Silver Moon – Book 3 Chapter 19
Kagura and Mutsu charged down the pathway that ran off to the right of the large room. The path soon turned into a hallway, which was long enough that the two girls could not see the end of it. But it didn't matter, because no matter how long it would take them to get there, they knew that their enemies would be waiting at the final destination.
As they ran, Mutsu tried to garner some information out of the younger Yato. "So tell me about our opponents. How strong are these two, Kamui and Abuto?"
"They're both pretty strong," Kagura replied. "The older one, Abuto, is tough and sometimes clever, but he should be manageable. The one that you really need to look out for is my stupid brother, Kamui…"
"He's that strong, huh?"
Kagura nodded. "I don't want to admit this, but he's probably as strong as my dad by now…"
Mutsu frowned for a second. "You two are the Great Umibozu's children, correct?"
Kagura didn't say anything, but nodded once more.
"I was afraid of that," said Mutsu with a scowl. "This fight could be troublesome indeed…"
"Well, you better get ready for it," said Kagura, "because it looks like we're here."
Sure enough, the two girls ran into another big room full of random pipes. The room wasn't as large as the last one, but there was still plenty of space to move around. Once they were inside, Kagura and Mutsu slowed to a halt before glaring up at their enemies. Kamui and Abuto both sat very high up on pipes near the ceiling.
Kamui simply grinned down at them. "So you finally made it…"
Takasugi stood atop the prow of his magnificent ship, and slowly inhaled from his pipe as he looked down on Edo. The Terminal lay in the distance, and the soft rays of the early morning sun were starting to reflect off of it. Takasugi simply grinned to himself as his hair and kimono gently flapped in the wind. The sight below him was truly breathtaking, but he was more excited to see it in a few hours, after his plan had gone into effect.
Just then, he heard a loud noise behind him. He slowly turned to see that the hatch in the deck a fair distance away had been flung open. He then watched silently as Gintoki pulled himself out of the hatch and stood up, facing him.
Gintoki glared at Takasugi as both their hair and clothes fluttered around them. Neither spoke.
Clenching his fists, Gintoki slowly approached the man. As he watched, Takasugi merely grinned.
"Greetings, Gintoki," he said calmly. "I must admit, I did not expect for you to be broken out of your prison cell, but it does not matter. In fact, I'm glad that you came here…"
For a second, Takasugi's eye sparkled with insanity. "Now you can see the spectacle that's about to unfold with your own eyes!"
Gintoki stopped walking within short range of Takasugi, and just frowned. "I don't think so," he told him. "I came here to stop you."
Naturally, Takasugi just smiled in response. "I'm afraid that my plans can no longer be stopped. The time for Edo's destruction has been set, and there's no going back now. Even if you manage to defeat me here, it won't change anything."
Gintoki remained silent as Takasugi inhaled from his kiseru again.
"I'll admit," said Takasugi as soft trails of smoke poured out of his lips, "these ships with the merchants on them may be somewhat successful in stalling my Kiheitai air fleet. However, it doesn't matter, because they can't stop us from reaching our destination, the Terminal. And besides, even if my Kiheitai fleet is taken out, I have Kamui's Harusame fleet right behind them ready to bomb Shinsengumi Headquarters. And of course, that's just the sky. I also have a small army situated on the land, already moving out to take Edo Castle…"
Takasugi then flashed an insane grin. "Well, Gintoki, what do you think of that? You have no way of stopping such a force, do you!? Do you even have anything to combat my army with!?"
Gintoki remained silent again, with the only response being the glare in his eyes.
Takasugi continued grinning triumphantly, but soon looked confused as a small beeping sound caught his attention. Moving slowly, he reached into his kimono and retrieved his cell phone, which was currently ringing. Frowning slightly, he answered.
"Yes?"
"Takasugi-san!" the other line screamed at him. "We're sorry to bother you sir, but we have several emergency reports coming in!"
Takasugi scowled a little. "What's going on?"
"Oh boy, where to start…Well, first off, our land force has been completely halted! They didn't even make it to Edo Castle!"
"What's this? Why have they stopped?" asked Takasugi coldly.
"They met enemy resistance! Apparently, the Mimawarigumi moved out ahead to stop them, and they soon received reinforcements from the Oniwabanshu Shinobi and the elite swordsmen of the Yagyu family! All three forces have met ours in a huge brawl! It's pure chaos! They're being completely slaughtered!"
Takasugi seemed very upset at this. "What!? The Mimawarigumi!? What the hell is that damn Sasaki thinking!? Doesn't he realize that those are my men!?"
"Er…I don't know sir, but I'm afraid that's not all. The Harusame division has also been halted. Apparently, the Shinsengumi discovered them following us and immediately took to firing upon them from the ground. Their cannons are slowly ripping into our fleet!"
