Title: Cold History
Series: Samurai Deeper Kyo
Author: Cherry
Rating: PG-13 for violence, gore and character(s) death
Author's Notes: I'm not re-writing Japanese history, no! Not that it is even clear to begin with...--...I've done my homework, yes. All stories of Yukimura end at the Summer Campaign of Osaka, however-- one has it that no one knows what happened to Yukimura after the battle, another says he had wounded Ieyasu before being struck down, while another tells of how Yukimura just gave up when he saw no hope of winning. shrug Whichever be the case, this is my own SDK version of the Osaka Summer Campaign, with reference to Shindara's/Migeira's visions. SDK is only up to the 26th episode. TT We've come to the end of the series and this is my (unworthy?) tribute to this wonderful anime.
Disclaimers: I don't own Samurai Deeper Kyo, no.
[Prologue]
He sat on the steps, alone. A small smile was on his lips but it did not light up his face. Not like how it used to. Flames danced on the path that led to where he was and the building behind him was on fire too. The door was open. Inside, a young man with white-gray hair sat on the floor with his back against the wall, silent. His right leg was stretched in front of him, while his left was half-curved towards him. His eyes were closed, head slightly bent down. He looked asleep except no one sleept with an arrow protruding from their shoulder blade.
"I am supposed to die, aren't I?" The man asked no one in particular, eyes surveying the scene before him blankly. His grayish blues remained dull, lifeless, even with the warm orange light continuously flickering in front of him. His voice was hollow, the tone used bordering on both boredom and sadness. "Sasu-- Shindara, was this what you had seen? What you had wanted to prevent..?"
This is how history should go.
[Cold History]
Osaka, Summer
"Sakura no hana?" Sarutobi Sasuke asked him with wide golden eyes, the small cup held in his right hand halfway to his lips. Years have passed since that time before the Battle of Sekigahara when Yukimura had offered him sake-- it would lessen your nervousness, he had said, although Sasuke had none to begin with-- and now Sasuke had gotten used to drinking rice wine with his master. Of course, he doesn't drink as much-- both he and Saizou doubted it was possible for anyone to-- but he had definitely started to take a liking to sake after he had come of age. Finishing his drink, he gently placed the fragile pottery piece down on the table. "What do cherry blossoms have to do with sake?"
"Nothing really," Sanada Yukimura replied with a shrug, catching one such delicate blossom from the cherry tree that stood right outside. They were in the tea room, the doors wide open, allowing the slight breeze to carry the pink flowers inside. "It is just that sakura, like sake, will forever be a part of Japan. I cannot imagine this country without cherry trees just as I cannot imagine its people not knowing what rice wine tastes like."
A shake of the head. They have been together too long and through too many things not to have gotten used to each other.
"I'm being serious here," Yukimura said, easily reading his companion's movements. He released the sakura petal. "Really, I am," he insisted, laughing.
"I know, Yukimura-sama, I know," Sasuke replied almost absently, pouring more sake into his cup. But then, the abrupt change in the air around him came, and he didn't move to drink the wine he had just poured out. "But we can never be sure. There are always changes, always. What we think will never leave us can be suddenly gone, with no warning at all."
Yukimura sighed. "Like Saizou?"
"Like Saizou."
Gray blue eyes looked down, finding the young man's hands clenched into tight fists on top of the low table. Bringing them back up, however, he saw a calm, calculating expression on Sasuke's face-- void of any emotions, his lips set in a straight, firm line. "And your smile."
"My smile?"
Yukimura reached across the table, placing one hand on Sasuke's cheek. "Don't think we haven't noticed, Sasuke. Everyone has."
"What are you talking about?" Sasuke asked, moving his head out of Yukimura's touch. Without another word he stood up, grabbed his sword and walked out of the tea room.
You haven't smiled once since that day. I suppose it's just one of those things...things we think will never leave us but can be suddenly gone, with no warning. I miss your smile, Sasuke. I really do.
Battle of Osaka, Winter Campaign
Sasuke kneeled down on the ground next to his friend, trying in vain to stop the bleeding with the bandanna he had unwound from around Saizou's head. Long locks of brown hair was splayed over the battlefield, turning ever darker with both dirt and blood. Eyes stared up at the young ninja, full of pain yet at the same time full of hope.
"Sasuke, it's just a scratch. Don't worry about me," Saizou said hoarsely, managing a weak smile. But then he started coughing up blood.
