Chapter 17
Our Fight
The waterfall every Hayabusa ninja has been talking about was where she fled off to. Dragon flames danced in the wind and came to a stop to drop off the maiden. Landing on her feet, she slowly turned to look at the waterfall. Sure, magic doesn't exist, but this waterfall made the Hayabusas' somewhat believe. The clear water swished over the rocks joyfully and thundered down the into the pool below like a gigantic water spout. Toppling below, it foamed it at the bottom. The sight made the maiden smile as she sat on the rail of the bridge.
"This used to be fun back in our younger days." She mumbled and thought back when she came to the path with them.
"Ryu-kun!" Momiji called out to Ryu.
"Momiji, wait up!" Her older sister, Kureha, said and turned to look at Ryu.
"Sorry I asked you to tag along Ryu. I can call this off and-"
"It's fine." Ryu interrupted her.
Blinking a couple of times, she smiled and grabbed his hand.
"Then let's go play!" She laughed and pulled his arm, starting to run after Momiji.
Ryu hesitated to play along since he never had the chance to be free from training by his father.
Letting go of her hand, he stopped in his place.
"...What's wrong?" Kureha frown and turned to see him not following anymore.
"I don't know." He stated and glanced the other way.
Kureha smiled and pointed over to Momiji, who continued to run all over the bridge.
"I bet we can catch her off guard." She winked.
Ryu looked up to see her getting into her fighting stance.
"Try to catch me Ryu-kun!" Momiji laughed.
Smiling, they both leaped at her, ready to take her down.
Acting fast, Momiji jumped on top of the rail of the bridge and blocked all the punches they threw at her. Kureha leaped back as she wanted to watch just the two fight instead.
"Too slow!" Momiji said as she jumped over him and kicked him in his back. Ryu then fell back on the bridge and turned to see Momiji laughing at him.
'That was a good day to remember.' Momiji thought and walked to the other side of the bridge. Suddenly, a striking pain hit her chest as she forgot what happened soon after that.
Kureha smiled and watched Ryu get easily defeated by Momiji. Her smiled quickly faded as she saw Ryu's right hand forming blue and black fire in his palm.
"Too slow, huh?" Ryu laughed and quickly got up and threw the dark fire ball at Momiji.
"Ryu!" Kureha called to try to stop him. But it was too late, he had already thrown the ball. Momiji's eyes widen as she was hit in the chest and broke the rail. Her body grew limp and she slowly fell from the bridge, to the river below.
Ryu's eyes bugged out as he witnessed her fall down. Acting fast, he jumped, head first, reaching his hand out to grab her.
"Momiji!" He cried as they continued to fall.
Kureha ran to the edge as tears escaped her eyes and ran down her cheeks.
"Momiji! Grab my hand!" Ryu yelled at the girl.
"No! Stay away from me Ryu-kun! Don't touch me!" Momiji cried as tears flew from her eyes.
"Stop being stubborn and grab my hand! I promised I'll watch the both of y'all! I will not let you die!" He yelled as they continued to fall.
"You threw fire at me! If you don't want me to die, then why did you throw that at me Ryu-kun?!" She yelled at him.
Ryu's face darkened the second she had her outburst. He then flew down towards her and grabbed her in his arms. He then teleported and now they sat at the edge of the river banks. Momiji cried in his chest as he grasped her small body.
"I'm sorry Momiji...I'm..." He buried his face into her shoulder.
"I never met to hurt you. I will never." He told her as she continued to cry.
"Momiji!" Kureha appeared a few feet away from the two. She then ran over towards them and embraced them both. Seconds later, her shoulders began to shake and soon, she was crying along with Momiji. Ryu embraced the two girls as they cried in his arms.
Momiji tried to study herself against the railing of the bridge as her stomache grew worse after that memory.
"Don't touch me!" She repeated several times in her mind.
"Ryu don't touch-!" She stopped. Suddenly something tiny and shiny cut through the wind. The maiden staggered forward once the needle hit the back of her neck. Seconds later, she fell instantly over the railing, down to the river below.
"Idiot!" Momiji heard someone yell from below. Before long, she was out cold.
Something then flew through the air and caught the maiden before she hit the ground. The figure landed near the edge of the river banks and its silver thin eyes scanned Momiji's face.
"I'm sorry. I'll never leave you again, Momiji." The male figure said and kissed her forehead. His long black hair flowed in the wind as he turned to head towards his destination; back to the Hayabusa village.
Multiple men had gathered outside of the shrine, waiting for Joe Hayabusa. Minutes later, they rose their heads up to see him walking out of the door.
"Master Joe, we wait for your orders." One ninja said with a bow.
