Corrin(M) X Hana
C+
"Ke'ri, they're catching up to us!"
"Just keep running, Lon'qu!" Ke'ri replied as the two ran side-by-side along the bay.
But Lon'qu was right. The bandits who'd been tailing them not far behind were more physically fit than the two kids in their early teens. If they were to catch up to them, Ke'ri was doubtful that either of them could take them all on at once. Not only that, while the bandits were armed to the teeth, the only weapons the pair carried with them for defense was her dagger which she'd clenched tightly in her hand as they sprinted across the sand.
As the they raced around the corner and past a boulder the size of a hut, about a hundred yards ahead of them was a massive boat hangar big enough to construct four Red Seal ships consecutively which had been decommissioned for the evening. And once it had come into view, and idea popped into Ke'ri's mind. "Come on!" she exclaimed as she took her wheezing best friend's hand. "We'll lose them in that hangar!"
Lon'qu was barely able to keep up as Ke'ri picked up the pace; nearly dragging the boy with her as she did so. By the time they reached it, the group of bandits had already came into view around the boulder just as the pair disappeared through the mouth of the hangar.
"There they go!" Shouted the leader of the ruffians. "You three, circle around back and try to cover any exits they try to escape through. You two, keep chasing after those brats! We can't have anyone spilling our hideout's location to the authorities!"
"Hurry! We need to hide and double-back so we can get help!"
"Ke'ri, slow down!" the boy from the slums gasped as they trotted over the wooden catwalk. His bare feet felt like they were on fire after sprinting through the sand, and his legs seemed as though they were being weighed down from all of the running they'd endured. And even if they were able to somehow slip past the bandits, how far were they going to be able to get before they were spotted agai-.
"AGH!" Lon'qu cried out as an old withered board caved in from beneath his foot; not all the way to where he could feel the saltwater several inches beneath him, but enough to throw him off balance. His ankle twisted as he fell forward, causing him to holler out in pain as he landed face-down onto the boardwalk and clutched his leg. "Ow-ow-ow!"
The light-haired brunette stopped in her tracks and gasped as her closest friend grimaced in pain and tried to stand- only to fall back down as he attempted to use his now sprained ankle to push himself back up. "Lon'qu!"
Lon'qu seethed, "I'm fine! I'm fine!"
But he was far from fine and Ke'ri knew it. Rushing to his side, she knelt down, threw one arm over her shoulder and lifted him back up onto his good leg. "Hang in there, just a little further!" They had managed to limp several feet forward before an arrow zipped past a couple of inches from her head and imbedded itself into the boardwalk.
"Grr, I almost had you!" A gruff voiced yelled behind them. The pair turned around to see two of ruffians that had been chasing after them standing at the mouth of the hangar fifty yards away, one with his sward drawn and the other with a bow in his hand as he pulled and knocked another arrow.
Lon'qu's heart sank. This is it, he thought hopelessly. They've caught us. And it's all my fault. Ke'ri I'm so sorry...
The archer let loose the arrow and Ker'ri ducked; pulling her filthy-haired friend down with her as the projectile zoomed over them. "Lon'qu, listen to me," she spoke soft and calmly, "I want you to run. Get out of here when you have the chance."
His stomach tightened in desperation. "What are talking about?! You can't take them on by yourself and I can't even move anywhere!"
The boy's one and only friend sighed heavily in acceptance. "I'm sorry, Lon'qu, but if there's any chance that even one of us can make it out of here, I'd rather it be you."
Shaking his head stubbornly, Lon'qu told her, "No. I got us into this, so I should be the one to allow you to escape. Ke'ri, please, don't do this!"
The ruffian archer snarled, "This one oughta shut you up." He began to draw his third arrow until his partner stopped him.
"You've had your chance, Clay. It's my turn to have a go at 'em."
The fiend named Clay shrugged. "Sure, whatever you say. But be careful. I've heard that even kids from Chon'sin are already trained to kill with a flick of their wrist."
Clay's partner laughed as he advanced towards them. "C'mon, you actually believe that? Besides, their unarmed. Oh well, so much for expecting an actual fight. I was kinda lookin' forward to it."
Lon'qu's wide-eyed gaze fell onto Ke'ri as she let out another sigh. The young girl's face seemed passive as though she wasn't aware of what was going on. "K-Ke'ri...?"
