Merry Christmas, everyone!
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Chapter 8: Confrontation
Kojuro, Samenosuke, Yoshinao, Magobei, Yukimura and Sasuke made it back to the Takeda residence safe and sound, the ransom still in their possession. They were greeted by a tear struck Bunshichi and an approvingly smiling Takeda Shingen. Bunshichi was so out of it, he needed several minutes until he could finally stop hugging the shit out of his friends and report what happened while they were away.
"There have been no unusual occurrences among the men. The Chief and Big Boss have spent most of their time in their room, but Big Boss did go out once and came back with a huge pot of rice porridge."
"Chief?" Yukimura wondered who they meant.
"Kaminari-sama," Samenosuke explained with a hushed voice. "She is the Chief of our healing aid unit."
"A dragon the Chief of the aid unit?"
"Ey, she ain't just a dragon!" Yoshinao defended her. "She's our Foresight and whenever something happens to her, the whole army's gonna thirst for revenge! Besides, when she's strong enough, she can take on a human form. She's just one amazing woman."
"I see. So the One-Eyed Dragon is Big Boss, his Right Eye is Boss and the real dragon is Chief," Sasuke summarized.
"But what would Date-dono want with a pot full of rice porridge?" Yukimura asked a bit louder this time.
"Feed it to the Chief, of course," Samenosuke answered.
"Kaminari-sama's an immortal dragon, so she very rarely ever eats to avoid wastin' any valuable food someone else might need, even when she's injured and needs to eat to recover faster," Magobei explained.
"So the Big Boss cooks for her whenever she's ill or wounded. Big Boss knows she'll feel obliged to eat when he goes through all that trouble for her," Yoshinao added.
"But I thought her tongue is missing. How can Date-dono feed a dragon rice porridge like that?" Yukimura asked curiously. Bunshichi, who had heard the question as he finished his report to Kojuro, spoke up.
"He stood on the porch here and Kaminari-sama had crawled out of the room enough to turn her head around and face Big Boss on the porch. She angled her head up and Big Boss slowly poured it into her mouth," he explained, trying to accompany his explanation with gestures to make it easier to understand, also pointing to the spots he was referring to.
"I was there as well and I believed it to be a truly wondrous sight," Shingen commented grinning. "I will also never forget how the One-Eyed Dragon just walked up to me and demanded I show him the shortest way to the kitchen, where he immediately took over, not letting anyone anywhere near the pot. One of the cooks tried to change something and, unfortunately for him, the One-Eyed Dragon had a knife in his hand at that moment. For an instant, I believed he would cut off my cook's hands."
"Honestly," Kojuro sighed. Though he should be pleased that Masamune showed such responsibility, he was kind of annoyed that he neglected his own well-being while doing so. On the other hand, it was safe to assume that Kaminari never would have let him leave if his condition couldn't allow activity such as cooking.
He left the others to themselves and entered the room inhabiting his two biggest concerns. Said concerns were peacefully resting like they should. But the basin in the corner of the room, filled with bloody water and with bloodied cloth laying around it did not go past his notice. Neither did the fact that Kaminari's eyes were no longer crusted with blood. As soon as she had the strength to transform into her human form, they would have to bandage them and her heels, but for now, cleaning the wounds was the best they could do.
Kojuro closed the sliding door behind him and, climbing over the protective dragon still curled around her closest friend, he placed the swords back at the head of the futon, next to his master's clothes and armor. He then knelt in front of the futon for some time, before he spoke.
"I have retrieved your retainers and returned safely." As no response came, he stood up again. Glancing at Masamune one last time, he exited the room again, closing the door as quietly as possible. Since Kaminari had not budged in the slightest from her position, Kojuro's sight was cut off, allowing the single steel grey eye staring at the ceiling to go unnoticed.
The next day dawned with a bright blue sky and birds happily singing their songs. Kaminari had recovered more strength in the short time period than she had thought (obviously, Masamune claimed his rice porridge to be the cause) and had not wasted time to heal as much of the bullet wound as she could.
Hence why Masamune could be found in the garden, donned in his armor minus the helmet and swinging one of his Dragon's Claws around. The door to their room was fully open so that Kaminari could lay her head on the porch and enjoy the sun, tuning out anything and everything that was not immediately around them to save her energy. Masamune had warned her to stay inside as much as possible to avoid a panic about a dragon inside the manor. Not to mention the fact that there were always people who sought fame and wealth. Slaying a dragon was most likely one of the fastest ways to that goal. He owed the Takeda for taking them in and they were currently their guests, but they were still the enemy. Besides, what the master of the manor says and what his servants actually do…there were far too many possibilities, so until she could take on human form again, he would avoid exposing her to too many people.
