Arc 14 - Rise of the Ronin

[NRP Botman]

ARC 14 - Rise of the Ronin

You must be registered to see images

Year 813​

Soon after all of the men who had been competing in the tournament left the Tower, the remaining swordsmen closed the building down to others, intent on investigating the wreckage and getting to the bottom of it. Ishijo, Kaida, and the other Ronin convened in the Rose Corridor, discussing who the possible culprit could have been and what purpose they had for it. Though no one directly mention, she could tell everyone's thoughts were fixated on one thing: Where was Oisha? It wasn't likely for him to be unreachable. To the others, maybe but she could always reach him when she needed him... something wasn't sitting right with her and Kaida avoided her eye for some reason as well. Attributing it to him being more pensive than usual, her attention turned back to the others. They were discussing what could have happened, who was behind it, questions she had already asked herself many times. Perhaps someone here knew something, heard someone, had any information that would put them on a path towards vengeance. Speaking up, she interrupted the whisperings, the men moving into a semi circle formation to listen.

"Men, listen, gather round. There's no sense on being indirect about it so let's get straight to it. The Tower was attacked and we need to find out by who and why. Have any of you seen anything unusual or out of place recently?"

Silence followed, no one remembering anything out of the ordinary.

"Okay.. did anyone sense any foreign souls around the Tower grounds? The competitors armor masked their soul signature so they wouldn't have been senseable if they had an armor on."

Kaida narrowed his eyes at the question, wondering where she was going with it.

No one spoke, the others all looking around. After a short pause, someone answered, stepping forward.

"Well, I identified 2 foreign souls, in the supply room with Oisha earlier though one faded away.. As it faded away, Oisha's own grew darker and stronger.. his soul was a dark color. The other soul was extremely weak and began to fade away, but became stable. Outside of them, I sensed no others."

Ishijo paused, the comment about Oisha's soul unnerved her. She didn't believe it to be possible, it couldn't have been.

"Are you sure that's what you felt?"

"Yes, Ishijo. And more to it... They were within a few meters of one another and while one steadily increased, the other decreased at the same rate. This was no coincidence, make no mistake of it: Oisha was using Amidabutsu."

Whispers amongst the group broke out at the statement, disbelief spreading rapidly. Oisha was using a soul drain to kill someone in the Tower?

"Quiet," Kaida said, speaking over the group. "Ishijo, where ar-"

"And you're sure there was no foreign souls present within the building besides those two? Were there any messages intercepted over the Tower's frequencies?" Ishijo interrupted him and kept speaking, ignoring his questions.

"Just one, a distorted message saying 'Time is gone'. Because there had been many messages jumping frequency, we assumed it to be a tech issue."

"But those messages only come through when we filter for poor connections. That means this came through directly over the system, which means the person who acted was not a foreign soul and knew how to operate our radio systems. They got away but them speaking over radio comms means they had an accomplice and I think I know who." Turning to face Kaida, she snarled directly at him.

"Kaida. You plotted to destroy the Tower and sabotage the Rose Tournament."

"Ishijo, that's madness!"

"You alone had access to the tower communications," Ishijo argued. "And you had the Time Turner to revisit the scene but chose not to before giving it away!"

"I did, before I returned! I was waiting to speak alone about it and not in front of the Ninja. I-I visited the scene and... well, I'll just show you."

Walking forth to place 2 fingers on her forehead, then placed 2 fingers on his own forehead to link their experiences. Showing her what he witnessed as he played the scene back atop the tower, he revealed how he learned who attacked and with what.

"That was a scroll marked with the Ronin symbol.... the Sengoku. That's one of our own techniques. But how di-"

"Only one person has full access to the armory. One soul can be the Key at any time and only he could have retrieved it. Yoshida."

"But why? What could he gain from this?"

"No one knows. He spoke about 3 masks on the roof before attacking but I'll have to look more into it to see what he meant. I might have to visit the library to find more about that."

"3 masks... could it be related to the Masked Samurai Myth?"

"No, it can't be, those were just tales they taught us during training. They aren't real. Kaida, can you establish a soul link with Yoshida?"

"It'll take a few days to isolate him across the globe but.. I should be able to."

"Good. Get some rest and get started when you're back up. We have some things to discuss with Yoshida."

