The Sage's Pagoda

A.N: Before the chapter start I want to apologize for the quality of the chapters from yesterday's, I'll try to not write once again sleepy since it was trash. I'm going to spend this Saturday trying to fix the mistakes and improve the flow of them.

I hope this chapter is better than the previous two.

Also I do request for more interaction with the novel since I'm at lost if you're enjoying it or not.

And if you wish to support it, please leave a review or a power stone!

I won't bother you anymore and here's the chap!

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After at least fifteen minutes trying to relax and prepare for what was to come, Ryuuji finally entered his house with firm steps and a determined look, he stood in the middle of the living room and told his companions.

"I heard what you feel about me, and I appreciate that it is our bond that makes you listen to me and, even more, help me."

Ryuuji paused briefly to take a breath and look everyone in the room one by one, eye to eye.

"In case this person that Sarui is going to introduce us to can't help me, all of you are free to continue on your way from now on, I only ask that until then, don't let go of my hand." After finishing these words, he grabbed his paddy hat and ordered them.

"Let's move out." And everyone in the room follow his path, but neither mind was set on the task at hand, as Ryūji's words resonated with them.

In the case of the Sheks, what moved them to follow and listen to him, even more so, to obey the order given was their unwavering honor and sense of duty, to whom each one of them swore to follow, fight and protect until the last moment, to then die as brothers.

Thus, Kang, Seto, Stenn and Masaru made the daunting task of putting aside what Ryuuji was causing them at this moment and with a cold look they prepared for one last march with the human warrior who they swore allegiance to.

In Ruka's case, she was moving at Ryuuji's side, taking a position that made her decision clear.

She wasn't going to follow him due to an order, she didn't need to hear his words to accompany him in this dark hour. Ruka took her place as Ryuuji's partner, the person to whom she not only swore allegiance, but also to whom she placed her affection and hope.

This problem was also her own. As nothing would make her doubt the unwavering faith she placed in the human by her side.

And that is how she turned the pain of touching him into a flame that gave her warmth in a hostile world. That the rejection of his presence changed into a love that enveloped both of them.

Unfortunately, it was only Ruka who could overcome what Ryuuji produced.

Manin for his part forced his own mind to remember all the moments he spent with Ryuuji, that's how he found the resilience to follow him on this journey. But not like this, if for others it was painful to touch Ryuuji, for the hiver prince his mere presence made him clench his teeth in pain.

Each step he took away from Ryuuji's house it was one harder to take, his being wanted to flee away from such dread it was feeling in the presence of him.

Although he tried not to look at Ryuuji, it was impossible for him to not feel an abyss where Ryuuji's should be.

Thankfully, due to forcing himself to appreciate the value of his camaraderie with Ryuuji, Manin was able to move forward and resolve his will to carry out this order.

Beep on other hand, had to reminded himself of who gave him chewsticks when he was feeling hungry and followed Ryuuji without to much problem.

It may be painful to be around him, but for Beep it was more important to remember how to pay the kindness he once received. And who gave him the sword to follow his dream.

Though the person that trained him didn't think the same as Beep.

Syntax was the last person on the group following Ryuuji and Ruka, his eyes didn't shy away from looking at the abyss and unsurmountable being that Ryuuji has become, even if he felt going mad due to his actions and exposition at Ryuuji's.

His mind and memories were trying to come up with an explanation to the phenomena, and what was more important, trying to rationalize the intrinsicall horror that his soul was feeling. And all of his conclusions came to the same point.

Something happened when Ryuuji died, and his presence on this world was what made every around him act in that way.

'Maybe the realm of death is something that shouldn't be taken so slightly.' Syntax thought to himself while adding to his mental notes to further study into the matter in the future.

The revival of Ryuuji, in Syntax opinion, has opened a Pandora box that should've never have been opened. Yet now they were facing the results of it and they needed to act fast if they didn't wanted the fallout to further increase.

All this time while thinking of this, Syntax continue to slow down his pace as the distance between himself and Ryuuji's increased.

"The pain does decrease to a level near not feeling being burnt alive and shredded to pieces." Syntax said to himself as he fastened the pace once again while grunting in pain.

Although in a different occasion he would've been the first to kill Ryuuji, he couldn't deny that the current situation not only made him feel excited about the prospect of studying the unknown. But also triggered a spark into his life he wasn't aware off.

He felt that something that was invisible for him was cut, and he wanted to know what exactly was such thing.

Thus, with vigorous steps, Syntax closed the gap once again between them as he eyed the peeping eyes that were looking at Ryuuji with extreme fright.

It seemed that just like how quickly Ryuuji's figure raised among the villagers, it quickly fell too. And the trauma that his presence left behind, would be hard to recover from it

....

