Chapter 3
Shozen, Izo, Shun, and Mikana walk down a trail surrounded by tall trees
Their leaves flowed along the paths of the sky's wind, leading to the direction they intended
Tall, grassy mountains stood tall in the distance, the greenery and view was quite the delight, a sight for sore eyes
Shozen look exhausted but continues to walk anyway, he knows he has to show out on his first mission as a samurai
Shozen: How much longer is it gonna take until we get there?
Mikana: We should be arriving in another hour— or so…
Shun: PATIENCE, SHOZEN— YOU WILL GET A CHANCE TO PROVE YOURSELF!
Shun says grinning ear to ear
Shozen: That's not why I was asking— it's just we've been walking for at least 4 hours non stop…. My feet are getting sore-
Mikana: Are you complaining—
She says gaining a hint of frustration
Mikana: You're a Samurai…. There's going to be times where you have to walk for 10 hours with a High Ranking and you won't be able to complain or stop—
Mikana: SO SHUT UP!
Izo continues to walk in silence but observes with his arms crossed
Shozen's faces drops and he whisper to Shun
Shozen(Whispering): What's her problem?
Shun(Whispering): She doesn't like you…
He whispers back
Shozen face turns serious
Shozen(Whispering): I can obviously see that Shun….
Shozen grabs the back of his head and smiles
Shozen: So— Mikana— what's it's like being the daughter of The Shogun
Shozen: It's gotta be perfect—
Mikana: It's not….
She says seriously
Mikana: It's worse than it seems
Mikana stops walking and so does everyone else
Mikana: I'm always in this "shadow" of him and—
Mikana: Everyone just sees me as The Shogun's daughter…
Shozen: W-Well… I'm sure you'll make a name for yourself one day—
Mikana: Tch! I don't need YOUR reassurance of all people
Shozen: R-Right
Shozen: What about you, Izo?
Izo: …
Shozen: Alright…
Mikana: Shun, would you like to share anything?
Shun: Of course!
Shun: I LOVE FIGHTING!!!
Mikana: Besides that…
Shun: Ah- well in that case
Shun: I come from a long line of powerful warriors and was trained to be just that
Shun: My father is one of the Daimyo so he certainly expects me to meet that standard
Shun: And if I don't then I've outright failed him as his only son…
Shun stopped for a second, as did Shozen
But Mikana and Izo continued their walk
Shun: I want to become the most powerful in my clan so I can be there to take my father's place when he needs me to
Mikana: Yeah… it sounds about right
Shun: That's not all… not even close to it
Shun: There's plenty of my clan members straight up outmatch me… it won't be so easy—
Shozen: But it's possible!
Shozen: Trust me, Shun
Shozen: I can feel a will in you that most others don't have, you can and will become the head of your clan
Shun: AND A DAIMYO!
Shozen chuckles, rubbing the back of his head
Shozen: The Daimyo too!
Mikana: What are you two waiting for? WE HAVE A MISSION TO COMPLETE AND WE HAVEN'T EVEN MADE IT THERE YET!
Izo: She's right… it's already taking us a while and we're nearing nightfall— We need to pick up the pace even if it's just a bit
Shun: Right!
Shozen: R-Right…
They spoke in sync
Around an hour and a half passed and the group finally decides they need to take a break from the obnoxious walk
Shozen and Shun begin to snack on little rice cakes they brought along as Izo inspects his bow and sharpens his blade
Mikana: We'll need to cut this short, we don't know how much more time is left for those civilians at the-
Within the split of a second some rustling occurred in some bushes nearby
The groups attention swayed to the bush, waiting for a few moments
Shun: Hm… maybe it was just the wind— or an animal
Shun: Anyway, we've had enough rest, we can eat these rice cakes during the walk, Shozen!
Shun: A WARRIOR MUST EAT!
Mikana: Could you stop being loud for just FIVE MINUTES
Shun: S-Sorry about that!
Shun and Shozen jump to their feet as did the others, continuing down the now dark path
Shun: I have an idea
Shun: Something that can stave off the boredom
Shozen: Like what?
Shun: A game of… uhhh—
Shozen: Uhhh…?-
Mikana: Have you two ever tried playing the quiet game?
Shozen: No… what's th-
Mikana: A GAME WHERE YOU SHUT YOUR TRAPS!
Shun: Yeah… I don't think she enjoys our company very much
Shun: C'mon Mikana! Don't ruin all the fun!
Mikana: The only time we have fun is when we aren't on missions
Mikana: And if you two couldn't tell, that's what we're on
Mikana: SO STOP TREATING IT LIKE ONE!!!
Shun: MA'AM YES MA'AM!
Mikana: If anything we should try to formulate a plan for when we arrive—
Izo: IF we arrive…
Shun: Izo, what're you sayin'?
Izo: One of the reasons I've been so quiet is because I'm listening out for it…
Shozen: It? Who's it?
Shozen: What's it…?
Izo: I don't know… It's a voice I always listen to
Izo: It tends to guide me in the right places and for the right shots so I have reasons to trust him
Shun: So… what is IT saying right now.
Izo: It may sound strange… but we need to get off of this trail
Mikana: Get off of the trail?
Mikana: In the mission briefing said-
Izo: It doesn't matter what was said…
Izo: It's a sense that I trust… so I will do just that
Izo took his own lead, treading off of the path and deeper into the trees while still heading in the relatively same direction
Mikana: UGH!
Mikana: As your leader I'd be responsible for anything that happens to him or the rest of you
Mikana: So I guess we'll stick together and follow
Shun: Pfft-… she said leader
Mikana: What? Do you think YOU could lead any better, 'Muscle Head'?
Shun: I mean… I wouldn't doubt myself
The rest of the group began to follow Izo off of the path, and following him closely
Later on their way to the village, Izo suddenly stopped, looking up into a tree and pointing
Izo: I knew it…
The rest of the group looked up, spotting a string attached to some sort of harpoon dart with poison on the edge
That same string was covered in dirt and directed across the path
Izo: Someone set up traps… as if they knew about our arrival…
Izo: Look… over there too
There was another trap set up… but different from the last.
It was a battle axe that was held up by a string as well
Any disturbance to the string would caused it to fall and swing… potentially killing someone
Mikana: Wow… I guess you aren't so crazy after all, Izo
Mikana: Phenomenal work…!
Izo: It's best that we keep a low and quiet profile… it's no coincidence that the traps were set up closer to the village… perhaps to catch us off guard completely
Izo: Only a few more minutes… we're close
Within the next ten to fifteen minutes, the group began to smell heavy scents of cinder and a pale light through the trees
Izo grabbed the handle of his blade, slicing at the limbs of the trees that covered their sight
Izo: We're here…
The group emerged from the woodsy forest unharmed, met with the gaze of a burning…
Cinder Village
To be continued. . .