Chapter Three
There had been quite a commotion when it was announced that their captive had escaped and nearly maimed two of the Shinsengumi captains. Chizuru was placed in the same room from which she escaped, and she couldn't help but smirk at their faces upon entering. With no signs of an escape and no rope left behind, it was something very new to the Shinsengumi. She sat there now, in the center of the room, waiting to be summoned once again when all of the captains were assembled. The sliding of the door alerted her that it was time. It was Saito who opened the door.
"Chizuru, my commander will now see you." He stepped to the side and motioned for her to step through and follow him. As they made their way towards wherever the rest of them were assembled, Chizuru evaluated Saito. He was tall and lean and she could tell that he would have just the right amount of muscles under his clothing from years of training. She thought back to her first encounter with him and was impressed by his speed. She had never even heard his blade being drawn.
"He must surely be a master of Iai. And he is a lefty. Interesting." She glanced at his right hip where is katana lay strapped. She knew very well that it was highly frowned upon to hold your katana in your left hand. If you ever did, you were told you had no talent or that you were stupid. She trained with a few others under her master that were left-handed. Unlike others however, her master had been smart and allowed them to keep their stance. Left-handed individuals where just as strong as those who were right handed. She had a few scars to prove that.
Saito stopped finally at a door and opened it to reveal what would appear to be a main room. It was fairly large and could seat quite a few. Currently, it housed eleven in total. Saito motioned for her to take a seat in the middle of the room, which she did so cautiously. She couldn't help but feel nervous without her swords. She would have to make sure that they were given back to her.
"So this is the pipsqueak you guys brought back? Seems pretty small to be making so much trouble." He looked….well…young. He had large deep green eyes and long hair that sat high in a ponytail.
"You're one to talk there kid. He looks just as young as you do Heisuke! HAHAHA!" The one he referred to as Heisuke threw a punch towards the man but missed as he dodged.
"I'm not that young you old fart! You and Shinpachi always have to say stuff like that" , Heisuke shouted.
"Harada and I are NOT old you little brat!" This one must be Shinpachi. He had short, spiky hair held back by a green bandana and soft green eyes and a charming smile surprisingly. The one she assumed was Harada had red hair tied back low, a soft smile that Chizuru was sure he was never without, and an odd wrapping around his waist.
"I hardly think I am nearly old enough to look like a dad. You must be referring to Shinpachi!" he laughed out. The three sat together on the right side of the room. Looking towards the front, Chizuru could actually recognize a few faces. Okita sat next to Saito on the left side of the room and the one known as their commander Hijikata sat in the front next to two other men she did not recognize. She also saw three others sitting at the back of the room when she first entered, but considering their silence; she assumed she was not supposed to notice.
"Truly and interesting group of men here. Judging by their brawn, they are all highly experienced. I should tread cautiously", she thought to herself.
It was Hijikata who spoke first. "Enough already you three. It's time to hear what this boy has to say."
"Ahem yes. My name is Isami Kondo and this here is my vice Commander Toshizo Hijikata and my general Keisuke Sanan." The one known as Sanan coughed slightly and Hijikata blanched.
"Kondo-san, is it necessary to go through complete introductions at the moment?" asked Hijikata. At this, Kondo began to become worried.
"Ahem…ugh..yes. Perhaps you are right. That was…unnecessary. Um…well…back to the issue, you seem to have…witnessed something that you should have not, correct?" The question was obviously directed to her. She contemplated how to answer for a moment. She was sure that she knew things about the creatures she encountered that the Shinsengumi did not. But should she let them know that was the real question. All eyes rested on Chizuru now.
"There are many things which you do not know; both about me…and about what I saw. If you let me, I will explain everything. But first, I have questions of you."
Hijikata spoke loudly at this. "We are the ones who are asking the questions here. You obviously saw something you shouldn't have and now you think you can use it against us? It is your life on the line here, not ours."
"What I saw is nothing new to me. I have fought many creatures such as those that I came in contact with last night." At this revelation, a silent gasp went through the room. The tension was now thick in the room.
"What exactly do you mean by that?" Hijikata's eyes where now strikingly focus solely on her.
"If you wish me to answer that question, answer mine first. How did you get a hold of the Water of Life?" Now the room fell deathly silent. All eyes were focused on her, but she did not break eye contact with Hijikata. This was something she needed to know desperately.
"My name is Chizuru Yukimara, and I have come to Kyoto to look for my father. About two months ago he came here to Kyoto on business and never returned. I received letters from him daily almost but after about two weeks, they stopped all together. He is a doctor of western medicine, and seeing as how you either have the Water of Life, or somehow came into contact with it, he was here. How do you know my father?" She spoke slowly so that everyone in the room would understand her. She did not want any misunderstandings. It was already a bold enough choice to tell them this much information.
Hijikata and Kondo passed a look before Hijikata sighed and began to speak. "Your father did come through here. He was hired to be our doctor for a time. However, about a month ago there was a fire in his clinic and he disappeared. There were no signs of a body so we assume that something must have happened. We too have been looking for him."
"That still does not explain how you have the Water of Life." This was becoming more and more difficult by the minute.
