Chp 19: Roar of The Raijuko
R.F.: The final battle between Raiga and Kaori begins...
Raiga watched in disbelief as Lee was still able to stand despite being repeatedly struck by lightning. "Why are you willing to go so far for that Raijuko?" asked Raiga.
Lee swayed a bit on feet before steadying himself. "Raijuko or not...Kaori-san...I admit I do not know her so well... but all the same, she is a ninja of Konoha and therefore my comrade, my friend!" he declared standing straight. "And there's nothing I won't do to protect my friends, that's my nindo!"
Raiga scrunched his face up in distaste. "Well your nindo is stupid if it means you are going to protect someone like her!" he cried as Raiga lifted his swords above his head and summoned a huge surge of lightning towards him. "Ninpo..."he began to say as he started to spin around creating a lightning tornado. "Lightning Dragon Tornado!"
Lee gaped as the lightning tornado grew larger and taller until it formed a dragon with blazing red eyes. Kaori gasped as she recognized the feel of it's form. "Could it be? Raiga's Raiju?" she exclaimed in disbelief. This only confirmed her suspicions about Raiga's powers even more as the dragon looked at Lee. It roared loudly as it came down on Lee.
"SENPAAAIII!" cried Kaori in horror as she saw getting electrocuted once more in the dragon before getting thrown out and over the mountainside. "LEE-SENPAI!
"Hustle! Hustle!" urged Sansho as she pushed her son to run faster up the mountain path.
"I'm running, I'm running!" replied Karashi looking over his shoulder. "Don't push! I'll spill the curry at this rate!"
"Less talk, more speed!" ordered Sansho pushing her son even faster.
Karashi desperately tried to keep himself steady as he tried to pick up speed with some difficulty. A large curry pot was being carried on his back in a large knapsack along with a ladle and some wrapped up plates of rice. Yue was running ahead of the two in Beast form while Ranmaru held on tightly to her back. They occasionally stopped to wait for the other two before continuing their run.
"Hurry, Yue, hurry!" urged Ranmaru.
"I'll do my best Ranmaru-dono!" ensured Yue as she began to pick up speed. "We'll go ahead!" she yelled over her shoulder as Yue jumped of the mountain path into the air. "Winged Beast Jutsu!" Yue yelled as her fangs grew longer and her wings sprouted from her back in a puff of smoke. Giving them a good flap, Yue and Ranmaru soared high into the air and disappeared from sight.
"Oh my!" exclaimed Sansho in surprise.
...
While Yue and Ranmaru were already a good distance away from the two, Ranmaru noticed a familiar figure wedged between some rocks. "Lee-san?" he said curiously.
Yue noticed him as well as she flew down to him. He was unconscious and obviously stunned but he was very much alive. Yue could see the smoke rising from his body which she suspected was from being electrocuted. "Lee-san? Are you okay?"" asked Ranmaru when suddenly, Lee flopped forward and went splat on the ground at their like a piece of limp noodle.
"Lee-dono? Wake up! This is no time to be unconscious!" yelled Yue exasperatedly as she shook him hard with her paw.
"Hustle! Hustle!" she then heard Sansho as she and her son finally caught up with then.
"I can't run anymore!" exclaimed an exhausted Karashi as he sat down on the ground hard.
"Sansho-baasan, quick the Curry of Life!" said Ranmaru urgently as he slid of Yue's back.
"I'm on it!" replied the old woman as she prepared two plates of curry before knocking Karashi hard on the head. "Alright you! Go bring this to Kaori-san, Neji-san and Naruto-san! We'll take care of Lee-san here!" she ordered.
"Hai, Okaa-chan!" replied Karashi hurriedly as he grabbed the plates and began running up the pathway.
The moment he disappeared from sight, Sansho turned to Ranmaru and Yue. "Alright you two, help me open Lee's mouth while I pour him the curry!" Sansho instructed.
The other two nodded as Yue pulled open Lee's lower jaw while Ranmaru pulled on his top jaw. Taking one big scoop of the curry from the pot, Sansho poured the whole ladle into Lee's mouth to the point his face swelled like a melon before the two let go. The group watched intently as Lee began to chew and swallowed the curry in one big gulp, returning him back to his normal color but still remained unconscious. "I guess even the curry was no good..." Sansho began to say sadly.
Suddenly, Lee's eyes popped open as he snatched the ladle from a shocked Sansho with such force she got tossed into the air but was quickly caught by Ranmaru and Yue. "Heavens!" she exclaimed as Lee began to eat the curry straight from the pot much to the surprise of the three.
Meanwhile, Karashi had arrived at the top of the mountain as saw Kaori, who spotted him as well. "Karashi-san..." she almost exclaimed as the boy came up to her and bowed his head.
"Kaori-san, I'm very sorry for lying! I truly am, please forgive me!" he pleaded. "Here take this!" he said placing the plate of curry in her hands.
