Cough, well. It's been a while. I'm alive right now. This chapter about the Joi war is finally done. I, am tired. I thought it would need at least 3000 ish words to finish the entire arc. But, apparently it took 6500 ish words. Not including the author notes. So, enjoy this giant of a chapter.
When Gintoki was a kid, the sight of war-torned ground was familiar. He often walked amongst the spirits of Death and the crows that feasted on left-over bodies. Sometime he competed with the crows for edible meals. It was such a familiar sight, that Gintoki almost released a sigh of relief. That feeling of relief was gone when he joined the first battle. The Spirits of Death that normally only appear amongst those who ran out of time was numerous. Everywhere he looked there was always the glow of ominous purple. It took everything he had not to threw up his stomach content.
"Gintoki, are you alright?" Zura asked one day. Gintoki stayed silent. It's not like he could tell Zura that he could see the spirits of everything and all he saw was the spirits of Death swarming the battlefield. Or how he felt the bond he had with Shouyou slowly but surely unravelling.
"It's nothing Zura. Just thinking about some stuff."
"Huh, you actually thought about stuff? I thought you only used your brain to find some parfait." Zura retorted.
"Go to hell Zura. Everyone know Strawberry parfait is heaven in this shitty life."
"What are you talking about. It's clear that Y*kult is the best there ever was." Takasugi somehow chimed in.
"Nonsense. P*cari is better than anything you mentioned." And they continue their debate until sunset. Inwardly, Gintoki was glad that Zura and Takasugi chose to banter with him. It helped taking his mind of the number of Death spirits and his bond with Shouyou.
A few months after they joined the war, they got some news that reinforcement from Tosa was joining the war and brought much needed supplies with them.
"So that's the dragon of Katsurahama huh?"
"It's not Katsurahama, it's Katsura."
"No one is talking about you Zura."
Gintoki kept silent while Zura and Takasugi bantered. He had the same feeling when he first met Shouyou, Katsura, and Takasugi. This Dragon of Katsurahama person will be crucial. He just didn't know how. Thin strings started to form around the three, connected to the person on the ship. When the ship came closer, Gintoki saw the beige color of wanderlust surrounding the person at the bow. Just looking at that person's face already irked Gintoki.
"I don't like those young master type. They don't know any hardwork and always a handful. We got enough on our plate with the self-righteous eldest son from military family here. More like smallest." He drawled. The silver-haired man noticed that Takasugi was twitching with fury so he continued his insult. They continue to fight until Zura had enough and told them to stop.
As the boat came closer, Gintoki noticed that Sakamoto looked like he is holding his laugh. And so, he tested him by throwing threats to his face. And yet, Sakamoto didn't seem to care about it. Perhaps, just perhaps, they had finally found a good comrade. In the realization that they might have found somebody with great talent, Gintoki noticed the green specks of sickness a little bit too late.
"GOHAAAA…."
That's it. Comrade or not, he will kill this guy.
The war was hellish. There was no other words. Even with Sakamoto's help, the enemy was too many to count. He slashed and stabbed and killed, and yet the enemy never decreased. They kept coming with even bigger weapon and stronger soldier. At one point, the Bakufu's army of 1000 was attacking the rear of their army of 300. In the end, Katsura and Gintoki decided to stay behind to let the others escaped. In that state of desperation, they fought as best as they can. In the lull of the battle, Gintoki saw the spirits started to gather. If he was by himself, he could ask the spirits to whisk him away. But there is no way he would leave Zura, annoying as he is. Even now, Zura being the idiot he was, chose to slit his own stomach.
"Screw that, get up. If you's like to die so bravely, let's end this in a blaze of glory. Let's go, Zura!" Gintoki encouraged him.
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Katsura inhaled and smirked. As they charged against the enemies, he heard Katsura shouted, " It's Katsura!"
They fought as hard as they can. When they saw an opening, they took it and tried to escape. Along the way, Katsura collapsed because of exhaustion. The enemies were getting closer and closer. Gintoki immediately grabbed Katsura, carried him to hid in some folliage. As they manage to find a hidden place, Gintoki immediately asked the spirits to brought them to the nearest point to the camp. As they were transported, Gintoki lost his conciousness as well.
