Hanabi forgot how much her fingers were hurting when she saw what was happening in the valley. "No!" she cried as she watched Hanzo wiped out several soldiers with a wave of his sword.

His sword, it wasn't anything she had ever seen before. It was moving, like cold dead flesh with sharp teeth. The blade bulged and emitted an eerie purple light, like it was a live animal, starving for blood. And the once admired Hanzo had turned into a shell of his former self; his clothes were tattered and his skin stretched over wasted muscle. But that didn't seem to curb his strength as he fought against the soldiers. Some brave students tried to take him on but were knocked aside by the flat side of the haunted blade.

Hanzo cackled, his laugh sounding like bones rattling together. "Oh, Ame no Habakiri, I have found you!" He raised the sword into the air and the flame grew bigger. From where they hid, Hanabi could feel the heat and she shied away behind the oak.

Almost immediately, his voice had turned gravelly and old, as if someone else was talking as he hissed, "Well done.. Now slay all those who stand in your way and acquire their blood."

Another maniacal laugh escaped him as he brandished his sword and said, "Let all those who defy me find their way in the path of bloodshed."

Beside her, she could feel Hayabusa trembling. She looked at him and was so shocked to see that he was not like himself at all. Always the emotionless, confident boy but now he looked like a little child lost in the woods. Hanabi patted his shoulder and he looked up at her, his face recovering the inscrutable look it had always wore. "This is my destiny," he said, his voice wavering. And before she could stop him, Hayabusa dashed from behind the tree and charged.

Hanabi watched in horror as he grabbed a spear at a fallen soldier and made to pierce Hanzo's heart, all the while screaming fiercely. Hanabi could not believe his recklessness and foolishbess. Her breath caught in her throat and she squeezed her eyes shut and the last thing she saw was Hanzo lifting his blade.

However, Hayabusa hadn't met his death yet as he was knocked aside by someone of a bigger build. Hanzo's sword slammed down onto the ground a heartbeat where Hayabusa had been. Hanabi raced from her cover and met the two boys as they ran clear of Hanzo's attack range.

"Ryuu!" Hayabusa snarled.

The older boy slapped him. "What did you think you were doing? You think you would die a hero if you charged in like that? You would've been killed for nothing!" Ryuu led them to the foot of the cliff and ushered them inside a low-hanging cave. Inside, it was warm and Hanabi was surprised to see so many other students were clustered around inside. They all looked up at them with frightened faces.

"The brave and the foolish stayed outside to challenge him," Ryuu explained gravely. "This is not a way to die."

Hayabusa turned on him which shocked Hanabi. "You don't understand, this is what I am meant to do. I am meant to challenge Hanzo and bring an end to his terrorism."

Hanzo scoffed and he pushed Hayabusa out of his face. "You're only barely in your teens. What makes you think that you could fight against him? Have you seen his sword and smelt the air? He has allied himself with demons. No one can defeat him."

To Hanabi's relief, Hayabusa saw sense in his sect-mate's reasoning and calmed down a bit. However the battle was still ongoing overhead as more soldiers rallied and called for aid. "Will there be help?"

"A messenger was sent to warn the Grandmasters of his return," Ryuu replied. "Let's hope they get here in time."

"But they won't make here in time!" Hanabi protested.

The grim look in Ryuu's face showed that he already knew that. Silence greeted her words as the other students took in what she said. She regretted her words and wished that she could take them back. Right now, all these frightened students needed were assurances that they would be fine; and she hoped that they were true.

The ground above them shook, causing some small stones to fall onto their heads. "He's getting closer," Ryuu muttered seriously. "We need to delay his approach for as long as we can before backup arrives." He casted an intense stare at Hayabusa and Hanabi. "He must not find the rest of the students here."

Hanabi nodded in understanding. If he wiped out all of students, then the village was as well as defenseless. They were the last line of defense if Hanzo defeated all the soldiers. "Then, let's go," Hanabi conceded. "We must help the others. On one condition." She turned to Hayabusa and spoke firmly. "No more foolishness."

Hayabusa nodded silently. "Let us go."

