"Motonari-sama!" The soldiers stood at attention. "Ready to move out!"
"Hm." Motonari mounted his horse and the members of his escort followed suit, falling into formation around him.
They traveled at an even pace, leaving Itsukushima behind them. Motonari wondered if he should have added a few more soldiers. But it was unlikely that anyone was watching his movements, and it wasn't very far to his destination.
At noon, they stopped for a break. Motonari walked down to the edge of the rocky beach nearby, staring out over the tossing waves.
About three months had passed since the incident at Sekigahara. Yoshitsugu had sent a letter, saying that there was no recent activity in Kanegasaki or Honno-ji, which was a relief. Mitsunari had recovered from his injuries during the three months, but now he was in an "especially foul mood" and a visit from a friend might calm him.
Three months. He couldn't believe that it had already been so long since the wolf had left. And though he waited, each day hoping she might appear, she didn't. He always thought the worst, but still he waited. She wouldn't break her promise, after all.
An odd high-pitched noise came from the sea. At first he thought it was a gull, but then whatever-it-was made the noise again, closer this time. He looked out across the water. Something small and white paddled towards the shore.
The waves surged, threatening to bury the creature. It made that plaintive noise as the water tossed it about, then pulled it under.
Motonari threw off his helmet and armour, running towards the waves. His soldiers cried out in alarm but he ignored them, plunging into the water and striking out for the place where the creature had last surfaced. It didn't come up again.
Sucking in a breath, he dove. There. The little white creature was sinking down towards the seabed. Kicking harder, he swiped at its tail a few times before he finally grabbed it. He clutched the creature against his chest and ascended.
His head broke the surface. Keeping the creature's head above the water, he made his way back to shore. The worried soldiers helped him up and scurried about fetching blankets and making a fire for extra heat.
Motonari wrapped the white puppy in a blanket and rubbed it dry. It was still breathing. He set it down near the fire so that it could warm up.
A few minutes later, the puppy woke. It made a whimpering noise and looked around, flicking its stubby ears.
"Are you all right?" Motonari asked.
The puppy blinked at him with big dark eyes. His heart thudded in his chest.
"You can't possibly be…" He trailed off.
"Motonari-sama," said one of the soldiers, "I believe that's a wolf pup."
"Did I ask for your opinion?" he snapped, waving an arm. "Leave us in peace! This is personal!"
Perplexed at their leader's strange behaviour, the soldiers retreated. The puppy whimpered and edged away from him.
"I don't mean you any harm," he said, adopting a gentler expression. "If you are who I think you are, I know your mother."
That got the puppy's attention. Its ears twitched and it stopped cowering, then cocked its head and examined him, making an inquisitive noise.
"We fought together," he said. "She helped me, and another comrade."
The puppy wagged its tail and shook itself, spraying water everywhere, before walking up to him and putting a paw on his knee.
He resisted the urge to pat its head. "What were you doing out there in the sea? You could have drowned."
The puppy sat and poked at the pebbles in the beach. Unfortunately, it shared its mother's greatest flaw, and that was the inability to speak.
"I suppose we can figure that out later," Motonari mused. "Well, I'm not leaving you out here by yourself. Why don't you come with me?"
The puppy looked up, eyes shining.
When they were ready to leave, he donned his armour. The puppy started making a series of high-pitched noises, and he realized it was laughing at him. Or more precisely, at his helmet.
"You're fortunate that I'm not as ill-tempered as the friend we're going to visit," he remarked.
The puppy stopped laughing and pricked up its ears. It raced over to Motonari's ringblade and sniffed at it, then looked up at him, jumping back and forth and barking. It was trying to tell him something, but what?
The puppy ran towards the beach, then back to the ringblade. When he still looked confused, it repeated the action.
"You followed it here?"
The puppy wagged its tail. Asking it why was pointless, but answers could wait. He put the puppy on the saddle before climbing up himself, and they set off again. The puppy, never having ridden a horse before, opened its mouth to make a panting noise and thumped its tail as it watched the scenery rush by.
What happened to you, Shiranui? How did your child get separated from you?
She would not be so careless. Something must have happened. He hoped that she was all right. At least the puppy was safe with him.
They continued the long trek to Osaka. Several hours before their arrival, the puppy's ears flicked and it barked frantically. Motonari glanced at the trees. It was a little past sundown and difficult to see.
Something whizzed towards him and his horse screamed, pitching headfirst into the ground and throwing him and the puppy from its back. He scrambled to his feet and the puppy scampered towards him unhurt, taking cover behind his legs.
His soldiers gathered defensively around him. Something had sliced the horse's front legs from its body, but somehow, the soldiers traveling beside him hadn't been hurt.
