Author's Note: Well well, here we are again. I tried to make the battle interesting here, which I have some trouble with, so I hope it's okay. As for Azura/Robin requests (since I've gotten a ton), I'm thinking about it. I don't know though, as I've still not decided if I want Robin to have married in Awakening and I don't want him to be a two-timer. I think I had something else to say but I don't remember, so that's- Actually, this may or may not be it, but... I forgot again. Remembered! I tried to vary paragraph length a little this time by making some short ones. It's kind of awkward so I may switch it back later (all I did was take existing paragraphs and split them up). Uh, anyway, thank you for 90 reviews and 250 follows! Let's try to get to 100 and 260 by next chapter! Also, remember when I first published this and thought it would end at 100,000 words? Ha. Now without further ado, enjoy.
Quickly assessing the situation, Robin took in how greatly outnumbered he and his companions were. Not that that was anything new, but it was off-putting. The large number of ninja around meant that ranged weapons would be key to the battle, so Robin would have to figure out some way to deal with that. They had paused for a short moment after crossing the river but before meeting up with Saizo to visit the astral plane and get a few long distance weapons, but problems still existed. First of all, they only had one javelin and a single spear, but three spear users. And since the spear didn't work for close combat, that would put anyone using it at risk of taking a direct attack.
He also had a kodachi and an iron katti he'd taken off a samurai that had attacked Corrin's army as they walked from Izumo to their current location. The man was a resident of some small town nearby that was convinced Corrin and Co. were passing through to find and attack his town, so tried to get in the first strike. Of course, one man against an entire troop was a dumb move, and he was quickly beaten.
The man hadn't really understood though and kept coming back even after Robin had released him, so after the third time Robin simply knocked him out and stole his sword. He also left a note saying they weren't out to hurt anyone as long as they were left alone, and that he and his friends would keep clear of the man's village if he stopped bothering them.
There were four people in need of ranged swords, however: Corrin, Hana, Hinata, and Robin. Robin could manage fine with his tome, he supposed. One of the others would just have to go without a ranged weapon. Who that would be was complicated though. Corrin was the strongest, so if she got a ranged weapon, then she'd do the most damage and help others out. But Hana was the most fragile, and could be defeated in fewer hits. If she couldn't defend herself from ranged attacks, she'd be an easy target for any ninja looking to finish someone off before they were defeated or killed themselves. But Corrin also needed to have a defense mechanism, since she was the head of the army and needed more than anyone to be at full health. Hinata was even enough that he had the defense to survive a few hits, and had enough strength that he could do some real damage too. He'd be the most effective with one, then.
Considering that… Hinata could get the katti, and Corrin the Kodachi. Hana could keep her regular iron katana. Robin would pair her up with Subaki, having her ride on the Sky Knight's pegasus with him. It was hard to aim on top of a moving object if you weren't used to it, and Robin didn't want to test Hana in the middle of a battle. They could do that one back at Fort Corrin.
With the sword situation taken care of, he went back to the lance one.
Azura had such shoddy defense that it was suicide to send her without a defense mechanism past the poor natural defense she already had. If she had a javelin, not only could she retaliate to any attacks, but it would conceivably discourage some ranged attackers from attacking her. A spear would open her to melee attacks, which was worse if anything.
That left Subaki and Oboro for the spear. On one hand, if he gave Subaki the spear he could place the sky knight up above trees when he threw it, having the advantage of height that would likely either prevent shuriken from reaching him at all, or at least give him extra time to dodge as the weapons were slowed upon their ascents. On the other hand, if Hana was riding with him and he stayed flying high above the others, Hana wouldn't be able to do anything useful past act as a meat shield in case someone tried to attack Subaki from behind while he was distracted.
Hana was a terrible excuse for a meat shield though. So that wouldn't work. And since that was an automatic failure, Oboro got the spear. Robin would just have to be careful with making sure there was someone between her and the next enemy, if possible.
By that strategy, he would send her to fight with someone lacking a ranged weapon. To the areas with shuriken and other ranged weapon wielders, Robin would send in Corrin or someone else with a weapon that could attack both at close range and a distance. To areas without ranged fighters, Robin could send in Oboro and her partner, Hayato. The magic-physical combination would work well together first of all. But secondly, if Hayato kept in front of her, then she could only be hit with ranged attacks while wielding the spear. And if anyone tried a range attack on Hayato, he'd be able to counter.
Takumi was in the same boat, being a bow (or rather yumi) user. He could follow Jakob. Two silver/gray haired irritable men with extreme passion directed toward Corrin made a good pairing. Even if Jakob's passion was adoration and devotion, and Takumi's passion was hatred and distrust. They both held intense feelings.
That would also help bridge the gap between the Hoshidan and Nohrian members of Corrin's army, provided they got along. For the moment pairing Oboro with a Nohrian was too risky, because she absolutely abhorred them and anything to do with the land to the west of the Bottomless Canyon. Robin couldn't count on her listening to what a Nohrian suggested on their attack plans, and he wasn't going to test whether or not he was right. But if her liege, Takumi, were to be on good terms with a Nohrian, especially one that was extremely hard to get along with regardless of your place of origin, that would help convince her at least a little. Hinata was nice, so he'd be fine either way. Corrin Robin was unsure about, so he'd leave her alone.
There was a good choke point to the left, so Hinata could take that on with Rinkah. They wouldn't be able to best swords, but with their combined weapons they at least wouldn't be weak to anything. Kaze could follow Corrin, with Sakura trailing. The Kaze-Corrin pair would be headed in the same general direction as the Oboro-Hayato one, and for a time would be close enough to Subaki and Hana, so Sakura would be on duty to take care of them all. Provided they listened, Saizo could pair with Reina, and Orochi with Azura. Gunter would be alone. The old knight had enough defense to be fine though, and Robin was still trying to keep him from fighting whenever possible. Or maybe he'd pair himself with Gunter, and just creatively and conveniently always place himself in the line of fire, preventing Gunter from ever getting the chance to get an attack in. That sounded good. Plus, then he'd only have to worry about giving Gunter a single weapon, which meant the knight could stock up on vulneraries and concoctions to distribute for his side of the attack. Jakob was in position to heal those Sakura couldn't, but Robin would rather he focus on attacking instead. As long as they could rely on potions, they would.
