(Author's Note: Thanks to everyone who waited patiently for the next chapters… please bear with me as I write a very long yet relevant passage on the names of my characters… One thing I always do before writing about a character is to look up their name. It is interesting to note that Jin's name is something of a misnomer. Although it can be either male or female, it is more often female; it means "benevolence, tenderness, compassion, love, gentleness." Its origin is probably from the seven bushido of the samurai. "Yuki" is a similar misnomer. It is, like Jin's, primarily a female name. (The suffix "maru" literally means "circle;" in context simply means he's a boy, but no one really bothers to use it.) Thanks to Lorrie Wendell, who wrote that it is "…a name given to children born in December, meaning 'snow,' which signifies purity… and innocence." Innocence indeed. But its second meaning is, ironically, "luck, lucky, or good fortune." So, because of the biting irony of the name "Yuki" (lucky) I felt I had to "kick it up a notch" and really torture him. And although Shino isn't really mentioned here, her name means "a slender, strong rod of bamboo… the stem being a symbol of fidelity and dedication." Thanks again, Lorrie! And thanks to Shenji, who told me his name is derived from Shinji or Shinshi. "So, basically, is a cheap knock-off." Say it with a Japanese accent for the best effect. Priceless. Its meaning is "trust(worthy)" or "faith," although Shin-chan also said something about acupuncture (Shenji is a real prick, isn't he?) and its character being an anchor, so it also means strong or steadfast. He refused to explain it any further after I called him "Shin-chan." Lastly, forgive me, I translated my own name into Japanese. "Kaijou," or "son of the sea." If you see a Kaijou make an appearance, that's my ego at work.)

CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

"Find anything?" asked Koto. He was leaning against the wall lazily, examining his nails and trying to pick the dirt from under them with the point of his short sword. Kohachiro had just returned to the dojo; it was sunset, and he'd been out most of the day. All the boys were wearing the same outfit—it was the uniform for students of the Mujuushin kenjetsu dojo.

"Nothing," answered Kohachiro despairingly as he sheathed his swords. "We thought we had him so many times… but we picked up a lot of false trails."

"I killed a cat," grumbled Ogura, stomping in behind Kohachiro. "Talk about a disaster… why aren't you out looking for him?"

"I'm helping keep the dojo in order," said Koto. This was, obviously, a lie. The dojo hadn't had any semblance of order since Enshirou's body had been found the previous morning. Saiyu had become an unelected leader, being one of the oldest. Most of the other older students were systematically combing the streets of Kisarazu for Jin; the younger ones were still in completely confounded state. And students of all ages had simply disappeared, presumably to find their own ways home.

"We nearly took the head off some old lady, too," grumbled Kohachiro.

"Lucky you have self-control," said Koto, still scrutinizing his nails. "Another murder would be a shame."

"Not if it was Jin's," replied Ogura. "Saiyu-san." He bowed.

"Ogura-kun," said Saiyu, managing a bow without breaking his stride. He and Kohachiro didn't need such formalities; they brushed hands when Saiyu had reached the entrance hall

"Nothing?" guessed Saiyu.

"Nada," confirmed Kohachiro, sliding off his shoes. "We killed a cat and traumatized an old woman. That's it."

"He didn't just disappear," said Saiyu irritably. (Anyone would be irritable staying in a dojo all day, waiting for news, breaking up scuffles and trying to console dazed students who wandered aimlessly and bumped into each other, leading to more spats.)

"I told you what to do, if you want to find him so bad…" drawled Koto.

"I already said no. Yukimaru's been through enough…"

"How's he holding up?" asked Kohachiro.

"Fine, considering the circumstances. He's still in shock, I think."

"I'm telling you, it's all an act!" said Koto with sudden passion. "How can you believe that Jin didn't tell him a single thing? Come on, he was the only person Jin had! If Jin said anything—"

"He didn't," interrupted Saiyu.

"Want to know why Jin didn't leave Yukimaru a note? Because Yukimaru probably already knows everything that happened and where he is—"

"Koto, it's a closed subject," said Saiyu firmly, not bothering with the "-san" suffix. Koto sulked, but didn't argue further, sensing that Kohachiro was getting hostile. He was certainly bristling and holding the edge of his sword rather tighter than necessary.

