Chapter 17

Narration's POV

It has been several weeks since the war began in earnest and after their first victory the rebel force only proceeded picked up speed in its liberation of Nippon. From one town came another's liberation and then two more, then three and soon the Royal Guard slowly began to find itself increasingly outnumbered as word spread of the rebels overwhelming their forces. It wasn't long that the whole of Nippon had begun to turn against them. That's not to say there have been only good things occurring. Many good men and women have met their end in the heat of battle, leaving many widowed mothers and orphaned children. Also, with many farming and fishing villages putting down their tools and picking up weapons there are less workers tending to the fields, causing food supplies to diminish. Moral was beginning to waver on all sides and in noticing this, Nar realized that this was not a war that could last much longer ordered for an assault on the capital, intending to free the nation once and for all. The rebel army, at this point now thousands strong, marched to the capital where they were met with the bulk of the Royal Guard troops. The two sides clashed with matching strength, desperate for the conflict at hand to finally reach an end

Neither of the expected what was to come

Hattori's POV – During the Battle

I pulled my blade from the torso of a guard to block another attempting to get the upper hand on me as an arrow found his neck. Cutting down another I stood back to back with Momoko

"How are you on arrows?" I asked slashing another attacker

"Fine for now" she replied pulling five from her quiver and shot them all in rapid succession "Where are the others?"

"I lost them in the crowd when the battle started" I replied blocking a swing "I'm sure they're fine"

Sure enough the sound of several guardsmen dying at once caught my attention, and found Masamune cutting a path towards me with Miyako following close behind

"Brother!" he called as the two of them joined us "It seems a large portion of guards are retreating into the capital"

"Sounds like they're giving up" a familiar voice spoke next to me

Turning I found Takeda and Kaoru joining the fray

"It seems too easy though" Kaoru pointed out before cutting down another guard

"I agree" Momoko responded "It seems too early for them to be giving up"

At that moment we all heard a signal horn blow from within the capital, causing everyone on the battlefield to stop and look towards the sound of the noise and saw the doors of the capital open to reveal several large contraptions of some kind. They were as big as houses and looked like they were made with plated iron and resembled that of a shrine

"What are those?" Kaoru asked

None of us responded but then all of them revealed small openings all around the body of the contraptions

"What are they doing?" Miyako asked

I stared intently at the openings, and amidst the dull light of the clouded day I could see something resembling a ring with a dark hole in the center. And after a brief moment my heart sank as I realized what was pointing out of the openings

"FALL BACK!" I cried as the cannons blasted into the rebel forces

The initial blast decimated a great deal of our men as the rest, fully registering the situation began retreating in mass droves. Some archers attempted to fire on them but the arrows harmlessly bounced off. The six of us ran as fast as we could narrowly dodging several of the cannon balls as the caused the ground to erupt besides us. Even as the distance grew between us I could hear the sounds of the Royal Guards rejoicing behind us, cheering in victory. I gritted my teeth and focused on fleeing, and trying to push out the thought that continuously picked at my mind

What are we to do now?

Nar's POV – A Few Days Later

'This is indeed troubling' I thought to myself as I looked out on the Grove

It hadn't taken long for me to catch wind of the Emperor's new war machines, to say nothing of the fact that in the few days they've been set into play the Emperor's forces have already retaken much of the ground we have gained. Once I learned of their destructive force I immediately called for all our remaining forces to retreat to the Grove

Not all of them made it

In fact by my count, if at one point we were thousands strong, then we were now only hundreds. With these levels of causalities in this short of time, coupled with the already shortened food supply, moral among the men has already fallen to an all-time low

"So you're saying to give up Hattori?!" I heard Takeda scream from inside my war room

I sighed and turned around to return and play peacekeeper

"I'm saying we can't rush in without a plan Takeda!" he fired back "In doing so it'd be nothing but a suicide mission!"

