Disclaimer: I do not own or claim to own Kannazuki no Miko. Kannazuki no Miko is copyrighted to Kaishaku and Geneon studios. Any and all cameos are copyrighted to Tite Kubo.

The Repentant Traitor

Often used in children's books and films, he starts out as a clear-cut villain, who is sent to infiltrate and betray the "good guys", but is won over by the kindness/goodness of the good guys and builds up a rapport or changes their actions to save a loved one on the "good guys'" side. Sometimes his defection is caused by abuse or a betrayal from the main villain. Changes side to join them, but in this almost always loses their trust in admitting to having worked for the enemy, and at this point becomes a true traitor in betraying his (or her) original side. Almost always killed or severely wounded in this change to the good guys. A repentant traitor can also be someone who was the main villain but was betrayed by someone who worked for them and helped the good side after being treated with kindness.

The streets of Mahoroba were wet as they were cold. But nothing flooded the streets as much as rumors and talk about death to the king and queen. Even on the warmest of days, another rebellion had begun. When freedom to talk began, the rebellion began. Critics to the king and queen were rising up everyday. People would stand on boxes and street corners cursing out the royalty for supposedly 'not sharing power equally'. If it wasn't for the guards, the palace would have been burnt to the ground.

But not today.

Today, the rain created the perfect environment. The drops poured so heavily, they rattled the rooftops of every hut, made the streets wet with dirt, and soaked his clothes to the chill. He looked around slowly, through the sheet of water the rain had created. Here, he would find his solution. Today was the only day he could operate. He continued to get his long hair wet in the rain, and gazed around. The rain weeded out the weak and the cowardly from the desperate. Here, he would find the one he was looking for.

Then, he heard the quick splash of footsteps followed by a poke to the back. He turned around.

The poke came from a knife, shaking in a pair of young hands. The boy seemed to grit his teeth, his crimson eyes showing determination, but his body seemed weak, fragile. It constantly shook in the rain, and his rags didn't protect him any better. His light green locks dripped with water soaked into each strand. His stance was wide spread and therefore, flawed. He could have been easily tripped or grabbed by the testicles. However, the most significant of all was his eyes. Their crimson glow showed something other than raw hate or uncontrollable rage. They showed the will to overthrow the king and queen.

"That's a nice knife," he spoke reaching out and grabbing the weak wrist. He twisted it fiercely, not breaking it but enough to ellict a childish scream throughout the rain. "How unfortunate that you don't know how to use it." The boy twisted and turned, and responded by biting the man's hand and moving away.

"Don't be stupid!" The boy grabbed his knife and held it in both hands. "All I want is your food. That's it. You try to grab me again, and I'll cut your eye out."

He looked the boy over. He was defiant, brave and rebellious. He was willing to stand up to someone stronger than him, even with the possibility of losing. In other words, he was perfect.

"I have something better than food." Slowly, the man reached behind his back and undid the lashings that surrounded his shoulders. He grabbed the package, struggling and wriggling as he pulled out a small child, no older than three. The child had gags around his eyes and his face, and his arms were bound by rope. The boy looked at the child and held him by the arm, for he was too heavy. The man smirked and explained, "It's a 'Souma.' I'm sure he'll be very useful to you in the future."

"Can I eat him?" The boy said, looking at the bound child.

The man chuckled. "I'm sure you could, but what would be the point? If you feed him before you feed yourself, he'll follow you, obey you, even worship you. He'll admire you and best of all, he'll die for you." The boy simply looked at the child, and patted his black hair. He seemed to smile as the man went back towards the palace. The boy looked at him with suspicious eyes.

"Wait!" He shouted, the rain almost muting him. "There's something wrong with him, isn't there? If he's so useful, why don't you take him with you?"

The man turned around and smiled. His emerald hair was getting soaked into his priest's uniform so he wanted to end this quickly.

"Isn't it obvious? He and I will eventually fight one day. It's better that neither of us are on the same side."

