Mitsuko rode on her horse for roughly half a day, she travelled on a paved road while being in deep thought about where she should go from here, of course she was going to fight to quell the rebellion but what should she do afterwards? It's not like she can go through a door labelled exit and she can be back in her time or anything so she's pretty much stuck here. Should she actually go serve one of the lords even though to her knowledge women in these times? Should she help the emperor not fall in the hands of anyone? Should she just live a simple life? Questions like these filled her mind and she found herself riding between two small fields with several farmers having their backs facing her. Mitsuko wanted some confirmation just in case she took a wrong turn during her daydreaming.
"Excuse me is this way to Louyang?" She asked to one of the farmers when she made her horse stop.
"Who's asking?" the famer replied, Mitsuko thought that was rather rude of him but she answered.
"Just someone wanting to help quell this rebellion, look I got this official uniform and everything." She stated.
"Oh? Well in that case..." The farmer started when he disrobed to reveal his yellow turban attire and his sword while Mitsuko had an arrow fire that zoomed past her head and her horse neighed while standing on two legs in which Mitsuko was so surprised by that she lost grip and crashed down onto the road while the horse fled as fast as it can.
"We'll take all of your belongings!" the yellow turban shouted as he started to run towards Mitsuko whose eyes began to turn into the snake like ones. She jumped to her feet and slashed the kneecap of the charging yellow turban before he had the opportunity to strike her. As he started to fall, Mitsuko got the blade of her scythe underneath his neck and struck it upwards decapitating him. Two yellow turbans yell run behind her and attempt to strike down with their swords, Mitsuko notices them before they could bring their swords down and blocks them. She pushes upwards and slashes the two yellow turbans before they could react. When they fell a larger yellow turban lunged behind Mitsuko and used all his body with his shoulder first to barge her into the fields. Mitusko felt she was flying for a moment until she landed in the fields and felt pain in her torso.
'Well i'm glad I had armour otherwise that would've hurt.' Mitsuko sarcastically thought to herself as she struggled to get up by leaning on her scythe after standing it upright while getting a good view of the man responsible for her short sustained flight. He was a large man with a bulky build who looked very strong, his yellow turban had a symbol on his head which Mitsuko didn't recognise with his face having a small beard and began stroking it.
"Haha you fell right into our trap you han slave!" The large man shouted as more men emerged from the fields.
"And you are?" Mitsuko asked.
"I'm Guan Hai a servant of the yellow turbans and the way of peace and we will take down the Han and the people will be spared the tyranny of the emperor and finally live in an age of peace!" He proclaimed in which Mitsuko looked at him oddly.
"I mean thats great and all...but I just asked for a name I didn't care about that other stuff since you know...you're gonna die but thanks anyway." Mitsuko says which for some reason made Guan Hai furious.
"How dare you insult me and my yellow turban brothers! When you are slain I will use your belongings to infiltrate their forces and we will use that information against them and then finally the land will start to know peace after we have taken down the traitorous emperor and all his advisors! My brothers will watch as I will claim your head!" He declared while Mitsuko sighs.
"I didn't even insult you! Oh well let's get this over with." Mitsuko says to herself as she prepares her scythe for battle. She was handling herself quite well, when she first struck she was surprised that it was blocked so she used up more strength in her swings in which he still blocked, she grew more frustrated with herself and her enemy as they were blocking and countering each other, however she noticed that she started to get tired, her breathing got heavy as sweat escaped her brow and plunged to the ground as she slays about half of the group. Her body was not used to this amount of physical activity.
'Shit! This isn't good, I really should've been more sportier.' She regretfully thought to herself when Guan Hai out of nowhere jumped in the air with his spear dropped in front of Mitsuko striking Mitsuko, she blocked it however the strength and weight of him along with Mitsuko's exhaustion made her legs wobble and made her land on one knee. He kicked her further with great strength into the field. Mitsuko manages to backroll back onto one of knees, she finds herself however surrounded by a group of yellow turbans jeering and she notices her helmet lying on the ground in front of her.
