Chapter 07 | The Pleasure House Ruse
Mio regretted the words as soon as they left her lips. She didn't need to give Madara any time to process the information because it hit him like a punch to the gut and his displeasure quickly replaced his earlier confusion.
"Izuna? You made Izuna a Guardian?" he asked pointedly, ire laced his tone. "Mio, what were you thinking?"
She silently wrapped the blanket around her body, feeling inadequate in her nakedness. She asked herself to be calm as she steeled herself to respond. "My artifacts cannot be without Guardians."
"And you have hundreds of people to choose from, but you picked Izuna," he snapped.
"I am not distributing the artifacts at random," she argued. "They are not choosing Guardians according to my will alone, not anymore. Izuna was the best candidate for an arti—"
"Holding one of your spheres means becoming a target." Madara hastily tied his robe and grabbed a haori from one of his drawers. "After what happened to Saori, do you really want to add more targets for your enemies to hunt?"
"I could very well be preserving his life," she argued. "The artifacts have the potential of growing stronger when they have hosts. If the collective is strong, so is the artifacts' innate ability to protect their Guardians."
"This was not your choice to make—"
"It is not yours either," she interjected, surprised to find her voice steady but harsh. "Izuna is the one that decides. You may be his brother, but you cannot control what he does with his life. Becoming a Guardian is ultimately his choice to make."
To subdue his anger, he clenched his hands into fists, knuckles white, and let out a vehement shout that startled her. "You can make me Guardian!" he shouted. "Me! Not him! Give me whatever sphere you intend to give him! Make me a Guardian again, but you keep him out of this!"
Mio rose from the futon, holding the blanket closed around her. She approached him slowly and reached out to touch his arm. "Madara…"
He jerked away. A stung of rejection hit her heart, squeezing the beating appendage as she fought to keep the ache from showing in her expression.
"Has he accepted?"
"No, I haven't told him," she admitted. "I thought it best he didn't know, not before I told you. I didn't expect you to react this way."
"How did you expect me to react?" he demanded. "This is not a good time to be a Guardian, not if you're all getting picked off one by one."
"I am aware it isn't," she answered, "but what would you have me do?"
"Destroy them like you said you would!"
Mio's stomach sank, her eyes steady on his.
"There has to be a way," he continued, lowering his voice, though the edge in it remained. "You must have found some way to see it done within these past three years."
"There is a way," Mio confirmed, engaging him, "and it means my death. It also means there is no guarantee that it will work. There will be another way, someday, but as I am now, I can't do it. I can't destroy the artifacts. I can only try to preserve them by offering them to people that I trust are strong enough to defend them." She swallowed hard, her throat dry. "What happened to Saori will not happen again. So, whether your brother agrees to take the Vision Sphere or not will not be our choice to make, but his."
Madara's frustration endured her confession. It thickened the air around them, destroying the semblance of happiness they had. Quiet fury darkened his gaze as he fixed it upon her unexpressive face.
"You know he will not deny you anything," he spat. "You know that if you asked him to become your Guardian that he would. He is blind to you. You're taking advantage of—"
"You're angry. Stop before you say something you'll regret," she said firmly, knowing it would not be enough. As she was reckless in desperation, he was thoughtless in anger. She blamed herself for dampening his mood, seeing now that it was not the appropriate time to speak about her plans for the artifacts. "Madara, do not insult me."
"You're taking advantage of his feelings for you," he finished, emphasizing every word to show he did not care whether she took it as an insult or not.
Mio bristled. "Do you think me so cruel as to toy with his feelings? He's my friend and I would—"
He took her firmly by the wrist, raising it between them. "I think you are willing to sacrifice everything for those artifacts, even if it means losing the people that you care f—"
"I have already sacrificed everything I am willing to for these artifacts and none of those sacrifices involved my family or my friends," Mio interjected, ire flowing through her veins. "I don't have any more sacrifices to make." Her chest felt tight. She couldn't bear this emotion. If she let it control her, she would be the one to say something she would regret and the conversation didn't need any more fuel to the fire. She turned her face, refusing to look at him and forced his hand off her. "Just get out."
Surprisingly, Madara walked out briskly. She waited to hear his footsteps descending the stairs to sink to her knees, her legs too weak to keep her standing. She wrapped the blanket around her body completely, and in a brief moment of weakness, sobbed into her covered hand, eyes wide with unshed tears.
Madara didn't return to their room to sleep that evening, once all preparations had been made for the following morning. It was then that her emotions betrayed her and she cried. Her insufferable heart ached until there was nothing left but a stuffy nose and puffy eyes. She realized as she was lying in bed that she missed Madara's body beside hers, but she didn't want to go find him. It didn't matter how much she missed him.
A knock disturbed her pathetic thoughts, rousing her onto a seat. "Yes?"
"It's Nako."
"Come in."
Nako stepped inside wearing a fur poncho that seemed a lot thicker on her until she tugged out the pillow she had hiding underneath it. "I overheard Madara asking Izuna if he could stay in his yurt," she said softly. "I thought you might need some company."
Mio's heart was delighted by the sentiment. "If you wouldn't mind."
Nako slid the door shut and made her way across to her as Mio made room for her in the futon. Nako folded her poncho up nicely and threw her pillow down on the futon beside her.
"I don't like sleeping alone, but since Yayoi stole my sleeping partner, I've had to get used to not having my own private Kuronuma," said Nako, slipping in beside her. "You could say I jumped on this opportunity. You're all warm. This blizzard is hell at night."
Mio smiled. "I do hope you know Takuto likes you better."
"Yeah, because I don't snore. I can hear Yayoi snoring the whole night. I don't know how he does it. She's probably right at his ear doing it."
They giggled, but quickly fell silent.
Nako peered down at her with her big, green eyes. "Do you want to talk about it?"
"I told him that Izuna was a Guardian," she whispered.
"Ah, it went like you imagined?"
"No, it went worse." Mio felt her lower lip tremble. "He's so angry he doesn't want to be near me."
"Well, he's stupid. And he's also a dumb sleeper. He'll probably crush you in your sleep one day, so it's good to take a break once in a while. We don't want you developing spine problems or something because he's always sleeping on your back."
Mio snorted. "Nako, stop."
"But I made you smile."
Nako grinned.
"Thank you, Nako," she said, "I appreciate it."
"You don't have to thank me," she said. "That's what friends are for. We're here for each other. Now, let's get to sleeping. You have an early day tomorrow."
Nako's presence provided enough comfort for Mio to sleep through the night. Perhaps, it had been too much comfort because she needed to be woken the following morning when it became obvious she was nowhere to be found.
Mio spent little time preparing a small bag. It held the bare minimal: a medical kit prepared by Takuto, a few ninja tools, a change of clothes, and room for a packed lunch that a few Kuronuma made specifically for her. She dressed comfortably in dark colors, wearing a pair of trousers under a high collared, sleeveless shirt with a kimono top tied around the waist by a sash, and a pair of tall zori. She gathered her hair into a high ponytail to keep it from getting in the way. She wore the Uchiha crest at her back and the Vision Sphere tucked in the back of her sash for quick assess, though she never used it as an artifact, she very much enjoyed it as a dagger and made certain it remained at tiptop shape.
