Samurai Champloo
Chapter 8: Princess of Death
After their exciting day the group relocated to a new hotel, on the other side of town. This time, they were not alone. One of the other Bosses from LA had finally arrived and offered their support to Fuu. She and the boy's were given a room to themselves that joined to their allies'. Inside, they were busy interrogating their new lead.
Sara was bound to a chair by her wrists and ankles. In front of her, Fuu was kneeling, looking at her keenly. At Sara's sides were Jin and Mugen.
Fuu let out a load sigh, "Alright, let's take a break guys." She bowed her head and stood up to stretch her limbs.
She heard no argument, as it would soon be daylight, having gone through the night with now results in the way of confession from Sara.
The boys retired to beds (their now being two), and Fuu set up camp on the bed unfurling from the coach. Next to her was the still tied up Sara.
Sitting on the edge of her bed in a pair of pink pajamas, Fuu turned to her helpful fellow Boss, Sousuke Kawara.
"You can go now, I'm fine." She smiled.
"Oh, uh, are you sure?" He scratched his head.
"Yeah, I'm sure. Hey, thanks for all your help. I don't know what we would have done without you!" Fuu smiled sincerely.
Sousuke smiled back and blushed slightly. He bowed his way out through the door joining their rooms.
Fuu sighed again, and looked back to Sara.
Now that she had the woman that they had been looking for tied up in front of her, she should feel at least accomplished if not happy. But Fuu felt sad…She was an empathetic person and couldn't help but think back to all the times she herself had been kidnapped. Sara was captured by enemies, surrounded by skilled swordsmen, and in the presence of two commanding bosses.
Though both Fuu and Sousuke were young, it would be a mistake for anyone to take them lightly. Despite their age, they both commanded skilled fighters.
Fuu and the others had spent all night trying to pry information out of Sara. She hadn't answered any of their questions about where her employers were, or what they planned to do next. The only information they had were the names that Yatsuha had scrounged up before…
The thought of the ninja brought Fuu back to reality, as she remembered the shadow outside the window.
"It's alright now Yatsuha, you can come in now, the boys are asleep by now."
There was a moment's pause before the screen was ripped open, the window slid up, and the curtains pulled aside. In walked the ninja.
Fuu scanned her up and down and tilted her head in exasperation.
"I understand the color, and the close fitness, but why the leather and fishnet?" Fuu, being fashionable herself, couldn't help but take notice of the ninja's provocative costume.
Yatsuha blinked and looked herself over while standing in front of the fluttering curtains.
She wore mid length fishnet gloves, and a black leather short shorts body suit. It zipped up from her stomach to her neck, and the sleeves were short. Her face was disguised by an eye mask.
"What?" She shrugged her shoulders and took a seat at the small table by the window across from Fuu and Sara.
"You look more like a thief than a ninja…" Fuu pondered.
Yatsuha giggled, "Yeah, but I look sexy, right?"
"If you're into that." Fuu teased.
The girls shared a laugh but soon grew quiet and serious.
Yatsuha gestured to Sara, "So this is the assassin?" She asked.
Fuu nodded.
"She isn't gagged…has she talked?"
Fuu shook her head.
Yatsuha got up from her seat and walked over to Sara. She lifted her head, which had been drooped and silent this whole time. She contemplated torture, but Fuu refused.
"You realize that this is the woman that has tried to kill you and your friends on more than one occasion right? She works for people trying to take over you and all the other Bosses of LA!" the ninja was growing impatient with Fuu.
Fuu hushed her and gestured to the sleeping men. "I know, but she only did what she was told. It's her job…I've dealt my fair share of deception and pain to others…we're not that different is all I'm saying."
Suddenly, the silent assassin spoke, "Why?" She asked.
Fuu looked at her questioningly, "Why what?"
"Why would you show me mercy? I might even call it compassion…" She stared blankly in front of her.
"Compassion?"
