Sakura

## **SAKURA LORE**

Once upon a time, there were a Great Kingdom ruled by the Great Empress Ashina called Sakura, where peace and unity is upheld firmly, where its people lived in peaceful days, but as they say, life is a journey of living and challenges - as the days of peace had been permanently devoured by the forces of evil being.

All things changed in a single moment, a scary growl in the ground shocked the whole kingdom, reaping terror in all lands, and destroying all things possible. The catastrophic quake caused the ground to be divided in two, emerging on its dark depths is a corrupted evil being, a glimpse of evil smirk is seen on its awful face, the guards alarmed the whole kingdom and shouted 'It’s the Demon Lord!', causing the people to crumble in fear, the Kingdoms best weapons ready for a chaotic battle as the people run for their lives, the whole kingdom is putted under despair and anguish.

As the Demon Lord marches its army towards the gates of Sakura Kingdom, Ashina and her best warriors ready themselves for a chaotic and deadly battle, they know why the Demon Lord had come, to take away the powerful rune, the Sacred Ruby, and knows what will happen once he got his hands on it. Ashina being the most powerful General of the Empire marched his army, confronting the Demon Lord. In a single moment, two forces have started the battle.

The battle turned to a gruesome fight, every single second a warrior loses his life as the Demon Lord just stood still as he watches his evil army increases, Ashina noticed the event and had seen her own men fight against each other, Ashina signaled his men to pull back, as the battle is turning against them. Ashina heart brokenly turns away as his fallen men devoured by the evil power of the Demon Lord, turning them all to his evil pawns.

As the kingdoms army falls back and regroup, the Demon Lord stood up, and suddenly leaped on where he stands, jumping towards the kingdoms most sacred palace, the Azuchi palace. Ashina left the army on her most trusted warrior Yuna, and pursue and stop Demon Lord from reaching the ruby. As Ashina dashes towards Azuchi Palace, she heard Yuna's battle cry, a battle cry which is only heard by a warrior ready for his death on the battlefield, a shed of tear falls on Ashina's eye.

As Yuna and the rest of the Kingdom's army defend the Kingdom, their front has slowly fallen. Yuna, losing their front guards, forced her to put kingdom's samurai to cover the front, fending off the Demon Lord's army, but it was in vain as the evil army easily rips through them and was killed in an instant.

The empires army was reduce to its half, leaving Yuna with Akiyama, the head of Archer platoon as the last vanguard. Yuna proceeded the battle with range, as she instructs the archer platoon to fire their sacred fires, the fires effectively kills quarter of the evil army, slowing the march of the evil army, Yuna saw hope in the battle and charges towards the evil army, but as she marched towards the enemy a black shadow emerged from her back, consuming her body, Yuna desperately fights the shadow's possession, but the shadow was stronger and consumed her body, turning it black and pure evil. The kingdom's army was shattered, as the sacred fires was running out, Akiyama tried his best to fight the possessed Yuna, but they failed, the two warrior died on the hands of Yuna, and the rest of their army was left without a leader and devoured by the evil.

As the Demon Lord nears the entrance of Azuchi Palace, humans who he seen instantly turns to dust, eating out their souls and leaving others into possessed beings, at the entrance of Azuchi Palace is a warrior, this warrior was especially tasked by Ashina to guard the Palace, holding the name of the Greatest Swordsman and most devoted warrior of the kingdom, with sword ready he faced the Demon Lord in battle, the two fight slash after slash, fought equally, fending and dodging both of their attacks, but as a human the warrior slowly reaches his limits and slowly losing his stamina and speed, the warrior knows what’s about to unfold unless he unleashes a final blow, the warrior recites a death poem, accepting his faith and doom, he ready his sword, the sword began to emit a white flame, the Divine Fire.

He poured all his life force unto his sword, the attack is meant to kill someone, including his, in a split second he rapidly dashed towards the Demon Lord, the warrior hits flesh but was surprised that the Demon Lord fended his attack with just his palm, the Demon Lord applauded his resiliency and ask his name, “My name is Gengyo”, having fired his last attack, Gengyo starts to spout blood out of his mouth, his attack cost him to die. As Gengyo slowly dies, an old woman runs towards him, unbothered by the presence of the Demon Lord, she tried to help Gengyo with her medicines she prepared for the battle.

The Demon Lord asked the woman, ‘You are brave, who are you?’, the woman replied ‘I’m his mother and my name is Shidora’ , Shidora is the renowned doctor of the empire, having created the empires most valuable medicine the Ancient Ash, she bravely run towards her son and made him drink her medicine, but the medicine wasn’t enough as Gengyo sacrificed his own life force as an attack, Demon Lord just watches as Gengyo dies, leaving Shidora in despair and tears, ‘I will end your despair woman’, in a single moment Shidora was killed by the Demon Lord.

As the Demon Lord enters the Palace, a young boy was hiding inside the Palace, an apprentice of Gengyo, Akihiko was struggling to be brave to face the piercing Demon Lord, in the midst of his struggles, and he saw Ashina in a window from far away running towards the Demon Lord, in a quick instinct he suddenly charged his sword towards the Demon Lord in hopes to stop him until Ashina arrives on the Palace, his attack was not strong enough to hit the Demon Lord, and was repelled, sending him back against a wall, the Demon Lord picks up his sword and shoots it at his heart, leaving Akihiko dead against the wall. But his actions weren’t in vain as Ashina was able to catch up to the Demon Lord, but as Ashina approaches her, the Demon Lord destroy the walls near the entrance, closing the entrance with huge boulders leaving Ashina outside, the Demon Lord continued to find the Blood Ruby, killing all the warriors inside that faced him, leaving bodies lying on ground, as he searches the Palace with his evil underlings made from the Palace’s fallen guards, he grown impatient, and made a huge explosion deep inside the Palace, as he searches the remains of the Palace he saw an armored door on the ground, having not seen the Ruby in the remains, he destroyed the door, but as he enters the door, she saw a familiar face, Ashina was able to enter the Palace after the explosion he made, he instructed his underlings to face Ashina and went through the door.

