After travelling for two days, Kazuo, Mikoto and Takumi arrived at Yamaguchi Port. The area crawled with foreign and local merchants trading all sorts of goods. Several wooden boats were moored by the harbour while others were being readied to set out for distant lands. Across the sea towards the horizon, another island was visible–the Water Country.
A cool, summer breeze blew through the blue sky with few to no clouds in sight. Sounds of seagulls and people shouting filled the air. For the trio, the scene felt loud and serene at the same time. It had been a while since they got to enjoy such a moment.
They asked the locals about Hanzo Nakamura but no one had heard of him. The trio came to a stop when they noticed a crowd forming outside a tavern and walked towards it.
At the centre, a slim-looking man lay flat on the ground facing upwards. He was dressed in a blue haori, grey trousers and waraji sandals. On one hand, he held a hyōtan (gourd) that spilled saké. From the mumblings, it was unclear why he was sleeping outside tavern. Others suggested unpaid alcohol and some said he slept with the owner's wife.
"Tenzooooooo!" A bulky man got out of the bar carrying a huge, wooden ōtsushi. "You're a dead man, you drunk!" he said, increasing his pace.
The vagabond raised both legs into the air and leapt to his feet. He rustled his scruffy undercut and the silver hoop on his left ear shimmered. His well-chiseled face was covered with a moustache and sideburns. "Your money is coming, give me a day."
Kazuo placed a hand over his eyes. "That's him," he said, taking a good look. "I think..."
"How'd you know?" asked Mikoto.
"My great grandpa's–" he answered, turning to the drunk who had started running. "Hanzo! Wait!"
Followed by a few onlooker, the tavern owner chased after Tenzo. "Stop! Huh-huh... STOP HIM!" he said, running out of breath.
A crowd of merchants and other bystanders closed the path ahead of Tenzo. He was cornered. Haha... he chuckled, skidding to a halt. He cleared his throat and spoke with a hoarse voice. "You got m–"
"HAAAAA!" the bulky man swung his hammer aimed at Tenzo's head. "DIE! You son of a bitch!"
Tenzo took a quick breath and vanished before impact. He spun behind the tavern owner as though losing his balance. "Whoa..."
The man's face turned red, puffing hot air. He was fuming. "Why you!" He spun the ōtsushi once more and Tenzo grabbed it. "Uh–"
"I said... I will pay you." Tenzo's voice deepened before he broke the hammer with one hand. "Understood?" he smiled, shifting to his normal tone.
"Understood!" said the man, dropping on one knee.
The Lightning trio was awestruck.
Takumi wiped his sunglasses, wide eyed.
"That..." Mikoto gulped. "Was insane!"
He's definitely him... Kazuo raced towards the vagabond at full speed. "Nakamura... Hanzoooo!"
Upon hearing Kazuo, the drunk man took to his feet with the Lightning trio right behind. They chased him to a secluded log cabin further from the harbour. The spot, however, was near the shoreline. He stopped and turned to them. "What do you kids want?"
"I know–it's..." said Kazuo, out of breath. "It's you… my great grandpa's student..."
"Ah, yes…" Hanzo grinned. "The infamous purple-haired prince!" He studied him, eyeing the katana on the boy's waist. He's already retrieved Raijin, huh? "How can I be of assistance?"
"I want you to train me."
Hanzo furrowed his brows, eyes red. "Why?"
Kazuo told Hanzo about what had happened in the past few months. The Inazuma massacre and seizure of the Lightning region. He also professed his desire to exact revenge on the Shadows.
"Vengeance only leads to an early grave. If that is your reason to become stronger, I cannot agree as it would be a disservice to Kazuro-sensei."
Fuck this shit! Kazuo's face turned red as he unsheathed Raijin. Enraged, he advanced. "Ha!"
Hanzo staggered into a swift zigzag, dodging Kazuo's uncoordinated swings with ease. When it looked like he would be cut, he veered off and the chokutō missed him. He repeated the maneuver a few times before disarming Kazuo. "Yield..." he said, placing the blade on the boy's neck.
Kazuo's eyes widened, noticing white sparks of light surrounding the chokutō. He remembered his first encounter with Raijin. No way... he can hold it?
