Well hi. I know that almost everyone who has subscribed to me on this site probably hates me for only writing stories for Sengoku Basara. Go complain to Kishimoto.
If you are confused by this chapter: good, that's what I want you to be. Also, I dare say I'm trying to kill myself writing from one character's point of view while trying to have that ONE character know what EVERYONE around them is doing.
No I won't describe the Basara cast involved in this story because you should already have a good idea of what they look like and if you don't, I'm sorry, but you're just going to have to go look up the characters yourself. I still have 1308720857 characters that I need to introduce to you later on anyway, and their descriptions alone will take up hefty parts of the chapters. Oh, keep in mind that I include characters from the third game in this as well.
"Countervail" is set in an alternate reality of Sengoku Basara. You will find out more as the story progresses, so please don't ask questions. However, if you do find it in yourself to review this story, please tell me what interests you about the world so far, and I'll keep it in mind for later chapters.
Will update again in two weeks. Or depending on how fast I finish writing chapters 2/3/4.
Main warning for this story: FRIGGIN HUGE OVERLOAD OF ORIGINAL CHARACTERS. Oh the treachery! Deal with it.
Also um... apologies in advance for any out of character-ness of the characters. I haven't ever played the games so I have no idea what some of these characters are like... also, I was unaware of the fact that Nobunaga and Hideyoshi actually DON'T get along, so I went based off of history for their relationship which was a lot more friendly then their relationship in Basara, apparently... so, I apologize for that, and for any miss-use of honorifics that there may be, of which I am sure there are several.
Chapter 1: Assimilation.
"Oyakata-sama... I, Yukimura, still don't understand why the Demon King, of all people, would be calling for an alliance of, well, everyone," Yukimura informed his lord. Shingen nodded his head.
"It is quite surprising, Yukimura, but we'll see what this is all about when he gets here," Shingen's aged eyes looked over all the lords who were already present. Yukimura examined them as well.
Date Masamune was to Shingen's left, with Kojyuro on his left and Itsuki on his right. Then there was Tokugawa Ieyasu, with the Maeda clan between him and Toyotomi Hideyoshi, who had Hanbei and Mitsunari with him. Saika Magoichi was also with the Maeda clan, and was blatantly ignoring Keiji's shameless flirting with her. Chousukabe Motochika, Mouri Motonari and Otani Yoshitsugu were sitting quietly next to one another. Which was surprising to Yukimura considering that Motochika and Motonari were not on the best of terms with each other.
Yukimura glanced at Sasuke, who was chatting idly with Kasuga, though she was more interested in staring at Uesugi Kenshin then talking with Sasuke.
'Where did the other shinobi go?' Yukimura wondered, eyes scouring the dimly lit room for any sign of Fuuma Kotaro. The shinobi shifted in the shadows near Yoshitsugu, as if he knew that Yukimura was searching for him. Yukimura stared at him for a moment, then returned to brooding. He caught movement near Motochika and squinted his eyes to see better behind the purple armored man.
Tsuruhime had poked her head out from behind Motochika and after seeing that Yukimura was staring at her she squeaked lightly and retracted her head.
Earlier that week an envoy from the Demon King had arrived, battered and bruised. He'd relayed the message for an alliance to Shingen before collapsing onto the ground. He was still being cared for by the doctors in a room not far from where everyone was. Shingen had then sent out a message to all the other lords to come and meet in Kai shortly after receiving the news from the Demon King's envoy. That's how they had gotten to this point of everyone being in the same room.
Masamune sighed; Yukimura's eyes flicked to him. He was rubbing the end of his overcoat in between his fingers while Itsuki tried to make him stop, grabbing his hand. It soon became a game between the two: every time Itsuki tried to grab Masamune's hand he jerked it away.
'Masamune-dono has gotten quite impatient... I wonder where Oda Nobunaga-dono is...'
Though he had sent out the request, Oda Nobunaga hadn't arrived in Kai yet. Yukimura fidgeted and Sasuke elbowed him lightly to make him stay still, muttering under his breath, "stop moving, danna."
'It's so strange. Oda Nobunaga-dono is one of the most powerful men in the country, yet he's calling for an alliance of all the lords. Chousukabe-dono and -dono came from very far... I wonder why Toyotomi-dono didn't come with Oda-dono,' Yukimura's brown eyes settled on Hideyoshi.
Hideyoshi was one of Nobunaga's generals, so why he wasn't with the Demon King Yukimura wanted to know. Hanbei noticed he was staring and gave him an icy look, which prompted Yukimura to quickly look away.
Footsteps were heard on the porch, urgent footsteps. Yoshitsugu, who was closest to the shoji door at the moment, looked up. The door was slammed open.
"Oyakata-sama!" the soldier had a heavily breathing Ranmaru under his arm. Maeda Matsu was quickly on her feet. She pulled Ranmaru into her arms when she reached the soldier.
"Ranmaru? Ranmaru, what happened?"
"Ugh... it hurts, Matsu-san, it hurts..."
"What hurts?" she demanded, carefully sitting on her knees, Ranmaru in her lap. His eyes flicked to his hand.
"My wrist. I – I think it's sprained..."
As she took his wrist into her hand the soldier moved to the side. Toshiie hurried out the door and exclaimed "Nobunaga-sama!" before disappearing from sight. Yukimura jumped up and followed him, while the other lords exchanged various looks.
Yukimura was in shock at what met his eyes.
Nobunaga was being supported by both Toshiie and Mitsuhide, Nou Hime flitting about him in panic. Nobunaga's shoulder looked like it had been torn open by something, and had been wrapped by a black fabric. A quick glance at Nou Hime made Yukimura blush lightly; the bottom of her kimono was missing. Quickly he returned to Shingen's side.
"Oyakata-sama, it appears as though Oda-dono has sustained injuries."
"Injuries? Nobunaga?" Hideyoshi barked, standing himself. He stomped towards the door.
By now everyone was standing and muttering. Yukimura looked at his rival to see his eyebrows drawn in. It was hard to believe that the Demon King had been injured.
Hideyoshi helped Mitsuhide and Toshiie get Nobunaga into the room, while Sasuke and Kotaro darted off to get doctors after an order from Shingen. Nou Hime was clammy and sweating, her hands shaking as she removed Nobunaga's face plate and started trying to get his armor off. Toshiie quickly assisted her in the task.
"What is the meaning of this? Who would dare injure Nobunaga-sama?" Mitsunari asked Mitsuhide. Mitsuhide shook his head, blinking his eyes rapidly.
"I don't know... they can't be too far behind," he replied.
"They?" Shingen repeated, "they who?"
Mitsuhide made a hand gesture for everyone to sit down. As everyone did he jerked his head up, eyes wild.
"Oichi-sama, where is Oichi-sama?" he darted out of the room. Yukimura was stunned by his display of worry. Sasuke and Kotaro returned with a few doctors who quickly got to work on taking care of Ranmaru's sprained wrist and Nobunaga's ripped shoulder.
Masamune began drumming his fingers against the wooden floor. Yukimura sat in silence, listening as several generals whispered amongst themselves, many of their questions similar to the ones Yukimura wished to ask himself.
'They? A new army? But we would have also heard of them, right? What did Mitsuhide-dono mean when he said they?' the return of footsteps pulled Yukimura out of his thoughts. Mitsuhide had returned with Oichi in tow, and she quickly rushed to her brother's side, kneeling down beside him. Her hair hid her face and her grip on her weapon was so tight her knuckles were white.
Yukimura furrowed his brows at her, 'Oichi-dono looks very upset... eh?'
Kojyuro's hand had appeared in Yukimura's line of sight. Yukimura watched in surprise as Kojyuro forcefully made Ichi let go of her weapon, quietly informing her that she was going to bruise her knuckles if she continued to grip it so tightly. She apologized to him and set her weapon down, folding her hands in her lap.
'I didn't realize that Oichi-hime was sitting so close to Katakura-dono.'
Mitsuhide started pacing. This got the generals' attention. The group stared at the ivory haired man expectantly.
'Mitsuhide-dono has never looked so... fearful, before. Whoever the 'they' are that he mentioned must be terrifying to scare Mitsuhide-dono!' Yukimura decided, eagerly awaiting the report.
"They... they are gigantic monsters is what they are. Huge black creatures. We encountered five of them and nothing worked. Nothing at all. No weapons, nothing. Every time I struck one it was like I was trying to destroy a steel statue. They are covered in an impenetrable armor," Mitsuhide stopped pacing and focused his wild gaze on Shingen.
"They have no weakness that we know of. One of them single-handedly took out half our forces. It had swords of all shapes and sizes protruding from its body, and after it charged the blades retracted back inside its skin. The creature's roar was enough to terrorize the soldiers; they were all shaking in their armor."
