Ryu POV
The training field was still dusty from my fight, and Kaito hadn't even stood up yet when Raizen walked past him and approached me. He didn't smile, but his eyes did.
"Impressive," he said. "Very few in this clan could read movements like that."
I bowed a little. Not out of respect—just habit.
Then the Shinobi Lord stepped forward. He was older, gray around the edges, with a long coat marked with the clan's crest. His Ki felt heavy but calm. He studied me for a few seconds that felt too long.
"Your stance," he said quietly. "It was samurai."
Some shinobi behind him shifted uncomfortably. They all knew what samurai meant—rigid discipline, pride, honor, the same people who hunted shinobi for generations.
I answered simply, "Maybe."
He narrowed his eyes. "Maybe isn't an answer."
"I don't owe you one."
The words came out sharper than I intended, but I didn't take them back. A few shinobi instantly stepped forward, hands on their blades.
"Watch your mouth, kid."
"Who do you think you're talking to—?"
Raizen didn't move, but the Lord glanced their way and said, "Stand down."
They stopped immediately. The pressure that came from him wasn't loud or violent, but it felt like the room's air shifted.
His eyes came back to me. "Your sword," he said. "It isn't normal."
I rested my hand on Ashen Ryoma's katana without thinking. "It's mine."
"It radiates Ki," the Lord said. "Old Ki. Heavy Ki."
He paused. "Where did you get it?"
"Found it," I said.
He didn't believe me. I could tell. But he also knew I wasn't going to tell him anything else.
Eventually he sighed. "Very well. Keep your secrets for now."
He gestured toward the village.
"You'll stay here. You'll train. You'll learn our ways. If you cause trouble, you'll be removed."
"Removed," one shinobi behind him muttered.
"Dead," another whispered.
The Lord ignored them.
"You showed skill today. But skill isn't enough. A shinobi is more than power—you saw that in the forest."
I nodded. "I understand."
"Good," he said. "Raizen will take you to your quarters. Your team will meet you there."
Team?
Raizen motioned for me to follow, and I walked beside him through the village. The ground was clean, the houses small, built into the forest. Kids ran around training with sticks. Older shinobi sharpened weapons or meditated outside. The air felt heavy with Ki, but calm.
"Don't mind the Lord," Raizen said, hands in his pockets.
"I don't," I replied.
He glanced at me. "Good. He dislikes lies, but he respects self-control."
We walked deeper until we reached a small building, slightly old but clean. Raizen opened the sliding door.
"This is yours," he said.
The room was small. A thin bed, a desk, and a window that barely let light in. A meditation mat in the corner. That was it.
Perfect.
Raizen leaned against the doorway. "Your team will be interesting."
"Team?"
He smirked. "You didn't think we were going to let you wander alone, did you?"
I didn't answer, but he continued.
"You'll meet them shortly. Try not to threaten them."
"I won't start anything."
"Good," he said, walking off. "Because they might."
I sat on the meditation mat and closed my eyes. Ki flowed through the room. Calm. Faint. Nothing like Tenma's cave, but enough to settle my breathing.
I focused inward—space bending naturally in my core like a spiral of threads—
No. Not yet.
One thing at a time.
I followed the breathing pattern my father taught me. Calm. Controlled. Letting Ki pool and settle.
Footsteps approached. Three different sets.
The door slid open.
A girl stepped in first. She looked around sixteen. Pale skin. Dark hair tied into a sharp ponytail. Eyes that could probably kill someone without touching them. She stared at me like I was a stain on the floor.
Behind her walked a boy who looked like he could talk forever. Same age, maybe older. Broad shoulders, messy hair, wearing gear like he wanted everyone to know he was strong.
"I'm Jin," he said immediately, pointing at himself with a thumb. "Top of my class. Fastest in hand seals. Strongest Ki reinforcement. You name it."
The girl didn't even look at him. "No one cares."
Jin stared at her. "I was introducing myself."
"I still don't care."
The third boy entered quietly. Too quietly. Slight build. Black hair covering half his face. He didn't even raise his head. Just stood near the wall like a shadow trying not to disturb anyone.
Jin gestured to him. "That's Sora. Don't expect much talking."
Sora bowed slightly. Didn't say a word.
The girl crossed her arms. "I'm Ayame. Don't slow me down."
I stood up. "Ryu."
Jin raised an eyebrow. "Just Ryu? No clan name?"
"No."
Ayame snorted. "Figures."
Jin ignored her and stepped closer to me. "That was impressive earlier. The fight. Didn't think you'd dodge Kaito like that."
Ayame rolled her eyes. "He got lucky."
Sora finally spoke, barely audible. "That wasn't luck."
Ayame glared at him. "What?"
