A mysterious stranger appears… again?
I don't own any copyrighted material, except my own OC's: anyone else's OC's will be acknowledged in their introduction chapter
Small village 25 miles north of previous village
As Cao and Ruby rolled into a town, they sighed in unison. The rough state of the highway made riding in any kind of comfort impossible. Even sitting down, they back and hips ached dreadfully from the constant and wild bumps they took. The wagon itself had taken its fair toll, and likely would need repairs soon from the constant strain of the rough roads. Even the massive draft horses, animals breed for countless generations of Wei to be able to move large loads incredible distances were getting tired of these conditions. When Cao took them off the yoke one nearly stomped his foot.
"Hey! Easy girl you can rest now!" Cao yelled as he tethered the horses and gave them hay and water
"We keep this up they will go on strike." Ruby groan as she slowly climbed down
"Horse's can't go on strike Ruby." Cao curtly replied as he put blocks behind the wagon wheels
"At the rate we are going I think they might. Hell, I'm willing to go on strike. How do you manage it?" Ruby complained
"Barely." Cao muttered and the two limped into a large tavern
The tavern was easily the largest structure in the village by far. The main hall had dozens of tables, with easily a dozen serving girls rushing around carrying sake and hearty food at every moment. Large booths hugged the walls, only broken up by large doorways to the various living arrangements. Furs, antlers, and other animal parts formed decorations alongside expert wood carving in everything from the rafters to the floors. The two travelers marvel at the fact whoever owned this place clearly put a fortune into it. As soon as they had seated a waitress walked up to them.
"Hello there. Welcome to the lodge of the priesthood, What can I get you to drink?" The woman asked kindly
"Traveler's sake for both of us." Cao said as he looked at the menu
"Why does this place have the name The Lodge of The Priesthood? I thought priests didn't like people drinking alcohol and being so loose with women?" Ruby asked confused
"The second largest structure in town is the shrine. It is tended to by an order of rabbit Faunus shrine maidens and priests. The man that founded this tavern was one of those priests who retired from his duties." The waitress explained
"Strange how things happen sometimes." Cao said with a slight chuckle
The two sat back and relaxed as their bodies enjoyed the more comfortable chairs. Soon the waitress came back with travelers sake and poured them glasses. After the two clanked their glasses and took a sip. They simply sat there and began to take in the atmosphere. It was hectic, but somehow had a soothing and relaxing feeling. This was needed for their sore, broken bodies. However, everyone heard a loud ruckus outside.
"What the hell was that?" Cao asked as he jumped in his seat
"Bandits are attacking! They are going after the shrine!" A villager yelled from outside
Everyone rushed outside as they saw in the distance over a dozen human shapes moving across a grassy field towards a large shrine. The only thing slowing them down was the steep banks of the hill. Several however reached the top only to be met with a surprise. One swiftly had his head taken off by a katana as soon as he reached the top. The other two barely have time to block the second blow as a mysterious samurai stood in front of an injured rabbit Faunus by the name of Velvet.
What stood in front of them was a samurai of easily 6'3", muscular and fit. His armor was mostly black and steel grey, with purple cloth and clothing underneath. The mask was a deathly grey and mostly one piece, a mask permanently attached to the kabuto. It was forged in the face of a jagged toothed demon with two downward tusk. From its eyebrows two large horn plate that point upwards. No eyes could be seen from the eyeholes, instead only two void black holes.
"Who the hell do you think you are?" The bandit questioned snidely
"The only thing I will be is your death." The samurai bluntly replied, bloodied katana in hand
"Get him boys!" The bandit roared and the rest of the bandits surged towards them
They surged forward in unison to try and hack him down quick with axes and tanto's. The stranger however emitted a slight change in his aura as his semblance activated, deciding to end these bandits and make an example of them. One tried to slice down on his shoulder, but he swiftly and elegantly dodged, despite being in heavy armor. Each bandit tried to strike him, but he continued to dodge out of the way with relative ease.
"What the fuck is wrong with you morons!?" The head bandit roared in anger
"We can't hit him boss!" A bandit yelled back
"I can see that you incompetent moron! Surround him and box him in!" The leader roared and they follow his orders
The unknown samurai however let these bandits enact their plan. Using his semblance, he dodged and weaved through all their strikes, moving as swiftly and gracefully as a flowing river. To the peasants and the priests, it was mighty impressive, but to Cao it was almost like showing off. However, he kept that idea to himself, not wanting to have to deal with another Ronin's hurt honor and its ramifications. Finally, the Ronin stopped being passive, and instead went on the offensive.
One bandit tried to drive his axe's head into his thigh, only to miss and in retribution the Ronin drove his sword through the bandits elbow joint. He then used its momentum to swing the blade up and then across to cut the bandits head off in one clean motion. This surprised the bandits as the Ronin began to cut the others apart in similar smooth and elegant slashes. After 5 of the bandits were dropped in such a fashion, the rest ran away. Dismayed, the leader fled as well.
"Wow…" Ruby says in shock as the Ronin went to Velvet to check on her
"Not bad." Cao simply said
"Not bad? That was incredible!" Ruby yelled, and the Ronin seemed to notice
"That's cause your not a samurai. His semblance did most of the work." Cao replied
"He still did something good by saving the temple." Ruby tried to say
"Yes, he did, but such a temple should have guards. They can't rely on the benevolence of wandering samurai. You of all people should know that." Cao said as he walked back towards the tavern
Ruby however turned towards the mysterious Ronin. He had finished patching Velvet up and turned to move away without saying much. However, Ruby noticed his behavior had changed. In combat he was confident, if maybe slightly reckless. Around this priestess however he was reserved, and even nervous based on what little body language she could decipher through the thick armor. Yet he was only nervous around the Faunus priestess. As he walked away Ruby decided to walk up to him.
