(Disclaimers:  Nobuhiro Watsuki is the man, see Chapter 1 disclaimer for details)

4/19/02

5/12/02 – revised

Chapter 4

Boshi: The Tempered Point: Tokio's Resolve

Evening of the Hanami Festival – Kyoto: Kamo River bank – opposite of Gion

They had two attackers.

As Hajime unsheathed his own blade the second man tried to close in on them with his longer weapon, but Hajime was ready for him. One thrust and the man with the katana was down. The other attacker tried to take advantage of the distraction but with a throat ripping growl Hajime shifted to a side attack with such speed and strength that the other man's weapon was wrenched out of his grasp and went sailing into the water reeds at the river bank edge.

The man did not wait around to see if his companion was dead or not. He quickly turned around and ran.

 "Hajime!" She quickly went to his side before he could collapse. He leaned on her heavily, fully expecting to end up in the dirt but she was stronger than she looked.

 "We…we need to get out of here," his voice pained, but first he leaned down to check the second man; dead. He almost couldn't stand back up.

They got as far as the nearest river bridge, but instead of heading to the Gion side Hajime turned her back toward the gardens. She was going to ask for help but Hajime wouldn't let her, he kept looking for something, someone.

Minutes went by and now he was on the point of passing out, and no matter how strong she was she wouldn't be able to carry him. They made it as far as the Takase River, a smaller water way just off the side of the larger Kamo River, when Tokio heard shouts, "I think they went this way". She recognized that voice, the man from a southern han.

Hajime was almost insensible with the pain, he needed to rest, just rest, but not long. Unfortunately his attacker's blade had struck him close on the same side as his broken ribs. The pain was enough to dim his vision.

Tokio lead them both down the bank to come under the Gojo-ohashi Bridge, and they weren't alone. Other women indecently clothed, some with men, and strange noises emanating from the darker recesses. One woman nearby was on her knees, her face buried in a man's open kimono. Tokio tried not to stare but she couldn't help it.

This was the territory of the yotaka, the poorest prostitutes, too drug addicted, ugly, or old to work a brothel. The merchant girl had once overheard the men in her father's warehouses talking about them. They said the yotaka would perform "services" no brothel yujo would.

Tokio let Hajime rest against a bridge pillar. She heard the same voice shout, "Look around. Look along the bank. I'm telling you he's wounded, they can't move fast."

Stripping off her haori she yanked up hard on her kimono from the waist front. She let the kimono slide down her back to reveal an overly indecent amount of cleavage, and pulled the bottom askew to one side.

Leaning up against Hajime she placed one of his hands on her backside and brought her bare leg sliding up against his. Hajime had managed to sheath his katana earlier, and even in the state that he was currently in he refused to take his hand off the tsuka. The weight of his head came to rest on her shoulder, his ponytail limply covering the side of his face.

 "Hajime? Hajime!" she whispered. "How much does a yotaka cost?"

Tokio was talking to him, saying something but he didn't know what. The citrus scent of  yuzu was on her skin again and she smelled good. If he didn't hurt so much he would tell her. His lips ran across her bared shoulder of their own volition.

 "How much does a yotaka cost? Hajime!" her whisper was insistent.

 "Yotaka?" he whispered back, he was not capable of more. "Four funs maybe, but…told Hijikata… I don't want a yotaka…yujo." He knew he was hallucinating, but it felt better than his pain. His hand on her back slide down to lightly grasp her bottom, she sucked in air, felt his mouth on her neck. "..but… you're different."

At that moment two men came skidding down the bridge embankment.

She gave a loud naughty laugh, as if Hajime had just said something both witty and indecent, "For that kind of service it will cost you five funs!"

What was she talking about, he wasn't sure. He wished his head would clear and the pain that seemed to start from his side and spread everywhere would go away, but she was in his arms and she felt good! Her skin was so soft. If he could just rest a little…he closed his eyes.

One of the men was gawking at her and she worried that he would come closer. "Look at her," he said slyly. It was the same man and he didn't recognize her.

 "We don't have time." The other man pulled impatiently at his kimono sleeve, "come on."

They sprinted back up the embankment.

She let her head drop to Hajime's chest for a minute, letting the feeling of overwhelming relief wash over her. They had escaped so far. "Hajime, I have to get you out of here. Can you walk just a little more?"

 "Don't…don't need to," his words were becoming more slurred. "You're here. Everything I want is here," he held her tightly.

 "No I have to get you back home. I've got to get you to a doctor."

 "Doesn't matter…. die anyway."

 "NO, you're not!" her voice strong and positive in his ear. He thought she was so… so his.

