Chapter 3 - Journey
Adjusting another borrowed outfit, Sakura nodded to herself. The outfit was blue and very snug and warm, perfect for the bitter cold outside. This time she would be sure not to freeze. She grabbed her bokken off the bureau, thankful they brought it when they found her, and slipped it into the band around her waist that kept the warm clothes snug. Tucking the scroll into the top of the coat, she opened the door and slipped down the halls.
It had been three days since she accepted her position as Genbu no Miko, and in those three days, she, along with Uruki and Shaiming, spent the time going over the scroll and making plans on how to find the Seishi. The first two symbols were "dipper" and "fight." They figured that "dipper" was the symbol of the Seishi and "fight" was where they would find him or her.
"Fight? Where could we find something like that? Doesn't fighting go on all the time, and just about everywhere?" Sakura had asked once she heard of the first Seishi.
Uruki nodded, "That's true, but it just so happens that in a few days a fighting tournament will be conducted to the north of the capital. That's probably where the Seishi will be."
Making sure that the scroll was firmly inside the coat, she sighed, "I hope so. I truly hope he or she will be there." Brushing her loose hair over her shoulder, she stepped outside where everyone was gathered. Shaiming, a few guards and servants as well as Uruki were near a set of horses, going over the plans once more in hushed tones.
"Sakura! You ready?" Uruki called, waving the younger girl over after she finished setting up her horse.
'Horses. Crap, I've never ridden one before.' she thought and winced. "H- hai!" she called out. 'How hard could it be?' Stepped up to one of the horses, she grinned sheepishly and gently reached out to pat its nose. "Erm, Uruki, I-"
"Excuse me!"
Thankful that she was cut off, Sakura sighed and turned towards the direction of the mysterious voice. "An!" she called out, smiling as she recognized the woman with white hair.
"Ohayo," the woman smiled, walking up to Sakura and Uruki, still holding her wooden staff. Bowing her head, she got down on one knee before Sakura. "Genbu no Miko. Watashi wa Genbu no Namame, your Seishi," she spoke quietly, lifting up her right hand and showing the glowing symbol of "wall" on the upper side of her right wrist.
Sakura, slightly stunned that the woman was kneeling before her, could barely contain her happiness once she saw the symbol. "Hontou.?"
Namame slowly stood up and nodded, smiling down at the younger girl.
Eyes wide, Sakura leapt up and threw her arms around Namame's neck, similar to how she had been towards Uruki when she found out she was a Seishi. "Wai! The second Seishi! We've found her!"
"Sa-sakura! Wo tsukete ne! You might suffocate her like you almost did to me!" Uruki yelled, a look of worry on her face at how tight Sakura had clung herself to the older woman.
With a chuckle, Namame shook her head, patting Sakura on the back. "It's all right. I'm fine," she smiled down at Sakura as the shorter girl backed away with a slight blush on her cheeks.
Sakura clasped her hands in front of her, looking downwards, a large smile on her lips despite the blush on her cheeks. 'Yatta! We've done it! Two seishi, so now there's only five left!' she thought quietly, having a bit of trouble containing her happiness.
Having seen the entire thing, Shaiming smiled and nodded to Namame. "Well, it seems Genbu is smiling down upon us. I'll send for another horse so that you can ride with them, Namame."
"Iie! That's okay! I can ride with Uruki!" Sakura piped up, her eyes wide.
"Are you sure?" Shaiming asked, a curious look on his face.
Sakura nodded.
With a smirk playing on her lips, Uruki leaned down to whisper in Sakura's ear, "You can't ride a horse, can you?"
Making a face, Sakura shook her head. "All right, then," Uruki stood back up. "She'll ride with me."
Shaiming stepped forward and held out his arms, tightly bringing them around his sister and embracing her tightly. "Be careful," he whispered in her ear. "If anything happened to you, I don't know what I'd do."
Hugging back just as tightly, Uruki nodded. "I know, but you don't need to worry. I'm stronger than I look, you of all people know that," she grinned, stepping away and lightly punching her brother's shoulder.
Always having been fond of how his sister acted outside the royal palace, Shaiming nodded and stepped back, slipping his hands into opposite sleeves.
With another nod, Uruki backed up and got up on her waiting horse. She reached down with a hand and pulled Sakura up into the saddle behind her. "Ready?" she asked, turning to Namame who had already mounted the other horse, her staff nowhere to be seen. The older woman nodded and the party waved before kicking their horses and riding off.
---
The young Emperor of Kutou, Emperor Li, stormed down the many halls of his palace, shoving a few guards and servants out of his way as he moved. "So, Hokkan has found their Miko, 'eh? Well, it's a good thing I found these guys when I did." he muttered to himself, rounding another corner and skidding slightly on the well polished floor, but paying no mind as he dismissed the guards at his door and entered his quarters, closing the door behind him.
Almost immediately he began pacing back and forth, running formulas and ideas running through his head, wondering how, exactly, he would go about getting rid of Genbu no Miko. "Kogane!" he yelled, stopping his pacing and facing his bed, tightening and relaxing his hands into fists.
A few feet behind the Emperor, a black mist seemed to develop out of nowhere and quickly began to take on height. Within a few moments, the mist was the size of a human, and at the center, a man took form and stepped forward. His hair was long and golden, reaching his hips, and his eyes were a matching gold color. In contrast, his robes were black, adorned with various golden trinkets. Moving his arm over his stomach, parallel to the ground, he bowed at the waist.
