Scarlet Justice - ep. 132
"Evoke"
[Golden Rust: Feature 2]
I awaken at the usual time, which is to say much earlier than most people. My nose picks up the scent of frying eggs and pork. This has to be Cadence, devoted wife that she is. But then, Joshua also seems to be the type of person to wake up early so that he can pamper his beloved.
With a gentle movement, I leave Hina's warm embrace and roll out of bed. I take care of my hair and then my face, brush my teeth, and apply a bit of makeup so that I look presentable for my meeting.
"All done. Let's get dressed and start the day."
I wink at my reflection before leaving the bathroom and getting dressed. Once I finish pulling on my socks, I head out of the room and down the hall towards the kitchen.
"I just feel 'rhythm emotion'~"
That's definitely our hostess. She's in front of the stove with a pair of headphones on, singing away while cooking. A good amount of food has already been made, and is being kept warm in the meantime.
"Good morning, Miss Cadence."
"Mornin'. You're an early riser too, eh?" she says with a smile.
"Yes, indeed. This is part of my routine in the Leaf," I reply as I sit down at the table.
"Good for you, getting an early start on the day is always a blessing. Want some tea? The kettle's nice and hot. Breakfast will be a few more minutes if you wanted to wait, otherwise I can fix you a plate right now."
"I should be fine with tea while I wait. One sugar is all I need."
"Got it. Just a moment, hon." She twirls towards the kettle and picks it up, pouring water into a waiting mug and dipping in a tea bag at the same time. The mug is delivered on a saucer, and she plucks out the bag before stirring in a small spoon of sugar.
"Give it a taste, yeah?"
I take a sip and nod with satisfaction. "Delicious. Thank you so much."
"No problem! Our sleepy heads should be up soon...no way could they resist the smell of breakfast for much longer."
I watch Cadence toss the bag into a small bin before bouncing back to her workstation. There are a great number of questions I could ask her...how she could be so energetic in the mornings, how happy she is or isn't as a woman, why someone like her would choose to be a housewife instead of anything else. It sounded like she could have had the world. But...I also know better. That one person's chains can easily be another's emergency rope. That the measure of a woman is not how liberated she is compared to her peers. That love and devotion can take many forms, and that there is a fine line between what the world sees as acceptable and unhealthy.
The conviction she displays in her words and actions...that is the story I have decided to read thus far. And it has been more than enough. I hope one day that I can be as wonderful a mother and friend.
"Morning, y'all. Time to get the day started, at last."
"Mornin', hon." Joshua and Cadence share a long kiss. "Breakfast is just about ready."
"Cool. I'll make myself some coffee. Ah, we got another early bird," he says with a smile towards me. "Good on you. More time in the day to plot your world conquest."
I laugh lightly. "I suppose so. I did have a wonderful sleep, so thank you very much for that."
"Hey, nothing to it. We always want to treat our guests right."
"Yep. Nothing like some good old hospitality to warm the soul," Cadence says.
"Mother, Father. Good morning."
"Good morning, sugar!"
"Morning, Aria." She hugs both of her parents before stopping near me and bowing.
"Good morning, Miss Lili."
"Good morning, darling." I gently pat her head and she smiles. "Did you have a good sleep?"
"Yes, thank you. Father is very warm."
"Yes, fathers are very much like that. That's what makes them the absolute best. Cherish your Papa, okay?"
"I will, Miss Lili."
"Good girl."
"And the last two arrive! Welcome to breakfast!" Joshua announces. Hina and Shino make their appearances and sit on opposite sides of me. Cadence makes them each a mug of tea, and Joshua sits down with Aria in his lap.
"A big breakfast for growing boys and girls! And one that'll make you wanna clean your plate to a shine, or my name ain't Cadence Walker!"
