Author's Note: Well, I was able to update earlier than usual, how about that? In this chapter, we've got a huge battle between two best friends, this is perhaps the most important fight in the entire book. So without any further interruptions, I present to you the latest chapter.
Chapter 32: There is no Difference
"So I am accused of treason, am I?" I asked Shion.
"I don't want to believe it, Mina," Shion assured me, "in fact, I don't believe it."
"Then why did you try and attack me just now?" I asked.
"Whatever the reasons are for executing you, I have no idea," she answered, "but I'm afraid orders are orders, Mina."
Without saying another word, my best friend took her sword to her side and charged. Would I allow death to take me at that moment, I already had it consume Tetsu a short while ago. I couldn't die yet, there was still something I had to do.
I tightened the grip around my katana once more, quickly pulling it upward to catch Shion's attack. The ringing of metal filled my ears as the two blades met, locking in an angle so that the eyes of my friend and mine met. The look in her eyes, it was different from the one Tetsu gave me when I fought with him. There was a hint of sadness in them, they looked ready to leak at any moment. Just looking into those cinnamon pupils made the translucent rivers crawl down my face once more. Shutting my eyes, I pushed all of my weight into the sword, causing my friend to stagger back. I hadn't followed up with another strike, I was too caught up in myself to do anything else after.
"Mina, I don't like any of this as much as you do," Shion told me, "please, don't make this any harder."
"Why kill me, Shion?" the tears began to fall my rapidly. "Why are you following the Ishin Shishi's orders? Don't you see it, Shion, Tetsu was right, our forces are killing off their own hitokiries to save their own hides. Once they have you kill me, they'll execute you as well."
"I wish I could believe that," Shion said, "but you're only making excuses to save yourself."
"No, Shion, please don't say that," I begged.
"Mina, I knew you hated Tetsu, but I didn't think you would actually kill him," she turned to the corpse of our friend.
"I didn't have a choice," I tried to explain, "he and the other soldiers..."
"Saigo-sama was right, you are nothing more than a blood-thirsty murderer," my heart once again crumbled with her words.
It was a true, I was a blood-thirsty murderer back then. I killed so many because I thought I could be reunited with my brother faster if I did so. I didn't care who anyone was, if they were with the Shogunate, they had to die, and if anyone had seen my actions, they would be killed as well. My sword's thirst for blood was never easily quenched, my lust for blood would help satisfy it. But after talking with that girl, my lust is suddenly gone, but my sword still thirsty. It had already drank Tetsu's blood, and I was not going to have it take another one of my friend's life.
"Even if you are a murderer," Shion continued, "you're still the woman I love."
"You speak in circles, Shion," I told her. "If you really do feel that way, then why must we fight? Is duty really more important than our feelings?"
"I can't answer that, Mina," Shion answered with the shake of her head. "The only way I'll know is by...," her sword began to raise once more.
Again her blade came crashing down. I took the defense once more, this time I didn't allow her sword to clash with mine. Instead of blocking her attack, I jumped a step or so back, although things didn't go as I had planned. Just as I found my feet on the floor again, Shion's form suddenly disappeared before me. My eyes widened a split second later, widening from the whistling winds suddenly swirling behind me. Shion had made her way behind me, for a moment I forgot that her Akai Chi Naginata Ryu also used the very same God-like speed of my Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu.
"Hyah!" I turned to find one of her blades swinging forward.
"Hah!" I used my weapon to block once more.
Again, our swords were locked in angle, both of seemed to be pushing all of our weight into our swords this time. Neither of seemed like we were going to overpower the other this time around, so in unison, Shion and I jumped away from each other once more.
"Shion, just drop your sword," I tried negotiating once more, "I don't want to waste anymore lives, that I don't, especially yours. Please Shion, I..."
"As I said before, orders are orders," she said with her head hung low.
"Shion, let's just stop right now, don't you see what the Ishin Shishi are doing to us?" I tried convincing her again.
