***Chapter 4***

"Under the sword lifted high, there is hell making you tremble. But go ahead, And you have the land of bliss."

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Kiota learned quickly the differences between a one-on-one duel and a large battle. Unlike the duel, the battle was completely impersonal; there were so many bodies and faces that it was impossible to really understand any opponent as an individual. In addition, everyone was so close that one fighter was really three fighters and his opponent was really three opponents. With everyone practically on top of each other, it was difficult for any real fights to take place; everyone was fighting everyone and to focus on only one opponent was to ignore the others that were trying to kill

"Watch those lions!" Shinmen yelled over the chaos of the battle as he gestured to a pair of quite large lions that were making their way to the fray.

Kiota growled and finished off his current opponents with a series of quick strikes to the throat. He spun to the side to avoid the next attacker and jumped over a fallen soldier as he identified the two lions. The first roared as he easily struck a mercenary away. The second leapt onto the fallen fighter and ripped his throat out with his powerful jaws.

Kiota grinned and launched himself at the closest lion. The unexpected blow made the lion stagger backwards for a moment before he regained his footing. He looked up in surprise as a clawed paw struck him across the face. The smaller rogue leapt onto his opponent as he fell backwards with blood pouring down his face. The other massive lion roared and swung out at Kiota, but he ducked low to his victim's body and allowed the swing to pass harmlessly by. Before he rose to meet the next attacker, he finished off his pinned enemy with a deep rake across the chest.

Before the second lion could lash out again, Kiota leapt out and tacked him to the ground. To his surprise, he felt the lion's hind legs press up into his abdomen and launch him away from his enemy. It was the first time in a while that Kiota's attack had been successfully countered, and it almost made him grin to know that this opponent was a bit stronger than the rest.

He quickly rose to his feet and struck down two others that had come at him. They fell sharply with identical slices in their sides. Kiota looked back for the massive lion that had countered him, but he didn't see him immediately. A sudden swing from the side surprised him and made him drop to the ground to avoid it. He realized that his new attacker was the one he was looking for, and lunged out aggressively with his claws extended. He did not try to push him over, for fear of being launched away again, but instead dug his claws into the lion's biceps.

The pain caused him to roar in pain and try to rip free, but Kiota's grip was solid and was too painful to allow much movement. His claws dug deeper into the lion's arms for good measure, then he quickly released and flowed upwards towards his head. Kiota's claws sliced deeply up the lion's chest, then across the neck, and finally over the face. He followed through with another slice to the throat and took a step back to watch his opponent collapse to the ground in a lifeless heap. Normally, his victory would have been something for Kiota to revel in for a moment, but in the chaos of battle he had to move forward. He met another lion head on and easily killed him while he looked around.

Shinmen fought nearby with a host of other fighters. They were doing well, but still were only barely better than the others. As Kiota watched, Shinmen caught a hyena in one paw and held him there while he raked a lion across his face with a vicious growl. Once he was done with the beaten lion, Shinmen quickly ripped out the hyena's throat.

Close footsteps behind Kiota made him turn to face a new attacker. He looked and saw two more lions rushing towards him with determination in their eyes. They leapt together at him, and Kiota noticed another merc in his periphery. Surely his ally would help him with at least one, so Kiota leapt at the far-side one first. To his surprise, both enemies collided with him simultaneously. The merc hadn't helped! Kiota roared as he felt sharp claws rip his shoulder open and rage filled him. He struck out and knocked one lion away as he backhanded the other. As the two opponents reeled back, he leapt at the closest and forced him to the ground. After a short while of rolling around on the ground, Kiota's claws found the lion's throat and sliced through the soft tissue with ease. While the dying lion gurgled in his own blood, Kiota turned in time to block a strike from the other attacker. He caught the lion's paw with his own and dug his claws into his arm. The enemy roared in pain and lifted his head high in an involuntary spasm. Seeing the opportunity, Kiota lunged forward and closed his jaw around his enemy's throat. He bit down sharply, instantly quieting the roar of pain. A sharp twist yielded a resounding crack and the lion fell down limply to the floor.

Kiota stood there for a moment, breathing heavily. His shoulder was bleeding profusely and it enraged him to know that he had been unnecessarily wounded. Had the merc done his part and dealt with the other lion, Kiota would have easily been able to defeat his opponent without injury. He wheeled around to see the mercenary still standing there, mouth agape.

"I-uh…"he stammered nervously.

Kiota just roared angrily and leapt at him with his claws extended. The merc didn't even try to defend himself, he just stood there with a look of horror across his face as the furious killer's wrath approached.

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The battle ended shortly with most of Kugo's army retreating back to their lands. Shinmen was wiping off the blood from his fur when Kiota approached.

