My little sister had major surgery to correct her scoliosis yesterday, so this update came out a day late. Sorry!

Also, to the latest anonymous reviewer, I hear your suggestion. Don't feel nervous about suggesting things. I love suggestions and is alway open to them, so suggest away.

I'll try to insert a festival scene the best I can. It'll probably be after Shizuka gives birth and it'll probably be the Tanabata festival. However, if I can't fit it neatly into the main story, I'll probably include it in the side stories portion.


Chapter 51

The pain of parting is nothing to the joy of meeting again. –Charles Dickens

And the sea goes up, then down, then up again just like the contents of my stomach. Oh, and I think I may have discovered the reason the ocean is never actually blue. The sheer amount of upchucking I had done alone since I stepped on the ferry—

The ship swayed just as a soft wave rolled against the starboard side. I heaved the remainder of my half-digested afternoon snack over the side. A soft square of cloth was pressed against my cheek before the gross remnants of my stomach's slurry was wiped away. At that point, even the clear cup of water that was just pushed into my hands looked unappetizing.

"And hence why traveling, especially by ship, is not recommended for pregnant women," Souji stated, looking very unimpressed with the particular shade of green my face was. He rubbed the spot between my shoulder blades before he leaned casually against the ship's wooden railing. "Regret the trip yet?"

I leaned my sweaty forehead against the railing. "Only that we didn't go by land."

Why did traveling by sea have to be significantly faster than traveling by land? I groaned, picking my forehead up before pushing into Souji's side, no longer caring about the possibility of vomiting on him. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see Chizuru-chan fluttering about the deck of the ship in complete awe.

"Well…," I paused, closing my eyes briefly just as my stomach rolled again, "at least someone is enjoying the ferry ride." Especially now that I got her to stop fretting over me. One can only watch another person puke her guts out for so long before growing slightly indifferent.

"I think it's because it's her first time on a boat," Souji said before barking, "Oi, kid! Don't wander too far! Don't forget that we're letting you accompany us. If you run, I'll kill you." at Chizuru-chan.

"Ah! Sorry, Okita-san!"

I shook my head at the whole exchange. "And exactly where will she run on a ship surrounded on all sides with water?" I muttered. "Will she suddenly sprout wings and fly away?"

He snorted at my muted sarcasm. "I dunno. She can still fall overboard. Plus, were docking soon. I can see the harbor. You excited to finally be on solid ground?"

Ha! Did he even have to ask? So excited that I could get down on both hands and knees to kiss the dirt.

The ship took a solid twenty or so minutes to dock once it pulled into the harbor. However, once the ramp was attached to the ship, there was no keeping me on the wretched vessel. Finally letting go of the ship's railing, I wobbled my way towards the ramp with any hesitation. I took about two steps before Souji wrapped his arm around my elbow to steady me. Chizuru-chan quickly fetched my medical kit and grabbed my opposite arm to offer more support.

"I can walk by myself," I stated weakly before I felt my stomach roll again. I groaned pitifully, taking any and all force out of my previous statement.

"Right," Souji said sarcastically while looking at me like I was an idiot. There was a hint of concern in the look, but it was mostly just him silently calling me an idiot. "You're so fine that you could waddle down the ram without hobbling around like you're missing a foot."

"Do you have to call it 'waddling'?" I couldn't keep the disdain out of my voice.

I mean I know I didn't have the same figure from before pregnancy, but "waddling"? Ow, my confidence felt like it was just sucker punched in the gut.

"Umm…," Chizuru-chan interjected, being forever the peacekeeper. She shrunk a little when Souji's eyes flickered towards her somewhat coolly. "Okita-san just want to make sure you're okay, right Shizuka-san? Seasickness is harsh on pregnant women and it would be bad if you fell right now."