"Shut up, stop talking," Sasuke scolded once the coughing subsided, putting aside the purple cloth. The blood had already soaked through. He tore at the white sleeves of his kimono almost savagely, pressing the cloth against the wound. "They'll be here soon. Yukimura-sama and the others will set you right. Rest...You've got to hold on until then, Saizou!"
It won't stop bleeding. He can't stop it from bleeding. It's hopeless. Saizou will die from blood loss. Any minute now...No! Please, anyone, no!
"...We've won, right?"
Sasuke stopped, looking down at the grounds below. Fire was burning everywhere. Yukimura, with the rest of the Sanada Juuyuushi, fought what was left of the Tokugawa army. Yes, they were winning. Benitora-- no, Tokugawa Hidetada had focused on force rather than strategy. Yukimura, as usual, had relied on his tactics. They had spent days planning what they would do, how they would utilize Osaka's defenses, how one of them would sneak into the enemy's camp and slip drugs into their food and water. Even with such a small number, they had the upper hand. But that did not mean there would absolutely be no casualties on their side.
Although he couldn't see from where he was, he knew Yukimura was smiling. Their master didn't know. He wasn't there. He had sent Sasuke to check on Saizou, who was tasked to lead a small group defending the other side, and he found...this.
Casualties.
"Yeah...yeah, we've won," he replied, turning his eyes back to Saizou.
"I'm glad," the other ninja replied, closing his eyes. His body stiffened, and then relaxed. Sasuke felt as if his heart trapped in vice being tightened. Saizou's breathing was slowing down, becoming shallow, and his words came out slowly and between pants. "Do me a favor...and watch Yukimura-sama...tonight...And yourself too...don't drink...too much...sake...Sasuke..."
"Stop that. You'll be there with us tonight and so help me I'm going to do everything to get you drunk," Sasuke snapped half-heartedly as he forced a smile on his lips, choking back on a sob. He wiped away the blood on the man's face. Underneath, Saizou's skin was dangerously pale. Not unlike those of the corpses around them. Corpses! Many of them! Of both friends and enemies! Only Saizou survived the battle waged here. He survived...right? He survived..."I...I don't know what to do, Saizou!" Sasuke moaned in despair, head bent down. He didn't want to be alone with Saizou, not a time like this! It brought back a feeling lost long ago. To be a child, to be afraid, to be so helpless...Something wet fell on the back of his hand. He opened his eyes. Tears..?
"What...are you...talking about?" Saizou asked and then promptly started coughing up blood again. He had tried to laugh, to lift the young ninja's spirits up. But he couldn't. And he knew he would never again. This was the end. "Protect...him, Sasuke...Farewell..."
"Saizou, Saizou, no! Please!" Sasuke exclaimed. And he continued to implore the other to answer even as he pulled Saizou's body closer to himself, feeling its coldness. Continued to make promises to never taunt him again, or even smirk at him, if only he would wake up even as his small bloodied hands closed Saizou's eyes. But after awhile he lapsed into silence. A few minutes more and exhaustion finally hit his small body and he fell asleep, clutching his friend's body close.
That was how they were when they were found at twilight. That night, there was sake but no rejoicing over their earned victory for both Yukimura and Sasuke. And the young golden-eyed ninja was never seen smiling-- or smirking-- ever again.
Battle of Osaka, Summer Campaign
The battle was fierce, soldiers of the Tokugawa army coming from everywhere. Even for an outstanding swordsman like Sanada Yukimura, fighting off six enemies at one time was difficult. But it was not for nothing that he was said to be the only man Ieyasu Tokugawa feared. And neither was he alone in this fight.
Perspiration trickled down the side of Sarutobi Sasuke's face as he pulled his sword out from yet another man's stomach. Having forgotten to use the soldier's arm to cover the gaping wound as he did however, blood mercilessly sprayed on his face like a shaken soda can opened. He either didn't care or didn't notice as he quickly turned around to block a swing that was meant to take his head off, simultaneously kicking at his enemy's mid-section to place some distance between them before pushing the blade of his sword through the man's throat. The smell of gore and death hung in the air, burning his nostrils, and he felt as if rinsing his mouth a thousand times after all of this wouldn't rid it of the sickening coppery taste.
He crossed swords with another soldier but this time he found it hard to pull or break away. The man grinned-- he had caught Sasuke in a bad position-- before using both his height and weight to push down on the smaller ninja. Sasuke winced upon feeling the pressure being applied gradually increasing, his legs seeming to give way beneath him any minute now....
