Hankichi looked askance at his partner. They had finally broken a dangerous counterfeiting ring after taking almost a year to infiltrate it and honors and promotion would surely be theirs once they returned to Edo. It was inconceivable to him that she meant what she said.
Yatsuha only laughed. "Don't you think I've earned some time off?"
This at least he could answer without a problem. "Of course you have. But time off in Edo, where you belong, not wandering around looking for that scruffy bum." Her eyes flashed and he shook his head at her. "Don't look at me like that. If you cared about him, you wouldn't have left him like that in the first place."
The young ninja was taken aback. She hadn't thought anything of it when she left the tattooed Ryukyuan under that tree but the image of him kept recurring to her mind. She had planned to go back to Edo, report on the counterfeiters, and get her next assignment. She had been joking-at least, she thought she had been joking when she told Hankichi that she wanted to marry Mugen someday.
She hadn't been able to get the thought of him out of her mind, though. The farther she walked on her way to Edo, the stronger the pull on her became. They stopped for lunch at a small roadside inn, and Yatsuha made up her mind. She was going back.
Hankichi shook his head. "This is not a good idea, Yatsuha. Mark my words, if you go looking for that guy, you're going to regret it."
She shrugged. "Then I'll regret it."
"Fine," he sighed. "I'll wait here for you." She looked surprised and he smiled a little. "We're partners, right? I'll be here if you need me."