Makoto Saotome's fingertips ran over the gold medallion she was awarded. She thought her eyes were deceiving her, just as she thought they had deceived her when the princess had given her the award before a clapping audience the previous day. But as she held the medallion to the edges of her fingertips, as she felt the smooth edge of the coin as wide as her thumb, as she ran her fingers over the smooth hill and the jagged edges of the horse's mane, she knew it to be true.

She nearly would have lost sight of her surroundings if not for her bandaged calf. She winced a little, rubbing it, still unable to comprehend the beauty of the castle. True, she had been acquainted with the beauty of the crimson halls before, but seeing the so-called Hall of Justice, was a marvel to behold. She never knew architecture would allow a narrow space to become circular and allow people to sit up so high. Up on the panel, she witnessed her friend near the top with the azure-haired princess. As she waved up high, she was followed by a baritone voice. "Makoto Saotome, I presume."

She turned to see the emerald-haired priest, bound in chains and smiling. He was the center of four surrounding guards, all carrying a chain. Rather than the clean white priest's uniform he had on the other day, he wore brown rags, covering every inch of his body. Where an oblong hat used to be was now bare, showing his flat edge above his skull. He smiled and looked at the girl.

"How ironic." He gazed at the medallion, his hands still bound in chains. "If my side had won, I'd be the one carrying the medallion around my neck and you'd be in chains, at the very least."

"Lucky for me, then." Makoto responded with a determined look. She wouldn't let anyone who would have let Himeko die be forgiven.

"Yes, in fact very lucky. Tell me, what was your strategy if Pantera hadn't gotten themselves involved?"

Makoto looked at him fiercely with her emerald green eyes. "I would have stayed by Himeko's side, no matter what."

"I see..." The man responded in a disappointed tone. "It saddens me to hear that. You had so much potential in you."

The auburn-haired girl yelled fiercely, hearing this. "I'm not like you. I won't betray my friend no matter what happens!"

The priest smiled as he was dragged to the center. "Don't worry. You're still young. There's plenty of chances for you."

Himeko couldn't help but feel a sinking feeling in her heart seeing her mentor be dragged in chains. His appearance had become untamed since the last time they spoke. Himeko, high above, could see that the clean white priest robes were exchanged for brown rags. The oblong hat that usually sat on his head was absent. His hair fell untamed, green strands over his face. But worst of all was the cold, unfeeling look on his face. Instead of the warm smile Himeko had known and loved all this time, she was greeted with a taut frown, showing how serious and unfeeling a man could be. She whimpered a little, only to be caressed by a gentle hand. Chikane smiled, hoping to comfort the young girl.

Everyone attended. If Abuki's trial was the hearing of the century, then Kazuki Oogami's trial would be the hearing for a millennium. People crowded the courtroom, wanting to hear what had become of the supposed 'loyal' Kazuki Oogami. Children, hags, and noblemen attended the court hearing. Most notable, many of Pantera's soldiers had stood by the side, listening to the hearing as it began. They still wore the same white demonic masks that Mahoroba had come to know them by. Their white robes had remained the same as before: covered with drops of blood.

The audience came to a silence when the surviving Elders gestured. The most powerful Elder, only lower to Himeko and Chikane, began to read off the parchment, his voice somewhat hesitant.

"Kazuki Oogami, you are hereby charged with conspiracy, murder and treason of the highest degree. How do you plead?"

"Guilty," The emerald-haired man said quickly and somberly, "To all charges."

The audience shared the same reaction as Himeko: shock. They never realized that Kazuki would give no resistance, no argument. Himeko shook her head. She couldn't believe after all this time, she still wouldn't hear the truth. That couldn't be true. It just couldn't be.

"Very well. As for your sentence, you will be imprisoned to the dungeons for the remainder of your life. Would you like to say anything? Anything at all?"

Kazuki shook his head. "What am I to say? How I regretted nothing? How what I believed in was supposedly right? I won't waste your time with such petty speeches."

Chikane rose from the highest seat and gripped her hands into fists. Himeko felt scared, seeing her love in such a rage. She wanted to calm Chikane down as much as she wanted to hear Kazuki's reasoning. However, the latter choice won as she let Chikane yell out to Kazuki.