The man's eyes widened in shock and pain. He muttered something Sasuke couldn't hear before falling forward. Sasuke barely escaped being crushed underneath the bulky figure with the help of the hands that had pulled him aside.
"Are you all right, Sasuke?" a gentle voice asked him, the owner calm as always even now that they faced an arguably hopeless situation. Small wounds and deep gashes riddled Yukimura's thin face but he still somehow found the strength to smile down at the younger boy. Sasuke was surprised to find it genuine.
"Y-yeah...."
"Be careful," Yukimura chided, handing him his sword. Sasuke's eyes widened and he immediately thrusted the just handed sword over Yukimura's shoulder. His master grimaced, feeling something sticky and warm at the back of his head-- blood of the man Sasuke had just killed.
"Be careful," Sasuke threw back tonelessly as the dead body fell down and he and Yukimura whirled around to stand back-to-back. Benitora's soldiers had surrounded them, forced them to remain in the middle of their circle. Sasuke glared. "We have to break free," he said to his master, taking a step forward.
"No, Sasuke, we have to stick together," Yukimura replied without turning around. He hadn't moved from his position.
"Better than standing around here and dying!" Sasuke exclaimed, rushing forward without another word. Vaguely, he heard Yukimura's agreement and a distant echo of the sound of his sword cutting through flesh. Their way of thinking and style of fighting were by no means similar, but at times like this, Sasuke had always felt as if something connected the two of them. As if they were part of the same body controlled by the same mind, moving in sync. Anyway, they both knew they were already exhausted now, and only moving on andrenaline.
Sasuke suddenly stopped, letting a poor man die with a half-severed head. What was he doing here?! He couldn't believe he had moved outside Yukimura-sama's orders, moved on his own and against him. But he couldn't stand it, couldn't bear to have that feeling again. That feeling...that feeling of being trapped and helpless, unable to do anything!
"I...I don't know what to do, Saizou!"
"What are you talking about?" Saizou replied, laughing. You know what to do..."Protect him, Sasuke...."
Yukimura-sama!
Sasuke whirled around to find his master, eyes widening when he saw something-- someone-- else instead. An archer. And he could only be aiming for him...there he is! The archer was already pulling back the string of his bow, far back, right by his ear....
"Protect him, Sasuke...."
"Yu-Yukimura-sama...."
"Sasuke!"
Throwing one man off his back, Yukimura pushed his sword through another's stomach. He felt another presence coming from behind him, and fast. He whirled around, ready to lash out, only to barely catch a small, shaking body in his arms. Gray blue eyes met golden ones. Yukimura didn't want to look down, afraid of what he might see, fighting the conclusion his head had already made for him, why Sasuke was shaking, why he had been running towards him....
"Yu-Yukimura-sama...."
"Sasuke!" he cried out, unable to keep it in. He had one arrow at his side, the other stuck out of his shoulder blade. Yukimura couldn't really tell from the light. At the worst case scenario, that last one could have hit the young ninja's heart. Or one of his lungs. Or....
"He...He's still alive...Ungh!" Sasuke groaned, pullling the arrow from his side, making his injury worse. Yukimura just stared as the projectile was offered to him. "Take it!" Sasuke bit out painfully.
Yukimura finally did, silently, and, without moving from where he was, without picking up a discarded bow, threw it at their attacker who was loading another arrow then. Yukimura's eyes burned with such anger no one had ever seen before. The arrow hit the man right in the middle of his forehead and he instantly died, a quick painless death he didn't deserve.
"Yu...Yu..." Sasuke had difficulties speaking now, blood spilling out of his mouth along with his swords. Yukimura shook his head, bending down and wiping the blood away from the young face with his kimono.
"Shh. Silent now, Sasuke," he crooned gently, stroking his hair as he gently lowered Sasuke to the ground, his upper body cushioned by Yukimura's legs and arms. There was a lull in the fight. The two of them alone had defeated this troop but he knew another one was coming to take its place. And even if there wasn't, he didn't know where he could take him, or if he'd even last until they could get out of the castle.
If he could, he would cry, but he couldn't. Sasuke had never seen him cry. He had lost his tears long before Sasuke had lost his smile. They were broken fighters, the two of them. Incomplete, having seen their comrades die before them....
I've seen too much, have let too many of them leave me. Not again, please....
