'' Hiro!.. Hiro!'' a voice called for him. Hiro blinked, his mind reeling with confusion as he regained his consciousness, '' How did we...…?'' he began, his voice trailing off as he struggled to piece together the fragmented memories of the day.
Kanji, his expression grave. he responded '' I carried you from the forest'', he said his voice heavy with the weight of his words. '' You were not yourself, but you did not harm me''.
Hiro swallowed, a wave of guilt washing over. '' I could not..... I could not control myself. it was as if my body had a mind of its own and I almost killed you,'' he whispered, his eyes meeting Kanji's. Kanji placed a comforting hand on Hiro's shoulder. '' You did not,'' he said, his voice a quiet reassurance. '' whatever happened, you fought against it. You resisted.''
Hiro, his eyes haunted by the memories of the event that happened, nodded slowly. ''But what if I cannot control it? what if it happens again?'' Kanji's gaze was steady, his words a mixture of concern and determination. ''Then was a must way to understand this power. We must discover its source and learn to master it.''
In the warmth of the room, Kanji began to tend to Hiro's wound, his hands moving with surgeon's precision. As he bandaged the torn flesh and mended the broken bones, he pondered the mystery that had unravelled in the forest. '' What could have caused this?'' he murmured his voice a whispered prayer to the gods of battle.
As the evening grew, kanji pondered on the nature of Hiro's transformation. Was it the result of some hidden power that had always resided within Hiro, waiting for a moment of crisis to awaken? or had it been a curse, cast upon the young boy by some malevolent spirit? was that why he happened?
The possibilities churned in Kanji's mind like the waves of the sea, each one more terrifying than the last. Finally, as dawn broke over the horizon, kanji knew that he must find answers to his questions. kanji then decided to go for a walk around the village to clear his head.
As he made his way through the village, kanji's thoughts turned to the ancient scrolls he found in one of the king's chambers when he was still at the palace, the legend of a set of warriors who harnessed the power of dragons. could it be that Hiro had somehow tapped into such a power, awakening a slumbering dragon's soul within him?
Kanji's mind, still whirring with the mystery of Hiro's transformation, wandered down the paths of the village, oblivious to the world around him. But as he turned a corner, his absent-mindedness collided with fate as he stumbled into an old woman, her form hidden by a dark veil.
The impact sent the basket of fruits tumbling to the ground, a rainbow of colour and deliciousness dripping down the wet ground. Kanji, shocked out of his daydreaming, rushed to the woman's side. The woman, her voice aged and weary, let out a smirk under the veil at Kanji. '' Thank you, young man, '' she said, her words a gentle melody in the morning air.
Kanji, his hands moving quickly to gather the scattered fruits, returned her faint smile with one of his own. '' it was my fault, I'm deeply sorry,'' he said, his voice a soft murmur. '' I was lost in thought, and I did not see you.'' The woman, her face still hidden by the veil chuckled softly '' Lost in thought, indeed,'' she said.
Kanji having gathered the last of the fallen fruits, offered the basket to the old woman. As Kanji handed back the basket, a hint of gratitude on his features, the old woman's voice rang out with a wisdom that seemed to span the ages. ''
'' Do not worry, young one, '' she said, her words a gentle balm to his fears. '' The answers you seek are not yours to find. your purpose lies everywhere, in the guidance and support of the boy.'' She paused for a moment, his gaze slightly lifting up but with her face still hidden. '' Remember'', she said, her voice a whisper in the morning air, '' let him know of your past and who truly you are before your departure .''
The woman then collected her basket, gently making her way to where she was going. As the woman disappeared into the quiet village, her
words lingered in Kanji's mind a puzzle to be unravelled. He knew, in that moment, that he must return home, to Hiro who awaited him.
He made his way back home, the rain now a distant memory. As he approached his house, he could feel the weight of the woman's words upon his shoulders.
Hiro, his body still recovering from the events of the day before, sat quietly on the floor of the house. Kanji his thoughts still swirling with the mystery that had engulfed him, took a seat across from Hiro, The two, each grappling with their burdens, sat in silence for a moment, the air thick with unspoken questions.
Finally, Kanji cleared his throat, breaking the quiet. '' Hiro, '' he said, his voice measured and steady, '' I must speak with you about something.'' Hiro, sensing the gravity of the conversation, met Kanji's gaze with a nod of understanding. '' it is about me, not just about me it is about us,'' Kanji said, his voice cracking with the weight of his words.
Kanji took a deep breath, his gaze fixed on some distant horizon. '' I was the greatest swordsman of a great kingdom.'' he continued. his voice low and strained. '' An assassin for the king, But when the king betrayed me when he sought to take the woman I loved, I fought back. '' I saved her, at the cost of my own life, '' Hiro whispered, his words like ghosts in the air. '' And for that, the king sent his guards to haunt me down, to kill me.''
Kanji muttered, his words like ghosts in the air, because of that,'' he went on, '' In our endeavour, I lost the lady I loved; an arrow struck her, and she died. '' I was forced to go and continue running. it was during my struggle to survive that I spotted you, a baby, at the base of the mountain, it appeared as though someone had left you there.''
'' I wanted to leave you there, but I couldn't, so I brought you with me and we came here, where I met your mother, who permitted us to stay. You were about to be devoured by a beast but I saved you.'' Hiro stared, transfixed, as the truth of his past unfurled like a tapestry of betrayal and compassion. '' you...… you saved me ? he murmured, his words chocked with disbelief and fear '' But I thought...…. I thought my family was.....''
Kanji's heart broke as he watched Hiro grapple with the devastating truth. Hiro clenched his mouth in horror at what he had just heard, and his tears dropped in disbelief. The family he had known all of his life turned out not to be his real family; overwhelmed by emotion, he fled into the forest. Kanji stood up to chase after him, but he saw Hiro needed time to process the circumstances.''
In the forest Hiro's body trembled as the tears streamed down his face, a torrent of emotion crashed over him like waves upon a storm-tossed shore. As he knelt, alone in the forest, he felt the weight of his past and present bearing down upon him, crushing him under its unbearable burden. But as he began to rise, his head bowed with sorrow, a plume of smoke on the horizon caught his eye. His breath caught in his throat, his mind seized with a sudden, terrible thought.