Which reminded Robin that he hadn't included Gunter in his weapon distribution counts, but he couldn't bring himself to care. The man wouldn't be attacking anyway if all went according to Robin's plans, so what he had to attack with was of no importance.
That was too much to ask for though, as after giving out his orders, the world remembered that it hated him and ruined them.
"What the!?" Oboro said, after she ran to attack the first enemy before her.
A few steps in, the area she was nearing to cross was swept away and replaced with a sea of spikes, too close together to avoid, and of a medium size that meant they'd slice through one's foot as soon as they attempted to cross. For everyone with thick boots it would be a detriment but not impassable, but for Corrin and Azura…
"G-ghaah!" Corrin cried out in pain, trying to hop back. She has been standing in an area that appeared to be grass when she has stood there, but revealed itself to be part of the same curtain of spikes Oboro had revealed.
The pressure Corrin put on the ground in order to propel herself only further embedded her feet into the spikes, so she got caught as she jumped away, making the skin on the bottoms of her feet tear away. She stood unsteadily after getting back, and tried to take a few steps further to retake her place, but it didn't work out. She grunted in pain and stumbled, Jakob and Gunter moving to catch her. Jakob immediately pulled out his staff as some of the enemies nearby began to giggle. It wasn't funny in Robin's mind though. As such, he ordered Oboro and Hayato to continue their charge, despite the spikes. They were healthy enough they'd survive, and were equipped with vulneraries just in case.
He still had the problem of Corrin though, and since she and Azura were in the same shoeless boat, he had to figure out what to do with The blue haired princess as well.
"Gunter," Robin commanded, voice even, "pick up Corrin and put her on your horse. I know it may not be super happy about riding over spikes, but we need Corrin's strength and my guess is that that area isn't the only one with spikes around. Try to ride over areas without any visible, but remember they may just be well hidden traps.
"Reina, same to you. You have a flying mount, so you should be fine as long as you remember to hover, but I'm going to need you to take Azura with you so she doesn't suffer the same fate as Corrin just did. Saizo, that means you can go with- actually, you go with Kaze. I'll follow Orochi. Now hurry, before the Mokushujin decided they're done with waiting around for us to walk to our own demises and initiate an attack. Not that we'll fall to them, but they don't know that yet so time is of the essence. Take your positions everyone, and move out!"
Robin got a few boss in return for his orders, and joined Oboro where she stood ready to take on a samurai.
"You seem like an interesting man, you know," she said with a smile, rather cheerful for their predicament. "I would love to take your fortune once we get back. Well, that is if we do go back together. Probably not since we're technically part of opposing armies, but I can see it. I'm meant to fight by your side another day. I'm only hoping that I am at your side to assist you, not attack you. Now let's get on with this!" Orochi took on the samurai, conjuring up a tiger spirit to send his way. Her spacing meant she was too far for the samurai to immediately counterattack, so the diviner stepped to the side to allow Robin to run in and deal the knockout blow.
A ninja moved to injure Robin, who wasn't equipped with a range weapon at the moment as his tome was by his side, but Reina flew past close enough that Azura was able to cut the man across the chest with her naginata, knocking the man into a tree and dazing him. Orochi ran from behind to finish the man off while he was down, but Robin grabbed her arm, kicking the man in the head himself and relieving him of his weapons.
"Oh sorry, I forgot to mention this, but Corrin really wants to get through this war with the least amount of deaths possible, so we go for knockouts rather than kills whenever we can do so without risk of significantly harming our person or allies. Make sure you take their weapons when you're done. Shuriken are easy to steal as long as you've got a bag to store them in, but you don't so hand them to me. That or throw them really hard into the deep woods. That'll at least delay any attack the original wielded tries to make while he looks for them. Because while we hope they won't wake up for a while after we knock them out, sometimes that doesn't work out." Robin's warning was firm and Orochi took it into consideration, nodding.
Another enemy, this time an oni savage, ran up to Robin in hopes of attacking him. The tactician slipped past though, dodging and delivering a long cut to the man's back. Orochi followed up with another tiger summoning, sending the beast toward the man's head. The blow succeeded in rendering him unconscious, and Orochi laughed in triumph.
"Just a warning, though," she started, responding to what Robin had told her, "Reina won't be too happy about that, and I don't think she'll try too hard to abide by the no-kill rule. You hear what she was saying earlier, didn't you? About the screams and blood? If I've ever met a sadistic person it's her, so I don't know how big of a chance we have of getting her to stop."
Robin frowned, about to voice his disappointment, before Orochi continued, sending a different spirit, this time a monkey, toward a nearby enemy that Robin finished off for her.
"But, since she's paired with Azura right now, it's not entirely impossible to convince her to slow down her journey to most kills in the Hoshidan army of all time. Azura doesn't like fighting all that much, and had this calming air to her. That alone would help convince Reina, but Azura also has the advantage of being familiar with her."
Robin sent a bolt of lightning at a shrine maiden healing a samurai nearby, the jolt shocking her and leaving an opportunity for Orochi to deliver a quick blow to her neck. The maiden crumbled, drawing the samurai's attention. He went for Orochi, but Robin got in the way and took the blow instead. Orochi fired her scroll up once more, but the man dodged. In his dodging he jumped back to where Robin was standing though and Robin wound up to kick the man in the back. He fell flat to the ground, but not before lobbing his katana at Orochi, the blade managing to nick her unprotected side.
"Ouch!" she exclaimed, putting a hand to the wound which was bleeding freely.
Gunter passed by then, Corrin taking an enemy out on his other side as he tossed Orochi a vulnerary. She thanked him and downed it, keeping pressure at the wound marring her pale waist. She was wearing white, so the blood that dropped from it stained the cloth and she pouted, cursing the man that injured her. Robin gave her some advice, knowing that as good as vulneraries were, the cut was better healed by a staff or rod.
"I'll take the point. Don't run more than you have to and risk reopening your wound," he said, before switching topics. "And what do you mean Azura's familiar with Reina? Is Reina a castle guard? Or did Azura try to run away or something and was caught by Reina?"
