Foxes & Dragons | Akatsuki no Yona

Episode 23

Episode 23
'Join the Cause'

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"U-urgh... the smell of the sea is just a bit too much."

"I guess even immortals have their fair share of problems, huh?"

"Oh quiet Yoon!"

The journey to the pirate ship was enjoyable for some, painfully smelly for others.

Hak and, surprisingly, Yoon were having a blast teasing Saya to no end about her sudden desire to barf over the utterly unbearable smell of sea salt and fish.

"Is this really all it takes to knock you out?" Hak giggled, throwing Saya a sly expression. "How unimpressive for the almighty Fox Goddess."

"Grrr－ just  SHUT UP  you two!" she snapped, her face flushed red as she held her nostrils shut with her index finger and thumb. "I'd like to see your expressions if you had a fox-like sense of smell next to this garbage heap you call an ocean."

"My, my you all get along quite well, don't you?"
Jae-ha chided as he lead the group to where the pirate ship was currently on standby. It's position had changed from the last time Saya saw it but it was still relatively close to it's original spot.

Once onboard the passengers of the ship began circling around the group with Jae-ha joining their ranks. An old woman pushed herself to the front of the crowd, snapping at some of the pirates along the way.

Saya wore her hood low to cover her ears as she was in charge of listening duty with Shin-ah as her back-up, taking in their surroundings with his dragon eyes.

The others in the group were on alert as well as they huddled close to the two, their eyes and ears scanning everywhere and everyone for anything that would pose a threat to their safety. Thankfully, nothing of the sort had alerted but there wasn't any harm in staying vigilant.

"Nice to meet you," the princess said. "I'm Yona. Are you the captain?"

The old woman from before looked the girl up and down before nodding. "Captain Gi-jang. I heard 'bout your little bunch 'ere from Jae-ha. So ya want to help, eh?"

With conviction Yona exclaimed, "Yes." Her eyes were a purple flame blazing brightly in the sun. The pirates around her were captivated by the sight and even the captain seemed a bit impressed.

Just by looking at the woman Saya could tell she was a tough cookie. The confidence in her voice and the way she upheld herself said just as much. A respectable woman indeed.

"Huh? What's with this guy?"

Captain Gi-jang made her way towards Shin-ah who had been silently standing in the corner.

"Take of yer mask," she said.

Shin-ah refused by shaking his head. The captain didn't allow this to slide, however, and instead proceeded to take off the mask herself. Immediately, Shin-ah's hands shot up to cover his eyes in fear of hurting someone, but the captain wouldn't budge.

"What's wrong with ya?"

"A-ah－ wait － he's just shy," Yoon announced as he tried convincing the woman to stop her attempt at unmasking their blue dragon.

"Pfft..." Saya giggled from under her hood, covering her mouth with her hand to muffle the sound. No one noticed it besides one man in the back who watched with utmost curiosity.

"Ya'know, the thing I value most is trust. I ain't gonna recruit someone untrustworthy," Captain Gi-jang informed them.

"But you need strength, right?" Hak chuckled.

"Hah. Be that as it may, I'm not gonna take someone who just talks without anything to back it up."

"Ohoho? Then how about you test us?"

The captain smirked at the ex-general's cockiness. "Alright, I'll take ya up on that then."

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"If ya can knock out all of 'em, ya win."

"Hey Captain, don't you think this is just a little unfair?" A pirate asked from below. "We completely outnumber them."

"Shut yer trap and just get on with it."

"Y-yes Captain!"

Murmurs began making their way through the crowd, however, as the pirates saw who they were up against.

"Hey, isn't that a woman?"

"What's she doing with them?"

"Is this some kind of mistake? Do ya think they're messin' with us?"

A tick mark found its way to Saya's forehead as she said in an aggravated tone, "You won't be saying that for that long. Just get on with it already!"

Reluctantly the pirates nodded to each other before launching themselves towards the small group of four.

In swift, fluid motions Hak used the butt of his spear to knock some of them off balance or unconscious, being especially careful not to cause any permanent damage. Kija was working in a similar manner as her used his large, clawed hand to knock people unconscious.

Shin-ah and Saya worked together as a pair with Kija holding off their weapons while they knocked them unconscious in their own respective way.

This continued onwards until only one pirate remained. In his hand was a sturdy wooden board that he used as his weapon. Like Saya, the man also wore a hood that masked his facial features and kept his appearance a mystery. He was skillful and capable of handling Hak on this own with only the oar as his sword.

With one big swing from Hak that caused the man to jump backwards, he began falling off balance over a compass one of his comrades had dropped during a fight, which Kija used to his advantage.

"I got you!" he exclaimed.

Before Kija could knock the man unconscious, he narrowly escaped by dodging and swerving his head in a different direction. This action, however, costed him because his hood was suddenly pulled back by the wind and what was underneath it was shocking.

Bright, stark white hair similar to her own. Clear, shining blue eyes like the color of the sky. Familiar... it was all so familiar.

Saya gasped.

"D-D... Dao-yi?" Is that y-you?" she cried.

The man stared up at her in shock as she removed her own hood revealing her silver locks and crimson eyes.

Tears began welling up in his eyes as he gazed at her with mesmerization. "It really is you."

Saya nodded frantically, almost not believing her eyes.

"Nice to see you again," she said with a soft, broad smile.

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AAAHHHHHH IT'S DAO-YI OMG. And he's... he's....－ HE'S HOT!!