father gave you some time off, so get some rest. I probably won't be needing you for anything for a while either so you can rest easy," Ren said.

"How come?" Ryuto asked.

"Father assigned everyone a task to secure Kanto. I've been tasked with handling all supply management and distribution for both our troops and the citizens, so it looks like I'll be stuck doing a lot of paperwork around the castle," Ren said, rubbing his neck.

"I see. Well I don't know anything about that kind of stuff, so I probably couldn't help. Still if you need anything my lord then I'll be there," Ryuto said.

"I know. It means a lot. Well, I guess I should be on my way. I've got a lot of work to get started on. Rest up, alright?" Ren said, as he got up and began heading towards the door. Just as he slid the door open, Ryuto called out to him.

"My lord... again, thank you. I feel a lot more at ease now," Ryuto said with a calm expression, his posture now much more relaxed.

Smiling, Ren nodded to him.

"Of course. Any time"

O-O

Several months would pass by with everyone in Kanto on edge. While everyone was fulfilling their tasks such as bolstering defenses, training troops, or managing cities, they all had a deep sense of unease as they kept an eye out on the state of the land. The tension that filled everyone's hearts was almost suffocating, knowing that at any moment, the relative peace they enjoyed in their land could be stripped away. Ren was no different. As he was stuck in his office with a mountain of scrolls and reports neatly stacked on either side of his table and on the ground below. Each day that passed, he progressively got more and more worn down by both the sheer amount of work, as well as the constant feeling unease that swelled up in his chest with each new report about the battles across the land. That changed however, with a new report that was delivered to him in the middle of the night. As he gazed upon the newest scroll under the dim candlelight on his desk, a big smile formed on his lips. His tired eyes grew softer, as he reread the words in front of him. He quickly looked up, as he heard the door to the office sliding open which revealed Hayakawa, who quietly walked in. She wore a light blue nightgown adorned with light pink floral patterns. Her hair was also loose without her usual ribbons in it.

"Hayakawa? What are you doing up this late?" Ren asked as he set down the scroll in front of him.

"I'm the one who should be asking you that. You've been doing this a lot lately. I've just been worried you're overworking yourself," she said in a worried tone. Ren sighed while rubbing his eyes.

"It's fine. I'm just trying to get everything finished for tomorrow morning," Ren said. Hayakawa frowned at him, as she scanned her eyes over the mountains of documents around the room.

"You're already way ahead of schedule with everything. We all know how hard you've been working. I know Father wouldn't want you to overdo it," Hayakawa said, taking a seat next to him.

"I know, it's just... I'm worried. With everything that's been going on for a while now, I just feel like I need to do as much as I can in case something happens. I just don't want anything to go wrong," Ren said, tightening his fist. He felt Hayakawa place her hand over his, her touch cool and soothing. Looking over to his side, his eyes met hers.

"I understand. Everyone's been feeling the same way. That's why everyone's been working so hard, but you've been going too far. I know you really want to do as much as you can for everyone, but working yourself to exhaustion like this every night won't help anyone. If something were to happen to you then that would just make everyone else more anxious," Hayakawa said. Her grip on his hand tightened, as she gave him a worried look. Sighing, he relaxed his muscles before slumping down.

"You're right. I guess I should tone it down a bit. I'm sorry for making you worry," he said.

"It's a bit late for that. I'll always worry about you. Just like how you're always worrying about us," Hayakawa said, giving him a warm smile. Seeing her smile never failed to ease his heart. Feeling a warmth rising in his chest, he straightened back up in his chair.

"I guess so. Okay, I promise I'll get some sleep after getting this last batch done," he said, chuckling.

"Good. I'll help. The sooner you get some rest the better," Hayakawa said before looking over at his stack of reports. There was one open one in front of him that caught her eye. It wasn't like the other ones which held information of the grain and taxes of various regions, but rather it was a battle report.

"What's this?" she asked while sliding it over to her side.

"Oh right. It's a battle report that just came in. It's about the Uesugi... and Saburo," Ren said, smiling. Hayakawa's eyes widened, as she quickly began reading through the report.

"The Uesugi and the Oda fought at Tedorigawa. The Uesugi routed their forces with a water attack, and scored a massive victory. Saburo played a big part in the battle and fought alongside Lord Kenshin and the others," Ren said, unable to contain the joy and relief in his voice.

"Saburo... I'm so glad," Hayakawa said, as small tears formed in her eyes. "Thank goodness he's still doing okay. It's been so long since we've heard about him".

"Yeah. It looks like he's doing really well for himself, and he's really become part of their family. Honestly I'm really happy for him, yet part of me is kind of sad," Ren said.

"I know how you feel, but all that matters is that he's safe," Hayakawa said, putting a hand on his shoulder reassuringly.

"Yeah, you're right. It's just been so long since we've seen him is all. I really miss him," Ren said.

"I know. It's been a long time. I'm sure he misses you the most. You were his favorite after all," Hayakawa said.

"His favorite? Are you sure? I don't think so..." Ren said, confused.

"Are you kidding? He always followed you everywhere. He never stopped asking you to play and train together," Hayakawa said, giggling at remembering her brother's attitude towards Ren.

"Hey brother! Come on! Teach me some moves again!"

"Brother! What are you reading? Can you show me?"

"Come on, Brother! I'm not done yet! Don't hold back on me!"

Ren thought back to all the times the two had spent together, and he knew his sister had a point. Of all his siblings, with exception of Hayakawa herself, there was no one closer to him than Saburo, who was always by his side from the day Ren joined their family. His younger brother's sincere smile and determination was always something that brightened his day.

"I guess we were always pretty close. He was the first one who was really a true brother to me. Knowing him, he's probably giving his all for his new family just as he did for us. I hope that we'll see him again one day," Ren said softly.

"No doubt we will. I'm sure of it. For now, let's just do our best just like him. Here let's finish up everything," Hayakawa said. Ren nodded to her before the two started on the stack of forms on the table. As they began their work in the dim candlelight, Tsunashige, who was leaning against the wall outside the room, smiled. He got up and began heading down the hall with their voices slowly getting further away. Making his way out to the front of the castle, he was met with a soft breeze gently blowing through his body. Looking up, he saw the bright moon shining down on him which illuminated the city in front of him. He walked through the gate leading out of the main ward where he was greeted by two guards who were on duty. Looking to his side, he watched the large city before him. The streets were quiet with few people out and about aside from the occasional tavern which held the voices of some rowdy people inside. The city was lit by many lanterns and torches which swayed as the wind breezed through them. The few people he passed by all greeted him respectfully in cheerful yet tired voices, as he continued his way. After about half an hour of walking, he reached the stables. Passing by several horses, he reached Ren's horse, Tatsu, who woke up upon noticing Tsunashige's presence. It gave him a wary glare, as he smiled at it.

"Still quite the stubborn one, aren't you? Even after all these years," Tsunashige chuckled. It gave a low cry before resting its head back down to slowly return to it's slumber.

Shaking his head amusingly, he moved on to the horse in the pen beside it. It was slightly smaller than Ren's Storm Runner, but it was still a quality horse. It's chestnut brown hair shined brightly under the dim lighting in the pen. It's healthy looking posture and it's strong muscular body made it stand out from most of the other horses available. Nodding in approval, Tsunashige gave it's head a soft pat before leading it outside. Once there, he strapped his signature yellow Hachiman banner to it's saddle where it stood proudly under the night. With that, Tsunashige smiled with satisfaction before jumping on.

