Warning: This is based off a manga called Sengoku Strays. If you haven't read it yet, I highly recommend that you do! I don't own anything but my OC, and I will probably end up using artistic license to butcher Japanese history, so I would just like to apologize in advance, and I don't mean to offend anyone!

[Narration]

{setting/stage directions}

"Speech."

'Thoughts.'

"English speech."

—¡–!–¡–!–¡— Scene shift/passage of time.

A whole line of text like this without quotes is a written letter or something similar.

WORDS IN ALL CAPS AND NO QUOTATION MARKS ARE SOUND EFFECTS.

Flashbacks and changes in POV will be labeled.

Unless stated otherwise, the POV will be third person omniscient.

If you ever have any questions, please feel free to ask.

Previously:

"You finally look like girl now." Kuranosuke said bluntly.

"I'm sorry, could you repeat that? I don't think I heard you right." Ayako said, and Kuranosuke could sense the menacing aura hidden behind her blindingly bright smile. He gulped and nervously avoided her gaze. Was it just him, or had she gotten even scarier...?

"I-I mean... you're beautiful?" Kuranosuke said nervously, breaking out into a nervous sweat under her stare.

"Oh, is that so? Thank you~!" Ayako said, smiling innocently. "Oh! Let's go look at that stall next, Kasane!" Ayako said, pulling Kasane along as they ran over to check out another merchant's stall.

"... It seems that Ayako's gotten stronger, now that her confidence has been restored..." Gorouza said sweat dropping. Inuchiyo nodded in agreement. They had sensed the threatening atmosphere too.

"Yes, she looked so happy, didn't she?" Nobuyuki said, smiling. He was completely oblivious to the danger Kuranosuke had been in. The others all sweat dropped, but they didn't correct him... Ignorance is bliss, after all.

They had split up, and were checking out the different stalls, but they all made sure that they didn't let Nobuyuki out of their sight. They were there to protect him after all. Kuranosuke was drooling over the latest rifle models one merchant was selling, Kasane and Ayako were looking at a rice cooker at one stall, and Gorouza was staying close to Nobuyuki as they looked at different stalls. Ayako was surprised when she noticed that the men in the town were being extra nice to her for some reason. It had finally clicked for Ayako after she and Kasane rejoined Nobuyuki and Gorouza. They were all walking together, when two men came over and started chatting up Ayako and Gorouza. She thought they were just being friendly until they asked them out on a date.

"Are they flirting with both of them!?" Kasane asked, her jaw dropping as she gapped at the man who was flirting with Gorouza. She and Nobuyuki flinched in shock and embarrassment for poor Gorouza. He was a guy, for crying out loud! Ayako blushed when the man flirting with her asked her out. She hadn't ever really been asked out before... thanks to the fact that almost every guy was too scared of her grouchy uncle to approach her, and those who did lost interest once they realized that she was stronger and tougher than them. Still, Ayako and Gorouza both turned them down as nicely as they could—Gorouza for obvious reasons, and Ayako because... well, she already had a certain someone she cared about...

—¡–!–¡–!–¡—

A horse was staring directly at Kasane as she stared back at it. She was looking at the horses that were being sold with Inuchiyo and Ayako. The way the horses were all lined up reminded Kasane of how they displayed and sold bikes in the future.

'It's like the same thing...?' Kasane thought, amazed at the similarities.

"There are horses for sale, too!" Inuchiyo said excitedly as he and Ayako pet them.

"I love horses! They're my favorite animals." Ayako said, smiling affectionately at the horse she was petting.

"I've got some good ones!" The merchant told them, smiling. Ayako reached out to pet the horse that had been tethered to a tree in the back, behind all of the other horses. She couldn't understand why they would leave such a beautiful horse in the back, where he wouldn't be noticed right away.

"Ah, Miss! That horse is dangero—!" The merchant yelled, stopping short when he saw how the horse had reacted to her touch.