"Another thing, Koto-san…" said Saiyu, forcing himself to use the usual respectful terms, "…I believe I saw Kariya Kagetoki stalking around…"

"Kariya-dono might have stopped by," said Koto neutrally.

"Well, I don't want him stopping by!" said Saiyu. "The man's a vulture. The last thing I need is for everyone to know of Master Enshirou-san's death…"

"Saiyu, I think everyone already knows. The townspeople have noticed us, after all…" said Ogura.

"I didn't say anything to Kariya-dono," added Koto. "But just for the record, I think he would be very sympathetic to our situation. He would not only pay a very fair price for the dojo, but mentor us for the remainder of our training…"

"A fair price?" repeated Saiyu, aghast. "How can you think of money at a time like this? Aside from that, who would he pay? No one owns the dojo at all… Jin was supposed to be Master's successor."

"That was just a rumor," said Koto dismissively. "There have been an equal amount of rumors that Master meant to turn over the dojo to Kariya-dono, who happens to be very skilled in the way of the sword…"

"I wouldn't train under him," grumbled a student, walking past. "I'd rather transfer to another, inferior dojo…"

"Thank you for your input, Shamisen," said Ogura sarcastically.

"For all we know, the dojo belongs to neither Jin, nor Kariya-san," said Kohachiro.

"Who else is there?" asked Saiyu.

Before anyone could answer (and indeed, Koto had opened his mouth to supply a list of potential candidates) the door burst open and Shenji fell in against Kohachiro.

"Shenji!" all cried. Shenji looked completely disheveled. His hair was flyaway, his glasses missing, and he had a fair amount of blood caked over his once-gray kimono.

"I found him!" gasped Shenji.

"You found him?" the boys shouted, so loud that students came running. A crowd formed and it took Saiyu over an hour to shoo all the younger students away before he, along with a few others, shut themselves in a room with Shenji.

"What happened?" they all demanded, as Shenji wincingly began washing his cuts; a gash on his left arm and another across his left knee. "Where have you been?" Shenji had been missing since the previous day; no one was sure where he'd gone to.

"Oh, it was awful," he said, enjoying the attention. "I went after Jin, of course. I thought he'd go to his house, so I dug through Master's records for the location and then struck out on my own…" (Many people grumbled. Some thought it was foolish or selfish to go after him alone; others thought it was disrespectful to go through Enshirou's library so soon. But no one voiced their oppositions too loudly, wanting to know all about Shenji's encounter with Jin.) "So I found him there, and said, 'You're going to die for what you did.' He just looked at me, completely unremorseful—glaring right at me—"

"Skip it," commanded Saiyu. "Just tell us how he got away."

Looking slightly hurt and a bit flustered to have been cut down so abruptly, Shenji said, "Not much to tell. We fought. He got away. But we had a fantastic fight, let me tell you about—"

"How did he manage to cut your arm without ripping your kimono?" asked Koto.

"Oh, that. My sleeve was rolled up at the time," said Shenji dismissively.

"Did he mention me?" This question came from the screen, which had been cracked open and was host to over a dozen people peeking in and listening. Saiyu went over and opened it wide. A pile of younger boys fell at his feet, among them, Yukimaru, ruffled from multiple interrogations and looking a little like a beaten dog.

Saiyu looked reproving, but grudgingly prompted, "Shenji?"

"Nope," said Shenji. Yuki looked crestfallen. "But don't feel too bad," added Shenji quickly. "He didn't mention anyone. Except you, Saiyu. Oh, and you, Kohachiro. And Ogura, and Tamasine, and Toshi, and Shamisen, and Tomi, and Sho, and maybe Matsu—"

"Shenji!" snapped Saiyu.

Shenji smiled sweetly. "But he didn't mention you, Yuki-chan. Sorry."

"That's okay," mumbled Yuki, staring at the ground miserably. He looked up, suddenly hopeful. "But did he maybe say anything about me indirectly? Without saying my name?"

"Nope! Nothing at all. Not a word."

"...oh. Okay," mumbled Yuki, scuffing the ground with his foot.