"You called?" he asked, his voice quiet and deep. Behind the tall man, similar pools of mist took form and transformed into four silhouetted bodies, kneeling on one knee with their heads bowed. Their forms were completely shrouded in darkness, so it was nearly impossible for any of them to be made out as human or non, female or male.
"Yes," the emperor replied, raising his arms up and crossing them over his chest, quickly turning around to stare at the tall man. "Kogane, I need you to take care of that girl Hokkan has found, Genbu no Miko. I don't care what you do or how you do it, just make sure she never summons Genbu. Understand?"
The tall man now identified as Kogane nodded once before standing up to his full height, his arms dropping to his sides as he looked down at the man before. "Wakateru," he replied, taking a step back. Each of the five bodies turned into a black mist once more and disappeared leaving the Emperor to brood.
---
Ever since she entered Sakura's father's library and picked up the book, Maaya couldn't seem to put it down. She was still skeptical about Sakura actually being in the book, but as she read on and on, she was more convinced that the girl in the book actually was her best friend; there was no way some author could have come up with a character exactly like Sakura without ever having met her. But the questions just kept popping into her head. Was what she was reading actually happening? Where exactly was Sakura? How did she get into the book in the first place?
Shaking her head, Maaya looked up and checked her watch. "Eight. Better call mom," she muttered to herself, placing the book on the floor and walking out of the library, stopping in the hall and picking up the phone. She dialed her number and waited for someone to pick up. "Mom? Hi. Uhh, I'm still at Sakura's. She's not feeling very well, so I'm going to sleep over her house. No need to worry about anything, I'll borrow things from her if I need it. I'll call you back in the morning, okay? Bye." Hanging up the phone, she sighed and made her way back into the library. She plopped down on the floor once more and picked the book up, gently fingering the pages and going to where she left off.
"'With his orders clear, the dark sorcerer stepped back into the shadows and disappeared with his minions, plans for taking care of the miko already brewing in his head.'" Maaya shuddered. "I really don't like this guy. If he does anything to Sakura, so help me." she trailed off growling.
---
They had been riding since they had left the palace, with little to no stops, and Sakura was already getting tired. Yawning, she tightened her grip around Uruki's waist and leaned against her back. "How much longer until we get there?" she muttered through the clothes.
Chuckling, Uruki surprisingly heard her. "Not much longer. We're going to rest for the night at an inn in the town. Tomorrow the tournament should be starting, so hopefully we'll find him or her there."
"Mmhmm." Sakura murmured, closing her eyes and trying to rest, but finding it hard with all the jostling her body did in the seat because of the horse. But it did feel good to close her eyes for a bit.
And as Uruki said, it didn't take them much longer before they reached the town. Namame and Uruki slowed their horses down to trots and made their way towards the inn. When Sakura had to get off the horse, she nearly fell over on her rear, but luckily caught her balance in time. Wobbling around for a few minutes, Sakura winced, "I never want to ride another horse again."
Namame chuckled as she tied her horse outside. "You get used to it for a while. Come, we'll get some food, rent a room and get a good night's rest."
The party entered the inn and made their way straight to the dinning room. They took their seats and placed their orders. Luckily Uruki brought quite a bit of money with her so they could buy whatever they wanted, and within a few minutes, their orders were brought to them. Sakura was quite content with sitting stationary while eating as she could barely remember sitting still so long.
"Namame?"
"Hn?" the white haired woman looked up from her vegetables to look at the youngest.
"What were you doing before you joined us?" Sakura asked curiously. Although she hadn't been in Hokkan very long, she had gotten to know Uruki very well, like a sister. But she didn't know a thing about Namame, and as the Miko, she felt like she had the responsibility to.
"What do you mean?" Namame asked, her brow furrowing in confusion as she placed down her chopsticks.
"I mean." Sakura started, wondering how she could put it. "Like, tell us about yourself!"
"Ah," she nodded, dabbing her mouth with her napkin. "Well, let's see. There isn't much to tell, really. When I was younger, I grew up in a very loving family. But sadly, I don't remember them very well. But when I grew up, I fell in love with a boy my age. His name was Shota," she smiled as memories of her past roamed in her mind.
Sakura smiled, leaning forward a bit. "What was he like?"
Namame tilted her head slightly. "He was tall, dark, handsome and very quiet. We got along very well, spending almost all our free time together. Everyone used to say that we were connected at the hip," she chuckled. "But our parents were against it. My parents didn't like him and his parents didn't like me. We couldn't stand how our parents acted, so when we were seventeen we ran off to live on our own."
Placing her own chopsticks down, Uruki leaned back in her chair, listening to the story. "Did your parents find you?"
"Actually, they didn't. They sent out search parties, looked for us themselves, but after a few weeks they got tired and gave up. We did pretty well as young lovers then," she sighed. "We both got jobs, supported each other. Not long after that, Shota asked me to marry him, and of course I accepted."
Like the girls they were, Sakura and Uruki sighed happily at the thought of the young lovers.
"But, on the day we were supposed to get married." Namame trailed off, her eyes becoming blurry, her head tilting downwards. "We were attacked by a small group of bandits. Shota threw himself over me, trying to protect me, but he died in the process."
