Pon…. Pon…
The sound of bamboo hitting bamboo between a steady stream of water flow. The Shishi-Odoshi continued its endless cycle, the only sound present in the area. It was a traditional Japanese-style garden, an alcove of nature surrounded by countless bamboo trees and bushes. A line of stones separated the bamboo grove from the inner circle of the garden, filled with evenly cut grass, and a stone walkway, leading to a circular ‘plate’ of stone, at the center of the room. There was no blowing of wind or chips of birds, as this wasn’t outside, nor was it even on earth. This was the Kusanagi Manor, located near the center of Nova Solyma, Luna.
The Kusanagi clan was an odd-case in Everglory. They were one of the few people who weren’t Psychodrivers yet they held a fairly high position in society, a clan of nobles so to speak. They had been apart of Luna society since towards its beginning, though they remain uninvolved in the politics of governmental affairs. They instead stand as affiliates, working with the Luna military. The Kusanagi clan fosters their children as strong warriors, making them ideal for their role in society.
In the middle of the Manor’s garden, a lone woman sat, seiza, motionless. Her eyes were closed, and her breathing was slow relaxed, it was almost impossible to see her chest expanding and compressing. She was dressed in a traditional kimono, colored white, with red Hibiscus patterning throughout the kimono. Her hair was tied up in a high ponytail, its grey-ish blonde sheen reflecting the artificial light of the room. Her face was rather angular, yet had an attractive balance of smoothed, feminine features to it. She was a beauty, to say the least, and likely captured the hearts of many men, though she herself, rarely saw herself as a woman. It was a result of how she was raised in the clan. She was taught to forego her femininity, becoming a strong heir who will one day inherit and become head of the Kusanagi clan. The head of the clan’s current generation was unable to conceive a child, so a contest was held between the branch families, a decisive victory meant becoming the new main family of the clan.
Okuni was that victor.
Named after the Miko who founded Kabuki theatre, Okuni was the firstborn child of the Aohara family. However, being a female, it was strange for her to become head of the clan, so she was given a more masculine name, Ikazuchi, derived from her martial technique. Ikazuchi’s technique, dubbed 無敗の剣 by many of the clan members, was due to her never losing a fight. While everyone of the clan practiced the Kusanagi sword-style, no one perfected it like Ikazuchi. Though she never thought of it as ‘perfect’. Ikazuchi kept grasping higher, even when she had victory over the other branch families, she continued to refine her technique, hoping to further the prowess of the Kusanagi sword style. While she had always shown compatibility with the martial arts, where she was today wasn’t due to privilege or being born a ‘genius’. It was the result of effort. If anything, she was a genius of hard work.
A bamboo leaf had fallen from its branch, slowly drifting down and towards Ikazuchi. As it passed her forehead, her eyes opened in an instant, focusing in on the falling leaf. Mimicking with her hands the “Battō” of a sword, her empty right hand ‘drew’ itself from her hip, forming an edge with the outside edge of her hand. In one movement, she placed her right foot on the ground and pushed forward with her whole body; her motion moving inches before the leaf, but the force exerted by it, her ki rushed outward, cutting the leaf in half down the vein.
“...” Ikazuchi gave a profound look, having been stirred from her meditation.
“Perhaps they are reaching their end…” She reached out and grabbed the still-falling leaf and cupped it in her hand. “...Is there anything that lasts forever?”
The sound of bamboo hitting bamboo between a steady stream of water flow. The Shishi-Odoshi continued its endless cycle, the only sound present in the area. It was a traditional Japanese-style garden, an alcove of nature surrounded by countless bamboo trees and bushes. A line of stones separated the bamboo grove from the inner circle of the garden, filled with evenly cut grass, and a stone walkway, leading to a circular ‘plate’ of stone, at the center of the room. There was no blowing of wind or chips of birds, as this wasn’t outside, nor was it even on earth. This was the Kusanagi Manor, located near the center of Nova Solyma, Luna.
The Kusanagi clan was an odd-case in Everglory. They were one of the few people who weren’t Psychodrivers yet they held a fairly high position in society, a clan of nobles so to speak. They had been apart of Luna society since towards its beginning, though they remain uninvolved in the politics of governmental affairs. They instead stand as affiliates, working with the Luna military. The Kusanagi clan fosters their children as strong warriors, making them ideal for their role in society.
In the middle of the Manor’s garden, a lone woman sat, seiza, motionless. Her eyes were closed, and her breathing was slow relaxed, it was almost impossible to see her chest expanding and compressing. She was dressed in a traditional kimono, colored white, with red Hibiscus patterning throughout the kimono. Her hair was tied up in a high ponytail, its grey-ish blonde sheen reflecting the artificial light of the room. Her face was rather angular, yet had an attractive balance of smoothed, feminine features to it. She was a beauty, to say the least, and likely captured the hearts of many men, though she herself, rarely saw herself as a woman. It was a result of how she was raised in the clan. She was taught to forego her femininity, becoming a strong heir who will one day inherit and become head of the Kusanagi clan. The head of the clan’s current generation was unable to conceive a child, so a contest was held between the branch families, a decisive victory meant becoming the new main family of the clan.
Okuni was that victor.
Named after the Miko who founded Kabuki theatre, Okuni was the firstborn child of the Aohara family. However, being a female, it was strange for her to become head of the clan, so she was given a more masculine name, Ikazuchi, derived from her martial technique. Ikazuchi’s technique, dubbed 無敗の剣 by many of the clan members, was due to her never losing a fight. While everyone of the clan practiced the Kusanagi sword-style, no one perfected it like Ikazuchi. Though she never thought of it as ‘perfect’. Ikazuchi kept grasping higher, even when she had victory over the other branch families, she continued to refine her technique, hoping to further the prowess of the Kusanagi sword style. While she had always shown compatibility with the martial arts, where she was today wasn’t due to privilege or being born a ‘genius’. It was the result of effort. If anything, she was a genius of hard work.
A bamboo leaf had fallen from its branch, slowly drifting down and towards Ikazuchi. As it passed her forehead, her eyes opened in an instant, focusing in on the falling leaf. Mimicking with her hands the “Battō” of a sword, her empty right hand ‘drew’ itself from her hip, forming an edge with the outside edge of her hand. In one movement, she placed her right foot on the ground and pushed forward with her whole body; her motion moving inches before the leaf, but the force exerted by it, her ki rushed outward, cutting the leaf in half down the vein.
“...” Ikazuchi gave a profound look, having been stirred from her meditation.
“Perhaps they are reaching their end…” She reached out and grabbed the still-falling leaf and cupped it in her hand. “...Is there anything that lasts forever?”