"Your wound from Nagashino seems to be on the mend," Kojuro shared his opinion as he stepped up to Masamune, who paused in his training.
"Yeah. I could go after the Devil King's head at any time."
"I'm relieved your injuries did not prove to be grave," he stated smiling. Masamune huffed.
"Sure, no thanks to you," Masamune grinned. He looked down at his sword. "What do you say, Kojuro? Wanna go another round?" And he continued striking again, as if to prove he was in a better condition to fight.
"Sir, I will be your sparring partner whenever you like." He waited shortly, before he spoke up again, once again the seriousness in person. "Masamune-sama."
"What's up?"
"Once you have defeated the Devil King and succeeded in seizing the country, I, Kojuro, am prepared to face the consequences." Masamune turned to him in surprise, though quickly returning to swinging his blade through imaginary enemies. Kaminari had turned her head as if to look at them.
"No matter the reason, I still turned my sword against you, sir." He closed his eyes and hung his head in shame. Behind him, Kaminari just grumbled amused and turned to lay down in a more comfortable position. "Whatever punishment you deem-…" He didn't get to finish as the tip of the Dragon's Claw was pointed at his throat.
"Man, you keep spewing that crap, I'm gonna have to chop you up right here," Masamune joked smiling. One which Kojuro returned with joy and pride as the sword removed itself from him.
"Yes, Masamune-sama!"
"Men." Although annoyed by their antics on the surface, their following laughter made her smile inwardly. Life was finally right and great again.
"An urgent message," Sasuke said as he appeared out of nowhere. So much for life being right again. Masamune and Kojuro turned to him as Kaminari raised her head in anxiety, sensing a foreboding touch in the ninja's aura. "We have received word that Tokugawa Ieyasu, Daimyo of Mikawa, has been slain. Oyakata-sama wishes to have a conference with you. I will bring you to the assembly hall."
"What about Kaminari-sama?"
"Well, the assembly hall is some corridors away and I don't think we can let her go through the adjoining rooms…"
"Then there's only one option," Masamune stated and looked over to the giant reptile. "Think you can handle it already?"
"I will try." She slowly but steadily started to glow in an eerie light until the present people had to shield their eyes from it. When it subsided, it grew smaller and smaller, revealing empty air where parts of the dragon had previously been. As it fully died down, a woman sat on the porch in a shabby kimono. She sat like she wanted to fold her legs underneath her, but instead had them slightly to the right, not fully sitting on them.
Yukimura gasped as the injuries she had suffered stood out grotesquely, now that there were no scales obscuring the view anymore. Masamune and Kojuro wasted no time walking to her side to properly tend to her wounds.
"Yukimura, wouldcha mind looking for a woman's kimono for me? And you, ninja, bring some bandages over." Yukimura returned much later than Sasuke with a simple light blue kimono. Since there were no women in the estate, he had to run to the next village and purchase one there.
Masamune had just wrapped a bandage around Kaminari's head to cover her eyes as Kojuro opened the door with the kimono in his hand.
"Perfect timing. Do you need help with the kimono?"
"No, I'll be just fine, thank you," Kaminari practically barked. Masamune laughed.
"Alright, if ya say so."
When she was done, Kojuro took it upon himself to carry her to the meeting, seeing as Masamune was still injured.
When they got there, Shingen sat on a stool facing them at the head of the room. Yukimura and Sasuke sat down on the wood to his left, Masamune, Kaminari and then Kojuro to his right.
"It was Akechi Mitsuhide," Sasuke started. "When Tokugawa formally broke his alliance with Oda, Akechi appeared as the Devil King's proxy. He cut down the unarmed Tokugawa without hesitation." Masamune sat there, his arms crossed as he thought about the twist this day had brought them, when he noticed Yukimura's shivering form sitting opposite of him. The Tiger Cub's hands twisted the fabric of his pants.
"Ieyasu-dono… Such disappointment his loyal retainers must be suffering now! Such heartache!"
"That means Akechi is not taking part in Oda's invasion of Kyushu," Kojuro concluded, ignoring Yukimura's outbreak.
"According to reports," Sasuke continued. It's not just him. Two others have been conspicuous in their absence. Oda's wife, Nohime, and an archer named Ranmaru."
"Mori Ranmaru…" The men focused on Kaminari, Shingen, Yukimura and Sasuke with slightly wide eyes as this was the first time they had heard her speak and also the first time they had heard someone talk right inside their heads. "He is not to be underestimated. He is only a kid, but very talented and loyal to Nobunaga. Much like Mitsuhide, he does not see battle and fighting as something with great consequences. He wants to fight for the Oda Clan's cause, having fun on the battlefield all the while. Not in the sinister way, though. More like a normal kid playing with its favorite toy. Nobunaga favors him for some reason."
