Path Of War

THAT NIGHT, ARTHUR LEFT THE CAMP and found a tree on the outskirts. He climbed it and settled into the branches before choosing to rest. Not fully asleep, his senses were kept sharp through the night.

At dawn, he arose without any disturbance.

Now he knew he had to shift tactics, so he changed his form into something native to the land: a blue jay that wouldn’t draw attention. His wings caught the morning breeze as he flew back toward the congregation. Once there, he circled once before finding a rooftop to land on near the Five-Tails.

The Five-Tails groaned now and then. The noise wasn’t loud, but it carried a heavy tone of pain. Even unconscious, the creature suffered. Its limbs were bound, and its chakra was being suppressed by the sealed lock.

Soon, movement below drew his attention.

Fujin had exited a building, and with him came a large number of the congregation’s members. They moved toward the square in a group, murmuring among themselves, but with no real confusion. It looked like they had just come out of a morning meeting.

It wasn’t long until a man stepped forward and broke their pattern. Arthur focused on him.

"What thou’rt doing is wrong," the man announced. "The sacred beast should be let free."

The others around Fujin looked between the two, waiting to see how it would unfold. Then Fujin stepped forward and asked, "Art thou speaking against the order of things?"

"Nay," the man replied. "I am honouring what our forefathers did pass down. The sacred beasts were never meant to be caged. They were guardians of the land, bound to the shrines. They were free."

The crowd didn’t react kindly; they laughed and mocked him. Some even rolled their eyes, while others crossed their arms in annoyance.

The idea of sacred beasts being free didn’t hold meaning for them anymore. Fujin had shaped their thinking and changed their beliefs. Ninshu wasn’t something sacred in this part of the land. It had been converted to ninjutsu, a weapon. And the beasts were its fuel.