Notes: GOMEEENNN!! ~shouts + bows~ gomen gomen . . . I've been busy . . .
and . . . my ideas have died ^^; multiple times . . . not really an excuse
~sweatdrops~ sorry anyway . . if there are any reviewers left? :P
Chapter 16: Torn
Neji knocked on the wooden door, barely glancing at the two guards standing behind him. Resting his metal staff on his shoulder, he sighed and waited. A minute passed. He turned to the two black-clad, spear-wielding guards.
"You're certain Shishio-sama wanted me to come?" Neji asked, glaring at them. They nodded as one.
"Hai, Komagata-san," one of the guards said, not meeting the younger man's gaze. Neji scratched his head and blinked as the door creaked open. All three men turned to face the door and a sleepy looking Yumi.
"Yumi-neechan, ohayou."
"Ohayou Neji-kun . . . did Shishio-sama call you?" Yumi asked, wiping her eyes. She wore a plain kimono and no makeup. Neji nodded.
"Is Shishio-sama awake yet? Or, should I come back later?" he asked, grinning at her. She flushed and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.
"Just . . .come in, Neji-kun." Yumi leant out of the door and grabbed her brother by the collar, dragging him inside. Once she shut the door, she yawned and padded over to where she and Shishio slept. She poked her head out and looked at Neji again. "Wait right there." She smiled then went inside.
Neji slumped against the wall and waited. A few minutes later, Shishio walked out in his normal purple kimono with Yumi following him. "Neji, I need you to go check on something for me."
"What is it, Shishio-sama?" Neji asked, straightening and taking a step from the wall. Shishio opened his mouth then glanced at Yumi.
"Yumi, go get changed," Shishio said, waving distantly with a hand. "You don't have to stand there without being dressed." Neji sweatdropped as his sister nodded and went back inside the room, shutting the door behind her.
'It's not like we're brother and sister . . .' Neji thought to himself. 'And, she was wearing a kimono after all . . .' He blinked and focused as he saw Shishio gazing at him.
"Neji, I want you to go to the Tokyo harbor." Shishio sat down on the couch and rested his bandaged chin on his glove-less palm. He waited until Neji nodded. "Go to the warehouse at the end of the dock, inside there will be a man. Ask him if my ship is completed."
"Your ship?" Neji repeated, blinking. Shishio kept his dark eyes fixed on Neji's. The bandaged man nodded slowly, once. "What would you need a ship for?"
"A ship. The Rengoku. Do you remember the coming of the Black Ships?" Neji nodded uncertainty.
'Everyone knows the Black Ships,' Neji thought. 'But . . .'
"The Rengoku will cause that fear to sweep the city, once again." Shishio clenched his hand into a fist, his eyes burning into Neji's. "We will enter Tokyo Bay and raze it to the ground. We shall crush the weak Meji government in the turmoil that follows. The fools think we mean to burn it to the ground, so we shall use my trump-card and bombard it until the flames burn as hot as the fire inside of me."
Neji gaped at Shishio, caught up in his words, before swallowing. "And . . . you want me to check up on, your ship. That . . will do all of that.. ." He blinked. "Why. . . did you tell Yumi-neechan to leave the room?"
"I told her to change."
"She's my sister, it doesn't matter if I saw her in her sleeping kimono . . . You're keeping this secret from her?" Neji said, looking wide- eyed at Shishio, who took out a thin-stemmed pipe from his kimono sleeve and lit it.
"And you must keep this secret from her as well." He inhaled the smoke.
"But, she's my sister!" Neji growled, narrowing his eyes. "You're telling me to lie to her?" Shishio glared up from his pipe-bowl and bit down on the stem.
"I'm ordering you to keep silent," Shishio said, gratingly. "Where does your loyalty lay, Neji?" Neji swallowed.
'If I say I'm loyal to nee-chan . . .what would he do?' Neji thought. 'Would he let me stay, or would he make me leave? Or ensure my loyalty?' Neji looked up as the door creaked open and Yumi stepped out, dressed in her normal off-shoulders kimono. Her hair was tied back in a bun, her bangs hanging in front of her face. She smiled at Neji then moved over to Shishio to smile at him.
"Do you want some sake, Shishio-sama?" she asked. Shishio didn't reply, his gaze still on Neji's face.
"To you, Shishio-sama," Neji murmured, head half-bowed.
Shishio grunted and leaned back more on the couch. He flapped his hand to excuse the young man.
"I will do ask you asked, Shishio-sama," Neji said, bowing abruptly and turning to leave the room.
TBC
This was just supposed to show how Neji's more loyal to his sister than Shishio, but has to be loyal to Shishio b/c his sister's happiness is involved . . . kinda . . . ~sweatdrops~ did it work? It was all original for once ^^;
Moonlight2: hehe, sorry about that ^^; this is an all neji chapter, but if you click on the little arrow in da right hand corner . . . you'll see the next chapter is all about Soujiro ^_^ I was gonna write a shorter one here, and then do the Soujiro part, but . . . the title sounds better if you just have one part :P oh . . . ~grins~ thanks for the good ideas! Never thought of that . . hmmmmmm ~grins again~
Chapter 16: Torn
Neji knocked on the wooden door, barely glancing at the two guards standing behind him. Resting his metal staff on his shoulder, he sighed and waited. A minute passed. He turned to the two black-clad, spear-wielding guards.