"Oi, oi, oi! Creatures with impenetrable armor? Tell us about the other ones!" Motochika interrupted, his expression one of eagerness. Yukimura was afraid of what other descriptions might come.
Mitsuhide dropped to his knees on the floor, eyes closed in thought.
"The one that injured Nobunaga-kou had a whip-like tail. It was very long. There was another one that did nothing but shriek. It seemed like a scout to me, with the way it constantly screamed. It was quick footed as well. As for the last two, one kept on disappearing and appearing at random. It had... stars in its body? It was a strange one... stranger yet was the final one. Its tail was shaped like a shield. It scooped soldiers up and threw them. No way they survived the fall."
Mitsuhide collapsed onto the floor then, mumbling. Alarmed, Yukimura quickly crawled over to him.
"Mitsuhide-dono?"
"So tired... hope you don't mind... I'll just sleep here... can't be too far behind... find us... today at... the earliest..." and he continued to mumble incoherently. Yukimura looked back at Shingen, whose eyes were closed in thought.
"This is alarming news. Creatures with impenetrable armor," he opened his eyes and looked at Kenshin, "what do you make of this?"
"First off, how did they get here? And when did they get here?" the icy lord questioned, looking at the other lords in the room. Nobunaga sputtered then and all eyes trained on him.
"Shortly after... Matsunaga Hisahide was killed in that explosion. These creatures were spotted on Owari's border. After they themselves saw Honnoji they laid waste to it. We were lucky to escape... thanks to my sister," he glanced at her, not in a kind way. Yukimura furrowed his brows at this.
"Ichi... Ichi remembers fainting and then... when Ichi woke up Mitsuhide-sama was... carrying Ichi..." she added softly, clenching her hands. Kojyuro's eyes flicked down to her hands. For a moment Yukimura thought he was going to make her unfold her hands, but Kojyuro looked up at him instead. Yukimura blinked, and focused on Mitsuhide.
"Oyakata-sama, should I move him?" he asked, reaching for Mitsuhide while looking at his lord. Shingen shook his head.
"No, Yukimura, leave him where he is."
"This is bad news," Kenshin said as Yukimura returned to Shingen's side, "if these creatures aren't hurt by weapons, what can we do to defend ourselves from them?"
"The most efficient survival tactic is fleeing. The creatures gave chase to us and left everything else alone. I also noticed that they will not hurt civilians," Nou Hime finally spoke, both of her hands grasping one of Nobunaga's.
"Not hurt civilians?" Motonari piped in, "we could use that to our advantage then, couldn't we?"
Motochika stood up abruptly, glaring at Motonari and startling Tsuruhime; she was pulled back slightly by Kotaro.
"Don't even think about it Mori! We are not going to under any damn circumstance pull innocent people into this!"
Motonari stood as well so he could be level with his rival, "when it comes to the value of an army, the general is the most important. If these creatures won't hurt civilians, then if we use them as shields they won't attack us, correct?"
"Why you-!"
The two continued to bicker. Tsuruhime tugged at a sleeve of Motochika's jacket.
"M-Motochika-nii..." he ignored her and continued his argument with Motonari. Yukimura would have intervened himself if he hadn't noticed Keiji stand, his eyes flicking worriedly between the two. When it looked like they were going to start a fist fight Keiji stepped in between them, placing a hand on each of their shoulders.
"All right guys, that's enough!" he turned his head to Mouri, "and Mouri-nii-san, that's an idea, but hopefully we can use it as a last resort...?"
Motonari "humphed" and sat back down, while Motochika stalked to the opposite side of the room. Each of the generals had fallen into silence, each brooding over the situation.
"Oyakata-sama..."
"Hm?"
"What do you make of these... creatures?" Yukimura asked. Shingen looked thoughtful.
"They are strange, no doubt. I'm most worried about how they got here... and after Matsunaga Hisahide's death... this seems very odd to me. Perhaps they were already here before he was killed?"
There was a silence until Kojyuro spoke up, "to be certain, maybe we should visit Matsunaga's home."
"Katakura-dono...?" Yukimura looked at him. His expression was tight and worried.
"This will sound far-fetched, but it could be a possibility that Matsunaga is still alive."
Sasuke jumped up, "these creatures couldn't be his doing!"
Kojyuro breathed deeply, "I'm not saying that. But if they arrived here after Matsunaga's death, then maybe they were searching for something. And if it's to Owari that they went... they had to be in an area nearby to get there. Matsunaga was closest to Owari."
"... Katakura has a point," Hideyoshi agreed, standing, "we should head to where Matsunaga had been. There might be some clues."
Shingen and Kenshin looked at each other, then nodded their heads. Nobunaga straightened despite the doctor's timid request that he stay still.
"We should leave here as soon as possible, Kai no Tora. Those creatures are relentless in their pursuit. And the scout's scream is very loud. No matter how far from each other they are, the creatures will surely hear it."
Everyone began chatting and getting ready to move out; Masamune and Kojyuro headed for the door, Itsuki trailing after them.
"I'm not gonna' sit around and wait to see if those things show up. Kojyuro and I will head out first. See you there," he raised his hand in a waving gesture and departed from the room, Kojyuro glancing over his shoulder at Oichi before following his lord faithfully. Yukimura bit his lip.
Oichi stood then, shakily, and picked up her weapon.
"Ichi will go as well," she stated quietly as she swiftly left the room. Shingen watched her go. Yukimura looked at him, awaiting orders.
'I guess we're splitting up,'Yukimura realized as not many others went after Masamune.
"Yukimura, take Sasuke and go with them," Yukimura nodded and soon found Ieyasu at his elbow.
"I'll go as well. Motochika, perhaps you should come too."
"Why?" the pirate general demanded, turning to face Ieyasu. Ieyasu sighed softly. Yukimura had noticed that he and Motochika hadn't been on the best of terms when they got to Kai.
"Because we should split ourselves up, between rivals I mean," Ieyasu glanced at Yukimura before adding, "some of us are lucky they get along well with their rivals already."
"... you have a good point there. All right, I'll leave with you guys," with this information Sasuke quickly left the room, calling after Masamune.
"Well, let's go. The Dokuganryuu won't wait for us," Ieyasu said, nodding to Yukimura. Yukimura nodded and led the way to the stables. Once there he and Ieyasu picked a horse for Motochika to ride and after retrieving theirs they hurried to the gate. Sasuke was prancing around the entrance.
"Ah, danna! The Dokuganryuu and Katakura-no-danna aren't too far ahead but... they're ahead. With Oichi-hime and Itsuki-san."
"Ho, Sasuke, lead the way!"
Sasuke nodded and darted off, the three men following on their horses. It wasn't long before Yukimura could see Masamune's blue overcoat, though it was half obscured by Itsuki, who rode behind him. Yukimura was surprised to see Oichi riding side-saddle behind Kojyuro.
"Masamune-dono!" he called after he got over his shock of seeing Oichi behind Kojyuro. Masamune glanced over his shoulder and smirked.
"Yo, Sanada Yukimura! Glad you managed to catch up!" he turned his head back to the front, then looked back again.
"Why are you two coming, huh?" he asked the other generals.
"Well, to keep us away from our rivals, mostly," Ieyasu informed him.
"You and Sanada are lucky you both get along when you need to. As for some of us... that won't ever be happening," Motochika added with a chuckle. Masamune laughed and looked ahead again. Sasuke drew back to Yukimura's side, his eyes trained on the woods around them. Yukimura stared at him in worry.
'I should keep Sasuke near and not let him scout...'
"Sasuke."
"Yes, danna?"
"I don't know if it would be wise for you to scout so... don't scout, all right?" Yukimura ordered him. Sasuke gave Yukimura a strange look, like he was offended that his master was questioning his abilities. Yukimura gave him a pleading expression.
"If you say so, danna. I'll stay by your side."
Yukimura felt a wave of relief pass over him and as they rode to Matsunaga's land his mind wandered.
'I wonder when we'll see Oyakata-sama and the others... perhaps splitting up wasn't the best choice we could make but... it's better then Masamune-dono and Katakura-dono coming out here alone,' his brows furrowed, 'what will we do if we encounter these creatures? Our weapons won't wound them in the slightest...'
He glanced at Motochika, who also appeared to be lost in thought. Ieyasu was very quiet on his horse, his eyes downcast. The lord of Mikawa had changed a lot; he wasn't young looking anymore, with his brown hair swept back away from his face and spiked up.
Sasuke jerked his head up when they were half way to their destination, trees flying by in a blur. Yukimura looked at him; the group was now closer together, Kojyuro and Masamune still at the front. Ieyasu was further to the right of Masamune but still behind him and closer to Yukimura's horse; Motochika was about at the same place as Ieyasu but on the left.
