*This is a bit of a mix between Hakuouki and Peacemaker, it still has Chizuru has the main character through and she has more of a tomboyish streak to her.
*Chizuru knows that she's a demon and she is a princess of her clan and she is master of the family's sword style.
*In Chizuru's demon form she has a slightly more mature look to her.
Make a Man out of her
Kyoto, March 1864
The cherry blossoms were in the mid-morning sky as people went about their business. One boy in particular was running as if the ground was crumbling behind him. "Of all days to oversleep why did it have to be today?!" he exclaimed to himself.
As he ran, he bumped into several various people, "In a hurry! Overslept! Sorry!" He clumsily apologized. The fact that his medium blue kimono, dark purple haori, and gray hakama were not helping with his speed a bit. "Hey Tetsu! Wait up!" a boy with a long ponytail said chasing after him. That boy was Heisuke Todou, a traveler the boy had met awhile back on his journey to Kyoto.
Flashback:
"I'm hopelessly lost, where in the world is Kyoto?" Tetsu exclaimed. "It's been a month since I left Edo and I still haven't reached the city. Guess that's what I get for avoiding humans and not asking a single person for directions."
Then he heard a scream, worried he ran towards the source. In a clearing, there were about five ronin tying up a boy that seemed about a year older than himself and were searching through his belongings and kicking him after they pushed him to the ground.
"What are you doing to that poor boy!" he exclaimed at the Ronin. "What does it look like we're doing?" One of the ronin stated smugly. "You got a problem with this, Brat!" another one said, pulling his swords out, preparing to fight. "You really don't want to pick a fight with me, you cowards." the boy stated, glaring at them, not backing down. "Oh…You're quite confident for a pipsqueak." The leader said, amused as the rest of his men pulled out their swords.
"By the time we're done, you're going to need a doctor." One of the lackeys stated. "You're the ones that are going to need a doctor. And for your sake, I hope there's one nearby." the boy said bringing out his short sword, which seem to come out of no where. "Who do you think you are?" the leader asked getting beyond angry and annoyed. "Why don't come at me and find out." he said.
The leader came at the young boy first, but he dodged his first blow and then hit him from behind with the back of his sword. The second charge at him and the boy did a backflip back and knock the longer word right out of his hands. Then all of the five ronin came at him all at once, hoping to overwhelm him. But he quickly knelt down and toss up and large hand full of dirt and dust from the ground, creating a dust cloud. This confused the five so call warriors, enough for the boy to get close and strike them holding his sword effortlessly with a single hand.
The thugs tried a few more times, but the boy managed to get them too out of breath to fight. He strike a stance to intimidate them and to mockingly ask them if they want more, and then the ronin ran when they had caught up with their breath. The boy cut the other boy's rope and twirled his sword around with the handle and put it back in its sheath.
"Are you okay?" the boy asked as the stranger got up and dusted himself off. "Yeah, I'm fine, but forget about me. That was some amazing swordsmanship! You fought them as if they were fighting the wind itself." the former victim exclaimed, extremely impressed. "Well that's the point of my family's sword style." the younger boy stated.
"I'm Heisuke Todou by the way. But you can call me Heisuke if you want. Most of my friends call me that." the blue-green eyed boy of eighteen said. "Nice to meet you Heisuke-Kun, I'm Tetsunosuke Ichimura, but my friends calls me Tetsu for short." The brown haired boy of seventeen introduced.
"So what brings you to this part of the forest?" Heisuke asked as he took inventory of his processions, which were thankfully all still intact. "I'm on my way to Kyoto." he answered. "Talk about a coincidence, I'm going back to Kyoto myself." Heisuke said. "You're from Kyoto?" Tetsu asked. "Yes, I work there. Hey, as long as we're going in the same direction, let's go together." he Suggested.
"I don't know." Tetsu said, feeling reluctant to travel with someone, especially a stranger he had just met. "Oh it won't be a problem, traveling together will be better than traveling alone in this day and age. And it looks like we're about the same age, so it won't be a problem." he insisted. "Well okay, I was lost anyway." Tetsu admitted. So they began the journey together, and in a week's time, they arrived in the capital.
Back to the Present:
He skid to a stop in front of a building with two men with light blue haoris with White Mountain scape patterns along the edges. There he caught up with his breath. "What are you doing here boy?" one of them asked.
He took a few more breaths of air before straightening himself up and stood erect. "I'm Tetsunosuke Ichimura, and I'm here to join the Shinsengumi!" he announced between a few more breaths. "So you're here for the tryouts huh?" the other guard asked, unconvinced. He was about to go in, when a guard put his arm in front of him.
