Five
Isamu
It had taken him over half an hour to find the path that led up the steep hill, and another fifteen minutes to climb the rocky stone road. The hill was incredibly jagged, thousands of years of rain and ocean wind chipping away at the rocky earth. Finally reaching the top, he realized the hill plateaued off, giving him a wonderful view of the Minami delta.
Isamu sighed in relief as he made it to the flat ground, taking in the glorious scenery he had come from. The Chai River's brown waters passed beside Kamakessai, the now very small village safe from flooding due to its levies, and how the great rushing waters splintered off into dozens of smaller tributaries and streams, trying to reach the south sea in the far off horizon. Following the great rivers that branched over the large territory known as the Minami Delta, Isamu's gaze was eventually focused on the dark clouds that hung over the vast blue sea that seemingly stole the earth away.
He turned away from the beauty that this plateau provided for him, facing the small construction that was completely hidden from any observer in the land below. The building was too small to house several Inklings, so Isamu deduced the building's original purpose wasn't to be a fortified outpost. He supposed it wasn't a tool shack either, as it was much too big, and out of the way to be a viable place to store supplies. For a while, Isamu dwelled on why such a house had been constructed so far away from the settlement of Kamakessai, but realized in the end that it didn't matter. The one he sought was inside the building, and that was all he needed to worry about.
As Isamu neared the house, hand nervously gripping the handle of his sheathed blade, he could see that it wasn't just a single construction, but two put together, as if two builders had constructed it with two different goals in mind. As he saw the rundown walls of a simple single story house, meant for maybe a single individual, a massive growth appeared on its northern wall in the form of a dissymmetric trapezoid.
Delaying the inevitable, Isamu walked to investigate this part of the building first, coming to a latched door, kept closed by a small wooden peg. Peering through a crack in the shoddy wall, Isamu could see large piles of wood stacked neatly on each other, undisturbed by last night's storm.
"Hey! I know you." A voice suddenly blurted, making Isamu's heart jump into his mouth. Quickly turning to see his general half dressed, his under armor shirt dangling by his waist with sleeves tied to form some impromptu belt, the moonlight commander stood, with a mildly concerned look on his face. Isamu had always felt nervous around this individual... and though he hated to admit it, it was mostly due to his general's mutated skin color that made him look as though he were suffering from a sickness.
Unlike every normal Inkling, their commander couldn't control his flesh color, much like the mutant Night Blades that currently resided in the forest. He had proven he could change his ink color, but even while everyone else shifted from pale to tan at will depending on the season of the year, their general was stuck with what his parents had given him. Some theorized he was a mutant like the Night Blades themselves, but his eyes were simply normal, as opposed to pitch black orbs the real mutants were forced to live with. A few thought he might be legitimately diseased, but those concerns were dismissed by those who had actually witnessed their general in action. Not that there were any who had actually seen a sick Inkling.
"Are you having a heart attack?" Range asked Isamu, who was busy clutching his chest.
"No sir!" Isamu declared, unintentionally making the general wince with his voice. Correcting his voice levels, Isamu quickly followed with, "Apologies, general."
"Yeah, yeah." Range waved, his resemblance to their mutant allies very obvious today, as he was sporting one of their double edged straight swords, unsheathed and bouncing on his bare shoulder. As Isamu's general left him by the latched door, he took the opportunity to get his thoughts together, slapping his cheeks lightly as he trotted after the general.
As he went to the open door that led into the house proper, Isamu made sure to wipe his feet, lest he track mud into his general's temporary residence. Peering into the empty hallway, Isamu wondered if he should go to the door to the right, or follow the hallway left. Unsure of what to do without his general's instructions, Isamu carefully approached the sliding door, planning to open it.
"Not that way." Range's clear voice commanded, stopping Isamu dead in his tracks once more. Taking a breath to recover from the sharp words, Isamu about faced, rounding the small corner and entering what appeared to be a small common room, with a ground hearth being stoked alive. "Have you eaten, Isamu?"
Shaking his head, Isamu kept looking around the furnished room, wondering if these nick-knacks were his superior's. Oil lamps were sitting quietly on shelves, along with dusty collapsible mono-scopes scattered around the room. In the corner, a few paper kites sat, their twine rolled neatly around their bone tipped ends, ready to be unwound. Isamu turned to his general, realizing Range had been staring at him while he had inspected the room, threatening him with a large metal skillet.
