A/N As most of you probably already know, Shibata Katsuie is a character from Sengoku Basara 4. A part of this chapter is based on the official novel of this game.


10. Change

The sun was sinking beyond the horizon, casting a blanket of gold across the fields of crops surrounding a small shrine. Cold winter breezes blew past two lone figures walking side by side along the wooden fence. One had a sword slung over his shoulder, and there was a pair of spears on the back of the other.

"Now Shibata-dono's probably in the kitchen, talking to the elder cooks." Yukimura commented out of nowhere, her normally pale face flushed from exercise.

An amused smirk spread across his lips. "I don't know what Katsuie finds so fascinating about those ghost stories."

"If he's happy, then there's no problem, isn't there?"

"Hn."

A comfortable silence fell between them for a moment before she spoke up again.

"About the reason you made him stay with us..."

"Hmm?."

"Katakura-dono seems to be brooding about it quite a lot lately."

"Let him think all he likes."

"...It's his eyes, isn't it?"

His feet stopped, and his surprised eye was turned to her.

"They're exactly the same as yours when I first met you."

His single eye looked at her thoughtfully. Maybe she knew him even better than Kojuro. His Right Eye had yet to figure out his real intention for taking in the Oda general. "You could say so."

"My guess was right, then?"

He did not answer. Instead, a sudden curiosity bubbled up in his mind, and before he knew it, the question flew out of his mouth. "How does it look now?"

She suddenly leaned closer, her face unreadable. "Let me see."

After a moment under her intense stare, despite himself he began to feel uncomfortable. "Well?"

"It's still blue."

"Huh?" She had also said something like that on the first day they had met. Of course it was. It would be quite creepy if his eye changed colours over time.

"But now it's much deeper... like the sea. And it's crystal clear like today's sky." She tilted her head to the side in thought before adding with a warm smile. "And it's shining like a lake under the morning sun."

At that moment, he could only stare at her in silent astonishment. Had he really changed that much?

Something soft and cold on his face recovered him from his loss of words. Raising his free hand to brush it off, the thing melted against the warmth of his hand. His eyes widened subtly in surprise as he looked up to the sky. It was the first snow of this year.

She was looking up too, a childlike fascination on her face, before a full smile spread across her lips.

The last rays of the sun were reflected by countless snowflakes dancing in the wind, turning the whole scenery into a natural display of fireworks.

"Beautiful." Her voice was soft, almost a whisper.

"Ah." His amused gaze fixed on her face, he reached out and brushed some snow of her cheek.

"Let's hurry before both of us catch a cold."

She was startled of her trance though by his touch or his voice he was not sure.

The hand on her cheek moved around her shoulder, and he pulled her closer.

"Masamune-dono?"

"Just a precaution." His voice was flat, but she giggled at him anyway.

Wordlessly, he resumed walking, and with his arm wrapped around her shoulder, she was forced to move along as well.

Maybe it was because of the cold fingers of the wind brushing through his hair, or maybe it was because of the soothing warmth from her small frame, in this moment he was not disinclined to share his private thoughts, something that did not happened so often. "It's all because of you and Kojuro. If it weren't for you two, I'd still be crawling in the dark."

He could feel her surprised gaze on him for a moment before she leaned a bit closer. "... I think the same goes for me too. And that's why I want to help you help him."

The frightfully empty eyes of the bob-haired warrior came to his mind. Now he did not have even a slightest clue how to make those dark voids shine once again. "It'll take quite some time."

"But with you by his side, he'll heal eventually. Just like me." Her soft voice was full of sincere conviction, and if there had been any lingering doubts in the back of his mind, he found them all gone now.

Since he had met her all those years ago, he had been dreaming of creating a world where everyone could embrace hope and look forward to the future. Somehow along the way, it seemed that had become her wish too.

As long as they walked on this path together, he had a feeling that the goal would be reached eventually.