Chapter 16: Arrival of the ninja
The two soldiers outside Masamune's chamber did not need sleep. They did not need anyone else to replace them either. Orochi's men were loyal in their duties. So it really wasn't much surprise to Tiger, as she watched from the shadows, when the two soldiers did not move an inch. Tiger had seen Sima Yi walk past twice before finally retiring to his own room. Tiger waited for a few minutes before striking.
--
Zhen jolted a little when she heard the sound of two dead bodies hitting the floor. The thump hadn't been very loudly but both Zhen and Masamune heard it all the same. The dragon placed his helmet on his head as Zhen reclaimed some of the bags. They waited silently in the dark.
Suddenly the lock clicked and the door slowly opened. Tiger bowed her head as the bodies of the soldiers lay behind her. "My lord. Zhen. We should move post-haste." The ninja whispered. Masamune made the final check on everything before disappearing into the corridor. Zhen stopped by Tiger briefly and handed her sister Lu Xun's hat.
"Azumi...please give this to Lord Lu Xun." Zhen whispered. Tiger nodded her head, gently taking the item from the chinese bodyguard. Zhen smiled before darting off to follow Masamune. Tiger placed the hat in her sash and then proceeded to drag the dead bodies inside Masamune's chamber.
--
Masamune kept his ears open as he listened for any sound. Although it was the dead of night, there would be soldiers making their rounds. As they were about to round one corner, Zhen grabbed Masamune's arm and yanked him back. "Zhen?" Masamune whispered. Zhen placed a finger to her lips and then pointed to the corridor. Masamune gasped wordlessly and flatened himself against the wall as a soldier walked past.
When the soldier was gone, Masamune nodded his thanks and the pair continued on their way.
--
Lu Xun sat close to the bars of his prison cell. He had seen two soldiers walking past and both were members of Orochi's army. They growled in sheer enjoyment of Lu Xun's fate but said nothing to the chinese warrior. Both of them figured that he wouldn't be much conversation anyway. Lu Xun sighed a little to himself and waited. He trusted Masamune completely. After all there was no reason for the dragon to betray him.
"Hey! What are you doing down here?"
Lu Xun sat up straighter before climbing to his feet. Whoever had turned up was not high on the soldier's favourtie list. That and it was very late for Lu Xun to get visitors. Lu Xun jumped a little when something hit the floor with a heavy thump. The second soldier charged at the unknown person before they too met the same fate. Lu Xun strained his hearing a little, listening out for any sign of the unknown warrior.
"Lord Lu Xun. Are you alright?"
He hadn't heard her one bit and Lu Xun jumped backed. Tiger smiled a little. "I'm sorry my lord." she whispered. Lu Xun returned her smile and shook his head.
"It's fine Tiger." Lu Xun paused when he caught something gold and red tied to Tiger's sash. "What's that? Is that...Is that my hat?" he inquried, pointing to the object. Tiger paused in her action of unlocking Lu Xun's cell and looked down at the item in her sash. Tiger scolded herself for getting all about it and quickly untied it. She dusted the hat down and slipped it through the bars of the cell. Lu Xun nodded his thanks and took hold of the hat. "Where did you find it?"
"Zhen found it when she returned the place of the ambush. She asked me to return it to you." Tiger replied, her eyes locked onto her task. The lock gave a dull click and the cell door opened with a small squeak. Lu Xun stared at Tiger.
"Zhen?" Lu Xun's face lit up at the sound of his bodyguard's name. "Have you found her? Is she alive?" He questioned quickly. Tiger said nothing as she handed Lu Xun his weapons and pulled him out of the cell.
"We must hurry." was the only reply Lu Xun got as Tiger hurried to the left. The Chinese warrior wasted no time in following and caught up effortlessly. Deep down he knew that Zhen was alive and well. The pair came to a stop in front of what looked like a normal brick wall. If the door was there, neither could see in the dark. Tiger traced her fingers along the wall. She smiled when she felt the out-line of the door and fumbled quickly to find the handle. When she did, the ninja wasted no time in opening the door.
