Chapter 9 – Nobunaga’s Heir, The Spirit of Fire

They arrived at the lucky red gate, their questions still unanswered and their brains working hard to unravel the many puzzles. They wanted some answers and they figured that the spirits would have them. Jiro and his comrades placed their swords in the ground and as the magic energy flowed they were taken to the other world. Time stopped around them and for some reason things felt rather edgy. Tension grew around them and they suddenly felt as if they were in mild danger. “The spirits are angry with us.” Hanzo explained as Gan’s eyes turned from determined to demonic once again. Suddenly there was a burst of light and the spirits appeared, battered and bruised. The spirit of poison collapsed while the spirits of wind and fire were at their last burst of energy. “What happened?!” Hanzo asked, deeply worried.

The spirits were in disarray as they attempted to regroup. They had obviously been in a war but neither Tadatsugu nor Hanzo knew how anything could have done such damage to them. They were fully equipped and strengthened gods when they had last spoken to both Jiro and Mitsukechi. ‘What demon could have done this to a trio of gods?!?’ Jiro thought as he walked towards the poisonous spirit. He handed the sword to him so that he could recover faster. It seemed that without it he might have died. “What happened to you?” Mitsukechi questioned, not realizing he was repeating the words of his father.

“They came from out of nowhere… They all had strange weapons. They were like spears but they had 2 blades. They were glowing red and black. They were just like Gan… In the dragon form you discovered on the way here.” “Is he…” Hanzo could not finish the question off. “Yes Hanzo… He is the son of the demon king.” The fire spirit explained. “But that means…” Once again Mitsukechi became the spitting image of his father in Tadatsugu’s eyes. “Yes,” The Wind spirit explained. “He is Gan’s father and the creator of the mysterious weapons that caused us harm.” “We still do not know why, but the attack was definitely Nobunaga’s doing.”

“You four must go to Kyushu. The schedule must not change. Find your sister Tadatsugu. She has a sword. She has the sword of crystal. That may come as a surprise to you but it does exist. It is said that only once every hundred years a woman is born with the power to control it. Always a woman, always a century. Be aware that there is another under Nobunaga’s control. A powerful one who controls your sword Mitsukechi. You were born to take that sword from him. It is your destiny.”

Mitsukechi’s eyes lit up like the night sky after an explosion. “Please! Tell me more! I must know!” Mitsukechi begged, but he was turned down and the group left the spirit world… All except Hanzo. “Is it true? Is Nobunaga’s right hand man really in Kyushu?” “Yes Hanzo. It is. You must not leave this world just yet. The spirit of light has for seen all that is destiny. Not all of it is pleasant. You must stay here until they fight Cao Shu. The salamander won’t go down unless you use your power to boost Jiro’s through his sword.”

The others made it back to the red gate and realized Hanzo was gone. “He must have stayed with the spirits in order to find out more about their attackers.” Mitsukechi said as they continued toward Kyushu. “We will be fine! We must keep up the pace!” Tadatsugu said. They continued to walk when suddenly a strange man appeared out of a dark portal. Jiro immediately drew his sword and up in the spirit world, Hanzo was ready to transmit power before he was stopped by a tall man in black samurai armour… It was Nobunaga. He was a decent height of 6 feet with a glowing blade like that of the spirits attackers. “Hello Hanzo. He said. “I wish to play a little game with you. I shall give the spirits back to you under one condition. You must prove to me that Tadakatsu’s son needs no help to fight the salamander.” Nobunaga said, before laughing hysterically. “Nobunaga, you know I can’t do that.” “It seems you have no choice!” Nobunaga said with a demonic smile. He knew they would probably die. “Here’s the thing… If they survive I will join you and heal them. If they die then I will slay Kotaro and claim this land for myself. I have the power to do so.”

Hanzo knew this to be true. He sat down and agreed to do as Nobunaga requested knowing he had no choice. Nobunaga had enough power to kill the king of darkness himself and end Kotaro’s foolish games. If Tadatsugu was to be victorious it would mean an extremely powerful ally and Gan would be reunited with his father. If Tadatsugu were to lose then Gan would have a happy ending but the rest of the world including Nobunaga himself would not, as Tadakatsu himself would come out from hiding and slay Nobunaga but the consequences would leave the rest of the world destroyed and Gan would be drunk with power. Hanzo had no choice but to sit the battle out.

Tags: Tadatsugu

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