I closed my eyes and took a deep breath to calm my rebelling stomach before letting Souji win the argument. I offered Chizuru-chan the best warm smile I could manage at the current moment to counteract Souji's cool glance before leaning into Souji's side again. Souji grumbled under his breath, something about me listening to anyone but him lately, before he began carefully leading me down the ramp. Once our feet were firmly planted on the dirt, he carefully led me to the wooden bench nearby and had me sit down. Chizuru-chan took a seat next to me and took it upon herself to dab the cold sweat on my forehead away.

"Chizuru-chan, stay here with Shizuka," Souji said in a very businesslike tone whilst giving her a sharp look. Chizuru-chan nodded hastily out of intimidation if not out of agreement. "I'll be right back. If you run, I will kill you."

He then turned and disappeared into the crowd. I wanted to ask him where he was going, but I felt like I was going to vomit again when I opened my mouth for a brief second. I just sunk into my seat and let Chizuru-chan finish wiping the sweat from my forehead.

"Are you feeling better…?" she asked, her large eyes quickly giving me a once over probably to check if she missed any other thing that could have possibly been ailing me.

I leaned back against the wall behind me and looked up at the clouds in the sky as I absorbed the natural warmth from the sun. The effect was then ruined when the cold winter air from the sea blew in. I shivered and attempted to glare at the sea, but the sight of the rolling waves was enough to make me dry heave. Right now, I really hated the ocean and its accursed waves.

"Shizuka-san?" There was a worried frown on Chizuru-chan's face.

"It's just…" I shivered some more before pulling my blue hanten closer to my body as I attempted to bury my nose in the scarf I was wearing. "Why is it still so cold? And the ocean— Does it have move so much? I feel sick just looking at it. Ugh."

Chizuru-chan giggled at my look of disgust. Glad to know she was at least comfortable enough to laugh in my presence.

"I'm sure we'll be heading to the inn Hijikata-san and Sannan-san are staying at as soon as Okita-san comes back," she said, glancing back at the rolling waves. "Just hang in there a little longer." She then put a finger on her chin. "Umm… Do we even know the name of the inn they're staying at?"

"Not a clue."

Chizuru-chan jumped in alarm at Souji's answer before turning a pasty white color.

I looked up to just in time to see Souji returning. He knelt in front of me and pushed a warm bamboo flask of water in my hands, which I thankfully drank. The warmth of the drink was enough to soothe my turning stomach.

"Wait, we don't?" Chizuru-chan exclaimed nervously, her eyes shooting between me and Souji.

Souji shrugged in an untroubled manner. "At least I don't. I didn't read the letter like Shizuka did."

I heard Chizuru-chan heave out a small sigh of relief. She looked to me, waiting patiently for me to finish my water. Souji disposed of the empty flask when I was done by chucking it into the bay. I shot him an annoyed scowled at his actions, but there wasn't much point in snapping over the disposal method. Bamboo did decompose naturally. I just wished that the water from the splash didn't hit any of the random bystanders nearby. One kid got a face full of ocean water before exploding in tears and running off, probably to cry to his mother.

"Okita-san!"

"Not my fault that kid was such a crybaby. It's just water."

Chizuru-chan was just gutsy enough to glower at Souji. He brushed it off like it was nothing and even grinned like a little kid. He was probably amused with her expression. Like a cat with a new toy.

I cleared my throat to get their attention again before pointing towards the center of town. "They're staying at an inn called Yamatoya Hoten. It's just off the main road on the corner of a major marketplace."

"Well," Souji stood back up, looking all serious again, "let's get going then. Best not keep Sannan-san waiting. Plus, pregnant women shouldn't be wandering the streets much on an empty stomach after sundown. If we get to the inn on time, we might be able to catch dinner on Hijikata-san's tab."

My stomach lurched at the mention of food. All that vomiting really did do wonders when it came to driving my appetite away. Souji must have seen my face change because he frowned again. Thankfully, he said nothing as he took me by the arm and began leading the way to the heart of the city. Chizuru-chan quickly scuttled after us like a crab, carefully making sure to remain within Souji's sights, but there was no hiding the awe on her face as she took in the city's sights.