Once the squad plus Sarui left the village, without saying a word at Asa, Otto nor Minami, they moved switftly through the path in a jogging pace.

According to Sarui, the Pagoda where the monk lived was near black fire town, but not in the current road. So they would need to approach the town itself and avoid it while taking the road that lead to the Pagoda.

However, something that concerned not only Sarui but the rest of the group was the reaction of the various villages that surrounded Black Fire Town. Since although they would be avoiding them, they would get near them wether they liked or not. The villages were on the path after all.

And the more time the squad spend around Ryuuji, the more they started to feel their rationality and sanity begin to wane.

It wasn't even five hours since they departed, that Kang asked Ryuuji to follow them from a distance since it was becoming unbearable for him. Thus, Ryuuji had to accept as he didn't wished to see his companions further suffering around him, not when they were helping him even if he was visibly causing pain and plight at them.

So, in that manner, the squad advanced through the path, now without having to fight against a tearing pain all the time, and just focusing on maintaining at bay the dreading feeling and their decaying sanity.

By the next morning, the squad was able to see various structures and a wooden wall that conformed the Black Fire Town. On the sides, they saw various villages spawning around the two distinctive roads that spaned through the horizon, each going to the opposite direction and joining conjunction in the town itself.

However, there wasn't any activity on the road, and Sarui pointed out the lack of caravans entering and exciting the town itself.

Yet the same heavy at atmosphere seemed to encroach the town and the various villages. With a bad feeling, the group continue with their path.

....

An atmosphere of despair, dread and danger has been encroaching the whole Black Fire Town, the surrounding villages and most importantly, the Sage's Pagoda.

The Sage Monk Lao has been trying to not only keep at bay his once controlled emotions, but also prevent his disciple from going mad.

He refused to help the various villagers that came to his pagoda in search for help, only lending a hand towards those that were visible injured by the event itself. Yet he knew it was futile, the damage of whatever it was has already been done and no matter how much he used his own abilities, he couldn't mend the spiritual and soul injuries that everyone seemed to share.

What disturbed him the most was how his connection with the Sage itself was cut off at the beginning of the event, and how he wasn't able to not only reconnected, but the sheer silence in the spiritual world itself.

Something of magnitudes he wasn't able to grasp of happened, and he feared the consequences such thing would produce in the future, as he only saw dark and grimness awaiting them.

While still trying to conceive and somehow calm himself at the thought of it, Lao wasn't able to continue meditating and helping when not only he, but almost everyone started to feel that something was approaching.

Many villagers fled in sheet fright and horror, leaving behind everything they have and not wanting the feeling to continue increasing. Not even the grieving mother's that lost their children at the start of the event could stop their own instinct of survival, everyone that didn't have a powerful willpower was able to stand the incoming danger.

Lao and his disciple, Ting, were forced to remain on the Pagoda, as their duty with their religion was stronger than the dread they were feeling. Yet none of them was able to close an eye through the night, as the suffocating aura only increased as it approached.

While overlooking the surroundings during the morning, Lao saw various figured leaving in fright from the town itself.

'Shinobis.' Judged Lao after knowing that only the samurai and shinobi's were the one's that stayed behind. With the necessary willpower to face whatever was coming at them.

As he felt the cause of such event slowly approach his pagoda, Lao's face and body slowly started to change.

From his eyes, marks started to spread around his face. While a powerful aura exploded from his body. With heightened sense, he was able to pinpoint the person that caused such tragedy in this world.

Yet he opened his eyes wide open in surprise, as what he saw left him speechless.

His senses were overloaded as everything around him faded from his perception, a gargantuan void of black engulfed not only his vision but everything around him and extended beyond his own capabilities as a sensor.

'It is impossible! SOMETHING LIKE THAT SHOULDN'T BE POSSIBLE TO EXIST! SUCH EVILNESS!' His mind screamed in profound terror, he felt his knees shaking, his stomach turning out.

With difficulty he tried to grab into something to steady himself, yet when he grasped the railing in front of him, he destroyed by the sheet amount of force he was using.

Yet when he regained somewhat his senses and saw the figure almost reaching his pagoda, he flew towards it while gulping down the fear.

A sheer rage and violence erupted from the most deep seated parts of his soul, as he tried with a simple movement to kill the young man in front of him.

Like a lightning he appeared from the top of his pagoda, to in front the of the man, and with a fist that threatened to erase everything from existence, he was stopped just a couple of centimeters away from the young man face as a kick was successful enough to let the fist reach its destination.