"Hm?" Ayako asked innocently as she pet the horse. The man's jaw dropped when he saw that the normally stubborn, wild, and dangerous horse—who never let anyone ride him, let alone touch him—was not only letting this girl touch him, but it even seemed to be cuddling closer to her. The man snapped himself out of it. That problem horse had been causing him nothing but trouble, and no one wanted to buy it because of how dangerous it was, and it was costing him money... This was his chance!

"Excuse me, Miss... would you be interested in buying this horse?" The merchant asked her, trying to contain his creepily triumphant grin.

"Y-Yes... I would like to, but I'm afraid I don't have enough money to be able to afford such a fine horse..." Ayako said hesitantly. The man's smile creeped her out a bit. The man grinned like the cat that ate the canary.

"I tell you what, if you can ride that horse... I'll let you have him for just two copper coins." The merchant told her. Ayako was suspicious of the absurdly low price the merchant was willing to sell such a magnificent horse for, but... She glanced at the horse, and smiled. It would be awesome to have a horse of her own, and she could tell that this one was a little stubborn, but he held himself nobly, with grace, and dignity. He was a proud horse, but she knew that all he needed was a firm hand and to be treated with respect.

"Alright then, you have a deal. We'll let him decide." Ayako said, petting the horse, who snorted in agreement. To make a short story even shorter, Ayako won the deal, and rode away on the magnificent steed.

—¡–!–¡–!–¡—

"Wow, I can't believe that you were able to get such a magnificent horse for less than the price of one serving of sweet dangos!" Nobuyuki said in amazement when Inuchiyo told him what had happened when they rejoined the others, and Ayako led her new horse up to them. Along the way, Ayako, Kasane, and Inuchiyo had started listing names, and waited for the horse to snort in agreement when he heard one that he liked. Ayako didn't want him to be stuck with a name he didn't like, after all. The horse had decided he liked the one Ayako came up with—Eishi. So, now they were all together again, walking down the street, with their newest addition to the group, Eishi.

"Back home, they used to call me the 'freebie queen.' I've always been pretty good at bargaining." Ayako said proudly. It was a valuable skill when you lived with a penny-pinching uncle. If Ayako wanted something other than clothes and other basic necessities, she had to earn the money for it herself, but her uncle would let her keep any money that she saved them when she got a discount, so it wasn't really all that bad.

"Hmph, you probably just got lucky." Kuranosuke grumbled. He reached out to pet Eishi. This horse looks pretty tame to me—!" Kuranosuke pulled back his hand, startled when the horse tried to bite his hand.

"Yeah... apparently, he doesn't like to be touched." Ayako said, warning them a little too late.

"Say stuff like that sooner!" Kuranosuke yelled indignantly as he stopped and jabbed a finger at her, only to be smacked in the face by Eishi's tail. The horse seemed to be glaring at him for insulting Ayako. Kuranosuke flinched involuntarily, and the horse's expression changed... it now looked like the horse was smirking at him.

"Good job, Eishi!" Ayako said, petting the smart horse. "But it would probably be better if you kept the biting to a minimum. I don't want you to get in trouble." Ayako told the horse gently, but firmly. The horse snorted. He'd think about it.

"I'm sorry!" Kasane said suddenly.

"Huh? What are you apologizing for?" Kuranosuke asked. "Ah! Don't tell me you're so broke, you stole something?"

"You're really rude, you know that?" Ayako told Kuranosuke, frowning at him.

"I would never!" Kasane said, shocked that he would even think that. "No! No, not at all—Well... I thought towns in this day and age... would be all poor and empty." Kasane said apologetically.

"Huh!? What'd you say!? You picking a fight with Owari!?" Kuranosuke hissed angrily at her, like a cat that had been thrown into a bucket of ice water.

"That's why I apologized!" Kasane said defensively, sweat dropping.

"Well, it's true that it's different from what we're used to in our era, but they have their own standards of wealth here." Ayako said, sweat dropping at both of their reactions.

"Now, now... It's because Owari doesn't have harsh terrain, and due to my brother's influence, some of the restrains on the market have been lifted." Nobuyuki said, trying to calm them down. It has the feeling of a commercial district. Various goods come in from port cities. As for food, there's stuff from the sea to the mountains in abundance—"

RUMBLE. GRUMBLE.