The streets of Osaka, just like Kyoto, were busy. While Kyoto was often busy because it was the capital, Osaka was busy in the same way Edo was. Osaka was similarly a port city. There was plenty of merchandise streaming in from the docks and amazingly fresh seafood. There was even a stall selling live giant clams right at the inn's doorstep. If my pregnancy didn't cause me to have an aversion to seafood, I would have been so excited right now and been begging for some sashimi. It was really difficult to get fresh sashimi in Kyoto since it was a good few hours from the sea. Instead, we were stuck with funazushi while in the capital.

The inn itself, the Yamatoya Hoten, was an impressively large wooden structure sitting in the corner of the market plaza. It wasn't overly fancy like the ones a person might find closer to Tobita Shinchi. This inn mainly catered to traveling merchant families. As if to confirm my suspicions, I could hear an infant crying as soon as we entered. As Souji approached the front desk I lingered behind with Chizuru-chan and watched the crying infant, who was quickly silenced as he latched onto his mother and started nursing.

It made me feel all warm and fuzzy on the inside really quickly. The baby was cute. Probably not really as cute as I was making him out to be, but hormones. I couldn't help but rub my belly whilst nibbling on my lower lip. I was now feeling impatient now that my nausea was gone.

Chizuru-chan peered at me curiously, smiling to herself when she caught onto my actions. Meanwhile, Souji quickly pried Hijikata-san's room number from the front desk attendant, who, by the way, looked about ready to have a heart attack.

"Room 15!" the man exclaimed, breaking out into a cold sweat. His hands shook as he pointed up the stairs. "F-Five doors to the left."

Ah. Souji was the most notorious in Osaka. The people of Osaka still remembered his stunt with the sumo wrestlers from last year. The people still remembered the man with the boyish grin bathed in blood.

Souji didn't even bat an eye at the man's nervous behavior as he started climbing the stairs. Chizuru-chan and I quickly tagged along behind him, quickly catching up when he paused to wait for us at the top of the staircase. We took a sharp left before we were left standing in front Hijikata-san's room. Souji slid the door open rudely without bothering to announce himself.

There was a dull thump before I heard Hijikata-san's yelp.

"What the hell?!" Hijikata-san sounded just like he witnessed someone rising from the dead. "Souji?! What the fuck are you doing here?!"

I poked my head in cautiously, taking great care not to attract Hijikata-san's attention, though I was not so lucky with Sannan-san. He spotted me right away and furrowed his brows at me first in surprise, then in disapproval. I waved at him, nonetheless, and begged him not to alert Hijikata-san to my presence yet by raising a silent finger to my lips.

Hijikata-san was seated by Sannan-san's futon in the room. Sannan-san, himself, sitting up with his bandaged arm hanging in a white sling. While Sannan-san was as calm as one could be, Hijikata-san appeared to be just the opposite. He was wearing an incredulous look, the one that consisted of a slacked jaw and wide eyes, though he was quick to rein in that expression when Souji's smug smirk appeared.

Souji tsked while wiggling his finger condescendingly at Hijikata-san, who narrowed his eyes in response. "Mah, mah, Hijikata-san. It's rude to yell like that. You should think about your neighbors and poor Sannan-san's ears."

Hijikata-san snarled, being in no mood to deal with Souji's attitude right now. He looked about ready to tear into Souji before his eyes finally landed on my head poking out from behind the door.

"You too, Shizuka?!" Hijikata-san's voice may have gone up an octave. "You shouldn't even be traveling! Souji! What the hell made you think this was a good idea?!"

"Really?! Just one look at me and you assume that it's myfault that she's here?! Do you honestly think I was the one that decided to bring Shizuka along when she's so far along her pregnancy?! If I had my way, then Shizuka would still be back at headquarters! Did you forget how pushy she is when she gets an idea?"

And, of course, they would argue as soon as they saw each other.

