A long time ago, a war erupted between two groups, who fought for the future of Japan. The Demon Clan, who wanted to rule over Japan with an Iron fist. Another group known as the Order Of The Lotus who wanted to protect Japan and the innocent people.
It was a bloody war that lasted for years, with members of the Demon Clan somehow obtaining abilities of actual Demons, slaughtering many people at a time without blinking an eye. A few members of the Lotus had the strength to combat these powerful threats, being able to even the odds against the Demon Clan, if only for a moment.
The Order Of The Lotus would have been wiped out by the Demons, that is if it wasn't for a traitor from the clan, having a change of heart. The war was finally over and in the end The Order Of The Lotus prevailed, with a few members of the Demon Clan being forced into hiding.
But soon, with only a few knowing, the man who betrayed the Demon Clan had a child with the woman that he loved. Afraid that the child would become a target, they had to give up the child and stay as far away from him as possible. The two parents then go their separate ways and go into hiding.
However, there's still violence in Japan.
One night, a family of Orphans(both teenagers and small kids) are walking together after getting food from a small town nearby their home. At that moment three men with swords arrive, staring down the children. They start slaughtering the children, one by one, with sick smiles on their faces. As they cut down one person after the other, a small child with a cut under his eye, prepares to fight, with no fear in his heart or eyes. He tries to charge at one of the killers but is quickly grabbed and held back by a young woman. Another young woman stands in front of the men, trying to stop their killing spree.
"Please, don't hurt the boy!" She begs but gets slashed across the stomach.
The boy tries to stand up, but the young woman holds him tighter, with tears in her eyes.
"Lee, don't look." She whispers to him.
Lee can't help but watch as more people that he cares about get murdered in cold blood. A third young woman drops to her knees, clutching one of the bodies.
"Oh my dear sister, no!" She screams, then gets slashed as well.
The woman holding Lee then lies on the ground, covering his body while holding his head. Blood splatters on the woman's back as the men slowly walk toward her.
"Lee. You are just a child. you have not chosen your life. You cannot die now. You must live. Live a full life for the sake of those who died here tonight."
The woman is then grabbed by her hair and pulled off of Lee who watches in horror.
"Lee, please live." She says again.
As tears fall down her face, a blade goes straight through the back of her neck. As she falls to the ground, she looks over at Lee.
"Live Lee...Live for me....You must- never give up."
She is then stabbed through the heart, causing a tear to fall down Lee's face. The men turn their attention to Lee, who is the last one left. Lee wipes his tears away, stands to his feet, grits his teeth, and puts his hands up to fight. The three men laugh at the child and one of them steps up to cut him down just like the others. At that moment, he hears sounds of a struggle behind him that stops him from killing Lee. The man turns around and sees two of his allies dead on the ground and an old man standing over their bodies.
"Who the hell are you, old man?"
The old man slowly walks towards him.
"You are about to die, so knowing my name is useless to you." The old man replies.
The murderer charges at the old man with his sword but the old man quickly appears right in front of him. He then lands a powerful one inch punch that stops his heart. The old man takes a deep breath, then looks at the dead bodies and bows to them.
"I suppose it was fate that led me in this direction tonight. You have been avenged."
He then looks over at Lee.
"Bearing a grudge against these men will not bring your loved ones back. Let your survival be their memorial."
The old man then turns to walk away, but looks back at the child with sadness in his eyes as Lee stands there in front of the dead.
At dawn, the old man walks back to where the bodies were left.
"I was too late to save them. At least I can bury their bodies. The boy has probably ran away somewhere, unable to handle the loss of his family. I hope he didn't take his own life." The old man thinks to himself.
As he makes it to the area, he is shocked to see everyone already buried, with sticks in the shape of crosses as their tombstones. He walks through the graveyard and soon sees Lee kneeling and praying over three stones.
"I notice you've made graves for the bandits as well as your family." The old man says.
Lee nods
"Last night, they weren't murderers anymore. Just dead bodies." Lee replies.
"What are these Stones for?" The old man asks.
"Aska, Kasumi, Akane, they were the oldest. They always took care of me and the others. When those men came, they said "Please don't hurt the boy" and were killed. I wanted to protect them, but I was too weak to help. I wanted them to have special graves, so I went and found good stones. Those are the only ones I could find. I don't even have flowers to put on them."