They all stared at Inuchiyo. It was his stomach growling. He was drooling a little, and staring at them like a puppy that was begging for a treat. They all sweat dropped.

"...Oh." They all said. "You were talking about food..."

—¡–!–¡–!–¡—

"Enjoy!" Their server said as he set the food down in front of Inuchiyo, who immediately began scarfing it down.

"Chow time!" Inuchiyo said happily.

"To think Lord Kanjuuro bought you food..." Gorouza said, sweat dropping.

"I can't tell the lord." Kuranosuke said, ashamed of how Inuchiyo had so shamelessly taken up Nobuyuki's generous offer to buy him food, without any hesitation whatsoever.

"Remember to thank him properly." Ayako told Inuchiyo as she fed Eishi some carrots that she had purchased for him with her own money. Nobuyuki had offered to pay, but Eishi was her horse, and therefore her responsibility, so she thanked him and politely declined his offer. Eishi happily gobbled down all the carrots, and quickly became restless once he had nothing to do. "I'll see you guys later, Eishi's getting restless, so I'm going to take him and go find Kasane and Lord Nobuyuki." She told the others, as she waved goodbye for now and left with Eishi. Nobuyuki and Kasane were still walking around the town together. The two of them hadn't been walking for long, when Eishi used his mouth to tug on Ayako's sleeve and point her in the right direction when he saw Nobuyuki and Kasane. "Hey guys!" Ayako said, smiling and waving at them, as she made her way towards them through the crowded streets. It helped that people moved out of her way, since Eishi made them nervous. "Having fun?" She asked.

"Yeah!" Kasane said, smiling happily. It was good to be able to relax for once, and Nobuyuki was easier for her to get along with that Nobunaga was.

"Oh, wait here for a moment!" Nobuyuki said, when he saw something good, and left the two girls standing there.

"Ah! Wait, we're supposed to keep an eye on you." Ayako said as she and Kasane ran after him.

"Here you go." Nobuyuki said, once they had caught up to him. He turned around from the food stall he had just purchased something at, and he handed both of the girls a small bag of something that was warm and smelled sweet. The two girls thanked him, even though they had no idea what he had just handed them, it was too late decline the treat out of politeness, since he had already bought opened the little bags to find that they were filled with some kind of dessert that neither of them had seen before.

"What's this?" Kasane asked, surprised.

"Pastries?" Ayako asked, curiously and excitedly. She hadn't had something sweet to eat in a while.

"Pastries with Ivy packed into the dough and steamed." Nobuyuki said, smiling. He could tell the girls were happy, and he was glad that he had decided to treat them.

"Wow... and the bag is cute too!" Ayako said, showing her girly side, as she smiled cutely when she took a closer look at the little bag the pastries had come in. She especially liked the string they had tied it with. It had decorative knots on the ends that looked like butterflies. Both of the girls took a bite of their pastries.

'Ah, it's good! Unique and sweet.' Kasane thought, as she tasted the delicious sweet. Ayako closed her eyes and smiled in appreciation for the yummy treat.

"Yum~!" Ayako said happily. Being from Louisiana, a place where delicious food was highly appreciated and huge part of the culture, Ayako loved to eat, and she was a real foodie.

"What are the markets in your hometown like, Kasane, Ayako?" Nobuyuki asked curiously. Ayako had her mouth full, so Kasane answered for both of them.

"Well... the atmosphere actually isn't that different. Though, there's no cell phones or CD stores." Kasane said.

"Cell phones?" Nobuyuki asked curiously. Ayako choked when she heard Kasane mention the futures technologies. Sure, she had told Nobunaga about a few things, and he had actually held her cell phone for himself, but she didn't really have a choice, given the circumstances, and Nobunaga understood the importance of not letting that knowledge of the future taint this era. Luckily, her nearly choking had distracted Nobuyuki before he could ask any questions.

"Are you alright!?" Nobuyuki asked her, concerned.