"What is it, Sasuke?" Yukimura finally gave the shinobi his attention.
"Kotaro. He's caught up with us," Sasuke said. He glanced at Yukimura before leaping into the trees. Moments later he returned with Kotaro by his side.
"Everyone else isn't too far behind. No sign of the creatures yet, but Oda-no-danna wants everyone to be on their guard, just in case," Sasuke looked at Kotaro for a moment. The black and white shinobi appeared to be telling him something. Sasuke focused on Yukimura again.
"Apparently the scout is rather quiet despite its size. About... as big as a wagon, Kotaro says," he spoke loud enough for the other lords to hear him.
"Big as a wagon? Hah! That's not too big," Masamune looked over his shoulder, "what about the others? Which one's the biggest?"
Again Sasuke stared at Kotaro before replying, "the one with the long tail is the biggest, about the size of a house. Then the one with all the blades; the two are close in size. As for the last three... well, the scout is as big as a wagon, the starry one is slightly larger and the one with the shield for its tail," Sasuke paused, "its tail is bigger then it is, Kotaro says."
Masamune scowled, "so we better watch out for the one with the blades and the long tail then. Shit."
Yukimura nodded his head and Kotaro disappeared into the woods, going backwards.
'Must be returning to Oyakata-sama...' he focused on the road ahead of them. The sky was lighter near the horizon; the sun would be rising soon.
As time dragged on Yukimura noticed that Oichi was constantly glancing at Masamune, a curious look on her face. Yukimura pursed his lips, 'I wonder if she wants to speak with Masamune-dono.'
He was sure Masamune was aware of that Oichi was looking at him, but so far his rival hadn't said or done anything to acknowledge her. Kojyuro got her attention and they dropped into an idle conversation, Oichi stuttering frequently.
Yukimura was too far away to hear what they were talking about, but something Oichi said made Motochika chuckle and Kojyuro smile. The woman looked away from Kojyuro, up at the sky. Yukimura guessed this was because she was embarrassed.
"Neh, Sanada-kun."
"Eh? Hai?" he was surprised that Itsuki was talking to him. He blinked at her, 'when had she turned around?'
"Oi, Itsuki, you better not fall off."
"I won't fall off! Gees, ya don't hafta treat me like a little kid all the time..." she complained, elbowing Masamune. He snorted.
"You are a little kid, Itsuki."
She wrinkled her nose, a light blush on her cheeks, then looked at Yukimura again.
"Anyway, did ya see Tsuruhime?"
"Tsuruhime... ah, yes, I did," he tilted his head at her, "why?"
"I think she likes you."
Yukimura's eyes bugged out of his head, "eeeh? Ah – n-no she couldn't like me, I mean, maybe she likes me but she doesn't like me -"
"Danna, what are you getting so nervous about?" Sasuke questioned. Yukimura looked down at the shinobi. Sasuke was trying not to smile. Itsuki was grinning giddily.
"Could it be tha' you like her, Sanada-kun?" she inquired in an eager voice. Her question made Yukimura flush.
"Itsuki-dono! I hardly know her!"
"But still!"
"Oi, oi, oi! Leave the poor kid alone, Itsuki!" Masamune exclaimed, but the way he was smiling let Yukimura know that his rival was getting a kick out of him being teased. Yukimura scowled at him.
"You are a terrible liar, Masamune-dono."
"Ah, I was caught. Damn. Tease him all you want, Itsuki," his shoulders bounced up and down with quiet laughter. Kojyuro rolled his eyes.
"Masamune-sama..."
"What?" the tone of his voice was innocent. Yukimura fumed inwardly.
"I think ya like 'er," Itsuki stated. Yukimura sputtered and glared at her.
"I do not! I haven't even been formally introduced to her and – w-why do you care!" Yukimura demanded, face warm. The whole group laughed, Motochika nearly falling off his horse. Even Oichi was smiling as she looked back at Yukimura, her head resting against Kojyuro's back.
"It's not funny!" Yukimura complained, pouting. Sasuke patted his leg with a hand.
"Don't worry about it, danna. Itsuki is a girl. She's interested in things like relationships," Sasuke glanced at her, as if he was making sure she wasn't listening before he added, "and perhaps there's someone she likes."
Yukimura gave Sasuke a questioning look. Sasuke looked pointedly at Masamune. Yukimura couldn't help releasing a short laugh, which got Itsuki's attention.
"What's so funny?"
"Nothing, Itsuki-dono," Yukimura assured her, resisting the sudden urge he had to tease her, "nothing."
She frowned at him before elbowing Masamune.
"I'm turning back around!"
"You little – make up your mind!" he complained. She stuck her tongue out at him – which Masamune obviously didn't see – and stood. She turned around and carefully lowered herself back onto the saddle, then wrapped her arms tightly around Masamune's waist.
"Oi, Itsuki... don't fall asleep, okay?"
The girl nodded her head. Though Yukimura was focused on what Itsuki was doing the look Oichi was now giving Itsuki didn't escape Yukimura's eyes. It was easy for him to see her expression because her cheek was against Kojyuro's back. Her eyebrows were drawn back and her lips were pursed.
'I wonder what that means... Oichi-dono seems a bit... jealous of how Itsuki-dono shows her affection so freely,' slight movement in the woods caught Yukimura's attention, and for a brief moment he thought he saw very bright eyes.
When he blinked whatever he had thought had been there was gone. He frowned. There was no time for him to ask questions - they had reached their destination. The horses were slowed and they stopped just outside the outer wall.
The eight dismounted, Kojyuro helping Oichi down and Sasuke helping Itsuki. Ieyasu and Motochika approached the door together, talking in low voices. Yukimura trotted up beside Ieyasu and their conversation came to a halt. Yukimura quickly moved ahead of them, causing Motochika to chuckle softly. Once at the door, Yukimura turned slightly, waiting for the others to catch up to him. Once everyone was closer Yukimura tilted his head.
"Go ahead and push them open, Sanada Yukimura," Masamune instructed, resting a hand on one of his katanas, "we're ready for whatever might be behind those doors."
The others nodded their heads and Yukimura took a deep breath before throwing the doors open. Sasuke dropped down in front of him, his windmill shiruiken drawn. The shinobi glanced around, sniffing the air. After one tense minute, Sasuke withdrew and clipped his weapons to his thighs.
"Nothing in sight. Looks like those creatures haven't been here yet," the group released a collective sigh. Ieyasu stepped up next to Yukimura, looking at the horses behind them.
"What do we do about them?" he asked, pulling his left glove on tighter.
"We leave them. It would be too strenuous for the horses to go up those stairs," Kojyuro informed them, gesturing to the steep staircase ahead of them. Yukimura glared at it; he didn't look forward to going up that staircase again. Masamune squatted down on the ground.
"Better come up with some kind of plan. What do we do if we run into those creatures?" everyone sat down around him in a circle.
"Well, maybe we should have some kind of formation," Ieyasu started. Motochika nodded his head.
"Put me at the front. I've got the biggest weapon of all of us here," he offered. Itsuki looked him up and down, then glanced at Masamune.
"Ya look like the strongest one too."
"Yeah, I'll be the flesh shield," Motochika grinned widely at her, "don't need to worry about the Dokuganryuu getting hurt."
"H-hey!" she exclaimed, blushing. Masamune patted her on the head.
"It's okay. Your concern makes me feel warm inside," he teased, tugging on one of her pony-tails. Kojyuro gave Masamune an unimpressed look.
"Masamune-sama."
"Okay, okay, I'll be serious. So Chousukabe will be at the head, the rest of us in the middle and you girls at the back. Don't hit me, Itsuki! I'm not doubting your ability, honest," he grabbed her wrists to stave off her attacks, "it's just -"
"You need to keep Ichi from fainting at all costs," the woman said softly. Everyone looked at her and she continued, "if Ichi faints Ichi doesn't know what Ichi will do. Ichi might kill you if you are too close."
"... all right," Masamune stood but Sasuke appeared at his side.
"What is it, shinobi?"
"What should we do if we can't go with that formation?"
"Simple: we scatter," Motochika answered, shouldering his anchor. He had stood as well, "if we can't get into that formation we'll just have to do our best to stay alive. Date, Ieyasu and I should be the ones trying to damage these creatures at the least. Don't argue, Katakura, Oichi-hime needs a big strong man to look after her."
Motochika quickly scampered off upon seeing Kojyuro's scowl. He grinned boyishly at the group.
