The Hundred Item List
Another Path
By Leishe
The rooster strutted around the dirt yard impetuously, raising its head with the utmost arrogance, as it stepped past the fat hens sitting over their eggs, as well as the small chicks scratching at the ground.
Cluck, cluck.
Bakaaw!
Ah, chickens. One would wonder if they had personalities, the way they held themselves.
Dawn approached, with the sky beginning to grow lighter, but with the moon and her children still hanging on to the last wisps of night. The air was cool, and the backyard fowl ruffled their feathers for warmth.
Respect was given to the family rooster, which was far more practical than the western alarm clock. The masters and children of the house counted on it to signal the breaking of day, when the golden sun rose into the clouds.
Baak, baak, bak.
Flutter. Scratch.
It was itching to give the morning's warble, but the sky was not yet that light, and the sun was still buried in its sleep. The rooster looked up at the faint outline of the moon with annoyance, and strutted back to its warm sleeping corner.
One of the chicks had managed to catch a worm.
.0o0.
"Get some rest, Misao, you'll be all right." Murmurs of agreement followed, and a warm hand ran down her heated forehead.
A bandage was being wrapped around one of her legs. Someone was scrubbing her body harshly with a wet washcloth, and the young woman groaned, trying to move, but not being able to.
Lying down on her back, on the futon, in the dim darkness, that was what Misao had remembered hearing last, before everyone had left her to get what little rest they could before the day started again.
The room was quiet, with nothing but the gentle humming of the wind, fanning lightly against her face.
"Three or four days. She'll be up and running by then."
Omasu's rough estimation hung in the heavily in the air, and Misao grimaced in her sleep. Three days was too long to remain resting and waiting for her body to heal. Why, she could force it to heal now, if she wanted to.
'Just don't keep me in here…'
The Aoiya was silent, outside. Slowly, carefully, the girl felt her body awaken, against its will, but not against hers. Her eyelids fluttered open, and a moan escaped her parted lips. Her head ached terribly, and, not surprisingly, so did the rest of her body.
Ceiling. Smooth wood. Flat. It was the first thing she saw, upon reaching a slight state of consciousness. Of course, everything was extremely blurry.
'The…Aoiya.' So, it hadn't been a dream. But how did she get here, then?
Misao moved one of her arms and tried to get up, but without much success. Everything hurt. She could see bandages and bruises, but thankfully, no blood. The ninja girl bent her legs. If anything, the spaces behind her knees were the only parts that weren't injured too badly.
"Wa..ter…" Her voice came out raspy and deep, and it felt like someone had poured a whole bushel of salt down her esophagus.
Misao cleared her throat, pausing to yawn. Halfway, she stopped. It hurt to yawn, and even more so to talk.
'I suppose I'll just have to shut up for a few days,' she thought glumly.
Thankfully, her strength had collected a bit over the night, making it possible for the young woman to be able to move herself properly. Painfully, the injured okashira forced herself to sit up, using her hands to support her upper body. Misao turned her head in the direction of the sliding door, wincing as she did so.
"Aiiiya!" she cried out, her voice still rough, "…it hurts…"
There was no doubt that the rest of the Oniwabanshu would kill her once they found out she was up and about so soon.
Misao gritted her teeth.
But she was sooo thirsty….
Water…
Having to walk out of her bedroom and into the kitchen was harder than she had first thought it was. Her ribs were probably bruised, and the ninja girl clutched at her throbbing side periodically, while she limped through the deserted hallways.
Dug.
Dugdug.
Dug.
Dug.
Irregular footsteps thudded awkwardly down the wooden floor, and Misao wondered vaguely if she was waking anyone up, then realizing that it didn't really matter. Wincing, the young woman felt a slicing pain in her left leg, but she looked up, determined.
The kitchen was not that far away.
Thud.
Thud.
Thud.
Misao got there soon enough, pouring herself a cup of water in a small porcelain mug. She listened as the clear liquid gurgled into the container. Draining the cup in one go, she felt the water trickle down her throat, and settle into her stomach. It was a nice, satisfying feeling, and Misao felt her headache slowly melt away, along with the drugging sleepiness.
She released a breath in her chest that she didn't know was there.
Tinkle.
The sound of the windchimes reached her ears, and on instinct, Misao turned her head towards the direction of the dining room. The sliding doors that lead to the outside were still closed, but knowing Okina, they probably weren't locked.
Misao smiled, but then she stopped. It hurt to smile.
Thud, thud, thud.
