The New Generation

by pyps

This is a story about the children of the Ronins. There is a four part Prelude due to the fact that the new series would be confusing without it.

2. Prelude Part Two

Prelude Part Two: Azuri

Ryo was dispatched from the hospital the following morning, and when he got to Mia's house, he went straight to his room and locked his door. The others began to get concerned for him, but they just let it pass, thinking that he was just stressed about the whole thing and needed some time to himself. Then Ryo locking himself in his room became a constant thing, and it even got to the point where he wouldn't come out except to go on his morning and evening runs. There were even a few occasions when Rowen and the others spotted him going out for a run at two in the morning.

"There's definitely something bothering him," Rowen said as he took a bite of his breakfast. He swallowed and then added, "I just wish he'd open up his mouth and talk to us."

"I know what you mean," Kento said. "He's really starting to get on my nerves."

"Just give him some time you guys," Mia said as she set another plate in front of Kento, to which he happily accepted it. "He'll come around."

"No offense Mia, but that's what you've been saying for the past two months," Sai informed her, a note of annoyance in his voice. "Ryo's being very pigheaded about… whatever it is that's bothering him, and I agree with Kento, he's getting on my nerves."

Sage continued to stare at his plate. The food on it had remained untouched since Mia placed it in front of him. The others looked at him and could tell that he was deep in thought.

After a few minutes, they heard the front door open. Mia's head came up quickly. Yulie walked into the room, and she hung it back down.

"Yeesh," Yulie said. "Did I like ruin the mood or something?"

"No," Mia said, looking up and meeting his gaze. "I was just hoping you were Ryo."

"Why? Doesn't he always go out on a morning run?" Yulie looked down at his watch. "He's still got about ten minutes before he normally gets back, doesn't he?"

"Yeah," Mia said, her voice changing from disappointment to hard and strict. "Except that he's been gone since midnight."

"What?"

The boys were all staring at Mia in shock, and all of the Ronins were now on their feet. She looked down and sighed. "After you had all gone to bed, I went to go talk to Ryo. He wasn't in his room, so I went to go look for him. He was sitting on the couch down here, and so I went over to him. Well, we started to talk, and it got out of hand. I started to yell at him, and I said some things that hurt him. He stood there and stared at me for a second or two, and then he went to the rack, grabbed his hoodie and went out the front door. It was a little after midnight then and normally when he goes out on a run in the middle of the night he's back by no later than six."

They all looked at the clock. It was a quarter after ten. "He's four hours over due, and five minutes over due for his morning run," Sage said.

"Do you think we should go see what's up?" Yulie asked.

"We'll give him some more time; I don't think we should worry too much just yet."

So they waited, and waited, and waited. Lunch time came and went, but Ryo still wasn't back. Finally, by two o'clock, the Ronins had given up on waiting for him. They all grabbed their jackets, made sure they had their power balls with them, and then they hopped into Mia's Jeep and began to drive down the road in the direction Ryo had gone.

Ryo flew back against a tree and slid to the ground. His whole body was aching now, and his mind was beginning to become nothing but a blur, causing his reaction time to slow down. He looked at the glowing orb that was floating before him. He stood up and concentrated on it. I've got to know, he thought to himself. I've got to know the truth. I have to know what really happened that day.

Ryo slowly walked towards the glowing orb, his right hand out in front of him. He knew what to expect this time, which made it easier for him to walk up to it. When his hand came into contact with the orb there was an immediate wave of electricity that surged through his body, but he did not remove his hand. He knew he couldn't do it, he knew that this was the only way.

"What's that?" Yulie cried pointing to the horizon ahead. There was a flash of light, almost like lightning.

"I dunno," Mia said. "But we're about to find out." She pressed hard on the gas and turned onto a dirt road.

As the jeep bounced around the Ronins and Yulie grabbed hold onto anything they could. It didn't take long for them to begin to feel sick, and so Mia slowed down a bit. Not long after, they reached an opening in the trees and Mia swerved to a stop. The Ronins jumped out and stared.

