A/N: Apparently Caesar is also modeled after Napoleon (well, his pose in the 2nd ending is that of Napoleon's famous painting), and it does show. So, I guess no way Napoleon exists in Nobunaga the Fool either.

Pairings: Caesar/Ichihime, Charlemagne/Joan, others will be revealed as they come.

Interesting Facts: Like Caesar in NtF, Napoleon was known to be a bit of a womanizer. After he married Marie Louise (his 2nd wife), there is no accounts that he was unfaithful (that I found anyways). It was said he took "great pains" to please her.

Disclaimer: I don't own Nobunaga the Fool.

Chapter 9

Caesar felt pain rip through his shoulder as red blood entered his vision. He dropped to his knees as he reflectively grabbed his shoulder. As he did, Hisamasa fell to the ground before him. There was no sign of life coming from him. Undoubtedly, the reason why Caesar was still alive was because the Azai lord had ironically been a shield. In the distance he heard Joan yell "Charlemagne", but he didn't know what that meant nor did he have time to think about it. He had to get to a safe place. As soon as he located a place, a tree, he ran to it. Instantly he started looking around for where the shots had come from, but they didn't fire again. Caesar's guess was that they had already left after the initial shots.

Caesar slid down to the ground as his adrenaline slowed. He was now starting to feel the pain from his wound. He looked down at his shoulder to the flow of blood was steady despite his hand on it. His eyes drifted close...

In their chambers, Ichihime was sitting in a chair with her hands clasped together. She was silently watching as Brutus and Gracia tended to Caesar's wound. Due to urgency the two were seeing to him, instead of waiting for someone else. Ichihime thought back to when Brutus had brought Caesar in. It had scared her to see him unconscious like he was...

Flashback

"Caesar-dono!" Ichihime exclaimed as she rushed to her husband, who was being carried by Brutus.

"Don't worry, my lady, Lord Caesar will be fine," Brutus tried to assure her.

Ichihime nodded and followed the lieutenant into their chambers.

Brutus paused and looked back at her. "My lady, please wait outside," he politely instructed.

Ichihime shook her head. "No, I want to be with him."

Brutus looked at her a few moments before deciding not to argue with her. Either because of her determined expression or he didn't have the time she couldn't tell. He then looked up behind her. "Gracia, come with me."

"Eh!?" the girl exclaimed, but scampered in regardless.

Flashback end

"That should do it," Brutus stated as he secured the bandage.

Gracia collapsed to her knees. "What a relief!" she sighed out.

Brutus looked up at Ichihime and bowed. "I shall take my leave. I need to determine what has transpired."

Ichihime nodded her dismissal and watched as the lieutenant left.

Gracia stood up and bowed. "Get some rest yourself, my lady." And with that she followed Brutus.

Ichihime turned her gaze to her husband. She slowly stood up and walked over to him. He appeared to be resting normally, but the slight crease in his brow told her otherwise. She carefully sat by him and reached over to smooth it. At the feel of her hand the general seemed to relax.

"Caesar-dono..." Ichihime whispered.

Brutus was busy going to different officers as he tried to find out what had happened and who had caused it. Unfortunately there wasn't many leads, none really. The shooters had managed to escape, which was unfortunate. He rubbed his chin as he pondered over who it could have been.

"It could have been an order from the West. I can't see Lord Charlemagne taking Lord Caesar down that way, but one could have been ordered without his knowing. Also, it could be someone from the East. It could've been one of the Azai, knowing that Hisamasa would be defeated, but then why kill Hisamasa? Unless they wanted to get rid of him and blame someone else and to get rid of Lord Caesar too. And while technically we are allies of Lord Kenshin and the Oda, it could have been someone who despises working with someone from the West." Brutus sighed. "Lord Caesar, you had to fall in love in the most dangerous place possible..."

From out of the corner of his eye Brutus noticed some movement in the shadows. He looked closer to find it was Ichihime's three ladies-in-waiting... They were all leaving the castle together instead of just Hatsu.

"Bianchi, Nell, I know you're nearby," Brutus stated.

The twins magically appeared at his side. "What?" The asked together.

"Those three are leaving."

"We know they are," Bianchi replied.

"We've been watching them," Nell also informed.

"Could I perhaps persuade you to follow them to where they are going?" Brutus asked as he finally turned his attention to them.

The twins looked at each other with Cheshire cat smiles. "Well... it does sound fun," Bianchi started.

"Especially if they're going to see that suffering fool," Nell finished.

They then turned back to Brutus. "You can."

"Very well, I shall reward you both generously."

Bianchi and Nell looked at each other with excitement. "Let's go!" Bianchi exclaimed.

"Yes, let's!" Nell agreed. And with that the both of them vanished.

Brutus turned his attention to the horizon towards the direction where the Oda were. "Did you have anything to do with this, Mitsuhide?"

On Oda Lands...

Mitsuhide was in the woods nearby Oda Castle; clearly waiting for his three subordinates. He didn't have to wait too much longer as in the next few seconds the three silently appeared before him.

"What is it?" Mitsuhide inquired.