Certainly, the plates are weighty and filled with food. Eggs, ham and at least two types of bacon. Thick bread and leafy greens, tomatoes, and sausage. There's sweet bread in there, too. I know that she didn't get up too much earlier than I did, so how did she make so much food so quickly? Well...I don't mind too much, since I will be devouring all of this promptly, as she noted.
A knock on the front door interrupts us.
"I'll grab that. Gotta be Yuna," Cadence says as she wipes her hands on a towel. We wait patiently as the door opens and the two women have a quick conversation. Yuna comes into view and takes the empty seat with a sigh, while Cadence makes her a cup of coffee.
"Mornin', guys. Ugh...rough trip the way up. I drew a rookie driver this time."
"Happens from time to time," Joshua says. "At least you're up, and not motion sick."
"Yeah, but those rides are always a bit worse if I don't have my coffee first. Maybe next time I'll come on foot again. It's not that much hassle." Cadence sets down the coffee and a plate of food in front of Yuna. "Fuck's sake, woman. You're lucky I love working out."
"You're welcome, sweetie."
"Time to dig in, y'all. Bless this food and the most beautiful cook in the world," Joshua says. At that, we start our breakfast. It is absolutely delicious, as I expected. We get refills of our tea as requested, and for myself, I get to drink a few glasses of milk.
"So, any changes to the agenda?" Joshua asks Yuna.
"Nothing on my end. What about you?"
"Nothing. Gonna take Lili here out to meet the General as planned. Shouldn't be any hassle and Ma is gonna be around. I'll likely be idling while they have their meeting."
"Sounds good. I guess we'll be down at the government building getting some stuff done. Not really clear on what it was, though."
"The mission instructions include cooperation with regards to regional matters," Hina says. "We have documents with extra data that we intend to share with the Iron Country in order to help deal with rogue elements, and other uncategorized problems such as Akatsuki, as mentioned before."
"Some cross referencing," I add. "Standard bingo book updates as well, based on what we have and the information we have on the versions in other nations."
"Ah, right. I keep forgetting the shinobi countries have different bingo books," Joshua says.
"Eh? How come? It would make sense to have a universal one, so that you can all cooperate and stuff, right?" Cadence asks as she collects our empty plates.
"There are some entries that are universally known, usually S-Class shinobi that pose an immediate threat to all nations," I reply. "But the majority of entries involve internal issues that need to be taken care of, and enemy shinobi of other nations that pose considerable threats. An example to illustrate my point. Do you know of Sharingan Kakashi?"
"Yep. The man of a thousand jutsu, great hero of the Third Shinobi War. Known as a legend all over, and I don't think he's even hit mid-life yet," Joshua says.
"Yes. Now obviously, he would not be listed in the bingo book for the Hidden Leaf, since he is one of their soldiers, and a loyal elite at that."
"But he would be a target of say, Hidden Cloud. Since he's from a foreign army...they can put a bounty on his head as a powerful rival."
"Correct. And these are just the official books used by the villages. Some organizations have their own personal black books used to eliminate their own targets. Information is gathered on those as well, and their entries are added or removed from official listings depending on the situation. But suffice it to say that a universal bingo book shared by multiple nations is not something that will happen any time soon. If it were to happen, the information shared would be very carefully curated so as not to reveal secrets that would compromise national security."
"So...if someone gets themselves listed in more than one bingo book, the official ones at least, it probably means that the country they're from is giving the green light to hunt them down," Yuna says.
"It's a possible scenario. I believe that Lord Hokage said a truly international threat would facilitate the creation of a special joint task force, with representatives from each concerned nation. As far as just collecting bounties...the target merely has to be delivered to the country where the bounty is listed in order to collect. A new and significant bingo book target, that is to say, a missing-nin, is more than likely known within a few weeks due to the existence of spies and the like."
"Hm. Makes sense, I guess."
"Okay. Let's get going for the day. I'll grab Shippu from the blade room and meet y'all out front," Joshua says.
"Want me to call a ride over?" Cadence asks.
