I bet you guys weren't expecting to see another chapter so soon were you? To be frank, neither was I, but I got hit with a bit of that writing bug and I couldn't help myself. It probably helped that I was stuck at work for about 15 hours with nothing much to do during the event time. Anyway, Happy reading to you all.

Kiriya sat across the table from Minako, Yuji's mother. It'd been a couple days since the mission Yuji had gone on and well...he had ultimately decided that it was better to drop the news to her in person. He'd initially elected to keep it quiet, but Hanzo had told him it was better to let her know. Never one to doubt the old shinobi, Kiriya had decided to go through it, electing to leave the kids alone for the afternoon, they could engage in some self study while he broke the news. A cup of warm tea sat in front of him as Minako had finished pouring her own, taking a seat across from him in the dining room.

"Are you sure you don't want anything to eat Kiriya-sensei? I really don't mind making a sandwich or two."

"No no, in fact, it's probably better that we don't eat anything." he replied, taking a sip of his tea. "Now then Ms. Egawa, I'll get right to the point. Yuji went on his first mission and...he came face to face to a moment."

There was a pregnant pause within the dining room as Minako's eyes went wide and her heart rate increased.

"A...a yoma? What the fuck...what the fuck made you send him against...against those things?!"

"Ms. Egawa, please calm down." Kiriya started

"Calm down? CALM DOWN?! How in the living fuck do I calm down knowing he came into contact with one of those?! I knew something was wrong with him when he came home but...but...what the fuck Kiriya, who died, how many?! He's a fucking beginner!"

"Please understand, that mission was not meant to involve yoma." Kiriya said, sighing. "We don't know how or why it appeared, but it did. Everyone came back unharmed save for a few scratches...but I will agree, something is wrong with your son. We assume he's a bit shocked that yoma exist and his encounter with it. Do not be alarmed, I'm taking the proper measures. I've decided to accelerate his training a bit, just enough that he can call upon his animal spirit. Ikaruga should be good at giving the proper instruction. And make no mistake, if he goes on another mission and runs into any yoma, I've given him clear orders to flee. Abandon the mission and get to safety."

This gave Minako pause and had her raise her eyebrow. "Really…? Abandoning the mission, that's a risky play Kiriya-sensei."

"I know, but rest assured, I will make sure that he suffers no punishment. Even Hanzo himself has pledged to step in on his behalf should things reach that point."

These words cause Minako to visibly calm down as she quickly downed her tea. "Okay...that's good. Just...please, I don't want to lose him. He's all I have...he's all I'll ever have…"

Minako had begun to tremble, tears forming at the corners of her eyes as the idea of her son dead beyond recognition began to form in her head. Kiriya took her hands, giving her a gentle squeeze of understanding. "Ms. Egawa...look me in the eyes." he said calmly.

Doing, Minako was met with a look of pure determination, one that said that everything would be all right. "I swear to you, I will not let any yoma harm your son. If I have to die, then so be it, but your son will live. Okay?"

"Yes...I...thank you Kiriya-sensei. I'll trust you...n-now, how about some food? It's lunch time after all."

Kiriya merely nodded, now that the hard part was over. He had to admit that with the tension leaving the room, he was actually kind of hungry.

"Thank you Ms. Egawa, I'd like that very much." he said as a small smile crept onto his face.

-0000-

Yuji couldn't get his mind off of the mission a few days prior. He had initially wanted to tell Asuka and the others about the yoma...about what she said before dying, but he couldn't bring himself to do it. After the mission he'd received a brief history on yoma and basically, they were really dangerous creatures that usually show up when shinobi fight one another hard enough, usually the result would be catastrophic for the shinobi side and as such yoma were labeled as dangerous monsters in the shinobi world.

Then why did that one initially talk to him at first...or at least try to? Why did she express genuine fear before her death? These questions kept swirling around in his head. So much so that he couldn't put his all into his training or regular studies. Taro and Daisuke had even noticed something was up, but he couldn't say what. Just that he'd had a long night of studying and when it came to his fellow shinobi, the most he could do was just brush them off. The fierce conviction they had when explaining how bad the yoma were made him less than enthusiastic at the idea of telling him. Who knows what his friends would think if he had said he could hear the yoma's words. Maybe they'd report him to the shinobi council and then they'd tie him to a lab table or something! No way in hell was he becoming a guinea pig for some super secret lab experiment where he'd never see the light of day again! No...no he'd keep this to himself.