"Something happened," Chacha informed. "As we told you, Caesar-sama had a duel with Hisamasa-sama today. Caesar-sama would have easily won, but... there were gun shots and Caesar-sama got hit. Hisamasa-sama got killed."

Mitsuhide's eyes widened in shock and fear. "How is Ichihime-sama?"

"She's perfectly fine," Chacha quickly assured.

Mitsuhide sighed in relief, but then narrowed his eyes. "How about Caesar?"

"I don't believe it's life threatening."

"I see..." Mitsuhide sighed and gave a rueful smile. "Ironic, isn't it?"

The three sisters blinked in surprised at their leader's sudden change.

Mitsuhide sighed once more as he looked towards the castle. "When we first came here with Kagome..."

The three girls looked down; clearly sad at the mention of their fallen ally.

"We had a plan to take over the Oda. I would distinguish myself, become trusted, woo Ichihime-sama, get in an arranged marriage with her, and then kill Nobuhide-sama and his sons. We would then rule the Oda and restore our clan. But look at us..." Mitsuhide sighed as he pushed off the tree. He looked away in pain. "I decided to serve Nobu, and Ichihime-sama is married off to someone else..."

The three sisters didn't say anything, but silently reflected on things.

Close by, Bianchi and Nell were listening. They were looking at each other with impish grins. "Oh my! Isn't he the devious one? I can't see Caesar lowering himself that much, and he has done some nasty things," Nell commented.

Bianchi chuckled. "But unlike Caesar, he didn't have the guts to accomplish those goals."

The twins giggled quietly to themselves.

"We can use this," Mitsuhide suddenly said and turned to his three subordinates with a determined glint in his eyes. "We can use this to get Ichihime-sama back."

At Kai...

Ichihime was humming a soothing song as she watched her husband sleep. After some moments had passed she looked out towards the window at the setting sun. The sun was casting the land and even the room in a soft orange glow. It was truly a beautiful sight, but unfortunately she couldn't enjoy it.

The sound of the door opening alerted the princess of someone entering. She turned to see it was only Gracia with some food. She watched as the girl carted the food in and bowed. "Ichihime-sama, here is some supper. We thought you would like to have your dinner in here. Also, it's too dangerous for you to move about at the moment."

Ichihime nodded. She hadn't wanted to leave Caesar's side, but she knew that the guards that were now stationed at the door wouldn't let her out in case she did. She hadn't seen her ladies-in-waiting recently, but she was sure they were around. Besides she doubt they would be let in to see her anyways as Brutus and Gracia seemed to be the only ones with clearance to.

Ichihime watched as Gracia readied the food and placed it on a small table. "It's ready, my lady," the girl informed as soon as she was done.

Ichihime reluctantly got up and sat down to eat. Truthfully she didn't have much of an appetite. As she was eating, she kept glancing at Caesar.

Gracia giggled. "You really do care for Lord Caesar, don't you, my lady?"

Ichihime started and glanced at Gracia before looking back at her husband. She knew she had come to care for the general, after all he had done. But she didn't know the extent of her feelings for him as of yet.

"I suppose Sir Brutus didn't tell you that Lord Caesar's sleep is a drug induced one. He won't wake up until it wears off," Gracia tried to comfort the princess.

"I see..." Ichihime murmured then turned to Gracia. "Thank you for telling me. Brutus-san did forget to tell me."

Gracia giggled. "No problem! Sir Brutus is awfully busy, I'm sure that's why he forgot."

"How is the investigation going?" Ichihime inquired. She hadn't really thought about that until now.

"I don't know, my lady. You should ask Sir Brutus when he comes to check on Lord Caesar."

Ichihime nodded quietly.

"I'm going to change Lord Caesar's bandages, is that all right? Or would you prefer me to wait till you're done?" Gracia asked.

Ichihime shook her head. "Go ahead."

Gracia bowed and Ichihime watched as she changed the bandages. "Now that I don't have to dig a bullet out, I can do this more confidently," Ichihime heard the girl mutter.

Ichihime sat her glass of tea down. "Tell me, Gracia, how bad was the wound?"

Gracia glanced over her shoulder. "Not too bad, my lady, but it was a close one. It almost got his heart. Also there was something weird about the bullet."

That got Ichihime's attention. "Like what?"

"We're not sure. It's being analyzed is what I heard," Gracia said and straightened up. "There! Done!" She then turned to Ichihime. "Would you like me to stay or leave, my lady?"

Ichihime paused. "You may go. Just come and tell me whenever anything new is discovered."

Gracia bowed. "I certainly will, my lady." And with that the girl left.

After a few moments Ichihime moved to sit by Caesar once more. She faintly smiled. "You're too reckless, Caesar-dono..."

Brutus was in one of the walkways; watching the sun as it set. Though he appeared calm his mind certainly was not. At that moment the twins appeared.

"Hey, Brutus," the twins greeted together.

Brutus turned to them; his eyes very serious. "Did you find out anything?"

"That we did," they replied impishly.

"So?" Brutus was very impatient.

Bianchi and Nell turned to each other; ignoring the mood the lieutenant was in. "Brutus seems quite desperate for details."