"Oogami-sensei! Tell me the truth. Now."

The former priest turned to her, rose his head and looked into her dark blue eyes. "With all due respect, your Highness, I owe you nothing. You can do anything you want to me, but I don't owe someone like you anything."

Himeko watched in horror as the man turned around and began to march through the door. All this time, she felt as if she understood the gentle man, but in truth she knew nothing. She wanted to be a part of Kazuki's life just as much as she wanted to be part of Chikane's life. She bit her teeth as the sadness began to take over her heart. The audience began to mock and boo at Kazuki, something she hated. Her amethyst eyes began to water, as she stood up. "I have to know. I just have to know after everything that's happened."

"Oogami-sensei!" Himeko yelled, silencing all noise in the room with her high pitched quiver. "I-I'm sorry! I'm sorry that you have to go through this, but please tell me! Please tell me what happened because I-I" The blonde broke down to tears. She felt her head become stroked by Chikane's soft and comforting hand, as she began to compose herself.

Somehow, in some strange way, Kazuki heard her. His eyes widened and his cold expression became much warmer, the lines of his face gently lifting. He gave a slight smirk and turned to Himeko.

"Dry your tears, Kurusugawa-san," he spoke in his warm voice. "If it pains you that much, I'll tell you. But, I expect you to listen closely as I won't be repeating this again." He turned to the crowd and addressed them.

"I expect all of you to pay attention. You might just learn something."

He turned back to Himeko and began his tale.

"You see, I was one of fraccion to the Vulgarian Noise. Unlike many, I saw war on a daily basis as the Vulgarian noise loved to fight for conquest. I, along with a select few, joined the king as we slaughtered thousands, all for the sake of power and reputation. Eventually, our little campaign paid off as he eventually came to power and we lived comfortably in his castle, Las Noches. Like many, I was blinded by power to realize that our prosperous time would eventually come to an end."

"Luppi..." Himeko stated in a hushed voice.

"Perceptive as always, Kurusugawa-san. You see, Luppi eventually came to the conclusion that he could take the place of the Vulgarian Noise. This, of course, started the war that changed everything for me. I had no family. The king and his shadows treated each other coldly, so I did not consider them friends. The only thing I had was my reputation and my honor, something Luppi took away from me. We fought against Luppi's forces fiercely and without mercy. Because of his short temper and his easily broken pride, the Vulgarian Noise eventually rushed into a trap, therefore damning the rest of us. As they held us by sword point, the Vulgarian Noise was robbed of his throne, and became nothing."

Himeko nodded. She wanted to hear all the story, not just Kazuki's fall but Souma's involvement as well.

"It was then I realized how different things were. As I walked the streets of Pantera, I noticed people looked at me and at times would mock me behind my back. They had called me a traitor, a follower of the old ways. I couldn't buy food or live at a home because people had seen how disloyal I was. I understood what a hero was. Heroes are nothing more than traitors who happened to be on the right side at a fortunate time. Therefore, I was a traitor. I was apparently part of a tyrant's entourage and was nothing more than a foot soldier."

"What did El-The Vulgarian Noise do about it?" Himeko asked curiously.

"Nothing. All he did was follow orders to conquer more lands and obeyed them. He talked about how he would take the throne back, and how he would put his fist through Luppi's heart, but it didn't matter. He talked like a madman, and I stopped listening. The same could not be said about his shadows, constantly following him. I found someone else. She was different, like a star shining brilliantly amongst a sea of darkness. When we talked, I had found something right in my broken world. My wife, Maria."

Himeko stood silent for a while. She spoke up, "What-what did she look like?"

Kazuki scoffed at the question. "Turn to the princess. Describe how she looks like in a few words."

Himeko turned her neck towards Chikane. Himeko could have said how her hair was a dark blue and how her eyes matched them. But, there was so much more to her beauty than just simple colors. There was a living being to her. There was life in how her blue hair gently swayed in the wind, and how her darkened eyes reminded her of the ocean, and how her thin and tall body could hold so much strength and yet could be so lonely, so cold in certain darkness. Himeko's mind lit up. To describe Chikane would have been too long for her heart had wanted to express every bit of detail of her love, from her body, to her smile, to her heart. Himeko shook her head.