To his and the bandit's confusion, the brunette's lips crept into a thoughtful smile as she lifted her friend's arm from her shoulder and took his hand into hers. "Lon'qu, every moment that I've spent with you- every night that I've snuck out of home to see you and bring you you're favorite treats, I will treasure those memories for as long as time itself moves forward. While we've both lived opposite lives, you still have so much to experience and live for. And I will not allow these rotten scums to take that opportunity away from you."
Lon'qu refused to believe what she was saying. "No, no! That isn't true! You're the one who deserves to live! You're the one who has so much more to give this world more than what I ever could! Please, Ke'ri...!"
Ke'ri never lost her smile as she leaned forward and kissed his forhead and cupped a hand over his cheek. "I love you, Lon'qu. And I want you to do whatever it takes for you to make your life matter." The boy's mind was in a scramble and couldn't think of the words to say and the actions to perform as his only true friend stood to confront the ruffian, who snickered.
"Ya know, I personally have a thing against killing women, but if the boss says I gotta take you out, then... well, he'd kill me if I didn't. So I'd start praying right now."
Taking several steps forward,Ke'ri withdrew the dagger from her sleeves for the hoodlum to see and spoke loud and confidently, "I do not need to pray to anyone except for whatever God you will soon meet. My body and soul is prepared for judgment. And I ask you this: is yours prepared as well?"
She didn't even wait for the bandit to answer. With a clean and flawless swipe of her arm, she cut the rope to her right which held a cargo net containing a large load of barrels hanging thirty feet above them. Noticing the load fall, Lon'qu and the bandit reacted by instinct by covering their heads as it came crashing down onto the boardwalk behind Ke'ri. Fresh water exploded from the barrels as the boardwalk caved in from the immense weight. And while the ruffian had been distracted from the sudden commotion and leaving himself completely defenseless, Ke'ri made her move.
From the other side of the giant pile of barrels, Lon'qu quickly got a hold of his senses and pushed himself back onto his good foot. "Ke'ri!" he called out. The mountain of trashed wood was too large to climb over, even with his good leg. However, he was able to find a small hole in the wreckage to peak through to see what was going on.
Faster than the human body could react, the girl shot forward and was behind the swordsman before he even realized what was happening. With her free hand, she reached over his shoulder and pressed her palm into his nose, causing the man to involuntarily tilt his head back and slit his throat. Gurgling uncontrollably, the bandit dropped his sword as he pressed his hands to throat, desperately attempting to keep the blood from spilling out, but no avail. Several moments went by as both Ke'ri and the bandit's partner, Clay, watched as the man bled to death before he finally stopped moving entirly.
"It's pointless to tell a dead man, 'I told you so,' "Clay shook his head.
As fast as she was able to move before, Ke'ri took the dagger by the blade and sent it flying. But the ruffian anticipated this and was easily able to deflect it away from him as the dagger splashed into the murky water. Now without a weapon, she went for the sword that the dead outlaw had dropped. However, right before she was able to get a grip on the hilt, Clay had pulled back his arrow that he had on the ready and fired; sending the projectile straight and true as it pierced through both of her forearms.
Crying out in agony, Ke'ri fell flat on her backside, both arms limp as blood began to spill from where the arrow had penetrated.
"NO!" Lon'qu screamed. "LEAVE HER ALONE, YOU DASTARD!"
"Lon'qu," his best friend said through gritted teeth, "you need to leave."
The ruffian chuckled. "Heh, though I hate to admit it, you've done me a favor." He drew and knocked another arrow. "Sooner or later I was going to kill that fool myself. He'd always been getting on my nerves, but since you'd saved me the hassle, I'll make both of your deaths quick."
And with that, he pulled the back. Ke'ri made no attempt to move as her gaze beamed into the eyes of the bandit's, awaiting her faith as he released the string and the arrow flew towards her heart.
"KE'RIIIIII!"
I-I-I-I-I
Hana sucked in a sharp breath as she awoke; instinctively placing a hand onto her chest and over her heart. That dream again... She took another breath. It didn't matter how many times she'd experienced it. Hana was never one to believe in bad omens, and she'd tell herself over and over again that it was just an unprecedented nightmare, yet the fact that it felt so real every single time...