'Despite the fact that we're trying to be serious,'Yukimura hurried off with the rest of the group when Motochika gestured to them, 'it's difficult with Chousukabe-dono and Masamune-dono around,'Yukimura couldn't help smiling at the fact that Motochika was trying to stay away from Kojyuro. Oichi stuck close to the Right Eye of the Dragon, to his left while Masamune overtook Motochika. Yukimura was tempted to try and over take him, but the pirate and the dragon already seemed to be having some kind of race.
Sasuke easily overtook the two racing generals' however.
"I'll go take a quick look around first!" he called back, sprinting easily to the top. Yukimura only managed to nod his head.
Nothing had changed about the landing when the group reached it – at least, nothing had changed since Yukimura had been there a month ago. Everyone had to stop to catch their breath, Motochika and Masamune chuckling at each other. The pirate general patted Masamune on the back then proceeded to look around. Ieyasu was near one of the fallen pillars, pieces of rock all over the place from the statue that Hisahide had blown himself up with.
'Oh! What about Masamune-dono's - oh. How foolish of me to think he hadn't recovered from it,' Yukimura furrowed his brow when he found that Sasuke was no where to be seen.
"Danna!" the call came from the right and Yukimura looked. Kojyuro was by Ieyasu's side - Motochika, Masamune and Oichi also with him - he explained about Hisahide's obsession with explosives. Most of the destruction had been caused by said explosives.
"What is it, Sasuke?" Yukimura asked, seeing the shinobi wave frantically from the trees.
"I found a staircase over here! I believe Matsunaga-no-danna used this staircase to get between his home and this area."
"A hidden staircase, eh? Let's check it out," Masamune suggested while swiftly making his way to Sasuke's position. The rest of the group followed. Sasuke led them to the next landing and once they were at the top they stopped dead in their tracks.
'This... the creatures must have been here! Unless canons were used damage this great couldn't have been caused by soldiers!' Yukimura exclaimed inwardly, his eyes wide and mouth agape. Silence had come over the group as they stood at the entrance to the hidden path way, their eyes surveying the destruction.
The nearby house had been leveled, cement statues were shattered and the normally organized white sand had been scattered all over the area. There were even specks of sand floating in the air. Kojyuro was the first one to proceed towards the wasted house. Masamune headed off in a different direction with Itsuki trailing after him. Ieyasu and Motochika both approached the area where the sand had originally been before being scattered everywhere.
Yukimura looked over his shoulder to see Oichi gripping her weapon tightly, her head bowed. Yukimura furrowed his brows at her.
"Oichi-hime?"
"Ichi knows this damage. They were here, Yukimura-sama, the creatures were here."
Yukimura was taken aback by the honorific. No one had ever referred to him as "sama" before. He walked over to the woman and grabbed her bicep in a gentle grasp. She looked up at him.
"Ah, maybe you and I should go help Katakura-dono, Oichi-hime."
"H-hai," her lips twitched up in the smallest of smiles. Yukimura gave her a wide grin, and tugged her off toward the house.
Sasuke was also investigating the remains, his head constantly lifting as he scouted the trees for movement.
"Katakura-dono!" Yukimura called. The Right Eye of the Dragon was very stiff. Yukimura approached him cautiously.
"Katakura-dono?" he asked as a breeze swept over the area. It brought with it an unpleasant smell, one so unpleasant it made Yukimura gag. Beside him Oichi covered her mouth, swallowing several times.
"W-what's that smell?" she asked timidly. Kojyuro turned his head, his expression grim.
"There's a body here... in armor I've never seen before."
Yukimura held his breath as he turned to Sasuke, gesturing at him to get the others.
'What a horrendous smell! Must have been here the whole month... just rotting away,' Yukimura walked up to Kojyuro's side and looked at the body as well. He furrowed his brows in confusion.
"What kind of armor is that? The designs are so intricate..." Yukimura crouched, muttering an apology to the deceased soldier as he traced his fingers over one of the designs. They were swirling all over the metal. Curious, Yukimura tapped the other parts of the armor while someone came up behind him.
"Oi, Kojyuro! What did you find?"
"A body, Masamune-sama."
"A body? Oh hell! That stinks..." Masamune complained as he got closer.
"It really is a horrid smell. Worse 'en back when the Demon King destroyed mah village," Itsuki added. Motochika and Ieyasu stood at the head of the body, staring down at the masked face. Masamune prodded the metal boots with one of his feet. He tilted his head in confusion and Yukimura stood.
'It's all metal... all this armor is completely metal... like Oda-dono's armor but sturdier and more like... like... like plate metal.'
"It's plate metal," Yukimura said out loud. Everyone looked at him in surprise, "all of it is plate metal."
"Even this mask?" Ieyasu asked, crouching down himself to tap his armored fist against it. The mask made a hollow clanging sound. Masamune whistled.
"Wow, it is plate. So this is more like a helmet then a mask."
"Mm... but is there only one?" Kojyuro wondered, looking around. No one spoke but broke into groups of two to see if there were other bodies. Yukimura continued to observe the one Kojyuro had found, Oichi and Kojyuro staying with him.
"It looks like something is missing, Oichi-hime. Like how you have... um..." Yukimura was afraid to mention the clan, "like how you have the Azai clan's crest here," he gently tapped the crest and watched as Ichi nodded her head. He crouched down again and tapped the same area on the body, wrinkling his nose. In all his years of battle he had never come across a smell as putrid as this.
"... Yukimura-sama is right. It looks like something was taken from this man," she peered more closely, finally setting her weapon down. Yukimura watched her worriedly; her face was very pale.
"Oichi-hime, you – you won't faint, will you?" she shook her head in response to his question, her gaze still focused on the spot where the missing piece should be.
"Was it a crest like Ichi's?"
"Maybe," Motochika's voice cut in. Yukimura looked over his shoulder and up at the taller man, then jumped to his feet. Motochika was carrying another body, his purple jacket over the chest.
"Chousukabe-dono -"
"This one. This one's a girl," Motochika muttered quietly, setting the body down next to the other, "the... chest plate was ripped off..."
"Oh..." Yukimura whispered, looking up at the sky. The sun was taking it's time to rise.
"Here's another," Masamune announced. He was half dragging the body - the body looked to be heavier then the other two - Itsuki choosing to stay quite some distance away. She was eying the body with a disturbed expression.
Masamune placed the third body next to the only female one. Yukimura stared.
"So we've got one with pretty much undamaged armor, one with the chest plate ripped off, and one without the helmet," Masamune took his own helmet off, holding it under his arm. His brows were furrowed.
"But I don't get it. What's with this guy's peaceful expression? And damn," he covered his nose, "we just had to bring them all together didn't we?"
Motochika laughed lightly, though his lone gray-blue eye was focused on the girl. He crouched down, "you'd think that without his helmet on, this guy's face would have blisters and the like all over it."
Glances were exchanged; Yukimura mulled over this information.
'It's true. His skin was exposed to the sun so his skin should be burnt and blistered,' Yukimura looked at Ieyasu.
"Ieyasu-dono, what about... her?"
Ieyasu ducked his head, "she... her skin wasn't burnt or blistered either, but she was under debris. Motochika and I sniffed her out. Then again, despite being buried under rubble, she doesn't have any bruises or cuts over her body. Just dust."
Motochika dumbly nodded his head, still staring at the girl. All three were wearing the same design of armor. Yukimura tilted his head, trying to see them from a different angle. The armor was plate, like Nobunaga's but it appeared to be more flexible and lighter. Like the armor Sasuke and Kotaro wore.
"Wait a moment..." Yukimura muttered, taking five steps back and tilting his head again. The others present gave him various looks.
'There is something... something strange about this armor. If it's plate it should be bigger and bulkier. It's almost like this armor was built to be more light-weight,'Yukimura's eyes widened and he quickly called for Sasuke. The shinobi appeared at his side.
"Yes, danna?"
"Does this armor look light-weight to you?" Yukimura asked. Sasuke opened his mouth to speak, then his brows furrowed. He closed his mouth and hopped over to the three bodies, prodding at the armor and looking at the helmet-less man's face. He slid his hand under the dead man's back and lifted. He hesitated before setting the man back down and returning to Yukimura's side.
"It is light-weight, danna. Meant for people who are quick on their feet. Also, while you were all looking at their bodies I was looking for weapons. I found a short-sword," he handed the weapon to Yukimura from under his poncho, "it's similar in design to Kotaro's."
Yukimura turned the weapon over in his hands, then looked up at Masamune. His rival had a most interesting expression on his face, one that crossed between him being angry and curious at the same time.
"So you're suggesting that these three are assassins or shinobi?"
"Yes, but they weren't killed by Matsunaga-no-danna. He would have blown them up if he'd been the one to kill them."
Kojyuro rested a hand on Masamune's shoulder, "true, if Matsunaga had killed them, they would be in pieces. Oichi-san, do you think they were killed by those creatures?"
