Chereads / Dragon Zone; The Code Of Heart And Hate / Chapter 20 - CHAPTER 19; THE WIND SAINT:- EXPLOSION AT THE MARKETPLACE!

Chapter 20 - CHAPTER 19; THE WIND SAINT:- EXPLOSION AT THE MARKETPLACE!

Nemesis sat on his throne deep in the temple of the Dark Ryu. The Temple was dark and gloomy. The air around was heavy and the Temple almost looked abandoned. The single throne at the centre of the inner temple was the only significant thing in the room. Nemesis was lost in thought.

"So, my worst enemy, Ryu, you are finally gone. Now all that is left is to deal with Michael and the others" Nemesis said to himself.

"SHUT UP RYU! SHUT UP! STOP TALKING AS IF YOU KNOW EVERYTHING ABOUT ME!"

"The pain of loneliness is so…so cruel, isn't it, Son Of Shekan?" Nemesis recalled as he clenched his fists tightly.

"Why Ryu? Why do I feel pain at your death? Why do I feel guilty for killing you?!" Nemesis roared.

"Sir, a group of dragons have been spotted heading towards the Wind Ryu" a dark ninja announced.

Nemesis remained silent.

"Tell me, do you think I am weak?" Nemesis asked.

"Not at all my lord. The ryu fear you" the ninja responded.

Nemesis turned to face him with glowing red eyes, "I will never show weakness again. Rally the ninja, we attack the Wind Ryu immediately!" Nemesis ordered.

"Yes, my lord" the Dark ninja replied as he disappeared into the shadows.

"We still have unfinished business, don't we…Atlanta?" Nemesis said with a sly smile. "I still have a score to settle with you for betraying me" Nemesis widened his smile into an evil grin.

***** **** **** **** **** ****

"WHAT THE…?! MY TOOLS!" Ryu yelled as he desperately searched his satchel. "NO KUNAI, NO SHURIKEN, ONLY TWO SMOKE BOMBS AND SOME HERBS?!" Ryu exclaimed in disbelief.

"What's wrong Ryu?" Atlanta walked into the room.

"My tools are gone!" Ryu exclaimed as he searched the satchel again. He saw a hole at the bottom.

"Damn! I should have searched earlier!" he sighed in exasperation.

Michael walked in.

"Ryu, we're going to the market to get new equipment. Are you coming?" Michael asked.

"I guess it can't be helped. I need a new satchel and tools anyway. Let's go" Ryu sighed.

So Michael, Ryu and the others left the Temple and headed for the marketplace. As they walked around town, they noticed how lively the Wind Ryu was. It was unlike the other ryu. The air was very cool and everyone seemed happy. The Wind Ryu was made up of a lot of brick houses arranged very neatly. The Temple was at the centre of the Wind Ryu and right beside it was a pub which was almost as big as the Temple. The Wind Ryu though was not a very big community and much like the other ryu, everyone knew everyone else. As they approached the marketplace, the noise around became almost deafening. There were a lot of shops and merchants with wooden stalls. However, all these merchants were citizens of the Wind Ryu since no one could come to or leave the Wind Ryu at will. Some ninja were displaying their skills to the rest of the locals and the townsfolk were so proud to have such gifted ninja. Ryu and the others were in regular clothes. The Wind Master had told them that it would be safe not to reveal their identities.

"It feels weird to be around normal people" Atlanta said.

"I feel happy. It reminds me of the Crystal Village" Ryu sighed with a nostalgic look on his face.

"I feel it too Ryu" Michael said.

"It reminds me of my home before Nemesis invaded" Nadia said.

"Don't ask me how it feels. The Earth Ryu was completely full of ninja. No normal people lived there" Rokkan said.

"Hey look, a tools store. Let's go!" Ryu called as he ran towards the store.

"I can't believe this guy was actually ever sick" Michael said as he shook his head in disbelief at the sight of Ryu's crazy vigour.

"Hmmm…I've never seen you guys around before" the shopkeeper said.

