Hi this is Benji Himura. I am now starting a new fanfic; it is a Sakura Taisen story. I don't own Sakura or any of the characters. Some anime or manga characters might show up in the story I also don't own then. I own Benji Himura and others characters that will show up in the story. It might be violence and sex in the story so if you are underage of seventeen are warned the content might be too improper to your age. Read by your own will and risk. In anyway enjoy the story.

Signed: Benji Himura

"Text" Talked sentences.

'Text' Thoughts.

-Text- Sounds effects.

(Text) Talked sentences in a foreign language, as English when everyone else speaks Japanese.

: Text: Messages show in an electronic screen or written.

Text: something being recalled, flashbacks, scenes being replayed.

Text: a detail found in a location, scene, person, recording and images that originally wasn't there.

New feature in the story:

I will be using a series of ……… to mark scene changes and a series of ……… to mark changes from a scene to a flashback and from a flashback to a present time scene.

The use of bold text will be reserved to recollections and flashbacks triggered by one action of a character.

I.e. a character starting a flashback by thinking on the event or speaking about the event of the flashback to other characters, the flashbacks started this way won't be started with the dots but a dot separated flashback most of the times will be a character started flashback as it occurred before on the story with the bold text flashbacks.

Chapter seven: Sacrifice

Kyoto December Twenty First 1925; 10:15 PM

Not wanting to make his sacrifice in vain Maria kills the third sniper by aiming at the direction of the muzzle flash; she knows that the others are dead. "It doesn't matter how many of those pawns you kill." The major sneered. "Your knight is dead; you no longer can defend yourself from my attacks."

"Maybe." Maria said in a cold voice, even being a stranger Maria was deeply affected by the effect that Benji's dead on Rosa. "But I can kill you now." Punctuating her words Maria fires at the major's legs. With satisfaction Maria sees the blood jetting from his wounds while he falls on the ground.

Rosa tries to run to finish off the major but a strong hand stops her. "You aren't going to do it." Benji's voice now hoarse said while he grabs Rosa by her collar. "How it is possible?!" Kaede exclaimed in total shock. "Lots of armor I know that most people try hit the heart, the punch was so strong that I fainted a little." Benji replied.

"Daddy!" Rosa exclaimed joyfully hugging his waist. "Sorry for worrying you." Benji said ruffling her hair. "Think as payback for worrying me." Maria picks up Benji's pistol. "How a second!" Maria exclaimed seeing Benji's face. "YOU!"

"Have been a while Miss Tachibana." Benji said with a smile. "Nice to see that you remember me." "What is wrong Maria?" Kaede asked in a worried tone. "You two know each other?" "He is that father that I told you about." Maria explained to Kaede. "The one that we met occasionally in Teito."

"You can scold me later now we have more pressing issues." Benji said pointing to the major. "We have information to extract." Maria nods and hands to him his pistols. They drag the major after knocking him out and leave the area not knowing how many soldiers were hidden there.

Benji tells them to enter in a waiting car, he can see Emi sited there worried and the relief in seeing them. "To the base." Benji said entering in the car after they tossed the major on the trunk. Emi nods and drives away; Kaede doesn't hide the fact that she is happy in discovering the base of whatever organization that Benji is part of.

Later Kaede stares at the mansion in horror, she was confused when the car drove them to the pleasure district, she even thought that was a good hideout but she never considered that they would enter on a leisure mansion, adding to her shock a group of women worriedly waits them.

"We have an information source in the trunk." Benji says to Tayu. "Get his wounds treated and get him ready to be extracted." "Immediately." Tayu replied ordering two girls to obey that command. "We need to treat you too; I can see the hole in your armor and the worry in Rosa-chan's face."

"Sanae and Mariko have already prepared the room." Tayu continued in a tone that shows that she won't accept a refusal. "Ai prepared a room for the guests." "This way please." Ai said to Maria and Kaede, not seeing how to refuse they follow the girl. Rosa follows Benji and Tayu to the treatment room.