Oichi shook her head lightly, "Ichi isn't sure but, because of the destruction here, Ichi knows that those creatures were definitely here before us. The three don't look to be physically injured by those creatures because anyone who was..." she swallowed, "anyone who was, was disfigured beyond recognition..."
The group cringed at the thought. Masamune put his helmet back on.
"Well, whatever happened, this guy's smiling about it," he nodded to the third body. Yukimura stepped back more. The air was very still and he shuddered.
'Something's not right...' he felt a warm breeze against his back. He straightened abruptly, his movement catching Sasuke's eye.
Then the shinobi had his weapons drawn, his eyes focused on something behind Yukimura. Alarmed, the rest of the group looked at Yukimura and then they too had their hands on their weapons, Ichi's eyes wide with fright. Yukimura swallowed, his heart pounding in his chest as another warm breath was released over his back.
"There's one behind me, isn't there?" he stated softly. The group vigorously nodded their heads, Motochika gesturing to Yukimura as he slammed his anchor into the ground.
"I think you should come back over here, Sanada Yukimura."
Yukimura slowly turned around, coming face to face with the monstrous creature. It had a large tail swaying from side-to-side behind it, a spiked mace ball at the tip. It released a low growl as Yukimura began to back up with Sasuke, reaching back for his spears while Mitsuhide's warning about physical weapons having no effect on the creature echoed in his head.
The creature tilted its head, pushing itself up more fully onto its powerful forelegs. Its jaws opened, revealing a deadly set of sharp teeth. It roared, sword blades of all kinds bursting out of its skin and gleaming in the light of the dawn.
Yukimura had never been more terrified in his life.
"Shit! It's the one with all the blades! Duck, Sanada Yukimura, duck!"
Yukimura glanced at Sasuke, who glanced at him. They both threw themselves to the ground as the creature charged; the blades passed harmlessly over them. Sasuke was quickly on his feet, his facial features tense.
"It has to have some kind of weakness!" he called out. Yukimura jumped up, watching as the beast chased after Motochika. Despite its large size the creature was very fast. Itsuki yelped – she was under Ieyasu's arm – when Motochika was nearly cleaved in two. He was lucky enough to trip over a tree root.
"Forget the formation! Get this thing away from me!" Motochika yelled. Ieyasu sent Itsuki over to Yukimura and then ran to help Motochika. The beast was trying to smash him with its tail. Ieyasu slammed his fist into the mace, making the creature snarl and stagger.
'... Oichi-hime!' Yukimura frantically searched for her with his eyes. He relaxed only when he saw her with Kojyuro. She looked so horrified, her eyes wide and mouth agape. Masamune gave Kojyuro an order and then the man was gripping Oichi by her bicep, dragging her towards Yukimura while Masamune raced to help the other two generals get away from the creature.
Kojyuro stopped by Yukimura's side.
"We have to keep Oichi-san from fainting at all costs," he glanced at the beast, his worry for Masamune evident in his eyes, "but how do we fight a creature that is resistant to physical attacks?"
"I have no idea," Sasuke muttered. He looked up at Yukimura, "danna, I'm going to see if I can find a weakness on it. Don't give me that face, danna! You're making me feel bad..."
Yukimura clenched his jaw and nodded his head. Sasuke joined the other three.
"Katakura-dono..."
"Yes?"
"Um..." Yukimura stared at the older man for a moment, "if that one is here... what about the other four?"
Kojyuro turned around sharply in response, green eyes scanning the foliage. Itsuki huddled closer to him, gripping her mallet's handle tightly in one hand. Ichi stayed facing the current battle, her back against Kojyuro's.
"That's a good question, Sanada."
"Un," Yukimura clenched his spears tightly. He wanted to assist the other four, but they were doing fine by themselves. The creature clearly didn't appreciate them keeping their distance and hiding behind trees and debris. Ieyasu took a chance and slammed a lightning fused fist into the ground, making the creature shriek. Sasuke leapt onto its back – it had retracted its blades – and was stabbing at its spine, trying to find a weakness.
The creature roared furiously and lowered its head, its large tail whipping into the air, triggering the blades to burst out of its back. Three speared through Sasuke, a fourth one slicing off his leg.
"S – SASUKE!" Yukimura cried, breaking into a run. Two arms flew around his waist, a delicate body throwing him off-balance and into the ground.
"Yukimura-sama, no! Don't go! Ichi doesn't think this is a wise choice! B-besides, Sasuke-sama is a shinobi, right?"
Yukimura stared at Oichi, breathing heavily. He closed his eyes, dropping his head back against the ground.
'Of course. Sasuke isn't stupid. I've surely offended him.'
He opened his eyes and gave Oichi a small smile – he couldn't keep a faint blush from flitting over his cheeks. He wasn't used to having a woman hold him to the ground.
"Thank you, Oichi-hime, for stopping me. But..." he glanced at the battle still going on to the side; Motochika, Masamune and Ieyasu looked tired out already, "I don't think it's good to hold me down any longer."
"... ah! Ah, Ichi is sorry," she said, getting up. Yukimura pushed himself up, resting his hand on Oichi's shoulder. If not for her, he would have gotten himself – or someone else – killed.
The ground began shaking, a panting sound coming along with it.
"Sanada! Look out!" Ieyasu yelled frantically. Yukimura looked up to see the beast charging straight towards him, snarling.
"Danna!"
Yukimura quickly pushed Ichi to the side. He didn't raise his spears – what good would they do, if the creature had impenetrable armor? Ichi grabbed his arm, trying to pull him out of the way with her.
"Y-Yukimura-sam-AH!" she yelped suddenly. Someone grabbed Yukimura's shoulder in a tight grip after Oichi's yelp of surprise. Yukimura was jerked back as a multitude of purple slashes volleyed the creature from the left. It screamed in pain, lashing out with its tail at anyone behind it. Ieyasu was hit by the middle of the tail and went careening into the ground. Yukimura blinked rapidly at the scene before him.
Keiji was dragging Masamune away from the creature, his great sword unsheathed. Looking to the right of the beast Yukimura saw that Motochika was helping Ieyasu to his feet while Shingen parried the tail with his axe. Lastly, in front of Yukimura stood Mitsunari, his back to the beast as it retreated away from the group.
"Ah! You – you're all here!" Yukimura exclaimed, looking over his shoulder. Kojyuro had Ichi by his side and immediately behind Yukimura was Hideyoshi.
"Sanada-san, are you all right?" Mitsunari asked, standing. Yukimura looked up at him.
"I am. Thank you, Mitsunari-dono."
"Anything for my allies," Mitsunari replied. He turned around to observe the creature, "it appears as though I've actually wounded it."
"It does seem that way," Hideyoshi agreed, "on your feet, Sanada Yukimura."
"H-hai!"
"We hurried the horses into a gallop when we heard the roar," Matsu piped in. Yukimura looked around at the group. Aside from Nobunaga's shoulder injury, no one was hurt.
"Ah, Ieyasu-dono...?" he glanced at the lord of Mikawa. He nodded his head.
"I'm fine, Sanada, just a bit winded. You? And Oichi-san?"
"We're okay."
"That's good," Ieyasu said in relief, then nodded to Motochika and moved away. The pirate general stared after Ieyasu before shouldering his anchor.
"What do you make of that? I mean, the fact that Mitsunari's dark blades hurt it?" Motochika mumbled.
Shingen looked thoughtful, "I wouldn't say it got injured."
"It looks more startled then injured," Hideyoshi agreed. The creature hissed and growled at them as the group gathered together, several facing away from the creature to be sure that the others wouldn't take them by surprise. Hanbei sighed.
"Maybe it would be better if we made a run for it," he suggested. The words "run for it" made the creature perk up. It tilted its head at them, curious. It's jaw opened.
"Why would you run?" the voice that came out of its mouth was raspy and inhuman.
"Holy shit!" Masamune exclaimed. The whole group tensed, Yukimura staring wide-eyed at the creature.
'It... it can talk?' Yukimura swallowed, 'since when could...'
"When could you talk?" Nobunaga demanded. The creature snarled and shook its head at him.
"I remember you."
The ground shook as it bounded at the group, the blades popping out of its body once again. The group scattered. Kotaro, Sasuke and Kasuga teamed up to try and trip the creature. Kasuga's roped kunai made quick work of bringing it down as she tossed the weapons at different points around it, its feet getting tangled in the light purple threads. It screamed angrily as it went down, its tail whipping around to the front of its head and all the way around its body to the other side of its head. The group had to continuously jump clear of its sweeping tail.
"Toyotomi, grab its tail!" the instruction came from the right; Yukimura couldn't see who. He had gone to the left with Shingen. Despite narrowing his eyes at the order, Hideyoshi grabbed the creature's tail. When it realized it couldn't move, it began to shriek pitifully.
