Adaption is Key (An Aza Chobei Fanfic)

Prologue: A Bandit and an Executioner

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Aza Chobei was arrested for murder and thievery. What made him special was that he was a master at those offenses, hence his moniker as the Bandit King, earning him a red seal. The prison had tried torturing him, but he would easily adapt to whatever circumstances were given. First, they tried flogging the man for his banditry. He was tied up against a pole and lashed for a maximum of a hundred times each day, but Chobei would play them off. Despite the new scars he had received, the blond would mock the guards for "barely doing their hardest to whip him." It even entertained him to the point that it brought him painful pleasure. As the flagellations continued, he noticed a woman in the Yamada clan garb watch over him, writing down notes on her book.

Huh? A female Yamada clan member... I thought that those swordsmen barely invite women...

Second, they had attempted to execute him for his crimes involving murder. When they boiled him with oil, he would kick the cauldron, incinerating some poor schmuck. Next, they tried pulling him apart by tying his legs to oxen so that they could tear him in half. However, Chobei would move his legs, forcing the livestock to bump into each other and die from the force of the impact. This infuriated the guards as Chobei mocked them with laughter until he saw the girl again. He would always see that girl observe his executions, despite the fear on her face and the tremblings in her knees, despite being a swordswoman. Even though he calculated that the woman would execution him by decapitation, it amused the Bandit King to see a girl cower in front of him.

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As the Bandit King endured a month's worth of agonizing pain, he looked outside his cell to see the female Yamada clan member with sweat shaking off her.

"Gre...greetings, Aza-san!! I'm Mizuho of the Yamada clan!" she nervously explained.

Aza Chobei smirked at the fear in her eyes. "What is a girl like you doing here talking to the Bandit King~? Are you going to decapitate me~? Your clothes and sword aren't fooling me. You're part of the Yamada clan, albeit a lower mook."

Her fear was then replaced by a solemn tone, realizing that she must tell the truth to him.

"Yes, I'm an unranked member of the Yamada clan. I was supposed to perform my duties here and execute you, but I decided not to...."

"Why is that~?"

"We've captured your younger brother, Aza Toma..." confessed Mizuho.

Chobei's face turned from smug and confident to worried and aggressive. "What did you do to him?!"

"Don't worry," replied Mizuho returning back to her nervous tone, "Toma is currently being held in the Yamada clan headquarters. If you want both yourself and him free, I have a proposal for you..."

With a determined and interested face, Chobei asked, "What is it?"

Mizuho, although rushingly, continued. "There's an island called Shinsenkyo...it's where an immortal elixir lies. However, many explorers had either died when they reached the island... or came back as corpses of flowers when they arrived back.... In order to save his people while wanting to become immortal, the emperor chose death-row criminals to bring him Tan exchange for their freedom..."

"However there's a drawback...In order not to use this opportunity to escape from their crimes...the emperor had assigned members of the Yamada clan to watch over them and execute them if they fall out of line... I volunteered to be your executioner..."

Chobei, determined for the freedom of himself and his brother, replied. "I'm in."

Mizuho smiled shyly. "Good...but we have to head to the beach first. The emperor wants to make sure to find suitable criminals to find the elixir for him..."

Chobei licked his face with excitement of going there as the guards let him go from his prison. As they exit the jail, Chobei saw Mizuho in her white kosode with bell hanging from her left collar, a black haori decorated with white wave patterns, a hakama that bears a single red band at the left gusset, a red obi to hold her katana and supplies from medical to survival, and high platform shoes. He also noticed her bangs covering her face's left side with its jet-black, poofy hair reaching her waist with a small hair bun tied up by miokuri. Mizuho also had dark blue eyes that sparkled in the sunlight. The Bandit King looks at her with amazement.

Despite this chick's nerves being all over the place, he thought to himself, she's quite good looking.

Mizuho then faced him, holding papers and ropes. "Unfortunately, the meeting spot is secret so I have to bind you and cover your face. Do you understand?"

"Yes, ma'am." He said before Mizuho tied his wrists and covered his face.

Don't worry, Toma... He thought to himself. Your big brother is coming for you...

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Author's Note: 

Hello readers! 

It's my first time writing to the public. I hope you enjoyed this and had fun reading this. I wanted to make my own, since the characters I liked or enjoyed don't have a lot of fanfiction here dedicated to them, so might as well do it myself.

Thank you!

Edit:

I added more detail for the prologue

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