Both faces fell, feeling as though they were about to cry. Uruki kicked Sakura under the table for asking such a rude question, and Sakura kicked her back since she was just as curious. "Gomen.." Sakura whispered, looking up to the older woman.
Sniffling quietly, Namame shook her head, lifting it back up, her eyes much clearer. "Iie, it's all right." She cleared her throat. "I was so scared when it happened, and I felt so guilty. From that day on, I began wandering the lands, doing what I could every now and then to make some money. I vowed that I would track down his killer and kill him as payback. At night, I would stay up and stare at the moon. Once, I became so angry that I started hearing things around me, and that's when I found out I was a Seishi." She rubbed the symbol of "wall" on her wrist.
"Did you ever find your lover's killer?" Sakura spoke up.
Namame shook her head. "No. While I was traveling the lands, learning to control and use my power, I learned that he had already died in a fire. I was glad when I found that out, but still angry. I couldn't take my revenge for Shota. So instead, I made him a new promise."
Uruki and Sakura looked at the woman, their faces reading looks of confusion. "What promise was that?" they both asked simultaneously.
"Since I couldn't save him, I promised Shota that I would protect the next important thing to me with my life," she spoke, nodding to Sakura. "I promised him that for the rest of my life, I would protect Genbu no Miko in his place," she smiled.
Sakura just blinked a few times, a light blush creeping onto her face as she heard Namame's words. "A-arigatou." she smiled lightly.
"Iie, it is both my promise and purpose to protect you."
Still smiling, Sakura nodded, but the blush wouldn't leave her cheeks. Not longer after, the women finished their meals and retired to the room they had rented. It was large and cozy, the best room in the inn with three beds, one for each of them. It was already late and the three of them immediately fell asleep once they lied down.
---
The room the three women were staying in was absolutely silent and motionless except for their breathing. Each of them lied in their own bed, sleeping peacefully and quietly, their deep, slow breathing proof of their slumber. The room was pitch black, save for small bits of light that poured in from the stars and moon outside the window.
In one of the farthest corners of the room, a delicate mist began to spread out along the floor, growing into a large sheet of tumbling air and moving silently across the floor. As it moved, it continued to spread out before it stopped at the side of Sakura's bed. It then began to grow upwards and take on the shape of a human. In an instant, the mist disappeared, leaving a young body covered in the darkness of the room. His entire body was hidden, except for the glint of a red eye.
Breathing quietly, the boy looked down at Sakura, cautiously reaching out a hand and bringing it down over the young girl's forehead, brushing her bangs out of her eyes. A soft smile played at his lips as he brought his hand down, his fingertips gently moving across the girl's forehead and down her cheek. "So soft." he whispered, his eyes watching her with interest.
His hand kept moving downwards, down her chin and along her neck to the top portion of her chest that was exposed, outside of the warm blanket surrounding the rest of her body. "So very soft." he breathed again, his fingers slowly moving back and forth across the top of her chest, right above her cleavage. With his pointer finger, he traced a line over her collarbone before moving his hand further down beneath her shirt, gently touching one of her breasts.
Although she was in such a deep sleep, Sakura stirred slightly, her brow furrowing as her body lightly twitched.
Slightly surprised with her reaction, the boy pulled his hand back and continued to stare down at the girl. Bending down, he placed his warm lips to her forehead and kissed her. As he stood back up, he began taking steps backwards, a red character glowing upon his right hand. "Oyasumi." he whispered as his body turned back to mist and disappeared.
A small smile played on Sakura's lips as she murmured something in her sleep. Turning onto her side, she curled up into the blankets and fell into an even deeper sleep.
---
By ten the next morning, everyone was up, had breakfast and was ready to go. As they packed their things in their room, Sakura called over her shoulder, "What time does the tournament start?"
Uruki flung her bag over her shoulder and replied, "Should have started by now. If not, it'll start in a few minutes."
Finishing up with her bag, Namame moved towards the door and looked towards the other two. "I think we should split up. I know, I know," she shook her head at the faces of disbelief the girls were giving her, "you think it's not a good idea. But this town is big, and the chances of getting into much trouble are small. I can take care of myself. So Uruki, you go with Sakura. If something happens, just yell; I'll be able to hear you no matter where I am. By eleven, whether you've found him or her or not, we'll meet up back here, understood?"
Both younger girls nodded. And with that, the party left the room and separated into two once they hit the streets.
"I don't think we should have split up," Uruki said, looking every which way to see some sort of glowing symbol. "Whether she can take care of herself or not, I think it'd be best if we all just stuck together."
Sakura nodded, checking out every person that passed her by, tightly holding the scroll in her hands. "I know, but I really do think Namame can take care of herself. She's a strong woman."
After an hour of checking the tournament grounds, both girls sighed sadly and made their way back towards the inn. "Too bad we couldn't find the Seishi. Maybe Namame had better luck," Sakura said.
"I hope so. But, where are we...?" Uruki stopped where she was and looked around. Somehow they had split apart from the regular crowd of the town and were now in an abandoned alley.
"I. I don't know." Sakura replied quietly, slowly backing up towards Uruki, getting a bad feeling.
"Well, well, look what we got here, boys," a voice from behind them spoke. The two quickly spun around to see seven men had followed them.
"Seems like our lucky day!" another voice called. Uruki kept facing the first man that spoke, but Sakura gasped and spun around seeing another six guys close in from behind.