"Ah!" Kasane said nervously and patted Ayako on the back hard, in an attempt to stop her from choking, knocking the wind out of her.

"Th-Thanks, Kasane... but I had already stopped choking... Sorry for making you worry." Ayako said, wincing slightly. She was probably going to have a handprint-shaped bruise on her back now, but she didn't mention that part since she didn't want Kasane to feel bad. "You mentioned earlier that there were restrictions on trading, but this place seems like an open market to me." Ayako said, trying to get the conversation going again, without bringing up cell phones, or any other possible time paradox inducing topics.

"Yes, my brother told me that he wants you to be able to trade even more freely at this market eventually.

"There really are restrictions on trading? Isn't this like a flea market?" Kasane asked.

"That's how it's been since long ago." Nobuyuki said. "In order to sell goods, you have to go through a checking station and be taxed. You have to pay money to open a stall in the market. To be honest, we're still quite a ways off from trading freely. Sure, there are people who can abide by the current rules, but... considering this place should be, there are people and goods who won't come to such a closed market."

"Certainly, most foreigners that want to sell their goods here probably wouldn't find it worth their while to come, since the journey over itself can be expensive, and once they got here, they might find out that they can't even sell some of their goods, on top of being fined even more money... They'd probably lose too much money to make any real profit." Ayako said, not realizing she was thinking out loud. "Standing on your pride like this, won't bring you wealth or glory..." She realized that Nobuyuki and Kasane were both staring at her, slightly stunned. "Ah! I didn't just say that out loud, did I!? I'm sorry if I offended you!" Ayako apologized quickly.

"No, I was just surprised. That's exactly what my brother said." Nobuyuki said, smiling and laughing. He could see why his brother and Ayako got along so well.

"That's true enough... you're really smart, Ayako—Oops!" Kasane said when someone bumped into her. It was a man that had a huge box tied to his back, like many of the other traders at the market.

"Oh, Sorry!" The man apologized as he turned around to make sure they were okay.

"It's alright, she isn't hurt. Good luck with your trading." Ayako told the blond and freckled faced man. He sounded and looked like he was from England. The two English speakers waved goodbye to each other, since the man was in a hurry to set up his stall.

'Gah! There really are foreigners trading...!?' Kasane thought, honestly shocked to see a foreigner in ancient Japan. "Wow, Ayako! You can speak English really well!" Kasane said, amazed. She wasn't exactly making A's in that class either. Ayako gave Kasane an odd look.

"Kasane... I was born and raised in an English speaking country, remember? English is my first language. I speak it better than I can speak Japanese." Ayako said, raising an eyebrow at Kasane. Eishi also seemed to be giving her a similar look, mimicking his owner. Kasane sweat dropped. She had forgotten about that.

"I'm sure... that what we see walking around like we are now... is far from what my brother has in mind." Nobuyuki said. "My brother once told me this—If there's a province where all the things in the world, both people and goods, can freely mingle together—" As Nobuyuki spoke, both Kasane and Ayako envisioned the town, much more prosperous, and filled with people of every nationality and color, freely interacting with each other. "Then, that's the kind of place he wants Owari to be—" Nobuyuki said, smiling. Eishi nudged the two girls, bucking his head up against them, when he noticed the dazed look on their faces.

"Ah!" Kasane and Ayako said, snapping out of their little daydream.

'Huh!? For a second there, I thought... wasn't it like another city?' Kasane thought, rubbing her eyes to make sure she was awake, confused when she saw the same town that had been there before her vision.

'Wow... my imagination really runs away on me sometimes... For a moment there, it was like I was looking at a more Asian influenced America...' Ayako thought, blinking in surprise.

"Are you laughing at how foolish that sounds?" Nobuyuki asked, smiling wryly. That had been most people's reactions when they had heard it. Kasane and Ayako both shook their heads.

"Of course not!" The two girls said in unison.

"Thanks." Nobuyuki said, smiling as he sat down on a bench to rest, and the two girls joined him, taking a break from walking. "I also... think it's something my brother can accomplish." Nobuyuki said proudly.

