Ryo Gaiden

Seven years ago, in the Ken tribe, Yasue was patrolling around his brother's house under the full moon. It had been an exhausting day for Kamiya and Yasue as tensions between the clans had escalated, and war could break out at any moment. That day, Sato, Kamiya, and Yasue had gone to gather intelligence on the Jun clan, but they hadn't learned much. Since the last war, relations between the Yuki and Ken clans were good, but the blood spilled in the past was not forgotten. The young men in their late twenties got along well, and Sato's cousin, Hirose Ryo, and Yasue Naizen had even made a promise to each other—they might unite their families in the future. However, just a few days earlier, Hirabayashi reported that Hirose had been injured and, the next day, it was discovered that Hirose had been kidnapped.

Yasue had been unable to control his temper recently, and Kamiya's dismissal of his emotions was frustrating. Because of this, he had sought help from Sato Ryo, but they had made no progress together. Sato then decided to sneak into the Ken clan's territory and stay at Kamiya's house for the night. At dawn, they would resume their duties. Just before dawn, Yasue noticed someone on the roof. He thought it could only be a cat, but he decided to check and climbed up. No one was there, but he was certain he had heard someone.

Descending from the roof to the veranda, he opened the sliding door and entered. A simple corridor led forward, turning left after passing two rooms. Kamiya and Watase were on the right, while Sato was on the left. Concerned that someone might have spotted Sato and attempted an assassination, Yasue checked on him. As soon as he opened the door, Sato woke up. "Yasue? Is there something wrong?" Sato asked quietly, thinking quickly despite having just woken up. "I saw someone. I was certain they were on the roof, but they disappeared," Yasue replied. As Sato got up slowly, a choking sound came from Kamiya and Watase's room, startling everyone. Kamiya panicked. "Watase! Stay with me, Yas—" He stopped short as he saw them at the door. "What's happening?" Yasue asked, alarmed. "Someone poisoned her, Sato. They can't have gotten far; chase them down!"

Sato quickly dashed outside, climbed onto the roof, and leapt over the walls, heading into the forest. Whoever it was truly couldn't have gotten far.

Yasue and Kamiya were frantic, but there was nothing they could do. Watase died within seconds, her eyes and the skin around them cracking and blackening. Her body was growing pale. Kamiya looked into her eyes and saw no light. Shocked, he gently laid her down, speaking in a cold, eerie tone. "We'll find them and kill them—all of them… anyone involved..." Yasue was startled by his brother's aura; he had never seen him so shattered and at rock bottom. He could only nod. Yasue then left the house to join Sato in finding the person responsible.

Kamiya, wanting to keep the children from seeing their mother's corpse, wrapped Watase in a cloth and carried her to his father's house. Endo Naizen had been working late in his room when he suddenly saw the door open. Kamiya had brought Watase, wrapped in white cloth.

"Can you bring her back? I need her… please." He spoke without any emotion, his eyes narrowed and empty.

"Don't be ridiculous, Kamiya. Raising the dead is never good. Even if I could do it, the cost would be heavy, and I don't know another way. You know I would have done it for your mother if I could."

Kamiya, furious now, let his emotions show. "At least you tried for my mother! Try this time for your grandchildren—you might find another way!"

Endo stood up angrily. "Do you think I'm not grieving? If I were strong enough, I would save everyone! Stop this foolishness and accept that this will not end until we kill our enemies."

Kamiya calmed down, looking into the void, and placed Watase gently on the ground. "Prepare her funeral. Today, I will find the killer—perhaps I'll only bring back their head."

Kamiya quickly left the room and disappeared into the forest. "Guards, prepare the body for the funeral!" he shouted, unable to contain his anger. Looking at Watase's body, he muttered, "Even someone with a resistance to poison can die from it. Could it be someone who knows our weaknesses…? Hmm, maybe there's a traitor among us," he sighed, thinking he hadn't smoked in a while, then lit a cigarette, contemplating that a great war might be coming. Soon, the mortician entered the room. "You summoned me, sir?"

Endo pointed to Watase. "She's a Naizen, Watase Naizen. Prepare a funeral fitting for her tonight."

"Yes, sir. I will prepare a proper funeral for the Naizen." The mortician paid his respects, bowed, and took the body from the room.

Sato, moving swiftly among the trees, spotted someone ahead, though they were very fast. Yet, Yasue managed to catch up. "We need to keep going a bit further. I think they're trying to wear us down."

Yasue sped up a bit more, activating his Seimei-sen eyes. Though not as powerful as his brother's, the three lines in his eyes gave him enough strength to close the gap.

Close to the target, he made a quick decision, stopping on a branch nearby and shouting, "Fire: Dragon's Maw!" Taking a deep breath, he exhaled a massive dragon-shaped flame that tore through the trees, hitting the target and causing significant destruction and explosions. However, it exhausted Yasue immensely. "I got him… ah…" he panted heavily. "Are you okay? You used a lot of energy," Sato said. Yasue was too tired to speak. They looked at the figure lying on the ground in the clearing, showing no signs of life, but remained cautious. "Who are you? Why did you do this?" Sato asked as he approached. When he saw a slight movement, he quickly pinned the person down, placing his knee on their back to secure them. Recognizing the face, Sato was surprised and looked back at Yasue, who was kneeling to catch his breath. "Minamoto Toki? Why…?" Sato couldn't hide his shock because he knew Minamoto as a man of honor who had once even helped Kamiya fend off three attackers alone. "No, you don't understand, Sato. I can't explain now, but it wasn't me. I wasn't in control," Minamoto said.

