The pale grey sky, the flora adorned with a hint of aquamarine and neon green, and the dazzling moon all drifted along as they were reflected in the lake. There were Sakura petals that floated around, whose origin no one knew.

But that wasn't the only thing that was on the lake. A man's body lay afloat, slowly drifting into the never-ending horizon. The man's face was pale, and he had a few bruises here and there on his body.

Suddenly, his face frowned as he slowly came to. He moved his right hand to his forehead and then slowly rubbed his eyes.

'Ugh, what the hell happened to me? Where am I? Ahh, crap, it hurts like hell… that damn bastard. Just you wait, I'll get back up and beat your ass up…' Seijūrō's eyes were closed as he drifted inside his own consciousness. He suddenly opened his eyes to see several Sakura petals, which then flew towards him in the form of a gentle spiral.

As he looked at the petals, he saw various images of himself in them. Some showing the him of today, and some showing a younger him. He held out one of his hands and one of them landed on his palm. He suddenly blinked and woke up at his home… One of the Minamoto clan's main houses in Kyoto.

'Huh? Strange… What are all these thoughts about?' He looked around and saw a younger version of himself, fiercely swinging his bokken in the lawn by the engawa.

"Let's go play outside, Nao-chan!"

"Let's go. Let's go, Masako-chan."

"Eeeh, don't leave me behind, Nao-chan!"

The other kids of the clan were running around the house and playing amongst themselves.

Seijūrō watched them, and the younger version of himself looked at them, making a sad face.

The other three children noticed Seijūrō and came closer towards him.

"Seijūrō-neechan (brother), do you wanna come play with us?" One of the kids asked him.

"Ye-"

"OI BRATS!!! GO MIND YOUR PLAY ON YOUR OWN AND DON'T BUTT INTO OTHER PEOPLE'S TRAINING! NOW GO AWAY."

Seijūrō's response was cut short by an adult's voice, which seemed to thunder throughout the huge house. A tall man wearing a crimson haori over a kimono walked in and rushed towards Seijūrō as he saw the other children. He had long black hair, which was held together with just a pin while it hung over his back.

This man was Minamoto Nobuhide, father to Seijūrō and the current head of the Minamoto family. He belonged to the main family and was a direct descendant.

"Seijūrō, let me know if those brats of the branch families bother you again while you are training, okay? Those good-for-nothing bums are just jealous of you and want to hinder your progress in becoming the next clan head.

Don't get fooled by those idiotic smiles of theirs, got it?" Nobuhide held and shook Seijūrō's shoulders firmly as he spoke.

"But father… they're playing and having fun. They have other friends in the village, and they play with them too.

I wanna play with them too. I wanna have friends too…" A young Seijūrō asked Nobuhide with a look of sadness on his face.

"Ohh look at this… Look at how those vermin poisoned my boy's mind and filled it with mundane thoughts!

Listen carefully, Seijūrō…

You aren't like them, you aren't like any other child you would see in this village. You are special. You are destined for much greater things, things that those brats can never even dream of achieving.

You don't have time to waste here, and that too on these useless things such as playing outside, friendship, and all that. You must train yourself and focus on your future. Not to mention, you are yet to awaken your Dragon Will.

Look at your brother, he trained hard and worked on himself, and now he has set out for one of the prestigious swordsmanship academies.

You and Suzaku are both my precious treasures, which is why I must guide you down the path to becoming a good successor for this clan."

"Okay, Father, I understand." Seijūrō nodded and bowed his head in respect. Nobuhide patted his head and made him train further.

Seijūrō was looking at the two of them and watched it happen again while standing on the engawa. As soon as his father stopped speaking…

"Oi… wait…

No, I'd… I'd still choose to have friends… I want to live a normal life.
I want to have fun.
I want to enjoy my life...

I don't want to be stuck as the heir of this stupid clan…"

He watched this memory pass away into the distance slowly…
"No… Don't go… Don't…"

Seijūrō fell on his knees and hit the ground in frustration, with tears falling on the ground.

"Seijūrō… My son…"

"Huh?" Seijūrō looked up while still on his knees and saw his father with a much older version of himself, him from almost two years ago.

"My boy.. you are all I have now.

Suzaku, that brat…
He chose to be loyal to the Shogun and the Sword Emperors over his own father and his clan after he got appointed as one of the Ivory Guards.

