After hiding out all night in the shrine, avoiding the power of the Blood Moon and whatever cataclysms that it caused, Joyata was happy to get some fresh air again and feel the sunshine on his face as he emerged from the Waku Jata Shrine and removed his mask.
He couldn't stand being below ground any longer and his stomach was growling, he'd overslept too as his eyes were redshot and his mind was hazzy, still he had to find, speak with Link and join the good side against the threat of the Dark One.
But first, it was time to eat something and get a drink of liquid. Joyata's tummy was rumbling, but if there was one thing he could not go after, it was bananas. Why would his foster family want to go bananas over, well, bananas?
If Joyata was going to eat something, he was going to eat meat and carrots or nothing at all. If he couldn't eat, he could drink or always starve for a while. No! Yutowya thought, I will not think about that one bit. I must continue on and eat.
Walking away from the shrine with his stuff, he drew his sword, eager to hunt.
A doe and her young deer wandered into the clearing, carrots in their jaws, hardly eaten at all. Joyata watched with caution, hoping none of the creatures would notice him, as he hid behind a tall brush of bushes.
Deciding upon the most opterune moment, Joyata attacked and sliced up the deer with his Yiga sword.
Quite surprisingly, no blood was spilled, maybe the sword was magical and could cauterize wounds and ensure no greivous injuries were done.
With that taken care of, Joyata gathered up the carrots and the deer meet to use for his meal.
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Never in all the years of his life had Joyata considered eating his meal in a colliseum arena surrounded by thousands of stands where spectators would usuaully watch as all kinds of events took place ranging from jousting tournaments to concerts and all kinds of crazy sports.
At first, he'd thought of eating in one of the stands. But eating in the shadow of the arena was a fine idea, thankfully there'd been a cooking pot for cooking meals for the crazy crowds, all in the days well before the rise of the not so great Calamity Ganon
At least the place was closed today so nobody else would be here, Joyata liked to be alone and not in really super big and crowded places.
He did hear tell that the colliseum had been occupied by Ganon's monsters for a while, a Lynel roaming the arena while Bokoblins, Moblins and Lizalfos watched from the stands as unfortunate travlers wandered through only to end up being fought and horribly defeated by the big bad Lynel beast himself.
Yiga Footsoldiers rarely came, mostly due to fear that the Lynel King would viewing them as a threat.
Understandable due to the fact that Ganon's monster minions and the Yiga had shaky relations The last time somebody like a Yiga or non-Yiga had tried to make contact with a Lynel, that ended with the Lynel skewering that person.
Contact with Hinoxes? Person crushed by Hinox. Moblins?
They straight up would club and eat people. Talus monsters or Molduga?
Crushed and/or completely chomped on and devoured. The Yiga tended to stay away from Ganon's monster minions, just in case something bad happened.
Joyata could care less due to his status as a not-so fully fledged Yiga, he'd rarely seen any action or been sent on missions, especially back when Master Khonga had yet to face Link.
But when he teamed up with Link, he was not going to back away from fighting the monsters his step family rarely allied with.
He was going to fight, the reason he'd not fought any monsters yet was due to the fact Joyata was nervous, that was because he did not have a legendary sword and he wasn't brave just like Link or the other Yiga, regardless of little courage.
When Joyata met Link, the only thing he could hope for was that he'd learn to overcome his fear and cowardice so he could fight his enemies without giving into his retreating instincts and trying to flee instead of making the right choice to stand and fight to survive another day.
When Link came to the Yiga Hideout all those days ago, Master Khonga had instructed Joyata to wait in the shadows, only to emerge if needed. By the time Joyata emerged from hiding, Khonga was gone and not much was left but other Yiga.
Joyata didn't care if Link had taken away the only papa figure he had, the Hero of Hyrule, including Zelda, was the only one who could help Joyata deal with the coming Dark One.
Scratch that, they were going to help each other. But even as he finished his meal and prepared to go find the hero, wherever he was, Joyata was a bit nervous.
