Douluo Continent, Huo Yuhao who returned from Sekiro

Chapter 1 Return from Ashina

On the boundless reed field, a handsome, young boy lay weakly among the reeds.

With a thunderous roar, several crisp sounds of swords clashing followed.

The sound of blood gushing from a person's body drifted away on the wind, followed by the sound of a heavy object hitting the ground.

"Ho-click!!!"

The blood-red blade struck precisely at the neck, severing the obsession of the man returning from the underworld.

"Well done, Sekiro."

After saying this, the man, who had been kneeling on the reeds with his back straight, seemed to have lost all his life and collapsed heavily into the reeds.

Farewell.

Huo Yuhao sheathed the Mortal Blade in his right hand and made a Buddhist gesture with his left hand, paying homage to the Sword Saint who had imparted the supreme swordsmanship to him.

Even though ninjas are destined to kill, they must never abandon the little compassion they have. Huo Yuhao put this teaching into practice very well.

"Wolf, where are you?"

The weak voice drifted into Huo Yuhao's ears along with the sound of the wind through the reeds. As a ninja, Huo Yuhao could detect any subtle sound.

Huo Yuhao quickly walked to the boy's side, knelt on one knee, and said, "Divine Child, I am right beside you."

Huo Yuhao looked at the child in front of him with some reluctance. He would never forget the moonlight on the Moon Gazing Tower, and the lonely figure on the Moon Gazing Tower, that small figure who placed all his hopes on him.

Taking out the Sakura Dragon's Tear and the Everlasting Cherry Blossom wrapped in cloth from his bosom, Huo Yuhao slowly lifted the Divine Child's head with his other hand, as if he had made up his mind.

"My Lord, please take the Dragon's Tears."

The shimmering light of the Cherry Blossom Dragon's Tears made the pink cherry blossoms even more beautiful, and the pink light even reflected Huo Yuhao's face and his gray-brown ninja outfit made of linen and canvas.

The prince struggled to open his eyes, but only a crack, just enough for him to see his ninja staring at him with lingering reluctance.

"Wolf."

The sage wanted to raise his jade-like hand to stroke his weathered ninja face, but the power of the Sakura Dragon's Tears and the Everlasting Cherry Blossom quickly dissipated from his body. The next moment, the sage's head lolled to the side, and he fainted once again.

Huo Yuhao slowly lowered the arm that had been supporting the head of the divine child, and then turned the arm behind him to grasp the large katana that was on his back.

"Whoosh—"

With a soft sound, the sound of a long sword being drawn came, and a large katana with a blood-red blade and a nick in the edge was pulled out.

"I will end the last one who survives."

Huo Yuhao stared at the blood-red greatsword in his hand, which exuded an aura of devouring life, and slowly pointed the blade at his neck.

"My Lord, please live a normal life."

Huo Yuhao turned his gaze to the Divine Child, wanting to reach out and touch her delicate face, but in the end he did not loosen his grip on the Mortal Blade.

"Whoosh—"

Huo Yuhao's body transformed into cherry blossom petals the instant the Undying Blade fell, dissipating against the wind into the reeds.

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"Huff! Huff!"

His neck was severed by the large katana. The extreme pain that erupted in his central nervous system made Huo Yuhao open his eyes abruptly. He gasped for breath. The sounds he heard were no longer the howling wind sweeping across the endless reeds, nor the incessant thunder. All he heard was the intermittent coughing of a woman.

"Cough cough cough"

Opening my eyes, the swaying reeds had disappeared. Raising my hands, my right hand, which was originally covered with scars and calluses, had been completely transformed into a thin, small hand that only a child would have.

Originally severed by Genichiro, the prosthetic arm that later inherited Hibiki's left arm, which was equipped with various deadly weapons, no longer exists. All that remains is a left hand that is completely symmetrical to the right hand.

The thick finger joints have become delicate, but they are still covered with various tiny wounds. Some of these wounds were left from doing odd jobs, while others were frostbite caused when helping his mother wash clothes in winter.

He stared blankly at the dusty beams above him, and a thought flashed through Huo Yuhao's mind—a thought he longed for but dared not even dream of.

"Am I back?"

Stumbling and sliding off the bed, Huo Yuhao rushed out of the room and saw the scene he had longed for day and night.

A simply dressed woman with long brown hair had already tied her hair up in a bun. She sat in front of the gate with her legs spread apart in a somewhat unseemly manner, vigorously scrubbing something. In front of her was a wooden bucket filled with river water. Inside the bucket, a dozen or so taro balls were rolling around happily in the water. The woman scrubbed them vigorously, washing off the mud from their bodies until they became yellowish and slippery.

"Yuhao, are you awake? Today I'm making your favorite egg and scallion pancakes. The old housekeeper brought half a pound of well salt while delivering meals. I'll use the salt to make pancakes for you, and sell the rest at the market to get you a couple of eggs to help you make up for it."

Before the woman could finish speaking, Huo Yuhao froze on the spot, as if he had lost his soul. He wanted to say something, but in the end, he just stared at her, unable to utter a word. His eyes burned at that moment, and a large tear rolled down his cheek. Huo Yuhao subconsciously shook his head, trying to block her gaze so that his disheveled appearance would not be noticed.

He had expected to burst into tears, as if a flood had been released, but it was clear that after a year of bloody and fiery battles, his habits no longer allowed him to act so weakly.

Huo Yuhao wanted to rush to the simply dressed woman in three steps, then kneel down on the ground with a thud, hug her, and burst into tears. But in the end, he just lowered his head and gave a soft "hmm."

Having danced on the edge of a knife for a year, Huo Yuhao's temperament underwent a complete transformation. He had even given up the possibility of ever returning here. He thought he would never see his mother, whom he longed for day and night, again, and never see the woman who gave him all her love and tenderness.

The scene he had imagined countless times was now actually happening in front of him. Huo Yuhao's shoulders trembled incessantly, and his lips twitched as if he wanted to say something, but what used to be a simple matter of speaking had become incredibly difficult at this moment.

A surge of intense emotion, both dreamlike and exhilarating, welled up in Huo Yuhao's heart and reached his throat, overflowing through the gaps between his clenched teeth.

Huo Yuhao slowly clenched his right fist, raised it, and pressed the third joint of his right index finger against the center of his upper lip to control his excitement.

At this moment, his mind was burning with the sudden excitement, and if it were not restrained, his malnourished little body might be directly overwhelmed by the ecstasy surging from the depths of his heart.

"Yuhao."

The woman was stunned. She stood up and looked at Huo Yuhao, who seemed somewhat unnatural. She gently hugged him. In this tender embrace, Huo Yuhao seemed to have all his strength drained away. His suppressed emotions surged out in an instant, overwhelming his fragile mental state and causing him to faint.

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(End of this chapter)