"You never gagged, threatened, or were rough with me. Now you won't let this ninja torture me…why do you care? I am the enemy."
Fuu stammered for an explanation, "Because well…I guess I know how you feel right now…being alone and captured by people who you know want something from you."
"Do you mean me harm?"
"No, I just want answers."
Sara lowered her head once again. Her hair fell to cover her face.
Fuu and Yatsuha could sense her deliberation.
"What will you do with me if I tell you?" Sara questioned suspiciously.
Fuu was taken aback, she hadn't thought that far ahead, and told Sara so. Sara grew quiet again for a while, and Fuu took the time to really think on Sara's question. Would she let her go free? She thought that would seem foolish…But she couldn't kill her, Fuu wasn't like that. Fuu knew she had to come to a decision, or else someone else who cared far less would decide for her.
"How old are you?" Fuu asked.
Sara answered without movement, "Twenty one…"
"What does that matter?" Yatsuha looked at Fuu sternly…she sensed what was next.
"Well, she's too old to go to school with us…But I was thinking about taking her in as a new fighter." She paused, but Sara said nothing. "Would that be fair? This can't be the life you want, Sara. Full of fighting and deceit, death around every corner."
"Death…no one can escape that, especially not me, the Princess of Death."
Yatsuha and Fuu looked at each other, and asked Sara to explain.
Yatsuha was now on the same page as Fuu about Sara. Their plan was to make Sara realize how little she had to gain by keeping quiet about her employers and their plans. Fuu did actually plan to sign Sara, if all went well. She sensed the good in her.
Sara went on to explain, "Sara means princess, and I am a skilled killer. I wasn't always an assassin, but even before that, death was everywhere. We will all die someday."
"But you don't have to be the cause of it for others, Sara!" Fuu consoled, "Your right about not escaping death, but you can escape this life…You don't have to do this forever."
Sara tilted her head, "I thought all Bosses were the same; selfish and insensitive to their fighters. But you seem different."
"I am." Fuu agreed, "I really care about my fighters, and I would never make them kill for me or commit crimes…Me, Mugen and Jin make money off the ring, but we don't plan on being there our whole lives. LA is different from this area; most of our fighters live double lives, or leave the ring when they leave adolescence."
Yatsuha nodded, "That's right. It's more of a hobby, unless they go on to be Bosses. Some go on to other sports, teaching martial arts, performing, movies, or make a career in fighting legally."
"You could do that too, Sara, any of that. I can help you, Yatsuha and Mugen or Jin will help you. You just have to prove yourself and help us prevent the bloodshed that's sure to happen unless you tell us everything."
Sara sighed deeply…Once she was sure of Fuu's sincerity; she agreed to tell them everything they needed to know.
She confirmed the Boss who they had suspected from the beginning, Nagatomi Rikiei, a ruthless and ambitious Boss of the San Francisco Underground. He had a large number of fighters under him, and the ones closer to him in rank were supposed to be the best around. He was looking to expand his area of influence, and planned to attempt a sort of takeover in the LA Underground. This way, he could set up two separate teams and compete in two cities. This was not how the Underground worked, since that would give someone a higher chance of making it to the state finals. It seemed like he planned on using brute force and scaring away the other LA Bosses, so no one would oppose him in his rule breaking.
Fuu was outraged, even more than before when she thought this was simply to strut his stuff. Now he was doing it for his own gain, and using his fighter's lives to do it. This was the worst kind of man Fuu knew; a man with an ego and no concourse.
One might expect Fuu to be used to this type of human in her line of work. The difference was that most fighters had their own code they lived by, or followed their Bosses. No matter how twisted or unintelligent the code of honor, conduct, or manner of killing it may be, it always set limitations that allowed justice to win over in the end. Not with this man. He was in it only for himself. His code was for money, name and territory.
Fuu swore then, that she could never allow this to happen. If there was any one in LA with enough balls to stop this man, it was be Fuu and her boys.
