Hi, everyone! After a long long pause I am back. I hope some of you are still interested in this story!

Chapter 61

"I, the eldest son of the almighty emperor. The heir. The most important person in these lands after my father. The one born from the love of his life, his empress, the beauty with a golden heart – Momo. The one, whose birth brought joy to the whole empire. Only that it isn't true. I was not the long-expected heir, everyone was cheering for. I was the child, who saved his mother and secured her position of power. The son of a mother, who tried to kill his father and became a traitor. That is who I am and who she is."

When Hideki looked up he found himself in front of Soifon's palace. He did not plan on coming here, but the only person who could comfort him was Sachiko. There was no one else he could rely on. He jumped from his horse and the servants gathered to welcome him. He expected Soifon to greet him, but it was Omaeda instead, which was even more uncomfortable.

"I wish to speak to Sachiko."

"You could have warned us you were coming." The man answered coldly. Then noticed the wound on his face. "What happened to you?"

"Does not matter. Forgive me that I couldn't think of such formalities in the current circumstances."

Omaeda's eyebrow twitched. He had never liked this arrogant boy, just like he had never liked his father. Yet, two of his daughters became his wives and he could not object it.

"The servants will inform my daughter and she will come down if she wishes to speak to you."

With these words, Omaeda turned his back to Hideki and walked away, while a petite blonde girl hurried up the stairs to alert her mistress. Hideki came inside the big hall and sat down, trying to calm down. Luckily, he did not have to wait long, before Sachiko came inside, looking tired and sad.

"Sachiko!" He stood up and grabbed her hands. "I am so glad to see you."

She did not smile.

"Why did you come here, Hideki?" Then she also noticed the wound on his mouth and became worried. "What happened to you? Did my father hit you?"

"No. He has nothing to do with this. I will explain later." He said, then asked a little bit offended. "But what is this greeting? I missed you. I needed to see you and talk to you."

Her features softened and she moved to sit down next to him.

"Father does not like it and we are already a subject of rumors. Maybe we should wait, until we are formally married."

"There is a war coming. This might take years. Besides, I won't be able to see you for a long time after we leave, so we might have only a few days." He caressed her cheek gently and she smiled.

"I will pray for this war to finish soon and for your safety."

"I know you will." He moved closer and kissed her on the lips, feeling her warmth engulf him, calming him down. "I only have you from now on. And I only trust you."

"What do you mean?" She asked, moving back, a bit startled.

"My parents hid such things from me...You can't even imagine." And he told her everything that had happened in the last days, without hiding any details.

Sachiko was so shocked, she moved her hand in front of her mouth as she gasped when Hideki explained the words he said to his mother and how his father hit him.

"Hideki!"

"Can you imagine it? My mother with her sweet words and polite demeanor to do this?"

"I can't believe Tsunade told you this." She shook her head, feeling disgusted with her sister once again. "Especially when there is a war coming."

"I can't believe no one else did." He exhaled into his fist, then looked at her face. Her expression was strange. He told her such scandalous revelations and she only thought of the actions of her sister. Then it became clear to him. Not only Tsunade had known. The whole Omaeda family was in the light about it.

"You knew about it too, didn't you?"

"About what?"

"About my mother trying to poison my father." He stood up. "Your mother has told you."

Sachiko moved up too and tried to take his hand.

"Hideki..."

"And I came to bare my soul in front of you, thinking I could trust you."

"Hideki, please!" She looked desperate. "How could I have told you this?"

"I deserved to know!" He raised his voice at her.

"Why? What did the news bring to you? Only sadness, resentment. It is something that happened in the past between your parents and only they know what the truth is."

He smirked and shook his head as he hurried towards the door.

"I can't believe it! And I thought I could trust you!"

"Hideki, wait!"

She hurried after him, but it was futile. He disappeared from her sight before she could even reach the door. She stood outside watching his figure riding on his horse in the distance, tears falling down her face. Later, she would recall this scene frequently, as it would be the last time they saw each other. The only thing to comfort her was that it was better that way, because she had thought carefully about it during the last days. So after she calmed down and wiped away her tears, she climbed up the stairs and went to meet her father.

"Father, can I talk to you?" She asked from the door frame and Omaeda looked up from the shogi board. It was his hobby to play alone when he wanted to calm his nerves.

"Of course. Come in."

Sachiko closed the door and moved closer, but instead of taking the chair in front of the table, she knelt down in front of her father and looked up.

"What are you doing?" Omade tried to pull her up, but she pushed his hands.

"No, please! Listen to me first!" Her eyes were teary and pleading and he nodded. "Please, let me go somewhere fa away from here! I don't want to marry Hideki. After the army leaves, I want to go somewhere, where no one will know who I am and live in peace."

