CHAPTER 8: Gimmei Reveals her Past
Gimmei saw the gleam of the blood-soaked sword. She stood and backed into the wall.
"There's no where for you to run, little girl..." Bussho laughed. Gimmei gave him a frightened grimace.
"I know..." she said. Bussho laughed in mockery again. Gimmei looked past him and saw Saito's body lying on the floor limply. She sighed. Might as well die now, there was nothing else to live for. His wife and child were probably dead already and since Bussho just killed him...
"Are you ready?" Bussho asked, holding up the blade. She stared at the red liquid on the blade. It reminded her of death.
"Yes," she said. "I'm not afraid, Bussho. Kill me..." Bussho grinned evilly.
"Just as I thought! Good... I'll make it fast..."
"Hold it, I'm still your opponent!" a voice choked. Gimmei gasped and her eyes flew to Saito's body, pushing its self up.
"What? You're still alive?" Bussho asked. He turned to Saito. Gimmei slipped past him to the other wall away from danger.
"It takes more than a cheap shot to kill a Miburo!" Saito said, holding his side, which was dripping blood through his fingers and onto the dirt floor. Bussho attacked with his sword, but Saito backed up and grabbed onto the sharp blade with his hands. Gimmei's eyes widened.
"Saito!" Gimmei yelled. She saw him wrench the sword out of Bussho's fingers and toss it to her. It skidded across the floor with a metallic sound and she picked it up. Bussho hurried toward her.
"Give me it!" he shouted. Saito jumped at him, smashing his foot into the back of Bussho's head. Bussho spit blood and fell to the floor, eyes glazed. Gimmei stared at the fallen man.
"Hand me the sword," Saito requested. Gimmei gave it to him and watched him stab through Bussho's neck. He took the sword out, closed Bussho's eyes gently and dropped the blade to the floor, nearly collapsing from injury and fatigue.
"Thank you..." Gimmei said. "For saving me..." Saito shrugged.
"I wasn't intending to," he said, smirking. "I was saving my own butt. I could care less about you." Gimmei glared and then grabbed his hand.
"There're too many men still here," Gimmei said to Saito. "We'll take this secret passage to the hidden hot springs and hide there for a while." She opened up the wall and walked inside. He glanced around, then followed her. She slid the wall shut, then crawled into a small opening into a tunnel.
"You have hot springs here? Where are we?" Saito asked, wiping his bloody hands on his hakama. Gimmei continued to crawl into the darkness. It felt like they were climbing uphill.
"We're in the mountains," she said. "And yes, we did drag you up here that night when we fought." Gimmei said. As they crawled further in silence, the tunnel began to grow warmer and moist. Finally, Saito saw a light ahead. They stepped out of the tunnel and were standing in a room built around a hot spring. Gimmei shut the door to the tunnel and locked it tight.
"You never told anyone about this?" Saito asked.
"No, no one except Shiki and me knew But... he's dead now," Gimmei said. "And I forgive you." Saito was taken by surprise by this statement. Gimmei smiled.
"I'm going to soak. You can go into this room and change or something. We always left clothes, food, water, towels, and soap in there just in case. And if you drink sake... well, that's there too," Gimmei said, taking a towel out of the room. "And watch me if you want, but I won't be naked." Saito sighed and headed for the other room. It was small and cramped, so he quickly picked out some clothes that seemed to fit, and a towel and walked back to the main room.
"Mind if I rinse my wounds?" Saito asked Gimmei, who was sitting in the spring, wrapped in a towel. Saito noticed the small scars that were scattered on her body, but he didn't say anything.
"Go ahead," she said, closing her eyes and leaning her head back. Saito dipped the towel into the water and wiped the dirt and blood from his hands with it.
"Why did Bussho want to kill you?" Saito asked, sitting on the edge of the spring and wiping his cut ankles with the wet towel. Gimmei opened one eye to look at him.
"I don't know," she said. "But he was always jealous of Shiki. Always wanted to lead the groups into battle. But Bussho was never able to defeat my brother... Shiki was too good of a swordsman."
"You really looked up to Shiki, didn't you?" Saito asked. Gimmei thought a while, then nodded, straightening up and watching him. She watched him as he took off his torn gi and began to wipe his injured side. Gimmei watched him for a while longer then waded over to him and took the towel from his hand.
"Let me do it," Gimmei insisted, stepping out of the water and walking around to his back. She began to dab at his bloody side and to her surprise he didn't resist.
"How many people have you killed, Neko?" Saito asked thoughtfully.
"I don't know," she said. "Many." Saito turned and took the towel from her hands.
"You've killed many people..." he repeated. "Why?" Gimmei glared and smacked him.
