Author's Note: This is my first ever fanfiction!
On a whim, I downloaded "Shall We Date?: Ninja Love" and began playing it...only to be frustrated by the lack of details, the choppiness of the storyline, and, above all, the flimsiness of the heroine. So I decided to use the game's story (Hanzo's route, since he's my personal favorite) and general dialogue as a starting point and fleshed it out! I had a lot of fun writing this story and would love to hear what you think. Enjoy!

This first chapter covers the game chapters 1-2.
Hanzo and Reika, working with Lord Ieyasu, decide to go disguised into Kyoto city to gather information and investigate news of rowdy Akechi supporters...

It's done. Oda Nobunaga is dead.

(A few days later…)

Hanzo and I had not returned to Iga, but were staying in the hidden house of a certain person in the capital. That person was none other than Lord Ieyasu. He stood framed in the doorway of our sitting room.

"Master Hanzo, thank you so much for your help with this matter," he said. Hanzo got up immediately.

"Sir." Lord Ieyasu inclined his head toward me as he joined us at our table.

"Nobunaga-sama was defeated thanks to the work of you and your ninjas."

"I am humbled by your kind words," Hanzo replied, bowing his head. "I heard from my messengers that Mitsuhide-sama was able to leave the capital unharmed."

"It seems so. But he'll certainly be targeted by Nobunaga's men for some time," Lord Ieyasu observed, his brow furrowing. The Incident at Honnouji had been planned by Master Mitsuhide and Master Ieyasu for some time. With the help of Hanzo's ninjas, Nobunaga's defenses were weakened so that the Akechi troops could secure their victory.

"Now Lord Nobunaga's tyranny has finally come to an end," Lord Ieyasu began. "But this does not mean that the world will suddenly become peaceful."

"Yes. The country must unify under you, Lord Ieyasu. And our ninjas will help you," Hanzo said with conviction.

"By the way, how are things going at Iga?"

"Thanks to your help, we have avoided catastrophic destruction," Hanzo replied. He looked down briefly. "But many of our allies were lost. Goemon Ishikawa is currently looking into matters more closely."

"I see," Lord Ieyasu said, his voice grim. "Then for the sake of those you lost as well, we need to bring about peace as quickly as possible." With that, he stood. "Please get some rest. I will see you in the morning." We bowed him out respectfully.

(Later that night…)

I prepared for bed and, hoping to cool the room, opened the sliding door to the garden. As I surveyed the night sky, my eyes found Hanzo standing by himself, gazing up at the moon with his back to me. The slope of his broad shoulders seemed lonely. The future of the ninjas has been saved, but he has lost so many friends and allies, I thought. I slowly made my way out onto the veranda towards him.

"Master Hanzo," I called softly. He turned immediately.

"…Princess. I see you're not asleep yet."

"I was just preparing for bed, but I'm not quite tired." Hanzo nodded.

"I'm sorry. I should be escorting you to Kanshinji as quickly as possible," he said.

"Please don't apologize. The capital is still in danger," I reassured him. "Protecting it is our priority—and protecting Lord Ieyasu."

"Princess, you must be exhausted. Shall I prepare some medicine to ease your fatigue?" No matter what I said, he seemed to always think of my wellbeing…

"No, I'm alright. Please don't worry about me." If anything, Hanzo was more exhausted than me, both physically and mentally. And yet, here he was, still worried about me. Sympathy welled up inside me.

"Master Hanzo, is there anything I can do to help?"

"To help?" He seemed surprised.

"I thought you must be tired yourself…"

"This won't do. I shouldn't be making you worry about me," he said, frowning. "Please don't worry about me. I'm fine." Unexpectedly, he smiled a little, his features softening slightly. "Look at us, just telling each other not to worry." I stayed silent. Hanzo was always looking out for me, always treating me with the utmost respect. But that also maintained a kind of distance between us, which sometimes made me feel lonely. To always be on the receiving end of his kindness and protection… I shook off my thoughts and looked back at him.

"In that case, I'll go back to my room," I said, turning away. "Goodnight, Master Hanzo."

