Book I, Chapter 2: "Twenty Years After, the Flower Returns"
What is there to life other than to pursue the pleasures of the body and mind? it is ultimately what everyone seeks and works so hard for. Carrying out this lifestyle of enjoyment and promoting its values was the life of the hedonist, Kyouraku Shogi.
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The floor was tiled with sparkling silver marble and the entire room emitted a glow of luxury, its walls plastered with golden wallpaper and colorful flowers on green vines circling the room. There were stone statues of gods and goddesses standing in the corners of the room and steam filled the air as the hot spa bubbled eagerly, waiting to satisfy the naked bodies that prepared to enter. Meanwhile in the center of the room, a figure remained lying faced down on a massage bed, his face inside a hole and a beautiful female massagist mounted on his naked form, softly working her way down from his neck to hips. Bottles of scented oil were used and here and there were scented candles lit fill the entire room with a flowery aroma and a light classic music played in the background for the tenderizing of mood. Shogi's eyes closed automatically as he focused on the sensation of the lean, slippery fingers crawling up and down his back and bottom, the fingers knowing when to be soft and when to be strong, following an attractive rhythm as if knowing how to please the man's body. If heaven did exist, this was what he expected.
After the massage was complete, Kyouraku spent another two hours in the Hamasaki Spa Center which was located near the gates in order to be the first to attract tourists and travelers, relaxing in the hot bath and receiving the extra VIP services provided by the attractive female specialist. Finally, with his spirit and body recovered, he set foot on the streets outside and was greeted by the cool breeze of autumn. They sky was a mixture of red, orange and yellow as the sun now began to set and the air was crisp with the night's coldness slowly emerging. Kyouraku reached into his pocket and took out a pack of cigarette, slowly biting one and lighting it. White fumes exited his mouth and nostrils, spreading int the air like a small cloud. With no particular place to focus on, he stared blankly at the gates with half closed eyes and continued to smoke. many travelers moved in and out through the gates as well as various carts and carriages. His head was full of planning the party for that night when something caught his eye. What captured his attention was a white carriage that was pulled by two white horses. the carriage was veiled by a luxurious golden curtain to protect the identity of the VIP that sat within but it wasn't the carriage that interested Shogi. On the gold silk was a symbol that looked oddly familiar to him but he just couldn't remember. Puffing out another cloud of smoke, Kyouraku searched back through his memories. Suddenly, his eyes opened wide with surprise and blood rushed madly to his head, his bewildered green eyes staring at the flower. Soon, Shogi began to hear the soft sound of raindrops, at first somewhat a comforting sound, but becoming louder and louder, turning into a cacophony of raindrops falling hard on the ground...
Raindrops fell hard onto the flower, but the teenager did not have the time to look at the tattoo on the dead man's shoulder, which looked like a lotus. the black-haired teenager sat alone in the middle of the half-torn forest with chaos surrounding him. the earth was ripped apart next to him, trees broken like weak twigs and scattered around messily in the area, and the pools formed by the rain, contaminated in crimson red as blood flowed continuously like a small creek from the corpses of five unfortunate souls. The young Kyouraku himself was bleeding from parts of his body and he sat in a sea of blood with limbs and torn flesh swimming about. Fire burned chaotically in the forest behind him, the rain too weak to calm its fever nor to cover the tears that trickled down from the boy's green eyes. Looking up to the sky, hating the gods for sending him such misfortune, the young shinobi let out a fierce howl that depicted the boiling rage he felt and the long, sad scream echoed far through the mountain range and the valleys below, letting the world know of his misery. Lightning began to strike from the sky and rain poured even harder, washing away the blood that was smeared all over the boy's face. He squinted through the falling water to gaze upon the sky but saw nothing but darkness. It was during that moment that he would punish those who had taken from him, everything.
When Kyouraku regained his consciousness, escaping the flashback, he noticed that his cigarette had burned out, leaving only the filter in his mouth, and the carriage having gone far outside the village and striding into the forest. With the expression on his face now stern, the hedonist followed the mysterious carriage without hesitation, acting on nothing but his instincts. He had to find out who the fuck was in the carriage and if the symbol and the tattoo were related to each other.
[Requesting Exit]