There, in the center of the clearing stood Ryo. He seemed to be completely unaware that they had arrived, even though nobody could've missed it the way that Mia was driving. They were about to go over and ask Ryo what he was doing, when they noticed the glowing orb in front of him. It was the same orb that had drawn their attention on the night of their graduation. Ryo reached out to touch it.

"Ryo don't!" Rowen called out, but he did not hear him. Once Ryo's hand made contact with the orb electricity was drawn from the orb and sent through Ryo. He began to shake with pain, but would not release himself from the orb.

"What is he doing?" Kento exclaimed.

Before any one could answer, the orb began to increase in size, and it was soon larger than Ryo. The Ronins seemed to be frozen in awe and wonder. Suddenly, there was a flash of light, and Ryo disappeared into the orb.

The others immediately snapped out of their dazed trance and jumped to action. They hurried over to the orb and tried to grab Ryo and pull him out. Kento was the first to reach the orb. He reached out his hand and the moment it made contact he felt a surge of electricity infiltrate his body. He pulled his hand away and was thrown back into the Jeep.

"You alright man?" Rowen asked as he, Sage, Sai, Yulie, and Mia reached Kento.

"Yeah," he said, his voice strained. "I think so." They helped him stand and stared at the orb, none of them sure of what to do to save Ryo.

Then, without warning the orb turned into flames. As the Ronins watched, they saw the flames begin to take shape. Once the outline of the form was complete, the mouths of the Ronins dropped open. It was the form of the Armor of Wildfire. They were even more amazed when the flames dissipated and all the details of the armor could be made out.

It looked to Rowen and the others like Ryo had called up his armor while inside of the orb, but none of them could figure out how, or why he did. As they continued to watch him, Ryo's eyes flew open and they could literally see flames burning within them.

"Ryo?" Sai began, uncertain of what to do.

Ryo withdrew his swords and stared at his friends with those piercing fire eyes. They felt as though he were branding their souls, and it frightened them. What did the orb do to him? Why was he like this?

There was a noise behind Ryo, and he turned to see what it was. The orb had returned. It stretched out, creating a portal to some unknown world.

Step through the portal.

The voice rang through Ryo's head, and he struggled not to listen.

No, I will not do it; I will not allow you to take me over again!

YOU WILL DO AS I SAY MORTAL!

Ryo suddenly had a searing pain through his head, and he crouched over, the pain almost becoming unbearable.

"What's going on?" Sage asked as he and the others watched Ryo crouch over in pain.

"I don't know," Kento responded.

"I don't like this at all," Rowen said, and he began to walk towards their comrade. He got no more than two feet when he suddenly flew back in the same manner Kento had. He picked himself up and rubbed the back of his head.

"There's some sort of force field there," he groaned. "I can't get through."

"I think it's time for us to armor up guys," Sage said, determination evident in his voice.

"ARMOR OF HALO!"

"ARMOR OF TORRENT!"

"ARMOR OF HARDROCK!"

"ARMOR OF STRATA!"

"Let's do it!" Kento said. "IRON ROCK CRUSHER!"

"ARROW SHOCK WAVE!"
"SUPER WAVE SMASHER!"

"LIGHTNING BOLT CUT!"

The warriors tried for what seemed like hours, but they made no progress. They watched in horror as their friend began to walk to the portal once again.

Yes, that's right.

Ryo felt numb all over, as though he had no more control over his body. As this reality came to his mind, it was both frightening and in a way soothing, for there had been so much stress in Ryo's life and he longed for it to belong to another. He just wanted it all to go away.

Ryo could feel himself starting to slip from reality. It was as though he were falling and yet standing there perfectly still at the same time. Darkness began to engulf him, and he was prepared to let it take him. He no longer wanted to be there. No one would miss him.

RYO! Please don't do this!

Ryo's consciousness suddenly returned. Someone had called to him. The voice was familiar and yet strange. He could not place the voice with a face or a name.

You are a Ronin Warrior, Ryo of the Wildfire. You cannot leave them, not now. They need you. There are more lives at stake if you leave now. Stay. Reconsider.

The voice was that of a female. He had heard the voice once before, in a dream he'd had. The words she spoke seemed to provide Ryo with a new strength and willpower. He clenched his fists.