"Don't get comfortable," Nobunaga warned. His voice was hard to hear over the creature's shrieking.
"Probably calling its friends, damn it," Masamune panted, glaring at the beast. Yukimura glanced at him. He then sought out Ieyasu and Motochika. All three of them looked tired from trying to hold it off on their own previously.
"Sasuke! Try to find its weakness now!" Yukimura yelled. The shinobi looked at him then nodded his head vigorously. The creature continued to moan.
"Can you hold it, Kasuga?" he asked the female. She scowled at him.
"Who do you think I am, Sarutobi Sasuke?" she demanded. He grinned cheekily at her before leaping onto the creature's back again, wary of the blades that still protruded from its body.
"Just making sure, Kasuga," he assured her, spinning his windmill shiruiken. He tilted his head, and proceeded to throw his weapon at the back of the creature's neck. It snapped it's head back, the shiruiken bouncing off its forehead. Kasuga experimentally stabbed at its exposed throat with a kunai, the weapon having no effect. The group slowly began to tense, Yukimura staring at Sasuke who stared at the creature. He yanked his shiruiken back.
"... back of its neck," Yukimura heard Sasuke say faintly. The creature's moaning had subsided and it was now growling lowly. Sasuke straightened, his expression going wild.
"Its weakness is the back of its neck! That's where it has no armor, because it had no reason to tip its head back like that if - woah!" Sasuke didn't manage to finish his synopsis because the creature bucked, snapping Kasuga's threads and dragging Kasuga under its body. Shingen surged forward first, wedging his axe under the creature before it could crush Kasuga with its body weight.
"Ah - ah - Kotaro! Grab Kasuga!" Sasuke ordered uncertainly. Now that it was unbound the creature raced backwards, keeping its head pressed securely to the top of its spine, effectively protecting its neck. Hanbei pulled out his sword, narrowing his eyes at the creature.
"Perhaps my whip would be more effective in holding it... but now that we know its weakness, I doubt that I will be given the benefit of holding it for a long time. Our best chance is to tie up its legs and tail and forcefully pull its head down so we can slice its neck open. Hopefully that will kill it," and with that Hanbei rushed forward, followed closely by Mitsunari. Shingen and Hideyoshi made their way towards its tail now that Kasuga was safely out from under the creature, Sasuke and Kotaro by her side. Kenshin stayed near her but had his hand on the hilt of his sword, just in case.
Hanbei lashed out with his sword - Yukimura stared in surprise as it separated and extended into a whip - and maneuvered the whip around the creature's legs. It managed to step over the whip with its forelegs but was unprepared for Mitsunari's attack on its left foreleg, while Motochika joined the attacking group and wrapped the chained part of his anchor around its right foreleg. He jerked the leg out from underneath the creature and it howled loudly as it collapsed forward.
The three shinobi burst forward then, Kasuga and Sasuke using their weapons to tie up its mouth. Keiji grasped either side of the creature's head and starting pulling with all his might - Shingen and Hideyoshi were stuck holding down the creature's tail, which it was desperately trying to free. Kotaro dashed around the creature's head, waiting for Keiji to pull the head down.
"Guess you can't do that alone, hm, Maeda Keiji?" Mitsuhide chimed in before he dropped his scythes and flounced over to help. Yukimura was about to go help as well when a deafening scream tore across the sky. It jarred Yukimura's vision and he collapsed to his knees. He couldn't see straight - in fact, he saw several Keiji's and Mitsuhide's.
'What - what's happening? M-my vision I... I can't see straight and my head,' Yukimura pressed a hand to his throbbing head. He attempted to look around but that only served to make him feel dizzier. The only thing he could make out was that the people closest to the creature were beginning to struggle with it. They all looked like they were swaying.
As Yukimura's vision began to clear and his headache began to fade there was another scream. It was closer then before and Yukimura collapsed to all fours, several people around Yukimura collapsing along with him. He shook his lightly from side-to-side, trying to ignore the pain.
'Oichi-hime... Oichi-hime, I hope she's okay. I hope she hasn't fainted,'Yukimura raised his head in time to see that Mitsuhide had fallen to his knees and was unable to help Keiji. Kasuga had lost her grip on her threads and had almost collapsed, but Sasuke - from what Yukimura could make out through his erratic vision - had jumped to her side and caught her.
'Everyone looks disoriented... are the other creatures here? That wouldn't be good -'Yukimura's eyes widened when a long, snaking tail whisked past him and wrapped around Keiji, jerking him away from the bladed creature's mouth. Though the long-tailed creature had saved Keiji from being snagged in the bladed creature's sharp teeth, it lifted him high in the air and slammed him violently into the ground.
"K-Keiji-dono!" Yukimura cried out, struggling to his feet, "Mitsuhide-dono!"
The long haired man was nearly snatched up into the bladed creature's mouth, but gunshots sounded from Yukimura's right and he knew that Nobunaga, Nou hime and Magoichi were firing at the creature to prevent it from chomping Mitsuhide in two. Kotaro and Sasuke quickly dragged anyone that was around the creature away; the rest of the group was turning around and trying to get up, slowly recovering from the powerful screams.
Toshiie and Matsu had freed Keiji from the grip of the long tail, and just as everyone had finished recovering there was another scream. Yukimura managed to cover his ears for most of the scream, but some were not so lucky.
'Must be the scout that's screaming. Mitsuhide-dono did mention that one of the creature's would only run around and scream but to think that its scream had this kind of power...'Yukimura staggered to his feet, eyes searching for Oichi. He saw her with Kojyuro and Masamune, the small Itsuki standing behind her. A wave of relief swept through him. Oichi appeared unaffected by the screeching.
The bladed creature leapt over their heads, skidding to a halt next to its friends.
"Everybody regroup!" Shingen bellowed. Quickly Yukimura moved toward his lord's voice, careful not to bump into anyone else. He held his spears defensively in front of him. The smallest of the creatures ran around in front of the other four. It dashed towards the group at random. Yukimura thought it would attack, but it would only shriek pitifully at them and then retreat to the others before repeating the action.
"Now we know they have a weakness. But why wouldn't the back of their necks be covered in the impenetrable armor?" Hideyoshi muttered. Yukimura glanced back, vaguely aware that they were all slowly making their way towards the trees.
"Perhaps their necks aren't covered because that would make it difficult for them to move their heads, Hideyoshi-sama," Mitsunari offered.
"That's a plausible explanation," Motonari agreed, threatening to charge at the scout when it dashed towards them again. It immediately threw its head back, pattering from left to right in front of the group, like a crab. Yukimura heard Nobunaga quietly inform them that he was at the trees.
"We really have a better chance of killing them if we can get above them," Sasuke told the group as he, Kasuga and Kotaro jumped into the trees.
"Either that or we really make a run for it," Ranmaru said, his voice shaky. Yukimura exchanged a look with Masamune.
"All right, how about this: the shinobi distract them and everybody else runs?" Masamune suggested then. Yukimura's eyes widened at him.
"Masamune-dono-!"
"Danna, it's all right! I think we three agree with the suggestion. You should have more faith in us shinobi."
Kasuga and Kotaro nodded their heads, the female saying, "we'll keep them at bay as long as we can."
"I have faith in you, my beautiful blade," Kenshin purred, smiling at her. She blushed lightly before pulling out her eight kunai. Kotaro and Sasuke followed suit, pulling out their short swords and windmill shiruiken respectively.
"Go now!"
"Right!" everyone turned and shot off. Yukimura fell in step next to his lord, glancing back to see that the creatures' were hesitating. As he turned his head back in the direction the group was going the ground began to shake, signaling that the creatures were beginning to give chase.
"Don't worry about Sasuke, Yukimura. You won't do yourself any good by worrying over him," Yukimura looked up at Shingen after the older man spoke.
'I didn't realize my worry was so evident on my face...' Yukimura thought, ashamed that he had let such worry show, 'I know that if I worry over Sasuke he'll think that I don't believe in his ability but... I can't help it...'
"Woah! Woah, damn!" the shout came from the front, the voice belonging to Masamune. The group rushed together, confused.
"Masamune-dono! What happened?" Yukimura asked when his rival was within ear shot. Masamune turned his head towards Yukimura.
"That black one with all the stars in it is here. The shinobi can't hold back a creature they can't catch," he told Yukimura. His voice was loud enough to carry to everyone else.
"So whatta' we do?" Itsuki wondered, her mallet in hand. Movement to Yukimura's right caught his attention. Tsuruhime was standing next to him, her bow at the ready. She had a cute bob cut that kept Yukimura staring at her. She looked at him, her brown eyes growing a tad bit wider. Yukimura quickly gave the creature his attention when it emerged out of the trees, making a rumbling sound at the back of its throat.
