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travellingmonk · 5 years

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YST Shin Kon Hen (Early Dusk Volume) Book 4 - Summary

Chapters 3 - END

Solely because writing out the full story exhausted me, so I went ‘forget this’ and summarized the thing. Enjoy. It’s now in English. whew~

- SUMMARY OF EVERY CHAPTER'S EVENTS -

Book title : Book 4 * Samurai Troopers * Shin Kon Hen (Early Dusk Volume) SUMMARY

Published by Keibunsha Novels

Character designs by Enzan Norio Art by Ushyuu Miki Story by Yoshie Kawahara

Chapter 3 - Era of the Oni

After the attack on Yakushi's mansion, the damage was fixed and it was as if the attack had never happened. Nearby in the heart of the city was a place where many houses of rich people were at. In the middle of these was a single large garden space. Yakushi meets the retired emperor here, then walks into a nearby house where they quietly sit down and talk. She says that she is glad he's feeling better, but will be glad when he regains power and becomes the emperor again. He says that he will never become the emperor again. Having power as the emperor is one thing, but being able to help people live better, more peaceful lives is the wiser way to be. His brother is now the emperor and it is fine. Besides, the retired emperor was already exhausted having had so much work to do when he was the emperor. If he were to become the emperor again, it would be too much work. Too exhausting. Also, before this latest illness, he already suffered from many illnesses when he was younger. He was never 100% healthy. Instead, they (the retired emperor and her) should live in a quiet, nearby city and live out the rest of their days in peace and quiet. This gets Yakushi extremely upset. She loves him very much. She wants him to be emperor again so she can have the power she wants. Why does not he not understand this?! She's completely ignoring what the retired emperor is telling her that he wants. She's sticking to what she wants and nothing else will do. She begins to cry. He hugs her. He tries to comfort her by telling her a story about an ancient emperor that wore shining armor. This 'shining emperor' was very, very strong. This shining emperor wearing armor appeared only because the world was a horrible, terrible, scary place and innocent people prayed for help. This shining emperor removed all of the evil from the world to make it peaceful and happy. Because of this armor wearing emperor, this is when the world began. Or, so this is how the story is told. Yakushi hears this and, instead of hearing this as a fictional story, she thinks this story is real. She leaves the retired emperor and returns to a temple located outside of the capital city. There, she flirts with the priest in charge of the temple, that way she'll get the answers she wants a lot easier. Aas she asks about the emperor with shining armor. Some years earlier he'd worked on a scroll talking about that very topic. He finds and shows her the scroll and it shows a shining white armor. She's not impressed by how it looks, because the paper is very old and the art style is not new and beautiful, but this goes to prove to her that this is real. She reads text written on the side of the paper. The prayers of those who fear evil will make this warrior appear. This warrior collects the power of living things. She asks the priest to tell her how to make this emperor with the shining armor appear. He says that the story only describes it as 'screams and prayers of help from scared people will make this warrior appear'. This gives Yakushi a new idea. She will use her Oni to change the Earth from a nice place to live. Instead, it will become a living hell and that armored warrior will have to appear. When he does, she will order her Oni to steal the armor. Then, the retired emperor will have the armor and become the most powerful person in the entire world. As the priest escorted Yakushi out of the temple and to her vehicle, Kose was quietly sweeping the floor nearby, watching and listening to everything.

Back in the city, Yakushi and Oni are in an empty room where they can talk alone. He is clean, dressed in armor, and looks more civilized, but anyone can see that this is a terrifying man and someone to be afraid of. She asks how the recruitment of warriors is going. If she is going to turn this world into a living hell, she'll need more than one warrior at her side. She will need an army, and Oni will be the leader of that army. Oni says that there are no skillful people he can use. Yakushi says he'll have to tolerate it for now. They need numbers to make this work, even if they're not the best or strongest warriors. Knowing that she can't continue to call him 'Oni'. He has to fit in with everyone else, and that requires a proper sounding name. As they talk, a memory surfaces in Oni's mind. His name is 'Arago'. When he was living out in the wild countryside, he lived alone. He had no idea who his family was, if he even had a family. Where he was born. Or even his own last name. The longer he was around her and here in this city, the more of an influence it was having on him. The less stupid and silent he was becoming. He finds it amusing how a 'woman' reacts to hearing his name, and his tone angers her. She scolds then dismisses him from her presense.

