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"To live is to suffer, to survive is to find some meaning in the suffering."
— Friedrich Nietzsche, Germany
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(YEARS AGO).....
"Finding a meaning it's everything ruke remember that...., we drax kill for the well being of Nevada, that's what we find meaning in, but individually we all have meanings we have to search for ourselves, that's where our journey starts" kaiji taught, he was having a one on one discussion with his disciple.
"But what meaning is there to live, to have life sensai?...., what makes taking a life different as you said earlier" young ruke asked (9 years old)
"Humans have life, life itself is special and taking it is wrong but for the right reason.....that can be justified....listen ruke every little thing in this world clings to what's special no matter how tied down they are...even we drax sometimes cling to our life as well...." But if you find this explanation not satisfying, I guess you have to live long enough to find out what the meaning of life is young disciple"kaiji smiled standing"now c'mon young boy, today I select two more pupils to be my students" he continued walking ahead while young ruke followed behind.
(PRESENT DAY)
"A fight to the death huh?"anila asked forcing out a smile, they had just gotten out of the sanctum and were now heading for the rax, the rax a building accommodating three students, and their master, it had four separate rooms and a huge room in the center where masters and disciples learnt, had lessons and briefed each other.
"What do you think.....who do you think would win?"anila asked again, her purpose of talking was to Brighten the mood everyone on team hadn't said a thing since they left the sanctum. Not even ruke and she had never seen him have such a worried look on before.
"What did they really tell you shadow, what exactly?" She thought diverting her attention soon enough to notice some other trio approaching them.
"What up shadow?....you looking down is this.....about the deathmatch?" A guy from the trio asked his name balk, he had always hated ruke since ruke fought and humiliated him in front of everyone.
"Stay back balk....., this isn't the right time to start a feud"ran warned
"Says you.... you'll be dead tonight and you know it...., you're not the best drax the temple has to offer" another fellow responded, Leo by name a kid brought in for his exceptional talent after his parents were murdered in a massacre years ago
"Should we stop them?"anila asked standing at the some steps away from the almost igniting brawl with the female of the other trio nel, she was rumored to had been birthed by a drax who was guven a death penalty as soon as her daughter was born.
"I don't think so..., and besides I don't plan on getting on involved in any brawl with Shadow., he's dangerous" she replied, and anila damn well knew she was right.., igniting rules rage was just going to far, he could take on everyone n the temple at his stage if he wanted to and no one besides the grandmasters, and the gate keepers would stop him, even the teachers at the temple found it difficult to face him on a duel.
"Let's go lightning....," ruke ordered ignoring balk and avoiding any conflict but balk wasn't satisfied, he wanted ruke raging so they would brawl but all his efforts were fruitless as ruke had more pressing issues to sole at the moment. Ruke simply walked past him with his team heading back to the rax leaving balk and his team behind.
"One day shadow....I will have my revenge"balk swore watching ruke walk.
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"These are your teammates ruke, you all should learn to take care of each other...., have each other's back no matter what happens" kaiji smiled introducing his disciples, of course to the newcomers ruke needed no introduction, he was the talk of the temple, an orphan picked and trained by drax kaiji who at the age of nine has surpassed every pupil in the temple in both hand to hand combats and swordsmanship, the perfect prodigy they called him.
"I'm anila....., It's..... it's nice to finally meet you"anila said with a tiny blush, she had never thought she'd be standing so close to the person she admired so much, he had been her reason for trying to get better and surpassing most pupil in the temple.
"C'mon you don't have to be so stiff....., he won't bite" kaiji joked but while he laughed ruke hadn't said a thing yet he had his gaze fixed at the other end of the room, his third teammate hadn't Introduced himself, rather he has walked to the other end and sat there with his had placed on his lap and his back placed on the old style earthen wall in the room
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"He's sitting the exact same way he sat when we first met"ruke smiled painfully after reliving a memory, he was going to have to kill his friends and there was nothing he could do to stop it, the grandsmasters words were precise and supreme, even if he tried saving them, they'd all be given a death penalty and die leaving no one alive and that wasn't worth being a plan.
[We already know how it ends shadow..., they die and you live to become the doushin, this is necessary to purge away every emotions you have in you]
Those were their exact words to him on his first briefing about becoming the doushin, why did it have to be him, why did he have to be the doushin he wondered. Painful smiles being forced on his face while he tried hiding it he couldn't, everyone could tell he was feeling guilty.