"NO!" he shouted, breaking free of the powers influence over his mind.

After Ryo had shouted out some sort of refusal, the fiery glow that surrounded him dissipated and Ryo leaned over, breathing heavily. The others slowly walked towards him, uncertain whether or not the barrier that had been placed between them had been removed or not. They were able to get to Ryo without any difficulty.

"Ryo," Sai said. "Ryo, are you ok?"

Suddenly there was a cruel, evil laugh. It was all around the Ronins, and they could not distinguish where it was coming from.

"Who are you?" Sage shouted, holding his sword out in front of him. "Show yourself!"

"With pleasure," the cruel voice said.

"Guys," Ryo said quietly, his body growing weaker. "Please…"

"Please what Ryo?" Rowen asked coming down on one knee to Ryo's level of vision.

"I'm…" He never finished his thought. He collapsed into a heap at Rowen's feet. Rowen stood and faced the floating shadow that was looming behind the Ronins.

"Who are you!" he screamed out in rage.

As the shadow took form, and transformed from something of transparency to a solid form, they saw that he was clad in armor much like theirs. He had a cruel laugh pulling at the edges of his mouth, and his eyes were dancing with the thought of destroying the Ronins. "I am Azuri, Warlord of the moon. I have come to destroy you Ronins!"

Azuri withdrew a sword and quick as a flash leapt towards the Ronins. Azuri was fast, but not fast enough. The Ronins all rolled out of the way, barely missing Azuri's blow.

Sage prepared to attack. "Thunder bolt cut!" he cried.

"Mirror Shield!" Azuri called out.

Sage's attack immediately bounced back and hit Sage. Although it was only half of the force Sage had sent it out with, it still caused him to keel over in pain.

"Iron Rock Crusher!" Kento called. Again, the attack was repelled.

"Arrow Shock Wave!"

"Super Wave Smasher!"

None of the Ronin's were able to even phase the warrior that stood before them. They were all growing weak, and fast.

Sage suddenly felt life beginning to dissipate. He turned to the other three. The looks on their faces indicated that they felt it too. They all turned and realized what it was. Ryo was dying. They could not figure out why, or how, but they weren't about to let him.

Sage jumped up and attacked Azuri again, this time Azuri was not prepared, and the attack hit him full blast. The other Ronins quickly stood and did the same.

"You cursed Ronins!" Azuri yelled, his voice filled with nothing but pure rage and hatred. "I will get what I want!"

"And just what is it you want Azuri?" Kento exclaimed.

Azuri turned slightly and his gaze lowered to something on the ground. The Ronins followed his gaze. He had his sights set for Ryo.

Now they understood. Somehow, this Azuri was slowly killing Ryo, or at least he was making the Ronins think so. Sage wasn't about to let him take his friend.

"You'll never have him!" he shouted.

"And who is going to stop me? You? You're nothing but a mere mortal, too weak to even stand straight. You are pathetic. From what Kayura told me I thought you'd have more fight in you than this."

Kayura? What did she have to do with any of this? It had been two years since the Ronins had seen her, or even thought about her.

"I will take Wildfire," Azuri said. "And you will not stop me!"

"Why do you want him?" Sai asked fiercely.

A smile played on Azuri's lips. "Perhaps you can ask his Aunt and Uncle… at his funeral!"

As Azuri raised his sword the Ronins saw a dark shadow coming off of it. As it shot forward and passed through the four of them they cried out in pain and collapsed onto the ground.

Azuri put down his sword. He walked over to the Ronins, kicking Sage over onto his back. He was out cold. They all were.

"Pathetic," Azuri said under his breath.

Mia and Yulie were hiding behind a tree. Luckily for them, Azuri had not noticed their presence. They remained quiet as Azuri battled the Ronins, and then struck them with some sort of darkness. Yulie almost cried out, but Mia covered his mouth with her hand. They continued to watch.

Azuri was walking towards Ryo. Yulie couldn't take it anymore. He pulled out of Mia's grip and began to run at Azuri.

"Yulie, NO!"

