This story is set in the late nineteenth-early twentieth century Asia during the First Sino-Japanese War. I am in an introductory Japanese history course, and was inspired by the rapid modernization of Japanese society during the transition from the Tokugawa to Meiji periods. Many of the themes of this story are based off of my knowledge of Japan during this time, but not everything should be taken as an accurate depiction of life during this time period. I worked hard to do research on various aspects, but most of this is fiction. I shall put footnotes in order to indicate what is factually based, but assume that the rest is from the crazy corners of my imagination.

I hope you enjoy, feel free to leave feedback, especially if you have comments about improvement or notes on historical data.

Disclaimer: I do not own the characters within this story. All copyrights go to Masashi Kishimoto.

Arrows & Bullets

Introduction

August 27, 1894

"You must be so proud," Oshima Kiyomi gushed. "Your son is going to be a leading major general in the war! And he's so young, too!"

Shibi took a small sip of his tea, a blank expression on his face. Kiyomi took this as a sign to go on.

"How times have changed! If it was only a few years earlier he would have never had such an opportunity. But your son has incredible intelligence and courage. He is an admirable choice."

"Thank you for your kind words, Oshima-san," Shibi said as he set down his tea. "Shino has bestowed nothing but honor upon our family, and I do not doubt that he will do the same for our country. Although I must admit I will miss his company and his aid dearly."

"I can imagine. Ayaka will miss him dearly as well," Kiyomi replied, hardly hiding the smug grin on her face. "I fear she'll be lonely without seeing Shino."

Shibi only nodded in response. He looked towards the window of her dwelling, where he spotted Shino with Ayaka. He saw them perusing the garden, Shino pointing out a type of insect particularly useful in aiding in their silk-making process, or a species of bird that sings most beautifully in spring. Shino gestured for her to sit down on a bench with him, and Shibi saw her laugh in delight at something Shino had said. Shibi was pleased that Ayaka was fond of Shino, and that she was of generally good countenance, but he worried that Shino's view of this betrothal as duty to his family was interfering with any genuine emotion he could possibly harbor towards her. Shibi knew that Shino's duty to his country and to his family were equally important, accepting his draft into the army without any fear or disappointment, but only hopes to serve his country well. But Shibi hoped that the calculating, analytical mind and views that his son was taking with him to war would not spill over into his personal life.

Shibi sighed. The last thing he needed to be worrying about was his son's feelings towards a young woman when he was off to war. Still, he needed to take things one day at a time. And right now, he had to deal with Ayaka's mother, who was all too pleased about their little arrangement. But Shibi left that aside as he attempted to entertain his guest.

"More tea, Oshima-san?" Shibi asked. Kiyomi nodded and smiled, as she glanced out the window towards the pair in the garden.

Shino stood to walk Ayaka to their front gate, where he would see her for the last time before he left for the war. The wind blew gently around them as he faced her to say goodbye.

"Thank you so much for today, Shino," Ayaka said. "And every other day I see you. Your kindness has always made your company very enjoyable, and I look forward to seeing you after the war. I know that you will come back with great honor and distinction."

"Thank you, Ayaka-san," Shino bowed. "I wish you well."

Ayaka looked up at Shino thoughtfully. Shino knew that she wanted something more from him, something more than a formal goodbye. Shino had noticed this before, learning the way that she moved and gazed and spoke. He found out through observation when she wanted to be comforted, and when she needed to be left alone, when she needed someone to talk to, and when she wanted to listen. He knew that in order to honor his family, he needed to be an honorable husband, and in order to do so, he had figured out ways to tell what she desired. Right now, the way that she looked at him longingly and her body shifted slightly towards him implied that she wanted physical contact.

So Shino reached out, gently taking her hand and holding it for a few seconds before lightly squeezing and letting it go. She smiled and seemed satisfied, so Shino turned towards his house to see his father and her mother were walking towards them.

"I wish you the best of luck, Shino," Kiyomi said. "I am very impressed by your loyalty to your country and your family. You are more than anything I could have asked for for my daughter."

She smiled smugly once more before bowing.

"Thank you, Oshima-san," Shino said as he bowed. "I wish you both the best as well."

Ayaka threw him one last glance before they took their leave. Shino gave her a slight nod in return.

Shibi and Shino stood in silence as they watched the pair leave. As they disappeared from view, Shibi turned towards his son.

"Dinner will be ready soon. I shall call you inside when it is."

And with that, Shino was alone with his thoughts. He turned towards the sun, beginning to set in the distance. Another day ending, another day closer to deployment. Shino looked out into forest, the vastness of the land was overwhelming. Would he be a good soldier? As a fast learner with an eye for detail, he passed the extensive training with flying colors, and was chosen to lead for this reason, but he knew that an isolated camp was nothing in comparison to a real battle, taking real lives. Although he had played out many scenarios in his head, analyzing the proper response to each, would he really be able to honor his country when it came down to it? He didn't know.

As long as he could remember, he had always been able to figure things out through the powers of observation. He was patient, but picked up on things rapidly. It was how he charmed Ayaka, how he aided his father in creating a prosperous silk business, and how he became promoted to such a high rank in the Imperial Japanese Army. He was going to command thousands of soldiers in the Second Division of the Second Japanese army. Although he knew in general how to inspire his men, what to say and what to do, he wondered if it would be enough. He knew that as a soldier you needed more than just intelligence and courage and big Western guns. The only problem was was that he hadn't quite figured out what he would need when fighting in the war.

With that thought, his father called him in for dinner. He glanced at the sunset once more, and thought that the problem could wait at least just one more day.

End

Hope you enjoyed! So basically:

1. Family duty and national duty were extremely importance and equivalent in terms of levels of importance in the Meiji period.
2. In 1868, Japan decreed that there would be a universal draft for the first time in its history.
3. Official marriages were uncommon in Japan before this era, but they started to use them in order to seem more civilized to the West.
4. The Japanese needed to compete with the West because of the arrival of Commodore Perry of America in the mid-1800's who basically said, "Open your ports or we'll open them for you." So Japan sort of said "If you can't beat 'em, join 'em." And thus, they began to colonize China, thus the First Sino-Japanese war and the development of Western military technology.

Please leave me a review! It would make me very happy! Please also let me know if you're confused or you see grammatical mistakes and what not. OH! And if you'd be interested in beta-ing, because I scan my writing because I get bored of reading what I know I've said.

Until next time!

Caution Tape