Page 84 of Son of Shadows

Masaru groaned as if the oni’s words caused him physical pain. “He’s asking you why you’re helping us.”

“Oh.” Yamaguchi counted out his fingers as if he was struggling to list the reasons. “According to the Ryukage, because I let you all through, I’ve been released from duty. As he put it, ‘If you don’t get out of here in the next few minutes, you’re going to become intimate with your own insides.’ Which means it’s the sea for me.”

They all turned to stare at his father, who seemed completely unconcerned by his cruel threat.

“What? He was incompetent,” Ryukage said, in defense of his actions. “Personally, I didn’t want to get on his boat, but we didn’t seem to have any choice, did we?”

“You’re lucky he hasn’t thrown you overboard,” Masaru joked.

His father didn’t flinch. “I dare him to try.”

Yamaguchi grinned. “I know better.”

Even though the oni seemed fine with this twist of fate, Ryuichi felt responsible. If it wasn’t for him, Yamaguchi would still have a job. He seemed like a nice yōkai. It was a shame he had to get him fired.

Yamaguchi took the rudder. “Don’t feel bad. Job was boring anyway. Back in the day, I used to get visitors from all over who tried to find the master of the pagoda. There have been many over the years, before your dad came along. They’d try to bribe me with all sorts of gifts and offers for safe passage. It was great.”

“Did it work?” Ryuichi asked.

“No, but I appreciated the gifts after I ate them. To be honest, I’m not a fan of seafood or fish. But before the Ryukage moved to this island, it was meat every day.” He slid his gaze toward Masaru and Yumi. “Kitsune was always a personal favorite.”

Yumi’s eyes widened.

Masaru’s expression changed to silently say, “Try me.”

After that, Yamaguchi went on a long rant about how good things used to be. Soon Katsu joined in and they started sharing their stories of long ago.

Ryuichi tried not to pay attention to them. He was far more interested in where he was going than where he’d been. His past was an anchor that dragged him down. He didn’t want to think about what had happened, because he couldn’t change any of it.

All that mattered was the future.

He was on a mission to help his friends.

To save the world.

And despite the odds, he believed he would win.

Ryuichi looked at his trusty sword, solid steel. He was relying on this rugged blade to deliver him victory. How tiny and insignificant it appeared. Compared to other katanas like it, his sword was nothing, really. Still, it was an elegant weapon that created nations. Provided it didn’t break under pressure.

Kind of like a human soul.

It only took one person to make a difference. But only if they were strong enough and held it together.

You can be that person.

Ryuichi listened to the voice inside his head, not knowing if it was his own conscience or his mother guiding him.

This is your destiny as the Son of Shadows.

His father had brought the darkness. It was Ryuichi’s duty to bring the light.

He took a deep breath and accepted a scary truth. The stakes had never been higher than right now.

But at least he wasn’t alone.

Ryuichi glanced around at those who were willing to put their lives on the line to protect the human and spirit realms. He thought of his friends who weren’t with him.

Koichi, the old samurai who had done a great job teaching him. He never gave up on Ryuichi, even when things got hard.