He rode through the city until finally the outer gates came into view. Squinting, he saw the outline of Ujiyasu standing beside the gate along with several guards. He was reading through a scroll that he held. Tsunashige was just about able to make out a small smile on the man's face before he looked up towards Tsunashige. Stopping the horse in front of the gate, Tsunashige greeted his lord.

"You know you didn't have to head out tonight, right?," Ujiyasu asked. Tsunashige shook his head.

"I know, but it's best to take care this quickly before anything happens. Besides, seeing the young master and everyone working so hard lately makes me want to get out and get things done too," Tsunashige said.

"Is that right?" Ujiyasu said, as he rolled up the report in his hands.

"I see you are quite pleased with the latest report," Tsunashige said, smiling.

"Eh. It's fine. With this, the Oda will be set back quite a bit, and we can finally breathe a little," Ujiyasu said in a bored tone.

"Is that all? What did you think about Lord Saburo?" Tsunashige asked with a smirk.

"Hm? Oh right. Looks like he did a good job. I'm happy for him," Ujiyasu said nonchalantly. Despite his uninterested expression, Tsunashige could easily see through him. He knew all too well that there was no one happier to see Saburo mentioned in the report than him.

"Tsk. That's all you have to say, huh? You never change even after all this time although I guess that's not a bad thing," Tsunashige said, chuckling at his lord's stubbornness.

"I have no idea what you're talking about," Ujiyasu said, looking away, as he pulled out his pipe.

"Yeah, yeah. Well I'll be on my way. I should be arriving at Hachiōji Castle by later tomorrow," Tsunashige said.

"All right. Good luck, although knowing you, you probably won't need it," Ujiyasu said. Tsunashige flashed him a big smile before taking the reins on his horse. The horse quickly raced through the gates and it wasn't long until Ujiyasu could no longer see the yellow clad man under the moonlit fields ahead.

(Hachiōji Castle, Kanto)

By the next day, after a long night of riding, Tsunashige finally reached his destination. As he approached the front gate of the castle, he saw the two generals in command, Kenmotsu Yokoji and Terumoto Otoishi, awaiting his arrival.

"Lord Tsunashige!" Terumoto yelled while waving his hand.

Tsunashige quickly stopped once he reached the two, and jumped down from his horse.

"Kenmotsu. Terumoto. Sorry to keep you two waiting," Tsunashige apologized.

"Not at all, my lord. We're the ones who should be sorry for calling you out so suddenly," Kenmotsu said, bowing to him.

"Don't worry about it. I know the situation must be serious for you two to ask for my help. These aren't your ordinary bandits, are they?" Tsunashige asked. Kenmotsu shook his head, as the three began walking into the castle. Once inside the main hall of the castle, Kenmotsu led the two towards a large map which hung against the wall. It held the details of the castle and some of the surrounding area including the closest rivers and cliffs.

"As you saw in our report, the bandits came from the west about six days ago. From what we've seen, their numbers are much larger than a normal group of bandits with about four thousand in numbers," Kenmotsu said, crossing his arms.

"Four thousand? How did a mere bandit group gather so many?" Tsunashige asked, surprised.

"We believe they were originally multiple groups that merged into one after being driven out by other clans such the Oda and Uesugi. So far they haven't made a move yet, and have been wary of getting too close to the castle," Terumoto said.

"I see. That's good for us. They may be mere bandits, but with those numbers, they could be a real nuisance for us in a full battle. I can see why you asked for my help," Tsunashige said while scratching his mustache.

"Yes. We were thinking of launching a surprise attack on them before they have a chance to cause any trouble. With your help, it should be no problem," Kenmotsu said, determined.

"All right then. I think I'll head down to their camp myself and take a look. After I come back, we'll plan our next move," Tsunashige said.

"Very well, my lord. They have set up camp to the west of the castle between the two hills to the side of the main road," Kenmotsu said, pointing to the area on the map.

Taking note of the area, Tsunashige began to set out of the castle with the two generals seeing him off. Getting on his horse, the veteran quickly rode through the west gate. As he rode through the town on the outside, many of the people all gave him a wave, and greeting as they passed him. He smiled back at them as he continued to ride down the road until he reached the vast fields of wheat and paddies on the outskirts of Hachiōji. The farmers lit up upon seeing the general, as they called out to him. As he waved back at them, he failed to notice someone further down the road. Suddenly a long object was launched towards the man. It swiftly hit the ground right beside the hoof of his horse. Startled by the sudden object's close impact, his horse bucked and raised it's body, taking the man by surprise and nearly throwing him off. It continued to flail it's body around, causing his banner to be waved around violently with it.

"W-Whoah! Calm down!" Tsunashige yelled out while pulling on the reins to get it to settle down. After several seconds of him holding tightly onto the reins, the horse's rampant stomping and cries came to an end.

Letting out a sigh of relief, he gently pet the horse's neck before looking down at the ground. Inspecting the pole that was embedded in the ground, Tsunashige pulled it out to see that it was a rusted shovel. Raising his brow, he stared at the shovel for a while before many of the farmers ran up to check on him.

"Lord Tsunashige, are you alright?" an elderly man asked in a worried tone.

"Yeah, it's nothing. Don't worry. But what's this all about?" he asked while holding up the shovel. The peasants were just as surprised as he was upon inspecting the tool. Watching them from afar, a short figure began walking towards the crowd from down the road.

"Hey, old man! Over here!" a young voice called out.

Tsunashige raised his brow, as he turned to the voice ahead. Looking down the road, he caught the sight of a young boy with fierce glare on his face. He seemed no older than twelve with short brown hair, and chestnut colored eyes. He had a fair build for someone so young which clearly showed in his sleeveless grey shirt and shorts which were covered in dirt.

"Hey kid. Are you the one who threw this?" Tsunashige asked, holding up the shovel for him to see.

"Yeah, I am. I'm challenging you to a fight, old man," the boy said in a mocking tone.

"Oh?" Tsunashige said, amused.

"Takeshi! What do you think you're doing?! How dare you pull something like that on Lord Tsunashige?" the old farmer asked angrily.

"Does your mother know what you're doing? Apologize immediately!" an middle aged woman in a kimono said, glaring at the boy.

"This is between me and the old man. You all stay out of this!" Takeshi said in a stubborn tone.

"So you all know who this boy is?" Tsunashige asked.

"His name is Takeshi Kusakabe. He and his mother work the fields just a little ways down. He's always been a very stubborn boy who causes trouble every once in a while, but this is too much even for him," the old man sighed.

"I hear you're pretty strong old man, so fight me! I bet I can take you on, no problem," the boy taunted.

"Look kid. As interesting as your offer sounds, I'm busy at the moment. Just stay out of trouble, alright?" Tsunashige winked at him.

"Hey, wai-" he was quickly cut off by Tsunashige quickly bucking his horse and riding past him.

"Hey! Come back!" the boy yelled out angrily. Tsunashige smirked as he waved his hand back at him.