"Now die!" a rough voice said from behind. Yukimura's eyes shot open and with his left arm still around Sasuke he half-turned and brought his sword out in an arc. He caught the man's attack just in time but he knew it wouldn't be long before the other won. He was using both hands and although normally that wouldn't be a problem to the much more powerful Yukimura, he was so tired, both physically and emotionally....
And he couldn't let go of Sasuke's...dead...body.
"Yukimura-sama!" a shout came from the branches of the trees behind, startling both men. A shadow dropped to the ground behind the Tokugawa soldier, taking the person out only seconds later.
"Kotarou...."
But the yellow-haired ninja didn't respond, looking down at the still form of his best friend held in Yukimura's arms. "Sas...Sasuke!" he exclaimed, dropping the shurikens he was holding to the ground and grabbing the younger boy's arm. Cold...he was dead. Dead! "No! Sasuke!"
Yukimura stared down pitifully at the two. Kotarou was doing everything he wanted to do. Cry, scream out, try to will the best of the ninjas back to life...He stiffened, distinctly hearing the sounds of war approaching. Tokugawa's army was vast and he was relentless in his attacks. "Kotarou, leave," Yukimura ordered the ninja, picking Sasuke's body off the ground easily and carrying him over to the building behind. Kotarou followed them, slightly limping, Yukimura noticed.
"Why?! I can still fight! I will fight, Yukimura-sama!" Kotarou protested as his master leaned the limp form against the wall. Sasuke looked so peaceful...he looked asleep.
"There's nothing to fight for anymore, Kotarou."
"Sasuke died fighting this war. I will not run away from it!"
"Sasuke would want you to live!" Yukimura shouted, facing the young man. "You have the skill to escape this hell, Kotarou. Please. It's the least I can do for him."
Kotarou paused and then-- "Then come with me. Sasuke would want you to live too."
But what anymore is there to live for? Saizou, Sasuke, the Sanada Juuyuushi, my dream, they're all gone....
[Epilogue]
The sound of running footsteps were getting ever closer. Yukimura stood up, the faint ghost of a smile on his face. Men with spears and swords were right at the foot of the steps he had sat on. Alone, he ran down to face them all.
Guide me...Saizou, Sasuke. And wait for me. I'll join you...soon.
Owari
Series: Samurai Deeper Kyo
Author: Cherry
Rating: PG-13 for violence, gore and character(s) death
Author's Notes: I'm not re-writing Japanese history, no! Not that it is even clear to begin with...--...I've done my homework, yes. All stories of Yukimura end at the Summer Campaign of Osaka, however-- one has it that no one knows what happened to Yukimura after the battle, another says he had wounded Ieyasu before being struck down, while another tells of how Yukimura just gave up when he saw no hope of winning. shrug Whichever be the case, this is my own SDK version of the Osaka Summer Campaign, with reference to Shindara's/Migeira's visions. SDK is only up to the 26th episode. TT We've come to the end of the series and this is my (unworthy?) tribute to this wonderful anime.
Disclaimers: I don't own Samurai Deeper Kyo, no.
[Prologue]
He sat on the steps, alone. A small smile was on his lips but it did not light up his face. Not like how it used to. Flames danced on the path that led to where he was and the building behind him was on fire too. The door was open. Inside, a young man with white-gray hair sat on the floor with his back against the wall, silent. His right leg was stretched in front of him, while his left was half-curved towards him. His eyes were closed, head slightly bent down. He looked asleep except no one sleept with an arrow protruding from their shoulder blade.
"I am supposed to die, aren't I?" The man asked no one in particular, eyes surveying the scene before him blankly. His grayish blues remained dull, lifeless, even with the warm orange light continuously flickering in front of him. His voice was hollow, the tone used bordering on both boredom and sadness. "Sasu-- Shindara, was this what you had seen? What you had wanted to prevent..?"
This is how history should go.
[Cold History]
Osaka, Summer
"Sakura no hana?" Sarutobi Sasuke asked him with wide golden eyes, the small cup held in his right hand halfway to his lips. Years have passed since that time before the Battle of Sekigahara when Yukimura had offered him sake-- it would lessen your nervousness, he had said, although Sasuke had none to begin with-- and now Sasuke had gotten used to drinking rice wine with his master. Of course, he doesn't drink as much-- both he and Saizou doubted it was possible for anyone to-- but he had definitely started to take a liking to sake after he had come of age. Finishing his drink, he gently placed the fragile pottery piece down on the table. "What do cherry blossoms have to do with sake?"