As the Demon Lord enter the door he was welcomed with a maze, a maze made by Ashina to hold the Bloody Ruby, but the maze was not a problem for him as he used his demonic powers to summon a quake again and destroyed the whole maze, leaving the maze in shambles, and showing the entrance to another room where he saw a unique person.  There he saw a man with an awful figure, an inhumane form for a man, the man was Geta Akuma, cursed by the Witch of the Lake, as a punishment for his misdeed, though unfortunate he was a renowned guard, a brute and a skilled fighter which was imprisoned inside the maze, though with his state Geta Akuma couldn’t fight normally as his cursed had been growing on him, the Demon Lord saw his state, the sadness and anger on Geta Akuma’s eyes and instead of fighting him, he instantly possessed him with his shadows, and made Geta Akuma his pawn.

With Geta Akuma in his hands, the Demon Lord continued on to search the Palace remains, whilst searching the Palace, the Demon Lord had feel somethings off as the presence of his underlings he sent to face Ashina can’t be felt anymore, he then instructed Geta Akuma to search for Ashina and continued to a room, a room filled with gold and treasures, as well as the empires artifact, seeing these, the Demon Lord rapidly searches the room, but was not able to find the Ruby, and after some moment he noticed the presence of Geta Akuma has weakened and surprisingly close, he used his powers to locate Geta Akuma, and made huge whole towards another door.

As the Demon Lord go through the whole, he saw Geta Akuma in the hands of Ashina, and the Blood Ruby behind, Ashina had fought Geta Akuma and was victorious against him. The Demon Lord asked Ashina ‘So you beat me to it, I’m amazed and it seems you already killed my newest pawn” and ‘You’re next!’ replied by Ashina.

The smirk on the Demon Lords face has been replaced with a serious face, ‘Well then, I will let you fell my blade’, and summons his demonic sword, Ashina prepared her Holy Sword to fight against the Demon Lord, and called upon the heaven to grant her the Holy Armor.

In a split second, the two dashed towards each other, their blades kept meeting, fending each other’s attacks, their fight had destroy the Palace but the fight hasn’t went to an end, then Ashina primed her sword with a pure white fire, and positioned in a special formation, and made a combination attack, the Soul blade, she charged towards the Demon Lord, the Demon Lord was stunned as the Soul blade attacks as Ashina kept piercing her sword with hundred multiplying attacks, Ashina’s attack made Demon Lord to back away, giving her time to also rest in a few seconds. ‘That’s quite a sword’ applauded by the Demon Lord, Ashina didn’t respond and primed her sword for another attack. The Demon Lord summoned a Demonic Armor to defend against Ashina’s attacks, while casting the Demonic Armor, Ashina began her attack a second early in hopes of beating the Demon Lord before he can do anything. Ashina was able to hit almost all attacks leaving the Demon Lord kneeling in the ground, she lowered her sword and told the Demon Lord ‘This is your end’.

‘You might be dreaming’ replied by the Demon Lord and suddenly stand, with no single scratch oh him, the Demonic Armor has covered all throughout his body, a very dark aura that turned Ashina’s attacks to nothing.

Ashina, using her best attack twice in a row had been exhausted, had been losing her energy to keep fighting. The Demon Lord started to move and charged towards Ashina, Ashina was forced to defend only as her energy isn’t enough to launch a counter attack, blow by blow Ashina barely depends the Demon Lord’s attacks, and in a misdirection she was caught by him, delivering a wound on Ashina’s body, but Ashina’s Holy Armor protected her against the corruption in the wound.

Ashina then turned her face to the Blood Ruby and taken it with her, and withdraw from the fight, but the Demon Lord was faster and her efforts to escape has been totally stopped. Caught in a wall, Ashina started to prime her sword again, now using the Blood Ruby to empower her, she began to attack the Demon Lord, with her every attack, it pierce through the Demonic Armor, causing damage to the Demon Lord.

The battle between the two had been going longer, and they both know that is has to stop. The two started to make this last moves, the conclusion of the battle is in line, the Demon Lord summoned a dark aura and embedded it on his sword, making his sword darker and more evil. Ashina enchanted her sword with a pure fire, and with Blood Ruby’s power, the fire grown brighter.

The two had ready themselves for their final attacks and the Demon Lord charged towards Ashina, his attack was so fast that Ashina couldn’t dodge it, but Ashina opened up the clouds with a bright light in a form of a sword which fall to her and the Demon Lord, the Demon Lord couldn’t avoid the attack as Ashina’s attack was targeted on herself. ‘Only evil gets devoured by the light’ Ashina said, the Demon Lord started to lose his form slowly, but Ashina was not affected however rendered her immobile. However, the Demon Lord had enough power and used his last demonic powers to fuse his soul to Ashina’s body as a final resort.

After few moments, the Demon Lord’s body completely disappeared before he was able to finish his possession on Ashina’s body, but Ashina was left lying in the ground.

After few moments. Ashina was able to stand up, but her eyes were dark as the Demon Lord, the last attack dealt to her cut through her Holy Armor and had corrupted her.

The rest of the Kingdom was devoured by the corruption from the Demon Lord, the once peaceful and beautiful land is now home to the corrupted beings, and those to have survived had disappeared on other lands, the fall of the Sakura Kingdom is now written in the history as the darkest age of all time.