Kitty-chan: Woo! I don't have much time, but here's chapter ten, finally. Woo! I hope you like it! This is a fun chappy. Real fast, I don't own any of the Samuari Toopers. I own the plot, and I own Takai, Kuri... Lai... and I don't claim to know Shin's mother's or his sister's name. Nor Toma's parents names. I just gave them name I thought were fit. Alright! Name translations!

Character Names
Sanada Ryo: Ryo Sanada (Duh)
Hashiba Toma: Rowen Hashiba
Date Seiji: Sage Date
Mouri Shin: Cye Mouri
Rei Faun Shu: Kento Lei Faun
Yagyu Naste: Mia Koji
Byakuen: White Blaze
Yamano Jun: Yuli Yamano

Armor Names
Rekka: Wildfire
Tenku: Heavens/ Strata
Korin: Nimbus/ Halo
Suiko: Torrent
Kongo: Stone/ Hardrock
Kikoutei: Inferno
Go Retsu Ken: Soul Swords of Fervor

Enjoy! The stuff with ( ) next to it is translated at the end of the chapter.

"I have the armor… to protect this world." Ryo stated firmly, standing in the center of the yard once more. His five friends stood around him as he once again answered Seiji's questions, the white armor glittering in the late morning light.

Naste stood on the porch near the backdoor, too anxious to sit down. How could she relax when Ryo was fighting for his own identity? Her own worry kind of struck her as odd. She wasn't quite sure how she viewed Ryo. She loved him more than a brother, but she couldn't, at this point, view him as a boyfriend either. Of course, she loved all five of them as her beloved brothers, but there was something about Ryo that was… different. She couldn't explain it, even to herself. Perhaps it was Ryo's nature as a leader. He wasn't a painfully obvious leader, but rather, his charisma was subtle and powerful. Perhaps it was that which drew her to him.

Or maybe it was the effect his past had on all his relationships. To those who got to know him, Ryo clung to and protected with his life. After losing his father, his only remaining family, Ryo had distanced himself from everyone. But, when he found true friends in the other Troopers, his walls broke down and the five of them became as close as brothers. They became inseperable. She was no exception to his relationships. She felt closer, if possible, to Ryo than to any of the others. Perhaps it was because his mind and heart needed healing. That came out plainly, and she answered his cry. Yes, Toma, too, needed healing, but he seemed to turn more to Seiji than anyone else. The two had grown up together, so Toma trusted Seiji more than anyone else. So… what was it about Ryo that put her in limbo between lover and sister? She wanted to be more than his friend. She just needed to admit it to herself.

As Seiji attempted to get Ryo to hit a few targets, the doorbell rang. Naste rolled her eyes. The Hashibas are probably back to nag at Toma. Her thoughts were confirmed as she moved through the livingroom to open the front door. She was met with the surly countanance of Toma's father. She did her best to smile and lead them in. "Ohayo, Hashiba-san." The man grunted, shattering what little of a happy mask she had on. "You know, you have a lot of nerve coming back here."

The man glared at her before harumphing up the stairs, apparently hoping to find Toma in his room. Glad to be rid of him for the moment, Naste turned to his wife. "So, what about you? Why'd you come back here?"

The woman sighed and her face lost its sharpness. She gave a bow before speaking. "Please forgive our intrusion, Naste-san. Please believe me… I mean…" She trailed off. Naste could plainly see the struggle in the woman's eyes. Her anger dwindled and she led the woman into the kitchen and poured a few mugs of tea left over from the boys that morning. The woman sat at the table, and Naste soon joined her, sliding a cup in front of her.

"What's up? You seemed with your husband pretty firmly yesterday." Naste stared at the woman's contemplating face as she regarded her tea.

The woman heaved a heavy sigh and seemed to switch gears entirely. "I'm a journalist. I travel constantly, going all over the world, and spending next to no time at all at home. Narai pretty much raised Toma by himself. I saw little to none of Toma when he was growing up. I had no idea Narai was physically abusive. I never saw enough of the two to tell if something was wrong."

"The why don't you do something about it? You could talk to him. Get on his back to ask Toma's forgiveness. Why can't you help Toma?"

"It's not that simple, Naste-san. I can't do something like that to Narai. I love him too much. I abandoned him to raise an infant on his own. I have to stick by him now. I just couldn't possibly abandon him."

