Chapter Seven: Dai ichi butai - (第一部隊): The First Unit.

"There you are… I've been looking for you. "

"Aruji-san! "

Horikawa turned around abruptly as he called him, an air of both surprise and guilt on his face as if he had been at fault. Trying to look as reassuring as possible, the Sage approached and sat next to him against the trunk of the ten thousand leaf cherry tree all the while raising his head toward its pale pink petals.

The sun was shining low in the azure sky, the green leaves of the trees dancing in the cool breeze as birds chirped continuously. It was the start of a great day, one morning as they were all used to, intense but soothing. Yet a different feeling loomed on the horizon. A feeling of doubt, of questioning, and even of disappointment... suffocating the citadel in a black cloud leaving a bitter taste in the throat.

"It's still a bit early to be up, don't you think? "

"I... I couldn't sleep… "

Squinting as he tried to catch a glimpse of the last buds, he remained silent for a minute before finally looking down at his Toudan, muttering in a sorry tone:

"I made you push yourself too hard, I'm sorry. "

"No…! " the Wakizashi objected distressingly: "It's… It's me. Tonbokiri-san… "

"Tonbokiri is safe now. "

"Yes, but… it was my fault. I dragged him down. The people and the town… I couldn't… So many innocents died, so many sacrifices were made… I can't help but wonder if we really did protect history… "

"You and Izuminokami…" the cherry-haired boy whispered, sighing as he rolled his eyes amusedly.

"Huh? " his sword gasped, not understanding.

"No, it's nothing. " the Sage huffed, shaking his head and shifting to face him serenely. "Protecting history is a very complicated thing, even for us Saniwas... Many rules may seem unreasonable, even more may seem unfair. History demands terrible things to happen, just as it demands wonderful things to exist. Understanding the meaning behind the protection of history, ironically enough, takes time. Sometimes a time that is hardly granted to us. Thousands of centuries, all different but all important, and which tied together lead to the future in which we currently live... And the only, unique question that you must ask yourself is: Are you truly ready to change this present, at the risk of sacrificing your loved ones and yourself eventually, so that the past may look a little more like what you would like it to be? "

"What I would like it to be…" Horikawa repeated, concerned.

"And none other than you can answer that question. " the Saniwa declared as he stood up, a soft smile on his lips.

Retracing his steps, he observed the cherry blossom tree once more and finally began to walk down the hill towards the estate when he got suddenly stopped in his track by his Touken Danshi's worried voice.

"What if… What if Kane-san… He feels guilty about what happened to Tonbokiri-san, about Edo burning down…! "

"What if he feels he can't do anything as the Commander of the Second Unit, you mean? "

"Yes… "

"What about him? " the Sage retorted, turning round with a frown. "Do you think he will stop leading the Second Unit? Do you think he will flee and give up on protecting history? "

"That's doesn't sound like Kane-san at all! " Kunihiro exclaimed without hesitation.

"Then there is nothing to worry about. "

"…"

The stubborn silence of the short blade only more reaffirmed him in the idea that the former Uchigatana of Hijikata Toshizou had inevitably rubbed off on his partner, and he burst into laughter, deeply amused.

"A-Aruji-san? " the Wakizashi called him out, sceptical.

"Forgive me. It wasn't to make fun of you, I swear. " he articulated between chuckles, stepping forward again to crouch down and gently place a hand between his Toudan's jet black locks. "I guess... it was a mistake of me to think that putting you two together might cause problems. "

"I do not understand… "

"Let's say that, if you doubting my words so much, wouldn't it be best to ask for Izuminokami's opinion himself? You'll know what it is all about. "

Xxxxxxxxxx

The great hall was bathed in the blinding rays of the sun playing a game of hide and seek, filling the room with circles of shadows and light through the rice paper panels of the shōji. In front of them, the cups of tea were still steaming on their saucers, the plate of biscuits already emptied, orange peels pared in the shape of flowers resting on the crumbs.

"So you're really not going to see any of them? "

"Neither Izuminokami's nor Konnosuke's rapport is done. And I prefer to give them time to get back on their feet. "

"But you've already talked to Horikawa… "

"He seemed rather lost, I thought I could clear his mind a bit. Moreover, it was a request from Tsurumaru. "

"Tsurumaru, eh? "

The cherry-haired boy raised an eyebrow at the question, amused. There was something in Kiyomitsu's gaze that had always intrigued him deeply. A way he had to carefully measure and weigh every word said to him as if they might hold some hidden meaning. Quite a special trait which was also one of the many reasons why the sword had been the first summoned within the citadel.

"Something's the matter? " he asked, his head tilted to the side.

"Huh? " the Uchigatana looked back at his master, suddenly out of his thoughts. "No, not really. "

"Right. "

Grabbing his cup, the Saniwa dipped his lips in the black beverage and turned to his other Touken Danshi leaned against the wall behind him, quiet.

"Ishikirimaru? "

"Unfortunately, I haven't had the chance to bump into him yet. He seems to be spending his time with the Date swords… " (*)

"Is that so? "

"It's not for want of trying… " the Ootachi sighed, eyes closed, mentally remembering his attempts. "Imanotsurugi-san was even pretty upset that he didn't come to greet us when he got back. Of course, at that time, we didn't know anything about Tonbokiri-san's condition… "

"Well, Tonbokiri is fine now, it's odd of him not to come to see you. Especially knowing how close you all are. " retorted Kashuu, surprised.