A month later finds Arago in charge of his own military group. Yakushi managed to get Nakanari, her brother, into a position of power. He was the only person that Arago answered to when it came to this. This military group is charged with keeping the capital city safe. Over time more men had come forward to join this group, thinking that they were going to help keep the precious capital city safe from danger and evil people. However, only four people truly stood out as suitable warriors. These four directly served under Arago. Everyone else served under these four warriors. Shinsei, Yokuseki, Takekuni (Ryou look-a-like), Akimitsu. Their latest order was to go out to the wetlands near the capital city and take care of the thieves living there. It was night time and anyone out here would be fast asleep, making an attack easy.. A full moon over head was their only light. Arago led the way. They were all on horseback. They quietly approached a rough and poor looking settlement. The four men spoke quietly as they surveyed the area. It didn't really look like any sort of secret hideout for bad people. Even if they were terrible people, this was no way for anyone to live. As they tried to decide how best to approach, Arago charged forward on horseback to stomp across and begin destroying the poor looking huts. It didn't take long befor confused, screaming, and frightened people came running out of the huts. The four were absolutely shocked at Arago's actions, and doubly shocked to see that, instead of bad-looking, evil people scurrying out of the buildings, these looked like poor people. Old, grey haired people. Pregnant women. Little children. People who posed no threat to anyone. Arago wasted no time in using either his horse to stomp down and kill people, or his sword to cut through anyone within reach. Shinsei was the first to react, racing forward on his horse to stop Arago. This only got his horse kicked and Shinsei knocked to the ground. The other three hurried to their comrade's side, echoing Shinsei's cries to stop. They used their horses to block Arago's horse, but this didn't stop him. He dismounted, then ran after people, slaughtering anyone who wasn't fast enough to get out of his way. Which included a feeble old man and then a small child. The four warriors felt sick at what they were seeing. Once the survivors had managed to scatter and hide in the darkness, away from where Arago could reach, that's when the large, muscular man stopped his ruthless attack. He got back up onto his horse and didn't see at all bothered by the brutal massacre or by how his four leading soldiers were reacting. One of them called Arago out on what he'd just done, but he shrugged and acted like it was nothing important at all. Whether they were thieves or poor people, worthless lives were still worthless. They were breaking the law and this was their punishment. And, that was that. He mounted his horse and led the way back to their barracks in the capital city. The four silently followed along behind, but once they were back within the city's borders, they headed straight for Nakanari's office to talk to him. They told him about what had happened and, instead of supporting them, he was as nonchalant as Arago was. Nakanari didn't exactally agree with how Arago had decided to carry out punishment, but it wasn't that big of a deal. Worthless lives were still worthless lives. 'Their fate was their own fault'. Besides, Arago did what he thought was best to keep this city safe. End of discussion. Akimitsu asked what should be done about the dead bodies, but Nakanari really didn't seem to care. Leave them were they fell. Nakanari left the room and the four young warriors were in complete agreement. Nakanari and Arago were completely wrong. What Arago did was very wrong. What could they do? Report them to the emperor? Takekuni pointed out that they couldn't do that. According to the information he'd gathered, Nakanari was Yakushi's brother. Yakushi was very close with the retired emperor. And Arago was said to be the personal guard of Yakushi. Even if they went to the current emperor with this information, it would be a wasted effort because of how connected they all were with one another. A single word from Yakushi to the retired emperor to the current emperor and no disciplinary action would be taken. This is when Takekuni decided to be honest about his identity. He told them about how he was really Nosuri. About the clan of Kaosu. About how Kaosu was going to try and help, but, for now, they needed more information before they could act and do anything. He would leave his meeting and report to Kaosu. Until then, the young men had to patiently wait. They agreed, then parted ways. Nosuri hurried out of the city to meet with a young woman, a member of his family. This was a good thing because the young woman had managed to work her way into not only being a servant of Nakanari and Yakushi, but being the one person in charge of all of their servants. She reported that Yakushi had left to visit a nearby temple and pray for the retired emperor's health to improve. The only thing is that this particular temple had a reputation for preforming curses and casting spells if the people who came there were willing to pay a high enough price. Nosuri thanked the young woman for the information, then went to the temple. He needed to find evidence of anything that could show Yakushi was trying to harm, not help, the retired emperor. He successfully snuck into the temple and began looking around for anything out of the ordinary. He discovered a hidden room where a priest was preforming a weird spell, making a creature emerge from the flame of a candle. Before Nosuri could find out anything else, a night watchman monk stopped him. However, instead of any big, noisy fight, it was clear that neither person wanted to fight the other. Instead, they ended up talking. The monk, sharing that he is Kose, tells Nosuri that a month ago he'd tried to run away from this temple because of the bad things that were happening, but that he, instead, found a new friend named Kaosu. The only reason he returned here was to be a spy and gather information. All to try and put an end to the bad things that were happening here. Nosuri tells Kose about who he is, and that he's also here to help get information for Kaosu. They both thought it was funny and wonderful how they, two complete strangers, out of every person in this entire world, both know Kaosu and were currently working to help out their friend. With a new friendship forged, they work together in the temple to find any evidence of Yakushi's wrongdoings. Soon enough they find an altar with bits of spellpaper on it. On the paper was clearly her handwriting. They find a small wooden doll dressed in very fancy clothing. This was meant to represent the retired emperor. The body was covered in many scratches. In its chest is where a hole had been dug out and several needles were sticking into it. There were also small bones nearby this, as well as a lock of cut hair. This is exactally what Nosuri had been looking for.

Chapter 4 - Opening Eye

Both Kose and Nosuri felt troubled by what they'd found, and understandably so. They wished one another good luck and stay safe, then parted ways. Somehow Nosuri had to find Kaosu and show this to him.

Far out into the mountains and the forests, Kaosu had returned to the hidden village after Kose had left. That's where Onjiyou had told Kaosu that his training was finished. There was nothing else that he could teach to Kaosu. Kaosu how had to leave and confront his destiny out in the world. Kaosu thanked the old man, then, with Byakuen at his side, left the village. He had a vision about Arago, and feeling his evil presense made both Kaosu and Byakuen feel nervous. They walked through the forest and Byakuen eventually led Kaosu to a lake that was hidden deep in the forest. This was unlike any lake he'd ever seen before since all of the animals gathered here were peaceful. Animals that would've been enemies and tried to kill each other out in the world were peaceful here. He had a nice night of sleep, then awoke the next morning to see that the lake had changed. It looked cleaner, brighter, shimmering in the sunlight.