"The Shinsengumi too!?" Takasugi growled. "When did those useless cowards start taking action!?"
"Finally sir, our very own Kiheitai fleet is slowly being torn apart by the Kaientai merchants and their female warriors known as the Hyakka that snuck on board. Their strength is too much for us to handle! We're not sure what to do!"
"Fight back!" he shouted at the phone. "What else!?"
"Y-yes sir! We will try!"
The line then went dead as the informant hung up. Takasugi just continued scowling as he tossed the phone away. He then brought his kiseru back to his lips in order to calm himself.
"I must admit…" he said slowly, "that I am impressed that you have actually managed to mobilize such a large force behind you, Gintoki…"
Gintoki stared at Takasugi, and continued to remain silent as he had been. Eventually, he gently shook his head. "I didn't mobilize any army," he told him. "Those people down there and on your ship causing chaos, they're just a bunch of idiots who were sitting around with nothing to do. If they chose to stand up and fight your goons, then they decided that on their own."
Gintoki then glared at Takasugi before reaching for his sword. "To be honest, I'm not really concerned with stopping your plans for destruction. Not this time…"
Takasugi raised an eyebrow out of curiosity as he put his kiseru away. His hand also reached for his own sword. "Oh…?"
"Takasugi, as far as I'm concerned, you've already maimed my world. Now, I'm just looking to strike back."
Gintoki then drew his sword and held it out in front of him. Takasugi quickly did the same.
"Let's settle the score," Gintoki muttered.
As soon as the words left his mouth, Gintoki charged at Takasugi, blade raised. They met in an instant; their blades connected, and sparks flew everywhere…
Sogo ran down the halls as a large group of enemies chased after him. At first glance, this might have looked like he was running away out of fear, but that honestly wasn't the case. Every now and then, the boy would turn back and swing his sword, claiming another one or two terrorist lives. He would then focus on running again.
Sogo currently had a plan, but in order to follow through with it, he would have to reach a certain location on the ship. Hence, his haste. However, little did the young officer know, his plan would soon be interrupted by the appearance of a large bird.
Elizabeth suddenly ran around the corner, still carrying both Tsukuyo and a signboard in his arms. Chasing behind him was another horde of enemies. Naturally, both him and Sogo soon realized that they were running right for each other.
"What the hell!?" yelled Sogo, stunned.
Elizabeth flipped his sign. 'Indeed.'
In order to avoid a collision, the two of them slammed to a halt right in front of each other. They then instinctively turned around and started slashing and beating down their respective enemies.
"What the hell's going on?" asked Tsukuyo as she was swung around on the bird's shoulder. She soon spotted Sogo standing behind the bird. "Ah, is that the young Shinsengumi officer they mentioned?"
Sogo glanced up at her for a second. Oh, I think I know who she is. She must be the one that Takasugi kidnapped from the hospital, and the one that China came here to rescue…
Sogo then grinned. But you know, I really don't care about any of that.
Out of nowhere, the boy suddenly turned around and swung his sword at Elizabeth. The bird somehow noticed in time and was just barely able to jump out of the way.
He flipped his sign again. 'What are you doing!?'
Sogo just remained silent as he advanced and took three more swings. Elizabeth managed to dodge them all, but he was now getting dangerously close to the enemies behind him.
Sogo then pointed his sword at the bird. "I'm not here to talk," he said quietly. "All I know is that I see a notorious Joi Rebel standing before me. You run around with Katsura, correct? Prepare to be arrested."
Elizabeth just stared at him before flipping his sign again. 'Stop! I'm trying to rescue this injured woman from this place!'
"Yeah right," Sogo grunted. "For all I know, you're working with these other rebels and you're carrying her off somewhere."
'…Oh, you've got to be kidding me…'
"Unhand the woman, and prepare to be arrested," Sogo repeated as he took another swing.
This time, Elizabeth jumped over the boy before landing behind him. He then quickly set Tsukuyo down before drawing a sword from his mouth. 'I don't want to hurt you,' the sign now read.
"You won't," said Sogo as he swung once more.
Their blades met in the middle, and a loud clang was sent throughout the hall. Meanwhile, the enemy terrorists that had been keeping their distance decided to make a move.
"They're fighting each other!"
"Kill 'em while they're distracted!"
Several men jumped forward, and Tsukuyo ducked as both Elizabeth and Sogo swung in wide arcs. Each man quickly fell to the floor, dead.
'Is this really the best time for this?' Elizabeth asked.
"Do these terrorists concern you?" asked Sogo plainly.