Kaori eyed the plate before looking at Karashi before shaking her head. "Alright, fine. But only because you came back to help," she said as she took a bite of the curry.
Suddenly her eyes popped wide open as flames erupted from her mouth, startling Karashi. "I think I've had enough..." she muttered as she gave the plate back to Karashi, who nodded and went to find Naruto and Neji.
It wasn't long before he did. Karashi received the exact same reaction from Naruto who quickly ate the curry. In Neji's case, it was only one bite but it caused his eyes to pop open before the boy fell unconscious again, much to Karashi's confusion.
Back with Sansho, Ranmaru and Yue, Lee had actually ate the whole pot of curry and turned with a weird grin on his face. He suddenly stood up straight with his head in the air like a soldier.
"Looks like he's all better," stated Sansho when Lee started wobbling like a jelly stick before flopping, his forehead hitting the ground.
"Or not..." said Yue bluntly.
Lee wiggled a little before he held his head up and laughed a little. His face was slightly flushed and wore a goofy expression on his face which was quickly replaced by a sick one. Slowly his jaw dropped to the ground followed by his whole body like a worm. "The world is spinning~..." they heard him say in a drunk voice.
"What's the matter with him?" asked Ranmaru in confusion.
Yue caught a whiff of Lee's breath. "Is that wine I smell?"
"Oh dear..." muttered Sansho as she realized what was causing Lee to act like a goof.
A while back...
While Ranmaru and Yue were eating in order to replenish their energy, Sansho had gotten out a large knapsack and held it open. "Hurry and put the curry in here," she instructed.
"Hai!" said Karashi as he lifted the heavy pot, accidentally knocking a bottle of red wine into the curry, splashing some into Karashi's eyes. "Hot!Hot!Hot!" he yelled involuntarily dropping the pot on his foot.
"YEOW!" he exclaimed again clutching his throbbing foot when he banged his head against the wall, causing a wash basin to fall on his head. Poor Karashi slumped on the floor slightly dazed when he saw the wine bottle sticking out of the curry, it's contents slowly sinking. "Oh no, the curry!" he exclaimed as he tried to fish the bottle out only to find that remaining contents had already spilled out and mixed into the curry. "Oh boy..."
"Oh well, there's no helping it, let's just put the curry into the bag and hurry!" said Sansho.
"He must be drunk due to the wine..." groaned Yue slapping her forehead.
"Is he going to be alright?" asked Ranmaru.
"We have a problem..." muttered Sansho as Lee got back on his feet and began spinning and laughing like crazy.
Just then, the sound of thunder diverted the group's attention away from Lee. Carefully, Sansho, Ranmaru and Yue peeked around the corner and saw Raiga walking by the cliff edge. "Raiga..."growled Yue in distaste. "I'll take care of him..."
"No Yue...I'll do it. Maybe if he see's that I'm alive he'll stop..."suggested Ranmaru.
Yue looked into the boy's eyes and softened her expression. 'You really are like her...' "Ok, I trust you Ranmaru-dono..."
The boy nodded as he carefully made his way up the mountain. Yue followed closely behind careful to make herself unseen. Sansho smiled a the two she turned around to mind Lee only to find him gone. "Oh my, where did he go?"
On the mountain top, Kaori continued to stay out of sight as she darted between rocks. She had managed to stop her wound from bleeding and closed it but as said before the wound was completely healed as it still pained her.
"Oh Kaori?... Where are you?...You can't hide forever you know?.." taunted Raiga in a creepy sing-song voice.
Kaori pressed her back against a boulder and peeked out. On the other end of the mountain top, she saw a small figure appear before Raiga, who apparently noticed as well. Raiga obviously assumed the figure to be Lee when he said, "So you're still alive? I'm going to make sure you die this time-"
"Raiga," the small figure said, to which both Raiga and Kaori recognized as Ranmaru.
"Ranmaru?" asked Raiga in pleasant surprise. "You're alive!"
"Kaori-sama!" Kaori heard a familiar voice whisper. The girl turned to see Yue's leopard form sitting by her.
"Yue! Oh thank goodness!" exclaimed/whispered Kaori throwing her arms around the leopard's neck and hugged her. Yue rubbed her head against Kaori's before the two peeked out again to see Ranmaru and Raiga. "Raiga... how did he survive?"
"You won't believe this my Lady, but Ranmaru brought him back to life with his own chakra..."
Kaori looked at Yue startled. "But such a feat should have taken his own life, how is that he survived?"
"He was weak but I managed to get him to the restaurant and made him eat some of the Curry of Life," explained Yue.
"Sugoi..."
Meanwhile, Raiga had raced up to Ranmaru and lifted him high before putting him on his shoulder. Raiga had appeared to calmed down a lot judging from how overjoyed he was to be reunited with Ranmaru. "Now we can be together again, Ranmaru! After I kill that Raijuko and her friends, let's just go on to do bad things!"