Before Yulie reached the man there was a bright flash of light. Azuri cowered back in pain.

"Ah!" he cried out in surprise. And then he disappeared. Yulie looked and saw that all of the Ronin's were lying on the ground. He hurried over to them.

"Rowen, Kento, Sage, Sai, Ryo, are you guys ok?"

Rowen, Sage, Kento, and Sai stirred, and then they each opened their eyes. They lifted their heads and saw Yulie rushing to them, Mia not far behind. They pulled themselves into sitting positions.

"Are you guys alright?" Mia asked frantically checking each of them. "Are you ok?" she repeated, grabbing Kento's face and shaking it a bit.

"Yes!" he said, pulling his face free. "Calm down Mia."

Suddenly a thought came to Sai. He quickly turned to look at Ryo. He hadn't moved at all. He couldn't even tell if he was breathing. He hurried over to him.

"Ryo!" he said, gently shaking him. Ryo's armor suddenly disappeared, including is under gear. Sai stared in surprise. That never happened. He motioned to the others and they came over and helped him carry Ryo to the car.

Ryo's eyes opened slowly. He looked around the room. He was in his bedroom at Mia's house. From what he could tell it was night time. He pulled himself up and suddenly felt his head begin to spin. He immediately lay back down.

Ryo heard the rain begin to patter on his window. He could hear the television on downstairs. He decided to attempt to get up once more. He went slowly this time, making sure not to rush it in any way. Once he was in a sitting position, he waited a moment, then slowly stood.

He noticed that he was wearing pajama bottoms, but no top, so he pulled his robe off the hook next to the door and put it on. Once he was ready he went out into the hall.

He slowly went down the stairs, his head beginning to pound. He heard arguing in the living room, and quietly made his way to it.

"We don't even know what really happened!"

The Television had been turned off, and two of the Ronins were yelling at each other. At first Ryo could not tell who, but as he got closer, he realized who they were.

"And we probably never will!" This was Kento. He was evidently severely upset about something.

"Just give him time, he'll come around." Sai. He always had a way of trying to calm people down whenever they were in a disagreement.

"We've given him time Sai, plenty of it!" Kento again.

"Not everyone is able to speak their mind as easily as you can Kento!" Rowen, he had been the first one Ryo heard clearly.

"What are you saying! Are you trying to point the blame at me or something?"

"I'm telling you that you don't know when to keep your mouth shut! Both vocally and digestively!"

Ryo tried not to laugh. Kento became even angrier.

"At least I CAN open my mouth! He can't even register when to talk and when not to! I wonder if he even remembers how to!"

Sage intervened. "Both of you just cool it! Look, Mia will be home with the food soon, then we can all sit down and talk about this."

"We are talking Sage! Besides I don't see you giving any input! You or Sai!"

"I'm neither agreeing nor disagreeing with either of you," Sai said calmly, although there was a hint of annoyance in his voice.

"Fine, whatever, there's still Sage."

It was quiet. Ryo moved closer to the doorway.

Sage sighed. "Look Kento, I'm not saying that I'm happy about this whole thing," he said calmly. "I mean, I want to know what's going on in his head just as much as any of us does. But the truth is, we're not going to be able to force it out of him."

Ryo suddenly realized that they were talking about him. He could feel his anger boiling up inside him, and he was about to walk into the room, but then Kento began to talk, and Ryo listened again.

"I don't care what any of you say, it's pissing me off and I'm not going to stand for it anymore!"

"What are you going to do Kento?" Sage asked angrily. "Go up there and tell him to leave or tell us everything? He'll never buy it!"

"No! I'm gonna go up there and give him a piece of my mind! That's what I'm going to do!"

"Then please, by all means do so, I'd really love to hear it."

The four turned and saw Ryo standing in the doorway. There was a mixture of hurt and anger in his eyes, and none of them could tell which was the more prominent.

"Ryo…" Rowen began, but Ryo cut him off.

"No! Kento want to tell me what he thinks, FINE! Go for it Kento."

Kento was silent. He was still trying to recover from the shock.

"Well?"

Again silence.

"Darn it Kento! Just say it!"