He didn't want to leave her now but he'd have no choice. "Shin..sengumi law," he said in his wakened dream-state, "let my enemy get away…can't…"

He started to blackout. Tokio barely got him to the ground to keep him from falling hard.

 "No, please!" She balled up her fists. She wanted to scream with the frustration of it. They couldn't! Yet she knew they would.

Then she heard a group of men by the end of the bridge. "They got away, but I know I wounded him," said their attacker.

 "Baka, that wasn't the plan!" said another.

Tokio looked around. Quickly she unsheathed Hajime's katana and laid it on the ground, and then she took her haori and covered it up. Looking at Hajime, she thought her heart would break. Brushing the hair out of his eyes, "forgive me," she said. She rolled him over on his side facing away from her.

Moving quickly up the embankment she came to rest against the end railing, her hair in disarray from her efforts and her kimono indecently dipping down in back. It all added to her slatternly appearance.

The man who had attacked them earlier saw her and smiled, maybe he wasn't going to be completely unlucky this night after all. She wasn't courtesan material but she was pretty enough to be a brothel prostitute and he wondered briefly what she was doing plying her trade with the other yotaka but he didn't give it too much thought.

 "Come on. Let's get back to the inn," said the other.

 "You go on ahead and I'll catch up to you."

His friend shook his head and took off back toward Gion.

The man came up to her and reached out, letting a finger trail up her smooth back to her neck appreciatively, "Well, little Night Hawk, what are you selling tonight?" He smiled as if he thought this was extremely clever. Tokio tried not to look panicked.

Not trusting her voice at all, she took him by the hand and began to lead him back down the embankment, under the bridge to the same pillar where she had left Hajime.

Her "customer" looked over at Hajime's still form, "What happened to him?"

 "Too much drink, but he paid first so I don't care." She stepped in close and began untying his hakama.

 "Hey, you're really eager for this aren't you," he said, putting one hand on her shoulder and the other over her breast, allowing himself a good feel. He laughed.

She froze for a moment, but then started again as if uninterrupted. "I'm eager for anything that pays five funs," she said.

 "I don't remember agreeing to that price," the man said slyly.

In a feathery voice she said, "You heard my price earlier. I saw you looking," and she forced her self to cup his arousal, "and five funs isn't too much for taking you to heaven."  He had to believe her. She would only get one chance at this.

She had finished untying his hakama. Dropping to her knees she opened his kimono, and pulled aside his fundoshi. Taking his swollen shaft in one hand, she held out her other palm up. "Hurry," she thought, forcing herself not to look in Hajime's direction, her breathing becoming more rapid.

At this point the man was beyond arguing. He retrieved a money pouch from inside his obi and quickly counted out five funs.

Slipping the coins into the folds of her obiage she allowed him to guide her mouth to his pleasure. She closed her eyes briefly and tried not to gag.

When she opened them again it was like she was seeing this all from a distance. She saw this disheveled woman doing an unspeakable act with a stranger. She saw the man with both hands on her head now, brutally forcing a rhythm the woman was so obviously out of sync with, his head thrown back in a cry of ecstasy. She watched as the woman removed her hands one at a time from the man to reach down to grasp the haori on the ground and the solid form beneath, one hand on each end; watched in horror as the woman brought the haori covered nihontou up, swift and straight, locking her elbows with a snap, and the razor sharp blade passing through both fabric and flesh unimpeded.

The man screamed but only once, as in cold fury the woman took the katana tsuka in both hands and getting to her feet swung up with everything she had. The haori fell away as the katana sliced through his neck and head. Blood s-p-r-a-y-e-d.

Tokio open her eyes. Blood was everywhere. It was all over her hands, arms, and chest. She took the ruined haori and tried to wipe some of it off her face but it was useless. The man's neck and half his face was split open. His lower half was mangled flesh.

Silence reigned under the bridge, no one said a word. Some left quietly, others simply moved away to the other side. She reached down into the man's kimono and took out the pouch in his obi. It had a good amount of money in it. She took out half, and tossing the other half to the woman nearest her she said, "Get me a kago or a cart and I'll give you the other half when you get back." She didn't bother to ask. She knew the woman would do it.

The poor looking yotaka took the pouch, and dashed up the embankment. In the meantime Tokio bent over Hajime's form and rolled him back over into her lap. He was still unconscious. Had his bleeding stopped? She didn't know, it was too dark to see. She took off her obijime and used it to bind what was left of her haori to his side. She rocked back and forth a little, "Hajime, please stay with me. Please," she whispered.

It seemed like forever but in fact only a very short time had lapsed when the yotaka was back. Not immediately giving her the other half of the money, Tokio commanded, "Take his other side and help me get him up to the road."

