Castle Shirasagi, Hoshido:
Inside the castle's throne room, a tall middle aged man stands before the court.
Clad in a swordmaster's armor however his hands were tied behind his back.
His face showed no anxiety but rather, a serious demeanor as he stands tall and faces the various officials surrounding him in this court.
"General Yi" One of the court officials said "You stand before the court today to answer this report of your negligence over your duties in managing the fort in Hoshido's eastern borders"
"This is ridiculous!" a young woman, clad in a master-at-arms' armor, interjected "General Yi has proven himself to be a capable general! Have you forgotten the pirates he repelled in that very same place?!"
"Princess Katsuragi. We understand that the general was your mentor however, we cannot ignore this report. Although, the court recognizes General Yi's meritorious services to the King, we nevertheless must address these allegations as the report stated that if not for General Yi's negligence, the pirates would not have been able to raid one of our storage houses"
"These reports hardly have a single strand of truth in them! And you all know that! Besides, General Gyun has been known to have held a grudge against General Yi!"
"That is pure conjecture. We cannot consider such subjective notions or our decisions will be filled with bias"
"Conjecture?! Do you people even think?! It's precisely for that reason why you should-"
"Katsuragi. That's enough" the man in the throne interrupted
"But father!"
"I said that is enough!"
"… Yes father"
"Thank you, King Shouhei" The court officials responded "Now, General Yi. Have you anything to say or will you allow the princess to have spoken on your behalf?"
The general does not respond but he leers at the court official.
"Nothing? Very well. Let us proceed with the trial then"
Sometime later:
"With that" one of the court officials said "General Yi. For your incompetence, you shall be stripped of your rank and sent to the Northern Border. Be grateful that this is your only punishment"
Without a word, Yi is escorted out of the throne room as Katsuragi approaches her father.
"Father" she said "This is not fair! You know what kind of person General Yi is! Everything in that report were obvious lies! Why did you believe in them?"
"You are royalty, Katsuragi. Our duty is to uphold the laws, traditions, and best interests of Hoshido. You still have much to learn. If you are to lead Hoshido in the future, you must set aside such sentimentalities or risk having such sentimentalities cloud your judgement"
"But father, this is… this is obviously unfair! I understand that we must be impartial in our judgements but we also cannot ignore-"
"You do not understand what I am saying then! If you maintain such biased thinking, you will never be worthy of wielding Raijinto! This discussion is over! Now go and think about the things you have said"
Disappointed, Katsuragi walks away.
Hoshido-Haixi Border, Northern Hoshido
Days later:
Yi stood on a hill overlooking the border.
The experienced soldier scanned the horizon.
A single Hoshidan fort and a small river separated Hoshidan and Haixian territories.
He had received reports that Haixian raiders were running rampant in the area, pillaging nearby villages and damages military structures.
He sits down under a cherry blossom and meditates.
Eventually, he stands up, gets on his horse, and rides towards the fort.
Upon entering the fort, he is met by a tall middle-aged man on horseback.
"General Gyun" Yi said with a serious tone
"Ah Yi" the general said with a condescending tone "I hope you'll be more… hard working from now on"
Yi doesn't respond.
"Nothing to say? Good. Wouldn't want another report, now do we?"
"What needs to be done?"
"Haixian raiders have recently attacked this fort and a nearby village. I want you to reinforce this fort and have it ready to take on those barbarians"
"And what of the village?"
"Our fort takes first priority. We cannot defend the villages if this fort falls! That is all"
General Gyun then moves past Yi.
"Where are you going, then?" Yi asked
"You would do well not to talk to me with that insolent tone. And I have no obligation to tell you. Just follow your orders. You should be grateful that the court granted you the rank of forward commander. Now do your duty"
"Very well…"
General Gyun then gallops away.
Yi then enters the fort and begins reorganizing the Hoshidan forces.
Later, he approaches a group of ninjas eating near a campfire.
"You there" he said as the ninjas stand in formation "I need you to scout the Haixian side of the border. Inform me of any suspicious activity"
"Yes commander!" they answered as they comply with his orders
3 days later:
"Commander!" a Hoshidan ninja said approaching Yi "We have spotted Haixian raiders! They are headed towards a nearby village!"