"Yuji-kun, come on, it's time for training. Kiriya-sensei had some work to do, so I'll be overseeing things okay?" Ikaruga said, snapping the boy back to reality

"Huh...oh uh, okay. Lead the way Ikaruga-senpai."

The two began to head out to behind the school, there was a forest nearby that was used for ninja training and luckily none of the regular students ever dared to enter, so there was no need to worry about anyone seeing them as they made their way there. Along the way, Ikaruga couldn't help but shoot a glance at Yuji every now and then, noting his unease on his face.

"Yuji...are you okay? Is something the matter?" Ikaruga asked

"Nothing senpai, I'm fine." Yuji replied

The same reply as before. Ikaruga thought sadly, it was clear that her underclassman was still perturbed from his run in from the yoma, but he was clearly trying to push the trauma of the entire ordeal down and ignore it. That wasn't healthy, it wasn't healthy at all. Still, if only she could help in some small way. It was then that an idea hit her, it was simple, but hopefully the gesture wouldn't be lost on him. Stopping suddenly, Ikaruga turned towards Yuji and in one fell swoop enveloped him in her arms.

"U-uh...Ikaruga-senpai? What are you doing…?"

"Yuji...I understand that you're scared. That yoma really shook you up...but please Yuji, don't push us away. We're your fellow students...your friends. If you're hurting, please tell us okay?"

She pulled him tighter and though Yuji could feel the...presence of her chest on his, he didn't let that distract him from her words. Mustering up a smile, he placed his hands around Ikaruga's back reciprocating the hug.

"Thanks Ikaruga-senpai, I'll be sure to do that. Now let's get to training yeah?"

"Teehee, right. We can't keep the others waiting."

With that done, the two finally made it to the training area in the forest. A clearing amongst the trees that had nothing truly notable about it, but it was far enough away that no one could hear or see whatever the team got up to.

"Okay Yuji, Kiriya-sensei left a small lesson plan for you today. You're meant to call upon your shinobi animal today. Once you do so, you'll have created a contract with your animal, allowing you to summon it to aid you whenever you like." Ikaruga explained.

"A shinobi animal? Like...a wolf or something?" Yuji asked.

"Exactly like that. I for instance, can call upon the phoenix, Yagyuu can call a squid, Katsuragi a dragon, Hibari has Ninto her rabbit, and Asuka has a toad."

Yuji couldn't help but raise an eyebrow at that and silently looked at Asuka.

"It's not something I can help, your animal is chosen by the males in the family. In my case, my grandpa had a toad, my mother had a toad, and now I have a toad too. It's...well, it took some getting used to, but it's actually not that bad." she sighed

"Well okay...so how do we go about it? I gotta admit, I'm kind of eager to see what I can summon!"

"Therein lies a particular problem…" Ikaruga sighed "I was told by Kiriya-sensei, that you and your mother are not blood-related. As such, we can't look up your family tree to know what animal you'd have. So, Kiriya-sensei gave me an alternate means of helping you out."

Ikaruga pulled out a small hand-mirror she'd kept...somewhere, and held it out to Yuji.

"Uh...what is this?" Yuji asked confusedly

"This is what's called a 'soul mirror'. Long ago, these were used to help one commune with their guardian shinobi animal, before familial contracts were made which helped to simplify the process. With this, you can peer into your soul and in a way 'call out' to your animal. They will surely find you."

"Huh, I didn't know about something like that." Katsuragi said rubbing her chin, "Where did you learn about this Ikaruga?"

"I had no idea about it either. Kiriya-sensei however did know and explained things to me, according to him, it was sheer dumb luck that he still had one laying around at all. These are rare these days since soul mirrors are largely unneeded and getting one made is even trickier."

"No big deal. What do we do next?" Yuji said "I'm ready to get on with it."

"Sit down and look into the mirror. After that well...we'll keep watch over you, make sure nothing happens."

"Uh...what does that mean?"

"Well, some meetings...as far as Kiriya-sensei has told me anyway can get...dangerous."

"That isn't reassuring Ikaruga-senpai." Yuji said in a deadpan tone.

"I know, but it comes with the territory. Just don't worry, we've got you okay?"

With a sigh and a nod, Yuji did as told, sitting one the ground and taking the mirror into his hands. It looked just like any regular old hand mirror, even as he stared at it for several seconds. Yuji was about to call it quits when he felt a weird pulling sensation. His body could not move or react in any way, but he wanted to scream from the sudden motion, but he could not. He felt himself spinning before being surrounded in black. No matter where he looked there was nothing but pitch black, he couldn't even see his own hands let alone anything else.