The flames had encircled the valley by the time they emerged and stood with the rest of the braver students to face Hanzo. A few bodies were littered across the ground and Hanabi avoided looking at them, afraid she might see someone she recognised. "What is that blade?" Hanabi gaped at the sword he was holding. However much she was terrified, she knew she had to compose herself to face him, otherwise many more lives would be lost.

"He called it Ame no Habakiri," Ryuu replied. "I've heard that he had recently acquired it here in this forest. We just have to hope he hadn't grown accustomed to it yet."

"That may be the only thing left that could save our lives," Hayabusa noted flatly as he plucked out a spear in the ground and threw it like a javelin. It whistled over the heads of the soldiers and made contact with the hilt of Hanzo's cursed sword. It bounced harmlessly off but now, he had gotten Hanzo's attention as he stared through the ranks of soldiers to see who was stupid enough to throw that spear at him.

Hanabi cursed under her breath as she saw his eyes. What were supposed to be two human eyes were replaced by bulbs of sightless blue orbs. His cheeks were sunken and he looked like an reanimated corpse. Her stomach gripped with fear. How could anyone fight with death?

Hanzo let out a ghastly roar and plunged his sword into the ground. Immediately spikes protruded from the earth, piercing anyone in its way and it made its way towards the trio. They flung themselves out of the way and quickly got to their feet and watched as Hanzo struggled to tug the sword out. The soldiers saw their chance and charged. Hanzo flashed his teeth at them like a wild animal and, balancing on his sword like a pole, kicked the soldiers aside with several swift movements. He clawed at another's throat and flung himself onto two, sending both to the ground as he gorged their hearts out like a mountain lion.

After he was done with his prey, the sword opened up from the toothed end like a gaping mouth. Hanabi watched in horror as it sucked the souls from the dead bodies into it. The blade bulged more aggressively and brighter. Hanzo made to grab the hilt again but was stopped when Ryuu threw a large stone at his face.

Hanzo turned his head in his direction, his face contorted into an emotion of fury and hatred. "Young boy," he growled, sounding like his voice was dragging on gravel. "I sense the greed for might in your mind. Join me in power and live to see a new age unfold. I promise you that you will have a special seat right beside me." With one swift movement, he pulled the sword out of the ground and left a dark scar on the earth. Hanabi stared as the dark scar pooled over with black ink and formed the shape of a slimy, black creature without sight. It floated in the air and circled around his legs like a cat. It grew shiny, white fangs and grinned a malicious smile. Feeling suddenly defenseless, she picked up a sword from the ground next to her.

When Ryuu refused to reply, Hanzo flicked his wrist and the creature swarmed towards them, its mouth gaping as if it wanted to suck their souls. It raced pass her and made for Ryuu and Hanabi tried to slice the creature with her heavy sword but the blade just cut through black mist.

Hayabusa leapt into his friend's defense and hopped onto the creature but he fell through it.

"It's no use," Hanabi gasped. "That thing has no body. We can't harm it!"

"Ryuu, get away!" Hayabusa screamed and Ryuu threw himself onto the ground at the last minute and the creature plunged onto where he was standing a second ago. Hanabi watched in amazement as it swam up through the earth like it was water and swerved onto the path in Ryuu's direction again. But the boy was not fast enough to get up and Hanabi made her way to intercept, plunging the end of the sword into the creature's mouth as it gaped to consume Ryuu.

The creature gagged and Hanabi had to struggle with it in order to keep her grasp with the sword. The dark mist was biting down onto the blade now, jerking its head from side to side until Hanabi lost her grip and the creature got away again.

"Hayabusa! It's coming!" She cried out a warning to him as he ran side by side with Ryuu away from the creature as it pooled out of the ground again, its jaws opening and closing as it reached closer and closer, almost grabbing hold of the boys' heels.

Then something happened that Hanabi could not comprehend directly. A wide disc intercepted its path and erupted in a burst of light, distinguish the dark mist like ink in a bowl of milk. The two boys collapsed, panting. They looked as shock as she felt. The disc returned to the hands of someone standing at the edge of the woods, too far away to make out but it seemed to be glowing white light. And Hanabi's heart faltered when she thought that one of the gods had come down to deliver them to the heavens. The person was on the back of a grey steed and it was galloping fast towards them until Hanabi made out that it wasn't a god at all, but Kagura.