The yotaka was not happy about this but the blood stained woman spoke as if she had no choice but to obey, and the yotaka briefly let her eyes flick to the dead man's butchered body. She shrugged. The sooner the blood-onna was gone the sooner she could get her money and be gone too. She didn't want to be around if the Shinsengumi decided to patrol this way.

Between the two of them they finally got to the road, but then the kago's lead porter saw the state they were in and started shaking his head, "No, no! You can't use this. No. We don't want any trouble."

Bracing Hajime on one side and dragging up the bloody katana she still held in her now trembling hand she hissed loudly, "You will! You will or I swear I'll tell the Shinsengumi Commander Hijikata that YOU let one of his men bleed to death in the streets, and when the 'Demon of Kyoto' finds you he'll slice your belly open like a fish!"

The man's eyes went wide, as did the yotaka's, and he started shaking his head, "No, no, it was a mistake. How was I supposed to know? I didn't know…"

"Shut up! Get him in." she commanded coldly.

Fortunately the Kago was a large one and it had four porters. The men were able to get him in quickly. Tokio gave the rest of the money to the yotaka as she had promised and said, "If you have need of employment go to the Ohoshi Pottery on the southern edge of Gion. Tell them…tell them the bead merchant sent you."

The yotaka didn't know what to make of it but she nodded and bowed.

Giving instructions to the porter to get them to the Mibu Guard Station quickly, she squeezed into the kago meant for one, trying not to cause any further injury to Hajime. The lead porter called out a cadence and the porters took off in a shuffling run.

Tokio had thought about trying to find somewhere closer to take him but she didn't know how safe they would be, or if there would be a doctor available. She knew the Shinsengumi would have a doctor. Resting her head against Hajime's arm, a whirling chaos threatened to take over her mind, but she refused to let herself think about anything but getting him help. In the distance she could hear the large drums of the temple performances, and closer were the party goers in the streets.

It took an agonizingly long time for the kago porters to negotiate their way to Mibu, once there she got them to carry him to the entrance. She rang the bell at the entrance to the compound and banged loudly upon the gate.

A member of the guard opened the smaller gate door and his hand went immediately to his katana. Tokio looked down, only just realizing that she still held Hajime's bloody katana in her hand.

 "Captain Saitou is in need of medical attention," she said woodenly.

The guard opened the gate-door wider and allowed the porters to hurriedly carry Hajime's unconscious form into the compound yard and up the path to the main house. The guard opened the door and gave a shout for someone. The porters carried Hajime in through the open shoji to the main area, and laid him down on the tatami. Tokio knelt beside him.

There was a lot of commotion as members in the main area gathered around and Commander Hijikata and Commander Koudou were sent for. She knew they were staring at her but she felt nothing.

They came in together and Isami immediately sent for a doctor. Toshizou got some men to get Hajime to his room. Tokio followed quietly.

Once there she knelt by his side and didn't move, not when he was undressed and laid upon his futon, not when the doctor unwrapped his broken ribs and made his examination, nor when the wound was cleaned, stitched closed, and rewrapped.

 "He should be alright if infection doesn't set in," the doctor spoke to Toshizou as he stood. "He's fortunate that his side was already heavily bandaged. It kept the weapon from penetrating something vital, and it slowed the loss of blood. Although I'm sure that the hit to those broken ribs would have been enough to knock out anybody. I'll check on him tomorrow, and send for me if he develops a fever. If he wakes up just allow him miso soup, water or green tea, if he wants anything." Toshizou thanked the doctor as he left.

No one asked her any questions the entire time. The scene was surreal. A small woman, blood covered kimono in obscene disarray, kneeling with a bloody katana across her lap.

Toshizou knelt down next to her and gingerly went to take the blade from her. She started suddenly and starred at him, eyes wild, clutching the tsuka tighter. He had seen this look before on the faces of recruits who had never seen fighting, bloodshed, and violent death up close.

 "He's fine and you must clean up," he said gently. "You don't want him waking up and seeing you like this."

 "Yes," she said in a daze, "I must clean up." Turning loose of the katana she looked around as if she didn't know where she was.

Toshizou motioned to someone behind her and a woman came to her other side. Helping her up the woman led her to the bathing rooms in the back of the headquarters main house.

The Shinsengumi commander stood for some time on the engawa, looking out on the courtyard. Isami joined him there.

 "I spoke to the doctor on his way out. Did you find out what happened?"

 "No," said Toshizou, "I will though," he promised his leader. "The girl is bathing. Once she is clean and settled she'll tell me what I want to know."

