Scene XII

Solar Year 189

Tokyo Empire, Asakusa

. . . . . .

Benimaru groaned, pain pulsing against his brow like an angry heartbeat.

He managed to get one of his hands out from under him to check his (admittedly) thick skull, fingers gently prodding the tender flesh. He flinched, grunting at the flare of fresh agony. Well, the skin wasn't broken so that was a plus at the very least; but damn he was gonna let Shobu have it when he got out. The headache growing behind his eyes was enough to piss him off alone. Pain aside, Beni blinked, attempting to find his bearings, and discovered the box was only mostly dark. There was one shard of light managing to poke through an old hole in the front wall.

He rolled over and struggled to sit up. Luckily for his scrawny self, the box wasn't so small that he couldn't move around somewhat. Nonetheless, it took him three separate tries before he was able to sit upright. Well, nearly. He had to bend slightly to avoid hitting his head against the sloping lid of his confinement, least he end up whacking himself . . . again.

"There you are!"

Beni froze, hand stilling against his temple at the sudden shout. Damn, they hadn't lost them after all.

"Where is he?! Where's Shinmon?!"

Cursing under his breath, he braced his hands against the lid of the woodbox and pushed. Nothing. He repositioned himself and tried again, this time getting his knees under him and pressing up with one shoulder. The wood gave slightly under the force and the hinges squeaked in a tired, painful way but still the lid did not swing free. Hang it all, Shobu must have blocked it somehow from the outside and he couldn't remember whether or not the blasted thing had a working latch.

"The hell should I know? I ditched 'im soon as I got the chance."

What in the hell are ya thinkin', stupid?

She was crazy. Crazy and stupid and goddamn, she couldn't take them all on by herself. Was she that confident or had she entirely lost her mind? At this point, Beni didn't know which was more likely. Probably both, if he had to guess.

"Really? That so?" Jin's voice asked, tone snide. "Well, that makes things a bit easier fer us now don' it?"

The other two laughed and the sound alone made Benimaru's skin crawl. Not good. So very not good. Again, he tried the lid and, once more, the wood refused to budge.

"I don' know what the moron did ta ya," Shobu snarked and Beni wanted to groan out loud for her overuse of bravado. "But how 'bout ya chase somethin' else fer a change?"

"Sure, why not?" Sanji drawled menacingly. "Think we've found somethin' a lot more fun ta mess with, what ya think guys?"

"Looks that way," the third piped up, though he sounded a lot less threatening trying to speak through a throat thick with blood. His nose still hadn't stopped bleeding, apparently.

Dammit, Shobu! Run!

This wasn't a fight she could win, not on her own. If only he could get the hell out, then maybe . . . A startled yelp, followed by a muffled grunt of exertion, instantly stopped his line of thought. He dropped down to the floor of the woodbox and peered through the old hole, hoping to see some aspect of the conflict taking place outside.

At first he saw nothing, only able to hear the sounds of a struggle; then Shobu came across his limited line of sight, followed by Jin who was trying to grab a hold of her. She was far to nimble for that, dodging and weaving around the leader with a grace that surprised even Beni. The act did not last long, however. Sanji and the still unnamed third came into view and caught her unawares, each taking one thin arm in their grasp as she struggled to free herself.

"Not yer day, huh Shobu?" Jin asked coldly as he marched up to the thin, twig of a girl. "Bet yer wishin' ya didn' ditch Shinmon after all?"

"Watchya gonna do without yer little friend?" Sanji taunted and, from what little Beni could see of him, twisted her arm in such a way that Shobu cried out in pain.

"Take a walk off a cliff, the lot o' ya," she spat through clenched teeth. "Yer a waste o' oxygen fer the rest o' us."

"How 'bout ya get off yer goddamn pedestal," Jin returned without pause, a clear growing hatred building in his words. "Quit pretendin' ta be better than everyone else!"

To Beni's surprise and horror, she only threw back her head and laughed. It was a high, cold sound which chilled his blood and almost caused his heart to pause.

