Chapter Thirteen
Last One Out, Hit the Lights
>>>Midday - May 6, 1583
Nobumitsu was furious, more with himself than anything else. The giant man passed through the southern town entrance without so much as a nod to the guards and marched steadily in the direction of the Yunoyama Onsen. Nobu quickened his pace as numerous admonitions raced through his head.
How could he have been so ignorant? It had now been two days since the strangers from the north left Komo Town in search of a murderer. Why had it taken Nobumitsu so long to come to the obvious conclusion. Ueda Takashi . . . The name had sounded familiar at the time he heard it, but the resemblance had been easy to dismiss. That is, until Taroto-san had remembered what the town guardian himself could not.
Nobumitsu huffed raggedly as the forest floor crunched underneath his weight. There was no way he was leaving his sister anywhere near that thrice-damned Ueda Takashi!
>>>Afternoon - May 6, 1583
Yunoyama Onsen was basically a volcanic hot spring with a veritable mansion built around it. From what Yamamoto Fuji had learned, the onsen had been a famous tourist spot before the bandit raid that had razed Old Komo Town to the ground eight years ago. The mansion itself spent many years in fearful abandonment before its current tenant, a curious woman by the name of Gateau Ari, took up residence.
Fuji found it hard to concentrate on such things, however, exhausted as he was from posting all of those o-fude charms around the area. He and Yuki could hear loud voices coming from the outdoors washtub as they ascended the stone steps that lead to the onsen's mansion. Apparently, Gateau Ari was still attempting to get the laundry done.
"Okay, Megumi, let's see if we can get it right this time."
"I'm really sorry, Ari-san. Are you sure you're okay?"
"Yes, I'm sure. Just remember to hold the soap like-"
There was a loud thunk.
"Aaah! Gomen nasai! Gomen nasai, Ari-san!"
Fuji was not surprised to find that very few of the group's normal garments had been washed, most likely due to Megumi's blunders. Yuki made her best attempt to stifle a fit of giggles caused by the former kunoichi's antics.
Ari placed a hand to her bruised forehead while retrieving a renegade bar of soap that had just recently served as an impromptu weapon. "Don't worry, Megumi. I don't think I'm dead yet, but maybe it would be best if you found some other way to help out around here."
Fuji still felt strange shivers run down his spine whenever he looked at the onsen's beautiful tenant. She looked to be in her early forties, but had managed to retain a slender form that fit her simple blue kimono and sky blue obi perfectly. Ari possessed very kind eyes, the kind of simple radiance that only those who have truly loved and experienced happiness possess. However, none of these things struck Fuji more than her nearly white blonde hair that cascaded over her face and descended past her waist, restrained only by a blue ribbon that kept it in a long ponytail.
Megumi hung her head in sadness at the tenant's words. "I'm sorry, Ari-san. I'm just trying to find a way to do my part around here."
"No one's got a problem with that." a voice chirped from within the simple yet massive building that comprised the majority of the onsen. "Still, there are easier tasks than finding something you do right."
Megumi looked very confused. "Like what?"
Nobumitsu's sister, Tomoe, emerged from within the mansion. "Oh, I don't know. Fighting dragons, maybe?"
Tomoe was a very plain-looking girl, especially when compared to her gargantuan brother. She wore a simple brown children's kimono with a red obi, and her black hair tied back in twin pigtails. Her wide, open eyes were the most endearing part about the girl, though it often made those who did not like children uncomfortable. According to Gateau Ari, who had given the girl a job assisting her with the mansion's upkeep, Tomoe was normally a very sweet and understanding sort of person. Apparently, however, that understanding had its limits.
The last comment by the young girl had obviously stung the hapless Megumi. Tears began to well up in the former kunoichi's eyes.
"Hey," Megumi sniffed. "I'm trying my hardest! Why do you have to pick on me like that?"