Sora didn't repeat himself.
Jin laughed. "Well, lucky or not, you're with us now. That means we have to work together. Even if Little Ice Queen here hates everyone."
Ayame elbowed him hard in the ribs. Jin wheezed.
"That proves my point," he coughed.
I sat back on the mat. They all stared at me.
"What?" I asked.
Ayame frowned. "We're waiting for the sensei."
"Sensei?" I repeated.
"Yeah," Jin said. "Every squad has one."
The door slid open again.
A man stepped inside. Tall, relaxed, mask covering the lower half of his face. His silver hair fell messily over one eye. He looked like he had woken up twenty minutes late and was still tired.
His Ki, though?
Controlled. Calculated. Silent. A blade hidden in plain sight.
"Alright," he said, waving lazily. "Team Nine. Everyone here?"
"Yes, Sensei," Jin said.
Ayame didn't respond. Sora bowed. I just looked at him.
He looked right back at me.
"You must be the stray Raizen dragged in."
"…Stray?" I repeated.
He shrugged. "You don't look like a shinobi. You carry yourself like someone who's been trained differently. Straight back. Tight steps. Eyes that don't wander."
He walked around me once, analyzing.
"And that sword… That's no village blade."
Ayame studied the blade too. "It feels… off."
Jin leaned in. "Off? More like creepy."
Sora quietly said, "It's powerful."
The sensei nodded. "He notices. Good." Then he faced me again. "Listen. I don't care where you came from. Whoever you were before means nothing now. Here, you're a shinobi. Understood?"
I held his gaze. "Understood."
"Good. Because you have a long road ahead. And if you plan to survive it, you'll need all three of them"—he pointed to my new squad—"and they'll need you."
Jin grinned. Ayame looked annoyed. Sora said nothing.
The sensei clapped once. "Training begins tomorrow. Today, get to know each other. Don't kill each other. Easy."
He walked out.
Silence filled the room for a moment.
Then Jin flopped down on the floor. "Well, this'll be fun."
Ayame glared at him. "You talk too much."
"You breathe too cold."
"Good."
Sora sat quietly near the corner, eyes drifting.
I leaned back against the wall, arms crossed.
A squad.
A team.
Not what I expected.
But something about it felt… right.
Even if they didn't know who I really was.
Even if I couldn't tell them.
Tomorrow, real training began.
And I would keep moving forward.
Ryu POV
The training field was still dusty from my fight, and Kaito hadn't even stood up yet when Raizen walked past him and approached me. He didn't smile, but his eyes did.
"Impressive," he said. "Very few in this clan could read movements like that."
I bowed a little. Not out of respect—just habit.
Then the Shinobi Lord stepped forward. He was older, gray around the edges, with a long coat marked with the clan's crest. His Ki felt heavy but calm. He studied me for a few seconds that felt too long.
"Your stance," he said quietly. "It was samurai."
Some shinobi behind him shifted uncomfortably. They all knew what samurai meant—rigid discipline, pride, honor, the same people who hunted shinobi for generations.
I answered simply, "Maybe."
He narrowed his eyes. "Maybe isn't an answer."
"I don't owe you one."
The words came out sharper than I intended, but I didn't take them back. A few shinobi instantly stepped forward, hands on their blades.
"Watch your mouth, kid."
"Who do you think you're talking to—?"
Raizen didn't move, but the Lord glanced their way and said, "Stand down."
They stopped immediately. The pressure that came from him wasn't loud or violent, but it felt like the room's air shifted.
His eyes came back to me. "Your sword," he said. "It isn't normal."
I rested my hand on Ashen Ryoma's katana without thinking. "It's mine."
"It radiates Ki," the Lord said. "Old Ki. Heavy Ki."
He paused. "Where did you get it?"
"Found it," I said.
He didn't believe me. I could tell. But he also knew I wasn't going to tell him anything else.
Eventually he sighed. "Very well. Keep your secrets for now."
He gestured toward the village.
"You'll stay here. You'll train. You'll learn our ways. If you cause trouble, you'll be removed."
"Removed," one shinobi behind him muttered.
"Dead," another whispered.
The Lord ignored them.
"You showed skill today. But skill isn't enough. A shinobi is more than power—you saw that in the forest."
I nodded. "I understand."
"Good," he said. "Raizen will take you to your quarters. Your team will meet you there."
Team?
Raizen motioned for me to follow, and I walked beside him through the village. The ground was clean, the houses small, built into the forest. Kids ran around training with sticks. Older shinobi sharpened weapons or meditated outside. The air felt heavy with Ki, but calm.
"Don't mind the Lord," Raizen said, hands in his pockets.
"I don't," I replied.
He glanced at me. "Good. He dislikes lies, but he respects self-control."