The pair burst out into the cold air.
--
Lu Xun had barely gotten out of the prison when he was hugged tightly by Zhen Shao. "Lord Lu Xun!" she cried, burying her face in his chest. Lu Xun returned the hug before Zhen pulled away. "You're not hurt are you my lord?" Lu Xun shook his head. Although he was in fact hurt, Lu Xun did not want to worry Zhen further. "I'm so sorry. I should have been more helpful. I should..." Lu Xun placed two fingers against Zhen's lips to silence her.
"It's not your fault Zhen. None of this has been your fault." He told her firmly. Zhen nodded her head and darted to the second borrowed horse. Masamune walked over to Lu Xun. The pair embraced each other tightly. "Thank you for looking after Zhen for me." Lu Xun whispered in Masamune's chest. Masamune smiled.
"No problem." The dragon pulled away a little and checked the area around them. So far everything was going to plan. "Come on. We've gotta get out of here." Masamune reminded. Lu Xun nodded his head and walked over to his horse. The two warriors mounted their horses and took off into the night.
--
Da Ji woke suddenly.
She couldn't explain why but something was bothering her. There was a buring sensation in the back of her head. The demon fox frowned deeply and sat up. The night was cool, Da Ji could easily tell as her windows were open. Her silk curtains moved slowly in the breeze. Da Ji pulled her satin covers from her body and got changed. She needed to find out what was bugging her. She was missing her beauty sleep damn it!
Once the fox was changed, Da Ji headed towards her chamber door then paused. Nothing moved. Shaking her head, Da Ji opened the door and stepped out into the corridor. The burning sensation was getting on her nerves badly now as she made her way to Masamune's room. The sun was just starting to peek over the horizon but Da Ji paid little mind to it as she came closer to Masamune's room. Even in the dim light she could tell that the guards were no longer at their posts.
"Where the hell could they be? I asked them to do one simple job and this is what I get? Can't even guard a half-blind kid for..." Da Ji trailed off when she entered Masamune's room. She first saw the two dead bodies of the guards. There was no sign of Masamune or Tiger anywhere.
Come to think of it...there was nothing in the room that belonged to them.
Da Ji backed out of the room and tore down the corridor to find Sima Yi.
--
Masamune had been strangely quiet during the ride to the castle. While Tiger was use to her lord's silent periods, Lu Xun and Zhen were a tad worried. Zhen looked up at the sky, noticing that it was tainted pink and gold. "Masamune...is everything all right?" Lu Xun questioned breaking through Masamune's thinking. The dragon jolted a little before smiling at Lu Xun. The warrior in red slowly returned it.
"Tiger, go on ahead. I need you to inform the unit at the castle that we're arriving." Tiger nodded her head and took off quickly into the forest. "I've been thinking Lu Xun. Da Ji and Sima Yi would come looking for the castle first. They know my unit is here, they know this will be the first place we'd go." Masamune explained sadly. Zhen bit her lip, trying hard not to let her emotions get the better of her.
"Then perhaps we should find somewhere else quickly. We can easily rest up at the castle while a scouting troop looks around for another location." Lu Xun suggested. Masamune's face lit up, as a the smile on his face reached from ear to ear.
"Lu Xun, you're brilliant!" Masamune exclaimed. Lu Xun blushed slightly, a small pink tint staining his cheeks. "Come on, we'd better hurry." Masamune dug his horse in the ribs, ordering the beast to run. Lu Xun did the same and the two warriors darted off closer to the castle. Zhen Shao caught up effortlessly.
--
"But where could he have gone? None of this makes sense."
Mitsuhide could do nothing but watch as his friend Hideyoshi pacing feverishly. "Hideyoshi-san please sit down. We'll figure this all out." Mitsuhide ordered. The Monkey warrior paused and regarded the other warrior. After a while Hideyoshi sat down, rubbing his forehead. "Now. How long has it been since you've seen Lu Xun?" Mitsuhide inquried. Hideyoshi frowned a little.