"Would be swell if you did that. Thank you kindly. Let's go, Aria. We're gonna make sure our friend is awake today."
"Yes, Father."
"Will you be okay with the dishes?" I ask Cadence.
"Just fine, honey. But thank you for asking. You all get going to work, I'll see you later. Probably gonna be fish for dinner, unless something comes up."
"We'll catch you then, Sunshine," Yuna says. "Everyone else, make sure you're packed and ready. Hinata and Shino will be with me as we discussed, Lili there will be heading out with Josh. So if you've got any notes you need to pass around, do that before we split."
"Are there any extra instructions?" Shino asks me.
"None. Follow what we've gone over before, and pay attention for any abnormalities if they should arise. There should be no immediate danger if you do spot something, so we can come together for a report later on to discuss things if need be," I say to him.
"I'm assuming your conversation with the General will be private in nature," Hina says.
"It seems so. I was not instructed to prepare for such a meeting, so the dispensation of details will be at my discretion. If the old man wants to know what was said, he has a working voice box."
She nods. "I think that works for our purposes. It is you, after all."
"Quite. Yuna, we should be ready now."
"Great. Let's head out and wait for Josh."
The four of us walk out to the front porch and wait as mentioned. Two of the rickshaw similar to yesterday's arrive, and Yuna heads out to meet with the drivers to see where they're going.
"All set," Joshua says as he emerges. The changes from yesterday are a black cap on his head and a new katana on his side, sealed within a metallic blue scabbard. The handle is wrapped in a deeper blue colour, with the traditional diamond pattern appearing. And the scabbard itself is adorned with symbols and markings that I don't recognize at a glance. This must be Shippu, the great blade that is part of an exclusive hierarchy in the world of weapons.
"The one up front is heading where you want to go," Yuna says to Joshua. "See you in a while, then."
"Yep. Take care of yourself, partner. Try to keep busy," he says with a smile.
"No promises." They bump fists and part ways, with our group splitting in the same way. I sit next to Joshua and the rickshaw starts on its way. Yuna, Hina, and Shino eventually head towards Kurosawa Port, while Joshua and I continue outwards, further through the city outskirts.
"About a half hour ride at this speed. There's a train connection, too. Takes a while to spin up though because of security," Joshua says.
"I see. Is this where General Mifune usually stays?"
"Most of the year, yeah. Doesn't have much in the way of relatives, no immediate family. He's pretty free to move where he wants and just stay at work, or train, whatever he feels like. Intense guy when he gets into something, but otherwise he's chill. Likes to dispense wisdom and all that."
"Have you learned a lot from him?"
"Plenty. We used to have sessions, mostly about historical readings and the like. Swords too, of course. Huge sword buff, but that only makes sense, right? Guy can build his own, too. Some of them sell as art pieces and the money goes to certain causes, or just people down on their luck every so often. He says the process is zen. I get it, honestly."
"Hm. So you have a great deal of respect for him."
"Without a doubt. Of course, between us both...Yuna's his favourite."
I look at him with surprise. "You don't say."
"She's really, really good with her sword. Like, next level good. Her stances, her positioning, everything. The only reason she's not higher up in the ranks is because she finds it a hassle. And as much as she snarks at the General for being old and traditional and stuff, she's a pretty big fan of his. Again, don't tell anyone. She does her best not to melt every time he praises her."
"I see...it's not stunning that she would have a more tender side, but I didn't figure on her being the General's darling."
"Heh. Every so often he calls her up to do demonstrations," Joshua says as we pass through a grassy field. "So that people can see what the ideal form looks like. Though she doesn't like bragging about it too much. Yuna knows how to be modest, sometimes at least."
"Mm." I do still have a complex about such things, but...becoming a teacher is more appealing to me now. More than something that I need as a stepping stone for my development, I can make a bit more out of it and start a culture change. The question is what kind of teaching I want to do...but I should be able to figure that out in time.