 

[NRP Botman]

The tower's collapse forced him into moving earlier than he had wished to. He hadn't even had enough time to grab some of his research or artifacts, having dropped the Shadow Blade in the research room itself. Oisha sighed deep, shaking his head as he realized how soon his plans would be discovered. In his arrogance, he made the mistake of giving the villainous monologue much too early. It was always a Fatal flaw of his, rubbing in his skill into others faces. Nevertheless, he had to act quickly before someone pieced together everything.

It was for that very reason he had traveled to the Modoroki Shrine, the secrets it held being vital to his own plans. With haste, he entered the temple, eyes darting around the building as he walked. He knew it was here, but where was the real question. He had been tracking it's history and after a series of trades, murders and wars, one of them found it's way to the Modoroki Shrine. Though in it's glory the Shrine was a beacon of information and peace, it held within it's walls sacred artifacts of power and destruction, some of which had been gathered over hundreds of years from all over the planet. However in recent years after raids and bombings, the temple laid in ruins with its inner walls deep underground and never breached, containing all of it's treasures.

It didn't take much effort to find the inner temple in the labyrinth of walls, just time. After finally making it there, Oisha found a wall with elaborate markings etched deep within them, a glowing pumpkin orange shade with a slightly audible humming noise resonating from it. Before he could take a step, a voice rattled behind him.

"It is not time for that, Oisha."

Wheeling around, Oisha came face to face with a tall man dressed in dark purple with a golden dragon scale mask with red tribal like markings. Oisha became startled, partly because he couldn't sense the soul of the man in front of him as he should have been able to. It was almost as if he wasnt living or even there.

"You will have your chance to get what you need, but first I must give you this message and warning. You look quite different here, I must say."

"Where do I know you from and why cant I sense you?"

"Because we have not yet met. My warning to you is one of precautionary measure for your own and the world's sake. Should you take what it is you seek from here, you begin a timeline of dynamic proportions, culminating in the end of everything you hold dear. The only way to prevent this end is to unify the three of them - or to leave and not remove the item you seek.

"Because we have yet to meet and we will, I know of your choice and only ask you make it quick."

Bowing, he stepped forward and disappeared, leaving Oisha at the glowing wall, now slowly opening with a rumbling sound. With the path fully opened, Oisha walked forward down the stairway to a corrodor with doors marked with several paintings across the top of them, signifying different contents behind the doors. Arriving at one with a half mask, Oisha placed his hand on the wall, causing the door to crumble away. Stepping inside, Oisha came face to face with a tall man, the very same he had just met.

"And now we meet."
"And now we meet."

---

Moments Later

---

Oisha stepped out of the temple, wiping his hand on the cloth on his shoulder. His fist was a bit bruised and bloody but he would live with it. Raising a hand to brush the hair out of his face, his fingers grazed the red mask he now wore, glowing at the touch. Taking a deep breath, Oisha exhaled deeply as light blue steam emanated from it as his skin glowed the same shade. His body and powers severely enhanced, he walked off and left, the burning temple and dying tall man behind him.​

 

[Lord of Kaos]

Several days had passed since the Tower's attack, an incident beginning to be whispered about far and wide. Word had spread about the mysterious people who appeared with a cure and a tournament for it that had cut short but very few knew what was truly happening, having been ushered from the grounds soon after the attack. Only those among the Tower still had any indication of what transpired and even they were left in the dark, leading to Kaida preparing his Soul Link. A difficult process, the Soul Link would allow him to find any spiritual entity on the planet the moment it enters their dimensions. There were very few ways to hide from its gaze, none short of death would shake the link once it was formed. It was why he was deemed the ultimate tracker and why Oisha had recruited him.

..Oisha... It was the only thought on Kaida and the other's minds lately, it was almost a mantra at this point. They all wanted to know where he had went, where he disappeared to. It was this very reason it was taking Kaida such a lengthy time to find Yoshida, his one actual task; split between locating either of the two, it was a daunting challenge.

Ishijo entered the chambers, the debris cleaned from the grounds but the gaping hole still remained, a reminder of what they had to do. It was here she found Kaida seated as if meditating. Though his eyes were closed she knew he knew she had entered. Almost on cue, he spoke to her.

"I haven't found him yet, though the link is nearing completion."
"That's good news," she replied, tightening the straps on her armor as she approached him. "Soon, we can begin to find out exactly what the hell he was trying to do here."

