Search for Heart of Sword
Chapter 3
It was nearly evening before Soujirou's path led him into the view of the inn. He had taken Aya to the police, but that was a task in itself seeing as how the girl kept wandering off. But having to chase after her was quite an adventure, saving kittens from bullies and all. Soujirou chuckled lightly to himself, shaking his head the whole time. The antics of the young were so amusing. Of course there were more serious matters, they had met Aya's mother at the police station. After hearing the information that Aya provided, the police chief assured the distressed mother and daughter that his force would act as soon as possible. Soujirou then had to go through the long hassle of being invited by Aya's mother to dinner then declining as graciously as possible using the excuse that it would intrude too much during such a crisis, and that it would be much more preferable to both parties if the invitation was pushed back to another date when times would be happier. Just thinking about these social protocols made Soujirou's head hurt. The summer sun finally started to go down. Soujirou smiled, the summer breeze feeling great on his face. He took quick note of the bath house across from the inn before heading in, a bath would be great in this summer weather. He stepped into the inn's dinning area to be welcomed by the innkeeper's wife with a delicious, though not extravagant, meal. He sat down, and looked around for Sai, expecting her to be nearby. " Don't worry young sir," The innkeeper's wife reassured him. "I delivered a light meal to the young lady not long ago. She looks a lot better, but the poor thing's stomach isn't ready to handle any strong foods yet." "Thank you." Soujirou smiled at the maternally woman. "I'm sure with all your gracious care, she will be well soon." The innkeeper's wife smiled back at Soujirou and went on her way to serve the other customers.
~^-^~
Sai finished her meal rather quickly despite the fact that she just woke up not too long ago. She stretched after the meal, feeling very energetic and awake. She placed the three bowls she had on the tray they were brought to her in, and carried them downstairs to the inn kitchen. Sai placed the tray beside the other dirty dishes and was about to start washing them when the innkeeper rushed in and told her that as someone recovering from a fever she should be up in her room resting. She could not help but smile as she was shooed out of the kitchen. As she walked passed the dining area to get back to the room she shared with Soujirou, she caught a brief glance of him eating with the others. She caught his eye briefly, smiled, and went back to the room.
Sai entered the room they shared, and quickly crossed over to where a screen divided the room into two. She slipped behind the screen to her side of the room, and laid down to nap once again. Sai knew that she would need whatever strength she could gain from napping, for tonight, she would hunt.
~^-^~ A full stomach could do wonders for a rurouni, Soujirou thought as he walked upstairs towards the room. A nice long soak would complete the day perfectly.He thought as he gathered a clean change of clothes and put them in a basket borrowed from the inn complete with a towel. He paused on the way out of the room. He was happy to hear Sai's rhythmic breathing from across the screen. She needed her rest, it was good of her to retire so early.
~^-^~
Sai remained motionless on her bed until the sound of Soujirou's footsteps were no longer audible. Now, she would have to make her move now. She sat up, letting the blanket slide from her body revealing the only other set of clothes she had. It was like a shinobi uniform, except instead of being the typical black, it was dark blue with a silver dragon emblem on the front. A matching dark blue bandana managed to cover most of her flame red hair, which were coiled to her head. A dark blue scarf covered the bottom of her face. Grabbing her flute sword, she walked to the small porch that overlooked the garden, jumped lightly onto the rail, and vaulted onto the roof of the inn. There she watched until Soujirou had entered the bath house before she sped off on the roof tops toward the south side of town.
~^-^~
Soujirou sunk into the bath, letting his worries, and dirt, wash away. Sighing he slid deeper into the tub until the water came to his chin. The luxuary of being clean was one that he must take more often. He leaned his head against the side of the tub and closed his eyes. A pair of smiling amethyst eyes looked back at him.
What was he going to do? She was energetic, playful, cute, and above all, alone. He sighed, and reminded himself once again that he knew nothing about her. Nothing, nothing, nothing! He dunked his head into the water. There, much better.
~^-^~
Sai spied on the warehouse building from the roof of another building nearby. Being a warehouse it was located in a back part of town with the front entrance facing the street. That entrance was undoubtly locked for the night and was none of Sai's concern. Her concern was the side entrance. Located in a side alley, the dim lamplight showed that there was a man guarding it.