"What is the meaning of this?" He quickly stood up and his face became red. "Did this brat offend you?"

"No. He has no fault."

Her father shook his head.

"As if I would believe that!"

Sachiko stood up too and caught his hand.

"Father...I am pregnant."

His eyes widened and he looked straight into hers. His rage only grew more.

"And you say that he has no fault!"

"Because, he never did anything against my consent! I don't know why I did it and what I thought. It's true that I've always had feelings for him, but it is impossible." Tears started rolling down her cheeks and her father embraced her tightly, softly caressing her back.

"Don't be afraid! Everything will be fine. I will speak to the emperor today and you will be formally married before we leave. Nobody will dare say shameful things about you."

"No!" She looked up. "I don't want to."

"What is that now? You want to go to somewhere far away and raise your child there? Live without a family? To punish yourself?"

"To find peace and happiness!"

He was heartbroken that his favorite daughter, the one who took after him the most, wanted to leave him, because she was unhappy in her own family. Only that it was exactly true. She could not be happy if she stayed.

"If you are afraid of your sister, I will make sure that she will behave."

"No, father! I am afraid that if I stay, I will become just like her. A miserable pawn in this game of power. Our children will grow up competing for the throne and hating each other. Do you want this too, just like mother? For your grandson to be the next emperor?"

He remained silent.

"I know you helped Kiara escape. So will you help me too?"

His heart was breaking at the thought of being separated from another one of his daughters, but he understood her motives and supported them. Tears appeared in his eyes and he moved his big palm to her cheek in a silent promise.

"You shouldn't have hit him!" Momo said.

Toushiro who was seated next to her raised his head.

"And what could I have done? You heard what he said about you?"

While she found it heart-warming that he was that angry because of an insult towards her, she could not stand the scene of Hideki's sadness.

"But he was right! What I did was unspeakable! And he was shocked! He acted impulsively..."

"Nothing excuses his words, Momo! Because he was always a spoiled and beloved child and this has not harmed him in any way!" Even if Toushiro was sorry, he was also convinced in his righteousness. Never could he tolerate such an insult to Momo. "It has only harmed us. And it is our choice if we want to speak about it."

"When other people know a secret, it is no longer one. It always comes out." She spoke and looked intently at his face. "That's what I've been trying to tell you."

Toushiro met her look and she immediately sensed his annoyance. He stood up.

"Tsunade is a truly a mean and pitiful girl. But Soifon is the one who will answer in front of me."

"What is the meaning of this, Toushiro?" Momo also stood up. "A war is coming and we have so many problems. We are all on the verge and we don't need another heated argument."

"So I should just let it go?"

"You better find a way to make amends with Hideki. His problem is not with you, but with me and you are leaving in two days time. You have to fix things before then."

"We will fix things. He will apologize to both of us. You will see." Toushiro raised his finger, then went out.

"Toushiro!" Momo sighed and sat back down, while a worried Chiyo went inside, then hurried to pour her some water.

Even though Toushiro was enraged he quickly forgot about these concerns because Kyoraku was waiting for him in the throne hall together with the other captains and Takashi ready to devise a plan before leaving. At least Takahi was focused on the problem, proving once again to be reliable. He went to bed exhausted at 3 am, but if sleep ever came it was too short to count. At 6 am he was up again and immersed in the battle tactics. Takashi came with a big map, followed by his brother and while he sensed the tension between Hideki and their father and saw the dark spot on his face, he never asked. He believed that his brother was still angry at their father for not confiding in him about Yhwach. Toushiro had no energy to fight with his son again, but he also demanded that Hideki apologize to his mother, which the boy agreed to but did not do afterwards. Masaru also came to learn more about his responsibilities, determined to do well as a regent. Nobu was tasked with the job to help him as an advisor. And to top it all off the old man also demanded a decision to be made regarding Deiji, which infuriated the emperor. He scolded Nobu for bothering him with such superficial problems in the light of the war, leaving the old man offended and angry. When the night came, Toushiro was too tired to even think about plans and tactics and his legs lead him to Momo's chambers on their own. She was in her nights' clothes, but was walking impatiently in the dim light, also unable to sleep.

"Toushiro..." She stepped closer to him. "I was hoping you would come."

He smiled.

"I was hoping to hear you say that."

She caught his hands.

"Please promise me that you will do everything to finish this war quickly and not try to be a hero."

"Don't worry! I have no plans of expanding our territory. I just want to protect it."

She smiled and squeezed his hands.

"And please protect our sons. Do not let them expose themselves to too much danger. They are brave and stubborn and they can be reckless."

"Of course. I will bring them back safe." He made a short pause. "Even if I don't come back, they will."

"What are you saying?" Momo lowered her voice.