"So are you saying that we should quit and side with the Shogunate?!" Shion spat. "The very same government that was responsible for Keisuke's and my family's death?!"
"I'm not saying that we should side with them," I explained, "I'm saying that we should just stop this fighting and get out of here together."
"Then where will we go?" she asked. "We'll be deserters, living life on the run, we won't have anyone to support us. Both the Shogunate and the Ishin Shishi will constantly be on our tails, they'll continue to hunt us down like dogs until we've both been killed!"
"It's bound to happen anyway," I told her. "Once you execute me, the Ishin Shishi will try and kill you too. You'll still be put in a life on the run, there's no way of avoiding it!"
"You're wrong!" Shion spat. "Once the Shogunate has been totally annihilated I'll be able to live in luxury in this new era as a reward for my loyal services."
"Your only reward will be death," I tried convincing her.
"Maybe it is for you as both Ishin Shishi and the Shogunate will be after you from now on!" her katana flew forward once more.
Pulling my sword to the left, I was able to swat the weapon away. Just as I watched the strike be deflected, the clicking of steel soon echoed my ear. She had just pulled out her wakezashi, swinging it to my right as soon as it was drawn. Again I jumped away to avoid the attack, this time I used the Ryu-Tsui-Sen's jump to get an even larger distance away from my friend. The rumbling of earth soon entered my ears as soon as I landed, it was a similar sound to my Do-Ryu-Sen.
"Akai Chi Ryu, Yama-No-Ten!" I turned to find Shion slicing the ground with her swords now conjoined.
The power of the strikes suddenly began traveling from the ground; rocks and other pieces of the ground levitated for a mere second as the wave flew forward. I dodged once more, jumping to the side to avoid the oncoming debris. It didn't do much good though because Shion was already charging forward with another attack.
"Akai Chi Ryu, San-Sakura!" the longer blade struck first.
Steel began ringing once more with the clash of the weapons. I knew her attack didn't end there, her attack's name had 'san' in it, that would mean that there would be two more strikes. It was just as I predicted, there was a second strike, this one was an uppercut with the shorter blade of her naginata. I took a step and pushed all of my weight into my back to avoid this attack, but the third part of the attack followed immediately after. It was a back flip that had Shion's left foot strike me under the chin, making me stagger to the floor.
'That attack, it's like the Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu's Ryu-Shou-Sen just with two additional strikes,' I thought to myself as I regained my balance.
"Akai Chi Ryu, Miyabi-Kishin!" she screamed as her charge became a spin.
'A Ryu-Kan-Sen type of attack!' I concluded with her next move.
I was expecting her attack to strike me from behind, readying my blade to catch her attack if it were to strike me in the back of the neck. Big mistake. Instead of her spinning behind me, she stayed in front, her blade swinging at my mid-section. I had no time to deflect the attack with my katana, so with my left arm I quickly brought the handle of my wakezashi to catch the weapon. It was another big mistake because I had no idea there was another part of the attack. Her foot met with the blunt side of her sword this time, the force pushed me even further than the last strike.
"Mamano-Arashi!" she screamed as she charged once more.
'Mamano-Arashi, that attack she used to kill that man who aided in killing her family,' I recalled. 'Shit, she's coming, there's only one way I think I can deflect this attack.'
"Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu, Ryu-Son-Sen!" I screamed.
A blur began to circle my entire body, flashes of light began appearing from all sides. Wherever the light appeared, it would quickly die out a split second later with the swing of my sword. I swung my blade in every direction at least ten times within five a time limit of five seconds, not once did I ever have to use the Ryu-Son-Sen so long and so quickly. Shion's form appeared a small distance away after the attack, she looked rather shocked to not find a single scratch on me.
"Shion, no matter which attack you use on me, I'll block each and every one of them," I told her. "Just stop this right now and we can drop the whole matter."
"And drop our lives while we're at it!" Shion spat. "Is the blood you've lost so much that it's making you delirious?" she reminded me of my bleeding scar.
"If anything it's opened my eyes," I answered.