"You don't have to abandon him. Simply let him know that he's in the wrong. I understand that you love him, but do you care more for Toma? Do you love Narai so much that you wouldn't stand between Toma and Narai to help Toma?" Naste looked down at her tea. "I've lost my father and my grandfather. If there's one thing I've learned, it's that keeping silent, no matter what the reason, can only hurt a relationship and keep it from growing. There are so many things I wish I could have told my father and my grandfather before they died, but I kept quiet. That haunts me sometimes. I know, and I'll tell you that if you don't say or do something now, you and Toma will never really have a relationship. You see, your silence is not the only problem. It's also Toma's view of you that will harm the chemistry between you. At this point, in Toma's eyes, you are no better and no kinder than Narai."

Ania paused and regarded her tea for a long moment. "But… I didn't abuse him. I didn't hurt him."

"No, you didn't, but you never stopped Narai from doing it either. Even if you weren't there to do anything about it, Toma only understands that you were not there for him. I'm not saying you're a bad mother. I'm just saying that that is how Toma feels right now." Ania looked down at her brownish reflection in the tea. "Even now, you have not spoken out against Narai for what Toma revealed yesterday. Toma interperets that the only way her can; you support Narai and not him."

Ania shook her head slowly back and forth. "No… I love Toma."

"And, I'm sure, so does Narai… deep down… way deep. There are next to no parents who can turthfully say that they have no love whatsoever for their child, but Narai cannot control himself for whatever reason." Naste put a hand to Ania's shoulder. Tears began to slowly gather in the corner of the mother's eyes. Naste smiled. "You are a kind person, Ania. You are, perhaps, the polar opposite of Narai. You are very open-minded. You have slowly sunk in to the fact that Toma is not normal. I can see that, since you haven't brought it up once. Narai still refuses to accept the reality. You have also taken in everything I've said, even though I am not a mother, and have accepted it as truth. You accept it because I know more about Toma than you or Narai. You may not be able to change Narai, but you can change how Toma feels about you. And that, I think, is the whole point."

Ania looked up, scrubbing away her tears. She had an urge to throw her arms around naste in a grateful hug, but being the businesswoman that she was, she refrained. "Domo arigatou, Naste-sama." Her eyes were sad, yet encouraged.

Just a few minutes later, Narai stormed into the kitchen, looking around. Naste rolled her eyes. "Where is that boy?" He bellowed. "I've looked all over this house!"

Naste muttered something under her breath and jabbed he thumb at the back door. "They're out back, training." As the three headed toward the back door, the doorbell rang again. Naste headed to the front, praying to the fates that the visitors were not reporters. She opened the door and was relieved, but wary at the sight of a younger woman and an elderly woman standing on the porch. Naste backed up a bit. "Uh… can I help you?"

"We are looking for Mouri Shin. He lives here, doesn't he?" The younger woman inquired weakly.

"Yes he does. He's out back. Come on in." She lead them through the house and out to the back porch, joining the Hashibas. The younger woman helped the older settle into a patio chair before taking one herself. Naste also seated herself and watched the training. The two women off to the side seemed to be trying to pick Shin out. Four of the five Troopers were running about the yard, jumping this way and that, attacking at different intervals. A voice from amidst the foue moving Troopers seemed to constantly encourage and instruct one called Ryo, apparently the white form in the center of the array of lights.

"Keep your focus, Ryo! You must only defend! This is an exercise, and if you allow the armor to convince you to attack, it'll statr to manipulate you again!" the voice cried.

The white figure held his two crossed swords up as an orange light flew down. The orange on struck, then vanished again to become a colored streak once again. A light blue form began an attack from the back, but apparently caught sight of something near the house. He missed entirely and hit the ground, sliding to a stop right in front of the back porch. His armored head lifted up until his shocked face could plainly be seen.

"Mum! Sayako!" He cried in English. "Where… I mean… when did you… how did you…?"

"Shin! So it's true!" Sayako cried, slipping back into Japanese and dropping to give Shin a strong hug. "Thank goodness you're alright!"

"Shin!" Toma yelled.

Shin turned slightly before roughly shoving Sayako back onto the porch. Kikoutei's sword whistled through the air, coming straight down at Shin. Shin's spear returned to his hands and his held it up to catch the white swords before they impaled his face. "Shin!" Sayako and his mother yelled in unison. Kikoutei overpowered Suiko by an incredible amount, and the sword continued to decend. Shin grunted and did his best to fend off the weapons, but Suiko's physical strength couldn't hold Kikoutei's back. After a few minutes, one of Kikoutei's blades retreated away from Suiko and aimed the deadly point at Shin's throat. Shin couldn't even throw off the one Kikoutei sword. Yet, he glared at the other three as they approached to restrain Ryo. "No, Minna! Let Ryo fight Kikoutei on his own!" He grunted again, his arms quivvering with the stress of holding the weapons back. "Ryo! You can do this! You did it yesterday! Your will is stronger than Kikoutei! Don't let it do this to you!" Ryo's eyes flashed their normal color, then back to cold blue. The sword charged foreward. "RYO!"