Sanan spoke next. "Your father came to us with the Water of Life saying that it could keep a man from dying. However he did not tell us what it would do to them. How do you know of the Water of Life and its effects?"
Chizuru sighed before telling more of her story. "Before he left for Kyoto, my…master and he were working on something that they said could make a man stronger. I thought the idea itself was absurd, but they swore they were close to a breakthrough. One night, I heard a large crashing from my father's personal study where the two of them had locked themselves in for most of the day. Concerned, I went over to make sure they were okay, but what I found was…shocking." All eyes seemed glued to Chizuru.
"My master was convulsing on the floor and my father sat shocked by his desk. I ran to my master's side but stopped when I saw his face. His hair had turned white and his eyes red. He had stopped his convulsing, but his shoulders still shook. Before I could figure out what was going on, he jumped at my father crying out for blood. I…I killed him, or so i thought. I didn't know what else to do. Before anything could be said, my master, who I thought had been dead, leaped from the floor and burst out of the window. After some explanation, it turned out it was the...elixir they had been working on. While it did heal a man, it drove them mad with the need for blood. That night I made my father swear to me he would never use it again on anyone. Shortly after, he was called here to Kyoto."
The room sat in silence at this new finding. Chizuru glanced around the room at the captain's of the Shinsengumi. They all seemed to be digesting what she had told them.
"I have made it my personal mission to find my master who escaped and to find my father after he went missing. Now however, it would appear that things are much worse than I had imagined. My father has not stopped using the elixir and now he is spreading this...plague throughout Japan. I must stop him and put an end to my master's tyranny. I have been following reports of murders throughout the country side that have lead me here to Kyoto...where my father last was. I can only begin to guess that they have reunited...and seek to continue their efforts." Chizuru took a deep breath for a moment before slowly scanning everyone's faces. Each one of the Shinsengumi captain's appeared deep in though. Once more she took another deep breath before speaking again.
"Also, there is something that I must say now before this progresses any further. I am not a man, but I am a woman." Every head in the room shot up at this confession. It was obvious that they had no clue she was a women.
"A woman!?" Shinpachi exclaimed. Harada scratched his head sheepishly and Hesiuke simply gawked.
"To say that we actually had a woman bound in a room all night", came from behind her.
"Actually, if you remember, we are her because he…ahem…she escaped." It was Saito who spoke up. She glanced towards him and Okita and Okita blushed slightly. He turned his head away from her.
"Well actually, if you really look, she is kind of girly looking." Harada blushed slightly at the little glare Chizuru gave him. Kondo looked the most perturbed. He continued to mutter things to himself. Words like woman, bound and boy could be heard every once and again. Hijikata let out a cough gaining everyone's attention.
"Seeing as we have a mutual objective, we will let you stay here. However, I must ask you to remain dressed as a man, for if a woman were to be found living here at the headquarters…." He let the last bit of the sentence trail off knowing full well everyone got his meaning.
"Of course. I understand. And I thank you for your hospitality. I must ask permission to look for my father though. Obviously he has disobeyed my wishes to never use the Water of Life again. I do not know what his intent is, but I wish to be the one to put an end to it. I am however, very grateful for any assistance you can spare me." Chizuru bowed politely. Hearing this broke Kondo out of his musings.
"But of course. We will lend you any assistance you may require. Inoue, could you please show Miss Chizuru to a vacant room?" Kondo's query was addressed to someone behind her. Chizuru stood and bowed politely once more and turned to see who would be leading her. From the shadows, stepped three men. One, who she assumed was Inoue, stepped up to her and bowed slightly and greeted her cheerfully.
"My name is Genzaburo Inoue. This here is Susumu Yamazaki and Kai Shimada. We apologize greatly for our earlier treatment of you." Shimada, a slightly larger man than the rest wore a kind smile and gave a nod of agreement with Inoue's apology. Yamazaki, a smaller man, though she did not think of him as any less lethal, bowed slightly as well and actually gave her a small smirk. She defiantly found him intriguing.
"Thank you. No apology is needed. I understand why you had to do what you did." Chizuru bowed slightly back sending a small smirk of her own back to Yamazaki. He arched an eyebrow in surprise but showed no other emotion. Inoue made a small move towards the door but before he could go further, Chizuru turned back around to face the front of the room once more.
"Before I go, I would first like to thank Saito for granting me this audience with you." Making eye contact with him, she bowed deeply to show her true appreciation of his actions. His eyes widened but in return he also bowed to her.
"Secondly, I would also like to thank everyone here for hearing me out and being so compassionate and hospitable." She again bowed. "But before I or anyone else leaves, I MUST request my swords back." She rose from her bow to stand as tall as she could and sent a pleading look to Hijikata. His face blanched for a mere second before he nodded his head. Behind her, she heard movement and so turned to find Yamazaki coming towards her producing her beloved swords. She almost cried out in relief but bowed to Yamazaki and Hijikata in thanks.
"Thank you very much! I wish you all a good night." With that, she secured her katanas once more at her hip and proceeded to follow a slightly stunned Inoue out the door and to her new room.