"What are you doing?" the boy asked. "How old are you?" the guard asked. "I'm seventeen years old." he answered. "I don't think that a shorty such as yourself can stand one hour in our group. Come back in a year or two, alright kid." the guard said. "But the notice board said that you were recruiting new members, broadly seeking people, regardless of age, rank, or stature, who are willing to serve their country whole-heartedly." he stated memory from the board he had read in another town. "Should have watch how the commander worded age." the other guard said.
"It's okay, he's with me." Heisuke said. "Captain Todou!" the guards said, standing at attention. "Captain Todou? … WHAT YOU'RE A CAPTAIN OF THE SHISENGUMI?!" Tetsu asked, "WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL ME?" "I wanted to surprise you." he answered. "I'm surprised alright." Tetsu stated, flabbergasted.
"You can let him through. I can vouch for him, he dueled with me along the way here to Kyoto and he defeated me good. He may be even shorter than I am, but he's fast and he's got a lot of hidden muscle under those twig like arms. I got the bruises to prove it." Heisuke said. "What? A kid even shorter than Captain Todou defeated him?" the guard exclaimed in disbelief.
Before they could argue further, a commotion from behind the gate. "Come on men! We can't let the second unit have all the fun!" a red-haired man with golden eyes, holding a spear and wearing the Shinsengumi uniform said, "TENTH UNIT MOVE OUT!" the other men cheered and followed him out of the headquarters, nearly running Tetsu over. Luckily, Heisuke pulled him out of the way.
"What just happened?" Heisuke asked. "I heard that there's a riot in town, and so the second and tenth units are going to settle it." the guard answered. "I think the tests are being delayed until they get back." the other guard stated. "Well, I guess we'll have to wait until the tests start up again." Heisuke said, "How about I show you around the city until they get back?" "Why not? If I'm going to live here, might as well get to know it better." Tetsu stated, shrugging his shoulders optimally.
"But Captain Todou, what would Commander Kondou and Vice-Commander Hijikata say about you not reporting in immediately?" one of the guards asked. Heisuke stiffened at the latter. "Oh right, I better get inside." he said, "Come on, Tetsu, we can hang in here until the tests are back up." "Are you sure that's okay?" Tetsu asked. "Sure it's okay. I could also talk to Kondou-san about you to secure a spot in the try-outs. We get a lot of people coming to join." "Alright, if you say so." he reluctantly agreed. "Commander Kondou should be in the training hall overseeing the recruits that are already in." one of the guards informed. "Thanks!" Heisuke said as he and Tetsu went in.
At the training hall, the members that were left behind were sparing with each with such intensity. "Whoa, these guys are pretty good. They're not fooling around are they?" Tetsu stated. "Nope." Heisuke stated. "Somehow, my stomach is turning inside out." Tetsu stated nervously.
"Hey guys! Is Kondou-san here?" Heisuke asked. "Ah Todou-kun, you're back!" a man sitting on the side said. "Yep! And I brought a potential new member along." he answered. "Oh." the older man stated, looking at the boy who was even shorter and younger than the youngest captain in the group.
"I admit it is admirable for someone your age to want to be part of our humble group. So tell me, Ichimura-kun, what can you do?" Kondou asked with the upmost curiously after Tetsu introduced himself. "Sir! I'm have been trained in swordsmanship since I was six years old and I mastered my family's sword style when I was thirteen." Tetsu said informingly, "My father also helped in our village as a doctor and I know his medical books by heart, so I can help with injured if necessarily. My mother and I also made food to give to the poor in village, so I could help with the food. Over the past half year, I have been doing a bunch of odd jobs here and there. So you see, I can help out in any way I can." Kondou looked upon the determined boy, with impressed eyes.
"Sounds like either way, he will be a great addition to the team." Heisuke stated. "Well, for a captain of the Shinsengumi to praise a potential like this, we are bound to have quite an entrance tournament." Kondou exclaimed, "Someone get this boy some protectors!" "Sir!" a soldier saluted as followed his orders. "Yes!" Tetsu shouted to himself in excitement.
About an hour later, the troops have returned to headquarters, minus the third unit troop since the captain has been absence due to an assignment. The tests were arranged into a tournament with four separate rounds. The rules were simple; in the qualifier round, you have to strike your opponent ten times before moving to the next round, for the second round, you need to strike your opponent five times, for the semi-final you need to strike the opponent three times. And for the final round, the contestants are organized into nine groups, one per captain. Based on their skill, they will be paired off with a captain and if they can strike him one and one time, then they will become a member. But if they are hit just once, then they will be dismissed.
After the tests were opened by Kondou-san's speech, Tetsu glided through the first three rounds with ease. The captains were impressed by the boy's speed and agility, it was almost as if he was the wind. Every time his opponent tried to strike him, he would avoid them as if he was a leaf riding a breeze of wind to avoid the obstacles that are in its way. When his opponents are in reach, Tetsu would strike them. Basically, he could touch his opponents, but his opponent can't touch him, like a gust of wind.
