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The two teens walked down the road on opposite sides. Min carried a small bag that hung across her body, the only things inside were the box and three gold pieces she snagged from that old lady the day before.
She glanced at Hachiro, "So before we go too far on this journey, let's do a cash count."
"Cash count?" Hachiro cocked an eyebrow.
"Yeah, I've got four gold pieces so we should be okay for a while, how about you?" She asked while fishing the four coins out of her bag and flashing them quickly before returning them to a hidden pouch.
Hachiro didn't bother looking impressed, "I have no money."
Min stopped suddenly and stuck her head out narrowing her eyes, "What? You have NO money? Are you shitting me?!" She clenched her fists. "God, now you're just extra baggage I have to take care of!"
Hachiro let out a huff, "Take care of me? That's not a woman's job."
Min smiled and stopped abruptly, putting her hands behind her back, giggling, "You know what… you're right!"
Hachiro stopped and looked back at her, "Really?" he asked, smiling at her.
"Yeah! I guess I was just being stubborn." She said shrugging, a slight blush coming to her cheeks.
Hachiro blushed a little in return, "Okay, well, let me protect you." he nodded.
They continued walking, and soon broke free of their home village into the expansive fields of tall, thick grass peppered with wildflowers.
"Beautiful area isn't it?" He said, giving her a sweet smile.
Min nodded, her light brown eyes squinting slightly, "I think we'll really get along if-."
Hachiro suddenly felt a tight sensation around his throat. His eyes widened as he reached for his sword, but he ended up grabbing the hand that already beat him to the hilt. He flailed around, trying to grab his attacker.
Min flung Hachiro's sword deep into the the field's tall grass before sweeping his legs from underneath him and slamming his body to the ground. She flipped him over like a rag doll then grabbed him by the wrists placing a foot firmly on the center of his back. She pulled his arms back, and he let out a squeal.
"Don't ever tell me where my place is ever again! EVER! You hear me, idiot?!" She roared.
Hachiro gritted his teeth, his face bright red. "I-I hate you." he muttered. "I hate you so much."
"WHAT?!" she yelled, jerking Hachiro's arms back a little farther.
Hachiro let out a cry, "Okay! Okay! Get off!" He panted through the pain, "I'm sorry!"
Min stepped off of him and shoved his arms down to the ground. "Know your place." She spat.
Hachiro stood up on wobbly legs and shuffled over to his sword that stuck straight out of the ground. He pulled it out and wiped the dirt off the blade looking over as the short girl stalked away down the path. The bottom of her kimono was torn and her wooden sandals chipped and splintering. Her light brown hair was braided in a thick line down her back, small curls and frizzes sticking out, becoming more frequent towards the bottom where it was tied tightly by a small brown ribbon.
Min pulled out the pins on the side of her head, letting her hair fall into her face. She twisted the hair back up and made an 'X' with the pins. Her step size became smaller and her cheeks cooled down, her rage beginning to pass. She could feel Hachiro's presence behind her, his swaying figure practically radiating shame. Soon their tired bodies made it to a large village. The houses were monstrous and gaudy, each one stories tall with traditional curved roofs. Min frowned and looked back at Hachiro who seemed to be thinking the same thing she was.
"This place is going to be way too expensive." Min said.
Hachiro sighed and shrugged, "It doesn't hurt to check." He gestured with his hands towards a large inn down the street.
"It hurts to lose daylight, we need to find someplace to sleep." Min mumbled, stopping and crossing her arms.
Hachiro kept his distance from her, "then I'll find one myself."
Min burst with laughter, "And then what? I have all the money. You think you're just going to samurai chop your way into some hotel here?"
Hachiro's face boiled. He turned around and stormed off, "just stay here, I'll go find it myself." He grumbled. He slinked down the cobblestone path, a strange sight for a Japanese village. He looked into the window of an inn, it seemed warm and welcoming, before walking inside.
Min wandered down the empty streets, an ominous wind whipped passed making her shiver; winter was coming soon and at night was the coldest. "Jeez baka, hurry up." She grumbled to herself.
As her skin broke out in bumps against the cold, the hairs on the back of her neck began to stand up. Min felt it was more than just the cold, she was being watched. She looked over to a window in one of the large houses. The house was painted a deep red with a large, paper door. The front step was guarded by two clay samurai. There was a small, old man gazing out of the window from the second floor, but he quickly closed the paper blinds when she noticed his probing eyes. "The hell..?" she wondered to herself. She felt a hand on her shoulder, making her jump and karate chop the phantom's wrist. "I see you!" She yelled, stopping and letting out a sigh, "So I was right, hm?"