Orochi laughed, cringing and putting a hand to her side as she and Robin moved forward once again, stopping at a point just wide enough for the two of them to stand in, but not enough for others to pass. With how much damage they'd done, the Mokushujin would start initiating the attacks rather than just standing in wait, and their current position was a perfect place to receive the attacks. They had already cleared out the area behind them, so they wouldn't have to worry about any attacks from that direction. And even if they had missed someone, Gunter and Corrin were still running (or rather riding) around, so they could deal with any possible trouble. From the front, only one to two people could attack at a time, so that worked out well enough. Plus no one could get past them that way, so the others wouldn't have to worry about surprise attackers coming from Robin and Orochi's direction.
"No, no, it's nothing like that. Azura was a most pleasant girl. Much too calm and pleasant for a hostage, if you don't mind me. Her life in Nohr must have been terrible for her to have been so unbothered by her situation… Ah but anyway, on to the relationship between she and Reina.
"Ever since Mikoto became a member of the court, I've been serving as her retainer, as did a samurai named Haitaka. He was dismissed a while back for insubordination, and Reina took his place. Mikoto often insisted the two of us, Reina and I, follow her around in her duties around the castle, including playing with her children on occasion. Typical Hoshidan tradition had the ruler and their spouse with a set of guards that accompanied them whenever they left the castle grounds, and another made up of ninja and other figures that could protect them inside Castle Shirasagi, with a different personal guard to remain at their side and dissuade any attackers from acting. They would also typically stay away from their charge's personal life, but Mikoto was truly a revolutionary queen. Reina and I spent many a day inside the castle, sometimes just sitting with Mikoto as she painted or meditated, and other times entertaining Azura or Takumi or whoever else while she concentrated on either another child or her duties. Mikoto was very worried about Azura feeling at home, so she got a lot of Reina's attention, Sakura was in the hands of others for a long while given she was so young and Reina… well, she can be okay around children who've already developed to a point, but I don't think even Mikoto wanted to risk having her as the example Sakura grew up to model herself after. Ryoma was the oldest and very nature from even a young age, and Hinoka had a long period where she was too good for us, and more concerned with training to save Corrin. Takumi was a very… fragile child, so I spent a lot of time with him. I still remember when he-"
"Duck!" Robin shouted, pushing Orochi back with one hand and casting a lightning spell with the other. The man he hit twitched on the ground from the force, and Robin kicked him in the head, leaning down to remove his katana and a vulnerary. "We're doing pretty well right now, so you can chat a bit, but make sure to remember we're still on a battlefield. The others look like they're doing a fine job keeping people from,coming over here, but we can't be too careful."
Orochi nodded and apologized for her mistake, mentioning she had finished up anyway and was done speaking. Robin gave her a thumbs up in response and set his gaze ahead, waiting for whoever else came their way.
"Reina, same to you. You have a flying mount, so you should be fine as long as you remember to hover, but I'm going to need you to take Azura with you so she doesn't suffer the same fate as Corrin just did. Saizo, that means you can go with- actually, you go with Kaze. I'll follow Orochi. Now hurry, before the Mokushujin decided they're done with waiting around for us to walk to our own demises and initiate an attack. Not that we'll fall to them but they don't know that yet so time is of the essence. Take your positions everyone, and move out!"
Saizo looked over to his brother once Robin finished speaking, moving to join him. Why Robin would pair two ninja and two magic users together, rather than mixing them up, he didn't understand. They needed versatility at the moment. And though the tactician could use a sword, thus giving his pair with Orochi some more variety, Kaze and Saizo were both equipped with shuriken, not katana or other weapons. He wasn't one to disobey orders though, and headed out.
As he headed left, Kaze grabbed Saizo's arm and turned him around. "Saizo, there are already three groups going in that direction. We need to follow Robin to even out the field."
Saizo shook off his brother's hand, and Kaze's forehead tightened.
"There are seventeen of us, all but one in pairs of two. One direction will have three and the extra person, one will have five and thus three more. I say the left, where Robin is headed, should have the three. Jakob is headed right, and they need a healer. Sakura can follow along, and as long as she's careful can stay out of the line of fire. There are a few choke points she can hide behind, since she should have a few long ranged rods."
"You say it should have three, or that you want it to have three?"
"If you're implying that I want Robin or his companions to be h-"
"Not at all. But Robin's direction, in addition to having one less person, includes two injured people forced to rest on the mounts of others. Are you sure they can handle that side without our aid?"
Saizo paused. Reina and Orochi were the Queen's personal retainers. They were skilled. But they weren't used to facing this level of ambush. At least, Orochi wasn't. Reina would likely be having the time of her life, being back in her own element. But she also had to ferry around Azura, which would slow her and could lead to injury. Robin was competent, that much Saizo had seen. So he'd be able to guide Orochi well enough to keep the two of them alive. And Corrin had been a force to deal with back at Fort Jinya, as had her old knight servant. Saizo hadn't looked long in their direction, but he hadn't noticed a particularly large amount of troops their way. There wasn't much reason for there to be. Kotaro was in the other direction, so the majority of his troops would be between he and his prey: Corrin and her 14 person army. 17, if you included Reina, Orochi, and Saizo. But it was still small.
"...Yes. They'll survive. We on the right also have a pair up in Hana and Subaki, plus two people often limited to ranged attacks, one entirely and the other for most of the time. This way also has more enemy troops. We are needed more away from Robin."
Kaze's face softened. "We'll go right then. Thank you for your honesty."
"No problem. Now let's go." Saizo wondered what it was that made Kaze feel the need to test him. Everything surrounding Corrin and her group was a mystery. She herself was an oddity, but she also seemed to change everyone that was around her. Saizo was unfamiliar with it all, and more and more he found himself with questions he wasn't sure the answer to. It wasn't good for his name and position, to be so uninformed. Even Kaze had changed slightly. Maybe this time fighting alongside her would help Saizo figure out just what she was doing, and how she did it all. Or at least what was up with her sidekick, the even more curious Robin. He had come from nowhere, joined for no reason, and ordered everyone around without receiving any backtalk or opposition. Something was strange there.
After he and Kaze had taken on a few of her ninja, demonstrating the superiority of those from Igasato over those from Mokushu, Kaze asked his brother a question.