When they came into awareness, their throats and breaths felt odd. And yet, they just feel glad that they managed to survive and protect their army. And so, they started the slow trudge back to the camp.
The moral was so low that just the slightest bit of joke managed to set off everyone. When Gintoki decided he can't stand the aura of the camp, he chose the stand watch at the roof. As he looked over the entire camp, he saw the mauve color of desperation and hopelessness. Almost everyone have this color. The only one that still has bright yellow of positivity was Tatsuma, and he was an idiot after all. Zura annoyingly had the azure blue of serenity and calmness, while Takasugi had the bright scarlet of hidden rage and anxiety. He wondered about his own color. He used to try to ask the spirits about his own color, but they couldn't actually discern between shades. They could see the color alright, they just can't discern the difference of azure blue and midnight blue. For them, it's all blue. As Gintoki sat pondering about Sensei's state, Zura came up to relieve him of his position.
"Thank you for keeping watch. So, how do they look, the Bakufu army?"
Gintoki kept his eyesight forward. He saw the spirits of Death fluttering across the Bakufu army and their own. He also saw that earth spirits trying to repair the scorched land, only for the next two or three days to be destroyed again. Such is war. Only destroy and destroy. Even the winner will lose something to war.
"We gave them a really rough time. They're probably not going to move for another two or three days. Ya might be right to say this is our only chance to press on them." He said.
Of course, Zura declined that. Saying that only Gintoki and one other that could fight at this moment. Zura also told him that he better keep his blade sheated until the reinforcement came. As they spoke, Gintoki saw the bright yellow of Tatsuma climbing towards the roof, a moment later, he heard his annoying laugh.
"Gahahaha! I heard you guys came from the same school. So this is what they mean when they say that the better friends you are, the more you fight eh?" and somehow, they started to talked about ana kyoudai.
And of course that idiot would talk about that incident in red light district. That guy really had no common sense. That bright yellow aura of his probably rotted his brain already.
CRAASHH!
"Woahh, that was so close. There was bullet from the enemy front. You better be careful Tatsuma." He threatened. The idiot, being an idiot he is didn't listen and instead started recounting what the woman said about Takasugi. Takasugi immediately threw his sword and almost hit Tatsuma.
"I bought you some yakult. So shut up and drink it!" he said. Of course, Gintoki being Gintoki won't let the chance to antagonize Takasugi escape. Just as they were about to fight, Kurokono, the person in charge of intelligence came while carrying a can. For normal people, Kurokono's presence was so weak that he almost undetectable. But for Gintoki, he could see the spirits of darkness surrounding Kurokono. It was almost fascinating to watch his form going blurry every once in a while.
"How about we play kick the can? We could use it to spend some time before the next attack," Kurokono offered. Gintoki and Takasugi immediately understood the code and agreed to play. Of course, Zura being the goody two shoes he was tried to declined the offer. Not like he could do much with Gintoki and Takasugi agreeing with Kurokono. And so, Kurokono became the 'oni' while they hid themselves. As Kurokono started counting, Zura and Tatsuma saw suspicious soldiers trying to enter the temple.
"It can't be! Spies! They slipped into our wounded to infiltrated us!" Zura shouted. Sadly, their position was too far to try to intercept the enemies. Just as despair almost settled on his heart, Gintoki and Takasugi appeared with Takasugi holding a switch.
"You're a hundred years too early to be ready for launching a surprise attack on us." They said as Takasugi pressed the switch. Immediately, the temple was destroyed and the enemies was scattered.
"Gintoki! Takasugi! Don't tell me you were creating an opening in order to flush out the spies!" Zura exclaimed.
"Don't worry, we had all of our comrade fled out of the back gate. Zura, I told you, the time to press them was now. Don't tell us not to move next time." Gintoki told Zura.
Zura exhaled, "Okay! Go rampage to your heart content!" and all three of them went to fight, except for Tatsuma that was still confused with what just happened. Not for long though, as he quickly went to battle while laughing his obnoxious laugh. Half of the healthy soldiers also helped them in the temple, while the other half guarded the wounded and the sickly.
The battle went for a while with the Joi as the winner. There were still a lot to do though, so they built a temporary camp before they celebrate. Secretly, Gintoki asked the spirits of the earth to protect them while they hid in the forest. As they sat around the camp fire, quite a lot of soldiers were asking about what happened at the temple. And so, Gintoki told them about how Kurokono brought some intel about spies within the soldiers to Takasugi and they made a plan to handle it.