I crossed my arms and shot Chizuru-chan, who was still hiding out of sight probably out of fear of Hijikata-san's temper, a glance to convey my annoyance. Stupid men. She forced herself to laugh nervously while inching away from the door.

"You know," Sannan-san said, cutting the two arguing men off before things could spin out of hand. Our neighbors were already poking their heads out of their rooms to see what was going on, "Shizuka-chan is standing right there while you two argue about her. I doubt she appreciates it."

Hijikata-san backed off with an irritated huff before crossing his arm. He glowered at me before placing a hand on his forehead as he sighed.

"Fine," Hijikata-san said, still growling a little. "Sannan-san can have his arm looked at immediately this way. At least there are no more surprises."

Best get this over with quick. Like ripping off a bandage.

"Well, about that…," I said before quickly grabbing Chizuru-chan by the arm and tugging her into view. It looked like her heart stopped for a moment.

Chizuru-chan nearly dropped my surgical tools in surprise at the sudden tug. She stared at her toes as soon as she was presented to Hijikata-san. She refused to meet his shocked eyes and curled herself up to make herself seem as small as possible. Though, Hijikata-san wasn't looking so shocked anymore. In fact, I swear that he was starting to turn purple. And, oof, let's not talk about how tense his shoulders—"

"SOUJI! WHAT THE HELL IS THE ONE PERSON THAT'S NOT ALLOWED TO LEAVE HEADQUARTERS DOING HERE?! YOU BASTARD! YOU'RE TRYING TO MAKE ME GO PREMATURELY GRAY!"

Hijikata-san exploded. How unfortunate.

"OH, COME ON! WHY THE FUCK IS EVERYTHING MY FAULT?! IT WAS ALL SHIZUKA'S IDEA! WHY ARE YOU ONLY YELLING AT ME?!"

Oh, look. Souji too.

In the background, Sannan-san was quietly shaking his head while Chizuru-chan tightly clung onto my arm out of the belief that would save her from Hijikata-san's wrath.

It took both of them a while to calm down from their shouting match, but at least they didn't get physical. This time, at least.

I unwrapped the bandages around Sannan-san's shoulder while Chizuru-chan sat nearby, closing observing my every action with a careful eye and a thirsty mind. The outer bandages unwound dry and unsoiled, but the bandages closer to the wound started to come away soggy with the final layer being a soft pink color. Sannan-san let out a silent pained hiss when I peeled the last bandage off. I could feel Chizuru-chan flinch beside me when she got a full view of the wound. It was a nasty slash wound. And with the open wound no longer bleeding, I could see just how deeply the enemy sword had cut. I could see a nick in the white bone. Sannan-san was lucky the sword stopped at the bone. Some katana were known to be able to pierce through five people at the same time without a problem.

"How does it look?" Hijikata-san asked as he peered over my shoulder at the wound. Souji, who was also nearby, stuck his head over my opposite shoulder to get a look too.

"From the preliminary result, the cut looks good. It's clean and there's no foul odor, so there's no need to worry about infection, but…" I pointed to a long stringy construct within Sannan-san's arm. The radial nerve was one of the nerves that were large enough to be seen with the naked eye. "That right there is going to be a problem. Chizuru-chan, scoot a little closer. You'll want a close look at this."

I took the time to dig through my medical kit as Chizuru-chan got a closer look at the wound. The wound needed to be stitched shut to heal properly. I loaded up two syringes and attached them to capped needles before handing it them Chizuru-chan. She held the loaded syringes like she thought they were going to bite her. I hastily loaded up one more but held onto it myself.

"Chizuru-chan, I'm going to show you how to inject local anesthesia and how to stitch up an open wound," I said before turning to the men in the room. "Sannan-san is experiencing loss of feeling and control in the arm because the radial nerve has been severed. It is possible for the nerve to regenerate by itself, but it's more than likely that the two ends of the nerve will need to be reconnected through a nerve graft."