In a nearby village of Kaosu, a man rang a bell. Everyone became very excited. "Kaosu has finally awoken". They hurried to make their way to Mitama Lake. (Yes, THAT lake. The lake where Shuten, Nasutei, and Jun found the Inochi no Magatama (Jewel of Life).) (Note from the translator : The only thing I can figure that makes any sense is because they're all a part of the clan of Kaosu, they're aware of each incarnation of Kaosu and when his powers activate / 'awaken'. Though the author never explains this. AT ALL.)

Kaosu and Byakuen stood on at the edge of the lake as the water changed, then moved. It revealed a hidden temple that had been under the water. They went into the temple and the first thing they saw were suits of armor lining a hallway. They entred into a room with a golden shrine to see a single suit of armor there. When Kaosu moved the armor, somehow knowing this was reserved for him to use and wear against the evil he would soon face, he found the Inochi no Magatama (Jewel of Life) resting on a small space in the golden shrine. He took the armor and left the shrine. Once outside, he was greeted by the people from the clan of Kaosu surrounding the lake, as well as lots of different animals. They were aware of him and were ready to celebrate his awakening. Kaosu had returned to his home village and managed to get a good night of sleep after his people celebrating his awakening. The next morning he was woken up by Nosuri's return. The leader of the clan looked over the little wooden doll his friend had brought back. It was difficult to believe anyone would go so far to do something this horrible. Nosuri explained, to the best of his understanding, that Yakushi had made her way to the retired emperor's side solely because she wanted to seem so loving and devoted to him and his wellbeing. Little did he know that the source of his health problems was Yakushi herself.

Back in the city, the Oni's reputation had only grown, and this was, by no means, a good thing. Word had spread of the savage attack in the dead of night. It was at the point that no one dared to go outside at night, for fear that the Oni would suddenly attack and slaughter them without a second thought. With Oni's reputation growing and getting more fierce, so, too, did Yakushi's self-confidence grow. It was as if whatever weakness she may have been seen as having, solely because she was a 'woman' were vanishing from sight. Due to Yakushi quietly pulling the strings in the background, working to get her brother more power, he was becoming more greedy. Sure he could try putting forth the effort to do it himself, but why bother when she was already doing so much on his behalf to further her own plans? Because of her ambitions, Yakushi's evil ways were only pulling her more and more into darkness without her even realizing it. It would only be a matter of time before she would stop existing and only pure evil would be in her place. As for Arago, what little information that had been gathered didn't do anything to make anyone feel better about him. Arago had been born into poverty and was like little more than some feral dog attacking, killing, and managing to live by eating human flesh.

(Note from the translator : Yes, you read that last bit correctly. Directly translated from the original Japanese text. HE. KILLED. PEOPLE. AND. ATE. THEM. blech... )

The only reason why he was even seen as a human was down to Yakushi's influence and dressing him like a proper person. Putting him into a more civilized enviroment. Though that didn't really do anything to change the beast of a man that he was. A long time ago he'd met a monk who had tried to help him be better. Arago was taught words, shown how to have a better life, how to understand other people. However, the monk couldn't stay and eventually left. This left Arago as being neither a man or a beast. Perhaps he was something of them both, in the end.. In the end. Arago had to make up his own mind and live his own life the only way he could. For him, this was the right path. This was the only path. There was nothing else for him. A part of him had wanted to see that monk again. Every time he killed, he'd been hoping the monk would appear soon after. A familiar, kind face. But, no. So, this is what it was. His life was to instill fear into people and kill. Just as this was his life path, so was Kaosu's path to lead his people into a world of peace. Light and Shadow. Two opposites. Eventually, they would have to meet.

After Nosuri had left Kose at the temple, Kose had decided to follow after. His first thought was to return to the waterfall where he and Kaosu met. He was disappointed to not see his black haired friend anywhere near the water. Out of ideas, not familiar with the area, and having no intention of aimlessly wandering about in these woods, he placed his hands into the waterfall and concentrated on his friend. Maybe, by some miracle, this body of water was somehow connected to Kaosu. Maybe his desire to see his friend would be transmitted. Surprisingly so, it worked. He could hear Kaosu's voice telling him that there is a village nearby on the other side of the mountains. Following the instructions, and hoping it wasn't simply his imagination or some daydream, he soon found himself entering a hidden away little village.. Much to his surprise, he was greeted by the village people and Kaosu had told them to expect Kose's arrival. Kose was clearly surprised and marvelled at how awesome the people of Kaosu's village were. Before he could dwell too much on this fact, Kaosu appeared nearby in the doorway of a hut, and wearing an impressive suit of armor. Before they could talk, an older woman walked up to Kaosu and gave him a sword. He accepted it and said that he would protect this entire family just as he had done from the most ancient of times. As long as evil exists, he would be there to stop it. Kaosu sheathed the sword on his hip, then Kose and Kaosu, with Byakuen close behind, walked into a nearby shrine. Everything seemed normal, up until the point that the shrine began to glow and shine. Then the trio began to shine as well. Just like that, in the blink of an eye, they vanished from sight and the glowing came to a stop. Everything looked like it had returned to normal. (aka Kaosu, Kose, and Byakuen teleported somewhere else.)

