Chapter 33: Out of the Frying Pan

The first thing that hit Shoryu was the cold. Last time the old crypt of the Senmatsu lair was considerably warmer, but as he and Ayako burst into the hall through a wall of frost the temperature dropped at least twenty degrees. It was easy to see why: the entire cave had become a freezer with a fresh coat of white ice slathered across its walls and floor.

The Jonin looked away cringing at the sight of Suzume Oyama, her head precisely three feet from her neck, rolling around in a puddle of blood. Ayako gave a squeal and he pretended not to notice. Further ahead the scene was just as much of a mess. It was hard to make out at first, but two distinct figures lay mirroring each other on the ground, face down on crimson ice.

Closer inspection proved what he suspected: it was Madoka and Kazuya. With his heart in his throat Shoryu flipped over the samurai he spent the last four years with, fearing the worst. His terror was proved unfounded as Kazuya drew breath – a gasp escaping him as he returned to consciousness. Blood covered his armour, so much that Shoryu had no clue how much damage he'd really taken. His face lost colour from chakra exhaustion, and to make matters worse his eye was a mess.

A single jagged wound ran all the way through his left eye. He kept it shut, as Shoryu suspected he would for the rest of his life, but the wound itself wouldn't close without proper treatment. Worse still was the mangling of his shoulder. That much Shoryu could at least help out with. He took off his jacket and wrapped it tight around the wound, letting red stains seep into the fabric of his father's blue coat; surely it would wash out.

"Moron," muttered Shoryu. "Would've been easier if you'd just let me help."

"You'll understand it someday. I would've given anything to take her life," said Kazuya. Shoryu suddenly got the impression he wasn't all there; perhaps all the blood loss had made him euphoric.

"So she's dead then?" Just to check, Ayako span around and placed a cautious finger to the woman's neck, feeling for a pulse. Nothing – she was gone, but Kazuya didn't need telling that. He knew the severity of the wound he'd delivered; having so many organs damaged at once would've killed her on the spot.

"Yeah, I got her good," he said. Kazuya made an effort to move, finding only the pain of his wounds to keep him down. "This is shameful of me to ask, but any chance I could get a lift?"

Sighing, Shoryu bent to pick up the Taisho to carry him to safety, but Kazuya had other ideas. He waved away Shoryu's hand and gave an awkward smirk. "Maybe Ayako should," he proposed.

Shoryu arched an eyebrow. "Why?"

"Because you're stronger, and he's a hell of a lot heavier than I am." A shaky finger pointed just a few metres further down the cave, where Bishamon lay motionless in a pond of his life's blood. Shoryu understood right away; Kazuya was asking him to bring his predecessor's remains too. The man was a giant – far too big for someone of Ayako's size to carry over a great distance. Shoryu wondered whether even he could carry something that big.

"Just imagine it's food supplies. You got pretty good at carrying them if I remember," chided Kazuya, remembering a time long ago when Reizo-sensei had tried to toughen him up.

"Very funny. I suppose you still want my help?" snapped Shoryu.

"That would be great, yeah."

The Jonin held back an insult as Ayako gave an apologetic look, hoping another fight wouldn't break out between the two at such an untimely moment. Reluctantly Shoryu obeyed; burial was important for samurai he knew. Denying Kazuya his funeral would be cruelty beyond anything he knew, so after steeling himself for an ordeal Shoryu lifted the elder samurai.

Even with his whole arm slung over the boy's shoulder, Bishamon's feet still dragged across the floor when Shoryu started walking. The man's weight was unreal; all that muscle mass combined with his natural size to form something heavier than Shoryu had ever dared to try and lift. In the end it wasn't as bad as he first figured. The stairs would be his only annoyance.

Ayako looked to have a much easier time carrying Kazuya, and for the first time in a while he seemed back to normal. Even half-dead and losing blood he still continued to offer japes at Shoryu's expense, as though insulting the commander distracted him from the pain of his wounds. In the end the Jonin retaliated in full force. With his spare hand Shoryu fished around in his pouch and found a small battle.

"Drink this." He handed it over. "It'll help."