Takuto and Akihiko approached her as she exited the house with a fresh-faced Nako at her side.
"Akihiko promised to guide and support my group into the Earth Country," said Takuto. "I'll be sending Akira as well as a quarter of our shinobi with Madara, leaving a quarter here under Nako, and I'll take half with me to confront the Ishiki clan."
"I requested for a large group of shinobi to travel to the Earth Country ahead of time," added Akihiko. "Another group will be coming here to help protect the Uchiha village."
"Thank you," Mio said with a polite inclination of the head. She turned to Nako. "I'll be leaving you in charge of Saori."
"I'm leaving all the current medical specialists on rotation with her, so the schedule won't be too altered."
Nako nodded in understanding. "You know I'll protect Saori with my life."
Mio rubbed Nako's shoulder, smiling at her. "Keep yourself safe as well. I don't want anything to happen to you either."
Nako grinned, a little bashful as she nudged Mio's arm. "You're just saying that because you like me."
Takuto and Mio laughed while Akihiko stared at each of them with amusement. The mirth subsided as soon as Takehiko appeared to dampen the mood with his narrowed eyes and eternal frown.
"When are we moving out?" asked Takehiko, directing the question to Akihiko while openly ignoring everyone else.
"The intention is drawing the Ishiki clan's attention from potential attacks, so we won't be moving until Madara and Mio make it to the Sun Country," responded Takuto, smiling ruefully. "Obviously, it won't lower their guard, but it would distract them for a split instant, which is our plan to exploit."
Takehiko averted his eyes, his grimace deepening.
He might have apologized to Takuto for his stupid comments, but he had done so to please Saori for his brother's sake, not because he believed he needed to apologize. That belief explained a lot of his actions henceforth. He wasn't the Kuronuma clan's biggest fan, accusing them of being happy-go-lucky idiots that rather spend their days wasting time than being productive, which was one of the primary reasons as to why he thought it was useless to take any Kuronuma against the Ishiki, having petitioned with Madara to send Uchiha shinobi in their stead.
Takehiko got along well with the Uchiha shinobi that opposed the alliance forged with her marriage to Madara and shared the same sentiments as many did about her sickly, useless outer appearance, not to mention he was starting to buy into the whole "she's a curse on this world" theory that had been pursuing her for many years. This would have affected her more if she cared about their opinions.
All she cared about was that Takehiko and that particular crop of Uchiha shinobi did their jobs.
"We'll be here for a while longer," Akihiko told his brother, squeezing his shoulder. "We should prepare for Kane's arrival."
"Will Saori's clan be sending anyone?" asked Nako.
"I advised Takuei against it," Mio said, having corresponded yesterday morning. "Too much movement is suspicious. We are risking enough with asking the Amamori clan for support, so it'd be best not to involve the Ito clan if we can avoid it."
"Takuei-san did agree to send shinobi to the Amamori village as a precaution," added Akihiko. "The Ishiki clan have many allies apart from their rumored connection to the Mikazuki clan. There are at least two clans within the Waterfall Country that continue being loyal to their treaties that are poised to attack either the Ito or Amamori villages at little or no advanced noticed."
Nako's expression dimmed, worry seeped into her features. "This isn't looking well, is it?"
"It's difficult," said Takuto with a comforting ease, "but we have prepared as best as we can to allow for the least number of casualties in our attack against the Ishiki clan. There is also no telling what Madara and Mio's group will face in the Sun Country."
"You will have the protection of the Climate Sphere," assured Mio. "I have been strengthening it over the last couple days, so it should hold up against trespassers. I wasn't able to make it so it had the same strength that made it famous in Mt Hyōga, but I managed to override its structure so that it only allows people with certain chakra signatures to cross it. If our enemies should prove relentless, you'll have plenty of time to prepare a counterattack."
"Chakra signatures?" questioned Akihiko. "Your magic sphere has the ability to read specific chakra signatures?"
"It can determine what clan one belongs to through a person's chakra signature," said Mio, proud of her most recent accomplish. "And it isn't a magic sphere. Any gifted sensor should be able to do it."
"To be able to distinguish one's clan from their chakra signature is quite a talent, Mio-san," praised Akihiko.
"Madara is the talented one," she corrected. "My sensor abilities are entirely exclusive to my Guardians and it isn't as refined as Madara's either. I might be able to sense them from vast distances, but I wouldn't be able to tell what clan they belonged to if I didn't already know."
"Do you need to hold an artifact?" asked Akihiko. "For you to be able to sense them?"
"The general rule about it is that they need to be Guardians," explained Mio. "Guardians never stop being Guardians, though having an artifact does help amplifying my ability to sense them clearer, otherwise they're a whisper in a crowd of shouting people. I would still be able to pinpoint them, though it takes concentration."
"Mio-sama." Mio turned to see Arata standing in wait. "Izuna-sama and Jouji-san are ready if you are done with your preparations."
"Thank you, I'll meet them immediately."
Arata bowed and left them.
"Keep your artifact with you at all times, Takuto," Mio told him, then turned to Nako. "If by some chance, the Climate Sphere's protection is threatened, take Saori to where the artifact is. You'll be safe there. If you feel your life is in grave danger, you give up the artifacts."
"But Mio—"
"No, Nako, your lives are more important than the artifacts," Mio interrupted. "No matter how many artifacts we lose, we can always get them back. We cannot do that with your lives."
The protest died down in Nako as she nodded.
Mio turned to Akihiko and Takehiko, inclining her head politely. "Thank you for your help. I hope for your success against the Ishiki clan."
"We should be the ones wishing you luck," Akihiko said immediately. "You and Madara are going to invade the Sun Country. There's no telling what you'll encounter."
"Thank you."
"Watch Yayoi," Takuto said. "Take care of yourself, too. Don't overdo it. Oh, and before I forget." He rummaged through his medical bag, tugging out a waterskin. "I hope you won't need this, but it's better that you have some extra concoction on you. If you have to face the Mikazuki clan, you'll have trouble doing so without using our techniques. Just don't exhaust yourself. Remain calm. Remember to breathe."
Mio took the waterskin from him, feeling the heat radiating through it as she slipped it inside her bag. "Thank you, Takuto."
"I hope you seduce that tyrant good, Mio," said Nako, reaching out to hug her.
"Knowing Mio, she'll have him on his knees just by looking at him," added Takuto, joining them in their embrace, enveloping them completely in his arms.
"Don't exaggerate, I'm nervous enough without your teasing," said Mio, pulling away from them. "Just hope that I can make it happen."
Takuto and Nako laughed.
