For some weird reason, I like all of the named Samurai characters that you are allied with. I don't know why, I just do. Same thing with Stone, the conqueror that used to be Iron Legion, Stigandr, and Cross. I just like them as well. Anyway, this story is no way, shape, or form related to Duty or Love. This is a completely different story all together.
The Orochi was quickly sprinting away from the ruins where he fought a Warden. He needed to get back to base as soon as possible. Momiji was most likely there as well, being tended to for her wounds. He cursed himself as he remembered what happened. The two were out on a scouting mission to find a safe passage for their army so they can reach the Blackstone legion fortress without any complications. Unfortunately, during the mission, Momiji was hit in the knee by an arrow. To make matters worse, it was done while they were scouting out the newly reformed Iron Legion. So, they had to fight their way out. Momiji got out safely but the Orochi was caught by the commander. After a rage-filled battle with the Warden in charge, he raced off to report back to Ayu, hoping that Momiji was safe. As he was sprinting, he remembered the moments before he was captured.
Sometime ago
The Orochi dodged a slash from a knight captain before stabbing said captain in the neck. He was about to be attacked by another knight when Momiji stabbed that knight from behind, piercing through his armor easily, killing him. While she was severely handicapped due to her led injury, she was still capable of putting up a fight albeit at a lesser degree than usual.
"These knights don't know when to give up." Said Momiji as she retracted her naginata from the corpse. "They sure are persistent." The Orochi just grunted in agreement as he slit the throat of another enemy soldier.
"I don't suppose you can limp faster?" Asked the Orochi as he looked around for more knights.
"No, this is the best I can do. I sure would like to see you try and do this." Said Momiji as she limped toward him using her naginata as a crutch. "Is the coast clear?"
"For now." Said the Orochi as the two moved ahead. As the two neared a window, a knight climbed through the opening. The Orochi, seeing this, pushed the knight out the window, causing the man to fall to his death. "At this rate, every single knight will be upon us."
"Then what do you suppose we do? Ask nicely to have them let us go?" Asked Momiji as the two neared the exit. It was guarded by a Conqueror but beyond that, they saw the bridge that will lead them out of here. It was also guarded by a group of knights. "Great. What do we do?"
"We have to fight our way out. Momiji, listen carefully. Once you made your escape, I'll stay behind and hold them off to buy you time." Said the Orochi. Momiji widened her eyes upon hearing the plan.
"Are you insane!? This place is crawling with knights. You'll be overwhelmed!" Said Momiji. While she was confident in her friend's skills, even he cannot fight so many at once.
"We have no choice. This is the best option for getting us both out of here alive." Said the Orochi, looking at Momiji. Seeing that she still looked reluctant at going ahead, the Orochi placed his hand on her shoulder. "Don't worry Momiji, I won't be far behind you. And I wouldn't do this if I wasn't sure that I can handle it. Just trust me." Momiji looked at the ground for a few moments before looking at the Orochi in the eyes.
"You better come back alive." Warned Momiji. "I didn't help you escape from jail, just for you to die by some lowly knight."
"I won't. Now stay behind me and don't do anything stupid." Said the Orochi as he drew his katana and charged at the Conqueror.
Present
Within an hour, the Orochi spotted a group of Samurai led by Okuma. The group stopped upon seeing him. Okuma, upon seeing his friend, laughed as he approached his friend.
"You sure know how to make us all worry about my friend. Taking on an entire legion by yourself." Said Okuma as he shook his head. "You must be really stupid or really brave."
"Perhaps both, my friend. Though I will admit, that I wish not to do something like that again." Said the Orochi. Okuma laughed and patted his friend in the back.
"C'mon. You must have a story to tell." Said Okuma as he led the group back to where their army was making camp. As they were walking, the Orochi couldn't help but worry about Momiji.
"Okuma. Is Momiji safe?" Asked the Orochi.
"Hmm…yeah. Last time I saw her, she was being tended to for her wounds. "Said Okuma, making the Orochi sigh.
"Are her injuries permanent?" Asked the Orochi.
"No. She should be fine in a day or two." Said Okuma. With that, the Orochi nodded in relief and the rest of the trip remained silent. Eventually, the group arrived at the camp and the Orochi gave his report to Ayu. After reporting to her all he knew about the Iron legion, the commander, and what he recommended on what to do about them, he was walking around, trying to find Momiji. He wanted to speak to her about their mission and how she was. After some time of searching, he spotted Okuma. Deciding that he should ask him for directions on where Momiji is, the Orochi walked up to Okuma.
"Okuma, have you seen Momiji?" Asked the Orochi as he approached the Shugoki.
"Last time I saw her, she was walking to a lake somewhere close by." Said Okuma as he pointed to the direction. Nodding in thanks, the Orochi walked to where Okuma was pointing at. "Good luck." Said Okuma as soon as the Orochi was gone. The Orochi walked around for a while until he heard a waterfall. Thinking that he found his target, the Orochi walked to where the sound was coming from. When he got there, however, he was caught with a rather…awkward scene. He found Momiji but she was…bathing.
