Hey Everyone.
This chapter will be a long chapter because of the war that takes place. I will do my best not to go into too much detail but you never know. As I always say....
On with the story.
The Ninja: Chapter 3
War.
The man had been wandering through the mountains for days now. He was tired and hungry. Yet he could not stop, he knew he would fighting in another war soon, he could feel it in his bones. He was deep in thought when he wandered in to another village.
"You there you can not linger here, you must go on." One of the villagers yelled at him.
"I'm sorry, I am a wanderer looking for food and rest. I was hoping to find food and rest at a village. Looks like I must go on the. Sorry for the intrusion." He said and went on his way. 'That is the second village that has turned me away. I wonder if they are under the control of the Shino. I must find out who they are.'
As he continues wandering he came to a part of the mountains he had been in earlier. He heard a commotion in the village as he passed by and decided to investigate.
"I only told him that we could not offer him food or shelter. That is all I told him." A women yelled.
"You young fool, we know you told him about us. You know that is forbidden under bane of death. Now you must pay the price." A man said. He sounded like he was playing god.
"I'm sorry. He asked so I told him. Its not my fault that he asked why we could not spare any food. He asked." The women pleaded. She sounded like the girl he had met at the village gate. If she were to die for the action of warning him away he would have to stop it. He ran to the village.
By the time he got there he saw Rose with her head on a stump, crying. He also saw a man about to behead her with a sword. "Stop this madness." He yelled out. Everyone on the village looked at him but the man about to behead Rose started to swing the sword. The stranger saw this and rushed forward with a speed not seen in years. The sword was about five inches from Roses neck when his fist slammed into the blade and his foot into the face of the executioner. The blade was knocked out of this hands and landed on the ground. The executioner reeled back from the hit.
"You young fool, no one touches a Shino and expects to live. You shall pay for your insolence. I shall not even give you time to mention your name." The executioner said and rush forward with a speed that rivaled the strangers. Everyone was surprised when the fist was caught.
"You are a disgrace. You said that I will not have time to mention my name yet I do and I will tell you it now. My name is Ranaka Saotome. I have trained all my life in the art of war. I can not believe someone like you would do such a thing. Wait, I do believe I can. Now you will leave this village and never come back to it. If you do or any of your kind come back to this village I will kill them. Now go and tell your masters." Ranaka said as he threw the man away from him. The man got up and ran. "Now, my I please have some food?" Ranaka said right before he passed out.
"Rose, he has been out for several hours. I don't know when he will wake up, if ever. He is strong but I fear the fight with the governor has pushed him beyond his limits. I don't think he will survive." An old women told Rose.
"He has to survive. What if they come back and kill us all for what he has done? Then what grandmother? Then what?" Rose pleaded.
"When they come we will hand him over...."
All of a sudden a bright glow surrounded Ranaka. His eyes then started to open and for the first time people could see his eyes clearly. They were a light blue with gold streaks in them. Then they knew that he must have the blood of a god in him. They knew that his destiny was written in the stars. Then his eyes closed.
"My child he is special. We must protect him, to turn him over to the Shino would be very bad for us. Now go and fetch the herb elder and be quick." Roses grandmother commanded her.
"Yes Grandmother." Rose said as she got up to run out the door.
"That will not be necessary. All I need is some food and I will be alright." Ranaka said as he sat up.
"Rose go and fetch some food."
"Yes Grandmother." And she ran to get some food.
"May I ask you about your eyes my lord?"
"Please, call me Ranaka. I hate it when people call me lord. Anyway my great grandmother is a goddess, she is the goddess of war. My family has always been great warriors. She married my great grandfather when he saved her from a god killing demon. They fell in love and got married. I see her every now and then. She was there when my father was buried. She told me that I was not to fight another war until I hade found my fathers killer. I would know when I had found my fathers killer when I found a group of oppressed people. She said that they were to a great people oppressed by people that worshiped her image, but not her. They worshipped her as there goddess but did not follow her teachings. They are a powerful people but not as powerful as the people they oppress. I was told they are my fathers killers."
"You said your fathers killers worshipped the goddess of war, but did not follow her teachings?"
"Yes, they worship my great grandmother but do not follow her teachings. She has gone before them several times to get them to change their ways but they do not. If she could kill them herself she would, but she can't."
"I have brought some food grandmother." Rose said as she entered the room caring a small basket of food.
"Thank you Rose, I shall not forget your kindness."
"Grandmother said you were special, why is that?"
"Well, it is a long story and if you wish to hear it it would take half the night."
"Well please begin, we have all the time in the world." Rose told him.
During the night he told them many stories. After midnight they went to bed. The next morning Rose got up to check on Ranaka but she couldn't find him in their home. She decided to check outside. When she looked out side she saw him wrestling with the young men of the village. She watched him wrestle all the boys at once and win. She watched as he moved in fluid fashion unlike the jerky fashion of the Shino. She knew then and from the stories he had told last night that if he were to fight, the shino would not sand a chance.
"HARVEST TIME." One of the elders called out. Everyone in the village started towards the fields for the harvest.
"Why don't you join us in the harvest? It is one of the few times that the whole village comes together for a joyous occasion." Rose asked Ranaka.
"I think I will. Come on then show me the way to the fields." Ranaka answered.
During the harvest everyone worked, those too young to worked played games. Ranaka worked along side Rose in the wheat fields helping harvest the wheat. That night there was a joyous celebration. They gave thanks for the most bountiful harvest anyone could remember. The next day the young men went out to hunt wild boar with nothing more then a knife to prove them selves as men. Ranaka was asked to join them and accepted. He came back with the biggest boar. The festivities continued as people picked apples and harvested the watermelons.
During the night Ranaka would tell of his travels to distant places and of strange peoples. His stories always drew crowds. He participated in the harvest to his fullest. Then on the finale day of the harvest everything changed. The Shino governor returned with a small army.
"Where is the one that struck me? Hand him over to me and some of you may be spared. If you do not you leave me with no choice but to destroy this entire village." He declared.
"You will do no such thing." Ranaka declared back.
"If you do not surrender your self I will be forced to destroy this village, and what good would that do?" The governor asked.
"I will not let you harm a single person in this village. If you do I will kill you all."
"How could one man destroy an entire army? You would die before you could take five steps."
"And how would you kill me before I took five steps?"
"You may have the speed of the gods but even they could not dodge all the arrows that my army will shoot at you. Even if you managed to dodge all the arrows the villagers would be killed in the process. Face it you can not win this battle, surrender and I will spare this village."
"I can not trust you on that so I have no choice but to fight. I know that if I surrender you will destroy this village anyway. I can not allow it."
"You have just made the biggest mistake of your life. Archers ready and fire." All of a sudden the sky was filled with arrows. Ranaka watched in horror as he saw that they were aimed at the villagers. As he saw this he did something that had not happened in a long time, he snapped.
Everything became a blur. He lost all control over his body as his training took over. He would remember nothing of the battle. When it was all over he regained control and saw the field littered with dead bodies. As he looked around he saw that the village was still standing. The villagers were safe. When he made sure of this he started to collapse, the last thing he saw was rose running for him.