Sai smirked in the dark. This should be easy, undoubtly whoever that had kidnapped the mayor did not have that many men with him, thinking that it would be a mere kidnapping, with a small town police force that probably would not risk their mayor's life. They never even took into the account the possible appearance of someone like her. Unless, of course, they planned to move the mayor to another location before the police force could call in someone with experience in these areas. Sai's brows furrowed slightly, she was wasting time trying to figure out the kidnapper's plans. What mattered was that they were here now, and that there weren't that many of them.
Looking up she saw a small patch of light coming form the back side of the warehouse. There must be a window there, and she should assess the situation inside before she just barged in. With that thought in mind, Sai silently moved to the other side of the roof she was on, away from the light, and landed on the ground. She crept along the wall of the building, and once she made sure the guard's attentions were elsewhere, she dashed through the shadows to the walls of the warehouse, stopping once she was under the window.
Sai peered into the window, careful to not show her head too much. The window was dusty from neglect, and even if the occupants glanced at it, they might not be able to see more than a blur of what was outside, but her Shishou had taught her it was always better to be cautious when one can. The mayor was obviously the unconscious man bound to the chair. There were also three men sitting around a table. Two were playing dice, and other was dozing off.
Only four men, Sai thought, it was not worth the trouble of sneaking in the building. She walked along the shadows of the building towards the side entrance. Silent as a cat, the guard did not even notice her presence. She stopped just short of the circle of light, using her flute as a staff, leaped at the man and dealt him a blow to the neck, which rendered him unconscious. She landed lightly, although she was sure that the sound of the guard's bulky body dropping to the floor must have already alerted the people inside.
Sure enough Sai heard footsteps coming to check on the guard. The door opened, and the man that had been dozing looked in digust at the guard's body, which was the only thing visible.
"You idiot." He kicked at the guard. "You're not paid to sleep-"
A blow similar to the one that fell the guard took care of this man also. Alarmed, the remaining two kidnappers headed toward the door with swords in hand. Like the first man, they saw nothing in the darkness of the alley except for the two unconscious bodies. Puzzled, one of the kidnappers kneeled to check the two bodies for signs of life. As he looked up to tell his companion that the two were still alive, Sai walked out of the shadows.
She smirked at the two kidnappers' shocked expressions. To them, she must have looked like she just appeared out of thin air. Before either kidnapper could utter as much as a squeak, she rammed her elbow into the stomach of the one standing, knocking him back into the warehouse. She quickly turned and delivered a roundhouse kick to the remaining kidnapper as he struggled to stand, his sword unsheathed. Her foot made contact with the side of the man's head, knocking him also into unconscious. Sai quickly ran to where the mayor was bound, jumping over the fourth fallen body. She gave it a suspicious glance as she started to undo the ropes that bound the mayor. Just as she was about to undo the last knot, the fourth kidnapper came at her with his sword. She blocked his blow with her own sword, now unsheathed. "I was wondering how long you'd play dead." Sai told the kidnapper with slight amusement. " Stupid brat." The fourth kidnapper snarled, as he tried to over power Sai's block. "Brat? " Sai glared at him. " I'm insulted." She heaved a little extra strength onto her block, making the man stumble back. As soon as he lost his footing Sai unleashed her sword upon him. The man's blocks were slow, and his arms were soon covered with slashes made from Sai's thin fast blade. Unable to hold his sword any longer, he dropped it and stumbled toward the door. " You are not worth dirtying Long over." Sai looked at the man with contempt. She sheathed her blade. " But you're not getting away either." Sai appeared behind the man before he could run and dealt him a blow to the neck, adding him to the group of unconscious men outside. Satisfied with her work, she quickly returned to the mayor, who had started to regain conscious. She pulled the last of the bounds off of him, and offered him some sake that the kidnappers had left on the table. "Can you walk sir?" Sai asked as she helped the mayor to his feet. " Not very well." The mayor smiled weakly, indicating his bruised ankle. His eyes took in the four unconscious figures at the door. "Thank you," he said weakly. "You will be well rewarded." "Save your strength mayor, we should get out of here just in case there are more of them." The mayor nodded, and allowed Sai to help him, limping, out of the warehouse.