"Wait...you're a woman!?"Guan Hai asked confusedly.
"...Yes did you not tell by my voice? Mitsuko asked, noticing that a smirk grew on his face.
"A woman with skill...interesting, maybe if I bring you to lord Zhang Jiao me and my brothers can finally be recognised by him. If not...I can always have some personal fun with her."
"Ok thats it! You all die!" She declared furiously as she got to her feet as she got her weapon ready while panting heavily.
'I say that but i'm not sure how long, it feels like i'm about to collapse any minute.' She thought to herself when they all hear a horse galloping from down the road. They turn to find a lone man with white hair dressed in Red armour armed with a larger than average sword.
'Wait...is that...Sun Jian what is he doing here?' She thought as she strikes down a yellow turban to her far left despite her exhaustion since all of them were occupied with trying to see who the armoured figure was. When they heard the scream they immediately turned and started to engage her. Sun Jian jumped off his horse and landed on one of the yellow turbans and ran his sword through his torso before he slumped to the ground. He attacked two more from behind while Mitsuko took out the two remaining turbans with one slash.
"damnit...I'll get you both another day!" Guan Hai shouted with fear before he fled.
"Hey...get back...here." Mitsuko yelled in between breaths while panting heavily and started to run a couple of steps before she almost fell, she planted the polearm in the ground and used it to keep herself up.
"Don't worry you'll get your chance at him eventually." Sun Jian had said as he walks up to her.
" Grr goddamnit!" She growls to herself however she notices him walking to her she bows her head and does the fist in the palm thing she saw during the cutscenes they did in the dynasty warriors games she played.
"Ahh my lord, i'm grateful, for your help." Mitsuko said in between breaths in which Sun Jian laughed heartedly
"Do not worry my fair lady i'm just glad to see you unharmed, I must say I am impressed by your skill."
"Oh really? Well thank you for your kind words my lord...erm Sun Jian?" She questioned not being completely sure if it was in fact Sun Jian.
"Aha seems like you already know who I am, my fame seems to preceed me!" He laughs while Mitusko nervously laughed along with him
'Is this really what Sun Jian was like?'
"However I must ask my lady, you are dressed like you are going to war, are you going to volunteer in the battle against these rebels?" He questioned.
"Actually yes, I was actually on my way to the volunteer forces camp, that's when I was ambushed with these damn yellow turbans out here that were disguised as farmers. Speaking of which, what are you doing here alone here anyway my lord?" Mitsuko curiously asks.
"I actually got some information from scouts that a small ambush party lied in wait around here praying upon the weak. So I decided to have investigate it and here I am, are you strong enough to travel my lady?"
"Y-yes I should be able to."
"Then in that case allow the tiger of Jiang Dong to accompany you to your main camp." Mitsuko was taken back my Sun Jian's generosity.
"My lord are you sure that's wise? I can handle the rest of the journey myself and i'm sure your forces must be worried for your safety." Mitsuko told him, she didn't want to bother anyone with her troubles.
"Aha do not worry, your camp isn't too far so it isn't any trouble, besides if I left a maiden like you unattended I would not be able to call myself a strong tiger of the Han now would I?" He laughed while Mitsuko gives him an odd look.
'I don't remember anyone calling you that.' She thought to herself when Sun Jian whistles and his white noble horse appeared by his side. He climbed on his steed and the horse started to walk along.
"Come, we shouldn't be there before too long my lady." Sun Jian told Mitsuko which Mitsuko decided to walk along the path with him. She uses the scythe as a walking stick in the beginning of the journey to keep herself steady, however over time she recovered from her fatigue and started to carry it off the floor with the curve of the blade pressed against her bare neck. They travelled for about 10 minutes before Sun Jian attempted to start a conversation.
"So my lady may I ask your name?" Mitsuko just then realised she didn't introduce herself to one of the more powerful warlords in this time of china.
