The Dragonblade [On Hold]

Chapter 1: The Academy

"Backhand cut! Parry! Riposte! Thrust! Rest Position!"

Shigeru Matsumoto, a sixth-year apprentice at the prestigious Kenjutsu academy, stepped back from the training post and wiped his forehead with the back of his gloved hand. Shigeru was a tall, lean boy that had the look of a natural athlete. He held the sword in his right hand, and he looked down the line to see the instructor walking towards him.

Kazutoshi Shimazaki was an older man, about the age of fifty. He taught swordsmanship and karate at the academy. He was a formidable-looking man, and many of the students were scared of him, ranging from more of a respectful type of fear to being outright terrified of him. And rightly so.

"Shigeru!" He barked, stopping in front of the cadet. "What do you think you're doing? Just because you're a prodigy here at the academy here doesn't mean that you can slack off."

Shigeru internally sighed. "Sir, I wasn't slacking off, I was doing the drill, just as you ordered."

"Oh really?" Kazutoshi asked, a sneer entering his voice. "If that's so, then you can perform for me the last four strokes that I ordered."

"Gladly," replied Shigeru, taking two steps forward. He sank into a fighting position, and attacked the post, calling out the moves as he went. "Backhand cut! Parry! Riposte! Thrust!"

He looked back at Kazutoshi and said, "The last four strokes, as you requested, sir."

The instructor was unimpressed. "If you're half the warrior everyone here says you are, then you would do it again, with your left hand, at twice the speed."

Shigeru grinned. "Gladly," he said, before switching his sword to his other hand and repeating the sequence.

Kazutoshi grunted, before walking off without saying a word. Shigeru smiled to himself, before taking up a fighting stance again.

After the swords training class, Shigeru met up with one of his closest friends, Hitoshi Hiroyuki. Hitoshi was about average height, stocky, and was a bit of a joker. The two had met four years ago when Hitoshi had been picking up his stuff off of the ground in the hallway in front of the dorms. Shigeru had walked out of the dorms and nearly tripped over Hitoshi.

"Hitoshi!" He had exclaimed. "What are you doing on the floor?"

"Sanako Hirasi," was all he replied with. And that was all he needed to say.

Sanako Hirasi was the school bully back when they were in their second year. He wasn't the strongest or the smartest student at the academy, but by the way that he held himself, you would have thought that he was. Shigeru had helped Hitoshi pick his stuff up, but the moment he had picked everything up, he had stormed off.

Nobody really knew what happened after Shigeru stormed off that day. All everyone knew was that Shigeru had talked to Sanako and that after they had talked, Sanako had become much more passive towards everyone else. It's also worth noting that Sanako had paid a visit to the hospital wing, and that for a week afterward, Sanako walked with a limp, and that his voice was about an octave higher than it was before.

Shigeru and Hitoshi had hit it off pretty quickly, and the pair become nearly inseparable. As they walked down the hall towards their history class, they discussed what the swords instructor had said to Shigeru.

"Why do you think that he's always picking on you?" Hitoshi asked.

"Probably because until I got here, Instructor Kazutoshi was the second-best swordsman here. Ever since everyone figured out what I had, he was kicked down to third, and people have been respecting him less."

"You're probably right."

They arrived at the history classroom, a small, unadorned building that was in need of remodeling. Shigeru pulled open the door, and they walked in.

The history professor, Makiko Kikutake, was a tall, young woman. But if you looked past the exterior and looked into her eyes, you would see the intelligence that went beyond her years. She had been the history professor at the academy for three years, and the students didn't know anything about her past.

Shigeru and Hitoshi sat down at their seats just as the late gong rang. Professor Makiko walked in and said, "alright class, everybody settle down please."

As everyone quieted down, the professor walked up to the front of the classroom and said, "today we will be talking about the dragonblade, it's history, and how it relates to the succession of the throne in our kingdom. Can anyone tell me what the dragonblade is?"

Shigeru raised his hand, and the professor nodded at him. "Shigeru?"

"The dragonblade is, as its name suggests, a sword infused with the power of dragons, specifically the dragons of the north and south winds. The blade can be properly wielded only by the rightful emperor of the kingdom. The blade can summon one of two dragons, depending on the person who is wielding it. The blade is also thought to enhance all physical abilities of the wielder."

"Thank you, Shigeru," said the professor. "Now, can anyone tell me how the dragonblade came to be? How about you, Hayato?"

Hayato, who was falling asleep on his desk, jerked upward. "Wha- I wasn't asleep!" He looked around and asked, "what was the question again?"

"Can you tell us how the dragonblade came to be?"

"Ah, yes, the dragonblade, " he replied. He straightened up in his seat and said, "The dragonblade was first given to Atsuko Wataragne, the founder of our kingdom. Legend has it that it was given to him by the gods themselves."

"Good," said Professor Makiko. "Now, can you tell us the logical solution of how the dragonblade came to be?"

"Most likely, it started out as an ordinary katana that was forged out of some incredibly hard metal. It was probably infused with the power of dragons by Atsuko Shimada using magic, which we know is a gift that generally exclusively appears in the royal family, with a few exceptions throughout history. It has been passed down through history, from one emperor to another."

"Thank you, Hayato," said the professor. "Now, everyone, please take out your history books and turn it to page 34. Read the section about the dragonblade, and then we'll continue our class discussion."

As he opened his book, Shigeru looked up and saw that Hitoshi was frowning and raising his hand. Professor Makiko noticed it too and looked up at him. "Do you have a question, Hayato?"

"Yes, ma'am, I have two questions, " replied Hitoshi. "The dragonblade signifies that someone is the true emperor of the kingdom. But what happens when someone tries to take the throne without the dragonblade? And does Emperor Hanzo have possession of the dragonblade right now?"

"The events that you speak of have rarely happened throughout our history. However, it has happened before that people have tried to seize the throne by force. Without exception, their reigns were short and violent."

"As for our current emperor... When he attacked Genji, his older, twin brother, Genji used a spell that broke the dragonblade into four pieces and scattered the pieces throughout the kingdom. Emperor Hanzo is currently scouring every inch of the kingdom, searching for the pieces of the dragonblade. As far as I know, he has only found one of the pieces."

"Thank you, ma'am," said Hitoshi, pulling out his book. Shigeru turned his head back towards his book, but internally, he was pondering over what he had just heard.