Then finally, it was the final round. The contestants were excited and nervous about who they were going to face in order to get in the Shinsengumi. "Good luck getting out, kid." one man who had been getting under Tetsu's skin since the tests have begun said. "I bet you'll be out by the time the match starts!" "We'll just see about that!" Tetsu spat. But the man just snickered in amusement.
"Alright, I have taken note of your matches and I have decided who will be facing who." Kondou-san announced, "This time, we have only one person facing First-Unit Captain, Souji Okita." "Now I wonder who that could be." the obnoxious man said to himself full of confidence, as he knew that Okita was one of the best swordsman in the Shinsengumi, if not the best. "And that is, Tetsunosuke Ichimura-kun." he announced. "What?!" The man yelled in disbelief and glared at Tetsu intense with humiliated rage. "Whoa! You'll be fighting Souji! That's going to be your toughest test yet, if not your last." Heisuke said. "What?!" Tetsu exclaimed, feeling even more nervous than when the tryouts started.
Then a young man in his early twenties, with reddish brown hair and emerald green eyes came into the training hall. "Sorry to keep you ladies waiting, I'm the first unit captain, Souji Okita." he introduced himself. "An honor to spar with you sir." the rude contestant said. "Hey!" Tetsu exclaimed. "Now, now, now, Yamakura-kun, you're supposed to be facing the ninth unit captain." Kondo-san corrected. Humiliated again, Yamakura marched to the group of contestants going up against Mikisaburo Suzuki, the ninth captain in the Shinsengumi.
"Oh, so this feminine looking lad is my opponent for the day." Okita sneered in jest, "This is sure to be a quick match." "Think again!" Tetsu bellowed after fighting a flinch at that statement, "I'll defeat you and become a member of the Shinsengumi!" "Well, well, sounds like we have quite a match on our hands." Kondo stated in anticipation, "How about we save the test with Souji last?" "Fine by me, gives me more time to figure out how I'm going to beat this kid." Okita stated boastfully. "We'll just see who's going to beat who." Tetsu threw back.
The other tests with the other captains went fast, at the end, only about an fourth of the original number of contestants remained. Now it was Okita and Tetsu's turn. "Commander, I have a request!" Tetsu stated. "What would that be, Ichimura-kun?" he asked. "For my final test, I feel that I would have the best chance of passing against Okita-san, if I use my family's sword style." Tetsu answered. Kondo laughed when he heard this request. "You don't need permission to use it, I'm quite interested to see it!" he answered excitedly. "Thank you, sir!" Tetsu bowed in grateful respect.
"Alright, someone tossed me another bamboo sword!" he said. "What?" Heisuke asked, "Isn't the one you have good enough?" "Just hand it over!" Tetsu insisted. With that, Heisuke threw another sword at him and he caught it with his left hand effortlessly and then gotten into a stance with both swords in hand.
Everyone in the room gasped in awe in both amazement and disbelief at what they were seeing. "The Twin Tycoon Two-sword Style!" Tetsu announced as he prepared to duel with Okita. "He's knows a two-sword style?!" Kondou exclaimed like a child excited for a show. "He might as well be admitted to the group right now." Shinpachi stated, flabbergasted. Harada nodded in agreement.
In another room, a man with piercing purple eyes and long jet black hair let down his ink brush as the noise from the other side of the headquarters got even louder than before. "What a racket!" he complained, "Yamazaki, what's all the commotion?" "It's just a Shinsengumi hopeful taking his entrance test, someone name Tetsunosuke Ichimura, I believe." a boy wearing dark ninja like clothing with brown hair and purple eyes said.
"Ichimura?" the black haired man asked shocked. "He the only one who was qualified to spar with Okita-san for the final round and apparently he's using a two-sword style." Yamazaki stated. "It can't be…that boy died." the man said under his breath as he gripped the arm rest hard.
It seems that everyone in the compound dropped what they were doing to come and watch the match between the genius swordsman Souji Okita, and this wielder of two swords. "Well, you sure are pulling out all the stops." Okita stated, not getting the at least bit intimidated. "Of course, if I'm going to beat one of the top swordsman of the Shinsengumi, I need to give everything I got." Tetsu stated. "You're gutsy, I like that, kid." Okita smirked.
"Begin!" the referee shouted, signaling the start of the match. Both of the opponent got into their stances, looking for any openings to strike. "Lady's first." Okita stated. For some reason, Tetsu flinched at that statement. "Funny, I was going to say the same to you." he said. "Ooh! The kid has guts!" Shinpachi stated.