"N-no! I mean, yes, I have. Again, apologies." Isamu once more apologized, afraid if he had offended the leader of his company.
Range chuckled lightly, messily leaning back and knocking over some small ceramic bottles, which were obviously empty judging by the amount of noise they made as they hit each other. Isamu watched his general lean back and stretch to a rucksack, which would have probably been easier to walk to get, dragging it with him as he sat back up. As he started to go through the sack, Range spoke, pulling out a large paper package.
"We're going to have to be quiet. The door behind me connects to the same room you were about to stroll into, where Hana's sleeping. I don't want to wake her unless I can distract her with something first." Range explained, pouring alcohol from a gourd that his general had found next to the fire. Isamu decided to sit down as he watched the pale warrior cook.
"What do you mean, sir?" Isamu asked, daring not to raise his voice above the levels that Range had set, getting a half smile as the general just shook his head.
"Don't worry about it. Are you sure you're not hungry? Look at this fillet, man. It was caught six days ago, brined for three, then salt wrapped. Apparently, the folks in Kamakessai harvest salt by the buckets every couple of weeks, and the delta as an overabundance of fish. It's great." Range happily spoke, not even trying to act like a general.
During the winter months when times had been tough, Isamu had felt starvation, along with everyone else in the company. But even then, he at was able to eat at least once a day, even if the portion sizes decreased gradually. Range had prioritized his warriors first when it came to eating, few realizing the commander had been giving away his food while he chewed on tree bark... but only his bodyguard and logistic officers and by extension, Isamu's runner squad, were even aware of that fact.
Now that they were in a region with an abundance of fresh food, Range was keeping everyone well fed while he himself was slowly building his appetite back up to an average Inkling. Isamu had grown to deeply respect this individual for his self-sacrifice and constitution, hoping to be a fraction like him in ten years... even if he couldn't truly get over the instinctual mistrust he had in the warrior.
"No, thank you. My squad's hostess made us breakfast this morning."
"The toad lady, right?" Range asked, his facial features showing he was trying to remember the nick name of the one taking care of his specialist squad.
"She prefers Miss Frog."
"I like her. That crazed look in her eye and the way she cackles at everyone. It's pretty entertaining."
"The rest of the town thinks so too. I can't thank her enough for all she's done for us."
"Be sure to pass on my thanks as well. She was nice enough to take you eight in, so if I hear even one complaint made by her, you're all getting flogged. I'm serious by the way." Range threatened, pointing the small knife he was using to flip the cuts of fish on his pan at Isamu.
"Yes sir." Isamu answered, smiling despite the threat.
Miss Frog was a very old lady, who was one of the original founders of Kamakessai. Whatever her real name was had been forgotten long ago by the town, treating her by her chosen name which had been gained by the amount of frogs she kept around her large house. Miss Frog was the only one to have volunteered to house the brigade's runners, which was Isamu and seven others. Runner squad itself was a very weird band of Inklings, each chosen by their previous logistic officer for their ability to remember and repeat orders clearly. With their time spent mostly relaying messages between the platoon leaders, and the small number of them, Range had asked someone to personally take care of feeding and their sleeping location, to lighten the burden on the eight of them. Miss Frog hadn't even hesitated, declaring the first day of the brigade's arrival that she would take on the task the general had asked of their hosts. Some called her mad, raving, and off her rocker, but anyone who spent time with Miss Frog knew her to be caring, compassionate, and filled with joy.
"Good." Range stated, focusing more on the food he was searing, wiping the side of his mouth at the smell. Silence soon filled the room, making Isamu feel uncomfortable as he continued to stare so passionately at the metal, fire, and meat. Glancing at the longsword lying beside Range's sheathed sidearm, Isamu noticed the general's favorite weapon was missing.
"General, if you don't mind me asking, where's your glaive?" Isamu dared to ask, while he could make small talk. Range stared at him for a moment, turning around to the two weapons in the corner of the room, before turning back to the runner.
"I've been burgled." He solemnly realized, his eyes seemingly staring at an object a thousand miles away.
"W-w-what? Should I alert the company to find the perpetrator? Who would dare steal from you?!" Isamu asked in a panicked, hushed voice. Range stared at him, his mask of a face changing as he began to laugh.