Chapter 5 - Right and Wrong Determination (Correct and Incorrect Determination)

In the capital city, the emperor had arrived and, in a room of a very nice building, was holding a meeting with the retired emperor and all of the lords. Yakushi and Nakanari were there, too. The emperor announced that Nakanari's military group would have more men added to it, and then be split apart so there would be a smaller police division to patrol the city and keep everyone safe. This meant more power for the already-greedy Nakanari. However, unfortunately, the emperor had made up his mind and said that the capital city would now be a completely different location and be called 'Miyanaka'. This make Yakushi upset. This was ruining her plans. To make matters worse, the retired emperor, and by association, Yakushi, too, would be excluded from any further meetings like this. The retired emperor said he was fine with this and happy to live a quiet life, but Yakushi was having none of it. She tried to look really sad and make the retired emperor change his mind, but it doesn't work. Suddenly, Nosuri stood up from the back row and walked forward. He presented the retired emperor with the doll he had found in the temple. The retired emperor saw the writing, the scratches across it's surface, the hole in the chest, and the needles stuck into the hole. To add to this, Tomoaki approaches next. He'd been investigating as well. He'd found a very old and somewhat small box that belonged to Yakushi. In it were scraps of various cloth, some loose, some sewn together. Some pieces being the exact same cloth and sewing pattern that the emperor's wooden doll was currently wearing. The retired emperor went from feeling betrayed to absolutely angry. The woman he cared so much about had worked her way into his life, put a spell on him to make him ill, and, to him, been pretending to pray for his wellbeing when, the entire time, she was the one making him sick and weak. The emperor ordered Nakanari and Yakushi to be arrested, but Yakushi fought back. She struggled and managed to escape from the guards. Outside, she ran across the street to Arago and told him that the people in the building were going to harm her. He had to protect her. Akimitsu, one of the four men who had been serving directly under Arago, was the first outside of the building, sword in hand. He rushed over to Arago and Yakushi, intent on not letting her escape, even if that meant fighting against this beast of a man. Arago withdrew his sword to fight. As he swung his sword down, Akimitsu was quick to move out of the way, but Yakushi was not. The sword came down and cut Yakushi's head, splattering his face with her blood. He withdrew the blade, but didn't flinch or even show any signs of remorse. More people had exited the building. Nakanari had witnessed the scene and ran away screaming. Tomoaki and Shinsei hurried after Nakanari as he was climbing up onto the roof of a nearby building to escape. Tomoaki shot a single arrow at him, the arrow landing in his thigh. Unfortunately, this threw him completely off balance. He fell from the roof and died when he hit the ground. Arago took several steps back from Yakushi's dead body and laughed. He then aimed his sword at the retired emperor. Without a word, making it clear that he would be the next to be killed. Akimitsu jumped in the way, followed by Nosuri, using their swords to hold Arago's sword at bay. For the moment, stopping any attack from happening. Tomoaki and Shinsei quickly join in to stop Arago as the emperor orders the gates of the city to be shut. The gates securely slammed shut. The doors of buildings were closed and locked. The capital city was now under martial law and no one would be allowed out. Arago shoved the four warriors away from him, freeing his blade. He moved fast, running down the street and being chased by soldiers. However, the longer he went, the more exhausted he became. Speed and endurance were not what his body was built for. He couldn't go into the building where the meeting had been held. He couldn't get out of the city and flee into the nearby mountains. He'd gotten lucky and managed to lose the guards who'd been chasing him, but, all too soon, he heard a man's voice talking to him. A familiar voice. Kaosu appears to Arago and the large man recognizes the figure to be the same monk that had come to him so long ago. Kaosu tries appealing to the humanity within Arago, saying that he doesn't have to be an Oni. He doesn't have to be some blood thirsty monster. He can still choose to turn away from this kind of life, from seeking power. Kaosu is standing in the same street as Arago. After everything he's been through, Arago refuses to listen to reason and draws his sword on Kaosu. At that moment, a pure black force flew through the air, swirling around Arago. He asks for darkness to take him and says that he's not a person. He's not a man. He is a monster. He's not afraid. Suddenly, the dark force showed its true form as a spirit. An old, thin man wearing the tattered robes of a high ranking monk and pale, greyish blue tone to his skin. It's clear that this person is nothing from this world. He introduces himself as Badamon, bowing to Arago with respect. He's a spirit that comes from a world of evil and who knows of Arago's evil ways. He says that Arago is the being powerful enough to become emperor of that world. Arago asks how he can accomplish this. Badamon is a spirit. Arago is still very much so alive. Badamon shows a creepy smile and says that he can make Arago into a being like him. The power from the world Badamon comes from can surpass the power of 'life' and having a physical body. Arago smiled in return. That's all he needed to hear. Badamon summoned energy from everywhere, the ground, the sky, the water, making everything appear to sizzle and explode as energy gathered around Arago. A lightning bolt shoots down and, suddenly, massive hoard of dead mean can be seen on the ground, crawling towards Arago. They are now his servants, attracted to his power, his greed, and his desire. Another bolt of lightning strikes and suddenly Arago finds himself wearing a huge suit of black armor. Badamon explains that this evil armor is just for him. It was created to combat the menace that is "Kikoutei". Arago takes a moment to look over himself, seeing that he's no longer his human-sized self. He's much larger and the armor that's completely covering his body reflects the beast, the warrior, the monster that he was as a man. The mask guard is blood red, there is ghostly white flowing hair on either side of the front of the helmet, and the dark, menacing grey of the armor reflects the dark and evilness that he represents. A final bolt of lightning strikes and Arago finds himself surrounded by an armor of soldiers. HIS soldiers. HIS army. A sharp rumble of thunder is heard, dark, ominous clouds can be seen in the sky, blocking out the sun, and a heavy rain begins pouring. With Arago in the lead, he wastes no time travelling through the city with his army laying waste to everything in its path. Like some weird, horrible tsunami, the soldiers destroyed houses, slaughtered people, leaving nothing behind but destruction. Men, women, young, old, it didn't matter. Anything in his path would be cut down. The emperor's soldiers tried to fight back, but it was completely useless. No matter how the emperor's soldiers struck, attacked, or cut into Arago's soldiers, they didn't fall. They weren't injuried. Nothing was stopping them. The emperor completely shut down the section of the city that held this invading, other wordly army. Any innocents who remained alive either stayed hidden and out of sight, or made a mad run out of the city to escape Arago's army. Despite several different attempts, the soldiers proved to be unstoppable. The four young men who'd been serving directly under Arago, having seen the atrocities he'd committed, now fought against him alongside Kose, but nothing seemed to work. They poured oil on the grould then lit it, hoping a line of fire would stop their approach. No. They fired numerous arrows hoping that would stop them. Again, no. The emperor's soldiers piled up sandbags at the closed gates, half for protection, half in another effort to stop the invaders. Nothing seemed to be working. Tomoaki reported this disappointing news to the emperor, but the emperor tried to reassure the young man. The enemy they were facing wasn't from this world. There wasn't anything left for them to do. Nothing left but to pray. It's at that very moment that Kaosu, wearing his armor and with Byakuen at his side, appears amid the rain and walks towards them. In unison, Nosuri and Kose happily call out to Kaosu, letting everyone around know that this was a friend, not an enemy. Nosuri couldn't help but cry a little bit. Here stood his childhood friend, his best friend, who was also the leader of their entire clan, was also THEE Kaosu of legend. That young boy had become this amazing man, this warrior ready to fight to protect, and save, this world. The warriors, the retired emperor, and the present emperor all felt a great sense of relief at Kaosu's presense. Nosuri took a moment to speak with Kaosu, giving him several beads. He says that they are special beads, made from a sacred tree that the clan has been protecting for a very, very, very long time.