As I entered the room I quickly took notice that besides the two yelling couple, the girls as well as Masamune all wore expressions of sorrow and defeat. This wasn't the first time Takeda and Hattori have come to blows like this, but in the past few days they were constantly at each other's throats, both attempting to determine the best course of action to return the tide of the war to our favor. Sighing I tapped my cane to the ground and spoke with clear authority

"Enough!" causing everyone to look at me "As I said before, this bickering will get us nowhere"

They both backed down for the time being and I took my seat at the head of the table

"What's the situation right now?" I asked

"The last of our forces have returned to the Grove" Hattori spoke up "According to your agents after all of the camps had been reclaimed the machines returned to the capital"

"The wounded are being treated and are in no condition for combat" Momoko spoke up "So despite the number of soldiers we have in the Grove, not all of them are combat ready"

"Moral is getting low too" Miyako spoke up "I try my best to cheer them up but the men are falling to despair"

"And our supplies are running low too" Kaoru chimed in "From medical to food"

"So" Takeda started "What are your orders my lord?"

A question that had been plaguing my mind for a while now. With a sigh I closed my eyes and placed my head against my clasped hands and tried to think. I went through several battle plans through my head but with the inclusion of the war machines each one would only be met with failure, something that we don't have the luxury of affording anymore

Then one idea came to mind

It was risky, dangerous and had a high chance of failure but it was also the only other plan I could think of that had a chance at success. I opened my eyes and look at everyone, who were still looking intently at me

"There's only one more option" I finally said making them perk up a bit "But there's a good chance it will fail"

"But if it has a chance to succeed" Takeda responded "Then it's the only thing we can do"

I nodded

"Our primary concern is to destroy the war machines" I explained "So I recommend the best course of action is to send in a small team to destroy the machines while they aren't in use"

"And how do you propose we do that?" Hattori asked "The capital is more secure than anywhere else in Nippon"

"Especially with the war going on" Masamune agreed

"That may be so" I agreed "But that may not be quite so true"

The looked at me quizzically

"If my hunch is correct" I began "Then these recent victories will have no doubt made the guards of the capital overconfident"

"And you believe because of that they might have relaxed their security?" Momoko finished for me

I nodded and they all thought about my proposition

"Even if that were the case" Hattori finally spoke up "The team would still be neck deep in enemy territory"

"And the destruction of the war machines would likely have the whole of the capital come running" Momoko continued

"And even if we did destroy them" Kaoru spoke up "What's to stop them from making more?"

"And then they'd never let their guard down again" Masamune finished

I nodded once more

"Then we'll have to make sure it ends there" I stated

Their eyes widened a bit

"You mean…" Miyako started

"If this mission is to succeed" I continued "Then in addition to the destruction of the war machines, the team will have to assassinate the Emperor"

"But even if the team were able to destroy the machines" Masamune pressed "Would the Emperor not be taken to a more safe location?"

"That's where the finite and key points of this plan fall in" I reasoned

The looked at each other and then at me again

"We will send the remains of our army to the capital" I explained "And right before the team destroys the war machines one part of the team will send up a firework to signal the army to charge"

Hattori nodded, seeming to catch on

"Which would also signal the other part of the team to assassinate the Emperor" he reasoned "And with the war machines out of commission our forces would have a chance at victory"

"And with the Emperor dead you can take the throne" Kaoru finished

I nodded

"But" Momoko chimed in "How do you intend to get the team inside?"

"I believe I can help with that" a voice called from the shadows

We all turned to see one of my agents appearing from the shadows, I recognized his wolf mask instantly as the leader of my agents

"DenshiAkuma" I greeted him as he knelt before us "I trust you heard most of the situation?"

He nodded

"My scouts report that the guards have not yet discovered the tunnels beneath the city" he explained "We can use it to get our team in without being noticed"

I looked around and saw everyone considering the plan and I could already guess their answer by the increasingly uplifted spirits

"Like you said; it's dangerous" Hattori started

"But it seems careful isn't an option anyway" Takeda finished

"So, who will be on the infiltration team?" Miyako asked

"It'll be led by Denshi" I began "From there-"

"I'm going" Takeda cut in

We all looked at him

"Are you sure this is what you want Takeda?" I asked

He nodded

"After all" he started, looking at Kaoru "I still have a promise to keep"

She flushed a bit but was smiling warmly

"I will go as well" Hattori interjected making everyone turn to him now

"Then I suppose I'll go too" Masamune spoke up "I gotta keep you both from bickering right?"