"Can you operate then?" Sannan-san asked. His voice was overly serious to the point of it being a little flat. Even his glasses were no longer gleaming in the light like they always had.

"Honestly, I don't know." I fetched a curved needle from the kit along with some silk thread and placed it on a nearby square cloth before reaching for my scalpel. "I lack the proper equipment to even perform the surgery, and not to mention, the technique used for this type of surgery is something I don't specialize in."

"It's impossible then? Sannan-san will lose function of his arm?" Hijikata-san looked stricken. He was treating Sannan-san's arm like it was his own.

"She didn't say that," Souji interjected pointedly. He only knew a little more than Hijikata-san and Sannan-san regarding the subject because he was digging through my notes the night before we left for Osaka.

"There's little I can do for the nerve right now, but luckily, nerve grafts don't need to be performed immediately, though they are more effective when performed near the time of injury. I can go back and try to reconnect the two ends of the nerve at a later date. For now, I need to contact Kyoko-chan to see if she could get the equipment manufactured. Then I'll need to practice with the equipment to grow adjusted to using it before I even attempt to operate on Sannan-san. So, for now, we'll stitch the wound shut and have it heal."

I removed the cap from the needled and motioned for Chizuru-chan to pay attention.

"This is a numbing shot. There's no need for general anesthesia because it's only a small area of the body, but it is still very strong. I'm going to inject the first shot and have you do the last two. We'll have to work quickly once the shots are in effect because the numbing does wear off with time."

I pointed to the pink flesh of Sannan-san's arm.

"Now see how the flesh looks? How it's no longer bleeding and looks textured almost like sand? It's because it's been a few days since the injury and now there's granulation tissue forming without actually sealing the wound shut. Normally, the appearance of granulation tissue would be a good thing since it would be a sign that the wound is healing, but you can't stitch a wound shut if there's granulation tissue. The wound won't seal properly if you try to and infection will set in. The granulation tissue needs to be scrapped away. When you're stitching a wound shut, there needs to be fresh bleeding."

Chizuru-chan quickly steeled herself with an admirable look of determination before nodding, signaling to me that we could start. She injected the two syringes without a flaw after my example and took to using the scalpel fairly quickly with supervision. She had to be convinced to scrap away more of the healed tissue but worked quickly once she got used to it. Stitching the wound shut was the easiest for her. It was almost like sewing clothing.

"Hijikata-san?" I said, taking advantage of the time my hands were free. "Can you run down to the front desk and book two more extra rooms and ask for some dinner to be sent up? We haven't eaten yet."

Hijikata-san frowned, looking reluctant to leave Sannan-san, but he eventually caved and left the room with a nod to fulfill my request.

I had Chizuru-chan wash her hand as I finished up with the bandaging. Once dinner arrived, we all ate in relative silence out of respect for Sannan-san as he struggled to eat with one hand. No one said anything about the mess he created while trying to eat with one hand. We didn't let him see us clean up after him before going to bed for the night, but I knew he somehow knew. I was sure I was not the only one that had trouble sleeping that night.

The following morning, Sannan-san was being a difficult patient.

"Sannan-san, eat," I said, voice firm with a furrowed brow as Sannan-san glared at his breakfast the next morning. "You can't take your painkillers on an empty stomach.

Sannan-san's glare then switched to me, his glasses gleaming ominously in the morning light streaming through the open windows. His chopsticks hung loosely in his right hand as a bowl of rice sat untouched before him. I returned his glare with the same intensity, daring to challenge him whereas I would have never before. But this wound has changed him. His glare was ten times as icy and his mood was constantly foul, but he no longer seemed intimidating to me. It was like he lost all the heat behind his actions.

It was his arm that was wounded, but it seemed that it was his pride and morale that took the most damage.

"Sannan-san." I scowled and crossed my arms.

His glare never relented before he suddenly looked away, refusing to meet my eyes like a petulant child. "I will eat when you leave the room like the others."