'Not really…'
"Didn't think so…"
As the two of them started picking up their battle again, a thought struck Tsukuyo. She quickly reached out and grabbed the sword of one of the freshly killed terrorists. She then stood up as she tried to decide which direction would have less enemies to fight through.
I'm not entirely sure why those two are fighting, but this is my chance. While Elizabeth is distracted, I'll be able to sneak away and help the others! All I have to do now is get away from here!
Feeling determined, Tsukuyo chose the path behind Elizabeth. Running as fast as her injured body would allow, she attacked the first line of soldiers. Even in Tsukuyo's weakened state, they were no match for her.
Elizabeth soon spotted her escape. 'Hey, where are you going!?' The bird tried to make a move to stop Tsukuyo, but was quickly intercepted by Sogo once more.
"You're not getting away, terrorist!" the boy yelled as he swung his sword some more. Elizabeth met him blow for blow, unable to reach Tsukuyo as she started to slip away.
After cutting her way through several enemies, the courtesan managed to jump into a hallway that led off to the side before running down it. With each step she took, she felt serious pain. She simply ignored it however, and kept going.
A couple of guards chose to chase after Tsukuyo, but most of them remained behind to try and take out the other two fighters. However, any time one of them stepped forward to make a move, they were instantly met with death as either Elizabeth or Sogo swung their sword. These two fighters were much too skilled and experienced to die to something like a sneak attack from a crowd…
Elizabeth flipped a sign. 'You damn tax-robber!'
Kagura and Mutsu glared up at Kamui and Abuto, who simply stared back at them with confident smirks.
"Well if it isn't the Captain's little sister," said Abuto as he folded his arms. "And look, she even brought a friend along."
"Care to come up and play?" asked Kamui in a taunting voice.
"Kagura," Mutsu whispered, "we need to come up with a plan."
"Yeah?" Kagura replied, not taking her eyes off of the enemy.
"Listen, you said that the stronger one is your brother Kamui, correct?"
"That's right," she said, nodding.
Mutsu frowned. "Well, this is just my guess, but I'm willing to bet that Kamui wants to split us up during the fight. That way, he can finish us off one at a time. Abuto is probably just his support in keeping us apart…"
"Hey," said Abuto, pointing his finger down at them, "what are you talking about down there?"
"Oh, let them talk," said Kamui, completely carefree. "Girls like to gossip, you know."
"Anyways," continued Mutsu, "I believe it would be in our best interest to stick together at all costs. That way the two of us can both focus on Kamui and just deal with Abuto whenever necessary…"
Mutsu then went silent for a moment to stare at Kagura. "It's not going to be easy. We'll probably have our hands full with Kamui, and keeping an eye out for whatever Abuto has planned on top of that is a lot to handle. What do you think?"
"This is probably our best shot, right?" asked Kagura, still watching her brother.
"Yes."
Kagura clenched her fists. "Then let's do it."
"Great," said Mutsu, staring at their opponents once more. "Before we begin though, I have one last question."
"Yeah?"
"That man, Abuto…," said Mutsu, pointing. "Is one of his arms mechanical?"
Kagura raised an eyebrow at this. "Yeah, it should be…How did you know?"
"I've seen arms like that before," she explained. "I can tell by the way it moves. Anyways, that's all I needed to know."
Mutsu then stepped forward. "It's been a while since I've enjoyed a brawl." She suddenly removed her trademark hat and long purple cape. She cast them to the ground; they would only get in the way of this fight.
"Oh boy," said Kamui was he watched. "It looks like we've got a real fighter on our hands!"
"Actually," said Kagura, also stepping forward, "you've got two."
"Are we finally ready to get this show on the road?" asked Abuto, cracking his knuckles.
"It's about time," said Kamui, jumping to his feet. He then extended his arm out towards Kagura before gesturing for her to come closer. "Show me what you've got."
Kagura shot one final glare at him before whispering to Mutsu. "Let's go."
Wasting no more time, the two girls ran towards their opponents and leaped, fists clenched and ready to fly…
Tsukuyo kept running through the halls, even though it pained her to do so. The few remaining Kiheitai members that continued to chase her were slowly getting closer. No matter how hard Tsukuyo ran, she knew that her injuries would eventually exhaust her completely. Clenching her teeth, she looked back and cursed her situation.
"Damn it, guess I'll have to use this," she said as she lifted the sword in her hand. Finally resigning herself, she slid around an upcoming corner on her knees and prepared to make an attack…only to hear someone call for her.
"Boss!?"
Tsukuyo glanced down the hallway she had just entered to see several members of the Hyakka looking at her. Just then, the men chasing after her appeared around the corner.
"Look out!" several of the courtesans cried.
Tsukuyo turned back around just in time to see the terrorist's bodies covered in kunai from head to toe. They instantly fell to the floor.