"Sure thing Raiga..." replied Ranmaru, smiling softly.
Before looking towards the sky. Suddenly the boy's eyes began to glow red and a thick fog erupted from his clothes and surrounded him and Raiga, who looked around in confusion. "What's up with this fog?"
"It's okay Raiga, I'll be your eyes," said Ranmaru reassuringly.
"Yes, there is nothing to fear with you around!" said Raiga smiling at Ranmaru. "But what happened to them?"
Ranmaru paused for a moment. "They are dead and that Raijuko seems to have bled to death."
Raiga's eyes widened in happiness at the news. "YEEESS! RAIKA, DID YOU HEAR THAT? I'VE TAKEN VENGEANCE ON YOUR DEATH! YOUR MURDERER IS DEAD!" he cried out joyfully to the sky. "Come Ranmaru! Let's celebrate this day!"
"Hai, Raiga,"replied Ranmaru as Raiga began to walk forward, unknown to him that Ranmaru was actually leading him to the cliff's edge.
"What in the world is he thinking?"hissed Naruto who had managed to find his way to Kaori and Yue.
"Could it be...he intends to atone for his sins by killing himself and Raiga?" suggested Yue narrowing her eyes.
"I can't let him do that!" said Kaori standing up from her hiding place.
But just before she could do anything a new voice rang out. "Hold it right there! hic!"
"Lee-senpai?" Kaori said in surprise when she saw Lee staggering into the scene. Something seemed incredibly off about him. His speech was rough, his face was flushed and Lee couldn't even walk in a straight line.
"What's with you punk?" demanded Lee in an uncouth manner, catching Raiga's attention.
"What the hell was that?" asked Raiga turning around.
Ranmaru peeked through the fog and gasped. "Lee-san!" he exclaimed, forgetting to keep up the fog cover allowing Raiga to see Lee.
Lee glared at the at the two before taking up his Drunken Fist stance. "HERE I GO!" he yelled rushing up them ( and tripped once before getting back on his feet) and began swiping at the fog while Raiga and Ranmaru stared at him.
Lee's strikes cleared what was remaining of the fog as he began striking at Raiga who tried blocking with his one arm but was unsuccessful as Lee forced him to retreat his steps. Raiga looked over his shoulder to see that he was extremely close to the edge and growled at Lee.
Lee spun away and chuckled before suddenly he felt like puking. This annoyed Raiga greatly as his eye began to twitch while a cowlick on his head curled up. "QUIT FOOLIN' AROUND!" he yelled as he raised his sword to summon lighting and shot it at Lee who simply did a head stand and dodged the blast. Raiga looked taken aback but continued to send lightning blast after lightning blast all the while Lee dodged them simply by flopping all over the place before he began to charge at Raiga again. Before Raiga could react, Lee delivered a sharp kick to his chin, causing him and Ranmaru to fly.
Ranmaru began to scream as he went over the edge, only to be caught by Naruto riding Yue. "Are you okay?" he asked.
Ranmaru nodded while Yue hovered in the air.
"Look, I need you to stay with Yue," Naruto ordered.
"No! Take me with you!" protested Ranmaru.
"Yue, I'm counting on you!" said Naruto ignoring Ranmaru.
"Hai!" replied the leopard as Naruto jumped off and began climbing the cliff.
Meanwhile, Kaori stood by as she watched Raiga search desperately for Ranmaru. She recognized the look in his eyes. It was the same look he had years ago when Raika was dying in his arms. Lee, still in his drunken appeared to be unaware of what he had done as he got ready to fight again. "I WON'T FORGIVE YOU!" roared Raiga as he connected the ends of his sword while summoning Lightning as he twirled it above his head.
"Ninpo: Thunder God Armor!"he cried as the lightning engulfed his body literally forming and electric armor.
"Lee-senpai, don't do it!" cried Kaori.
"HERE I GO!" declared Lee as he and Raiga began charging at each other. The two collided with a loud explosion as Lee successfully penetrated the armor by driving his fist into Raiga's stomach. However the force of the two attacks was so great that the two were blasted opposite directions. Unfortunately, Lee was knocked unconscious once more but Raiga got up. Kaori ducked behind the rock as fear gripped her while she clutched her head and curled into a ball.
'This is just like back then! Why can't he just die? This is all my fault! I should have killed him back then! Sensei...what should I do?'
Just then, Kaori heard the sound of feet landing snapping her out of her mental state. She looked out to see Naruto, Yue and Ranmaru standing in front of Lee.
"Ranmaru, what are you doing?" demanded Raiga.
"I want you to eat it, the Curry of Life!" said Ranmaru in a determined voice. "When you eat it, you will learn the true worth of living, Raiga! It's a wonderful warm feeling! I know what happened to your sister Raiga! I'm sure she would have forgiven both you and Kaori-san for what happened back then!"