My glare grew dark as I felt a vein in my forehead twitch. This man—!

"What did you say?" I growled, my irritation oozing from every single pore. "I never thought that you were capable of acting like a stubborn child."

"'Stubborn child'?" he snapped as he hastily turned to argue.

It was then I forcefully stole the chopsticks from his hands and dug it into the bowl of rice I had just picked up. Sannan-san was too furious to even realize what I was doing.

"There is nothing wrong with wanting privacy while eat—!"

It was game over as soon as he opened his mouth to yell. While Sannan-san was midsentence, I stuffed a small mouth of rice into his mouth. The action was perhaps a bit rough on my part, but I was careful enough to make sure he wouldn't choke in my irritation.

"Swallow that before you speak," I ordered, pointing the pair of chopsticks at him while dangerously narrowing my eyes. "And don't you dare even attempt to spit the food out. You don't want to know what I would do to those who knowingly and willingly waste food."

Sannan-san's glare increased another tenfold as he quietly promised retribution. He chewed the rice before he slowly swallowed. He grabbed his nearby cup of tea and jerked it up to his lips so he could wash down the food. There was a loud clink sound as he put his ceramic cup back down on the tray a little too roughly.

"Shizuka-chan, that was quite rude of you." The words were one of a light scolding, though his tone was much darker.

I scoffed as I picked up another small mouthful of rice and held it in front of him. "Quite frankly, I don't care. While I care about you, do not take my actions as pity. Making sure you recover is quite literally my job, which you are making very difficult." I shoved the rice against his closed lips. "Eat. I can't operate on your arm if you suddenly become unhealthy or waste away from starvation. You want use of your arm again, yes?"

Sannan-san closed his eyes briefly, as if in pain before he slowly opened his mouth to let me deposit the rice. His shoulders sagged forward in defeat. Wordlessly, he allowed me to feed him like a child. He finished the bowl of rice before he wiped his own mouth. That was one task he would not allow me to help him with. He still had too much pride for that.

"You've change quite a bit since leaving Edo," Sannan-san finally said before offering me a small smile.

I don't know if it was my eyes playing tricks on me or something, but the smile almost seemed sad.

"Before you used to be quite shy and never challenged me on anything I said. You used to run away as soon as I narrowed my eyes at you." It was one of those rare moments where he reached over and patted my head. "Like a lioness, you've become quite a fierce young woman. Motherhood will suit you."

I flushed at the compliment and covered my face with both hands, causing Sannan-san's smile to grow a little bit more. He can't say that type of stuff and not expect me not to feel embarrassed! And while I'm sure he meant every word, he was probably also saying that just to get revenge for earlier. He did like poking at my red cheeks.

Sannan-san then cleared his throat before observing the empty room. "Where are Hijikata-kun and Okita-kun?" he said, changing the topic. Though he didn't mention Chizuru-chan's name, it was pretty much implied he wanted to know where she was too. "I am aware that they wanted to give me some privacy, but they have been gone for a while."

I shook my head, effectively removing the flush from my cheeks before I glanced at the door.

"A government official came to the inn an hour earlier and specifically asked the front desk for the 'Shinsengumi's Vice Commander'," I explained. I stood up to go open the window a little wider. There was a nice breeze and it was not nearly as chilly as it was yesterday. "There have been a series of thefts in Osaka lately and it appears that they have finally had enough of the thefts. They probably want us to investigate before we leave. Souji accompanied Hijikata-san to meet the official after he pestered Hijikata-san into bringing Chizuru-chan. I believe it was something like, 'Why don't you take your adorable new page along to show her the ropes. She needs to be able to act like a page for the lower-ranking soldiers to believe she really is your page.' Then they started bickering again."

Sannan-san made a sound of acknowledgment.

When I picked up the tray of dirty dishes, he shot me a questioning look. After all, the inn had excellent service and would have undoubted sent a maid to pick up the used dishes like they did last night. However, I wanted to go to the kitchen to speak the cook. Vitamin B12[1], something fishes had in spades, was great for encouraging nerve damage recovery.