"Princess!" I turned, surprised, to see him come closer.

"Are you all right sleeping alone?" I tried not to stare, incredulous.

"Pardon?" He seemed to realize how unusual his question was, and seemed a little embarrassed.

"No, I don't mean anything strange by that…" His flustered expression, so out of place on his usually stern features, prompted a burst of giggles from me.

"I didn't think you meant anything strange at all," I said, controlling myself. He immediately apologized. "I can sleep by myself, so please don't worr—oh, I said it again." I clapped a hand on my forehead. Our eyes met, and we smiled at each other. Seeing a genuine smile on his face made the heaviness I felt for him ease slightly.

"Well, then, goodnight, Princess," he said.

"Goodnight, Master Hanzo," I replied. I stepped back into my room, sliding the door shut, and plopped down onto my futon. I felt drained. The battle was over, but tensions still ran high…I should get some sleep while I can, I thought, and turned out the light.

The next morning, I woke up from poor sleep. I wasn't sure if I was still nervous from the battle or worried about the future. Probably both, I thought as I dressed. I could only eat a little of the breakfast prepared for me, and I felt guilty.

"That's not very nice of me," I thought aloud, considering the work of the cook.

"What wasn't nice?" I yelped in surprise when Goemon dropped out of nowhere to land next to me. He grinned at my reaction.

"Well now, that wasn't a sexy scream at all."

"You scared me! Suddenly dropping out of the sky like that!"

"I didn't come from the sky. I came from the roof, silly," Goemon corrected me. I suppressed an embarrassed growl.

"Silly, am I?"

"So what did you do that wasn't nice? Did you try to sneak into Hanzo's room to seduce him?" I gasped and stared at him in shock.

"You know there's no way I'd do that! Where in the world do you get those ideas?"

"But you're blushing," he teased. He grabbed me playfully and started grinding his knuckles into the top of my head.

"Ow, ow!" I cried, half laughing, trying to fight his strong arms off.

"Goemon!" I heard Hanzo approaching. He pulled Goemon off with ease. "How many times do I have to tell you to be more respectful to the Princess? She's a lady." Goemon laughed.

"And how many times have I told you that this 'Princess' isn't very ladylike?" Hanzo didn't smile.

"How dare you—"

"N-no, it's okay, Master Hanzo!" I defended Goemon, stepping in front of him. To be honest, the casual way that Goemon treated me actually made me more comfortable. I was really just a regular girl who had been suddenly given the title of Princess, anyway. Goemon gently pushed me aside and faced Hanzo, his face serious again.

"More importantly, I've come to report about Iga. Many of the lower-ranking ninjas have been killed, or are still missing. When I arrived, the area had nearly descended into lawlessness, and bandits had come to loot the place." Hanzo's eyes turned stormy.

"I see," he said, his voice low. His right hand clenched into a fist.

"I told the remaining ninjas to regain order. How are things at the capitol?" Goemon asked.

"The Akechi forces are in control, but there are probably remnants of Oda's army still in hiding," Hanzo replied. "Kotaro's gone to the mountains in the east, and Saizo and Sasuke to the mountains in the west, to gather information. You should go help Kotaro."

"Yes, sir."

"I'll disguise myself as a tourist and gather information around the capital," Hanzo continued. Goemon raised his eyebrows slightly, and then glanced to me.

"In that case, you should take Reika with you." Hanzo looked sharply at Goemon.

"What do you mean? I cannot put the Princess in a potentially dangerous situation."

"I understand that you don't want to put Reika in danger. But I don't think you realize what you look like," Goemon said. I gaped at his words.

"What I look like?"

"Do you really think here are any tourists that look as grim as you do? Even if you try to gather information at a souvenir shop, the clerk would be too frightened of you to speak. You can be quite intimidating," Goemon went on, seemingly fearless of his own master. I turned to Hanzo, expecting him to be angry, but instead saw a thoughtful expression on his face.

"You should pretend that Reika is your wife. Things will go more smoothly if you take her with you," Goemon finished. Hanzo nodded slowly, but didn't seem quite convinced.