"Saizo, why are your attacks filled with so much hatred? Even when fighting Nohrian troops your blows were never filled with so much anger and spite." Kaze's voice was laced with concern, and Saizo raised an eyebrow, picking up the shuriken of the man he had last defeated to put thin in the pouch at his side. Mokushujin craft or not, he couldn't deny they were good weapons. "I'm not saying that you should stop fighting but… do try to lessen your hatred before you are consumed by it. Before it becomes something more."
Another enemy came and was defeated, the brothers pushing past where Oboro and Hayato were blocking off a small path.
"They are filled with hatred because these people have committed a great crime. They have kidnapped a woman simply passing through their territory, and a Hoshidan retainer no less. She had permission to pass through by the terms of the agreement Mokushu and Hoshido have. They have broken this treaty, and must be reprimanded," the older of the brothers quipped. It was true enough.
But Kaze was no fool, and continued his question as they simultaneously raised and threw their shuriken at an oni savage just ahead. "I know you're hiding something, brother. That's not all. You have something against Mokushu, don't you?" His question then was not merely a question, but more a statement. "Some deep hatred that trails back. But when did you-"
Kaze dropped to the ground, a samurai's katana swiping the air an inch above his head. The samurai adjusted his grip to hit down, but Saizo caught the sword with the blade on his wrist and jerked back, disarming the man. Kaze leapt to his feet with a spin, kicking the man's feet out from under him. Saizo knocked the samurai out.
He clicked his tongue in annoyance, addressing his brother. "Be careful."
Kaze looked down for his reply.
"Of course. I'll pay more attention next time, sorry."
Having been interrupted in the middle of his question, Kaze's thought was not finished. And either he had forgotten about it entirely, or was too ashamed after what had just occurred to continue speaking, because it was never restated. Kaze went completely silent after the particular incident, only speaking to tell Saizo to dodge or do something else combat related.
Takumi and Jakob were working astonishingly well together, the archer sniping anyone nearby and either finishing them off with a single blow, or leaving them weak enough for his partner to jump in and defeat whoever it came to be. The prince was mainly aiming for legs and arms, always piercing either the thigh or the video of his victim. When they faltered, Jakob took the opportunity to come up and hit them over the head. On occasion the shock or flinch would leave the two members of Corrin's Army enough time to remove their opponents' weapons without knocking the defenseless enemy out. A few had passed out from blood loss it seemed.
Many of those Takumi struck would likely never be able to enter combat again. Divine weapons such as the Fujin Yumi were special in that the wounds they dealt took longer to heal, and often left thicker than normal scars. Even if the muscle did heal itself back almost to its original state, the repairs would be thickened and more likely to snap again.
It was something enemies of Sumeragi had mentioned after he spared them. Saizo the Fourth had told his son of a few men who had committed suicide after fighting Sumeragi, unable to fight from wounds dealt by the Raijinto that never managed to fully heal, and full of shame. It wasn't a widespread occurrence by the slightest, but as Saizo the Fifth would be serving as the personal retainer of Sumeragi's son, it was best to know any enemies he might have as a result of the actions of the father.
Sumeragi was beloved throughout the East side of the continent regardless, so social pressures alone discouraged any attacks on him or his family. Many funerals were held after his death at King Garon's hands.
The injuries dealt by Takumi were thus harsh, but despite the apparent brutality of the light haired duo, they left the nearby shrine maiden alone, allowing her to heal her companions. A dagger or arrow would be aimed at her if she healed too long however, as the two didn't particularly want their enemies to wake up, so the maiden healed her companions only to prevent their deaths and most of the permanent injuries she was able to.
Hana and Subaki were triumphing from their place in the air, the sky knight frequently swooping down long enough for Hana to get in a hit without making himself too easy a target. As he went low, Hana would swing her arm hard to one side, sometimes knocking a man clean out by a blow to the head, and sometimes catching someone on their weapon arm or chest, causing them to fall and stop their attack to heal themself.
Oboro and Hayato were also doing fine. The boy was taking a number of blows, but shrugged most of them off, casting through the pain. He had impressive defense. If he was to be the successor of the wind tribe, then it was in good hands. At least, strength wise. Saizo couldn't say anything as for the child's social skills or maturity as of yet, though from the screeches he heard before joining with Kaze, Hayato was likely lacking in the second department. Oboro was doing well backing him up, though she was having trouble wielding the heavy spear Robin had assigned her to use. Not only was in Nohrian craft, and thus of a different style than Oboro was used to, meaning it flew differently and would take some clever maneuvering, but its weight made it unwieldy.
Oboro had muscles, but she'd have to build more in order to use the spear effectively. She was managing though, and that was what mattered.
At the moment it wasn't even the enemies that were doing the most damage, but the spikes in the ground. Jakob had to pause more times than he would have liked, leaving Takumi to deal with a few enemies while the butler healed one of his companions whose feet were ripped to the point of limping.
Saizo looked through the woods after he and Kaze took down a pair of oni savages, sporting the man he had been hunting. Kotaro. He was grinning, and looking back at something out of sight. Cocky and overconfident, no doubt.
The woods were too thick for Saizo to pass through, though, so he'd have to go around them. The red haired ninja could only just barely see through the trees between he and the leader of the Mokushujin forces, and trying to maneuver his way through would be suicide. Even if he did squeeze his way through, the amount of noise that would make and time it would take would alert any and all nearby ninja to his presence, ending his mission before it could even begin.
"Kaze," Saizo began, nodding toward the slight gap in the trees that revealed Kotaro, "that is the leader of these troops, and the one who knows Kagero's location. He'll be much stronger than any of his minions, so be wary facing him. Now, our plan of attack is to-" he was unable to finish his sentence, cut off my a female voice.
"Saaaaiiizooo! And Kaaaazeee!" it rang, increasing in volume as a pegasus approached. Hana hopped off while it was still several feet in the air, rolling to lessen the impact of the fall. "Man, I thought I wouldn't be able to find those guys. Anyway, I need your help Saizo, or rather, Subaki right there does, so I'll let him tell you."