"This might be troublesome." Tayu said seeing the state of the armor, the explosions and high impacts damaged the locks. "At least we also foresaw issues like this in the design." She commented pulling a pair of pliers from her medical bag and reaching to Benji's left side.

She grabs a small dent in there and pulls revealing two long metal bars. "It is a good thing that this isn't damaged." Tayu commented. "You seem to have overdone this time. You haven't even finished healing the last wound before getting a new one." "It is not like I had much of a choice here, they used a round from Maiko." Benji replied while Tayu removes his armor and his under shirts. "At least I was able to damage the bullet, if the shape was the usual one I wouldn't survive."

"From what I can see I can only agree." Tayu said seeing the damage in the armor. "This lump is it right?" "Yes." Benji answered knowing what she is talking about; it is a lump on his back in the height of his heart. Tayu picks a scalpel and cuts over it, the large projectile falls on the mats with the end of the cut.

"It was deflected by the ribs; the armor prevented it from getting out but gave you a very ugly cut in your entire left side over that rib." Tayu commented seeing the large cut no longer bleeding. "You have the devil's luck and strong ribs."

"I do." Benji said knowing that it is true. "I will clean and stitch it." Tayu said pulling a large piece of gauze and alcohol from her bag. Rosa looks in silence knowing that it is her fault that her father is hurt like that. "Come here." Benji said to the depressed little girl while patting on his lap.

Rosa obeys actually lying across his knees expecting to be punished. "If I was going to do that I would tell you." Benji said easily lifting Rosa and sitting her on his knees, Benji lightly kisses Rosa's lips. "I love you, that is why I protect you, I am not angry or not blain you for it. You are my little girl and I won't let anyone hurt you if I can stop them."

Rosa lithe up and hugs Benji's neck tightly, crying happily because he doesn't hate her. Rosa's biggest fear wasn't corpses, the dark, pain or anything like that; her biggest fear is being hated by her father. The thought of being hated by him filled her with fear, despair, sadness, loneliness and hate for herself.

Benji lightly kisses her forehead and caresses Rosa's soft hair. He knows that Rosa got really scared on that night; it would be a precious lesson for her, now she understands very well what could happen if she disobeys him. Benji tried to be the best father that he could be avoiding to do what his father did to him, but at the same time that Benji was a loving parent he was also a strict parent with Rosa's limits, Rosa knew very well that when he said no he wouldn't budge if she tossed tantrums, she would receive few slaps on her behind for those; Benji punished Rosa when wrong and praised when right, in few events instead of a praise she gained a prize but she knew that those kind of rewards are rare and cherish them.

Hours later Benji and Tayu are in the interrogation room, a polite way of calling the torture room, mostly it wasn't used they usually extract information from willingly sources, that room was mostly used for punishments and in rare cases extract information of unwilling sources.

Benji doesn't really like to rely in torture to extract information but he is aware that there is time that is it the only way, besides he wants to extract some revenge on that major for ordering his sniper to shoot Rosa.

Tayu was there since she finished with Benji; Benji and Rosa after the treatment slept a bit, Rosa was very unwilling to let him go even to sleep. Benji had to admit that Tayu was really good in torturing; her medical degree certainly pays off in how to give most pain in the less damaging way.

The major is currently telling everything to them, as usual Tayu is taking notes of the information, and Benji is there just as formality. Maria is by the door hearing everything, she didn't like the methods either but as a soldier she understands the value of torture in war as ways of obtain information; Kaede didn't had the stomach to watch.

When the major tells everything he is allowed to rest a little. "Dispose him." Benji tells to Tayu. "Yes my lord." She replied with a small smile. "What about Maiko?" "Later I deal with her again, it is the second time." Benji said with a frown. "Maiko?" Maria asked confused. "The person that makes the ammo that pierced my armor, I gave the designs for her." Benji answered. "She wasn't to sell them to anyone, she got a little greedy."