"Wait, both of you make a plan? Will the world end now? Since you made a plan together." Zura said incredulously.
A twitch appeared in Takasugi's forehead, "What was that suppose to mean Zura? Do you think we can't get along even for something as important as this?"
"It's not Zura, it's Katsura. But yes. You never get along. Even when we were at school you never get along. Or did you forget the time when you tried to frame each other at school? Or the time that you both thought it was a good idea to…."
A smack was heard as Gintoki slap Zura's head.
"Zura, we don't talk about that. In fact, I don't know what you're talking about. Really, were you dreaming or something?" Gintoki drawled.
"What?! How could you forget about that?! Both of you were…" And another smack was heard.
"Now Zura, might you have some infection on your brain? I truly don't know what you were talking about." Takasugi said.
"It's not Zura, it's Katsura! Are you sure you both okay?! How could you not remember about that!?"
"Oi, chibi. I think we smack him too much. His brain got all rattled." said Gintoki.
"No. Even when we were at that dojo, his brain already rattling. Now, it's just rotting." Said Takasugi.
Gintoki hmmed and pick his nose, "That so. Well, I'm going to sleep now. Night."
"Wait! Don't sleep yet! We got to check you up first!"
"Zura, Shut up."
"But, Takasugi!"
"Sleep Zura."
"Fine"
Gintoki was walking in a dark place. Up in the distance, he saw a glimmer of light. When he got closer, he saw that it came from a hole. As he peek inside, he saw two people with similar feature in there. One with long soft stright hair and calm visage, while the other had his hair slicked back and very cruel visage. He heard them conversing softly.
"Your time is numbered Shouyou. Soon, I'll take back the body."
"Indeed. My time is slowly coming to an end. Much like the other personality of yours. But rest assured Ut***ou, one day there will be people that can kill you."
"The only way to kill me is to kill the planet. Or did you forget that cursed altana that gave birth to us."
"No, I can never forget about that. I am you after all. A fragment of you that wish for human companionship. And yet Ut***ou, I have found what I wish for. Have you?"
Slowly, everything dimmed until all that left was the oppressing darkness. And Gintoki fell and fell and fell while surrounded by crow's feather.
He kept on falling for a while. The sight of bloodied battleground keep flashing once in a while. The mournful cry of earth Spirits kept ringing in his ear. The taut bond between him and Shouyou felt so painful as if someone tried to sever it. In the midst of that, he heard someone calling him.
"Gintoki-san. Gintoki-san." At that, Gintoki slowly woke up.
'Huh, what did Kurokono want?' he thought.
"…. Fell asleep did you? I had wanted to say goodbye before we parted, but maybe this is…. The most appropriate way for me to say good bye. No matter what I did, I was always mediocre and in the background. And I couldn't do anything but help everyone in trivial ways from behind. I could never forget how I worked in everyone's shadows and fought with everyone. But everyone forgot me huh? But, that's okay. That is a shadow's pride."
'So, he is leaving huh? About time. He still had a lot of people waiting for him' Gintoki thought to himself.
"A shadow, won't appear on the ground unless there's at least a little bit of light. If just one person remembered, you won't get any punishment. So if something happens, come help us again, Kurokono." He said.
As Gintoki looked up, he saw Kurokono shed a tear, "Yes. I understand Gintoki-san. Thank you very much for all this time." He said as he bowed. Kurokono then turned around and walked away from the temporary camp. As Kurokono went further, Gintoki silently asked any spirits that might want to hear him to protect Kurokono until he reached safety. Meanwhile, for Kurokono himself, he found it weird that no enemies spotted him. And so he took it as a blessing.
When morning came, the other three felt like someone was missing. And yet for the life of them, the couldn't remember anything. When they asked Gintoki, he only gave them an enigmatic smile as he said, "You probably drank a bit too much. No one is missing right now."
The next battle took place in a field around one week walk from their current one. Apparently, the bakufu had used an assassin army called Enmi.
"Why is it called Enmi? It's just one letter away from Enmā. I mean, Enmā is scarier. Enmā-ou is the overlord of hell after all." Gintoki complained.