He was supposed to help our clan by being in the Shogun's official address, and yet…

Ahh, alas, it can't be helped. To think my son, my own flesh and blood, would choose the royalty over the clan. I guess wealth does change a man." Nobuhide spoke with such sadness in his heart that it seemed he might collapse because of the pain he was feeling.

"It's alright, Father. I'll do my best in my brother's place. I will never disappoint you." Seijūrō bowed his head as he spoke.

"Ahh, my son, you really are my beacon of hope. You still have much to learn about the ways of the sword and you are yet to awaken Dragon Will. But we mustn't be hasty, it'll all piece together in due time.

In two years, you will set out for Mt. Kyūkokuzan, to the village of the Ancient Emperor. I want you to come out on top there in the academy's induction tournament." Seijūrō bowed again, and then he left the room to train.

"Yes, father."

"NOO!
STOP…
Stop doing this to your own son. You raised me like a pig for slaughter, not letting me know what the people in this world are like or what the outside world is like.

You were planning to train me as a mercenary and a spy, right from the start. Then send me to the shogunate to join the royal guard, or be one of the Sword Emperor's underlings, and reap benefits for your own satisfaction. This was nothing more than an elaborate plan for accomplishing that…

You never even saw me as a son, you never cared about what I wanted, what my dreams were, or anything. You only considered my big brother Suzaku as your son, you never had a place for me in your heart.

Everything you told me was just lies, which were told just to keep up appearances, just to keep me fooled, and just to ensure that I followed your plan without a hitch.

And here I was, thinking I'm the son that my father would be proud of, the son who would have his back after his eldest son broke his trust and betrayed him.

How naïve I was!

Then I came to know how you truly felt about me when Suzaku came back to visit. You would just cast me aside after I'd accomplished what you wanted me to, especially after you came to realize that I might not have Dragon Will.

So I somehow managed to get out of there, under the pretense of getting more experience with real-life battles in order to better awaken Dragon Will.

The outside world was too harsh and cruel, and I had a hard time adapting to that. If I hadn't had the accursed family name over my head, perhaps I might've had a better time in the real world.

But it wasn't something that I could hide just like that, so I presented the confident version of myself, and in time, I grew into it and became confident enough to face the world, but the world was still too hard to fit in.

And then I got to meet those two... Takeshi, Kiyomasa, and the folks of Umikaze village, Aiko-san, Sachiko-san...

I can call them my friends, right? I finally have someone by my side, right?

Hahh, and now I'm here… waiting to die, I'm all alone again." Seijūrō sobbed as he thought about everything that happened until today.

"No, you're not alone." A voice suddenly spoke.

"Huh? Who's that?" Seijūrō asked out loud, looking around him.

"Well, you don't know me, but let's just say I'm the embodiment of your spirit."

Two yellow-colored eyes suddenly lit up in the dark. As it moved towards Seijūrō, its whiskers, the rest of its face, and a part of its body became more prominent. The area got more lit up as the being moved closer, and in the process, it lit up the entire area.

"What the-" Seijūrō was totally taken aback, and he fell back on the ground in surprise.

"A D-Dragon?"

The huge figure stood there, basking in its primordial grandeur. With glistening crimson red scales, a jet black mane, and an overall majestic look. Seijūrō could sense that the Dragon that stood before him was not some mere Dragon from legends. 

"Well, not technically… 
But you aren't wrong either."

"I am your...

Dragon Will (龍意志)."

The voice spoke, which echoed throughout the consciousness.

"Wait, why are you here?"

"Wha-? What do you mean?" The Dragon spoke, startled by Seijūrō's sudden question.

"No, I mean, I thought I didn't have Dragon Will. My father said it manifested for him when he was 13 years old, but even when I turned 15, it didn't come for me." Seijūrō responded.

"Do you think manifesting Dragon Will is like hitting puberty? No, it doesn't come for everyone at age 13." The Dragon replied.

"But my brother manifested it at that age too, almost all the clan members who are able to use Dragon Will awakened it at that age, that's why..."

"So? That doesn't mean you should awaken it at that same age. 

My goodness, people of the new ages are really out of their minds. What strange misconceptions and superstitions, maybe this world was better off enslaved." The dragon responded, making a disgusted face.

"You know, I'm seeing you speaking to me right in front of my eyes, and yet I'm finding it really difficult to picture you saying this to me, especially while making that face." Seijūrō spoke, chuckling, placing his hand on his forehead.

"Uh-huh? Well, get used to it, I guess.