Without a word Kazuya popped off the cork and guzzled it down. It was medicinal – he knew that much – but something else was there too, some form of liquor. It was undoubtedly one of Jinga's special poultices, but he still had to ask.

"The hell is that?"

"Rum," Shoryu lied.

"Why rum?"

"I figured you'd want some."

"Why would you assume I wanted rum?"

Ayako snorting in laughter beneath him gave Kazuya cause for concern. What were they up to? With his condition so dire the joke's meaning escaped him. Shoryu pursued it further.

"I dunno, I just did," he replied.

"Well don't."

"Aye aye Kazuya."

"'Aye aye'?" If his arm could move Kazuya would've scratched his head as he turned to Shoryu. Craning his neck did nothing; everything left of his nose was now a blind spot, meaning he saw nothing of the sniggering teen stood beside him. Finally he got the joke – his eye was the brunt of it. "I'm not a damn pirate!" he insisted suddenly.

"Whatever you say Cap'n."

Reizo's speed reached new heights as he burst from a series of catacombs and followed the trail west. With the Daimyo Raikyogan active he used it to increase his speed, doubling the rate of his synapses firing to pump his muscles full of supercharged bioelectricity. Through blue-lensed eyes he saw the occasional circuitry of a rabbit or a deer in the hedges nearby, but only recently had he begun to notice people.

He managed to slip past the first few undetected, but as their frequency increased he was often spotted in his hurry, meaning he had to take down two or three highwaymen to press on. Killing them revealed the men to be clones; it told him he was on the right track.

His first day in their pursuit had been dreadful, covering less than half of the ground he'd crossed in the last two. Following the tracks of ninja was difficult at speed; they were light on their feet and made a habit of leaving the ground undisturbed, making catching them a pain unless one knew their exact route. Samurai were another story, their heavy armour making stealth impossible. Reizo had found the exact clearing where close to fifty samurai had joined up with the others, and from then on tracking became easy.

Even when running his fastest, keeping one eye trained on the ground at all times meant Reizo could follow without much trouble. The only thing bothering him was the clear disadvantage of time he had. Shoryu and his group had a two-day lead. Even the Raikage, running his fastest with only four hours of sleep a night, would be hard pressed to make up the difference. Saito had the truth of it; in all probability they were dead already, but as long as the chance remained Reizo would carry on chasing them.

The Kage's claustrophobic sprint came to an end when he found himself at an opening in the trees. He stopped for a moment, fascinated by the scene that lay before him. A great bog of muck and filth spanned like an ocean between him and the next rise, with no end to it in either direction. Fortunately Shoryu's group had clearly come through here, as a path of ice bridged the swamp in its entirety.

Bursting back into speed the Raikage started to cross it. The ice already started to melt beneath his feet, but it still held its shape fine enough. Its age told him much; they'd been here not long ago – an hour or two at his best guess. Finally Reizo felt as though he'd made some headway. If they were this close then he might just reach them in time. The thought brought more speed to his soles as he crossed the frozen sea.

The idea that he might be fighting soon occurred to him. With a stroke of his right hand his spear was out beside him, extended to its full length as he ran a few volts down it.

Stay alive guys, I'll be there soon.

When the trio emerged once again into the expanse of the canyon Kazuya grew sombre. Shoryu had almost forgotten about the man slung over his shoulder, and what significance his death meant. Samurai quickly gathered around them as confusion spread; their new leader's expression confirmed he was dead. Some wailed in shameless tears, others bowed in fealty to Kazuya, and some even asked permission to take their own lives.

In fact Bishamon's death gained such attention – even amongst the ninja – that people overlooked the new Taisho's injuries. Eventually, when a ninja began to notice the gash down his eye, his newfound zeal made him think the samurai was already healed. Yuudai smiled and gave a giant thumbs up.

"Yohoho Kazuya!"

Kazuya's patience ran out. "Any chance I could get some help over here? Or you could just let me bleed to death!"

"Bleeding to death sounds good," said Shoryu.

