I'm glad you're interested in my fic, Lord Mitsuhide! I can't wait until we get to that point either!
Yeah, it's exactly like the arc thing, Arashi! And the Akechi are a very resiliant bunch... :)
Thanks for the reviews!
The majority of the fighting took on the road and field between dense forestry; Mitsuhide led the group swiftly but with caution through the forest as he knew soldiers could be lurking around in the heavy brush. He also kept an eye on the battle; he noticed that even though his army seemed to have the upperhand, they were beginning to pull back towards Akechi Castle. "Come on, we need to go faster!"
Mitsuhide hurried the group's sluggish pace into running as he hoped to reach Akechi Castle before the gates eventually closed. Unfortunately, as Mitsuhide's party sped up, so did his army; it wasn't long before the Akechi army was safe behind the Akechi Castle gates. Although Yoshitatsu's army had not given chase to the fleeing Akechi troops, they were close enough to Akechi Castle that attempting to enter Akechi Castle from the relatively distant forest would be suicide for Mitsuhide and his group. Mitsuhide sighed as he stared helplessly at his castle; his sanctuary was so close yet so far. The small party decided to rest after their fruitless dash towards the castle.
"What are we gonna do now?" Yasu panted as he leaned up against a tree, trying to get as much cover from the light sprinkle above as he could.
Mitsuhide sighed as he sat down in some grass next to his wife. "Well, we aren't getting into the castle anytime soon."
"Haru and Tada didn't forget about us, right?" Yasu spoke with a nervous tone.
Mitsuhide shook his head and gave his brother an assuring smile. "Of course not. It's just not safe for them to leave the castle gates open. They know we can handle ourselves."
"Could we help them some way...?" Yasu asked.
"I was just thinking about that..." As Hiroko laid her head onto Mitsuhide's shoulder, an idea came to him. "There could be a way to help them. But it's all up to Sadanori."
"Huh? Me?" Sadanori had also sought cover from the storm under a tree when he heard his name.
"Yes. I'm sure your father has an army at Tsumaki Castle?" Mitsuhide rested his head on Hiroko's as he opened his wagasa and held it over them.
"He does..." Sadanori mumbled, seemingly trying to avoid the question.
"With your father gone, you are his heir which means you control the army, right?" This time, Sadanori did not respond, so Mitsuhide persisted. "Your father would do anything to save you, do you understand?"
"I don't know..." Sadanori's mumbling fell to an even more muddled speech.
Mitsuhide gently pulled away from his wife and handed her his wagasa before standing up and stepping towards Sadanori. "We need to go to Tsumaki Castle, your father may not have much time left if we don't help them as soon as we can."
"But that's my father's army, not mine-"
"Sadanori, we must do this for daddy. He would do the same for you or me." Hiroko interrupted Sadanori.
Mitsuhide nodded in agreement and Sadanori fell quiet before suddenly speaking in a rousing voice. "You're right! Our family has to stick together!" Although they all agreed, everyone rushed to shush him before he gave them away. "Uh... sorry."
Tsumaki Sadanori now led the group towards Tsumaki Castle. The castle was so close that it would only take the already exhausted group a couple hours to reach it. Halfway to Tsumaki Castle, the group abandoned the forest and began traveling on the road. There was silence between them, besides Saizo chewing on a bamboo twig and the occasional sigh of boredom from Yasuhide.
As they walked along, Saizo ended up walking next to the young Yasu, who was walking with his head hanging and arms limply dangling. Saizo looked down at the child and his obviously dreary composure. Saizo reached to the bamboo stalk protruding out of the back of his armor and snapped off a twig, he held it out in front of Yasu and offered it to him. "Here ya go, kid."
Yasu lifted his head and eyed the bamboo twig in front of him. "What am I supposed to do with it, sir?" Yasu questioned before he looked up at Saizo and saw him chewing on an identical twig. "Oh, nevermind." He said quickly before taking the twig and imitating Saizo.
"Focus on that and it'll make things a little less boring!" Saizo smiled at the boy.
"Alright, sir." Yasu quickly returned the smile as they both nibbled the small twigs.
