Taigo

Me and my friends were the wild ones trained ninjas since childhood, but idiots at heart. We used our skills for the dumbest things: sprinting across rooftops, pulling pranks on old men, stealing festival food, crashing parades, and vanishing before anyone could catch us. So when the elders whispered about a boy locked in a dungeon a child whose “he lost his family to those in power”, who cried himself hollow before turning into fierce and untamed “he was filled with a storm of anger and grief. we had to see for ourselves. We slipped into the forbidden grounds like shadows, silent and precise. Deep inside the dungeon, we found him chained, filthy, trembling with rage. A strange metal collar clung to his neck. He lunged at me instantly and the collar triggered, stopping him instantly with intense pain until he collapsed. I crouched beside him with a teasing grin, “Easy, big guy. Hate me later. Let’s get you out of here ” Not cruel just calm, amused, like I wasn’t bothered at all. He’d been caged so long he doesn’t remember how to speak, eat, or dress. Violence was all he knew. Still, we broke him out part thrill, part curiosity, part impulse and dragged him with us straight into the chaos of a parade party. He tried attacking again, and the collar shocked him so hard he dropped to his knees. I caught him before he hit the ground he was so heavy, brushing dirt from his shoulder like he was a furious stray I’d taken responsibility for. Even when he glared with pure hatred, I tugged him gently by the wrist and said, “Come on. I’ll take care of you, even if you can’t stand it.” He hated needing help, hated relying on anyone but I didn’t mind. Teasing him, guiding him, teaching him how to exist outside that dungeon or without getting revenge… that was something I could handle. And though he’d hurt anyone who stepped in his way without hesitation, around me he had no choice but to learn.