Figuring that Okita wasn't going to make a move, Tetsu dashed towards him moving left and right to shake him off. It did, but not much. He strike with his right sword, but Okita blocked it. "First he'll attack me from above, then he try to attack me from the side." He thought to himself. But Tetsu did something else, he used his left sword to launch himself into the air and flipped over Okita to strike him as he landed, but it was blocked as well.
"Not bad, not just anyone can block an experienced two-sword technique, since so few have actually mastered it." Tetsu said impressed. "It's no difference from anticipating the move of a single-sword technique." he stated. "Well, it's extremely rare that someone can strike against this sword-style." Tetsu said confidently.
The match went on for several minutes, longer than any of the matches they have for the day. "Man, Tetsu's matching Souji, strike to strike." Heisuke stated, flabbergasted. "If this keeps up, the match will last the rest of the day before a winner can be decided." Shinpachi stated, acting like he was about to fall asleep. "Or the match will have to be called a tie with no clear winner." Harada said, knowing that a tie could go either way. "We just might have a second Souji on our hands." Kondou commented with much interested.
Then the two opponents were out of breath. "You can go ahead and quit, if you're too tired to continue." Souji suggested. "Not until a winner is decided, and trust me it won't be you!" Tetsu stated, not backing down a bit. The green-eyed man grinned in amusement.
Then, Okita got into his Tenshin Reshin style stance. Tetsu charged at him and just as Souji was being his sword to strike his chest, Tetsu's sword thrust towards the tip of the sword. The force and pressure of each other's swords broke the tips of each and forced them away as if they were flying. Okita landed into the wall and Tetsu flew into the closed door, breaking it and rolling into the garden.
"Tetsu!" Heisuke shouted as he ran up to Tetsu, "Are you alright?" "Yeah, I just got grazed from the impact." Tetsu answered as he got up, the right side of his forehead dripping with blood. "Hopefully if Souji doesn't get back up, you'll…never mind." Heisuke said as Okita got back up. "Sorry, but the fight's not over yet." Okita said as he stepped outside. "That's right! I can't give up just yet!" Tetsu exclaimed as he stood his fighting stance again, blood dripping from the wound, eyes looking like a predator about to charge at its prey. Okita made the first move, and Tetsu prepared to block, but both wooden swords were splintered as a wrist blocked it instead, surprising both of the opponents.
It was a man in his late twenties, with long jet-black hair tied in a long ponytail, and piercing purple eyes. For a moment, there was a blush on Tetsu's face as he saw the man's face. "What you think doing you're doing?" he asked the two offenders, telling them enough was enough, "Souji, how many times have a told you?" "You just had to interrupt when we were getting to the good part." Okita said with a smirk, sounding annoyed disguised in sarcasm.
Tetsu dropped to his knees and brought his hand to cover up his cut after just realizing it was there. "Tetsu! Are you alright!" Heisuke said, concern. "Yeah, I just need my body to get its energy back again." he answered. "Splendid effort, Ichimura-kun! You were able to fight Souji without getting struck, longer than Saito-kun ever had, and his skill is one of few who is on par with Souji's!" Kondou exclaimed, "I say that's enough to welcome into our humble corps!" "What?!" Tetsu exclaimed.
"Now just wait!" The rules state that you have to strike a captain once to get in!" Yamakura exclaimed in fury and humiliation, "There was nothing about getting in with a tie!" "True, it could go either way with a tie." Kondou stated, "If the boy had just defended himself and retreated from Souji's attack, I might dismiss him. But Ichimura-kun kept striking and blocking Souji's attacks blow for blow, meaning he's has skill that rivals his. So I declare he more was worthy to be in this halls."
"So, Tetsu's in?" Heisuke asked as Tetsu gleamed with excitement. "No he isn't." the dark haired man said, which shocked Tetsu greatly. "Why not, Toshi?!" Kondou demanded. "We need neither whelps nor weaklings." he said bluntly.
"What?! What are you talking about? What is your problem? Who do you think you are?!" Tetsu asked furious, getting into the man's face. "Um that's Toshizou Hijikata, he's the vice-commander of the Shinsengumi." Heisuke whispered to Tetsu. "Oh." Tetsu said in a 'me and my big mouth' tone, "Wait a minute! If he's the vice-commander, then how come his ruling rules over the commander's?" "The kid's got a point." Sanosuke Harada, the tenth unit captain whisper to Shinpachi Nagakura, the second unit captain, who only sweat dropped that the boy was putting his foot in his mouth again.
"If you need more proof, I can always show you a thing or two!" Tetsu exclaimed. "Tetsu…" Heisuke said fretting heavily, knowing Hijikata wasn't the kind of guy he would want to pick a fight with. "It doesn't matter." Hijikata said, rejecting Tetsu's challenge, "we will not accept someone who practices the sword of vengeance in our halls." "Sword of vengeance?" Tetsu repeated curiously as Hijikata walked away.