Goemon grinned at my expression as I tried to process what was happening, and turned to Hanzo again.

"And you should work on being more casual with Reika. You're so straight-laced and formal with her. If she's your wife, you should be more gentle." To my incredulity, he went on. "If you act like that with all women, it's no wonder that you're still single."

"That's hardly the issue right now!" Hanzo snapped. He seemed conflicted. I took a deep breath.

"Um, I agree with this plan. Please let me help you."

"But…" Hanzo frowned, gazing at me.

"If I stay by your side the whole time, there won't be anything to worry about, right? You'll be able to protect me."

"Well then, it's decided!" Goemon exclaimed suddenly. "I'll go join Kotaro now."

"Master Goemon, please be careful," I said, turning to him. Despite the strength that I knew he had, and his brash overconfidence, I still couldn't help but be concerned. They always threw themselves into their dangerous missions… I didn't want to see him hurt. Goemon stopped and stared hard into my eyes.

"You should worry about yourself before you start worrying about others." He reached over and pinched my cheek lightly.

"Ouch!"

"Make sure you eat properly, and get some sleep at night. Got it?" I looked up into his eyes, rubbing my cheek. He put his hands on my shoulders. "You carried out your job as well as anyone could have hoped. You can puff up your chest and be proud of yourself. Don't overthink things. Just leave the rest to us, okay?" He gave me a reassuring squeeze.

"…Yes. Thank you, Master Goemon," I said. He brought his face down a little closer to me, his face still serious.

"…So, did you fall for me?"

"Huh?" He dropped the seriousness and guffawed.

"Come on, what does it take to charm you?" He patted me on the shoulder with a wink, bowed to Hanzo, and was gone in a blink of an eye. I turned back to Hanzo to see him staring silently in the direction Goemon had gone. He shook his head slightly and then addressed me.

"Princess, you and I should also get ready to go into the town. Please meet me in the sitting room in fifteen minutes." I nodded and hurried back to my room to get ready. When I made my way to the room, I found an array of expensive looking kimonos spread out all across the tatami. I couldn't suppress my gasp of wonder. Hanzo opened the door and joined me.

"When I explained our plan to Lord Ieyasu, he had these prepared for you. Couples sightseeing in the capitol would be wearing quality clothing. Please choose whatever you like." I'd never seen so many beautiful kimonos in one place! I pulled out a light pink one and a lush green one, unable to decide. The heavy embroidery was mesmerizing.

"Either one would look perfect on you, Princess," Hanzo said, breaking into my reverie.

"Really? Hmm... They're all so nice, I can't decide…" I mused on until I remembered what these were for. "I'm sorry! I let myself get carried away. I've never seen so many fine kimonos…" Hanzo had a gentle smile on his face.

"No… It's been a while since I'd seen you looking so happy. It reminds me that you're a girl after all, Princess." I couldn't help but stare at how handsome he looked when he smiled.

"Forgive me—I shouldn't be calling you a 'girl,' Princess," he said, looking contrite.

"No, I really am just a girl," I said, folding the kimono over my arm. "I just happened to be chosen as a symbol for this battle, but inside, I'm not different from any other—"

"No, you are different, Princess. You're very special." Hanzo looked right into my eyes. "We were able to fight through to the end because of your cheerfulness and kindness, your courage and your optimism."

"Master Hanzo…" I couldn't help but feel flattered. But I'd only been able to make it through the difficulties because I'd had him by my side.

"Earlier...that is…" he started to speak, but trailed off.

"Earlier?"

"Goemon beat me to it. His words…I should have been the one to say them. Unlike Goemon I'm no good with words. I'm sor—" I interrupted him.

"Master Hanzo." I looked directly up into his face. "I have one request for you."

"What is it?"

"Please stop apologizing so much." He seemed baffled. "Every time you apologize to me, I feel so guilty. I'm always receiving your help and depending on you, and the last thing I want is for you to make me feel even more indebted, when I should be the one apologizing for all the trouble I've put you through."

"Is that so? I'm so so—Ah!" he caught himself, looking embarrassed. I couldn't help but laugh a bit. I smiled, and gently took his hand.

