Chapter IV, Part I – The Renjiro Clan

The Myre was a harsh environment for anyone not accustomed to it. Many different species of plants and animals lived here: some dangerous, some passive. The people here—the Samurai—could be even more deadly than the creatures that crawled around the wet and muddy grounds. One would be wise to leave them out of wrongdoings, but it seemed that no one across the three factions were wise enough for that simple fact.

It would be easy to ignore the Samurai, for they normally maintained a passive approach to the other two factions. However, the Knights and the Vikings had never learned from past mistakes. Motivated by greed and bloodlust, they would attack the Samurai. Many times, they would assault the Myre, hoping to gain some kind of advantage against the enemies in their own region.

That was in the past, however. The most recent attack against the Samurai and the Myre was from the Blackstone Legion. That event was a few years ago, and with no battles occurring since then from neither the Vikings nor Knights, the people of the Myre allowed themselves to settle back down into a peaceful state. Still, they were wary of trusting either of the two other factions after a rough history.

None of that history mattered to the young Tsutsui Kanon. She did not care for the wars against other factions, for it was not the Knights nor Vikings that took her parents from her. It was her own blood—Samurai from other clans. Kanon should have died along with her parents, but they hid her in the basement just before the slaughtering of the village. She would have been left there had she not been found by the Renjiro clan—the clan which was supposed to protect her village but did not after the small town failed to meet a crop quota.

The Renjiro clan had found the young Kanon in the small basement a few hours after the initial raid from the rival group of Samurai. She was found cowering and fearful—emotions fit for such a young girl in such a dark time and place as this. They were cautious with the young girl, but they eventually decided to take her with them. The Renjiro clan took Kanon deep into the Myre's thick jungles where she would be raised by a pair of well-meaning adults. Eventually, Kanon would abandon her born name to take that of her new parents': Nakasone Hanako.

Contrary to what many other children would do if they were put through these horrible circumstances, Hanako was not content with wallowing in pain and sorrow. She used it as a way to see the world differently. She said farewell to the innocence of a child, and she welcomed realism and a brand-new pragmatic view of the world. With this new attitude and perspective, she put all her time into training. She had learned that you could not depend on the world helping you; instead, you had to help yourself, and she planned to do that.

Hanako would stay with the Renjiro clan for many years, for she considered them her family since her actual one had met their tragic end. She trained under many Shinobi, and whilst her ability was not extraordinary—for it was only above average at best—it was the fact that she so easily picked it up that propelled her in the eyes of the clan. It was not in her physical weapons that her skill lay—although she definitely was deadly with them—but it was within her leadership and ability to strategize.

Because of her good leadership skills and her natural, no nonsense attitude, the Renjiro clan assigned Hanako to the task of training the youngest recruits. Since she could not measure up to some of the more notable members of the clan, she mostly specialized in teaching the trainees the listening and patience skills that they would need to become a Shinobi. Most of her students would eventually become some of the deadliest of the Renjiro clan simply because they knew the true meaning of discipline, and they could only thank Hanako for that.

Nevertheless, training was not the only thing that Hanako did for the clan. They would often send her on reconnaissance tasks, which she always completed with success. However, the young Shinobi would soon be tasked for one of the most important missions. It was a kind of right of passage for her. The Renjiro clan was always very particular, so it was strange of them to give one of their trainers one of these assignments.

Here she was: the small wooden meeting hall in the heart of the Myre. The walls were short, but the roof arched, allowing for some much needed height within the cramped area. Torches lined the perimeter of the room, casting dim light into the center of the windowless chamber. A wooden throne-like chair sat along the back wall draped in a bear's fur coat.

A man sat in this chair. He was dressed in a fine cloth with small pieces of leather in select places. Unlike other Shinobi, he was not wearing a mask. His face was stern and young, which was strange for a man in such a high position. A golden ornament depicting a half crescent moon with three stars sat atop his head, signifying his role in the Renjiro clan. This man, Tetsuo Renjiro, slumped back in his chair.

