Chapter 49: Chapter 10.2: Kageyoshi Part 3 A wave of strength and vitality washed over him, the exhaustion in his muscles receding, replaced by a renewed sense of power.
As his vision adjusted to the darkness, he realized it wasn’t absolute. The room was filled with a soft, ambient light, emanating from glowing strips set into the floor and ceiling. As his headlamp beam swept across the space, the lights began to brighten, responding to their presence, revealing a sight that stole the air from his lungs.
This was no laboratory. It was a sanctuary.
The floor was made of polished, dark hinoki cypress wood, the same wood from his fragmented memories of the dojo. The walls were a seamless blend of traditional Japanese shoji screens and high-tech holographic displays. The air was clean, filled with the faint, calming scent of sandalwood and ozone.
In the center of the room, on a raised dais, was a single, simple weapon rack. And on it, resting on a stand of polished obsidian, was a katana.
It was not ornate or overly decorated. The scabbard was a simple, matte black, and the hilt was wrapped in deep blue silk, the same color as the trim on their uniforms. But even from across the room, Jin could feel its presence, a silent thrum of power and history that called to something deep within his soul.
"Whoa," Rosa breathed, her usual bravado completely gone, replaced by genuine awe. "Now ’that’s’ a sword."
Jin walked slowly towards the dais, his footsteps silent on the polished wood. He reached the dais and looked down at the katana. This was it. This was what he had been searching for. He reached out a trembling hand, his fingers brushing against the cool silk of the hilt.
The moment his skin made contact, a jolt of pure energy shot through him. The world dissolved into a chaotic of images and sensations.
’Memory cascade in progress,’ Asha’s voice cut through, laced with concern. ’Your neural activity is exceeding safe parameters. Try to focus, Jin.’
But it wasn’t faces he saw. It wasn’t just his mother’s voice. It was a motion of movements. A thousand cuts, a thousand parries, a thousand steps, all flowing into one another like a river. He saw battles on dusty fields, duels in rain-slicked courtyards, the flash of steel against steel. It was a language of combat, a perfect grammar of violence, refined over centuries until it became something more than human. A system perfected by an unknown hand, designed to be the ultimate expression of the sword.
He saw the first form, simple and direct, like the rising sun. A single, flowing draw and step that opened the fight, calm, precise, immediate. ’Asahi no Kata’.
His body moved without his command, the stun baton falling from his grasp as his fingers closed around the hilt of the katana. He drew the blade from its scabbard, the steel singing through the air. He flowed through the form, his movements a blur of black and gold, the blade seeming to pause the world for a fraction of a second.
[SYSTEM NOTIFICATION]
[MEMORY RESONANCE: 45%]
[HERITAGE WEAPON ACQUIRED: Kageyoshi (Katana)]
[NEW SKILL UNLOCKED: Kensei Kōryū (Passive Lv. 1)]
[Description: A lineage of compiled sword-forms spanning battlefield tactics, court kata, and guerrilla counters, refined into a single, perfect system. Skill will evolve with practice and combat.]
[Skill Progression: Sword Mastery (Lv. 1 → Lv. 3)]
[Core Attributes Updated:]
[DEX: 4.00 → 6.00]
[+0.002 DEX (Sword Form Practice)]
He felt a new understanding settle into his bones, a knowledge of how to move, how to fight, that was as natural as breathing. This was who he was. Jin Tsurugi. A Swordsman.
"Jin?" Sera’s voice pulled him back to the present. He turned to see the team watching him, their expressions a mixture of concern and wonder.
"I remember," he said, his voice thick with emotion. "I remember... the forms."
As he spoke, a section of the wall slid open, revealing a small, hidden armory. Inside, neatly arranged on velvet-lined racks, were more weapons. A high-powered sniper rifle with an advanced scope, a pair of sleek, energy-based pistols, and a set of throwing knives that seemed to hum with a faint energy.
𝚏𝕣𝐞𝗲𝐰𝕖𝐛𝐧𝕠𝕧𝚎𝚕.𝐜𝚘𝗺 "Looks like your mom thought of everything," Rosa said, a wide grin spreading across her face as she immediately picked up one of the energy pistols, its weight feeling comfortable in her hand.
Clara was already examining a small, compact device on a nearby table. "This is a portable shield emitter," she said, her eyes wide with excitement. "It can generate a localized energy barrier. It’s... it’s incredible."