"I'm afraid I'll have to be the one to make them shut!" she charged once more.
'I have no choice,' I thought to myself, 'I can't keep blocking forever, I have to fight back.'
"Akai Chi Ryu," she suddenly jumped into the air, "Koukuukougeki!"
'The Ryu-Tsui-Sen variation!' I thought to myself. 'If I can move at the right time, I just might be able to...'
There was no time to finish my thoughts, her blade was already upon my head. Before slitting a single hair on my head, I shifted all of my weight to my left shoulder, ramming into the ground as I swung my blade. Time just seemed to have slowed down from that very moment, I swear I could feel every inch my blade's tip traveled as it dug into Shion's skin. I could see every drop that seeped from the crater, filling the newly made crease in her kimono. I could hear every pitch of her cry, just thinking about how harming her made even more tears fall on my face. Just as my shoulder met with the ground, my sword finally freed itself from Shion's flesh.
"Ow...," Shion staggered forward, her naginata breaking her fall.
The cut had started from the center of her chest and made it's way to the top half of her breast. The center of the wound had met with the scar Saito gave her the first time I challenged him. The center of the newly made cross scar was at the center of heart, it occurred to me what I had just done right there.
'The cross-shaped heart,' I thought to myself, 'just like in that book. The scar, the mark, the heart, and the tear, could it be... Why am I thinking this now, it's just a book and a stupid coincidence!'
"Gomen nesai," I apologized as I returned to my feet, "Shion, I didn't mean..."
"No Mina, I'm the one who should apologize," she took her spear into her hands once more, "I'm the one who's going to end your life!"
She was serious, that look in her eye, I saw it when she killed that man a year ago. So much anger in her eyes, the fire within those pupils would incinerate anyone that came even remotely close to it. My best friend was going to kill me, and as much as it pained me at that moment, there was no other way around it, it was either her or me.
"Forgive me," I shut my eyes.
As I opened them again, Shion's arms were already raised above her head, the long blade of her naginata pointed at the sky. My fingers took one last grip of my katana and brought it to the side. My right foot began to step forward, my left followed a second later. My right took the lead once more, and then the left. My feet began racing one another, just as my sword began to lift into the air. My feet were at neck and neck when my blade was at my chin's level, the very same height of Shion's weapon. Metal rang once more as the two blades clashed for a mere second, parting in the next. The two of us now had our backs turned to one another, our weapons pointed forward. Something was wrong when our weapons met, I was sure I felt one go right through another. My knees and arms were still locked as we awaited the outcome of the clash, neither of us moved an inch as we waited for the other to fall.
"Oro?" a drop of liquid suddenly fell upon my arm.
It was a translucent drop, the same hue of my tears. Another soon fell upon me, this one atop my head. Two more followed soon after, and then three. Their numbers began to increase every second we stood there. Was it rain, or were they the heavens' tears?
A small creak suddenly entered my ears as the drops became more rapid. A louder one followed a moment later. I looked to my blade, a small line of black had been smudged in the center of the curve. The crack suddenly began to grow until one half of my sword clattered to the floor. My katana had broken, and yet...
"Impressive," Shion had spoken first.
I turned to her, her back was still turned, she was still standing there in the same pose as when we both struck, but with one difference. She was holding a long sword handle in her hands now, with poorly sanded pieces of metal sticking out of both ends. I had broken both sides of her weapon as well, the two of us were now basically unarmed.
"Shion...?" I called her name, as I wiped the crimson rivers traveling down my cheek.