Backing up until the two were back to back, Sakura whispered, "I think we're in trouble. I don't know how many I can take." Her hand moved down towards the hilt of her bokken.
Uruki grit her teeth, eyeing the men before her. "Neither do I," she whispered back. But getting an idea, she stopped up straight and glared at the bunch before her. "I suggest you boys back up and go home!" she called out. "I am the Empress of Hokkan, and if you know what's best for you, you will leave us alone!"
"Uruki!" Sakura hissed. "What are you -doing-?!"
"Trust me!" she hissed back.
The first man, who seemed to be the leader, chuckled and advanced forward, his boys following close behind like obedient dogs. "Ohh, so we have royalty before us! I hear the royal women have very soft skin. That should make this all the more fun," he laughed.
"Well, we're screwed," Uruki sighed. "I can't use my powers. There aren't any roots or anything below us!"
Pulling her bokken into a defensive position, Sakura shrugged. "Well, I say we bust our way through and run. Ready?" Not bothering to wait for an answer, Sakura rushed forward and brought her bokken down over the first man, clipping his nose and causing him to reel back in pain.
"Sakura, matte!" Uruki yelled. But it was too late. With a sigh, she shook her head and ran forward, bringing her knee up and slamming it into the crotch of the man who was closest. She then slammed a hand down at the back of his neck and knocked him over. A man threw a punch at her, and she ducked under it, her fist coming up to meet his stomach. Standing back up, she flung her body to the side and brought her foot up, round housing the man in the jaw and sending him flying backwards.
Twirling from her position, Sakura brought the bokken around and slammed it into the stomach of the closest guy. As she had feared, her skills weren't as good as she had hoped. She could take out a few more guys, but afterwards, she would be in trouble. Spinning around once more, she brought the bokken down over another man's face, this time actually cutting the skin, leaving a diagonal slash on his face, a few drops of blood staining the wood.
Within a few minutes, the girls had taken out eight of the men, leaving another five. Their movements too slow, both women were caught and forced up against the alley wall, their wrists pinned above their heads.
"Heh, heh, heh." the leader chuckled, moving over to the two. "Seems you girls have caused a bit of trouble with my men," he shook his head, motioning to the fallen men. "You're going to pay for that," he growled, reaching down and loosening his pants as the other men laughed.
"Hey!"
"Oh, now what?!" the leader yelled, turning to look towards the alleyway entrance, seeing a silhouette of a man. "What do you want? If you want a try at these girls, you'll have to wait!"
Shaking his head, the man at the alleyway began walking forward, clicking his tongue. "Don't you have any manners?" he asked, stopping just a few feet in front of the leader. Sakura slowly opened her eyes, her breathing heavy, and looked at the recently arrived man. He had short brown hair and eyes, a red bandana tied around his forehead.
"Let the ladies go, and I'll let you live," he growled, crossing his arms over his chest.
"Huh.. and just who do you think you are, punk?" asked the leader, fully turning around to face the kid. He motioned for two of his men to move forward with him. Without bothering to wait for an answer, the three men were on the boy, lashing out with kicks and punches as the other two laughed from their position of holding the women up.
With a growl, the boy slammed his fist into one of the men's chins, sending him to the ground with a broken jaw. He then slammed his elbow back into the chest of the man behind him, then wheeled around and punched him across the face, breaking his nose with a sickening crunch. The second man fell backwards, holding his nose as blood gushed from it.
"All right!" the leader yelled, backing away. "You win this time! But the next time I see you, you won't be so lucky!" With that, he turned and ran out of the alley, his two lackeys close behind, leaving the women to fall to the ground holding their wrists.
"You two okay?" the boy asked, stepping up to them and crouching down to take a look at them.
"H-hai." Sakura whispered, slowly looking up. The poor boy had gotten into so much trouble for them, even the left sleeve of his coat was ripped off. And his arm was fully exposed, the green symbol for "dipper" glowing on his bicep. "Y..You're..!"
Uruki looked up from her wrists towards Sakura. "What are you going on about?" she asked. She looked to where Sakura was pointing and grinned. "Yatta!"
"N-nani?" he asked, looking at the blue haired girl pointing at his bicep. "Oh, this? This-ack!" he yelped as Sakura threw her arms around him and hugged him tightly, knocking him over.
"The third Seishi! We've found him!" she called out happily, hugging the boy tightly.
"Sakura.. You really have to learn to stop doing that." Uruki sighed, standing up and pulling Sakura away. "What's your name?"
Once Sakura was pulled off him, the boy stood up and brushed himself off, chuckling lightly. "My name's Miao Fai, but because of this symbol," he said, pointing to his bicep, "I'm also known as Hatsui, Genbu no Hatsui."
Unable to contain her excitement, Sakura leapt forward again and threw her arms around Hatsui's neck once more.
"S-Sakura!" Uruki yelled.
'We did it! Now we only have four more!' she thought happily, not noticing Hatsui's face turning blue or hearing Uruki's yelling.