"We are-uh-outsiders" Ryu said.

"What?! Impossible! That would mean you came through the devils" the shopkeeper exclaimed in shock.

His assistant came up to him. "Is there any problem boss?" he asked.

"These people claim to be outsiders" the shopkeeper said.

His assistant laughed.

"Haven't you heard? The story is everywhere!" he said excitedly.

"Huh?" Ryu drew back in surprise.

"Uh-um, if we're causing you trouble, we'll leave right away" Ryu tried to escape but the assistant caught him by the arm.

"This boy not only passed through the devils but defeated the Super Devil" the assistant said.

"HE WH-WHAT?!" the shopkeeper exclaimed in shock as he turned so pale that Ryu thought he would faint.

"It's not any trouble at all. If anything, it's an honour for us to have you buy tools from us" the assistant said.

"If that's the case, buy whatever you can for free. It's a pleasure. I'm busy elsewhere" the shopkeeper said.

"I'm taking a look around" Rokkan said as he walked away.

"Rokkan is never excited. He is emotionless, silent and so annoying! You are beginning to get on my nerves with your attitude!" Ryu called.

Rokkan put up a hand in mockery of Ryu.

"Why that jerk!" Ryu growled.

"I'm also busy so I'll call the shopkeeper's daughter to help you choose your equipment" the assistant said.

"If it isn't any trouble, could she show us around town?" Nadia asked.

"She is very shy but…I'll ask her. She is a Wind Ninja but the others mock her for her shyness. She has difficulty with elemental control but her taijutsu (hand to hand combat) skills are superb!" the assistant said.

Ryu glanced at Atlanta.

"I know how that feels" Atlanta murmured.

"Tanya! Could you come over here for a second?" the assistant called.

A teenage brunette girl about Atlanta's age and with the warmest brown eyes approached them. She had a look of uncertainty on her face.

"Y-you called?" she spoke in a timid voice.

"These people are very powerful ninja. They conquered the greater devil. They will be shopping here for free. As you can see, they are about your age. I've been telling you that you don't need to be older or stronger to be a great ninja" the assistant said.

Tanya nodded shyly.

"They want you to show them around town" the assistant said.

Tanya raised her head.

"I-I'll do it. A-Although t-the others mock me" she stammered shyly.

"I'm Ryu, what's shaking?!" Ryu introduced himself happily.

Atlanta knocked him. "Is that anyway to introduce yourself?!" she yelled at him.

"Ouch! What was that for?!" Ryu exclaimed in pain.

"Hi Tanya, I'm Atlanta. That's Nadia and Michael, Ryu's brother" Atlanta introduced the others.

"Yo! What's up?!" Nadia greeted.

"Nice to meet you" Michael waved.

"Where is that jerk Rokkan?! He'd better get his butt here before we leave him!" Ryu growled.

"Hey guys, I'm sorry I'm…" Rokkan paused when he saw Tanya.

Tanya blushed shyly.

"…late" Rokkan completed his sentence.

Ryu stared at Rokkan in surprise, then at Tanya, then he scratched his head and frowned.

"HEY ROKKAN! GET YOUR EYEBALLS BACK IN THEIR SOCKETS AND STOP STARING AT HER LIKE THAT! SHE'S SHY!" Ryu roared.

Rokkan shook his head as if waking up from a dream.

"S-Sorry. I get carried away sometimes" he said.

"You don't say! She's showing us around town so keep your goo-goo eyes to yourself!" Ryu scolded Rokkan.

"I think we're set" Michael said.

The group began their tour of the ryu. Ryu could see some people whispering as they walked around. He could catch bits and pieces of their sentences like "…the boy who defeated the Greater Devil" and he knew they were talking about him.

"Mikey, I'm not comfortable with all the whispering. Let's get our tools, find the Wind Saint and get outta here" Ryu whispered.

Suddenly a ninja boy about Ryu's age approached them.