Mio bid farewell to the Amamori brothers once more before leaving everyone to meet with Jouji and Izuna. The two were standing with a small portion of the group accompanying Madara to Eishirou's coastal province. Mio caught sight of Madara several feet away with another part of his shinobi, Yayoi and Keigo present at his side, listening as keenly as those around him did to his instruction.
She saw his eyes flicker in her direction, but quickly turn away. She didn't have the energy to spare their problems another thought.
"Are you ready?" asked Jouji.
"Yes."
"Madara! We're going!" shouted Izuna, waving his arm in the air to catch Madara's attention.
Yayoi and Keigo detached themselves to join them.
"I expect you to behave in Madara's company," Mio told Keigo.
"I promise you I will not be a burden to Madara-san," Keigo vowed.
Yayoi was busy saying her goodbyes to Jouji and Izuna, Keigo joining in a few seconds later, when Madara approached her, a sullen expression on his face, jaw tight.
No words were exchanged, only stares.
Mio wondered what sort of pitiful look she had on now, hoping that it wasn't as bad as it felt. She hated the idea that they weren't on good terms.
Yet, the longer the silence spread between them, the more aware she was that his face lost a bit of its harshness.
"Don't do anything reckless," he spoke, sighing as he rubbed the back of his neck.
She stood stunned. "Don't forget to watch over yourself too," she answered, breathing at last. "I'm too young to be a widow."
Madara frowned.
"Mio!" Yayoi threw her arms around Mio's neck, hugging her tightly. "Good luck with the pleasure house. I'll be praying for your success."
Mio patted Yayoi's arms. "Keep the Fate Sphere on you at all times."
"I will. I promise." Yayoi pulled away. "I should go get it."
Keigo chased after her. "I want to see the Fate Sphere!"
"We should be leaving now," Izuna said, clapping his brother's back. "I'll see you at Eishirou's castle."
"That is if Mio infiltrates the castle."
"We know Eishirou won't stand a chance." Izuna grinned. "Right Mio?"
"I hope he doesn't for our sake," she answered.
"Just go. We'll be moving out after you." Madara shooed his brother away.
"Fine. Let's go, Jouji, Mio."
Izuna started to lead the way with Jouji following close behind. The two headed north, straight for the snow-tipped trees that surrounded the Uchiha clan's village.
Mio tugged off her red string bracelet and stared at it fondly. She had never taken it off since Madara sent it to her.
"For luck," said Mio, reaching for Madara's hand. He let her tie it around his wrist neatly. "Don't take it off. Keep it safe and it will keep you safe."
Madara nodded stiffly and repeated, "Don't be reckless."
"I'll try not to be. Goodbye."
The tension between them doubled as they turned their backs to one another, walking in their own separate ways. Her heart felt heavier and her chest couldn't stand the weight of it, but as Mio caught up to Jouji and Izuna in the forest, she buried the pain. She would have plenty of time to speak to Madara properly once they succeeded in capturing Eishirou's castle.
She would have to tell him the truth to help him understand. She doubted she would be able to keep it all a secret for any longer than she had. It was different before because she wasn't with him every day. Being at his side made her want to confide in him. She needed him to know her truths and see that she didn't have a choice.
She had found a way to destroy the artifacts and had paid the price. He had every right to know about it and how it had linked to making his brother a Guardian.
Mio cleared her mind of the memories, refocusing her attention to the current mission. No distractions.
Jouji explained the route the merchant would be taking to The Thousand Cranes and once he finished Izuna proposed various modes of interception. While the conversation went on, Mio took care of navigating them through the forest, avoiding any main roads on the way towards the Lightning Country from the Fire Country.
It took a few days for them to come upon the merchant's preferred route to the pleasure house and staked it out in the surrounding mountain ranges. They were mindful of all movement and remained in communication with Madara throughout the three days that they waited for the merchant to appear riding an oxen drawn wagon along the perilous roads.
"Izuna."
On cue, Izuna sent several shuriken flying towards the wagon. The projectiles sliced through the reins that kept the oxen in place. The wagon slammed forward, crashing into the hard ground, startling the two oxen, both running along the road after making a startled noise. The merchant cursed loudly, but his voice was drowned by the screams of several girls riding in the back of his wagon.
The merchant lifted his eyes in their direction, but they hid against the wall behind the coverage of some fog. The lanky male cursed repeatedly beneath his breath as he scrambled out of his wagon, searching the ground until he came upon the proof that he had been ambushed, two shuriken stabbed to the ground. He drew a short sword from his spilling luggage in a fit of anger, screaming so violently that the startled girls in the back could be heard cowering.
"I'll retrieve the oxen," Jouji said, scaling the mountain at their backs and disappearing overhead.
"Where are you?" the merchant shouted, waving his sword. "I've already paid your damn fine! I should have free passage through here!"
"Master!"
A young boy climbed out of the wagon, holding a handkerchief to a wound on his head, narrowed eyes surveying the area worried.
"Stay inside, Shou!" snapped the merchant. "Make sure the girls are unharmed!"
Mio and Izuna exchanged looks. Nobody mentioned the merchant would have an apprentice.
Izuna gestured below as the young apprentice was about to make it back inside the wagon. She nodded, inching closer to the edge with Izuna at her back before jumping down, landing behind the boy. She grabbed him before he had a chance to turn, wrapping an arm around his neck and pulling him into a stronghold. The merchant caught sight of her and his expression changed.
"Wait, you're not with that bandit clan," he observed slowly. His confusion ebbed quickly and he raised his sword threateningly. "Who are you? What do you want?"
Mio cast a glimpse inside the back of the wagon, counting five girls, all battered to some degree with ripped clothing and dirt on their skin. They were shackled together, making it impossible for them to run.
The boy in her arms struggled, but she applied sufficient pressure to his throat to restrict breathing until he fell limp against her, unconscious. Izuna took the opportunity to sneak behind the merchant and knock him out with a swift kick to the head that sent him barreling into the mountain wall.
"You think he was talking about that shinobi clan giving everyone problems around here?" asked Izuna, as he rummaged through the merchant's pockets for anything they could find useful.
"Perhaps," answered Mio, laying the unconscious boy beside his master.
Izuna accompanied her when she returned to the back of the wagon to the five startled girls expecting the worst.
"Five for one, business is tough in this market, isn't it?" asked Izuna, clearly teasing.
"It might increase our chances, it won't matter." Mio moved towards the edge as all the girls shuffled backward, holding one another as means of protection. She smiled at them sweetly, taking hold of their chains. "There's no need to be afraid. We're letting you go."
She tugged at the chains, bending the metal until it broke. Each one stared at her wide-eyed.
"Oh, I think Jouji's back. I'm going to help him put the oxen back." Izuna wandered off.
"I'm going to need you to come closer to remove the shackles," Mio told them, patient enough to wait for one to move forward, choosing to trust her. The girl extended her shackled leg towards Mio, allowing her to put her hands on her. Mio was careful in breaking the shackles, deciding it'd be best to apply pressure to the edges sticking out to force them open without hurting her any more than she already was. She helped the first girl climb out of the wagon and asked her to stay until she released the others.