*cue ending music XD* Glossary:
Hontou - really? Wai - yay! Wo tsukete ne - be careful Yatta - woohoo! Emperor Li - Emperor of Kutou, minor character Chopsticks - I don't know if they used chopsticks or not, go figure Shota - Namame's lover, minor character Oyasumi - good night Matte - wait
Adjusting another borrowed outfit, Sakura nodded to herself. The outfit was blue and very snug and warm, perfect for the bitter cold outside. This time she would be sure not to freeze. She grabbed her bokken off the bureau, thankful they brought it when they found her, and slipped it into the band around her waist that kept the warm clothes snug. Tucking the scroll into the top of the coat, she opened the door and slipped down the halls.
It had been three days since she accepted her position as Genbu no Miko, and in those three days, she, along with Uruki and Shaiming, spent the time going over the scroll and making plans on how to find the Seishi. The first two symbols were "dipper" and "fight." They figured that "dipper" was the symbol of the Seishi and "fight" was where they would find him or her.
"Fight? Where could we find something like that? Doesn't fighting go on all the time, and just about everywhere?" Sakura had asked once she heard of the first Seishi.
Uruki nodded, "That's true, but it just so happens that in a few days a fighting tournament will be conducted to the north of the capital. That's probably where the Seishi will be."
Making sure that the scroll was firmly inside the coat, she sighed, "I hope so. I truly hope he or she will be there." Brushing her loose hair over her shoulder, she stepped outside where everyone was gathered. Shaiming, a few guards and servants as well as Uruki were near a set of horses, going over the plans once more in hushed tones.
"Sakura! You ready?" Uruki called, waving the younger girl over after she finished setting up her horse.
'Horses. Crap, I've never ridden one before.' she thought and winced. "H- hai!" she called out. 'How hard could it be?' Stepped up to one of the horses, she grinned sheepishly and gently reached out to pat its nose. "Erm, Uruki, I-"
"Excuse me!"
Thankful that she was cut off, Sakura sighed and turned towards the direction of the mysterious voice. "An!" she called out, smiling as she recognized the woman with white hair.
"Ohayo," the woman smiled, walking up to Sakura and Uruki, still holding her wooden staff. Bowing her head, she got down on one knee before Sakura. "Genbu no Miko. Watashi wa Genbu no Namame, your Seishi," she spoke quietly, lifting up her right hand and showing the glowing symbol of "wall" on the upper side of her right wrist.
Sakura, slightly stunned that the woman was kneeling before her, could barely contain her happiness once she saw the symbol. "Hontou.?"
Namame slowly stood up and nodded, smiling down at the younger girl.
Eyes wide, Sakura leapt up and threw her arms around Namame's neck, similar to how she had been towards Uruki when she found out she was a Seishi. "Wai! The second Seishi! We've found her!"
"Sa-sakura! Wo tsukete ne! You might suffocate her like you almost did to me!" Uruki yelled, a look of worry on her face at how tight Sakura had clung herself to the older woman.
With a chuckle, Namame shook her head, patting Sakura on the back. "It's all right. I'm fine," she smiled down at Sakura as the shorter girl backed away with a slight blush on her cheeks.
Sakura clasped her hands in front of her, looking downwards, a large smile on her lips despite the blush on her cheeks. 'Yatta! We've done it! Two seishi, so now there's only five left!' she thought quietly, having a bit of trouble containing her happiness.
Having seen the entire thing, Shaiming smiled and nodded to Namame. "Well, it seems Genbu is smiling down upon us. I'll send for another horse so that you can ride with them, Namame."
"Iie! That's okay! I can ride with Uruki!" Sakura piped up, her eyes wide.
"Are you sure?" Shaiming asked, a curious look on his face.
Sakura nodded.
With a smirk playing on her lips, Uruki leaned down to whisper in Sakura's ear, "You can't ride a horse, can you?"
Making a face, Sakura shook her head. "All right, then," Uruki stood back up. "She'll ride with me."
Shaiming stepped forward and held out his arms, tightly bringing them around his sister and embracing her tightly. "Be careful," he whispered in her ear. "If anything happened to you, I don't know what I'd do."
Hugging back just as tightly, Uruki nodded. "I know, but you don't need to worry. I'm stronger than I look, you of all people know that," she grinned, stepping away and lightly punching her brother's shoulder.
Always having been fond of how his sister acted outside the royal palace, Shaiming nodded and stepped back, slipping his hands into opposite sleeves.
With another nod, Uruki backed up and got up on her waiting horse. She reached down with a hand and pulled Sakura up into the saddle behind her. "Ready?" she asked, turning to Namame who had already mounted the other horse, her staff nowhere to be seen. The older woman nodded and the party waved before kicking their horses and riding off.
---
The young Emperor of Kutou, Emperor Li, stormed down the many halls of his palace, shoving a few guards and servants out of his way as he moved. "So, Hokkan has found their Miko, 'eh? Well, it's a good thing I found these guys when I did." he muttered to himself, rounding another corner and skidding slightly on the well polished floor, but paying no mind as he dismissed the guards at his door and entered his quarters, closing the door behind him.
Almost immediately he began pacing back and forth, running formulas and ideas running through his head, wondering how, exactly, he would go about getting rid of Genbu no Miko. "Kogane!" he yelled, stopping his pacing and facing his bed, tightening and relaxing his hands into fists.
A few feet behind the Emperor, a black mist seemed to develop out of nowhere and quickly began to take on height. Within a few moments, the mist was the size of a human, and at the center, a man took form and stepped forward. His hair was long and golden, reaching his hips, and his eyes were a matching gold color. In contrast, his robes were black, adorned with various golden trinkets. Moving his arm over his stomach, parallel to the ground, he bowed at the waist.
