Demon’s Path

By Jackie

 

Disclaimer: The characters in this story are based on my own imagination. Please do not steal.

 

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They looked on, frightened because of his strength. No one could match it, but they had their orders. He stood there unmoving, waiting for the inevitable.

He knew the assassins were there and he welcomed the challenge they posed. He was outnumbered; at least 20 to 1, but that didn’t matter. He could take them and if not it didn’t matter anyway. He lived only to fight.

She watched, hidden in the bushes, looking at the stranger who had stopped in the forest. She was fascinated, yet he frightened her. Why had he stopped in her forest? Right where she was hiding no less. There were too many strangers! She had decided to hide. But they wouldn’t go away.

Then the attack came. They all attacked at once, and he stopped them in their tracks, seemingly without doing a thing. But they all knew better than that. The assassins had underestimated this demon. He had only used a fraction of his power, but it had been enough. He had stopped them and sent them flying back.

The assassins that had survived fled, knowing they didn’t stand a chance. They had been searching for a child with unimaginable power. Instead they had found one of the most feared demons in existence, Isaku.

As the assassins scrambled away, they reminded Isaku of mice scattering, as if they had seen a cat. He wondered what had brought ninjas such as they here.

She groaned quietly as she sat up. That had hurt. How did he do that, she had wondered, slightly awed? He hadn’t moved yet all of those people had gone flying back. She had even gotten knocked over. She tried to move quietly to see if he was still there but she couldn’t find him anywhere. She let out a sigh. She was safe and he had left. Or so she thought.

He watched her silently, unmoving, to see what she would do next. She had made the mistake of making a noise and he had heard it. She crept silently, looking for him, he guessed, but she wouldn’t find him. Then she made her second mistake; assuming he was gone.

She had relaxed a little but was still on her guard. She didn’t survive this long by letting her guard down. Even so she was completely unprepared for what happened next.

Isaku had realized she was the one the assassins were after and decided to find out why. Slowly he crept up on her and grabbed her, covering her mouth.

She tried to scream but she was having enough problems trying to breathe as it was. Suddenly, there was a bright flash and the next thing she knew she was on the ground and everything went dark.

 

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Isaku got up, surprised that this small child could wield so much power. He saw her lying on the ground and went to go see if she was alive. He nudged her and she started to stir.

Once she had woken up, he saw to it that she did not go anywhere. “Who are you,” she asked timidly, “and what do you want?” 

He looked at her for a moment and then answered quietly. “My name is Isaku. You have intrigued me greatly. Now it is time for you to tell me your name.” 

She sat there looking frozen for some time before saying, “I am called Kimiko.” 

“Why were those assassins after you?” Isaku asked.

Kimiko just shrugged her shoulders and replied, “I didn’t know they were.” She looked sad and frightened, though she was trying to hide it.

Suddenly he stood up and walked away, leaving her sitting there. She got up and followed him from a distance for the next three days. On the fourth day she had been stalking him as usual, for it could not be called anything else, and the next thing she knew, someone was grabbing her behind. She screamed and tried to get away but to no avail.

He heard a scream and was sure it was she. He turned around just in time to see Kimiko being grabbed by assassins. Isaku circled around behind them, hoping to catch her captors by surprise.

Kimiko saw him slip around and continued to struggle, trying to keep their attention. Next thing she knew, she was on the ground, fairly unharmed and Isaku was beside her, guarding her from them.

They attacked once more to get Kimiko, but once again Isaku stopped them. He fought like the demon he was, with a style unique only to him. They didn’t stand a chance. After it was over, he was tired but otherwise unharmed.

Through the whole fight Kimiko had watched, and remembered how she had not been strong enough to save her family, and later, herself. It was then she made her decision. She would learn to fight and protect those who couldn’t. She would learn and she knew exactly who she wanted to teach her.

After he cleaned off, Isaku walked back to the clearing and saw Kimiko waiting there, looking impatient. He wondered what was bothering her. When she saw him she smiled, and walked over to talk to him.

She looked him directly in the eyes and prepared for the worst. She took a deep breath and asked him what she had in mind.

“Will you train me to fight?” she asked, startling him. He looked her over for a moment and then decided on his answer.

“I suppose if you’re going to be following me anyway, I might as well train you so I’m not constantly having to get you out of trouble,” he said with a sigh and thought of the trouble to come. He smiled ruefully. At least it would be interesting.