Chapter 1 Bravado & Desperado
The North.
Land of the Samurai.
Sasuke from the Uchiha house had just arrived at his destination: in the stronghold of the most fearsome and bloodthirsty outlaws in the Samurai Lands: The Akatsuki gang. He crouched on the rocky ground, damp from the constant blizzards.
Sasuke watched the indigo sky: the rays of sunlight touching his pale skin like ivory stung his temples, despite the icy cold and the ghostly mist that descended like a white snake, slithering through the narrow, tree-covered fields. Prince Uchiha thanked the gods by remembering that during his arduous journey from Suna desert to reach the northern lands, he had come across a rich merchant who convinced him to buy his garments and spices. Although the old fox had clogged up most of the Uchiha's coin, at least Sasuke was protected from the northern winter, thanks to the suna man's greedy persistence. The last Uchiha was wearing a brand new pack of clothes. All his clothing was lined with sheepskin underneath it to keep him warm against the polar winds, however, around his war clothes, he covered himself with a pitch-black hooded cloak to protect him from the untamed blizzards of this forsaken land.
Fucking thugs the Akatsuki were. This bandit group represented the scum of society, in Sasuke's onyx eyes.
In the old days, before Akatsuki took over the abandoned fort, this dungeon served as a prison for prisoners of war and criminals that samurai captured while patrolling their region. It was a dark and damp fortress that drew attention for its extensive and numerous tall gothic towers. The inside, as Sasuke was aware, had a plethora of facilities of cells that the rays of daylight had never reached to warm the sickly bodies of the prisoners. Despite this, the titanic fortification was so degraded that it looked like dusty ruins rather than a stronghold. So any sane human being, regardless of whether they were a noble birth or a shitty horse thief, would know that using the fort as shelter was a kamikaze idea.
Therefore, the castle, which was built on a high ground near the mountains, was surrounded by massive stones and tall dry trees with their tangled branches barring the outside world from breaking in, that is to say, difficult, Sasuke's plan to invade the fortress was going to be almost impossible to put into practice as he had planned in his mind, because the castle was so strategically positioned that not even the best cavalry of the Konoha province, would be able to invade beforehand.
To make Sasuke's suspicion and his uneasiness even more heightened, the room didn't even have a sign of life, not even a sentry surrounding the watchtowers or the steel gates and it didn't even have vigils atop the crumbling gray parapets.
Sasuke, who no longer cared about his own life, had nothing more to lose, was in action mode as he decided to break down the gates that led to the courtyard of the fort and massacre everyone who came his way.
Like a swordsman about to go into battle, Sasuke drew from his leather belt his dark katana, Kusanagi, which was sharp as a tiger's teeth. This elegant sword that shone brighter than the North Star was an ancestral heirloom of his house , a millennial sword of his family, passed down from father to son.
Out of nowhere, on top of the fortification structure whose parapet protected the wall dwellers against any unwanted attack, a man, followed by a dozen lackeys behind him, appeared.
"Look boys, what we have here: a little sheep that got lost from the herd." cried the man, rudely like the pig peasant he was. This raider , who looked like the leader of the gang, continued: "Tell me your name, little sheep."
Sasuke, who hadn't revealed his face or lowered his night-black hood, ignored the question, but got right to the point. "You have something that belongs to me." His voice was hard as a block of ice and sharp as a rough diamond.
" Look! The little sheep speaks!" The man clapped his hands, jumping for joy. "How about roasting this succulent lamb over the fire, boys? Huh? I doubt the chef will notice the taste of fresh human flesh." The man licked his disgusting lips full of worms and wounds, showing his rotten teeth that made Sasuke shiver, not in terror, but in pure disgust.
"Your damn head will feel the blade of my sword, you peasant pig." Sasuke stated, his voice firm, not showing any emotion, despite his eyes brimming with hostility.
" You sure? From what I'm seeing with my pretty eyes, you, a shitty brat, are at a disadvantage. You see, twelve men against a solo player."
Sasuke didn't answer anything, just looked at him with more contempt and disgust than before.
"Did the cat eat our prey's tongue?" shouted the man, laughing with his fellow bandits.
"It is you who have not understood the message: it is you who are the prey and I, the hunter." Sasuke howled like a wolf as his ebony eyes reflected his inner fury and his voice echoed far away between the snowy fields and cavernous mountains.
The man widened his eyes wide, opening his mouth, looking at his companions in pure surprise. "AHAHAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAAH WHAT A FUNNY JOKE!!"
" OH THAT'S AWESOME! WHAT A BRAVE SHEEP!!"
"It's more of a SHORT-LEGGED LIE AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH" One of his man said.
"MAYBE HE CAN DO IT WHEN HE'S IN MORPHEUS ARMS!" Another said, almost shitting his pants.
"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH!"
Sasuke didn't see a quick arrow like thunder in the sky pierce his shoulder, causing Sasuke to stumble backward, almost falling sideways. Looking at the towers, he tried to find the archer but it was in vain, the ghostly fog camouflaged bandit archer.
He rose again, composing himself for battle, pulling the arrow from his shoulder, breaking it with one hand and throwing it to the snow-covered ground.
" What are you waiting for? Come at me because I will send you all to HELL!! Screamed Sasuke, pulling his cape from his shoulders, taking the thugs by surprise as he activated his sharingan eyes.
The Uchiha House' signature skill and power.
Shit.
" Come at me!!"
In a nanosecond, the raiders realized who they were dealing with.
