The purple haired brat

A loud shriek echoed throughout the royal palace and dashing from the women’s baths in full sprint was an adolescent boy with purple hair and an average build. He was clad in a white jacket, black trousers and shoes. Kazuo Inazuma, the daimyo’s (feudal lord) fifteen year old delinquent of a son raced through the palace corridors and was brought to an abrupt stop by his sensei Rohan.

“Where might you be rushing off to in such a hurry young lord?” the samurai asked.

The young lord stammered and failed to come up with an answer to save his skin. Just then two women drenched and clothed in white yukata (bathrobes) arrived at the scene. Rohan didn’t need further explanation, he apologized to the women before dragging Kazuo by his arm and escorting him to the daimyo.

“What has that purple haired brat done now?” one maidservant whispered to another as they saw Kazuo being dragged through the palace corridors.

“Careful addressing the young prince like that. These walls have ears you know,” the other servant replied as she thoroughly scrubbed the ceramic tiled floor that now looked like a mirror.

“Last time I heard he started a fire in his manservant’s quarters,” the first servant added whilst dusting the royal ornaments.

Kazuo was brought to the daimyo’s chamber where he was welcomed by his parents. Seated on the throne next to his father was his mother princess Natsuhi. She was a gorgeous and youthful looking thirty three year old woman. She wore an orange floral kimono with a yellow obi to conceal her curvaceous body and had long violet hair whose colour her son inherited. Her hair was rolled into two buns and she also had bangs that covered her forehead. Her husband Kazuma on the other hand was two years her senior. He was a handsome man with short and neatly combed black hair who also looked younger than his age. He wore reading glasses, a black nagagi, hakama as well as an orange haori which was strictly worn by Fire daimyo.

“Inazuma Kazuo, why do you always have to act out in order to get your father’s attention when you know how busy he is?” asked a concerned Natsuhi after Rohan told them what had transpired. “Last time a man almost died because of you and now this!”

Kazuo could notice the fury in her eyes and this was confirmed by the fact that she only addressed him by his full name whenever she was angry.

“I have told you that your son has no manners my dear, he’s almost come of age but is a disgrace to the family name,” Kazuma said facing his wife. He then turned his gaze towards Kazuo, “Look at your cousin who’s only a year younger than you but is well-mannered and disciplined.”

“Don’t compare me to Kenzo old man when you’re never there!” Kazuo snapped back at him.

“Kono gaki (You brat)! I am the daimyo of this village not your babysitter,” Kazuma bellowed furiously.

“Language Anata (my love), our son just needs to be guided in the right path.”

“My dear, when I was his age my father–the Lord Sage had to be at the Lightning village for most of the time. Keiji and I didn’t act out like he’s doing when we were younger!” Kazuma took a deep breath and paused for a moment before facing his son. “You as the heir should be focusing on succeeding me in the future, why don’t you grow up Kazuo and stop playing these stupid games?”

In that moment Natsuhi conjured a brilliant plant, “Anata, why don’t we send him to your father.”

Kazuma thought for a while and then answered, “That’s a brilliant idea! Maybe he can teach the boy a thing or two because I have had enough of his nonsense.”

“Hey wait a minute…” Kazuo immediately interrupted. He was worried that his parents were making decisions on his behalf. “Don’t I get a say in any of this!?”

“No! It’s decided, tomorrow morning you’re going to your ojiisan (grandfather) and that’s final,” replied Kazuma.

“Kuso (shit)…not that old geezer,” Kazuo thought and then shouted, “I wish I never see you guys ever again!”

Kazuo violently slammed the door right behind him and then ran off to his room. The rest of the day went by in a flash and soon enough the next day had arrived. He woke up in the morning tired because he had been thinking about what his parents had told him the previous day. To add on that morning he had to prepare his own bath and breakfast because his manservant had been ordered not to do so on his behalf. When he was done with bathing and eating he packed his stuff in his satchel and his father summoned him to send him off in front of everyone.

“Inazuma Kazuo, you are hereby banished from the Fire village for all the trouble you have been causing,” Kazuma’s voice echoed in the royal chamber.

The young prince glared at his parents spitefully for the last time and Rohan escorted him outside of the royal palace. “You know you had this coming young prince,” he told the boy as they were walking in the streets of the Fire village.

The leader of the royal guard samurai Rohan was forty two and had a strong muscular build. He had a short black man bun with a receding hairline and his face was covered with a short stubble beard. Rohan was clad in the distinct red fire samurai armour with orange lining for royal guards and he also wore waraji (straw sandals). On his waist were two sheathed swords, a longer katana and a slightly shorter wakizashi. As they walked everyone stared at Kazuo and knowing how fast hot news travelled in the Fire village even the peasants had heard about his banishment.

“I will only take you half the journey,” Rohan said as they exited the Fire village gates.

“I’ve never actually walked to the Lightning village before, it was always on a horse drawn carriage or palanquin,” said Kazuo.

