_____Tokyo was once known for its unequaled beauty and tranquility. I once enjoyed the peaceful life in Tokyo. I thought nothing would destroy the peace here. Such a naïve thought that was. In minutes, the world I once knew would be gone. War broke out between those loyal to the shogunate and those that opposed it. Right before my eyes, I watched my father die to save me and my mother. My mother protected me with her life as she instructed to leave. I escaped with only one thought in my mind, to bring peace to the land, even it means if I must stain my hands with blood. Years went by and the war seemed endless. It was then that I appeared to end the chaos. I recruited several orphans of war and trained them into warriors. We killed all who opposed us; loyalist or rebel, we could care less. No longer was their need to show mercy, for we’ve become the agents of destruction. In the midst of the chaos, we were given the name “Black Lotus.”
_____Me and my men stood atop the Nagasone cliffs and surveyed the battle below us. “Look at them my men. The only thing they have on their mind is the killing. They don’t deserve to see the light of the new age that I, Katamori, Genjiro, wish to create. We shall deliver heaven’s judgment with our blades.”
_____“Shall we go, lord Genjiro?” the man next to me muttered.
_____I turned toward the man and answered, “Yes, Kojiro. Tonight, we shall deliver heaven’s wrath.” Nakagame, Kojiro came to me as I slaughtered his parent’s killers. He showed no hesitation to the blood that spilled before him and pledged his eternal loyalty to me. “Everyone, draw your swords.” At that instant, everyone drew their swords and disappeared into the mist.
_____At the bottom of the cliff, the battle between the loyalists and the rebels continued. As a rebel struck down his opponent, he turned around to await his next opponent. “Is there no one who can defeat me?” As he raised his sword, he noticed a moving shadow. “What’s this?” As the shadow came closer, he instantly noticed the familiar straw hats that the shadow wore. He fell to the ground as he shuttered with fear. “Its…it’s…the Black Lotus!!” He scurried to his feet, but by the time he was set to run, he was cut down where he stood. As the man screamed in agony, everyone, rebels and loyalists alike, turned to face their apparent threat.
_____A soldier readied his sword and shouted, “He is but one man! There is no need to waste our efforts on just one swordsman! I, Shoji, Migami, will strike him down!” The soldier charged at the lone swordsman. As he readied his sword to strike, in the corner of his eye, he saw a flurry of arrows coming toward him. The careless soldier froze in place as he was pelted by numerous arrows. The remaining arrows continued to come from the lone swordsman’s direction, striking down numerous soldiers. When the arrows finally ceased, two more members revealed themselves.
_____“These fools look like a bunch of weaklings. I’m going to enjoy slicing them to pieces…” a tall man remarked as he readied his nodachi.
_____“You always ready to kill, aren’t you, Shinko,” an impish man retorted.
_____“Shinko, do not charge recklessly towards the enemy. Ginji, prepare for battle,” I ordered. Both of them nodded in agreement and prepared for the slaughter. Kurogasa, Shinko was a large man who wields a giant nodachi. His strength was incomparable, but can he can be a bit unstable when angered. Kankoro, Ginji was Shinko’s opposite. He’s quick on his feet and can come through at a moments notice. Ginji’s unique skill with throwing daggers is quite useful in a pinch. “Show them the might of our swords!”
_____The remaining soldiers stepped back with fear. As my men approached them, a few of the survivors attempted to flee. Their retreat cost them their lives, for they were decapitated in an instant by a dark blade. “So you choose to run away like cowards. Cowards deserve to die,” another member said as she cleaned her blade.
_____“Let’s offer their heads to lord Genjiro, Miss Kunimori,” replied a smiling swordsman. The lifeless bodies fell before the scythe wielding combatant.
_____“The heads of cowards do not deserve to be seen by our lord, Eiji, and stop calling me ‘Miss!’” Kunimori muttered.
_____I stared at them at gave a brief smirk. “Just in time you two. The midnight slaughter was about to begin.” Shiragami, Kunimori is a mysterious woman who wields an equally mysterious blade. I don’t know much about her, but she came to me to avenge someone. I don’t question her, for it isn’t my place to meddle in someone’s past. Marikawa, Eiji is a gentle man when he’s not holding his giant scythe. In battle, his ruthlessness takes over as he fights with honor and dignity. Eiji came to me shortly after Kunimori did, and since then, I never saw him leave her side.