Sitting up in her bed mat, she stretched out her arms before looking out the window of her quarters. Though the night was still dark, just beyond the horizon the sky was beginning to change from that of black to a dark gray; giving Hana the ability to infer that it was the hour of the rabbit. It's time to go to work.
It took no time at all for the young samurai to change out from her night clothes and into her training gear. Once fully dressed, her gaze fell to the only other piece of furniture inside of her one-room cottage. She knelt down on both knees in front of the katana which rested upon the top of the knee-high bookshelf, with a lit candle burning dimly on each side. And after taking a bow and saying her prayer, she gingerly took the weapon from its dragon-crafted stand, along with a small green booklet from the shelf.
I think I'm finally ready to train for this new style, Hana thought to herself as she tucked the booklet away. "And if I can master this, a surprise attack on Lady Sakura will be a thing of the past."
Legends spoke of a legendary swordsman only known by the name Lyndis from the land of Caelin who wielded the sacred blade, the Mani Katti. She was also notoriously designated for the not only the mastery of the katana, but for also perfecting the art of Iaido and Iaijutsu. With her formidable talent combined with the power of the Mani Katti, Lyndis could strike with immense power and skill within almost an instant. It was a jutsu of the fast draw that would take even the most experienced swordsman several minutes to prepare.
"Only one other person was able to perform this type Iaijutsu." Hana said aloud. "And he's already got his own hands full, so I'll be on my own on this one." She put the book away. Phew, alright, first thing's first: I will need to be able to cut through solid stone before I can even think of moving up to the next level. And before I even do that, I'll have to be able to cut through this first.
Standing before her was a rolled tatami mat; a common item that had been used for trainees when practicing their swings. However, this tatami mat was a special case. A creation of her own design, this mat consisted of denser, harder material along with almost three times the amount of tethers; making this practice dummy much, much more difficult to cut through.
Hana's thoughts go back a couple months earlier as she remembered her conversation with Hayato.
"I don't understand, Hana," the young man had said as he closed the green booklet. "Out of all the other diviners that we have in Corrin's little personal army, why come to me for help? Orochi has had a lot more experience when it comes to divination, so why did you choose me?"
"Because from what I've heard," the samurai had answered, "You have the most linear control over spirits when it comes to the practice of the Aikido, despite how young you are. Somebody with that kind of natural skill and potential is all the reason I need to ask advice from you."
Hayato cringed and threw his hands in the air. "AGH. For the love of-, why do people always just assume that I'm a child based on my appearance? I'm twenty years old for gods' sakes!"
"Wait, you're twenty?!" Hana gaped. "But you don't even look like you could be any older than fifteen!"
His cheeks turned red. "Sp- speak for yourself! You look as though you couldn't be older than the age of sixteen!"
"Well then I've got news for you. I'm actually twenty-one years old. The same age as Corrin."
The diviner raised his brows. "So, that means you're... you're older than I am?" Hayato had let out a heavy and hopeless sigh. "The cycle never ends, does it?" He shook his head. "L-lets just drop the subject now. In any case, I'll take what you said earlier as a complement. So in return, I will help you prepare for this new jutsu. But before we even get started, there are some rules and risks that you absolutely must be aware of and take in accordingly."
Hana nodded. "Well, you're the sensei, so I'm all ears."
"Ok, first off, don't call me sensei. All I'm doing is helping out a friend, alright? Now listen, what you're trying to accomplish will require absolute precision and balance between the body and the spirit. Think of it as though a fragile object that is precious to you is encased inside a block of ice. To set it free from its incarceration, instead of slowly chipping away at different areas, what you're attempting to do is placing the pick at a strategic sweet spot on the ice and hitting it with a carefully power-controlled strike. If done correctly, the ice will break apart, leaving that precious object undamaged. But if your strike is too hard or the pick is not placed properly, the entire block as a whole will shatter to pieces.
"Now, you've already heard of the phrases that people say before loved ones enter a battle, 'ancestors give us strength,' correct?" She nodded. "The thing about this saying is that it's partially related to the practice called Shamanism. Shamanism is the center of all the paranormal events that people are able to perform, such as the summoning of the animal spirits, which in turn allows you to tap into the forces of Aikido. But in order to learn the basics of this practice, the first step that you must take is endorsing a contract with an animal from the spirit world. Each animal has its own unique vibe and skills that you can tap into for a short period of time, or you can summon the spirit into its physical entity and use it for either offensive or defensive measures. For most, you can only form a pact with a single animal. When the contract is signed, they are given a scroll which contains the spirit that they can summon."