The tip did not strike. Ryo's arm halted and his hands relaxed, releasing the weapons. He stood up straight and slowly pulled his helmet off. The armor dissolved, leaving him in his Rekka armor before that two faded off of him. He gave a small smirk. "I did it." His legs buckled beneath him and he dropped to his knees. Naste leapt from her chair and ran foreward, allowing his upper body to fall against her as he collapsed completely. His breathing was heavy and Naste could feel his entire body shaking.

"Ryo… are you hurt?" she whispered.

His head moved slowly back and forth. "No. I'm fine. Just… a bit shaken." He gave a heavy sigh and his terrified body managed to relax itself against her.

"Are you sure?" Seiji inquired, kneeling next to him.

"I'm fine, actually. I don't even feel really weak. I'm just… so shaky." Ryo smiled, moving his eyes to look at his comrades.

While the inquiry of Ryo continued behind, Shin had shed his armor and was sitting awkwardly amongst the newcomers, to two of which, he had no idea what to say. Finally, Sayako sent him a stern look. "Shin, what do you think you are doing here?"

Shin looked up, almost a look of shame in his eye. "I could put you to the same question."

"We came to give you your senses back! Have you lost your mind? That man over there, the one the woman is holding, is your comrade?" Sayako pointed at the resting Trooper.

"Of course he is. That's Ryo." Shin answered bluntly.

"He just tried to kill you! And you almost let him! Something happened in your brain! You're crazy!" She continued.

"Calm down, Sayako-chan." The mother put a hand on her daughter's head. Her tone was serious, but gentle. "How have you been, Shin? Well, I hope?"

Shin paused and sighed, wished she hadn't asked. Such a general and simple question would require a disproportionate amount of strength to answer if he were to respond in truth. That's because I haven't been well. His mind had been overcome, and his body taken over. The agonizing posession process and the remainder of Takai's spirit in his mind haunted his every step. He finally sighed and gave a weak smile. His horrors were not for his family to bear. "I'm as well as one can be in a war, Mum. You two?"

His mother smiled. "We've been fine. Missing you more than anything."

Shin's face solemned. "I'm sorry to have caused you more problems. I mean… your heart-!"

"My heart is fine, Shin. You know your sister graduated from med school last year. She takes good care of me. Again, I'm more worried about you." She sighed. "You're so young to be in this kind of war."

Shin shrugged. "I'm fine. Really. This is my purpose, and I'm prefectly fine with it."

"Are you?" His mother seemed suddenly very wise as she gazed into his deep sea eyes. Shin struggled for an answer. His mother always did have a sort of intuition when people lied. She could tell he wasn't fine. He was spared having to conjure an answer as Naste and the others approached, Ryo already on his feet and walking.

"I take it this is your mother and sister?" Naste assumed, waving a hand at them.

"Yes. This is my mother, Suki, and my older sister, Sayako." Shin nodded.

Shu sighed. "And so, the assult continues. Now the only parents we haven't heard from are Seiji's."

Seiji gave a shy smile. "I don't think we'll be hearing from them."

"Why not? Won't they be worried about you?" Toma inquired, completely ignoring his parents' presence. This seemed to somewhat irk Narai, but he kept quiet.

"Yeah, but my family might not be too surprised about the yoroi." Seiji could almost see the question marks in the others' eyes.

"You mean they know about Korin!" Shu cried suddenly.

Seiji waved his hands. "No no! My family runs a dojo, and we practice with weapons there. The legend of the Samurai Troopers has been passed down through my family line for generations since an old soothsayer once told us that one of our family line was to be a Trooper. They knew something was up when I was suddenly a master of the no-datchi, and they almost immediately guessed that I had the yoroi when I would start giving off green light when provoked. I never actually told them that I have a yoroi. It's just… I'm pretty sure they won't bother me, now." He seemed to sudenly acknowledge Shin's mother and sister. "Not that you're bothering us, of course!"

The two of them nodded. "Yes, I understand." The mother looked back at Shin. "So, you truly have been well?"

Shin nodded. "Yes, Mum. These guys take good care of me." Ryo's hand appeared on Shin's shoulder.