"I can't. You would never understand unless you saw her."

"Then you'll realize why I won't bother telling you. I will say this. My wife. She was...soft. Everyday, as my wife, she would tell me to believe in my ideals, in my own sense of right and wrong. She even bore me a small boy. How pitiful. Then, of course, your parents, Chikane-hime, had decided to defect from us and create their own independent kingdom, Mahoroba."

Himeko sat silently, listening to the speech.

"Guess whom Luppi assigned to handle this situation."

"So you and the Vulgarian Noise fought against Chikane-chan's parents?"

"Him, me and many others. But most importantly, my wife had joined the conflict. We thought that Pantera's forces would overwhelm the rebels. Little did we know about how plentiful Himemiya's resources were and how frivolous he was about spending. When he outlasted us, using superior resources, we were mocked once more. It wasn't anything we didn't hear before. We were charged with every accusation possible: treason, incompetence, conspiracy. But that wasn't what drove me out of Pantera. It was when the Vulgarian Noise decided to rush the Himemiyas in a foolish attempt to overwhelm them. And when my wife volunteered to head the blitz."

A slience ran through the room, as if they were paying respects to Kazuki's loss.

"That's when I knew that there was nothing left for me in Pantera. Even if I took it upon myself to strangle Himemiya by his fat neck and murder his wife just as he had murdered mine, my Maria was dead. All I had was my stripped honor. I knew Luppi would never give me that honor. His vanity was a sure sign of it from the start, building those statues and surrounding himself with mirrors. And the Vulgarian Noise kept babbling about how he would eventually take his revenge on Luppi. No, if I wanted any shread of honor, I would need to beg for it from Himemiya himself."

"You're willing to beg for your honor?" Himeko asked.

Kazuki smirked. "You're so young. You haven't the slightest idea how valuable it is. Yes, I was willing to beg. However, I knew the guards would kill me on sight, regardless of what I had asked. So, I took a guard's armor and charged through the throne room. There, in my state of misery, I begged King Himemiya to slay me and restore any shred of honor I had. Would you like to know what your father told me, Chikane-hime? What he was like in his youth?"

Chikane gave no response, knowing that Kazuki would respond.

"In truth, Chikane-hime, your father was a kind bastard."

Chikane gave a subtle frown at this.

"I'll never forget the words he told me. He said that he would kill me, but I would gain no honor from it. Instead, he told me that I would have to earn it. I would have to work for my honor much like peasant would have to work for his bread. He told me that if all I could do was betray, then I would betray for him. He used me. Me! And for what? To forward his idealistic and naive dream of freedom for all, a place where we wouldn't have to answer to Luppi. But, that's not important. All I knew was I had a choice: continue fighting a losing war and being mocked for my incompetence or betray my wife's ideals and join Himemiya. I'm sure you knew what choice I picked."

Himeko nodded, urging Kazuki to continue.

"When I dissented to Himemiya's side, with his resources and my military intellect, it wasn't long until the Vulgarian Noise was humiliated once more and I was on the winning side. As suspicious as it sounded, Himemiya kept his word and promised not to reveal my secret to anyone else provided that I would serve him from now on. So a new kingdom was born and my honor had been restored. At first, it felt odd when people started smiling at me and greeting me with such praise. However, I got used to it, finally realizing how easy it was for 'honor' to be gained. But I knew it couldn't last. Eventually, I saw signs of protest and rebellion. Critics and out speakers were everywhere and the guards did nothing to silence them. Eventually, another war would break out, and I had to prepare myself for it."

"So what did you do?" Himeko asked.