Maria nods understanding; it wasn't her problem anyway but the issue of an army colonel trying to destroy the hanagumi was a very serious issue and was her problem, she only wandered why it was also Benji's problem; they barely knew each other, she didn't deny that she had fun around him in Teito, as all the other hanagumi girls back then just loved to see that little infant so cheerful and full of life.

"Why?" Maria asked while Benji walks away from the interrogation room. "Why you helped us?" "I wanted to." Benji answered in a casual tone. "Price of a past mistake." "What mistake?" Maria asked seriously, for some reason those words made her very tense. "When asked I refused to lead you." Benji answered in the same tone. "I didn't want more worries or responsibilities other than being a single father with no experience at all."

"You were asked? By who?" Maria asked surprised, even not wanting to believe that someone would refuse be part of the hanagumi and defend Teito she could understand why he would refuse that. "Fujieda Ayame." Benji answered holding his left side, the moment are making his wound ache.

Maria bites her lower lip to not do or say anything stupid, Ayame was a painful subject for everyone in the hanagumi; she died after she changed sides to be with Yamazaki. "You killed uncountable people with your infant daughter with you." Maria said in a shaken voice. "Why you refused to join the hanagumi? It would be much safer and a much healthier environment for her."

"Maybe yes, maybe no. You don't know that for sure." Benji answered in a gentle tone, he can see that Maria is in the verge of something. "I don't have regrets in how I raised my daughter, she is a lovely little girl, cheerful, bright, lovingly, smart and healthy."

"She kills." Maria hissed trying to control her anger, her conflicted feelings over Rosa's life combined with feelings Ayame's death and Maria's own past mixed together making hard for her to tell apart what her past is and what was her feelings. "She kills others with out even hesitating; she knows a gun better than she knows toys. She saw uncountable corpses and battlefields. That isn't life for a little girl."

"I won't deny that." Benji said in a serious tone. "But she isn't a normal little girl, even before she was born she had enemies, right now they think that she is dead but when older and she begins to look as her mother they will discover that she is alive and will try to kill her, that is why I take her with me, she needs to know how to fight by herself or she might die in the day that I am gone."

"That isn't an excuse." Maria replied. "She shouldn't be holding guns, she shouldn't know the scent of blood and corpses, she shouldn't know how to kill; she should be playing, living far from death and blood." "If I haven't failed in my past she wouldn't know." Benji said in a somber tone, his failure was the reason that Rosa is a little assassin in training.

Maria tackles Benji and draws her Enfield. Benji reacts fast and blocks the hammer with his thumb, his next moment surprises Maria, he headbutts her in the forehead stunning her, Benji grabs Maria's collar and tosses her on the floor hard with a judo strike.

Maria gasps in pain while trying to recover her breath that was lost because of the severe impact, she landed hip first and she was feeling pain not only there but in her back, legs and head.

Benji is clutching his left side knowing that he broke his stitches with that stunt. Benji kneels and grabs Maria's revolver and presses her down using his left knee over her left shoulder, not only pinning her down but giving her pain. "You don't know anything about me or Rosa." Benji said pointing the pistol to the bruise on Maria's forehead, there is a small cut there from the impact that is staining her hair with few thin blood streams. "You don't know our lives, you don't know our enemies and you don't know our reasons."

Benji activates the leaver and opens the chamber of the gun. "I don't know what enraged you so much but don't judge us by your standards." Benji said while the bullets fall around Maria's head. Benji lightly places the empty revolver over Maria's stomach and stands up. "Our lives are different than yours."

After those words Benji walks away leaving Maria behind, she clenches her hands in anger at herself for snapping, he wasn't the guilty one there she knows it. The emotions that she tried so hard to suppress overflowed her when thinking of so many events and she snapped.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Sister Isabel looks at Benji worried, he had left late on the previous night with out telling her where he was going or why, he just asked her to watch Rosa while he was gone, for long hours she waited in worry while Rosa slept, when Benji finally arrived he was nearly dead with three very large and deep cuts on his chest, his clothes were soaked in blood and he was using a sword as a support to walk.

