Teen Titans © DC Comics

29. Dark

"True Master?" he called, stepping into the quaint, wooden home. "Sensei, where are you?"

His voice lingered, echoing in the barren home. Shadows played cruel, deceptive games across the wooden walls. Bushido hesitantly walked forward, hand poised on his sword as if to strike. The air was still, and he almost longed to cut it in order to break the dreadful silence. His swift, black orbs crossed everywhere, leaving no corner of the abode unturned. Red walls paled to gray at night, and the floorboards creaked underneath his sandals. Bushido took a breath, partially holding it before exhaling when he arrived before her chamber. Hesitantly knocking, he awaited the barking, grating hiss of the elderly woman, but no sound emerged. Quirking an eyebrow, Bushido called for her again.

"Bushido?" Chu-Hui crooned from inside her domain.

"True Master, has your illness passed?" he asked, concern dripping from his tongue like rain.

A weary cough was his response.

"I suppose not. Shall I prepare supper?"

"Make something for yourself. I am not hungry," she replied, sputtering and hacking.

"Are…are you sure?"

"Don't you backsass me!"

Bushido winced, backing down and reluctantly agreed. Moving away, he sighed and trudged down the hall. Ever since Slade's attack, Chu-Hui's health deteriorated faster than a suicide bomber. She grew too sick to properly train him, shouting commands for him to follow. Bushido learned rapidly, much to her luck, expertly mastering swordsmanship and martial arts all at once. He truly was his mother's son, obeying and caring for Chu-Hui even in her near-death state.

Sitting down at the kitchen table with a bowl of turnip and ramen soup, the Japanese youth felt a twitching smile come to him as he gazed at his favorite meal. Removing a pair of chopsticks from the counter, he quietly devoured his meal in ravenous lust. By training all day, Bushido rarely stopped to eat. With Bear, Snake, and Monkey under Slade's vile control, he needed to be on guard at every second. There was no telling what cruelty the animals could do or if they would attack. Monkey was known for his mild insanity, flipping around and led his opponents to death by freefalling. Snake loved torturing victims in poignant strangulation whenever they failed so they could not try again. Bear simply loved to battle, but only if necessary, making him the most honorable, but Slade reconfigured his mind. He twisted the grizzly into such an awful abomination that Bushido could only dream of reclaiming their former friendship.

Once he finished, Bushido washed his bowl, brushed his teeth, and yawned into his fist. He threw his chopsticks away, staring out at the crisp, black night. There were no stars, and the moon cowardly hid in the darkness. Bushido glanced over his shoulder, hearing his master moan harshly. Pain seeped from her throat, poisoning his ears. With the severity of her sickness, Bushido hurriedly rushed over to her door and furiously pounded on it, demanding to be let in.

"Go away!" Chu-Hui snapped, and an audible crash was heard.

Bushido glanced down at the shards of glass underneath his feet that slipped through the crack of the door. "True Master, please! I demand you allow me entrance! I am very worried about you and this disease! Do not leave me in the darkness while you suffer!"

There was no response for a while, but before Bushido could add anything, she replied, "Come in, Ryuko."

Baffled at the use of his real name. Bushido almost backed down, but pushed gently against the door and opened it. Stepping inside, he bowed to his master and stepped carefully over the glass shards of a vase she threw at the door in rage. When he gazed at her face, he gasped sharply at her feeble position.

Chu-Hui was nearly strapped to her bed. She was covered in sheets and surrounded by herbs and medicines. A fire was ignited by a small chimney in the corner of her petite room. In appearance, Bushido suddenly realized how elderly she was. The wrinkles on her face were like prominent creases on paper. Her eyes lost the sparkle of her prowess and skill. Chu-Hui became a shriveled, old woman in mere days.

"T-True Master," Bushido stuttered in horror.

She chortled hoarsely, beckoning him closer. "Ah, Ryuko, you truly are a kind person. Kneel."

