"How did the clan get annihilated?" Jin asked.
"The boy's story is..."
It was a peaceful night—until a loud noise erupted from the shinden (clan head's room). The doors burst open, and out staggered Shinoto, the younger brother of the current sōke (clan leader).
He was shirtless, his usual stern expression replaced with something twisted—a hollow, drunken despair. In one hand, he clutched a tokkuri (sake bottle); in the other, his katana, its blade glistening with fresh blood. And in his grip... the severed head of the former clan head.
The boy had been practicing karate when a bloodcurdling scream shattered the night.
"What are you doing, Shinoto?!" a clan warrior bellowed—only for his words to be cut short as a shadow moved.