"Ahahaha…. Maybe if the used Enmā as their name, no one would hire them or something? Ahahaha!"
"No, I think it's more of they were too afraid of Enmā-ou retribution if they use his name. Karmic retribution is scary after all."
"Zura, everyone know Enmā-daiou is scared of Hoozuki. Hoozuki can kick Enmā-daiou around after all." Takasugi interjected.
"Takasugi-kun, let's not break the fourth wall yes? It's very out of character of you, it's scary. You are more of the type that do stupid thing while being overly serious after all." Said Gintoki.
Takasugi quickly unsheathed his sword and attacked Gintoki, "Who are you to say that huh? I think your brain got messed up because of you damned perm Gintoki. Want me to cut it of you? I heard buzz cut is all the rage nowadays."
"No way, buzz cut didn't fit me. Rather than me, I think you got some problem since you didn't grow very much, Chibisugi-kun. Maybe you need more calcium? Oh, I know! You could always drink strawberry milk. They had high calcium content you know!" Gintoki fought back.
As they almost fought again, Katsura managed to stop them in time. "Enough you two. We still need to discuss strategy to handle the Enmi. We know Tatsuma's group will be the distraction for now. What will Kiheitai, Gintoki's and my group do?" he asked.
Both Gintoki and Takasugi went silent at that. They still need someone to fight the Enmi. But since they used 'magic', it would be difficult.
"How about a pincer attack? Though I doubt the Enmi would join normal soldiers." Tatsuma offered.
Katsura seemed to consider it. After making some arrangement, they decided that Katsura's force and the Kiheitai will use the pincer attack while Gintoki's squad would directly attack Enmi's ship. Afterwards, they debrief all forces and went torest.
The next morning was a lull. No battle happened since both forces were preparing. At that time, Gintoki was keeping watch at the roof of the temple. As he sat there, Spirits of the Time suddenly appeared out of nowhere.
'Hm…. How rare. Normally only one of them appear to give me some weird feeling. Now a whole bunch of them? I wonder what happened.' He thought as he saw the Spirits dances. And what a dance it was. The light show alone, if normal people could see them, would be very captivating. The twirled, spin, flying up and down in a rhythm only they could hear. Gintoki could only hear their chirp as they dance, and then something weird happened. Some spirits split into two, and the new spirits disappeared completely. And yet, the spirits kept on dancing for a while. Confused, Gintoki tried to ask them, but they only kept on dancing and singing.
The battle was harsh, but Gintoki managed to kill Enmi and his (its?) underling. It was rather difficult to focus on the Enmi, since the spirits kept on distracting him. Even now, the spirits of Life looked rather agitated around his wounds. He let them be though, since that was their normal reactions when he was sick or wounded. Now that the battle ended, he didn't saw the spirits of Time dancing anymore. It seemed that whatever caused them to dance had disappeared.
That night, Gintoki laid down on the roof. The stars looked even brighter. Their forces would stay at the same place for a while. Apparently, the war would be continued in this area for a while. The Bakufu would probably brought even more troublesome mercenaries compared to the Enmi. As Gintoki listened to the lull of Wind Spirits, he heard someone climbed up the roof. The usual sunshine yellow seemed rather muted now.
"Are you not going to get inside Gintoki?" Tatsuma asked.
"Nah, it's too cramped and hot inside. Can't stand it." Gintoki answered.
"Ahahahaha…. True enough. Zura and Takasugi was being annoying too huh."
"Hmm, part of the reason why I'm staying here."
"Gintoki, the stars are beautiful aren't they?"
"If you are here to flirt with me, then get lost. I don't swing that way."
"Ahahaha! Such harsh words Gintoki! But no. I just want to talk with you."
"You are getting creepy there Tatsuma. Better hurry and go to sleep soon."
"Hm, Gintoki, what do you think of going to the space? Don't you think it's a very amazing opportunity? A whole lot of creatures up there. Maybe there will a lot of customer too. What do you think?"
Gintoki didn't answer. He kept his eyes shut and listen to Tatsuma's rambling. That was the way they did things since their first meeting a few months ago. Tatsuma kept on rambling for a while. Slowly but surely, Gintoki was lulled to sleep. Tatsuma's noise and the caress of the Wind Spirits soothe him enough to feel comfortable. Within minutes, he completely slept. Meanwhile, Tatsuma kept on talking for a while. About his decision to go to the space and desire to scoop and fish stars. Just as he asked Gintoki about his thought, he saw Gintoki sound asleep.