"Please, listen to me, Momo! You have to be strong because of our sons. Hideki may be strong and prepared, but he is also young and inexperienced, prone to let his anger control him. You have to be by side, guiding him."

"Toushiro!" Momo moved her hand to his cheek. "You will come back! Do not even think about the opposite! Not only our sons, promise me that you will also do everything in your power to come back..."

Her voice almost cracked at the end of the sentence. Toushiro moved closer and pulled her into his embrace.

"You know me well enough to know that I will do it. There isn't a man who can defeat me in a battle."

"In an honest battle."

He smiled, feeling himself more confident when her warmth was engulfing him.

"Besides, this day will also come. One day I will be gone and Hideki will take my place. He will need you by his side. By the way, did he apologize to you today?"

"He did." Momo looked up and also smiled, even though she said a blatant lie. "He is still angry, of course. But it will pass." She made a short pause. "But that day you are talking about will never come for me, Toushiro. Because I pray to God to take me before you and I know that he will listen to my prayers."

"What are these words, Momo?" Toushiro's face became concerned. "Is your health worse again?"

"I am fine. Just terribly worried." She looked up. "Let's not discuss it anymore We are both too tired." She said and took his hand. "Will you hold me to sleep tonight?"

"Always." He followed her.

Meanwhile Deiji had her head on Takashi's chest, trying to hold back her tears, but they still spilled on her cheeks.

"Hey...don't do this! I will come back! And we will only be separated for a short time."

She looked up.

"I hope so. But this is a war. People will suffer and die. And I am terrified to think that I can lose you or my brother."

"I already promised you to find Rei and take care of him. And I will do it." He wiped away her tears. "I know that the best for us is yet to come."

She tried to smile, but it was futile.

"Please, let's not spend this last night in sadness and tears." He moved closer and kissed her cheek. "Instead, I want to spend it in your arms, kissing you and enjoying every moment. This will warm me up during the long cold nights in the camp."

When he moved in to kiss her lips, she responded because it was the most natural thing. She also wanted to get lost in Takashi's scent and forget about tomorrow.

"You will come back. And I will wait for you." She said while he was kissing her neck.

He looked up and they locked eyes.

"Yes."

Then he kissed her passionately and she wrapped her arms around his neck.

It was a few hours later when she was sound asleep that he cut a piece of her hair and leaned down to kiss her forehead.

"This will be a piece of you I will carry with me." He whispered.

Then got up and got dressed silently, before leaving.

Toushiro had decided they leave before dawn break because he wanted them to move faster to their camp south and because he hated long goodbyes. It was enough for him to take the sight of desperately worried Momo to needing the tears of other members of the family.

He looked majestic and strong in his white armor as he effortlessly climbed on Hyorinmaru and led the procession. He was not surprised when Ichigo showed up together with Renji and his son Kazui, even though Toushiro had warned him numerous times to keep his son out of the battles because the boy was not trained nor experienced enough. The real surprise, however, came, when Omaeda showed up on his horse, ready to join the army.

"Omaeda, while I am glad to welcome more men in my army, you did not need to come." Toushiro said when he moved closer to the man, so only he could hear him.

"Despite our mutual dislike, I still hold loyalty to the empire and its people."

"This is not what I meant. These past years you held little experience in battles. And this is no ordinary enemy. You may die there."

"Let it be so. I may find salvation that way." The man pulled the reins and moved in line.

Toushiro smiled in a silent respect.

The procession moved forward until the soldiers noticed a group of armed man awaiting on the road. Toushiro insisted to move forward and face the intruders only to freeze in his spot when he saw the face of his father under his armor.

"Father...What are you doing here?"

"Joining the army with my own division. Even if I wasn't properly invited." Byakuya looked majestic and calm as always, like he had never stepped down from the throne.

"Father, in your condition..."

Byakuya's gaze grew ice cold and his voice lowered.

"Is that the respect you show to your grand emperor?"

Toushiro kept quiet for a few seconds.

"I don't doubt your supreme abilities as a warrior and commander when in full health, but now..."

"But now I will be fighting on the back of my horse, shooting arrows at the enemy, instead of rotting peacefully in my garden. And I do not need your permission."

Toushiro sighed, then smiled. The temper of his father never failed to amaze him.

"Now will you please make a way for me to take my place in the procession?" Byakuya asked calmly and moved forward.

"There is no need to. You lead it." Toushiro answered.

"The people have only one emperor to lead them and that is not me."

With that said he made his way behind his son, while his soldiers joined the back tracks. Once Byakuya was behind his son, Toushiro made a signal and they continued forward. Takashi watched the back of his grandfather in awe. He was 60 years old and badly wounded, unable to walk properly, but his spirit was always that of a king. He remembered Deiji's words that he reminded her of his grandfather and made a silent vow to truly become like him one day.

Read and enjoy! :)