"So there are a few people that are able to forge a contract with more than one animal?" Hana had asked.
Hayato nodded, and smiled proudly. "That's right. I myself am one of those who can summon multiple spirits. However, having the ability to call upon these sprites does come at a price. Since these beings come from the spirit world, they do not feed off of your physical strength unless absolutely necessary. Take me as an example of it. I may be one of the least physically fit people in the army, but through meditation, I can strengthen my own spirit so that the ones I call upon can receive a plentiful amount of energy to feed on; thus strengthening the power that I can unleash.
"Your own spirit and body works together as one throughout every instant of your life. But no matter how physically strong you are, if the sprite you call on does not receive the energy you'd agreed to via contract, one way or another, it will get what it had been promised. And by that, I mean, it will begin to feed off of your very own life force. In other words, your life span shortens. So, now that you understand the tradeoff that comes with the power that you want to obtain, are you sure you want to go forward with this?"
The young samurai nodded without hesitation. "If this power helps further my goal to protect Lady Sakura, I will sign a thousand contracts to ensure her safety."
"Very well then," Hayato had said, "First I will you teach you the proper hand signs and commands in order to connect with the spirit world. Though I must tell you, you don't get to make the final decision on who or what you forge your contract with. Depending on what it is that you truly desire or need does heavily sway what animal is right for you. Once you've made a pact with that apparition, you need to practice the summoning as you strengthen your own spirit through meditation. And with enough practice, you will be able to summon them without having to use hand signs; which in normal circumstances takes several weeks or even a couple of months to master. But knowing you, you just might be able to do so in half that time." Hayato had then asked, "You said that Ryoma was the only other swordsman to master this type of jutsu, am I correct?"
"That's right."
"Interesting. So both people were able to strike with such power because they possessed a divine blade."
Hana frowned. "What are you getting at? You don't think I'll be able to pull it off?"
"I never said that. In fact, I was thinking the opposite."
"And what do you mean by that?"
"What I mean is..." Hayato clarified, holding the book up, "If you can pull off this jutsu with just your guts and your willpower, not only will you be able to master it, but you could also turn it into something that you can call your very own signature Iaijutsu."
An Iaijustu of my very own, Hana thought with an optimistic smile. That definitely has a nice ring to it. Now let's see how much further I have to go. Lacing her fingers into the proper hand sign, she spoke out softly, "Hebi no seishin." Snake spirit.
Hana's vision began to dim within the outer rim of her eyes, as though the light were failing to pass through the lens, and the target in front of her blurred. However, now with her lack of vision, her hearing became keener. She could now listen to the insects that scuttled across the ground beneath her, the toad that croaked from across the training field, and even hear Azama gasping in shock near the armory as Oboro scolded at him; undoubtedly using her petrifying expression as she did so.
The joints in her body became less constricted, and more nimble as her muscles tightened and the atmosphere suddenly felt cold.
Positioning herself into the proper stance, Hana gripped the hilt of her blade; concentrating on drawing out more power from her animal entity before she let it loose.
Hana drew her blade in an explosion of energy as she cut into the tatami mat. The air shrieked as it was torn apart, and shreds of the material went airborne as the sword sliced its way across. It all happened within a split second time frame, but to her, the katana only seemed to be moving just as fast as any normal soldier could manage.
Fatigue soon took over after unleashing her attack. Hana's vision remained slightly blurred from the exhaustion and her hearing downgraded back to its normal level. Her forehead dripped with sweat and gasped for air as her body began to lose its temporary strength. I'd never expected to feel this tired after using the snake spirit's power just this once, she'd thought. Hayato said that it fed from my spiritual energy, so I guess when I use this divination, this is what the aftermath is like when you force your body past what it's mentally capable of. Once her vision had finally cleared up, Hana inspected the blow that the tatami mat had received.
The cut itself had managed to penetrate at least two inches into the material, a quarter of a ways from going completely through. Along the half-inch wide cut, the tethers had been completely severed and torn to bits with the strings protruding in the direction the katana had swiped through. Even a blow like this couldn't be done by a body-built soldier with an ax, but Hana was not satisfied.
