It was late afternoon when they reached the ocean, Fuu racing delightedly into the waves and Mugen and Jin following at a more sedate pace. She hiked up her kimono, kicking at the water and shivering. "It's cold!" she called to the two men.

Mugen scowled fiercely to hold back the smile he felt trying to come out. Fuu looked so cute like that-her childlike glee in the water bringing back memories of his own childhood. The only pleasant times he could recall had been playing in the ocean. No one had ever been there to watch him, but he had never come to any harm. Later the ocean had been both friend and ally-a place to retreat to when life became too bitter and an opportunity to escape from the wretched world he had been born into. He sighed, glancing down the beach and seeing Koza, a girl he had grown up with on the Ryukyu Islands. Mugen shook his head-he definitely needed to get something to eat if he was hallucinating people from his past. The girl stood up and approached them.

"Mugen?"

However she came to be there, she seemed real enough and the Ryukyuan was about to respond when a net swirled at them and his reflexes took over. He dove to one side, noting that Jin had also managed to avoid the trap and Fuu had been caught. Figures. She can't even jump out of the way when something's about to land on her. He took up a protective stance in front of her, Jin at his side, both of them with their swords out as a group of yelling men bore down on them. A couple of quick slashes and two of their assailants were face down, bleeding their lives out into the sand.

Koza ran up. "Stop! It's Mugen!" She grabbed one of the men by the arm and he backhanded her, knocking her down and returning to the attack. Then a man's voice boomed over the fray and everybody froze.

Mugen's eyes narrowed as a tall stocky figure came towards them. Like the girl, he wore a shirt with a curious sawtooth pattern-the same pattern on the strap that held Mugen's sword. He bared his teeth-he couldn't really be said to be smiling as he stopped outside the range of the Ryukyuan and the samurai. "Mugen. Long time no see."

Fuu struggled free of the net, her eyes wide as her bodyguard snarled, "What are you doing here, Mukuro?"

The man eyed Fuu, then returned his attention to Mugen. "Lookin' for fighters. See, we go after any strangers-get their money, and anybody strong enough to survive joins us. Ain't that right?" He looked around at his gang and they acquiesced with varying degrees of sullen servility. "And now we got a chance to take a government transport ship carryin' gold. What do you say, Mugen?"

The Ryukyuan sheathed his sword with a swift motion. "I don't work for nobody but myself."

"What about them?" Mukuro gestured to Fuu and Jin. The girl edged behind the samurai, clutching his shoulder.

Mugen shrugged. "I got no commitment to them. I'm just protecting them till they get to Nagasaki."

"You're protectin' them!" Mukuro laughed with genuine amusement. "Now that's funny." He addressed Fuu and Jin. "You two know anythin' about this guy? How bad he is? You want to know how many lives he's taken?"

Mugen ripped out his sword and stopped it an inch from Mukuro's throat. He knew Jin and Fuu didn't believe him innocent, but the thought of his past being aired to his companions by this man he hated was too much for him. He saw Koza out of the corner of his eye and the expression on her face….The Ryukyuan had never been good at reading people, but he thought she looked afraid and he remembered how she depended on Mukuro. Disgusted, he sheathed his sword again and walked away without a word.

"Mugen!" Koza ran after him, Fuu on her heels. Jin looked haughtily at Mukuro as he sheathed his sword, then he followed the others.