"You shouldn't pry into a lady's past!" she snapped.
"Oh, then please excuse me, MY LADY," he said. Gimmei pouted. Saito smirked, amused at her frustration.
"I was trained to kill," Gimmei said. "Shiki wanted me to." She slid back into the steamy water. "Because when father was killed, Mother told Shiki to become a murderer of people... like... you." She glanced at him. He was studying the water. She saw how exactly four strands of hair fell into his face.
"So when I was born shortly after father was killed, I was trained by Shiki, who was... fifteen, I think," Gimmei mumbled. She swished the water around in the spring.
"So you started training when you were..." Saito said, waiting for an answer.
"From the time I was two, I was trained by Shiki. He used to tell me that if I was strong enough to walk, I was strong enough to train in swordsmanship," Gimmei said. "And when I was five, he gave me my first test. He fought me. With a real sword." Saito stared at her.
"And...?"
"I only had a bokken," she said. "And he chopped it in two before I could swing it." Gimmei studied Saito's face, which was angled toward the water.
"So? He obviously didn't kill you," Saito said.
"No, but he kept swinging at me and telling me to grab his sword with my bare hands like you did with Bussho's sword. I knew how to do it because he had taught me during practice but... I couldn't bring myself to do it. He kept saying it was a matter between life and death and that my hands were the least of my worries, but I didn't understand. I was only five. I didn't want to cut my hands, so I just kept running, getting cut by his sword, crying for him to stop. But he didn't stop.
"'Use your hands!' Shiki kept yelling at me. 'Use your hands and I'll stop!' But I couldn't bring myself to do it. My mother told him to stop, but he wouldn't. Then, I tripped and he raised the sword to deliver the final blow.
"'If you were a boy,' Shiki yelled. 'If you were a boy instead of a girl, you'd be more of a help to me! I hate you! I can't stand useless girls!' And before he could kill me, mother ran in front of me. And he killed her. Shiki killed mother. I couldn't... stop crying... and hating him... and so he left... for a long time... I stayed with the neighbor, an old doctor who was a friend of my mother's. And Shiki returned one day, when I was ten, and he took me away." Gimmei stopped. She wiped her eyes.
"You don't have to tell me anymore, Neko," Saito said, picking up the discarded gi and folding it neatly. Then, he picked up the new one and pulled it on.
"I want to," Gimmei said. "It... feels good to tell someone... because Shiki made me lie about my mother's death. He said to say that she died from tuberculosis. And I always did because he scared me."
"So how come you look up to him?" Saito asked. "I would think you hated him for messing your life up." Gimmei smiled.
"Someone can be your enemy and you can still love them," she said. "I still loved him, looked to him for protection and lessons. Then, he told me how Father was killed and how he wanted revenge. It was when I was 11. He said that he needed my help, and that he had recruited men from all over to fight for him so that they could keep the government officials in line."
"Your father was one of the Ishin Shishi, wasn't he? Why would you want to keep tabs on the officials?" Saito asked, sitting on his heels and casting her a glance.
"I don't know. Shiki was never clear about his actions. Sometimes he was extremely kind, and other times he was... not. Like when he killed my mother," Gimmei said. She ran her fingers through her hair. Then, Saito drew in a sharp breath.
"What are you going to do to Tokio?" Saito snapped. Gimmei looked up.
"Who?"
"My wife, Baka Neko!" Saito said, standing. Gimmei's green eyes widened.
"****! I forgot all about that!" she said, jumping out of the water and running into the room where she changed quickly and came out holding two swords.
"What was your plan?" Saito asked harshly, taking a sword from her and following her to the tunnel.
"Attacking your house..." Gimmei said sheepishly, pulling open the door to the tunnel. Then, a hand came out of the tunnel, followed by a body. Both Saito and Gimmei backed away, drawing their swords.
"So, we found you!" the man said, drawing a saber. He gave an evil grin, the saber gleaming in the light.
A/N: Ha ha... tricked you! He's not really dead!! Ha ha!! Really early April fools!! No, I'm really sorry to all of you who were devastated, but that marks a TRUE Saito fan! And the ones who believe that he can't die are also true Saito fans! All the rest of you out there who don't really care about Saito-sama are... just plain fans. Sorry it took so long. I was... busy. But this chapter should clarify some things... so... yeah. Thanks for reading!
REVIEW RESPONSES:
Kairi7: Sorry to put you through all of that misery for nothing... but... hey! Dramatic, right? Terribly sorry. Don't kill me or anything. * cowers in fear *
MissBehavin: Okay. I won't knock my work. As for a 'Tall Tale,' I think I'll try making a sequel, but it won't be out for some time. I haven't even thought of it yet! But I'll try. I really will! And you were right! Saito- sama lives!