Once one had trusted her, the others were less reluctant in doing so, allowing her to free them and help them out of the wagon. Jouji and Izuna tied the oxen back at the front of the wagon as she turned to the five girls, offering them her money and the remaining lunch that they had brought with them.
"Why did you help us?" one girl asked bravely.
"It's best you don't know," said Mio, closing her bag. She paid close attention to their appearances and thought of ways to mimic it. "You should return to your villages. I apologize I can't offer you someone to escort you, but I hope that that is enough food and money to get you all home."
The five girls bowed deeply, thanking her, before scurrying down the road, helping one another along the way.
Mio returned to Jouji and Izuna's side to tie the merchant and his apprentice together, leaving the two on the side of the road.
"We can count ourselves lucky that he had an apprentice," said Jouji, staring down at the unconscious males. "You won't have to tail us anymore."
Izuna rummaged through the merchant's bag, procuring a new set of shackles and offering them to Mio. "Get rid of the ones you broke and put these on." He went through the burlap's contents with a determined look. "There aren't any keys in here, which annoys me."
"It's likely the people doing business with him in The Thousand Cranes have the keys," said Jouji. "This is done often to make sure the merchant doesn't get away with any of the merchandise."
"I'll go get dressed in the back," Mio announced.
The two courteously turned their backs in the direction of the wagon, offering her some privacy. She returned to the back of the wagon, gathered the broken chains and shackles from within and tossed them over the edge of the road into the river that ran through the mountain range. She set her bag down and tugged out a simple silk robe. She recalled the tears she saw on the girl's clothes, most along the skirt so it rode high at their hips and around the shoulder and chest area where most of their bruises were visible. She ripped the hem off the robe, tore one sleeve, and tossed it to the dirt ground. She rolled it under her foot until it accumulated enough dirt that made it seem as though she had been dragged across a rocky floor. New tears appeared, small ones that evidenced enough of her intention.
Mio doused herself in water from her container and patted dirt every visible place on her body after she pulled on the filthy robe. She created the effect of matted hair, tying knots into it until the mud dried in it.
After dressing, she tossed her bag at Izuna, leaving it in his safekeeping, and secured the shackles around her ankles once she climbed into the back of the wagon. Jouji took care of dragging the merchant and his apprentice out of sight before he and Izuna assumed their identities through a Transformation Jutsu.
Within minutes, they were following the route to their destination with Izuna riding in the back with her. The trip was spent to readdress their plan, ensuring that all that could go wrong didn't by reworking any flaw.
Mio grew nervous once they entered the small village where the pleasure house resided. Jouji guided the wagon through a few narrow streets to reach the establishment through the back where the owners received all of their deliveries. The structure was prominent, located in the farthest end of the town, hidden behind a cluster of similar establishments.
The instant the wagon stopped near The Thousand Crane, its back entrance opened and an older man with a crooked nose stepped out smocking a pipe. Jouji stepped off the wagon to speak with him.
"How many?" the man asked.
"One," answered Jouji.
"One?" the man snapped. "What was the problem this time?"
"That mercenary clan gave me trouble on the way," Jouji told him, succeeding in sounding nervous in his disappointment. "They took two of them from me."
"Something needs to be done about those bastards," the man complained. "They've been stealing from the farmers as well." He sighed. "Well, let me see the girl, see if she was worth the trip."
"Shou!"
Izuna scrambled out of the wagon with the same grace expected of the apprentice and reached for the chains, tugging them lightly so they rattled. Mio slid forward to get off on her own, pretending as if he were pulling her too harshly. She even stumbled on her way off the wagon and made her way clumsily behind Izuna. Jouji took her by the shoulders and pushed her in front of the man, allowing him to stand back to have a look at her.
The man blew a stream of smoke at her face before taking her chin with coarse fingers, lifting it to scrutinize her properly. She could imagine the fear those young women would have experienced in her position, the adrenaline pumping through them at the thought that what their life became was in the hands of another, that it was not their own and would never be from then onward.
She related to that feeling a bit, recalling Ayuka specifically, and it made her more angry than nervous as this strange man touched and patted her at every place imaginable, the humiliation stretching far more than any one of them had anticipated. Then he grasped her by the arm, pulling her to his side, making her stumble over her shackles.
"This one will do fine for the time being." He turned to the door and shouted for another person, a small, old woman with an envelope appeared to hand the payment over to Jouji. He shoved Mio through the door. "She'll need washing."
Mio glimpsed at Jouji and Izuna one last time before she was pushed further inside the establishment. The small woman produced a link of metal keys and crouched down in front of her, reaching for the shackles at her feet to release her from them. Her ankles were believably red after she spent the entire wagon ride scrapping the metal into her flesh until it cut into her skin, leaving deep cuts that stung with each step that she took and dark rings of bruises all around.
She sensed the presence of others within the establishment in the form of curious eyes and low whispers chased with giggling. She saw women that she assumed had once been in the same position as herself, sold into a pleasure house after their villages were raided and they were captured, though not for the exact reason she was there. Unlike her, they didn't have the option to leave whenever they wanted, so they acclimated to the new setting, to the environment.
She imagined they were scared in the beginning, taking in their strange, new surroundings. The back entrance led into a small square of gray stone surrounded by a step to reach the elevated floors made of wood. Apart from the door behind her and the long hallway in front of her, she stood closed in by walls in both sides. The pleasure house's layout seemed simple enough, full of rooms of varying sizes, the largest sitting near the middle and the smallest all around them. There would be at least two large sitting rooms near the front entrance to accommodate bigger groups, a kitchen would come included near the back entrance, and a bathhouse sat next door, conveniently attached to the traditional house.
The man moved to stand behind the sitting woman, the two taking a long, silent interval to look at her before exchanging gazes.
"She's not ugly," the woman said gruffly, tilting her head as if the angle would help her spot a hint of redeeming beauty. "Not beautiful."
"A bit on the lean side, too," added the man, taking her by the wrist to pull her arm up. "It wouldn't hurt to put on some weight, might do you some good." He faced the woman. "I leave her to you. See if you can make sure that she looks good enough to make a profit until we can find someone to replace her."
He walked down the hallway, disappearing after turning a corner.
The old woman grabbed her by the arm, leading her back out the door to the bathhouse next door. Her tone was clipped as she ordered her to strip and wash herself thoroughly in the empty bath.
Mio obliged her without any hesitation. She could act as she assumed others before her had, but that would be safe. She needed to be brazen for this particular act because that would draw the attention she needed to ensure some success in her mission. Someone bold attracted all eyes. She needed to set herself apart from the doe-eyes women that Eishirou normally went for, make herself more believably desirable than the purity in the their grace. She required enough presence to dwarf everyone else's, so that his eyes went straight to her and ensure that they never leave before Izuna's name was dropped to secure their win.
She washed her body thoroughly, shampooed her hair until she was able to undo the knots she had tied into it and scented with the oils provided for her. She was given a set of plain robes to dress into before she was returned to the pleasure house for another critical onceover from the owner.