After about half an hour of riding, Tsunashige arrived atop a steep cliff. Upon looking down, he was greeted by the sight of his target. At the bottom of the cliff lied a vast opening. The sight of the opening was caught between two cliffs with only two narrow entrances on the east and western sides. Within the area were countless tents and shacks which could easily hold a force of a few thousand. Light puffs of smoke rose up from the several campfires set throughout the place.

"Hmm, That's quite a few down there. The only two entrances are far too narrow for an assault. They could easily defend those bottlenecks with just some spearmen and archers. This could be trouble," Tsunashige sighed, as he carefully surveyed the area. At first glance, their defenses seemed sound, and just as he was about to give up, something caught his eye. At the very corner of the camp, there was a steep slope leading up the cliff. It's angle made it far too difficult and inefficient to make it a path up the hill, but moving down however...

"Perfect"

Smirking, he nodded to himself before double checking the hill. Upon confirming his suspicions, he quickly began riding back towards the castle. Eventually, he reached the fields from before, and waiting for him in the middle of the road was the same child from before. With his arms crossed, he glared up at the general.

"Took you long enough to get back, old man," Takeshi said.

"Takeshi, right? I don't get you're trying to do, but I like that look in your eye. All right, I'll humor you this time," Tsunashige said, hopping down from his mount.

"Finally," the boy said, a devious smile forming on his face, as he cracked his knuckles.

"I'm in a bit of rush, so let's make this quick, shall we?" Tsunashige said, cracking his neck.

"Oh, it's going to be quick all right!" the boy immediately bolted from his spot with his arms raised.

Throwing a punch straight for Tsunashige's face, the older man moved his hand to block, but just before contact was made, Takeshi stopped his attack. Swiftly dashing to Tsunashige's exposed side, Takeshi raised his leg up for a kick which met Tsunashige's forearm just shy of his target.

"(He's fast...)"

Pulling back, he jumped up into the air, his body blocking the sun which made it difficult for Tsunashige to see. He brought his leg down for a downward hammer kick. Tsunashige crossed his arms to block the strike which sent a loud smack upon impact which could be heard all over the fields.

"You're not bad kid, I'm impressed, but I'm afraid I can't play for too much longer," Tsunashige said before grabbing his leg. Takeshi's eyes widened, as suddenly he was spun around rapidly by the leg. It was fast enough that he almost had the urge to vomit before the man let go. He was thrown down the road while skidding against his back. Letting out a low groan, he felt a rising pain in his back, as he slowly raised his neck. To his surprise, he had been thrown down at least eight meters from the man, who flashed a smile at him.

"Alright, that was fun. I should probably get going now," he said.

"No way... I'm not done yet!" Takeshi said, forcing himself back up. Picking up the shovel beside him, he placed both his hands on top of each other in the middle of the pole which made Tsunashige confused.

"What an odd grip. He's holding it like a sword, yet from the middle like that?" before Tsunashige could ponder on it any longer, Takeshi was once more upon him. He brought the shovel down with astounding speed. Tsunashige jumped back just in time to evade, and watched as the shovel slammed against the ground, the metal ringing against the earth.

Not stopping there, he kept his momentum by sliding the blade against the ground until finally bringing it over his head and circling down towards Tsunashige. The man narrowly dodged with the edge of the shovel nearly scraping his nose. Despite missing, the boy did relent, but instead continued his momentum, not stopping even once as he kept bringing the shovel around in a continuous sequence from every angle possible.

"Hm, what an interesting technique," Tsunashige said casually while moving side to side. The attacks kept coming from above, below, the side, and with each rotation, the speed of his strike steadily grew. He could clearly see the boy's composed face with a light glisten of sweat adorning his forehead. His breath grew constantly more strained as he kept moving despite the growing power behind his blows. After having seen countless years of battles, he knew all too well when someone was overexerting themselves. Without a doubt the boy would reach his limit soon. Seeing this, the man decided to bring an end to their little spar. Right as the shovel came around once more, Tsunashige grabbed the pole just below the spade just before it hit him. The boy's eyes widened upon seeing how easily his momentum was halted by the man.

"As much as this has been, I'm afraid we should stop here," Tsunashige said, winking. Before the boy could retort, he was stuck by an overwhelming force to his stomach. Imbuing his body with Musou, Tsunashige pushed his palm against the boy's abdomen with blinding speed. In an instant, the boy was sent flying back before crashing into the ground on his stomach. He coughed in pain, as a burning sensation was left where his stomach was hit. Slowly opening his eyes, he couldn't believe how far away he was sent by that single attack.

"H-How?" Takeshi moaned out. He attempted to get back up, but there wasn't any strength left in his arms.

"Don't worry, I only hit you with enough force to stun you for a bit. You'll be fine in a couple minutes," Tsunashige said before sticking his shovel into the ground. He was about to go check up on the boy, but stopped upon seeing someone coming down the road. Squinting, he saw the figure of a slim, middle aged woman. She had brown hair tied into a bun and a light blue kimono.

"Takeshi!"

She quickly ran up to the boy on the ground before running a hand along his back.

"Mother? What are you doing here," he said in a hard voice between deep breaths.

"What am I doing? I've been looking for you, you troublemaker," she said angrily. Looking up, her eyes widened upon seeing Tsunashige walking over to her.

"That armor... those colors... your Lord Tsunashige, aren't you. I-I'm so sorry. Did my son cause you trouble?" she asked meekly. Chuckling, the man shook his head.

"Not at all. He said he wanted to spar with me, and seeing how spirited he was, I couldn't refuse," the man said. She looked back down at the boy with narrow eyes. He could clearly see the anger in them before turning his head away.

"Honestly. You always cause trouble, but this time is ridiculous. How dare you bother the general like that? Apologize!" she demanded. The boy groaned, as he steadily rose to his feet, slightly swaying from side to side as he did so.

"Urk... I'm sorry. But this isn't over!" he exclaimed before being hit by his mothers fist on the top of the head. He grasped his head in pain, as she felt a vein rising on her forehead.

"Alright! That's enough. Go home now!" she said, pouting angrily. Sighing, he picked up his shovel and headed down the road, but not before taking one last glance at the elderly general.

Once he was out of sight, the woman sighed.

"Honestly, that boy... I'm so sorry about him, general," bowing as she apologized.

"Hehe, don't worry about it. He was certainly quite interesting. May I ask where he learned those moves from? I've never seen anything like it before," Tsunashige asked.

"Oh, that... Well, he's actually self taught. Everyday after tending to the fields, he does this training regiment of his alone. He says it just comes naturally to him," she said.

"Really now? That's quite interesting. Why does he do it though? Isn't it a bit odd for a boy his age to work on something like that? He had a level of strength and speed that certainly isn't natural for someone so young," Tsunashige asked.

"Well... it's something he's been doing ever since his father passed away..." she said, as her eyes grew dim.

"Oh... I'm sorry to hear that. You don't have to tell me if it's too painful," the man said softly, but she shook her head.

"No, it's alright. I think you deserve to know since he came to fight you and everything. His father was actually a soldier for the clan, but he lost his life in a battle against the Satake several years ago. He was still so young back then and it really affected him," she explained, sighing upon remembering what happened.

"I see... I'm so sorry," the man said, bowing.

