Kumugawa looked at Anbu, seeing the condition his body was in. He shook his head. "He turned his child into a monster because of his anger toward the Saito's. That's a next-level obsession."
Anbu's sword floated in front of him, and Anbu clenched his palm at its handle and looked at the dragon carvings inscribed into the blade.
"Where did you get that weapon?" Kumugawa asked. I've never seen anything like it. It's not a Blade of History, but it doesn't matter because it might be better. Everything has a presence in front of me, whether object or person, but your sword was traveling at very high speeds and could cut me without me realizing it until it was too late." Kumugawa looked at the dragon next to Anbu.
"Dragon's still existing, huh, or maybe that's the last remaining."
The ancient gold dragon appeared from the sky and landed in front of Anbu.
"Kumugawa..." it said.
Kumugawa looked at the dragon and smiled.
"yes?" he said.
"I hope Anbu kills every last one of you dirty Saito's after that dragon slaughter you guys caused decades back."
"I didn't lead that incursion; dragons were said to be attacking nearby towns."
"Now you know dragons don't commit violent acts unless bothered first." It spoke.
"It doesn't matter what I think. I regretted it always, but the Saito lived by integrity and to serve. We are God's children, so we use our power to help those who call out for us." Kumugawa explained.
The dragon looked at kumugawa and then vanished.
Anbu tossed his sword at Kumugawa cutting his sleeve, and rushed toward him.
Kumugawa did a flip to kick Anbu in the chin but missed.
Anbu ducked and grabbed Kumugawa in the air by his foot and slammed his back into the ground.
He ran toward his sword, but Kumugawa had recovered and stepped on his hand to stop him from getting it.
Anbu met his knee to Kumugawa's face and reached for his sword again, but he was there, stopping him.
Anbu backed up, removed his robe, and put his fists up.
"Are you not scared? Every time your father came, I could sense his fear, but he fought regardless. I wonder what the Hirata members think of such an incompetent leader.
"we all respect him," Anbu answered.
Kumugawa rushed toward Anbu and dived below, hitting him with a punch in the ribs, which sent Anbu flying toward a tent.
"Your clown mirror thing you showed me, I saw my deaths. I do not fear you because every mirror showed me the same person." Kumugawa grabbed Anbu and looked him in the face. "And that person wasn't you."
He put his fist up to meet it with Anbu's face, but the dragon swung his tail at Kumugawa and tossed him through a different tent.
Kumugawa gets back up and looks at the damage caused around. He saw his wife hiding and holding onto their son and grabbed his head.
"I lost sense of my surroundings." He put his hand up. "I give up," he said as he walked toward his fallen soldiers and told them its time to head back to the main Saito territory. He went back and grabbed his wife and apologized as he walked away.
Anbu looked at Kumugawa walking away and fell over, drained from all the power he had just used for the first time.
The Hirata soldiers picked up Shiki and Anbu and returned to base.
All the Hirata members surrounded the entrance as their man walked back, bruised and mentally defeated.
Anbu's mother pushed through the crowd as she rushed toward her son with tears. "Anbu, please wake up."
They grabbed her and pulled her back. "He awakened. He must rest everyone's body is in strain during the first use," they said.
***
Days passed until Anbu first woke back up.
He got up from bed when his dad walked in.
"Son... you're awake." He said.
"Yeah, what happened?" Anbu asked.
Shiki grabbed a stool and sat down.
He thought for a second and then looked back toward Anbu.
"I'm proud of you, son," Shiki said.
Anbu smiled. He heard what he had wanted to hear for a long time.
"I saw what you did, and the soldiers explained what happened while I was out and Kumugawa retreating?" Shiki smiled. "That's good to hear." he then stopped smiling. "But he was right. I should focus on more important things. The Saito isn't of my worries anymore."
"But dad, we have the power to take them now if it's you and me," Anbu said.
"That's not true. Saito's also have greater numbers and are allies of many nations. I had a rivalry with Kumugawa, and I let that blind me from what was standing before me." Shiki added.
While they spoke, a guard came running and called for Shiki.
Shiki exited the room and saw Rankers standing before him enough to take over a country.
"How may we help you," Shiki asked.
One of the Rankers opened up a scroll and read it allowed.
"Due to the violent attacks targeted toward the Saito Clan. The Hirata are asked to be exiled to a random island for rehabilitation." The Ranker closed the scroll and looked up.
"Don't get it twisted. We are being nice by asking you to go. If you refuse, then you'll go by force." He said.
The Hirata members started to whisper amongst themselves.
"Is that the number 1 Ranker?" someone said.
"I think it is," another whispered.
"wait, hold on," Shiki said, moving his hand up.
Instantly every Ranker got in a stance lifting their weapons.
Shiki looked at them, then sighed. He knew there was nothing they could do.
"Alright, we will leave," Shiki said, walking away.
The Hirata members packed up and followed the Rankers to their new home.
"You will stay here until we decide otherwise."
All the Rankers disappeared.
Shiki looked around and then entered one of the homes built. He laid down and rested.
A couple of days passed, and the Hirata managed to adapt.
***
One day a strange visitor came to the island. He entered the Hirata territory, nobody sensing his presence until he already stood before them.