(Translator's note : It really doesn't go into detail here, but my best guess is that Nosuri just handed Kaosu the 'beads' that would later become the crystal spheres that will house the 9 armors.)

Kaosu accepts the beads, thanking Nosuri for being here, then tucks them away and out of sight. Being as prepared as he is ever going to be, the emperor's soldiers allow Kaosu through the gates along with Shinsei, Tomoaki, Nosuri, Akimitsu, and Kose.

(Basically, Kaosu + Nosuri (Ryou look-a-like), Shinsei (Shin look-a-like), Kosu Shuusetsu (Shuu look-a-like), Tomoaki (Touma look-a-like), and Akimitsu (Seiji look-a-like).)

Each of the five young men shout at Arago's soldiers. They're determined to defeat this enemy. They'll save this city. They'll save the people. No matter what. Somehow this gives them the power, the strength to inflict damage on the soldiers, cutting into the armor and making the bluish grey smoke escape, rendering those injuried soldiers completely useless. Even Byakuen got in on the action, leaping forward with bites, scraches, and slashes, doing as much damage as his human counterparts. Kaosu participates as well, using his sword to cut down numerous soldiers. Finally, at long last, instead of seeing this seemingly endless army of soldiers, Arago appears at the back. He was no longer human. No longer recognizable. He was now nothing more than a huge armor made of iron. The armor seemed to emit a sort of pressure on everything around it, including the young men. However, they're quick to regain their footing and shout at Arago, asking if he's even human any more. If he sold his soul to evil. If he really wants to kill people. Their reply is Arago's laughter. He doesn't care about this city, about the emperor, or even the country. He has exactally what he wants and everything else beyond that is worthless. The young warriors charge at Arago, telling him to wake up, trying to plead with anything left inside that may still be human. However, their attack is in vain. Arago throws them back, the strike throwing the sword clear out of two of the warrior's hands. Kose attempts an attack with his staff, now made of iron and not wood, but the attack is easily repelled by Arago's incredible armor. The staff is thrown so violently away that it escapes Kose's grip and stabs deeply into the stones that line the ground of a nearby alley. Arago laughs at their failed attempts. The five band together with a single, unified attack, only to be thrown down to the ground with no real effort on the demon emperor's part. Kaosu steps up and launches an attack at Arago, cutting into the armor with a single slice, looking into the eye holes of the face guard but, to his shock, the only thing he sees inside is darkness. Within that darkness he can feel numerous, vengeful dead spirits present there. Arago shoves him away. Instead of anger or fear, Kaosu finds himself pitying the demon, the Youja, emperor standing before him. Standing before him was what use to be a poor man who was lonely, who struggled just to survive in this world. Who had to become a monster simply to remain alive. In that moment, old, forgotten, vague memories flashed through Arago's mind. The monk he'd once known. The monk who had given him the name of 'Arago'. 'Arago', meant to be immortality. The immortality of all things in the universe. Something to represent happiness, to represent the beginning of precious things. The memory turns to the monk screaming, and then is gone. Arago is screaming. He's holding the sword above his head. As he brings down the sword, instead of cutting through anyone, or even Kaosu, only the sound of a beautiful bell could be heard. He dropped down to one knee and Kaosu said that the armor was an evil purgatory armor. Arago calls him an idiot, then demands to know his name. Kaosu refuses to say it. Arago says he will return to this world one day and have his revenge. The power of his armor will guarantee this, then he collapses onto the ground. Defeated. Kaosu stands over Arago's body, saying that this world never belong to him, then plunges his sword into Arago's chest. Reddish smoke emerges from armor, flying into the air and out of sight. As the five young men cheer, the emperor's soldiers cheer out as well. It stops raining. However, Kaosu can still sense evil within the armor, despite Arago's spirit having left it. Kaosu looks at the remains of Arago, the now-empty armor left behind and comments about how this should be a warning to all humans. Basically, greed and evil is bad. The present emperor and retired emperor stand beside Kaosu to inspect the armor, pressing his sword into the armor, but everyone is surprised when, suddenly, the armor's head springs to life and begins flying around. Then, it flew into the sky and vanished. Probably to follow Arago's spirit, where ever it had gone to. All that remained behind now was a giant suit of armor without a head. Nosuri is worried, both of the emperors are clearly afraid, and Kaosu decides that the only solution is to break apart the armor, then seal each part away. . . somehow.

