Disclaimer: All credit goes to Shingo Nanami and フクロウ. Enjoy!

喧嘩

A Fight

Part Two

Nobunaga x Kasane

Kasane left the castle and proceeded to walk down to the village.

Though she had power to leave, Kasane had no home to return to nor any family to rely on. There was no one is this world that could help her.

In the end, Nobunaga's castle was her only place to call home.

The current may have been pervasive, but he was certainly someone whom she could rely on.

Glancing at the landscape before her, she felt a sense of alienation.

As far as she can see: the unfamiliar appearance of people and the unfamiliar landscape of the town.

For Kasane they were the ones who were strange, but of course to them, with her school uniform, she was the weird one.

Out in the open, at a small distance, she could hear them whispering to each other.

Kasane shrank down from the discomfort.

In the beginning, she received this sort of reception at the castle.

However recently everyone is familiar and nice to her.

From the start, Tono-sama didn't care about gender or birthright or appearances- - -.

"...What use is it thinking about this?"

Kasane shook her head to clear away all those thoughts.

Even though she had just left, she now had the urge to go back. Kasane berated herself for her shallowness and urged on.

"Even I can manage on my own!"

Compelling herself to move forward, she began once more with enthusiasm.

She is, after all, a high school student.

She is already at the age of where she can think and act on her own.

Mph!* Kasane reassuringly walked down the path.

"...Please stop it!"

Hearing a woman's cry Kasane went "Hm?" and raised her head.

"Isn't it fine? Don't be so pretentious."

"Ya don't want that pretty face of yours to be ruined, right?"

"If ya listen to us, we'll be gentle."

"No! Let go!"

There, surrounded by a small group of men, Kasane could see the figure of a young woman.

For someone whose sense for justice was strong, Kasane gazed upon the spectacle and immediately approached to help the woman.

"Come on, let's get goin-... Uwa!?"

She brushed the man's hand off the woman's arm with a swat of her sword.**

The woman bewilderedly looked at Kasane while the men copied her expression.

"What?! This brat…"

"A woman huh."

"So the lil' missy wants to join in too?"

Realizing that she was a girl, the men, just for that moment, smirked.

Without saying anything, she took one glance at them.

"It's dangerous for a girly like you to hold a sword like that you know~"

"Wearin' strange clothing…"

"Yosh, let's take her with us."

One of the men reached out to grab her.

However lightly avoided out of his reach and quickly attacked at his abdomen with the hilt of her sword.

"Uu..gah!"
"Oi!"

"What'd think you're doing, bitch!"

One of the men collapsed while clenching his stomach.

The rest of the group openly released their anger to Kasane and moved into to grab her.

"Haven't you learned…"

With her weapon still in its sheath, Kasane easily dodged their hands.
"...not to bother people when they say no!?"

"...We're really sorry…"

After getting themselves severely beaten up by Kasane, the men were now kneeling and apologizing before her.

In the end, she had no need to unsheathe her sword and after beating up half of their group, they easily submitted to her.

"As long as you guys understand. But you better not do that ever again, alright! Or…"

Kasane pulled the sword out of its sheath.

"Of course not, of course not! We won't do it again, have mercy~!"

The men pathetically cried and fled for their lives.

"Um, are you alright?"

Kasane turned to the remaining spectator and called out to her.

The young girl blankly stared back at her.

"Thank you so much… for saving me back there…!"

The young girl promptly bowed her head and raised it back up.

Kasane looked at the girl in wonder.

(Wah… She's really pretty….)

Before she could only see the girl's figure from a distance from that dusky place; indeed now as she looked at her now, she was certainly someone whom men would want to entangle with.

Surely, the girl in front of her eyes was not much different to her age.

Beautiful, shining long raven hair, a small face with big eyes.

A delicate body that seemed to topple over any second, her mouth was small and her lips were tinged bright red that made her seem luscious.

(There's a real beauty right here~...)

Even though they're of the same gender, she felt like falling in love.

Surely if Toukichirou-san were here, he would have merrily called out her without hesitation.

"It's fine, are you sure you're okay?"

Kasane asked as she cheerfully smiled at the young girl.

The young girl's cheeks reddened and she returned Kasane's smile with pretty smile of her own.

(She's really beautiful…)

"I… am Hanako***...May I know yours?"

"...Ah, well, I am K-kusanagi Kasane!"

Hearing the girl's polite manner of speaking, Kasane unintentionally replied in the same formal tone.

"Kasane-sama…"

The young girl repeated her name.

"'Kasane-sama'... Just call me Kasane."

That unfamiliar way of calling her name sent jitters on her back.