Gimmei saw the gleam of the blood-soaked sword. She stood and backed into the wall.
"There's no where for you to run, little girl..." Bussho laughed. Gimmei gave him a frightened grimace.
"I know..." she said. Bussho laughed in mockery again. Gimmei looked past him and saw Saito's body lying on the floor limply. She sighed. Might as well die now, there was nothing else to live for. His wife and child were probably dead already and since Bussho just killed him...
"Are you ready?" Bussho asked, holding up the blade. She stared at the red liquid on the blade. It reminded her of death.
"Yes," she said. "I'm not afraid, Bussho. Kill me..." Bussho grinned evilly.
"Just as I thought! Good... I'll make it fast..."
"Hold it, I'm still your opponent!" a voice choked. Gimmei gasped and her eyes flew to Saito's body, pushing its self up.
"What? You're still alive?" Bussho asked. He turned to Saito. Gimmei slipped past him to the other wall away from danger.
"It takes more than a cheap shot to kill a Miburo!" Saito said, holding his side, which was dripping blood through his fingers and onto the dirt floor. Bussho attacked with his sword, but Saito backed up and grabbed onto the sharp blade with his hands. Gimmei's eyes widened.
"Saito!" Gimmei yelled. She saw him wrench the sword out of Bussho's fingers and toss it to her. It skidded across the floor with a metallic sound and she picked it up. Bussho hurried toward her.
"Give me it!" he shouted. Saito jumped at him, smashing his foot into the back of Bussho's head. Bussho spit blood and fell to the floor, eyes glazed. Gimmei stared at the fallen man.
"Hand me the sword," Saito requested. Gimmei gave it to him and watched him stab through Bussho's neck. He took the sword out, closed Bussho's eyes gently and dropped the blade to the floor, nearly collapsing from injury and fatigue.
"Thank you..." Gimmei said. "For saving me..." Saito shrugged.
"I wasn't intending to," he said, smirking. "I was saving my own butt. I could care less about you." Gimmei glared and then grabbed his hand.
"There're too many men still here," Gimmei said to Saito. "We'll take this secret passage to the hidden hot springs and hide there for a while." She opened up the wall and walked inside. He glanced around, then followed her. She slid the wall shut, then crawled into a small opening into a tunnel.
"You have hot springs here? Where are we?" Saito asked, wiping his bloody hands on his hakama. Gimmei continued to crawl into the darkness. It felt like they were climbing uphill.
"We're in the mountains," she said. "And yes, we did drag you up here that night when we fought." Gimmei said. As they crawled further in silence, the tunnel began to grow warmer and moist. Finally, Saito saw a light ahead. They stepped out of the tunnel and were standing in a room built around a hot spring. Gimmei shut the door to the tunnel and locked it tight.
"You never told anyone about this?" Saito asked.
"No, no one except Shiki and me knew But... he's dead now," Gimmei said. "And I forgive you." Saito was taken by surprise by this statement. Gimmei smiled.
"I'm going to soak. You can go into this room and change or something. We always left clothes, food, water, towels, and soap in there just in case. And if you drink sake... well, that's there too," Gimmei said, taking a towel out of the room. "And watch me if you want, but I won't be naked." Saito sighed and headed for the other room. It was small and cramped, so he quickly picked out some clothes that seemed to fit, and a towel and walked back to the main room.
"Mind if I rinse my wounds?" Saito asked Gimmei, who was sitting in the spring, wrapped in a towel. Saito noticed the small scars that were scattered on her body, but he didn't say anything.
"Go ahead," she said, closing her eyes and leaning her head back. Saito dipped the towel into the water and wiped the dirt and blood from his hands with it.
"Why did Bussho want to kill you?" Saito asked, sitting on the edge of the spring and wiping his cut ankles with the wet towel. Gimmei opened one eye to look at him.
"I don't know," she said. "But he was always jealous of Shiki. Always wanted to lead the groups into battle. But Bussho was never able to defeat my brother... Shiki was too good of a swordsman."
"You really looked up to Shiki, didn't you?" Saito asked. Gimmei thought a while, then nodded, straightening up and watching him. She watched him as he took off his torn gi and began to wipe his injured side. Gimmei watched him for a while longer then waded over to him and took the towel from his hand.
"Let me do it," Gimmei insisted, stepping out of the water and walking around to his back. She began to dab at his bloody side and to her surprise he didn't resist.
"How many people have you killed, Neko?" Saito asked thoughtfully.
"I don't know," she said. "Many." Saito turned and took the towel from her hands.
"You've killed many people..." he repeated. "Why?" Gimmei glared and smacked him.
"You shouldn't pry into a lady's past!" she snapped.