Pausing to unsheathe her sword, she looks at the inscribed words along the golden blade she carried. It was a gift from Oisha when they first declared their revenge so many years ago. He hadn't knew of the intricacies of the blade but he had a message etched into the blade as a reminder of what they do. Looking back to Kaida, she saw him burrow his brow in concentration before his eyes snapped open.

"I found him."
"Where?"
"The Urals mountains, his signature just appeared but..."
"What? Let's go, why are we waiting around?"
"Because.....while I was supposed to be finding Yoshida, I split my time between him and Oisha. I couldn't find either, both taking a long time to locate."
"Okay? I'm not following you, we found Yoshida so let's go ge-"
"I haven't found Yoshida. I found Oisha."

 

[NRP Botman]

It was only a few moments but they arrived at the mountain's summit. There was nothing around as far as the eye could see. just dead grass, snow and harsh wind blowing around them. Wild beast roamed the mountains, large bears stalking smaller mammals were plentiful as they traveled further, though this was to be expected. What worried Ishijo was the trail of bodies along the path. The first was a man of elderly age, a lone puncture wound through his lower abdomen. The second was further up the mountain, a trail of blood leading to a body of a young man with a burn mark across his face and the same wound. With a trail of blood and burns around the already sparse grass around, it was clear a struggle took place and the man tried to crawl away before his death.

Looking at the body, Ishijo kneeled and examined him, fearing the worst. As expected, the wound had the telltale signs of spiritual drainage, with the wispy steam emanating from it. Looking back at Kaida with a worried expression, he nodded and helped her up as they continued up the mountain. It wasn't long before the pair came across a cave entrance marked with torches and an insignia across the top of the entrance. Ishijo tried to make out the symbols beside it but couldn't. It had to been here hidden for eons nd was long forgotten, she hadn't ever heard of them.

Before walking in, she gasped at the sounds of someone nearby, turning abruptly to face the person with her sword drawn, Kaida following suit. Finding an elderly monk with a puncture wound not unlike the ones they had just observed staggered forward, nearly falling before Kaida caught him. The monk worried Ishijo because for once, she could not identify a person from their soul signature.

"What happened here?"

The man couldn't speak, stammering over his words as the color from his body began to drain before their eyes, his color turning black as steam grew from him as if he were a thousand degrees. He rose a shaking hand, pointing forward as he drew his last breath. Just like that, the man was dead. Kaida cursed the gods, he knew what had happened and he knew Ishijo knew it too, even if she refused to acknowledge it out loud for fear of making it a reality. Oisha had something to do with this, and he was determined to find out exactly what he had done. As they entered the cave, his mind turned to what he had to do to end this, forgetting about Yoshida for the first time in days. His mind was attuned to more pressing matters in the present,

After a short trail, they came across a clearing within the cave itself, opening up to the skies above and uncharacteristic of the mountains they were in. A grassy plain with a small pool of crystal blue water within the center and cherry blossoms around the edge as the sun shone bright, a tranquil image in front of them. And it was here they found Oisha, kneeling with his sword laid by the water. When they approached, Ishijo began to run out to him before Kaida stopped her with an arm.

"Oisha-sama, where have you been? What are you doing here? There is a trail of bodies behind you... do you wish to tell us why you have killed these people?"

Still seated with his back to them, Oisha leans forward and places his hand in the water, washing the already clean hands in the water before standing and cracking his neck as he stretched. "Kaida, my friend. I'm glad to see you have kept Ishijo safe, I left her in good hands it seems. And Ishijo, I'm glad you finished the Rose tournament in my absence. I couldn't have picked a better successor."

"Lord Oisha..." Ishijo started, the words appealing to her desire to see Oisha as the man she knew him to be, a kind samurai who cared about his people. "Return with us, the others need your wisdom and guidance more than ever. Yoshida has betrayed us and destroyed the Tower, help us find him."

"Oh there will be no need for that, Ishijo. I know exactly where he is."

"Where, my Lord? We can capture him together."

"I'm here."

The voice echoed through the cave as a lone wave of energy fell from the top of the clearing from the skies itself, causing Oisha to roll forward while grabbing his sword to escape the strike before launching high in the sky backwards as Yoshida landed in between the trio. "Glad you finally decided to show up, Yoshida."

"I've waited for this moment for a while and now, it's time you say goodbye to this world and greet Asano."

"You dare speak-"

"Yes, I dare. This ends here."