"Should be coming up just ahead. Big old place. Nice interior, though."
It's a castle, in the traditional style. A massive fortress with several buildings and pent roofs, stacked on top of each other. I can see the defensive features, such as the moat, and the many openings that take the form of squares, rectangles, and the like. These are for the archers and various long range attackers to retaliate without exposing themselves to enemy fire needlessly. The structure has a black exterior, and if what Joshua said was correct, the age of this structure means that it is mostly made of stone and wood. Though there should be materials like plaster and the like in strategic places to prevent enemies from burning everything to the ground easily. We pass by the outer walls and then exit our transport, with Joshua paying the driver before sending him on his way.
"Ma can get the train ready for our trip back," he says as we walk towards the inner gate. Two samurai in their white armour and helmets salute Joshua, who salutes back. One of them passes a message along on his radio before waving the two of us through, and we move towards the inside of the castle. As I imagined, there are pristine wooden floors and many wood pillars in the open space. Many hallways, of course. A castle is simply not a castle without a maze of passages to traverse.
"Major Walker. Good morning to you."
"Good morning, Minister. Awaiting your orders."
Maria nods towards us. Today her hair is wrapped in a neat bun, secured by an elegant decorative comb. She wears a black kimono with silver edges to it, the sleeves just barely covering her hands. Beneath the silver sash on her waist, there is a wakizashi, a type of sword smaller than a katana and commonly carried for protection.
"I would like you to wait until the end of Captain Kobayashi's meeting in order to escort her home. A room has been prepared for your use."
"Thank you." An attendant appears nearby and bows before leading Joshua off.
"Please follow me."
"Yes, ma'am." Maria leads me down one of the long hallways and through a series of paths. There aren't any obvious signposts, so I can only assume that it's purely memory used to go back and forth between the General's room and everywhere else. Or, at least I assumed as such...but the increase in people is telling me something else. There are men and women walking through this hallway with towels and cleaning equipment, and the scents coming my way are light and pleasant...the kinds that come from perfumes and soaps in the bath. Hm, so there wasn't anything complicated after all. We must be going to a training facility for our meeting. I have to wonder why. No matter. I can go back to more important matters for now...mm. Maria does have a lovely figure, doesn't she. It's too bad this is mostly a business trip and our time is limited...
"Minister Walker, ma'am. Welcome." A woman with swirling orange hair in a white kimono bows to us. "And a good morning to you as well, Captain Kobayashi of the Leaf."
"Thank you, Natsumi."
"Thank you," I say with my own bow.
"General Mifune is inside the training area and ready to begin."
"Good. Come inside and make sure the door is sealed. Hold your position there until instructed otherwise."
"Yes, ma'am. Ready to execute."
Natsumi pulls apart the double doors and Maria leads me further inside. The training area has the same wooden floors as the rest of this castle, a wide open space that admits light through its windows and the ceiling above our heads. While the floors are smooth and polished properly, the walls bear clear signs of work and struggle over many years. Cuts and gouges, some cracking outwards from various impacts, scorch marks and deep grooves. Upon closer inspection, even the smooth floors are not completely erased of past sessions. Is this a place with a deep history? Or just somewhere to set the tone of this meeting?
"..."
Then again, perhaps I have been too wrapped up in my own knowledge of the shinobi world. Looking for layers that were never there. Mifune brought me here because he wants to test me physically. The reasons for that are a mystery, but I can afford to oblige him. If only because the old man gave him the okay.
"Lilith Kobayashi, is it not?" The elderly man approaches us from the other end of the room, clad in a set of purple robes with his katana on his hip.
"Yes, sir," I say to him. I bow politely and he extends his hand for me to take. We shake firmly.
"You are already aware of me, but I must properly introduce myself to you. I am Mifune, the general of the samurai forces and leader of the Iron Country. It has been a long time since I have met with an elite of the Hidden Leaf, and it is my honour to receive you today."