"I'm kidding." He eventually explained. "Kaji's fixing it, along with my armor. In the meantime, I'm using one of Kagehaha's weapons. It's very interesting."
Sitting back down, Isamu couldn't laugh, more surprised his general was joking around with a mere runner like himself. If Range had seriously been stolen from, the entire company wouldn't rest until the thief had been located and beaten to death for disrespecting their general.
"What? Would you prefer I didn't joke with you, mister serious?" Range asked, putting his frying pan on a thick piece of woven fabric next to the hearth as he was seemingly finished with it. "I'm your damned general, I'll joke with you if I want to, dammit."
"I apologize, sir. I was just mentally preparing for the violence that would come to the one who had theoretically stolen from you." Isamu admitted, lowering his head.
"That's cute." A feminine voice suddenly spoke, the owner silently standing in the now open door frame. Isamu glanced at the barely dressed platoon leader and averted his eyes immediately from the simple robe that covered her body. Wishing he could make himself smaller, Isamu felt a reprieve as Hana was already ignoring him, speaking to their general. "Good morning, Range."
"Good morning, Hana. Fish?" Range offered, the still smoking fish cuts he had made beginning to fill the room with their aroma. Isamu heard Hana's nostrils sniff the air, then heard her feet begin to move across the wood floor, halting at Range.
"It's okay to look, Isamu. It's not like you haven't spoken to Hana before." Range stated, Isamu noticing that his general and platoon leader Hana were sitting next to each other, both half-naked in front of him. Averting his eyes once more, he heard Hana laugh for what seemed like the first time since his inclusion to the company.
"I am, uh. Uncomfortable, with that idea. But thank you."
"You should tell the general why you've come, before I take him away." Hana spoke, lightly blowing on the hot food the general offered to her. Isamu was about to quickly answer, but Hana's voice added coldly, "And how you knew we were here."
"Hana, don't be rude." Range ordered while chewing, either intentionally being ironic, or just not having been taught not to speak with his mouth full.
"You're right. I've come to report that Commander Kichi was reported by the logistic officers to have destroyed their meeting room during the storm last night, and to report that platoon leaders Akurai and Taiki are missing. They were apparently investigating tracks of an enemy before their disappearance. Kagehaha has already sent out a search party, preempting your orders." Isamu explained, shifting into a groveling stance as he bowed his head down to Hana. "This was the only location where one could keep an eye on things in Kamakessai and be out of the way. I apologize for interrupting."
"Stop apologizing." Range blurted, a tinge of annoyance in his words. "If that's all, you can leave."
"Yes sir. Is there anything you want me to relay?" Isamu asked, raising his head, attempting not to stare at Hana's body.
"No. There's nothing for me to say. If Akurai and Taiki are dead, then they're dead, and Kagehaha will either find them, or Tsume will. Their party probably holed up somewhere for the storm, so I'm not really worried."
Isamu nodded, daring to ask, "And about Commander Kichi?"
Range stared at him, confused. "What about her?"
"She destroyed an entire room." Isamu reminded his general.
"Yes, and?" His general asked, Hana's hands starting to scratch his chest.
Now it was time for Isamu to feel confused, having assumed his general might want to address his subordinate commander. "Do you want me to relay a message to her?"
"No. Now leave." Range commanded bluntly, grabbing Hana's wrist and making sure Isamu knew he didn't care if the runner was there or not.
A wise man once said, 'get while the getting was good,' and Isamu now knew exactly when good was to be gotten. Electing to leave the same way he had entered, Isamu tried to quietly abscond from the residence, desperately trying to block what he knew was happening behind him from his mind.
The feeling of awkwardness remained with him, long after he began his descent of the steep hill.
"You look to be thinking deeply there hon." Miss Frog suddenly spoke, making Isamu stand in surprise, his body reacting by half drawing his blade before calming himself. The hunched over elder didn't seem surprised by his reaction, standing perfectly still, one hand behind her back, with her other holding a small number of orange fruit. The old lady waved him down, and Isamu quickly apologized for his rudeness.