Several months pass by. Kaosu had taken the armor and been working on breaking it apart, reshaping each piece, instilling a precious virtue into each one, then magically sealing each piece into the sacred beads (crystal spheres) Nosuri had given to him before the fight began. The virtue magically instilled into each separate piece of Arago's armor would help make these a weapon for good, no longer a weapon of evil. Benevolence. Justice. Gratitute. Knowledge. Trust. Loyalty. Filial piety. Respect for one's elders. Endurance. If the head of the armor hadn't flown away to join Arago's spirit, there would have been a tenth armor. The virtue for it would have been 'courage'. With a virtue magically instilled into these armors, they would help the future warriors be stronger than evil by making the strength of their heart, of their spirit, of their virtue something that is in the armor itself, and would be a characteristic of that warrior's unique personality. The nine new armors were complete. Sky, water, earth, light, darkness, dreams, power / strength, medicine, and fire. Each one would represent a natural ability all its own, so, whether used alone or alongside the other armors, it would be a force for good. To keep the skies safe, Tenku. To protect the water and all that live in it, Suiko. To protect and manage the land, Kongo. A light that will protect and help manage the Earth, Korin. To protect the light and manage the night, Yami. To keep your dreams safe from evil and scary thoughts and manage your fantasies, Gen. To heal injuries and soothe the body, Doku. To lead the others and help to remain on a good path, Oni. To protect the weak and show compassion towards others, Rekka. With this, the evil armor of Arago was purified of its evil and, now, has become a protector. Unfortunately, one problem remained. That last piece of his armor. The helmet that flew away. Arago may be defeated for now, but he was still out there. He still existed. . . somewhere. One day he would, without a doubt, return. Although this wasn't his personal desire, Kaosu surrendered to the fact that he now had to be directly involved with this physical world. He had to keep a watchful eye on what humans did and be ready to intervene and act, to find suitable warriors for these armors when the time came. Although the world of humans (i.e. the physical world) and the world of spirits were two separate places, the fact of Arago's life and transformation, that there were people who'd been using dark magic for evil things, like Yakushi, this had only proven the fact that these two worlds were no longer separate. There was a crack in the boundaries between these two worlds and this would be dangerous for everyone. Kaosu was only one person. He needed to remain in order to protect them. Going forward, now more than ever before, the clan of Kaosu was needed to help out mankind. He struggles with what to do, not sure how to help. He asks aloud "Kikoutei, what can I do? How can I possibly protect both worlds?" This is when Byakuen suddenly begins to shine brightly then splits apart into two separate tigers. One is white, the other is dark grey and wearing a suit of beautiful, prestine white armor. The metalling clanking of metal filled the air and the temple was bathed in golden light for a short time. When the light vanished and he opened his eyes, five of the crystal spheres rolled to his feet, each one momentarily shone a single color, displaying a kanji. Benevolence, justice, gratitude, wisdom, trust. He paused a moment and realized the other four crystal spheres were missing. No matter where he looked, they were nowhere to be found. This was Kikoutei's will. Kaosu was directly in charge of these five armors, to keep them safe and wait for the time when Arago would return. That's when he'd find a suitable warrior for each to wear. They would protect the Earth. The four remaining armors would protect the spirit world. Looking at the two tigers, now more than ever it was clear that the two words, as different as they are, were balanced opposites of one another.

Kaosu gave the armor of benevolence to Nosuri to guard and protect. After a few years Shinsei left the area with his family and moved to the east. Eventually becoming instrumental with the Kamakura Shogunate (a Japanese feudal military government of rule that ruled from 1185 to 1333), and eventually leading to the family bearing the name of "Mouri". Akimitsu was entrusted with the armor of gratitude. A few generations later his family took on the name of "Date". Tomoaki was entrusted with the armor of knowledge and remained in the capital city. His family eventually taking on the name of "Hashiba". And Kosu Shuusetsu, who was entrusted with the armor of justice, returned to his family home for a while, then moved up into the mountains of the area, becoming a veterinarian. Alongside that, he'd also foster young kids and help teach them how to live a good life. His family eventually taking on the name of "Rei Faun".

It took a while before the whole uproar over Oni's antics in the capital city began to fade from people's minds. It helped that this area stopped being the center for Japanese politics and was no longer where the capital city was.