Using the sound of Megumi's voice, Yuki moved to stop the impending stream of tears. "Don't take it so seriously, Megu. I've got something you could do for me. Why don't you go check on Noriko? I saw her out back near the cliffside."
"What's she doing back there?" Fuji wondered aloud. "I thought she was supposed to be resting."
"People have different ways of relaxing." Ari commented as she returned to the wash. "Hers just seems to involve swinging a sword."
Fuji felt that weird shiver again at the sound of Ari's voice. What was it about this woman?
"Yeah," Yuki added. "She doesn't want to be out of practice for the next time she sees Matsuda Jiro. Not that it would make that much difference considering how their last meeting went, but who can stop her anyway?"
Fuji smiled at the group and began making his way toward the mansion. "Well, I'd be glad if you could check on Noriko for me, Megumi. I'll go see if Takashi's woken up yet."
"I came close to getting him awake earlier." Tomoe almost giggled. "I wonder what he meant by 'five more minutes, baby; The Greatness hasn't had time to get up yet'."
Fuji sighed heavily. "Oh yeah. It sounds like he's getting a whole lot better."
As the Shinto apprentice entered the onsen's mansion, he couldn't help but admire not only the aristocratic architecture, but also the immaculate cleanness of every room within. The two floors of the building were supported by polished wooden pillars and covered by a traditional clay tile roof. Straw mats covered the floors of the living areas while fine-grain timber lay exposed along the hallways and work areas.
Fuji ascended the creaking wooden stairs to the second floor, which housed a multitude of individual sleeping quarters separated by wooden-framed paper screens, similar to a high-class inn. They had placed Takashi in a room near the outside wall, with a screen open during the daytime to let in fresh air. Fuji carefully closed the screen to the Takashi's room behind him and glanced over the futon-covered ronin. He wasn't snoring as loud as usual, but he still seemed to be asleep. The apprentice sighed and went to adjust the glass wind chime that Ari had been kind enough to hang outside the open screen; the object had come slightly unhinged from the thatched straw that constituted the tile roof's underbelly. Once fixed back in place, the chime began playing its sweet, lilting tune that offered serenity to just about any environ.
Fuji was just about to sit back in a corner and take a nap himself when he heard strange mumbles coming from the ronin.
"Takashi?" he questioned tentatively. "You awake?"
After several low growls, the ronin responded. "Oh, hey Fuji."
"Yatta ze." Fuji commented. "Thought you'd never wake up. It's been two days; you want something to eat?"
Takashi smiled widely. "Sake."
Fuji laughed politely and rose to his feet. "Actually, I think we have that here. You'll have to walk for it though; think you're up to it?"
"I am always," Takashi grunted as he struggled to rise and eventually succeeded. "Up to it."
As the apprentice assisted Takashi in walking slowly toward the stairwell, the ronin seemed to realize the unfamiliarity of his surroundings for the first time.
"Hey, where did we end up?" Takashi wondered aloud.
"You remember Tomoe from New Komo Town, the girl we saved?" Fuji questioned. "She has a job up here at the Yunoyama Onsen. She convinced the tenant, Gateau Ari, to let us stay until we can travel as a group again."
"Yunoyama." Takashi commented. "I was about five years old when they finished this place. It was a real big deal back then. Anyhow, that was real nice of the tenant. Do we have to pay?"
"That's the funny thing." Fuji responded. "She wouldn't take any money from us, even though I offered. It sounds charitable, but to be honest, that lady gives me the creeps."
Takashi smiled as they began to descend the stairs. "Can't always look a gift horse in the mouth, Fuji. We'll just make our stay as brief as possible."
Fuji stopped midway on the staircase landing. "Hey, Takashi? Why did you leave?"
"Huh?" the ronin replied.
The apprentice's eyes narrowed. "Back when we stayed the night in New Komo Town, you just up and disappeared. The next time we saw you was in the ruins of Old Komo Town. Did you get attacked by that Hideaki guy?"
Takashi grimaced. "So, you met him too, eh?"
