Yorodien Samurai Troopers:
Another Story

Kaijin drove his fist into the wall, his mind filled with mixed emotions: hate, fear, confusion, bewilderment. He couldn't control what had happened not that long ago in the park. He was just about to collect the armors when one of the Masho, Anubis, managed to use his powers and actually destroy parts of his mask. Nobody had ever done such a thing.

The mask that which was cursed upon him was to have protectedhim and itself from such an attack. Perhaps now its magic was beginning to dwindle?

So close, Kaijin thought. So close to becoming free... and not to mention losing my sanity! If it wasn't for Sachiriku, then there was a chance of ridding myself of this mask! But it's too late. Sachiriku managed to somehow use her powers to piece the mask back together, impenetrable as ever.

Drawing his fist away, Kaijin sighed in disbelief. Oh well, perhaps the magic will fade in another three hundred years...

"There you are, silly head!" a voice croaked from the darkness of the hallway.

Kaijin grimaced but forced himself to remain where he was. "Sachiriku-sama, where are you?"

Just then, the six-armed amazon fell through the shadows and landed on the floor with a loud *THUMP.* Sachiriku groaned but quickly got to her feet, her six arms brushing the imaginary dirt that collected onto her armor.

"Sorry, sorry, sorry," she quickly apologized. Lifting her head, she focused her pupil-less eyes upon the masked individual. "Kaijin-san, you didn't get me my armors, now did you?"

Kaijin shook his head. He bowed and said, "Forgive me, my lady. As I had mentioned, I was attacked by some spiritual figure -- a female -- who knew my name and said that I knew who she was."

Sachiriku's eyes enlarged and she started to become fidgety. She started kicking at the red carpet underneath them and her arms started moving about, either waving in the air or scratching her head. One of her hands went over to her hair and started tugging on it nervously. She darted her head left and right as though expecting to be attacked.

"She's here? No! She's dead! I'm dead! We're both supposed to be dead!" Sachiriku shrieked.

"S-Sachiriku-sama?" Kaijin inquired, taking a few steps back.

Sachiriku didn't answer him though. Instead, she started floating about the room in a crazed state, bubbly laughter escaping from her throat. She banged against the walls before flying into the throne room. The heavy iron double doors slammed shut after her and its noise echoed throughout the whole castle.

***

"W-what... did you say?" Naza asked, not sure if he had heard right.

Chibi Shin sagged his shoulders as he craned his neck just so he could see Naza. "I said, can I go home? I wanna see my mama and sister."

Oh great, Naza thought. Why do I always seem to be stuck with Suiko and his problems? "Um, you can't go home. Not just yet, Suiko."

"I wanna go home!" Chibi Shin whined, stamping his foot onto the ground. He stuck out his lower lip and made his hands into fists at his sides. "You take me home right now!"

Naza towered over the boy and replied acidly, "And I say you stay here!"

"Why!?"

"Don't you realize that you might get attacked again by those Shadowlings? And Kaijin or Sachiriku might be looming out there waiting to capture you!"

Chibi Shin was silent for a moment before he fell onto his bottom on the floor and kicked his legs up and down. "I don't care!" he screamed. "I wanna go home! NOW! NOW, NOW, NOW, NOW, NOW!!"

***

"Shu-kun, you come back here!" Nasuti cried desperately as she chased Chibi Kongo no Shu around her study.

Chibi Kongo was laughing happily as he dashed about to and fro, swinging his tiny staff as though he was fighting. "Take THAT! An' some of THIS! Yah!"

Swords were falling to the ground and the armors that hung on display fell apart. Nasuti cried out in distress. Even though Shu was just a little boy, he had great speed -- mainly because of his armor and special abilities.

Byakuen smiled sadly and shook his head. Seconds later, he dashed forth and held out his hand. Chibi Kongo, who was laughing merrily, bumped into Byakuen's open arm. He fell onto his rump and sighed. "Aw, man! You caught me. Wanna play Tag, Yaku-chan?"

The man shook his head. "No, Shu, I think you should settle down now. Okay?"

Chibi Kongo nodded. "Okeedokee, Yaku-chan. Where's Ryo? I wanna play with him now."

Byakuen felt a muscle twitch in his jaw. "Ah, Shu, why don't you go find Touma and the other boys to play with. Ryo's... taking a nap."

"Phooey! Awright."

"Change out of your armor first. Please."

Chibi Kongo stuck out his lower lip and went, "Aw, double phooey! No fair!"

Nevertheless, he closed his eyes and seconds later, his armor was gone and he once again wore his regular clothing. He scrambled over to the door and on tip toe, he opened it and was out of the room. Nasuti sighed in relief as she was able to pick up and put back all of the armors and weapons that had fallen out of place. Had she had enough time, she would've stored these things away so the Chibi Troopers wouldn't hurt themselves.

"Thank you, Byakuen," she said afterwards.