Over in the other world, the world of spirits, the Youja World, weakened and, for the time, defeated, Arago fell asleep in the darkness. Although his ambitions had been stopped and his new, terrifying body of armor had been ruined by Kaosu, time had allowed Arago's power to return. When he woke next, he was ressurected as the Youja Emperor Arago. It took very little time after he awoke to become stronger and stronger. He created his own city in the Youja World, one that imitated the capital city of Heian-kyou. A place for him to reign over that was completely his own. With Badamon knowing how to move between the Youja World and the Human World, he was extraordinarily helpful to his Youja Emperor, helping him gather more and more power, and, eventually, being instrumental in allowing him to find his four Mashou. Shuten Doji. Anubisu. Rajura. Naaza. Although that is a different story to be told for a different time.

In a vision from the future, Kaosu saw Arago's return. The floating castle in the sky. The ominous dark clouds. War would come. Until that time came, the nine armors would have to remain in their respective worlds. Until that time, he would have to keep a watchful eye on the Earth and the humans. Try to keep this world a good place, even if it wasn't perfect and tranquil. For now, though, peace had returned and people could be happy again. Kaosu took his clan's armor with him and decided to travel across Japan dressed as a monk. He would confront and deal with any spirits from the Youja World that happened to appear while he waited for Arago's return.

Epilogue - Where The One Village Becomes Eternal

Late at night, sparkling stars in the sky, somewhere far off in the mountains, the wonderful sounds of ringing bells could be heard. Deep in the forest of the area was an open grassland. Everything was peaceful and quiet. On an old, small, wooden stage, Kayura wore a samurai costume and was dancing in time to the sound of the bells. Small bells being tied around her wrists and ankles. She was the only one left behind to celebrate this festival, to dance in its honor. So, dance and celebrate she will. Now knowing all of the memories and history of her clan, she is free of her role as a replacement for Kaosu. She can be allowed to be a free girl in this world. The calm, reflective surface of the lake had shown her all of these precious memories. After so long, after so many things had happened, finally the two worlds had been returned to their original forms. Kayura, unlike Kaosu, no longer had to live for a long time to prepare for the return of any Youja. The only thing she has to do is protect the memories of her clan and of Kikoutei. If and when evil would dare to appear in this world again, Kaosu will be reborn again. With no need for them, the guards from the Mitama Lake's temple returned to the temple. The Inochi no Magatama was set back into its rightful place in the shrine of that temple. The lake burying the building, its power, and its secrets from the rest of the world.

(Note from the translator : The story includes that the crystal spheres / armor spheres / kanji spheres, whatever you want to call them by, were also buried within the depths of the temple, but, after the whole thing with Kikoutei Densetsu and MESSAGE, we all know that that's not possible. Five of those nine armors were destroyed, so no way for their respective spheres to still exist. So... yeah... you can definately tell this was written before MESSAGE was released.)

This night markes Kayura's departure from a warrior, from being needed as a replacement for Kaosu. This is the first day of the rest of her life, and her chance to live a normal, peaceful, nonmagical life. So, here in Asuka she danced. With a heart full of gratitude to everyone who had helped her, supported her, and for everyone who had to live through horrible battles, able to only find a life as a Youja, this was all that could be done. A simple dance in order to honor and show respect. A good distance away at Mitama Lake, the bells are faintly heard. Deep within this hidden temple, embedded into the wall are the ten beads. The nine that housed Arago's reformed armor pieces, and the final crystal sphere that was never used. At the entrance of this room is a statue of a sacred tiger wearing armor. Sheathed on the sides of the armor are the swords of Kikoutei. In the darkness, a small movement of pure white light moves around then out of the statue before vanishing into the darkness without a trace.

The End

Otogaki (Afterword / Postscript)

(Note from the translator : This is basically Yoshie Kawahara talking about 'I hope you liked this story, despite me being an amature writer', 'in my opinion, the story ended when the TV series ended and the armor wearing warriors are no longer needed', and 'thanks to everyone who's supported me in my life while I've worked on this book!'. The end.)

"I hope this show has an impact on you and gets a special place in your heart." No matter what project I write for, this is what I pray will be in the reader's mind. This is what it was like for me with Samurai Troopers. However, with this, it sure seems like this series was a big hit and the prayer was successful. As for me, I started writing this book, but it was fairly unexpected. I'm someone who's a novelist for anime shows, but I wasn't expecting to end up making five books for it! I'm pretty sure that all five books will be available soon in bookstores all around the country, in case you were wondering about that.

This book took several tries before I ended up settling on the story. When I got to that moment, all I could end up saying was "Finally!". To date, this was the most difficult story I've had to write. I mean, sure, there's the story itself, but there are a lot of things from that time period that I only have middle school / junior high school knowledge about. I'm sure that if an expert on that time period reads this book, they'll be able to find every last bit and piece that I got wrong about it, and that the story might even be sort of disorganized.

