Chapter 97
Genji, can you hear me?
Guardian? I mean, papa?
Are you alright?! What happened?!
I don't know......I can't move. I can't even open my eyes.
Oh no.....I think I know what happened. You wasted all your ki doing something, didn't you?
Oh, that's right! I remember now! The demon tree.....I......
How much energy did you use up?!
Did I use all of it? Dude.....
What the hell were you thinking?! What did I say about powering up that high?! I said don't do it! You could have been killed! Your body could have been blown to pieces!
Please don't yell, papa. My ears hurt a lot, and I can't hear anything outside my head.
You blew up the demon tree, didn't you?!
Ow.......papa, please......
Well, this explains all the new burns! I'm amazed you still have hair on your head! Just about every inch of your body is burned! That does it, I'll have to punish you now!
Whadaya gonna do? Ground me?
For life, kiddo!
Genji would have smiled if he could.
I'm glad you find this funny, cause I'm serious, Genji. You don't use up all your energy at once! What if you were in battle and you went into this comatose? Your enemy wouldn't hesitate to kill you!
Hey, go easy on me. I'm still a beginner.
Hell, even beginners knew this!
Sorry.
It's okay for now. Just don't do it again.
Genji relaxed and began to fall asleep.
/|\
Suzaku carefully laid Genji in the village square before landing. He quickly called for every priest to aide the boy. Four Emishi priests came running with jugs of hot water, and poured them on the fresh burns quickly. The burns sizzled as they reopened and cleaned out. Genji didn't stir, thankfully. He was wrapped up in a blanket and taken to an empty hut to rest. Most of the priests left, but one stayed behind to bandage Genji.
The village had awoken and went into an uproar about the earthquakes and explosions, adding to the aftershock of the demon kodama attack. Suzaku began to explain what happened, telling everyone what he saw.
Upon hearing that Nago's tree was destroyed, the villagers began to panic.
"His spirit is loose!"
"He'll kill us all!"
"Get the women and children indoors!"
"How could Genji-san do this?"
"I said that wolf boy was trouble....."
"What do we do?"
Murasaki stepped out of a hut, supported by a crutch in one armpit. Some concerned priestesses went to her side, insisting that she was still injured and that she should get back into bed. She ignored them, heading into the center of the village square. Upon arriving at her desired speaking spot, she took in a breath and shouted at the top of her lungs.
"SILENCE!"
The village went quiet, and Murasaki continued in a speaking voice.
"We cannot afford to panic. If anything bad has become of this, it should have happened by now. Everyone, please remain in your homes. Ravens, patrol the area and watch closely for anything out of place. Someone bring me Hasanko; I'm going to look at the explosion sites."
The village immediately protested.
"No, Murasaki-san! It's dangerous!"
"We can't lose you, Saki-chan!"
"Stay here, where it's safe! Please!"
Murasaki shook her head.
"Someone fetch Hasanko. I'm going to investigate."
"Let someone go with you." Suzaku advised her. "Hasanko may not be able to fully assist you."
Murasaki nodded in agreement.
"How is Genji?"
"Too injured to move. His external scars should be easy for you to heal."
"The others?" She looked through the crowd for Ryu, Momiji, Arangami, Trunks, or Goten. She spied Goten as he and a councilman guided Hasanko to her by his reigns. Hasanko lowered his head when he reached Murasaki. She grabbed a horn and lifted herself on the elk's back.
"Goten-kun?" she called. "Hop on and come with me."
"Okay." Goten agreed, hovering up and setting himself down on Hasanko's back behind Murasaki. He held onto her shoulders, and she spurred her elk into a gallop out of the village and into the dark forest.
It took them virtually no time to reach the place where Nago's tree once stood. All that remained was a giant crater, and many happy kodama dancing around the area.
Goten panicked at the sight of them.
"Oh no! They're back! Don't move, Saki-chan! I'll protect you!"
"It's okay, Goten. These are normal kodama." Murasaki insisted, hopping off Hasanko. "They won't hurt us." She walked to the crater and slid down the sides to the very center. Goten hovered off the elk and flew up a short distance in the air.
"Everything okay, Saki-chan?"
Murasaki didn't answer as she stood in the center of the crater and closed her eyes. She raised her hands up over head, and felt around her with her ki. She searched for any sign of demon energy within the crater, and throughout the forest.
After a few minutes, she opened her eyes and smiled.
"Nothing. There is no demon power here."