"Tell them I'll be heading out, guard the entrance and do not allow anyone in, understood?" Joe explained.
"Hai!" The men answered in unison.
With said, half of them stayed with Master Joe while the others went to go spread the order.
Ryu watched from the window as everyone was getting ready for battle. He then glanced down at the origami star in his hand.
'I made a promise, huh?' He told himself.
Turning around, he left the room and walked out the shrine. Many of the villagers were moving from one place to another, carrying supplies, gearing up, or going back to their homes. Ryu watched and came to a sudden stop when he felt a familiar presence.
"Ryu.." He heard her voice call him.
He turned around to see a swirl of green leaves flow in the wind. Two sparrows flew with the leaves as they swirled around his body and flew off down the path.
"Ryu, come follow me.." Her voice carried in the wind.
'It can't be.' He told himself. His feet then took off after the wind of leaves as he still continued to hear her voice.
"Please don't worry, I'll stay with you wherever you go Ryu. I promise." She said.
"You don't have to, I left you long ago. I let you down."
"Don't blame yourself Ryu! Please don't!"
His eyes narrowed as he bolted through the path.
"Ryu, do you hear me? They need you out there. You can't waste any more time. Go save your..."
She paused once he had come to his destination.
"Family." He finished as he stared down her tombstone.
"Please find Canna, Ryu. I'll be waiting for you."
His eyes then trailed down to the ninja star in his palm. Staring down for a few minutes, he placed it in his pocket.
"I won't let you down, Kureha." He said with a bow and teleported back to the village.
The male ninja appeared not far from the Hayabusa village entrance. Looking at his surroundings, he kneeled down and placed the maiden carefully down on the ground.
"I'll see you soon, Momiji." He smirked and moved to give her another kiss when he heard someone nearby.
'I guess it'll have to wait.' He said to himself and disappeared into smoke.
Ryu had all his thoughts running throughout his mind until he felt someone's presence in front of him. The sharp star flew towards him, but luckily, he blocked it just in time.
"Where is she?!" A boy's voice yelled from above.
Looking up, Ryu drew out a single kunai as the boy landed in front of him with his own weapon, ready to attack once more.
"Where did you put her?!" Sanji yelled and lunged again and Ryu.
"What?" He asked and pushed himself back away from the boy.
"Last time I checked she was with you in the shrine, and I'm out here waiting for her to come out to have a talk with me. I waited and waited and that's when you came out alone. Where did Momiji go?! What happened with her?" He asked and leaped up in the air, ready to pierce Hayabusa.
"Sanji, calm down. You need to stay calm." Ryu replied and grabbed Sanji's wrist.
Clicking his tongue, Sanji untwisted himself from Ryu's grasp and teleported behind him. He raised his palms out and placed them to his chest. Then a small form of energy shaped into a ball in his hands as he raised them back out again.
"Where did you hide her Master Ryu?" Sanji asked with anger as his energy ball slightly grew.
"Master Ryu," Sanji then stood in his fighting position.
Ryu narrowed his eyes and stood at ready with his kunai in his hand.
"ike!" Sanji called as he threw his fireball at Ryu.
"Sanji!" They both heard a woman's voice in the wind.
Sanji's blue eyes widen the second he heard the voice. Ryu then threw his kunai at the fireball, which caused the two to explode in the process.
"Sanji, it's ok. I'm over here now." The woman's voice called.
Turning around, Sanji looked to see a woman laying down before the entrance of the village.
"Momiji?" He called out to her. He then started walking over towards her.
"Momiji!" He then began ran over to her when he was suddenly stopped by Ryu.
"Wait, Sanji." He stated as he grabbed his arm.
"You tell me to wait. That's what I've been doing this whole time..and waiting came to this? Is she even alive? I'm tired of people telling me to wait for something that will never come-!" He stopped as Ryu's fist collided into his stomach. Sanji fell forwards into his arms and soon fell unconscious.
"Kore ga watashi ga anata ni matsu yō ni iu riyūdesu." He replied and tossed Sanji over his shoulder.
Ryu then stood up and walked over to the maiden. Kneeling down, he moved a few strands of her hair away from her face.
"Momiji, can you hear me?" He quietly called.
His fingers trailed from her face down to her neck. Something thin and shiny caught his eyes as his fingers moved along her neck.
"Hm?" He studied the needle that was stuck to the back of her neck. Once his fingers got near the needle, a shocking wave stopped him from pulling it out.
'So, you can't be pulled out?' He thought and caressed her neck.
Without wasting anymore time, he lifted Momiji in his arms and carried her, while Sanji still hung on his shoulder.