Hachiro put his hand on the back of his neck, "Yeah, I suppose. We have enough money for a night…"
Min's eyebrows lifted with interest.
"The price is three gold pieces."
Min's eyebrows dropped as she furrowed her brow, "Screw that. Let's go." She clopped away, her fists clenched. "Three gold pieces, what do they have in there that's worth three gold pieces, baths in pure poppy oil? Tsch, bullshit." She continued to muttered under her breath, shaking her head with every step.
Hachiro began to follow, his hand instinctively gripping the hilt of his sword; the village was completely silent. This place isn't right. He thought to himself. The pair wandered into a thick wood, where the ground was flat and the trees tall. There was a half moon, shining silver light through the fat branches.
Min dropped her bag by a thick tree and laid down by its base. "Goodnight." She said, her body draped over a thick root.
Hachiro raised an eyebrow, "Uhh, should we not build a shelter or fire?" He loosened the grip on his sword, letting his hand slide down to his side.
Min sat up and began to unwrap her kimono, "You can. You can do whatever you want. I'm going to sleep, I'm too cold to be awake." she complained, shrugging the brown fabric from her shoulders.
Hachiro shielded his eyes and sighed, setting his sword down beside a tree then laying down. Min rolled herself up into a little burrito, her back facing Hachiro. He looked at the stars through the trees, what was so special about this girl that master would put him on such a useless mission? He scanned the area, propping himself up on his elbows, though the village was about a mile away he still felt uneasiness surrounding him. It's probably just nerves, this is my first time out of the village without Master. He thought to himself. These repetitive thoughts in his head gave him some peace of mind before he slowly drifted off to sleep.
Finally, Hachiro's breath became deeper and slower, making Min grin. She sat up, her makeshift kimono-blanket sliding off. She crawled over to Hachiro, her breasts and hips tightly wound in cloth wraps. She stalked around his sleeping body, inspecting his sword. Nothing suspicious, she concluded. She began to wriggle back to her spot before spotting a small velvet pouch peeking out from behind his kimono over his chest. Her eyes sparkled with intrigue, she crept towards him and lowered herself over his body. She slowly reached a shaky hand to his chest, gripping the top of the pouch with her fingers. Her eyes glanced over, Hachiro's eyes were closed. She looked back to her hand and began to drag to small bag out of his top, it emerged flawlessly. Min let out a small giggle, shoving her fingers in between the drawstrings. She felt a hand grip her wrist,
"Min." Hachiro growled. Min smirked mischievously and scuttled away pulling the bag open, "No! Min!"
Min let out a loud cackle as she violently tore it open. Her playful attitude completely dropped as she saw the contents of the bag.
"You…" She flipped the bag over, sending the copious amounts of gold pieces clattering to the ground. "YOU." She chucked the bag forwards into his eyes, springing up towards him, kicking him straight in the gut, sending him stumbling back. He hit a tree and let out a cough, sliding down to his butt. "LIAR LIAR LIAR!" She sprinted towards him, her fist connecting with his chubby cheek.
Hachiro saw stars. He stood up shakily, and leaned against the tree.
"I… Can explain…" He choked out. "Wait."
Min clenched her throbbing fist, "Shut up!"
Hachiro felt another fist give a hard blow to his head then his vision went black.
Hachiro's head ached and eyes burned, his head felt like it was going to float away into the stratosphere. His body shifted on the ground as he reached to find something to help him support his weight. Gripping a tree, he sat up holding his forehead.
"What happened?" he grumbled. His eyes began to focus on a figure against a trunk across from him.
Min sat cross-legged, chewing on a fresh piece of fruit.
"Good morning, you fraud." She said holding up the pouch, jingling the coins within. "I thought you didn't have any money, that's why we were sleeping in the middle of nowhere, freezing to death!"
Hachiro rubbed his temples and sighed, "Once again, you were so brash not to realize that I have an explanation." He looked over to her, his eyes filled with hatred, "I was given this money by Jin." Min raised an eyebrow, obviously not impressed.
"He gave me the money because once we travel all the way to this to 'Mugen' guy's house, he might need some persuasion to even listen to what we have to say." Hachiro smiled triumphantly, "so, do you see why I couldn't give you the money? I have my reasons." He said shrugging smugly, obviously proud of himself.
Min threw the pit of the fruit at him, nailing him right in the middle of his already bruised forehead.
"Listen, dumbass. You shouldn't have lied to me in the first place. Do you really feel the need to keep even the smallest shit from me? If you had just told me you had money but we couldn't use it, I wouldn't have gotten mad last night. So, really you're the one in the wrong, so maybe your reasons are stupid." She scratched her chest then stood up with a yawn, her brown kimono covered in dust. "Well, let's get going!" She exclaimed with a smirk. "...Hachi."