"Fine! You wanna know what I think? I think you're being a pigheaded, stubborn idiot! You're so wrapped up in your own personal feelings Ryo, that you can't even see past the end of your own nose! You're the biggest COWARD I've ever met!"

Ryo lost it. He didn't even bother to think of the consequences, he just did it. But as his fist made contact with the side of Kento's jaw, he knew he was going to regret it. Kento swung back at him, hitting him square on the jaw.

Ryo ran at Kento and tackled him to the ground. The two of them struggled and then Sage and Rowen jumped on them. Rowen held Kento back and Sage stood in front of Ryo to keep him from attack Kento again.

"That's enough," he told him strictly. Ryo tried to get past him but Sage pinned him up against the wall. "I SAID THAT'S ENOUGH!"

Ryo and Sage stared at each other, both equally pissed. Finally Ryo broke free of Sage's grasp and left the room. He pushed by Mia who had just come back from shopping. He grabbed his hoodie, as he did so often, and left the house.

Mia turned to the others. "What was that all about?"

They all lowered their gaze, none of them able to tell her.

It has been said of cats and dogs; Dogs come when they're called, cats take a message and get back to you. Well no matter the observation made of cats, when a bushy, orange tabby cat showed up on the front step of Mia's house, it was automatically welcomed in.

The cat was fairly skinny (although its hair made it look as large as a basketball) and was fond of laps. But, it was also known to make trouble.

So, when Kento told everyone that he had decided on keeping the cat for his own, the others more than willingly gave the responsibility to Kento. The cat slept in a basket at the end of Kento's bed and sometimes took the food offered to it by its new master.

Kento and Sai were playing a game of chess. The orange cat leapt up onto Kento's lap and lay down, purring softly. Kento petted the cat but his concentration remained focus on the game before him.

Sage was sitting on the couch looking at college pamphlets with Mia, Yulie leaning over their shoulders and looking with them. Rowen was on the floor putting together a one thousand piece puzzle to which he only had a small bit to finish.

Yulie looked up and saw the cat on Kento's lap. He rolled his eyes. "I can't believe you kept that thing," he said. "It's one of the ugliest cats I've ever seen."

"Oh!" Kento exclaimed, covering the cat's ears. "How mean! Marshy is very sensitive about name calling!"

"And you just had to name it after a food didn't you?"

Kento stuck his tongue out at him, and Yulie just rolled his eyes and continued looking over Sage and Mia's shoulders.

Ryo walked into the room. Everyone stopped what they were doing. They all looked at him (that is, all except for Kento, who clenched his fist and just stared angrily at the chess board).

It had been nearly a week since the fight between Kento and Ryo. Kento refused to talk about the incident, and Ryo refused to leave his room. Sai, Sage, and Rowen tried to get Kento to talk to Ryo, but he would just walk away or ignore them. Then, when they tried to talk to Ryo, he locked them out of the room and wouldn't let them in. So, seeing Ryo not only out of his room, but in the same room as Kento, well…that was nothing short of a MAJOR shock.

The silence was growing longer and more awkward. Finally Ryo walked over to the table next to the couch where Sage, Mia, and Yulie were gathered. He picked up his baseball and glove, then turned to Mia.

"I'll be outside," he said. Mia could tell he was going to add 'If anyone needs me' but held back.

He was about to leave when Mia let out her breath in frustration and stood up.

"Ryo," she said. "Wait."

Ryo stopped not exactly sure why she had asked him to. He slowly turned to face her, hoping he could read her face and figure it out.

"I've got something to say," she said. "To ALL of you."

All of them, even Kento, turned and looked at her curiously. She waited a moment, looking each of them in the eyes to make sure she had their full undivided attention. She then took a deep breath, cleared her throat and began.

"I've been invited by one of my colleagues at the University to go on a trip to the UK. There are some ancient runes there that we believe might have some answers to a research project we are working on. The trip is going to last for two months starting next Thursday."

They all stared at her in awe.

Mia, gone for two whole months?

Who's going to help keep the peace around here?

Who's going to help make sure Ryo and Kento stay in line?

Who's going to help me pick the best colleges?

