Soul of the Sword

All souls have a destiny. Some are simply brighter than others.

I am a lover of art and beauty, Okame-san,” he said with a shrug. “I have learned that it can be found anywhere, regardless of station or circumstance. True beauty is rare, hidden and often overlooked by others and it can appear at the strangest times. I try to appreciate it when I see it.

Is this an 'I'm sorry I tried to assassinate you' tea ceremony?

My master used to say, sometimes a whisper is all that is required to calm a storm, but when words fail, sometimes you need the thunder.

As I said before, vengeance is easy. One can never be certain with an emotion as dangerous and unpredictable as love.

In the best stories, the heroes always give their lives, for honour, duty, sacrifice and the glory of the empire. Anything less and it is not much of a story at all.

But then, he let out a breath, and it seemed to release all the fear, uncertainty, horror and doubt of the past nightmare. He crushed me to his chest, clinging to me like a lifeline, like I was his sanity and he was afraid I would abandon him.

It’s not the spirits that call to us,' he murmured. “It is our own failures and regrets we see.

But I’m going to do it. I just...want you to know that I’m coming, Tatsumi. And that I’ll fight for you, as hard as I can. I’ll free your soul from Hakaimono, one way or another.” My chest felt tight. No one in my seventeen years of existence had cared so much to try to save me. I was nothing; a weapon of the Kage, trained to kill and to obey.

Now you understand. Your tie to this world had nothing to do with the vengeance, or anger, or justice. It is not revenge that keeps you here, but longing. Love." He shook his head. "The most dangerous of human emotions.

I’m not afraid.” She shifted closer, placing her hands over mine. I looked up and found her face a breath away, golden eyes shining as they met my own. “If it means I’ll see you again, I’ll fight a dozen Hakaimonos.” She blinked, and atop her head, her ears twitched nervously. “There’s only one, right?” My heart pounded, and I drew in a slow breath to calm it. “As far as I know.

Tatsumi has been taught to resist pain, manipulation, seduction, even mind control and blood magic. But I neglected to warn him about the most dangerous emotion of all.” A bitter smile curled one corner of his mouth. “After everything we put him through, I honestly thought the boy incapable of it. Apparently, I can still be surprised, after all these years.

This is why I don't trust magic," he muttered, leaning back against the tree. "Inanimate objects like swords and scrolls should not WANT to be found. They should not want anything.

For the other clans, the night is to be feared, a thing shut out and kept at bay with light and warmth. But the darkness has always favoured the Kage, and we have learned that traveling through the shadows is far quicker than traveling in the light.

I didn't think Naganori's Shadow magic would produce flowers and butterflies, unless they were black butterflies that ate your soul, which didn't seem healthy at all.