Subaki explained the situation with a lazy grin. "While flying over, Hana and I noticed a few chests that looked pretty valuable. My lockpicking skills are great, yes, but there's no better person to pick a lock than a ninja. So might you help me open the chest, as to help us take whatever's inside? Probably something valuable, given how deeply it's hidden. It seems like a chest someone would hide in case their village was attacked and they needed to get a last minute something while being chased."
Saizo looked back through the trees, over to where Kotaro was now talking to a shrine maiden standing nearby. That would be a problem while trying to fight him. The Mokushujin leader would have to go down in a single blow, then. But if he had to go with Subaki…
"Is it alright if I go with you instead, Subaki?"
Kaze spoke up, drawing Saizo's attention. The green ninja sent a glance at his brother, turning back to Subaki.
"I may not be in the same level as Saizo, but I assure you I can pick whatever kind of lock you could throw at me. It's one of my few skills. I think Saizo would be a much more effective attacker as well, and we're close enough to the leader of the group judging on the increasing density of opponents that it would be best if he stayed, rather than left to go open some random forest chest."
"That's fine by me. Hana, can you go with Saizo, then? I'll be back with Kaze in a little while. I'm counting on you," Subaki replied, waving Hana off.
Kaze left Saizo's side then, putting a hand on Subaki's pegasus' side to mount it. He stopped before hopping on, however, running back to Saizo and pulling him close. Whispering into his brother's ear, Kaze said one last thing before leaving with Sakura's male retainer.
"This is the reason you've been so angry, isn't it? You looked crushed when Subaki asked you to come with him and the prospect of fighting Kotaro dimmed. Not crushed in a way that anyone other than myself and a select few would notice though, so don't worry about being to expressive. I wish you luck in your battle. I'm off then."
Kaze took his position behind Subaki, and the sky knight kicked off, carrying himself and Kaze off to wherever the chest was located.
Saizo was left with Hana, who was almost jumping with anticipation. Her fists shook slightly, and she brought one to get chest to pound it twice.
"You can count on me to back you up, Saizo! We'll beat up everyone in the way and get Kagero back in no time. Then you two can get back to Lord Ryoma and protect him. What happened to separate you guys anyway? I thought the rule was that all royal retainers had to stay by their liege's side until death. Or in the case which you couldn't follow, which makes sense in Kagero's case, but what about you?" She questioned, looking to where Jakob and Takumi were continuing to carve a path through the Mokushujin blocking their way.
Once they made their way a little farther, she and Saizo would pass them up to take on the rest of the enemy. Jakob had a staff, but healing took time, so the plan was to let Takumi and Jakob do the first strike and accumulate the most injuries, so that they could back off and heal while Saizo and Hana went in. With less opponents, Saizo's team would receive less wounds, in theory, which was important due to their lack of healer. They still had to wait a few more moments, though.
Hana tapped her katana on the dirt, a soft thumping audible. The girl was young and excitable, and her position as Sakura's retainer was given when it was expected Sakura would stay out of any battlegrounds for at least a few more years. With that, Hana herself was appointed under the assumption she'd have a few years to connect with the princess and earn experience both battling the trainers found around Castle Shirasagi, and to study the ways other retainers acted and mature. Her eccentric nature was something her father was rumored to have had, so chances were a few more years away from fighting wouldn't have gotten rid of her impatience and recklessness, just toned it down.
She was skilled with a katana regardless of her demeanor and personality, which was the most important thing at the moment. And the girl was also staring at Saizo expectantly, waiting for him to say something. But what would…?
"Wait a minute…" she said, realization dawning on her face, "you don't even know where he is, do you?" Shock widened her open mouth to a large pout, and she opened her fists, placing palms on her hips. "How could you just lose him like that!"
Saizo was at a loss for words, not entirely sure of what she was talking about.
"And who is it that I supposedly lost?" he asked, raising the eyebrow above his good eye.
"Who is- Lord Ryoma! You know, the guy you swore to protect! He's your liege - How could he possibly be so far from your mind that you didn't even consider him! The first rule of being a retainer is to have your lord's health and safety on your mind at all times! Right now I'm thinking about how Sakura's doing over with Corrin and Robin, but here you are off in la-la land not even realizing Lord Ryoma is gone! C'mon Saizo, you're the head retainer, and retainer to the crown prince. You're always so strict and protective of the royal family, so what's up with you now?" Hands left a slim waist to shake in the air, their motion and the shouting of their owner drawing a nearby ninja's attention.
He was quickly dealt with, Saizo receiving a small cut to his arm in the process. His sleeve had been torn open by the shuriken's blade, so he would need the be repairing it soon. Oboro would likely volunteer to do it as soon as they met back up, given her background in fashion and clothing repairs. If not, he would do it himself.
Hana drooped at her mistake, moving to attack a swordsman partially hidden by the trees. His positioning and the forest meant the samurai's view of the Hoshidans was blocked and thus that Hana's attack would be a surprise, but her recklessness got the better of her in that moment. She grunted just before swinging, and the enemy caught on. He swung around with all his might, his foot moving with him and catching Hana in the stomach. She stumbled, and before Saizo could reach her took a hard blow to her arm. The female samurai's hand spasmed. As she dropped her katana, her opponent kicked it away and lifted his own.
He dropped it before he could do further damage though, choking.
Shaking hands went to his throat in a flash, the sudden movement only serving to injure himself further as his fingers were pierced by the shuriken embedded in his neck. He took a step back and hit a tree, prevented from fleeing any further.
Saizo approached and put his hand on the man's wrists, slamming him into the tree. The action made the shuriken pierce further into the man's fingers. More force by the way of Saizo drove the metal completely through the samurai's palm, at odd angles because of the way bone blocked the edges at some points but not others.
The man struggled to breathe, unable to with the injuries he had sustained. The blows from the shurikem and Saizo's blow had severely damaged his neck, to the point of breaking or at least cracking some of the bones if the lopsided way his head fell back against the tree was any indicaton. Sadly for the man, it only enough to block his windpipe a considerable amount. Death would have been more pleasant.
He made a gurgling sound with each failed attempt to bring in air, tears building in his eyes from the pain of broken and bloody hands and neck. It was evident he couldn't breathe.
The Mokushujin samurai's lips shook as they moved to form silent words, likely those to a plea for life. Or for death, as death by asphyxiation was unpleasant, especially when combined with other wounds.