"Good god, Kiota…" he said suprisedly as he eyed the bloody lion. "That's a nasty gash."

The rogue snorted irritably. "I got it because one of your mercs froze up."

A dark expression crossed the cheetah's face. "Figures. Who was it? I'll punish them appropriately."

Kiota shook his head. "Don't bother, he's dead." He let out a sigh as he plunged his blood-soaked shoulder into the cool stream. "He froze up again when another lion attacked him."

"It happens…"

"It's war."

Shinmen sighed. "In any case… we did well. Toyo is having us advance onto their territory and finish them off once and for all."

"Is their home similar to Toyo's fortress?"

"Not as elaborate, but still formidable."

Kiota nodded neutrally. "When do we leave?"

"Soon. After we check the fields for any survivors, we'll head out after them."

"I'll go now."

"Are you sure?" the cheetah asked almost worriedly. "Your shoulder looks pretty beat up."

"I'm fine. It already clotted."

"Alright… but don't strain yourself." He remarked as he fell into step alongside the rogue. "From what I saw today, you are probably one of, if not the, best fighter of our group… next to me of course."

Kiota nodded without looking down. Shinmen was a good fighter, no doubt, but he doubted the Cheetah's true ability compared to himself. The arrogance was a bit irritating to Kiota, but if he wanted to think that he was the best, why not let him? Kiota was confident enough in his own abilities and didn't need someone else to recognize him for his skill.

The two walked in silence for several moments through the field dotted with bodies. Movement from the corner of his eye made Kiota look. He walked over to see a leopard with a torn up leg attempting to crawl away.

"Is he yours?" Kiota asked Shinmen.

The cheetah shook his head. "Nope, he ain't a merc. Must be one of Kugo's"

Kiota nodded and approached the wounded leopard just as he had seen the other mercenaries do with wounded prisoners.

"P-please…" the cat stuttered as Kiota loomed over him with an expressionless face. "D-don't…"

Kiota eyed him for a moment and analyzed the wound. Judging by the cat's pallor, he had already lost a lot of blood and his leg was still gushing the red fluid profusely. He was dying, and Kiota didn't plan to waste any more time with him.

The leopard screamed and was cut short as the Rogue's paw flew across his neck. He stared silently up at his killer with blank eyes, and Kiota stared back. He watched as the cat's scared expression soon faded into the look of dazed shock that was so common on corpses.

"Let's go." Shinmen said as he looked over his shoulder. "I think they got everyone else."

"Yea…" Kiota said as he turned away from the dead leopard. The corpse bored him. He followed behind Shinmen back to the encampment while he thought about the battle. It had been very different from one-on-one duels, but it was still appealing to him. It lasted longer and offered more fights in a shorter amount of time. He still preferred the smaller duels, but there would always be other lions to challenge. Battles like this were few and far between; he would follow the Vita Mercenaries to the Kuga's lands, he decided. It would only take a few days, and it would be… for lack of a better word, fun.

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Shinmen's explanation had been accurate. Kugo's home was a large stone structure; similar to Toyo's just smaller. It had less caves and tunnels, but was still a formidable defense. From where he stood with the mercenaries, Kiota could see many lions and other cats walking the ramparts of the stone face, waiting for the ensuing battle.

"When do we attack?" he asked, trying to hide his anticipation.

Shinmen shrugged. "Whenever Toyo says to. He's taking over this battle himself to avoid any mistakes."

"Shinmen!" a voice called from a ways off.

"That's him now." The cheetah remarked as he trotted off to receive his briefing.

Kiota returned his gaze to Kugo's lair while Shinmen spoke with Toyo. He figured that it would be a bit easier to keep his enemies in front of him in the closer quarters of the tunnels. He glanced down at his shoulder and examined the healing wound. In the two days since he had received it, it had closed up quite well. It would surely scar, but it was unlikely to cause any permanent damage. When the fight began, he doubted that he would be at his full power; but then, what was a fight without a challenge?

Footsteps from behind made him look back to the approaching mercenary. Shinmen roared loudly to call his higher ranking troops. Kiota followed them and circled around the cheetah.

"Toyo wants us to be the spearhead into Kugo's home." Shinmen began. "We are to attack from this side and secure the front entrances while the rest of the army takes the sides."

Kiota waited patiently while he dealt out responsibilities to his team leaders. To his surprise, the mercenary landed him with a task of his own.

"One of my team leaders was killed in the battle, so I want you, Kiota, to take over his responsibilities."

The rogue just stared in shock at the task.

"Your orders are to deal with the harder fighting near the center. The front entrance is pretty big and we'll have a lot of ground to cover."

Suddenly he found his voice. "Did you say my orders?" he asked slowly.