We couldn't help but laugh at that, even the bickering two in question couldn't help themselves

"Will four people be enough?" Miyako asked after everyone regained their composure

"I will gather two of my best men" Denshi answered before turning to Hattori "Rally the troops, we strike tonight"

He nodded

"Then with that being said" I said standing up "May we finally end this war and restore the land to how it once was"

Everyone nodded

"Dismissed!" I said and they all left to prepare for tonight

Takeda's POV – Several Hours Later

The six of us had gathered at the entrance to the tunnels that connected from the Grove to the capital. The two Denshi had gathered also had their faces obstructed with masks, one was a fox and the other some kind of bird. We had rallied the men and bade our goodbyes to our lovers, promising them that we would return

"Are you three ready?" Denshi asked us

We nodded and jumped into the tunnels with the three agents following along after. The trek was long and silent, with only the sounds of our footsteps disrupting it. I glanced at my companions, I could tell each of them was tense with anticipation and worry. I'd be lying if I didn't feel the same way, but I could only swallow those feelings as we reached our destination. We all quietly exited the tunnels in the same location where Kaoru, her sisters, the two generals and I originally escaped the city all those years ago

"Kinda figured this spot would be more guarded" Masamune whispered

"Then it looks like Nar's hunch was correct" Hattori said "We need to move fast"

"Agreed" Denshi responded "You four go to the war machines, we'll get into position"

They nodded and took off

"This way" Denshi said before sneaking through the city to the palace

Following him, my hand never left my blade. It had been several long years since I made that promise to Kaoru, now I can finally make good on it

Masamune's POV

I watched as the fox masked agent silently killed another guard and hid his body

"We're getting close" he said

Sure enough, we came across the storage area for the war machines. Sadly it seemed that there were several guards on duty to watch over them

"Now what?" I whispered

"We'll have to take them out almost at the same time" the one with the owl mask answered

"You both take those on the left" Fox Mask instructed Hattori and Owl Mask "We'll take the ones on the right"

We nodded and carefully snuck through the shadows and staying out of the guard's sight until we all were in position. Watching Fox Mask he counted down on his fingers

5…

4…

3…

2…

1…

As he hit one he landed on the back of a guard and slammed his blade through his neck as I thrust my own blade through the back of another while covering his mouth. Owl Mask slit the throat of one throw a kunai at a distant target as Hattori stabbed his blade through the throat of on nearby before grabbing the bow of the slain target and picking off the remaining guards just as they started to notice. With all the guards dead we began our work

Kaoru's POV

The army sat in the shadows of the forest near the capital, carefully watching the top of the walls for the signal to charge. I could feel the tension from everyone as each second ticked by with nothing happening

"Do you think they're okay?" Miyako whispered quietly

I swallowed my frustration at the 8th time she asked that same question

"I'm sure they're fine" I answered her once again

"There hasn't been any commotion yet" Blossom agreed "So they haven't been discovered yet"

She didn't seem any more relaxed now then the first time she asked. I suppose I couldn't blame her, this was our last shot at victory. Everything we had was staked on this one gamble and if we lost, then it was over. For the rebellion, for Nippon, and for everybody

I didn't pray very often, but at that moment I was praying to every God I could think of to allow everything to turn out alright

Takeda's POV

We had snuck past the guards in the palace and hid ourselves within the shadows of the garden

"What now?" I whispered to Denshi

"We need to make our way to the Emperor's quarters" he answered quietly "At the top of the palace"

I looked up towards the top of the rather large palace. Never really noticed until now how tall it actually was

"And how do you recommend we do that?" I asked "I'm guessing the stairs aren't an option?"

"It's too risky to try and enter the palace" he answered "We'll have to climb the outside"

I looked at him, then back to the top and then back to him again

"Really?" I asked him

"I suppose you have a better plan?" he asked drily

I sighed and moved my katana so it wouldn't be in the way and followed him as we began to scale the outside of the palace walls. It wasn't long before I was struggling to keep up with Denshi. Despite all my years of training I never really had to practice climbing like this, Denshi on the other hand was like a monkey the way he scurried up the walls. As I was climbing however, a piece of the roof gave way under me and created a loud noise