"No need to call me sir! We're buddies! Just call me Saizo!"
Yasu's eyes shot over to his mother; she had a strict rule that demanded Yasu address all his elders properly. Chieko wasn't paying attention to the conversation as fatigue from the day's events had hampered her watchful gaze. Noticing his mother's lack of attentiveness, Yasu smiled up at his new friend and spoke cheerfully. "Okay, Saizo! You can call me Yasu!"
"Here's one for the road, Yasu." Saizo broke another twig off of his bamboo stalk and- much to Yasu's delight -slid it in the crevice between Yasu's ear and head.
Ahead of the two new friends was Mitsuhide and his wife. Hiroko walked close to him as she spoke in a hushed tone and made no eye contact. "Mitsuhide... What's going to happen now?"
Mitsuhide turned his head towards her but had his eyes fixed on the ground; he had no desire to make eye contact with her as his answer was indefinite. "I don't know... We'll figure it out."
"I knew this was coming...This is what I was always afraid of." Mitsuhide's eyes slowly drifted over to Hiroko's gloomy face. "War has finally reached us. You know what war does..."
"Love, we'll be alright." Mitsuhide reached for her bandaged hand as they walked to try to comfort her.
Hiroko gripped her husband's hand tightly but continued her spiel. "Our homes will be destroyed; our family will be torn apart."
"Before we got married, I asked you if you thought I could keep our family safe. And to only marry me if you thought that was true." Hiroko nodded up at Mitsuhide. "Do you still believe I can keep us safe?" Hiroko nodded again as her face scrunched up and her eyes watered. "Then there's no need to worry." Mitsuhide smiled but could not stop his own eyes from moistening from the sight of his wife's own somber look.
"Everyone! Look!" Sadanori called out as he pointed ahead. Only a few figures were in view a few hundred feet down the road at first, but suddenly the few became dozens, and the dozens into rows of soldiers.
"Come on! Into the forest!" Mitsuhide yelled and led the group into the nearby forest. All of the group except Yasu, who had fallen behind by slipping face first into a puddle of mud.
As they rushed into the forest, none of the group had immediately noticed Yasu's absence until he called out to them while attempting to get up. "W-Wait!" However, as he stumbled to his feet, Yasu lost his footing and dropped once again.
"Yasu!" Saizo was the first to react to Yasu as he quickly ran out of the brush and to Yasu's aid. "Don't worry! I got ya!" Saizo lifted up the muddy Yasu but as he looked up, there were two armed men on horses riding straight for them.
Saizo set Yasu down as quickly as he could before unsheathing his naginatas and taking a fighting stance. Yasu backed away as Saizo was soon joined by Mitsuhide who already had his katana in hand. "Go to mom, Yasu!" Mitsuhide instructed before Yasu started to run into the forest.
The horses and their riders stopped a few feet away from the ready Saizo and Mitsuhide. They were both large men; the younger of the two held no weapons in his hands yet had an assortment of different weapons on his back while the older man carried an ax in each hand. "You can fight us if you'd like, but we have an army." The older man said with a low, rugged voice.
Mitsuhide's eyes wandered to the army behind the horsemen as the man mentioned it. Eventually Mitsuhide eyed the banners, which bared a flower not much unlike the Akechi's own bellflower, flown by the oncoming soldiers and vaguely recognized it. Mitsuhide slowly lowered his katana and turned his attention to the two men. "Who is your lord?" Mitsuhide questioned.
The two men glanced at each other before a third horseman slowly walked his horse in between them. The men both bowed to the much younger and more distinct looking man. The man wore bright, baggy robes which contrasted with his dark features such as his jet black hair and facial hair. His eyes were as dark as his tied back hair, and they pierced Mitsuhide as he shot Mitsuhide a glance.
Mitsuhide mentally trembled at the man's foreboding presence yet he also found this man familiar, though he recalled as much about this man as he did the banners. "Who are you? You don't seem to be a part of the Saito."
The man looked to the crying sky and chuckled, revealing his deep, leisurely voice before he even spoke. He then stared back into Mitsuhide's eyes before uttering out his name. "I am Oda Nobunaga."