A boy of around fourteen years of age reached out his hand to his sister who was two years younger. She was exhausted, but her older brother's determination kept her going. They were climbing up the slopes of a steep mountain, fighting through the pain of having their hands and feet scratched from brushing against all the jagged rocks. What's worse, they had to find shelter before the howling winter wind blows away all hope of survival. The little girl grabbed her brother's hand and pulled her up.

"Don't worry Roka," the boy told his sister. "We're almost there. I spotted a cave up ahead."

Roka nodded as she followed her brother towards the cave. As the wind grew stronger, she asked him weakly.

"Mizuchi, why do the gods hate us so much?"

"Don't say that," her brother Mizuchi replied, trying to lift her spirits.

"But they do," Roka complained, her eyes welled with tears. "We are the only ones left of our entire village. Two children in the middle of nowhere."

"Don't worry," Mizuchi reassured her. "I will protect you, no matter what happens."

The children arrived at the cave by nightfall. Fortunately, it was more than enough to keep them warm. In the morning, Mizuchi would go hunting for food while Roka gathered branches around the cave to use as firewood. This routine would continue for about a week. Once in his many hunting trips, Mizuchi would stumble upon a naginata hidden behind a small waterfall.
He didn’t know it at first, but this weapon would turn out to be Kawa. It was one of the nine magical weapons of Ina. Legend has it that this was the final resting place of a mighty hero who once wielded this weapon. Never in his wildest dreams did young Mizuchi realize that he would one day carry this very weapon into battle.

The siblings thought that this would make life a lot easier for them. After all, this weapon made Mizuchi unbeatable. It didn’t matter if the beasts in the woods were much larger than him. The naginata gave him control over water and ice. He could simply freeze the legs of his prey before finishing it off. With the way things were going, what could possibly go wrong? Unfortunately, things were about to turn for the worse.

One day as Mizuchi was returning from a hunting trip, he heard of the shriek of a young woman followed by the loud footsteps from heavy boots. This alarmed the young boy, for he feared that Clan Jikan might have found his sister. He ran as fast as he could to the cave but she was already gone. There were signs of a struggle, and Mizuchi's worst fears were confirmed when he saw a helmet of a Jikan soldier lying on the ground. He searched for her in the mountains for a month, in denial of the fact that his sister was captured. or perhaps dead After some time, word spread out that Roka was being held captive by the Jikan. Mizuchi bravely went to the clan and offered to make a bargain with the daimyo. He would serve as the clan's Hunter in exchange for her freedom. The daimyo agreed, but the Yako had some reservations. The Yako made the rule that Mizuchi could only see his sister once Jikan has conquered all the other clans. If he should ever attempt to see her, then the Yako would kill her. Time and time again Mizuchi resisted the urge, but the longing became too great. He once tried to peek and saw her silhouette locked in a cell. But he knew better than to slip away before he was caught. Mizuchi knew he had to act quickly if he wanted to see and possibly free her sister.

Mizuchi would be a Hunter working for Clan Jikan. He would lead them in many of their campaigns, yet he knew these were only the tip of the iceberg. If he wanted to see his sister, he would have to defeat the champions of the other clans. His first target was Takeda Rai, who was leading the forces of the Hibiki clan. He never imagined that in their midst was another Hunter, Taira Tatsuya.

The rest was history.
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Back at the present, Mizuchi was beyond himself. He remembered everything he and his sister has been through, how he longed to see her after all this time. He felt the rage inside him boiling over as he saw his sister right in front of him. All this time, he was led to believe that she was held captive by the Jikan. He even saw her there at the prison himself, and told her time and again that he would get her out of there. All he needed to do was to keep his end of the bargain. And yet here she was.

“How?” Mizuchi stammered. “But they said they captured you! They said you were dead!”

Without saying anything, Roka got up from her seat and pulled her brother close. No words were needed to be spoken as the two siblings who haven’t seen each other in a long time surrendered to each other’s embrace. Tears fell from their eyes out of sheer joy. Then Roka gave Mizuchi a sad smile as she composed herself.

Mizuchi understood. Roka was now the leader of this new rebel faction. Though it was an emotional reunion, she didn’t not want her men to see her vulnerable. She needed to remain strong to maintain their morale, even if it meant being seen as cold or stoic. Mizuchi couldn’t feel prouder of his younger sister. It seemed only yesterday that she was this scared little girl. Now she was the mastermind of the Yako opposition, giving courage to men more battle-hardened than she. Still Mizuchi felt that she needed some answers.

“You didn’t answer my question Roka,” Mizuchi spoke, with a bit of concern. “How are you…”

“Here, in the flesh?” Roka chuckled, cutting him short. “Silly brother, you’ve been played for a fool!”

“That’s mean,” Mizuchi grumbled.

“I’m sorry,” Roka teased. “I’m just surprised that you haven’t put the pieces together.”

“So, it seems I’ve been tricked,” Mizuchi sighed. “And you’re not going to let me hear the end of it aren’t you?”

“Nope,” Roka grinned.

The rest of the people gathered in the council tried their best not to smile or chuckle. They couldn’t help but be amused by Roka teasing her older brother. They were indeed siblings. Roka began playing with Mizuchi’s hair, which despite being embarrassed her older brother didn’t object to. Roka continued:

“But I guess I do owe you an explanation. You see when they ambushed me at the cave, I was fortunate enough to be able to slip away from their grasp. I fled from the mountains and was rescued by the warrior monks, led by Kazan's late master. He was the one who passed on the magical weapon to me."

She pointed at the snowflake-shaped shuriken or ninja star that she laid on the table. Then she continued:

"Later, I heard the rumor that the Jikan were spreading this lie that I was their prisoner. Apparently, they learned that you possess one of the magical weapons, so they found a cunning way to acquire your services. Everything they told you was a lie, and you fell right into their trap."

"Those scoundrels!" Mizuchi roared. "I will raze Clan Jikan to the ground!"