"Oh, I wonder if that's why he took me in." Kasane said.

"I wonder... Actually he told me about it not too long after Ayako arrived." Nobuyuki said. He knew that Nobunaga had always had the idea of making Owari into a rich place of cultural exchange, but he seemed to be more determined than ever after meeting Ayako.

"Me...?" Ayako asked. 'I wonder if it's because I told him about how diverse and rich America's culture was...' She wondered.

"Now then, it's about time to get going. I'd better go gather Inuchiyo and the rest." Nobuyuki said as he stood up again, and the girls followed suit.

"Yes, sir!" Kasane said.

"... Oh?" Nobuyuki said when he glanced back down at the side of the bench where he had set his sword down earlier.

"!?" Ayako said when she saw what had gotten his attention.

"What's wrong?" Kasane asked.

"I put my sword down here..." Nobuyuki said, but the sword was nowhere in sight.

"Eh!?" Kasane said, starting to panic when she realized the sword must have been stolen while they were sitting there.

"I can't believe we didn't notice..." Ayako said. "We haven't been sitting here, for long, so the thief should still be—"

"—Ah! That kid...!" Kasane yelled when she saw a dirty and scruffy looking kid in a tattered kimono, walking away with Nobuyuki's sword, in the crowd. The kid took off running. He obviously didn't want to get caught.

"Ah...! Hold it!" Kasane shouted at the kid. "I'll go after him! I'll catch up with you guys later!" Kasane yelled as she ran after him.

"Ah! Kasane!" Nobuyuki yelled after her.

"Wait, Kasane!" Ayako yelled. She glanced at Nobuyuki. She couldn't just leave him there, unprotected, while she ran after Kasane. Ayako figured that Kasane hadn't realized it, but after seeing the state that the kid was in, the situation was probably worse than they had initially thought... And then Nobuyuki took off running after Kasane, adding the cherry on top of the sundae of disaster.

—¡–!–¡–!–¡—

"Heh!" The kid who had stolen Nobuyuki's sword laughed, smirking as he ran. "High ranking Samurai like him are the easiest—" The kid thought he heard someone behind him, and glanced over his shoulder. "to trick... Uwah!?" The kid said, shocked when he realized that Kasane was suddenly right behind him, running at an incredible speed.

"I'll be taking this back!" Kasane said as she grabbed the sword, and tried to pull out of his hands.

"...Uh!" The kid said, straining to keep a grip on the sword. "What're you doing! I found that! It's mine!" The kid yelled at Kasane.

"Forget it! You can't just steal from people!" Kasane yelled back, scolding him. "Didn't you ever learn that..." Her lecture died in her throat when Kasane noticed that they weren't alone.

The kid had run to a wooded area that was just outside the town. There were a few dilapidated houses, and there were a few adults, but most of the people there were children. They were all dirty and dressed in rags, and they looked like they were half starved. Two of the men there were going through an unconscious man's belongings, and crows were landing close to them, like they were waiting to see what they could scavenge for themselves.

'Who... are these people...?' Kasane thought, flinching in surprise. She suddenly realized that following the kid by herself might not have been such a good idea... she was starting to get scared.

"I can't... steal from anyone...?" The kid said darkly as Kasane looked back at him, unnerved by how eerily calm the kid sounded all of a sudden. "... What are you talking about? If I don't steal... I can't live, can I?" Kasane froze, horrified.

"Kasane...!" Nobuyuki yelled, panting as he and Ayako finally caught up to her. Ayako would've gotten there sooner, but she had to keep pace with Nobuyuki, who wasn't as used to sprinting as they were.

"Wait, if you rush in without thinking..." Ayako said, not wanting to make the situation any worse by acting rashly. The scene that greeted them upset Ayako and tugged at her heart, but she had suspected the kid was heading to a place like this, so she wasn't as shocked as Kasane had been.

"!?" Nobuyuki said when more people came out and surrounded them.

"... This might happen." Ayako said, sweat dropping.

