Chapter 9
The Job
While Danzo had been busy on his search for Ryuki. Asuka and the other kunoichi soon gathered in a secluded area to ensure that their meeting was necessary for their next objective. All the girls soon agreed that Miyabi was acting like her normal self, hunting Youma and becoming the ultimate ninja of the world.
"We gotta get to the bottom of this," Katsuragi said.
"I agree Katsu, We need to be cautious before anything else gets out of hand for all of us," replied Ikaruga.
Hikage nodded as well.
"Even though I feel no emotion, I still know what concern feels like," she said quietly.
Homura was surprised to hear her friend say that, earning her a smile.
"Well doesn't that sound out of character for Hikage," chuckled Katsuragi.
"Ahem, we don't want to make Hikage annoyed right now," piped in Mirai.
"It's okay Mirai, I can experience some emotion when I want to," she said with a small smile.
"That's good, Hikage Darling," said Haruka, her voice almost soothing her to sleep.
"Well at least Senko, Gekko, and Fubuki might know something about Danzo that we don't," Piped in Ryona.
"Maybe Ryona," agreed Ryobi, making Ryona happily jump for joy.
The shinobi masters themselves had arrived at the meeting ground along with Kagura, Naraku, and the Mikagura sisters.
"Indeed I do. Danzo is a half-youma," she said calmly.
Everyone gasped in awe and shock, but Hikage still kept her face neutral to mask what the other Kunoichi were feeling.
"Fubuki's right, she felt his youma power awaken while we were searching the tower," said Senko.
"But we do know one thing, he's the son of the Legendary Black Ninja, Sato," added Gekko.
"What!?" everyone asked, aghast at what they heard.
"Sato was a youma who turned upon his brethren many years ago when Madara soon took charge of the youma realm. But eventually he met a human woman named Emika, they fell in love, married in secret just as Fubuki's parents did, and had twin sons named Danzo and Ryuki," explained Kagura.
"But what happened to Danzo and Ryuki's mother and father?" asked Yumi.
"It's a bit of a long story, but I'll tell you all about what happened to Danzo's mother Emika. After Sato left and passed away as a living legend, A new youma took over from the previous youma emperor. His name was Madara and he wanted to see his traitorous soldier's family exterminated," began Kagura.
Then she told them about how she tried to hold the youma back before they could even reach the house only to realize that several more had entered.
Emika quickly saw her son Danzo lying on the ground as flames engulfed their home. She rushed to his side and helped up.
"Come this way," she said, taking him to a closet and ushering him inside.
"You need to hide, Danzo. No matter what happens, you mustn't leave! I need to find Ryuki. I promise I'll be back. I know this is hard. You must listen to me. Be a big boy… A man, huh?" Emika told her son.
"I understand Mom," Danzo said his eyes filled with love and concern.
"If I don't return, you must run. By yourself, alone. You must change your name. Forget your past and start a new life as someone else. A new beginning," Emika said as she shut the closet doors.
All Danzo could do now was watch his mother run off to find his brother from behind the doors.
"Ryuki!? Where are you, Ryuki!?" she called.
But a huge explosion sent debris flying as Emika screamed in shock to see angry Youma cut her apart in tiny fragments.
"Mom, Dad," wept Danzo, as he sank back to the wall and sat down.
Kagura lashed out at full power sending the Youma back and wiping them out when she heard dark cold laughter in the distance.
"Pathetic human! Abandoning her own children after their traitorous father had left and passed on!" It was Madara, the Youma Emperor.
"You accursed monster, You will pay for what you did!" shouted Kagura, unleashing a full power energy beam from the ground incinerating the Youma around her.
Emika's breathing had become labored as she looked at Kagura who knelt by her.
"Kagura, promise me, you'll look after my son," she said softly.
"I swear, I'll look after him," replied the Youma slayer.
"He will avenge us," whispered Emika.
Kagura watched solemnly as Emika's eyes fluttered shut and died. When the flames died down, Kagura saw young Danzo walking out and saw that his mother was lying near the Youma slayer's feet.
"So you are Danzo, the son of the late Sato," she said.
Danzo nodded, and ran to Kagura burying his tear stricken face into her chest.
"I know, your mother asked to take care of you, So I promise I'll look after you, even if you do become someone else," Kagura said placing her arms around him in a gentle hug as a tear rolled down her cheek onto Emika's motionless face.
"After that, Danzo became a youma hunter for hire, starting up a business with an employer after learning from Hanzo Academy, Gessen Academy, and Hebijo Academy before he left to put the skills he learned from those three schools to further his career in youma hunting," Kagura said, finishing her story.
Everyone was horrified by the terrible carnage in that story as Asuka slowly felt a tear roll down her cheek.
"Poor Danzo, I do feel sorry about what happened to his mother," she said sadly.