"This is for what you did to Igasato and my father. Your sins will not be forgiven."
Saizo hit the man's head onto the tree again, and stepped back. The man was unable to stand without Saizo's support, and he fell to the ground. With the tree behind him, the only place for the samurai to fall was forward, onto his knees and then completely down in front of Saizo's feet. Had he been an inch or two taller, he would have landed on them.
The force from Saizo shoving the man's own hands into the shuriken and his neck proved itself strong, as even as the man fell to the ground they remained in place, crossed over his neck and frozen. The man's garbled breaths and bloody chokes filled the air as Saizo walked away, approaching the point he and Hana had originally taken to watch Takumi and Jakob's progress. He would die shortly enough.
Hana picked up her katana and followed her fellow retainer. Her eyes were wide as she stared at Saizo, slightly afraid and unsure of what she could say.
"We leave in a minute. Can you still fight, or is your arm too injured to wield your katana?" Saizo's face held no expression. He stood ramrod straight and completely still, not bothering to face Hana as he addressed her.
"I…" Hana cut herself off, shaking slightly. She quickly downed a vulnerary, and shook her arm. The action made her wince. "I can. I'll use one arm so I won't be the most helpful but… do you have a concoction on you? I'm sure if I drink that, then I can-"
"Stay back then. There's no point in sending in an injured person. Your injury will slow you, and you'll presence will only to slow me as well if I have to worry about your well-being. I'll direct Jakob to you when the two of us pass. Follow him and have him fix your arm. I'll take on Kotaro by myself."
"Kotaro? Who's that? Is that their leader? I don't remember anyone mentioning his-"
"It's been a minute. Let's go."
Saizo rushed forward, dodging her question. There were only five enemies left- Kotaro, the shrine maiden, a ninja, an oni savage, and a samurai. A variety. With only shuriken and one person, Saizo would be at a disadvantage, but if he could use the surroundings correctly… Two against five was much better than one against five. If he had had Hana at his side he would have gone continued on immediately, confident of achieving victory. But as she left his side to follow Takumi and Jakob on their retreat, that confidence waned.
The pass of Hana to Jakob and Takumi wasn't direct, as she wasn't all that close to Saizo as she went away from the place she'd been hiding. It worked out to Saizo's benefit, though. As she ran away, she drew the attention of the four men around Kotaro, Kotaro himself not paying attention to his surroundings anyway. The stupid grin was still on his face, a sign of overconfidence that would be his death.
With all eyes on the three figures moving away from Saizo, no one thought to look where the ninja was.
He had moved after sending Hana off, and was perched on the branches of a large tree. Not larger than the others, because differentiation was terrible when trying to be discreet, but one large enough that if he was spotted he could slip to the other side of the trunk and avoid any projectiles thrown his way.
Height would also hurt in that it was harder to get down from tall trees. Rolling was a good way to lessen the impact of a long fall, but when the ground beneath you was covered in spikes, rocks, large roots, and shrubbery, rolling wasn't exactly an option. The mess on the forest floor also meant he'd have to plan his jump carefully as to not land on anything that could injure him, something that would be made even more of a challenge with increased height.
Picking his initial target was the first thing to do. The shrine maiden would prove troublesome, because she'd be a bother whether or not he eliminated her immediately. If he did kill her to start off, he's draw the others' attention without taking out anyone that could hurt him. On the other hand, it would be bad if he were to hit someone else and not deal a one hit kill (which he had been advised to avoid, anyway. The one ninja he had taken out could be overlooked, as Hana would keep quiet about it and he was generally out of the way, but anyone on the way to Kotaro couldn't. Corrin would walk past them and get upset, and while she and Saizo weren't entirely allies yet, upsetting her wasn't the smart thing to do when surrounded by those who were).
If he hit, say, the samurai, and they survived, then the shrine maiden could heal any damage Saizo had dealt. The rod she held must've been at full strength. Kotaro wasn't a complete idiot. As such, it would have a good fifteen or twenty uses in it, and Saizo didn't plan to get in twenty separate blows. Trying to wear it out was no use.
Attempting to hit the shrine maiden was out of the picture anyway. She was hiding behind Kotaro and a solid wall which Saizo's shuriken would not be able to pierce.
And Saizo wasn't going to risk hitting Kotaro. No, Kotaro would be the last one Saizo killed. And kill he would, regardless of Corrin's wishes. The man had committed an unforgivable crime, and he would pay for it. But he would also see the face of his death. That's why Saizo would not hit him from his position. No, any and all wounds he received would be in person. He wouldn't be left with an inkling of hope for survival or aid. A single long distance blow gave him the idea that his opponent was scared, and the distance meant the shrine maiden at his back could heal whatever damage he took. Saizo was no coward. He would deal with Kotaro straight on, and straight on only.
Being shirtless and having a wide chest, the oni savage was the easiest target. As the man turned around, his back to Saizo, Saizo threw the shuriken in his right hand. The ninja by his side noticed them and warned the club wielder, but it was too late. The slight movement the oni savage was able to make in the short time between the ninja's warning and the contact between shuriken and skin was enough to throw off the initial target of Saizo's attack. Instead of getting hit under the right shoulder blade, the shuriken hit the center of his back, making contact with his spine if the sudden jerk the man made was indication. His legs buckled under him as if all control of them was lost, and he reached out for the ninja. Shakily, he got to his feet, able to move them somewhat. A second shuriken from Saizo hit his calf, and the man went back down to the ground. Both were laced with a paralytic, so in a minute the man would be unable to turn or use that leg regardless of how much pain he was in or how much muscle Saizo had severed. One of five down.
The ninja supporting him looked up at the trees nearby, glancing around until his eyes fell on Saizo's dark figure. Shadowed or not, red was easily spotted in the middle of green trees.
Saizo left his place, running around the trees and into another patch nearby. The samurai went to his injured ally while the ninja chased after Saizo, a Mokushujin shuriken flying past Saizo's face. It didn't completely miss the Hoshidan retainer, however, glancing off his mask and making the noise of grating metal. If he hadn't been wearing it, then Saizo would've been sporting a cut deep enough to make a scar across his face, and long enough to be a horizontal match to the one across his eye.