"No need, no need. You don't need to say you're sorry when I'm in the wrong. Sneaking up on a dozing warrior, I must have thought I was a young woman again! The pains of age, young man…" Miss Frog ended abruptly, then let out a wild laugh that echoed that of a seabird. After a moment, she gestured him to return to his sitting position, slowly coming to sit beside him. Together, Isamu sat with Miss Frog on her previously empty patio, protected from the sudden rain by the clay shingles above them.
"Do you want a mikan, young Isamu?" Miss Frog asked, offering Isamu one of her small fruits. "I'm afraid I can't finish them all, and they'll rot soon."
"Um." Isamu was all he could say as he took one of the small orange fruits from the wrinkled hands of Miss Frog. "Thank you. Aren't fruits mostly water?"
Miss Frog let loose another seabird cry, hooting and hollering as if he had just said the funniest joke in the world.
"Sonny, everything in the world is 'mostly water'. Now, I've been eating mikans for twenty some odd years, and I'm still kicking." Miss Frog pointed out as she started to peel her own fruit with her bare fingertips, raising it to her mouth as she waited for Isamu to copy her.
As he amateurishly pulled the peel apart, Isamu felt his fingertips become coated in the juices of the fruit, the liquid feeling very peculiar. Bringing his fingers to his tongue, he test licked it, then hurriedly put the actual fruit into his mouth, getting another mad cackle from the elder.
"Pretty good, huh? Maybe you should listen to this old lady, young man. Miss Frog might know what she's talking about!"
Isamu said nothing, savoring quite possibly the sweetest thing he had ever consumed in his entire life. As the juices ran down his mouth, Isamu was quick to wipe his lips realizing he had completely lost composure at the snack. "Excuse me."
"There you go again, apologizing. You know son, you've been saying how sorry you are for the past weeks. Do you want to talk about what's really bothering you?" Miss Frog asked, offering another fruit to Isamu, who was hesitant to take it. "That bad, huh?"
"I don't deserve it." Isamu said flatly, avoiding the gaze of the elder. Someone had once told him that elders instinctively knew when a lie was being told, so he tried to be as honest as possible. "I don't deserve any kindness, not after what I've done."
"I doubt that, young man. Any crime can be forgiven, if given enough time. Take it from someone who's lived a long life, Isamu. I've had to forgive all sorts of Inklings, including myself." Miss Frog stated, once more offering the fruit.
Taking the small orange orb, Isamu stared briefly at it before looking at the rain again. "My friend… no, not my friend. My enemy… no, that's not right either. I don't know how to describe it. I hated him, looked up to him, was jealous of, and was completely disgusted by him. I thought he was so cool, how he was unshaken by everything, always smiling and making others laugh. I thought he was horrible, using tricks and lying constantly to get whatever he wanted. He caused so much distraught amongst everyone in my company, but everyone wanted to be around him. It was incredibly aggravating."
Miss Frog laughed a few times, smiling at the words Isamu was speaking. "Sounds like a rival to me."
"A rival?"
"Yes, a rival. Someone you share a bond with as you grow together. That bond being neither good nor bad." Miss Frog smiled, looking into the rain herself, in memories only privy to her.
Isamu nodded, "Yeah. That sounds about right. Anyways, we were both interested in the same woman, and I knew I had no chance, but I wasn't going to just roll over and let him do whatever, you know? He might have been older, more established in the company, a popular platoon leader, funny, and skillful, but I wouldn't just let him have his way, now that…" Isamu paused, not wanting to name names, glancing behind him to the two other runners who were playing cards deeper in the house. Looking at his hands, he decided his old logistic officer's alias quickly. "Mikan… Mikan was… She was grieving, and hurting, and I knew I couldn't do anything other than stand there with her as she worked through whatever it was destroying her…"
Isamu said nothing for a while, mulling over his own failures during fall and winter of last year. Miss Frog continued to sit there in silence, allowing him to gather his thoughts as he prepared to continue the story.