"Nothing really," Sanada Yukimura replied with a shrug, catching one such delicate blossom from the cherry tree that stood right outside. They were in the tea room, the doors wide open, allowing the slight breeze to carry the pink flowers inside. "It is just that sakura, like sake, will forever be a part of Japan. I cannot imagine this country without cherry trees just as I cannot imagine its people not knowing what rice wine tastes like."
A shake of the head. They have been together too long and through too many things not to have gotten used to each other.
"I'm being serious here," Yukimura said, easily reading his companion's movements. He released the sakura petal. "Really, I am," he insisted, laughing.
"I know, Yukimura-sama, I know," Sasuke replied almost absently, pouring more sake into his cup. But then, the abrupt change in the air around him came, and he didn't move to drink the wine he had just poured out. "But we can never be sure. There are always changes, always. What we think will never leave us can be suddenly gone, with no warning at all."
Yukimura sighed. "Like Saizou?"
"Like Saizou."
Gray blue eyes looked down, finding the young man's hands clenched into tight fists on top of the low table. Bringing them back up, however, he saw a calm, calculating expression on Sasuke's face-- void of any emotions, his lips set in a straight, firm line. "And your smile."
"My smile?"
Yukimura reached across the table, placing one hand on Sasuke's cheek. "Don't think we haven't noticed, Sasuke. Everyone has."
"What are you talking about?" Sasuke asked, moving his head out of Yukimura's touch. Without another word he stood up, grabbed his sword and walked out of the tea room.
You haven't smiled once since that day. I suppose it's just one of those things...things we think will never leave us but can be suddenly gone, with no warning. I miss your smile, Sasuke. I really do.
Battle of Osaka, Winter Campaign
Sasuke kneeled down on the ground next to his friend, trying in vain to stop the bleeding with the bandanna he had unwound from around Saizou's head. Long locks of brown hair was splayed over the battlefield, turning ever darker with both dirt and blood. Eyes stared up at the young ninja, full of pain yet at the same time full of hope.
"Sasuke, it's just a scratch. Don't worry about me," Saizou said hoarsely, managing a weak smile. But then he started coughing up blood.
"Shut up, stop talking," Sasuke scolded once the coughing subsided, putting aside the purple cloth. The blood had already soaked through. He tore at the white sleeves of his kimono almost savagely, pressing the cloth against the wound. "They'll be here soon. Yukimura-sama and the others will set you right. Rest...You've got to hold on until then, Saizou!"
It won't stop bleeding. He can't stop it from bleeding. It's hopeless. Saizou will die from blood loss. Any minute now...No! Please, anyone, no!
"...We've won, right?"
Sasuke stopped, looking down at the grounds below. Fire was burning everywhere. Yukimura, with the rest of the Sanada Juuyuushi, fought what was left of the Tokugawa army. Yes, they were winning. Benitora-- no, Tokugawa Hidetada had focused on force rather than strategy. Yukimura, as usual, had relied on his tactics. They had spent days planning what they would do, how they would utilize Osaka's defenses, how one of them would sneak into the enemy's camp and slip drugs into their food and water. Even with such a small number, they had the upper hand. But that did not mean there would absolutely be no casualties on their side.
Although he couldn't see from where he was, he knew Yukimura was smiling. Their master didn't know. He wasn't there. He had sent Sasuke to check on Saizou, who was tasked to lead a small group defending the other side, and he found...this.
Casualties.
"Yeah...yeah, we've won," he replied, turning his eyes back to Saizou.
"I'm glad," the other ninja replied, closing his eyes. His body stiffened, and then relaxed. Sasuke felt as if his heart trapped in vice being tightened. Saizou's breathing was slowing down, becoming shallow, and his words came out slowly and between pants. "Do me a favor...and watch Yukimura-sama...tonight...And yourself too...don't drink...too much...sake...Sasuke..."
"Stop that. You'll be there with us tonight and so help me I'm going to do everything to get you drunk," Sasuke snapped half-heartedly as he forced a smile on his lips, choking back on a sob. He wiped away the blood on the man's face. Underneath, Saizou's skin was dangerously pale. Not unlike those of the corpses around them. Corpses! Many of them! Of both friends and enemies! Only Saizou survived the battle waged here. He survived...right? He survived..."I...I don't know what to do, Saizou!" Sasuke moaned in despair, head bent down. He didn't want to be alone with Saizou, not a time like this! It brought back a feeling lost long ago. To be a child, to be afraid, to be so helpless...Something wet fell on the back of his hand. He opened his eyes. Tears..?