Who's gonna buy the food?

"I haven't given her a definite answer," she said. Each of them breathed a sigh of relief. "But I'd really like to go."

There was silence once again. Ryo was the first to speak (which came as a second shock to the Ronins, including Ryo). "You should go then," he said. "If it's what you really want to do."

She again let out her breath in frustration. "Don't you get it? I can't leave whether I want to or not!"

"Why?" Kento asked. "You've got enough cash to do it."

"And you're as good a researcher as anybody in that University," Rowen said.

"Not to mention you've got great insight on things," Sage said.

"And you're really good with people skills," Sai added.

"And you're like, the favorite employee there at the University," Ryo said.

"Thanks guys," she said, looking down. "But that's not the reason why. In fact, it's more…personal, I guess."

"What is it?" Yulie asked.

Right away there was a chorus of 'Yeahs' and 'how comes'. She looked them each in the eyes again, and then said, "There's no way I can leave you guys here to bicker and fight each other."

There was immediate shame felt throughout the entire room. Even Yulie felt it. Mia looked down once more. "If I left," she said. "I couldn't bear the thought that you all ended up breaking away from each other because I wasn't here."

That hit them all hard. Suddenly all thoughts and feelings toward Ryo and Kento were gone, and the guys all began to feel sorry for the way that they had been acting. Their negligence of Mia's feelings was causing her to give up something she really wanted to do, and that was not right.

Kento stood up and walked over to Mia. "I'm sorry I've been a bit pigheaded lately," he told her.

"A bit?" Rowen said a note of teasing amusement in his voice.

The mood instantly lightened and everyone burst out into laughter, even Kento. Once they had all calmed down, Kento walked over and stood in front of Ryo. The two stared for a moment, and then Kento took a deep breath and began.

"I apologize for the way I've been acting towards you. I should've been more understanding and considerate of your feelings. I know how it is to have something, what ever it is, bother you, and you don't want to tell anyone. I know how much it means to be given time to get up the courage and say how you feel. I'm sorry. I'm sorry that I said those things about you too."

"No," Ryo said, looking down at the floor. "I'm the one who should be sorry. I provoked you. You're right, I am stubborn and pigheaded, and I can't see past the end of my on nose." He looked up at Kento, and they could all see the tears he was trying so hard to repress. "I should tell you all the truth and I will." He paused. "Right now."

They stared at him in surprise, their jaws suddenly lax, even Yulie and Mia's.

Ryo took a deep breath. "Three months before graduation, I started having these, nightmares…"

"Nightmares?" Sage said. "About what?"

Ryo told them everything about the dream, and then he was silent after wards. They stared at him. Finally , Sai spoke. "You don't believe it do you? That you're alone I mean."

Ryo turned his gaze from them, too ashamed at the knowledge of what they were asking. No one spoke. There was too much shock and uncertainty for any of them to speak.

"It isn't true Ryo!"

They all turned and saw Yulie standing, conviction noticeable in his eyes. "You aren't alone! You've got Mia, and the Ronins, and me! We'd never abandon you! EVER!"

There was open surprise on the faces of all in the room. Although Yulie had been subject to speak his mind and to be opinionated, but never before had he been this determined about something (unless you count the time when they were fighting Talpa, but that was more of an annoying conviction rather than an inspiring one).

"I know that Yulie," Ryo said, openly hurt by Yulie's declaration. "I just…"

"No! I don't want to hear it! You're our friend Ryo! You never should have thought that, or felt that way because it isn't true and you never think things that aren't true!"

"Yulie," Mia said coming over to him and putting an arm around him. "Calm down, it's alright."

Yulie looked down. "I'm sorry," he said apologetically. "It's just that you guys have been like my family and I don't want to lose any of you."

"What do you mean lose any of us?" Sai asked.

Yulie dodged their gaze, and they understood what he was meaning. This young, twelve year old boy was worried that because of the way Ryo was feeling, it meant that he was going to leave the Ronins, or worse, commit suicide.

Ryo walked over to him. "I would never leave Yulie," he said, placing his hand on the young boy's shoulder. "I'm sorry that I acted as though I were considering it. I didn't realize that it mattered so much to you."