"Two days."
Mitsuhide nodded his head. Although he was worried about the disappearance of the wu warrior, Mitsuhide knew he had to keep a level head at the moment. "Where was the last place you saw him?" Mitsuhide watched as Hideyoshi twitched slightly.
"I didn't see Lu Xun per say. I went with Lord Nobunaga to speak with Lu Xun but we found Zhen Shao outside his chamber. She told us that Lu Xun was sleeping. Lord Nobunaga didn't want to disturb him but I had my doubts. We left his bodyguard alone and carried on with other duties." Hideyoshi explained. "He couldn't have run away! He told me he was happy fighting for Lord Nobunaga."
It was now Mitsuhide's turn to frown. "There is another reason. Lu Xun has been a little obsessed with Date Masamune. You heard him yourself Hideyoshi-san. Lu Xun wished to set Masamune free from Orochi's control." Mitsuhide shrugged his shoulders. "He may have gone to find Masamune and bring him here." Hideyoshi panicked slightly.
"But...what if he got caught?" Hideyoshi suddenly questioned. Neither warrior said anything.
--
Masamune rubbed his eyes as he sat down on the side on the bed. Behind him, Lu Xun was still fast asleep. Masamune glanced over to the golden eyed boy and smiled. Lu Xun was slightly tangeled in the sheets. Shaking his head a little, Masamune turned his attention to the window of the chamber. It had been a crazy couple of days and the dragon knew things were going to get even more crazy.
But...what will happen once we're safe? There is no way we can ever escape war. Will we defeat Orochi for our own purpose? Masamune mused as he moved to window. The morning breeze felt good, almost making Masamune forget all about his worries.
"My lord!"
Masamune looked down to see Zhen. "Is something wrong Zhen?" Masamune called down. He hoped he hadn't woke Lu Xun up. The heavens knew that he deserved the sleep. Zhen pointed to something in the distance. At first panic rose in Masamune's throat. They couldn't be here already!
"The scouting party has returned. They say they may have found a place for us." Zhen relaid. Masamune let out a sigh of relief and nodded his head. "Shall I fetch lord Lu Xun?" Zhen inquried. Masamune shook his head.
"No, it's okay. Go with Tiger and take the party to the main hall. I will join shortly with Lu Xun." Masamune responded. Zhen nodded her head and quickly disappeared. Masamune remained where he was for sometime. They now had somewhere else to go. At least somethings were looking up.
"Masamune? Was that Zhen?"
Masamune glanced over to the bed to find Lu Xun rubbing sleep from his eyes. Masamune nodded his head as he moved to sit on the edge of the bed once again. "Yeah. She said that the scouting party has returned. We have another place to go." Masamune informed. Lu Xun smiled as he rubbed his arm. "Something wrong?" Masamune inquried. Lu Xun waved it off.
"Arm's gone numb. I think I slept on it funny." he muttered. Lu Xun sat up further. "So things are looking up for us." Lu Xun dared to suggested. Masamune shruggedd.
"So far." There was a slight pause. "Come on, we'd better get going to the main hall otherwise Zhen is gonna wonder where we are." Masamune chuckled. He lent forward quickly, kissing Lu Xun's forehead and then stood up. Lu Xun blushed a bright scarlet colour before following Masamune.
--
Sima Yi felt his anger reaching dangerous heights. Not only had he been rudely intrupted by Da Ji that morning, but now he had discovered that his soon to be toy had disappeared with Masamune. The Wei warrior watched as Da Ji paced her room. "Well? What should we do? Lord Orochi will..."
"...be happy that this has happened." Da Ji cut in quickly. "Don't forget, our lord loves challenges like this." The fox smiled at Sima Yi who continued to scowl to himself. Da Ji's smirk got wider and she walked closer to the warrior. "Don't be upset Sima Yi. You and I both know they have only one place left to go." she giggled. Sima Yi's eyes lit up.