Turning around for the last time, the three started back to the village.
Hayate was lost in his own thoughts, thinking how he would handle the situation of bringing an outsider into the village. He would have to make a good excuse in order to not let chaos spread throughout the village. But thinking about what had happened once he got here, rumors were already spreading.
"What a pain in the ass." He muttered to himself.
Children laughter interrupted his thoughts as he turned to see a few ninjas running up to him.
"Hayate-sama!" One of the three called out to him.
"Hm?" He answered and looked down at them.
There were two young boys, and a girl, who were standing by her side as she held out fresh flowers for Hayate.
"Here! These are for the lady. When momma felt bad, flowers always made her feel better! I thought I'd come to help by bringing her a present from our village!" The girl smiled and held up the flowers to him.
One of the boys jumped back with shock and quickly placed a hand on her shoulder to stop her.
"Harumi, you can't just go giving strangers gifts like that! She could be our enemy for all we know!" The boy exclaimed as he stared her down.
"But!-"
"Harumi, listen to me. You don't want to get into trouble, do you?" He interrupted her.
Now this time, it was the other boy to grab his shoulder.
"Yo, Hitoshi. Who says that she's all bad? Jumping to conclusions again, are we?" He smirked at Hitoshi.
"Anyway, go and give her your flowers, Princess." He turned to Harumi and took her hand to place a kiss on top of it.
"I would never turn down your presents, friend or foe, Harumi." He smiled as he still held her hand.
Her cheeks grew a bright shade of pink as she stared into his red eyes.
"Ren!" Hitoshi yelled at him as his fist flew towards Ren's jaw.
But before his fist collided, another hand stopped Hitoshi's.
His baby blue eyes narrowed as he turned to come face to face with Hayate, who had his fist in his grasp.
Harumi jumped back with surprise as she never seen Hayate like this before. Ren, on the other hand, stood in front of her and covered her with his arm while his other hand was ready to draw out his kunai.
Hayate stared into Hitoshi's eyes as he tightened his grip on his fist.
"I will not have this violence take place here. If this were to happen again, I suggest you to go take it out at the training grounds. As of right now, I don't want any loud commotion going on near this room, understand?" He demanded.
Hitoshi grunted and unclenched his fist. Hayate then released his hand and watched the boy distance himself away from him.
Hayate then turned back to Harumi and Ren, who slowly began to distance themselves as well.
He then noticed the boy named Ren getting a hold on his kunai.
"No need to get to those limits, Ren." He stated.
Ren gasped and nodded. He then removed his hand from the kunai and stepped aside as Hayate walked past him towards Harumi.
Kneeling down, Hayate smiled at the girl.
"Thank you, Harumi. I'll give her your present." He calmly answered and took the flowers from her hands.
Harumi's eyes then teared up as she looked at his face.
Suddenly she embraced him and whispered into his ear.
"Arigato Hayate-sama."
Hayate smiled and wrapped his arms around her small body.
Seconds later, she released him and took a few steps back.
"Let's get out of here Harumi, Father would get mad if we're not home by evening." Hitoshi said and turned around getting ready to leave.
"Ok!" She answered and began to walk towards him. Ren paused in his tracks and turned back to bow at Hayate.
"I'm sorry Master Hayate." Ren apologized with his head lowered.
Hayate got up and slowly walked over towards him.
Ren kept his eyes shut, ready to take any consequences from him. But instead, he felt a hand patting the top of his head. Shooting his head up, his eyes widen once he looked up to see Hayate looking down at him.
"Protect her, Ren. Grow up as the protector of this village." He told him.
Ren's cheeks slightly grew a bright pink once he heard those words.
"I will work hard to reach that goal, Master Hayate." He nodded and turned back towards the other two.
"Hitoshi." Hayate called.
The boy stopped and slightly turned over his shoulder.
"Remember what I told you." He stated.
Clicking his tongue, he turned back around.
"Whatever." Hitoshi answered and walked off.
Soon, the three were gone.
Hayate glanced down at the flowers in his hands and then looked up to see Yori coming out of the room.
"How is she?" He asked.
Yori smiled as she faced him.
"She lost lots of blood, but she can still manage. The medicines will help ease the pain from her wounds. Just let her get some rest for the next couple of days. She's awake if you want to see her right now, Hayate-sama." She explained.
Hayate relaxed once he heard that she was alright. But a frown was still present on his face as he was thinking about if it were to happen again. Who's at fault?
Yori placed her hand on his shoulder.
"Please don't be so worried Hayate-sama. She's fine now. I'm glad you got her here on time." She sighed. "Please..."