"Ya know," Shobu said quietly (he had to strain to hear her words at all). "I'm gettin' real sick an' tired o' everyone thinkin' they know me. Fine. How 'bout we switch, guys? Ya want ta live my life? How 'bout ya fuckin' take it!"

She practically snarled the last words, a biting retort aimed to both intimidate and challenge her captors. Through his small window to the outside world, Benimaru could see how she held herself. Tall, proud, and angry. Even now, trapped as she was with no way out, she didn't let on that (or if) she was afraid.

"Fair 'nough," Jin agreed darkly. He reached out and seized her by the front of her yukata, pulling her up as far as she could stand so as to have her at eye level. "Why don' we."

Then the older boy slapped her across the face, the sound echoing across the alley ominously.

Beni flinched so hard, his forehead collided against the wall of the box and his vision blurred.

"Nobody's here ta cover yer ass, Shobu." Jin remarked and the sheer casualness in which he spoke riled an anger deep within Benimaru. "Shinmon ditched ya. Or maybe ya thought ya could take us all on yer own? Was that it? How arrogant do ya have ta be, Shobu?"

He pulled back his other hand and hit her again, the blue ribbon barely holding it's place within the black strands of her hair. Still, Shobu didn't make a sound.

"That old man o' yours is the only thing that gets ya anywhere," Jin continued. "Yer only 'special' cause yer his daughter. Yer Style and training's all ya got. Without it, yer nothin'. 'Sides, where's that talent, now? Huh?"

Another slap and, this time, she did cry out. A high, quick yelp of pain and shock which had Beni balling his fists against the wall of the woodbox. He couldn't watch this anymore. He had to do something. Even if it wasn't his fight exactly, he was the one who started it. He had to end it.

"But," Jin added, voice becoming sweet and gentle-like; he reached out and lifted her chin so he could look at her. "Maybe, if ya tell us where Shinmon went, we might take it easy on ya."

For a moment there was nothing but the desperate inhale and exhale of Shobu's breathing. Benimaru could practically hear her Breath of Life struggling not to give in, though he wished she would. He wanted her to give up. It wasn't worth it. He wasn't worth it.

Then, Shobu yanked herself out of Jin's grasp; her head falling against one shoulder. He couldn't see her face now, so he had no idea if she was crying, or in pain, or what. She mumbled something but Benimaru was too far away to hear.

"What was that?" Jin grabbed her by the hair and shook her, still trapped in the constraining arms of his fellows. "What did ya say?!"

Beni watched, horror mounting, as she merely tilted her head back as far as Jin's hold on her would allow.

"I said . . . Go. To. Hell."

And then she spat in his face.

Jin reeled back, crying out in shock and disgust, while his friends all but shoved Shobu to the ground. Her face hit the cobblestone with a dull thud! and the rest of her lay in an awkward tangle of gangly limbs and dirt smeared fabric. She let out a low groan of pain and Benimaru had more than enough. He had been stupid enough to think maybe Shobu had a plan to deal with them, but now he knew that wasn't the case. She had been only buying time.

As if it couldn't possibly get any worse, it did.

Jin stumbled backwards, hands wiping angrily at his eyes which had taken the brunt of the attack. "Damn, ya Shobu!"

Then he reached down and picked up a stray rock just as she was struggling to her feet. The older boy launched the stone at her unprotected face, while Shobu herself was too disorientated to dodge the incoming missile. It struck her square across the temple and a small squeak of startlement was ripped from her throat before she collapsed in a tiny heap in the middle of the alley.

Benimaru sensed her Breath of Life sputter, then turn shallow and ragged.

For a moment, there was nothing but cold terror washing over him . . .

. . . and then pure, unadulterated rage.

. . . . . .

His Master was always telling him, someone of his strength needed control. Control was the key to understanding, not just others, but himself. Especially himself; because he was strong and the strong held power others couldn't and didn't understand. As such, it was up to the strong to keep things in check. Whether that be outside forces, the people they protected, or themselves. Power itself was a raw and wild thing. If it burned for too long while growing hotter and hotter, it would become a massive firestorm which would rampage and destroy anything in its path.