'It's not attacking us. What does it want?' Yukimura watched as Masamune and Kojyuro charged at it. It screamed and ran off, but stopped when Masamune and Kojyuro didn't pursue it. Yukimura noticed that Motochika was about to speak when a black and white blur slammed into him.
"Chousukabe-dono! And Kotaro!" Yukimura rushed over to get Kotaro on his feet. The shinobi was unsteady, his legs shaking. He looked like he was dizzy. Yukimura didn't have to ask where Kasuga and Sasuke were - the green clad shinobi came soaring over next, Kasuga in his arms. As soon as he landed on his feet Kasuga was screaming at him.
"I didn't ask you to catch me!"
"Well I wasn't about to let you get speared through by that bladed creature!" Sasuke retorted. He ignored her screaming and reported to the group, "we better move," he glanced at the starry creature, which made a sound similar to purring in its throat, "that one… seems like it's more docile. I say we follow it."
The ground started shaking and Hideyoshi followed after the creature as it started walking off, "then follow it we will. I'll take my chances with the docile one rather then those other four, especially that screaming one."
Though several generals sighed, the whole group moved as one after the creature. It picked up the pace, running through the trees. Yukimura watched as those who were finding it difficult to keep up were grabbed by those that were quicker on their feet. Masamune had grabbed Oichi while Kojyuro scooped up Itsuki. Yukimura stared after the creature they were following, unable to bring himself to trust it.
'What if it turns around and attacks us?' Yukimura tensed as the creature's head swung around, as if it were checking to make sure they were following it. Yukimura knew he wasn't the only one who tensed, as Mitsunari had his hand on the hilt of his katana and Motochika kept a hand on the staff of his anchor. Yukimura looked back as well, seeing that Nobunaga was struggling to keep up with the group due to his shoulder injury.
"Oyakata-sama."
"Yes, Yukimura?"
"Should we really be trusting this creature? I don't think that's the wisest -" ahead the creature let out a long shriek that echoed back through the woods. Yukimura felt his entire body go cold, his vision abruptly turning to pitch black. He heard several gasps before his heart beat drummed in his ears. When the feeling passed and he regained his sight, Yukimura dropped to his knees. His head was spinning. Beside him Shingen was also on his knees, along with most of the other generals. Up ahead it looked like Oichi had collapsed onto Masamune, whom was sitting on the ground, his legs outstretched in front of him. His head was jerking around as he took in the surroundings, baffled.
"Where - are we?" he asked. His questioned prompted everyone else to look around too, Yukimura noticing that the forest they were now in was full of trees with colorful leaves.
'Wasn't the forest we were in earlier all… green?' he slowly got to his feet, drawing his spears. He couldn't hear anything at all around them, no sound to indicate that the creatures were still in pursuit. The starry one was no longer with them.
"Sasuke," he spoke lowly; Sasuke appeared at his side.
"Yes, danna?"
"Where is that creature? And where are the other ones?" Sasuke's lips formed a tight line over his teeth.
"I'm not sure, danna. I was just looking for the starry one but it's no where to be found. Kasuga and Kotaro were looking with me as well but… we can't find anything around here."
"What the hell was that?" the demand came from Mitsunari. Yukimura turned around to see the swordsman crouched next to Hanbei. The smaller man didn't look like he was doing so well with his head bowed. Hideyoshi knelt down next to him, resting a hand on his back.
"Hanbei?"
"Hideyoshi, I'll be all right," Hanbei wheezed, struggling to his feet. Mitsunari assisted him and once Hanbei could stand on his own feet, the swordsman stalked towards Yukimura. Yukimura blinked, then turned back around. Masamune was doing his own investigation, tapping the tree trunks. Oichi was now sitting on the ground, having recovered from whatever event had just occurred. Kojyuro and Ieyasu were inspecting leaves, muttering about them as Itsuki prodded at the dirt.
"What a strange thing… do you think it was that creature?" Nou hime wondered. All heads turned to look at her. She must have felt the need to explain herself, because she spoke again.
"Well, if you think about it, right before that… darkness engulfed us that creature shrieked. And when the darkness left," she gestured around at the forest, "we were here, and that creature is no where to be found."
Kasuga and Kotaro returned, heads shaking. Sasuke looked up at Yukimura and shrugged, then stood from his crouched position. Yukimura followed Shingen as the group came together again. Though a few threats were made here and there - mostly by Mitsunari and directed at Ieyasu - the generals were all getting along with one another.
'That's a good thing. It would be bad if we all decided to fight amongst our selves…' Yukimura thought he heard another shriek, but it sounded very far off. Sasuke, however, jerked to a stop, as did Kasuga and Kotaro. Everyone turned, Nobunaga drawing his gun.
"What is it, Sasuke?"
"… I can smell them, Oyakata-sama," the shinobi replied, "I'll go check it out."
He shot away from his spot before anyone could stop him. The seconds that ticked by felt like minutes as everyone tensely awaited Sasuke's return. Yukimura flexed his hands on his spears, trying to keep calm.
'Sasuke is a shinobi. I have to remember that Sasuke is a shinobi. He can out run those creatures. He can dodge them,' as Yukimura thought this Sasuke came stumbling back towards them, eyes wide. He flailed his arms.
"Get back! Get back! BACK!" his yelling was accompanied by the bladed creature's furious roaring. Yukimura twisted his body around, following after everyone who had already begun to run back. In the chaos Itsuki - who had been next to Kojyuro - tripped and fell. Kojyuro noticed that she was no longer beside him and he half-turned to see where she was. Yukimura half-turned as well. She was on her feet again; the creature was skidding to a halt, its tail raised in the air.
"Itsuki!" Masamune was the one who called out. At that point Ieyasu stopped running forward. Like Yukimura he turned his body. Itsuki was still trying to make it to the group but there was no way she would make it, not with the creature's hind leg right behind her and its tail raised high in the air. Yukimura jerked forward but was stopped by Sasuke.
In an incredible display of speed Ieyasu launched from where he was standing to in front of Itsuki as the creature brought its tail down, snarling. He parried the tail which was then whipped up into the air again. As the creature paused its actions to take aim Ieyasu wrenched Itsuki's mallet out of her hand, picked her up and spun, building momentum before throwing Itsuki towards the group. Motochika released his anchor to catch her. Yukimura's eyes widened as the mace tipped tail slammed down on Ieyasu's back.
"Ieyasu-dono!" he cried, once again trying to go forward and once again being stopped by Sasuke.
"Danna we don't stand a chance against that thing!" Sasuke tried to reason with Yukimura. Ieyasu was trying to get onto his feet again, blood running down his back and neck. The mace tail raked into his side and sent him soaring into the air, in the direction of the long-tailed creature. Masamune cursed at the arrival of the other creatures.
The long-tailed creature opened its mouth wide, rows of sharp teeth gleaming. Yukimura cried out again, struggling against Sasuke and now Mitsunari's restraining hands. In his frantic attempt to try and save Ieyasu from the creature, a bright flash of red caught Yukimura's eyes. Something small zipped up the long-tailed creature's back, up its neck and onto its nose. The red animal looked like a large, longer legged version of a salamander. It launched off the long-tailed creature's nose and outstretched its arms, latching onto Ieyasu. The force of its jump caused Ieyasu to stop falling towards the open mouth of the long-tailed creature and he plummeted straight to the ground right as the long-tailed creature snapped its jaws in rage.
As soon as Ieyasu hit the ground a horde of the little red animals burst out of the woods, rushing at the long-tailed creature. The bladed one roared at them and stomped after them, trying to crush them underfoot. Yukimura finally got free of Sasuke and Mitsunari, his hands releasing his spears.
"Ieyasu-dono!" he yelled, running towards the group of red animals that had converged over Ieyasu. They appeared to be trying to drag him towards the group.
"Ieyasu-dono, Ieyasu-dono!" Yukimura dropped down to all fours. The red animals dispersed, hovering around Yukimura and Ieyasu in circles. They made quiet squealing noises, like they were worried. When the bladed creature roared again all their little red heads turned in its direction and they squealed right back at it. Yukimura jerked Ieyasu up into a sitting position, wrapping his arm around Ieyasu's back. Yukimura swallowed when Ieyasu coughed up blood.
'What should I do? What should I do?' Yukimura questioned himself. Someone else had joined him and an anchor was slammed into the ground.
"Ieyasu!" it was Motochika, "oi, Ieyasu! Get a hold of yourself!"
The pirate general was trying in vain to mask the concern in his voice. The little red animals started running around frantically.