"Out of the way! Out of the way!" Right on cue Jinga appeared. Samurai gave him abhorrent looks as he shoved his way through them, nearly tripping more than once until he finally reached the group. His hands were already covered in blood; he looked exhausted, and if the few threads left in his sewing bag were any indicator then he'd been treating wounds all day.

For all his medical expertise the young doctor was poor at reading social situations. Anyone with a pair of eyes could see tempers flaring as the samurai came to grips with the idea of a new era; Kazuya was now their number one priority. As such, some foreign doctor pulling out a needle and taking it to the Taisho's wound didn't go down too well.

A samurai in his thirties strode forward, his expression one of outrage as he slowly drew a blade and pointed it at Jinga's back.

"Hands off the young lord foreigner. Unless you want my sword through your gut, that is."

Jinga froze, fear visible in his eyes. His hands trembled with the sanitised needle and the chakra filling his palms formed unsteady flashes as his nerve was tested. The thought that he might die at any second seemed to flash across his mind, although Shoryu rose to put it at rest.

Two identical scrapes of honed steel echoed around the clearing as the Jonin drew both swords. He rose up faster than any could react, and before another blade could join their standoff he stood with two swords his pressed to the offender's neck. The samurai wavered for a moment and met his gaze; a mistake considering the fact that Shoryu virtually towered over him with a disgusted look of anger.

"If you put your sword to my man again – or if you open your stupid mouth one more time – then I'll give you a new one to speak from," he said, making sure the samurai could feel the sharpness of his swords. Around him the others from the Glacier traded glances of uncertainty, but Kazuya was there to put their fears at rest.

"Stand down Noda, idiot. You distrust these ninja after we fought beside them and broke bread with them these last few nights?" he said, still amazed that samurai could be so stubborn.

"When a pair of ninja bring out my Taisho dead and his successor without an eye, who do you think I'd trust then?"

"I trust them," Kazuya insisted. "And that should be good enough for all of you. Our enemy – the Senmatsu – were the ones who injured me. Bishamon died fighting them. Without the ninja we couldn't have gotten even this far. Don't be too quick to condemn them; it's your eyes that are deceiving you, not them."

For a few moments Shoryu thought he'd never put down the sword – he even looked about to turn it upon himself. After thinking on Kazuya's speech however he seemed to be satisfied, and with a curt nod he holstered his sword. Silence descended about the camp as the Taisho captured the gaze of everyone present.

"We can mourn Bishamon and put our affairs in order when the mission is done. Right now we need to get out of here. Shoryu, you mentioned this place was dangerous?"

Shoryu nodded, his eyes glancing round the clearing. "Yeah – it's not exactly the ideal place to hang around for very long."

"Then we should set off right away." Only one thing still troubled Kazuya; he cast his eyes to the yawning mouth of the shadowed cave. Beyond there the gloom only got worse. The place was now a graveyard for fallen ninja and samurai – a house of torture where barbaric experiments had been conducted by the day. "Even so, I'm not sure how I feel about leaving this facility still standing."

"You and me both." Hotaru strode forward, fresh from having his wounds dressed as he waited for Kazuya's arrival. He'd traded in the trench knives in favour of open palms, knowing he'd need only hand signs for his newest assignment. "Leave the demolitions to me – I'll burn this place to the ground. You guys go on ahead. I'll catch up when I'm done here; shouldn't take me any longer than half an hour."

Shoryu was about to agree when Hotaru carried on walking regardless. He wasn't looking for consent; the Jonin was just as much in charge of this mission as Shoryu was – he could do whatever he liked. Even so, the Cloud's commander quickly found reason to worry when Hotaru disappeared into the darkness of the base. His figure became a shadowed outline as he ventured further in, until his footsteps clacking off steel could were the only proof of his being there.

Then the fire started.

Shoryu covered his face and jumped away as a sudden explosion leapt from the mouth of the cave, black and red as it smoked into a billowing flare before disappearing completely. When he looked back the base was on fire; the floors, walls and ceiling caught the blaze as easy as dry tinder, and within just a few moments girders and panels began to fall in the pyre.

Another portion detonated as more flames curled from the opening, then a third nearly singed Shoryu's eyebrows. Anxious, he turned to a ninja beside him – one of Hotaru's operatives.

