Part Two

Here's the revised and enhanced version,

Ichi found the secret path leading to the meeting point, but something felt wrong. The forest was eerily silent, the usual sounds of rustling leaves and chirping birds absent. He stopped in his tracks, scanning the area.

"Hey! I'm here!" he called out, his voice echoing faintly in the stillness. "Where are you? Let's talk business, you still owe me some coins. The clan is under attack, and it's only a matter of time before it falls, I don't intend to stick around. I've got the boy, so where's my payment?"

He strolled cautiously along the path, clutching the bag of silver coins he'd been promised in his mind's eye. His confidence wavered when the bushes ahead stirred, the movement too deliberate to be the wind.

"Finally," he muttered, relief washing over him as a figure emerged from the shadows.

But relief turned to terror.

Ichi froze, his breath catching in his throat. The figure stumbled forward, clutching at a gushing wound in its neck. The man—an Izuo soldier—collapsed to his knees, blood streaming between his fingers as he reached a trembling hand toward Ichi.

"Help... me..." the soldier croaked before his body hit the ground with a lifeless thud.

Behind the fallen man, a shadow emerged—silent, deliberate, deadly.

"No… no…" Ichi stammered, his survival instincts kicking in. "This… this isn't happening!"

The shadow moved closer, revealing the glint of a blade slick with blood. Panic gripped him, and he bolted, his heart pounding as he sprinted back toward the cave. A whistling sound cut through the air—a shuriken narrowly missed his chest, embedding itself into a tree with a menacing thud.

Ichi didn't look back.

Reaching the cave, he dove between two large rocks, his chest heaving. He pressed himself against the cold stone, trying to silence his labored breathing.

Then he felt it—warm liquid trickling down his face.

Blood.

He touched his forehead in confusion, but the realization came too late.

A blade pierced through the back of his skull, its tip exiting cleanly through his throat. The last thing Ichi saw was the shadow of his killer looming over him.

Hyoushi Kitomi retracted her blade with precision, wiping it clean in a single, practiced motion. She stepped past the corpse, her expression cold, her mind singularly focused. She had gotten the information she needed from Izanagi's family before dispatching them. The boy's location was no longer a mystery.

She entered the cave silently, her movements calculated. The boy was crouched near the far wall, blind but aware, his small frame trembling.

"Who are you, who is there?" he asked, his voice cracking.

Kitomi raised her blade, her grip steady. It would be so simple—a single strike, quick and clean. Yet she hesitated, he was blind, she could tell from the way he starred without purpose.

For the first time in years, her resolve wavered.

The vow she had made burned in her mind. None must be spared. Every drop of blood owed must be repaid in full. She had spent years carving her vengeance into the flesh of those who had wronged her, leaving a trail of death across the clans. Yet, here she stood, faltering over a defenseless boy.

Why?

The boy clutched a scroll tightly in his hands. Kitomi snatched it away, her curiosity piqued. She unrolled it, her eyes scanning the hastily written words:

*"If you are reading this, dear friend, then I must surely be dead or captured and this war hasn't ended yet.

You must know I had no other option but to find a way to reach you. The boy must be protected at all costs. His life will determine the course of this bloody war.

We must not let what happened to Hyohi, what happened to our people, happen again. Izuo, Isaka, and Murokai have joined forces against the capital and the emperor. I had hoped to stand by my brother, but something compelled me to take my stand against the clans, they see it as betrayal but The boy is the key. He must return to the capital, The emperor must see him

I once saved your life and you made me a promise—now it is time you repay the favor by saving his.

Your last known location was the village of Dukai. The boy will find you. I have sent a guard to deliver him to you. Take him to the emperor himself. The boy is the key. He must survive

Yours faithfully,

Grand Patron Izanagi Uwa."*

Could it be? Could the person this letter was addressed to be the one she had been searching for all these years—the one who had slaughtered her family in cold blood?

She turned her attention back to the boy, her blade still in hand.

"I won't kill you," she said at last, though the words felt foreign on her tongue. "Who is this person, and how do we find him?"

"I don't know," the boy said, his voice shaky, "but I can try. I have this."

He reached into his robe and produced a small golden dagger. As soon as Kitomi reached for it, a blinding light emanated from the boy's hand, momentarily disorienting her. When the light faded, the boy spoke again.

"I've tracked him," he said with newfound confidence. "This dagger belonged to him who we must find. He's in a village called Sakuja, but he's moving. We'll need to hurry. My father said he'll take me to the emperor."

Kitomi's lips curled into a wicked smile.

"Oh, The blade let me have it," she said softly.

"It won't work for you, I don't know how but it only works with me, Are you going to take me to him?"

The question troubled her, She had never worked with anyone nor babysit anyone either. Although they seem close enough in age but this was troubling, however it felt certain that this mystery person could be the elusive swordsman, Izanagi was known to be closely associated with him in times past. This would be worth it. She convinced herself.

" I will take you to him, Do not talk to me unless I talk to you, You do as I say only when I say it, d you understand that? "

The boy nodded obediently, unsure and probably scared too.

She sheathed her blade, her mind racing. Keeping the boy alive was no longer just an obligation—it was a necessity. He was her key to unlocking the vengeance she had long sought.

Her ultimate revenge was now within reach.