Author's note: What do you think about my side story? I'm hoping to do a few of them to give a back ground on the previous hero. I will release them at random during the progress of the main story line.

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Side Story 1 - I am Ryuutaro

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Warning: Mature Content

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“A new prey is coming along the road!” -???

“Woooo! He is alone and looks loaded.” -???

“What do you think boss Ryuu?” -???

I am Ryuutaro. A scruffy young man and the boss of a small bandit gang in the outskirts of the city Edo, located somewhere in Japan. My age? I don’t know. As for my height, for all I can say was I am taller than most men around me. It must be attributed to the cursed foreign blood from my father’s side.

“This is our first fat and juicy prey in a long time. You boys know what to do.” –Ryuu

My small bandit group was hiding within the trees along a dirt road leading to Edo city, as a lone samurai was walking along it. Usually samurai will travel in small groups unless they are ronin. However, this lone samurai we have our eyes on was definitely no ronin. He was too finally dressed and looks to be loaded with some coin.

“Ke Ke Ke. I wonder how much we can get from this.” -???

“Quiet. He is close.” -???

“Make sure to surround him guys.” -???

The lone samurai approaches where we are hiding and my group jumps out and surrounded him. I am hiding myself behind the trees. With my rusty dagger out preparing a sneak attack in case something goes wrong.

“Stop right there mister samurai!” -???

“Hehehe. Yea drop all your valuables if you wanna live!” -???

“Do it! If you know what is good for you!” -???

“Filthy bandits!! Dare attacking a vassal of the Sakai family!!” –Lone Samurai

I started to get a very bad feeling as the lone samurai unsheathed his great katana. Why was such a finely dressed samurai traveling alone on this road?

My fears are realized as my three bandit companions attacked the lone samurai. Being bandits, for we are used to killing people but are unskilled with weapons compared to trained warriors.

“Fools!! Prepare to die!!” –Lone Samurai

The lone samurai was fast. So fast in fact that I couldn’t even make out his body as he moved towards the two in front of him. That was when I noticed two of my companions started to spray out blood from their bodies as they hit the ground.

The lone samurai turned around to start attacking the last of my companions. In a panic I threw out my dagger at the lone samurai hoping to catch him off guard. Sadly, it only hit his right arm and not a vital point.

“Damn. There was another one hiding!” –Lone Samurai

“You will pay for killing my friends!! Ahhhhh!!” -???

My last companion yelled out a fierce battle cry as he lunged himself at the samurai in rage. Seeing the samurai distracted I jumped out from hiding and tried picking up a short katana from one of my fallen companions.

“Take this you dirty bandit!!” –Lone Samurai

The battle happened very fast and in my panic stricken state, I hurriedly poured some poison across the short katana. This was poison I saved for a long time in case of emergencies. Now was such a time.

The lone samurai cut down the last of my companions as he turned towards me with a savage smile. The blood dripping from his great katana, then he flicked it off to the side to get rid of the blood.

“Now only one bandit left. This is what happens when you mess with the Sakai family!” –Lone Samurai

Gripping the poison covered short katana as fear invaded my body. I tried stopping my legs from shaking, for I try steadying myself. It was a bad idea to attack this lone samurai. He was too skilled with the sword.

I killed a lot of men to survive and reach this point in my life. Now it looks like my turn to die today. The lone samurai readies his weapon to charge at me. The life I had up until now flashes before my very eyes.

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I was the son of a geisha and my mother named me Ryuutaro. She thought having ‘dragon’ in my name will make me grow up strong. My mother became pregnant with me after a foreigner visited the geisha house and slept with her.

The geisha house located within the red light district of Edo city was a lively place. After the day the black ships appeared in the harbor of Edo, for everything changed. Western foreigners came to Japan spreading their goods and ideas.

The foreign westerners visited the red light district of Edo and indulge themselves with the entertainment there. Sadly, these crude westerners labeled geishas as prostitutes and not as high class entertainers. They stepped on the pride of geishas and forced these women to carry a bad image.

As a result of my mother being pregnant with a child of a western foreigner, for the geisha house told her to abandon me. My mother refused and they kicked her out. Life after for my mother turned for the worse.

She went from being a high class geisha into a dirty prostitute willing to sleep with any kind of man for money. My mother did so in order to raise me. I often curse having foreign blood as it ruined my mother’s life.

Slowly my mother lost her beauty she once had as a geisha and became sick with some disease caught from a random man. While I was still young at the time and with no doctor willing to see my mother, for she ended up dying.

Now alone living in the red light district with its many bright shiny colors was a horrible world behind this beautiful place. I was forced to beg and even pick pocket to survive. I was often beaten for being the child of a western foreigner, since I had brown hair instead of the usual black as everyone else.

Eventually I grew older and joined a bandit gang and stealing from anyone that caught our fancy. I often cursed the western foreigners for invading our country. It was their fault I had to suffer.