"Hanako." Tetsuo said as the young woman silently entered the relatively empty building, his two brown eyes looking her up and down. She was dressed in full Shinobi gear, her weapons included. She bowed slightly before his presence.

"Yes, master?" Hanako's voice remained low, but it was just loud enough for Tetsuo to hear her.

"You've done much for the Renjiro clan." He commended as he sat up from his slouched position. "But I think you could do more. You have certainly proved yourself as an efficient Shinobi, but you could always be better."

Tetsuo paused and stood before walking over to Hanako. She tensed more and more the closer he got to her. He stopped just behind her, but she did not dare look over her shoulder at him. Neither did he.

"Darius Shonto." He whispered just barely loud enough for Hanako to hear. "He has become quite the nuisance for us here in the Myre. I don't like nuisances."

"Of course not, sir." She mentioned, keeping her eyes glued ahead of her.

"We have word from other Shinobis that he was seen riding to the Wolfstone Outpost." Tetsuo informed as he turned on his heel to look at Hanako from the back. "Go there and prove your worthiness for the Renjiro clan. Kill Darius Shonto, and you will gain much from this simple thing."

"It is done, master." Hanako said.

"Good." Tetsuo said after he walked back to the wooden chair. Turning on his heel, he looked straight into Hanako's amber eyes. He bowed, and she returned the favor. He waived his hand, alerting her that she should leave—which she subsequently did.

This meant a lot to Hanako. If she could successfully complete this task she was given, then she could further herself in the hierarchy of the Renjiro clan. She was not one to be content with where she was; she was always trying to improve herself. So, when the chance to become one of the few "generals" that commanded small groups of Shinobis came, she took it with fervor.

The night was young, the moon was full, and the Myre was quiet. These were all things that the young Shinobi was relieved about. She was lying down on her stomach, muddying her cloth and leather armor. Hanako was silently waiting for a man named William. He was Darius Shonto's second and advisor. He was to pass through the Myre on his way to the Wolfstone Outpost from one of the various farms that was nestled along the border of Ashfeld and the Myre.

Hanako was lying inside a thick bush that was just large enough to cover her torso. She pushed aside a few of the branches, keeping her eyes glued on the barely used path made of mud and loose stones. In the distance she could hear the clicking of horse hooves. It must have been William, for no one else would have used such an unknown path. The Shinobi's suspicions were later confirmed when her target crested the hill, letting her see the emblem on his shoulder armor.

The emblem was of a right half of a skull, the left half of a Knight's helm, and a sword splitting down the middle where the two other symbols connected to each other. All of this was orange on a black background. It was an emblem that struck Hanako with a sense of familiarity. Most, if not all, the Samurai throughout the Myre knew this insignia. It belonged to the Blackstone Legion—the legion that had marched against the city of Koto years ago.

What is the Blackstone Legion doing in Ashfeld? Hanako thought. The growing sound of horses snapped the young Shinobi from her thoughts. William and two other men—whose names were unknown to Hanako—rode their horses closer and closer to her hiding place but just far enough to not notice the Samurai. As they approached, her heart began beating even more. She silently retrieved her Oyumi that had been lying just beside her. Placing the arrow in its wooden frame, the Shinobi snapped a long cord into place.

Hanako aimed her shot with the Oyumi. She breathed in and out once before letting the arrow fire off from the weapons, splitting the air with its great velocity. The sharp object pierced the soft part between one of the two unnamed men's shoulder plate and helmet, sending the man flying onto the ground beside his horse—dead. William and the other unknown instantly drew their swords and looked to where the arrow originated from.

In response, the Shinobi put down her Oyumi before letting her Kusarigama fall into her hands. She threw a smoke bomb down and jumped from the small overlook that she had been perched on. Landing just behind the second nameless man, threw her right Kusarigama from a distance of a few feet. The sharp point nestled itself in between his chainmail and plate armor. After Hanako pulled on the chain, which sent the man flying from his horse and towards her, she took her left Kusarigama and planted the blade deep into the man's exposed face between his eyes, killing him almost instantly.