"Ah my deepest apologies my lord, you may call me Mitsuko." She replied instantly not wanting to sound more rude than she thought she has been.
"Ahh Mitsuko, an unusual name for this land, do you not have a family or a home?"
"I actually have not my lord it is quite a complicated story i'm afraid." Mitsuko responded trying to avoid talks of family or how she actually got to this world.
"Ahh I see, my apologies." Sun Jian apologised to her.
"Oh do not worry my lord you meant no disrespect it is fine." Mitsuko replied while flustered in which he laughed in response.
"Aha I see, I must say I'm surprised you bear such fangs Mitsuko." He said when Mitsuko was confused to what he means at first but then she realised that he liked to talk about himself and his family like tigers rather than people at times.
"Do you mean this?" She questions while lifting her scythe while Sun Jian nodded in response.
"Indeed, do you intend to keep bearing those fangs?" Mitsuko thought about this for a minute before responding with "Well I don't see why not, now that I have a taste of this I can't imagine myself wielding any other weapon."
"Hmm then in that case might I say that you should consider the way you bear your fangs." He told her with seriousness in his voice.
"What do you mean?"
"Even though you are skilled you fight like a snake that wants to be a tiger and attempts to bear their fangs like one. Our fangs may be similar but how we fight and attack with them are different. If you want to use your fangs to their fullest potential perhaps you should consider embrace the fighting style of a snake if you choose to bear the fangs of one."
"If I want to use my fangs to their fullest potential..." Mitsuko repeated that to herself while staring at her weapon, is that why she was losing to Guan Hai...because she wanted to be like a tiger when she was a snake all along? Wait a minute what did that mean, fight like a snake!?
"Aha do not worry you will learn to fight like one eventually with training and practice." Sun Jian told her sensing her frantic thoughts.
"Wait why are you telling me this?" She questioned with curiosity, since he was a warlord why would he bother giving advice to someone he doesn't really know, nevermind that Mitsuko is a girl and to her recollection women in ancient times all over the world weren't given the most fairest of treatments.
"Because you are also a beast of the Han like any man here, in this land of chaos we beasts should help each other no matter the species." He told her with a smile and laughed afterwards.
"Ahh Here we are." Sun Jian stopped as did Mitsuko in which they both saw what seems to be a huge wooden stockade standing 10ft tall with wooden gates right in front of them.
"Well here is where we part ways for now, farewell for now my lady but do be cautious, some beasts of this land do not look at women fondly in the slightest." Sun Jian warned but Mitsuko smirked in response.
"Then in that case it's a good thing I do not care what they think of me, I'm only here to fight if they have a problem with that and get in my way then they I will reap what they have sown." Mitsuko was shocked that she would say such a thing, she wonders if being here has made her bolder with confidence in herself. Sun Jian laughs yet again at her.
"You remind me of my daughter, it seems I have nothing to fear take care until next time Mitsuko." Sun Jian's horse galloped in the opposite direction as Mitsuko looks at the gates in front of her and sighs. She opens the gates to find a lot of men huddled in small groups with several large tents. Some of them had excitement in their faces while others contained fear. They all seemed to be dressed in the uniforms similar to what Mitsuko was wearing.
"Halt!" Mitsuko turns around to see a man with with full armour escorted by two guards armed with spears.
"What are you doing here?" He questions.
"What does it look like? I'm here to help out in your battle." She bluntly responded.
"Why? You're a woman, you don't have a place on the battlefield, I mean look at you, you don't even have a proper weapon to fight with." He laughs with the guards joining in. Mitsuko points her scythe at them with the blade in front of their faces stained with the crimson blood of her enemies.
"Well I don't know about that I think anything could be a weapon if given enough thought about it." She smirked as the smiles were wiped from their faces.
"Still, you are just a woman you more lowly than these peasants I can't believe I got stuck babysitting you people who have dreams of becoming soldiers of the han." He said which made Mitsuko furious.
