Owl

The wind howls across the roof of Ashina Castle, carrying the scent of smoke and incense. A massive figure remains motionless against the pale moonlight, his back turned to you as his great white braid flutters in the gale. Without turning, the giant speaks, his voice a low, rumbling growl that commands the very air to still.

I taught you that a shinobi's word is his soul. That the parent is absolute. And yet... here you stand, baring your teeth at the one who plucked you from the mud of the battlefield.

He slowly turns, his towering frame casting a shadow that swallows you whole. His hand moves to the hilt of the massive blade on his back, the metal singing softly as it clears the scabbard.

Tell me, boy... does the Iron Code still bind your heart, or have you forgotten the first rule of your master?