"Geez! Tetsu, I'm really sorry about that!" Heisuke said, "But stay here, maybe me, Kondou-san and the others can convince him to let you in." with that, he chased after Hijikata. Then someone grabbed Tetsu by the scruff of his collar, dragged him out the door, and tossed him into the mud puddle outside the headquarters. "That's where brats like you belong!" Yamakura said.
"You!" Tetsu exclaimed as he shook his head of excess water. "I will not have a brat be better than me!" he said, competitively, "Why don't you go home and stay there?!" "I wish I could, but I can't. My village was burned to the ground in a massacre." Tetsu answered as he got up. "Oh so that's where the sword of vengeance came from." Yamakura said, "You wanted to join to kill those people who burned down your town?" "No! True I want justice for what they done, but don't know who attacked my village." Tetsu explained himself, "But I will find out, and prevent others from ending up like me!"
"Whatever! But here's a suggestion, go to the sewers and alleys where the other street rats." he said. "WHO ARE YOU CALLING A STREET RAT, YOU RAT!" Tetsu shouted. "You heard me, you are a worthless street rat! You were born a street rat, you'll die a street rat, and only your fleas will mourn you" Yamakura said as he closed the doors to the headquarters, blocking Tetsu as he tried to charge at him.
"I'm not a street rat, YOU DON'T KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT ME!" Tetsu exclaimed. He banged his head against the door and deeply sighed in frustration. "But maybe he's right, maybe someone like me doesn't belong in the Shinsengumi or anywhere in this world." he said in defeat, "Might as well go find somewhere else to go, or at least try." With that, he walked back into the city alone.
Later at Night, In the City:
Day had turned into night and Tetsu had no such luck finding a place to stay. He had covered the small wound with a bandage he had, although no one knew it was just for show. He had his legs daggling from the side of a river in town and was throwing stones in the water below and occasionally, throwing them to the stone wall on the other side. When any stones were out of his reach, he took the earring he had on his left ear and look at it reminiscing about his past. The decorated red and brown earring was only about the half the size of his pinkie finger and it was slightly curved like a Japanese sword.
"Tetsu?" a familiar voice said. He turned to his right and saw Heisuke in his Shinsengumi Haori and gear. "Wow, you almost look like a different person in that." Tetsu stated. "I didn't expect you to see you again so soon." Heisuke said, unsure about what to say, "Anyway, you missed quite a show when you left. Souji really got a scolding from Hijikata-san. He said 'Souji, when are going to learn to more prudent?!'"
Heisuke laughed at the memory of it, but he stopped after he noticed that Tetsu wasn't laughing with him. He just gave a deep sigh and sat next to him. "Anyway, sorry about him. Souji can get a little too wiled up during a fight." he apologized. "It doesn't matter, I'm actually glad that Okita-san took me seriously. It made me worthy enough to be a warrior." Tetsu answered with a slight smile.
"Say, Tetsu, I overheard what Yamakura said to you." Heisuke hesitantly said, "Is it true that you lost your village?" "I'm afraid so." Tetsu answered. "What happened?" he asked, but then he realized that he shouldn't pry, "Sorry, you don't have to say anything if you don't want to." "It's alright, I need to get some things off my chest anyway." Tetsu said. Heisuke just laid back knowing that this story was going to be a long one.
"My village was a small one was separated from the others because of our beliefs." he began to explain, "One day, men came and kill everyone. The men, the women, the children, the elderly, even our guests weren't spared. I even saw my mother killed right before my eyes. After that, they burned the village to the ground and took whatever valuables they could get their hands on, not leaving anything behind." "Oh man." Heisuke said, unable to say anything else. "Me and my older twin brother were the only ones who survived. But he went missing during the massacre." Tetsu continued, "To this day, I still don't know who were behind that day or why they did it. But every time I think about then, I can't help feel angry at myself for being unable to do anything and at the men who heartlessly killed the people who were dear to me. I want to be strong enough to stop those men, find out their motives, and prevent anyone from ending up like me." "I'm so sorry, Tetsu." Heisuke said sympathetically.
"But Hijikata-San has a point, if I saw my mother's killer in front of me, I don't know whether I would remain calm and apprehend him and make him face judgement for his crimes, or if I'll go insane with rage and sorrow and kill him mercilessly." Tetsu said with a lot of thought, "Perhaps that was his way of saying that I'm not ready for something like this." "That's sound like something Hijikata-san would do. Despite his scary glare and strict ways, he really is a nice guy." Heisuke said, "But don't tell him I say so, or he give me a scolding." "I didn't heard a thing." Tetsu said.