"Don't be. He died protecting the land he loved. He was always such a kind and strong man. Takeshi always looked up to him. After his death, he's taken on all of the responsibilities around the fields himself. Not only that, but he's formed an obsession about getting stronger. He challenges people who he thinks are strong to try and get better. Of course that just ends up with him getting into trouble. I'm worried about what'll happen to him in the future," the woman said while rubbing her head.

"So that's why... Don't worry about him. He's still young and has been through a lot. I'm sure he'll be fine once he gets older," Tsunashige said reassuringly.

"I wonder about that..." the woman was not convinced, as she shook her head.

"I'll tell you what. After I've dealt with all my business, I'll come and pay you a visit. I'll have a talk with him for you," Tsunashige offered. The woman was surprised and quickly brought her hands up.

"N-No, that isn't necessary! I couldn't bear to bother you like that," she said frantically. The man simply laughed it off.

"It's nothing, believe me! I've dealt with all of Ujiyasu's children as well countless youngsters in the army. I know all too well how hot blooded some are, trust me," the man said, his eyes full of nothing but confidence.

"Well... if you really don't mind then I will take you up on your offer. Thank you so much, my lord, and please help my son" she moved to bow to him, but he quickly stopped her.

"Don't worry about it, ma'am. Just go home and rest easy for now. I'll come in a few days," Tsunashige said. Nodding, she thanked him once more before heading off in the direction that Takeshi left. With all of that settled, Tsunashige quickly hopped on his horse and resumed his return to the castle, all the while unaware of the light clouds of dust that formed in the hills he was at previously.

O-O

"Ah, Lord Tsunashige, you've returned," Terumoto said joyfully upon seeing the man walk in.

"Yes, I got a good look at the bandits camp. Their force is as large as you said," Tsunashige said, sighing.

"So how should we handle them? I doubt a direct assault would be smart," Kenmotsu said, scratching his chin. Tsunashige shook his head.

"The terrain at the sight wouldn't allow it. There are only two narrow entrances between the cliffs which would make it simple for them to defend. We would rack up far too many casualties like that," Tsunashige explained. "However, there is a weakness".

The two of them immediately looked up at the general.

"While it is true that the entrances to the clearing of their camp is well guarded, there is another route we can take. If we do this right, we'll sweep them aside easily when they least expect it," Tsunashige said.

"Oh? Please explain, sir," Terumoto said with a glint of hope in his eyes. Walking over to the map, Tsunashige pointed to a certain spot.

"The two cliffs on either side of the camp are steep and treacherous, however there is a spot where the hill is just a little flatter that leads down. The incline is far too raised to effectively go up, however, to go down is a different story. If our forces move around to the other side of the cliff here, we can rush down swiftly into the camp," Tsunashige said, smiling.

"Ah! I see. If this works, we can take them down in no time flat. Their forces won't see it coming," Terumoto said.

"Indeed. And if we can place two units outside of each exit to lie in wait for when they retreat in a panic, they won't have anywhere to go! Victory will ours," Kenmotsu said in an excited tone.

"Precisely. We should prepare the forces soon. I'll lead a few thousand cavalry for the raid, and you two can guard the two exits with infantry and archers," Tsunashige proposed. The two men nodded in approval.

"Sounds good. We'll have the men prepared. Let's launch our plan into action tomorrow. The longer we wait, the less-"

"Generals!"

Before Kenmotsu could finish his sentence, the three men looked over to a soldier who came rushing in. Panic was clear on his face, as he dropped to his knee before them.

"What's the matter?" Kenmotsu asked.

"It's terrible! T-The bandits have attacked!" the man said.

"What?!" Terumoto said, shooting up from his seat.

"They came out of nowhere and tried to storm the city. Our guards were able to fight them off, however, they took multiple hostages from the fields on the outskirts of the city!" the man said. Tsunashige immediately froze up.

"They took hostages? How many were taken? Was anyone hurt?" Tsunashige asked, trying to keep his composure.

"From what our guards found, no one was killed, but virtually everyone who resided in the western field were taken. I would say nearly a hundred were taken to their camp," the man reported.

"Those cowards!" Kenmotsu yelled, slamming his fist into the table causing it to shake violently.

Tsunashige couldn't find any words as his heart sank. I felt his spine tingling as he remembered all the people he passed by earlier. Especially Takeshi and his mother.

"Please... help my son"

"Damn it!" Tsunashige said under his breath. He quickly stormed out while grabbing his spear. His expression was one filled with anger and determination. The three others in the room quickly tried to catch up to him.

"My lord! What are you doing?" Terumoto said while struggling to keep up with the veteran. The older man's pace was rapid with each step firm enough to shake the floor beneath them.

"I'm going ahead. The longer we wait, the more of a disadvantage we'll be in. Besides, they won't expect retaliation so quick after their attack," Tsunashige said. Once he reached outside, he quickly jumped onto his horse and looked down at the two generals.

"We'll proceed with our plan immediately. I'll leave it to you two to prepare the forces. Head over to the camp once you're ready. I'll head in first," Tsunashige said.

"My lord! That's far too dangerous. They may just be bandits, but there's still far too many. Not only that, but they'll have all of the hostages there!" Terumoto warned.

"I know... but if I can't even protect these people now, how can I do anything in worse times? How could I face my brother? Just leave it to me. I'm Tsunashige after all," Tsunashige said, flashing them a confident smile before immediately riding out the castle.

O-O

(Bandit Camp, Western Hachiōji)

"Damn those Hōjō. Their defenses are more sound than I thought. For a bunch of cowards, they sure know how to fight," a large man said. It was clear that he was the leader of the group by his large frame and fear from his subordinates around him. He was easily over six feet tall with a bandana covering the top of his head. His clothes and armor were worn and tattered with many pieces missing. On his back was a large double sided ax with many chips and scratches adorning the blade. He said in the middle of tent surrounded by many other bandits, each of whom appeared to have different banners behind them.

"Boss, what should we do now? After that attack, surely they'll come for us," one of his subordinates said nervously.

"They wouldn't dare. They Hōjō are too soft especially when it comes to their own people. With all of the hostages we've taken, they won't move against us. We'll use them to gain an advantage. As long as we can claim a city for ourselves that'll give us the base we need. Besides the terrain is to our advantage. We'll mow them down if they dare attack," the man said grinning.

The others nodded in agreement. Just then, there was a loud yell which came from outside. It was then followed by more sounds of commotion. Raising his brow, the leader walked outside the tent, and saw a large crowd ahead in the area where they kept the prisoners.

"Argh!" a bandit cried out before being sent to the ground.

Before him was Takeshi surrounded by a pile of wounded bandits on the ground. Behind them was the large crowd of the abducted villagers who were all huddled up together in fear. Many of the children tightly clutched onto their parents while the adults could only look on, each too afraid to say a word. They were surrounded by many bandits who had their weapons pointed at the crowd, yet they didn't dare get too close to the boy.

"Is that all you got?!" Takeshi taunted while raising his bloodied fists. Despite his age, he handily took down many of the bandits which made the others wary of getting too close. They could only look on, as the boy shot them a fierce glare. His breathing was heavy, as he looked on fearlessly at his captors. Just as the bandits were about to charge at him, they were stopped by who they saw behind them. Clearing a path, the bandits had a look of fear as their leader came forward. His frame towered over the boy, as well as his subordinates. He gave a look of disgust to the other bandits, who immediately broke into a cold sweat.