Shinmon Benimaru's strength was like nothing anything the Master had ever seen before, or that's what the old man had once told him. He had more power in one hand than most could ever dream or hope to gain in their entire lifetime. The sheer intensity of it could lay waste to all around him if he so desired. He had the power. He had the flame. He had the unbridled anger which all young teens possessed and yet, had no idea how to control. All three were a dangerous mix rolling around in one small, thirteen-year-old boy.

Especially one who struggled for that control and failed at every turn.

So, when he burst out of the woodbox in a blaze of unbridled fury, wrapped in flame, and mismatched eyes burning with the sheer loathing of a boy who had more than enough . . . the older teens turned tail and bolted as if they were faced with the terrifying vision of Acala himself. For all intents and purposes, they might as well have been.

Benimaru briefly debated whether he should give chase and beat their asses stupid for what they had done to Shobu. He wanted to. He wanted to feel their bones give under the weight of his fists. He wanted to hurt them. He wanted to make them scream. Then he glimpsed her prone form out of the corner of his eye and the rage wavered for a moment. That moment was more than enough; he took a breath and cooled his anger, the heat subsiding and fading back into his being. Once he was no longer aflame, he rushed to her side and skidded to his knees. She lay in a crumpled heap with her hair tossed about her face and still. So very, very still.

"C'mon, Shobu." He murmured desperately, gripping her shoulder and giving it a small shake. "Wake up. Wake up!"

She groaned and tried to roll over onto her back, but failed; her hair falling completely out of her ponytail, leaving strands of it to fall haphazardly across her shoulders and along the ground. There was a fresh wound along her hairline where the rock struck her, pouring blood across her face and dripping onto the cobblestone.

" . . . Shin . . . mon . . ." She blinked, green eyes unfocused and voice slurred.

"Shobu, can you stand?" He asked insistently, worry bleeding into full on panic. "Shobu! Focus will ya?!"

But, her eyes closed and she moaned; a small, low sound which only served to frighten him even more. She wasn't focusing on him at all; in fact, she continued to wince every time she opened her eyes. She'd blink, then look away to something else; but nothing could hold her attention for more than a few seconds. And her eyes . . . they didn't look right. Something was wrong. Very wrong.

Concussion.

Cold realization churned violently within his stomach along with the sensation that he had swallowed stones. This was bad. This was so very, very bad.

" . . . Shin . . . mon . . ."

Well, she knew it was him at least. That was a plus. Right?

"Yeah, yeah it's me." He said quietly, leaning over her and doing a quick visual assessment of everything else. "Anything else hurt? "Sides yer head?"

"Ng," was all she could muster before her eyes closed again.

"Hey, hey!" Benimaru tried to rouse her without inflicting further pain. "Don't go ta sleep, Shobu! Ya might not wake up! Shobu!"

They couldn't stay here. She couldn't stay here. They had to move. This was serious and Shobu needed more help than he knew how to give.

Konro.

He'd know what to do. If he could just get her to the guardhouse, get her home, then everything would be alright. Konro and the Master would be able to sort it all out and she'd be fine. The question was, could he even lift her? Was it safe for him to try? Would it be better to run and . . . ? No, no he couldn't just leave her here lying in the alley like this. That was a terrible, horrible plan.

Alright, take her there then.

It was the only solution he could come up with which wasn't going to end in someone being left in the street.

"C'mon, Shobu." He encouraged quietly, trying to keep his voice even. It wasn't good to be loud and pissed off right now. He could be later, when she wasn't bleeding all over the street and her head was a bit cleared up. He ripped a portion of his sleeve and fashioned a makeshift bandage to wrap around the wound at her temple, careful not to jar her too much. "Yer gonna be fine, okay? I'll get ya ta Konro an' he can fix ya up in no time, promise."

". . . promise . . . ?" She murmured, eyes half-lidded; but it sounded more like a question than an affirmation.

"Yeah, promise." He nodded, though mostly to convince himself. "Ya jus' sit back an' take a load off, 'kay? Ya done enough."

" . . . 'kay . . ."

And she was out again.