"Thank you very much." I bow again and take a practiced step backwards to be polite. From here, I can see him properly again. His head is wrapped all the way around with bandage; it might be an aesthetic choice, or to hide a head wound of some sort. His hair is long and grey, which only makes sense considering his age. He must be around the same age as Hiruzen, if I had to guess. He also has a long goatee and a moustache that reminds me of bicycle handlebars. A distinguished looking gentleman...everything about him is neat and clean, but without dipping into pretension. Years of practice and discipline have resolved to this. It's impressive.
"Have you surmised why we are meeting here?" he asks.
"I have, sir."
"Good. Please, take the time to prepare yourself, and signal when you are ready to begin. Kurosawa and I will be waiting patiently."
"Yes. Thank you, sir."
"Maria, if you would stand watch for us."
"Of course, sir." She bows her head before moving a safe distance away, standing at the midpoint between us. I shake out my hands and bounce on my feet lightly. Mifune stands quietly across from me, hands at his sides.
"..."
He's looking for something. What, though...how should I fight him? How should I respond to this sort of challenge? There are a few options, but the correct ones stand out more than the others. The old man agreed to have Mifune meet me...and last night we were just talking about convictions and the like. Strength and courage to move forward.
"If I had to make a proper guess...you want to see what he sees in me."
That old legend. The story of how I went up against one of the Three Shinobi in Orochimaru. Echoes of that great feat, going through history. I see it now. So I have to gather myself, and then at the point of no return...make the correct choice to surge ahead. He'll probably use iai to attack first. Of this, we are both aware.
So. What will I do to counter that sort of technique?
I raise my hand into the air, and Mifune nods in response. His left hand goes to his scabbard, and the right to his blade's handle.
"Ready," Maria calls out.
We stare each other down, my hands at my sides. Speed...that's my advantage. I'll make use of it to pass this little test.
"Begin."
Mifune tears across the room at the first twitch of my hands, moving at a fantastic speed himself. I start to weave the four seals I need, and he's already on me, ready to draw.
"That won't work, shinobi!"
I know that full well. But I'm the sort of person that can make the impossible possible. The title of heaven's chosen isn't just for show. Mifune draws at high speed and I'm only halfway through my sequence. The blade comes for my hands, and it would be to my benefit to stop and reset. But I won't.
"!"
I lean backward before rocking forward quickly, feeling something cool touch my cheek as the sword sails by my head. The final seals are completed as Mifune completes his swing and starts to pull his arm back.
"Mobius, Type Four: Aegis!"
I take a hard step and slam my open palm into his chest, sending him flying backwards with blue sparks trailing him. He quickly recovers as his feet hit the ground, and I've already completed another set of seals-
"Hold!"
"?" I stop my technique as Mifune sheathes his blade, raising his hands in the air.
"That should be more than enough. Thank you. I have seen all that I needed to see. Maria, please tend to Miss Kobayashi's wound."
"Yes, sir." Maria comes towards me, then wipes at my cheek with a cloth before gently pressing her hand against it. The cut that I could barely feel earlier is now gone. Not much in the way of blood, either. It says a lot about the sword's sharpness.
"Lili is fine if you would like, sir," I say to Mifune as he approaches again.
"I see. As you wish, Lili Kobayashi. We will have further discussion in my office. Maria, if you could lead the way."
"Of course, sir. Did you want me to handle the tea?" she asks.
"No, no. Such a distinguished guest deserves nothing less than my full attention."
"Understood. You're not going to cook, though."
"Hm." He thinks on that a bit. "I suppose it would not be prudent to do so at this time."
She gives him a smug look. "Great minds do think alike at times, sir. I'll bring something for you both from the kitchen after you're settled. Please, follow me. Natsumi, you're dismissed after this. Please return to your regular duties."
"Yes, ma'am."
The doors are opened once more, and the three of us head through the castle together.