Hanabi never in her life thought that she would see the pretty noble and sensed the rush of relief she was feeling at the moment. Kagura slid out of the back of the beast and offered her hand to the boys. "Get up," she urged gently even though her voice was laced with fear.

Hayabusa was staring up at her in amazement. "What are you doing here?" Before she could reply, more horses were galloping past them, astride on their backs were the most powerful people in the village. They surrounded themselves around Hanzo as he fought against the remaining soldiers and students. More than half of them lay dead, their bodies strewn across the valley.

"Can you get up?" Hanabi was shaken out of her stupor when she realised that Kagura had spoken to her. She nodded and got shakily to her feet, relieved that help had finally arrived. With them, Hanzo could finally be contained.

"Climb onto Minnow," Kagura was persuading her onto her beast. While Hanabi was never fond of horses, she wasn't eager to show it in front of Hayabusa's friend and she silently obliged. Kagura followed her up and sat in front of Hanabi. She instructed her to put her hands on her hips so that she wouldn't fall off and Hanabi awkwardly did so. "Beside me," she ordered Hayabusa and Ryuu. She opened her umbrella and placed the hiragami (the 'pelt' of the umbrella) in front of the horse's face and spun it twice, creating a blue force field around them.

Hanabi watched in wonder as the blue force spiralled from the tip of her umbrella until it surrounded them. Kagura was stroking her horse's mane to soothe it. "Father and the rest will take care of him," she said, more to the others than to her horse.

"He let you come along?" Hayabusa asked in disbelief.

Kagura carefully positioned her umbrella over her shoulder so that it rested on Hanabi's as well. "I had to beg him," she confessed. "After I promised that I'll find you and stay out of the way, only did he allowed me to tag along."

The Grandmasters were talking with Hanzo, abandoning their horses and forming a ring around them. The purple flames had finally died down and the surviving soldiers and students had gathered near the foot of the cliff.

"The others," Hanabi reminded them, thinking of the petrified students taking refuge under the hill.

"Wait," Hayabusa said. "I want to listen to what they say."

"Surrender your weapon," Lord Nakahara - donned in heavy battle armor - was ordering. "And come back with us."

"Go with you?" Hanzo chuckled. "And what? Spend a lifetime in prison?"

"Then go," Lord Nakahara replied with great authority. "If you won't come back to Iga then we are sentencing you to exile."

"Wait." A whiskery old man stepped forward and Hanabi noticed that Hayabusa had held his breath. "That's Kenji sensei," he said. "What is he doing?"

"Hanzo, you were a wonderful student. You excelled in all the classes and have been given the highest praise. What happened to you?" he queried. He took another bold step forward. Hanzo only stared down at his former tutor. "What made you turn on this path of destruction and death? Why betray the people who cared for you and admired you?"

Hanzo picked up his sword and leveled it in front of the old man's face. "See here? This is Ame no Habakiri. Who wouldn't have been formed if it weren't for our ancestors. Our ancestors, the Akakage."

Kenji appear to realise something for he suddenly collapsed onto his knees and trembled from head to toe. "No, not that. Please, anything but that."

"You seem to understand, Kenji sensei," Hanzo said. "You seem to understand what our ancestors had done to create such a magnificent sword, a sword that impresses the Goddess of Death herself. With this sword, I can lay waste to any country that threatens our own. I can become the most powerful ninja of Iga, if you would let me." He laughed a hideous laughed which slowly transformed itself into a chortling sound and bones rattling together and when he spoke next, his voice was full of malice and greed. "He fed me the blood of Crimson warriors and awoken me. He is the only one worthy of me inhibiting a body. The Akakages have formed me and wished me to disappear, but only he could see the full potential of my powers - of our powers - if wielded carefully. Do you see it now, old man?"

Lord Nakahara had to step in and drag Kenji sensei away. "Hanekage, you live?" Kenji whimpered.

"You are all a noble breed." Hanzo's sightless blue eyes shone brighter as it landed on each person, including Hanabi who flinched away in terror. She gripped the clothes on Kagura's waist tighter. "I would hate to see it perish away, to see it wasted as it faded each generation. But now is the moment you are all blessed to see it finally get reawakened again. If you would join me and see Iga transformed into a legendary empire!"