Anyway, back to the question you asked me, I'm here because you awakened me, and you will be able to use my power, albeit a little. But it's only for now. As you train, reach a higher realm, and get stronger, you'll be able to use more of my power." The Dragon spoke confidently.

"Well, what's the use of it now? It's all over, I'll be dead in some time in the real world. This is just, my life flashing before my eyes, before I finally die. Awakening you now, when it's all over, further shows my incompetence." Seijūrō looked down as he spoke.

"Heh, you really are a naïve boy, aren't you?

Listen well.
You aren't dead—not at least while I'm still alive and kicking. And get your sorry ass back in the game, bring back that cocky, arrogant genius mindset of yours. Or maybe not, I really don't like cocky brats.

Well, anyway, those two could really use your help, you know?"

"Yeah, I guess, but I might end up getting in their way, they both trained hard and have their own trump cards up their sleeves. And despite that, we're losing. If I weren't there right from the start, they might've finished the fight already." Seijūrō responded, looking glum.

"But you do have one now." The Dragon smiled at him.

"I do, eh? Well, that's a relief…" Seijūrō slowly closed his eyes and fell unconscious.

"Remember, you are not alone!" The words of the Dragon echoed in his mind as he fell unconscious inside his mind.

"Seijūrō!!!
Seijūrō!!!"

The sound of Kiyomasa yelling can be heard softly. Seijūrō slowly opened his eyes to see Kiyomasa beside him, shaking Seijūrō, trying to wake him up. He looked to the side to see Takeshi fighting off the beast.

"Seijūrō!!!"

"Hahh, what the hell?" Seijūrō asked, suddenly snapping back to reality.

"Seijūrō, you okay?
You were out like a candle for like 10–15 minutes." Kiyomasa responded.

Seijūrō noticed that he was really battered and bruised, as was Takeshi, he knew that this was on him for not being able to protect the two of them while they attacked.

"Don't worry about me, I'm okay…" Seijūrō dusted himself off as he got up, with the help of Kiyomasa.

"I'm sorry about the inconvenience I caused you, Kiyomasa."

"Wait, why are you speaking so politely? It's so not-" Kiyomasa was shocked to see Seijūrō speaking like this. He was cut short in between by Seijūrō.

"In any case, I need you guys to buy me some time. Just keep it distracted for a bit, and let me know when you hit your limit."

"Umm, How much time are we talking about here?
I don't think me or Kiyomasa can hold on much longer."

"Clang Clang"

"Clang Clang"

Takeshi and the beast ran around the field, clashing with each other's blades, and when the beast would close in, it would go for a blast or try to overpower Takeshi.

"Yeah, you guys really might wanna get back here…"

"Clang Clang"

"And help me..."

Takeshi was almost being bent into two if it weren't for his legs.

"Any minute now!" Takeshi yelled out.

"Okay, we got it.

You do your thing, we'll hold it off." Kiyomasa patted him and charged in, aiming for a kick at the beast's head. It withdrew its hold on Takeshi to block it, and then they continued on with their barrage.

"Okay, here goes nothing." Seijūrō concentrated, holding his blade in a position.

Takeshi followed up with this movement technique to break the beast's guard, pushing it a bit to throw it off course. Kiyomasa backed this up by charging in with his signature attack while the beast was still in the air. He then yelled. "NOW!!!"

There was a sudden spike in the overall ki emanating from Seijūrō, slowly taking the shape of a dragon above him. This ki was red in color, compared to the colorless ki that shrouded the other two.

"Minamoto-Style: Dragon Rush (源流: 竜突入)."

Seijūrō breathed calmly before he revealed his technique's name.

The air crackled with the ki discharging from his body, and his entire body became a blur after he started moving. His eyes glowed with fearsome intensity, mirroring the dragon's fiery yet majestic gaze.

The air itself seemed to ripple as his blade connected with the beast, slashing away at it, doing a barrage of attacks, carving the name "Dragon (龍)" on it, and releasing a shockwave that reverberated through the field.

"GRAWWWRR GRAWWWRR"

The beast yelled out in such a manner that it would feel as if someone were pulling its organs out while it was still alive. It's face was contorted and writhing in agony. Seijūrō was shocked to see this particular reaction from the beast, that too, at this moment, after he did his attack.

The duo who was on standby, waiting to counter just in case, were surprised to see this too.
"Damn, Seijūrō's attack was really that strong, eh? To make that crazy beast cry out so loud. He did have the best trump card among the three of us." Takeshi remarked as he saw the dragon-shaped aura disappear slowly.