"Excuse me Ronin-san?" Ruby asked, causing the Ronin to stop in almost a confused fashion
"Yes?" He asked, forcing out the word in a soft and deep voice
"That was impressive blade work Ronin-san. I haven't seen that kind of kenjutsu besides the Sotora clan…" Ruby said, but the Ronin cut her off
"You know members of the Sotora clan? How?" He asked in a confused tone from behind his helmet
"How about a deal. You take off the kabuto and I will tell you Mr.…" Ruby said, realizing she doesn't know his name
"Tetsuo Yamamoto. I'm not one to take off my helmet for people I just met…" He answered with trepidation
"I am but a simple peasant Tetsuo-san. What possible risk am I to you? Especially with your semblances capabilities." Ruby said pleasantly and innocently
"I guess." He quietly said as he took off his helmet
When he lifted the kabuto off, Ruby was surprised at what she saw before her. He looked about 20 and his head consisted of short jet-black hair, brown eyes, and 3 claw marks on the right side starting at his eyebrow and ends at his jawline. The two's eyes locked, both not knowing what to do now. This lasted for a minute till Ruby finally snapped out of it.
"Thank you Tetsuo-san. Your scars remind me of Azura's. He's my sisters Sotora boyfriend?" Ruby said in shock
"You are related to a Sotora?" He asked with a bit of shock
"Eventually. Honestly they act like their married already." Ruby replied with a chuckle
"What are you doing so far north of Sotora lands then?" He asked
"I needed to get away from it. I was working my ass off just to fulfill burdensome taxes just to full a war machine that wants to start another pointless war. Why would I want to live under that any longer?" Ruby asked, but Tetsuo seemed disturbed and slightly angered at hearing this
"Sorry. I despise those who would harm innocent people in any fashion. That is taking advantage of the celestial order in a way I never would have imagined a samurai clan would stoop too." He said, as if having lost respect for the Sotora's very quickly
"That's why I left. If it wasn't for Cao I would still be stuck there." Ruby explained
"Who is this Cao?" Tetsuo asked
"He's a Ronin merchant I'm riding with. I think he went back to the tavern after you finished your fight." Ruby said
"A Ronin merchants?" He asked with a hint of disgust at the idea of the concept
"He's a very good one. He was the one that sold me my amulet." Ruby replied
"And you travel with him? Hardly seems like honorable company." Tetsuo said
"I can tell you now that for all his faults he is an honorable individual that protects his own and upholds his word." Ruby said in Cao's defense
"I will take your word for it Ruby, for I have no reason to dishonor you." Tetsuo replied curtly
"Why don't You come join us? You must be tired and hungry after your fight." Ruby asked kindly
Tetsuo tried to decline the offer, but his stomach growled fiercely and the strain of using his semblance began to catch up with him. He then simply nodded and followed her back to the tavern. Cao was still seated and sipping his sake. His eyes turned to Ruby and Tetsuo with confusion and shock. In his eyes, Ruby had some explaining to do brining a random Ronin with her.
"Hello Ruby, Ronin-san." Cao said politely
"Cao, this is Tetsuo Yamamoto." Ruby said, and Tetsuo bowed slightly in respect for his peer
"Its an honor to meet you Yamamoto-san. Have a seat." Cao said and the two sat down
"Thank you Cao-san for your hospitality." Tetsuo replied curtly as the waitress came up
"What would you like to drink sir?" the waitress asked
"Basic sake please." Tetsuo plainly replied, and she went off to get it
"The simple type I see." Cao said bluntly
Tetsuo took that on the face as the waitress returned and pour the sake for him. He nodded lightly in response and she left to let the three figure out their food choices. However, the conversation died right there and then. The two Ronin quickly didn't want to be very talkative, not trusting the other. They also looked at each other in glances, seemingly sizing each other up. Ruby gulped and got nervous at watching this awkward affair for several minutes before finally speaking up.
"Is everything alright you two?" Ruby asked nervously
"No. Everything is fine." The two Ronin replied in the same blunt tone
"Okay then…" Ruby said as she slowly looked away
This continued for easily another 10 minutes. The only time the two spoke was to place their orders with the waitress. Other than that, they barely looked at each other in quick observational glances. Ruby was at a loss on what to do. She never dealt with two samurai acting like this. The best she could hope for was they somehow settled it themselves. Fortunately, or unfortunately depending on how you could look at it, they seemed to come to that conclusion as well.
"It appears we are at an impasse." Cao bluntly said
"It appears we are." Tetsuo replied with an equally blunt tone
"What are you two on about?" Ruby asked
"Samurai defer to who are more powerful. Typically, one can judge if another samurai is stronger than you or not. However, it appears neither of us can decide who is stronger." Cao explained
"It looks like this will have to be settled." Tetsuo said as he stood
"Wait! First off, you two can't do it here! This is a public tavern! Second, at least wait until you have eaten. You two aren't at your peak condition." Ruby said to try and stop a fight from breaking out now
The two looked at each other and looked eyes. Without saying a word, they nodded in agreement and sat back down. Ruby sighed, but now knew that a fight would happen. These two Ronin were more stubborn than she thought. Then again samurai were raised to be a stubborn breed. Soon their food arrived, and they ate. However now the air was filled with a thick layer of tension over a very simple question. Who is the stronger of the two?
I give a big thanks to ComparedDread12 for providing Tetsuo Yamamoto to add to my cast of characters. As for the chapter, well it's a perfect cliffhanger. Also, I want to dedicate more time and detail to the fight while not making the chapter too long to write. The next chapter will break the format temporarily and will be another Cao and Ruby chapter. There a winner will be decided, and we will see which of these Ronin have the stronger chops in, "A Ronin clash inside the sacred temple."