"What the hell is going on out here?" he asked in low tone.

"B-Boss! We were watching the prisoners as you said, but this kid-" he immediately froze up once the taller man's eyes met his.

"You all managed to escape being hunted down by the damn Oda, yet a little kid is too much for you?!" he yelled out, causing his subordinates to flinch. He then turned his attention to Takeshi, who was unfazed by the arrival of the man.

"So brat, what do you think you're doing?" the man said, grinning at the boy. Takeshi smugly smiled.

"So you're the boss of the goons, huh? You've got a lot of nerve taking all these people like this. Taking you down will be interesting," Takeshi said, cracking his fists.

"Ha, you've got some guts. A little brat who doesn't know his place," the leader said, his eye twitching.

"Is that all you've got to say?!" Takeshi quickly rushed towards the taller man. Throwing a punch forward, he expected to make contact, but his eyes widened upon feeling the man's grip on his wrist before hitting.

"What was that you were saying, brat?" before Takeshi could respond, he was yanked up by the arm. Immediatly after, the leader sent a powerful uppercut to the boy's stomach with enough force that it made him spit out blood which splattered on the ground below him. He then did it again twice before dropping the boy on his stomach with a loud thud. Takeshi continued to cough up more blood, as felt a burning sensation on his whole front area. He groaned, as his vision started to get blurry. All he could see was the boss's feet, as he lacked the strength to even lift his head.

"All that talk, and this is all you have? Huh?!" the man said before sending a swift kick to his ribs, causing the boy to cry out in pain. The man continued to kick over and over again, one of them causing a cracking noise to ring out.

"Takeshi!" The boy's mother quickly pushed her way through the crowd to see her son. Seeing his beaten body on the ground, she attempted to run over to him, but the other villagers quickly held her back.

"Takeshi! Stop it!" she cried out as tears started streaming down her face.

"M-Mother. Don't..." he said weakly between groans as the man continued to abuse his battered form. The looked over to the crying woman before ceasing his beating.

"Oh? The mother of this brat, huh? Well now, this is a good opportunity. Bring her over here," he ordered. One of guards immediately complied and wrested her away from the crowd. Pulling out a sword, he raised it to her neck before forcing her to stand next to the boss. Seeing her son's condition up close only made her more tearful, as the man tightened his grip on her.

"All of you, watch closely. This is what happens when you defy us. And you, watch closely what happens to your son," the man said before reaching for the ax on his back.

"W-Wait?! Don't!" she cried out. She tried to struggle, but was unable to get out of the man's grip resulting in her neck digging against the blade. Blood slowly started dripping down, as she tearfully attempted to do anything she could.

The boy's vision started to black out, and was barely able to make out anything that was going on. Even his mothers cries were starting to fade out, yet he could still hear them. Seeing her crying face, he couldn't help but think back to when they had just found out about his father's death in battle. She had the exact same face that day, as she did now and it caused a whole wellspring of emotions to start coming up.

"M-Mother... I'm sorry," Takeshi could barely get out those words through a raspy voice. The man let out a small "hmph" as he pulled out the ax.

"Tch. How pathetic. All that talk, and you were still just an stupid brat. This is what happens when weaklings like you don't know your place," he spat out before raising the ax over his head.

"NO! STOP!" she started to thrash about uncontrollably with the guard struggling to keep her place. Tears were streaming endlessly down her face, mixing with the blood on her neck.

Takeshi could just about raise his neck by the slightest angle to see the shine of the ax against the light of the setting sun. He didn't feel any fear from what he saw which wasn't only because of the massive waves of pain flowing throughout his being. All he felt was regret.

"(Father... I'm so sorry. I'm still so weak...)" With that last thought, he was prepared for what was about to come next, as he closed his eyes. The crowd could only watch on in horror with many in tears. Some were even trying to break against the guards who tried to keep them back, but to no avail. All of them were forced to watch as their leader's ax came to a stop above his head. The man grinned as he tightened his grip. Takeshi expected the cries and pleas of his mother and acquaintances to cut to nothing, but instead he heard something. It was the sound of flesh being ripped through, but not his own.

"Arrgh!" the boss cried out. Soon after, a loud object hit the ground beside him. Opening his eyes, the boy was shocked to see that he was still among the world of the living. Blood dripped down to the ground in front of him. Looking up, he saw the bandit leader grasping his arm in pain. Right in his forearm was a bloodied arrow which pierced all the way through.

Before he could even tell what was going on, the sound of another arrow ripping through the air was detected by him. In the next instant, the arrow lodged it's way directly into the forehead of the guard who was restraining his mother. He could let out a confused groan as something wet started streaming down his face and his vision started to go red. His body got limp and immediately fell over, freeing the woman. She didn't even question what happened, instead she immediately ran over to her son.

"Takeshi! Takeshi! Are you hurt?" she asked between sobs.

"Yeah... I'm sorry mom..." he groaned out, but she shook her head. Wrapping her arms around his body, she carefully lifted him up to his knees.

"B-Bos-" another bandit was cut short by yet another arrow piercing his chest. Soon enough, eight more shots followed it, each hitting their mark's chest head on. The leader painfully looked up to see all of the guards who were keeping the hostages back shot. All of their bodies quickly hit the ground with blood seeping out of their wounds, onto the ground below.

"What the hell?" he groaned out while continuing to clutch his arm. All of the bandits behind him were just as confused as he was until they all heard something approaching. Looking around, they could hear the sound of hooves riding closer yet none of them could tell where it was coming from. As it got closer, everyone within the camp looked up in the same direction. Coming rapidly down the hill beside where they all were was Tsunashige with his bow in hand, and his banner flying proudly behind him. Upon reaching the bottom, his horse jumped over the side, flying over many of the bewildered bandits before landing in front of Takeshi and his mother with a loud bang. Tsunashige had his back to them while he glared at the bandits in front of him.

"L-Lord Tsunashige?" Takeshi's mother couldn't believe what she was seeing.

"Sorry I got here so late. Don't worry, I'll handle this," he said while putting his bow away in the saddle.

"Y-You can't be serious... you can't take them on by yourself," Takeshi said in a pained voice before doubling over from the pain in his side with his mother catching him.

"Hah... That's rich coming from you. Didn't you just try and take them on by yourself?" Tsunashige said, giving him a smug look. With no comeback in mind, Takeshi could only look away.

"Psst! Thought so. All of you stay together, I'll protect you. Watch closely, kid. I'll show you how a warrior of the Hōjō does it," Tsunashige said, as he reached for his spear. Brandishing the blade in front of the bandits, he allowed his Musou to flow through him, causing the pressure in the area to suddenly increase. Since there were no other users of it in the area, everyone was at loss as to why the atmosphere changed so suddenly.

"Who the hell is this old geezer?" the leader cursed while keeping his hand on the arrow embedded within him. The other bandits around him gasped as they got a closer look at the man.

"N-No way... That Hachiman banner, and those colors. That's Tsunashige Hōjō!" one of them panicked. Upon hearing his words, the others began to hesitate as well. Seeing this, the leader began to get angrier.