My scar was still bleeding, but the moisture of the rain seemed to have soothed the pain. I'm sure the rain must've done the same with Shion's new wound, but it must've only boiled when it met with her heart. Her back suddenly shifted to the side, her left arm now facing me. There was still a sneer perched upon her face, it stretched even more when she looked at her broken weapon once more. With a wave of her hand, she discarded the useless spear, meeting with the ground as if it didn't mean a single thing to her. Her fists took the place of her weapon, her left before her right as her legs parted until they were level with her shoulders. Even if she was unarmed, she still wanted to fight. I looked at the remains of my katana; half of the blade was left, I though it would be enough to finish our duel. I brought it to my side once more, just as the space between Shion's feet widened. The rain began to push down on our shoulders, crawling down every inch of our bodies. Regardless of these translucent weights, we hadn't lost our posture. The grip around my sword only tightened more as my shoulders grew heavier, just as Shion's thumb wrapped around her fingers more tightly. Shion suddenly began to move, her left legs stepping forward so that it was level with her right. Her arms did the same, only that both moved to the side of her body, just as her thumb released her fingers. The sneer on her face began to melt suddenly, melting into a frown as her eyes began to water. My fingers began to unfurl from the hold of my sword, it clattered to the floor without a noise. Shion's knees suddenly met with the floor, and her palms to her face. Cries began to escape her mouth, cries that would put any dog to shame. Without a second thought, I ran over to her, placing my arms around her shoulders as I brought her head to my shoulder.
"Gomen nesai," she cried, "gomen nesai, Mina! I didn't know what I was doing, I..."
"No, it's okay, Shion," I assured her, patting her shoulder as her body jerked.
"It's not okay, Mina, I was about to..."
"Shion, let's just drop it okay."
"Get out of here," she suddenly ordered.
"Nani?" I said puzzled.
"I said get out of here," she repeated. "I've killed Hitokiri Kensai, my assignment has been completed, the Ishin Shishi no longer have to worry about the rogue assassin any longer."
"You mean you're letting me go?" I asked.
"Hai," she nodded, "I can't bring myself to kill you, Mina."
"Arigatou," I smiled.
"So you must leave before they find you," Shion ordered once more.
"What about you?" I asked. "I thought we were going to travel together."
"We will, Mina," Shion assured me, "when my work with the Ishin Shishi is completed."
"But they'll only...," I tried to explain once more.
"Mina, I don't know who or what to believe at the moment," Shion said, "so all I can do is live through whatever life throws at me. I will continue to live my life the way I have unless something like what you said happens."
"But Shion..."
"Please Mina, trust me on this one!" she begged.
My best friend still didn't believe me after everything we've gone through. It hurt me to see her like this, but I knew that she wouldn't have gone with me at that moment. She was my best friend, so I had to trust her, even though she could not trust me.
"...all right," I responded after a moment of thinking, "I will."
"Arigatou, Mina," she smiled. "You better get going then before reinforcements arrive."
"Yeah," I nodded.
"That forest should lead you into the country, it should provide you with many places to hide," Shion pointed to the lot of trees to the east.
"I'll do that," I began to take my leave.
"Wait!" a tug suddenly fell upon my sleeve.
"Yes, Shion?" I turned to her once more.
"If what you say is true, where shall I meet you?" she asked.
"Nagoya," I answered, "we'll meet in Nagoya on September twenty-third, I'll stay there to the twenty-fourth if necessary."
"You mean on Shubun-No-Hi?"
"Yeah," I answered. "It'll attract a lot of tourists so in case anyone tries to follow us, it'll be hard to rack us down with all the people. To screw them up even more, we'll meet in front of Nagoya Castle within the hours of noon to six in the afternoon."
"That's perfect!" Shion exclaimed.
"I better get going then," I began to leave once more.
"Wait!" Shion stopped me once more.
"What is it?" I asked.
"You'll need something to keep you occupied while you're waiting for me," Shion began digging into the left side of her kimono. "Here," she pulled out a book.
"This is 'Crimson String and the Four Destinies'," I read the title.
"I thought I could leave it with you once this job was done," Shion said, "you really liked reading that book so I thought it could be a going away present."
"Arigatou," I stuffed it into my kimono.
"And I have another gift for you," her eyes began to face the ground again, her toes circling the same area over and over again, "I know you're not into this kind of stuff, but..."