"I'm Aida," the man introduced, tapping the ash out of his smoking pipe. "Do you have a name?"
"Mio."
"Mio? Just Mio?"
"Just Mio."
Aida dismissed the older woman and gestured to a sitting cushion in front of him. "Have a seat. We're going to talk."
Mio sat down, attempting to seem nervous.
"Where are you from?"
Outright lies were harder to maintain than the truth. Honesty was key to a good cover. All she needed were a few twisted facts.
"I lived in a cottage two miles away from a small marketplace," she answered promptly.
"You lived alone?"
"Yes."
Aida put the pipe between his lips, taking a drag. He kept his gaze steady on her, mindful of her every move, as if he were searching for more than he led on.
"You do understand what type of establishment this is, do you not?" asked Aida.
"Yes."
"For a newcomer, you aren't quite as…inconsolable as the others." He blew out a long string of white smoke. "It's a bit odd."
"This isn't the worst I've endured," said Mio. "So, there is no reason for me to overreact more than I already have."
"Oh? How much worse have you endured?" He moved forward, reaching to brush his fingers across her neck, over the fading marks her husband had given her. She reflexively winced, adverse to his touch. "Were you attacked?"
She closed her eyes, remaining silent.
"You will not be treated any differently from the other women," he said harshly. "You will gain no sympathy from anyone. Whatever happened in the past happened. It has nothing to do with what you will be doing here."
She reopened her eyes.
"You have today to observe," he told her. "You start tomorrow. Make yourself known to the customers tonight. If you are personally requested, I will set you up with a higher rate, and if you can make me a good profit, I'll consider keeping you here."
She inclined her head. "I understand."
Aida called back the older woman and asked to escort her to her accommodations, which she would be sharing with two other girls.
Adjusting wasn't too drastic. Her roommates expressed interest in her, not much, but there was some acknowledgment. One of them was kind enough to warn her of the obvious hierarchy. The highest paid woman in the establishment could do as she wanted, even order the other girls around to do her bidding. The prized courtesan liked to pick on the new girls.
Mio, being the only girl that had been bought in the recent transaction, was walking around The Thousand Cranes with a target on her back. It didn't go unnoticed.
Mio willingly became her lackey for the evening using her status as the most requested girl in the pleasure house to her benefit. She encountered three times the number of customers she would have had she been following any of the other workers in the establishment and did her best to act coy. She smiled when the customers' eyes dared for an instant stray from the beautiful courtesan keeping them company and would lower her eyes, rising gracefully to offer them their privacy.
As Mio acted as the main courtesan's servant, running back and forth from the kitchen to fetch drinks and snacks, she learned Aida had a knack of watching his girls as they wrapped themselves around their customers making them believe they were the only men in their world. He caught her looking in his direction and smirked, moving to her.
"You sparked some interest," he told her. "You certainly know how to sell yourself."
"Your first mistake was doubting that I couldn't," Mio said, brazenly running her forefinger up the curve of his neck to his chin. She offered him a playful smile. This was her element. Being someone she wasn't. It came easy for her to become this woman that piqued the interests of men. "I know what men want."
She watched him swallow hard, but he never lost his cool. "We should have a drink."
Mio accompanied him to a private sitting room to share alcohol. She humored him. She allowed him to box her in against the wall with his body and for his hands to touch the curve of her waist. She didn't bother playing coy with this man. He was bored with coy. It showed.
She redirected his attention back to the drinks when it seemed he would kiss her. He invited her to sit beside him where he could keep his hand on her thigh, drumming his fingers over it to make sure she never forgot it was there.
Aida's attention was on her Time Sphere. She hadn't take it off, but had made sure to cut back on the amount of chakra flowing to the artifacts to make the mist inside it freeze and coat every inch of the glass orb's surface to give it the appearance of a fine jewel.
He reached to touch it, but she caught his hand. "That is an interesting necklace."
"It's an old family heirloom."
"An expensive looking one."
"If I could have profited from it, I would have sold it years ago."
"You might not have been pitching it to the right people."
"Perhaps." She smiled, releasing his hand. "Should I pour you another drink?"
She poured him a drink, taking advantage of his gaze rapt on her face to use the opportunity to empty the powdered contents of a packet inside the bottle. It was sleeping powder guaranteed to knock him out within seconds of consumption. He would sleep through the night and she would take care of the rest.
Aida was caressing her neck when he drank down his drink while his other hand slid between her legs, moving up. He wasn't much of a conversationalist, which worked in her favor as she wasn't interested in talking to him any more than she already had. She noted the effects of the drug showing in his somnolent gaze and cupped his face in her hands, moving towards him to make the last thing he recalled her trying to kiss him.
He dropped down beside her with a loud thud. She tugged his hand out from between her legs and cast it aside. Quickly, she worked on preparing the scene for tomorrow morning. She found extra bedding in the sitting room's closet and spread it across the tatami. She helped him out of his clothes and moved him onto the futon before removing her own robes to join him.
She spent the night pinching her neck and chest to create fresh bruises to show for a passionate night. When morning came, Mio heard him stir, groaning as he shifted over the futon. He grumbled a complaint, something about his head, before he let out a low hum. He touched her shoulder, running his hand down her length of her arm as he rose to hover over her while she pretended to sleep. He made a contented sound before leaning down to kiss her neck.
Aida redressed, leaving her to continue resting. Outside, he encountered the old woman, who questioned his actions.
"What do you gain from this? Men like unspoiled women. They pay more for them and you go around sampling them all. Think before you act, you fool."
"Drop it," Aida dismissed. "Have her prepared for tonight? She'll be on display with the other girls."
Once Aida walked away, the old woman returned to wake her.
"Don't think you're special," she advised, throwing her clothes into Mio's arms. "It won't give you an advantage over the other girls and it won't guarantee your stay. He does this with all of them. Get dressed. Breakfast will be served in half an hour. Up front." She gestured to the door, particularly the hallway beyond it. "Take a right to the end and another right. The room will be the last one to your left."
Mio stood to pull on her clothes, nodding.
"I will have robes prepared for you for the evening. You will be displayed tonight. If you bring in a good profit, your stay here could very well be secured."
"How much is a good profit?" asked Mio, curious.
"You will find that out for yourself." The old woman said it in a way that made it seem she wouldn't measure up. She didn't seem to be the type to agree with anyone. She probably hated every girl in the establishment, as Mio would later learn that not one of them was treated any differently.
This was a waiting game for Mio. She made it through the first night, getting past the next few was the goal.
Mio successfully made it to breakfast. She took a seat beside the women she shared a room with, both were engaging in conversation with another woman. As the room was alive with gossip and giggling, Mio found her appetite lacking. Even so, she tried to eat a little to keep her body moving. She didn't get a wink of sleep because she was too busy keeping Aida asleep through the night, so she needed to stay busy.