Sera picked up the sniper rifle, her expert hands checking its action and scope. "This will give us a significant tactical advantage. We can engage threats from a much safer distance."
Jin looked at the weapons, at his team, and then back at the sword in his hand. His mother had prepared this place for him, not just as a repository of his heritage, but as a tactical resource. She had known he would need help, that he would need a team.
Just as a sense of peace began to settle over him, a deep, grinding groan echoed from the main door. It was the sound of it being torn apart from the outside.
A massive, cybernetically-enhanced claw punched through the warped metal, followed by a glowing red eye filled with pure hatred. The broodmother had found them.
"Clara, get to the console! Find a way out!" Jin yelled, already moving to intercept the creature. "Sera, Rosa, on me! We have to hold it off!"
The creature tore its way through the door, its massive frame filling the entrance. It was even more terrifying up close, a grotesque fusion of flesh and steel, its rage a clear force.
Jin met its charge head-on, the Kageyoshi held in a perfect guard stance. The impact was tremendous, but this time, Jin was ready. He flowed with the force, using the ’Utsusemi no Kata’—Form of the Shedding Shell—his body becoming a ghost for a moment, slipping through the creature’s attack as if it were smoke.
Sera’s sniper rifle barked, a high-energy round striking the creature’s shoulder joint, sparking but failing to penetrate. "The armor’s too thick! Aim for the seams!"
Rosa opened fire with her energy pistol, the bolts of plasma splashing against the creature’s hide, doing little more than annoying it.
Clara slammed her hand on the shield emitter, a shimmering blue barrier flaring to life just as the creature swiped at Sera. The claws scraped against the shield, the energy crackling and holding.
Jin saw his opening. He flowed through the forms, a blur of motion. ’Tetsu-Kabe No Kata’—Iron-Wall Form—his strikes becoming like hammers, breaking the creature’s guard. Then, ’Hono-Kesshō’—Flame-Crystal Bind—an aggressive, spiraling thrust that locked into a rotational finishing arc, its angular brutality finding a gap in the cybernetics.
The creature roared in pain and fury, its movements becoming more erratic, more desperate. It was a cornered beast, and that made it more dangerous than ever.
Jin knew he had to end it. He took a deep breath, centering himself, and began to weave the forms together. ’Asahi’ to open, ’Sazanami’ to create space, ’Kumo no Shiba’ to parry a devastating blow. He was a chaos of steel, a dance of death that the creature could not comprehend.
With a final, powerful strike, he drove the Kageyoshi through the creature’s chest, the blade sinking deep into its cybernetic core. The creature convulsed, a high-pitched shriek tearing from its throat, and then it collapsed, its glowing red eyes flickering and dying.
Silence returned to the dojo, broken only by their ragged breathing. Jin stood over the fallen creature, the Kageyoshi dripping with black, viscous fluid.
[SYSTEM NOTIFICATION]
[LEVEL UP!]
[Current Level: 8]
[EXP: 720 / 2000]
[STAT PROGRESSION DOUBLED - Tsurugi Bloodline Bonus Applied]
[HP: 450 / 450]
[Stamina: 450 / 450]
[Core Attributes Updated:]
[STR: 18.00 → 20.00]
[AGI: 12.50 → 14.00]
[END: 16.00 → 18.00]
[RES: 13.50 → 15.00]
[PER: 15.50 → 17.00]
[DEX: 6.00 → 8.00]
[Skill Progression: Kensei Kōryū (Lv. 1 → 15%)]
[New Ultimate Unlocked: Tenka Kōka (Imperial Bloom of the World’s Radiance)]
’Post-mortem analysis complete,’ Asha’s voice was calm, but with an undercurrent of something that sounded almost like respect. ’The creature is a fusion of the VHNDS viral mutation with cybernetic augmentation. A ’Broodmother’ variant, designed to lead and coordinate lesser Crawlers. Its cybernetics were crudely integrated, suggesting a rushed, desperate experiment. It was likely guarding this sector specifically.’
Jin looked at the creature’s remains, then at the ruined door. "We can’t stay here," he said, his voice firm. "This fight will have attracted attention. We need to get back to the Command Wing."
He looked at his team, at their new weapons and their determined faces. "We gather what we can, and then we go. Together."
They nodded, their expressions set. They had found what they came for, and they had survived. But the fight was far from over.