"'Met' really isn't the word." Fuji corrected. "He probably would have killed us if I hadn't blinded him."
"Sounds about right." Takashi sighed. "You should know that what happened wasn't exactly what I'd intended by leaving the group."
The apprentice smiled lopsidedly. "I kind of figured that."
The ronin's eyes narrowed seriously, his long black hair nearly covering his vision. "I saw Hideaki in town that afternoon, but I didn't want to admit that he was still alive. When I heard that someone by his very description was traveling with the man who murdered Noriko's father, I had to find out for myself what was going on. I thought that, at the very least, I could take care of one of the guys Noriko would be fighting against. That's why I left that note." Takashi grinned and looked upward, but Fuji could see the sadness in his gaze. "Wish I'd never left it," the ronin continued. "In the end, I did more harm than help."
Fuji remained perplexed. "What about this Hideaki? You know him, right? And Yuki too?"
"Hideaki is Yuki's older half-brother, a pure raiju demon." Takashi responded. "We were all friends once, but that was a long time ago. I thought that he died in the fire eight years ago as well, but then, I've been wrong about a lot of things lately."
>>>
The area past the hot spring baths of the Yunoyama Onsen was a small, grassy cliff that represented the lower edge of the depression in the east side of Mt. Gozaisho. Itagaki Noriko stood atop this overhang, swinging her katana, the Amatsuotome, in delicate patterns and moving with the stylish grace of a Kaguradancer in the early evening mist. Well-made bandages covered her many wounds, but they were beginning to come apart due to the swordswoman's sweat-laced exertions.
Unacceptable. Simply unacceptable. Her movements were slower than normal due to the injuries she had sustained in the battle against Matsuda Jiro. This would not do if she was to challenge the murderer again.
"Nori-chan?" a cautious voice called from the steps leading to the cliff. "Are you alright?"
Noriko stopped in her movements and looked toward the voice. "Megumi? What are you doing up here? I thought you were helping Ari-san with the laundry."
Megumi looked more than a little self-conscious as she stepped forward to reply. "Well, that didn't go so well, so I decided to check on you. Should you be practicing like that with those wounds?"
Noriko resumed her movements. "I don't have a choice. Our enemies could attack at any time, and I have to be ready to face them."
Megumi's gaze narrowed. "Face 'them', or face Jiro?"
Noriko continued without so much as a pause. "Matsuda Jiro is my target, he has always been. You should know that by now. He's the very reason I've come this far, and the only reason that I wield a sword."
Megumi sat down on a large rock. "What about the others? If they're in danger, wouldn't you help them?"
"I told you before," Noriko replied, a slight strain present in her voice. "I can't waste my time looking out for other people when I've got my own problems to handle. If I defeated Jiro, then maybe I could lend a hand, but I won't cover for anybody else while he's still a presence on the battlefield."
Megumi looked out toward the lights of New Komo Town in the distance. "Do we mean anything to you at all, Nori-chan?"
Noriko stopped in her movements. "Mean something? Listen, I was the one who started traveling south in order to find the man who killed my father, me and no one else. Every one of you joined me along the way of your own accord; I didn't ask for anyone's help or company. Don't think that I owe you something simply for being with you for a short time."
Megumi looked very downcast. "I understand."
Feeling the uncomfortable silence that followed, Noriko added, "Don't feel sad about it or anything. People who get close to me eventually get hurt, and I'm usually to blame for it. It's better for you not to get attached to someone like that, trust me."
Megumi's voice turned to a whisper. "Do you think that people want that kind of charity?"
Noriko barely had time to consider this before a voice boomed out over the mist.
"Itagaki Noriko!"
Megumi turned toward the mansion. "It came from over there; do you recognize it?"
Noriko sheathed her katana and began moving lopsidedly toward the stone stairway. "Of course, that's Nobumitsu from New Komo Town. What's he doing here?"