"My rival was in the same boat as me, now that I have an outsider's perspective on it... but he was actively trying to help her, in his own way, which made me feel threatened. I talked shit, struck out in anger, then got put in my place several times over… He called me out on everything I had done and hadn't done, and then punched me in the face." Isamu actually laughed, rubbing where that right hook had landed, still feeling the punch in a way. "But not before saying something that hurt him. I think he might have actually understood how alike we were…
"Two months later he showed his true colors, abandoned his duties and rushed to save Mikan, who had snuck off and was about to die. Took a masterwork blade, jumped down a city wall, and then ran for ten hours straight down a mountain. Then he killed a dozens of Octrian, kissed the one he loved most in the world, then died. I'll never forget how she cradled his body, screaming to the lightly snowing sky before trying to take her own life." Isamu remembered, finding it suddenly hard to talk, but tried anyways. "I had never felt so completely inconsequential in my entire life. These two had gone through so much, together and alone, all for it to end suddenly. It was cheapened even more as our commander knocked her out, then had her gagged and bound for several days until she had calmed down. Not even a day later, Mikan picked up the sword that she had tried to end her life with, and sworn to become a warrior. Now, months later, I'm still here, having done nothing, and she's moved on. It's so… I feel…"
"It's indescribable, isn't it? But why do you feel responsible for their actions?" Miss Frog asked, bringing Isamu back on point.
"Because I interfered. I shouldn't have run my mouth. I should have backed down, and let them be together. They loved each other, and I was needlessly getting in the way. If I hadn't been around, they both would be alive and happy, and I could hate his guts and... learn from him."
"That's dumb." Miss Frog immediately said, dismissing his reasoning instantly. "You have feelings too, you dumb kid. If you believe what you did was wrong, which was following your silly little heart, then you're being dumb. You didn't force this Mikan girl to run away. You didn't force your rival to chase after her. Sometimes bad things happen. All what matters is what you plan to do next."
"But I don't know what to do next, Miss Frog."
Miss Frog laughed as if he had told the funniest joke in the world again. "You're going to eat that mikan, Isamu. Then you're going to do what we all do."
"And what's that?" Isamu asked, having the juice of the mikan stain his fingers once more.
"Wait for the rain to stop." Miss Frog patted her legs, patted him on the back, and then went inside her home to offer the other two runners a mikan.
Isamu watched the rain fall for a single moment, before biting into the orange fruit.
"Isamu! Over here!" Ryuu shouted over the din of the inn, standing up beside the inn's bar. Careful not to get water on anyone close to the entrance, Isamu brushed the water off his under armor with a gloved hand. A young warrior that had entered before him offered him a slightly damp towel, which he accepted with a nod of thanks. Hurried, Isamu finished drying himself, putting the now very wet towel near the building's fireplace to dry, where the cloth had probably originated from. Navigating the packed common area, Isamu tried not to knock over any of the Inklings making drink runs, stumbling feet making it clear that a great many of them had already had a few. Tables were just as packed, as cards and game pieces were being intensely watched, no doubt having wagers tied to them.
"Hey!" Ryuu greeted, fondly patting Isamu on the back. "Welcome to the party, bruddah."
"How far in is he?" Isamu asked the girl sitting beside him on a stool, sipping from a wooden cup.
"As far in as me." Aina carefully spoke, as if trying to keep a tight hold over what she was saying.
"Aina! When did you get here?" Ryuu drunkenly asked, threatening to fall off his own stool, Isamu placing a hand on the Inkling's mug in case he dared to spill any of the precious liquid.
"Ryuu, sit down."
"Yes ma'am."
Isamu smirked at the two, before asking "Where's Ran?"
"She's over there somewhere, playing a game." Aina informed, waving her arm just behind her. Isamu tried to follow the hand, but couldn't spot Ran's figure.
"And how drunk are you?"
Aina said nothing, only sticking her tongue at him as if that explained anything. Eventually, she grumbled something about their commander, making Isamu ask, "What?"
"She said, if we want to drink like Range, we got to start hard and early!" Ryuu explained before slamming back his cup, and draining the contents in one go.
Isamu took the only open seat, sitting beside the drunk boy. Turning to absorb the interactions happening around the room, Isamu felt some sort of peace in his heart at the scene. Since Arashi Week had now officially begun, platoons had splintered and dispersed into Kamakessai, where conscripts from all over the brigade could go around as they pleased. Isamu knew many of these faces from his message running, but he'd rarely get to speak with any of them, as those his own age were at best squad leaders. Maybe he'd get to make some friends during the rainy days, beside the two beside him.
Isamu turned to Ryuu, who was currently beating the bar's top with his forehead. Aina was looking sick, gripping her temples with a single hand while holding her cup, as if she was trying to have a telepathic conversation with the contents. Isamu couldn't help but laugh at them.
