[Ako POV]

"My vengeance... ends now!" I say.

I charge at Zenji and she charges at me and we then clash swords with each other. As we fight, the intensity in our attacks increases. Zenji tries to slash at me, but I block with my sword. I elbow Zenji in the face, bloodying her nose.

I try to sweep in for a strike, but Zenji knocks my sword out of my hands and she slices my face, scarring it. Zenji aims to decapitate me, but I use my arm guards to block the attempt. Zenji wildly attacks with her sword, but I block the many swings she attempts. I break her sword in half, hit her with multiple kicks to the face and I blast her with a fireball of magic.

Zenji slowly gets up and she fights me hand to hand. I block many of Zenji's fast attacks, she is good, disciplined, but very aggressive. Zenji tries to hit me with a backfist strike, but I grab her arm and I slam her down to the ground. I begin to savagely punch her repeatedly, not stopping until I eventually crack her skull.

Zenji throws dirt into my eyes and she fires a fireball at me. I dodge and the fireball hits the dojo stronghold, causing the courtyard to go up in flames. Zenji goes back on the attack, but I hit her with a knee to the face, and a Crescent kick to the skull.

I go in for the kill, but Zenji cuts my leg with two small knives. She swiftly tries to attack me with the knives, but I dodge her attacks. Zenji tries to stab me with the knife in her left hand, but I block her attempt and I slam her face into the ground.

Zenji breaks free from my hold, but I quickly steal the knife from her right hand ans I slash her arm and her face. Zenji stabs me in the shoulder and side, but I repeatedly stab her in the back. I then block an attempted slash from Zenji and I viciously slice open her stomach, disimbowing her. I slash at her left arm and I slide the knife through it, ripping the skin open.

I break both of Zenji's legs and I stab her in the right eye with the knife. I call my sword over to me and I decapitate Zenji, killing her once and for all. As I stand over the broken body of Zenji, I close my eyes and I collapse to the floor.

"It's over... finally it's over." I say to myself. Although I am badly hurt, I manage to escape the burning Courtyard by jumping off of the building. I then disappear into the night, not leaving a trace behind...

12 hours later...

[Yashin POV]

Morning came... Me and the others then wake up, and we see that the stronghold has been destroyed, along with all of the Hidden Lotus clan.We look around for Ako but we don't see her. Is she dead? Did Zenji kill her?

"Yashin! Over here!" says Pai. I rush over to Pai's location and we see the headless body of Zenji lying in a pool of blood.

"Where's Ako?" asks Pai.

"She's gone..." I say to her.

We escape the scene, before the authorities show up. Where did Ako run off to? Well wherever she is, I hope she is okay. I also don't see Kunamoto anywhere, did Zenji kill her? All I know is that we won today, we have avenged everyone that has been ravaged by the Hidden Lotus Clan. Now their souls can finally rest.

Two months later...

Back at the dojo, I am still wondering where Ako is, she has not been back for quite sometime. I hope she is not dead.

"Yashin, this came for you." says Pai. She hands me an envelope that has no name on it.

"Thank you..." I say to her. I then open the letter and it turns out that it's from Ako.

"Dear Yashin... I thought about what you said, and you were right. After Killing Zenji, I don't know what to do next. I was consumed with Vengeance, obsessed with avenging my family, that I lost sight of myself.

When I met you guys, I felt like the smallest hole has filled my heart. You gave me back what I lost, a family. If you are wondering where I am, well... meet me whre it all started.

Where it all started? Her village? She wants me to head there? Riding on a horse, I make it to the Rising Sun village and I see Ako standing near the shrine.

"I knew you'd make it here. Sorry I took so long." she says to me.

"It's fine, I knew you wasn't dead." Ako walks over to me and she gives me a hug. As she softly cries, I hold her tightly.

"What's this for?" I ask.

"You saved my life, when all was taken from me. Thank you..." Ako says.

"Well, you saved mine. Before I met you, I was planning on killing myself. Ever since my clan was slaughtered, I had no reason to live, until I met you." Ako smiles upon hearing my words.

"So why are we here?" I ask her.

"I'm going to rebuild this place, start anew. I was hoping that you and Pai would be a part of it." Ako says. I pull Ako close to me and I kiss her passionatley on the lips. I don't know why, but something just came over me.

"Why did you kiss me?" Ako asks me.

"I guess, for a while now, I had feelings for you. Ako, you saved my life when I saved yours and I fell in love with you the moment I saw you." I look into her eyes, seeing that she is taken by surprise by my actions.

"I'm sorry that I..." Ako places her hand gently on my lips and she smiles at me.

"Do me a favor Yashin... shut up and kiss me." I continue to kiss her, feeling love from her aura. It's funny, Ako was a broken woman, traumatized by the killing of her family, then she found a friend in me, that actually cared for her.

Does the murder of her family still haunt her? I believe so, but she is deciding to move forward with her life, while not running away from her destiny. It's true that the path of the ninja is long and difficult, but together, we will face it... as a team!

[Mysterious Man POV]

Tokyo, Japan.

How beneficial was it that Ako Kusanagi killed Zenji. This worked to my advantage greatly. Ahhhh... here it is, the fresh blood of a super ninja.

"I hope this was worth it all, Zenji's destruction." Iana Ming walks up behind me, the new leader of the Hidden Lotus Clan. Her assistance was very instrumental in my plan.

"Yes, this is very mucb so worth the destruction of the old Hidden Lotus." I take the blood and I place it inside a vial.

"You are certain, that she can be controlled so easily?" Iana asks me.

"It is highly likley that she will be, and she will be the ultimate killing machine. She will be merciless, ruthless and completely void of emotion. As you said Iana, this is the age of the Hidden Lotus, our reign has just begun!"

Hey there guys! That is the end of this book! I am very happy to bring this to you guys! What did you guys think? Do you want to see more stories in this universe? Comment and let me know!

Thank you for reading and I will see you soon!

Peace and Love