>>>
"What's going on, brother?" Tomoe demanded. "Why can't you speak to Fuji-san?"
Nobumitsu stood in the middle of the clearing next to the Yunoyama Onsen's entrance, while Fuji, Takashi, Ari, Yuki, and Tomoe stood just outside the entrance.
Nobumitsu extended an arm toward his little sister. "Tomoe-chan, come here this instant!"
Tomoe complied, but still looked questioningly into her brother's ever-stern gaze.
"I mean no disrespect to the surrogate son of the High Shinto Priest Yamamoto Genji, but he is not the leader of this group. Even further," Nobumitsu directed a hateful look toward Takashi. "I will not communicate with that ronin in my sight."
Surprisingly, Takashi did not respond to the insult, simply turning his eyes downward, almost as if in shame.
"Hey!" Fuji countered. "What did Takashi ever do to you?"
Nobumitsu laughed dryly. "More than you'll ever be able to understand, son."
Noriko materialized out of the mist along with Megumi. "What is the meaning of this, Nobumitsu-san?"
The town guardian turned toward Noriko. "Ah, Itagaki-san. I have come to retrieve my sister, and also to deliver two vital pieces of information to you."
Noriko nodded. "Very well; go ahead."
"The first piece of information regards several sacred documents that had been removed from the Shinto shrine at the top of Mt. Gozaisho." Nobumitsu began. "They were carefully stored in New Komo Town after the fire at the shrine, and have remained there by the order of the Ise Shrine. However, one of the men seen with your father's murderer recently removed several of the more dangerous volumes from our custody."
Noriko's expression grew more serious. "That is doubtless a grave concern, but what does that have to do with removing your sister from this location?"
Nobumitsu pointed an accusatory finger in Takashi's direction. "This ronin, Ueda Takashi, is a danger to your entire group, and I do not wish for my sister to be anywhere near this menace."
"Menace?" Fuji exclaimed. "Why would you say something like that about Takashi? He's done everything he can to help us so far!"
Nobumitsu turned toward the apprentice. "Is that so? What do you really know about him? What has he told you about the destruction of Old Komo Town?"
Noriko looked toward Takashi dangerously before saying anything else. "Old Komo Town was destroyed in a fire eight years ago during a bandit raid. Is this not correct?"
Nobumitsu laughed dryly. "No, it is very far from correct. Nothing short of an army could have achieved that feat in such a short time, nothing except Ueda Takashi."
"What are you talking about!" Megumi questioned. "That doesn't make any sense!"
Nobumitsu glared with anger in his eyes at the downcast ronin. "Eight years ago, Ueda Takashi used the power of the Shinryo-ken, his cursed broadsword, to lay waste to Old Komo Town."
Shock crossed Fuji's face as he turned to the accused. "He's kidding, right Takashi? That can't be right, can it?"
Takashi looked up towards Nobumitsu with pain laced across his narrow features. "It's true. I am the one responsible for the destruction of my hometown, and the deaths of all who fell victim to the fires of the Shinryo-ken."
Nobumitsu turned to leave, taking hold of Tomoe's hand. "My apologies to you, Ari-san, but I would not wish to force the warriors out of your hands in exchange for my sister's job."
Ari did not share in the shock that had overtaken the rest of the group. "It is no problem, Nobumitsu-san. I will send word once they have left."
Noriko walked over to Takashi and stared the ronin straight in the eye. "Everyone, inside now. Our friend Takashi has some serious explaining to do."
(End Chapter Thirteen)
Japanese Dialogue and Terms (in order of appearance):
o-fude - translates as "honorable holy writing". Normally associated with the Shinto belief system, any paper with o-fude written on it is said to have a kind of mystical power.
yatta ze - a masculine variation of the expression for "I did it!".
Amatsuotome - translates as "Celestial Maiden".
Kagura - a special type of music used exculsively for Shinto ceremonies.
Shinryo-ken - translates as "Sword of Divine Will".