For her it was nothing shorter than a miracle that Benji didn't died, the doctor had cleaned and stitched the three cuts, they were close of the other but far enough to be stitched properly, they were bone deep and the doctor mentioned that he was lucky that the cuts couldn't cut the bones.

Benji is lying on his bed with bandages on his chest, few thin bloodstains reveal the location and direction of the cuts; it start on his left shoulder and move diagonally and down on his chest and ended under his last right side ribs. Rosa is restlessly staying on Isabel's arms, she wants her father and as much Isabel wants to allow Rosa to be with him she knows that he needs to recover.

"He can't hold you now." Isabel said to Rosa in a gentle tone. "Your daddy is hurt and need to recover, please bear for a while." Rosa pouts and chirps unhappily. 'She is too smart.' She thinks seeing how Rosa stopped moving look at Benji with what seem to be worry.

Two days passes with Benji drifting from sleep and being wake, Sister Isabel working hard to nurse Benji back to health and take care of Rosa. She wants to know why Benji was hurt but she can tell that he won't tell her. After one week Benji is able to stand and walk around if he moves carefully and not do anything that could break the stitches.

Rosa is happily napping on his arms, Benji is sited on his bed after lulling Rosa to sleep, in his current state hold her when standing was dangerous for both of them. A soft knock in the door disturbs the quietness of the room. Sister Isabel enters after hearing the permission, she still isn't used in seeing Benji only with the bandages and his pants, he said that was too hot to be with a shirt on with the bandages, but the lack of the shirt exposed the countless scars covering his body, the larger concentration of them are in his left arm that is covered on them from the tip of his fingers up to the shoulder.

"Someone here desires to speak with you." Sister Isabel said when she could avert her eyes from his arm. "She said that is important." "Who is the visitor?" Benji asked in a serious tone, he didn't knew anyone there and he nearly died in order to make Rosa's enemy think that he was dead and that he wouldn't move. "A major of the imperial army." Isabel replied seriously. "She said that wish to talk with you about an important issue."

Benji only knew one person that could fulfill the description. "Rosa is sleeping tell her to come later." Benji said to the sister. "It is the first time in a while that she fell in sleep like this and she won't like being disturbed." "I won't take long." Ayame said from the door.

Benji stays in silence knowing that Ayame was skilled enough to get there with out being noticed and that sister Isabel most likely took Ayame until the hall before asking to wait if he would receive her visit. Benji recognizes the look on Ayame's eyes; he had seem it before many times on his past; that meeting wouldn't be short.

Benji gestures to Isabel walk closer and hands her Rosa before standing up. Rosa noticing the movement and the change of her sleeping place wakes crying, Benji quickly sooths Rosa; the infant want to return to her father's arms but stays quiet on the sister's arms.

Benji puts on a shirt and takes the fukuro with Alexis's sword. "Stay here with Rosa." Benji says to the sister. "I will talk with the major." Isabel nods and sits on his bed while gently rocking the infant.

Benji and Ayame walk out of the church's living quarters and are standing inside the chapel. "What you want?" Benji asked in a serious tone. "Won't even let me introduce myself?" Ayame asked in a casual tone. "In case that you didn't notice it is the middle of the night and I was taking care of my daughter. You interrupted her sleep and she gets cranky when she doesn't get enough sleep." Benji replied not really in the mood to be talking to her.

"I am Fujieda Ayame, major of the imperial army." Ayame said deciding to speed things up before he decides not to listen to what she has to say. "And I am here at this time because I am not even sure if you would be here if I waited to the morning."

"I am living here for the past four months." Benji said interrupting Ayame. "I am wounded and I am not planning to leave anytime soon." Ayame sighs inwardly Benji was awfully aggressive towards her.