"Let's make a pinky promise! You'll try your best not to apologize. And also, we won't be so reserved around each other. We've defeated Nobunaga and preserved the future of the ninja. I am no longer the princess, the symbol of the battle. Please try not to restrain yourself so much when you speak to me." With my other hand, I helped him wind his pinky finger around mine. "It's a promise!" I smiled up at him. Incredibly, his cheeks seemed redder than usual. He's blushing! Goemon was right, he really is so serious and straight-laced. As the heir to the Hattori household, Hanzo was strong, and a genuine, wonderful person inside and out. Women shouldn't be able to leave him alone, and yet he still was without a wife or even a fiancé. Hanzo dropped his hand and then crossed his arms.

"Hmm… how to talk without reserve…" I stifled another laugh.

"Just act normal. And if I do something wrong, I wish you'd just get angry with me."

"There's no way I could be angry with you, Princess."

"You have every right to get angry and tell me if I make a mistake. You know how clueless I can be. I'm still a newbie, after all," I said, shrugging my shoulders.

"Are you okay if I get upset? Apparently my face is already frightening enough as it is…" This time, I couldn't stifle the mirth that bubbled up at his troubled expression.

"Are you still worried about what Goemon said?" He seemed embarrassed again, and I kept chortling as I turned back to the kimonos, folding up the others and straightening out the one I chose.

"I suppose it's alright. Thanks to Goemon's insults…" he trailed off.

"Hm?" I asked, glancing back up at him. He shook his head. I gazed at his smiling face. He's so strong and kind… whoever marries him will be very happy, I thought.

"I'm sure the priest at Kanshinji is also looking forward to seeing your smile, Princess," he said, bringing me back to reality.

"…yes, I'm sure he is." I did miss my hometown and my grandfather. But once I reached Kanshinji, I wouldn't be able to see the group of ninja that I had gotten so close with. Goemon, Saizo, Sasuke, Kotaro… and Master Hanzo. I felt a curious pain in my chest at the thought. I would miss them all. Hanzo got up abruptly.

"We have to head out soon. Please get ready and I will meet you at the entrance."

"This morning, I received messages from Sasuke and Saizo," Hanzo said. I quickened my pace to catch up to Hanzo as we walked towards the gate leading to the street. "A group dressed as mountain priests were training for an attack, deep in the mountains. It seems that the remnants of Oda's supporters have disguised themselves as priests, and are training for a raid."

"Are they after Master Mitsuhide?" I asked.

"The defenses around Master Mitsuhide are strong, so they shouldn't be able to reach him," Hanzo replied. "They're probably planning to attack any Akechi supporters still in the capital. Let's go into town and collect information. We can ask some questions at that souvenir shop by the corner…they should see a lot of traffic coming through the city." I followed him as we exited the safe house and made our way into the public street. We made our way down to the souvenir shop, and Hanzo let me enter first.

"Oh my, what a lovely green kimono!" A friendly shop clerk made her way over to us, smiling. As I murmured my thanks, she glanced towards Hanzo. "Are you two newlyweds?"

"Yes, we are," Hanzo answered her smoothly. I looked up at him, only to see a rather rigid expression on his face. Before the shop clerk could notice, I hurriedly interjected.

"Um, this is my first time to the capital, and I'm just so impressed by everything!"

"I'm glad to hear it!" she replied, but she looked again at Hanzo. "And you must be so happy to have such a lovely young wife! Why don't you buy her a hairpin?" His stern looks must have made her want to tease him a bit to loosen up. When he didn't reply, she grinned wider.

"Come on! Go ahead and choose one you think your wife will like!" Hanzo seemed a bit out of ideas, and glanced down at the display blankly.

"I'm afraid I don't know what women typically like…"

"If your kind husband chooses it, any will do, right?" The clerk gave me a conspiratorial wink.

"Of course," I said demurely. Hanzo still seemed a bit confused, but he studied the hairpins carefully. After a bit, he reached for a pin with a flower design.