Admittedly, her mind was working on overdrive. Thoughts of her and Madara's last conversation resurfaced in her memory. She didn't like that they weren't on good terms and she knew it was her fault. She needed to be more honest with him. She needed to trust him with her knowledge and tell him what she had done because of it. She needed him to understand that everything would be fine despite it all.
She should have gone to him from the start.
He was her husband.
She didn't talk to him because she was afraid. Terrified the conversation would be exactly what it had become when she told him that Izuna was a Guardian. She didn't know how he would react to know the truth. He'd call her stupid, reckless, and thoughtless. She knew she was all those things, but she wasn't thinking about the present anymore. She was looking out for the future. For their children. For their grandchildren. Their great-grandchildren. A world beyond theirs.
Where could she start? Where had she started?
It began after she learned of Kiyohime's hidden temple from Ayuka. That prompted her journey. She had to see whether it existed or didn't. She supposed that would be a good place to begin when the opportunity to tell him arose.
Evening came and the grand scheme began.
The Thousand Cranes was bright with lights as customers started to pour inside. Aida ordered Mio to bring drinks. His ulterior motives weren't unnoticed. She suspected he wanted to try to bed her again with the way he was looking at her while avoiding alcohol. She overheard him rejecting a man's request of her company and wondered if he planned to turn away all interest in her. That would certainly complicate things for their plan.
"Two more bottles of sake," a courtesan said, slipping into the room to join her. She leaned against the counter beside Mio. "They're shinobi, so be polite. They're in the red sitting room."
Finally.
Mio grabbed another two bottles of sake and put them atop the wooden tray. "Do you get shinobi often?"
"Oh, definitely. Some of them are just starved for female affection," the courtesan said, fanning her face. "It's a bit frightening at first. I mean, when you hear the things some of these men are capable of, it's really not surprising that you'd be afraid if one wants to spend the night with you, but they're like any other men. It's not any different."
"You thought it would be different?" asked Mio, humoring her to waste time.
"Wouldn't you?"
"They're human, like you and I."
"Yes, but most aren't even regarded as such. Not as shinobi. That fact alone separates them from the rest of us."
Mio grimaced.
"You don't have to worry about Izuna-kun, though. He's the exception."
"Izuna-kun?"
"Yes, Izuna-kun." She pursed her lips. "You know, I think it's a bit odd that he's even here. He's been a regular for a while, but he hasn't come around for over half a year. All the girls are fawning over him. You'd be lucky if he picks you. He's really good with his mouth."
"What? Like a kisser?"
The courtesan laughed. "Well, yes, I guess you can say that too."
Mio wanted to wipe her memory as she awkwardly took the tray into her hands and walked out the door briskly. The courtesan pursued her with ringing laughter.
"You are quite innocent, but I suppose that's expected from someone new. Have you even been with a man before?"
It wasn't innocence. She just learned something she wished she hadn't. "Is that relevant?"
"Huh? Relevant? Well, it helps if you have been. If you haven't been with anyone you have a better chance to paying off a chunk of your debt." The courtesan came into view, a grin spreading across her lips. "Oh, but there's a rumor going around that you slept with Aida-san."
"That isn't a rumor. I did sleep with him."
Next to him at least.
"Ugh, he has a terrible reputation with seducing the new girls. Seriously, he's so gross, why would you even let him touch you?"
Mio shrugged. Letting him pretend he had his grimy hands all over her brought her the benefit of avoiding other customers until Izuna showed, hoping that he would find a way to convince Aida to let him spend the night with her. Aida seemed like the sort that would cave to money, given the fact that he was running this sort of establishment and buying girls from a seedy merchant. If Izuna offered him the right amount of money, things could go smoothly. If he refused, Izuna could threaten to kill him. That would do, too.
The courtesan left her side after a minute of walking, taking a bottle of sake from her tray before entering a room where a male customer waited for her return.
Mio went on distributing small bottles of sake to every customer, going from room to room until she reached the red sitting room in the middle of a long hallway. She recognized Aida's voice drifting from within before she opened it to reveal him sitting in front of Izuna and Jouji. There were four courtesans sitting around the two, each one trying to outshine the others without making it obvious.
She walked forward after closing the door, kneeling down beside Izuna to offer him a bottle of sake that he took with a grateful nod. He took extra care in staring at her a bit longer than what was considered normal, while she acted oblivious handing alcohol to his bespectacled companion. The last bottle she left for Aida and took a seat to the man's left to pour his drink for him.
"Is this a new girl?" asked Izuna, curious.
"She isn't working tonight," responded Aida.
"Really? And I really wanted to get to know her," he lamented, his mock tone prompted the courtesans at his side to comfort him.
One woman put her hands on his arm. "Don't worry, Izuna-sama, we're here for you."
Another curled her dainty hand over his shoulder. "Yes, Izuna-sama, we'll take good care of you."
Mio couldn't help but notice that he was enjoying the attention and glared at him.
"Everyone has a price," Jouji said, pouring a drink for himself.
"You don't want Mio," said Aida, his eyes wandering to the other women in the room. "Not when you have so many others to choose from."
"Don't worry, I'm only here for a drink," Izuna said, eyes flickering to hers, though the fact that she was still grimacing made him turn away quickly. "I haven't decided whether to spend the night or not, but"—he paused, taking on the challenge of giving her something of a lecherous look that made her skin crawl—"I might change my mind."
When Aida took his eyes off him, Izuna mouthed an apology to her. His discomfort was obvious. She noticed it then.
Perhaps, this part of the mission was too much for him. If that was the case, he should have left it all to her. She was certain that without his help, she could have found a way to get under Eishirou's skin. They would have managed somehow.
"Go." Aida waved his hand at Mio, dismissing her.
Mio inclined her head, picking up the empty tray, and stood to leave. She lingered in the hallway in silence, eavesdropping on snippets of the conversation.
"…wouldn't deny…from me…"
"…is new…possibly be gained from…amateur."
A door slid apart up ahead and a woman peered out, catching sight of her and beckoning her with her hand. Mio walked to her.
"I need you to bring me a futon," the woman whispered. "Bring it quickly."
Mio hurried to the storage in the back of the establishment to retrieve a fresh futon from one of the closets and returned to the woman, leaving it in her hands.
She walked back to the kitchen where she remained for the most part of the evening, leaving only to distribute more bottles of sake to each room that requested it, and washing the dishes. She started to doubt that Izuna was capable of convincing Aida. He might have decided to leave that for another night, so she went out back to pick herbs from around a garden she spotted on the trip over. She brought back some with her and ground them into powder when the old woman appeared at the door.
"What are you doing?" she asked, trying to peer over the counter to look.
"Herbs for cooking."
"Forget that," the old woman ordered. "You've got a customer."
She blinked, assuming the role of a surprised girl, which only seemed to aggravate the woman. "A customer?"
"Did you think you were hired here as a servant?" the woman asked pointedly. "Get out of there and follow me! You should at least look decent!"
Mio glimpsed at her outfit.
"Hurry up!"