 "Harada's squad just came back in," said Isami, "he said that he, Okita, and Nagakura had run into Saitou and the Takagi girl earlier in the day at the Shoseien Gardens. I'm tempted to send them back out to comb the area again. The kago porter said he picked them up at the Gojo-ohashi Bridge after a yotaka had flagged him down."

 "It couldn't hurt to send a squad out," agreed Toshizou.

There was a strangled cry from further down the engawa, both men whipped around with hands on their wakizashi. The girl emerged from the bathing room clutching her bloody kimono in the front. Running to the edge of the engawa she dropped to her knees and was violently sick over the side.

Toshizou and Isami sprinted to her side. Toshizou knelt next to her and held her as her stomach continued to purge itself of all content. "Kaede," he called, but the serving woman was already there with a bowl of water and a cloth. She made a little shooing sign, indicating that the men should withdraw.

Getting up, Toshizou looked into the bathing room. The girl's bloodied obi was on the floor, along with a pink obiage and several small silver funs, five in all. He bent down and retrieved everything.

Once the girl had washed out her mouth, Kaede led her back into the bathing room.

 "I'll send Harada out," said Toshizou. "I'll tell him to make sure to check the surrounding area along the embankment of that bridge and question anyone he finds there," he looked down at the silver pieces, "… especially the prostitutes."

Much later, after Tokio was clean and decently dressed in a clean kimono, she was escorted to Commander Hijikata in one of the main area rooms. He offered a zabuton and some green tea. She accepted both in silence.

 "I know this may be difficult for you, but I need to know what happened this evening." He was speaking to her gently but the firmness underlying his words left no doubt that he would have answers.

 "Captain Saitou and I were attacked by two men while standing next to the Kamo River. Both men are dead," she emphasized.

Toshizou nodded. "Alright, now tell me exactly what happened."

 "I'd rather not."

 "Why?"

 "There is nothing to the story that will help you."

 "Perhaps I should be the judge of that." By the Gods, what could she want to hide?

 "I heard that you wrote the Shinsengumi laws." Her voice was a studied monotone.

 "Most," he was trying to shift his train of thought to accommodate this segue. Did Saitou violate one of those laws?

 "Well then, I guess you've already been the judge. You decided what was important. Both of our attackers are dead and Captain Saitou almost died to make certain of it," her voice held a world of hurt and accusation. "Now if you'll please excuse me I'm very tired and I would like to check on the Captain again," she finished listlessly.

 "Saitou didn't kill both of those men."

 "They are dead."

 "I don't doubt it, but the only blood the Captain came back with on him was from his own injury. You on the other hand were saturated." He hated doing this, but he had to know.

 "I was standing closer to the second man that died," said Tokio truthfully. Don't tell him anymore than that, she commanded to herself. She didn't know enough about their stupid rules to know if it was acceptable for someone else to kill Hajime's enemy.

 "I'm sure you were. How did you kill him? With Hajime's katana? Help me, Tokio. I'll find out eventually."

Tokio looked at him. He was so good looking, the epitome of a warrior too. She was sure that men and woman both did whatever he wanted. He was nothing to her. She let her eyes close and she toppled sideways to land hard against the tatami.

 "No!" Toshizou was next to the prone girl in a breath. He shook her gently, her head rocked loosely on her shoulders. "Gods!" Picking her up he carried her onto the engawa calling for Kaede as he went. She was there almost immediately showing him to an available room with a futon already prepared. After getting the girl situated he went in search of Isami to tell him there would be a delay in the information that he requested.

After the room was dark and quiet, Tokio opened her eyes. She made her way to the shoji and listened. Nothing. Quickly stepping out onto the engawa she borrowed a pair of sandals and continued out into the courtyard. If the guard at the gate thought it strange that a young woman would be leaving so late, unescorted, well then it was no stranger than when she showed up.

A couple of hours later Kaede found Hijikata in deep discussions with Koudou and Harada. She informed him that the girl was gone.

A low groan escaped him. How could he ever have thought she was a mouse!

***

Author's Notes:

Like everything else in this society, prostitutes had a class system too. The yotaka (night hawks) were the lowest on the ladder. The often plied their trade at or around bridges, and specialized in oral sex. This would be their most expensive "service" and I have them charging 4 funs (or 4/10 momme), although Tokio ups it one.

Like many average people who find themselves in extraordinary situations, our quiet Tokio is stronger than even she knew. She's forced to overcome seemingly insurmountable odds (good thing she's an Aries). The title of this chapter, Boshi, refers to the temper line in the point of a Japanese sword. I thought that summed up Tokio's resolve very well.