When I first became excited (read: obsessed) with Samurai 7, I would never have guessed I would eventually be writing a female Kyuzo fic. Ahh I remember the good old days a few weeks ago when I first came onto FFN for S7. And was confused beyond belief at all the fem!Kyuzo stories...
Oh, but anyway, that was a few weeks ago.
In a happy way I guess you could say it's Jun-I's fault. ;) I even guess you could say it's partially a dedication!
Warning: Female Kyuzo. And, no decided pairings yet. Strong possibility of at least implied Kambei/Kyuzo. Also, there's the horrible title. I hope to change that. For now it's a joke.
The battle had come out of nowhere. No prelude like dark gathering clouds signaling a storm or the rumbling beginnings of an earthquake had alerted them.
Although quiet for the morning, the echoing sound of the warning from a guard post and the sudden rushing of villagers meant there was work to be done for the roughly assembled group of samurai.
Within minutes the area was steeped in the sounds of battle. Footsteps pounded against hard, packed dirt and sunk partway into still damp patches of earth from the rain several days ago. Metal clanged loudly as steel struck steel. Twanging cries of released bowstrings preluded the whistling of arrows.
The samurai had quickly scattered to their posts. While they started off in their assigned areas, between following the thick veins of fighting, leaving the sparsely groups of nobuseri to the villagers and running in elsewhere to give orders or reports, they didn't stay in one place for long. At this point it didn't matter; a fight was a fight, and their responsibility had not changed.
The open fields had instantly become a battleground. Disposing of the last of them in the immediate area, Katsushiro was about to run off in search of where he could help next. A flash of red caught his attention amid the pale blue of the midday sky, and instinctively his head turned..
An admiring smile broke out over his lips at Kyuzo's graceful vaults and precise swordsmanship. Several yards away, the slender, tall frame dove and leapt between nobuseri, sending metal scattering into the sky and raining down. Larger pieces thudded dully upon the ground, smaller flakes of metal lost among the tall grass.
Wonderment kept Katsushiro glued to the ground. His pose suggested he was about to run, and in truth he was between dashing off to find someone who needed assistance and staying to possibly help Kyuzo here.
Yet he didn't quite think Kyuzo of all people needed his help, and as evidenced before his very eyes, the sylphlike warrior bounding between nobuseri and the open air as though stepping stones was fine by himself. However, a sudden gathering of a large number of bandits began to prick at Katsushiro's instincts, causing the hair on his neck to rise. His rationale told him he didn't need to worry about one of their strongest fighters. The cluster of metal that had assembled around Kyuzo was something that was in the red blur's ability to handle.
While he watched, Kyuzo broke out from the writhing mass of seething metallic bandits, bounding into the air as if in flight. The ends of his coat cascaded around the long and slender legs, folding under him as he prepared for his descent, swords raised and positioned to come down upon an unlucky foe.
Katsushiro's awe quickly fell into horror; in a split second a huge nobuseri had raised his blunted but enormous sword above Kyuzo. A shadow was cast over the midair veteran, and Kyuzo turned his head just in time to see it coming down upon him.
The blow connected with his back, and Katsushiro gasped, speechless at the sickening thud which brought Kyuzo down and out of sight among the tall grass. The swarm of nobuseri split, some closing in to examine and finish off the fighter with ripped wings and the others whirring as they sped off to terrorize elsewhere.
Although he had half-expected and half-hoped to see Kyuzo come to his feet, Katsushiro couldn't deny the possible truth and began to run at a speed he didn't imagine possible for him. Within seconds he was back to fighting off the vulture like culprits.
Minutes later, Katsushiro's panic had only increased. With every second that had passed, Kyuzo's injuries were left untreated. When the last of the bandits around him had been reduced to piles of dead flesh and metal, he turned to the open patch in the grass, where Kyuzo had not, as Katsushiro had fervently wished, risen from the bed of grass bent under him.
Sheathing his katana, Katsushiro's dismayed green eyes finally was able to examine the damage. Falling desperately to his knees at the fallen man's side, he cautiously moved Kyuzo from his side and flat onto his back. His timid hands shakily pressed upon the pale exposed neck, but soon found his fingers were too unstable to find a pulse.
Soon, however, he was assured that life still resided within the man; suddenly, the parted lips took in a shaky, raspy breath of air.
Breathing with relief, Katsushiro leaned carefully down to examine Kyuzo's face.
"Kyuzo-dono," He pleaded, and saw eyelids flutter weakly, and red eyes struggled for several moments to focus on his concerned face. "Stay awake, please, we have to-"
He gave up as Kyuzo apparently slipped into unconsciousness. Quickly looking over the damaged body, he confirmed there would be no extreme blood loss, but certainly some bones were broken. The sheer impact of the weapon was enough to destroy most people, but the collision of the ground had only made it worse.
Standing, his breathing erratic from prolonged and extreme desperation, Katsushiro looked around for signs of help. The empty field only responded with whispers from the grass as a somber wind blew through, ruffling his own hair, which he quickly brushed off his face. The rookie had to struggle to keep his eyes from watering. Although it was a huge loss to the group should Kyuzo perish, but it was a personal sense of awe and respect that had kept the unknowing Kyuzo in Katsushiro's worshiping gaze.
Glancing down at the unconscious man, Katsushiro came to the conclusion that he had quite a daunting task in front of him, and that the more time he stalled, the more desperate the situation became.
