[Kyuta/Ren takes a bag and his sword, and heads off to fight Ichirohiko, leaving his critically injured mentor (Kumatetsu) behind. As he is leaving via a stone path, Tatara and Hyaku catch up to him, stopping on stairs just above Kyuta.]
Tatara: [with worry] Kyuta! Are you really going to run out on Kumatetsu?
[Kyuta stops walking and looks up at them, but doesn’t reply.]
Hyaku: [angrily, with arms folded] You idiot! [Tatara is surprised at the outburst.] Seeking revenge, are you?! Just what do you hope to accomplish?!
Tatara: M-maybe we should all stay calm … !
[Kyuta turns around all the way, to look at them head on. His face seems determined.]
Hyaku: I will not stay calm! [Tatara is making nervous sounds.] I’m not always as nice and friendly as the rest of you seem to think I am! Kumatetsu’s in there lying close to death! Haven’t you learned anything?!
[Silence, but for some crickets. Kyuta continues to stare at them with the same expression. After several seconds, Hyaku’s angry face falls.]
Hyaku: [sighs; he lets his arms fall and speaks calmly, but defeated] You’re still going to go, though, aren’t you.
Kyuta: [nods, and then lightens his expression with a smile
] Thank you for yelling at me. I’m glad you cared enough to do it. [He walks toward the others.] But I’m not leaving because I want revenge. Ichirohiko and I are the same. I could easily have been the one swallowed up by darkness today. But in the end, I wasn’t, because of the people I was lucky enough to have been raised by. Including you – both of you. So thanks.
Tatara: [tearing up, looking desperate] Kyuta, please … listen …
[Hyaku is looking at Kyuta with his mouth hanging open, as if in shock.]
Kyuta: I can’t stay here; I have to do something. [he raises his right hand to his chest] Ichirohiko’s darkness is mine as well. We share it. Please understand. I have to go. Look after him. [bows]
[Tatara can’t take it. He runs toward Kyuta, arms outstretched.]
Tatara: [sobbing] Of course we understand! [pats Kyuta on the back] You do what you need to do; leave Kumatetsu to us! [losing it] You get going now! [pats some more] We’ve got it covered! It’s okay.
[Tatara breaks down crying off-camera. Hyaku stands in place, smiling weakly, tears in his eyes.]
[Later, Tatara and Hyaku are sitting beside Kumatetu’s unconscious body, leaned against the wall. They are staring straight out, not looking at anything in particular, and speak pensively.]
Hyaku: He believes he was saved from the darkness by the people who raised him?
Tatara: Us included. I’m still not really sure how that happened.
Hyaku: We did spend a lot of time around him, ever since he was just a little boy.
Tatara: Yep. I remember him back then. He was a cocky brat.
Hyaku: We went to see him every day, even though he was a human, and someone else’s apprentice.
Tatara: And gave him our sage advice – not that he was ever grateful for it.
Hyaku: Now, suddenly, here he is, looking so tall and grown up.
Tatara: Making decisions on his own like an adult.
[beat]
Hyaku: I couldn’t be prouder of him.
Tatara: No, neither could I.
Tatara: [with worry] Kyuta! Are you really going to run out on Kumatetsu?
[Kyuta stops walking and looks up at them, but doesn’t reply.]
Hyaku: [angrily, with arms folded] You idiot! [Tatara is surprised at the outburst.] Seeking revenge, are you?! Just what do you hope to accomplish?!
Tatara: M-maybe we should all stay calm … !
[Kyuta turns around all the way, to look at them head on. His face seems determined.]
Hyaku: I will not stay calm! [Tatara is making nervous sounds.] I’m not always as nice and friendly as the rest of you seem to think I am! Kumatetsu’s in there lying close to death! Haven’t you learned anything?!
[Silence, but for some crickets. Kyuta continues to stare at them with the same expression. After several seconds, Hyaku’s angry face falls.]
Hyaku: [sighs; he lets his arms fall and speaks calmly, but defeated] You’re still going to go, though, aren’t you.
Kyuta: [nods, and then lightens his expression with a smile
] Thank you for yelling at me. I’m glad you cared enough to do it. [He walks toward the others.] But I’m not leaving because I want revenge. Ichirohiko and I are the same. I could easily have been the one swallowed up by darkness today. But in the end, I wasn’t, because of the people I was lucky enough to have been raised by. Including you – both of you. So thanks. Tatara: [tearing up, looking desperate] Kyuta, please … listen …
[Hyaku is looking at Kyuta with his mouth hanging open, as if in shock.]
Kyuta: I can’t stay here; I have to do something. [he raises his right hand to his chest] Ichirohiko’s darkness is mine as well. We share it. Please understand. I have to go. Look after him. [bows]
[Tatara can’t take it. He runs toward Kyuta, arms outstretched.]
Tatara: [sobbing] Of course we understand! [pats Kyuta on the back] You do what you need to do; leave Kumatetsu to us! [losing it] You get going now! [pats some more] We’ve got it covered! It’s okay.
[Tatara breaks down crying off-camera. Hyaku stands in place, smiling weakly, tears in his eyes.]
[Later, Tatara and Hyaku are sitting beside Kumatetu’s unconscious body, leaned against the wall. They are staring straight out, not looking at anything in particular, and speak pensively.]
Hyaku: He believes he was saved from the darkness by the people who raised him?
Tatara: Us included. I’m still not really sure how that happened.
Hyaku: We did spend a lot of time around him, ever since he was just a little boy.
Tatara: Yep. I remember him back then. He was a cocky brat.
Hyaku: We went to see him every day, even though he was a human, and someone else’s apprentice.
Tatara: And gave him our sage advice – not that he was ever grateful for it.
Hyaku: Now, suddenly, here he is, looking so tall and grown up.
Tatara: Making decisions on his own like an adult.
[beat]
Hyaku: I couldn’t be prouder of him.
Tatara: No, neither could I.
