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"The First Glimpse" (Banner Village) It rained. As Mondo made his way to Banner through the forest, it rained. It had rained for almost the entire trip. Mondo was already in a slightly bad mood because of the rain. didnt even think to bring an umbrella... the ninja thought. As he walked over the crest of a large hill, his mood brightened significantly as he saw a small bridge over a river and the village that the bridge connected too. He watched the simple wooden lodgings gradually become clearer as he walked down the hill. Most of the windows emitted soft lights, showing that the occupants were still up and had their lanterns lit. Mondo took a few more paces down the hill, and that was when his eyes caught the middle of the small village. There are people out? In this weather? he thought. A few more steps down the hill Two of them... Mondo stepped onto the bridge wait a second...is that...? Mondo stopped in his tracks as he realized what he saw. A scream had been barely audible over the churning water beneath him. Mondo stopped staring and ran full tilt for the village. One of the figures was wearing mostly black, with a hood draped over its head. The figure stood over the second person, who was on their back and trying frantically to get away. "Where is it!?" the first figure yelled. By the sound of its voice, it was a man."Tell me now! They come here all the time, where is their base!? Tell me or I'll kill you!" The second figure, a woman, was in near hysterics, screaming that she didn't know anything. The man seemed about to strike her again, not content with just knocking her down. He didn't get the chance. Mondo jumped, and tackled the man before he even knew Mondo was there. They both seemed to fly several feet before landing in the mud. Mondo held the man in black by his shoulders, trying to look at his face. "Why are you threatening that wom-" Mondo was struck speechless with surprise as he saw the attackers eyes. They were glowing a very unnatural green. His split second drop in defense was all the man needed, picking up a rock and slamming it into Mondo's head. The ninja was thrown off, the whole world seeming to spin before his eyes. As his vision cleared, Mondo saw the man in black getting up, intent on finishing him off for interrupting his ‘interrogation'. Mondo pack had fallen from his back. He scrambled to it and reached in. He found his metal claw, the weapon he had used since he first became a ninja, and snapped it into place on his right wrist. He wasn't a second too late. The man in black had drawn a dagger, ten, maybe twelve inches in length, and swung it at Mondo's head with both hand gripping the hilt. Mondo brought his right arm up, stopping the blade with his claw. The man in black didn't reach up again for a second strike. He merely kept pushing down with the knife, obviously thinking he could out-muscle Mondo. The man in blacks glowing eyes studied Mondo for several moments, before they flashed with understanding. "You...your one of them...one of those damn ninjas from Rokkaku! Ha! I've been looking for you." he said. "Tell me..." his voiced seemed a bit strained from grapple with Mondo "what hold do you ninjas have on this town!? No one will tell me where your secret base is." secret base? He must mean Rokkaku... Mondo was still on his knees, keeping his body from falling over by supporting it with his left arm. He knew he wouldn't be able to hold out much longer; the man in blacks strength was remarkable. Mondo looked down, and saw his hand was near his open pack. He reached inside, hoping to find one of his knives, a smoke bomb, anything. His hand gripped something long and metal. Thinking it was one of his knives, Mondo thrust his left hand out wildly, dropping to the ground in the process. Damn! Bad move... he thought. He saw his attackers knife heading straight for his face. Mondo closed his eyes, knowing the end was near. A moment passed. Then two. It seemed like Mondo lay there, waiting for the knife before he opened his eyes, hearing the man in black groan. Mondo looked, and saw that his weapon had struck the man in black straight in the crotch. no blood? Isn't this one of my knives? he thought. Mondo looked more carefully. He had stopped the man in black by slamming him in the crotch with the spoon end of his ladle. It was so...strange that Mondo almost burst out laughing, and probably would have if the situation wasn't so grave. The man in black collapsed into the mud, holding himself and groaning in pain. Mondo got up, and quickly took the attackers knife out of reach. "D..damn you..." the man in black said, his voice sounding a little higher than it had before. Mondo was about to ask the man why he was asking the location of Rokkaku, when the mans body was suddenly enveloped in a large cloud of smoke. When it cleared, the man in black was gone. Mondo kneeled down and examined the spot where the man had been. smoke bomb... he realized. Mondo got up and looked for the woman whom he had rescued, but suddenly felt dizzy. He reached up and felt the side of his head, and was welcomed with a burst of pain emanating from his temple. He looked at his hand, and saw it was covered in blood. damn...that rock... Mondo fainted, in the middle of Banner Village, just as the rain began to let up. Mondo slowly opened his eyes, and they focused on the last thing he expected to see. A ceiling. He looked around, and saw a young boy with black hair sitting on a chair next to him. The boy looked over and promptly starting hitting him with a barrage of questions. "Wow your awake that fight was awesome its like you just ran in and BOOM! the bad guy was down the whole town it you were amazing it was like, totally cool like Lord Mcdohl would do or something hey where'd you get that claw? It looks sooo cool hey your a ninja aren't you that's cool to wish I could be a ninja you think I could be a ninja too?" Mondo just blinked. the whole town saw? Mondo wondered. The realization of what that meant sickened Mondo. The whole town had been watching. They all stayed inside, watching someone from their town be attacked, and they hadn't even gone outside to help!? They just left it up to some outsider like him... "Kid, is there a boat going out of this place anytime soon?" Mondo asked. "A boat?" the kid repeated "uh...the boat that goes to Radat is leaving soon. In like, half an hour. By the way, my names Koh, what's yours?" Mondo ignored the question and promptly got out of the bed he was in. Looking around him, he guessed he must have been in the inn. His pack was on a nearby table. Finding everything inside, including his claw and ladle, he quickly swung it over his shoulder and walked out, leaving 100 potch on the table and Koh looking at him in confusion. that should pay for the room... Mondo thought. As he walked outside, Mondo spotted the boat loading up to head to Radat. He walked up to man on the dock. "Hey, how much does it cost to ride this boat?" "Oh I'd say about...200 potch" the man replied. "Fine. Here." Mondo said as he hastily thrust the money into the mans hand and got onboard. He knew he was being swindled, but he really didn't care at the particular moment. Eventually the boat left, and Mondo was able to leave his thoughts on Radat behind, and wonder about the mysterious man in black.
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