I knew what she was talking about. I knew how much it meant to her, so for a while I decided to push back my thoughts on the matter. I wrapped my arms around her waist, pushing my toes against the ground to put me to her height, and then brought her lips toward mine. It was a moment later that I felt her arms reaching toward my back over my shoulders, her body soon pressing against mine. Her lips were so smooth, her skin felt so silky, so sweet, so... why am I getting all descriptive about her all of a sudden? When we finally parted lips, a smile was once again stretched across Shion's face.
"Was that what you wanted?" I asked.
"Arigatou, Mina!" she squeezed my body close to mine once more.
"Don't read anything into it," I told her, "I know it meant so much to you that I..."
"I know, Mina," Shion began to release me, "and I thank you for that."
"I guess this is goodbye until then," I began to push her away.
"Yeah," her head returned to her feet.
"Thank you for everything," I began walking toward the forest, "goodbye, Shion."
"Goodbye, Mina," she waved.
With one last smile stretching across my face, I turned to her for a second more. As I turned back to the woods, the smile slowly melted as I began treading into the forest. The winds began to pick up from there, the rain began flooding down, and the sky began to crash. In the midst of it all, there was yet another sound that brought a smile to my face for another second.
"I love you," was what I heard in barely a whisper.
"Shion...," I closed my eyes thinking of her already.
After reminiscing about my best friend for a mere second, I returned to reality and the path that lay before me. I turned back once more, nothing but darkness had awaited me there. I looked forward once again, there was still no light. There was no going back now, the only thing I could do was go forward...
Chapter 32 Liner Notes
A bit on Shion's attacks- As I mentioned in a previous chapter, Shion uses the Akai Chi Naginata Ryu (which can be translated as the "Red Earth Style") which is basically the spear version of the Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu. Shion's "Miyabi-Kishin" (the Ryu-Kan-Sen variation that strikes into he abdomen instead of the back) can be translated as "Graceful Demon God." The "San-Sakura" (the Ryu-Shou-Sen variation with two additional strikes) is translated as "Three Sakura (or "Flowers" in place of Sakura). The "Mamano-Arashi" (the Ryu-Son-Sen" variation) is translated as "Devil Tempest." "Yama-No-Ten" (the Do-Ryu-Sen variation) is translated as "Mountain of Heaven." Finally, Shion's "Koukuukougeki" is translated as "Air Strike." There are two more techniques that Shion has not used during her fight with Mina, these two attacks are variations of the Kuza-Ryu-Sen and the Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu's ultimate attack, the Amakekeru-Ryu-No-Hirameki. These two attacks will be seen in books II, III, and the side story.
What does "Gomen nesai" mean?- We already know that "gomen" means "sorry", so "gomen nesai" means "I'm very sorry."
What is "Nagoya?"- Nagoya is a large commercial city to the east of Kyoto. It has a port and in present day Japan, several railway stations. Many tourists go to Nagoya to pick up souvenirs and the such, it's a very busy city. I think it was also an alternate capital for Japan during the Tokugawa Shogunate's rule, I'm not sure, I still have to do some research on that.
What is "Shubun-No-Hi?"- "Shubun-No-Hi" is translated as "The First Day of Autumn." It's basically a day when many people go out into the city to celebrate the first day of Autumn by watching fireworks and having a night on the town.
(Next time: "It's all come back to haunt me. My past, it's something I'm not very proud of, and now it begins to consume me. There is no one who can help me, no matter how much I call. Tetsu, Shion, Shinta, someone, anyone, please save me from her...!" -Himura Mina)
Author's Note: Pretty sad huh? Well, as usual, I don't accept flames or anything like that for reviews. This was probably the hardest chapter for me to write, the two have come a very long way in the story so it was difficult to find a proper ending to the battle. Well, I'm afraid we won't be seeing Shion in the story for a while, not until at least chapter five of book II and the 'Crimson String' side story, 'When Angels Lost Their Wings', which is of course co-written with Crystal from ff.net. Anyway, there will be no action in the next chapter, just a lot of angst for our poor heroine. Two chapters left and the epilogue and then this book is over. I guess I'll see you guys on the next update then. Later!