All of that was due to the fact he'd been a partial Yiga his entire life/existance and he was still wearing the traditional Yiga Ninja outfit, he'd seen Link decimate Yiga soldiers and, if Link saw him, oh boy...
No! Joyata thought, drinking juice in order to wash down his meal, making his decision to run away from the Yiga final.
He was done with them and had never felt like he belonged with themas they were the ones who took his old family away from him all those years ago.
Today is the day I go over to the side of Wisdom and Courage, I could care less if there was no good or evil and there was only power as well as those too weak to seek it. Joyata vowed that if he met one of his old Yiga pals, he would not hesitate to help strike that Yiga down.
Patiently waiting for his food to digest, controling his bathroom instincts and holding back all of his anxiety, Joyata snapped his fingers and Ninja teleported to the only place where he could find the Hero of Time himself, unconcerned if he came under attack for wearing a Yiga outfit.
His adventures were almost over, but not at an end yet. He hoped Zelda was attractive and understandable, he'd always dreamt of holding a princess in his arms.
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Breathing in the fresh air and the sweet grass, Link was on patrol duty, guarding for any monster attacks, while Zelda spoke with Impa, who'd left Kakariko for the first time in years to get some exercise.
Thanks to the Super Blood Moon, the night had been chaotic and Kakariko had almost spiraled into chaos as ghost monsters rose up from the ground to actually taunt those living in the village and play scary mind games with them, just for a short time. With that time done, with dark forces rising again, people were taking precautions.
Guards were doubling at reconstruction sites, rebuilt Hyrulean outposts and forts, citizens were taking up arms for the first time in a long time.
It had been ages since the non-millitaristic citizens of Hyrule had taken arms to fight the oncoming forces of darkness, after all there'd once been a resistance group in the Twilight Era who sought to help make sure the hero of twilight ended the threat of Ganondorf.
After that day, the sight of day-to-day Hylian citizens fighting back was very rare.
The only time Link had seen normal everyday Hylians carrying weapons was when he'd been adventuring all over Hyrule, visiting shrines and practicing for the coming fights, whenever he saw Bokoblins attacking travelers.
The travelers who turned out to be Yiga in disguise?
They did not count, those people were jerks to begin with anyway and Link was glad he knocked them off like the animals they were, villains deserved to meet a grusome and horrific fate, not the good guys or the antiheroes.
And speaking of Yiga warriors…
Link spotted a figure in a red and black outfit wearing a Yiga mask appearing on the Kakariko Bridge out of thin air and began walking in Link's dirrection, carrying a bag, towards the stable itself. Link's face contorted with shock, Oh no, he thought.
The hero drew the Master Sword, prepared for a fight. But for some reason, the Yiga didn't draw his own weapons either.
Who was this Yiga guy and what else did he fraking want? Link's shocked face turned into a serious face and he adjusted his body into a combat stance.
"Stop right there!" He ordered. "HEY, I said… HALT!"
The unknown Yiga slowed his walking pace and stopped. "Please, Link. Put your weapons away." He said, his voice not sounding aggressive, "I mean no harm." Link raised an eyebrow, "Wait, whats going on? Why does it feel like you're trying to lull me into a false sense of security."
"You don't understand, I am a good guy, I'm a defector."
"Not buying it."
"Please you don't understand." Joyata took off his mask, revealing his youthful face with the Yiga tattoo upon his forehead.
"Dude." Link grunted, "You're a Yiga and you know what I do with folks like you, right? I slice and dice ya. Or, when I have a bow and arrow, spear you.
"If I have a bomb arrow, I blow you up. Ya know, I'm gonna take care of you. From how I see it, you want to gain access to Zelda so you can take her out and then do a sneak attack on me. Not buying it, so prepare yourself."
Link charged, swinging the Master Sword through the air and yelling a battle cry. Joyata's eyes widened and he let out a yelp of terror before jumping out of the way of Link's attack, thinking fast and dropping the bag, he teleported all over the area, dodging the hero's sword strikes and desperate to convince him he's a good guy.