I like history well enough, but I don't know every last detail about it. So, the contents of this book are my own theory about that particular time. I'd like to think that this is an interesting story. It deals with the beauty of the mind and the heart. The Japanese tradition associated with the word "Samurai". It takes place in a world that's full of traditional beauty. A place and time that should be protected and cherished. Even though I deviated from the aesthetic and beauty of the era, I'd like to think that this story ended up being a fun read. Besides, if a story is all about how pretty and lovely and peaceful everything is, that's not much fun. Sprinkle in a bit of drama, adventure, and danger, ah, see? That's when it becomes something more exciting to read. Alongside that, there's another aspect from traditional Japan that I worked into this story. The natural world, for as dangerous as it can be, is also a beautiful and wonderful place. Something to be both feared and awed. Something that people should have a great reverence for. This is something that history and culture has shown about our ancestors. They had equal parts fear and respect for the natural world, something that we here in the modern age tend to lack.

However, that's just my opinion on the matter. I've gotten letters from many people who noticed this and, I'll admit, I was pretty happy about. (I didn't expect so many people to write me about this story! This story that such an amateur, like me, wrote. If you're one of the people who sent me a letter but haven't gotten a reply yet, I'm sorry! Please, be patient. I'll get around to replying to every last one of them!)

As for the story, from this point onwards, please, feel free to think about the future of Kayura, about the future of the five Samurai Troopers, in whatever way you like. However, in their world, the way I see it is that the era of war and danger, the times that needed those armor wearing warriors to defend the world, that ended when the television series ended.

At this point in my life, I think I finally understand what it means to exist as a human being, a person who lives in Tokyo and no where near the countryside. My dad was also born here in Tokyo. He likes paintings, climbing stuff, the natural sciences, and stuff like that. So, when I was a kid, we'd go out to the countryside where kids can be allowed to climb stuff, fall off of them, even going to visit the sea in summertime. My personal recommendation about that is you should totally go. Don't wait around. The view and enviroment is worth it. All of the flowers and various insects I saw along the way were like something out of an educational picture book. I was never much of an artist, but that didn't stop me from going outside to sketch the flowers and the scenery alongside my father. Even picking up random stones and seashells to bring home as souveniers. I remember that, one summer night when I was laying clothes out on the clothesline, I looked up into the sky and saw one star in the faded constellation overhead. It brought back those rich childhood memories. Thanks to my dad, I guess I could be seen as an unusual sort of son. I love to stick my hands out and cut through the wind. I enjoy going out for a hike and soaking in the great views of nature. I love getting to go to the beach and walk through the waves and the wet sand. It's a little strange, but in a good way, to know that how my father raised me, the things I experienced as a kid, will, in some form, live in through these novels I've written. Though I think that my feelings probably seem weird to parents who've brought up their kids knowing nothing but city life and robotic pets. They'll never get to know how wonderful getting to be outside in nature, away from all of the steel, concrete, batteries, and technology, can be.

This series of books I've written for the Samurai Troopers, I love it. I kinda wish I was allowed to keep writing more for these guys. I'll feel a little bit lonely to leave this series behind, but I'd like to think that I've helped create a new path for them. Sometimes I would like to imagine getting to meet them, being able to write something new and create a whole new world just for them. If nothing else, when you're in a bookstore and see 'Kawahara' just know that I wrote that and remember me. Please.

I plan on letting this series go, saying my final goodbyes to the Samurai Troopers, and moving on with my life after this.

Last but, most certainly, not least, to those of you who were so kind and helpful, giving me useful and constructive advice, Mr. Shioyama, Ukai-chan. Mr. Danna, everyone who's sent me a letter of encouragement for these stories, I want to say to each and every one of you, thank you for everything.

Kawahara Yoshie

April 5, 1990

Final Note From The Translator

Hey there, dear reader!

First up, thanks for taking the time to read my humble little translated version of this book. It's been a very, VERY long process for me, but I'm glad I was finally able to finish this. To find out about the past of Kaosu and learn that Arago was once human. (Still can't get over just how violent Arago was, though. And the fact that he ate human flesh!!?? Yuck!!! I knew he was a bad guy, but, dang! That puts a whole new perspective on him.)

Second, sorry that I wasn't able to yet provide you with a full detailed and translated version of this book. I ran out of energy, but still wanted this book to be DONE. So, I went the easier route and summarized each chapter. I know it's not perfect, and, one day, I do hope to resume the fully detailed version of the story, translated into English, and release it for everyone to read. For now, however, this version will have to do.

Third, for the love of God, if you at all appreciate the fact that this summary exists, that this story exists AT ALL, then, while it's still available, go buy an official copy of this book. As of 2019, it's still available to be bought via

Amazon www.amazon.co.jp/dp/B00VR8X3US/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&linkCode=sl1&tag=adrenalize04-22&linkId=93bdd2364754d793b52a3c16001c3e2f

and Adrenalize.co.jp adrenalize.co.jp/list04.html

I know, I know, you're probably going 'But, This stuff is in Japanese! I can't read Japanese!'. Neither can I, but spending about $7 / 6.40 EUR / 9.30 Canadian to buy a digital copy of this book to officially show that there are fans that are still around and still wanting to read these stories is kinda worth it. Right? I mean, it's no guarantee that SUNRISE will release any new stories for our favorite armored boys, but, hope is ever eternal.

Last but not least, thanks again for your interest in this story and wanting to read it. Thanks to Yoshie Kawahara for having written this. Thanks to SUNRISE for having made and released this anime series.

Now, go on, shoo! Go take Yoshie's advice and go outside for a while. Get some nature around you and go pamper yourself! You deserve it!

See you in the next book I translate for this anime series!

#yoroiden samurai troopers #ronin warriors arago talpa kaosu the ancient one byakuen whiteblaze book 4 shin kon hen early dusk volume

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