"Can I ask you something?" Heisuke asked. "Sure." Tetsu said. "If you do find your mother's murder, would you abandon your humanity?" he asked, which made Tetsu feel a little on edge, "And would you stand your ground, even against demon?"
"Heisuke-kun…in my village was no such thing as humanity." Tetsu said, which bewildered the other young man, "To us, the word known as 'humanity' was just a fancy way of saying a set of idealisms that only humans can live up to, such as live to the last breath, stand for what you believe in, and never give up. But there are other beings in this world, and those values apply to them as well, and that includes me as well. Even if all the world's evil were to come at me, I will not abandon my ideals and I will defeat them!" Heisuke lost his puzzled look and replaced it with an impressed look.
"Oh shoot! I forgot what I was supposed to be doing right now!" Heisuke exclaimed as he shot back up to his feet. "Like what?" Tetsu asked curiously. Then suddenly they heard two voices slowly coming towards them. "Oh no! It's already started!" Heisuke said and he looked around franticly, "Quick hide!" With that, he hastily grabbed Tetsu by the collar and stuffed him into an empty barrel that was big enough to hide a person their size or smaller, and got into the barrel next to his. "What are you…?" Tetsu complained, but Heisuke slushed him.
"Aren't these cherry blossoms sublime?" a flirtatious female asked, "I just had to see them tonight in your company." "Is that so?" a familiar voice said, "But they say that cherry blossoms are most beautiful when they are scattering." "My, you're an awful man." the woman, who appeared to be a geisha teased, "Oh, but that's what I like about you… Vice-Commander-Hijikata."
The two boys shivered in disgust at the sickening sweet words of the lustful woman. "So, you came out here, and dragged me into this claustrophobic place just so you can spy on tall, dark, and discourteous' date?" Tetsu asked irritated. "No, it's not like that!" Heisuke exclaimed.
Before he could explain further, several fast-paced steps came across the nearby bridge and towards the couple. At least twenty men stopped, surrounded them, and filled with resentment for some reason. "Are you Toshizou Hijikata?" one of them asked. "And what if I am?" Hijikata asked indifferently. "You filthy dog of the shogunate!" Another one of the men exclaimed as he and the others pulled out their swords.
Tetsu's hand flew to the earring on his left ear, but before he could do anything, Hijikata had already unsheathed his sword and struck down three of the men. Despite the shock of his speed, the other men charged at him. But Hijikata continued to strike down his opponents.
"I guess he didn't need our help after all." Heisuke stated. "What do you mean?" Tetsu asked. "We got word that there were men trying to assassinate Hijikata-san and they were going to use a geisha from Shimabara to lure him out here." he explained. "Were you by chance, going to be back up if things took a turn for the worst?" Tetsu asked. "Along with a few of the other captains, yes." he answered, "But it looks like he didn't need our help after all."
"Hold on a second, shouldn't that woman be fleeing for the hills now?" Tetsu said observantly. "What do you mean?" Heisuke asked. "Well any woman would have been scared stiff and run away at the first sight of blood of her allies." Tetsu explained, "But she's staying unusually calm and there's even a smile on her face." "Now that you mentioned it, you're right." Heisuke said, understanding where the other boy was going at.
Hijikata continued to fight off the assassins one by one, meanwhile the woman's smile turned into a more evil grin. Then realization hit Tetsu. "Heisuke-kun! Those men are a distraction. The real intended killer is that woman!" Tetsu exclaimed. "What are you talking about?!" Heisuke asked in disbelief. "Look at Hijikata-san, the men are purposely luring his attention towards them and away from the woman, and she's staying compose. They aren't using that woman to lure Hijikata-san to them for the kill, they're using that woman to have Hijikata-san for the kill!" "But I don't see anything sign of a weapon on her." Heisuke pointed out.
Realizing that he had a point, Tetsu search for anything that could be used as an assassination tool, but came with nothing. Then as Hijikata's back was completely turned towards the woman, entirely in his blind spot, the woman began to stroll up to him and rolled up the sleeves of her elegant kimono. As Hijikata slew the final man, the woman's fingernails extended to twice the length and turned pitch black as night, and her brown eyes turned into a sickly yellow green with snake like slits. Terror struck Tetsu's very core as he recognized that the woman that was now right behind Hijikata was not human at all.
"NO! LOOK OUT BEHIND YOU! THAT WOMAN'S THE ASSASSIN!" Tetsu yelled as he jumped out of his hiding place. Hijikata's head snapped towards the young adolescent and then back at the woman who was in mid-strike. Just as he jumped out of the way, the extended black nails from her hand scratched his already injured right wrist.