"Shin, you alright?"

Shin looked up. "Yeah. Why?"

"Well, when Kikoutei got me back there, I didn't hurt you, did I?"

Shin smiled. "Nope. You did fine, Ryo." He looked back at his mother and sister. "So, when did you get here? It's a long flight to here from England."

"Well, we got tickets the minute we saw you on the report. Our flight left early this morning and we rented a car to get here." Sayako explained.

Shin's eyes widened. "Gosh! Aren't you tired?"

Sayako shrugged. "Nah. We slept most of the ride here."

Toma, Seiji, Shu, and Ryo split up to do their own things. Ryo and Seiji paired up and wandered off to train with the Kikoutei no-datchi. It had been determined that the Kikoutei yoroi had five different weapons. It had the identicle weapons of each of the five Samurai armors, and Ryo was anxious that he didn't know how to use them. As the two of them began to spar, Toma reclined by the lake to do some thinking while Shu found a spot in a tree. As Shin continued to converse with his small family, Naste gave Ania a long hard stre before bobbing her head in the solitary Toma's direction. Finally, Ania sighed and nodded. She stood and placed a hand on Narai's shoulder.

"I'm gonna go talk to Toma." She whispered. Narai huffed and continued to glare at a random direction as if the object of his annoyance had no right to infiltrate his light of sight.

Toma could sense his mother approach. He could feel the way the wind moved around her as she walked, but he paid little attention to her. After all, what could she possibly have to say to him?

"Toma?" she called gently. Gentler than he had expected from her. "Toma?"

"What?" Toma grumbled. He couldn't force himself to speak harshly to her. Not when she was being gentle.

Naste watched the two talk for a while, waiting for one of them to apologize, opr at least do something of that nature. She could clearly tell that Mrs. Hashiba was not too well versed in maternal customs since she stumbled and tripped over her words constantly. In her mind, Naste bgan to encourage the woman, almost as if she expected to suddenly develop a mind link and telepathically send her encouragement out. She couldn't help but smile broadly as Toma leaned, ever so cautiously over and gingerly placed his head on her shoulder, as if he was no longer listening. That meant that Ania, clumsy as she was, had gotten her message across. Naste sighed out a breath she didn't know she had been holding. The qualms between Toma and his mother were, by no means, over, but they had been somewhat calmed. There was still a lot of healing to be done, but it was at least a step in the right direction. She looked to Ania's husband, but his attention was no longer on his son, but at the display of swordsmanship in the center of the yard. Naste, too, found herself watching the two of them spar. Ryo looked like an expert with his sword. But Ryo also looked exhausted. His eyes had slightly glazed over and his visible skin shone with sweat. She sighed again and shook her head. She abandoned her chair and approached the two, listening to their conversation as she went.

"You're good, Ryo." Seiji was saying as she got close enough to hear. "You ever used the no-datchi before?"

"No." Ryo panted, taking up a wide stance and holding his sword up. "I think… it's Kikoutei."

"Huh?" Seiji's mind beagn to panick as the thought of Kikoutei influencing Ryo's outside actions appeared.

"I think Kikoutei's given me mastery of all its weapons." Ryo answered. "I can feel its power in the sword."

Seiji gave a short exhale to calm his breathing and scratched his head. "I have a theory about that."

"Whad'dya mean?"

"Well, our armors gave us almost instant mastery of our individual weapons, but if Kikoutei suddenly gave you instant mastery of all five… it seems to me that it would overload your senses. Catch." Seiji tossed his sword over to Ryo, who caught it with his free left hand. The blade instantly sank to the ground.

"Dang! This thing is heavy!" Ryo cried, attempting to lift it.

"Hmm… toss me yours."

Ryo obliged and tossed the pearly handled sword to Seiji, who caught it with ease. "No." Seiji began. "Your sword is the same wieght as mine." He suddenly yelped and threw the weapon to the ground, holing his right hand. "Now I get it."

"What?" Ryo inquired as he managed to sloppily swing Seiji's sword around. "You get what?"

"Your Kikoutei no-datchi. It's made so only you can use it. It becomes almost weightless so you can swing it around with the speed of a katana, but it guides your movements to a certain extent to change what you know about your katanas into the use of your no-datchi." Seiji looked at his hand ans blew on it a bit. "And it rejects everyone but you from touching it."

Ryo sighed and handed Seiji's sword back before stooping to scoop his own up. "Well, let's try again."