"You're certain Shishio-sama wanted me to come?" Neji asked, glaring at them. They nodded as one.
"Hai, Komagata-san," one of the guards said, not meeting the younger man's gaze. Neji scratched his head and blinked as the door creaked open. All three men turned to face the door and a sleepy looking Yumi.
"Yumi-neechan, ohayou."
"Ohayou Neji-kun . . . did Shishio-sama call you?" Yumi asked, wiping her eyes. She wore a plain kimono and no makeup. Neji nodded.
"Is Shishio-sama awake yet? Or, should I come back later?" he asked, grinning at her. She flushed and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.
"Just . . .come in, Neji-kun." Yumi leant out of the door and grabbed her brother by the collar, dragging him inside. Once she shut the door, she yawned and padded over to where she and Shishio slept. She poked her head out and looked at Neji again. "Wait right there." She smiled then went inside.
Neji slumped against the wall and waited. A few minutes later, Shishio walked out in his normal purple kimono with Yumi following him. "Neji, I need you to go check on something for me."
"What is it, Shishio-sama?" Neji asked, straightening and taking a step from the wall. Shishio opened his mouth then glanced at Yumi.
"Yumi, go get changed," Shishio said, waving distantly with a hand. "You don't have to stand there without being dressed." Neji sweatdropped as his sister nodded and went back inside the room, shutting the door behind her.
'It's not like we're brother and sister . . .' Neji thought to himself. 'And, she was wearing a kimono after all . . .' He blinked and focused as he saw Shishio gazing at him.
"Neji, I want you to go to the Tokyo harbor." Shishio sat down on the couch and rested his bandaged chin on his glove-less palm. He waited until Neji nodded. "Go to the warehouse at the end of the dock, inside there will be a man. Ask him if my ship is completed."
"Your ship?" Neji repeated, blinking. Shishio kept his dark eyes fixed on Neji's. The bandaged man nodded slowly, once. "What would you need a ship for?"
"A ship. The Rengoku. Do you remember the coming of the Black Ships?" Neji nodded uncertainty.
'Everyone knows the Black Ships,' Neji thought. 'But . . .'
"The Rengoku will cause that fear to sweep the city, once again." Shishio clenched his hand into a fist, his eyes burning into Neji's. "We will enter Tokyo Bay and raze it to the ground. We shall crush the weak Meji government in the turmoil that follows. The fools think we mean to burn it to the ground, so we shall use my trump-card and bombard it until the flames burn as hot as the fire inside of me."
Neji gaped at Shishio, caught up in his words, before swallowing. "And . . . you want me to check up on, your ship. That . . will do all of that.. ." He blinked. "Why. . . did you tell Yumi-neechan to leave the room?"
"I told her to change."
"She's my sister, it doesn't matter if I saw her in her sleeping kimono . . . You're keeping this secret from her?" Neji said, looking wide- eyed at Shishio, who took out a thin-stemmed pipe from his kimono sleeve and lit it.
"And you must keep this secret from her as well." He inhaled the smoke.
"But, she's my sister!" Neji growled, narrowing his eyes. "You're telling me to lie to her?" Shishio glared up from his pipe-bowl and bit down on the stem.
"I'm ordering you to keep silent," Shishio said, gratingly. "Where does your loyalty lay, Neji?" Neji swallowed.
'If I say I'm loyal to nee-chan . . .what would he do?' Neji thought. 'Would he let me stay, or would he make me leave? Or ensure my loyalty?' Neji looked up as the door creaked open and Yumi stepped out, dressed in her normal off-shoulders kimono. Her hair was tied back in a bun, her bangs hanging in front of her face. She smiled at Neji then moved over to Shishio to smile at him.
"Do you want some sake, Shishio-sama?" she asked. Shishio didn't reply, his gaze still on Neji's face.
"To you, Shishio-sama," Neji murmured, head half-bowed.
Shishio grunted and leaned back more on the couch. He flapped his hand to excuse the young man.
"I will do ask you asked, Shishio-sama," Neji said, bowing abruptly and turning to leave the room.
TBC
This was just supposed to show how Neji's more loyal to his sister than Shishio, but has to be loyal to Shishio b/c his sister's happiness is involved . . . kinda . . . ~sweatdrops~ did it work? It was all original for once ^^;
Moonlight2: hehe, sorry about that ^^; this is an all neji chapter, but if you click on the little arrow in da right hand corner . . . you'll see the next chapter is all about Soujiro ^_^ I was gonna write a shorter one here, and then do the Soujiro part, but . . . the title sounds better if you just have one part :P oh . . . ~grins~ thanks for the good ideas! Never thought of that . . hmmmmmm ~grins again~