Kaori widened her eyes as she bowed her head in shame. "Ranmaru-kun..."
"STOP IT! STOP TALKING ABOUT RAIKA! IT WASN'T MY FAULT!"Raiga screamed, covering his ears.
"Just forgive yourself Raiga! And forgive Kaori-san!"
"SHUT UP! HOW COULD I FORGIVE HER? I SAVED HER LIFE FOR RAIKA'S SAKE AND SHE KILLED MY SISTER!"
Ranmaru, Naruto, Yue and Kaori looked at him startled. This was definitely new to them. "Saved me?" exclaimed Kaori softly and that was when it all began to make sense to her.
"Back then, I was on my way back from the Lightning temple after escorting Raika when I saw that Raijuko being lead away by two other miko. I could sense their killing intent so I followed them. They were so close to killing that girl but I knew my sister would be devastated if something were to happen to that girl so I killed them before they could..." explained Raiga, gripping his swords tightly. "But then...that ungrateful little bitch went berserk on me! And then Raika arrived...she should've let me killed that Raijuko...but her foolishness had cost my sister her life! And it was all because of that Raijuko!"
"I don't believe Raika was foolish at all," replied Ranmaru calmly. "I don't know why, but I can understand how she felt. Someone as kind and compassionate as her would never approve of killing as a way of stopping people! Your need to take lives, your desire for revenge, it's all for naught Raiga!"
Raiga looked at Ranmaru with a betrayed look on his face. "I don't know you anymore...bring back my RANMARU!" cried Raiga as lightning began to spark all over his body and formed the Thunder Armor once more.
Naruto and Yue began to brace themselves. "Naruto-dono, watch out for that lightning of his..." warned Yue as a growl escaped her throat.
"YOU ARE JUST LIKE MY SISTER! SHE WAS FOOLISH AND SO ARE YOU!" cried Raiga jabbing a sword at Ranmaru.
"Go ahead Raiga, kill us if you want," said Ranmaru without fear in his voice.
"Ranmaru is right, all of this crap about revenge and shit, it's all pointless! This boy has learned that it's better to laugh with everyone than just you! Just stop all this!" said Naruto stepping in front of the boy. Kaori gripped the rock tightly.
"IDIOTS LIKE YOU SHOULD STOP TALKING!" roared Raiga angrily. "I am Kurosuki Raiga, a former member of the Seven Shinobi Swordsmen of the Kirigakure, I will not take orders from the likes of you!" he cried firing a whole barrage of Lightning at the group.
Naruto quickly grabbed Ranmaru while Yue covered them with her wings. The three braced themselves for the Lightning attack to hit when Kaori finally jumped out of her hiding spot and stood in front of them just seconds before the Lightning hit. "Kaori-san!" "Kaori-sama!" cried the three in unison.
The lightning hit Kaori dead on but she seemed to be unfazed by it as she opened her mouth...and began to swallow the lightning. Everybody else gaped as they watched the lightning slowly disappear into Kaori's mouth before she bowed her head closed it, smoke arising from her lips as she began to spark. Suddenly Kaori looked up and glared at Raiga with blazing beast-like eyes as she opened her mouth and fired the attack back at him screaming.
The attack came back at Raiga who simply absorbed it into his swords. "So you're alive as well...good, let's end officially end this once and for all!"
Kaori narrowed her eyes. "Couldn't have said it better myself... you dare raise your hand to the one person who has stuck by your side all this time...you've taken the lives of the innocent and you've hurt my precious friends...LET'S END THIS!" she screamed as lightning came down from the sky and struck her. Yue quickly grabbed the boys and jumped out of harms way.
Raiga screamed as well as the same thing happened to him. Their screams slowly transitioned into beast like cries as the energy surrounding them began to take shape. Yue's eyes widened when she recognized the form.
"Yue, what is that?"demanded Naruto shielding his eyes from the brightness.
"It can't be...Kaori's Raiju!"
"Raiju?" echoed Ranmaru.
"Hai, it's a manifestation of a Raijuko's powers. I haven't seen it since that day!" gasped Yue her ears flattening as her body shook with fright.
Kaori and Raiga continued screaming as their energy continued to take shape. The heat and force from the lightning had broke Kaori's hair-clip, causing her long hair bellow about her. (P.S. there's a picture of this on my profile labeled 'Raijuko Kaori'.)
The lightning around Kaori grew and grew until it took the form of a large cat with white glowing eyes and screeched. The same went for Raiga except his was a lot bigger, a dragon with red blazing eyes and roared at the top of it's lungs. Everybody else quickly covered their ears from the sound. The noise was so loud it immediately woke up Neji and Lee.
"What in the world is going here?" yelled Neji plugging his ears.
"It's Raiga and Kaori! They're about to fight to the death!" replied Karashi who also plugged his ears.