"What...are you...talking about?" Saizou asked and then promptly started coughing up blood again. He had tried to laugh, to lift the young ninja's spirits up. But he couldn't. And he knew he would never again. This was the end. "Protect...him, Sasuke...Farewell..."
"Saizou, Saizou, no! Please!" Sasuke exclaimed. And he continued to implore the other to answer even as he pulled Saizou's body closer to himself, feeling its coldness. Continued to make promises to never taunt him again, or even smirk at him, if only he would wake up even as his small bloodied hands closed Saizou's eyes. But after awhile he lapsed into silence. A few minutes more and exhaustion finally hit his small body and he fell asleep, clutching his friend's body close.
That was how they were when they were found at twilight. That night, there was sake but no rejoicing over their earned victory for both Yukimura and Sasuke. And the young golden-eyed ninja was never seen smiling-- or smirking-- ever again.
Battle of Osaka, Summer Campaign
The battle was fierce, soldiers of the Tokugawa army coming from everywhere. Even for an outstanding swordsman like Sanada Yukimura, fighting off six enemies at one time was difficult. But it was not for nothing that he was said to be the only man Ieyasu Tokugawa feared. And neither was he alone in this fight.
Perspiration trickled down the side of Sarutobi Sasuke's face as he pulled his sword out from yet another man's stomach. Having forgotten to use the soldier's arm to cover the gaping wound as he did however, blood mercilessly sprayed on his face like a shaken soda can opened. He either didn't care or didn't notice as he quickly turned around to block a swing that was meant to take his head off, simultaneously kicking at his enemy's mid-section to place some distance between them before pushing the blade of his sword through the man's throat. The smell of gore and death hung in the air, burning his nostrils, and he felt as if rinsing his mouth a thousand times after all of this wouldn't rid it of the sickening coppery taste.
He crossed swords with another soldier but this time he found it hard to pull or break away. The man grinned-- he had caught Sasuke in a bad position-- before using both his height and weight to push down on the smaller ninja. Sasuke winced upon feeling the pressure being applied gradually increasing, his legs seeming to give way beneath him any minute now....
The man's eyes widened in shock and pain. He muttered something Sasuke couldn't hear before falling forward. Sasuke barely escaped being crushed underneath the bulky figure with the help of the hands that had pulled him aside.
"Are you all right, Sasuke?" a gentle voice asked him, the owner calm as always even now that they faced an arguably hopeless situation. Small wounds and deep gashes riddled Yukimura's thin face but he still somehow found the strength to smile down at the younger boy. Sasuke was surprised to find it genuine.
"Y-yeah...."
"Be careful," Yukimura chided, handing him his sword. Sasuke's eyes widened and he immediately thrusted the just handed sword over Yukimura's shoulder. His master grimaced, feeling something sticky and warm at the back of his head-- blood of the man Sasuke had just killed.
"Be careful," Sasuke threw back tonelessly as the dead body fell down and he and Yukimura whirled around to stand back-to-back. Benitora's soldiers had surrounded them, forced them to remain in the middle of their circle. Sasuke glared. "We have to break free," he said to his master, taking a step forward.
"No, Sasuke, we have to stick together," Yukimura replied without turning around. He hadn't moved from his position.
"Better than standing around here and dying!" Sasuke exclaimed, rushing forward without another word. Vaguely, he heard Yukimura's agreement and a distant echo of the sound of his sword cutting through flesh. Their way of thinking and style of fighting were by no means similar, but at times like this, Sasuke had always felt as if something connected the two of them. As if they were part of the same body controlled by the same mind, moving in sync. Anyway, they both knew they were already exhausted now, and only moving on andrenaline.
Sasuke suddenly stopped, letting a poor man die with a half-severed head. What was he doing here?! He couldn't believe he had moved outside Yukimura-sama's orders, moved on his own and against him. But he couldn't stand it, couldn't bear to have that feeling again. That feeling...that feeling of being trapped and helpless, unable to do anything!
"I...I don't know what to do, Saizou!"
"What are you talking about?" Saizou replied, laughing. You know what to do..."Protect him, Sasuke...."
Yukimura-sama!
Sasuke whirled around to find his master, eyes widening when he saw something-- someone-- else instead. An archer. And he could only be aiming for him...there he is! The archer was already pulling back the string of his bow, far back, right by his ear....