"Oh, then please excuse me, MY LADY," he said. Gimmei pouted. Saito smirked, amused at her frustration.
"I was trained to kill," Gimmei said. "Shiki wanted me to." She slid back into the steamy water. "Because when father was killed, Mother told Shiki to become a murderer of people... like... you." She glanced at him. He was studying the water. She saw how exactly four strands of hair fell into his face.
"So when I was born shortly after father was killed, I was trained by Shiki, who was... fifteen, I think," Gimmei mumbled. She swished the water around in the spring.
"So you started training when you were..." Saito said, waiting for an answer.
"From the time I was two, I was trained by Shiki. He used to tell me that if I was strong enough to walk, I was strong enough to train in swordsmanship," Gimmei said. "And when I was five, he gave me my first test. He fought me. With a real sword." Saito stared at her.
"And...?"
"I only had a bokken," she said. "And he chopped it in two before I could swing it." Gimmei studied Saito's face, which was angled toward the water.
"So? He obviously didn't kill you," Saito said.
"No, but he kept swinging at me and telling me to grab his sword with my bare hands like you did with Bussho's sword. I knew how to do it because he had taught me during practice but... I couldn't bring myself to do it. He kept saying it was a matter between life and death and that my hands were the least of my worries, but I didn't understand. I was only five. I didn't want to cut my hands, so I just kept running, getting cut by his sword, crying for him to stop. But he didn't stop.
"'Use your hands!' Shiki kept yelling at me. 'Use your hands and I'll stop!' But I couldn't bring myself to do it. My mother told him to stop, but he wouldn't. Then, I tripped and he raised the sword to deliver the final blow.
"'If you were a boy,' Shiki yelled. 'If you were a boy instead of a girl, you'd be more of a help to me! I hate you! I can't stand useless girls!' And before he could kill me, mother ran in front of me. And he killed her. Shiki killed mother. I couldn't... stop crying... and hating him... and so he left... for a long time... I stayed with the neighbor, an old doctor who was a friend of my mother's. And Shiki returned one day, when I was ten, and he took me away." Gimmei stopped. She wiped her eyes.
"You don't have to tell me anymore, Neko," Saito said, picking up the discarded gi and folding it neatly. Then, he picked up the new one and pulled it on.
"I want to," Gimmei said. "It... feels good to tell someone... because Shiki made me lie about my mother's death. He said to say that she died from tuberculosis. And I always did because he scared me."
"So how come you look up to him?" Saito asked. "I would think you hated him for messing your life up." Gimmei smiled.
"Someone can be your enemy and you can still love them," she said. "I still loved him, looked to him for protection and lessons. Then, he told me how Father was killed and how he wanted revenge. It was when I was 11. He said that he needed my help, and that he had recruited men from all over to fight for him so that they could keep the government officials in line."
"Your father was one of the Ishin Shishi, wasn't he? Why would you want to keep tabs on the officials?" Saito asked, sitting on his heels and casting her a glance.
"I don't know. Shiki was never clear about his actions. Sometimes he was extremely kind, and other times he was... not. Like when he killed my mother," Gimmei said. She ran her fingers through her hair. Then, Saito drew in a sharp breath.
"What are you going to do to Tokio?" Saito snapped. Gimmei looked up.
"Who?"
"My wife, Baka Neko!" Saito said, standing. Gimmei's green eyes widened.
"****! I forgot all about that!" she said, jumping out of the water and running into the room where she changed quickly and came out holding two swords.
"What was your plan?" Saito asked harshly, taking a sword from her and following her to the tunnel.
"Attacking your house..." Gimmei said sheepishly, pulling open the door to the tunnel. Then, a hand came out of the tunnel, followed by a body. Both Saito and Gimmei backed away, drawing their swords.
"So, we found you!" the man said, drawing a saber. He gave an evil grin, the saber gleaming in the light.
A/N: Ha ha... tricked you! He's not really dead!! Ha ha!! Really early April fools!! No, I'm really sorry to all of you who were devastated, but that marks a TRUE Saito fan! And the ones who believe that he can't die are also true Saito fans! All the rest of you out there who don't really care about Saito-sama are... just plain fans. Sorry it took so long. I was... busy. But this chapter should clarify some things... so... yeah. Thanks for reading!
REVIEW RESPONSES:
Kairi7: Sorry to put you through all of that misery for nothing... but... hey! Dramatic, right? Terribly sorry. Don't kill me or anything. * cowers in fear *
MissBehavin: Okay. I won't knock my work. As for a 'Tall Tale,' I think I'll try making a sequel, but it won't be out for some time. I haven't even thought of it yet! But I'll try. I really will! And you were right! Saito- sama lives!