She didn't understand the point of wearing finer robes to have them removed. Men weren't there to appreciate the expensive silk or admire the elaborate hairstyles, they were there to sleep with a woman. She didn't question it. The old woman barely tolerated her act, if she started asking what would be viewed as stupid questions, she'd like her less. She wanted her stay to be comfortable.
Mio entered a private room where Izuna sat waiting, looking serious with a cup of sake in his hand. Aware the old woman stood outside, Mio sank into a respectful bow and introduced herself.
"Come sit closer," Izuna said, placing a seat cushion in front of him.
She waited. A creak in the hallway reached her ears when the woman walked away. She went to take her seat in front of him.
"Want a drink?" asked Izuna, offering her the bottle. "We're going to be here a while."
"Aida likes to watch."
"I know."
"It could be problematic, but if we simulate—"
"Mio, have a drink with me."
Stunned by his interruption, Mio nodded dumbly and obliged him. She allowed him to pour her a cup of sake and took a sip. She didn't want to get drunk.
Izuna was strangely quiet watching the ripples in the rice wine.
"This is too much for you," said Mio.
His eyes lifted to hers. "I didn't think this through completely."
"I trust you."
His grip on his cup tightened, gaze lowered to it as he brought it to his lips to drink. "You don't understand, Mio."
She tilted her head to the side, unconscious of the action. "I know."
He looked at her, really looked at her and she understood that she didn't at all.
"I'm sorry."
"No." Izuna shook his head. "I'm sorry. We should get things ready in case Aida decides to show up and pry."
Mio nodded. She left her seat after handing her drink to Izuna and slid open the closet, drawing out the futon. She went to an empty space in the room to spread it out.
"You're very popular here," she said, attempting at small talk.
Izuna sputtered. "A-Am not!"
"How often did you say you came here?"
"It's not polite to ask those questions, Mio."
"It's not like I'll tell Madara." She smoothed over the blanket after folding it. She patted it. "Come sit here. We should be ready."
Izuna emptied the contents of both their cups before going over to join her, taking a seat atop the futon. He teetered a bit, but that was likely due to a little tipsiness. "I'm not worried that you'd tell him."
"Because I wouldn't," she assured.
"I know th—" Izuna tensed.
She heard the sound of approaching footsteps and looked in that direction. She turned back to him as his hand went to her cheek and saw hesitation in his expression.
"You have to act like you are with any other woman."
"But it's you!"
"Yes, and you must ignore that."
Izuna frowned. He dropped his hand to her shoulder and pushed her down, rising onto his knees to hover over her. He caught her off guard despite her knowing that something like this would happen. She didn't expect there to be a need to go so far initially, but after finding out that Aida tended to watch she knew they would have to make things believable. She trusted him enough to know he wouldn't take advantage of the situation and would only go as far as she was comfortable.
"It's hard to ignore," he whispered, his face so close to hers she could feel his breath on her.
It felt like he might kiss her and it scared her to think he might. "Why?"
That angered him. His hand went to her face. "Why is it that you're the one that doesn't understand it?" he questioned lowly, as the footsteps vanished in the background. It wasn't Aida. "I've been in love with you for years now."
Her heart jolted. She averted her gaze, uncomfortable with the subject. "That isn't relevant. This is a mission. We have a job."
"And that's why I said I didn't think this through," he admitted. "I think I just imagined it would be different. That we would talk and drink and sleep, but…we don't do that anymore. We don't talk. Not like before."
It astounded her to realize it was true. As much as she tried to remember a time where they had sat down like before where she was able to share her most intimate thoughts without question in the most recent years, she found there was nothing like that.
"…So you can't say what's irrelevant when you don't know yourself," he finished strongly. "You can't make assumptions from what you see."
Her heartrate quickened. What good would an apology be at that point? What would she even be apologizing for? Did she ignore his feelings completely? Was it like Madara said? Had she been taking advantage of his feelings? Had she been so cruel and blind that she neglected to notice they had not gone away? Had she made that part up to make it easier to accept her relationship with Madara, despite their combined guilt?
"I'm happy you're with Madara, don't think I'm not. He's my brother, he's great, but…why?" It pained her to watch his expression sadden. His fingers brushed against her cheek. "Why couldn't it be me? Madara is your future. That was all you said. That was supposed to explain everything, but it didn't. That wasn't a good explanation for me. I expected more, but there wasn't. We should have talked. We should have gotten through this. It didn't have to be so hard. It shouldn't have been so difficult to see you two married."
Her eyes stung, voice breaking. "I'm sorry."
That wasn't enough. She didn't know what he went through. She assumed everything was fine because his attitude hadn't changed. He set his sights on other women. She saw the way he was around that apprentice girl. They looked quite friendly.
It was as he said, though.
She was making assumptions based on what she saw.
She didn't know what was going on in his mind or happening in his heart.
"I'm sorry," she repeated, attempting to steady her voice. She found it shaky and terribly difficult to control. "The truth is that I don't know. I don't know why it couldn't be you. I asked myself so many times and I couldn't find a reason. I loved you more than my own life, so there must have been something wrong with me. I just…I wanted you to be happy…but I didn't think I could make you happy." She refused to give into her tears. "I'm sorry for hurting you this way. I'm sorry for being a horrible friend. I'm sorry for overlooking your feelings. I'm sorry for allowing you to put yourself in this situation and for not noticing why you've been uncomfortable. I should have known better. I should have been looking out for you better. I'm supposed to be your friend. I'm sorry for loving him. I'm sorry for loving Madara."
He smiled sadly. "You don't have to apologize for loving Madara. He would have probably died an old cranky man if you didn't love him."
Mio covered her face, sobbing into her hands. Her heart was sensitive to the mention of Madara after their fight. She needed to be professional and forget about it, but it cut her deep to know that they weren't talking when they parted ways.
"Wait, no, that wasn't supposed to make you cry." Izuna took her hands by the wrists, tugging gently. "Mio."
She shook her head. "It's nothing. This is about you. We don't have to do anything. I'll find another way to make our objective happen."
"Did he make you sad? You know I suspected as much when he suddenly decided to stay with me. What did he do? I'll make sure to punch him for you when we see him again. I'll make it look like an accident too, like my hand slipped or something."
"It was my fault," she admitted. "I told him something that I should have told him a long time ago and he just…he just—"
She burst into tears.
Izuna panicked, searching his person for anything to help wipe the snot from her nose when they heard that creak in the hallway, which sent them both in a tizzy.
Aida.
They were already on the futon. She was on her back and Izuna was hovering over her. The position was compromising, but not enough for time they had spent inside already.
She wiped her tears with the sleeve of her robe. "We need to think of something fast."
"We can't think of anything on the spot. Let's go with the original plan. I promise not to look," Izuna said hurriedly. "You're going to have to lose your robes."
After the conversation she was a little self-conscious about being naked in his presence, but tugged off her sash. He moved to sit on his haunches, pulling his shirt off and throwing it aside.
