Chapter Twenty-Eight: It All Changes Again
As the months went by, and I experienced my seventeenth summer, I began to realise that the small moments of happiness, were about to come to an end. It happened slowly at first, and we were still coming off the elation that Chiyome's announcement that she was pregnant had brought when the gunpowder was finally sparked.
The dark days began again when Mizu ran into town, dragging Ranmaru behind her, "Soldiers on their way! Soldiers on their way!" Hastily pushing Ranmaru back into the house, the huntress glared me into closing the door, turning just as horses were heard on the horizon.
Shaking slightly, we clung onto each other, hearing the village children yell greetings to the passing group, familiar voices colliding with them. "It's the Date!" Ranmaru hissed, looking up at me. Pushing my finger against my lips, I edged the front door open slightly, pressing my eye directly up against the gap.
Getting the plan, he knelt down by the gap, watching the procession. Masamune was at the front as expected, Master Katakura close behind, looking as though he was trying his hardest to keep his eyes dead ahead, "I think he's looking for us." I whispered downwards, receiving a middle finger from behind Mizu's bowing back, "I think she heard me."
"Guess so." Giggling quietly, our faces soon turned to horror when we heard another familiar voice.
"Blue Dragon!"
"Itsuki!"
"Damn it!" Our blue haired lodger charged past Mizu, who seemed to be groaning in annoyance, even as Itsuki walked right up to Masamune's horse. Beneath me, Ranmaru started shaking, clearly worrying for her fate. You simply didn't halt a samurai procession, no matter who you thought you knew.
Just as we thought, Masamune turned, saying something to Master Katakura who held up a hand, halting the army. That was where the typical responses ended, because rather than decapitate her or order her death, the One Eyed Dragon slipped off his horse, grounding himself just in time to receive the full force of her hug. "How are you doing, kiddo?"
"Awesome, the rice is coming in perfectly this year!" Setting her feet back on the ground, Masamune ruffled her braids, smirking in that oh so familiar manner. Looking past her at Mizu, who hastily bowed again, his gaze was boring right into the doorway.
Gasping, Ranmaru pulled me away, causing us to end up in a pile on the step, staring wide eyed at the entrance, and waiting for that gauntleted hand to curl around the edge and pull it open. Two years, surely he'd have forgotten all about us by now?
All the same, my body shook, until I heard the powerful voice of Master Katakura again, "Lord Masamune, we should be going. I doubt that the Uesugi and Takeda will wait for us."
I felt my eyes widen again, glancing down at Ranmaru who was wearing a similar face. Kawanakajima again? Looks like the time for that rematch Masamune had been waiting for had finally come, which could only mean Yukimura had better be ready. Who knows, there might actually be a winner this time around.
Tucked away in the shoe hall, I knew my heart was beating in perfect unison with the hoof beats outside, only calming down when Mizu's fingers curled around the frame, easing it open, "It's okay, they're gone." Staring down at us through the gap, she and Itsuki smiled, beginning to laugh. Joining them, Ranmaru held out his hands to be pulled back up, his giggles turning slightly hysterical with the close call.
Letting Mizu yank me back up to my feet, I went to put some tea on the boil, planning to use it as a bribe to get the kids to calm down, but they were far too excited, forced into nervous chatting while the huntress left, leaving Ranmaru behind to calm his shaking nerves. Humming slightly, I set out a third cup, keeping my mind occupied so that my own frazzled state wasn't too noticeable.
We'd barely recovered from that shock when three days later, the army passed through again. This time Mizu and Ranmaru had decided to sell their pelts in town, leaving me and Hanzo behind to collect water for the washerwomen, and effectively leaving the village without a warning system.
Unless of course you counted Asuka, who had the good grace not to yell about what she saw, but instead dropped one side of her yoke, sending the bucket falling off until it landed on Hanzo's foot.
Swearing at a volume that would've had every mother in the village at his back had we not been in the company of samurai, Hanzo managed to keep hold of his water buckets, but within seconds, the army was passing by us, and he could do little more than bite his lip and bow.
Following likewise, I felt a pair of eyes burning into my hair, feeling Master Katakura's mental reprimand for being so reckless. Annoyed slightly, I let my head inch upwards, letting him see my displeasure, only to be ignored completely, his head looking at his Lord with concern. This simple observation worried me, because one thing I knew for certain was that if Masamune even so much as thought of a reason to make Master Katakura worried, his Right Eye would never stop watching his back.
So if it hadn't been his gaze that had been on me, then whose?
My thoughts disappeared nearly as soon as they came, Asuka hurriedly apologising for the injury, only to be waved off, Hanzo's eyes boring into the backs of the Date army, "Their battle didn't go to plan, I assume."
"And yet their manpower appears no smaller." I murmured, adjusting the balance of the buckets across my shoulders. The scene reminded me of Yamato's words, spoken long ago, "I doubt they even drew their weapons."
"Sounds fishy to me." Asuka nodded, picking up her now lone bucket, "Come on, we'd better get these to the washhouse, or risk getting attacked by angry mothers!"
Laughing at her own joke, Asuka went cheerily ahead, not noticing Hanzo pull me back slightly, "She's right, there's a rat under all this." Letting his eyes flicker at the disappearing company, he seemed to come to a decision, "Ask your friend about it, and see what information he feeds you."
Nodding, I realised that the letter was already dictating itself in my head, and within the hour, Talon was flying with its weight, taking the concern of Kodokuna Village with it. Watching his wings beat against the sky, I found that my heart suddenly felt heavier, and a familiar clouding came over my mind, twisting my thoughts into shadows of themselves.
Returning late in the evening, but with soba on his breath, Ranmaru seemed ignorant to the discussion Mizu was having with her brother, deaf to my input as well. We had already alerted the village Elder to our concerns, and he had promised that the truth would soon come to light, but only if we gave it time. "The only problem is we don't have any." Mizu sighed, "By now, Date will be sitting pretty in his castle, and whatever's going to happen probably already has."
Taking a slow sip of my tea, I nearly missed Hanzo's strange look, "The village can handle whatever's thrown at it. Our major concern right now is evaluating the threat."
"How very strategic," I smirked, hiding it when Mizu glared, "Remind me never to get on your bad side."
When he turned to face me, I was worried to see Hanzo's smile was still gone, "Keep your sword on you from now on, you might need it."
"I will when I see your spear." The side of his mouth quirked, and I knew that he was resisting the urge to grin. Rolling her eyes at us, Mizu said her goodbye, even as she gave the area a quick scan.
First the first time in two years, her paranoia was justified.