"Stop being a billy and actually enjoy the day Shadow....., we don't get to dlbrawl until this eve.. so chill"rann said trying his best to phrase it into a word for calming
"As rann was trying to say....we all knew what we were getting into the day we stepped into the temple ruke....., so c'mon let's drink sa'ke and eat together until we can't anymore its already mid day, let's not waste anymore time"anila said grabbing some bottles of sa'ke from the shelves in the main room
"Codenames please will ya..and yh shadow....we got one day together let's not waste it"rann said grabbing an open bottle and taking a drink from it.
They weren't scared about getting killed or were they hiding it behind the cook act they were putting on ruke wondered picking up a bottle as well, it didn't matter he wanted this little time they had left to be special so he drank as well.
While he drank anila secretly stared at him, she had had a crush on him since she met him, no before that, since she saw him walk down the path of greatness as the best pupil in the temple. She regretted not saying anything, the temples rules were strict. Anyone found having any special relationships woukd be executed to death not like it would make a difference now she smiled her gaze still fixed on him.
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"Let me go!" A tired anila warned, she was bleeding from her mouth and nose, her kimono was tattered and torn and she looked worn out, six more pupils stood in front of her although not as injured as her they were older.
"Like we said..., you fight with one of us, you get to fight us all" one of the bullies laughed giving her a punch to the face sending her down the floor
"You're strong no doubt about it, but when faced against multiple opponents at once, it gets a lot harder to fight doesn't it?" He said again that time giving her another punch to the face while pinning her down make making sure she wouldn't get up.
"I wouldn't recommend attempting that for the third time" young ruke warned standing behind all six of them including anila who had been badly injured.
"Mind your business ruke, you may be strong but we have the numbers" the bully warned others getting ready to attack ruke
Letting out a little sigh ruke took a some steps closer while the bullies attacked him, one by one they all fell and in no time the only one standing was the bully who had punched anila.
"You find it hard to believe a kid Younger than you could defeat them all right?....I guess that's what you're thinking"ruke asked getting closer to anila and the bully, he slowly stood taking steps behind getting away from Anila the one who he had bullied and the kid who had just destroyed his friends like it was nothing
"Need a hand"ruke asked offering his help to anila who instantly accepted, she stood shaking her injuries had been more than severe than ruke thought.
"You beat her up quite badly didn't ya?"ruke huffed "but I won't retaliate if you apologize" ruke said stareing at the bully who quickly got to his knees and begged Anila to forgive him hold her feet like she could kill him at anytime.
"Now that that done, I don't want you attacking, bullying or coming close to her, you touch her, you touch me too, am I clear?" Ruke threatened
"Yh, I promise" the bully responded, he was scared, he had only been this scared when he fought a drax for the first time and clearly this kid, ruke was more dangerous than imagined him to be
"Now go, get out of my sight" ruke ordered, at his words the bully ran trying to get as far as he could from there as possible but ruke had other plans, grabbing a pebble from the floor ruke threw it aiming at the bully's right shoulder dislocating it instantly, the bully fell to the floor screaming and agonizing in pain in the floor while ruke approached him holding anila's arm.
"I told you I'd let you go....I didn't tell you you'd be unscathed"ruke said continuing his walk with anila
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"It's been so long hasn't it" she smiled taking a sip from her bottle of sa'ke.
Lightening sat quiet, he had always been the quiet one, a silent poison type of guy. But as tough as he tried to be he had a soft heart which he tried hiding from most people not just his team. He turned around to catch a glance at ruke, then withdrew as soon as he did, he admired ruke, trained say and night to be like him, and one day tried proving they were equal but that left a permanent scar on his arm.
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"What! Too scared to pull your sword?"lightening asked his sword already unsheathed, they were both drenched from the rain outside, lightening was exhausted, he had attacked ruke with all he had but but he was the only one breathing hard, ruke hadn't taken any damage And hadn't unsheathed his sword, how was the even possible? He thought getting ready for another Final attack.
"I promise rann, if I pull my sword I'll live a mark to make you remember this day"ruke threatened but rann was never one who was swayed by such threats,
"Then it'd be worth it" he smiled rushing towards ruke aiming for one cut, begging for one cut but with one swift move ruke was already behind him and he could feel a sharp pain on his arm
"Arhhhhh!!n!" He yelled placing his right arm on his slit open left arm.
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"Still feels like yesterday" he thought taking off his hand form his now healed injury.
Did they really have to kill each other, if life had meaning and a value as sensei said why was it so easy to kill and easy to be asked to kill ruke asked himself stareing at his teammates.