"I'll be right back," I answered before exiting with the tray.

The kitchen in this place was surprisingly difficult to find. Normally, one would just have to follow the smell of food, but it was the breakfast rush. Everything smelled of food. Although, I suppose I should be glad that no one was cooking any fish this morning. I would hate to have to give up my search just because my nausea was acting up.

The kitchen was nestled all the way in some odd back corner of the inn and completely out of sight. I pulled back the blue, bamboo print noren and peeked inside first. It was incredibly busy. There were maids running back and forth, some with full trays, some with baskets of ingredients. At the stove was a big, burly man with gray hair. I swear he looked more like a pirate than a cook. The only thing he was missing to complete the image was an eyepatch and tattoos.

"Excuse me," I called into the kitchen.

"Oh!" It was one of the maids that noticed me first. She scurried up to me and quickly liberated my arms of the dirty dishes. "There was no need to bring the dishes down yourself. We would have sent someone to pick up the used dishes."

"I know." I offered the young woman a friendly smile. She only looked a few years older than me. "But I wanted to. Besides, I wanted to come down the kitchens anyway. I have a request."

"Oh?" the man at the stove interjected. His gruff voice matched his appearance. "A request? Whatcha need?"

"I have an injured family member staying at this inn at the current moment. May I send someone down here to cook some meals for him that will be easier for him to eat?" I asked with a polite bow. Just a pity it had to be fish. Chizuru-chan will have to cook in my stead.

The man barely even batted an eye at me. I think he might actually get requests like this quite often. Or it could have been the very obvious baby bump that softened him. It's hard to tell sometimes

"Fine," he said, grumbling a bit as he turned back to the stove. "But you'll need to go out and buy your own ingredients! I have none to spare. And whoever you're sending down to cook better not get in the way of me doing my job!"

"Thank you so much," I said, paying no mind to his gruff attitude as I bowed again before retreated out of the kitchen and back to Sannan-san's room.

Now all I needed to do was buy food. That much I could do myself without having to push it onto Chizuru-chan. But I probably needed an escort to go down to the market, which was stupid. The market was right at the inn's doorstep. I huffed in slight annoyance just as I stepped back into Sannan-san's room. Hijikata-san and the others were back.

"Where have you been?" Souji asked just as I took a seat next to him. All the eyes in the room fell on me. "You aren't supposed to wander off alone."

"I didn't leave the inn, in case you're wondering." I brushed my bangs out of my eyes. "I went to go get permission to use the kitchen. Well, actually, I got permission for Chizuru-chan to use the kitchen since you won't allow me to cook. Good nutrition is the first step to recovery. I'll need someone to go with me to the market to pick up ingredients."

Hijikata-san sighed tiredly before leaning back and putting all his weight on his arms. "I'll go with you while Yukimura stays with Sannan-san. I need to cool my head anyways." He then turned to Souji. "Go get a head start on the investigations. I want you to go speak to the people who've claimed they've been robbed."

Part of me wondered if Hijikata-san really thought this through. While some of the people weren't still afraid of Souji, most were. Would they even willingly speak to him?

Souji merely shrugged in response. He pecked me on the forehead and whispered, "Don't work too hard," into my ear before he excused himself.

"Well then," Sannan-san said faux cheerfully as he laid down and pulled the blankets snug against his chin, "go enjoy the markets while I rest a little longer."

I waved at Chizuru-chan before Hijikata-san gave me a small push out the door in his impatience.

My goodness. He did seem like his was in a significantly worst mood this morning. I waited until we were outside before I asked.

"So," I said as I made my way towards one of the seafood stalls I saw yesterday. The stall was already filled with this morning's fresh catches. Most of the fish were still alive. "What has you so irritated this morning? Perhaps it was the government official?"