"Well, the bulk of his force has attacked Kyushu. It is possible he dispatched those other three as assassins against us. As our forces are still recovering and regrouping after Nagashino," Shingen presumed.
"Crush the Eastern Alliance and take us down, one by one," Kojuro added.
"In that case, who will be their next target? Old Man Takeda, yours truly," Masamune counted, pointing to himself. "Or maybe…"
"Kenshin-dono," Sasuke finished. "I've sent him word."
"Alright now. Before we continue this, there's something interesting you guys oughta be interested in," Masamune announced.
"What are you referring to, Date-dono?" Masamune grinned at his rival.
"The true identity of Akechi Mitsuhide. Kaminari's given me some real interesting news 'bout that bastard."
"Next to no one knows where Akechi Mitsuhide is originally from. They say he is from the Saitou Clan in Mino, but there has been no evidence," Sasuke provided.
"That's 'cause apparently he was a creepy little incarnation of some bastard hundred or so years ago. Kaminari told me he had quite a bad taste where his food's concerned. The guts of people. Also has a brother, but she never saw 'im."
"If such is the case, would it not imply Akechi Mitsuhide being a demon?" Yukimura asked. Kaminari nodded.
"That son of a bitch was merciless, even back then, not taking orders from anyone. But he'd also scuttle whenever it didn't look so good. Tell me what ya want, I say she's tellin' the truth, it all fits that sly monster too well to be a coincidence," Masamune stated. The others clearly weighed the options in their heads.
"But if Akechi is really a bloodthirsty demon, then how are we supposed to be able to fight him?" Sasuke then asked.
"He was defeated and forced to hide once. His brother's nowhere to be seen so we can take this chance and-…" From the corner of his good eye, he caught sight of Kaminari tensing up. "What's up?" he asked.
"I can sense an immense amount of bloodlust coming from…" She wavered shortly, before pointing between Yukimura and Sasuke. "Around there, far, far away."
"That's north, right?" Yukimura said.
"Is it at the border?" Kojuro asked. She shook her head, lowering her hand.
"No, I don't sense any men of the Takeda Clan. It's further away…" She went over the map of provinces in her head until realization finally came. "It's coming from Echigo!"
"Speaking of the devil, hu?" Masamune frowned.
"Sasuke!" Shingen called.
"I'm on it!" And he was gone.
"Hopefully, he makes it in time," Yukimura murmured. Thunder shook the estate as rain pounded any surface it could reach. Thus, the meeting was over.
Shingen wasted no time going outside to stand under the roofed porch, watching out over the landscape. Yukimura also went outside to the dry landscape garden Masamune had previously trained in to test out the new spear Shingen had given him to replace the one that broke in Nagashino. And the rooms were just too narrow for him to be completely free in his training. His breath came out in short huffs, visible in the cold air for few short seconds, before disappearing again.
Masamune, Kaminari and Kojuro had retreated to their room. Kaminari had turned her head to the closed shoji screens.
"Sounds like one hell of a storm," Masamune commented into the silence. Kojuro nodded in agreement. They heard some commotion outside, soon followed by Shingen's billowing voice ordering to move out for aid.
"Wonder what's going on," Masamune murmured. Kaminari gasped and her arms shot up to hug herself as her face twisted into a fearful grimace. Alarmed, Kojuro and Masamune turned to her.
"What's wrong?" Masamune demanded.
"Kageromaru… He is closing in!" Kojuro and Masamune shared a short glance, both coming to a decision.
"Kaminari-sama," Kojuro started. "Maybe this would be a good opportunity to go into hiding and gather some energy from the storm at the same time." She could see what he meant. Fly up into the clouds, let them hide her from sight and absorb the electrical energy to restore her own. Then she would scout Mitsuhide for them and show them where he was coming from, using the special connection she and Masamune had, the real reason she was called his Foresight…
She nodded and let Kojuro carry her outside, where she transformed and, with some difficulty due to her unusable hind legs, ascended to the cloudy skies, using her tail to lift her up from the ground, instead. She could sense the clouds as she flew through them and twirled around to gather all the energy the lightning provided.
Down below, Masamune had joined Kojuro on the porch and watched how a claw or the tip of her tail would occasionally show itself from the cover of clouds.
"I don't like this," he said, his eye narrowing. Kojuro nodded.
"Me neither, but we don't have a choice. Masamune-sama, you should get ready."
"Yeah, yeah." Kojuro closed the screen again, while Masamune sat down against a wall, his legs slightly bent, his right arm resting on his right knee as he watched Kojuro sit down opposite of him.
