Messenger of Light [Haji|Musou]

[Morei Haji]

Damn it! I was too slow! I had no choice now but to run after the men, despite how far away they were. I would charge as quick as I could towards them, and if I managed to get close, I would slash at their horses' legs in an attempt to get them off of their mounts to even this out. Whether this was successful or not, I would slash at the ropes binding the women so they could get free.

[Oda Nobunaga]

Haji would miss the horses' legs, but he would be able to cut the women free! They would roll along the ground, sliding to a halt. A few of them let out cries of pain, and a few of them were just silent. The elderly folk who were crushed beneath the horses were dead.

"Hey, fucker! Who do you think you are?!"

They dropped off their horses, each bandit armed with two katanas. they rushed Haji, looking to impale him!

[Morei Haji]

"You bastards..."

There wasn't much one person could do alone, I began to realize that more and more. No matter how much I tried, I couldn't save everyone. I simply wasn't strong enough. I possessed the will, but it was worth nothing if I couldn't back it up.

As they rushed at me, my blades would conjoin once more, and I grabbed it by the blade, swinging it in front of me as they approached. Afterwards, I would bring it back and slash in at a lower arc before bringing it back up and spinning it around in front of me to parry any incoming attacks.

[Oda Nobunaga]

Haji would see himself doing exactly the acts he imagined he would, cutting the men down and thinning their numbers! He would... see himself. A light manifestation of Haji seemed to burst forth at his simple will, doing what he willed himself to with relative ease. He needed to be in two places at once? Well...

[Morei Haji]

What...? Was that me? I saw myself striking the enemies down, and yet... it wasn't me. It was like when I felt utterly helpless, my spirit seemed to channel itself into its own being to attack!

I don't know what's going on, but... I gripped my blade and steeled myself to battle. As I charged forth at the nearest group of bandits, I saw some more near some other villagers, and I willed that other me to go help them. And it looked like he read my mind, as he charged straight for them, blade in hand and aiming to strike the bandits down! As he swung his sword aiming to slash at their chests and throats, my own blade would swing around, planning to cut down those in front of me.

[Oda Nobunaga]

Haji and his doppelganger would prove unsuccessful! The bandits would come in droves, and overrun them, slaying them with relative ease! Haji would feel his throat being slit, and it would seem like it was all the end!

Then, a flash of light would appear in his eyes, and the next time he blinked he would find himself at the shore, once again, just like when this whole encounter began. Maybe this was his chance to... do it all over?

[Morei Haji]

No matter how many we slew, more would just keep pouring in! Before I knew it, we were overrun, and I found a blade to my throat. No! No, it can't end like this! I thought as I felt the blade pierce my throat.

And then... I found myself at the shore again, as if nothing had ever happened. I looked around in a panic, checking my body and finding no injuries, and yet, my heart was racing like it was all very real. Looking behind me and seeing the village, I wasted no time in sprinting over there, wanting to see what was going on. Was it all a dream?

[Oda Nobunaga]

Haji would arrive just in time to see the bandits pouring into the village for... the first time? The men and women of the village went to go hide, and all able-bodied men went to go and fight! A few women would be snatched off the road, and the bandits would pass just in front of Haji, making very little notice of the dark warrior!

[Morei Haji]

I... did I travel back in time somehow? It looked as though the raid was just beginning, this meant I could save more people!

My blade would come down, slicing the ropes that the bandits used to lynch the women. I would step out, revealing my presence to the men. My hand came up, slipping the mask from my face, and my body turned to its normal color.

"Your opponent is me!"

I readied my weapon, conjoining the swords and facing the bandits down. I had used the mask as a means to hide myself, to hide my shame. It was time to stop hiding and face these battles myself.

[Oda Nobunaga]

Haji saved some of the women, though would be faced with the same dilemma as before! He could stay and fight the bandits here to save the able-bodied men and the older men and women, or he could push past these men to go and save the women who were being dragged halfway across the village. To make this decision easier, a light version of himself would step forward, uttering the same words he did!

"Your opponent is me!"

the bandits in the area would charge, and it was Haji's decision if he would take this fight himself, or leave it to his doppelganger.

[Morei Haji]

The light me was there again! I stared in wonder as he appeared before me, readying his weapon as well. I realized now that my inner strength had manifested itself into a being that could help me save more than I physically could alone!

I nodded to myself, leaving this area to him. I felt he would be able to handle this well enough for me to save the women being pulled away, and I made a break for the women as the light version of me charged at the bandits, blade drawn and slashing at those who came near him.