"I couldn't, after going out your way to save me…! …Is Kasane-sama a practitioner of martial arts of some sort?"

"Martial arts practitioner…? Well I'm nothing that great…"

At the same time her stomach growled.

Kasane froze in embarrassment.

"...Kasane-sama. Would won't you come over to my shop so I can offer something out of my gratitude."

Hanako said as she softly laughed.

"Um… Isn't this…"

After accepting Hanako's offer, Kasane followed her until they reached a big colorful building.

"It's a brothel?"****

"Ah, I-I thought so. Un…"

Seeing the figures of young ladies peeping out from the shop's lattice, Kasane panicked.

"U-um, I believe you know this already, but I'm a girl and I don't have money…"

Kasane worried that the young girl couldn't see well in the dark and misunderstood that she was a man.

"Of course I'm aware you're a woman. And of course, money is not necessary."

Observing Kasane's strange behavior, Hanako chuckled.

As Hanako approached her, Kasane could smell an undefinable sweet scent on her.

"Mother, I have now returned."

Hanako entered the shop and another lady appeared out from inside.

Around the age of 30~40.

A graceful woman who looks almost exactly like Hanako.

She could easily guess at first sight that this was Hanako's mother.

"Ah, Hanako! I was so worried when you were late… Dear me, what happened to that child?"

Hanako's mother noticed Kasane and turned her attention to her.

Kasane immediately straightened her back.

"This is Kasane-sama, who saved me when I was in trouble. Mother, please give her our thanks."

"My, Thank you so much…! Please come over here."

As if swept by a tide, Kasane entered into the depths of the shop.

"My… So until now you were a soldier..?"

During the meal, Kasane recited her entire tale to Hanako. (Of course she left everything about her time slipping to this period)

"Then, I ran out without thinking…"

Her face clouded over.

At that moment she did it out of pure impulse, but now that she thought about it, running out of the castle might have been over the top.

"Well Owari's young lord isn't known to have a good reputation..."

Even though Hanako sympathized with her, Kasane's gloomy expression didn't change.

"...If you would like, why don't you work here?"

"Eh?"

Surprised, Kasane glanced at Hanako.

"Eh, um, but that's, well."

Kasane became hugely restless.

This was a brothel, she didn't have to think hard to know what women had to do to earn their pay.

"Fufu, of course I didn't mean that. I wished for you to work as this brothel's bodyguard."

"B-bodyguard?"

"Yes, in this dangerous world… especially when you're running a business in a brothel, there are many disputes that the customers bring to us…."

After hearing Hanako's suggestion, Kasane seriously lost herself in her thoughts.

"But if you decide this without consulting anyone, are you sure it's alright?"

"I don't mind. Mother will also listen to what I would say… and isn't it better for you to be a bodyguard for woman like yourself than a gentleman…?"*****

As Hanako shifted and nervously spinned out suggestions, she sent Kasane puppy eye looks. Looking at those big, imploring eyes, Kasane heart jolted without a thinking.

"Kasane-sama will be this shop's bodyguard. You won't have to take in any customers and if you have no other place to go, it will help us if you live here. Of course, if it's fine with you, we will provide meals."

"Eh!? ….Y-you're sure… that's fine with you?"

"Of course. As long as Kasane-sama is fine with these conditions."

Hanako giggled with a soft smile.

Unlike Kasane's wide laugh, it was laugh that was neat and tidy and filled with goodwill.

"Eh~... Well… As long as Ha-Hanako-san and the others don't mind then…"

Kasane modestly replied as she scratched her head.

To be frank, she was truly grateful for Hanako's offer.

She was such at a loss at what to do and where to go, and now she was given a place to live and guaranteed meals.

In addition she didn't need to take in any customers and work like a prostitute and was instead actually asked to use her skill in swordsmanship to help out the shop.

This sort of good chance would surely not come to her a second time.

"Th-...then I will be in your care!"

The two girls faced each other and gave each other a shy smile.

TBC

*This type of sound came out of her nose. This kind of expression is used when someone is determined to get things done...

** Sword is still in the scabbard.

*** I seriously didn't know what her name says (there are multiple ways her name can be said). It means fragrance of flowers though so it's a pretty name, but I was crushed between choosing Hanako, Haruka, Hanaka, and Hanoka. Urgh…

**** They way Hanako say this goes in between the lines of "It's a brothel, is there something wrong?". or she's confirming Kasane's initial thoughts. Something like that…

***** Not that she means that Kasane will feel better but also calmer...

...I wish this has an anime... Though there is a drama cd, it isn't enough... Well, I better work on the third chapter. I hope everyone has a wonderful day and see you all next time!