Shinmen nodded. "Yes, Kiota. Do you need me to repeat them for you?"

"No, because I don't take orders."

The cheetah blinked in surprise, but his expression soon turned to anger. "You are in my unit, so you will take my orders." He said dangerously.

"I don't care… I don't take orders from anybody." Kiota replied in an equally dangerous tone.

The other mercenaries all looked back at Shinmen to see what his reaction would be; no one had ever challenged him like this before. He just stood there with a dark look across his face.

"Are you refusing the order, Kiota?" he said dangerously. "That doesn't usually go over well with the rest of us."

Kiota glanced around at the other mercenaries who were glaring at him. Most of them hadn't liked him to begin with and now they had one more reason to dislike him. Unfortunately for him, now their reason to hate him was also a reason to kill him. Maybe at full health he could have taken them on, but not with a still wounded shoulder. Nevertheless, he was not about to take an order from this mercenary. He would fight with them, but not for them. He was a rogue and had no master. The thought of being Shinmen's inferior was nauseating to him.

"I am refusing your order." He said strongly. "I am no leader's puppet."

The cheetah's eyes narrowed dangerously. "So be it, Kiota. Instead of dying for me, I'll have you die because of me."

A loud roar split the air from afar and everyone turned to look. Toyo was beginning the attack onto Kugo's home and the ranks of soldiers were marching forward. Kiota took advantage of the sudden distraction and bolted away from the mercenaries. He would have liked to simply escape from the rear of the unit, but there were too many of them. Instead, he ran ahead towards Kugo's home with the mercenaries at his heels. Not all of them knew that he was now their enemy, but word was spreading fast. Soon he would have the entire unit of Vita Mercenaries trying to kill him.

He was caught in between two opposing armies, both of whom now considered him an enemy. It wasn't a good position to be in, even if he could take on most fighters himself. There were just too many to fight and they would come from all directions. Kiota thought fast, searching for an out as he approached the defending army. He figured it out a split second before he hit the first defender.

The lion roared as Kiota bit his shoulder aggressively and fell backwards onto the ground. In an instant the ground around them erupted into chaos as the two forces collided. Kiota quickly killed his first victim and leapt out excessively at another. The next lion swung out at him with his claws extended, and Kiota restrained himself from blocking the strike. He felt the claws hit him across the face and knock him away to the ground. He could feel the blood trickling down his face as he rolled to a stop in an unmoving heap. Pain in his shoulder told him that his other wound had reopened and was once again spilling blood. Good.

He lay there without moving as the blood from his face and shoulder ran across his body. To any observer, he looked like a bloody corpse with an unrecognizable face. The longer he lay there, the more the blood covered him and increased his dead appearance. The battle raged around him and an occasional splatter of blood fell on him from above. He was stepped on, kicked, bled on, and even fallen on. Despite it all, he was careful to remain as motionless and expressionless as the corpses that were piling up around him. Almost a half-hour into the battle, a lion fell on top of him and was pinned by another. While Kiota lay motionless under them, the pinned lion received several deep cuts to the abdomen and collapsed. It was a unique experience for Kiota; he felt the dying lion's ragged breath slow as his hot blood flowed across the rogue's body. The lion died soon after and Kiota felt the corpse cool as time passed.

The battle soon moved away from where Kiota lay among the bodies of dead and dying cats and progressed into Kugo's home among the rocks. Every so often a group of mercenaries or others under Toyo's command would rush by to either join or leave the battle. Kiota occasionally shifted his position to try to stay comfortable, but was sure to only do so when no one was around.

Eventually, night set and the battle continued to rage, though the sounds were becoming more distant and less violent. The fight was winding down and Kiota knew that soon the patrols would start to kill off any wounded enemies. He needed to get out, and fast.

He slowly rose and slunk away from his hiding place. He kept low to the ground and dropped instantly whenever anyone neared him. He stuck to the shadows and crawled among the bodies. He was still covered with dried blood and blended in perfectly with the gruesome battlefield. Any soldiers that passed simply assumed that he was just another corpse; his face was unrecognizable anyways. Eventually, he made it to the edge of the field and past the last body. Here, the grass was longer and un-trampled from the fighters' feet. Kiota was unable to suppress a grin as he slunk away into the darkness under the light of the rising moon. He had escaped the battle with his life and his independence. Battles, he decided, were not for him. Duels between only him and another were his preferred way. With his connection to the Vita Mercenaries severed, he could once again return to his traveling and fighting.

***Author's Note***

This was a bit gorier than I originally intended, but I think it does the battle justice. It is war after all, and there is blood in war. Sorry if it made you queasy. Thanks for all the reviews; especially to those of you anonymous commenter's who I can't personally message, your words is what keeps me writing!

-Ben