"You sure he'll be alright in there?"

The ninja scoffed a laugh in reply. "Don't worry, he does this stuff all the time. The only thing we need to worry about is not being here when he gets back; he'll be pissed if we ignored his command."

"Alright guys you heard the man! Let's be on our way," announced Shoryu.

"Us too. Gather the bison, we're leaving," Kazuya echoed.

As he shielded his eyes from the stinging heat Shoryu waved his other arm eastward. In a single unit the samurai and ninja set out. At the front ninja scouts checked ahead for ambushes, and half a dozen samurai shepherded the flock of furry bison trailing behind. Last were Shoryu and the others. Kazuya insisted on walking despite his injuries, an arm constantly resting on someone's shoulder for support.

Although Fujiko's condition still remained uncertain the new Taisho seemed satisfied with the mission's outcome. He knew now that he'd done all he could whatever the result. Shoryu felt happy for him; it was a while before he'd seen him walk with his head held high, but the same applied for all of them. This mission had hung over them like a storm cloud for the last two months – not a day went by that they didn't steel themselves for this inevitable endeavour to rescue Fujiko.

Now at last Shoryu could relax. The mission was a success, they'd taken few casualties and the opponent was slain. At the end of the week he'd receive a nice fat pay rise too, such were the perks of being a permanent Jonin. Now all his thoughts looked ahead, to getting home and telling his sensei all about how awesomely things had gone. He felt lighter and carefree once again; for a moment he almost felt thirteen again.

Shoryu motioned to his jacket wrapped around Kazuya's shoulder and grinned. The faded violet crest of the Senmatsu was smeared over with a splash of the blood – a nice coincidence after what just transpired. "We'll see a lot more of that before the year's up," he promised.

"Sure hope so," said the Taisho. "I won't rest until every one of them answers for their crimes."

"You'll contact me if you get any leads right? I mean you're not the only one with a personal stake in all this."

"Of course, but I should be the one saying that," Kazuya went on. "The samurai don't exactly have much of an intelligence agency – at least not compared to the ninja. Not sure what kind of leads you think we'll get."

"Good point." As Shoryu continued his merry walk a strange observation caught his attention. He could've sworn they set off during the day – with the sun at its zenith on a sweltering afternoon. Now it seemed they were walking in shadow, as though some giant thundercloud had come out of nowhere and sat itself on top of them. He jabbed Kazuya on the arm, careful not to hit his wounds. "Is it just me or did it get a whole lot darker all of a sudden?" he asked.

The Taisho stopped and looked at the ground, thinking back as he caught up to Shoryu's point. His eyebrows narrowed as he met the commander's eyes, showing the same notion of curious concern. "Yeah. . ." he said.

The pair turned to get a better view of their surroundings. Beams of light thin as twigs littered the ground behind them where the sun cracked through, shifting, vanishing and reappearing by the moment like the summer surface beneath a tree. Only there was no tree above them.

As the two lifted their eyes to the sky they caught sight of what blotted out the sun. High above a swarm of black shapes hurtled through the sky as one, varying in speed and size, accelerating by the second. Kazuya used his hand to cover his one good eye, getting a better look. "What is that? Birds?" he asked.

Shoryu shielded his own eyes and inspected the flock. The objects – whatever they were – bowed down on a course straight towards them. Only as they began to fall did Shoryu realise what they really were. He could defend a small target like himself from the rain about to come, but all these people here with him? They'd be annihilated. "It's not birds," he realised, pupils dilating in horror.

"LOOK OUT!" came the wail of a terrified ninja.

"Is that shuriken?" Kazuya asked; finally he reached the same conclusion.

Shoryu prayed it was Genjutsu as the storm of projectiles grew closer and closer. Arming himself, the Jonin prepared to do all he could.

"Shading Jutsu: Eternal Dome!" cried Ayako.

In all his years fighting beside her Shoryu had never seen anything like it. Ayako's half-sphere of transparent yellow chakra never shielded more than a dozen people at a time. Its size this time grew to ridiculous proportions, expanding to a full dome that engulfed the land around their marching platoon. The Jonin span around to face her, knowing that level of chakra was something she never attempted before.