Author's notes: Wow it's been long since I wrote.mostly cuz I haven't really just sat and wrote.=/ I did most of this when the power went out, on my laptop. ^^ Once i get a wireless router I'll get on my laptop more, which should prompt me to write more~ Well hope you've enjoyed this~
It was nearly evening before Soujirou's path led him into the view of the inn. He had taken Aya to the police, but that was a task in itself seeing as how the girl kept wandering off. But having to chase after her was quite an adventure, saving kittens from bullies and all. Soujirou chuckled lightly to himself, shaking his head the whole time. The antics of the young were so amusing. Of course there were more serious matters, they had met Aya's mother at the police station. After hearing the information that Aya provided, the police chief assured the distressed mother and daughter that his force would act as soon as possible. Soujirou then had to go through the long hassle of being invited by Aya's mother to dinner then declining as graciously as possible using the excuse that it would intrude too much during such a crisis, and that it would be much more preferable to both parties if the invitation was pushed back to another date when times would be happier. Just thinking about these social protocols made Soujirou's head hurt. The summer sun finally started to go down. Soujirou smiled, the summer breeze feeling great on his face. He took quick note of the bath house across from the inn before heading in, a bath would be great in this summer weather. He stepped into the inn's dinning area to be welcomed by the innkeeper's wife with a delicious, though not extravagant, meal. He sat down, and looked around for Sai, expecting her to be nearby. " Don't worry young sir," The innkeeper's wife reassured him. "I delivered a light meal to the young lady not long ago. She looks a lot better, but the poor thing's stomach isn't ready to handle any strong foods yet." "Thank you." Soujirou smiled at the maternally woman. "I'm sure with all your gracious care, she will be well soon." The innkeeper's wife smiled back at Soujirou and went on her way to serve the other customers.
~^-^~
Sai finished her meal rather quickly despite the fact that she just woke up not too long ago. She stretched after the meal, feeling very energetic and awake. She placed the three bowls she had on the tray they were brought to her in, and carried them downstairs to the inn kitchen. Sai placed the tray beside the other dirty dishes and was about to start washing them when the innkeeper rushed in and told her that as someone recovering from a fever she should be up in her room resting. She could not help but smile as she was shooed out of the kitchen. As she walked passed the dining area to get back to the room she shared with Soujirou, she caught a brief glance of him eating with the others. She caught his eye briefly, smiled, and went back to the room.
Sai entered the room they shared, and quickly crossed over to where a screen divided the room into two. She slipped behind the screen to her side of the room, and laid down to nap once again. Sai knew that she would need whatever strength she could gain from napping, for tonight, she would hunt.
~^-^~ A full stomach could do wonders for a rurouni, Soujirou thought as he walked upstairs towards the room. A nice long soak would complete the day perfectly.He thought as he gathered a clean change of clothes and put them in a basket borrowed from the inn complete with a towel. He paused on the way out of the room. He was happy to hear Sai's rhythmic breathing from across the screen. She needed her rest, it was good of her to retire so early.
~^-^~
Sai remained motionless on her bed until the sound of Soujirou's footsteps were no longer audible. Now, she would have to make her move now. She sat up, letting the blanket slide from her body revealing the only other set of clothes she had. It was like a shinobi uniform, except instead of being the typical black, it was dark blue with a silver dragon emblem on the front. A matching dark blue bandana managed to cover most of her flame red hair, which were coiled to her head. A dark blue scarf covered the bottom of her face. Grabbing her flute sword, she walked to the small porch that overlooked the garden, jumped lightly onto the rail, and vaulted onto the roof of the inn. There she watched until Soujirou had entered the bath house before she sped off on the roof tops toward the south side of town.
~^-^~
Soujirou sunk into the bath, letting his worries, and dirt, wash away. Sighing he slid deeper into the tub until the water came to his chin. The luxuary of being clean was one that he must take more often. He leaned his head against the side of the tub and closed his eyes. A pair of smiling amethyst eyes looked back at him.
What was he going to do? She was energetic, playful, cute, and above all, alone. He sighed, and reminded himself once again that he knew nothing about her. Nothing, nothing, nothing! He dunked his head into the water. There, much better.
~^-^~
Sai spied on the warehouse building from the roof of another building nearby. Being a warehouse it was located in a back part of town with the front entrance facing the street. That entrance was undoubtly locked for the night and was none of Sai's concern. Her concern was the side entrance. Located in a side alley, the dim lamplight showed that there was a man guarding it.