We walked deeper until we reached a small building, slightly old but clean. Raizen opened the sliding door.
"This is yours," he said.
The room was small. A thin bed, a desk, and a window that barely let light in. A meditation mat in the corner. That was it.
Perfect.
Raizen leaned against the doorway. "Your team will be interesting."
"Team?"
He smirked. "You didn't think we were going to let you wander alone, did you?"
I didn't answer, but he continued.
"You'll meet them shortly. Try not to threaten them."
"I won't start anything."
"Good," he said, walking off. "Because they might."
I sat on the meditation mat and closed my eyes. Ki flowed through the room. Calm. Faint. Nothing like Tenma's cave, but enough to settle my breathing.
I focused inward—space bending naturally in my core like a spiral of threads—
No. Not yet.
One thing at a time.
I followed the breathing pattern my father taught me. Calm. Controlled. Letting Ki pool and settle.
Footsteps approached. Three different sets.
The door slid open.
A girl stepped in first. She looked around sixteen. Pale skin. Dark hair tied into a sharp ponytail. Eyes that could probably kill someone without touching them. She stared at me like I was a stain on the floor.
Behind her walked a boy who looked like he could talk forever. Same age, maybe older. Broad shoulders, messy hair, wearing gear like he wanted everyone to know he was strong.
"I'm Jin," he said immediately, pointing at himself with a thumb. "Top of my class. Fastest in hand seals. Strongest Ki reinforcement. You name it."
The girl didn't even look at him. "No one cares."
Jin stared at her. "I was introducing myself."
"I still don't care."
The third boy entered quietly. Too quietly. Slight build. Black hair covering half his face. He didn't even raise his head. Just stood near the wall like a shadow trying not to disturb anyone.
Jin gestured to him. "That's Sora. Don't expect much talking."
Sora bowed slightly. Didn't say a word.
The girl crossed her arms. "I'm Ayame. Don't slow me down."
I stood up. "Ryu."
Jin raised an eyebrow. "Just Ryu? No clan name?"
"No."
Ayame snorted. "Figures."
Jin ignored her and stepped closer to me. "That was impressive earlier. The fight. Didn't think you'd dodge Kaito like that."
Ayame rolled her eyes. "He got lucky."
Sora finally spoke, barely audible. "That wasn't luck."
Ayame glared at him. "What?"
Sora didn't repeat himself.
Jin laughed. "Well, lucky or not, you're with us now. That means we have to work together. Even if Little Ice Queen here hates everyone."
Ayame elbowed him hard in the ribs. Jin wheezed.
"That proves my point," he coughed.
I sat back on the mat. They all stared at me.
"What?" I asked.
Ayame frowned. "We're waiting for the sensei."
"Sensei?" I repeated.
"Yeah," Jin said. "Every squad has one."
The door slid open again.
A man stepped inside. Tall, relaxed, mask covering the lower half of his face. His silver hair fell messily over one eye. He looked like he had woken up twenty minutes late and was still tired.
His Ki, though?
Controlled. Calculated. Silent. A blade hidden in plain sight.
"Alright," he said, waving lazily. "Team Nine. Everyone here?"
"Yes, Sensei," Jin said.
Ayame didn't respond. Sora bowed. I just looked at him.
He looked right back at me.
"You must be the stray Raizen dragged in."
"…Stray?" I repeated.
He shrugged. "You don't look like a shinobi. You carry yourself like someone who's been trained differently. Straight back. Tight steps. Eyes that don't wander."
He walked around me once, analyzing.
"And that sword… That's no village blade."
Ayame studied the blade too. "It feels… off."
Jin leaned in. "Off? More like creepy."
Sora quietly said, "It's powerful."
The sensei nodded. "He notices. Good." Then he faced me again. "Listen. I don't care where you came from. Whoever you were before means nothing now. Here, you're a shinobi. Understood?"
I held his gaze. "Understood."
"Good. Because you have a long road ahead. And if you plan to survive it, you'll need all three of them"—he pointed to my new squad—"and they'll need you."
Jin grinned. Ayame looked annoyed. Sora said nothing.
The sensei clapped once. "Training begins tomorrow. Today, get to know each other. Don't kill each other. Easy."
He walked out.
Silence filled the room for a moment.
Then Jin flopped down on the floor. "Well, this'll be fun."
Ayame glared at him. "You talk too much."
"You breathe too cold."
"Good."
Sora sat quietly near the corner, eyes drifting.
I leaned back against the wall, arms crossed.
A squad.
A team.
Not what I expected.
But something about it felt… right.
Even if they didn't know who I really was.
Even if I couldn't tell them.
Tomorrow, real training began.
And I would keep moving forward.