"Oh, I see you have good taste! Try pinning it on her!" I almost wanted to protest and tell Hanzo that he didn't have to—the clerk seemed determined to get my stiff "husband" to show me some affection. Before I could say anything, his hand gently swept my hair away from my face and he'd attached the hairpin for me. I couldn't help but blush at his soft touch.

"It looks wonderful on her. Doesn't it?"

"…Yes, it really does look good on her." Hanzo briskly stepped away from me. I blinked. For just a moment, I'd let my mind imagine if this was real and that he was really was my husband. I shook it off and made myself smile.

"Thank you. I'll take good care of it." As the clerk accepted the payment, she kept the conversation going.

"So is this the first time to the capital for both of you?"

"Yes," Hanzo replied.

"Yes…we couldn't believe that Nobunaga Oda was defeated just before we arrived!" I said.

"We were all surprised too," the clerk said, nodding. "Oda-sama was cruel and bloodthirsty, so it's nice that he's been defeated, but…"

"Is there a problem?" I asked. She glanced around at the otherwise empty shop, and leaned in.

"This is just between you and me, but I'm not sure I'd want Mitsuhide Akechi as a leader."

"What do you mean?" I asked, my eyes wide and innocent.

"Well, actually, I heard from a girl who works at a restaurant that Akechi's followers are rather slovenly, and that they've been merrymaking every night. They've been bringing girls to the restaurant, drinking far too much sake, and getting sloppily drunk…Don't you think that that's rather poor behavior at a critical time like this?" She clucked her tongue in disapproval. I nodded, my brow furrowed.

"By the way, which restaurant is that?" I asked nonchalantly.

"It's called 'Sugino,' just south of here."

"Hmm. That's troubling to hear, though, considering the current state of affairs," I observed. I put my hand up to my new pin and glanced up at Hanzo as if just remembering where I was. "Ah! I shouldn't be gossiping too much," I said hurriedly. "Thank you so much for your help. I look forward to exploring more of the city."

"Of course! Enjoy your time here, young lady," the clerk replied. "Thank you for your patronage." She bowed us out of the shop.

"It really is a good thing that you came along, Princess," Hanzo said, breaking the silence as we walked up the road.

"Hm?"

"Thanks to you, that shopkeeper chatted with us quite a lot. My face would have been too scary, it seems."

"No, you're not scary! Maybe just a little intimidating," I ventured. He seemed a little displeased.

"So you also find me frightening…"

"No, not at all!" I stammered. To my surprise, his features broke into a smile, and he chuckled a bit.

"I was just teasing you." I'd never seen him laugh so casually like that. His smile died away, and he turned thoughtful.

"A lovely young wife…"

"You mean what the clerk said?"

"Yes. Apparently, we seem to be quite far apart in age. I suppose I am getting a bit old…"

"You can't be that much older than me…Is that bothering you?" I asked, teasing.

"No, it's not bothering me. But my father wants me to marry someone as soon as possible." That sobered me.

"Master Hanzo, do you not want to marry?" It occurred to me that it was unusual that the the leader of the Hattori clan was still unmarried. It was no wonder that the Iga elders wanted him to quickly produce an heir. I wondered what kind of woman he would marry, and felt my good mood shift as I imagined it. It would have to be a strong, independent female ninja, perhaps someone like Kuma. Beautiful, too, if she wanted to match Hanzo's handsome looks. Hanzo's voice broke into my thoughts just as my self-esteem was about to take a hit.

"I'm just not very good at interacting with women. I don't really understand what they are thinking."

"So you're better with men?" I asked, my playful mood returning. He pulled up short and stared. "Haha, this time I was just teasing you." I covered my laughing mouth with the sleeve of my kimono and hit him lightly on the shoulder as if to a male friend. "You're always so serious—Ah, I'm sorry!" I blanched. "I didn't mean to be so familiar…My grandfather often told me that I was too unrefined and childish. He said I should behave more maturely, like a lady." I sneaked a glance up at him, but he was smiling.

"You're the first woman I've felt like I could relax around," he said unexpectedly. He felt relaxed around me? I was speechless, but then I remembered myself. Probably because I'm so childish that he doesn't think of me as a woman… But what was I thinking? Did I want him to see me as a woman…?