"You called?" he asked, his voice quiet and deep. Behind the tall man, similar pools of mist took form and transformed into four silhouetted bodies, kneeling on one knee with their heads bowed. Their forms were completely shrouded in darkness, so it was nearly impossible for any of them to be made out as human or non, female or male.
"Yes," the emperor replied, raising his arms up and crossing them over his chest, quickly turning around to stare at the tall man. "Kogane, I need you to take care of that girl Hokkan has found, Genbu no Miko. I don't care what you do or how you do it, just make sure she never summons Genbu. Understand?"
The tall man now identified as Kogane nodded once before standing up to his full height, his arms dropping to his sides as he looked down at the man before. "Wakateru," he replied, taking a step back. Each of the five bodies turned into a black mist once more and disappeared leaving the Emperor to brood.
---
Ever since she entered Sakura's father's library and picked up the book, Maaya couldn't seem to put it down. She was still skeptical about Sakura actually being in the book, but as she read on and on, she was more convinced that the girl in the book actually was her best friend; there was no way some author could have come up with a character exactly like Sakura without ever having met her. But the questions just kept popping into her head. Was what she was reading actually happening? Where exactly was Sakura? How did she get into the book in the first place?
Shaking her head, Maaya looked up and checked her watch. "Eight. Better call mom," she muttered to herself, placing the book on the floor and walking out of the library, stopping in the hall and picking up the phone. She dialed her number and waited for someone to pick up. "Mom? Hi. Uhh, I'm still at Sakura's. She's not feeling very well, so I'm going to sleep over her house. No need to worry about anything, I'll borrow things from her if I need it. I'll call you back in the morning, okay? Bye." Hanging up the phone, she sighed and made her way back into the library. She plopped down on the floor once more and picked the book up, gently fingering the pages and going to where she left off.
"'With his orders clear, the dark sorcerer stepped back into the shadows and disappeared with his minions, plans for taking care of the miko already brewing in his head.'" Maaya shuddered. "I really don't like this guy. If he does anything to Sakura, so help me." she trailed off growling.
---
They had been riding since they had left the palace, with little to no stops, and Sakura was already getting tired. Yawning, she tightened her grip around Uruki's waist and leaned against her back. "How much longer until we get there?" she muttered through the clothes.
Chuckling, Uruki surprisingly heard her. "Not much longer. We're going to rest for the night at an inn in the town. Tomorrow the tournament should be starting, so hopefully we'll find him or her there."
"Mmhmm." Sakura murmured, closing her eyes and trying to rest, but finding it hard with all the jostling her body did in the seat because of the horse. But it did feel good to close her eyes for a bit.
And as Uruki said, it didn't take them much longer before they reached the town. Namame and Uruki slowed their horses down to trots and made their way towards the inn. When Sakura had to get off the horse, she nearly fell over on her rear, but luckily caught her balance in time. Wobbling around for a few minutes, Sakura winced, "I never want to ride another horse again."
Namame chuckled as she tied her horse outside. "You get used to it for a while. Come, we'll get some food, rent a room and get a good night's rest."
The party entered the inn and made their way straight to the dinning room. They took their seats and placed their orders. Luckily Uruki brought quite a bit of money with her so they could buy whatever they wanted, and within a few minutes, their orders were brought to them. Sakura was quite content with sitting stationary while eating as she could barely remember sitting still so long.
"Namame?"
"Hn?" the white haired woman looked up from her vegetables to look at the youngest.
"What were you doing before you joined us?" Sakura asked curiously. Although she hadn't been in Hokkan very long, she had gotten to know Uruki very well, like a sister. But she didn't know a thing about Namame, and as the Miko, she felt like she had the responsibility to.
"What do you mean?" Namame asked, her brow furrowing in confusion as she placed down her chopsticks.
"I mean." Sakura started, wondering how she could put it. "Like, tell us about yourself!"
"Ah," she nodded, dabbing her mouth with her napkin. "Well, let's see. There isn't much to tell, really. When I was younger, I grew up in a very loving family. But sadly, I don't remember them very well. But when I grew up, I fell in love with a boy my age. His name was Shota," she smiled as memories of her past roamed in her mind.
Sakura smiled, leaning forward a bit. "What was he like?"
Namame tilted her head slightly. "He was tall, dark, handsome and very quiet. We got along very well, spending almost all our free time together. Everyone used to say that we were connected at the hip," she chuckled. "But our parents were against it. My parents didn't like him and his parents didn't like me. We couldn't stand how our parents acted, so when we were seventeen we ran off to live on our own."
Placing her own chopsticks down, Uruki leaned back in her chair, listening to the story. "Did your parents find you?"
"Actually, they didn't. They sent out search parties, looked for us themselves, but after a few weeks they got tired and gave up. We did pretty well as young lovers then," she sighed. "We both got jobs, supported each other. Not long after that, Shota asked me to marry him, and of course I accepted."
Like the girls they were, Sakura and Uruki sighed happily at the thought of the young lovers.
"But, on the day we were supposed to get married." Namame trailed off, her eyes becoming blurry, her head tilting downwards. "We were attacked by a small group of bandits. Shota threw himself over me, trying to protect me, but he died in the process."