Hurriedly, she walked—or rather—hobbled towards those closed doors, knowing fully well that no one was awake yet. The sun was not yet up, judging by the coolness of the air. Laboriously, Misao pushed one door open, finding that she needed to put more effort into it than she was used to. Only then did the spirited ninja girl realize how weak she had actually become.
"Curse those stinkin' fools," she muttered darkly under her breath, "In the name of Aoshi-sama and all that is good, I swear they'll pay…"
The sky was still a deep blue, lighter than the midnight sky, but not light enough for the blasting heat of morning. Misao looked up and found the moon. She nodded to it, wordlessly.
Sitting down, the young woman rested her back against the other door, still closed. She released a tired breath, slightly annoyed that most of her strength had left her.
A slight breeze passed by, ruffling her hair as it went. Misao closed her eyes slowly, inhaling the fresh, fragrant scent of dawn.
'I wonder how I got here…' she mused to herself, fingers exploring the rough wooden texture of the platform that the young woman knew all too well.
As far as last night was concerned, she didn't remember a bloody thing, save the part where she found herself suspended from the tree that she had fallen asleep under. And then the sneering, the threats and the long, blunt weapons, the first blows, and the sharp pain that followed.
And the blackness.
Misao opened her eyes, studying the clouds that had suddenly appeared out of nowhere. The Kyoto she knew and loved was still fast asleep, and the streets were still deserted, the shops still closed. No one was there, save one white cat, rummaging through the garbage that someone had left lying outside a shop.
"Must've been one of the guys who found me…" Misao muttered, imagining Shiro fighting the baddies off, cutting her from the tree and lugging her onto his shoulder, walking back home afterwards.
If Aoshi'd been the one to rescue her, though…the young woman imagined a tall man finishing the men off in a few seconds with his ultra-cool matrixy moves, then rescuing her…and as he carried her in his arms, princess-style, of course, travelling through the countryside at top speed, with the wind blowing in her hair, she would open her eyes…and he would look down into them…then she'd part her lips ever so gently…and then…and then…
"Tik-tik-tilaooooook!"
The crow of the rooster interrupted Misao's romantic fantasy, sending her back to pre-morning Kyoto, with a body beaten up so badly that it hurt to talk, sitting outside, watching a cat dig through someone's rubbish.
She slanted her eyes, before heaving a wistful sigh, settling back again into her state of comfortable silence, propping her back against the door.
'If only…'
.0o0.
Looking carefully at the clothes piled up on top of the futon, one would say that they hadn't been used, not even once. But that person would have been wrong…terribly wrong.
Soujiro had finished dressing up; making sure that his sword was in its proper place. He sniffed the air carefully. He was right, it was still before morning. Quietly, he slid the door to the guestroom open, stepping out into the hallway with almost no sound.
The air was wonderfully cool.
The young man glanced down the array of doors, listened for a moment, and, after hearing nothing, decided that it was safe to leave. With a wisp of a smile on his face, Soujiro padded into the kitchen, one hand on the hilt of the sakabattou. They wouldn't know that he had left just yet…maybe the old man and the rest of them would find out later, when they found the guestroom empty.
'You could stay, you know…' said the voice inside him. 'It would be…nice to have a home again.'
The young man kept walking.
Silence hung over the rest of the Aoiya, with the only light coming in from the doors of the dining room, which were slightly open. He assumed that the old man hadn't been able to close them properly after their rather wet arrival.
Blue eyes flashed, as Soujiro began to walk in the direction of the doors, still with no sound following him. He put one hand on the left panel, sliding it open in one easy, swift motion. Stepping out into the outdoor platform, the young man paused to take in the serene atmosphere before leaving…
A bloodcurdling scream pierced the air.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"
Misao.
His eyes widened in panic for only a split second, before Soujiro looked to his right, and spotted the girl from last night sitting there, looking at him with a bewildered expression on her face that bordered on incredulity.
The young man knew what it read. It was the 'What-the-hell-is-a-demented-bloody-killer-person-like-you-doing-in-my-home-at-this-time-of-day!' expression, and had been used only by a few people thus far.
He observed her, not saying anything.
Misao took one look at him. One look, and already, she began to feel her blood boil. His face, his eyes, his mouth…it seemed as if he had popped out of the stories Sanosuke had told her about their fights with the Juppongatana.
"The Tenken," he had said. "That kid's too fast for his own good, I tell ya. Why, if Kenshin here hadn't knocked some sense into that empty little head of his, we'd all been finished."
At first she didn't believe the chicken-haired man. What kind of person could possibly be faster than the legendary Battousai? Misao had seen him only once, and that was when she and that kid from Shingetsu village had accidentally knocked down a door to some hut…it seemed like a long time ago.
