Short chapter. It didn't really come very smoothly either, so sorry if it's a tad lacking. Here's a great big bear hug for all you who have been reading so far and for all you who have reviewed. It means a lot. Also, critique is very welcome for those who review. Thanks so much, and enjoy. -Galaxia

Part 6 – Interlude

"We have the report on the two men and the girl that was with them, Sir." The voice was a clear tenor.

Shinnyo looked up from the cup of tea he was absently swirling with one hand to glance at the young soldier standing before him. The other hand held a compress soaked with herbs against the large bump that had risen above is left eye. "Yes?"

"The one with the tattoos was Mugen, the sinner from Ryuukyuu. The two with him were Jin, the samurai ronnin who killed Mariya Enshiro, and Fuu, Seizou's daughter."

"The ones the famed "Hand of God," was supposed to have killed."

"Yes, sir." The soldier, one the commanders of Shinnyo's men, nodded curtly with the words, head wagging with each syllable.

"Apparently he failed."

"Yes, sir."

Shinnyo gave the soldier a severe look, annoyed at his bland repetitive responses. The man's stiff posture crumpled slightly. If I needed an echo I'd stand in a cavern, he thought. What he said was: "I want a search party sent for them by first light. These three are a nuisance and a danger to the shogun. They won't have gone far. The one—Mugen—was badly wounded and is perhaps even dead by now. I'd have killed him on the spot had Jin not surprised me." At the mention of his assailant, he pressed the cloth against the wound on his forehead a little harder, challenging himself not to grimace as he continued to increase the pressure. The action was somehow satisfying.

"Sir?" The voice rose with the question mark at the end of the word.

Pausing in his masochism, Shinnyo returned his attention to the soldier before him. That wasn't right. The correct response to his order was most definitely not a question. He assaulted the man with a hard look meant to discourage any continuation of the inquiry.

It didn't work. The soldier went on: "These… criminals… defeated Kariya Kagetoki. His name is still remembered by some of my men. They will wonder how we are to defeat them…"

Shinnyo froze, then gently placed the compress on the small round table in front of him. The now deserted gambling club/teahouse was silent save for the nervous breathing of the soldier…

And then, in one fluid movement, Shinnyo rose from his chair and unsheathed his sword, smacking the soldier's face with the broadside of it. The impact left thin lines of blood on the man's cheek.

"You will never again question my orders." He waited for the soldier, now wide-eyed and lying on the floor, to nod emphatically before continuing. "They are without swords and you outnumber them. If your men cannot defeat them in such conditions, then you are not worthy to wear the insignia of the shogun's guard."

Another emphatic nod, and then a tremulous "Yes, sir."

Shinnyo let the soldier shiver there for a moment before sitting again and muttering, "Dismissed" with a wave of his hand. He watched as the guard scampered out of the teahouse. Coward, he thought at the retreating figure. He took a sip of his tea and then set it down on the table. The clack of the china against wood echoed about the walls of the deserted Lusty Diamond. It was almost dawn, and the gambler's paradise had long ago dissolved to make way for the daytime front of a respectable teahouse.

Shinnyo stood. There was no room for further mistakes to be made in this matter. Particularly with the Ryuukyuu sinner who had killed a member of the royal family some months previous. It was imperative that he be punished for his crime. If not, others might hear about it and get ideas…

Shinnyo would go himself, just to make sure they were killed. Adding their defeat to his list of credentials would serve him well in gaining further honor and respect among his men. Especially if they were already viewing these criminals with the awe his head soldier had implied. Shinnyo would succeed where Kariya had failed. He snickered quietly at the thought. For years he had commanded "The Hand of God", formulating assignments for the shogun's most elite warrior, but Shinnyo had never liked Kariya. The man had been too cocky, and as a reward, the famous samurai was probably lying at the bottom of the harbor.

A smile touched Shinnyo's lips as he walked out of the teahouse and breathed the cool pre-dawn air. There was a reason he held the highest rank in the shogun's army. And as he stepped out onto the road he laughed the insidious chuckle that he used as a tool to fill his enemies with fear.

It was playtime.