"Ahahahaha! Sky! Please knock a meteorite on him! Ahahaha!"
"Tatsuma! Shut up!" someone from below shouted.
"Sorry! Ahahaha!"
The next time Gintoki saw Tatsuma again, was when he was brought to the camp in a stretcher with a wounded right arm. Many soldiers surrounded him, asking to hold on until the doctors arrive.
"Don't panic. The commander's gonna yell at you." Tatsuma said while cringing in pain.
Gintoki saw Takasugi moved closer. "You're the one I'm gonna yell at. You might be the Dragon of Katsurahama, but you got beaten quite badly there. What happened?" Takasugi asked.
"We were…. trying to carry the enemies' injured soldiers that weren't able to make it then, along with the injured soldiers…." Tatsuma trailed off. His eyes gazed at something faraway as if reminded of something.
"It looks like you do really need a lecture." Takasugi said. Gintoki saw the usual scarlet around Takasugi getting a little bit darker. And Tatsuma's usual sunshine yellow dimmed considerably.
"Spare me would you. I barely survived, are you trying to kill me off?" Tatsuma mock complained.
"As a samurai you're already dead now."
"I thought so. It's gonna be inconvenient if I can't even use a sword to peel an apple." Tatsuma said, his eyes glazed over in pain.
"You're a disgrace to samurai everywhere to begin with. What kind of samurai took pity on his enemy and ended loosing his good hand? That is an end fitting for an idiot like you." Takasugi said as he smiled somberly.
At this, Gintoki decided to interject. "He ain't dead. A samurai is more than a guy that swings a sword around. Cutting down enemies ain't the only part of a war." He said.
"Sakamoto Tatsuma's war, ain't some petty war you can clean up with broken pole." He said as he stepped forward.
"Do you remember the enemy's face?" Takasugi said after a measure of silence.
"You guys…." Tatsuma muttered.
"Unfortunately, we like petty wars. So you can fight your wars, and we'll fight ours." Gintoki said as he moved away from Tatsuma with Takasugi following him.
When Zura heard about what happened to Tatsuma, he choked from his drink and immediately ran to the medic camp. He stayed there for a while. Outside of the camp, Gintoki saw the mute green of worry wafting out from the camp. He also saw several spirits of Death hovered around. A sign that they will lose a few soldiers this night.
When Katsura came out of the medic camp, his face was grave. He seemed morose because of something.
"What's up Zura?" Gintoki asked as he tend to the boar meat.
Zura sighed as he sat at the log surrounding the campfire. "It's not Zura, it's Katsura. And Sakamoto wished to back out from the war."
Cue, all activities around the campfire were ceased when they heard the news. When Gintoki saw the faces around him, he secretly seethed.
"What's wrong with that?" he suddenly heard Takasugi spoke.
"He is wounded and unable to battle. Forcing to stay him would be detrimental both for his health and our moral conditions. Better he leave now than later." The purple haired man said as he stirred the soup.
"I hate to say this, but I agree with Takasugi. If we forced him to stay, we wouldn't be better than the Bakufu that forced their soldiers to the brink of death with each battle." Gintoki said.
The others was stunned at the mere fact that Gintoki see eye to eye with Takasugi.
"HURRY AND RANG THE ALARM! GINTOKI JUST AGREED WITH TAKASUGI!" Katsura shouted while the others screamed and flailing around. A tick mark appeared in Takasugi and Gintoki's face. With the continued chaos, they got angrier until finally they hit Katsura and the other soldiers.
"SHUT UP AND EAT ALREADY!"
A week after that, with Tatsuma's condition better than before, Gintoki escort Tatsuma to the nearest port. With them, a few soldiers that was loyal to Tatsuma following until they reach the small town. Afterwards, the rest of the soldiers returned to the camp after saying their good byes to Tatsuma. As Gintoki and Tatsuma continued their travel, Tatsuma asked if Gintoki would like to join him.
"Sorry, no can do." He said as he flicked his booger.
"I see. I thought you would be an interesting catch for me." Tatsuma said.