_____“We’re done for…” a soldier muttered under his lips. The soldier then took his sword and committed suicide. The soldier believes he died an honorable death, but to me, he was a coward who ran away from his fate. There were only two things that everyone shared in common; we are all human and we are all destined to die.
_____I raised my sword to the remaining survivors. “All of you, all that was born from chaos, only death await you. It’s futile to resist; except your fate.” I could see the fear in their eyes. They all wished that they never joined the war, some even wishing that they never existed.
_____In an instant, we all charged at the remaining men. The soldiers fell as easily as the falling cherry blossoms in spring. As the last man fell before my blade, I surveyed the surrounding area one last time. The trees, the rocks, everything was drenched with blood. I felt no remorse for the fallen, for they were destined to die by our blades. I cleaned my blade and returned it to its sheathe. Shinko decided to cut off their heads, while Ginji looked on. Normally, I would scold him for such behavior, but as the war ravaged on, I saw no point in holding Shinko back. As I turned to Kunamori, she was staring at her sword. This bothered me, for I have never seen her lost in thought. As I approached her, she sliced a nearby tree. "My lord, I..."
_____I looked at her with a puzzled look. Kunamori is usually calm and collected, but her slight hesitation started to worry me. "What is it, Kunamori?" She did not answer. She sheathed her sword and turned to walk away. Before she could take even a few steps, I yelled, "If their is anything you want to talk about, we can talk about it at camp."
_____She turned her head and looked at me. For a brief moment, I thought I saw a smile come to her face. She nodded and returned to the shadows.
_____I watched as little Eiji chased after Kunamori. I ordered Shinko and Ginji to return to base. I knew Shinko felt disappointed about the order, so I reassured him that their will be another time. Ginji approached me and asked, "What's are next target going to be?"
_____"We will attack the carriage that is headed towards Tokyo." Ginji looked surprised.
_____Ginji started to chuckle. As he regained his composure, he then replied, "So we're going after IT right?" I couldn't help but smirk at the thought as well. "This will surely get their attention."
_____"We will be going after the princess, but for now, we will return to camp. Ginji, tell Sokaku that I will address him with the next mission shortly. I have some business to attend to."
_____"Understood, my lord. I will returned to camp immediately." Ginji left as soon as possible. I felt relieved, since I finally had some time alone.
_____In my heart, I was against everything I have ever done. However, I couldn't follow my heart once I took someone's life. From then on, my hands were drenched with blood. The lineage that I was once proud of was stained with blood. I could never go back to the life I once had. All I can do, is pass judgment on those that the heavens deemed evil. To prove my existence, I will judge all that I deemed evil. All that is evil shall be dealt with my blade; my sword of heaven will deliver heaven's punishment. Only then, will the world I dream of will come true.
_____Me and my men stood atop the Nagasone cliffs and surveyed the battle below us. “Look at them my men. The only thing they have on their mind is the killing. They don’t deserve to see the light of the new age that I, Katamori, Genjiro, wish to create. We shall deliver heaven’s judgment with our blades.”
_____“Shall we go, lord Genjiro?” the man next to me muttered.
_____I turned toward the man and answered, “Yes, Kojiro. Tonight, we shall deliver heaven’s wrath.” Nakagame, Kojiro came to me as I slaughtered his parent’s killers. He showed no hesitation to the blood that spilled before him and pledged his eternal loyalty to me. “Everyone, draw your swords.” At that instant, everyone drew their swords and disappeared into the mist.
_____At the bottom of the cliff, the battle between the loyalists and the rebels continued. As a rebel struck down his opponent, he turned around to await his next opponent. “Is there no one who can defeat me?” As he raised his sword, he noticed a moving shadow. “What’s this?” As the shadow came closer, he instantly noticed the familiar straw hats that the shadow wore. He fell to the ground as he shuttered with fear. “Its…it’s…the Black Lotus!!” He scurried to his feet, but by the time he was set to run, he was cut down where he stood. As the man screamed in agony, everyone, rebels and loyalists alike, turned to face their apparent threat.
_____A soldier readied his sword and shouted, “He is but one man! There is no need to waste our efforts on just one swordsman! I, Shoji, Migami, will strike him down!” The soldier charged at the lone swordsman. As he readied his sword to strike, in the corner of his eye, he saw a flurry of arrows coming toward him. The careless soldier froze in place as he was pelted by numerous arrows. The remaining arrows continued to come from the lone swordsman’s direction, striking down numerous soldiers. When the arrows finally ceased, two more members revealed themselves.
_____“These fools look like a bunch of weaklings. I’m going to enjoy slicing them to pieces…” a tall man remarked as he readied his nodachi.