"Whassup Ryu? The Chuunin and Genin(Middle and Low Rank Ninja) of the Wind Ryu are having a get together. Want to come? It's this evening" the others will be honoured. Besides, we have a surprise for you. Call me Lee" the boy said.

"Sure, I'm definitely not going to miss it. Finally some fun! I'm the one that is honoured so see you later" Ryu said.

"You're cool Ryu, you're definitely okay" the boy said as he spotted some companions. "Hey! Wait up!" he called as he ran towards them.

"On second thought, let's take it slow. I've not fully recovered from the Jinn State's side effects" Ryu said.

"Didn't take much to change your mind, did it? Well I agree with you just this once" Michael sighed.

"YEAH MAN!" Ryu leapt for joy.

The companions resumed their tour. Soon the whispering ceased.

"L-Let's not go beyond here. The other side of town is full of rogue ninja who probably haven't heard about y-you. A-All their attention w-will be focused on mocking m-me" Tanya spoke in a tiny voice.

"The more reason we must go there. If you don't stand up to them, you'll never be happy for the rest of your life" Rokkan said seriously.

"That's the Rokkan I don't know yet love! I agree with you completely. What say you Mikey?" Ryu asked Michael whom throughout their quest had assumed the role of leader.

"Let's go" Michael said.

"Yeah, this is how things should always be" Ryu said in excitement.

Nadia began to crack her knuckles. "You know what I always say don't you?" she asked.

"WE'LL PUNCH THEIR LIGHTS OUT!" the companions exclaimed in unison.

"Team Ryu is in the zone! Okay! Follow the leader!" Ryu called as he walked in the lead.

The others did not budge.

"Hey guys!" Ryu called.

"Out here, we don't have a leader" Michael said.

"Spoilsport!" Ryu muttered.

"He's right. We'll move together. We won't stand out so much if we move as a normal group" Atlanta agreed with Michael.

Ryu's heart turned to dust and got blown away by the wind.

"Not you too…fine" he muttered in disappointment and kept silent from then on.

As they were walking, a teenage boy crashed into Ryu and they both fell to the ground. He had crimson hair and crimson eyes that seemed malicious. Ryu quickly got up and walked towards him. He reached out to the boy.

"Are you okay?" he asked.

"Don't touch me loser!" the boy yelled.

The others drew back in shock.

"Wh-What's wrong?" Tanya asked.

"Uh-oh, of all the words this boy could have used, he chose the one Ryu despises most" Michael said.

Ryu grabbed the boy's collar, lifted him into the air and dropped him. The boy growled in anger. A gang of ninja boys about Ryu's age began to approach them angrily. Some were cracking their knuckles. Tanya drew back in fright.

"What's wrong?" Michael asked.

"This is the village's most dangerous gang, The Creeping Mist Gang headed by that boy who has the power of the Wind Saint. They rob the villagers and do all sorts of nasty things and…" Tanya was saying when one of them recognized her.

"Hey look! It's the naturally born mukenin!" the ninja teased.

"So you understand. If you mess with me, I'll call my dragon to beat you up!" the boy said.

"Go ahead, we're going to seal Shekan anyway. Us including you but first…I'll beat you up and teach you how to treat people" Ryu said.

"As you wish" the boy said with a smile as he lifted his ring.

Tornado appeared in a flash of lightning and a gust of wind. Ryu smiled for Tornado was in his young, unevolved form.

"Is that all you can do?" Ryu asked.

The other Creeping Mist ninja opened their eyes in surprise. They expected Ryu and his group to be terrified.

"What?" the boy stared in surprise, then he relaxed. "You think I'm bluffing right?" he said with a smile.

"No…you think I am?" Ryu said with a look of anger on his face as a strong wind began to blow the area.

"Wh-What's this?!" one of the mist ninja asked in fright.

A crowd of villagers began to gather with Lee among them.

"Obviously you haven't heard the news…" Lee smiled.

"You challenged the wrong guy…" a ninja girl joined Lee.

"He single-handedly defeated the Greater Devil!" another ninja boy completed the sentence.