"What the hell are you all so afraid of?! He's all alone and either way, he's just some old man! Hurry up and kill him or else!" the leader commanded. At his order, they all set aside their hesitation. With a loud cry, the bandits began to swarm towards Tsunashige.

Without wasting a second, Tsunashige thrusted his spear towards the one closest to him. Embedding the spear into his chest, the bandit groaned in pain before suddenly he felt his body being lifted up. Tsunashige used his spear to push the bandit back, tossing him away which caused him to crash into multiple others behind him. With three more coming from his left side, Tsunashige easily swept all three in a single slash which was so sudden that it caused them to let go of their spears in the air before they fell. Seeing them, Tsunashige hit them in midair, launching them to the side which skewered yet another three bandits. Sensing anther wave of spears being lunged towards him, Tsunashige quickly bent forward, which caused two spears to fly over his back. While he was down, he thrust his spear back, instantly killing the two. When twelve more bandits came forward from the front, left, and right at the same time, they moved in unison and brought their spears down on him which he blocked. While in the blade lock, they continued to push down against and at this point they were overpowering him enough to make him arch his back on the horse with each of the blades getting closer to his face.

While this was happening, the bandit leader ripped out the arrow in his arm with pained cry. While ignoring the blood erupting from his wound, he reached down for his ax and watched the battle unfolding. He growled under his breath before calling for one of his men.

Back with Tsunashige, while the enemy began to overpower him, he looked to the side to see many more rushing over. Knowing that he didn't have much time before they would reach him, he decided to go all out and unleashed his Musou around his body. In an instant, he took the bandits off guard by overpowering them so easily, and pushing back. With one powerful push, he knocked their weapons back and while they were recoiling, he cut them each down in an instant.

Takeshi, who was still watching the battle before him, suddenly got a glimpse of something flashing before him. As he watched Tsunashige fight, he saw something light blue fading in and out of the man's body. Thinking he was hallucinating, he rubbed his eyes, but could still see the light energy fading in and out every couple of seconds. His mother noticed the strange look he had on his face.

"Takeshi? What's wrong? Are your injuries getting worse?" she asked worriedly, but he shook his head.

"No, it's nothing," Takeshi replied. "(Just what am I seeing?)"

While Tsunashige was still fighting his way through the bandits, he had to occasionally take a look back to see how the villagers were doing. He noticed Takeshi giving him a strange look, but had to ignore it after another spear came close to his face. Taking the reins, his horse raised it's body up, and while there, Tsunashige thrust his spear down, piercing the shoulder of the soldier under the horse. Pulling it out, the blood splattered against the eyes of the ones closest to him, temporarily blinding them. Using that opportunity, he swiped his spear against all another group of five, sending them backwards. As he continued to cut down more and more, the bandits started to get more frightened by the man's strength, until suddenly they stopped upon seeing something behind them. In that moment, they stopped in their tracks without a single one making another move towards Tsunashige. Wiping some sweat off of his brow, he could see the bandits clearing a path down the middle and from it, a rider came forward. It was the bandit's leader who had his long ax in his hand. He didn't waste a single moment before charging at the man while raising his massive ax over his head. Swinging down with tremendous force, Tsunashige thrust his spear to counter with the two blades meeting. The leader grinned, as he knew all too well that his strength combined with his massive ax would be able split through Tsunashige's weapon and reach it's mark just like all other adversaries before him. Unfortunately for him, Tsunashige was not like any of his previous foes.

"W-What?!" the leader couldn't believe what was happening. Despite pushing down on the pole of his ax with all of his strength, he couldn't budge it at all. It was also shocking that despite their weapons meeting at their tips, Tsunashige's spear wasn't broken yet. With him being the much larger of the two men, as well as his ax being far larger and thicker, he assumed that this clash should've ended by now, yet despite all of his efforts, he wasn't making a dent. Every vein in his body was pulsing at this point, as he tried to push down harder on his ax, but during this whole time, Tsunashige didn't seem like he was expending too much effort.

"How the hell are you doing this?!" the bandit asked angrily, but Tsunashige chuckled.

"You clearly haven't seen too much battle, have you? You think that just having a bigger weapon and muscle, you would win. Well let me show just how wrong you!" Tsunashige said before releasing even more of his Musou. The bandit leader suddenly felt a surge of invisible force pushing against him which unbeknownst to him, was flowing into Tsunashige's spear. It was then that he felt his heart stopping at the sound of a crack. He could tell from the vibrations from his pole that it wasn't Tsunashige's spear that was cracking, but his own. Looking up, he could see cracks forming along the entirety of his ax's blade. With one more push, Tsunashige completely broke through sending the pieces flying in every direction. The sudden shift in weight caused the bandit to lose his balance along his horse, and seizing his chance, Tsunashige brought his spear around and hit the bandit's horse by his neck with the flat of his spear. The horse panicked and quickly fell over causing the bandit to yell out, as he fell to the ground with his horse. Groaning, he tried to get up, but his body was too sore, and he couldn't get the horse to get back up either.

After seeing their leader defeated so easily, all of his underlings began to lose morale and kept their distance. Many of them were shaking with it clearly being seen in the way they held their weapons.

"N-No way... even the boss couldn't win"

"He's a monster! No wonder they say he is the incarnation of Hachiman!"

They all began backing away in fear. Seeing this the leader began to feel his blood boiling even hotter. Seeing the man looking down on him made seethe with rage, yet he wasn't such a fool that he would charge again after what just happened. It was then that his eyes caught the sight of the crowd behind the man. Many were cheering on the general while huddling together. Seeing this, the leader laughed.

"All of you, forget the geezer. Take the hostages! Now!" he roared. While hesitant at first, they realized that he was right. Despite the man's strength, there would be no way he could defend them all while fighting. Seeing another opportunity for victory, they let out another battle cry before charging at the villagers, who backed away in fear. Seeing the incoming horde ignoring him and aiming for the villagers, Tsunashige quickly rode over to intercept the crowd. Seeing that they were getting too close, Tsunashige quickly threw his spear forward. The moment it hit the ground in front of the bandits, a sudden bolt of lightning struck, instantly taking out everyone who was close to it. Those who were just out of range immediately stopped in their tracks. They were completely shocked by the sudden strike of lightning along with smoking bodies of their allies.

Using that moment of hesitation, Tsunashige rode through the crowd with his horse trampling and ramming those in it's way. Breaking through the crowd, Tsunashige quickly grabbed his spear and stood in front of the villagers.

"All of you, stay together behind me!" Tsunashige commanded. All of the people followed his orders and made sure to stay together. Takeshi's mother also helped Takeshi limp over with the rest of them. While walking past Tsunashige, Takeshi continued to see the strange energy on Tsunashige's body except now there were small sparks surrounding him and his spear. Just like before it was still continuously fading in and out of his vision, but now it wasn't fading out completely like before, rather it was steadily remaining more visible to him.

Soon enough, the bandits stopped hesitating and continued their charge. While they attacked, they made sure to come at every angle to try and get past the veteran. While he was cutting down those in front of him, he could see more coming in from the far left and right side getting past him. Unleashing another strike of lightning in front of him, he quickly jumped down from his horse. While he was still in the air, he embedded his spear into the ground and used it to send himself flying. Before the bandits could react, one of them was struck in the face with a kick from Tsunashige, who pulled out his spear slice the necks of the others. Not wasting a second, he tossed his spear to the other side of the incoming horde. The moment the blade dug into the ground, yet another burst of lightning ignited, taking out more bandits.