Naste figured it was time to stop listening. She put a hand on Ryo's shoulder. "Not now, Ryo. You need to get some rest now. You'er working your body too hard."

"But Naste-!"

"But nothing. If you want to be in any condition to fight Takai, go inside and rest right now." With that said, she spun on her heel and headed back to the porch.

Ryo stared after her. "Was that an expression of concern or a threat?"

Seiji laughed and dismissed his sword. "I think it was both." His subarmor dissolved back into his civvies and he began walking toward the house. "We'll work on it again later. Maybe we can try the bow, too."

"Hai hai!" Ryo smiled and followed.

Back on the porch, Shin was wrapping up his conversation with his family when his sister stood. "Oh no! What time is it?"

"Three thirty. Why?" Shin stood as well.

"We should probably get going. We haven't made hotel arrangements yet and we need to get an early start since it's often hard to find a hotel with the right facilities to suit Mum." She answered quickly. She began to help her mother get out of the chair.

"Iie!" Shin cired. "Naste-san, would it be alright if they stayed here? At least for one night? I know it's a lot to ask but…" He trailed off. He hated the thought of asking more of Naste than she was already giving, but he liked the idea of sending his weak mother and sister out into Shinjuku without any protection at all even less.

Naste smiled. "Of course they can. Please, stay as long as you like." She answered happily, looking at the two of them.

"Oh, we couldn't trouble you." Shin's mother smiled.

"But you're not. I couldn't forgive myself if I let you wander around Shinjuku with no protection." Shin begged, giving his sister a large pair of puppy eyes.

"Really. It's no trouble at all." Naste assured them.

Sayako sighed and smiled.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Sayako yawned and slowly walked down the stairs. It was a little after one in the morning, but Sayako couldn't sleep. She felt, whenever she lay in bed, that someone was jabbing needles into her arms and legs. She finally decided to wander around to try to shake off the feeling. She walked across the livingroom and into the kitchen, only to find someone already at the table. The lights were off, but she could tell, even in the darkness, who it was. "Ototo-sama?(1)"

His head shot up, his body jumping a bit in surprise. "Sayako? What are you doing up?"

"I could ask you the same thing."

"I asked first." Shin smirked weakly.

"I couldn't sleep." She motioned to him, prodding him to give an answer.

"Same here." Shin answered, looking at his coffee.

Sayako sat down across from him. She could tell that something was wrong. She could smeel the coffe that came from his mug. Shin never drank coffee before. And the dim moonlight that hit his face revealed deep dark circles around his eyes, accompanied by heavy bags. It was obvious.

He hadn't slept in days.

"Ototo-sama, what's wrong with you? You look like you haven't slept in a weak!" she cried.

Shin resisted the heavy urge to tell her of his troubles. He so wanted to tell someone, allow another to help him carry the burden of Takai's haunting presence. But he had promised himself he would not lay his burdensome problems on anyone else. His whole purpose of being a Samurai Trooper was to protect other from the horrors of war. It all seemed pretty redundant if he told such a thing to her. He stood and walked into the livingroom, where he sat on a couch. Sayako soon followed, sitting down next to him.

"Ototo-sama?" She whispered. "What's wrong?"

Shin smiled and looked at her. "Iie, Sayako. It has nothing to do with you."

"It has everything to do with me!" Sayako countered. Shin paused at her ferocity. "You're my brother. You're my one and only brother. I can plainly see your pain. I already lost father, don't let me lose you too. Please, Ototo-sama! Please, tell me what's wrong! I want to help you!"

"Sayako…"

"Shin, I can't wear ancient yoroi, and I can't wield a weapon. But what I can do is help heal the wounded. It's clear that you are hurt. But I can't heal you if you don't let me know what the problem is." She put a hand to his face. "Please, Shin. I want to help."

Shin could feel tears behind his eyes. Before he could stop himself, he began talking. He told of Takai, the nightmares, the pain in his head, the posession, and the haunting since. He continued until his voice cracked with sobs. The entire time, Sayako stared at him, her eyes never wavering from his agonized face. She was horrified at his story, but she attempted to stife her feelings. If she was to help him, she had to be strong. After his story had ended, and his sobs dwindled, she grabbed his shoulders and pulled him close. He ceased talking, but continued to sob as he wrapped his arms around his sister, thanking whatever fates were watching him that he had her. She and his mother were some of the few constant things in his life. He saw his friends in and out. His father left when he was young. But through everything, his sister was there, and his mother was there, giving him all the support they could spare.

"Sleep, Shin. You won't be able to fight if you don't get some sleep."

