Kindred Spirits

Twilight was coming, the sun descending in the distance as night began to fall upon the land. So many took comfort in the embrace of this darkness, but for those that could truly see...they knew that there was so much more to fear at this time. The land was quiet, and all seemed well as the sun finally dipped below the horizon and the moon began to shine brighter. The transference was now complete.

A lone man in dark robes walked towards an Inn in the distance, the flames of the torches providing the only light for miles. The man continued on until he stopped at a slight bump in the road. He reached down and slowly felt what was on the ground. It was a salt line, written in ancient runes. It was the type of technique that was known to only a select few. The man smiled as he saw the familiar sketching. They were done with care and precision, they would hold up against anything but the most powerful demons. With a smile on his face, he went towards the Inn.

On the inside, a man came up towards another man that was sitting near the fireplace. "Excuse me Mister Zen, I'm sorry to bother you at this hour but I've had a strange request," the owner said before turning and pointing. "I have a gentleman in the other room that wishes to have a word with you. He says that he knows you'd accept though he offered no name," the man said before standing back to see what happened next.

When Zen looked over, he would see the man sitting at a table. In one hand he held an ornate staff with several markings upon it. Zen would recognize the craftsmanship, they were the same kind of staff that several of the priests who taught him used. Attached to the top were several prayer beads that hung loosely. The man just watched Zen, waiting to see if the man approached him or not.

The day had started well for Zen, he'd arrived earlier that this in, Prayed, and then requested a room in exchange for his services. An offer that was quickly accepted by the inns owner. A few quick incantations and a salt line and some runes later, and the barrier was complete. All in a days work for a young priest.

It wasn't until after dinner that another soul had entered, though Zen payed no mind to the man, instead watching the fire dance about in the Inn, relaxing and enjoying after supper tea. It wasn't until the Inn keeper approached that Zen really took notice of the man walking over to his table and sitting down.

"Hello Friend." Zen greeted warmly and open heatedly showing no fear of the man, after all very few people had those staves, and none would part with them without a major battle of some kind. He was never given such a staff. Instead he took a sword meant for him. "Would you care for some Tea?" He after all pretty much had a free tab from the owner to eat and drink his fill after doing such a service.

"I'd be honored. Please, request him to add a bit of mint to it," the man said before pushing a few gold coins forward. He apparently seemed to insist that he would pay the man in some way rather than just having Zen use his services to get it. His demeanor seemed calm and relaxed, as if he knew that there was no evil within this place to fear.

Once their order was placed, the man also requested for some meat, bread, and cheese to be brought over. He had traveled for most of the day and had not eaten in some time. There was too much work to be done to stop for food and relax.

"Friend...I do hope you mean that when you call me that" the man said before bowing his head respectfully. "My name is Kaeji, and I am a man that is in contact with the spirits of this world...they are the ones that told me to seek you out," he said as his light green eyes seemed to be locked with Zen. "They told me about you and your training with the priests. They told me that I needed to say this phrase to you for you to understand."

"Only through long-suffering and patience does one find peace, but one can only find it if they are truly looking. One rarely stumbles upon the truth on accident."

It was an old phrase that the priests had used before, something they said to remind Zen that he needed to be constantly vigilant in his training.

"Finding Peace is only the first step to enlightenment." Zen responded in earnest and took a sip from his tea. Such were the things that the priests that trained him said. The first step was always the hardest. "It is good that you have found me. Are not all that are seeking enlightenment friends?" The real question was if Kaeji was truly seeking enlightenment or just answers like he was currently seeking.

"You have gifts that you can't quite understand or command, it is through self discipline and meditation that such gifts come manifest." Zen took another sip of tea and kept it in his mouth savoring the taste he'd meditate on it later. It didn't taste like the tea where he was from, and wondered how different it really was.

"Indeed. While there are few of us, we remain as some of the most worthy and vigilent warriors of our time. Though we delight not in the shedding of blood, we do see the value of preserving the peace," Kaeji said quietly before his food was brought over. He thanked the man before starting to gently tear his bread as he spoke next.