With his spear now far from him, two more bandits ran up to him with their spears for the finishing blow. As both thrust forward at the same time, Tsunashige skillfully grabbed both weapons at the points of the pole next to the metal. Using his strength, he pulled both towards him, making them lose their balance. He then pushed both poles back, making them pound against their chests which instantly incapacitated them. As soon as they were taken out, he used both of the spears to push back against the bandits, as he continuously fought his way through to reach his spear. Right as he came up to it, he threw both of the spears he was using to skewer multiple bandits who were only several feet away from the villagers.

After taking back his weapon, Tsunashige continued to fight against the crowd and while he was succeeding in cutting down tens of soldiers, it wasn't enough. With each one he cut down, two more would replace them. With him having to move from side to side to defend the villagers, he was quickly getting worn down, and was forced to slowly back closer to the villagers.

"(Damn it! They just keep coming! I can't keep this up!)" Tsunashige thought, as he kept crossing blades with the endless wave of bandits.

The ones he was protecting could see how hard he was fighting, but with no weapons or tools of their own, they could only watch helplessly and pray for him. Takeshi was more frustrated than anyone else, but as he tried to join the fight, the pain in his ribs quickly stopped him.

"Takeshi! You're too hurt, stop it!" his mother tried to stop him, but he wouldn't listen. As much as he wanted to fight, his body refused.

"I want to fight! How can I just watch and be a burden like thi-" he immediately bent over once the pain in his body reached even new heights. He quickly pounded his fist against the ground, as he cursed his weakness.

The bandit leader, who was watching the fight, had a large smile on his face, as he saw his incoming victory. By now, he was back on his horse with his wound bandaged up.

"Perfect. Taking out this old man, and taking out hostages, I can see our troubles ending," he said with the other commanders around him agreeing.

"If we take Tsunashige alive, I'm sure we can use him to get whatever we want from the Hōjō," one of them suggested. Thinking of the possibilities, the bandit leader couldn't help but smile even wider.

"Exactly. Finally all our troubles will be- hm?" Right then the bandit leader could hear something. Whatever it was, it was louder than the clash of weapons and battle cries in front of him. It sounded too familiar. It was then he realized that the sound was the sound of hooves, and knowing all too well that it couldn't have been his men, he looked up to the hill they were by. His eyes widened upon seeing the cause of the noise. All of the other bandits soon saw the same, and immediately they began to panic.

Coming from the same hill that Tsunashige used, was a massive Hōjō force consisting of hundreds of cavalry.

"Lord Tsunashige!" Terumoto called out, as he led the force. Seeing him, Tsunashige smiled, as the bandits he was holding off stopped.

"Perfect timing, Terumoto!" Tsunashige called out, as he wiped away the blood and sweat which covered his face.

Upon reaching the bottom of the hill, the cavalry crashed into the horde of bandits, instantly throwing them in chaos and confusion. The sudden attack caught all of the bandits by surprise, and it wasn't difficult to scatter out the bandits who were around Tsunashige. Terumoto stopped in front of Tsunashige and had several men to protect villagers.

"Is everyone all right?" Terumoto asked.

"Yeah, luckily no was hurt. If you hadn't arrived when you did then who knows what would have happened," Tsunashige let out a tired sigh.

"Goodness, my lord. That was far too reckless. Well at least things are alright now. We'll handle the bandits, you can stay here with these and protect them," Terumoto said to which Tsunashige agreed. Terumoto then rode off to join the attack with the rest of his men.

During this confusion, the bandit leader watched as his entire force was thrown into chaos.

"Boss! What do we do?!" one of them asked.

"Damn it! We're leaving! Everyone is to abandon the camp and meet up in the north!" The leader ordered before wasting no time in riding off first. The others panicked and tried to follow him. As he rode, he could feel his blood boiling over.

"Damn you, Hōjō! After I've suffered to escape the Oda, I refuse to be caught here!" he said to himself. After breaking through the western gate of the camp with his few remaining followers, he felt his heart stopping by what he saw after getting out of the cliffs. Standing before him was a long line of Hōjō soldiers and banners, as far as he could see. Kenmotsu stood at the front of them, as he raised his hand. The archers all drew their bows, and had them aimed at the bandits. All of his followers quickly fell to their knees and surrendered on the spot.

He could only watch in disgust as his followers gave up so easily. His grip on his ax tightened, but upon seeing another small unit of the Hōjō approaching him from where he had just came from, he knew that the rest of his followers had been captured or killed. His breathing became even more ragged at the sight. He wanted to fight through, but being fully surrounded, and without a single opening or follower left, he dropped his ax onto the ground with a loud bang. Looking down, he dismounted his horse and fell to his knees in defeat.

O-O

(3 Hours Later)

After a few hours of fighting, the battle came to an end. With their plan succeeding in trapping both sides of the camp, all of the remaining bandits were successfully rounded and captured. The remains of the camp were used to treat all of the wounded soldiers and villagers in the meantime before they could be escorted home. During this time, Takeshi was being looked at by a doctor with his mother close by. He was currently shirtless with many bandages covering his chest and sides with a small one on his cheek. The boy had a distant look on his face, as he watched the orange skies above him. He then looked over to see Tsunashige approaching them.

"How are you holding up?" Tsunashige asked. Takeshi eyed him up and down. The man's usual yellow and purple outfit was largely stained in dark red. The man's wrinkly face looked exhausted with dark circles under his eyes. Even so, he still kept a wide smile.

"His wounds aren't too serious. He just needs to get some rest and avoid too much straining activity for a while," the doctor reported. Nodding, Tsunashige dismissed the doctor, who proceeded to check on the other people.

"Lord Tsunashige, are you hurt?" Takeshi's mother asked with concern on her face. Looking down at his uniform, he laughed it off.

"Don't worry, ma'am. I didn't really get hurt. Just a little tired is all," Tsunashige said, reassuring her. He then looked back to Takeshi, who still seemed lost.

Turning to his mother, Tsunashige gave her a certain look. Looking back to Takeshi, she understood what he wanted, and bowed to him before leaving. Turning his attention back to the boy, Tsunashige took a seat next to him.

"So... how are you feeling right now?" Tsunashige asked. Letting out a long sigh, Takeshi looked back down.

"How do I feel? I feel so pathetic right now," Takeshi said.

"How so?" Tsunashige asked.

"I always thought that I could become stronger. That I could take on anyone, but when I got pummeled by that bandit, he was right. I am nothing. Then I was just a burden forced to watch as you protected us," Takeshi said, tightening his grip on the chair.

"I see... so tell me, why are you so obsessed with getting stronger? What do you want to do with that strength?" Tsunashige asked in a serious tone.

"My father... he was a soldier for the Hōjō. He was also so strong and looked after us, but then... he died. I thought then, if even my father could be killed then what could I do? With him gone, who was going to look after mother? Who could protect us? If even my father wasn't strong enough, who could look after us if the same were to happen to the Hōjō?" Takeshi said, rubbing his eyes.