Just when it looked like he was tired and Link was about to do what he was going to do, Joyata held his hands up in surrender, "YOU'RE MAKING A MISTAKE. I'M A GOOD GUY, I NEVER WAS A YIGA TO BEGIN WITH!"
Link sheathed his sword and put aside his shield, confused, "What?"
"Let me explain," Link's "adversary" replied, "My name is Joyata Yutowa . When I was a kid, the Yiga took away my family, leaving me orphaned. Master Khonga took pity on me and took me in, basically became my step-pappa.
"But, since I was an outsider, I was never a real Yiga even if I was part of the tribe. Yet, Khonga trained me and, right before my birthday, I was still in training when you kicked Master Khonga's butt.
"Not long after, Ganon was defeated and Hyrule was saved. While I felt disconected from the Yiga, I started having these visions of an entity I kinda call the Dark One who your non-Yiga people refer to as Demise. After having enough visions, I've decided to join you guys and help fight this guy whatever way I can.
"You gotta believe me, Link. I'm not a full Yiga, I never was. I'm one of the only Yiga who is a good guy, does that almost sound familiar? Tell me, can you at least somewhat sympathize with my, ah, tragic backstory?"
Link thought about that for a while, remembering Sheikah Guard Joss' story of how he used to be a Yiga and left the tribe after falling in love with a gorgeous woman whom he tied the knot and had kids with.
The Yiga struck down Joss' true love and made Joss their acting agent spy in Kakariko. He could now understand where Joyata was coming from, the Yiga had taken his family away when he was little and he'd been taken in by that fat, lazy dofus of a leader.
Over the years, this kid had finally decided to drop and move away from the Yiga.
"Alright, Mr. Joyata Yutowa." Link shook the kid's hand, "I believe you, sorry for my behavior, attacking you and everything, thinking you were here to knock me off or do something to Zelda."
And speaking of Zelda…
"What's going on?" The princess' crisp British-accented voice cut through the air as she emerged from the Dueling Peaks stable, wearing a long, flowing white dress remniscent of the white dress the Hylia-reincarnated Zelda used to wear during the Sky Era, the same period from well before the Kingdom of Hyrule proper came to be.
There she is. Joyata thought, spotting the princess, lovestruck and blinded by romance. But when Zelda spotted Joyata and the Yiga outfit he was wearing, her jaw dropped, not in amazement, but in absolute shock.
"Link?" She asked, "Why is a Yiga doing here without a mask and what does he want, also, why does he look so handsome?"
She called me handsome! Joyata thought, his heart fluttering with excitement, Huzzah for me! "Uh," Link scratched the back of his head, "Long story short, this guy is defecting to us."
"Uh," Zelda was still confused, "Full explaination, please?" Link gave her the run-down of Joyata's story, making sure he included almost every last detail he remembered.
Once he was finished explaining everything, Joyata cut in, "Its all true, I speak the truth. This is not a trick, why would it be? After all, you're not bad guys and neither am I, just because I was a Yiga for a time.
"If we work together, I'm super confident we can beat the bad guys who threaten Hyrule, which includes facing my former 'non-buddies'."
"Oh," Zelda said with a smile and flashing a wink, "Sorry if I had any doubts then, we are honored to have you join us, Joyata Yutowa.
"That was very brave of you to abandon your membership of the Yiga Clan and rejoin our side after all these years of being involved with them, imprisoned and half-indoctrinated."
Link nodded, "Yeah, we're happy to help put your Yiga-themed past behind you."
Joyata's soft smile turned into a grin, not just at Link, but at Zelda, "Thanks, its good to have friends. Not to mention that you're pretty, Zelda."
The princess blushed, "Um, thanks. I do like that compliment as I get that a lot."
Link looked at Joyata with shock, "Did you just..."
"Don't worry, Link!" Zelda cut in, "Joyata's a nice person, just like you."
"Why don't we get him some new clothes so he doesn't have to wear… that."
Thank you, Joyata thought with relief at the thought of changing clothes. It had been a while since he last wore something that wasn't Yiga-ish.