Taking a deep breath, Tsukuyo slowly rose to her feet. "You saved me, thanks…"
The Hyakka quickly ran to her side. "Boss! Are you okay!?"
"You're covered in bandages!" one noticed.
"What are you wearing?" asked another.
Tsukuyo looked down only to remind herself that she was still wearing a hospital gown. She realized that even though she had recently been patched up, she probably looked like a wreck.
"I'm fine," she told them all. "I heard that you came to rescue me."
"That's right," one said. "We heard what had happened to you and we wanted to get you out of here as fast as we could."
"Do you need us to escort you out?"
Tsukuyo frowned for a moment before shaking her head. "No, I'm afraid I have some unfinished business here. Right now, I really need to find…" Tsukuyo paused awkwardly. "My, uh, lover…"
"You mean Gin-san?"
"Yeah," Tsukuyo replied, "have you seen him at all?"
The Hyakka all shook their heads. "We've just been killing these lowlifes."
"I see," said Tsukuyo, thinking. "Well, I guess I need to go off and look for him. I have a feeling that he needs me. Could you spare me some kunai?"
"Wait, Boss," said one courtesan, "are you planning on running around and fighting?"
Tsukuyo looked at her. "So what if I am?"
The Hyakka immediately looked like they were against it.
"Absolutely not!"
"Just look at yourself!"
"You should be trying to escape! Not fight!"
"I know!" Tsukuyo shouted at them. "I know what state I'm in, but I really need to do this!"
The rest of the warriors looked concerned for her well being. "But Boss…" they said.
Tsukuyo gave a sigh. "What's the matter? Don't you trust your Boss?"
They were quick to respond. "Of course we trust you-"
"Then please," Tsukuyo told them, "spare me some kunai."
The Hyakka seemed hesitant at first, but they soon bowed their heads submissively. One of them then stepped forward to hand Tsukuyo a dozen kunai.
"This is all we'll give you," she told her. "Use them to get your business done, and then get the hell out of here, got it?"
Tsukuyo frowned as she took them. "Hmph, since when do I take orders from you girls?"
"It's in our best interest if you don't die, Boss. We're not ready to start looking for a replacement leader."
Tsukuyo just glared at them with a serious determination. "You won't have to," she said quietly.
She then started running off again. "I promise I'll survive!"
The Hyakka simply gave her their support as she left. "Be careful!" they called.
Tsukuyo just nodded as she took the opportunity to drop the stolen sword. With kunai in hand, she would have no use for it anymore. She then began to wince as the pain hit her again. As her body began to throb, she started to think about her actions…
I know it's stupid…she thought. I know it's reckless. I know that it's not in my best interest, and that the smart thing to do would be to just escape…but…
Tsukuyo sighed before flashing another determined look on her face. But something is encouraging me to keep going! I really feel like I should be helping out Gintoki! And besides, Gintoki does stupid stuff all the time, so it's only fair that I get to do stupid stuff every once in a while too…
Tsukuyo softly smiled and closed her eyes. That is, as long as it's for his sake…
Wow, this chapter was all over the place. But you know, I think that's honestly what I was going for. It really presents a chaotic setting don't you think? I like it. And by the way, you might want to get used to it, because I'm going to be doing the fights like this! That's right, we'll be jumping from fight to fight whenever I feel like it! Ha ha!
Anyways, I might as well dive into the Top Ten once again! Here we go!
Number 2: Tsukuyo
Yes, Tsukuyo. She is the character that I had to debate for possibly placing third under Takasugi…But after some thinking, I realized that I had always enjoyed it when Tsukuyo got screen time, and every episode/chapter where she made an appearance was an absolute joy. And of course, I've written this ridiculously long fanfiction about her…so yeah, I clearly like Tsukuyo a lot.
But honestly, that feels like an understatement. I love Tsukuyo so much, that she is my second favorite female character in all of anime of manga. That's right, I think that Tsukuyo is a shining example of what a good female character should be. She's strong, independent, badass, reliable, but she also has a really nice soft side to her too. She's kind, patient, sweet, and sometimes clueless and clumsy. The only other female character that I put above her is Kyoukai from Kingdom, and that is because she is an absolute goddess, but I digress.
Anyways, I really just love everything about Tsukuyo. Her design, her fighting style, her heart, her values, her relationship with Gintoki, EVERYTHING! No wonder I love seeing her around so much! Honestly, if she were real, I'd probably marry her. I mean hey, why the hell not? She's pretty hot too! XD
Ah, now I think I've said too much -.-' It's best to just wrap things up here. Next time, the (probably) obvious Number One favorite Gintama character! As for now, feel free to leave a review! And look forward to the next chapter where the fighting starts! I can't wait!