She undressed completely.
It was a bit awkward for them to be even remotely naked, but nothing could top the feeling of simulating sexual relations. He kept his hands at her waist mostly and his face buried in her neck, positioning his body well to conceal her nakedness underneath him, which she appreciated knowing Aida was peeking through the aperture in the doors. Making believable noises was probably the worst part.
Aida left after several minutes.
Izuna dropped onto the empty space beside her. He draped his arm over his eyes and sighed.
Mio pulled on her robe and turned over on her side, lying beside him with her arm cushioning her head. New tears stung in her eyes. She felt sad about her situation with Madara, but she felt worse about what she had done to Izuna.
"How can you even be kind to me…?" she asked sadly.
"Nothing you could do could make me hate you, Mio," Izuna said softly. "You could trample over my feelings for you and it wouldn't be enough to make me hate you."
"I feel like I did trample over your feelings." A tear slid down the side of her face. "I don't think I took your feelings as seriously as I should have. I should have acknowledged them properly. I owed you that much and I failed." Her lips quivered. "I don't know what I was thinking. I don't know if I thought staying away meant you would heal or forget. It—"
"I couldn't stop thinking about you," Izuna interrupted, his voice thin. "It was painful to think of you, to remember the way you looked that day, standing so determined as you stubbornly said that Madara was your future. I remember feeling so jealous that I punched Madara when I saw him again. I was jealous whenever I saw you both together, even if you were just sitting next to each other and talking, even though I knew there was nothing happening between you two because you were worried about my feelings. So, you can't say that you didn't take my feelings seriously. It took you three years to marry my brother and I had to orchestrate it. You both would have faster agreed to political marriages than what you have now because you were too concerned about my feelings."
He removed his arm from his face, looking to her. "Even now you're crying because of my feelings."
She wished she could change the way things hand panned out. She wished she could have been a little more honest about her feelings to Izuna, who had been her first and most trusted friend.
"Sometimes I wish it could have been me, rather I wonder what it would feel like if you would have chosen me," he continued, a humoring smile on his face. "I wished I could have made you happy. More than any other man could."
Mio shed more tears, biting back sobs. That night days before the ceremony when Izuna had told Madara that he had been jealous that she had picked her, she had thought it had been his way of clearing his brother's mind of doubt. She hadn't suspected that his words had been truthful. It pained her to realize this now.
"I still think about those things sometimes, but not like before," he said distantly. "I wonder it mostly about other people. Sometimes I don't think I have the capacity to love someone like I do you. It seems impossible, but sometimes…"
He paused, looking away from her with a forlorn expression.
He didn't finish his thought. He left it hanging there between them, bodiless but full of emotion.
"I hope you do," Mio said, sniffling, "because I know you can. Your heart is too big and too kind not to. And one day, there will be someone out there that deserves you. And I hope they make you happy. So much more happier than I could have ever made you." She wiped at her eyes. "But thank you, Izuna. Thank you for loving me for all this time, as deeply as you have. You were my first friend. I loved you first, though it wasn't like you deserved to be loved. I love you now. I don't want our friendship to suffer anymore. I want to be able to talk to you again. I want you to talk to me. I want to know what you see and how you see it. I want you to tell me about the people you meet. I want to know everything."
Izuna smiled, nodding. "Friends then?"
"Yes."
"Okay, now, I'm going to hug you and we're not going to be weird about any of this," Izuna said, turning on his side to wrap an arm around him. She reached out to embrace him tightly. "And you're going to stop crying because you'll wet the pillow and catch a cold. Eishirou is not going to want to own you with snot coming out of your nose."
She laughed.
"I'm going to tell Madara I kissed you the entire night when we meet up," Izuna said, drawing away. His smile was teasing. "He's going to hit me because no matter how angry he is with you, he's never going to give you up to anyone. He's probably agonizing about not having you near and knowing that all sorts of unscrupulous men are looking at you like they want to eat you."
She didn't think she could ask him not to tease Madara because he wouldn't. "We only need Eishirou looking at me."
"That's the plan."
"So, all the women want to know why you haven't been coming as often as before," Mio said, watching his smile turn into a grimace.
"It's terrible to gossip, Mio."
"Is it gossiping if I am not partaking in it?"
"You are gossiping now because you're telling me what the girls said about me."
"What? Then how do you distinguish what is gossip from simply relaying information?" asked Mio, utterly floored by his statement.
"You don't. You have to just acknowledge that you have been gossiping just as much as Yayoi and Takuto combined."
She grimaced, but Izuna was quick to coax a laugh out of her with a joke. They spent most of the night talking nonsense until he told her they had been gossiping the entire night and she decided that it was time to sleep.
The following morning Mio woke to find herself alone in bed. She didn't know whether Izuna spent the night or not. After their conversation, Mio felt the wall between them had broken. It would take more time before they would be okay, but this was a start.
The old woman startled her as Mio was putting the futon away inside the closet. "The shinobi requested you again tonight. Aida is pleased." She was about to go, but looked to her. "You're to take care of the laundry today, so go out back and start working."
Mio immersed herself in that day's chores.
Aida had taken the bait. All that was left to do was wait for Eishirou's overdue visit to arrive, but she learned she wouldn't have long to wait.
"Lord Eishirou's attendant dropped in this afternoon," Aida told the old woman in the privacy of his sitting room. "He says he will be returning for another girl this week."
Mio, who had been eavesdropping outside the room, retreated from the partly open door. She returned to her chores before either Aida or the old woman took the time to check outside to see whether or not someone was listening.
Once Eishirou appeared, things would either unfolding nicely or with great difficult. She didn't care so long as she was able to get this portion of the job done.
xl: For what it's worth, I think this filler-ish chapter served it's purpose...at least in an emotional standpoint. Most of these things are going to come around full circle at the end of this arc, so I guess they're not as filler-ish as I think.
I think we should all just like take a time machine to the future and get the end of the arc so we can just enjoy it as a whole.
This chapter also drops more clues about what Mio did. Hur hur hur. I was excited adding them in.
Thank you Loteva, Melissa Fairy, Flame Core, and blob80 for reviewing! Thank you everyone else if you recently added this to your fav/alert list! :)
I haven't started writing the next chapter because I know things and they make me sad.
Plus, I'm trying to finish Empress.
Blame Empress.
Seriously.
I'm going now. I have to sleep. I've been decorating my mom's house for my sister's birthday party later today. I was going to say Saturday, but it's 5AM. I'm co-hosting. So it's going to be hella hard for me to finish my essay, but whatever.
I also apologize for delays. I've had a couple rough weeks. My health was bad. It's better now, but I caught a cold earlier this week.
I'll post a preview of the next chapter as soon as I have a good chunk of it written. You'll be able to find that in my journal when it's available. :)
Thank you for reading!
PS - I'm sorry Izuna is still sort of in love with Mio. He never got any real closure. :'( He just kind of got a lot of women...
Also, I apologize because this was supposed to be a lighter chapter than it was...