_____“You always ready to kill, aren’t you, Shinko,” an impish man retorted.
_____“Shinko, do not charge recklessly towards the enemy. Ginji, prepare for battle,” I ordered. Both of them nodded in agreement and prepared for the slaughter. Kurogasa, Shinko was a large man who wields a giant nodachi. His strength was incomparable, but can he can be a bit unstable when angered. Kankoro, Ginji was Shinko’s opposite. He’s quick on his feet and can come through at a moments notice. Ginji’s unique skill with throwing daggers is quite useful in a pinch. “Show them the might of our swords!”
_____The remaining soldiers stepped back with fear. As my men approached them, a few of the survivors attempted to flee. Their retreat cost them their lives, for they were decapitated in an instant by a dark blade. “So you choose to run away like cowards. Cowards deserve to die,” another member said as she cleaned her blade.
_____“Let’s offer their heads to lord Genjiro, Miss Kunimori,” replied a smiling swordsman. The lifeless bodies fell before the scythe wielding combatant.
_____“The heads of cowards do not deserve to be seen by our lord, Eiji, and stop calling me ‘Miss!’” Kunimori muttered.
_____I stared at them at gave a brief smirk. “Just in time you two. The midnight slaughter was about to begin.” Shiragami, Kunimori is a mysterious woman who wields an equally mysterious blade. I don’t know much about her, but she came to me to avenge someone. I don’t question her, for it isn’t my place to meddle in someone’s past. Marikawa, Eiji is a gentle man when he’s not holding his giant scythe. In battle, his ruthlessness takes over as he fights with honor and dignity. Eiji came to me shortly after Kunimori did, and since then, I never saw him leave her side.
_____“We’re done for…” a soldier muttered under his lips. The soldier then took his sword and committed suicide. The soldier believes he died an honorable death, but to me, he was a coward who ran away from his fate. There were only two things that everyone shared in common; we are all human and we are all destined to die.
_____I raised my sword to the remaining survivors. “All of you, all that was born from chaos, only death await you. It’s futile to resist; except your fate.” I could see the fear in their eyes. They all wished that they never joined the war, some even wishing that they never existed.
_____In an instant, we all charged at the remaining men. The soldiers fell as easily as the falling cherry blossoms in spring. As the last man fell before my blade, I surveyed the surrounding area one last time. The trees, the rocks, everything was drenched with blood. I felt no remorse for the fallen, for they were destined to die by our blades. I cleaned my blade and returned it to its sheathe. Shinko decided to cut off their heads, while Ginji looked on. Normally, I would scold him for such behavior, but as the war ravaged on, I saw no point in holding Shinko back. As I turned to Kunamori, she was staring at her sword. This bothered me, for I have never seen her lost in thought. As I approached her, she sliced a nearby tree. "My lord, I..."
_____I looked at her with a puzzled look. Kunamori is usually calm and collected, but her slight hesitation started to worry me. "What is it, Kunamori?" She did not answer. She sheathed her sword and turned to walk away. Before she could take even a few steps, I yelled, "If their is anything you want to talk about, we can talk about it at camp."
_____She turned her head and looked at me. For a brief moment, I thought I saw a smile come to her face. She nodded and returned to the shadows.
_____I watched as little Eiji chased after Kunamori. I ordered Shinko and Ginji to return to base. I knew Shinko felt disappointed about the order, so I reassured him that their will be another time. Ginji approached me and asked, "What's are next target going to be?"
_____"We will attack the carriage that is headed towards Tokyo." Ginji looked surprised.
_____Ginji started to chuckle. As he regained his composure, he then replied, "So we're going after IT right?" I couldn't help but smirk at the thought as well. "This will surely get their attention."
_____"We will be going after the princess, but for now, we will return to camp. Ginji, tell Sokaku that I will address him with the next mission shortly. I have some business to attend to."
_____"Understood, my lord. I will returned to camp immediately." Ginji left as soon as possible. I felt relieved, since I finally had some time alone.
_____In my heart, I was against everything I have ever done. However, I couldn't follow my heart once I took someone's life. From then on, my hands were drenched with blood. The lineage that I was once proud of was stained with blood. I could never go back to the life I once had. All I can do, is pass judgment on those that the heavens deemed evil. To prove my existence, I will judge all that I deemed evil. All that is evil shall be dealt with my blade; my sword of heaven will deliver heaven's punishment. Only then, will the world I dream of will come true.