(Later that night)

We decided to visit the restaurant "Sugino" that the shop clerk had told us about. It was a nice shop, albeit slightly crowded. We succeeded in getting a table on the raised platform.

"Hey! Bring us more sake!" a man's loud voice came from across the divider.

"Our bottle's empty over here too!" The shop clerk was right about them being rowdy, I thought as I sat across from Hanzo. A maid came over to our table, her face contrite.

"I apologize, there's a very lively crowd in the next room. I will bring your food shortly." Hanzo inclined his head to the side slightly and spoke to me in a low voice.

"I've heard those voices before…they are Akechi's men. This restaurant is surrounded by dark gardens, and not many people walk past it. It's the perfect place for an attack by the Oda supporters." I nodded. The maid came back and brought us our food and drinks.

"It would be suspicious to come here and not drink at all," Hanzo observed, and took a sip of sake. The Akechi supporters in the next room kept up a constant stream of boisterous conversation. The maid kept going to their table to bring more bottles of sake.

"They seem to be drinking a lot," I whispered. "They must be too drunk to stand."

"They're probably already drunk on victory," Hanzo replied, frowning with disapproval. I remembered the shop clerk's words. It's such a critical time now for Akechi and Tokugawa as they try to bring the country together… what were these men thinking?

"Princess, please eat your food," Hanzo said. I looked down and realized that I hadn't touched my dish.

"Oh, of course." I hurriedly took a bite of the fish. "Wow, this is delicious!"

"I'm glad you like it," Hanzo said. After a couple of more bites, I noticed that Hanzo was only drinking his sake.

"Um, Master Hanzo, won't you get drunk?" I asked. He didn't seem to be flushed at all.

"We train so that we don't become drunk on alcohol," he explained.

"Wow… I feel like I've seen Sasuke get drunk several times, though," I said, remembering the drinking contests between the young ninja and Goemon, who seemed invincible. I couldn't help but smile as I recalled poor Sasuke's green face.

"He hasn't trained enough yet." Hanzo seemed perfectly fine. As expected of the Hattori heir… "Actually, maybe he was just pretending to be drunk," he said suddenly.

"Pretending? Sasuke?"

"To get your attention," Hanzo replied. "Anyone can see that he has feelings for you, after all." I raised my eyebrows in disbelief.

"Hmm…but he's only joking about that," I said.

"He's not joking at all. Sasuke's feelings for you are genuine." I didn't have anything to say, and Hanzo went on.

"Goemon jokes all the time, but I think he feels for you as well." I scoffed at that.

"Why do you think that? Goemon's always messing with me. He's like an annoying older brother." I was trying to laugh it off, but hearing Hanzo tell me about other people's feelings made me feel curiously uncomfortable. It was as if he was reminding me that he felt nothing for me. Of course, he was just spending time with the "Ninja Princess" for his missions…Even though I'd known that all along, why did my chest hurt so much?

"Is something wrong?" I looked up quickly and quickly rearranged my features.

"N-no! It's nothing." He studied my face, and then held his sake cup out towards me.

"Perhaps you'd like to drink a little as well, Princess?" I immediately put my hands up.

"I can't drink much alcohol…I get drunk very easily, and dizzy…" I trailed off as I watched the corners of his mouth turn up in an uncharacteristic grin.

"I'd kind of like to see that." I stared, dumbfounded. Training or no, he's definitely a little drunk, I decided. Before I could counter with a witty reply, there was a loud thump against the floor next door, and a drunken holler.

"Hey! It's about time we got some women in here!" The man slurred. The other men laughed raucously.

"Good idea. Let's get some beauties in here with us!" another rejoined. I wrinkled my nose in disgust. How crude. Suddenly, I felt hands on my shoulders, and I blinked up at Hanzo, who'd somehow gotten around the table to my side.

"Wha…?" He hushed me urgently.