"That's good, right?" Goten asked from the air. Murasaki looked up at him.
"Yes. The demon has been completely destroyed and his spirit passed on to Hell. However....." She bent down and sieved some of the scorched soil between her fingers. ".....there's no other energy here. This crater has absolutely no ki within it. I don't understand how this could have happened."
"Me neither." Goten scratched his head. "But, hey, there's no more demon, right?"
Murasaki nodded.
"I suppose that is what's important. A demon is no longer polluting our land or causing us pain."
Murasaki smiled to herself.
What a wonderful power you have, Genji. I must remember to thank you later. You have done so much for us already.
/|\
Arangami sat next to the sleeping Genji, watching the boy. The village had gone quiet in worry. The people were holding their breath, waiting for Murasaki to return. Arangami was more interested in Genji, waiting for the boy to wake up and answer some questions.
The ninja snorted at Genji.
"It never fails. 'The son of a frog is a frog,' they say. 'What sins the father, so too sins the son,' they say. They are right, DragonLore! One way or another, people suffered because of you! Just like how they suffered under your father! All those people in Yuzuha died! A lot of boys your age and description were turned into the police or seriously hurt, being mistaken for you! And now you brought demons upon the Emishi, upon your friends! You have the blood of innocent people on your hands, just like your monster father!"
Genji didn't stir. Arangami calmed down, running his hand over his face.
"My father....a good man.....was an innocent. I was no older than you as I watched that monster kill my father. I will always be haunted by my father's screams......my mother's sobs as she held me.......that maniac's laugh..... Those sounds, and some painful images, will always be with me." He looked away from Genji. "I can still see his eyes.....those burning pools of magenta filled with hate and lunacy.....
"Cell was a madman, not a tyrant like everyone says. He never sat on a throne, he never wore a crown, and he didn't create a system of law or establish a kingdom. All he did was scare others into doing what he wanted. But......he did find a queen.....and he had a prince. You. A silent prince to remind others about the month and a half long reign of fear."
He felt something poke his side softly. He turned to see Genji, wide awake, poking Arangami with a bandaged finger.
**You really like calling me that..... "Silent Prince?" You're a man of many metaphors.**
"You hush up." Arangami quietly reprimanded. "You deserve your title. With the power to summon demons while ASLEEP, you'll have the world in your grasp before you're old enough to marry."
**You think I'm that much of a terror? You descended from the demon that killed the life god Neko Gami. How come you haven't taken over the world yet?**
"Yuzuha didn't kill close to a million people....."
**And neither did I. So don't climb any trees you can't see the top of!**
They looked at each other for a moment before Genji continued.
**I guess we have a lot in common. We come from a line of evil yet our hearts remain pure, our families were ripped apart by madmen.......say, whatever happened to your mother, if you don't mind my asking?**
"We were both taken in by my master, and we gave him loyalty amulets which binds our souls to his command. However, my mother did something disobedient, and she was killed."
**And who is your master? What kind of man would do something so cruel?**
"I'm forbidden to say. Otherwise, he would kill me too."
Genji nodded.
**So, we both don't have a family. Yep, we have a lot in common, alright. But it sucks that I'm the one who has it worst off.**
"Do you, really?" Arangami smiled sadly. "You may not have known your parents, but you never saw both of them die before your eyes......."
**Hey.....** Genji comforted, reaching his hand up and putting it on Arangami's shoulder. **You're a Mononoke! Put the past behind you and look around the present. I'm sorry your parents are dead and that you're a slave to an awful man, and I wish it didn't have to be that way.**
Arangami smiled again.
"And I'm sorry you never got to know your mother. You would have loved her very much."
**How about this? We'll be friends when we fully understand and forgive each other.**
"Sounds good to me, DragonLore."
**Heh. You can call me Genji.**
Outside, in the village square, the Emishi people let out a huge cheer. Arangami rushed to the doorway to see what was happening. Murasaki and Goten had return with the good news, and the villagers were celebrating. Arangami smiled and turned back to Genji.
"I take back my rant about you causing suffering to others. You do what you have to for the good of the innocent, and I admire that."
Genji blinked.
**Your rant about what......huh?**
Arangami frowned.
"You were asleep through most of that?"
**I heard you saying something about Cell finding his queen...........was that another metaphor or something?**
"........................"
**What?!**
"DragonLore.......the time we may fully understand and forgive each other is still a ways off........."