"I was told that I would find you here. I've been traveling for a month in order to meet you here...the truth is that I need your aid," Kaeji said quietly as he made sure that no one was listening in on them. "About a month ago a spirits by the name of Amon came to me while I was meditating. He told me that the seals that bound the spirits to their world was beginning to weaken. Surely you have felt it? The energy that has started to flow in to the world? More powerful beings are coming through now. The Bijuu were what came first...but they weren't everything."

Zen didn't know very much about being Vigilant or being a Warrior, however as far as spirits were concerned he did know how to both nourish good spirits and banish bad ones. He knew what Keiji said was right. It was the only reason that such powerful spirits would be able to assail his teachers shrine almost unmolested by the barriers that keep worlds separate.

"I do not know about being a warrior. However Friend." Zen sat upright and put his Tea down. "You have shown your quest to be true to me, and have Recruited, Gon-Guji Zen as your partner until we can uncover the reason for such a disaster to unfold."

Kaeji smiled as Zen seemed to agree to work together for the time being. Good, he knew that the spirits would not lead him astray. Amon send Kaeji to Zen for a reason, and the longer they were together, Kaeji was beginning to understand just why he did. Zen wasn't just a warrior or just a priest, he had a good heart and he would do what it took to save the world. He didn't have any attachments, which meant that he'd give his all for everything else.

"Excellent!" Kaeji said happily before reaching his hand forward to shake Zen's hand. "We are almost complete. Amon mentioned an incident to me. He told us that there was one other that we should bring with us. He's a man that isn't like you or I. His mother was able to communicate with the spirits like us, but she was murdered by some kind of Oni. The man has been trying to find the killer ever since. I told him to come find us here...though I have not met him before, Amon assured me that I'd know him when I saw him."

Zen took and shook Keiji's hand quickly and firmly as most priests did. He was quick to get back to slouching and sipping his tea again. He didn't have very good posture for a public figure like an Assistant Chief Priest. Though really such a title meant little if he wasn't part of a standing Shrine.

"His mother Hmm? Terrible thing." Zen responded, his voice full of concern. He himself never knew his mother or father, he'd been an orphan from as far back as he could remember. "He has my sympathies."

"Indeed, it was quite the occurrence in Ame. He was a man that seemed to be able to change his form. However, it wasn't at the cost of chakra. They have devices that are made to detect strength of shinobi. What they found on this thing...it was unlike anything they had ever seen before," Kaeji acknowledged. "I was hoping to get him to come along with us. If we're hunting demons perhaps-"

But Kaeji stopped. He felt a disturbance in the area, and his prayer bleads started to glow an ominous black color. Zen would feel the same thing. Something was starting to distort his barrier outside, whatever it was hadn't completely destroyed it yet, but was working at bringing the magic down in order to enter the area.

"They're here," Kaeji said as he quickly stood up. It was late and while they had only seen the owner of the Inn, there were several others staying at this inn currently. "Come now, we have to see what's out there," Kaeji said before running to the door.

Zen couldn't just sense it, he could literally feel it in his bones as the barrier first was weakened with a single hit then ripped apart like Christmas wrapping paper in the hands of an excited teen. From this he could sense that there were either many opponents acting in unison or a single powerful opponent.

Zen would stand drawing his sword and knocking over his glass of tea in the process, its contents wouldn't touch him however as he cleared himself into the middle of the room waiting for whatever came busting into the room, sword drawn ready to seal or deal with whatever was coming into this place. "Expecting company? I doubt whatever it is will stay out there for long considering it was powerful enough to destroy my barrier, with ease."

Kaeji pointed his staff to the door as he knew that whatever it was would be coming soon. "Brace yourselves, I would hate for this partnership to end so suddenly," the man said as his staff started to glow a bright yellow light.

The door suddenly bursted open, as a large club with several metal beads attached smashed the door to splinters. A large man that appeared to have red skin, messy hair, and several elongated fangs walked through the door. He was easily eight feet tall, having to duck down in order to enter the doorway.

There was barely any life or light in his eyes, as the demonic madness was clearly strong within him. The demon turned his head, seeing the two spirit warriors standing in front of him. The demon growled lowly, tightening his grip on the weapon in his hands.