So the mourning young man quickly located Kyuzo's swords among the grass and gingerly lifted Kyuzo, supporting with his careful fingertips the narrow back, and as swiftly as he could slid the twin swords back into their sheaths.
Next, Katsushiro very carefully slid his arm under Kyuzo's knees and lifted them out of the grass.
Katsushiro was slightly surprised to find Kyuzo was not as heavy as he feared. Yet, he still had a man at least a head taller to carry back with him. With his mind racing as to how to most effectively carry Kyuzo, simultaneously thinking on how to least irritate the injuries, and which path to take in order to best avoid nobuseri, Katsushiro swallowed hard.
He had to act quickly, and any mistake could cost Kyuzo, and possibly his, lives. It only took a second for an oncoming enemy to cleave his body in two. Carrying an injured man meant he wouldn't be able to even draw his sword.
After the first wave of bandits had been defeated, the samurai had, as planned, rendezvoused in the village. Unsure if that was the last of them for now, they began to exchange information on numbers, of bandits that had been defeated, villagers injured, and report damages to their defenses.
Although it was quickly noted the absence of Katsushiro and Kyuzo, it was not thought of too deeply. Either they were on their way back already, or they would eventually wander to them anyway. It was too early to consider their absence abnormal, although no one wanted to mention the possibility of casualties.
No one, however, had expected Katsushiro to stumble to them with Kyuzo on his back. The long arms dangled lifelessly from over his shoulders and his arms holding Kyuzo's legs around his waist; he was hunched over, trying to support as much weight as he could on his back and legs. Kyuzo's long coat was apparently much too large for Katsushiro's height, as it was inches from the ground, and probably threatened to trip him once or twice already.
Panting heavily, drops of sweat running down from the sides of his face, Katsushiro made his way over, the subject of five incredulous faces.
"You gotta be kidding me..." Gorobei was the first to say a word, rubbing the back of his head.
"He's not dead, is he?" Shichiroji asked.
Shaking his head, Katsushiro breathed, "No, but he's injured pretty badly...."
Instantly, Kambei had stood and strode over to him, soon relieving Katsushiro of the dead weight on his back, easily supporting the limp man in his arms.
Troubled, Kambei examined the pale face, more ashen than normal. Awaiting the verdict from their commander, the others tentatively searched the old man's face for answers.
Not having Kyuzo in battle was a disadvantage, but of course there was no possibility he would be fighting for a while, at least in this battle. They had, seconds before Katsushiro's arrival, been informed of another wave of bandits several miles off, to be here within the next hour.
"He needs to be taken care of," Kambei started, "There are more nobuseri coming."
This presented, of course, a problem, and many more complications than anyone cared for.
"We can't have the men come all the way back here." Gorobei said, "They're already tending to wounded there, and they're all needed there to fight when the next group comes. Where are the women?"
"They're too far from here." Heihachi, as troubled as anyone, shook his head. "For someone to run and get them and come back, it could get a lot worse. He needs to be taken care of right now, I think."
"And with those injuries, we shouldn't be moving him anywhere either." Shiroroji frowned deeply.
Silent, Kambei was growing increasingly disturbed. Was he imagining it, or was the limp body in his arms beginning to become cold?
"Sensei," Katsushiro interrupted, catching his breath, "Let me tend to him."
Kambei looked at him, attempting to keep composure. "We need all samurai to be fighting."
"But I can take care of him in one of the houses here." Katsushiro argued, "I'll join the fight as soon as I can."
Distantly, the clacking of the alarms went off, and all samurai raised their heads, lamenting the sooner than expected arrival.
"What!? That was quick." Kikuchiyo quickly snatched his sword back into his hand, ready to leave.
"Sensei." Katsushiro insisted, and was silenced at Kambei's grave expression.
Considering, Kambei had to give in. Katsushiro was the easiest to spare in battle. Normally his responsibility was on either guarding or racing to report information from one samurai to another. His contribution to the actual fighting was not that of the others, and although it would be missed, they could cope easiest without his help. And they had discovered, pinning the poor boy at the expense of several insulting and perhaps even inappropriate jokes, that Katsushiro was quite adept at taking care of wounds.
"Very well, Katsushiro." Kambei earned a grateful nod from his self-proclaimed pupil. "Stay here and watch over Kyuzo. But stay with him until the end of the battle. We can't afford to lose him. Should any nobuseri invade this part of the village, he can't defend himself unconscious."
"Yes." Katsushiro agreed, and followed Kambei into a nearby abandoned house, which had been converted into one of the bases for use of the samurai during the fighting.
"Well, this kinda blows." Heihachi smiled solemnly. "Of all the fighters to lose, right?"
"Now we're missing two for this battle, not one." Rubbing his chin, Gorobei stood from the tree stump he was seated on.
"What can you do." Shichiroji sighed.
Kambei soon emerged from the humble building, and at his orders, the samurai were again dispersed, off to fight their second battle of the day.
It was getting far too long. Sue me. The next chapter is pretty long though....
And they had discovered, pinning the poor boy at the expense of several insulting and perhaps even inappropriate jokes, that Katsushiro was quite adept at taking care of wounds. - As in, "HAHA! Katsu sucks! He better be good at medical treatment, he'll be getting hurt a lot!". That's what I was getting at.
.....Huh? Unrealistic that Kyuzo survived getting hit with that giant sword and so quickly recovering?.....Oh, leave it alone.