"What was that?" I heard a guard ask

Denshi was there in an instant, he quickly pulled me all the way up and hid the both of us beneath a nearby balcony which happened to be where the guard happened to arrive to inspect the noise. We sat there as each second ticked by agonizingly slow, waiting for the guard to leave as he seemed to take his time searching for the noise

"Guess it was nothing" we finally heard him say at long last

As he walked away we waited to release our held breath until we were sure he was out of earshot. Once we were in the clear we looked at one another and with a silent agreement we continued our climb up, this time making sure to assist each other to ensure no more close calls like that occurred. Before long we had reached the top of the palace and sure enough we were able to hear the Emperor inside, chatting about the great victory his war machines had brought him

"Looks like we made it" I whispered to Denshi who nodded in response

"Now we just have to wait for the signal" he replied

We turned our attention towards where the location of the war machines, waiting ever so impatiently for the signal firework

Hattori's POV

I wiped the sweat from my brow as I placed another barrel into the base of the machine. There were several barrels of gunpowder on hand in order to load the cannons, the plan was to load all the machines with them, leave a trail to them and then ignite them all resulting in their complete destruction

"I'm done over here" I half whispered to the others

"Same here" I heard from Masamune

Fox Mask had also finished leaving a trail of gunpowder from the barrels to a point where we can light all trails at once

"Are we ready?" I asked Owl Mask

He nodded and began to set up the signal firework and I prepared to light the fuse but was stopped by Fox Mask

"Not yet" he said "Wait until the guards signal for an attack, then light the fuse"

I nodded and lowered my bow

At that moment Owl Mask had lit the fuse on the firework. A second went by and it shot up into the air and burst with a loud and colorful BANG

Momoko's POV

I felt like tearing out my own hair I was so nervous. I had to keep wiping the sweat off my hands so I could hold my bow steady

'What is taking so long?!' I practically screamed in my mind 'Surely they should've done it by now… right?'

Everyone else must have been thinking the same thing, they were antsy with sweat beading down their heads

Kaoru and Miyako were on the edge of a heart attack by the look of it, both were gripping their weapons so tightly I feared they would shatter them. I was trying to think of something to say when I heard a soft thud nearby. Turning, we all saw a soldier had dropped his sword to the ground

"It's hopeless" he fearfully whispered "They're all dead and soon we will be too"

"Don't say that!" a fellow soldier harshly whispered grabbing him by the collar

"But it's true!" he insisted "Why else wouldn't they have signaled by now?!"

The soldier didn't have a response to that and the cowardly one pushed away from him

"We're all doomed" he quietly wailed "I'm not going to stand here and die a certain death"

He turned to try and flee but was immediately grabbed from behind by Kaoru who, due to her fears and tension looked like she was ready to murder the poor man

"You are not going anywhere" she stated harshly "You are a soldier fighting for the freedom of our people, and you will stand and fight or so help me-!"

Suddenly a loud bang cut her off

We all turned with wide eyes to see the remains of the signal fizzle out. Even without looking I could feel the tension dissipate from the men

"The signal has been lit!" I called "All men, CHARGE!"

With a roar from everyone we began pouring out from our hiding spot and charged straight towards the capital

Masamune's POV

We watched the firework fade out and not even a minute later I was able to hear the distant roar of the army charging the gates. Not long after that we heard the guards begin signaling the others of the immanent attack. I looked at my brother who nodded. Lighting his arrow ablaze he fired it into the center of the trails of gunpowder which began burning towards the barrels

"Come" said Fox Mask "Let's lend our aid as best we can from inside the walls"

We took off towards the watch towers to deal with the archers. As it passed my sight I looked to the palace in the distance

'Good luck Takeda' I thought 'It's all on you now'

Takeda's POV

I grinned as I saw everything go down: the signal going off, the army pouring out from the forest and the guards signaling the attack. I turned to Denshi

"You ready?" I asked

"Absolutely" he responded

With that we burst into the Emperor's room and quickly dispatched the guards that had been monitoring the room. He attempted to flee but I easily tripped him and sent him tumbling to the ground. When he attempted to stand back up he found himself staring back at my sword

"It has been quite some time since we last saw each other" I said amiably "I see your nose healed back up"

"Don't think you've won just yet you scum!" he all but growled at me "Even with all your forces you still can't hope to best my trump card!"