Dammit, how in the hell was he gonna do this? His arms were too thin to carry her the way he'd seen the men of Asakusa carry around their wives and children from time to time. The only other option was to . . . oh, right. Pickaback. He'd carry her on his back. Alright, he could do this. Taking a deep breath, he lifted her left arm and drew it over one shoulder. Then, he reached down with the opposite hand to hook it under her right knee. Good, now he had leverage on each side so when he raised up, he wouldn't be off kilter and drop her on accident. One. Two. Three. Lift!

In one fluid motion, Benimaru managed to settle Shobu fully on his back and all without jarring her around to the point she cried out in pain.

He'd take any win he could get, at this point.

"Hang in there, Shobu." He said to her, hoping she could hear him. "Don't wimp out on me now, ya got that?"

For the love of . . . somebody . . . don't let it permanent. As much as she annoyed him, as much as she pissed him off and teased the hell out of him, he didn't want her to change because of a stupid rock.

. . . . . .

Nobody knew the streets of Asakusa the way Shinmon Benimaru did. Due to his penchant for trouble and his reputation as a scrapper, he knew all the ways home that were quick, efficient, and, most of all, obscure. There was little chance he'd run into someone who would cause a scene; the last thing Shobu needed was more noise. Down an alleyway, across a tiny intersection, down another alley, and on and on it went until he recognized the hard to miss watchtower connected to the main guardhouse. Thank heavens, he was tired. Shobu looked like she weighed nothing, but carrying her around for the better part of a half hour sure made for tiring work.

Straightening up, he heaved the aforementioned girl higher on his back before continuing the rest of the way. It would be better to make his approach from the back of the house, rather than the front. He'd risk less people noticing him and avoid any crowds still hanging about from the market. The less of that, the better in his opinion. 'Sides, Konro's room was near the back and he liked to sit on the engawa while sipping his tea in the late afternoon sun. It was a rather odd quirk for a man like Konro to have but, then again, the man could be a walking contradiction at times.

Right now, Beni couldn't be more glad that Konro liked to have his tea in the late afternoon and take it on the engawa in the back. It meant he, potentially, wouldn't have to go hunting the man down for help when they got there.

"Almost there, Shobu." He huffed, exhaustion starting to set in. "Then, ya can lie down an' Konro can fix ya up. Told ya . . . it wouldn't . . . be a problem."

Damn, his legs were burning.

He turned the corner . . . and his heart sank between his toes.

The engawa was empty and the shoji were closed.

Benimaru gritted his teeth and fought for the strength needed to make it as far as the engawa. He had to get Shobu off his back (this time quite literally) so he could get her some damn help. But, like everything having to do with the girl, things just had to get complicated. He leaned against the side of a nearby house, using the corner to brace himself as he sucked in a few lungful's of much needed air. He made it this far, he could go a few more meters. The damn house was right there.

" . . . Shin . . . mon." Shobu's voice was barely above a whisper, but it was the first he'd heard from her since he managed to get her out of the alley.

"Yeah?" He asked heavily, trying not to sound as exhausted as he felt.

". . . m'head . . . hurts . . ."

Well, shit. She'd been smacked around for a bit, knocked upside the head with a rock, and given a concussion on top of things as a consolation prize. Of course it damn well hurt.

"We're almost there, okay?" He remarked carefully, not wanting to make her cry.

She hadn't so far but that didn't mean he wanted to risk it. She was tough-as-nails on the day to day but, after all that, he couldn't say he'd blame her if she did. He'd just feel like a total asshole about it and he was already in the thick of it. He didn't need to add Make-Shobu-Tsubaki-Cry on top of the list of shit he was already responsible for.

". . . 'kay . . ." She agreed quietly and settled back against his shoulder where she had currently made her home for the last half hour.

It was a true testament to how bad her condition really was because if there was ever a chance that she was actually fine, she would have launched herself off of him faster than you could say white on rice. The mere fact she was willingly letting him carry her all the way to the guardhouse and not putting up any kind of fuss to either put her down or take her home was scaring the living hell out of him. This wasn't like yesterday with Kaede, at all. She had been fine after fifteen or so minutes and she could talk alright too. Shobu, on the other hand, couldn't walk, barely spoke, and when she did it wasn't even full sentences, and she couldn't focus on anything.