"What a pretty kimono... Food... I can smell food..." The people surrounding them said. Ayako grimaced most of them looked weak with hunger. She didn't want to have to hurt any of them, but unfortunately, people this desperate probably wouldn't hesitate to hurt them. "Give us some..." They said, looking half crazed in their desperation as they closed in on Kasane, Ayako, and Nobuyuki. Kasane took a step back, too shocked by the situation to react in any other way. Ayako tightened her grip on her hanbo. "Let us... have some too..." They cried as they thrust their hands towards them.

'Crap...!' Ayako thought when she saw that Kasane was too shocked to react. Ayako swung her hanbo, knocking the people who were in front of the mob back, and away from them. She felt bad about hitting people who were just desperate to survive, but she wasn't just going to roll over and let them hurt her and her friends. Unfortunately, rather than discouraging the remaining members of the mob, it only seemed to make them more determined, and they rushed towards them again.

"Let us have some...!" They yelled as they all reached for Ayako. They overwhelmed Ayako, all of them rushing forwards and slamming into her when she tried to shield Kasane and Nobuyuki. She felt like a surfer getting slammed by a huge fifty-foot wave, and then being pulled under by the riptide. There were just too many of them for her to fight by herself, and almost all of them seemed to be twice her size. Ayako managed to push them back, but she could only hold them for so long.

"Kasane, get Nobuyuki out of here!" Ayako yelled, finally snapping Kasane out of her shock.

"!" Kasane said, and grabbed Nobuyuki, shielding him when the mob began to push Ayako back again.

WHAM!

Inuchiyo and Kuranosuke arrived on the scene, jumping in front of Ayako, and pushing the mob back.

"Inuchiyo! Kuranosuke!" Kasane yelled, surprised and relieved to see their friends.

"Thank goodness... I don't know how long I could've kept that up..." Ayako said, relieved, wiping the sweat off of her brow. Eishi trotted up beside her, nuzzling his head against her. She smiled at the horse and patted his head. "Thanks, Eishi. I owe you one." Ayako said gratefully. When she had run after Nobuyuki, Eishi had gone to get Gorouza and the others for her. Since Eishi couldn't talk, he had gotten the guys there by dragging Kuranosuke by the back of his shirt, forcing to others to follow.

"Lord Kanjuuro! Kasane! Ayako!" Gorouza yelled from behind them. "Hurry up and slip away! Over here!"

"Gorouza!" Kasane yelled, relieved, as she ran to him.

"Don't have to tell me twice!" Ayako said as she ran too. She paused when she realized that Nobuyuki wasn't following. He gave the mob a pitying glance before pulling another bag of the pastries he had bought earlier for his brother out of his kimono, and left it behind for them. "Come on!" Ayako yelled, grabbing him and pulling him by the wrist. "I understand how you feel, but it's too dangerous for us here." Ayako said as she closed her eyes, feeling regretful that she couldn't do anything for those poor people.

—¡–!–¡–!–¡—

"No matter how prosperous the market is, there will always be people who can't get a job." Nobuyuki said as they left the town and continued on their journey. Nobuyuki was riding on his horse again while the others walked, but Ayako was now riding Eishi. "On the one hand, there's the influx of cultures and trade goods... but between war, disease, and starvation, families loose their homes. There are some people who can only survive by stealing like that... and for all the power Owari has, we still can't save them. It's like that riot we had. No matter how glorious an ideal you depict, it won't reach the people at the very edges. It's regrettable... but this is the world we live in now."

"It's not just here... there are people like that in every corner of the world. There are people like where Kasane and I come from too, but sometimes they can qualify for receiving welfare from the government, but not everyone who needs help can. Unfortunately, all we can do is help to ease their hardships through charities, and shelters that were built specifically for the homeless." Ayako said sadly. "The local churches and other charities try their best to pick up the slack from the government by collecting money, clothes, and food from the congregation, but there's only so much they can do..."

'There were kids there around Masamune's age...' Kasane thought, clenching her fist. It broke her heart, and frustrated her to see people living in such horrible conditions. "'It looks about the same,' yeah right..." Kasane said bitterly.