Hachiro's eye twitched with irritation, "Where's all my money now?" He asked, ignoring the stupid nickname.
Min shrugged and began walking towards the path that lead to the village, "I dunno." Her sandals shuffled against the dirt path where Hachiro closely followed her.
"Woman," He quickened his steps to approach her side. "Where is the money?"
Min shrugged again, "Aren't samurais not supposed to care about that kind of stuff or something? You sure are a bad samurai."
Hachiro felt his cheeks heat up, his face glowed crimson."You don't know what kind of samurai I am!" He shook with anger, sometimes he even asked himself the same question. He had never been a truly noble samurai, his attitude was not cool, he was far too skittish. Shaking off these thoughts, he grabbed the hilt of his sword.
"How about I show you?" He said seriously, his demeanor resembling Jin's, "Once I do, then you'll show me where the money is."
Min stopped, her eyes sparkling with interest, "Hmmm, sounds like a deal. Though, I don't know where your money is." She said with a wink. "Come on big man, you have first strike, or are samurais above beating women?"
The sword slid out out of its hilt, the blade sparkling in the orange sunrise.
"You're no woman." Hachiro said. Min's silhouetted figure shook as she let out a cackle. Hachiro lunged forward, his blade reaching Min's side in the blink of an eye.
"Whoop!" Min exclaimed, easily dodging the amateur attack. "Tsch," She clicked with her tongue. She jumped off of the hilt of his sword, gliding over him. She hit the ground and spun around, sweeping Hachiro's legs out from beneath him. He caught himself with a hand and flipped backwards away from the girl.
He glared at her, his deep brown eyes glancing left to right, looking for an attack plan. Before he could make a decision, Min's wooden sandal was already lodged into his gut sending him flying back into a tree. He swung his sword out, then lunged forwards once again. Min twirled past his blade like a ballerina and leaped up into the air, kicking down onto his shoulder and launching herself off to a safe distance.
Hachiro let out a grunt as he gripped his shoulder. She's fast, but most of her skills seem to be leg oriented, he analyzed. Before he could finish thinking, he heard Min's rapid footsteps approaching, but from where? He had zoned out. Such a severe mistake, he scolded. He whipped his head around looking for the girl, his shoulder throbbed and his stomach clenched with pain. He felt her body drop down directly behind him and he swung around, his sword promptly lodging itself into a tree. He tried to wiggle it out but failed. In the meantime Min kicked his arm away and shoved him back with a solid shove from her other foot, which Hachiro gripped tightly. He pulled her by her ankle, flinging her into a tree.
Min felt the air leave her lungs, letting out a wheeze. She grabbed Hachiro's kimono and pulled him forwards, swinging with her other arm. She had much more arm strength than Hachiro had anticipated. He released her leg and caught her fist, they stood locked for a second before backing away from each other, panting.
"You're fighting is too sporadic. You're really a pain to fight." Hachiro said, a bead of sweat dripping down his temple.
Min raised an eyebrow, "Tsch, you're so boring, so traditional." She cracked her knuckles in her hand, "Come on, catch me with that blade," she said, glancing over to the sword, still resting in the tree.
"Gladly." Hachiro used all his might and pulled his sword out from the tree. He stumbled forwards clumsily and caught himself by sticking the ground with his sword. He was still off balance from the day before where he had been ambushed by Min, yet even in an anticipated fight he was having difficulty getting a single hit on her.
"You're fast," he said, already tired.
Min looked at him unamused, "Of course I am, I've been fighting my whole life."
"As have I." He retorted, straightening up from his position hunched over his sword. He wondered why she had to fight her whole life, his reason was fairly obvious in his opinion. He was the eighth son, he had to prove his worth and honor to his father. Hachiro pulled his sword out of the ground, "Let's continu-."
Suddenly, glass shattering and screams could be heard from within the village.
"The hell?" Min uttered, she hadn't even noticed how close their fight had brought them to the village from the day before. A scream for help could be heard faintly from within the village's maze of mansions.
"Sounds like something bad's happening…" Hachiro said, trailing off towards the end.
"You're right, we should go around the village. It'll take us a little bit longer, but I think it'll be worth it- HEY! HEY! GET BACK HERE! HACHIRO!" Min's eyebrow twitched with irritation, "Tsch." The samurai had already taken off into the village, his sound of his wooden sandals fading off into the distance.
"Fine then." She grumbled, lazily making her way to the village's streets, "Baka."
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