But here he was, standing in front of her. Tenken no Soujiro.
Her mouth still hurt from the scream.
Instinctively, she tried to stand up, but failed miserably, stumbling back into the platform. Staring up at the young man, the ninja girl mustered her best death glare.
He smiled at her.
"Good morning."
She felt like screaming again.
There was something extremely annoying about this guy's calmness, down to the tone of his voice when he had greeted her pleasantly. As if there was nothing wrong with having Shishio's former right hand man suddenly come out of your home.
Misao didn't return the greeting, looking Soujiro up and down suspiciously.
"You're the Tenken, aren't you?" It was a predictable question.
The young man shook his head. "Seta Soujiro," he said. "Just that."
She was not convinced. "What are you doing here? And why?" her voice was rising.
Soujiro blinked. Should I tell her that I saved her life, and that the old man told me to stay? Or maybe I should just leave that to him…
Wisely, the young man chose the latter, opting to leave the Aoiya without having to tell Misao the whole story. It would just delay him further, and after all, wanderers didn't stay in one place. They wandered around, for kami-sama's sake!
She was surprised when he bowed to her politely, still smiling. His unusual ways unnerved her, and frankly, she wasn't really used to people who behaved like this.
"Sorry," Soujiro said when he looked back up at her, "But I think it best that you ask Kashiwazaki-san about that."
Misao stared at him. Ask Okina? What on earth did he have to do with the Tenken? She opened her mouth to speak, but before she could say anything, the young man had already hopped down the platform, and was walking out the entrance.
"H-hey—"
Hundreds of questions ran through her mind, but just like last time, none helped her situation at all. She decided to put the annoying voices in her head on hold for the moment.
Struggling with every move she made, Misao scrambled up to a standing position, and miraculously, was able to step down the platform, and follow the young man out. She saw him look back, and broke into a labored, painful run.
Wait!, her mind screamed, I have something else to ask you!
Before the words escaped her mouth, she saw Soujiro look at her and smile…it was one of his strange, creepy expressions that sent chills down her spine.
Goodbye, he seemed to say.
Misao reached the entrance, panting and gulping in large amounts of air.
"Wait!" her scream echoed out into the emptiness.
She looked around for signs of the young man. All she saw were the same deserted streets and closed shops that she had seen a few minutes ago.
Why? Her eyes seemed to say. And as an afterthought, a small whisper in her head asked, Was he the one who saved me?
Exhausted from the effort, the young woman hung back, sitting on the now dry ground, eyes still scanning the horizon for any sign of the infamous Tenken.
But he was already gone.
.0o0.
Aoshi was trying to get inside a cave. The keyword here is "trying."
He was climbing up a mountain somewhere in the north of Japan, and the man's main goal was to reach a certain temple that was said to exude wisdom, quiet power, inner strength, and all that jazz.
A small snowball 'plopped' on top of Aoshi's head. The man looked up, only to see the furry brown tail of some small animal disappear into the feathery whiteness. The snow was beginning to fall a little bit harder, and the tall man wrapped his coat tighter around himself.
'Hidden temple, here I come,' he thought, stepping up the snow-covered ledge with a resolve steelier than Saitou's.
He had better climb fast. Aoshi didn't like the fact that the snow was starting to ruin his hair.
.0o0.
"Misao! You're supposed to be resting!"
The young woman jerked up in surprise, hurting her back. She groaned, rubbing it, and shot Omasu a look of annoyance.
"You don't have to shout," she rasped, pausing to drain another cup of water. "Everyone can hear you!"
"Dear girl!" clucked the woman, rushing to Misao and grabbing her cup to refill it, "You'd better take care of yourself more carefully! Why, if that young man hadn't rescu—"
"You mean he did rescue me?" she interrupted, looking at Omasu with wide, opaline eyes.
The older woman blinked. There was a quiet silence afterwards.
"...who rescued you, dear?" she asked, as if she hadn't said a thing. Or maybe Okon was right, and Omasu really did have a bad memory.
Misao wanted to claw her hair in frustration.
"The Tenken!" she cried, "He left this morning!"
"He did?" another voice asked. Both ninja women looked up to see Okina standing in the kitchen doorway, looking at them both with a grave expression on his face. He had his cane, as always, and was already dressed for the morning's activities.
Slowly, the old man nodded his head. "I knew it. Maybe it's not yet time for him to stay."
"S-STAY?" Misao was incredulous. "You asked him to STAY!" Her throat was beginning to hurt again. "Besides," she added, "I didn't need saving!"