"No." Shin insisted, though his body seemed to relax.

"But Shin…"

"Iie, Sayako. I'm not going to sleep until Takai's presence is completely out of my mind." He answered. The two had still not broken their embrace, and they simply sat still, holding each other, one trying to comfort, the other trying to compose himself. Shin had to admit that sharing his pain with Sayako gave him a certain amount of peace. It was as if a pressure in his chest had been partially relieved, allowing him to breathe more freely. But his burden was not fully lifted. No matter how many people he told of his troubles, they would not serve to banish the festering darkness in the back of his mind. Though he knew his fears were baseless, he couldn't help but feel terror as he imagined himself succumbing to sleep only to have Takai's presence grow stronger and steal his body once again. He had to wonder if Shu felt the same way. It certainly didn't seem to. Of course… it only stood to reason that he didn't. When they had helped Shu free himself, Shu had banished every trace of Takai's presence from his mind, simply because he had done it himself. Shin wasn't that stron. Takai had willingly abandoned him to posess Shu, leaving a small circle of influence in his mind, its only purpose to torture him. Even now, Shin was not powerful enough to cast Takai away. At that moment, Shin felt as useless as ever. Shu had been able to break free because he was strong. Shin was so weak, he had let Takai's presence weave its way into his mind so much that he couldn't isolate the small amount that remained, all because he was weak.

You are just as strong as the rest of us. But in your own way. If you were weak, then why would Suiko have chosen you?

Shin thought back to that day a lifetime ago when Seiji had urged him to channel Kongo into Ryo. He had to admit, he was tempted to believe Seiji's words. If he were weak, why would Suiko have chosen him? But at the same time, his mind refused to acknowledge the logic as anything more than a distant wish. He sighed and held his sister ever tighter.

"Then neither will I."

Shin pulled away slightly to look at her. "Eh?"

"If you won't sleep, then neither will I."

"Sayako… you can't-!"

"And why not?" She commanded firmly. "I want to help heal the wounded. You are wounded, are you not?"

"But Sayako… what can-?"

"But your wound is not physical. Your confidence and mind are in shambles right now. I cannot bandage such a thing. But you know what they say, 'Misery loves company'." She smiled and tapped his nose.

"But I don't want-!"

"This is the only thing I can do for you right now. I cannot help you fight. But perhaps knowing that I willingly suffer with you will help ease your pain."

"Sayako, you'll-!"

"Don't worry about me. If you can handle it, I can too." Sayako smiled.

Shin couldn't help but return it. "You're really not letting me get a word in-!"

"You haven't completed a sentence yet, have you?" She wagged her finger at him gently.

Shin smiled and pulled her close again. "Domo arigatou, Ne-sama.(2)" He whispered over her shoulder.

"You have saved the world many times. It's about time someone saved you."

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

"Master Takai!"

"What, Lai?"

"Our spies have confirmed that the Samurai Troopers' families have shown up at their residence. Sa far, we have confirmed the presence of Suiko's mother and sister as well as Tenku's parents." Lai answered, appearing and bowing deeply.

Takai rolled his eyes. "Lai, I told you to abandon that mission. Those mortals are of no use to us."

"But, Master Takai! The families of the Samurai Troopers! A fatal weakness! Why couldn't you use them?"

"Lai, I grow weary of possessing mere mortals to deal with the Samurai Troopers. I've decided to finish them off myself. I've come too far to have my revenge carried out by weak humans. I'm gathering my strength to meet them for the final time. It would be a waste of effort and power to possess mere humans." Takai answered calmly.

"But… Master Takai-!"

"Silence!" Takai growled. "Just continue your mission with the units in the South Wing. When you've finished there, report to Kuri. She will have all the final assignments." Lai bowed and left.

Takai growled again as he servant vanished. The time has almost come for the Samurai Troopers to face the full force of Emperor Takai.

Kitty-chan: Once again, little to no time. How did you like it? Review! Woo! Just two translations this time.

1 Ototo-sama: Little brother (high respect)
2 Ne-sama: Older sister (High respect)

Okay! Preview for the final chapter!

"If you're going to kill me, hurry up and do it. You're beginning to bore me." Ryo gritted his teeth.
This is hopeless...
"Ryo! He'll kill you!" Toma objected.
"I know."
He's gonna try and get away! ... Not while I'm alive!
"SHIN!"
There you have it. Intense chappy, yes. Anway, there will be the next chapter and an epilogue. So, I hope you look foreward to the next chapter! Review!