"That devil you faced wasn't genjutsu Ryu. It was placed there by Shekan to make sure you could never find Ken and I" Tornado said.

"Do you know him Tornado?" the boy asked.

"Yes Ken, and that is why I will advise you not to fight him. His powers exceed all the Dragon Saints in their evolved forms put together" Tornado said.

"HA! He fell when I crashed into him. You must be wrong" Ken mocked Ryu some more.

Ryu scowled. "Then come and prove it!" Ryu roared.

"No thanks, I'll let the dragon deal with you" Ken said in a relaxed tone.

"HE HAS A NAME! STOP CALLING HIM 'THE DRAGON' AS IF HE'S SOME DUMB BEAST!" Ryu roared in anger.

"I'm sorry Ryu but I must obey him. I made a promise I cannot break" Tornado said regretfully.

Ryu removed a kunai from Rokkan's satchel.

"What do you think you're going to do with that?! Kill yourself to avoid being torn apart by Tornado's Wind Storms?" Ken mocked.

"IN YOUR DREAMS!" Ryu roared as he slashed his palm and stretched out his bleeding fist to Tornado.

"The pact of the Succeeding Dragon. With you all as my witnesses, I make this vow in the name of the Dragon Of Destiny. When I stop Tornado and this gang of Creeping Wisps…" Ryu paused as the villagers burst into laughter.

"GO ON RYU!" Lee encouraged.

"…Tornado will gain his freedom!" Ryu promised as drops of his blood fell to the ground.

"Let this vow be sealed with my blood" Ryu concluded.

"And with your blood, this vow will be broken" Ken wasted no time in mocking Ryu. "You talk as if you can even hurt Tornado. You won't even get close" Ken laughed.

"Are you mocking me?" Ryu asked with a smile as he held his clothes at the left shoulder. The others excluding Tanya did the same.

"I will never forgive a person who enslaves a sacred beast with his own benevolent promise!" Ryu growled.

"WHAT WILL YOU DO ABOUT IT?!" Ken mocked.

Ryu's and the other's clothes were ripped off revealing their ceremonial costumes and their rings.

Ryu raised his ring into the sky. The others did the same.

"Wh-What?! You all have rings?!" Ken exclaimed in shock.

"COME DRAGON SAINTS! WE SUMMON YOU!" Ryu called as flashes of lightning mixed with all the elements moved around the marketplace and announced the appearance of the Evolved Dragon Saints.

Compared to them, Tornado looked like a child Dragon. They surrounded Tornado in an instant.

"Give up Tornado. You can't fight us all" Crystal ordered.

Tornado bowed his head and gave up. Ryu cracked his knuckles.

"Now Creeping Wisp! It's your turn!" Ryu roared.

"Let's beat him in Zero Visibility! MIST ELEMENT! SHADOW OF THE MIST!" the Creeping Mist Ninja yelled as they became invisible.

"Huh? Where did they go?!" Ryu asked as he looked around.

"Uh-oh!" Lee exclaimed.

"We're right here!" Ken's voice sounded and suddenly, a gust of wind from nowhere knocked Ryu to the ground.

Ryu stood up and looked around. The others were being beaten too.

"You can't stop us fools! You can't even see us!" Ken's voice sounded and Ryu felt multiple kicks and blows raining on him. He staggered but managed to maintain his balance throughout the beating.

"Why you brat! When I lay my hands on you…!" Ryu growled.

"If you lay your hands on me…which you can't!" Ken mocked Ryu and Ryu felt a blow to his gut. He reeled over but didn't fall.

"Tornado, you must be wrong, this guy is just a loser!" Ken's voice could be heard laughing loudly, mockingly.

Molten frowned. "Should I scorch them a little? I can see them" he said.

"You can?" Ryu asked in surprise.

Then he looked Molten in the eyes and something struck him.

"Leave this to me Molten. It's my fight but thanks. With your faith in me all of you, I'll definitely win!" Ryu declared.