'Okay, I just gotta call out to my shinobi animal… Yuji thought Not too sure how to do that though…'

Shrugging his shoulders (or at least, he assumed he did, what with not being able to see his own body) Yuji decided to go with the tried and true method of screaming his lungs out.

"Hey! Shinobi Animal! Are you out there? Got a hot new prospect right here! I'm here and ready to make some deals!"

A full minute of quiet passed as Yuji sighed. Well that didn't work, what should he do now? Just walk around? But it didn't seem as if he could really get anywhere, since it felt like there wasn't really a here at all, or at least that's how it felt anyway.

"Oh my, so it was you who made all that noise." came a sultry female voice.

Yuji could feel his hair stand up on end and it took all he could to not scream as he slowly turned around. What he was met with was not an animal. No, what Yuji saw instead were two bright red eyes. Looking directly at him. Nothing else of this 'animal' appeared. He had to admit it was pretty creepy to see up close.

"Oh uh...hi, are you my shinobi animal?"

"My my...calling me an animal? I didn't know you were such a tease." She replied

"Oh! Um...no, I didn't mean that! Er…"

"Calm yourself, it was merely a joke. Though the face you made was quite...cute."

"Um thanks...so uh...how do I make a contract with you?"

"A contract? There's no need for that you silly. Within you runs the blood of my master and so I am already bound to serve you."

"Really? Cool, so how do I summon you? I wanna show you off to my friends!"

"Ah...about that. I am sorry little master, but it is probably...not wise to show myself in front of others."

"Really? Why's that? Are you a scary animal?"

"In a manner of speaking yes. I am quite scary to most humans. But fear not little master, there will definitely be a day where you call upon me, and when that day comes, your enemies will know to fear my power. Of course, there is one thing I would request of you when that day arrives…"

"What's that? Nothing crazy I hope."

The voice suddenly lost its sultry tone, a more...timid voice replacing it this time "I would like to receive what the humans call...headpats."

"You...want me to pat your head?"

"I am sorry if that's too much! I have just...heard it is nice from some sources."

Yuji couldn't help but smile at that, a small laugh escaping his lips "Aw, you're pretty cute after all. Well, I hope this is your head!"

"Wait, what are you-!"

The voice went silent as Yuji placed his hand on where he thought the voice's head would be. The two red orbs that were her eyes went shut in muted glee as she let out a smile squeal of delight. Yuji doing his best to softly pet her head as she requested. It was odd to him, it was dark still, but judging from what he felt, she had a human head, and nice silky hair too. Perhaps she had a human form?

After a few minutes, Yuji finally stopped giving her a moment to recover from her headpatting.

"There, was that good enough for you?"

"My, what a marvelous feeling. To think, my little master is so benevolent to give me a gift when I have done nothing in return. I shall amend this here and now."

"Haha, there's no need for that." Yuji chuckled "I'm just glad we met, even if I can't really see you."

"I insist little master and your words give me the proper idea. You've yet to awake to your true potential, but I shall give you a nudge."

Yuji suddenly felt slender fingers wrap around his head, stopping at his eyes...and giving them a gentle poke. Funnily, it didn't hurt at all. He looked around, confused at what she'd just done. "Uh...what was that?"

"A gift Little Master. Though you cannot penetrate the darkness here yet, within your world, night will not hinder you."

"You mean I can see in the dark?!"

"Yes. night vision. I hope it pleases you."

"Hell yeah it does! I mean, I was kinda hoping to shoot a fireball or something, but this can be useful too!"

"A fireball…? Little Master you are quite greedy, but fine, I shall impart one more gift."

Once again, Yuji felt slender hands creep upon his head. This time though, instead of poking his eyes, she instead held his head and...he could feel knowledge of a technique entering his mind. Black energy engulfing his broadsword...him doing several quick swings with said energy eviscerating his enemies, and one final slash with the power at its strongest, completely obliterating anything that stood in his way.

"That's...you just taught me a new technique to use?"

"Indeed I did Little Master, use it well, or to be more exact, it is a technique you had within you, I merely made you privy to its existence, think of it as a small opening of your mind there is much more you can do I am positive. Still, I am sure it will be of use to you for the time being."

"Hell yeah it will, nothing will stand in the way of the against the Broken Hand of the Black Dragon!"

"The what." The voice said bluntly

"It's the name! Pretty cool right? I just thought of it now, and it'll totally scare the crap out of anyone who goes against me!"