The two Raiju faced off each other just as Kaori and Raiga were. At first, nobody moved as tension began to rise and then came the signal. A single lightning flashed which began the attack. Kaori and her Cat Raiju against Raiga and his Dragon Raiju, the two ran at each and clashed.
The Cat slashed at the Dragon which dodged and weaved about it before biting it in the middle. The Cat screamed but it retaliated by smacking the Dragon hard with it's tail. At the same time, Kaori threw a kick at Raiga who blocked with one arm and stabbed at her with his sword. Kaori quickly swiped it away with her gauntlet before successfully delivering another sharp kick to the side. Raiga skidded a few meters but shot back at Kaori with a giant Lightning ball fired from the Dragon. Kaori's Raiju leapt forward and bit down on the ball causing it to disintegrate but that didn't stop the two from clashing again.
Ranmaru held onto to Yue in fright. "Isn't there a way to stop this?"
"I don't know! I never knew what really stopped Kaori-sama back then!"
"But we can't let either one die! I need to find out about Kisame!" yelled Naruto over the noise.
"It's no use Naruto-kun, if we get any closer we'll die too!" yelled Lee this time shielding his eyes.
Ranmaru closed his eyes tightly as he buried his face in Yue's fur. "Stop this...somebody stop this..." he began to cry when something strange happened.
Instead of the battlefield, Ranmaru found himself in a large field with an ominous looking sky above him.
"Ranmaru-kun..." a woman's voice called out to him.
The boy turned to see a young miko who looked exactly like him save for her green hair similar to Raiga's and her slightly tanned skin. It wasn't hard for Ranmaru to figure who this person was.
"Raika-sensei, am I right?"
The woman smiled at him. "Hai, thank you for taking care of my brother all these years..." she said walking up to Ranmaru and placing a hand on his head.
"Raika-sensei, I need you to tell me-"
"I know what's going on Ranmaru-kun, I've been watching through your eyes. You have a wonderful gift Ranmaru, and you can do wonders with it, just as you had revived my brother. Your power and meeting with Raiga along with crossing paths with Kaori, this whole fight even, was the path created by hitsuzen."
"Hitsuzen?" Ranmaru looked at the woman confused but Raika simply smiled.
"Listen Ranmaru, I can help you stop this fight and save my brother and Kaori but I need your power too," said Raika looking very serious. "Can you help me?"
Ranmaru nodded eagerly. "I can!"
Raika nodded and smiled. "You really are suited for my brother. I will help guide you so follow my lead, child."
"I'm counting on you Raika-sensei!" replied Ranmaru determinedly.
There was a loud explosion which caused Ranmaru to snap open his eyes. Yue had shielded Ranmaru with her wings and body from the blast so the boy was unharmed. Naruto, Lee were also shielded by Yue. Karashi and Neji had also managed to join them at some point. Ranmaru peeked out to see Raiga and Kaori still going at it, despite having already sustained multiple injuries. Kaori's wound was shown to have reopened and was bleeding again while Raiga had received multiple deep scratches. Their clothes were already torn in many places, Raiga having half his shirt ripped off while Kaori's jacket and headband were in shreds. The two were literally going at each other like wild animals just like their Raiju which continued attacking repeatedly.
"If this keeps up, those two are in danger of completely losing their minds or worse, their lives!"exclaimed Yue as everyone ducked to avoid getting blasted once more.
"Don't you know a way to stop them?" cried Karashi covering his head in fear.
Ranmaru clenched his fists as he stood up. "I do..." he said as he jumped out of the hiding spot.
"Ranmaru, come back!" yelled Neji as the others were about to make a grab for him but were forced back by a lightning blast.
Ranmaru ignored them as he continued running towards Raiga and Kaori dodging stray lightning bolts the best he can. "I'm ready Raika-sensei," he said.
"Good Ranmaru, let's do it..."replied Raika's disembodied voice in his head.
The boy slid to a stop before the two and took his stance. He stood straight with his left hand forming half the hand seal for Ram and slowly raised his right hand above his head. Yue widened her eyes as she saw a familiar transparent figure standing next to Ranmaru doing the same.
"What's he doing?" asked Naruto in confusion.
The two Raiju along with Raiga and Kaori paused to look at the boy who stared back hard at them. "Keep their gaze locked on you Ranmaru-kun, don't look away for a second!"instructed Raika.
"Raiga-san, Kaori-san! I'm going to stop this right now!" yelled Ranmaru as his eyes began to glow red. "Children of the Thunder Beast, in the name of Raijin, I now pacify your anger..."Ranmaru and Raika both said, their voices overlapping in each other as waves of chakra began emitting from the boy.
The two Raiju began to roar as they lunged at the boy.
"RANMARU!" cried the guys in horror.
"RANMARU! DO IT NOW!" cried Yue loudly.
"RIN!" yelled Ranmaru slashing his raised hand to right.