With urgency, Lao didn't bother looking at who got in between and move the person away. Yet when he was about to make his next attack, he was kick in the chest and send flying a few meters back, though unharmed since the strength behind it was too weak to affect him, it was enough to create a distance between them.

Yet when he saw the woman standing in front of the young man, he raised his brows in concern and clear anger, not only because he knew the woman, but also due to the disappointment in knowing that she was in cahoots with such evilness.

"Sarui, what are you doing with this spawn of evil!? Why did you stop me from killing such abhorrence vile!?" Although he tried to remain cold headed, it was a hard task to do with the feelings that the evilness in front of him produced into his being.

"Lao-sama! Please hear me out for a moment, we need your help!" A clearly agitated Sarui screamed at him while her body glowed in a golden hue, as various tattoos illuminated the dark skinned woman.

Lao scoffed at her words and with a infuriate expression on his face told her "The only help I can bring, is to kill that thing! Move away Sarui or else the next attack I won't show mercy on you!"

Lao was ready to let go his personal feelings in the face of evil. Not matter how much he appreciated the young woman, he wouldn't be helping at her when she clearly fell into the trap of the fiend.

"You fucking Oldman! We're here because we don't want to kill this guy and stop whatever he's causing! Can't you see reason for a moment!?" The voice of a tall man reached his ear as he saw a towering figure grasping tightly onto a giant sword while trying to shield the evil spawn.

Enraged by their words and the silliness of the content behind them, Lao roared at them "AND CAN'T YOU SEE THAT THE ONLY SOLUTION IS TO KILL THAT THING!? WHY HAVEN'T ANY OF YOU DO THE RIGHT THING AND FINISHED HIM BEFORE!?"

His roar and chakra expulsion seemed to attract his disciple Ting, who without saying a word after seeing the people in front of his master, let out his chakra exploding and move beside him.

It was then that Lao heard a voice that made his skin crawl in disgust.

"There's no need for any of you to die here today, its clear that this monk won't help." He saw the young man behind the nine figures moving toward the front.

A woman seemed to try and stop him, yet the man sat in seiza in front of Lao while looking at him in the eye.

Both Lao and Ting let their auras went berserk as they barely restrained themselves from killing the man then and there and waited for whatever he might wanted to say as his last words.

Seeing him gulping down and with a pale face, Lao was able to see the man steady hands placing his katana and wakizashi in front of him.

"I do not wish to have done any of this, I heard from Sarui here that you might help me with whatever might be affecting me sir, but if you can't find yourself to reason for a moment to look after my ailment, I wish to prevent for the blood of my family here to be spilled, as they have done more than enough by standing on my side." The sincere tone and the sad face in the young man, made Lao almost believe that he was a victim too.

Almost.

With a slow step, he appeared in front of them man, as he heard someone screaming on the back, yet he didn't paid attention to it and only looked at the man with such repulsion and hatred on his face that made the sitting figure flinch at the sight of it.

"You've done the right thing by appearing here, so I can finish you, I cannot think of anything that could help you more than relieving yourself from continue existing." The screams on the back got louder as Lao raised his hand while the chakra formed a blade around it.

Yet before he was able to strick the man down once again, a furious figure appeared in front of them with a sword on her hands, tears streaming down her face as she looked at Lao with utmost hatred.

"I won't let you kill him! He has done nothing to deserve such thing!" She let out those words through sheer rage and unwillingness.

But Lao could only scoff at her words "He didn't do anything? Have you seen what he cause on this town!? Don't you know that he cut my own connection with the spirits!? HE IS SUCH AN EVIL EXISTENCE THAT SHOULDN'T BE ALLOWED TO REMAIN ALIVE." Lao became so enraged that he wasn't even able to see Ting kicking at the woman to the side and sending her away.

""""Ruka!"""" He heard various people exclamating with fear.

"All we're asking is for you to take a moment and see if you can do something about it! ALL THIS WHILE YOU ONLY WANTED TO KILL HIM!" Sarui screamed at him with despair after seeing Lao attitude.

Hearing her words, Lao tried to breathe deep and close his eyes. Although every fiber on his being was telling him that the right thing to do was to kill the man, he decided for once to give a chance to the woman in front of him that he knew wouldn't deceive him.

Letting out the air on his lungs, he opened his eyes and grabbed the man shoulder. Yet the moment his palms touching him he felt like he almost died.

Retrieving his hand quickly Lao's rage diminished and his senses started to working back once again, it was then that he was finally able to perceive a blazing pain all over his body for just standing in front of the man.

Looking at the man with wide eyes filled with horror, he gulped down the question that lingered on his mind. Not wanting to touch him again, he ordered to Ting and the group in front him.