"Well, I guess that there's no point in hiding anymore!" Heisuke exclaimed as he jumped out of his barrel. The other captains came out of hiding and prepared to face whoever or rather whatever the woman was. "What are you?" Harada asked menacingly as he pointed his spear at the woman. "She's not human, that's for sure." Tetsu stated, "She has black nails, yellow green eyes, and green scales have appeared on her body. That could only mean one thing, she's a GREEN SNAKE DEMON!" "What? Has Souji did that cut to the head leaked some common sense out of you?" Nagakura asked in disbelief.
The woman laughed hysterically, which baffle the group, and then took a deep sigh. "It's quite excruciating to have a child reveal my identity, but there's no helping it now." She said as she began to grow in size, tearing her clothes as she did, leaving only enough fabric to cover her breasts. Her legs fused together and became a long thick green snake tail with a sharp tip, and her hair came loose giving her a sinister look. Fangs extended from her mouth, which had a small drop of what looked like saliva. It dripped from her mouth, singeing the ground when it made contact with the soil.
"This is my true form! A deadly member of the Green snake clan, Hebimiko!" she announced. Everyone was stunned at the horrific sight in front of them. "That's the ugliest thing I have ever seen!" Nagakura exclaimed. "I've never like snakes." Heisuke mumbled to himself in annoyance that he's faced with one of his top pet peeves.
"Why are you doing?" Tetsu demanded, "This isn't part of your clan's code!" "You humans are to blame for that!" Hebimiko exclaimed in anger. "Humans attacked your clan?" Tetsu asked in sympathetic disbelief.
"Men wearing black under a flag with black flamesss and the sssymbol for purifying came to the village and burned the village to the ground." Hebimiko explained, her voice hissing for every 'S', "To sssurvive, we sssurvivorsss had to get whatever we can to. And make humansss sssuffer during the job and finisssh off the employersss when the job is done." "So you were hired to kill Hijikata-san?" Tetsu asked, "You can't do that! LEAVE! I DON'T WANT TO FIGHT YOU!" "SILENCE! I WILL DESTROY ALL HUMANITY BEFORE THEY DESTROY ALL OF US!" she snapped as her eyes turned into a blinding blood red and her tail lashed out at the group of men in front of her. Luckily, they jumped out of the way in time, but stumbled when they landed at their feet.
"Oh no, she's has fallen." Tetsu exclaimed. "Fallen?" Okita asked. "When a demon is completely consumed with greed, anger, the need for revenge, hatred, or all of the above, they become unaware of their surroundings and attack everything in sight." he explained, "Once they fall, they continue as this until they die." As if on cue, Hebimiko charged at the Shinsengumi plus Tetsu, baring her fangs and claws, fortunately, she missed. "CAREFUL! IF SHE BITES OR SCRATHES YOU, YOU'LL BE DEAD IN AN HOUR!" Tetsu warned.
"How do we deal with that?!" Harada asked, "She's completely lost it! Innocent people will be hurt if we let her past us!" "But is there a way to help her?" Nagakura asked, "I mean, she is sentient with feelings of her own." "There's no choice, like I said, once a demon has fallen, they continued like this until they die." Tetsu said, "While that happens, many people will die. To prevent that, she has to be put down." "You mean kill her?" Nagakura asked. "Yes, there's nothing else we can do for her at this point." Tetsu answered in regret. "That's fine by me!" Okita stated with a smirk. "Don't you have any remorse?" Tetsu exclaimed as he charged at her.
Then everyone minus, Tetsu, charged at the creature, only to be thwarted. "This lady is nothing compare to the demons were used to." Heisuke stated. "Heisuke!" Nagakura and Harada snapped covering his mouth with their hands.
"Amateurs!" You can't take on a Green Snake like that." Tetsu exclaimed as he shook his head and took off his earring, which turned into a life sized short sword, "Step aside and let someone who really knows demons show you Shinsengumi guys how's it's done!" With that, the boy charged at the creature and expertly and effortlessly struck the creature where it hurts, making Hebimiko repeat backward. "You really should reconsider letting that kid into the Shinsengumi." Nagakura said utterly impressed to Hijikata, who was almost as astounded.
However, Hebimiko recovered fast and smacked Tetsu into a tree, knocking the wind out of her. "Perhaps, I spoke too soon." Nagakura said. "Need help? This job seems a little big for just one person. And we definitely need someone who knows about this thing." Heisuke asked. "I would like that, actually." Tetsu said rather grateful, "You need to strike the tail to restrict her movements and strike fast, because she has regenerative powers. She'll be killed immediately if her hear is cut off, or if she's stabbed in the heart." "Got ya! Let's go get her!" Okita said. "Let's." Tetsu added.
The battle began, everyone taking a swing at the creature in blind fury, but she effortlessly thwarted them every time. "We're not even making a dent in her!" Hijikata exclaimed. "That's it, we're doomed!" Nagakura stated.