Saiyu gave Shenji a withering glare. "Yukimaru," he said gently, rising. "It's been a long day. I think maybe you should go to bed."

Yuki nodded numbly.

"And Shenji… I think you need rest too."

"He's not so hurt," said Koto. "I'd like to know why Jin didn't kill him. Why would someone so cold-blooded spare—"

Saiyu glared Koto into silence. "Regardless, it's time for some of us to go to sleep. Everybody out."

The boys picked themselves up, a few grumbling, some wanting to hear about the fight and others wanting to know what Jin had said about them. As they filed out, Saiyu said, in a low voice, "I don't want to hear a single thing about any of you bothering Yukimaru. Understood? Everyone must leave him alone tonight… he's had a very difficult time accepting this." Mumbling, everyone promised not to trouble Yuki, no matter what. The screen shut behind them.

Shenji smirked while he cleaned his self-inflicted wounds. For him, the past few days had been marvelous. He'd cut Jin down to size; he'd earned a certain amount of respect too. Then again, he hadn't reckoned on Koto's suspicions. Nor had he thought Saiyu would become the leader of the dojo like this. He was starting to think he would have been better off to leave. He'd have to tell the others where Jin had been, of course. Jin was probably already miles away, possible dead. Setting the others on his trail was the honorable thing to do; they wouldn't catch him, not now, but at least they wouldn't be able to say that Shenji had betrayed them.

Shenji rose with a final tug on the bandage on his leg, and went to the screen. He opened it and peered into the dark hall furtively. No one was there; he slipped out and closed the screen silently behind him, then snuck away through the dojo. A few times he had to duck down a hall to avoid another person, but for the most part his path was uninterrupted, because he was going towards the rooms of the younger students, most of whom were already sleeping.

He poked his head into one of the many tiny rooms. "Yukimaru?"

"What?" asked Yuki, who wasn't even bothering to pretend to sleep. He was lying on his cot with his hands behind his head, staring at the ceiling miserably.

"Mind if I come in?"

"No."

Shenji slipped in, closed the screen, and sat on the cot. Yuki barely glanced at him.

"Did Jin really kill him?"

"Yes," said Shenji.

"But why?"

"I didn't ask."

Yuki rolled onto his side with a sigh. "I always thought he hated me."

"Yuki-chan…" said Shenji soothingly, putting a hand on Yuki's back. "He didn't hate you. He just didn't care."

Yuki snuffled. "I thought we'd be together. He should have taken me with him. He just… left me. He left me behind. Why would Jin-niisan…?"

"You would have just slowed him down," said Shenji. "He probably got some sort of sick enjoyment, too, knowing that you'd be harassed if he left you here."

"I thought he loved me."

Shenji sighed. "Yuki, you really are foolish. Can't you see Jin only cared about Jin? That's why he killed Master, for the fame. He probably did it while his back was turned, too."

"I don't know what to think anymore," mumbled Yuki, unwilling to agree that Jin was so selfish.

"I'll tell you what I think. I think he's just a common Takeda traitor. I think anyone loyal to the Shogunate would stop glorifying him and start seeing him for what he really is. A nobody, that's what. A sad little nobody. Like you."

Yuki sighed again. "You're right. Perhaps I should just kill myself."

"And let Jin go? Without even seeing him one last time?"

Yuki's eyes narrowed. He didn't say anything. Then he lapsed back into his state of complete and utter despair. "I just wanted him to like me. I thought he did. I thought…"

"You thought he liked you just because you were shudo partners?" asked Shenji humoringly.

"I don't know," mumbled Yuki. "We didn't do anything except spar. I think that's all he cared about—fighting."

"Poor Yuki," said Shenji with barely-concealed sarcasm. "Unrequited love is a terrible thing, isn't it? You would have given your life just to be loved, wouldn't you have?"

"A thousand times," answered Yuki.

"Maybe I can help," mused Shenji. With sudden swiftness, he lunged at Yuki. Yuki let out a squawk of surprise, and the two crashed to the ground with enough noise to wake the entire dojo. But those who'd been woken (and that wasn't many; most were too exhausted to be roused) went right back to sleep; after all, Saiyu had told them not to disturb Yuki, and they'd been expecting screams of anguish from his room since Jin's disappearance.