"PYOU!" he yelled again this time slashing downwards.
"TOU! SHAH! KAI! RETSU! ZAI!" he continued repeating his movements with each word. "ZEN!" he finished jabbing his hand at the two Raiju.
Suddenly, the waves of chakra around Ranmaru flew towards the Raiju and wound themselves around their necks and limbs. The Dragon and the Cat roared and screeched loudly prompting everyone to cover their ears as they began to struggle violently. It appeared to have a double effect on Raiga and Kaori who also appeared to be immobilized. Ranmaru's hand shook as he continued keeping his eyes locked on the two. "Raika-sensei, what should I do now?" he asked when suddenly saw a transparent hand hold his. The same was with his left. Ranmaru then noticed Raika's face next to his.
"Let's do it together now Ranmaru,"she said smiling.
"Hai!" replied Ranmaru, feeling a new strength.
"Let thy rage be quelled and slumber, by Raijin's power, I command you to return!"they both commanded.
The two Raiju stopped struggling and looked at Ranmaru once more and gazed into his red eyes before bowing obediently. Slowly, Ranmaru with Raika's hand guiding him, lowered his outstretched hand as the two Raiju disappeared back into Raiga and Kaori who immediately collapsed. Everyone else gasped as they ran towards them.
"Kaori-san!" yelled Lee, Naruto, Neji and Yue.
"Boss!" yelled Karashi.
Ranmaru panted hard and smiled happily. "I...I did it...I did it Raika-sensei..." he said turning only to find Raika had disappeared. "She's gone..."
Suddenly, Ranmaru's vision went all blurry before everything went black.
Raiga slowly opened his eyes to an extremely clear sunny sky. "It's bright..." he muttered, shading his eyes.
"It sure is, isn't it beautiful Onii-sama?" asked a cheerful voice.
"I guess..." he replied automatically when he recognized the voice. Raiga immediately sat up to find himself in a beautiful sunny field with flowers and green grass going on for miles but he wasn't interested in that. His eyes searched left and right for the speaker when he heard a rustling behind him.
Raiga whipped his head around to see someone whom he has not seen in a very long time. There she was standing not too far from him smiling serenely. "R-raika?" he gasped in disbelief. "Is that really you?"
Raika's smile grew even wider looking just as young as she did when she died. "Onii-sama!" she said.
"RAIKA!" cried Raiga happily as he ran up to his sister and hugged her tightly. "Raika...I don't believe it...it's really you..." he said as tears, real ones, began running down his face. "I'm so, so, sorry, I didn't mean to..."
Raika closed her eyes and stroked her brother's hair as she hugged him back. "Daijobu Onii-sama...I don't blame you at all..." she replied gently.
Raiga released her for a moment to look at her with his tear filled eyes. "So you blame that Raijuko as well right?" he asked.
Raika sighed and shook her head. "No, Raiga-niisama, I don't blame Kaori-chan either, no one is to blame for my death."
"But-" Raiga was about to protest when Raika lifted a hand to hush him.
"Onii-sama, let's sit down shall we?" she suggested as the two sat together on the grass. "I know my death has caused you a lot of grief and pain brother, but I want you to just forget it all. I died because my time was already up, I've done my part in raising Kaori-chan, that was my purpose in life."
"But I can't bring myself to forgive her! If you hadn't met her you would still be alive!"
Raika sighed even more heavily in exasperation and rolled up her sleeve. BAM!
"ITAAAAIIIII!" yelled Raiga clutching his head as a large smoking red bump began to swell on the back of it. "Whatcha' do that for?"
"Oh Raiga-niisama, you really are an idiot sometimes do you know that?" said Raika shaking her head before leaning back and looking at the sky. "My point is, you have been living for all the wrong reasons. The reason you are alive was because hitsuzen has given you a purpose to serve."
"Again with the 'hitsuzen' talk! I don't get you!" exclaimed Raiga exasperatedly much to Raika's amusement.
"Silly brother, I'm talking about Ranmaru-kun."
"Ranmaru?"
Raika chuckled and leaned her head on her brother's shoulder. "You gave the boy a reason to live when the whole world rejected him, that became the path created by hitsuzen. To live life peacefully along with Ranmaru, that is your purpose Raiga-oniisama."
"My purpose..."
"He truly does love you Onii-sama, enough to risk his own life."
Raiga smiled tenderly as he leaned his own head against his sister's. "Yeah...he is a good kid," he said, placing an arm around his sister. "I really missed you Raika..."
"So did I brother, so did I.." replied Raika placing a kiss on her brother's cheek. "I love you, Raiga-niisama."
"I love you too little sister," said Raiga hugging Raika tightly.
"R-raika..." muttered Raiga as tears streamed from his eyes. He opened them to find the field and his sister gone, only to look up at a wooden ceiling.
"You awake?"
