Hinseji, the warrior town east of Hisantrost, was my home for the majority of my childhood. Men and women after the age of nine were trained in martial arts regardless of what they chose to be. The town of Hisenji was very small in my opinion, but the Hisenji culture was truly something else. Maybe part of the reason I found it too small was because of the lack of relationships I had with the townsfolk. None of the girls were my age and the boys never even thought to include me. To cure my boredom, I often went exploring. The lake, the forest, the mill, the farms, you name it.

I think it was a month after my seventh birthday, I finally decided to explore the so-called spooky caves near the farm. There was nothing spooky about the webbed and smelly cave. In my fantasies, I always imagined finding a ghoul down there. Well, now I realize how stupid I was. I would’ve had my soul sucked out in no time. I had to get out of the cave. It was getting too crampy, even for me.

Anyway, Just when I was encountering something remotely interesting, I'm sure it was the skull of a wild animal, someone came calling for me.

"Tatsu, your father is being dragged out!" The girl yelled to her from outside the cave.

"What? Not again." This was not the first time he was humiliated by the town nobles. His humiliation was always my humiliation, so I rushed out of the cave. My head met one of the stone walls of the cave. It hurt very badly, but I shrugged it off.

"It's evening?" I asked surprisedly. I might have been in the cave for hours. All I remembered was eating lunch from the ramen shop and running to explore the cave.

"You're bleeding!" Sakazuki yelled at me. She was my neighbor and friend, whom J always thought of as a sister.

"Oh yeah." I touched my head to feel the blood dripping. "I got hit."

"What's going on with my father?' I asked her. "Is he being scolded again?"

"I'm not sure, but I heard your father screaming as I came out here. It's getting late, you should go home."

"I'm sure it's nothing. He's an idiot."

I climbed down the rocks leading to the cave. Sakazuki was plucking flowers from the fields down there.

"Why are you taller than me?" I asked her randomly. I always felt I was too short.

"Just eat more." She said dryly. "You will get taller as you get older."

"What are you doing out here? It's getting dark. Come home with me."

"No," she replied. "Mother is out of town. This is the only time I can stay out late."

The walk back home wasn't very long. The caves were north of the farms, which were only a quarter of a mile away from my home. By the time I reached the village block, It was nighttime. To top it off, there was something going on. A crowd was gathered and they were whispering. It was not good.

"You're a thief!" Someone yelled. I couldn't see through the crowd but I was sure it was a fight.

"No…" I heard my father cry.

"Dad?" I cut through the crowd and see if it was true. Was it really my dad?

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"Face it Kamtsu, we have witnesses." The village noble said. He was holding a sword that was aimed at his head.

"A beheading… oh lord." One of the ladies next to me said in horror. "He deserved it." Her husband told her.

I jumped in front of the noble before he swung his sword.

"Step aside child!" He ordered.

"No, he's my father." I tried to sound tough. "He wouldn't steal."

"I didn't!" My father cried.

"Lies. The owner caught him in the act. Didn't you, Yumer?" The priest argued.

"Yes, I did. The bloody burglar was running off with my sword." The stout man said. He was hugging the sword close to his chest.

"It's just his word against mine! No one else saw this supposed robbery!"

"Quiet. We have no reason to trust you. You're a disgrace to the town." The nobleman declared.

"No. That's unfair." I argued. "He would never steal anything."

"How else would you explain Yumer finding the sword in his hands?" The nobleman questioned her.

"He's lying!"

"Face it, your family has been in debt for yours. It was only a matter of time before your father resorted to something like this." He gripped his sword again. "Step aside."

"No!" I tried to punch him but I was pulled back by the villagers.

“Lord Servine,She’s just a child. Have mercy.” one of the women said. The nobleman lowered his sword after hearing it. He appeared to be conflicted.

“We do not need Katmsu to be a part of our time. Either you leave the town or you die by the sword. Make a decision.” The noble decided. “Kamtsu is no warrior. He is a man with no honor and now a thief. We do not need him!”

“We will leave the town.” I accepted his proposal. It was better than death anyway. My dreams of being a Heinji warrior were crushed but she had to save her father.

“Be off now.” The noble ordered.

I helped lift my father to the ground. He was badly wounded and could barely walk. I tried to support him with my frail body. He was limping but I kept him walking.

“Bloody burglar!” Yumer, the stout man with the sword, threw a rock at him. It was followed by a barrage of rocks from the other villagers. I started sobbing.

“I didn’t do it.” My father told me. “You believe me, don’t you daughter?”

“I do.” I said through my tears.

The whole way out of the town, we were thrown rocks and insults. My body was numb from it. The rocks finally stopped when we reached the bridge out of town.

My father started to cough up blood as we crossed it. He stopped crying.

“Set me down, Tatsu.” He said. I knew my father was hurt by the stones.

“I cannot make it.”

I put him down next to one of the bridge’s metal columns. He rested next to it. That was when I noticed something I previously hadn’t. He was bleeding from the stomach. I ripped open his shirt to find a very awful wound. He was stabbed.

“I promise you father,” I tried to sound as confident as I could, but the tears kept flowing down my cheeks. “I will return here as the strongest warrior ever. You have my word.”

“I am sorry.” He said through his last breaths. “I am sorry for leaving you alone. I never wanted to.”

“It’s ok. I will be fine.” I tried to offer him comfort but he wouldn’t stop crying.

“Find someone. Find someone you can care about. Please do not live with my burdens.” Those were his last words. His eyes were open but I felt him stop breathing. I groaned with pain. I hugged him as I told myself to never forget this, but somewhere along the line, I did. I got so bent on becoming the strongest warrior in town. I never returned to Hisenji because I had to do it alone. I had to make my father proud.

I eventually found people who cared about me as much as I cared about them. I never felt livelier than when I was with them. That is why I will do anything to keep them alive. I do not want to win alone.