One of the men at the back let out a gurgling noise. Horse and rider toppled to the ground. The others shouted but they couldn't see where the attacks were coming from. Another man fell, and then another, each one closer to Motonari than the last.
"Motonari-sama!" a soldier cried. "Please escape! We'll hold them off!"
Whatever was picking off the men came from the rear, to their right. Motonari took off in the opposite direction and he didn't look back. The puppy ran close beside him. It barked and the trees hazed out with heavy mist. He wasn't surprised-being with Shiranui had taught him to expect such things. He took advantage of the extra cover and kept running.
This was dangerous. The further he strayed from the road, the further he was going to have to walk. He might not make it to the castle before that thing found him.
The puppy leaped up and clamped its teeth into his boot. He halted, and it ran off and wriggled into some bushes. It wanted him to hide.
He crawled in after it, the brambles scratching at him. With a free hand he scooped up the puppy and pressed it against his chest. It stayed quiet, terrified.
The forest was silent. Motonari was afraid to breathe. They waited and waited, and just when he thought it was safe, a low growling noise came from nearby and branches snapped underfoot. He froze and so did the puppy.
Something shuffled in front of them. It was too dark to see what the creature was. It paused for a while and didn't move, toying with their sanity. Then, at last, it growled again and moved off. He listened until the sound of rustling foliage disappeared, and even then he didn't move until some time had elapsed.
Slowly, he eased himself out of their hiding spot, stopping whenever he made too much noise. He kept expecting the creature to come barrelling back at them. But it didn't, so the two hurried back towards the road.
They stuck close to the road but traveled under cover in the trees nearby. Swivelling its ears, the puppy sniffed at the ground for signs of danger. Motonari wished that they had a horse now - it would take them forever to walk those last few hours to the castle. He wouldn't be sleeping tonight. They had to reach their destination or risk being attacked.
He walked until his feet were sore, but he refused to stop. The puppy whined and plopped down where it was, too tired to continue. Scooping it up with an arm, he kept going, letting his ringblade hang from a shoulder.
A rumbling noise rose in the distance. It started off faint but came towards them, growing louder. Bright specks of light wavered between the trees further down the road, approaching them. It was a group of soldiers on horseback.
He stepped out of cover onto the side of the road. The soldiers saw him and slowed their horses as they drew near. When they got close enough for him to see their leader, he heaved a sigh of relief.
Mitsunari swung himself off his horse and strode towards them.
"What happened?" he demanded. "I doubt you decided to walk all the way here from Aki."
"Can we just get moving?" Motonari glanced over his shoulder.
"Someone is chasing you?"
"Something."
"And what is that -" Mitsunari's eyes widened when he saw the puppy. "You can't be serious."
"Whatever happened to Shiranui, I do not know. There will be time to talk later."
"Get on my horse, and mind that ringblade."
Mitsunari had brought a large entourage with him, but it was unlikely that they would be attacked again. Motonari sat behind him on the horse, holding the puppy close with an arm. He noticed that Mitsunari still wore his familiar white and purple pleated jinbaori, but now there were two wings embroidered on the back.
"I see you still have no sense of courtesy," Motonari remarked. "It's been three months and you treat me like I got lost a day ago."
"We can share pleasantries later. But it wasn't like you to be late. You're never late."
He smiled. "Is that why you came out here?"
"Are you laughing at me?" Mitsunari snorted. "Whatever. So what happened?"
"I was traveling with an escort but we were attacked by some kind of creature. I don't think any of my men survived."
Mitsunari groaned. "Don't tell me it was a crow tengu."
"I don't know what it was."
The great walls of the castle loomed into view. Mitsunari ordered the gate closed and locked. Any patrols outside were to be doubled and relocated to the battlements. He wasn't taking any chances. Motonari, meanwhile, was just glad to be somewhere safe.
"Your room has already been prepared," Mitsunari said once they were inside. "The servants will show you there."
"And what about the pleasantries?"
Mitsunari gestured at the puppy, who was fast asleep against Motonari's chest. "It's late. We will speak in the morning, in the map room."
Turning, he left without another word. Typical Mitsunari. Motonari shook his head and went to his room in the residential palace, which was the same one he had occupied three months ago. Everything was exactly as he remembered it.
He was glad to be here. The past few months had been complete boredom. Now, there was someone to talk to, who would listen and talk back. He felt alive again.
He had the servant fetch a large cushion. Placing it next to his bed, he gently put the sleeping puppy down on top of it. It stirred and was still again. Wolf or not, it had inherited its mother's knack for drawing trouble.