"What's so funny, run-boy?" Ryuu asked, not lifting his head from the wood.
"Aren't you two supposed to be like, the best warriors of our entire generation, or something like that? Both your body language's say 'conscript'." Isamu joked, getting both of them to turn and glare in unison. Isamu smiled at the insult, basically calling two of their commander's command squad bitches.
"Aren't you supposed to be like, worse than trash? Mister non-combatant? Your job is to literally run around." Aina venomously pointed out, not even looking at him as Isamu laughed.
"Yeah, get the fuck out of here. Here's a message – fuck you." Ryuu added, before joining in with Isamu's chuckles.
The three of them continued to trash talk each other, the two bodyguards often teaming up on him, which Isamu was fine with since that made it fair. After being briefly interrupted by a fist fight that had erupted at one table, and adding their voices to the yelling, jeering, and cheering, Isamu hopped the bar's top and got himself a drink before Inklings would rush the open bar and replace what was being broken or spilled.
"When was the last time we all hung out together? Like, six months ago? Seven?" Ryuu asked, suddenly getting sentimental.
"Something like that, yeah." Isamu confirmed, facing the two of them as he drained a bottle of its contents into an unused cup. "Not since the fifth broke up, and Range became a sub-commander."
"Has it really been that long?" Aina asked, shocked at how much time had gone by.
"Well, we see each other like, all the time. Just in passing though." Isamu shrugged.
"Why don't you hang around us anymore, Isamu-bawmu? We were so cool together." Ryuu whined, as if he was about to cry.
"Because, the general took you two with him, and gave the rest of us to Daiki. Then I volunteered for runner squad once it had been made." Isamu reminded the boy, who was sniffing hard. "If you cry, I'm going to smash a bottle over your head."
"Yeah, it's way too early for your tears." Aina agreed.
"Why do you both hate me?" Ryuu asked, slapping his head back against the bar top before letting loose the fakest wail anyone ever heard.
"We don't hate you, Ryuu." Aina cooed, "We just find you disgusting and gross."
Isamu laughed as Aina put her head on the boy's back, giving Ryuu a comforting side hug, which only made the boy deepen his depression.
"So while Ryuu cries, what have you been up to, Isamu?" Aina asked, playing catch-up while using Ryuu as a pillow. "And who took over after Daiki?"
"Some guy named Mitsuru. One of Daiki's squad leaders, from what I heard... but I haven't been doing much other than running and repeating messages. What about you guys?"
"Fuckin' nothing." Ryuu groaned, not moving from his position.
"Yeah, not a whole lot. We've been training the new girl, which is pretty boring."
"You mean Miki?" Isamu asked, getting both of them to sit up and raise fingers to their mouths. "You're kidding me, right? It's not even a secret. Everyone already knows."
"Yeah but, we're not allowed to say who she really is, because of subterfuge, or something. The logistic officers could be listening, you know." Aina quietly said, leaning towards him.
"Who cares what they think? This is their first company, and they're dumb." Isamu checking around the room to see anyone out of place. Luckily, logistic officers were easy to spot, and didn't usually socialize with the company warriors.
"Anyways, yeah. Miki's dumb as a brick. We're wondering if she's going to break from training or not." Ryuu offered, unaware that Isamu's face was slowly turning to a look of concern.
"I mean, she's fine as a person, but all she cares about is that stupid book and sword." Aina added, as if flabbergasted.
"Book?" Isamu asked, already knowing about Souta's sword being in her possession.
"Yeah. All she does is read it, over and over when she's not training. It's kind of scary, to be honest. Even more so now that she's adopted Range's philosophies."
"We really shouldn't be saying anything behind her back, Aina." Ryuu kindly said, which Aina instantly agreed to before Isamu could even interject. He wanted to know more about this book, and the philosophies.
"Hey, are you two friends with that girl over there?" Someone suddenly interrupted, Isamu never even seeing this guy before. The three of them tilted their heads to where he was pointing, and realized Ran was posturing against four guys, and not backing down.
"Shit. Yeah, we're coming." Aina said, dragging Ryuu off his stool to be a meat shield for her. Isamu debated going after them, before realizing his decision was made for him, once Ran dropped the first of the angry kids with a spectacular right hook.
Nothing like starting Arashi Week off with a fist fight, after all.