Yi and ninja then walks towards the war room.
In a wall was a map of the area.
"Where?" Yi asked
"Here" the ninja replied pointing at a watchtower surrounded by forests on the map.
"Gather the men. We must move quickly!"
"Yes commander!"
Later that night:
Two Hoshidan archers stand on top of a watchtower as one of them notices movement in the darkness.
Before he could react, an arrow flies past the two archers as several enemy archers, samurais, and cavaliers emerge from the darkness.
The two archers return fire as the raiders surround the watchtower.
2 Hoshidan samurais and a spear fighter then emerge from the watchtower, defending the entrance.
They skillfully hold back the raiders but are slowly overwhelmed as more raiders attack them from different directions.
One of them notices a Haixian archer preparing a fire arrow.
But before he could release his projectile, Yi emerges from the forest and charges towards the raider.
The archer turns around but Yi stabs him with his katana.
"NOW!" Yi shouted as Hoshidan soldiers emerge from the forest.
The raiders were quickly surrounded and outnumbered.
Armed with a steel naginata, a cavalier charges towards the veteran swordmaster.
The swordmaster stood his ground and tightens his grip on his katana.
Reaching striking distance, the cavalier swings his naginata.
Yi parries the strike and slashes the horse's feet.
The horse panics, causing its rider to fall to the ground.
Yi quickly slashes the man's chest as he stood up.
His adversary falls to the ground as 5 Haixian samurai attack the swordmaster simultaneously.
Yi skillfully parries and dodges every attack, all the while, quickly finding openings to attack his foes.
It did not take long for him to defeat each samurai one by one.
"Retreat!" a Haixian raider shouted as the other raiders began to retreat
"Don't let them escape!" a Hoshidan samurai shouted
"No" Yi interrupted "Let them run"
The Hoshidan soldiers cheer as they watch the raiders retreat into the night.
Castle Shirasagi
2 days later:
In the castle's courtyard, Katsuragi is sparring with one of her retainers.
"Ha!" she exclaims swinging her wooden katana.
Her opponent parries and strike with his wooden staff.
He then counters with a thrust which the princess blocks.
Both fighters then step back but before they could continue their duel, a masked ninja drops down to the courtyard.
"Princess" he said in a deep menacing tone
"Ah. Saizo" Katsuragi replied putting her weapon down "I think that's enough sparring for today, Akatsuki"
"Very well, princess" Akatsuki replied as he and Katsuragi walk closer to the ninja
"What have you found?" the princess asked
"The border fort is holding well against the Haixians" the ninja answered "However, it seems Commander Yi is requesting for reinforcements and General Gyun has been ignoring his requests"
"What? I thought General Gyun was supposed to be in the fort with General Yi"
"Apparently, he left the fort days ago and only the commander is there"
"That snake… I knew he was no good lying bastard"
"Should we inform the King?"
"My father? No. He's too preoccupied appeasing his court officials to ever make any real decisions"
"Princess" Akatsuki interjected "If I may, your father has proven to be quite a ruler. His reforms helped Hoshido flourish even more than what your grandfather did"
"There's no question that he's skilled in politics but mark my words. When a war arrives here in Hoshido, he will prove to be very inept. He fears conflict and would rather stick to rigid rules rather than stand up to those corrupt politicians"
"I don't think it is wise to say all these things about your father behind his back"
"I don't care. He is no closer to wisdom either. Anyway, our main focus here is General Yi. Why is he asking for reinforcements?"
"He seems to be suspicious of the recent Haixian activity in the area and believes that a major attack is underway" the ninja answered
"Concerning… And General Gyun is ignoring his request, correct?"
"Yes"
"Where is he?"
"Izumo"
"Of course… The source of many lavish parties. Pathetic. Akatsuki"
"Yes?"
"Can your Kinshi handle two people riding it?"
"What? Um… Yes but what are you-"
"Perfect! Saizo. You can travel to the fort just as fast on foot, right?"
"Yes"
"Ok. Akatsuki. Saizo. We're going to the Northern border"
"Wait, Princess. Your father will be furious if he finds out you went out of the castle without his permission again"
"To hell with my father. This is our country at stake. He has his way of leading. I have mine and no matter what he says, I WILL be worthy to wield Raijinto in my own terms"