"Who are you." A guard asked.
"I'm here to speak with Shiki Hirata." The stranger said.
Shiki came around the corner and confronted the man.
"I am Shiki," he said.
The man walked past him. "Let's find somewhere private to talk.
Shiki got them a room and entered, bringing the man a stool to sit on.
"I want to buy your son off you." He said.
Shiki looked at him weirdly.
"Buy my son?" Shiki said, "he isn't some slave you can just buy."
"Then I'll give you enough power in exchange for your son to defeat the Saito." He bargained again.
"My son isn't for sale. If you have nothing else to discuss, then I suggest you leave." Shiki said, standing up, which knocked his chair backward.
The man smiled.
The Hirata guards heard an explosion and turned around. They saw Shiki lying on the floor, bleeding next to them.
Shiki stood back up, holding his arm.
"Someone warn my son and his mother," he said. "tell her to get Anbu to safety."
** Earlier at the Saito clan main hide out**
"Who are you," Kumugawa said to the stranger that entered the territory.
"I am here to buy your son." The man said.
Kumugawa tried to punch the man, but the man grabbed his fist.
"So you want to take that route." He said. "So be it."
He kicked Kumugawa far out of sight and started to attack everyone he saw,
Flames started to cover the houses.
Kumugawa's wife grabbed her son and ran away.
A roof fell over on her, but she kicked it into smithereens.
She grabbed her son again and continued to run.
"Please, my lady, don't leave us. We need you." The Saito shouted.
She stopped and looked around at the damage caused.
She got on her knee and kissed her son on the head. "Keep going, son. You're special even among specials, your future is a scary road, but it's a bright one, so live and follow the road intended for you now, run." She said with a smile.
Zenkai started to run when he heard crying in the distance. He stopped and went around the corner.
"HELP, HELP, SOMEONE PLEASE HELP ME" a lady screamed.
Zenkai saw a lady burnt in flames, crying out, trying to help her children. She looked at Zenkai and yelled for his help.
Zenkai, scared, not knowing what to do, ran away.
Kumugawa returned to the stranger and looked at him.
"This man does not have a core. Could it be a God?" He thought.
***
Anbu and his mother tried to escape from the town, but the mom looked back toward the screaming and chaos and remembered what it meant to be a Hirata. Courage.
She looked at Anbu and smiled.
"I can't leave. I must fight with honor. But you don't have to worry. I see an amazing path for you. Follow it, and you'll become a man the Hirata can be proud to call their own."
She kissed Anbu on the forehead once more and ran back to Shiki.
Anbu ran in the opposite direction after he couldn't see his mom anymore.
"What is your name" Kumugawa and Shiki both asked the man.
"Hiro." He replied.
Shiki looked around, seeing every Hirata standing behind him.
Kumugawa noticed nearby villages coming to aid.
"This is the strongest person I've ever seen. We must move with caution." Kumugawa said, "We must not fold under pressure and move as warriors,
"Therefore, let us brace ourselves for our duties and bear that if the Saito Lineage and its allies last for another thousand years, men will say this was their finest hour." He added.
"When we resort to force, as now we must, we are determined that this force shall be directed toward ultimate good and against immediate evil. We, Hirata, aren't destroyers as the world believes.. we are Builders." Shiki said.
"This is a night that fell on a different world," Kumugawa spoke clearly.
"A world where our freedom is under attack," Shiki said.
Shiki saw Anbu's mom come next to him and held his hand.
He smiled.
"This is a world where the Hirata's are the bravest warriors," Shiki said. "We ride with discipline, We ride with pride, and we ride with Courage.
"There's this Monk's tale I used to like," Kumugawa said. "Where terrible luck finds everyone equally no matter how blessed," Kumugawa remembered the mirrors from Anbu's world. "I guess the gods gave up on even the Saito."
***
The number one Ranker arrived at the Hirata island and saw bodies everywhere. It was a massacre not a single soul remained.
He walked toward Shiki's body and felt his palm for a pulse. There was none.
He looked at Anbu's mother lying right next to Shiki.
He got back and looked around, standing in a pool of blood.
He walked away.
***
Hiro cleaned the blood from his hand. He was about to walk away from the Saito when a small kid came running out of a house.
Hiro took out his sword then he noticed the kid was coreless.
He smiled.
"Both of the kids were born into the Saito's." He thought.
"I guess I don't have to look for that Hirata anymore."
"Hey, there, kid," Hiro said. "What is your name."
"My mother called me Kuzan." He said.
***
Hiro and Kuzan went to a hideout when a kid with a lightning tattoo appeared.
"You must be Thunder God's new body," Hiro said. "What is your name."
"Call me Sin." He said.
"Well, Sin and Kuzan, I'll like to invite you to the team, so recruit more and only bring the strongest because when the Coming Chaos arrives, we don't need anyone holding us back.
They looked at Each other and shook hands.
***
The number one Ranker arrived at the Saito Territory and saw the same thing he did with the Hirata, nothing but a massacre.
He went toward Kumugawa's body which lay there with his wife.
The Ranker got back up and left.
"The Hirata and Saito are both dead." He reported.
The world grieved for the Saito.
The Hirata were forgotten.