Byakuen threw Nasuti a lop-sided grin. "No problem. At least I'm actually doing something helpful for once."

Nasuti gazed at him curiously. "What are you talking about?"

"I've been nothing but trouble for you guys," Byakuen stated, his brown eyes gloomy. "As I tiger, I was able to sense upcoming danger and help out the Troopers whenever they needed it. But now in this human form, I can't fight like I used to nor can I be able to help any to the others during battle. I have nothing: no claws, no sharp teeth, and no weight advantage. I'm just a bother."

"Oh, Byakuen, no, that's not true at all," Nasuti soothed gently.

"She's right." Coming from the balcony area, Anubis and Rajura came inside, closing the door behind them. Anubis came up to Byakuen but stopped about a few feet away. "You've done a lot more for us than you think," Anubis pointed out. He frowned as he couldn't believe what he was saying. I'm not too good in these kinds of situations... so what am I doing getting involved? "You were quite a combatant when we were all first enemies."

Byakuen snorted, "That was only because I was a tiger -- not to mention a powerful and helpful one at that."

Nasuti's face fell. Instead of Byakuen, she saw Ryo standing there looking crestfallen. Those two were more alike they would ever imagine. "Yaku..."

Forcing herself to turn away, she changed the subject and asked if anybody was hungry.

***

Inside Nasuti's bedroom, Chibi Ryo was rummaging through her makeup. So far, he had found nothing but powder puffs, blush, mascara, and nail polish. He gave a cry of joy as he picked up some red lipstick. "Cool, more crayons!" Chibi Ryo gave another joyous yell as he produced some eyebrow pencils. "Colored pencils! Neat!"

He jumped down from the footstool that he used and he shoved the lipstick into his pocket along with the pencils. They all fell out, but Chibi Ryo didn't seem to notice. "Now, I need to find my coloring book. Me and Yaku-chan can--" His sentence fell short as he remembered that he was supposed to be mad at Byakuen.

"I hate him," he said to himself. "He tried to hurt me. I-I don't need his help! Never ever! ... But... He was gonna help me color... an' play with me later..."

Chibi Ryo fell to his knees and tears trickled down his cheeks. "He wants me to remember... but remember what? I don't get it!"

Suddenly, multiple visions flashed before his eyes. Chibi Ryo found himself looking at images of a young man with black hair in red yoroi and beside him was a beautiful white tiger. A demon with a red mask, white hair, and wearing dark yoroi was looming over the city of Shinjuku. Four other young men wearing mystical armors were standing beside the first young man.

A magnificent suit of white armor, wielding two swords, was standing before the bright lights of the sun. A black suit of armor stood in front of a full moon and in its possession was a giant black boomerang. The young man appeared again, this time, with four of his friends and they stood together, promising that they would stay friends forever.

"Them... I know them..." Chibi Ryo whispered, his blue eyes wide in reverence. "I know them... but from where...?"

"Why, that young man in the red armor is you," a honeyed voice spoke from behind.

"NANI?"

Reeling, Chibi Ryo found a figure evolving before him. At first, he thought he was looking at an angel from heaven. Their body was glowing like the sun's eternal flame, almost too impossible to even look at. Chibi Ryo squinted his eyes and forced himself to not turn away. Finally, after a few moments, the glow vanished and the young boy found himself staring at the lovely woman whom he and the other Chibi Troopers met earlier at the park.

The woman stood tall and gracefully before him, garbed in a red and white suit of armor. Her silvery-white hair was cascading behind her by a concealed wind. Her eyes were blood red yet filled with such gentleness. Her skin was white as ivory, soft and smooth. She looked much better than from the last time the others saw her. Chibi Ryo immediately felt a sense of kindness, but nevertheless he changed into his body armor.

Smiling, the woman knelt down and said, "Do not be afraid, little one. Seoul is not here to harm you."

Chibi Ryo, who held up his arms in protection, lowered them slightly and fixed his eyes on her. "You mean it? You won't hurt me like the Shadowlings?"

"Seoul would never hurt you, child."

"I-Is your name, Seoul?"

"Yes."

The boy cautiously waved back. "H-Hello, my name's Sanada Ryo. I'm six years old and my birthday's in August."

"My, how polite you are, Sanada-kun. Tell Seoul what troubles you? Have you been crying?"

"H-hai." Chibi Ryo wiped his cheeks with the back of his hand. "M-my friend, Yaku-chan, yelled at me, telling me to remember stuff that I can't remember. Or that is, I don't think I can't remember... um, oh boy, I'm lost."

Seoul smiled and placed a hand on top of Chibi Ryo's head. "You are a brave boy, Rekka no Ryo. Seoul saw you fight against those Shadowlings. Do you realize how strong you and your friends are?"

"K-Kinda," Chibi Ryo replied timidly.

"Well, then, can Seoul tell you what you must remember?"

"You mean, you know what's going on?"

