The Ronin who stayed

(Soft shakuhachi - distant taiko) [Verse 1] Morning mist upon the stone. One more road to walk alone. No gold waiting at the end, Only footsteps without end. Cherry blossoms cross the stream, Just like all the things I’ve seen. Some were lost before goodbye… Still they drift across the sky. ⸻ [Pre-Chorus] Every wound… Knows my name. Still I walk… Just the same. ⸻ [Chorus] I stayed… When the wind called me away. I stayed… Though the sky turned into gray. No crown. No throne. No banner above. Only the weight… Of the ones… I chose to love. ⸻ [Verse 2] Many crossed the mountain pass. Many vanished with the past. Some drew steel to earn their place… I just learned… To leave no trace. The sword grows quiet in its sheath. Not from fear… But from peace. A battle left undone today… May let another child grow old someday. ⸻ [Instrumental] (Shakuhachi, koto and slow guitar solo) ⸻ [Bridge] They called me weak… Because I stayed. They called me broken… Because I forgave. Yet every scar beneath this skin… Was earned… Without giving in. ⸻ [Final Chorus – Choir] I stayed… Even when no one could see. I stayed… Even when it buried me. The road… Never asked my name. It only asked… If I would walk… The same. ⸻ [Outro – Choir + Shakuhachi] No master… No castle… No victory song… Only a ronin… Still walking… Home.