"Sorry, even if it appears so, I loved this place. Go rampage space or whatever. Those small catches don't suit you. Make a huge net to catch the world, and you'll pull in the stars and everything." The silver haired man said.
"So, what will you do now?" Tatsuma asked as he tilted his hat.
"I still have something to do here. Me and Zura and Takasugi. Someone to save and all that. After that, I don't know yet. I think I'm gonna hang a fishing net at leisure around here. One that will pull stars that accidentally fell to this planet and release it again to space." Gintoki explained.
Tatsuma was silent when he heard that, and then he gave off a small chuckle. "I thought you were sleeping at that time. But you were awake after all. Ahahahaha! I see! If that is what you want then I'll respect it. Be careful at the war Gintoki."
"Yeah, yeah. Whatever. Just leave already you idiot." Gintoki shooed him away.
"Ahahaha! Harsh Gintoki, harsh! Ahahahaha!"
"I pity whoever will have to put up with you in the future. Don't mess with her to much alright?"
"Eh, what makes you think I'll travel with a woman?" Tatsuma asked.
"A feeling. That's all." Gintoki evades.
"Hmm…. You still won't tell me your secret, Gintoki?"
"I never told Zura or Takasugi, what makes you think I'm gonna tell you?"
"You have a point there. Well, that's my ship. Good bye Gintoki."
"Not good bye. See you later, idiot."
"Ahahahaha! You are right! See you later Gintoki! Give my regards to Zura and Takasugi!"
And so, Sakamoto Tatsuma officialy ended his career at the Joi war to became a merchant. At the edge of the forest, Gintoki saw the ship carrying Tatsuma's sunshine yellow aura disappear over the horizon.
As Gintoki walked to return to the camp, he saw spirits of Death gathered near a shrine. Curious, Gintoki went over to investigate, perhaps a battle and someone died. Or perhaps a scene of murder. What he didn't expect was for the spirits to coalesced and formed a transparent form of a human. A human with blades stuck on many parts of his body. As Gintoki continued to watch in horrific fascination, the form turned to Gintoki and showed his blank white eyes and the few maggots that crawled around his face.
"errggghh…." The thing groaned.
Terrified, Gintoki immediately ran away from there. And that, was the beginning of Gintoki's fear of ghost.
When Gintoki arrived at the campsite two days later, he saw plenty of people gathered near the hall. When they did that, usually it meant Zura was sharing his next battle plans. Gintoki left them at that and went to his own tent. Zura would tell him later anyway. After he changed his clothes, Gintoki went to the meal barrack to get something to drink. As he walked there, he took note that the mauve aura of depression and hopelessness was getting stronger. To think that he would miss the annoyingly bright sunshine yellow of Sakamoto Tatsuma.
Takasugi greeted him as he took over the watch duty. "You just return. Why are you taking watch duty?" he asked.
"It's annoying inside. I can't stand it." Gintoki said.
"Hmm…. You've always been like that. Even before the war. How is he?"
"Tatsuma? He was fine when I left him. Probably annoying the people on that ship by now."
"I see. Get inside. Zura wants to explain his plan to you. Oi! Mitsuyu! Took over the watch duty!"
"YES! Takasugi-san!"
As they proceed to Zura's tent, Gintoki saw a few spirits of Time fluttering about. Immediately, Gintoki had this terrible feeling that the battle tomorrow might be the last of their struggle. For better or worse, Gintoki did not know. But one thing for sure, Shouyo's fate is at stake tomorrow. Already, he saw the worn out thread connecting him to Shouyo almost fell apart.
"Gintoki, what's wrong?" he heard Zura asked.
"Nothing. Just a terrible feeling for tomorrow." He replied. He could almost see the frown on Zura's face at that. But he shrugged it of and asked Zura for the plan.
They definitely didn't plan for the Bakufu to hire The Crows, thought Gintoki. He saw The Crows numerous time in the past. Back before he traveled with Shouyo, during and even after they settled down to set up the school. When he was alone, sometimes the Crows would eyed him in interest before leaving him alone. When he was with Shouyo, he noticed that Shouyo always tensed whenever one of The Crows's agent were near and only relaxed when that agent disappear. Not only that, Gintoki saw the spirits of Death always gathered around the agents. It showed that wherever they were, those agents would always surrounded by death.