Sato was disappointed. "With that speed, and all your talk of honor… I don't understand…"

Minamoto struggled slightly. "Look, I truly lost control. You can ask my brother; he was looking for me." Just then, Naru Toki appeared before them. "I've been looking for my brother for days; I see you've caught him, Sato Ryo."

"I'm glad to see you too, Naru… but why were you looking for your brother, and why did he kill Kamiya's wife with poison? I'm very curious," Sato replied with a smile.

Naru was shocked; his brother had no reason to do such a thing, and there was no personal blood feud between the Naizen and Toki families. "Sato, something's wrong. My brother suddenly disappeared, and he hasn't seemed himself lately. You know him somewhat. Let me take him; if he did what you said, Kamiya will kill all of us. I'll let you know the truth when we find out."

Sato was conflicted, but he knew he owed Minamoto a debt and couldn't betray Kamiya. "Sorry, but—"

Minamoto cut him off. "You owe me a favor, don't you? From when your brother died. If I'd been there, I would've saved him too. But you at least owe me this."

It struck a nerve with Sato, but he knew Minamoto was right. Besides, Yasue was exhausted, and they wouldn't be able to keep up with these two.

"Fine, I'll let you go. But remember, you must inform me about what happened, and there's a blood debt to Kamiya Naizen."

Naru was momentarily relieved. "Thank you, Sato. I won't forget this. See y—"

Just then, Kamiya appeared, high above them as if the moon cast him as a shadow, and shouted, "Fire: Compressed Fireball!" launching a massive, dense fireball straight at Sato. Naru touched both Sato and Minamoto, teleporting them away in the nick of time.

"Catch them, Sato; they leave as corpses today!" Kamiya roared. "Calm down, Kamiya; things aren't as they seem! And why are you targeting me?! Get a hold of yourself!" Sato shouted back, but his words fell on deaf ears as Kamiya ignored him entirely. "Thank you again, Sato," said Naru, and then he and his brother vanished. Enraged, Kamiya thought Sato had helped them escape, and he charged at Sato, landing a solid punch in his stomach, but Sato managed to block it in time. Sato jumped back a few steps. "Kamiya, don't do this. I'm not against you."

"Killing Watase was the worst mistake of your life!" Kamiya screamed, and his fiery aura expanded in rage.

"Who was it?" His voice was calm but carried a menacing tone. "It doesn't matter... knowing now won't change anything. Also you must have already figured out who it is. But things run deeper than they seem. Please, don't make a hasty decision." Sato understood Kamiya's pain, and his words held a sense of sorrow, trying to remind him that nothing could be undone—but it was in vain.

Kamiya didn't listen to a word. "This was a huge mistake, Sato Ryo," he said and dashed into the forest.

Yasue was still conscious but had no strength to move. "Why, Sato? Why did you let them go…?"

Sato looked at Yasue with a broken expression, then up at the bright full moon. Without answering, he walked into the trees, disappearing from Yasue's sight.

In the present day, Kamiya suddenly woke up, breathing heavily. "I haven't had this dream in a long time," he thought. Seven years had passed, and so much had happened. The weight of the past settled on him, leaving a lingering sadness. Thinking about the present, he was haunted by all the mistakes he'd made and the things he wished he could change, but it was too late. For two days, he had been searching for Yasue's body, while also keeping an eye on Soma and Rikimaru, training them. Twice they'd gotten into trouble—once having to kill a pack of wolves, and another time, ruthlessly taking down two bandits. They hadn't seen anyone with animal masks or numbers. If he'd been alone, he might have made more progress, but today, he hoped to find something unless the animals had eaten Yasue's body. He felt he owed it to him, as he had to give him a proper Naizen funeral, like he did for his wife.

"We've been on the road for a day, Father. When are we getting there? Do we have to keep stopping?" Soma asked.

"Not long now, just half a day's journey. If I were alone, it would've taken just one day," he said, smiling and patting his son's head. They had tied themselves to several tree branches to avoid becoming prey—an essential measure for survival in such a wild area. Kamiya untied the ropes and stood up.

"We could have kept up. You didn't need to worry about us, Kamiya-ojisan," Rikimaru said.

Kamiya laughed at that. "Hah! You have the same ambition as your father. If you want, we can race, but I'm not sure you could find me."

Rikimaru and Soma exchanged nods, and they suddenly leaped into the trees, disappearing from view.

Kamiya felt a bit of peace and joy. "These kids are so full of energy. I guess we were like that once too, right, Sato Ryo?" He smiled, raising his fist to the air as if Sato were right beside him. Thinking he should keep up, he quickly gathered their things and set off after them.