"We believe in you Ryu. We know you're just holding back because he's a kid!" Lee said.

Ken mocked. "This guy is not even a ninja!" Ken laughed scornfully.

At this, Ryu shut his eyes, "FROM NOW ON…" he began to say.

"Is he going to…? Ryu stop! You only just recovered!" Michael shouted.

"I'M NOT HOLDING BACK!" Ryu yelled.

Ken charged towards Ryu.

"TAKE THIS!" he yelled as he charged towards Ryu.

Ryu listened to the footsteps approaching him from all directions.

"MIST DANCE! SILENT KILL OF THE CREEPING MIST!" Ken called as the footsteps ceased momentarily.

"RYUUGAN!" Ryu called as the Dragon Sight activated.

He could now see the Creeping Mist. Their movements slowed down.

"Advanced Ryuugan Of The Evolved Saints" Ryu called as he smiled slyly.

He stood still and waited for the Creeping Mist who had planned to kill him with a kunai strike. But just before the blow landed, Ryu disappeared. Ken stared in amazement.

"Where is Ryu?!" Michael looked around worriedly.

Suddenly, there were loud punching and kicking sounds and the Creeping Mist ninja fell to the ground and gained visibility. Ryu appeared at his previous position.

"What did he…?" Michael was about to say.

"What happened? The Creeping Mist fell?" Tanya stared in surprise.

"H-How did you…?!" Ken growled as he stood up.

Ryu remained silent. His face in an emotionless frown.

"It must have been by chance! Let's do it again!" Ken ordered as the Creeping Mist disappeared again.

"We won't lose to this loser!" Ken declared.

Ryu watched the Creeping Mist silently. The fact that they did not think he could see them made him want to laugh but the anger of being called a loser kept the frown on his face.

"SILENT KILL OF THE CREEPING MIST!" the mist ninja yelled as they leapt into the air to attack Ryu.

To Ryu, their movement was slow, the reason why his movement seemed super-fast to them.

Ryu didn't attack this time. He waited for the attack. Suddenly, the Creeping Mist appeared.

"GOTCHA! EAT THIS!" Ken yelled as the kunai of the Creeping Mist landed but not on Ryu, their kunai were held by an invisible shield. Ryu's arms were folded and he could see absolutely everything around him.

"WH-WHAT'S THIS?!" Ken asked in fright.

Ryu stared at him angrily.

"This is the part where I teach you guys a lesson! Ken! You never learn do you?! I'm going to do this to you not because you don't respect Tornado but because you called me a loser one too many times!" Ryu said as he cracked his knuckles.

"You're g-going to use your full power on us?" Ken stared in fright.

Ryu remained silent for a while. "No…what use will you be if you're dead. We will not succeed in sealing Shekan without you…" Ryu paused.

Ken sighed in relief.

"Don't get so comfortable. I'm going to make you wish you were dead so much you'll never forget this day!" Ryu said as he took a fighting stance.

He stretched one fist in front of him, placed one foot before the other and raised his other fist overhead.

"PREPARE YOURSELVES!" he declared as flames surrounded his fists.

"What technique is that?! Nadia exclaimed in surprise.

"SECRET TAIJUTSU ART! RAGING BARRAGE OF THE MAD DRAGON!!!" Ryu roared as he disappeared.

A terrible succession of blows and kicks followed. The Creeping Mist screamed in pain. Michael sighed.

"That Ryu sure is an extremist" he said.

After a while, the blows ceased and the Creeping Mist ninja lay on the ground writhing in pain.

"Didn't you cause them enough damage to kill them?!" Michael roared angrily.

Ryu's Ryuugan disappeared and he began to pant heavily.

"No, I healed most of their internal wounds with every punch. I just left them with bruises and the pain" Ryu panted.

He wasn't happy with having to use such a diabolic technique on a group of bandits, especially on Ken.

"I still have some Jinn in me" Ryu said as he touched each mist ninja and caused most of their pain to go away. Only the pain of the bruises remained.

The Creeping Mist ninja stood up.