Ayako kept both hands planted firmly on the ground. Already she looked dizzy from merely conjuring it, but when the rain fell her expression turned to agony. Every sharp object that bounced off the dome was like a blunt instrument to her body as she thrashed left and right in recoil. The amount of concentration required left Shoryu in awe; even as invisible hits ricocheted from her body she kept channelling more and more chakra – lifting her hands by just a centimetre would bring the pain to a close, but in saving the group she endured to the very end.

Shoryu figured those ten seconds were like a lifetime to Ayako. As the Eternal Dome shattered into a thousand wayward fragments she let her eyes close and muscles relax, certain now that metallic rain was at an end. She fell limply to the ground, and fortunately Shoryu was there to catch her. Her eyelids flickered for a moment before opening again completely. On her face was a look of apology – of regret for not being able to do more. Confusion spread throughout the ranks as the girl addressed her commander.

"Sorry Shoryu. . ." she muttered, slowly catching her breath. "I think that used up all my chakra."

"Idiot." He gave a smile. "Don't be sorry, just take it easy." After setting her down gently Shoryu suddenly whirled around to face the others. "Alright what the hell was that?"

"Over there!" It was Jinga who spoke. With a set of binoculars in hand he pointed west across the canyon, all the way to the other side where a new set of enemies appeared. An army, perhaps three hundred strong, stood at the lip of the opposing rise as they assembled a formation. They marched down the slope right into the gorge's basin, their speed indicating full chakra and stamina. It was more than Shoryu could say for his troop – every samurai and ninja present looked about to keel over.

"More clones?" he asked.

Jinga shook his head glumly. The reality was far worse. "No, it's Stone ninja."

"Stone ninja?" asked Shoryu, dumbfounded. He'd fought them only a few times – a ruthless bunch now that they were under the reign of the Thirteenth Tsuchikage. Reizo had warned him about them on more than one occasion. Behind a striking exterior Hisae Kokowa would stop at nothing to further her ambitions; she charmed her people with false promises and rewards to the point of nearly brainwashing.

"We fight with them over this land all the time," offered one of Hotaru's Leaf ninja. "But I don't understand – the briefing said this area was clear!"

But Shoryu understood right away. Of course the briefing said that: Saito had delivered the report from the scouting unit. A stab of hatred washed through him; he could stand the bastard trying to get his own back, but involving all these innocent lives was a stretch too far. He'd doomed them all.

"You were saying something about our intelligence agency Kazuya?" said Shoryu. "Well if you ever create one take a tip: no intelligence is better than bad intelligence."

"Noted."

"More to the point, why aren't they attacking again?" Shoryu's eyes never left the army, expecting another wave of sharp objects at any moment. "You'd think they'd throw another round by now and just put us out of our misery."

After they saw Ayako's technique they probably figure we have an elite ninja on our squad, said Free. They'll get in closer for a better aim before they attack again. We have perhaps two or three minutes.

"Terrific." Three minutes was more than enough time – Shoryu had an answer in three seconds. He searched for any alternative, another way that might save them, but as much as he watched the army, counted his men and looked for all the nearest escape routes there was only one that remained certain. With his mind made up Shoryu gave his last order. There was no other option.

"Listen up!" he called, projecting his voice so all could hear. "I need you all to keep heading back the way we came! Get over that bank as quickly as you can, then keep going until you reach that swamp we crossed! If you destroy the ice bridge behind you then you should be able to escape! . ." Shoryu hung on his last sentence. It came out with more fear and uncertainty than he meant it to, but nevertheless the words finally formed – four words that raised madness from those he counted amongst friends:

"I'll keep them busy."

As the others panicked Shoryu turned his back and strode in the enemy's direction, splitting off from the squadron to face his death. He made it ten steps out before Kazuya intervened.

"Shoryu! Wait up!" he called.

Shoryu stopped for him as the Taisho hobbled over. If anyone deserved a farewell it was Kazuya. His eye shone with concern and sympathy when he spoke: "You don't have to do this, we'll fight with you," he offered.