She nodded. "Seoul does. Much more than you can believe."

Just then, the bedroom door flew open and Chibi Touma, Chibi Seiji, and Chibi Shu stood there. "There he is!" Chibi Shu exclaimed. "We were lookin' all over for you, Ryo!"

Chibi Seiji's jaw fell open as he spotted Seoul. "W-Who's that?"

"I think it's the lady from the park," answered Chibi Touma. "The one who made that Kaijin fly 'round the sky!" He held a thumbs up and said to Seoul, "That was pretty cool, lady! Can you do that neat trick again?"

***

Byakuen gasped as he stood up and faced the kitchen doorway. "Something's here."

From the kitchen table, Anubis and Rajura stood up as well. "Who's here?" Anubis asked. "What's going on?"

"No time to explain. Let's go!"

With that, Byakuen dashed from the room and towards the bedrooms. Anubis and Rajura quickly followed behind with Nasuti right at their heels.

***

"Ouch! Stop that, you little brat!" Naza cried as Chibi Shin stomped on his foot. He never realized that behind the adorable, innocent looking face was that of an extremely annoying brat. Were all children like this? Was he ever like this at this age?

Chibi Shin giggled as he stomped on his other foot mischievously. "Since you won't take me home, then you hafta play with me!" he proclaimed. "C'mon, Naza-san. I just wanna play!"

Naza growled fiercely, using every ounce of his willpower to prevent himself from going mad. Hoping on one foot, he growled, "I swear, if you weren't dying, I'd--!"

"Naza!" From the upper walkway, Naza found Rajura motioning him to follow. "There's trouble!"

The green-haired man nodded. "All right, I'll be there." Scooping Chibi Shin into his arms, the Doku Masho dashed upstairs in search of the others.

***

Seoul stood straight up as she found more people coming into the bedroom. Nasuti made her way to the front and cried out, "What's going on? Why is everyone in my bedroom! ...Huh? Who're you?"

"Her!" Byakuen admonished. "It's that woman from the park. Her appearance is different but she has the same scent."

"Yes, you are right. Minna-san, my name is Seoul. Seoul means you no harm."

Anubis glowered at Seoul. "How do we know you're not one of Sachiriku's soldiers here to capture the Troopers?"

Chibi Seiji nodded, holding up a fist and putting on a chivalrous face. "Yeah! How do we know you're not gonna hurt us and take us to that mean lady?"

Seoul did not show any signs of affliction on her face. Instead she beamed at them all. "Seoul understands how you all must feel. Well, perhaps Seoul should have a friend explain."

Suddenly, another female materialized beside Seoul and to everyone's surprise, it was a familiar blue-haired woman wielding Kaos' shakujo.

"KAYURA!" The Chibi Troopers cried out as they saw the blue-haired woman. Kayura's face was strained and pale stricken. The shakujo was clasped firmly in her fingers. She was breathing rather heavily but she managed to stay focused.

"Forgive me for taking so long to reach you," Kayura apologized in a raspy voice.

"Kayura, what is this woman doing here?" Naza asked firmly. "Have you found any traces of Sachiriku or Kaijin?"

Kayura gave a slight nod. "Yes, yes, but may we discuss this in the living room?"

Nasuti answered, "Of course," and quickly took charge. She was glad to lead everyone out from her room and back downstairs. However, Chibi Ryo and Byakuen remained behind. Chibi Ryo was staring down at the floor as Byakuen stood before him. Moments of absolute silence ratified between the two. Neither of them knew what to say or do; this was their first time having a verbal argument and thus, it was an awkward predicament. At last, it was Byakuen who spoke up:

"Ryo, listen, I... I'm sorry for what I did to you a while ago. I didn't mean to hurt you in any way."

Chibi Ryo shook his head and he lifted his head so he could see him. "No, Yaku, you didn't hurt me. I get what you were saying now. And you know what? I saw stuff."

"Saw stuff? What stuff?"

"Well, I saw some people wearing armors an' they were fightin' some bad guy in a red mask and I saw you! But, you were a white tiger and I saw me but I looked older."

He's starting to remember! Byakuen thought happily. Now maybe this will help saving him and the other Troopers if they just remember their past! "Ryo, that's right. You realize that--"

"Ryo! Yaku! You coming down?" Chibi Shu called from the stairs.

Chibi Ryo hollered back, "We're coming! Yaku-chan?"

He held out his hand and Byakuen gladly took it into his own. "You forgive me then?"

"Hai. I can't stay mad at you, Yaku-chan. You're my bestest, best friend in the whole world. No! The whole galaxy! No, wait! The whole universe!"

Byakuen chuckled as he and Chibi Ryo left the room. As they did so, Byakuen thought, I promise you, Ryo, I'll stop at nothing in getting you restored. No matter what I do, I'll do it for you, my friend. My best friend.

***end of chapter eight

Chapter Nine