"Well, he did promise something grand," Nell replied.

They turned back to Brutus, who was on the verge of being very annoyed. "We suppose we'll tell you," they said in unison.

"Mitsuhide was not behind it," Bianchi proclaimed as he pointed a finger in the air.

"But we did hear something else that was interesting," Nell added as she pointed her finger at her mouth in a supposedly cute manner.

Brutus's eyes narrowed as he heard what they had to say. "I see... So, he had such plans as that..." he sighed. "So, he's insisting on being a problem. We have enough," he ended dryly. "Well, I have some things to do. I will see to your rewards as soon as I can." And with that Brutus left.

As soon as he was gone Nell turned to her brother. "Do you think we're being too helpful lately?"

Bianchi grinned at her. "Not at all. Telling him this is making things more interesting."

Nell's lips turned to match her twin's. "You're right, Bianchi."

That night Ichihime couldn't sleep. The events that had happened that day kept replaying over and over in her mind. Especially the image of Caesar getting shot. She could see it like it was happening right now. The blood and Caesar falling to his knees... It was all too much. She was so focused on him she hadn't even noticed that Hisamasa had gotten hit.

Ichihime snapped open her eyes and raised herself up on her elbows as she looked at her husband. He was still breathing and still asleep. The princess let out a long sigh as she ran her hand through his hair. At that moment Caesar began to stir, like he was called out of sleep by her touch. Ichihime held her breath as he furrowed his eyebrows before opening his eyes. His eyes were glazed over as he looked around the room in a daze.

"Caesar-dono?" Ichihime tentatively called out.

"Ichihime?" Caesar softly breathed as his eyes landed on her. He took in her relieved and anxious expression and then the events of the day came flooding back. The general immediately sat up and winced at the pain that caused.

"Caesar-dono, don't move like that," Ichihime admonished.

Caesar didn't move to lay back down, but turned his gaze on her. "Ah, sorry, my dear Ichihime, it looks like I made you worried." He gave her a weak smile.

Ichihime smiled and shook her head. "I'm just glad you're alright."

"Ah, I'm surprised Brutus allowed you in here," Caesar commented.

"I demanded he let me," Ichihime replied with a slight blush.

Caesar stared at his wife for a few moments and then laughed. The movement caused him some pain, but he ignored it.

Ichihime frowned. "What's so funny, Caesar-dono?"

"Nothing. Just thinking back to when I proposed is all. I can see why he backed down." Caesar gave her a sly smirk.

Ichihime sighed. "You just woke up and you're already teasing me?"

Caesar chuckled. "Ah, I'm sorry, my dear." He looked to his wife to see her head lowered and her eyes shut. He immediately sobered.

"I was really worried for you..." Ichihime whispered and Caesar barely heard it as it was so low. The next move from Ichihime surprised Caesar as she flung herself onto him; her face burying into his chest. He winced at the pain, but didn't say anything. He barely felt it as his entire attention was on his dear Ichihime. "I'm so glad you're alright," she said with a strained voice.

Caesar wrapped his arms around her and smiled softly down at her. "Everything's alright, Ichihime," he whispered softly.

Ichihime slowly looked up at him with tears welling up in her eyes. "Caesar-dono..."

Caesar gave a tight smile. "Looking at me like that... I'll lose my control..."

Ichihime blinked. "Caesar-dono?"

She didn't receive an answer in words. She felt his hand on the base of her neck mere moments before his lips descended upon hers. Ichihime's eyes widened in shock, but soon they slowly slid shut and she returned the kiss. As soon as he felt her give in, accept it, Caesar caressed her lips with his own. Much too soon for his liking he pulled back. His smile was soft as he gazed down into her glistening eyes that were gazing into his own.

"You have no idea how long I have wanted to kiss you..." Caesar murmured.

Ichihime blushed bright red at that. "Caesar-dono..."

"You are like a forbidden fruit, one taste just simply isn't enough, my dear," Caesar whispered before swooping in for another kiss.

This time Ichihime readily accepted it; her arms went up with one hand tangling in his soft hair. Caesar's hand was in her silky hair as well, massaging her scalp, as he kissed her with more passion than the first time. Caesar ran his tongue along the seam of her lips, asking for entrance. Ichihime gasped which the general used as an opportunity to explore her moist cavern; tasting every bit he could. Ichihime moaned into his mouth which caused him to smirk. Reluctantly he pulled away; their breath mingling as they gazed into each other's eyes once more.

Caesar was about to go in for another kiss, but winced as a sudden pain shot through his shoulder.

"Caesar-dono, your wound!" Ichihime exclaimed. "You should lie back down."

Caesar gave her a tight smile. "Perhaps." He didn't argue any as he did as she instructed.

Ichihime ran her hand through his silver locks as she smiled down at him. "Rest, Caesar-dono..."

Caesar gave her a soft smile as his eyes slid shut.

A/N: I wanted to get this out sooner, but I had trouble with this chapter. Just wanted to say that Mitsuhide's plan is canon and was revealed in the prequel manga staring him.