« Gentlemen, my sincerest apologies for worrying you. I am proud to say that I am in prime condition. » said Kondou-san with a smile and that sentence alone lighted all the glum faces in the inn « Everyone gather round ! I have big news to announce ! Luck is on our side ! »
I frowned. If luck really was on our side then it forgot to warn me. My letters and paperwork had a completely different opinion on the matter.
« The shogunate still has a lot of faith in us and has ordered us to intercept imperial forces in Kofu ! » he continued.
Kofu ? But... If the Satsuma was already controlling the Hakone Sekisho then Kofu, west of that position, was probably already in imperial hands.
« On top of this, I had a promotion ! I am now Executive Lieutenant Minister ! You all know what that means ! That's right, I am proud to announce that I am now a daimyo ! A daimyo ! » he said with a bright smile, excited.
« Congratulations, Kondou-san. » said Hijikata-san with a smile.
« That's amazing, Kondou-san ! » added Chizuru with a wide smile.
« Thank you, Toshi, Saito-sensei. » he nodded, proud. « I am now lord Okubo Tsuyoshi but you can keep calling me Kondou, that's less confusing. Our corp isn't Shinsengumi anymore either but the Kouyou Regulatory Company ! Toshi, would you mind explaining to them the rest ? »
« Our reason for heading to Kofu is to tell those imperial bastards where lord Yoshinobu's allegiance is. We are going to storm Kofu castle, take it back and hold it against anyone stupid enough to get in our way. » continued Hijikata-san.
« If we are successful » added Kondou-san with a smile from ear to ear « we are keeping Kofu castle for ourselves ! Can you imagine ?! We have no other choice but to give it all ! »
Kondou-san's excitement and joyfulness was very communicative and soon, the whole room was filled with cheers from the men. A quick look around me showed me that the captains were not fooled by all these news of daimyo and castle. This mission had something fishy and we all knew it. The faces around me looked dejected, as if they were given something bitter to eat and I had no doubt that my own face was mirroring theirs. The worst expression was on Nagakura's face, in the corner of the room. He was listening with his arms crossed, looking disengaged despite hearing Kondou's electrifying speech.
« A castle ? » muttered Nagakura to himself with bitterness, visibly not sharing everyone's enthusiasm, just like all of us captains.
« So, fellas, all of you start preparing to leave for Kofu as soon as possible ! » yelled Kondou with his fist in the air, provoking more cheers. « How well we do will reflect my evaluation with the shogunate. I know I can count on every single one of you ! Alright ! You are dismissed ! »
« Wait, all of you ! » shouted Hijikata-san as we were all standing up « I made appointments to the tailor for everyone. Tomorrow is for the captains and then there are three days for the rest of the men. You can check your schedule on the wall here, I will hang a scroll this afternoon. »
« Ah yeah, thank you Toshi ! » replied Kondou-san « everyone will get a new uniform, western style. If we have to march to war, let's at least march in style ! » he laughed.
The tailor ? Western style ? What kind of shitty idea is this ?
« Alright, now everyone can dismiss. » finished Hijikata-san before storming out, Kondou-san following him, whistling joyfully as he exited the room.
« Whoah, Kondou sure is elated to have been given such an honorable promotion. » commented Chizuru as the men were getting out, leaving only the captains in the room. « I can't recall seeing Kondou that happy before ! »
« Kondou-san began as a small dojo master. » I explained in my toneless voice « it is only natural to express elation now his efforts are recognized and promoted thusly. »
« Are we really gonna have a castle ? » she asked me, still not believing her ears.
Only if we win. And the odds are not in our favor. Even if we do repel the imperialists, they'll come back for more with more firepower and we'll have to fight over and over to secure that position. Kofu is most probably already in occupied territory.
« If that happens, » she continued, still processing the new information « It would mean that you and the other captains would start working within the castle, right ? You won't be ronin anymore but samurai. »
That was true. But I was feeling less than thrilled about this prospect. A castle life seemed rather ambitious for me. My only skill was in taking lives. I couldn't see how this ability could keep being handy in the peace of a castle.
« Hajime ? » she asked, visibly expecting me to answer something.
« Ha. »
« Aren't you excited ? » she asked me, concerned.
« I wonder. » I just answered and that left her even more confused.
My eyes thinned and I looked at the open window, wondering what the future had in stock for me. Chizuru seemed to have more questions but she was distracted by Nagakura's complaints.
« What the hell is Kondou-san thinking ? » he sighed « I never signed up to become some daimyo's retainer. »
« What do you mean, Nagakura ? » she asked him with wide eyes « Samurai is an honorable position ! »
« He can call himself a daimyo or Okubo or whatever but he needs to chill out » he replied harshly « he's only sent to be turned as cannon fodder just like the rest of us. »
« Wha... What do you mean ? » she asked with her hand on her mouth, shocked.
« If this were thirty or fourty years ago, it'd be one thing » explained Harada with a bitter smile « but to get promoted by the current shogunate... That title doesn't have any substance now that the imperial law is restored. Kondou is blinded by his desire for recognition and doesn't realize that they are using him. »
« It's bullshit. » said Nagakura « and he decided all that without even consulting us. »
« I'm sure he and Hijikata-san talked it over... » tried Chizuru, her eyes wandering on the three of us, trying to find someone to agree with her.
« Well, at least everyone is pumped up, » smiled Nagakura to reassure her. « I guess it's better than staying here and doing nothing all day long. »
« Speak for yourself. » she scolded « Hajime's helping a lot around here ! »
« Hey, you don't need to snap, mama hen ! » he laughed « I wasn't speaking about him. »
I kept my gaze on the window, listening to each word. So I wasn't the only one to think that this mission was a way to get swiftly rid of the Shinsengumi... Well, too bad because I didn't intend to die in Kofu and I was pretty sure my comrades weren't planning to do so either.
« Shinpachi's right. » added Harada « it's been a while I haven't seen our warriors that excited about anything. »
At that moment, Kondou-san came back to the common room to hang the scroll about the tailor appointment. Another nonsense, if you asked me.
« Hey, Kondou ! » yelled Nagakura « Where does that order come from anyway ? »
« Lord Katsu who is currently serving in place of Lord Yoshinobu at Edo Castle. Why do you ask ? » he answered, confused.
« Katsu is one of the highest ranked officers in the old shogunate guard. Why would a man like him tell you to protect Kofu ? » asked Nagakura.
« Kofu is a strategic location. We need to hold it in case we mobilize another war. » answered Kondou-san very seriously. « If we hope to have any chance of participating in the warfront, it is imperative that we take Kofu. »
I turned from the window to report my attention to him. Kondou-san really believed every word of it.
« Hope it all goes swimmingly... » sighed Nagakura, his lips pursed into a forlorn expression.
I didn't say anything, nor did anyone else present. We all shared that hope. I turn my heels away to get back to work. I was still feeling amazing and I was starting to wonder how many days it could last... Could I be cured with the big amount that I drank ? Alone in my room, I unsheathed my small tanto and slid it carefully on my arm, making a small wound. I watched the blood pour, dripping... It didn't have any effect on me but I suppose it wasn't proof enough since it was mine. I wiped it away and looked at the wound slowly closing.
Still a Rasetsu then...
I sighed and sheathed back my tanto. I had been stupid to hope that I was cured... Yet, I had to make the best of my prime condition, not suffering from the sun or the bloodlust. Silently, I took my brush and started scribbling again.