"Y-You healed us? We're sorry. We'll never rob again" one member said.

The others bowed in approval.

Ryu smiled.

"Lee, why don't you invite them to the party. They are not bad guys, only misguided" Ryu requested.

Lee remained silent for a while and sighed.

"Can I refuse you Ryu? You destroyed the Super Devil, freed Tornado, stopped the robbing and brought peace to our village. Sure, they can come" Lee said.

"R-Really Lee, w-we're invited?" one Creeping Mist ninja asked, unsure of Lee's word.

"All of you are invited, Lao, Law, Jet, Slade, Ken, you can all come" Lee said.

"Thank you Lee! Thank you Ryu!" the mist ninja bowed.

"There is no need for that" Ryu said uncomfortably.

The mist ninja ran to their homes with joy. Ken remained. He wasn't so happy.

"I guess I have to come with you" Ken said with a frown.

"Yes" Ryu answered plainly.

"Fine! But let me get this straight! I don't like any of you! Especially you Ryu!" Ken yelled.

"Jeez…this guy" Ryu muttered.

"I don't like you too but that's not important. What is most important is that we help each other and stop Shekan so get that into your thick head!" Ryu said as he slapped the back of Ken's head.

"Hey! You think you're tough huh?! Let's go right now! No elements! Just taijutsu!" Ken challenged.

"I hope you haven't forgotten what sort of technique the Raging Mad Dragon Barrage was" Ryu said.

Ken recalled that it was a taijutsu technique.

"Forget it!" he yelled.

"Clever, he dodged that bullet" Michael sighed.

"Ryu, Ken, guys, let's get moving. We've got a long way to…" Michael was saying when.

"YOU CAN'T ORDER ME AROUND SO SHUT UP!" Ken yelled.

Michael frowned angrily.

"LISTEN YOU! AS LONG AS YOU'RE ON THIS TEAM, YOU WILL DO WHAT I SAY OR YOU'LL END UP PUTTING US ALL IN DANGER!" Michael roared.

"And who says I want to be part of your team?" Ken asked with a smirk.

Michael scowled.

"YOU! I'LL SHOW YOU! SHARK! LEVIATHAN! WATER ELEMENT! SPIRAL OF DOOM!!!" Michael roared.

"HAWK! FALCON! WINDY FURY!" Ken called as the two elements clashed.

Michael's technique was however stronger and knocked Ken to the ground.

"HAHA! MIKEY STARTED A FIGHT!" Ryu laughed happily.

"SHUT UP YOU IDIOT!" Michael and Ken yelled together.

"Why you…?! I'LL SHOW YOU! FIRE ELEMENT! DRAGON FIRE JUTSU!" Ryu roared.

"WATER ELEMENT! WATER DRAGON JUTSU!" Michael roared.

"WIND ELEMENT! STORM DRAGON JUTSU!" Ken roared as the three elements crashed and cancelled each other out.

"What do they think they're doing?!" Atlanta yelled angrily.

"Let's end this!" Nadia called.

"CRYSTAL ELEMENT! KNOCKOUT!" Atlanta called as Crystals grew from the ground and knocked the three combatants to the ground.

"WATER ELEMENT! WATER ROPE JUTSU!" Nadia called as ropes of water bound the three to the ground.

"Stop this nonsense at once!" Atlanta ordered.

The three boys stopped struggling.

"Michael, as leader of this team, you should have known better!" Atlanta scolded.

"Yes ma" Michael muttered in boredom.

Ryu burst into laughter.

"Shut up Ryu! Obviously you seem to have forgotten the requirements of being a ninja! You have shamed yourself!" Atlanta scolded.

"For you Ken…there's still a lot for you to learn" Atlanta said in disappointment.

Ken frowned. Ryu was most affected by the scolding. It hurt him so much that he couldn't feel the power within him anymore.

Nadia released the jutsu and the three boys stood up.

"Where do we go now?" Michael asked.

"Let's just get our stuff" Ryu muttered.