"No, this is personal. I let you go at it solo earlier; do the same for me," said Shoryu.

But Kazuya wasn't convinced. "How exactly is this personal? We've all got as much at stake here!"

"Listen to me." Shoryu slung his arm around the boy's shoulder, muttering quietly so that no one else would hear them as he took him aside. "This is Saito's brilliant plan to get back at me. I won't let anyone else get involved."

Kazuya realised it with a nod, yet still he didn't budge, silently contemplating his next move. Shoryu had never displayed such valour before, and he didn't act on a whim. He'd thought about this enough and decided he cared enough about the mission to die for it. To refuse him would be an insult. As the samurai debated losing his best friend another called out from the squadron.

"Shoryu it's suicide!" said Yuudai.

"Yeah, no kidding," he answered. "But it's our only choice – no one else has any chakra. I'll hold them as long as long as possible and take as many down with me as I can. You should be able to get away."

A samurai from the ranks then drew a katana, brandishing it in the air as he addressed the young commander. "We don't take orders from ninja!" he announced. "And we don't run away either – the shame of it would be too great. We're fighting them whether you say so or not; a death in battle knows no equal in glory."

"You don't take your orders from ninja, you take orders from me. Bishamon appointed me second-in-command here, and you'll get no orders from his corpse," reminded Kazuya. He gave Shoryu one last look. The boy's resolve was concrete; his eyes trained upon the Hidden Stone ninja like a hawk in waiting.

"And I say we leave," he continued, "This ninja has things covered."

The samurai looked outraged. With the Taisho's first command being an act of perceived cowardice it would be difficult now to enact a respectable rule over them. These men were trained fighters, some two or even three times Kazuya's age. The young lord's orders went against everything they stood for.

"Bishamon would've stayed and fought!" insisted one of them.

"Bishamon is dead!" Kazuya snapped, "And he wouldn't want his men to follow him to the grave. What do you achieve by dying here? An honourable death? What of your families? What about the winter? What about the crops that need sewing back in the village? You'd leave your wives and children alone just because you were too ashamed to run? These isn't even our war. As long as I'm in charge I won't let you die so selfishly, and if anyone has a problem with that they can take it up with me in combat once we get back."

From the looks on their faces every single samurai had a problem with that, but none dared challenge the Taisho. Despite his youth they'd seen first-hand the power he wielded, and he flashed his eye to a blinking spiral if only to remind them about it. Grumbling, the samurai turned back to the road ahead to shepherd the bison. Already the ninja had begun to move.

Jinga and Yuudai lingered in place for a moment. Shoryu met their gaze and nodded, and with glum looks of depression the pair turned away, determined not to look back no matter how much chaos ensued below.

Shoryu turned to the army once again, more at ease with the situation. A closer look proved his hands to be shaking.

"Most of my men don't have half your honour," lamented Kazuya.

Shoryu forced a smile. "You're a disappointment, I was expecting tears."

"I'll save them for your funeral."

The two shared a laugh as Kazuya gave him a fierce embrace. Blood from his armour formed splodges on Shoryu's shirt at the contact; it wouldn't matter soon anyway.

"Take care of yourself – your wife and son too. And if it's alright, I'd rather you were the one to tell my mom what happened here."

"Of course. Anything you need."

"Now get gone; you don't have much time."

Not wishing to keep him any longer, Kazuya parted the hold and gave a final wave as he made his way back to the group.

Shoryu stared ahead. With both swords at his belt the Jonin began to plot a route in his mind; what jutsu to use and what methods would be quickest to take out his enemies. Of course there were no guarantees; against three hundred he'd be lucky to even reach them before they skinned him alive with shuriken. The last thing he wanted was fall within three steps after vowing to hold them all off to everyone he knew.

"I'm staying," said a voice; Shoryu knew whose it was before he even turned.

Ayako stood in waiting, split off from the group as she faced Shoryu alone. Kazuya kept watch from the rear to make sure she didn't do as she claimed – Shoryu knew he'd knock her out if he had to. It would be a shame if it came to that, so he tried to resolve it without violence. He owed her enough to at least try and make her see reason.