She stopped once she felt Hayate pull her close into an embrace.
"Thank you, Yori. I'm so glad you're here with me." He whispered into her ear.
Her eyes widen as she was frozen in her place.
He then released her and smiled back at her for the last time and walked into the room.
Yori stood in her place trying to comprehend what just happened.
Her cheeks bloomed a bright pink as she placed both her hands on both of them.
"Hayate-sama." She mumbled.
Smiling, she turned back around, and made her way back to the village.
Hikaru arrived back at the Black Spider village just as Saburo and Mizuki did. Saburo quickly turned around to face Hikaru the second he sensed her presence.
"Ms. Hikaru, where would you want the prisoner taken to?" He asked.
Hikaru smiled and walked over to look at Mizuki, who was covered in the dark aura from the village. Her eyes were closed, but she was still slightly breathing.
"Back to where her little daughter is at. I'll be stopping by to watch Hayabusa finishes them off when he gets the news." She said with a smile spreading across her face.
He bowed and turned to leave, when he felt Hikaru place her hand on his shoulder.
"Matte." She told him and placed a piece of paper on Mizuki's chest. The paper had Japanese characters written in black ink that read "Nemuri!"
The paper then dissolved into her chest and her body released a black aura that surround her form.
Hikaru watched and turned to look at him, who was consuming the aura towards his chest.
"Daijōbu desu?" She asked with concern in her eyes.
He turned to look at her as his eyes turned a darker shade of green.
"I'll manage." He mumbled.
Minutes later, the black aura consumed both their bodies and he turned around and walked to his destination.
Hikaru frowned as she watched his comrade walking away, holding the curse around both their bodies.
"Well done, my daughter." A voice interrupted her thoughts.
She jumped in shock and slowly turned to see her father standing behind her, with a wide smile across his face.
"Father!" She yelped. "Oh, this plan. It worked out overall, but some of us couldn't make it back..but overall I completed my tasks." She explained.
His smiled faded after he heard what she had to say. He then grabbed the collar of her garb to stare directly into her eyes.
"And how long did this take you, Hikaru? If it was a simple task, why are you late coming here? To tell me this?" He asked.
Hikaru eyes widen as she felt his anger grow off him. Tears slowly began to fill her eyes and she looked away from his face.
"Tch." He clicked his tongue and released his grasp on her clothing.
"I made arrangements to meet with Donovan soon to discuss this event. The only thing you need to do for me is make sure the women don't escape. No Mugen or Hayabusa ninja shall come near them. Understand?" He ordered.
"Yes father." She bowed.
Spidor then turned around and walked away from her.
Once he was out of sight, Hikaru called out to a few men.
"Guard every part of this village. No matter what happens, kill those Hayabusas." She demanded.
"Yes Ms. Hikaru!" They all said in unison and spread out within the village.
"You will die in the hands of the Black Spider Ninja, Ryu Hayabusa." Hikaru thought aloud and smiled while she watched her men getting ready for battle.
She then unshielded her sword and scanned it right before she stabbed it into the ground. Hikaru pulled out a pink ribbon from her pocket and tied it at the handle of the sword.
"Sayōnara." She stated and disappeared in a flash.
She opened her hazel eyes to find herself in an empty area. The room was a clear white as she floated alone.
"Where am I?" She wondered aloud.
"With me silly!" A female voice answered her.
Momiji quickly turned around as her eyes widen. The female had short black hair and she wore a pearl silky kimono that dragged at her feet. Her smooth cantaloupe colored lips smiled and her amber eyes sparkled once she looked up at Momiji.
"I've missed you Momiji. How've you been?" The women asked with a smile.
"K-Kureha?" Momiji's eyes filled with tears as she stared at her.
She then slowly began to walk over to her sister.
"Hi little sister." Kureha replied.
Momiji then ran into her arms and sobbed uncontrollably. Kureha placed her hand on top of Momiji's head as she comforted her.
"I've missed you too Kureha." Momiji sobbed and buried her face in her chest.
Minutes later, Kureha's smile faded as she glanced around the area.
"Where are you, Momiji?" She asked.
"..What do you mean? I don't even know where I am." She replied and looked up at her.
"This is the place where all souls come together. How did you get here?"
Her eyes widen and she quickly released her embrace off Kureha.
"W-Where all s-souls..?!" She repeated with concern spreading across her face. Momiji then looked down at both of her hands and touched her face constantly.
"Don't worry, you're still live in the real world. But you better hurry, because if you're here for too long, you won't be able to go back to them." Kureha explained and walked back over to Momiji.
"Them?"
