The Dojo

Raizen woke up to the sound of whispers.

His head throbbed. His ribs ached. Every single thing hurt.

He tried to move his arms and realized he couldn't. Thick, coarse ropes bound his wrists behind him, tying him to a wooden chair, and he realized his ankles were secured too.

Panic flooded his chest.

"He's awake."

Raizen's eyes snapped open.

Six people stood in a semi-circle around him, all staring. The room was dim, lit only by a few paper lanterns hanging from the ceiling. Traditional. Old. The kind of place that smelled like incense and aged wood.

A dojo.

Raizen's gaze darted between the faces, his pulse hammering in his ears.

The woman with the purple hair who saved him, stood directly in front of him, arms crossed. Her mask still covered the lower half of her face, and her light gray eyes were not easy to decipher.

To her left was an old man, short, with white hair styled like wild flames. He leaned heavily on a walking stick, his eyes closed, his expression serene. But there was something unsettling about him. Something that made Raizen's skin crawl.

Next to him was a guy with long, spiky blue hair that jutted out in sharp, chaotic angles. He was scrawny, almost unnervingly thin, with a wiry frame that looked like it belonged to someone who survived on cigarettes and spite. His eyes were filled with a hatred that made Raizen’s throat bob.

Beside the blue-haired guy stood a man built like a machine. He had broad shoulders. Thick arms. Black hair slicked back. He was clearly very strong. His stance was relaxed, but his eyes remained on Raizen like a sniper to its target.

A girl with blonde pigtails sat on a wooden crate to the side, chewing gum obnoxiously loud. She blew a bubble, popped it, and grinned at Raizen like this was the most entertaining thing she had seen all week.

And then there was him.

The last guy stood at the back, leaning casually against the wall with his arms crossed. He had white hair that fell messily over his forehead, sharp red eyes that sparkled with amusement, and an aura that screamed untouchable. He looked like someone who could wipe the floor with everyone in the room and wouldn't even break a sweat doing it.

Raizen swallowed hard.

"Where... where am I?"

The old man didn't open his eyes. "You're in my dojo."

His voice was calm.

Raizen's breath quickened. "I need to go home. My aunt—she'll be worried. I need to—"

"You," the old man interrupted, his tone sharpening, "where did you find the stone?"

Raizen froze.

The blue-haired guy scoffed and stepped forward. In one fluid motion, he drew his weapon, a pair of sleek, crescent-shaped blades connected by a thin chain. They reflected in the lantern light, deadly and elegant.

"Let me kill him now and save us the trouble," the guy said, his voice dripping with barely veiled venom.

He lunged.

The purple-haired woman moved faster.

Her scythe materialized in her hands, a massive, curved blade with a long black handle. She swung it in a clean arc, intercepting the chained blades mid-strike. The clash rang out like thunder, and sparks flew.

"Move, Ichika. Now," the blue-haired guy hissed.

Ichika didn't respond. She just stood there, scythe locked against his weapon, her expression hidden behind the mask.

"Enough, Ryu," the old man said quietly.

Ryu clicked his tongue but stepped back, his blades retracting with a metallic clink. Ichika lowered her scythe but didn't move from her position between Raizen and the others.

The old man stepped forward, his walking stick tapping against the wooden floor. He stopped directly in front of Raizen.

Then he opened his eyes.

Raizen’s heart nearly stopped beating.

His eyes were completely black. There were no whites. No irises. It was like staring into endless, terrifying voids.

"Where," the old man repeated, his voice colder now, "did you find the stone?"

Raizen's throat felt dry. "I... I found it at home. In my father's room. There was a box—yellow papers all over it. I didn't know—"

"Your name," the old man interrupted. "What is your name?"

"Raizen. Raizen Kurogane."

Silence suddenly fell upon the room.

The old man's eyes widened, just slightly, but enough for Raizen to notice.

"Kurogane?" he whispered. "You're the son of that traitor?"

Raizen blinked. "Traitor? What are you people—"

Ryu's expression twisted into something ugly. "Then that's even more reason to kill him."

He lunged again.

Faster this time.

Ichika moved to intercept, but Kaizen was already mid-swing, his chained blades slicing through the air toward Raizen's throat.

"RYU NO!"

An explosion of blinding blue light erupted from