When Shouyo was captured, he saw The Crows did it. He tried to save Shouyo, but was held down by the Crows. He sreamed for help, for anyone from the village to help them, and yet nobody came. In a way, he resent Katsura and Takasugi for not helping him. In another, he was glad that they weren't there to see Shouto being taken away. And in a whole, he was glad that they didn't know of his ability to See.
He continued to be tied up in front of the school until morning came and the fire was put out. All those time, he repeated his promise to Shouyo, over and over again. To protect their friends, his fellow Shoka Sonjuku students. In the midst burning fire and the dance of the Spirits of Flames, Gintoki vowed that no matter what happened, he would protect them all until the day he died. He screamed at the lit sky and the moon when he noticed the thread showing his bond to Shouyo was starting to fray the further Shouyo was.
When Gintoki returned to the present, he saw someone similar to how Tatsuma described the person that wounded him. He tried to get to him, but the idiot Pakuyasha went there first. And so, he kept the rest of the enemies busy while directing his killing intent to the person. The battle continue for a while until finally Pakuyasha managed to escape. Later, Gintoki found out that Pakuyasha decided to retire from war after that battle.
The battle was in a lull for about two hours after everyone retreated. In the distance, he saw a Crow standing in the midst of rotting bodies. There were something weird about that Crow. He felt something similar to how Shouyo did when he woke up wrong. When he woke not as Shouyo but something that only had Earth Spirits. Ah, that's right. That one Crow, he felt like that time. There were the usual Spirits of Death, but there were a mix of Spirits of Life and Earth as well. Just like Shouyo. He didn't know what that meant, he only knew that that one Crow is dangerous and he better warned both Zura and Takasugi. As he went down from his perch, Gintoki knew that one Crow had taken notice of his position. Tensing, Gintoki prepared to battle, only for the Crow to disappear.
"Are you sure about that Gintoki? Secret Assassin organization of the Bakufu? Really?" Stupid Zura asked sceptically.
"Well, it's Gintoki after all. Probably made up something so we would be more careful." Takasugi said nonchalantly.
"You speak as if I care about you Chibi. But yeah, I'm positive. I've seen them a couple of time before I met Shouyo and during my travel with him. Shouyo was the one who told me about them." Gintoki explained.
Both Takasugi and Katsura got a pensive look on their faces. Sighing impatiently, Gintoki rubbed the back of his head and said, "Anyway, just be careful around anyone with wide-rimmed hat and carrying around a staff."
"Got it." Both of them answered.
The battle continue after that. At one point, Gintoki stood back to back with Takasugi. Takasugi asked him his reason to join the war, and Gintoki answered that they were just a couple of good-for-nothing warriors. After he said that, Takasugi asked him to protect sensei if he died, and Gintoki told him to live. The fight continue until sunset. Gintoki lose tracks of Katsura and Takasugi. When everything looked bleak, he ordered his troops to retreat as he covered for their escape. When everyone managed to escape, Gintoki fought his way over several Crows member that tried to kill him.
"Gintoki-san! Bad news Gintoki-san!" Gintoki heard when he reached the camp.
"Calm down. What is it?" he asked.
"It's Katsura-san and Takasugi-san! They were captured by enemy force!" said the messenger.
At that moment, everything stopped for Gintoki. In his mind, his past flashed through until it stopped at a certain point. His promise to Shouyo. He would protect everyone. And yet, of all the Shouka Sonjuku students that joined the war to save Shouyo, only him and the other two that survived this far. Gintoki gritted his teeth and call for a passing soldier.
"You! Prepare a bag filled with supplies and some medkit! I'm going to rescue them!" Gintoki shouted.
"Alone!? But Gintoki-san!" an unamed person exclaimed.
"It will take too long to bring other with me. I'll be fine. Now hurry up and prepare it!" Gintoki said. Turning around, he spotted the person he was looking for.
"Natsume! You are in charge until we returned! Make sure everyone survive!" Gintoki ordered a blond man.
"Understood Gintoki-san!"
Within minutes, a bag was packed with supplies and medical kit. Then, Gintoki immediately follow the strings that connected him to Zura and Takasugi. He was worried since the strings was showing sign of stress.