"The castle."
Da Ji nodded her head. "Of course. Masamune's unit is there. The four of them won't be able to fight us on their own." Da Ji reminded. Sima Yi nodded his head. He watched as Da Ji sat down on her bed. "We should be quick if we want to catch them. Leaving them alone in that castle for too long will be a bad move." Da Ji commented. She inspected her nails closely as Saim Yi chuckled behind his fan.
"But if we leave them there long enough to get too comfortable...we can catch them off guard." He pointed out. Da Ji regarded Sima Yi, a pearl white fang dipping low over her bottom lip. She smiled as she lent back a little.
"Just what I had in mind. Lu Xun's fate is left solely to you of course. Masamune will have to die as a traitor." Da Ji sat up again. "Besides. It would be more tragic if Lu Xun had to watch his beloved die in front of him." The fox burst out laughing. Sima Yi raised an eyebrow at the demon.
"And what makes you say that?" he inquried. Da Ji stopped laughing and stared at Sima Yi in mock shock. Sima Yi felt a little crept out and snorted dryly at her.
"Oh please Sima Yi, don't be so naive! Surely you would have guessed that those two have taken things further in that hastly made relationship of theirs. Something sexual must have happened if both ran away together." Da Ji scoffed. Sima Yi frowned slightly and eyed the floor.
"It is not in my nature to touch something that's second hand." he growled lowly. Da Ji chuckled to herself and climbed off her bed. Sima Yi watched as she slowly made her way towards him.
"Then the only option left is to kill him if you don't want him." Da Ji noticed the heated look Sima Yi was giving her and took a step back. "...Or maybe you still do. Who am I to judge." she shrugged.
--
Ling Tong shook his head as he took in the information. Every officer had been called into a meeting. Nobunaga had not said anything leaving the explaining to Mitsuhide and Hideyoshi. The monkey warrior had said nothing. "That's not like Lu Xun. Not like him at all." Ling Tong mumbled. Xiao Qiao nodded her head quickly.
"Yeah! Lu Xun wouldn't just leave without a good reason or a plan." she agreed. Glancing over to Hideyoshi, the younger Qiao sister noticed how crest-fallen the said warrior was. Mitsuhide held up his hands so he could speak.
"Lu Xun does have a plan. He has gone to seek out a warrior known as Date Masamune." Mitsuhide added. Huang Zhong raised an aging eyebrow. Other warriors seemed just as confused as well while Nobunaga took everything in with a bemused smile on his face. "Masamune and Lu Xun have been enemies for some time. I believe that Lu Xun has gone to turn Masamune to our side." The elder Shu warrior quickly agreed.
"It would make perfect sense. That Masamune kid would be an added bonus to our cause." Suddenly Hideyoshi spoke up causing everyone to turn to him. The monkey warrior did not look at anyone as he studied the floor.
"But Lu Xun has not returned for two days now. Me and Mitushide-san have come to a conclusion that Orochi has captured him." There came a sudden up-roar from the warriors. Ling Tong and Xiao Qiao demanded that someone should go and rescuse him. Other officers offered their help but Nobunaga helded up his hand. The room fell silent and all eyes were on the demon-king.
"I have received word from a scouting party. Masamune was seen heading towards a castle. This castle also bears the flags of the Date clan." Nobunaga looked over his collection of warriors. "If anything our search for Lu Xun should start there. He did go after Masamune after all. Hideyoshi!"
"Yes my lord!" Hideyoshi stood up to his full height. Nobunaga smiled a little.
"Since you have become friends with Lu Xun, I want you to take a small unit and go to Masamune's castle. Demand everything that that Date boy knows about Lu Xun." Nobunaga ordered. Hideyoshi bowed his head.
"Of course my lord."
Thank you to www.blond-girl, AZNchaos07 & runickenaz for their reviews.