Kanbei smiled faintly at himself as he put his meager belongings away in the bunk that had been assigned to him. He had found work in the first city he came across. The city wasn't too dissimilar from Kougakyo. There seemed to be fewer samurai though, so luck was on his side for that much. There were many posts open for a wanderer; bodyguard, soldier, guard...if there was anything that needed protecting, people would employ a samurai. He found that the city, Haruka, centered more on culture and less on economics, unlike Kougakyo. There were many theatres, tea houses, and art and history museums. Lots of places that held precious things. Lots of places that a war hero could get lost.
He had signed on as a solider under the local warlord that watched over the city. The warlord asked very little of the inhabitents; he received the profit made by the sales tax on all goods bought and sold, and took a little rice from the surrounding areas to feed him and his extensive family. There was the expected level of dissent within the city, as well as harboring its own little pockets of theives, assassins, and gangs. Enough action to occupy Kanbei's active mind while also giving himself time to relax. He looked at the uniform issued to him and gave a wry smile. It had been a long time since he had worn an uniform. He shrugged it on with a measure of discomfort. Uniforms brought memories, and memories brought on pain, which he tried to avoid. As he turned to put his clothes away, he sent the sword that he had rested next to his clothes clanking to the ground. He winced at the sharp sound, but then shook his head.
'Fine. You'll come back to me, so I won't dwell.'
He picked up the sword gently and threw his clothes into a drawer,then slipped sword and sheathe into his belt.
"Good, you got settled in."
Kanbei looked over to the younger soldier leaning casually against the doorpost.
"Yes, I managed to figure things out," Kanbei replied with a small smile.
"What's your name again?"
"Shimada Kanbei."
Kanbei had found that he was far enough away from Kougakyo for his story to be known, but his name was not common knowledge,so he had used it.
"Well, Shimada-san, my name is Kanzaki Ryuuo and it's been delegated to me to explain the procedures to you." Ryuuo gave a small half-smile. "Though it is rather strange explaining these things to someone who is obviously much older than I am."
"Age doesn't matter. I just needed employment. There are no wars to fight."
"Ah...I see. So you're more of a warrior than a soldier."
"You could say that."
"Well, come on. Enough talk here. I still have to show you around."
Ryuuo pushed off the door and turned, gesturing for Kanbei to follow.
Kanbei was always one step behind Ryuuo, and listened attentively as Ryuuo explained the inner workings to him.
His job was relatively simple. He was to roam the streets and keep the peace; break up any fights, help keep unrest to a minimum. He would also be called upon to guard in his Lord's residence, keeping him and his family safe from harm. Very different from the wars he was used to, but not something to which he couldn't get acclimated. He wouldn't be paid, but he would be fed, clothed, housed, and given medical care, if needed, by his Lord. His life was essential cared for, and all he had to do in return was to take care of his Lord's life. Not a bad deal.
Ryuuo grinned at him as he finished his tour. "It'll take a few days for you to meet all the guys who work here,since some patrol at odd hours of the day and night. Patrols are in groups of 5, guard shifts are in groups of 3. The shifts rotate so that you're not working with the same people all the time until we figure out who you work well with and who to keep you away from. I think you'll adapt realitvely easily though. You seem very disciplined."
Kanbei gave him a wry smile. "Being in the army will do that to you."
"What were you?"
"...a soldier."
"That' s too vauge. What was your post?"
"At the time the last war ended?"
"Yes."
"...a Commander."
Ryuuo's eyebrows immediatly shot up. "Really? Then we are very lucky to have you. Quite a few people here follow orders well, but not many are good at directing the efforts of our men."
"We'll see how things go."
"I look forward to it!"
There was a pause as Ryuuo looked Kanbei over, seeing him in a new light.
"Anyway, it's dinner time and I'm starving."
Kyuuzou hid in the shadows of an overhang, keeping himself out of the rain. He looked out at the people who ran through the rain into buildings, and pulled off his gloves. The runes were still there, faintly glowing beneath his skin. If he looked at them long enough and blocked out all other senses, he could almost understand the mechanism that was keeping him in the living world. It was disconcerting. His hand found its way to Kanbei's sword that rested on his hip, and he gave a small smile. He had finally found Kanbei, though he had never thought that he would find him in a city that held so many memories. It had taken longer than he had wanted to find him, but he had been sidetracked by various demands of the demon. The fact that he barely felt the demon's presence was testimony that Kyuuzou's acting was still in top shape. The demon probably thought that Kyuuzou had been worn down under threat of soul-searing pain, but that was trutfully the least of what was hurting him.
He had never regretted his kills as much as he did now.
Soon, though, he would find Kanbei and get his sword back, as well as giving Kanbei's sword back to him. Kyuuzou sat in the corner, cloaked in shadow, and waited for the rain to stop.