Hanako retrieved the Kusarigama from the dead man and turned her full attention to William. His grip visibly tightened around the hilt of his longsword; she could feel his fear even from beyond his silver helmet. He let out a scream and charged at her from atop his horse. Hanako pushed from the ground and jumped high into the night sky. She timed this perfectly, as she glided above the man's blade as his horse passed her previous position.

William quickly recovered and turned his horse back around to face her once again. Hanako landed the jump and also turned on her heel to look at him with an emotionless expression. He snarled from beyond his helmet. In response, the Shinobi retrieved her Ninjatō—a weapon similar to that of the Katana but shorter and straighter—that had been strapped to her back.

Growling, William once again road straight at the woman, swiping his sword towards her. Thinking fast, Hanako crouched down, slicing open the side of the brown horse as she did so with her sword. The animal toppled to the ground, sending the man from its back and into the muddy road. He quickly pushed himself up and angrily yelled after removing his helmet and throwing it to the earth, revealing a young, chiseled face filled with hatred.

The Blackstone legionnaire held his longsword with both hands, ready to fight the Shinobi in a close-combat skirmish. He buried his feet deep into the mud, anchoring himself in case his opponent was the first to attack. The Shinobi stood from her crouched position and turned back to the man. Her amber eyes locked with his dark brown. They stood like this for less than a minute, but that was still too long for the now bloodthirsty Blackstone dog.

William pushed himself forward, his longsword raised high into the night sky. He brought the weapon down onto the Shinobi, but she had ducked out of the way towards his right, cutting off the leather straps that held his breastplate to his chest with her Kusarigama as she did so. Recovering from the missed swing, William turned on his heel to look at the Shinobi. He tore off the plate of armor that was now hanging off to the left of his torso, throwing it to the ground like his helmet.

"You damned Samurai pigs!" He spat at the woman. "You're going to die!"

Hanako remained silent as he hurled swears and insults her way, her face remaining almost completely stoic. After a few more seconds of verbal attacks, William charged at her once again; however, he was met with the Shinobi charging at him once again as well. Just as they were both about to collide, Hanako dropped to the floor and slid across the muddy ground into his legs, knocking him to the ground. He lost grip of his blade as he fell, causing his longsword to be thrown to the side.

The Shinobi quickly recovered, retrieving her Ninjatō shortly thereafter. She silently walked up to the fallen Knight as he rolled onto his back. She pointed the blade at William's exposed neck. He took a deep breath in before holding his hands above his head, signifying defeat.

"It's over." Hanako demanded, her quiet voice piercing the man's ears and pride.

"No!" William yelled. As he was lying on his back on the ground, he kicked the Samurai's shin, which threw off her balance and sent her to the muddy earth beside him. He rolled over on top of the Shinobi, pinning her beneath him. He wrapped his hands around her neck and started squeezing, choking her.

Hanako could feel her life leave her body with every breath she would try to take. Feeling herself begin to go dizzy, she had to stop him. In a split second she kicked upwards, her hooked boot slicing into the man's crotch. His grip loosened as he screamed in pain. Hanako pushed the man off of her and to her feet. William attempted to stand from her feet but to no avail. He clutched his bleeding nether regions and collapsed to his knees in complete agony.

"You bitch…" William's once commanding voice was broken and quiet as his breath left his body. He toppled to the ground in pain, squirming there for a few moments as blood gushed out of various wounds in his body. After two or three minutes, he had lost too much blood, and his vision went black as he passed out.

All while this was happening, Hanako had stayed on her back, taking in deep breaths every few moments. She allowed herself to take a break and catch her breath, which was something unusual for the normally constantly working Shinobi. She knew this was not the end of the task she was given, but perhaps she was allowed a pause.

(Re)Introducing Nakasone Hanako, created by Mister Bombastic.

Sorry for this one being much shorter than the others, but I wanted to get something out this week, which is why I split it up into separate parts. With school and a certain weather event happening, things have been quite hectic these past few weeks. And concerning that aforementioned weather event, I wouldn't expect a chapter next week or the one after that because power/internet might be an issue.

Other than that quick update, I hope you enjoyed the chapter.