"Here we go." And Masamune closed his eye, calling to the connection with his friend. It started with an increasing feeling of cold, then he felt like he was drenched to the bone, which made him freeze even more as he flew at a fast pace through the sky. He couldn't see a damn thing, but then his sight shifted and distant, colorful bubbles moved upwards into his vision as Kaminari turned her head down. There were many red bubbles of which one of extraordinary size and bright color stood out the most. In the bubble, a tiger reared its head and roared. The Tiger of Kai. He could also make out a steady and very strong and turbulent stream of blue, a river. The bubbles -auras- scurried back and forth to the river, but wait. There was a fine line of purple and green separating the Takeda men and the river, though it was very faint. The red auras were all shadowed by fear.
"What's happening?" Masamune asked.
"It appears the rain is causing the water level to rise, threatening to destroy a dike. That purple on the dam is Kageromaru's, no, Mitsuhide's aura, no doubt. He has definitely done someth- There he is!" A sickly purple-greenish aura closed in on the men trying to save the dam, and fast. It swirled with what Masamune instinctively recognized as amusement and satisfaction, yet yearning for more. Akechi Mitsuhide!
"Return immediately! I will show you the way to the dike!" Kaminari said. Obeying, Masamune cut the connection and back at the mansion his eye flew open.
"Masamune-sama?" Ignoring the inquisitiveness, Masamune stood up and marched to the doors.
"Get ready to depart, Kojuro!" he ordered, slamming the screens open to see Kaminari waiting, circling the sky. He could see she was trying to absorb as much of the storm as possible, not only to replenish her energy but also to make the storm stop sooner, therefore lowering the burden placed on the strained dike.
"Yes!" Kojuro followed hot on Masamune's heels as they made their way to the stables with long strides.
"Where are Yoshinao and the rest?"
"They are with the Tiger Cub, assisting with the reinforcement of a dike."
"Perfect." Only moments later, their horses were ready and on the road.
"Hurry! Mitsuhide and Shingen are fighting right next to the dike!" Masamune loved that Kojuro didn't ask any questions, having interpreted the situation as too urgent. Fortunately, the dike was only a short ways away and soon enough they could hear the clash of metal against metal. They jumped off their horses and ran up to the small cliffside, looking down onto the battle.
"The bastard!" Masamune growled. It wasn't hard to read the situation. Many men were trying to save the dike while Shingen had his back to them, protecting the dike and his men, but he was dangerously close to it with Mitsuhide pushing against him relentlessly, having no qualms about fighting seriously. If Shingen were to make serious, it would mean the dike's destruction. Not to mention that Oda's general had already sabotaged it and thus made it that much more vulnerable.
Mitsuhide jumped away from Shingen and green light swirled around him. Lashing out with his scythe, he created such a strong wind, his opponents were forced to dig their heels in to remain standing. Just as the wind let up a huge crack appeared in a boulder in the dike, causing he masses of water to shoot through and resulting in further damage of the dike as smaller rocks got loose as well. In a quick chain reaction, the dike burst and water flooded the battlefield. The men tried to save themselves to the save shore, but the current was strong and the shore steep and muddy from the rain. In all this chaos, Mitsuhide went almost unnoticed as he jumped at the Takeda general standing in the water, trying not to lose his balance, and buried the tip of his scythe in Shingen's left shoulder. He retreated it and jumped to the safe land, using Shingen as stepstone, also resulting in Shingen to fall into the current completely.
"Oyakata-sama!" Yukimura called from his position up on the construction pillars of what was most likely supposed to be a well of sorts, and moved to dive into the current, but was stopped by a hand on his shoulder. Turning to the owner of the hand, he found Masamune frowning at him.
"You really wanna risk your life an' let a potential threat to these lands run wild?!" Masamune yelled.
"But-…!"
"Kaminari'll get him further downstream! Now you need to focus on protecting your people!" He didn't like it, but Yukimura could see Masamune's point. He could already see Oyakata-sama scolding him for almost neglecting his duty like that. Begrudgingly, Yukimura nodded his consent and followed Masamune back to the shore, where Kojuro waited for them. Glaring at Mitsuhide, who now stood on the other side of the river, Masamune murmured to Yukimura.
"Run downstream. Kaminari'll appear when she's sure Mitsuhide won't go after her. Keep running until she resurfaces with Old Man Tiger and try to help as many as possible." Yukimura did not need to be told twice. With him gone, Masamune and Kojuro went into battle position.
"Akechi Mitsuhide!" Kojuro growled.
"Sick freak! You will not walk away from here. Not until I've ripped out your throat for what you've done!"
"So you live after all" A sick grin of delight and anticipation stretched over his face. "One-Eyed Dragon!"