"Hide in the closet!" He lowered his voice. "I can sense someone suspicious outside. Hurry!" I nodded and darted towards the closet on the side of the room. Once inside, I found a small crack through which I could peek back into the room. I heard a small scream from out in the hall, presumably one of the maids. There was a crash of china, followed by heavy footsteps, and then the door to the next room slammed open.

"You'll pay for what you did to Master Nobunaga!" I covered my mouth in surprise—it seemed that the remnants of Oda's troops had come to attack the drunk Akechi supporters, just as Sasuke and Saizo had warned.

"Wha—are you Nobunaga's…?" I heard a slam and watched in disbelief as Hanzo kicked down the dividing screen between our room and the next.

"Who are you?" the intruder shouted, clearly surprised. I got a closer look and saw a large group of wild looking men, their swords drawn.

"Who cares? Kill them all!" one of the men shouted roughly. The Akechi men struggled to flee, but they were so drunk that they could barely get to their feet. I almost covered my eyes as I saw one of the Oda men raise his sword above one of the Akechi, before I heard a dull thud. When I looked, Hanzo stood between the two men, jerking his sword out of the chest of the attacker. As the stricken man slumped to the floor, another Oda man started forward, rage filling his face.

"Are you also on Akechi's side?!" He lunged forward with a roar, his sword raised. In blinding speed, Hanzo had dispatched him, and the Oda men all charged forward as if on cue. Slash! Spurt! One by one, Hanzo cut them down with apparent ease. Did they not know to run when they knew they were no match? The last man seemed to hesitate, but in that moment, Hanzo sprang forward and slashed him down. I marveled at his strength. He wiped his sword off and then looked at the staggered faces of the drunken Akechi.

"You fools…" He helped them up. "We must go." They seemed to get to their senses. Hanzo walked over to the door and checked the hallway before coming back to our room. He opened the closet door and I stared up at him.

"Come, we don't have much time."

With the Akechi men following us, we traveled into a solitary spot in the mountains. As we stopped, one of the retainers fell into a deep bow.

"We are in your debt! Master Hanzo, some day we will repay you!" Hanzo looked down at the prostrate man.

"Sober yourselves up. Don't let me find you spending your nights drinking. The time for celebrations is past—you must support your leader." The Akechi men all bowed to him in thanks and staggered off into the night. Hanzo watched them go, and then turned to me.

"Princess, are you all right?" I nodded.

"Yes, I'm fine."

"You must have been frightened," he said, looking into my eyes.

"I believed in you…But I don't think I'll ever get used to battle," I admitted. Hanzo laid a gentle hand on my shoulder.

"You don't have to get used to a thing like battle," he said, his face darkening.

"Master Hanzo…" I frowned at his expression.

"You shouldn't get used to it," he repeated firmly. "After all, you and I live in different worlds. Once you return to Kashinji, you'll be able to live a proper life."

"…a proper life?"

"In a world far from the bloody smell of fighting, you'll be home with your family. You'll marry someone, and start a family." I drew back, confused at his words. I couldn't help but feel stung by the way that he put up a wall between us. Me, the "Ninja Princess," the symbol for the ninja, who had gone through so much with him and the other ninjas, an outsider? And the callous prediction of my future marriage?

"What about you, Master Hanzo?" I shot back, hurt. When he didn't reply, I looked up to see his face, closed off and stern.

"I have to give up my life for my mission. That is the world I live in." He looked off into the distance. "Ninjas cannot fear death." He turned away abruptly. "We have to go." I watched his back as he stalked away, my head full of questions. Was it because of his perception of his fate, to die for his missions, that he hasn't married and lives alone? I felt sympathy replace my hurt.

"Master Hanzo," I began. He turned to look at me, his expression as always, with polite concern for me. I wanted to ask, but seeing that same, closed off mask made the questions die in my throat. To him, I was nothing more than the "Ninja Princess" that he had to protect. Just a part of his mission. Once he escorted me to Kanshinji, his duty would be over and our paths would likely never cross again.

"No…no, it's nothing."

In the next chapter: There's a small incident in the bath; Reika finally realizes her feelings for Hanzo...And how will the ninjas react to Akechi Mitsuhide's sudden betrayal of Lord Ieyasu?