"Er...right. I suppose that is true...now Little Master, I think it is time you return home."

"Yeah I guess so, will I ever see you again?"

"Perhaps...hmmm...we are connected, and this meeting has allowed to more easily find your spirit. Very well Little Master, in your dreams shall we meet. You need only think of me before your fall asleep."

"Cool! I'll see you soon uh...what's your name anyway?"

"A name? Little Master, I do not have a name. I am...well to put it as best I can, there is a 'what' to me, but there is not a 'who'. I know 'what' I am, but there is no 'who' I am."

Yuji found that a little sad. From the way she said it, it was as if she were a robot or just some number in a string of digits. Well, not if he had anything to say about it!

"Alright then, from now on your name is Kuyo."

"Kuyo…? Little Master…are you giving me a name?"

"That's right! From now on, you are not merely a what. When asked who you are you can respond with 'My name is Kuyo'. Pretty good right?"

"This is...wonderful Little Master!" She said ecstatically "Kuyo...Kuyo…" She said muttered the name to herself, almost as if she were sampling the taste of it. Her bright red eyes shining even brighter than before. "Yes...from this day forth, I am Kuyo. I am...thankful Little Master, you gift me headpats and more importantly a name. You are truly generous."

"Think nothing of it Kuyo, now...how do I get out of here?"

"Worry not, I, Kuyo, will send you back."

Yuji could feel his body warping again. His body twisting and turning before he was suddenly back in his body and looking around again. The sun had dipped below the horizon now, and it would be getting dark soon. Confused, he noticed that his fellow shinobi were still around him, though Hibari had nodded off and was currently leaning against Yagyuu's shoulder.

"Why is it so late…?" Yuji muttered getting to his feet.

"About time! You were sitting there for hours!" Katsuragi said causing Hibari to snap awake, with Yagyuu catching her so she didn't fall over.

"I was…? But I was only in that place for a couple of minutes!"

"I guess time flows differently wherever it was you went. You didn't budge at all and you were in a really creepy trance." Asuka said "Are you okay? Did you have to fight your Shinobi animal?"

"I'm curious as well, what animal did you obtain?" Yagyuu said coming towards you "Nothing something that can help your perverted endeavors I hope."

"Well...that's the thing, I kinda don't know." Yuji said sheepishly

"What do you mean you don't know?! You had to have seen it right?" Katsuragi said incredulously, when Yuji shook his head, she sighed "Okay well, just summon it, that should work right?"

"Well about that…" Yuji said with a nervous chuckle "She won't come. Kuyo is kinda shy."

"What…?" the others said in unison

"I mean...she said it herself, she didn't want to show herself in front of you all. Said she was a really scary animal. I think she's shy myself, she was actually pretty sweet."

"I don't think I've ever heard of something like this before…" Ikaruga muttered "I'll have to speak with Kiriya-Sensei later..."

"Are you really sure you made a pact with your animal Yuji? It's really weird that she won't show up." Hibari said "Ninto came right into my arms when I summoned him the first time!"

"Look, I'll prove it! She helped me realize this new technique and I can see in the dark now!"

Not waiting for the girls to say anything, Yuji took out his broadsword and took aim at some of the trees. Dark Energy began to envelope his blade. It was far easier for him to channel it than with the Wind Ripper, and in mere moments he was ready to show of his new attack.

"Hehe, now get ready! Tremble before the might of the Broken Hand of the Black Dragon!" Yuji exclaimed swinging his blade as he'd done in his vision, several horizontal black waves of energy easily severed the trees in half, before he sent out the final large wave in a vertical motion that flew further and destroyed even more trees, kicking a bunch of dust and debris.

"Whoa…" Katsuragi said with a whistle "Well, okay, I believe you. That's a pretty neat move."

"I have to agree...we even learned what type of element you align with the most." Ikaruga nodded

"The name could use some work though." Yagyuu sighed "Broken Hand of the Black Dragon. Really?"

"H-hey, it's totally awesome! You agree right?!"

Asuka and Ikaruga looked away, while Katsuragi just laughed "Yeah it's awesome, if you're a 14 year old."

"W-wha...come on! Asuka you like it right?!"

"It's er...unique?"

"Uniquely terrible." Yagyuu deadpanned

"I...sort of like it, it's kind of sounds like an attack a character from a video game would use!" Hibari said trying to be nice, but really, all it did was cause Yuji to wince in pain.

"W-whatever, you girls just don't know cool attack names when you see them!" he said in a whiny voice "Just you wait! One day, everyone will bask in awe of the Broken Hand of the Black Dragon!"