Both faces fell, feeling as though they were about to cry. Uruki kicked Sakura under the table for asking such a rude question, and Sakura kicked her back since she was just as curious. "Gomen.." Sakura whispered, looking up to the older woman.
Sniffling quietly, Namame shook her head, lifting it back up, her eyes much clearer. "Iie, it's all right." She cleared her throat. "I was so scared when it happened, and I felt so guilty. From that day on, I began wandering the lands, doing what I could every now and then to make some money. I vowed that I would track down his killer and kill him as payback. At night, I would stay up and stare at the moon. Once, I became so angry that I started hearing things around me, and that's when I found out I was a Seishi." She rubbed the symbol of "wall" on her wrist.
"Did you ever find your lover's killer?" Sakura spoke up.
Namame shook her head. "No. While I was traveling the lands, learning to control and use my power, I learned that he had already died in a fire. I was glad when I found that out, but still angry. I couldn't take my revenge for Shota. So instead, I made him a new promise."
Uruki and Sakura looked at the woman, their faces reading looks of confusion. "What promise was that?" they both asked simultaneously.
"Since I couldn't save him, I promised Shota that I would protect the next important thing to me with my life," she spoke, nodding to Sakura. "I promised him that for the rest of my life, I would protect Genbu no Miko in his place," she smiled.
Sakura just blinked a few times, a light blush creeping onto her face as she heard Namame's words. "A-arigatou." she smiled lightly.
"Iie, it is both my promise and purpose to protect you."
Still smiling, Sakura nodded, but the blush wouldn't leave her cheeks. Not longer after, the women finished their meals and retired to the room they had rented. It was large and cozy, the best room in the inn with three beds, one for each of them. It was already late and the three of them immediately fell asleep once they lied down.
---
The room the three women were staying in was absolutely silent and motionless except for their breathing. Each of them lied in their own bed, sleeping peacefully and quietly, their deep, slow breathing proof of their slumber. The room was pitch black, save for small bits of light that poured in from the stars and moon outside the window.
In one of the farthest corners of the room, a delicate mist began to spread out along the floor, growing into a large sheet of tumbling air and moving silently across the floor. As it moved, it continued to spread out before it stopped at the side of Sakura's bed. It then began to grow upwards and take on the shape of a human. In an instant, the mist disappeared, leaving a young body covered in the darkness of the room. His entire body was hidden, except for the glint of a red eye.
Breathing quietly, the boy looked down at Sakura, cautiously reaching out a hand and bringing it down over the young girl's forehead, brushing her bangs out of her eyes. A soft smile played at his lips as he brought his hand down, his fingertips gently moving across the girl's forehead and down her cheek. "So soft." he whispered, his eyes watching her with interest.
His hand kept moving downwards, down her chin and along her neck to the top portion of her chest that was exposed, outside of the warm blanket surrounding the rest of her body. "So very soft." he breathed again, his fingers slowly moving back and forth across the top of her chest, right above her cleavage. With his pointer finger, he traced a line over her collarbone before moving his hand further down beneath her shirt, gently touching one of her breasts.
Although she was in such a deep sleep, Sakura stirred slightly, her brow furrowing as her body lightly twitched.
Slightly surprised with her reaction, the boy pulled his hand back and continued to stare down at the girl. Bending down, he placed his warm lips to her forehead and kissed her. As he stood back up, he began taking steps backwards, a red character glowing upon his right hand. "Oyasumi." he whispered as his body turned back to mist and disappeared.
A small smile played on Sakura's lips as she murmured something in her sleep. Turning onto her side, she curled up into the blankets and fell into an even deeper sleep.
---
By ten the next morning, everyone was up, had breakfast and was ready to go. As they packed their things in their room, Sakura called over her shoulder, "What time does the tournament start?"
Uruki flung her bag over her shoulder and replied, "Should have started by now. If not, it'll start in a few minutes."
Finishing up with her bag, Namame moved towards the door and looked towards the other two. "I think we should split up. I know, I know," she shook her head at the faces of disbelief the girls were giving her, "you think it's not a good idea. But this town is big, and the chances of getting into much trouble are small. I can take care of myself. So Uruki, you go with Sakura. If something happens, just yell; I'll be able to hear you no matter where I am. By eleven, whether you've found him or her or not, we'll meet up back here, understood?"
Both younger girls nodded. And with that, the party left the room and separated into two once they hit the streets.
"I don't think we should have split up," Uruki said, looking every which way to see some sort of glowing symbol. "Whether she can take care of herself or not, I think it'd be best if we all just stuck together."
Sakura nodded, checking out every person that passed her by, tightly holding the scroll in her hands. "I know, but I really do think Namame can take care of herself. She's a strong woman."
After an hour of checking the tournament grounds, both girls sighed sadly and made their way back towards the inn. "Too bad we couldn't find the Seishi. Maybe Namame had better luck," Sakura said.
"I hope so. But, where are we...?" Uruki stopped where she was and looked around. Somehow they had split apart from the regular crowd of the town and were now in an abandoned alley.
"I. I don't know." Sakura replied quietly, slowly backing up towards Uruki, getting a bad feeling.
"Well, well, look what we got here, boys," a voice from behind them spoke. The two quickly spun around to see seven men had followed them.
"Seems like our lucky day!" another voice called. Uruki kept facing the first man that spoke, but Sakura gasped and spun around seeing another six guys close in from behind.