"Ah... I see now. So you've been wanting to become strong so you could look after your people in the place of your father, huh? That's why you've been getting into trouble and fights so you could learn. While I admire your determination, you're going about it all wrong," Tsunashige said.

"Tsk, what would you know? As strong as you are, I doubt you understand what I'm going through," Takeshi said, looking away. Tsunashige chuckled.

"I understand more than you think. In fact, I used to be just like you," Tsunashige said. Takeshi looked back at him, confused.

"How so?" Takeshi asked. Smiling, Tsunashige thought back to times long past.

"Well you see, I am actually the son of an Imagawa clan retainer. When I was younger, I was adopted into the Hōjō by Lord Ujitsuna. When I arrived, I was so uncertain of everything, but he and his son, Ujiyasu, treated me kindly. They made me truly at home and for that, I wanted to do all I could to repay them for the kindness they showed me," Tsunashige said, smiling at the thoughts of those days. Takeshi was interested in his story, and looked at him with anticipation.

"When I started fighting in battles, I was quite the headstrong kid much like you, probably even more so. I was beyond reckless in everything I did, and I was lucky that I survived after all that. Hell, I even developed this habit of declaring victory right before battles started. Apparently it scared my enemies so much that they started calling me the incarnation of Hachiman, the god of war and archery," Tsunashige laughed.

"Is that why you carry that banner?" Takeshi asked.

"It was a little while before I started doing that. I was so desperate to stand out that I even started wearing these colors so that I would be recognized wherever I went. By then, I thought that I could do anything, take on any foe on my own, and make my father and brother proud. However, I soon learned better. I lost a couple battles here and there, and during that time, I cursed my weakness. I trained constantly, making sure I was always getting stronger, yet I still lost sometimes," Tsunashige said, sighing.

"Really? Even with your strength?" Takeshi asked, surprised to which Tsunashige nodded.

"Yeah. I was at a loss, but then my adopted father had a talk with me. He told me the reason for my losses was because I was too arrogant, and that even with my strength alone, it wasn't enough to win every battle. After most battles, he had always told me off even after winning that I suffered too many losses in men. At the time, I didn't think much of it since a victory was still victory to me. It was only after my heaviest losses that I finally began to understand what he meant. What he wanted me to learn was that no matter how strong you are, you can't win alone. He then started making me fight together with Ujiyasu and I found that I achieved much more with him than on my own. The same went with all of the other officers and not only that, but they felt so much better," Tsunashige said.

"Really? How so?" Takeshi asked.

"Because in those victories, I was able to share them together with my brother and allies. Returning home with them felt right, and it was then that I truly understood how to help my father and the Hōjō. It was to make sure that with every battle, I fought together with my allies, and made sure that we all came out of it together. That is what makes the Hōjō. That is what makes me strong. It was then that I started carrying the banner of Hachiman. I truly started to feel worthy of it, and in order to ensure that I don't tarnish his name, I fight all of my battles with my allies to the best of my abilities," Tsunashige said while giving Takeshi a serious look.

"Working together with everyone? Are you sure?" Takeshi asked, still uncertain of the man's advice.

"Think of the battle just now. If it wasn't for the arrival of Terumoto and the others, how do you think it would've ended. Not only would I have been overwhelmed, but you would have all been recaptured as well. As soon as they arrived, the battle turned in our favor, and we succeeded," Tsunashige explained.

"I suppose you're right... Even though as strong as you were, everything turned out alright because of everyone showing up," Takeshi said, looking down at his hands.

"Exactly. I understand you wanting to get stronger, but on your own, you can only go so far. You must work together with others and that is where your true strength will shine," Tsunashige said, reassuring him.

"Then I suppose, I've been going about it all wrong... I'm such a fool," Takeshi said, burying his face into his hands. Tsunashige gave him a soft pat on the shoulder.

"Not at all. You did what you did in order to protect those you love. There is no shame in that. As long as you know now, I'm sure you'll be fine," Tsunashige said softly. Putting his hands down, Takeshi shook his head. He then quickly stood up and stood in front of Tsunashige, who gave him a questioning look. He immediately dropped to his knees and bowed to him.

"Please... Lord Tsunashige. Become my mentor. I want to become stronger with you teaching me!" Takeshi said. Tsunashige was taken off guard by this.

"Look Takeshi, I'm flattered, but I can't," Tsunashige said. Takeshi wasn't yielding.

"I've seen first hand how strong you are. I know I'm asking a lot, but I want to learn from you, please!" Takeshi begged while ignoring the pain in his ribs. Sighing, Tsunashige couldn't deny the determination in his voice, but he still couldn't accept.

"I'm sorry, but the answer is still no. I'm a general of the Hōjō. I'm constantly dealing with battles all over, and not just that, but I'm also in charge of training many others in the army. You're still too young, and I wouldn't be able to give you the attention you want," Tsunashige explained.

"I'm not giving up! I refuse to get up from here until you accept even if I have to stay until my body breaks down!" Takeshi said. Tsunashige could see blood starting to coat his bandages on his side. Seeing how stubborn he was, he couldn't help but think back to his old self. Bursting into laughter, the man shook his head amusingly.

"Hahaha! You're really something, kid. Get up, you won't be able to start training until you get healed up and staying down there is only going to delay that," Tsunashige said, pulling him up. Takeshi gave him a hopeful look.

"S-So does that mean..."

"I won't be able to train you traditionally. I still have a duty to my clan. However, this is what I can do. Every time I'm in Hachiōji or have time to spare, I'll come and pay you a visit. We'll train as long as I have time. How does that sound?" Tsunashige asked, smiling.

"That's perfect! I'll be in your care, master!" Takeshi said in a determined voice.

"Good. After you've fully healed up, we'll start with basic strength and endurance training. From there, I'll figure a way to train up that odd fighting style of yours. Maybe even figure out a compatible weapon," Tsunashige said.

"I'm looking forward to it! Also, maybe you can teach me how to do that energy thing of yours," Takeshi suggested which made Tsunashige surprised.

"You were able to see that?" Tsunashige asked.

"A little bit. It faded in and out of my vision, but I could definitely tell it was there. It made you stronger, right?" Takeshi asked.

"Hehe... You've got a bit more potential than I thought. It'll certainly be interesting," Tsunashige said, patting the boy's shoulder. Right then, he heard a lot of commotion coming from the soldiers in the camp. Whatever was happening, they all seemed to be in an uproar.

"You should go back home for now, we'll talk another time," Tsunashige said. Takeshi nodded before heading off with his mother. Turning his attention to the soldiers, Tsunashige walked over to them to see what was happening. They were all in groups, looking at some kind of report. Finding Teruomoto, he saw that the general was sweating.

"Terumoto? What's going on?" Tsunashige asked.

"L-Lord Tsunashige. A new report just came in. Please take a look," Terumoto said, his voice quiet. Raising his brow, Tsunashige took the scroll. After reading for a couple seconds, the man's expression immediately changed from curiosity to shock.

"This cannot be..." He blinked a couple times to make sure he wasn't misreading it.

Kenshin Uesugi was dead.

And that is it with this chapter! Phew I didn't expect it to be this long, and this came out way later than I would've liked (Thanks college). Anyway I hope you guys enjoyed the chapter and look forward to the next one! What will happen next with the Uesugi? We'll see in the next chapter!