Her back was facing him, so she didn't know he was around. Her hair was out of it's usual bun, letting it fall back to it's real length, ending around her waist. As she was washing herself, the Orochi couldn't help but stare. He knew what he was doing was wrong but something…feral within him told him to continue watching. He honestly didn't know what it was but he wished it would go away. Otherwise, both Momiji and Ayu would punish him severely for this. But…he had to admit Momiji was beautiful to look at. Her skin was fair. She had slight curves in the right places and she had a strong but still beautiful body. He was about to cough to get her attention when she suddenly turned around. Upon seeing the Orochi, she paused a few moments before gasping and covering herself with her arms. Seeing that he was caught, the Orochi looked away. There was an awkward silence between until Momiji broke it.
"How long have you been standing there?" Asked Momiji as she looked at the Orochi, still embarrassed at being caught naked by her friend.
"Too long." Said the Orochi with a blush though it was hidden by his menpo. "I am sorry for this. It was not right of me to see you in this state."
"It's alright. Just don't let it happen again." Said Momiji as she moved back into dry land. She then walked over to the place where she put her clothes and armor at and began to put them back on. After placing the last of her armor back on, she turned to the Orochi and coughed to get his attention. He turned to face her and saw that she didn't put her Noh mask on yet. The two stared at each other for a few moments before Momiji suddenly grabbed the Orochi and hugged him, surprising him.
"Momiji?" Asked the Orochi before she tightened her hold on him.
"I was worried about you." Said Momiji. "You stayed behind to face all those knights while I ran like a coward when I should have helped you." She then looked at him with tearing brown eyes. Seeing this, the Orochi cupped her face with one of his hands as the other wiped away what tears were falling on her face. As he did so, he couldn't help but admire Momiji's beauty. He had never seen her without her mask on before as it was a custom of Nobushis' to never reveal their faces, even to those they consider as friends and even family, to anyone. The only people they ever revealed their identities to those that are within their ranks, people that they trust with their lives, and lovers. Seeing that Momiji revealed her face to him, he had to be in one of the latter two. The Orochi looked at her brown eyes as they glinted still with tears.
"It's alright, Momiji. I willingly stayed behind to give you time to escape. And I know if you hadn't suffered that arrow hit, you would have helped be fend off the knights. Besides, you wouldn't have been much help if you stayed. You would have been more of a liability than an asset then. No offense." Said the Orochi, attempting to comfort Momiji. Momiji just let go and looked away from him.
"None taken." Said Momiji. "But still, I was worried for you. You've been in prison for a long time. Your skills could have dulled with that time. Plus, there was so many knights there. There was no way you could have held them off by yourself." Said Momiji. The Orochi grunted in agreement.
"That you are right. I should be fortunate that the commander wished to keep me alive." Said the Orochi, remembering the Warden and how he said that they share a common enemy. Momiji widened her eyes at the information before embracing the Orochi again.
"Then I guess I should thank that commander for sparing you." Said the Momiji, her head on the crook of the Orochi's neck. After a few minutes of silent embrace, the Orochi pulled Momiji off him.
"Momiji. I don't blame you for anything. Please, don't blame yourself for my capture. Why are you so obsessed about this?" Asked the Orochi. Momiji looked hesitant about something before wrapping her arms around the Orochi's neck and kissed him on the mouth, though his lips were covered by his menpo, it still caused him to widen his eyes in surprise. The kiss only lasted for a few seconds when Momiji pulled back with a blush on her face.
"That's why. Ever since we met, I always admired you and respected you. You've been one of my closest friends ever since I joined up with Ayu. You've never ridiculed me, you always been supportive of me, and you had my back when we were in a fight. And I guess along the way, I grew feelings for you." Explained Momiji, turning away with a blush on her face. She then turned to the Orochi with a sad look. "All this and I left you to face so many alone. It made me feel ashamed of myself, both as a Nobushi and a person, that I left you to basically die. That's why I'm so obsessed." The Orochi, upon hearing her confession, stayed silent before pulling down his menpo, grabbing her, and kissing her again. She gasped when their lips touched before she closed her eyes and kissed back. The kiss lasted longer than the last one but was still short. Once the two stopped kissing, the Orochi looked at Momiji with a smirk.
"Are you done moping around? Because I'm sure that I want the real Momiji back." Said the Orochi as he placed his menpo back on, making Momiji giggle.
"Oh, she's back alright. And she's staying. Though she would like us to continue talking in private." Said Momiji before placing her Noh mask on and grabbing her naginata. "But it would have to be later, we have to get back now. Otherwise Ayu would send someone to look for us." The Orochi nodded in agreement. The two then proceeded to walk back to camp. As they were walking, Momiji began to speak.
"You want to keep the fact that you spied on me bathing a secret?" Asked Momiji.
"Yes, please." Said the Orochi, not wanting to deal with Ayu or any other female in the army about his accidental peeping.
"Okay. But only on two conditions." Said Momiji. The Orochi looked at her, hoping that she wasn't going to do anything ridiculous. "First. You have take me out on a date after all this with the knights is over." Said Momiji. The Orochi nodded in agreement. It was relatively acceptable and reasonable. Now the second one is what he was worried about. "The second one is…holding my hand while we walk back to camp." With that she held her hand out. The Orochi looked at her incredulously before sighing and taking her hand. "What's wrong? Never held a woman's hand before?" Teased Momiji as the two walked back to camp.
"No. Just not one as beautiful as you." Said the Orochi. Momiji just laughed at him as the two walked back to camp with their hands still together.