It was at that moment a rather loud explosion went off near the walls. The Emperor did his best to twist his body in the direction of the sound

"What… what was that?" he asked dumbfounded

"That would be OUR trump card" I responded

It took him a few moments to understand what I meant. Once it dawned on him that his precious war machines are gone he began to panic

"Please! Please I beg of you!" he pleaded "I don't know who is paying you but if you spare me I can grant you a fortune! Anything at all!"

I couldn't help but chuckle at his how pathetic he looked

"Sorry to say but I'm afraid I can't be paid off" I replied, pressing my blade to his neck "Mainly because I did it for free"

He gaped at me

"You would assassinate the Emperor of all Nippon for free?!" he asked incredulous

"Well, it might've been free" I said thoughtfully "But I did get to meet the woman I intend to spend my whole life with"

I knelt down to look him directly in the eye

"Your would-be brides send their regards by the way" I stated

His eyes widened as I prepared my blade

"Emperor Tokugawa" I began as he kept trying to bargain with me "For the woman I love, for all the people whose lives you have crushed and for all of Nippon"

His eyes had tears of pure terror flowing from them as he was screaming for mercy

"I end you here" I finished before plunging my blade through his neck

His screams fell silent and blood began pouring from the wound. Pulling out my blade I swung it once to rid it of the blood and sheathed it. I looked over the dead body of the Emperor and felt the satisfaction of the deed finally done. I felt Denshi place his hand on my shoulder

"It's done" he said "We should leave"

I nodded and we fled back outside and down the palace before racing towards the gates to join in the fray

Narration's POV

Once the generals had joined in the fight the rebel army quickly took control of the battlefield. And without the war machines to save them this time the Royal Guard could do nothing to stop the rebel forces from claiming the city. With the Emperor dead and his supporters imprisoned Nar rose up to claim the position of Emperor himself. With no other family to speak of to replace Tokugawa Nar took the role as Emperor for himself. Appointing Hattori, Masamune AND Takeda to be his most trusted generals and was even present to officiate the weddings of his generals to their respective lovers Momoko, Miyako and Kaoru. With Nar now at the helm of the nation of Nippon he quickly began to undo all of the damage done in Tokugawa's reign. Implementing fairer taxes and removing laws that would benefit only the higher class as well adding in new laws that benefitted all he was quickly loved by all his subjects. As the years went by the time of the Demon Emperor seemed like a distant memory. The generals and their wives would come to bear children and live peaceful lives together. One spring day with the sakura trees in bloom Kaoru found her husband staring out as the petals danced in the wind

"You look like something's on you mind" she mused

He looked at her with a smile

"Just enjoying all the wonderful things I never thought I deserved to have" he said

Kaoru smiled and wrapped her arm around his

"I suppose even now it must still be a bit surreal" she agreed

"Still, I'm not complaining" he said happily "I have a loving wife and a beautiful child"

"And a peaceful world to live in with them" she finished for him

He chuckled a bit and turned to her

"I love you Kaoru" he said leaning in

"I love you too Takeda" she replied as their lips connected

At long last harmony returns to Nippon forever freed from the clutches of one demon thanks to the blade of another

After all; it takes a demon, to kill a demon

Me: AND IT'S DONE!

Nar: *blows a party horn*

Me: *collapses* It's finally DONE!

Nar: And it only took 2 years, 2 months and 27 days to do so

Me: Indeed. Well ladies and gentlemen, it took way longer than it should have but TKaD is finally said and done

Nar: Thank you all so much for supporting us despite the *levels a look at me* rather inconsistent uploads

Me: I know for Pete's sake!

Nar: And since it has been a while we'd also like to remind you of a new story that we have planned

Me: My first crossover story. It's with RWBY and Bloodborne and will be called From Blood to Dust. However, as I said I'm not letting myself leave you guys hanging again. So I won't post anything of this story until it is completely written

Nar: Also Electron likely won't start writing until after the holidays

Me: I need to be fresh and ready to get started on this new story

Nar: Riiiiiight

Me: So until that day comes everyone!

Nar: R&R!

Me: Enjoy Life!

Both: AND LATER DAYS

Me: And also, Happy Belated Thanksgiving as well as Early Christmas and New Years!