“Well then there’s a first time for everything now isn’t there?” replied Rohan and he further added “The journey ahead is quite long and filled with rōnin (rogue ninja) and bandits that’s why I’m taking you halfway. Oh and last night your parents had already sent a messenger bird to your grandfather notifying him of your departure today so I’m sure there’ll be someone waiting for you along the way.”

The two of them continued to talk and reminisce as they walked. The Fire village was now only showing in the distant horizon. Then unexpectedly they were met by a group of five bandits who had been hiding in the surrounding green underbrush.

“Where do you think you’re going?” demanded one of the bandits with short, dark spiky hair. He looked gangly, middle aged and was also chewed on a blade of grass.

“You will let us pass through,” Rohan replied taking a defensive stance in front of Kazuo and also about to draw his katana.

“Hahaha…what can one samurai do against the five of us?” questioned another bandit who was bald and stout.

The bandits drew their weapons and circled in towards Rohan and Kazuo. The first bandit threw a kunai knife with such a poor aim that Rohan didn’t have use his katana to block it.

“You’re not worth me using my blade,” said Rohan as he sheathed the katana into its saya (scabbard) and advanced towards the bandit with nothing but his fists.

Rohan punched the initial bandit right on his jaw and sent him flying towards some bushes. He then gave the chubby one a kick to his huge belly followed by a knockout fist to the face. Two bandits were down for the count and only three remained. Rohan was fighting against two of the bandits when the third one jumped right behind Kazuo.

“Young lord!” gasped Rohan trying to warn Kazuo as he gave one bandit an uppercut and knocked him out. Kazuo tried to defend himself with a kunai but was easily blocked and pinned down.

“Stop right there samurai…I got your boy now,” said the third bandit who was a bit muscular than the others as he was on top of Kazuo restraining the young prince.

“Leave him alone…I am your opponent.” Rohan thought of a way to save Kazuo.

“I heard you refer to him as a lord, so that means he’s from a noble clan,” the bandit replied, “…you will give us all the money you’ve g–.”

Before the bandit could finish his sentence Rohan had thrown a five star shuriken that stuck itself on the bandit’s forehead. He dropped to the ground dead.

“Nani! What the hell have you done? He was one of us!” shouted the remaining bandit who had been fighting Rohan. He was now enraged by the loss of one of his friends.

“Bloodlust?”

Rohan saw the last standing bandit furiously race towards him with a katana. He immediately drew out his katana when he realized that the bandit was now fighting with greater intensity than before. Sounds of steel clanging filled the normally quiet forest as the two swordsmen clashed against each another. It was a fight to the death!

The fight carried on for a while with the two warriors having inflicted minor cuts on each other. Rohan then observed that the other bandits were starting to wake up. He had no choice but to take down the bandit he was fighting.

“You fought with honor.” Rohan acknowledged his opponent and then sliced through his torso with a side cut.

Two bandits were now dead and the other three who were weaker than the former finally regained consciousness. After seeing the corpses of their fellow men they stared at each other with utter fear in their eyes.

“Scatter!” shouted the spiky haired bandit and they all scurried off into the bushes, never to be seen again.

Rohan wiped off the blood from his katana with a cloth and then sheathed it. He had taken a beating but wasn’t injured that much.

“Ikuzo Kazuo-sama,” said Rohan facing Kazuo and they were back on their journey.

“That was crazy what you did back there,” Kazuo commented, “I’m sorry I didn’t realize when that bandit jumped behind me.”

“It is alright young lord, I’m glad you headed my warning and reacted swiftly by taking out that kunai,” Rohan replied giving Kazuo a pat on the back.

They walked for a long while without any trouble and Rohan said, “We have now travelled half the journey, the lightning village is another ten or so kilometres from here and this is where I’ll leave you Kazuo-sama.”

“Can’t you go with me till we reach the village Rohan-sensei?” Kazuo pleaded. Tears were almost falling down his on his cheeks.

“Don’t cry young lord, this part is now safer as we have reached Lightning village territory and much of it is heavily guarded by ninja so you will be alright,” replied Rohan. “If anything happens remember what I taught you…Sayōnara Kazuo-sama.”

“Sayōnara Rohan-sensei,” Kazuo bid his mentor farewell.

Kazuo carried on the journey alone and only stopped for a short break. This time he could feel that the distance unlike when he was walking together with Rohan. He stopped for a few minutes and was back on track. As he walked his mind was filled with thoughts of what had happened the previous day.

“I can’t believe those guys…sending me to grandpa’s ninja school,” he thought. All of a sudden he heard a sound emanating from the nearby bushes.

“Wait, what was that?” he whispered.

A masked man with a spiky white pony tail and wielding a katana appeared right in front of Kazuo. He was in his mid-twenties, had a lean body and wore a turquoise armour with grey trousers as well as tabi shoes. On his armour was the kanji characters for ‘ninja.’