Saizo threw back a shuriken in return, but missed his target. Cursing, he paused behind a tree, trying to get a look at his situation. With the forest cover, he'd be harder to hit, but if the other ninja snuck in then he could be jumped on.
A shuriken passed by a tree two feet away from him. Judging by the angle it was embedded in the tree at, Saizo estimated where his opponent was and momentarily kept to the side of the tree, flinging his own shuriken where he figured the Mokushujin ninja was. A small grunt meant he hit his target, and so Saizo left the patch of forest he'd been in.
Unfortunately, his path ran him directly over some of the spikes the Mokushujin had placed out as a trap, and he had to bite his lip to keep from crying out as they broke into his shoes and bit into his feet.
The man behind him didn't however, and Saizo heard a quiet grunt as the samurai who'd been caring for the oni savage ran in to assist his friend in attacking the Hoshidan retainer. Saizo managed to dodge the samurai as well, but was essentially backed into a corner. If he could just-
Another shuriken came toward him, deflected by the metal of his wrist armor. The movement to block the shuriken had distracted Saizo though, and the samurai was back on him, catching Saizo on the stomach before he had the chance to get away. It wasn't a fatal wound, and he could keep going, but it slowed him considerably. Using his proximity to the samurai to his advantage, Saizo kicked at the man's feet and jumped back, catching on to the man's foot and quickly dragging him down. The samurai's head hit the dirt floor, but he was still conscious. Another similar blow would knock him out, but landing it was the hard question.
By jumping away at a horizontal, Saizo had propelled himself back into the spikes. Where he was, his weight was distributed evenly enough that he hadn't been completely skewered, but the points still dug into his back and legs, and he'd have to be careful getting up as not to pierce his hands. The breeze that brought wind to his back through the ripped cloth as he stood aggravated the new wounds, and Saizo felt both a painful sting and a full ache across his body. They were things staves could heal, but he was beginning to worry he wouldn't be able to defeat the two in front of him and still succeed at killing Kotaro without aid. Maybe if he tried hard-
The ninja came close and grabbed Saizo by the scarf, ready to both choke and slam him back down into the spikes. A shuriken hit the man's hand though, saving Saizo. The ninja cursed and tore out the shuriken, ready to throw it back at the attacker, but before he could another one hit him in his other hand, and a third his torso. With a high kick he was knocked to the ground. Saizo's savior standing over his body. Above both the unconscious ninja and Saizo was Kaze, breathing heavily.
"As soon as Subaki dropped me off from having unlocked the chest, I ran over. I know you wanted to do this on your own, and that you might have been able to, but I was worried. So… I'm sorry for breaking rank. You take their leader, I'll distract the shrine maiden," Kaze explained, putting out a hand. Saizo grabbed it and pulled himself up, rising to a standing position.
The samurai he'd knocked down finally had enough control of his movements to attack though, and went for Kaze who was facing the other direction. The stamp of his foot and noise of a sword cutting through air alerted Kaze though, and he dodged, throwing a shuriken just as Saizo did the same, the two weapons hitting the man in either side. A blow to the temple knocked him out completely. The man's injuries were severe, but he would survive. For the moment, Saizo's death count was only one. By the end of the day, it would hopefully be two.
Kaze looked down at the samurai, and back to Saizo. "...Thank you, Saizo. I'll go for the maiden by way of the nearby forest. I'll give you our standard signal once in in place."
"I'll look out for it."
Kaze left, and Saizo stood alone. He stared down at the two Mokushujin at his feet for a moment. Did they support whatever it was Kotaro had planned, or had they fought because of devotion to their leader? Did they even know of the attack on his father led by Kotaro and their people that brought on Saizo the Fourth's death? Letting out his anger on the unknowing and uninvolved wasn't fair. But the unrelenting hate had only built over the years, and every Mokushujin Saizo saw reminded him of the crimes one of their people had committed. Every enemy he saw reminded him even former allies could go bad, and that he had pent up anger just waiting to be released.
If he killed Kotaro, would that finally go away?
A repeated triple flash at a familiar interval came after his thought, and Saizo gave his own signal in response to tell Kaze to go for his target. Kotaro was at last within reach. He would avenge his father's death. He would bring justice, and deliver a brutal punishment to the leader of the Mokushujin bastards who had kidnapped his fellow retainer.
Kotaro turned at the scream the shrine maiden let out when Kaze dropped onto her, throwing an arm over her mouth and knocking her rod down. He quickly dragged the woman back as her limbs flailed, struggling to get free. Before Kotaro could move to free her, a katana soared past his head. Saizo had relinquished the object from the samurai he'd just beaten, but wouldn't be using it otherwise. It was much more useful as an attention drawing prop than a personal weapon in that case. A shuriken was too small, and he didn't want to waste a single one.
"Kotaro of Mokushu," Saizo spat, glare digging into the older man before him, "you will pay for what you've done."
The man let out a short laugh, crossing his arms. He was intrigued by the unknown man before him.
"Me? Why would I pay for a crime I have no knowledge of, and to some wannabe no-name ninja who has burst into my territory trying to play hero? I see no reason to." Kotaro smirked, undisturbed by Saizo's resolve,
"Some no-name ninja wannabe? I am not some nameless fake. I am Saizo the Fifth, retainer to the crown prince of Hoshido, and you will not get away from me this time!" Saizo shouted. He raised a hand clasping a steel shuriken, coated with the strongest poison he had on him. Kotaro eyed the weapon, smirk dropping once the processed the gleam it had, a shine attributed to its toxic coating.
"Saizo is it? That name sounds familiar, even if you aren't someone I've ever seen before." He turned around, making a small circle. Slow, snapping steps matched the periodic tapping of a finger to his chin, before he spun rapidly to face Saizo, fake realization on his face. "Oh yes I do know that name! I've killed people of the lineage after all. I don't know why you'd give it out though. The name of a failure isn't impressive after all. And I still haven't the slightest clue who you are. Are we supposed to have met, or are you just assuming your reputation is bigger than it is?"
Two pairs of eyes narrowed, each for different reasons. Kotaro's did because he was attempting to strengthen his glare. Saizo was already glaring, and narrowed his eyes in annoyance at the man's insult. He was digging his grave deeper and deeper.