Sai smirked in the dark. This should be easy, undoubtly whoever that had kidnapped the mayor did not have that many men with him, thinking that it would be a mere kidnapping, with a small town police force that probably would not risk their mayor's life. They never even took into the account the possible appearance of someone like her. Unless, of course, they planned to move the mayor to another location before the police force could call in someone with experience in these areas. Sai's brows furrowed slightly, she was wasting time trying to figure out the kidnapper's plans. What mattered was that they were here now, and that there weren't that many of them.
Looking up she saw a small patch of light coming form the back side of the warehouse. There must be a window there, and she should assess the situation inside before she just barged in. With that thought in mind, Sai silently moved to the other side of the roof she was on, away from the light, and landed on the ground. She crept along the wall of the building, and once she made sure the guard's attentions were elsewhere, she dashed through the shadows to the walls of the warehouse, stopping once she was under the window.
Sai peered into the window, careful to not show her head too much. The window was dusty from neglect, and even if the occupants glanced at it, they might not be able to see more than a blur of what was outside, but her Shishou had taught her it was always better to be cautious when one can. The mayor was obviously the unconscious man bound to the chair. There were also three men sitting around a table. Two were playing dice, and other was dozing off.
Only four men, Sai thought, it was not worth the trouble of sneaking in the building. She walked along the shadows of the building towards the side entrance. Silent as a cat, the guard did not even notice her presence. She stopped just short of the circle of light, using her flute as a staff, leaped at the man and dealt him a blow to the neck, which rendered him unconscious. She landed lightly, although she was sure that the sound of the guard's bulky body dropping to the floor must have already alerted the people inside.
Sure enough Sai heard footsteps coming to check on the guard. The door opened, and the man that had been dozing looked in digust at the guard's body, which was the only thing visible.
"You idiot." He kicked at the guard. "You're not paid to sleep-"
A blow similar to the one that fell the guard took care of this man also. Alarmed, the remaining two kidnappers headed toward the door with swords in hand. Like the first man, they saw nothing in the darkness of the alley except for the two unconscious bodies. Puzzled, one of the kidnappers kneeled to check the two bodies for signs of life. As he looked up to tell his companion that the two were still alive, Sai walked out of the shadows.
She smirked at the two kidnappers' shocked expressions. To them, she must have looked like she just appeared out of thin air. Before either kidnapper could utter as much as a squeak, she rammed her elbow into the stomach of the one standing, knocking him back into the warehouse. She quickly turned and delivered a roundhouse kick to the remaining kidnapper as he struggled to stand, his sword unsheathed. Her foot made contact with the side of the man's head, knocking him also into unconscious. Sai quickly ran to where the mayor was bound, jumping over the fourth fallen body. She gave it a suspicious glance as she started to undo the ropes that bound the mayor. Just as she was about to undo the last knot, the fourth kidnapper came at her with his sword. She blocked his blow with her own sword, now unsheathed. "I was wondering how long you'd play dead." Sai told the kidnapper with slight amusement. " Stupid brat." The fourth kidnapper snarled, as he tried to over power Sai's block. "Brat? " Sai glared at him. " I'm insulted." She heaved a little extra strength onto her block, making the man stumble back. As soon as he lost his footing Sai unleashed her sword upon him. The man's blocks were slow, and his arms were soon covered with slashes made from Sai's thin fast blade. Unable to hold his sword any longer, he dropped it and stumbled toward the door. " You are not worth dirtying Long over." Sai looked at the man with contempt. She sheathed her blade. " But you're not getting away either." Sai appeared behind the man before he could run and dealt him a blow to the neck, adding him to the group of unconscious men outside. Satisfied with her work, she quickly returned to the mayor, who had started to regain conscious. She pulled the last of the bounds off of him, and offered him some sake that the kidnappers had left on the table. "Can you walk sir?" Sai asked as she helped the mayor to his feet. " Not very well." The mayor smiled weakly, indicating his bruised ankle. His eyes took in the four unconscious figures at the door. "Thank you," he said weakly. "You will be well rewarded." "Save your strength mayor, we should get out of here just in case there are more of them." The mayor nodded, and allowed Sai to help him, limping, out of the warehouse.
Author's notes: Wow it's been long since I wrote.mostly cuz I haven't really just sat and wrote.=/ I did most of this when the power went out, on my laptop. ^^ Once i get a wireless router I'll get on my laptop more, which should prompt me to write more~ Well hope you've enjoyed this~