Backing up until the two were back to back, Sakura whispered, "I think we're in trouble. I don't know how many I can take." Her hand moved down towards the hilt of her bokken.
Uruki grit her teeth, eyeing the men before her. "Neither do I," she whispered back. But getting an idea, she stopped up straight and glared at the bunch before her. "I suggest you boys back up and go home!" she called out. "I am the Empress of Hokkan, and if you know what's best for you, you will leave us alone!"
"Uruki!" Sakura hissed. "What are you -doing-?!"
"Trust me!" she hissed back.
The first man, who seemed to be the leader, chuckled and advanced forward, his boys following close behind like obedient dogs. "Ohh, so we have royalty before us! I hear the royal women have very soft skin. That should make this all the more fun," he laughed.
"Well, we're screwed," Uruki sighed. "I can't use my powers. There aren't any roots or anything below us!"
Pulling her bokken into a defensive position, Sakura shrugged. "Well, I say we bust our way through and run. Ready?" Not bothering to wait for an answer, Sakura rushed forward and brought her bokken down over the first man, clipping his nose and causing him to reel back in pain.
"Sakura, matte!" Uruki yelled. But it was too late. With a sigh, she shook her head and ran forward, bringing her knee up and slamming it into the crotch of the man who was closest. She then slammed a hand down at the back of his neck and knocked him over. A man threw a punch at her, and she ducked under it, her fist coming up to meet his stomach. Standing back up, she flung her body to the side and brought her foot up, round housing the man in the jaw and sending him flying backwards.
Twirling from her position, Sakura brought the bokken around and slammed it into the stomach of the closest guy. As she had feared, her skills weren't as good as she had hoped. She could take out a few more guys, but afterwards, she would be in trouble. Spinning around once more, she brought the bokken down over another man's face, this time actually cutting the skin, leaving a diagonal slash on his face, a few drops of blood staining the wood.
Within a few minutes, the girls had taken out eight of the men, leaving another five. Their movements too slow, both women were caught and forced up against the alley wall, their wrists pinned above their heads.
"Heh, heh, heh." the leader chuckled, moving over to the two. "Seems you girls have caused a bit of trouble with my men," he shook his head, motioning to the fallen men. "You're going to pay for that," he growled, reaching down and loosening his pants as the other men laughed.
"Hey!"
"Oh, now what?!" the leader yelled, turning to look towards the alleyway entrance, seeing a silhouette of a man. "What do you want? If you want a try at these girls, you'll have to wait!"
Shaking his head, the man at the alleyway began walking forward, clicking his tongue. "Don't you have any manners?" he asked, stopping just a few feet in front of the leader. Sakura slowly opened her eyes, her breathing heavy, and looked at the recently arrived man. He had short brown hair and eyes, a red bandana tied around his forehead.
"Let the ladies go, and I'll let you live," he growled, crossing his arms over his chest.
"Huh.. and just who do you think you are, punk?" asked the leader, fully turning around to face the kid. He motioned for two of his men to move forward with him. Without bothering to wait for an answer, the three men were on the boy, lashing out with kicks and punches as the other two laughed from their position of holding the women up.
With a growl, the boy slammed his fist into one of the men's chins, sending him to the ground with a broken jaw. He then slammed his elbow back into the chest of the man behind him, then wheeled around and punched him across the face, breaking his nose with a sickening crunch. The second man fell backwards, holding his nose as blood gushed from it.
"All right!" the leader yelled, backing away. "You win this time! But the next time I see you, you won't be so lucky!" With that, he turned and ran out of the alley, his two lackeys close behind, leaving the women to fall to the ground holding their wrists.
"You two okay?" the boy asked, stepping up to them and crouching down to take a look at them.
"H-hai." Sakura whispered, slowly looking up. The poor boy had gotten into so much trouble for them, even the left sleeve of his coat was ripped off. And his arm was fully exposed, the green symbol for "dipper" glowing on his bicep. "Y..You're..!"
Uruki looked up from her wrists towards Sakura. "What are you going on about?" she asked. She looked to where Sakura was pointing and grinned. "Yatta!"
"N-nani?" he asked, looking at the blue haired girl pointing at his bicep. "Oh, this? This-ack!" he yelped as Sakura threw her arms around him and hugged him tightly, knocking him over.
"The third Seishi! We've found him!" she called out happily, hugging the boy tightly.
"Sakura.. You really have to learn to stop doing that." Uruki sighed, standing up and pulling Sakura away. "What's your name?"
Once Sakura was pulled off him, the boy stood up and brushed himself off, chuckling lightly. "My name's Miao Fai, but because of this symbol," he said, pointing to his bicep, "I'm also known as Hatsui, Genbu no Hatsui."
Unable to contain her excitement, Sakura leapt forward again and threw her arms around Hatsui's neck once more.
"S-Sakura!" Uruki yelled.
'We did it! Now we only have four more!' she thought happily, not noticing Hatsui's face turning blue or hearing Uruki's yelling.
*cue ending music XD* Glossary:
Hontou - really? Wai - yay! Wo tsukete ne - be careful Yatta - woohoo! Emperor Li - Emperor of Kutou, minor character Chopsticks - I don't know if they used chopsticks or not, go figure Shota - Namame's lover, minor character Oyasumi - good night Matte - wait