Although, the man didn't deserve a deep grave. He deserved a shallow one, where he would be dug up and trampled on by wild animals, destroyed by the elements and lost forever.
"My father was no failure, you wretch. And the Saizo line isn't something for you to mock as you have. My father was a proud and honorable man, as is our family rightfully distinguished! I will not allow you to desecrate the Saizo name such as this!"
Saizo's view of Kaze was not good from where he stood, as he was only able to see a small portion of fluttering purple cloth. But he wasn't sure he wanted to be able to see his brother. Saizo hadn't told Kaze of his findings in the search for his father's killer, not of the source of the hate that characterized him the past few years. Now, it was all coming to light.
"Oh, that man was your father, was he? Well now I recognize you. You're that brat that snuck across our borders a few years ago, aren't you. I remember one of my guards mentioning he cut a pathetic red headed intruder across the face a while back. A young ninja who apparently sought revenge, and was trying to dig up dirt on us. On me, specifically. But you never reached me. I guess this is an achievement then. We've finally met. But your success will end here. You were wrong in your assumption that you could get me then and you are wrong in your assumption that you will get me now. Death would be too kind a punishment for someone such as you. I think I'll give you a matching scar across your left eye. That way you can stumble home blind, full of shame and a testament to your failure of a family. Your father was a pathetic old fool. You're exactly the same. Slightly younger, but it's always more of a tragedy to hurt the young than the old. What do you say, kid? Killing your father wasn't all that entertaining, but making you suffer will be much better!" Kotaro bellowed, letting out a long laugh. He raised his arms and puffed out his chest, making himself a larger target. It was as if he was asking Saizo to just try and hit him, because he was going to miss anyway. The blow dealt to Saizo the Fifth's pride was not one easily shrugged off.
"You really were directly responsible for his death then… you coward!"
"Coward? I'm no coward. I may not have directly faced him… and gotten him when he was down, but that was his own fault. No good ninja would leave himself so exposed, even when ill or injured! Besides, I'm facing you face to face, aren't I? To make you feel better, I'll even use the same blade I wielded to kill your father. Then it will be a true repeat of the event! And how, poetic, too. To fell father and son with the same blade… Prepare yourself. You will not leave victorious today. You and your clan will die."
"Poetic, hm? Then I'm about to rewrite your poem."
"Ha! I'd like to see you try. If you're truly your father's son, then you won't be able to land even a single blow."
The two ninja moved simultaneously. The culmination of several years of anger on Saizo's part, and of crimes committed by a man without a care in the world, past becoming king of it all.
It was ended in mere seconds.
Saizo's steel shuriken had pierced Kotaro's armor, at the top left portion of his chest, the blow and poison delivered directly to the Mokushujin ninja's heart. The beating organ, injured but still going, would push the weapon's coating with the rest of his blood throughout the man's body. The posion that was a mixture of two. One a deadly toxin, the other a torture device. The man would suffer in his last moments.
"How's that?" Saizo chipped. "Did I land a single blow?"
Kotaro gurgled in response, coughing and choking as the poison's effects showed themselves. Within the minute, he was dead.
"Father… you have been avenged."
Saizo walked up to Kaze, the two silent. Kaze was the first to speak.
"So he was the one to kill father?"
"Yes."
"And the reason you've been so consumed by anger the last few years.
"...Yes."
Kaze gave a small smile.
"Then I'm glad that's over with. May father's soul finally be able to rest in peace."
Saizo looked up to the sky, breathing deeply.
"Mm. May father's soul be able to rest in peace."
A true smile graced Saizo's features with his words, the first real one he'd had in a while. His mask hid it from Kaze's view, but by the widening of Kaze's own a second later, Saizo had the feeling his brother could tell.
Author's Note: This ending may seem abrupt, as we haven't gotten to actually rescuing Kagero, but I felt it was a fitting ending. And I've reached 10,000 words. I based a lot of Kaze and Saizo's conversation off a combination of their supports and the in game chapter, and it made me realize I've never fully considered how their relationship works. Kaze had a little bit of an inferiority complex it seems, especially when faced with Saizo. He stutters and trails off, and doesn't seem confident in the least. But he tries to please and help his brother all he can, which I really like. Additionally, I absolutely love how the conversation between Saizo and Kotaro goes, especially its phrasing, so I took a few lines directly from the chapter dialogue. Just 1-3 though, I think. Can't exactly remember.
I also felt it fitting to give the chapter spotlight to Saizo here, rather than Robin. I'm not sure how many more times this will happen, writing from someone other than Robin's POV. I didn't plan on it until I got here and realized how well it would work. But that's this entire story, really. At this point I only have 2 things planned: The very, very end (probably last 1,000 words end), and one other small scene that I haven't worked out how to work in yet. Oh, and a pairing. The only concrete one. So have fun making guesses and suggesting scenes, everyone. Your guesses for what will happen are just as good as mine, and as I've said it before, if I like them they might make it into the actual story.
I want to give a special shout out to L2X, Darkness21, and AnonymousGeek. I've had lots of reviews, and a few people who've reviewed more than once, but you three have reviewed almost every chapter. It means a lot to me. Really. I can't tell you how much it makes me smile when I see a review, especially from a returning reviewer. Thank you so much, and I hope you and everyone else are having a nice day!
Last thing… I've had this done for a little while, but haven't posted it because I wanted to proofread. Which means I've already started on the next chapter. And by started I mean I have 14,000 words written. And am not done. About 5,000 words are dedicated to finishing up stuff that comes up in this chapter, and the rest are for the next in-game chapter (I'm not including the 5k here because I really love this ending). Would you guys rather I post a 5,000 word chapter then a 10-13,000 word chapter, or would you rather I post a single 16-18,000 word chapter? Because that's just how the split would work out, and I'm not sure what to do. Next chapter will probably come out on Christmas or the first day of Hanukkah if it's the latter, and maybe at the end of next week or the middle of the one after if it's the former.
Originally posted December 10, 2016. ~10,800 words without ANs. 11,342 with.
Thank you for reading, please review if you have the time, and I hope to see you next chapter.