Raiga slowly got up to see Naruto sitting on the other side of the room. That was when he realized that he was all bandaged up with his left arm in a sling. "I'm alive?"
"Sure as hell man," replied Naruto grinning. "All thanks to Ranmaru."
"Ranmaru?"
"Yep, he did some weird chanting while you and Kaori-san were fighting and you collapsed," explained Naruto. "Kid really is something!"
"Ranmaru...where is he?" asked Raiga.
"Downstairs in the kitchen with Sansho-baasan and Karashi-san, there's something he wants you to try."
Meanwhile, Ranmaru was in the kitchen standing on a stool, stirring a large pot of curry when Karashi, dressed in normal home clothes conked him on the head with a ladle. "Come on! Put some elbow into it! You'll never make the real Curry of Life with that energy!"complained Karashi.
"You should talk!" scolded Sansho flying in and hitting her son hard on the head with her own ladle. "You're a 100 years to young to say that's the real Curry of Life! I'm having you learn everything from scratch!"
"Oh come on!" groaned her son.
Just then, the three heard the stairs creak, alerting them to turn their heads to see Raiga coming down the stairs with Naruto helping him. "Oh my!" "Boss!" "Raiga!" the three exclaimed happily.
Ranmaru hopped of his stool, ran and glomped Raiga, knocking him of his feet. "Thank goodness, you're alright!" the boy cried tearfully, throwing his arms around Raiga's neck.
Raiga smiled as he patted the boy's head as he sat up, cringing a little in pain. "I have you to thank for that Ranmaru..."
Just then Ranmaru's head perked up, remembering something. "Oh yeah, Raiga-san, take a seat, I'll be right back!" he said jumping off Raiga's lap and dashing into the kitchen while Karashi and Naruto helped Raiga to the table.
Ranmaru came back shortly with a plate of hot steaming curry rice. "Raiga-san, eat this!" urged the boy enthusiastically. "It will help you get your strength back in no time!"
The man looked at Ranmaru before looking at his plate before grabbing the spoon and putting a large scoop of rice into his mouth. (R.F: Big Mistake, I say...)
At first, there was no reaction from Raiga as everyone looked at him intently and then..."HOLY RAIJIN!" screamed Raiga as flames spewed out from his mouth. "This tastes amazing!" he exclaimed as he wolfed down the whole plate.
"That's the Curry of Life for you!" exclaimed Naruto grinning.
"This is the Curry of Life?" asked Raiga once put his place down.
Ranmaru smiled happily. "Do you feel it? The feeling of being alive?"
Raiga stared at his empty plate silently. "I do...it..it feels great!"
"Doesn't it?" exclaimed Naruto.
Raiga glanced over at the boy for a moment."You, where's that Ra-Kaori?" asked Raiga pausing slightly.
"Over at the Gold Mines, Kaori said she wanted to see you once you got up," answered Naruto.
The man widen his eyes a little in surprise.'She did?...'
Meanwhile, at the Gold Mines, Kaori stood in the center of the graveyard where all the victims were buried alive. Instead of her usual clothes, Kaori wore a miko's attire only it was blue where it was supposed to be red. Her forehead was bandaged up along with her waist and her neck. Her hands were also bandaged due to cuts and burns she had sustained. Since her hair-clip was broken her hair was tied in a low ponytail with a white ribbon. Kaori also wore traditional straw sandals with single toed socks while by her feet lay her Cat Sash Bells. Watching her from a distance was Neji, Lee and Yue.
"So, what exactly is this?" asked Lee curiously to Yue who sat on his shoulder..
"Just watch Lee-dono, you are about to see Kaori-sama perform a purification ceremony for the trapped spirits," explained Yue.
Reaching into her sleeve, Kaori pulled out a small bag of salt and began sprinkling over the grave mounds. Neji and Lee looked to Yue for an explanation.
"The act of sprinkling salt is to first purify the negative energy of the area and releasing the spirits from being bound to the earth. Blessed water is normally used but salt is just as effective," explained the kitten just as Kaori had finished sprinkling and picked up her bells. "Now comes the prayer for safe passage."
Kaori closed her eyes, spread out her arms and rung her bells once, their sound resonating in the morning air. "Spirits bound to the earth, I pray for your safe passage to the afterlife. May Kami-sama forgive your sins and cleanse you all of regrets. I now release you..." recited Kaori as she let her bells drop but still hung on to the sash so that the bells were suspended a few inches of the ground. The bells swung back and forth like pendulums, ringing loudly with each swing."Rin, Pyou, Tou, Shah, Kai, Chin, Retsu, Rin, Kai, Zen..."she chanted slowly in time to the ringing.
The boys could feel the hair on their skin prickling for some reason. They began to gape as multiple small visible spirit balls began rising out from the ground and into the sky. "Woah..." breathed Neji.
"Pretty..." said Lee.
