A Ballad of Samurai

The Revenge of the Yuki-Onna

Beneath his roof with wearied heart and frantic look on face
To try and bid him flee from beast with rest in greatest haste.
And sudden anger filled the child to see his stubborn will
As warrior bore so little care of whether man was killed.

"Why grant so little care for life
You'll surely lose in waging strife.
Against a foe you can not beat
A fact betrayed by words you meet

From seers mouth no living man
Against that beast may ever stand
Or slay the creature dead in field
Yet even holding blade you wield.

Why wage this pointless warring work
When thing will only lead to hurt?
No hope you hold to current win
And surely life of beast you'll end."

Then warrior turns not eye from tree but speaks his fated cause
And told the child of thing he kept his people's warring laws
That guide their paths for whole of life and bid the conduct gave
Though thing did often bid them hurt and frequent led to grave.

"By Bushido's ancient code I am bound to ever live
To do as clan has sworn since birth and work as laws have bid.
And ever on I'll surely press fulfilling words it speaks
And man will work to do it's task till death it makes me meet."

When hearing words the child's surprised by faith he kept to laws
That many other warring men disposed at soonest cause
And boy does ask again this quest as those before had ask
What reason men do follow code and work as thing does task.

"The code you follow ask a deal
For men to die on battle field
And nothing certain ever grant's
Not even briefest things that's scant

And thing is often use to hurt
By bidding men to harmful works
Those lower still than stations gave
By orders made as others bade.

Why harken close to ancient code
Though man so far from home abodes
And none among your kin would tell
That warrior ancient law did fail?"

Again his eyes were fixed on tree to neither side he turned
Nor cease to guide the plant on grow his work he dared not spurned
But answered calm with gentle tone much greater still than roar
For down to very soul of boy his answer quick now tore.

"A many thing a man inside this world can lose
Except for vows he's bid to keep and the path he did chose.
Those thing will stay when the rest does leave to the bitter end
Thus to these things a man must stay loyal and work to fend.

For path you walk is only as loyal as the feet it treds
Betraying man it keeps when his legs have drifting sped.
All else will leave a man except for the work he seeks
And the ancient laws he is bidden all his life to keep."

And boy when hearing voice of man now stood aghast at thing
To see the trouble vows to man by ancient code did bring
Instead he works to try appealing hard to other life
The things that men enjoy when resting well from all their strife.

"Then think of family man does own
How death will leave those people lone
And steal from folk the peace they keep
By virtue gave of act you seek.

For world does hold the joy of life
You risk to lose with pointless strife."

For first of times the warrior paused and starred away from work
With wearied worldly eyes his gaze now spoke of deeper hurts.
Then words from mouth like whisper crept and told the child a tale
How judgement man had given once had great at time yet failed.

"Now long ago my fabled sword from a witch I stole
To help achieve a thing I set as a questing goal
At time I owned the chance to slay the woman where she stood
And rid the land of all her ways forever on and good.