The others just rolled their eyes, uncaring for the most part and deciding to head home for the day. Yuji decided to do the same since he actually did feel a bit tired, that trip to wherever Kuyo lived had taken more out of him than expected. As such, after saying his goodbyes to the others Yuji began making his way home. It was when he was about halfway there that he was interrupted by a familiar face appearing in front of him, almost as appearing out of nowhere.

"Mr. Hanzo, what are you doing here?" Yuji said in surprise "Is something the matter?"

Hanzo laughed, before waving away his concerns "No no, not at all. There's nothing wrong with me at all Yuji-kun. Rather, I was asked by your mother to check in on you."

"Er...me?"

"Yes. I heard you recently ran into a yoma and it uh...well, it shocked you sort of? I know it's not my place to pry, but yoma are no laughing matter."

And just like that, any happy mood he had was quickly gone as his mind was once again flooded with the memories of that night. The fight itself, but more importantly, the yoma's last words.

"It's...fine Mr. Hanzo, I'll get over it." Yuji said making to walk past him...only to be blocked by Hanzo again.

"Nonsense boy, I can see it has affected you. You're much to young to be able to fool me you know! Talk to me, tell me what bothers you so!" Hanzo said with a smile "I will not tell, on that you have my word."

Sighing, Yuji looked at the man with a tired look in his eyes "You promise? You won't tell anyone? Not my mom or Asuka or anyone else?"

"Indeed. One thing a ninja needs to know is how to keep secrets." he said with a wink

Another sigh escaped Yuji lips, but he figured that Hanzo could be trusted, after all he had taught him the Wind Ripper and that had been helpful to him. Sure, it was a flimsy reason, but in truth Yuji so desperately wanted to tell someone about what had happened, who better than the legendary shinobi himself?

"Well okay...when we fought the yoma...or well...before we fought it. It...she spoke to me, or well she tried to. I...she didn't seem dangerous. But, then Asuka showed up and she went crazy and we ended up fighting and just before Katsuragi finished her off...she...she…"

"Take a breath Yuji. Nice and slowly now." Hanzo said in a serious tone. Whatever playfulness he'd had was completely gone now as Yuji recounted the tale.

"She was scared. She didn't want to die. She was scared Mr. Hanzo. I...heard her say it: 'I'm scared' and I...Mr Hanzo...did I murder someone? I mean, I get it...we're ninjas, we're gonna do that a lot but...I just…"

A hand gently rested on Yuji's shoulder. His whole body stopped moving. He didn't even realize he'd been shaking the entire time. Hanzo looked at him with a comforting smile on his face.

"Ah I see...you've never seen someone die before. It is...a tough pill to swallow. I admit, when I was your age, I had about the same reaction. Do not worry Yuji, you did nothing wrong."

"But I-"

"Tell me Yuji...the yoma you were fighting. Do you think it would have let Asuka or Katsuragi live?"

"Huh…? I mean, I guess not? She laid eggs and the spiders were all over us for a while there. She really was coming at us now that I remember it."

"Then tell me, if the yoma were about to kill my granddaughter, what would you do?"

"I'd save her without question!"

"Even if it meant killing the enemy? Be it yoma or human?"

At that Yuji faltered for a moment before nodding. "Yeah...yeah I would. I'd do anything to save my friends."

"Then, that's all that matters. Killing to protect those dear to you is not murder Yuji. Murderers are those kill wantonly and with little reason. You are not a person like that. Look at you boy, you weep for the enemy...and a yoma no less! That to me, is the mark of an ultimately kind and gentle soul. Do not forget this feeling Yuji. Use it to temper your resolve as you move forward within the shinobi world. Use your power to act as shield to protect your friends and allies, and a sword to defeat those that would see to do them harm."

"I...yeah...yeah I guess you're right. I can't keep agonizing over this. Thank you . I think I really did need to talk to someone after all."

"Haha! Anytime my boy...and just between you and me, it's probably best if you don't mention that you heard that yoma speak alright?"

"You don't have to tell me twice. Thank you again , I have to get home soon or my mom is going to be worried."

"Of course, tell Minako-san I said hello!"