"That much is obvious, don't you think?" Hijikata-san snorted before smacking his own forehead. "I'm sure you heard about the thefts. Small valuables, such as jewelry, have been stolen from homes and the officials have just ignored it until now. The only reason they're paying attention to the thefts now is because a ring, which was a family heirloom of one of the officials, was stolen yesterday." He scoffed before glaring at nothing in particular. "These officials are selfish scum, ignoring everyone's demands of an investigation until one of them has been impacted."

"Well, humans are inherently selfish creatures to begin with. That's nothing new," I replied just as we arrived at the stall. My eyes were immediately drawn to the massive Japanese snapper[2] still flopping around in a wicker box to the far right.

"But still…" Hijikata-san growled in frustration. "We're low on manpower right now, so I guess it was a good thing you arrived with Souji yesterday."

"And Chizuru-chan too," I added while getting the fishmonger's attention by pointed at the Japanese snapper, signaling him that I wanted it. "She can help around with the little things if you let her. And since I probably won't be much help this time around, I'll stay at the inn and keep Sannan-san company." And away from self-depreciating thoughts.

I paid the fishmonger as Hijikata-san retrieved the fish. As we turned to return to the inn, another man, who was carrying several large rolls of cloth, ran smack into Hijikata-san. The man dropped his load while landing on his butt. Hijikata-san, on the other hand, only lost his balance for a few seconds before steadying himself. Hijikata-san growled at the man on the ground.

"Hey! Watch where you're going! You could hurt someone like that!"

"Me?!" the man on the floor said. "You should have moved out of the way!"

Oh, what a big mistake. Hijikata-san was already in a bad enough mood as is and he hated being blamed for something that wasn't his fault. At this point, I think he was just looking to pick a fight with someone.

"Ho?" Hijikata-san handed me the fish as he approached the man. "Care to repeat that a little louder?"

"I said—"

The young man shot up to his feet like a demented jack-in-the-box and got right in Hijikata-san's face, which was turning extremely dark.

"Watch. Where."

Strangely enough, there was just something about this man that seemed so familiar, but I couldn't pick out what. I squinted at the man in hopes of mysteriously uncovering something.

"You. Are."

It wasn't that he looked familiar or anything. I would remember someone like him if I had met him. He did look rather handsome, though, not as handsome as my Souji. He did have an Edo accent, however.

"Going."

Then it suddenly hit me like a bolt of lightning. I nearly dropped the fish in my hands. Just what were the chances of this happening?

"Isao-kun?" I suddenly interjected, causing Hijikata-san to freeze in his tracks just as he pulled his fist back for a punch. "Is that you?"

The young man jumped at the name and suddenly turned to me with wide eyes. "What?! Who are you and how do you know my…" He suddenly turned as pale as a sheet of ice. "S-SHIZUKA-CHAN?!"

I could hear crows cawing in the background as we stared at each other.


[1] Vitamin B12 is required for proper red blood cell formation, neurological function, and DNA synthesis. Vitamin B12 functions as a cofactor for methionine synthase and L-methylmalonyl-CoA mutase. Methionine synthase catalyzes the conversion of homocysteine to methionine. Methionine is required for the formation of S-adenosylmethionine, a universal methyl donor for almost 100 different substrates, including DNA, RNA, hormones, proteins, and lipids. L-methylmalonyl-CoA mutase converts L-methylmalonyl-CoA to succinyl-CoA in the degradation of propionate, an essential biochemical reaction in fat and protein metabolism. Succinyl-CoA is also required for hemoglobin synthesis.

[2] Paracaesio caerulea, the Japanese snapper, is a species of snapper native to the Western Pacific Ocean where it is known to occur in the waters around southern Japan, Taiwan and the Chesterfield Islands of New Caledonia. It is found in areas with rocky substrates at depths of over 100 meters (330 ft.). This species can reach a length of 50 centimeters (20 in) TL though most are around 30 centimeters (12 in). It is important commercially as a food fish.