"Wow, you really are a piece of shit aren't you?"
"What was that? I will teach you your place if you step out of line like that again!" He shouted with his two guards readying their weapons.
"Wait! Please lets not fight each other." A voice shouted they both turned to find a man dressed in green armour with a green cape accompanied by two large men, one with a long magnificient beard while the other one had a small beard and moustache with a double bladed spear.
"Please my lord let's not turn away those that want to help, in chaotic times like these I believe we should accept anyone who would want to help end the chaos we face." He told him while bowing and puts his fist in his palm, the armoured man snuffed him and responds with
"All right fine, I have better things to do than waste my time with her anyway, you're responsible for this girl though if she steps out of line once you will regret it." He told him while he and his guards walked off.
"Please do not take our commanders words to heart my lady not all of us are ungrateful for your assistance my lady." He bowed with his fist in his palm.
"Thats our commander?" Mitsuko sighs as she hears this news but then quickly remembered who the men in front of her were.
"Ahh my lord Liu Bei thank you for your assistance, my apologies for troubling you." She says while the Liu Bei puts his a hand on her shoulder.
"Do not worry my lady, helping the people is what I like to do." He says.
"That is...good to hear my lord." She says while bowing.
"Might I introduce you to my sworn brothers, Guan Yu and Zhang Fei." Liu bei motions to each of his brothers who bow and greets her.
"A pleasure to make your acquitance my lords, my name is Mitsuko."
"A most unusual name, tell me where do you hail from?" Guan Yu asks. Mitsuko knew she had to start telling these people something otherwise they won't stop asking.
"XiangYang, I hail from XiangYang although I do not actually have a home." She claimed."
"I'm sorry to hear that my lady, why don't you come sit with us?" Liu Bei offered.
"Are you sure my lord? I would not want to impose on you."
"Do not worry and please you do not need to be so formal to me, we are all equal in trying to quell this chaos." He said as he and his brothers walked to their little area with Mitsuko following close behind them. They sat down with a group of peasant soldiers whose faces seemed to light up when he sat down next to them. They asked Mitsuko about herself, while she avoided the questions about her family she did tell them about the raid on the village she defended.
"Thats quite the achievement especially for someone who has no experience on the battlefield and one so young." Guan Yu expressed his awe while Mitsuko nervously laughed.
"Well i'm not sure how I managed to do it but I did."
"Don't be so modest you managed to save a village of innocents I'm sure they are very grateful for your assistance." Liu Bei told her while Mitsuko genuinely smiled back at him.
"Yeah I guess so."
"If you're going to join us on the battlefield here drink this." Zhang Fei offered Mitsuko a drink with what seems to be filled with a light red liquid. Mitsuko hesitated for a bit before drinking all of it in one go, she was fine at first before the after taste kicked and she started coughing.
"Oh god, what was that?" She managed to cough out.
"Wine of course, I didn't expect you to drink the whole cup, you're tougher than you look." Zhang Fei laughed with the rest joining in while patting Mitsuko on her back. Things were like this until nightfall, the commander ordered everyone to get some rest so they would be ready for the march to Yinchuan. Mitsuko borrowed a spare tent from one of the volunteer soldiers and pitched it with the help of the three sworn brothers. She went inside the tent which contained only a blanket and a small thin pillow, her tent was on some grass so she didn't have to worry about lying down on hard gravel. She pulled the blanked over her and hugged her scythe tightly as now she didn't feel comfortable leaving it out in the open for anybody to steal. She didn't know what tomorrow would bring her, if the rest of her time here was going to be 'interesting' as today was, it was going to be at least an interesting road she was going to travel with. She remembered Sun Jian's words about the way she should consider bearing her fangs while slowly drifting to sleep trying to determine what was meant by that. she didn't know what was going to happen tomorrow however she was looking forward to it, especially the part of her that was itching to invade the battlefield and cause havoc to her enemies.