"Ah, but Mikazuki-san's deployment must have probably saddened him a bit too. " added Ishikirimaru with a nod. "Although it isn't so blatant when seeing him. "

"Tsurumaru is a trickster at heart. You will never see him show his weaknesses. " the Sage asserted, a smile slightly stretching the corners of his mouth. "It's not in his nature. "

"Anyhow, that's how things are now. "

"So none of the members of the Second Unit have been reunited, nor have spoken with each other since their return? "

"It certainly looks like it… "

"Uh-oh… that doesn't sound good at all. " the garnet-eyed sword expressed, wincing.

The boy watched as the sun's rays shifted from black to white on the wall, dancing a Kagura dance of chance and probability. Although the Tachi in white had only recently joined the Second Unit, he certainly had done so under the worst possible conditions. Now his attachment to his comrades was only strengthened by the suffering they had endured together.

Fear, guilt, responsibility, hope… so many feelings that had seized him the second he stepped onto the battlefield.

It was doomed to happen…

Surely, what his Toudan truly needed, for now, was some calm to rest his mind. To put his thoughts in order so that his heart as his soul did not revive the nightmare that was that night...

"I'm sure he'll be just fine. I wouldn't worry too much about any of them. " he finally declared, finishing the rest of his tea.

"Even for the demon Vice-Commander? " questioned Kiyomitsu, as well concerned about his former Shinsengumi comrade.

"It seems like he's looking for answers even I can't provide to him. He'll have to find them on his own. " indicated the Saniwa.

"I just hope he'll understand that it's only with the members of his unit that he will be able to do so. " whispered Ishikirimaru, his head bowed.

Xxxxxxxxxx

"Aruji-sama. "

"Hmm? What is it, Daisuke? "

The stillness of the night got suddenly disturbed as a message alert echoed in the office, a white window consisting of a video popping up on the writing desk, a few lines of text following it shortly after.

"Huh? It's from the First Unit. They request information on the enemy. "

"How strange… it's unusual for them to contact the citadel… "

The cherry-haired boy gave up his contemplation of the outside to join his desk and the kitsune, leaving behind the bluish clouds disappearing into the darkness of the starry sky.

Then, narrowing his eyes with interest, he pressed the button play and gasped in astonishment upon seeing the soldier standing by the riverbank with a kabuki mask hiding his face, black fog like that of the Retrogrades surrounding him, the miasma of evil filling the air.

"Wh-What's that?! " stammered the overweight animal, as shocked as his master, a frightened tone in his voice.

"No wonder Yūsuke is requesting help. " the Sage whispered, still focused on the opponent's silhouette. "Daisuke, please run a search in the citadel's database. I highly doubt it, but we may have crossed paths with that sort of Retrograde before. "

"Right away! "

Tapping away on the keys of the holographic screen keyboard as fast as he could, the little fox was browsing through a thousand files whilst the Saniwa continued to play over and over the video, studying each of the soldier's features.

"The First Unit suggested that they believe this man to be the Shogun Ashikaga controlled by the Retrogrades. " Daisuke indicated, still looking for some information.

"This is ridiculous, Ashikaga Yoshiteru died a month ago as history says so… " declared the Sage, troubled. "Unless… "

"Unless… " the animal repeated before being interrupted by a sound, the screen in front of him displaying a zero percentage under a download bar. "As expected, no clues were found. "

"All right. Send a message back to Yūsuke; tell him there does not appear to be any record or mention of such a character in the citadel's database. Therefore, I advise them to be extremely cautious. Meanwhile, we'll continue to examine all of this. "

"Consider it done. "

Finishing writing the message, the kitsune looked up at his preoccupied master and tilted his head with curiosity whilst asking:

"You told them you didn't know what that Retrograde was, but that's a lie, isn't it? "

"Not really…" the boy murmured, retracing his steps to lean back against the window sill and biting his bottom lip forcefully. "It's more of a theory than anything else. "

"In that case, you should have told them about it. "

"No. No matter what my knowledge is, it would in no way help them whatsoever. I rather prefer not to cloud their minds with unnecessary information. "

"I see. " the creature sighed, rejoining the Saniwa once his task was done. "Well, do you think it's a new sort of Retrograde? "

"We do not yet know all that the Revisionists are capable of. Seeing themselves thus cornered, they may have chosen to use a trump card hitherto hidden, or… "

"Or? "

"Maybe it was a one-time occasion… one that is not likely to recur in the future. "

"Like what? " the little fox questioned, intrigued.

"You never know… Perhaps the First Unit wasn't exactly wrong. " mysteriously replied the cherry-haired boy, his eyes, peering up again at the sky reflecting a silvery crescent moon.

Endnote:

(*): Refers of course to the Dategumi, the swords that have belonged to different members of the Date clan throughout history, namely Shokudaikiri Mitsutada, Taikogane Sadamune and Ookurikara, a group of which Tsururumaru Kuninaga also belonged for a short time.