Stop it. Yer making it worse. Focus on getting ta the house. Focus on what ya can do, not what ya can't.

That's right. He had to keep it together or Shobu was gonna be in hotter water than she already was. He could do this. He was nearly there.

Benimaru struggled upright and pushed himself off the corner, fighting for every step he could get out of his feet. Whatever he had left, he had to use it to get to the house, then he needed to run for help. He could do that much. He had to. Shobu was counting on him. Kaede too. Damn, what would she say when she found out Shobu had been hurt so bad? Would she hate him? He'd promised her he'd remember why he'd fought. He promised and he broke it. There was a limit to people's goodwill. There were limits to how much a person could take in the way of disappointment.

Konro and Kaede were going to kill him.

Well, if that was gonna be his fate, then he'd take it like an Asakusa man would. 'Cause, right now, Shobu was more important. They could hang him out to dry and beat the shit out of him or whatever, as long as she got help first. Then, they could kill him. But, only after.

Finally, the engawa was in reach and he let Shobu slide off him (gently) so he could lay her down (carefully). Once that was done, he willed himself up on the planked wood and stumbled across for the shoji.

"HELP! KONRO! SOMEBODY! HELP US!" Benimaru bellowed for all he was worth, despite his exhaustion and fatigue. He screamed again and again into the open doorway, leaning hard against the door but unable to muster enough strength to cross fully into the house. "IS ANYBODY THERE?! HELP, PLEASE!"

He'd never been one to beg, but he'd do it if it would get Shobu help.

He opened his mouth to scream again when Konro appeared at the end of the hall looking frazzled and scared witless.

"Benimaru, what the hell is the matter?!" The older man called out as he ran towards him, his great stride crossing the entire length in six whole steps. "Are you hurt-?"

"Not me," Beni choked out hoarsely, his voice utterly spent. He shook his head, body slipping down the length of the doorframe; his strength gone. "Shobu. She's . . . got a concussion."

Konro caught him about the shoulders just as he nearly beamed his own brain against the door. "Beni?! Benimaru what happened to-!"

He knocked the man's hand away, pointing desperately at the still prone Shobu Tsubaki lying on the planked floor of the engawa. Blood was weeping through his makeshift bandage and dripping down the side of her face, which was still smeared with blood from the first go around.

"Help 'er, stupid." Beni gasped, fighting for air. "Not me."

This time Konro did see her and the look of sheer terror on his face mirrored that of yesterday, when Kaede had taken the hit she should have blocked. "Holy, hells. Don't move, Benimaru!"

"Wasn't plannin' on it," Beni answered half-heartedly, leaning heavily against the shoji for support. Damn, he was tired. Oh, so tired.

The older man rushed to Shobu's side, crouching over her and running through some mental checklist of shit Beni had no idea about. All he could do was watch as Konro looked her over and frowned, his brows furrowing in concern and concentration.

"Not good," the man murmured under his breath. "Concussion. A bad one. We need to call Hajime-sensei and get him down here to take a look at her."

So he'd been right. It was a concussion.

Wonderful.

There was no way this could get any worse.

Suddenly, a large shadow chose, at that moment, to appear over him.

"What in the living hell have you done, Benimaru?"

It was his Master.

Timeline

SY = Solar Year

SY 195 (current year, as of now): Benimaru age 19; Konro age 35; Tsubaki age 20; Kaede age 28

SY 189: Benimaru and Tsubaki become friends through a rather unfortunate incident. Benimaru age 13; Konro age 29; Tsubaki age 14; Kaede age 22

SY 188: Benimaru and Tsubaki meet for the first time. Benimaru age 12; Konro age 28; Tsubaki age 13; Kaede age 21

SY 186: Benimaru is adopted by Shinmon Hibachi. Benimaru age 10; Konro age 26.

SY 184: Shinmon Himawari dies. Konro age 24; Kaede age 17; Tsubaki age 9.

SY 180: The Shobu Matriarch, Shobu Ryoko, dies. Konro age 20; Kaede age 13; Tsubaki age 5