"Looks like we're going to have to pull out the all the stops on this one." Tetsu exclaimed as he took something from a pouch, rubbed it on his sword with his Haori sleeve, and tossed it to the nearest person, "Rub that silver powder on your swords, it will make your swords stronger towards her. Confused, they just nodded and rubbed the powder over their blades. Okita was the first to take a slice and it was effective, the gash didn't heal back up. "Okay, now we're getting somewhere!" he stated.
With the leveling pane equal, the men were able to create a more damage. The woman was breathing heavily, but she wasn't letting up. The men were also out of breath as well, unfortunately.
"I'll take care of this." Tetsu stated as he walked towards the creature. In a last attempt to fight back, Hebimiko lunged at Tetsu with the tip of her tail, followed by her fangs. But thankfully, he barely escaped as he jumped in the air and brought his sword through her heart and twisted clockwise. "You traitor!" she hissed as blood spilled from her blood. "You betrayed yourself when you went against your clan's ways." Tetsu said coldly as she was suddenly set ablaze by blue flames and turned to ashes. "Well, that's the end of that." Hijikata stated calmly. "Yes, it is." Tetsu stated sympathetically as he took a deep breath in order to keep himself composed.
"That was amazing, kid!" Nagakura exclaimed as he slapped the boy in the shoulder. "Yeah! We should consider this as a retake of the entrance test and make you a Shinsengumi member right now!" Harada stated as he put his arm around Tetsu's shoulders. Then there was a rustle of clothing and hair, which caught the red haired man's golden eye. "What the…?" Harada stated, perplexed.
The right side of Tetsu's kimono was sliced open revealing a bare, slim, shoulder and a bit of the top of his chest wrapped tightly in bandages attempting to constrict and hide the small bumps. His ponytail had become undone as well, giving him a feminine charm. Realizing the cat was out of the bag as the young one exclaimed the state of the clothes, Tetsu screamed in a normal girl scream and kneeled down in embarrassment, covering the newly exposed skin.
"Those…are…breasts…" Nagakura stammered, "HE'S A SHE!" "WHAT TETSU'S A GIRL!" Heisuke exclaimed. "It's quite oblivious that she's a girl." Okita stated. "YOU KNEW?!" he or rather she yelled, red with embarrassment.
"Were you throwing your voice?" Harada asked astounded. "Yeah." she stated as she tried to straighten out her clothing. "It really sounds authentic." he said impressed. "I have been this for almost half a year." the girl stated.
"I thought that her performance seemed too convincing for it to be something she just came up with." Hijikata stated. "Well, that's…" she paused for a moment, "Hold on, was that the real reason you didn't let me in the Shinsengumi?" "Yes." he answered bluntly, "But more importantly, it's the fact that your swordsmanship hasn't seen real combat." "What's that supposed to mean?!" she questioned, her vein popping out.
"You have never actually been faced in a kill-kill situation, only in match style fights where both sides come out alive." Hijikata explained. "But isn't he…err she the master of that sword style from before?" Heisuke inquired. "Yes I am!" Tetsu stated, "I didn't lie about my age and swordsmanship training!" "It doesn't matter, with soft training like that, you won't last long in the battlefield." he said harshly.
"NOW YOU WAIT, why she your hand turning black?" she asked after noticing the blackened skin on his right wrist that was spreading to his hand and was halfway to his elbow. "That snake lady got you, didn't she?" Nagakura said. When the young girl came to a startling realization. "Hold on! That's the hand you used to block our swords. It got punctured with the splinters, didn't it?" she asked, "If the poison touched an opened wound, it will make things worse! Not to mention, you were jumping and running for five minute at most, that will only complicated your condition more!"
"Does that mean…?" Harada hesitantly asked. "It means we only have less than forty five minutes left, or Hijikata's done for!" she exclaimed. As if on cue, Hijikata keeled over and had difficulty breathing. "Hijikata-san!" everyone exclaimed with concern as they rushed towards their comrade.
"Oh no! He's already entered the second stage." Tetsu exclaimed, then it started raining, "Oh great! Cold and dampness make the poison go faster." she exclaimed. "What are we going to do?!" Nagakura asked. "First, we have to get him back to your headquarters, that large board over there will be strong enough to hold him. Everyone take off their haoris and hold them over him so we can keep him from getting cold and wet." Tetsu exclaimed, "Also, which one of you is the fastest?" "That will be me." Okita answered. "Then you need to get these ingredients for the antidote, while we try to stall the poison back at base."
After Okita got the list of ingredients from Tetsu, Okita raced off with no time to spare. The others got Hijikata on the board, Nagakura and Harada hold it up, while Heisuke and Tetsu held up the haoris over him. "Alright, time is of the essence, so let's move!" Tetsu said as they race against time in the pouring rain. If they lost the race, they will lose Hijikata.