"You must be wondering how I can wield Raijin without being struck…" Hanzo chuckled, brandishing the chokutō. "By right, I shouldn't be able to because of the bloodline curse restriction placed on it. However, there's a loophole... and that's how I was able to leave the blade where you found it."
Kazuo grumbled.
"I could tell you but then again, you're my student." Hanzo shoved the chokutō into the ground and turned to Mikoto and Takumi. "What about you too?"
Mikoto's face beamed and she took a bow. "Can we please train under you, Hanzo-sensei?"
"Such manners, what is your name Miss?"
"Mikoto..."
"Well then, Mikoto-chan," said Hanzo, bowing in return. "Why do you want to become stronger?"
Mikoto made a fist. "To protect myself and Kaminari from those who may want to harm us..."
"That's a good reason. You remind me of an old friend of mine. Rani and I trained together under Kazuro-sensei. I'll gladly accept you as my pupil..."
Mikoto jumped up and down. "Thank you!"
"What about the young Artisan?" asked Hanzo, switching to Takumi, who had been silent all along.
Kazuo got up from the ground. "Hey, wait a minute..." he said, dusting himself. "How come you agreed to train her? Is it just because she's a girl?"
"She just has a better motive that you," said Hanzo.
Takumi cleared his throat. "My pursuit is knowledge and I'd like to strengthen my intellect. Oh, and the name's Takumi." He bowed, greeting Hanzo.
"Well, Takumi-kun... a strong mind requires a strong body. If you'd like, I can also train you as well."
Takumi agreed.
"Whaaaat?" said Kazuo. "That's not fair!"
Hanzo answered him. "Reflect on your reason..."
There was a momentary silence until Mikoto spoke. "If I may ask sensei, where is Rani-san now?"
"It's been years since we talked. She's a sorcerer in Shiga and locals call her the Grass Witch..."
"Why then would they call her such?"
"Rumors say she abducts young men to experiment on them. Whether that's true or not, I'm not sure. All I know is she had a rough childhood."
Mikoto cringed. "Oh, if it's true... that's awful!"
Before Mikoto and Takumi started training, they went to get their carriage together with Kazuo. When they returned, Hanzo escorted his two trainees to area with some shade. Kazuo watched them from a distance as he thought about his motivations.
"Hanzo-sensei," said Mikoto, glancing at Kazuo who was deep in thought. "Shouldn't he be with us too? I mean, isn't his goal not reason enough? If you were in him, wouldn't you have done the same?"
Hanzo sighed, looking up at the sky. "It's because I've been there and it's never worth it. You lose more than you gain. My parents were killed by a group of rōnin. When I avenged them, I lost a dear friend and almost died in the process. Kazuo-kun and I are similar and I don't want him to tread the same path..."
"I see," said Takumi, adjusting his glasses.
Mikoto nodded before raising a hand. "So, sensei... what did it take for you to arrive at that conclusion?"
"When Kazuro-sensei asked me how I felt when I had gotten my revenge. I reflected on it and came to the realization that I was just the same as before, if not worse now having lost another friend."
Hanzo sipped from his refilled hyōtan and the two students stared at him, wide-eyed. "Vengeance only breeds more vengeance. It's an unending cycle. I told him that and he accepted me as his student."
The two students paid attention to every detail. They were glad that Hanzo had shared his story. Their hope was for Kazuo to tread a different path and stray from the cycle.
"I think we can begin training now..." said Hanzo, clearing his throat. "We will start with a warm up of ten sets of fifty pushups, squats and sit-ups."
"Understood!"
Meanwhile, Kazuo stopped what he was doing and observed them from afar. As they started, he copied each move and followed along. An hour passed during the regimen and he reflected on the answers Mikoto and Takumi had given to Hanzo's questions.
Two hours later, Takumi started panting. Extended physical exercise had never been part of his routine. During that session, his limbs felt sore. Mikoto, however, made it look like it was second nature.
"Took you long enough." Mikoto chuckled as Takumi completed his fiftieth sit-up.
Hanzo clapped once and made an announcement. "Alright then, that's it for the warm up. We will begin the actual training after we get through some theory."