"In short, I raised you, Chikane-hime. You were a prodigy, possibly the genius of our time. You simply weren't smart, but athletic, strong-willed and beautiful as well. I knew, that if war would grip the kingdom again, you would be the center of it all. So I raised you. I taught you to fire a bow and arrow, to ride a horse with elegance, to sing with a blade. I thought that you of all people could defeat the new rebels and rebel leader. But you wouldn't mold in the direction I wanted you to. Instead of always thinking of the kingdom, your mind wandered and thought of other things. You stared at the moon constantly when you should have looked over your kingdom. Isn't it ironic? After all these years of raising you and mentoring you, you found strength in a little blonde girl."

Himeko felt Chikane rub a side of her face, caressing her. They looked at each other and smiled.

"So that's it. I wanted honor and reputation for a lifetime. I chose the wrong side again, and I am a traitor once more. If you'll excuse me, I want to live the rest of this tiresome life in the dungeons."

"But!" Himeko cried out, unsatisfied with his answers. "What about Souma-kun? Why did you want him dead? I thought he was your son."

Kazuki grinned and shook his head. "Do you know what the purpose of a child is? To constantly whine for food? To become a burden on the parent? No, it is simply to further the family name in his honor, or better yet, fix that honor. Imagine how the great Oogami name bore loyalty, how one would slaughter his own flesh and blood for the sake of his country. That's why I gave that brat to the rebels, know that one day, Oogami would be considered a loyal branding. When the rebel leader told me Souma was dead, I was tricked into believing all my well laid plans had gone awry, so I had to act fast to gain honor."

"But why?" Himeko cried in her childlike voice. "Why did you do it? I thought you loved your wife. Why did you betray someone you loved?"

"Betray?" Kazuki responded. "You are mistaken. She betrayed me." Himeko shuddered at the sound of this. "When we had gotten married, we vowed to live long lives so that we may spend it together to the point where we would grow old together. When she had died on that battlefield, I knew how shallow her words were. Humans are capable of many things. If they are dedicated enough, the mind can override such physical weakness. So when my wife had died on that battlefield, rather than struggling to come back to me, I knew there was nothing left for me there. So, I burnt my uniform, stabbed my katana into the ground and left, never returning again."

The audience became silent at this. Not even the youth wanted to make light of the situation. The priest's words burned truth into their minds, realizing how fragile alliances were during war. As Kazuki was nearly dragged away, he turned and looked up.

"Himeko Kurusugawa." The priest spoke. "A few words of caution before I am dragged away."

Himeko leaned in to listen.

"You have damned Mahoroba to the Vulgarian Noise." Kazuki's words caused Himeko to gasp, hearing something so painful.

"In no more than a year, the Vulgarian Noise will send his arrancar troops to occupy the city. Mahoroba shall become a military state with guards as far as the eye can see. Your positions of power, your privileges, it will all be gone. The rich culture will be replaced by a puppet government designed to worship the Spaniard king. And most of all, every man, woman and child will wear a white Hamaka. I just hope for all this freedom lost, for all this history lost, for all this culture lost, it was worth it."

"Yes," Himeko said proudly, turning to Chikane. "Yes, she was."

He stood on the edge of the bridge, hearing the smooth crashing of the waves. His legs had taken him far on his journey, but he wasn't the least bit tired. He balled his palms into fists and followed the path, covered in dead leaves. He felt the familiar mist as he entered the cave, hearing nothing but the sound of his own footsteps. When he finally reached the back of the cave, he noticed a miniature shrine with a gate that he had never seen before. Above, as always lied the pit of nothingness, staring into him.

"Souma Oogami," it said in its multiple voices. "Why have you come back here? I thought you had taken a higher path."

The boy knelled down, his purple seal glowing. "I wish to learn from you. I want the power that you gave my brother, so I'll never face betrayal again."

The hole had no face, but from the sound of its voice, it seemed almost glad. "Tell me, who are these traitors?"

The boy rose up and showed his quiet fury. "My father betrayed me by abandoning me. My brother betrayed me by deceiving me. But worst of all, the only one I loved, the only girl I had feelings for betrayed my heart."

The hole seemed to understand through its long silence. "Very well, sit with me. I'll give you the power you so desperately seek."

The boy, his forehead glowing purple, sat down in a meditate position and made his palms flat.

"I am ready, master." And so he sat there, listening to the Orochi.