"I know that a little under four months ago you all by yourself killed a small biped kouma." Ayame said in a serious tone hoping that a direct approach would make things easier. "It was recorded by one of the security cameras around Ginza, it is part of detection system, it helps us to confirm the identity of the enemy."

Ayame smiles inwardly seeing that Benji is listening, the fact that he is now sited in one of the benches with the sword still wrapped on the protection cloth on his knees is a bit unnerving, but he was listening. "Normal people can't hurt koumas." Ayame continued. "To be able to kill a kouma a person must have a reasonable level of spirit energy, because of that fact I am here today. This city need your help, you are one of the very few that can kill koumas and any other evil creatures that might attack. I am part of a group created to protect this city and kill any demon that threatens the city; I am here to ask you to join us. You won't be alone; you will be leading a group of young women with similar powers to yours, our group will provide you with housing, equipment and anything else that you might need, it is a contract that will last at the very least twenty years."

Benji knew that she was going to offer him; he suspected that sooner or later after the kouma incident she would look for him, he sighs tiredly. "Of course you will be well paid and we are willing to cover also the expenses of your daughter, not only while you are contracted to us, if you join us we will provide her with the best schools until her graduation, and if she is interested we will even pay for her college for any degree that she might desire." Ayame added. "We will give the best care that you can possible imagine to you and your family."

It was temptating, Benji wouldn't deny; Rosa would live a life worth of princess based solely on Ayame's words, the stability would be good for Rosa but Benji is aware of the dangers of the theater and the hanagumi. Benji's wounds ache while he breathes and he remembers of his current condition, he wasn't skilled enough to defeat Rosa's and Alexis's enemy.

He sworn an oath for Alexis in the night that she died and months later to her grave, he was going to punish the person that ordered her death, staying in the theater with the hanagumi wouldn't help him to become more skilled, only with his life in the edge of death in the harsh path of combat and assassination he would be able to become stronger than his enemy.

"Your offer is generous but I refuse." Benji said in a serious tone. "What?!" Ayame exclaimed shocked, it was the very first time that someone refused her offer; Maria, Kanna, Iris, Kohran and Sumire they all accepted the offer and joined the hanagumi, Benji the prospective leader of the team the one person that she really didn't wanted to hear a refusal refused her offer.

"Why?!" Ayame asked in hopes of finding a way to convince him. "Rosa and I have an enemy, a very powerful enemy that wants us dead, that person killed Rosa's family." Benji answered in a serious tone. "I am nothing more than Rosa's sword and shield until she is able to fight by herself or our enemy is dead by my feet. I wasn't sharp enough to defeat our enemy, if I accept your offer I will get even duller. I need to be sharper, I need to be deadlier, and I need to be stronger. Your offer would only make me rust and Rosa would eventually die, I can't accept your offer."

Ayame doesn't understand his explanation. "I am sorry if I disappointed you but I am just an assassin, you need heroes." Benji said using the sword as a cane to stand up. "My duty to my Rosa is more important to me than the city." "So you will let the city die to save yourself?" Ayame asked with her voice shaking in anger. "This city won't die." Benji said in a casual tone. "Your hanagumi will get a good leader; I am just bad company to those ladies."

Ayame is shocked with his words; it wasn't just the content but the certain of his words as if he knew for sure that the city wouldn't die. "It doesn't matter." Ayame said to Benji. "Your past doesn't matter, I have an assassin in the team already, she wanted to change and accepted my offer, she said that wanted to protect instead of kill."

"It is the same thing." Benji said walking away. "You protect one another die; you take one life to protect another. It doesn't matter how beautiful you make it sound the core is that, killing one to protect others. You can't protect everyone."