With a quick bow, Yuji turned his back to the legendary shinobi and continued on his way home. When he rounded the corner, Hanzo let out a sigh. "So the yoma spoke to him...that isn't good. I can only hope that they don't know. I'll need to speak to Shoku about this…"

-000-

Yumi and her sisters filed into their shared home. It had been another tiring day of training. They'd talked to Wang Pai about the Battle Royale. And he agreed that Hanzo and by extension, his granddaughter should be taught a lesson. Initially, Yumi and her sisters were going to go straight to Hanzo Academy after that and challenge them then and there, however, Wang Pai stopped them, explaining that charging in recklessly would only end in their defeat. The girls all protested of course, but then came the bombshell news: the entirety of Hanzo Academy's elite class were all bonafide yoma killers. In fact, there had been a big yoma incident in Kyoto a few months prior and while the Good Shinobi Council had tried to suppress the news, it was far too big for them to cover up entirely. Especially since an entire town had gotten wrecked thanks to it. Because of that, the secret of yoma had spilled into the shinobi world and now even lower rank shinobi had some of idea of what they were and even more importantly, just how deadly they were. However, what gave Yumi and her friends pause was that not only had Hanzo Academy been involved in that incident, they were the ones who resolved it. In other words, those 5 girls had taken on dozens of yoma, killed them all and come out no worse for wear. For them to do that meant that they truly were strong. The information was top secret though. While they couldn't hide the appearance of the yoma, the council could hide which shinobi were actually involved. That much was easy for them to do. Wang Pai had also stressed that they were not to share this information with anyone else, or let it be known that they knew at all. It was highly classified information and the punishment for spreading said information would be severe. And that was using a lighter word to describe it, or so Wang Pai said.

As such, Yumi had decided that they would train before issuing their challenge. It was all they could do to close the gap that was between them. Running laps, rock climbing, spars against one another, lifting weights. The girls of Gessen spent days getting as strong as possible. They were running themselves ragged sure, but it would all be worth it in the end to make Hanzo eat his words.

"I'm hungry, can we now?" Minori whined

"Yeah, I'm like, totally worn out. I don't even have enough strength to do my hair!" Shiki moaned she sat down and laid her head on the futon.

"Well I'm not cooking, just heat up some leftovers...please." Yozakura said with a groan "I hope this training is worth it in the end."

"As do I. To think we would be going against yoma killers…" Murakumo said taking a seat as well "I hope we're prepared enough."

"We will be." Yumi said resolutely "We're getting stronger by the day and we'll be ready soon. Come let us eat and relax for now."

"When are we going to issue this challenge anyways? I'm kinda curious to see if these Hanzo girls really are as strong as we think." Shiki asked getting up and going to the fridge to grab some food to quickly toss in the microwave. "I mean, maybe we're overthinking things and they aren't that strong at all?"

"Or maybe they're even stronger than we initially expected." Murakumo countered "There's no way to truly know until we face them."

"Hmmm...perhaps we can test the waters a bit."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean that perhaps we drop by Hanzo Academy in a few days. This will allow us to accurately gauge where we stand and if we'll do more training if we need to. How do you all feel about that?"

Everyone around the table perked up at this news, all of them excited in one way or another. "I can't wait, we get to take on the bad guys!" Minori exclaimed with glee

"Heck yeah, we'll kick their asses Minnochi!"

"Indeed, for Kurokage, we will put Hanzo in their place!" Murakumo shouted in an overly passionate voice.

"Now that's what I wanna hear!" Yozakura cheered "We'll show them what real good shinobi are like!"

"Yes. We Will." Yumi said with a nod "They will understand what it truly means to be a good shinobi."

For a brief moment, Yumi allowed a scowl to form on her face. The reason being is that along with learning that the girls of Hanzo were yoma killers, they weren't the only team of shinobi there. What Wang Pai was able to tell them was that there was another group of shinobi there who had helped them, a group of renegade shinobi. Not necessarily a bad thing, her beloved grandfather was forced to become a renegade and he was a righteous man. No there was one particular detail that stood out about the group of renegades: They were formally evil shinobi.

And associating with evil shinobi, formally or no was something Yumi would not allow to stand.

And there you go! I figure that, with me basically combining SK2 and SV together, it makes sense that the Hanzo Academy girls would be a lot stronger than normal(And if you've followed this series at all, you know they regularly get the shaft). So with that in mind, Gessen's eventual fight with them isn't going to go as smoothly as it did in canon. That aside, so Yuji met his shinobi animal! I wonder if anyone can guess as to who Kuyo actually is. I will wholly admit, that the Soul Mirror is something I made up completely on my own. I don't think the series ever delves into how someone who basically has no shinobi lineage goes about finding their specific animal, so I thought that would be fun to play around with a little bit. I hope you all enjoyed this chapter and look forward to the next one!