[Oda Nobunaga]

Light Haji was able to strike down a good deal of the bandits with relative ease, as they seemed confused as to how they were fighting a being of pure light! The village warriors seemed to have the upper-hand with Light Haji on their side!

Regular Haji would get to the other side of the village in time to find a group of nine men about to make off with three women! Upon noticing him, the men threw the women to the ground, six of them going to face Haji while three would sit on the people Haji was trying to save! He now had six swords coming at him, each looking to impale him somewhere on his body!

[Morei Haji]

Something told me my light self was doing just fine, I could feel it. And I hoped that my faith in him was going to carry him to victory.

I saw six enemies approaching me, and I quickly spun my blade in front of me to parry any blows. Immediately afterwards, I would duck and sweep my blade in front of me at their legs, immediately following up with an upper sweep if I missed any of them, and then a slash to any of the bodies on the ground who weren't defeated yet.

[Oda Nobunaga]

Light Haji was actually wrecking shit with his villager allies!

Regular Haji's maneuver was successful! It seemed his driving motivation was bringing him a long way, as the six men fell before him! The last two men cursed, charging the Morei boy wildly, clearly unhappy that everything was going wrong for them!

[Morei Haji]

"You can't stop us. Our hearts are unified for a single purpose."

I spoke as the men approached me, and as they neared, they would find my blades detach, slashing at either one of them with one blade each. No more hesitation. No more stopping myself. I couldn't help anyone if I doubted myself.

[Oda Nobunaga]

As the men before Haji were slain, the end of the raid was marked. The villagers were all saved, thanks to this warrior of light! The women rushed to their feet, tackling him in a hug! The men and women on the other side of town went up to greet him as his Light self led them over. They were all so thankful, expressing how they felt they owed him their lives. And really, they maybe did. Haji saw how this could have ended up.

"Thank you... Thank you so much for your help, kind stranger."

[Morei Haji]

I sheathed my weapons, as it seemed the fighting was over. I was being showered with hugs and cheers, and I couldn't help but smile. Something in my heart healed, feeling better after my previous failures. I felt like it could no longer hold me back. And amongst the smiling and happy faces of the villagers, I would look up, seeing my own reflection in the light body before me. It was strange, and yet... I wasn't afraid of it.

"No need to thank me, I'm just happy that you're all safe." I said with a smile to the villagers around me before looking back at what I assumed was my spirit.

[Oda Nobunaga]

The people would give Haji one last giant hug, before Haji's light self took his hand and began to float. The two would seem to be disintegrating into particles of light, and the villagers looked on in awe.

"They were guardians, protectors sent by Izanagi!"

Upon his body fully "disintegrating," it would reintegrate in the clouds, and Haji would be met face-to-face with his light self.

"So, tell me, Haji: what was your motivation? Where did your sudden strength come from?"

[Morei Haji]

Light me grabbed my own hand, and suddenly we began to float. "Izanagi...?"

Before I knew it, we had disappeared in a flash of light, reappearing in a world of clouds. Were we up in the sky? At this point, I wasn't too afraid, it didn't seem like I would fall anyway...

My light self began to speak to me, and I looked up at him, sort of shocked. "My sudden strength...? I wanted desperately to protect the people around me, and... I realized that if I held myself back because of my own doubts, I could never achieve such a thing. I needed to be stronger, I needed to match the strength of my own will."

[Oda Nobunaga]

The light nodded, sitting atop the clouds, defying the laws of gravity. A kind smile crossed his face.

"So what was it that held you back in the first place?"

He was weak in the beginning, and could not fight until the introduction of his second self. It seemed the light was very intent on getting a good response out of the boy.

[Morei Haji]

Upon his question, I pondered for a moment. What made me weak in the beginning... "It was my own failure to protect the woman I love. I was harsh on myself, telling myself I failed her and failed to uphold my own ideals. So I hid behind the mask... literally, and figuratively."

I looked back up to the light as I spoke. Was this really my spirit? Or something more?

[Oda Nobunaga]

The light seemed to change as Haji spoke, looking less and less like him. Instead, it would resemble the Japanese's depiction of the God Izanagi.

"You must not doubt yourself, young one. The things you have done here, today, not many can say they have done." He approached Haji, placing a kind hand on the boy's shoulder. "You must never give up. There is a great deal of strength inside of you, a light that cannot be extinguished. This is exactly why I have chosen you to witness what you saw today. Were it not for you, and the choices you made, these people would be dead. And so, for your valiant efforts, I bestow upon you a gift. Never again should you lack faith in yourself, child."

Wit hthat, Izanagi seemed to fuse with Haji. Or rather, the light of him did, and Haji would feel... stronger.

[OoC: Musou obtained. Thread locked.]