"Bring him inside." As he said that Lao turned around and started walking toward the Pagoda.

Lao was starting to regret not killing already the man, yet what made him calm down and proceed with Sarui's request was the assurance that he would be able to kill him no matter what after.

The difference in strength was simply too big.

Thus after opening the Pagoda doors, he went towards his equipment area while trying to think what could be affecting the man.

'It's a presence, that's for sure, if that were not the case, I would have felt its presence and devastation long ago. And I don't think anyone would have let him live.' Lao first concluded as he started to prepare his exorcism tools.

He briefly looked over a piece of ink with a plume 'Maybe that would be useful.' he thought to himself while believing that maybe this time he may not be able to made the fiend disappear from that boy.

Grabbing his cane, and chanting a manthra to prepare himself, Lao let out a deep breath and returned back to the room where he was sure Ting lead them.

And sure enough, he saw the man sitting in the middle of the purification inscription on the floor. His companions surrounding him while another helped the woman that was injured and was seating on the back of the temple.

Although he saw her badly bleeding from her mouth, he didn't paid her attention as he focused on the man.

"You're aware that I will kill you if I can't help you, right?" Asked Lao with a somber tone.

Just approaching him once again brought back the blazing pain all over his body that was unbearable for him.

He couldn't imagine how all of these people were around the man.

"I am, please proceed." Was all the man said before Lao nodded his head and rest his cane on the man head.

The moment Lao closed his eyes, he saw it once again. A void surrounding everything. Yet this time he took a closer look, he was able to distinguish a blazing light moving outward from his senses were capable off.

Yet for Otto, that same blazing light was the answer to the question lingering on his mind.

What was this man? Well, for Otto it was clear that he was still somewhat a normal human. Yet the void within him was so immense that made first Lao unable to see it.

'What kind of evil could leech onto this young man in such way?' The thought almost frightened Lao, yet he started chanted his mantras to try and expell the evil.

Yet even when light encroached the man, the aura and presence was still there. Seemingly unfliched by his doings.

Lao keep trying with different mantras and by using various techniques to exorcise the man, yet none of them work.

It was when a frightful possibilty appeared on Lao's mind that he opened his eyes wide in disbelief yet choose to try his last resort.

"Take off your clothes and armor." Lao ordered the man who followed without saying a word and in a couple of minutes, was laying on the floor in his birthday suit.

Yet none payed him attention as everyone was more occupied looking at Lao's actions. The monk let out a scroll from a pocket in his robe and started writing all over Ryuuji's body and I the blank space on a part of the scroll.

Once he finished after almost ten minutes of constant writing, Ryuuji's body was filled with the ink that marked the inscription for the next technique of Lao.

"Fūin Kinshi: Tamashi Kyodai!" With hoping eyes, Lao roared the technique as the words around Ryuuji's body seemed to gain life and started moving around his skin.

Ryuuji opened his eyes wide as a gasped scream of pain escaped his mouth, yet everyone was taken aback by the hollow eyes that replace Ryuuji's eye sockets while a blinding light escaped from his orifices.

Lao was marveled at seeing not only the technique working, but the words forming correctly the seal at the left side of Ryuuji's body.

Yet what made everyone in the room be more surprised and glad at it, was the receding aura that surrounded the whole world.

The pain disappeared as so did the negative feelings towards Ryuuji, yet what replace it was a feeling of peace and warmth.

Lao saw with his eyes how the void shrunked quickly, yet not even after two minutes seemed to stop. This however proved to be nothing, as Lao was horrified after more than twelve hours of the technique working.

All this time he spend on the side of Ryuuji while still waiting for the other soul the be sealed. Yet the never ending void seemed to be almost limitless.

All this while Ting helped tending the wounds of Ruka while the rest of the squad remained looking at the scene with concern and hope.

No one said a word, only to share water and something to eat.

Yet it was then that finally Lao was able to see the end of the void, as the black hole seemed to finally show the end of it and the blazing light that escaped before was shinning brightly around it.

(A.N: Imagine the black hole from interstellar, that's it.)

When the darkness receded and only a blazing fire shone in front of Lao, he finalized with the sealing and was able to rest at ease.

Letting out a deep breath, he was glad he heard Sarui, as not only he didn't kill an innocent man. But was able to witness something incredible.

"...It's finally over..." he heard the voice of someone around letting out a tired and relieved sigh.

Indeed, it was finally over, the world was finally able to once again resume it's normalcy. Yet Lao knew that everything changed into this world.

Resting his gaze on the sleeping figure of the man, thousands of thoughts started running wild in Lao's head. Yet the same concerning question remained afloat on the sea of doubt.

'What is going to happen from here onwards?'