He obeyed, clutching her weathered hand. It was like a prune with flaks of skin hanging onto demure bones. "Is there anything I can do for you?"

"No, my dear boy. I want to tell you about my apprentices…and my life."

Bushido gasped lightly. On the subject of her past, Chu-Hui was tight-lipped, never revealing a peep. Anytime he asked resulted in a bop to his noggin. Inclining his head for her to continue, it was his turn to be silent.

"I was raised right here in this village below us. I trained under my mother, the original True Master and traveled the world when I was in my youth, making my skills improve. I fell in love with a man named Chan To, a sorcerer and fine warrior, but he was a thrill-seeker, and I disapproved of his cunning magic. Chan and I lived together, and we almost married, but he decided a life of blasted debauchery was better. I was thirty when it happened. In shame, I returned home to find my mother deceased from old age. I took up her name, becoming the second True Master. After ten years came my first apprentice, Slade, and he was a genius. I thought I had found the perfect student, teaching him everything, but the twenty-year-old decided to use the skills I taught him to become a mercenary. I expelled him, telling him he was worthless at twenty-five. I took on my second apprentice, your mother. Oh, she was an eager girl, much like you at fifteen. She was exactly like you, training under me for weeks and months until I told her how proud I was of her. She passed, going back to Japan, becoming the first Bushido. When she told me of her pregnancy, I was thrilled. I even have baby pictures of you, but your father, oh, he was a brave man, died fighting to save a few kids from a punk gang. Your mother, in her rage, cut the gang members down, and I could not bring myself to expel her when she threw herself at my feet and cried to me on how much she loved him. It was just like Chan and I, except ending with death, not betrayal. A few years later, she was killed. I was horrified. I thought I lost everything until I devised up the trials with Bear, Snake, and Monkey on this mountain. Fools tried and failed to pass the tests, and I only made them up for people to prove they were worthy of becoming my pupil. No one could succeed until years later, a boy named Robin arrived. You know of him, yes?"

Bushido nodded. "Yes, the leader of the Teen Titans."

"Yes, Robin was a hotheaded, clever boy. He faced many tribulations, including defeating Slade twice in his past. I was impressed by his reputation, but that was not enough and would be unfair if I accepted him without him finishing the trials. Robin passed, defeating Katarou who tried to best him through cheating. Robin was just like your mother, keeping everything in mind, mastering every art and craft in only a few days! I was completely stupefied, but Robin merely grinned, saying he had previous training by a man in Gotham City. Robin has now become my second successful pupil after your mother and the only one still alive besides you. Now, there is you, Bushido." At his confused expression, she smirked. 'You are young, but strong, brave, loyal, and skillful. I could have taught you more. Bushido, you are a hero. Never forget it. Do not become like Slade."

Bushido grasped his sword, unsheathing it and raised it in front of his face. "I vow on my honorable blade, my very life, to never become like Slade."

She coughed, having used all of her strength in speaking. "G-good, Ryuko. Believe in yourself. Do not-do not stray from your path."

"True Master!" he cried, tightening his grip on her hand, shoving his sword back into his sheath with his free hand.

She tapped his forehead, and out from her crimson sleeve came a gold belt with a Chinese symbol. "Put it on."

Bushido curiously grasped it, straightening himself to his knees and wrapped it around his waist. "True Master-"

"Ryuko Orsono, I Chu-Hui, bequeath the title of True Master onto you. Your mother would have been proud."

Bushido gasped, mouth ripping open. "Me? I am the True Master?"

Chu-Hui nodded, eyes sliding shut. "Make me proud, Bushido. There are bright things awaiting you in the future."

Suddenly, her body went limp, and her head rolled to the side. Her chest stopped rising, making her heart halt. Bushido grasped her hands, shouting at her to wake up. The heavy silence returned, making his charcoal eyes widen. Stupefied, Bushido rose to his feet, coming to terms with the horrible truth in front of him.

Chu-Hui, the second True Master, was dead.