I have to become stronger, or I won't be able to steal someone's wallet and run away. I have to become stronger, or I won't be able to win when my victims get revenge. I have to become stronger, or the magistrate will catch me and punish me.
In the magistrate's office, a boy had been tied up. In front of him, there was a man.
"As a thief, you already have three lines on both arms," said the man. "The next time, we'll cut one of your hands."
"Ahahah! If that's your goal, do it!" exclaimed the boy, laughing. "If you cut my hands, I still have my feet! I'll use my feet to steal! And anyway, you won't catch me next time!"
"At the age of eleven, you are a repeat criminal. Even though you've received one hundred lashes, you continue to be a rebel," said the man. "You are a little demon."
Say what you want. That's true, I'm a little demon. After all, they say I was born with teeth.
As the boy was returning to his village, two old men ran to him.
"Hakuji!" said one of them. "When your father found out you'd been arrested once again, he hanged himself! He's dead!"
Shocked, Hakuji went to his father's grave and found a letter, which he read.
"Dear Hakuji, live a virtuous life; you can still change. I don't want to live if this means robbing. Sorry if I caused you any problems."
Don't the poor people even have the right to live? Father... fuck this world, fuck everything! Why do these horrible people continue to live, and why did my father have to die? He wasn't a problem. Why did he have to apologize? He did nothing wrong! I can resist punishments. They could brutally lash me or break all of my bones... But I would resist for the sake of my father, even for a hundred years! My father was quickly losing weight, so I wanted to feed him something nutritious. I was sure I would be able to heal him one day. Why did he hang himself? I'd be happy to die, if for his sake.
After knowing his father had died, Hakuji started a brawl with seven men, and he knocked all of them out. Then, the boy heard a voice.
"Whoa, you're strong!" It was a muscular man. "I came here because a kid was about to be killed, but you knocked these seven men off by yourself! You're talented, you did it without a weapon, fantastic!"
Who's this man? Am I seeing my memories?
"Do you want to join my dojo? I have no students!" said the man.
"Shut up, old man! I'll kill you!" shouted Hakuji.
"Those tattoos mean you're a criminal of Edo, so you're banned from Edo, and you came here?" asked the man.
"What if I had? That's none of your business, old man!" said Hakuji.
"Oh, it's time to change, boy. Let's go!" said the man.
"Die, old man!" exclaimed Hakuji, attacking the man. But the man punched him with ease, knocking him off.
Later...
"Wow, you're strong! I beat you up, but you woke up in less than an hour!" said the man. "My name's Keizo. I'm the owner of a dojo, but I have no students. I brought you here for another reason, though. I want you to look after my sick daughter."
"Are you sure you want to bring a criminal like me into your house with your daughter?" asked Hakuji.
"I beat that criminal up earlier, so no problem!" said Keizo.
Keizo and Goku... were similar. I understand why I find you so annoying, Goku: you remind me of this boring story—an insignificant memory.
"She is my daughter, Koyuki," said Keizo, once they arrived in the room. In that moment, Hakuji saw her, and he felt something strange. Was it love? No, impossible.
"Today you're less pale than usual. Are you any better?" asked Keizo.
"Yes," replied Koyuki.
"This boy doesn't want to tell me his name, so discover it before I come back," said Keizo. Thus, Hakuji remained alone in the room with Koyuki.
"Your face... you're hurt. Are you okay?" she asked. But Hakuji didn't say anything.
I'll be better... I'll protect you... I'll save you... For all my insignificant life, I've done nothing but spit lies... Why do sick people always apologize? They're sorry for any problems they caused or for their cough being too loud. They're sorry because they can't work. They would like to do things on their own, they can't stop coughing, and they want to breathe normally. Koyuki was very fragile, and her health got worse. I stayed the whole night changing her sheets and towels. And of course, I had to assist her when she went to the toilet. I took care of my father, so it wasn't hard for me. The only thing I hated was when Kyouki started crying during our conversations.
"Sorry. Because of me, you can't train or have fun," said Kyouki.
"I never think about having fun. In free time, I train, so don't worry," said Hakuji.
"But... sometimes, you have to take a break," said Koyuki. "I've heard there will be fireworks tonight. You should go watch them."
"I can carry you until the bridge, so, do you want to come with me?" asked Hakuji. "Even if you can't go tonight, there will be fireworks the next year and the year after that, so you still can go watch them."
My master wasn't a samurai, but he had this dojo because he saved an old man from some criminals. The old man remained impressed by the Soryuu style, and since he had no successors, he decided to give this ground and the dojo to my master. However, the people who wanted the dojo weren't happy with the decision, and a nearby dojo started to annoy them. Because of this, the dojo Soryuu didn't have any other students aside from me, but training here and taking care of Koyuki saved me. Three years passed, and I turned eighteen. Koyuki was sixteen and had been healed, and she could live normally. One day, my master called me.
"Hakuji, do you want to be the successor of this dojo?" asked Keizo. "After all, Koyuki says she likes you."
In that moment, Koyuki blushed, and so did Hakuji.
I had been branded a criminal, so I couldn't imagine a good future, let alone a future where someone liked me. Could I live a virtuous life, like my father wanted? Inside me, the hope of changing my life in better intensified. At the time, I would have died to protect those two people... and I could never imagine they would be poisoned. One day, I went to my father's grave to tell him about the wedding. But then, when I came back at the dojo, before sunset, and before even acknowledging it, I felt nauseous. I had goosebumps and a bad feeling. Then, they informed me. Every time the people important to me are in trouble, I'm never there for them.
One day, before the tragedy...
During the fireworks, Hakuji and Koyuki were alone, watching them.
"Am I really worthy of it?" asked Hakuji.
"When we were younger, we said to go see fireworks together. Do you remember?" asked Koyuki. "Those stupid chats made me happy, Hakuji-san. Even though I wasn't able to see fireworks that year, you said I'd be able to the next year. I couldn't imagine living until the next year, let alone the year after it. But you were I would. It was as if you were able to see my future, even after my father started to give up."
"Yes, you're worthy. Will you marry me?"
"Yes," said Hakuji. "I'll become stronger than anyone else, and I'll protect you."
In the end, those were only words. The magistrate's records accurately described those murders. After the master of the dojo soryuu and his daughter had been poisoned, the only student who survived attacked the dojo nearby and killed sixty-seven people bare-handed. That student was me. Destroyed heads, squashed organs... Most of the bodies were missing parts, and the scene was infernal. The survived made went crazy. After thirty years, the documents were burned because they were too brutal and were believed to be false. After that, I met a strange man.
"I've heard there was a demon here who messed up things, so I came to control, but you're just a human," said the man. That man was Muzan.
"Go away, or I'll kill you...." muttered Hakuji. Muzan dashed forward, and Hakuji attacked him. But then, Muzan dodged and stabbed his face with his hand, crushing both his eyes.
"I was thinking about creating twelve powerful demons," said Muzan. "Can you handle the amount of blood I'm giving you?"
"I... I don't care... anymore... about anything..." muttered Hakuji.
I became a demon and lost my human memories, and I continued to search for strength. I had nothing to protect. I didn't even want to keep living in a world without my family... This is a sad, ridiculous, and useless story. Even if I were to die, I won't go to the same place as them. You made me remember my past. Humans are fragile, weak. They break, disappear, and die easily.
Chapter 57 - End