"No you're not," he insisted. "Don't be ridiculous!"

Tears came to her eyes, a spectacle Shoryu had never witnessed until now. Ayako never cried, not even when he'd seen her break a leg at the Chunin exams, or when their camp had been massacred at the hands of the enemy. She'd hardened herself to the lifestyle of a ninja, but losing close friends it seemed was too much to bury away.

"I'm not just leaving you here to die!" she said.

"Better just one of us than both of us!"

Ayako continued to sob as she covered her mouth with her hands. "But why does it have to be you?" she choked out.

Her words made Shoryu speechless, an empty pit of guilt wallowing up in his stomach at the sight of making her cry. Despite all the rational logic he applied, when he spoke it still felt like an excuse – some convoluted reason to leave her alone forever. "Not long ago we realised only me, you and Hotaru had any chakra left to fight," he explained. "No one can reach Hotaru in that fire and you just used up all yours. You can barely walk! You'll only be in the way!"

Shoryu learned long ago that sometimes hard truths were necessary. Never had he felt worse delivering one. Ayako's devastated gasp told him the words hit hard. She hunched her shoulders and continued to cry as Shoryu spared an anxious look to the approaching army – time was short, but Ayako wouldn't move.

"I'm still staying," she muttered, stubborn as ever.

That obstinate quality was one of the few things that frustrated Shoryu about her. She knew it was pointless – that what he said was right – but logic found itself crushed under the weight of feelings and loyalty. Ayako couldn't bring herself to turn away. Shoryu saw only one way to save her life.

"Of all people, I never thought I'd have to pull rank with you," he said, and after a long sigh he carried on. "Ayako Tsuji, as your commanding officer I am ordering you to leave now and lead these people to safety. You really want your last record to be dying like an idiot and refusing to follow orders? You're better than that! You're gonna have to get used to seeing people you care about die; you're going to be the next Raikage after all!"

Shoryu watched the impact of his speech in detail. Ayako bit down on her lower lip, quivering as she stared at the ground for a few moments. The tears stopped and her hands began to tremble instead. He noticed Kazuya with a hand on his sword, ready to smack her with the butt of it if she took too long. When he looked back to Ayako she was completely still.

With zest in her stride the kunoichi suddenly marched towards him, eyes still following the floor as she walked. She raised her hand, and in expecting an attack Shoryu almost flinched away from it. Instead the last thing he expected came to pass. Without words or prior warning, Ayako only pulled him into a deep kiss.

A breathless Shoryu escaped into bliss as he allowed his four year dream to finally come true. Around them the world vanished; nothing mattered anymore save for this moment of pure nirvana. She was even more than he expected, her lips sweet and moist, leaving him with an aftertaste of cherry when they parted at last. When his eyes opened the sight greeting Shoryu was one of her eyes, blue and sparkling, staring up with a smile to make him wish he could do it all over again. He was tempted to try.

"Whoa. . ." His sharp tongue failed him, a breath of awe taking the place of a cohesive sentence. "Worth it," he finally managed.

Ayako tilted her head. "What was?"

"My life until now."

The girl blushed and smiled back as Shoryu released another exhale, this one weary and frustrated; the Stone closed in. Their footfalls grew heavier now, audible on the canyon floor as they moved at a quicker pace. In thirty seconds they'd be upon them, and after that there was nothing he could do to save them.

"You need to go," he lamented, wishing only that they had more time. He hated to leave things this way; so much went unsaid.

"I know," she replied. After planting a final swift kiss on him Ayako finally released her hold of his shirt. "Thank you." There was nothing more to say. She turned and didn't look back, knowing the pain of it would be too great, the urge to return inescapable. Shoryu turned as well, setting off towards the Stone's army with his heart still beating like a drum. There were no more regrets – he could go now with a clear conscience.

.

Author's Notes: Made this a double chapter since it got waaaay too long for just one, so if you want to see what happens to Shoryu you can do so right now! And holy crap! Romance in Legacies! I dunno about you guys but my only thought was 'FINALLY'. I mean I've heard of taking your time but four years? God these ninja are so hopeless!