"Never!" Someone yowled and as one, the Grandmasters charged at Hanzo - or the demon that had taken over his body.

"Kagura!" Lord Nakahara called as he dragged Kenji towards them. Hayabusa rushed over to help. Kagura slid off her beast's back and together, they hauled Kenji onto its back. Hanabi had to make sure that he didn't fall over.

"I want you to return back to the village now," the lord told them. "Hurry and go. Far, far away from here as fast as you can."

"I will slaughter you all if that is what it takes to gain power!" The demon howled as it battled the powerful Grandmasters. But, however powerful they are, Hanabi could see that they were slowly losing. She searched the ranks for Chiyo sensei but could not find her. Then, she spotted her, leading an attack behind Hanzo as he was distracted. She was about to call out to her when Kagura's father yelled at them all to get away.

"How about you?" Kagura cried. Tears were streaming her eyes and Hayabusa and Ryuu stood off awkwardly at the side, both eager to be off.

"I will be fine here. Go home, and protect the house." He gathered his daughter in his arms and kissed the top of her head. "You are much more powerful than you think. I love you."

Before Kagura could say anymore, the lord threw himself into the fray, unsheathing his sword. Hayabusa tugged her away. Hanabi, meanwhile, was overflowed with emotion; envy because none of her parent had ever shown her that much love before, guilt because she couldn't do anything to help and most of all, sadness at seeing the circumstances they had to depart at. "Go on," she encouraged them. "I'll go beside you." She tried to ignore how much her fingers hurt as she tugged at the reins and urged the horse at a steady trot as the others jogged to catch up.

Behind them, the battle was more chaotic than ever. Hanabi could never begin to feel what Kagura must be feeling. Having to turn her back on a family member as they fought; possibly to the death.

However, amongst the fray, the demon had spotted the four hurrying to get away. He bared his fangs and said in a voice that resonated in the pit of everyone's stomachs, "You can't escape me! Let all those who are here witness the beginning of the destruction of your precious village."

His sword, once again, opened its mouth wide and sucked in the souls of the dead. The Grandmasters froze and watched in horror as they had never seen anyone perform such a terrible thing before. Before any of them could move, Hanzo plunged his sword into the earth again and unleashed a horde of dark mists. A few masters attempted to attack them but their weapons merely plunged through the mist harmlessly. Hanzo withdrew his sword once more and continued battling, but his movements were growing weaker and slower. The dark mists swarmed into a thick fog and assisted him; tearing up anyone in its path.

Hanabi glanced behind her and tried to prompt the others to go faster. While Kagura's force field were standing in between them and Hanzo, Hanabi doubted that it would hold long against the dark mists.

"Kagura, your umbrella," Ryuu called, stumbling along with Hayabusa and Kagura.

"It's no use," Kenji sensei wheezed. "With that many evil, even my lady is powerless against it."

But it didn't stop Kagura from trying. She threw her umbrella for as far as it could go into the midst of the fighting and conjured up a powerful spell that purged some of the mists, but many more replaced it. The umbrella returned into her hands as the dark mists realised who had defeated its comrades and made their way towards them. Desperate, Kagura quickly a small ball of pinkish light in her hands and threw it at them. It just seemed to annoy them more.

"Hanabi, go," Kagura told her. "Go with Minnow and Kenji sensei. We'll join you in the shelter. We'll hold them off for as long as we can." She glanced at Hayabusa and Ryuu and both of them nodded. "Take care of the other students."

Reluctant as she was to leave them behind, she knew that she had to. She would be of no use fighting with them if she could barely hold up a weapon, and Kenji was as useless as a frayed broom. "Take care," she whispered before letting the horse gallop off. Worse case scenario, they would all have to evacuate and hope that some of them would survive...

Thank you for leaving your reviews! I really enjoy reading them and, honestly, they are the reason that I'm still writing right now :P

I'm trying to progress the story so it wouldn't draaaggg...

I really enjoy writing the HayaxHana bits, they're so fun to write about!

And it's starting to make me wonder, maybe choosing one of them is going to be harder than I initially thought.