"Sanada! Chousukabe! Its going to charge!" Hideyoshi barked. Motochika jerked his anchor out of the ground. The other creatures were doing nothing; Yukimura thought this odd.
"I'm not moving," he growled. Yukimura slipped his other arm under Ieyasu's legs and attempted to lift him. He bit his lip when Ieyasu coughed up more blood, his face contorted with pain. Two other people joined them and Yukimura looked up to see Keiji and the red-haired woman with the strange looking gun-holster wrapped around her thigh; Magoichi. The creature snarled and charged, the little red animals scattering.
It was then that a dark gray armored character dashed in front of Yukimura, the cape he had on his back fluttering over Yukimura's head.
"Do not!" he barked in a stern, low voice. The bladed creature slammed its forelegs into the ground, spraying dirt and leaves everywhere as it tried to come to a stop. Another creature appeared, its head in a spade shape. It head butted the bladed creature and threw it off balance. When the long-tailed creature made to attack the new arrival, the man in front of Yukimura slammed his foot into the ground.
"I said do not!" his voice had become harsher - a very commanding tone. The long-tailed creature whined and lay down on the ground. To the right Yukimura watched in awe as the bladed creature retracted its blades and crawled towards the man on its stomach, releasing a series of low trills. The man approached it, hand outstretched. He rested his palm on the creature's forehead.
Meanwhile, Yukimura found himself being gently pried away from Ieyasu by the creature with the spade head.
"W-wait- ah-" Yukimura didn't know what to do as the creature opened its mouth and carefully picked up Ieyasu in its jaws. Its teeth were like a human's, rounded and smooth incisors and four sharp canine teeth. It backed up, Yukimura looking around at everyone to see that they were immobile from shock. The scout, starry beast and the one with the strange tail appeared then, near the bladed creature. The creature with the long-tail joined the other four, lying down next to the bladed one. Yukimura couldn't stop his frantic breathing.
In front of him the spade headed creature was letting its saliva drip onto Ieyasu's back. Steam rose from the saliva and Yukimura jumped forward.
The creature snapped its jaws at him, its teeth suddenly becoming sharp cylinders. A strong arm wrapped around Yukimura's torso while a hand grasped his arm and pulled him back.
"Sanada, calm down, just… look at his wounds. That saliva is healing him," Motochika said. To the left Magoichi made a sound of disgust.
"That's rather… gross," she commented as the man walked over to the creature. He bent over to lift Ieyasu as the creature opened its mouth very wide.
"Hey, what-?" Keiji cut off in shock as the man hefted Ieyasu into the creature's mouth. It swallowed him.
"Just what do you think -"
"If my beast's saliva is healing him, then you should know exactly what I'm doing," the man interrupted Motochika. Shuffling feet caught Yukimura's attention and he looked over his shoulder to see that the rest of their group had moved forward. The man raised his hand and rested it on the side of the spade headed creature's face. It nudged him in a motherly way.
The man's brow furrowed – 'seems like he's realizes that we... are lost,' Yukimura decided as Keiji and Motochika released him. The man's bright yellow eyes scanned over everyone and he leaned toward the group, "who are you? Where did you come from? I've never seen anyone like you around before."
"Likewise," Masamune said, standing next to Yukimura now, Oichi at his elbow, "we've never seen anything like these creatures before, you see? We don't even know where we are. All I know is that that starry one over there shrieked and then we were engulfed in black and then we were here."
The creature next to the man started jerking its head back, like it was preparing to regurgitate something. The man simply stood there, his yellow eyes slowly sweeping over the group. Suddenly Ieyasu was at Yukimura's feet, covered in clear mucus. He jumped up onto his feet, wiping some of the mucus off his face and looked back at everyone.
"Well! I'm feeling a lot better. Uh…" Yukimura had moved back with everyone else, looking Ieyasu up an down. He looked down at himself as well, "I guess that means none of you are going to hug me."
His comment startled laughter out of a few generals. Yukimura grinned, his eyes falling onto the man again. His eyes were wider then they had been, his lips tight. Yukimura's grin died.
'I wonder why he's making that face,' he was about to ask when Kenshin spoke up.
"Is there a reason you look so uneasy?"
The man opened his mouth to speak, "I... I am a Creator. Those – these – creatures, they are called Beasts," he looked over his shoulder at the Beasts, unsure of how he should continue.
"What do you mean, you are a Creator?" Yukimura asked, curious. The man locked eyes with Yukimura.
"I made them. I create Beasts, therefore, I am a Creator. I more specifically created this one here," he patted the beast next to him, "those ones back there could have been made by any nineteen of us."
"Nineteen!" Toshiie exclaimed. He was standing next to Keiji with Matsu when Yukimura looked. Toshiie continued speaking, "there are nineteen of you?"
"There were twenty, but one of us is dead. I am not about to tell you why he's dead but-" he went silent, his head jerking to the left. All the Beasts turned their heads to the left as well, several releasing low growls.
The starry Beast suddenly stood, wobbling, and hobbled over to the Creator. Once next to him it lay down again; Yukimura stared at it. Its body was beginning to radiate a strange bluish color. As Yukimura looked up at the Creator again, he noticed that the man had acquired a saddened expression. He set his hand on the Beast's head and spoke.
"Since I can create them I can also... destroy them... disintegrate," the word left his mouth reluctantly. The Beast closed its eyes, and Yukimura stared in awe as its body dissolved to black ashes. He wasn't the only one stunned by the display.
"You just... killed it?" Toshiie exclaimed. The Creator simply nodded his head and raised his hand to his Beast's mouth. It spat some saliva into his hand and he proceeded towards Nobunaga. Nou hime quickly removed the cloth from Nobunaga's shoulder and the Creator slapped the saliva onto the shoulder wound.
Yukimura watched as one of the fast red beasts from earlier scampered up the Creator's back. It was making gurgling sounds at him; the other beasts were restless. Yukimura looked at them, watching as the four Beasts rose onto their feet.
The Creator shook slightly and the Beasts crowded around him, like he was something important to protect.
"Listen. I don't have much time. I can't explain everything to you. Creators... we were originally a part of the Beast army. After a certain event we escaped with our Beasts – even the Beast army can't combat them very well. Listen, if you find a herd of Beasts, it would be wise to stay with them. They will protect you..." he glanced to the left several times, his lips quivering.
"The wisest choice for you is to head north – to a land they used to call Oshuu – and seek refuge with the Snake army. That is the only other army on this continent aside from the Beast army. Be careful when crossing the Barren lands; that is T-Ty-" he swallowed and gave up trying to say the name of whoever it was that ruled the Barren lands, "I will – I will only explain to you one Beast: the Rifter. The Rifter has the ability to traverse through different realities. This is not your reality and that Rifter's strength was spent; that's why it died and I disintegrated it. When it brought you here it only did so because that was the only way it could return the other beasts back here. It is dead, and until you find another Rifter you can never return to your reality, do you understand?"
Yukimura nodded his head, as he was sure everyone else was doing.
"Ah, wait, first um... what is that red Beast? They did save my life, after all," Ieyasu asked, shuffling his feet.
"Predator," the Creator replied stiffly before mounting onto his Beast's neck, "Predator, Scout, Shield Tail, Whiplash and Slicer. Those are what they are called. This is a Shoveler. I – I will go that direction," he nodded to the left, "you head north," he pointed slightly behind him, "but stay in the trees as much as possible. The Beast army... they don't like fighting in the trees. Half of them wear armor that renders them useless in trees."
The group didn't move and Masamune spoke up, "we can't just leave you to the Beast army."
The Creator narrowed his eyes and suddenly Yukimura found himself – and the rest of the group, for that matter – being stormed after by the different Beasts present, forced to head in the direction the Creator had pointed out.
"You have to leave me! I have Beasts; you do not. I can defend myself; you cannot. Leave! Go! Find the Snake army and survive!" the Shoveler bounded off in the opposite direction, the Creator settled on its neck. Yukimura knew it would be pointless to pursue the Creator; the Beasts were too powerful and too fast for them to keep up. Masamune cursed under his breath.
"Guess we have no choice, eh? Better move it then..." begrudgingly the generals all followed after Masamune.
As the hours dragged on with the group passing nothing but trees and foliage – and the occasional animal, but everyone was too on edge to actually want to eat something – Yukimura couldn't shake the feeling that they were being watched.
'As if... someone has been following us since we got here but...' he glanced over his shoulder, sure he saw a pale green blur in the trees to his left.
'We are definitely being followed,' but Yukimura decided not to tell the others.
Countervail is a real word. Here is the definition: to act or avail against with equal power, force, or effect; counteract. Okay, that's only one of them, but you get my point.
Seriously confused yet? No? Maybe? Yes? Good. Stay that way for the next three chapters; then it will all start to make sense.