"You need to go back to Ryu." Kureha answered and created an energy ball with her palm and placed it in front of Momiji.
Momiji looked at the ball and saw a blurry image of two men. Narrowing her eyes, she made out one of them.
"Ryu! Wait, is this all happening right now, in the present?" She asked.
Kureha nodded.
Her eyes then began to tear up again as she watched Ryu through the ball. He stared down at her, waiting for her to wake up.
"Momiji, can you hear me still?" She heard him ask her.
"Ryu.." She called and reached her hand to the ball. A sudden shock of energy consumed her body the second her fingertips touched the ball. She fell back in response of the electric wave.
"He can't hear or see you here. We are only able to watch from this place." Kureha stated.
Momiji looked from Kureha then back to Ryu.
Suddenly Momiji's hand slowly began to faded away.
"What's happening?!" She looked at her hand.
"You're waking up." Kureha answered and turned the small energy ball into a sparrow.
Momiji then quickly stood up and moved towards Kureha.
"When will I see you again?" She asked as her body started to fade.
"I will always be with you, Momiji." She smiled and grabbed her sister's other hand.
"Please remember this, Momiji. No matter what, I want you to choose to walk a path you will never regret." She said as she stared into her eyes.
A warm smile spread across Momiji's lips once she heard those words. She then released her hand from Kureha's and placed it on her sister's cheek.
"I will always, Kureha." She replied as tears rolled down her cheeks.
Seconds later, nothing remained of the maiden as Kureha watched her soul disappear.
"Goodbye, Momiji." Kureha waved.
Turning around, she walked into the open area and disappeared soon after.
Earlier..
Ryu concentrated on her as she continued to sleep. Her breathing was still constant but she made no sign that she was still with him.
He looked over at the needle, that was still deeply stabbed into the back of her neck.
"The ninpo isn't hard to remove, that's all I can say Master Ryu." The male ninja behind him spoke out.
Turning around, he stood up and glanced at the man.
"No harm in the process, I swear." He stated and looked back down at Momiji. He walked over and scanned the needle.
"Do you know how this struck her? I mean, with her quick senses, I thought she would've known." He asked Ryu.
"She was laying before the village entrance. I was not with her." He answered.
"Should've been." Ryu heard a reply coming from the boy, who laid on one of the futons in the room.
Sanji only narrowed his eyes at him then turned his body the opposite way, so that his back was facing the three.
The man opened his mouth, but was quickly stopped by Ryu, who raised his hand to stop him.
"Do what you came here for, Osamu." Ryu ordered.
"Of course, Master." Osamu replied and clasped his hands together.
Seconds later, blue and purple light energy escaped his palms as he moved them to hover over her neck.
Ryu watched the energy move its way over to the needle. The light streamed around it and slowly began to pull it out.
"Ryu.." Momiji moaned as the needle was loosening from her neck.
Ryu took a step closer to her and looked at her face. Tears constantly escaped her closed eyes as she continued to wince.
"Momiji, can you hear me still?" He called out to her.
The energy finally released the needle and turned it into ashes. Soon, the colored energy lights danced its way back to Osamu's palms.
"She'll be here soon, Master Ryu." He stated and bowed.
"Thanks Osamu." Ryu said and dismissed the ninja.
He then turned his attention back to the maiden.
"Ryu. Master Ryu?" Her eyes slowly opened to face the Dragon ninja.
"Are you alright, Momiji?" He asked as he helped her sit up from the futon.
"I'm-" She suddenly stopped and grabbed her head in pain.
Ryu watch with concern.
"I'm fine, Master Ryu. No need to worry. We need to find them." Momiji said and stood up, but quickly fell back down on the futon.
"You're in no condition of leaving." He stated.
"We need to find Mizuki and bring her back to the village." She said and looked back at him.
"Hikaru betrayed us." She clenched her fists.
He placed his hands on top of her fists and stared into her eyes.
"I made a promise. I'll bring them home soon." He said and stood up, getting ready to leave.
"Sanji." Ryu called out to the boy.
Sanji rolled over on the futon to look at Ryu, who had his back facing him.
"Hm?"
"Keep your eye of her." Ryu ordered and disappeared in a swirl of green leaves.
"Of course, I'll do your job Master Ryu." Sanji replied and got up and walked over to Momiji.
"Sanji.."
He then embraced her and buried his face against her chest.
"I missed you Momiji. Don't ever leave again, alright?" He mumbled.
Momiji gave him a sad smile and rubbed her hand on top of his head.
"...Sanji." She paused and looked down at him.
"Don't worry. I'll watch over the both of you." Momiji heard Kureha's voice inside her head.
"Arigato, Kureha."
