Ninja Love: Saizo Kirigakure

Chapter 50

The landscape is hazy, but I know this place well. I look around me, examining the houses and people and dirt roads, knowing that I will not remember any of this when I wake. I watch in silence as a young girl and boy with raven black hair run past me, laughing. They weave in and out of the people in the street, and he calls her by name; my name. I try to call out to them, but I can neither move nor speak.

The pair passes me again, hands intertwined and a picnic basket in hand, heading for the village border. For some reason, I know that they will not return to the same village that they left.

In the blink of an eye, the village is on fire. Hell has broken loose, and I am still motionless. The house beside me crumbles to the ground, and I try to ignore the screams that come from within it. Heat licks at my skin, and I open my mouth to cry out in pain. Silence. The sound of the village's destruction, the terrifying cries as soldiers tear families apart and murder children in front of their parents, and the hellish crackling of fire are the only noises to be heard.

At the edge of the village, I see the children, standing confused and afraid as they watch their home being razed to the ground. The boy turns to her and, though they are far from me, I can hear his words as clear as day.

"Stay here, I'm going to try to find our families."

The girl tries to hold him back, I open my mouth and plead with my voice to utter words of warning, but the boy leaves anyways. Shortly after he dashes into the smoke and heat, the girl follows, calling for her friend, her family, anyone. Soldiers on horseback nearly trample her, but she dives out of the way, barely avoiding her death. She breathes heavily, choking on a deadly cocktail of smoke and tears.

She runs closer to me via the road I am standing by, and still I can do nothing but watch. Suddenly, her eyes lock onto me, and she stops, her mouth hanging open in disbelief and her eyes shining with rage and sadness.

"You," she accuses, thrusting her finger at me with all the disgust and hatred her little body can contain. "Why won't you remember? Do we mean so little to you?"

'I want to remember, but I can't,' I want to say, but no words come out. The girls shakes her head and keeps running down the road, and I know I will not see her again.

Suddenly, the scenery changes. I am on horseback, riding through a forest. The air is crisp and the sky is blue, and yet I have a horrible sense that something terrible is about to happen. A shadow falls across the road, the shadow of a great man wielding two swords. A strong wind circles me, blurring out the rest of the world. I am gone.

○○○

"Misaki?"A gentle hand and concerned voice shook me from the already fleeting memories of my nightmare. I cracked open my eyes, squinting as the sun fell through the window and temporarily blinded me.

"Kuma?!" Once I could actually see, I could hardly believe my eyes. I leapt out of bed, tossing my blanket to the side as I wrapped my arms around my mentor and friend.

"What are you doing here?" I took a step back and beamed at her.

Kuma laughed and replied, "Hanzo sent for me; he told me what happened with the battle and said he required my assistance with something. Apparently though, plans change, so I'm going to be one of the ninja escorting you to Koga."

My smile faltered a little at the reminder of my departure today, but I kept it up as much as I could to make sure she didn't feel as though she was the cause of my disappointment.

"Well, I know I'm in good hands then," I said lightly as I began packing my belongings.

"Kuma," I paused as a familiar, deep voice came into the room. Saizo's eyes glanced between me and her, finally resting on me. "Take care of her, alright?"