The old man walks up beside Lee and sits next to him and puts his hands together in a prayer.
"Your prayers are enough, child." The old man says.
Lee smiles at the old man.
"Thank you."
The old man nods and smiles back at him.
"I am Monroe Ijin, a Martial-Arts master."
Lee is surprised.
"Martial-Arts...master?"
"My boy, you failed to protect something very delicate. Your tiny hands will remember how heavy their bodies were. But you will carry the far heavier weight of their lives with you forever. You have already carried them, now you must acquire the strength to support yourself, and protect others. Then, you will be able to live your life and defend cherished lives."
"Defend cherished lives..." Lee repeats, staring at the three stones infront of them.
"What's your name child?"
"Lee."
Monroe smirks and puts his hand on the boys head.
"That's a fine name for a martial artist."
Lee looks at Monroe in amazement.
"I am going to teach you, Lee. Teach you my style of Martial-Arts, and way of life."
Lee stares at the old man for a moment, then gets a determined look on his face.
"Ok." He replies.
Later that day, Monroe and Lee arrive to Monroe's dojo, where he lives. When they walk inside, Lee is amazed by how beautiful the dojo is, with a garden, fruit trees, a pond with fish, and a shrine dedicated to Martial-Arts.
"Wow." Lee says with sparkles in his eyes.
As Monroe smiles at the boys reaction, three teenagers come outside.
"Master, you're home." One of them say.
"That wasn't long at all. What did you have to do anyway." Another one asks, eating a bag of chips.
The three teenagers then looks down and sees Lee who waves at them with a smile.
"Uh master, who's the kid?" The third one asks.
"Mira, Mikey, Seokju. This is Lee, your new little brother."
The three stare for a moment, soon smiling at the boy. Mira and Mikey both hug Lee.
"You're so cute, welcome to the family." Mira says.
"I always wanted a little brother, now I'm not the youngest." Mikey adds.
Seokju then stands next to Monroe.
"You haven't adopted any children since you found Mira. What's going on master?" Seokju asks.
"There's something inside this boy. Something incredible. It's not just his potential. It's his heart, and his soul." Monroe says.
Seokju looks at the boy and smiles.
"Alright then."
He walks over to Lee and puts his hand on his head.
"Alright kid. Let's get you all settled in and accustomed to everything today. Then tomorrow, we'll start training." Seokju says.
Lee has a determined smile on his face.
"Right."
Mikey then puts Lee on his shoulders and the four of them walk around the dojo As Monroe smiles at them. At that moment, Ijin senses something from outside of the dojo.
"You three show Lee around. There's something else I have to take care of."
The three of them nod and leaves with Lee, as Monroe steps out, seeing a woman standing outside of his front gate.
"It's been awhile, Monroe." She says.
"Indeed it has, Aurora."
Aurora stays silent for a moment.
"Did you do it?"
Monroe let's out a sigh before answering.
"No. But The Order Of The Lotus think I did. Now I'm retired."
Aurora breaths a sign of relief, then hugs Monroe.
"Thank you, old friend."
Monroe smiles and gives her a hug back before Aurora turns to leave.
"You don't want to see him? It's been five years since the last time you were together." Monroe says.
Aurora stops in place and looks at the gate.
"I...no. It's not the right time." Aurora says.
"For him? Or for you?" Monroe replies in a disapproving tone.
Aurora closes her eyes, holding back tears of disappointment, sadness, and shame.
"Both. I- abandoned him. And when he needed someone the most, I should have been the one to save him tonight. What kind of a mother is unable to protect her own child?" Aurora says.
"You and Raizo wanted the boy to be safe. To have a good life, and to be happy. You did it for his sake. If you didn't give the boy up, who knows what would have happened."
"But look at his life now, Monroe. Not adopted, in an orphanage for all of his life, struggling for scraps, being forced to watch the only family he's ever known be slaughtered right infront of his eyes. It's my fault. Mine... and Raizo's. No- no I can't face that child. Maybe not ever."
"Aurora-"
"Take care of my son, old friend. Make sure to train him well."
Aurora then disappears into the woods, not leaving a trace behind. Monroe sighs, looking out at the stars and moon, soon walking back inside the Dojo's walls. Meanwhile, unbeknownst to Aurora or Monroe, Seokju was nearby listening to the whole thing.