"Those words are true?" Isabel asked to Benji after he crosses the chapel's doors. "You are really an assassin?" "I am a soldier there isn't much of a difference." Benji answered taking Rosa who eagerly reaches for him. "Rosa is really your daughter?" Isabel asked not letting go of the child. "Yes she is." Benji answered in a gentle tone. "You won't share the story with me?" she said letting Benji take Rosa.

"You don't deserve this cross." Benji said gently kissing the sister's forehead. "You are too kind and pure." Isabel stays in silence for the first time realizing that her devotion had isolated her from the dirtiness of the world, seeing the father and child that she came to know so well in the passed months in a different light her faith is shaken by the mysterious cross that Benji wants to carry all by himself and the strong and unshaken love of the infant to her father.

Rosa's happiness is clearly visible on her small gestures and noises, Sister Isabel can easily see how much the child loves her father, she wonders if it is reciprocated, the affection was there, but as Benji said she now could see what she thinks that is duty to the child.

She doesn't want to believe that Benji doesn't love Rosa, all the times that she had seem him lulling the child with soft songs that spoke of love in various forms, longing and bittersweet sadness, the gentle smiles that he gives to the infant whenever she could see.

"If I give up everything you would share with me?" Isabel said walking to him and removing her veil and revealing her long honey colored hair. "You shouldn't give up your faith for me sister." Benji said turning to her. "I don't want to see you lost in the path that you took."

"What about you?" she asked looking at him. "How you won't be lost in your path?" "I don't have a path I only have a goal, my path will be any that leads me to that goal." Benji answered with a dark smile. "And this path isn't fit for someone as kind as you are."

"What makes it fit for Rosa?" Isabel asked seriously. "Because it is the path that she was born on." Benji answered in the same tone. "My path is hers because it has to be like this. If I try to take Rosa in another path she will die. On this path is the one that will allow her to live."

"Why such a pure child has to walk a path like that?" she asked on tears. "Because she is forced by our enemy." Benji answered gently wiping her tears. "All that I can do is guide her on that path, showing her this path so when she is ready she can walk on this path. Hopefully I will be able to remove the obstacle that blocks all the other paths in her life before Rosa is too deep on his path. This is my hope."

"I will pray and hope for that." Isabel said crying. "I will pray everyday that the Lord aids you in your path." "I appreciate it." Benji said with a smile, his other hope is that sister Isabel won't suffer by knowing more than what she does.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Hours passed quietly, Kaede was informed by Maria about the plans to finish off the group that was attacking them; because the loss of the major the other soldiers would meet in a specific point and stay there for twenty four hours waiting for any other survivors and strays to arrive so they would leave. The plan to deal with them is simple, wait them to be inside and implode the building using tactical charges; Benji had already dispatched a team to do mine the building and stake out the building.

Kaede didn't like the idea of killing so many soldiers like that, but she knew that they were trying to kill her and Maria and that many other soldiers were killed to prevent their assassination. The only thing that improved Kaede's mood is that hers and Maria's luggage were taken to the mansion after the shooting in the hotel. Maria had tended the cut on her forehead and is thinking about everything and sorting her feelings about the incident and everything that made her snap.

Kyoto December Twenty Third 1925; 6:32 PM

The news of a large explosion in a government building is all around the media of Kyoto, as well the discovery of the corpse of a army major holding a detonator in a crashed car not far from the destroyed building.

It was easy to Maria and Kaede see how well the tracks were covered, by making the major the likely person of the bombing and crashing his car ended the investigation there as well killed the remnants of the group trying to destroy the hanagumi. They were shocked with the effectiveness of Benji and his group.

Benji is calmly reading in the garden while Rosa is doing her homework next to him. The two women can't believe in the absolute lack of remorse of the duo. For security reasons the departure of the two were stalled for a short while so the information network can be sure that no other attempts will occur. Kaede loudly voiced her displeasure but in the end accepted her condition.

End of the chapter seven:

Please read and review. And I would like to thank everyone that have read and reviewed and to everyone that is reading this story.