'I told them to be careful. But did they listen? Nooo…. They know better than Gintoki after all. Those idiots. I better hurry.' He thought. He whistled a certain note. After he did that, the spirits surrounded him and transported him to the nearest he could get to Zura and Takasugi's cell. Apparently, it was still quite far away and there were no more cover to hide in. Gintoki decided to take a little break before he stormed the cell. He continue to watch the movement of the guards. After the short break, Gintoki continued his journey. 'If only Kurokono was here' he thought. Kurokono abilities to completely erase his presence would be very useful for now.
Gintoki, to his own surprise, managed to reach the containment cell. Just as he was about to released the two idiots, someone grabbed him from behind.
"Where do you think you're going, disciple of Shouyo?" was what he heard before everything went dark.
When he regained consciousness, he can't move and all of his supply was stripped away. They only left his armor and headband on him. It took a few moment for the disorientation to clear. When it does, a few things became clear. One, he was captured. Two, he only knew vaguely where he was. From the sound of wave crashing and the spatter of ocean Spirits, he was probably near the sea. And there were only one area where he could think of. The cliff overlooking the sea, on the east side of the battlefield.
Gintoki immediately think of an escape plan. But before he could make it, the cell door was opened roughly and a pair of Crows came in. They grabbed him harshly and forced him to walk with them. Left with no choice, Gintoki decided to comply. As they neared the cliff, Gintoki heard the elder spoke.
"How pathetic it is, these young ones with hearts full of concern for their country. Meeting with such a fate, is this what you wanted to do, Shouyo?" he spoke derisively.
Gintoki's heart skipped a beat as he was forced to kneel. 'Shouyo is here' he thought, 'maybe we would have a chance.' As he thought that, he heard the elder continue to speak, "Your pupils have done just what they were taught and went to die like dogs. You don't recall of teaching them that, that is what you would like to say, no?" As the elder ended his speech, the Crows brought the tied up bodies of Takasugi and Katsura forward. Gintoki put up a struggle to reach them but was forced down again.
Again, it was just like that night. He can't do anything. The elder continue to speak again, "If that is the case, shall we test it? Will your disciple choose the path of dying like a dog with you?" Gintoki was forced to the center of the clearing and was given his sword back. Immediately, he knew what was going to happen. He refused to do it. And yet, "Or, with their own hands, will they choose their path of survival even if it means killing their master? A fitting method of execution for one who fancies himself a teacher, don't you think? Your master or your comrades. Choose whichever you like." The elder spoke and left.
Gintoki stood still. This can't be. Not this kind of choice. He can't choose. He wanted to protect Takasugi and Katsura, and yet he wanted to be with Shouyo again. He can't choose. The spirits of Life and Death sang in crescendo, and yet, Gintoki can't hear anything. Everything was numb. He can't hear Takasugi shouting at him to stop. He can't do anything. And yet. And yet, Shouyo turned around and decided for him.
"Gintoki, thank you." He said. In Shouyo's eyes, there were no hesitation. And in that moment, Gintoki remembered his promise to Shouyo, to the sky lit in crimson fire, to the moon. He would protect everyone. 'I'm sorry.' He muttered and prepared himself. Faintly, he heard Takasugi begging him to stop. And yet, he can't stop. Shouyo wanted this. His only father figure wanted this. Shouyo chose his comrades rather than saving himself. And Gintoki would honor it by giving Shouyo a painless death and send him off with a smile.
And so, his blade sang, and Shouyo's head went flying. The last thread that connected him to Shouyo snapped. It left him feeling hollow. His father figure is gone now. Gone by his own hand. Unknown to him, his tears started to drop. He wished it was raining, that way, he could blame the water on his face to rain. He kept smiling and crying, even when the Crows took Shouyo's body to be burned, and left them with Shouyo's head. He can't move. Everything is in the shade of gray. Shouyo, is gone.
So, I really wanted to cry when I did the last part. Considering i reread Gintoki vs Takasugi fight a couple of time in the previous chapter. And now again to write this part. And let me tell you, that last part never failed to kill my heart a little bit everytime I reread it. Some dialogues were taken directly from the manga, some taken with paraphrasing from the manga. Some scenarios, are my own making.
Anyway, I'm taking a break after this. This giant of a chapter sapped my energy reserves. And I need to focus on my thesis for graduation. final year is hell. Though whe I continue it would be about the year after this, before the main series. I think I'll skip a few parts of the main series.
Bye now~