"You're like a brother to me Ryo," Yulie told him, his head still down, "you and all of the Ronins. It would kill me if I knew that you guys weren't getting along and that you split up."

He looked up and Ryo could see the tears in his eyes.

"I'm not going anywhere Yul," he told him sincerely. "In fact, how 'bout you and me go play some catch outside?"

Yulie smiled. "Sounds great," he said.

With the tension finally gone, each of the Ronins and Mia went back to what they were doing.

"It's so much nicer not having to worry about arguing and fighting," Rowen said as he sat down to finish his puzzle. Kento and Sai returned to their Chess game, and Sage and Mia were back to looking at colleges.

Yulie hurried out of the room to go and get his glove from his room. As he did, he nearly ran right across Rowen's puzzle. "Hey!" Rowen exclaimed nervously.

"Sorry," Yulie called over his shoulder.

When Yulie returned, Ryo walked towards the door, being careful not to disturb Rowen and his puzzle. Without warning, Marsh leapt off of Kento's lap (having jumped back onto it once he had sat down) and ran across the floor. Ryo tripped over him and lost his balance.

Rowen was placing the last piece into its place when Ryo fell over, causing the puzzle to break up. Pieces went flying all over the room. Everyone froze. It had taken Rowen nearly two hours to work on that puzzle.

Ryo slowly stood, his eyes glued to Rowen. The expression on his face indicated that he was openly surprised and upset. Ryo walked past him carefully. "I'll just go," he said quietly, and then he an Yulie left the room. As they closed the front door behind them, Rowen's anger burst out.

"One piece left! ONE PIECE, and then that STUPID cat had to ruin it all!"

"Hey," Kento said, standing up to defend his cat. "You're the one who decided to do the puzzle on the floor, so don't go puttin' the blame on Marshmallow!"

"So much for getting along and not arguing," Ryo chuckled. Yulie smiled and the two of them stood in their respective places.

Rowen had finally calmed down, and resolved to work on the puzzle again tomorrow, only he'd do it in his room instead. As they all sat there, bored beyond measure, there was a sudden flash of light outside. They all jumped up (Kento tossing Masrhy onto the couch) and ran out the front door.

There, standing over the fallen form of Ryo, was Azuri. The others quickly armored up and began throwing attacks at Azuri.

"THUNDER BOLT CUT!"

"SUPER WAVE SMASHER!"

"IRON ROCK CRUSHER!"

"ARROW SHOCK WAVE!"

Once again, the attacks didn't even phase him. He laughed at the sight of them. "You are all weak!" he said. "You're attacks are nothing against me. Nothing will stop me now from taking your friend."

Kento made a run at Azuri, but he was thrown back as though he had hit a brick wall. Azuri was playing invisible barrier again. The Ronins had no choice but to watch in horror as Azuri approached Ryo and raised his sword.

"NO!" they all screamed.

An orange flash out of the blue whizzed past the Ronins.

"MARSHY!" Kento called to the cat. "I know I threw you but don't be stupid! We can talk about this! MARSHY!"

Somehow, the cat penetrated the barrier and leapt onto Ryo's back. Azuri paused, letting his sword drop slightly. "You're cat is foolish," he told Kento. "Nothing can withstand my attack. NOTHING!"

There was a bright light, and Azuri fell back a step. He looked into the center of the concentration of light. "YOU!" he screamed. "How did you…?"

Before he could finish his question, a large stream of light shot out at him, causing him to crouch over and disappear once more.

The Ronins looked around for the orange cat that so bravely defended Ryo. It was no where to be found.

Ryo's eyes slowly opened as his strength slowly came to him. He could see the feet of a person, a woman he guess, for she was wearing a long flowing dress. She leaned over, her face coming close to his.

Ryo could not remember the details of her face, for he blacked out not long after she bent over, but he could remember her eyes. Bright green eyes, much like that of a cat's…

Whatcha think so far? I know, I'm like, taking forever to get to the new series, but there's some things that come up in the series that refer back to Azuri and the events about to take place.