Growing up in such a harsh world I learned how to be strong and not appear weak. Being weak was a sin in this world. I climbed up the ranks of the bandit group and became the leader of a small crew.

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Memories of my life only filled me with rage as the lone samurai prepares his charge at me. No longer was I afraid. There was only desire to kill this samurai for reminding me of all the bad things. If death wants me then he will have to struggle for it.

“Hoh? You were afraid but now you looked ready to die. Not bad for a filthy bandit.” –Lone Samurai

“I am Ryuutaro. I refuse to die such a petty death! I will become someone great!” –Ryuu

I can’t die here. I refuse to believe my life was this worthless. I want to become something great as my mother intended when she gave me my name.

“Die!” –Lone Samurai

The samurai starts to charge at me and swinging his great katana. Then I notice his right arm started to weaken from the wound I gave earlier with my dagger. As the samurai’s great katana shifted I tried moving to the side.

His katana cut my thigh instead of my chest he was aiming for. I wildly swung my short katana at him and slightly cut one of his arms. A very shallow cut and barely does any damage.

“Damn filthy bandit! You got lucky with that small cut!” –Lone Samurai

I fell onto my butt from the first attack and was losing my breath. The exchange was too intense for me and my stamina could not keep up. I could only look up at the samurai as he starts the second attack.

“This can’t be…” –Lone Samurai

Blood started to pour out the samurai’s mouth as he was clutching his chest. The poison from the short katana I laced with started to take effect. I wasn’t sure how good the poison was but I know it was pricey.

I lucked out and was able to at least cut this samurai and poison him. He was quite skilled with the sword and if I didn’t have the poison, for I would surely be dead right now. I can only congratulate myself on making out of this crazy fight alive.

The lone samurai fell to his knees still grabbing onto his chest area. Finally he succumbed to the poison and died. Foam and blood was coming out of his mouth with a ghastly expression of horror and disbelief upon his face. This samurai probably didn’t think he would die from mere bandits.

I started to search his dead body and found a pouch of coins. Seeing the amount was quite a bit I yelled out in joy and relief. The feeling of surviving something scary and being rewarded was the first time for me.

“My luck is finally turning around.” –Ryuu

Looking over the dead samurai’s body and saw how my three companions died so pitifully. I made up my mind. No more living like a dirty rat criminal. This time I will live with pride and make a name for myself. I will live as a samurai.

The chance was here with the death of this lone samurai. I took off my shabby rags I wore as a bandit and replaced it with the samurai dress taken from the dead samurai. Taking his great katana and short katana and placing it on my waist.

I felt a surge of pride and dignity when I donned the appearance of a samurai. Probably could consider myself a ronin in this case as I have no family background. Peasants do not carry last names. Only samurai families and some merchants do.

Dragging the four bodies from the road and hiding them in the woods. When satisfied with my work I start to walk on the road to Edo. It has been many years since I returned to Edo, for living as a bandit took its toll on me.

I hummed a song from when my mother sung it to me as a child. From this day forth, I will change myself and become something more. How will I go about it? I am unsure at the moment. I might find out how once I return to Edo.

While traveling along the road there was a food stand nearby. A little hungry and tired from the battle I decided to treat myself to a good meal with the money taken from the dead samurai. I made way to the food stall with a few tables around it.

Once I sat down at a table. I asked the stall owner for an order of rice and some pickled vegetables. Also a bottle of sake if she had it, for the stall owner was some elderly lady. It has been a long time since I ate white rice.

There were a few people sitting on a table across from me conversing. While waiting for my meal and with nothing to do. I decided to eavesdrop on their conversation. It was better than nothing after all. Entertainment was quite lacking in this world for the poor.

“Hey did you hear about the tensions between the Bakufu and the rebels in the capital?” -???

“Oh I sure did. Those rebels are calling themselves the Ishin-shishi.” -???

“Those rebels want to overthrow the Tokugawa shogunate and welcome trade with the western foreigners.” -???

When I heard them talking about western foreigners a feeling of disgust surged within me. I started to listen more intently to their conversation.

“The rebels are very active in Edo. Bakufu created a police force in order to contain them.” -???

“You mean the Shinsengumi?” -???

“Yes those are the ones. They are recruiting ronin and even farmers with fighting experience.” -???

“Massive bloodshed will spill onto the streets of Edo soon.” -???

I stopped listening to their conversation when my food and bottle of sake came. Picking up a pair of chop sticks, for I start to eat the rice and my pickled vegetables.

While eating I started to think over what those men talked about. Shinsengumi a police force fighting the rebels Ishin-shishi and they are recruiting people. I became excited.

I, Ryuutaro, will join the Shinsengumi and fight those blasted rebels that want to side with the foreign westerners. This was a good chance for me to get revenge and become someone great in the process.