"Yeah, as much as I hate to admit it, haha. That lazy bastard pulled it off." Kiyomasa remarked.

The beast fell down quite far from where Seijūrō stopped, due to the force of the attack. It was shaking violently as it lay on the ground, with a large amount of its blood spurting out before finally stopping. The ki of the beast completely disappeared.

"Hahh, that's all I got." Seijūrō dropped to his knees, and then on his back as he slowly succumbed to exhaustion.

"Hahaha, you bastard, that's all you needed to do." Kiyomasa and Takeshi rushed to him to pick him up, but they too fell on their backs on the ground as they were exhausted.

"Ahh, its finally over!" Takeshi sighed in relief as he looked at the skies. Quite a few hours had passed since the battle with the beast started, and they somehow managed to pull off this feat.

The beast was still trembling, lying in a pool of its own blood, although very faintly now.

"Hmm, strange. Doesn't residual ki dissipate slowly after the person or creature dies? This beast's ki just disappeared, just like that." Takeshi spoke, panting in between words.

"Hahh, maybe it's because it's a different kind of beast. I mean, which normal beast has this kind of  strength?"Kiyomasa replied to him.

Just as they stopped speaking, the ki in the atmosphere spiked once again. With the beast slowly getting up, it was limping and struggling.

The trio sensed the spike and raised their heads to look at the beast. Their faces were quite the spectacle.

"You have got to be KIDDING ME!!" Kiyomasa yelled out.

Although it stood up, half dead, it wasn't facing the trio. It bent a bit, and suddenly a pair of wings emerged from the point where his spikes used to be.

"THE HELL? It's trying to escape." Seijūrō pointed at the beast. He turned to look at the other two and then himself, and realized that they were too worn out to chase after it.

As it was slowly gaining altitude, Seijūrō thought he had to jump and kill it before it fled, since it too was at its limit.

As he was gonna take a step to run, he heard something very softly.

"Eight Rivers: ****"

Kiyomasa, with the push from Takeshi, flashed in, leaping into the air and slashing the beast, before it got to a much higher, unreachable position.

The both of them fell down after the last of the beast's ki slowly disappeared.
"Hahh, it's over for real, right?" Kiyomasa spoke, turning his body and moving it away from the dead beast's body.

The two of them carried Kiyomasa, and the trio sat down near a tree, resting their backs on the trunk.

The two of them decided to slowly carry themselves back to Takeshi's cave, as they decided that trying to go back to the village in this condition was an invitation for more danger. At the condition they are in, even a rabbit could take them down.

"Oi, drag that beast too!" Kiyomasa spoke with his head down and his hands on the shoulders of Takeshi and Seijūrō.

"Huh? What for?" Seijūrō asked curiously.

"Well, I'm tired and hungry, and I did promise to bring back this beast's meat, remember?" Kiyomasa lifted his head up to look at Seijūrō and smiled at him.

"Ahh crap. Oh well, here, Takeshi, hold this end." Seijūrō spoke, handing over Kiyomasa's shoulder to Takeshi as he ran back to grab the beast.

"What am I? A randoseru? To hold the other end." Kiyomasa responded.

"Now now, conserve your energy, man. I'm tired too, and we could both fall down if you exert too much pressure on me." Takeshi spoke, holding on to Kiyomasa's torso.

Seijūrō came back a bit later, carrying the beast.

"God, this thing is heavier than it looks."

"Well, no use whining, it's gonna be our food." Kiyomasa spoke.

"Really? The thought of eating this thing is kinda weird." Seijūrō replied, making a weird face.

"Yeah, well, I don't think Takeshi has a lot of food back in his cave, so…"

"Well, yeah, that's true, I just have a few onigiri." Takeshi responded.

"Aww damn…

Oh well…" Seijūrō voiced his content as they walked back to the cave together.

*****

In a land far away, where the sun's rays don't reach the way they were intended to...

In the greyish-black background, there stood a throne, on which sat a man with a powerful aura. Wearing a simple crown on his head and supporting it using his hands, which were on the throne's armrest.

His eyes were closed for the longest time, his lips were sealed, and yet his ears heard sounds from realms unknown.

Suddenly his eyes opened, revealing his eyes, an iris of molten gold and obsidian black, which shone in stark contrast to the infernal void in front of him.

"Something interesting has finally happened after a long time.
It'll be interesting to watch these three.
Kekeke." The man's voice thundered throughout the land, waking up several others as he chuckled in a sinister manner.

To be continued...