"Protect him, Sasuke...."
"Yu-Yukimura-sama...."
"Sasuke!"
Throwing one man off his back, Yukimura pushed his sword through another's stomach. He felt another presence coming from behind him, and fast. He whirled around, ready to lash out, only to barely catch a small, shaking body in his arms. Gray blue eyes met golden ones. Yukimura didn't want to look down, afraid of what he might see, fighting the conclusion his head had already made for him, why Sasuke was shaking, why he had been running towards him....
"Yu-Yukimura-sama...."
"Sasuke!" he cried out, unable to keep it in. He had one arrow at his side, the other stuck out of his shoulder blade. Yukimura couldn't really tell from the light. At the worst case scenario, that last one could have hit the young ninja's heart. Or one of his lungs. Or....
"He...He's still alive...Ungh!" Sasuke groaned, pullling the arrow from his side, making his injury worse. Yukimura just stared as the projectile was offered to him. "Take it!" Sasuke bit out painfully.
Yukimura finally did, silently, and, without moving from where he was, without picking up a discarded bow, threw it at their attacker who was loading another arrow then. Yukimura's eyes burned with such anger no one had ever seen before. The arrow hit the man right in the middle of his forehead and he instantly died, a quick painless death he didn't deserve.
"Yu...Yu..." Sasuke had difficulties speaking now, blood spilling out of his mouth along with his swords. Yukimura shook his head, bending down and wiping the blood away from the young face with his kimono.
"Shh. Silent now, Sasuke," he crooned gently, stroking his hair as he gently lowered Sasuke to the ground, his upper body cushioned by Yukimura's legs and arms. There was a lull in the fight. The two of them alone had defeated this troop but he knew another one was coming to take its place. And even if there wasn't, he didn't know where he could take him, or if he'd even last until they could get out of the castle.
If he could, he would cry, but he couldn't. Sasuke had never seen him cry. He had lost his tears long before Sasuke had lost his smile. They were broken fighters, the two of them. Incomplete, having seen their comrades die before them....
I've seen too much, have let too many of them leave me. Not again, please....
"Now die!" a rough voice said from behind. Yukimura's eyes shot open and with his left arm still around Sasuke he half-turned and brought his sword out in an arc. He caught the man's attack just in time but he knew it wouldn't be long before the other won. He was using both hands and although normally that wouldn't be a problem to the much more powerful Yukimura, he was so tired, both physically and emotionally....
And he couldn't let go of Sasuke's...dead...body.
"Yukimura-sama!" a shout came from the branches of the trees behind, startling both men. A shadow dropped to the ground behind the Tokugawa soldier, taking the person out only seconds later.
"Kotarou...."
But the yellow-haired ninja didn't respond, looking down at the still form of his best friend held in Yukimura's arms. "Sas...Sasuke!" he exclaimed, dropping the shurikens he was holding to the ground and grabbing the younger boy's arm. Cold...he was dead. Dead! "No! Sasuke!"
Yukimura stared down pitifully at the two. Kotarou was doing everything he wanted to do. Cry, scream out, try to will the best of the ninjas back to life...He stiffened, distinctly hearing the sounds of war approaching. Tokugawa's army was vast and he was relentless in his attacks. "Kotarou, leave," Yukimura ordered the ninja, picking Sasuke's body off the ground easily and carrying him over to the building behind. Kotarou followed them, slightly limping, Yukimura noticed.
"Why?! I can still fight! I will fight, Yukimura-sama!" Kotarou protested as his master leaned the limp form against the wall. Sasuke looked so peaceful...he looked asleep.
"There's nothing to fight for anymore, Kotarou."
"Sasuke died fighting this war. I will not run away from it!"
"Sasuke would want you to live!" Yukimura shouted, facing the young man. "You have the skill to escape this hell, Kotarou. Please. It's the least I can do for him."
Kotarou paused and then-- "Then come with me. Sasuke would want you to live too."
But what anymore is there to live for? Saizou, Sasuke, the Sanada Juuyuushi, my dream, they're all gone....
[Epilogue]
The sound of running footsteps were getting ever closer. Yukimura stood up, the faint ghost of a smile on his face. Men with spears and swords were right at the foot of the steps he had sat on. Alone, he ran down to face them all.
Guide me...Saizou, Sasuke. And wait for me. I'll join you...soon.
Owari