Okina didn't respond, instead looking out of the dining room. His gaze travelled all the way past the doors, and into the marketplace, looking for a young man he knew was not there.
"A little more time…" he muttered, stroking his beard thoughtfully. "…maybe."
.0o0.
The list was opened during mid-afternoon, when the sky was a cool color of grey-blue, and the air was filled with the scent of apples.
A small brown bird hopped to and fro on the branch of a tree, seemingly excited about something humans did not know of.
Misao hadn't been able to go out all day, and instead, was forced to stay cooped up inside the Aoiya with almost nothing to do but rest, rest, rest. All the Oniwabanshu, save Okina, made sure of that.
"If you want to get better quicker, then you'd better take care of yourself properly!"
Of course, the four men and women couldn't be at the okashira's side all day—after all, they had a restaurant to run. Leaving the ninja girl to herself was much too dangerous, Kuro had observed, and everyone seemed to agree with him.
"Let's just tell her to stay inside." Suggested Omasu, shrugging.
"Words won't make much of a difference," Okon reminded her, "Remember what happened the last time we told her off?"
"Please, don't remind me," muttered Shiro, waving the thought away like it was foul gas.
They all let out a sigh. "Maybe we can…uh…threaten her with something…" shrugged Kuro. "Y'know…like…no dinner for three weeks?"
"That's cruel!" pointed out Omasu, "Besides, I'm sure there's something else we can do!"
"Like what?"
"Like…um…er…cutting off her braid?"
Silence.
"That's it!" said the chubby man, "Cut off her braid!"
Misao had been growing her hair since she was about six years old, and they all guessed that she wouldn't want it shorter any time soon. Well, they were right. The ninja girl treasured her braid just as she treasured Aoshi-sama's love…well, if he did give her love, which was still a matter to be determined.
Anyway, if disobey she will, then chopped off her braid will be. The four Oniwabanshu waiters and waitresses congratulated each other over the brilliant new idea that they had conjured up.
And so, it was.
.0o0.
Misao squinted at her writing, seated in her room. It was a bit dark, but not so dark that she couldn't read properly. The dimness and the four walls around her just served as a reminder that she had been indoors all day…rotting.
Stupid threat, she thought, annoyed. They just had to involve her braid, didn't they? Hrrmph!
Beside her lay her old brush set, which she hadn't used in maybe…three months. The ink was running dry, and so the young woman had snuck into Okina's room to borrow his bottle without asking.
Her hand was poised over the scroll, ready to cross out items that she didn't think were necessary anymore.
"Must be leader of the Oniwabanshu…" she muttered. Item number four was the first to go, since that didn't apply to her dear Aoshi anymore. Carefully, Misao lowered her ink-loaded brush to the paper, crossing it out neatly.
"Now…what else?" she mused, looking over the rest of the writing.
Her eyes stopped at number six.
6. Wears cool trench coat.
An image of Aoshi suddenly materialized in her mind, serious, cold and standing tall in that brown coat that he always wore.
And then, quite unexpectedly, another person appeared, but unlike Aoshi, he wasn't wearing a trench coat. He was wearing a blue gi, with what looked like a white shirt underneath.
"Tenken…" Misao muttered, a note of surprise in her voice. "…what on earth…?"
Aoshi wore a trench coat, but Soujiro didn't. The ninja girl frowned. But what exactly did he have to do with her list of things, anyway? And why…why was she even considering him when going over her list?
It's not like he's a candidate, or anything…I mean…Aoshi-sama's the only one I'm gonna marry!
The young woman scowled, quickly crossing item number six out, so that she wouldn't have to think about it.
'Besides,' she thought, 'What if he doesn't wear his coat anymore?' and as an afterthought, '…and besides, Tenken isn't the only one without a super-cool outfit like Aoshi-sama's, right?'
Right, answered a smug voice in her head. Right indeed.
She waited for the writing to dry, for a moment, and then rolled the scroll up, tying it up carefully. Misao but it back in the corner of her room, but not before taking a long look, as if rethinking what she had written.
After a few seconds, the girl shrugged, tossing the list aside and exiting. The door closed behind her with a soft 'thud'.
Something was very wrong here.
.0o0.
The fourth chapter, everyone. Sou has left the Aoiya (awww…) and Misao rethinks item number six. :D. What on earth could possibly happen next? XD I've revised the first three chapters…so all of those info errors have gone bye-bye. Thanks again to all of you out there who were kind enough to point them out. :)
…and yes, now that I think about it, Misao did look like a piñata. :) haha…