The beautiful sight didn't really last long but it was enough to leave Neji and Lee still gaping towards the sky. When she was finally finished Kaori made her bells disappear and brushed her hair out of her eyes before walking towards the boys. Yue quickly smacked them upside the heads so that the snapped out of it before Kaori reached them.
"Oi! Minna!" called Naruto at a distance running up to them, alerting everyone to look in his direction. Not far behind him was Raiga carrying a narrow bundle in his right hand while being led by Ranmaru followed by Karashi.
Neji and Lee became a bit cautious when they saw Raiga and protectively stood in front of Kaori.
"It's ok guys," she said gently pushing past them. "Raiga, how are your wounds?"
Raiga smirked a little. "Could be better," he replied. "and you?"
"The same..." replied Kaori followed by an awkward silence before she finally started speaking again. "Look Raiga, Yue has explained everything that had happened and I was thinking...I think it's time we should be doing what we should have done a long time ago...I..forgive you..." she said biting her lip a little.
Raiga looked down at Ranmaru who gave him a reassuring look before he looked at Kaori. He took a deep breath and scratched the back of his head. "Heh, you took the words right out of my mouth kid. But you're right, for Raika's sake...and Ranmaru's..." Raiga began to say placing a hand on the surprised boy's head."I forgive you too..."
Another awkward silence followed. Naruto glanced between the two and sighed heavily. "OK! We'll just go ahead and give you two some space!" exclaimed Naruto as he gave everyone the sign to scram. The others hurriedly nodded and began to scurry away. Yue hopped onto Naruto's shoulder.
"You're not really serious about leaving them together after last night are you?" whispered Yue worriedly.
"Nah, it's cool Yue!" replied Naruto scratching the kitten's ears.
Yue glanced over her shoulder uneasily but she decided to trust the blond boy on this one.
Raiga and Kaori began to walk after them as soon as they were quite a distance already ahead. Another silence hung between them until they began to talk again. "Soooo you're a kunoichi now, huh?" asked Raiga trying to make conversation.
"Y-yes I am..."stuttered Kaori a little. "Ranmaru really is a good boy..." she said changing the subject.
"Huh? O-oh yeah, he is...the resemblance is amazing don't you think?"
"Uncanny..."
Once more with the silence. Raiga took another deep breath before he remembered the bundle in his hand. "Kaori, I wanted to give you this..." he said passing the bundle to her.
Kaori curiously accepted it and unwrapped it. She gasped when she found out it was Raiga's spiked swords. She looked at the man in surprise. "But Raiga...your swords..."
"Keep them and use them well, I've decided... to retire as a ninja..." said Raiga before looking towards the sky. "I'm going to live the rest of my life peacefully help Sansho-baasan, Karashi and Ranmaru at the restaurant...its the least I could do... to be with Ranmaru..."
"Raiga..."muttered Kaori softly as she gripped the swords. "I'll take good care of them..."
"I'm sure you will."
Upon reaching the shop, Naruto, and Neji came bursting out of the restaurant with their bags and Lee in tow, much to the surprise of Raiga and Kaori.
"Kaori-san, you're back! Let's go!" exclaimed Naruto jogging on the spot. He was carrying Kaori's bag on his front along with his own while Neji kept his grip on a struggling Lee. Yue too burst out and transformed into her Winged Beast Form.
"Come Kaori-sama, we must get you home and tend to your wounds!" urged the leopard hurriedly as she scooped up Neji and Lee onto her back so that they rode in the front followed by Naruto.
Kaori sniffed the air and curiously glanced into the restaurant to see a table with four plates blazing red curry. Her eyes popped open as she quickly politely bowed to Sansho, Karashi, Ranmaru and even Raiga before jumping on Yue's back.
As the leopard took off, Ranmaru glanced up at Raiga. "Hey Raiga? What's hitsuzen?"
Raiga looked down at Ranmaru in surprise before a knowing smile took over his face. "It means the inevitable...call it fate if you will...it's a word used to describe the connection of events that occur because they were supposed to..."
...
Just then, Kaori felt a tingling which influenced her to turn around. Her eyes widened when she saw the transparent form of her late mentor Raika smiling and waving at her as she stood by Ranmaru. Raika continued to smile as she placed a finger to her lips and gestured to her brother before disappearing. Kaori smiled and nodded slightly as she turned her head to the front smiling happily to herself. Meanwhile, as Yue flapped her wings harder to pick up speed Lee looked behind with huge teary eyes. "MY CUUUURRRRYYYYY!" he cried dramatically sticking out his hand to the restaurant as Yue flew further and further away.
R.F.: *sits in a nearby tree watching the group fly past and shakes head* Oh Lee-kun...Anyway this concludes the Raijuko arc with a happy ending...for most people. Don't forget to send in you reviews and/or ideas for later chapters to come! Hey, I might even toss in your OCs for you guys if you'd like! Till next time, bye-bee!