Rather than grab Asuka's breasts, Katsuragi gently placed her hands on her friend's shoulders.
"I do too, Asuka, but right now we have to prevent a world wide Youma invasion, or everything we've done will all be for nothing," she assured the granddaughter of lord Hanzo.
Everyone nodded at Asuka, and Hikage soon began to feel her first friendly smile after so lung.
"I'd be happy to help you guys make sure that our common foe is defeated," said Hikage.
"Thank you Hikage," replied Asuka, pulling the knife wielder into a friendly hug.
The girls then split up yet again hoping to find Danzo and Miyabi
Danzo was now holding the Neo-Generator in his hand tossing it up and down like a ball. He then kicked it since his soccer practice days back at Hanzo Academy when he once his other name, Makoto Kisaragi. H kicked it high in the air, jumped up, and sent it straight towards a piece of architecture that resembled the face of a great lion. The bridge that he was on soon began to turn slowly and Danzo smirked proudly as he strode pridefully away to the door ahead.
"Bullseye," he said quietly, as he opened the door and entered a marble hallway.
Danzo slowly walked forward not even noticing the corpse of the man who arrived at his nameless shop, and sent Ryuki's invitation to him. His ninja training from the three schools enabled him to dodge a Kunai which removed a small strand of his hair from his head.
"Well that was quick," he said, turning to see Miyabi pointing her sword at him.
Miyabi slowly walked past him, her sword still pointing towards him.
"That man, did you kill him?" she asked.
"So what if I did?" Danzo replied.
Miyabi furiously attacked Danzo, but he quickly evaded her sword wipes as countered with his guns and sword on him. Danzo grabbed her arm forcing the electric bombshell out of her hand and into the lights above, causing them to short circuit.
"Ooh, I love a fast woman," he said cockily.
"SHUT UP!" screamed Miyabi, attacking him again.
Danzo however continued to evade her attacks dodging and weaving back and forth.
"He was obsessed with becoming a youma. So much he killed our own father. For that he butchered innocent people too. He's the most vile kind of creature," Miyabi explained still trying cut him down.
She tried to flip him onto his back, but Danzo flung her aside onto a nearby wall, and did a side twist as Miyabi flung more Kunai at him. They only left some small holes in his coat which made him mildly annoyed. Miyabi stood back and charged at him, but Danzo leapt above firing his guns at her, only to have the bullets reflected by the black damascus steel blade of her Katana. They turned pointing their weapons at each other.
"To top it off, that filthy scum is my brother," Miyabi finished.
"Well, we have something in common. I have a dysfunctional family too," Danzo replied arrogantly.
"And what would you know about Family!? You're a youma! This is my brother; my family! This was all supposed to end by my hand!" snapped Miyabi, pointing her sword at Danzo.
But she couldn't bring herself to kill him as she lowered her sword listlessly to her side and turned to face Akira.
"Aren't you gonna kill me?" asked Danzo.
Miyabi didn't respond.
"Well that's a switch," he muttered.
"Just go. I don't care anymore," she said quietly.
Danzo turned and walked away holstering his guns.
"Family huh?" he said to himself.
Once Miyabi was left alone she soon heard a gasp erupt from Akira, making her turn. And point her sword at him.
"Where am I? It's dark, I can't see anything," he whispered.
"You're still alive, I see," Miyabi said darkly.
Akira turned to face his sister.
"Miyabi? Is that you? What's happening? Where's our father?" he asked.
"Our father!? You killed him, remember?" She snapped.
"Yes… That's right. I killed him, with my own hands. What horrible thing have I done? I was too weak. I succumbed to his influence," he replied.
"You mean, you were possessed?" gasped Miyabi.
Akira tried to speak but he slowly began to breathe rapidly.
Miyabi dropped her sword to the ground, and knelt by her brother's side.
"Yes, I was manipulated. Manipulated by a youma, named Ryuki," he told her.
"Ryuki!?" gasped Miyabi.
He's attempting to bring the Youma Realm back to this modern day. A world that Sato once sealed off," Akira explained.
Sato? I thought he was a myth," replied Miyabi.
"If the youma return, this world will be thrown into chaos. Stop him. Stop Ryuki!" choked Akira.
"Me?" asked his sister, who was beginning to feel tears stinging her eyes.
"You are such a sweet girl, just like our mother," he rasped, stroking Miyabi's cheek, then he fell silent and motionless.
"Brother! BROTHER!" she sobbed.
Miyabi cried as she picked up his brother's book and placed onto him. Then she gently put his hands on top of the book, and looked up with fresh anger and hatred in her tear stricken eyes.
"Ryuki," she said in a low voice.
Picking up her sword, she slowly stormed after Danzo in search of Ryuki, so that she would find him and kill him once and for all.