I need to be able to cut completely through this with just one strike. She took a breath. But I won't be able to try again for a while now until my spiritual energy recharges. Ugh, the only part of training that I actually dislike...
Then a voice spoke up, "Um... ahem, Hana?"
The young samurai didn't turn around to see who it was that stood behind her. Instead, she took her sword into both hands before spinning on her heels; swinging her sword around with her in an arc. But the attack was stopped as the person anticipated this and was able to quickly raise his weapon to defend himself.
"Aha!" Corrin proclaimed, and smiled. "Not quite as quick on your toes when you know what to expect from your enemies, am I correct?"
Hana sneered. "Hmph."
Faster than what Corrin could comprehend, she pulled her right leg back. Releasing her right hand from the katana, she then grabbed Corrin's wrist that held the Yato. Now with his sword hand immobilized, Hana then preceded to take a heavy step backwards while placing her left shin in front of Corrin's and brought her left hand onto his shoulder. He didn't even have enough time to cry out as his left shin was swept out from under him and fell face-first into the grass.
Hana, who was now on top of the silver-haired prince, continued to grip his wrist with one hand and pushed down on his back with the other as she held him in place. "Now, let's see here," she giggled, "How many different angles can we go to see how many times your shoulder pops before you finally admit defeat?"
"Ah come on, Hana," Corrin sputtered through the leaves, "You can't be really- OW! OK! OK! I GIVE! PLEASE, NO MORE!"
"Oh, boo." the brunette pouted. "You're no fun. I thought you royal males were tougher than this."
"Yeah, well," he gritted his teeth. "This royal male wouldn't much use on the battlefield if he had a broken sword arm. Ever stop to think about that?"
"Heehee. Then that would be the perfect opportunity for you to practice becoming ambidextrous."
"And what's that supposed to mean!?" Corrin cried out desperately.
Hana scoffed. "Oh, relax, Lord Corrin. I'm just trying to blow off steam is all." She let go and stood as she watched the Norhian/Hoshidan prince spit blades of grass from his mouth.
"Ack, come on, Hana, I thought we had an understanding. I thought you'd said that you understood what I was trying to say a couple months ago. Did I say or do anything else to upset you since then?"
"Nope." She answered reluctantly. "I've just been having an itch to do that for a while now. If it were anyone else besides Lady Sakura, they'd probably get the same treatment as you did. I guess you were just unlucky."
"I'll say." Corrin sighed. "So, do you want to tell me what's on your mind?"
"What do you mean, 'what's on my mind?'" Hana frowned.
"See," the Yato's wielder pointed out. "There's that look again. Look, you have that same expression on your face the last time you'd attacked me with that wooden sword. To everyone else, it may just be another normal day of you going through hard training, but to me, it's as clear as day."
Her silence led to Corrin's conformation. "Hana, listen... I may not be the best with words, but believe me when I tell you that I really am worried about you. Not just as your duty as a retainer to Sakura, but for your own happiness as well."
The samurai's cheeks reddened. "Lord Corrin, I...!"
Corrin immediately doubled back at what he'd just said. "Not- not like that! Ah damn it, I did it again. God's, who knew trying to explain these kinds of things, would've been so difficult..."
"I... I understand what you meant, Lord Corrin." Hana muttered. "Sometimes your way of approach can be a bit... blunt, but I get what it is you're trying to say. There's no need for you to clarify this time."
"Hah," he breathed, "that's such a relief."
"However..." said Hana, "Since you were brave enough to tell me this in person, I'll make you a deal."
The prince asked skeptically, "Um, and what kind of deal is that?"
Hana sheathed her blade. "Soon I'll have to go train our newer recruits. And in case you've been watching me, I've spent too much of my energy on my personal training, so I'd like to have an extra pair of hands to help move things along. If you do this for me, I might share a little of 'what's on my mind.'"
Corrin scratched his head nervously. "Why do I feel like there's going to be a catch to this..."
"So is that a deal?" She held out her hand.
The young man seamed hesitant for a moment before letting out a reluctant sigh. "Alright then." He shook it. "Deal."
Attained Support Level C+
Project Requested By: Mzr90
Hey guys, I understand there wasn't much that happened between these two in this chapter; the chapter was getting lengthy but there's still just so much more to add and build up on. So I hope to make up for it in the next support level and I hope you enjoyed it.
