Ah ha . . . so . . . I might have messed up the cut and paste a little for this chapter. I'm so humiliated. Sorry y'all! The story worked okay without this first part but I thought it offered a little insight into Hiko's decision on what to do about Kenshin, so I wanted to include it. I am so mad at myself right now that I left this out, sorry for everyone who already read the chapter without this. Rawr. But for anyone who hasn't read the new chapter, updates will be more frequent now! Summer hiatus is over.
It would have been a brave soul who dared cross Hiko's path as he walked the streets of Edo. Even his billowing white cloak resembled a heavy storm cloud, matching the black look on his face. The killing ki that radiated from Hiko's person would have felt like a slap in the face to any person walking by trained in fighting. As it was, Hiko's less than pleasant aura didn't go unnoticed by the more martially illiterate citizens. People running about their errands scurried to get out of Hiko's way, leaving an uneven radius of empty space between him and everyone else.
Hiko's eyes were blind to the path in front of him. He didn't even notice the panicked looks as person after person hurriedly jumped from his way, muttering an apology as they kept their eyes deliberately glued to the ground.
I'll kill him. Hiko wasn't sure if he meant Jisaemon or Kenshin. The perverse thought entered his mind that someone else might have already killed Kenshin for him. In that case, he'd definitely kill Jisaemon. Slowly. Painfully. With ample taunting thrown in for good measure.
There was one bright spot to what Hiko had begun thinking of as his baka deshi fiasco. Jisaemon had only considered two outcomes: that Hiko kill Naosuke in order to get his student back, or that he refused to kill Naosuke and didn't get Kenshin back. Obviously any sane teacher would choose the former scenario. Luckily, Hiko wasn't any sane teacher.
As he'd listened to Jisaemon drivel on about his faultless plan, a third option entered Hiko's head. It would be difficult−certainly not recommended given the circumstances−but it was his only viable option. And it would certainly be a satisfactory end to what had fast become the bane of Hiko's relatively short life.
Despite his dark mood, Hiko smiled to himself as he walked. Jisaemon never had been much of a horizontal thinker. He was a staunch vertical tactician, to his detriment. And that was why Hiko's plan was going to work. Jisaemon would never see this coming.
And after Hiko saw to it that his deshi was sufficiently berated (groveling for forgiveness wouldn't be an undesired reaction), then he would turn his attention to Jisaemon. And that berating was going to be much more severe.
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The sharp ends of straw poking into his side and legs like so many tiny needles finally woke him. Vaguely, he realized he had crawled to the pallet in the corner of the cell at some point. His eyes still felt stiff and puffy from crying; his face was probably a blotchy red mess. His back pulsed with pain but the stabbing sensations that had consumed his body last time he'd been awake were gone now, leaving only occasional ghost pain tracing up and down his body. He tried to remember what had happened last. Vague images were playing across his memory like a picture book with burned pages. He'd been tied, he knew that. And then pain. He couldn't remember why he'd been crying though. He didn't think it was only from pain. He must have fallen asleep or passed out after that, because his mind was a blank up until the point he'd just opened his eyes.
Kenshin's heart jumped then, surprise and faint hope making his breaths come quicker. He'd been left alone long enough to go to sleep and wake up on his own? Maybe Kobori had decided his prisoner was too close to death to try anything else. Or maybe he'd decided that Kenshin really didn't know anything and they were going to let him go. Or maybe shishou was attacking the castle and everyone was fighting him.
Still lying on his side, Kenshin brought his chin down−slowly though−so he could see the cell door. A bowl containing a pale broth of some indescribable color sat there, a saucer of water next to it. So a meal had been brought. He really had been left alone for a significant amount of time. He still didn't know why though.
Kenshin started as his stomach growled loudly. It must have been at least a day since he'd eaten. Far longer than that since he'd eaten anything of substance. And even though the contents of the bowl at the door looked horribly unappetizing, he should probably try to force it down. He felt like he could handle food now. He didn't want to be so weak he couldn't move if he got the chance to walk out of this place.
Kenshin eased his legs off the palette first, stretching them slowly. Good, no pain. He had a feeling the next part wasn't going to be so easy. Still moving sluggishly, Kenshin placed his palms on the ground, preparing to push himself to a sitting position.
An orchestra of sensations flooded his body. Waves of electric pain swept up his arms, and his back began to throb in unison. Kenshin squeezed his eyes shut and gritted his teeth, refusing to sink back down to the floor. Gradually, the feeling in his arms died down to a tingle. He could feel something oozing down his back but thinking about it would just make it worse, so he turned his thoughts to eating.
He knew he was weak from lack of food; it felt as if he was moving with iron weights strapped to his arms and legs. He wasn't going to try to stand. He'd probably only injure himself more.
With painstaking slowness, Kenshin dragged himself to the door, wincing as the uneven stones dug new scratches into his palms and knees. His stomach growled again as he plopped in front of the food he'd been given. He stared at it for several long seconds. It certainly didn't look good. And the faint scent wafting up from the bowl reminded him of−
Kenshin shook his head. Better not to think about what it reminded him of. Before he could change his mind, he lifted the bowl to his lips and slurped the contents down in two large swallows.
"Food" was probably the loosest of terms to describe whatever the bowl held. But it hadn't been as bad as he'd imagined. There had even been a chunk of fish in there, although the freshness left much to be desired.
Kenshin drained the saucer of water to wash the taste of rotting fish from his mouth. He felt better already, maybe even good enough to get to his feet. Slowly, he braced himself against the wooden door with one hand, keeping his mind as blank as possible.
Don't think about how much it hurts, don't think−
Kenshin's silent mantra dissolved into a voluble shriek. The door he'd been relying on for support had suddenly been thrust inwards, smashing his back against the side wall. He could feel the raw skin that had barely started to heal tearing apart, accompanied by the warm trickle of fresh blood.
"No time for that, come with me, quickly!"
Kenshin's brain was too overloaded with other signals to register the panicked voice. Then a hand closed roughly around his arm and Kenshin jerked away automatically, looking up to see who had entered so unceremoniously. He found himself staring into a black-clad face, only piercing black eyes left uncovered.
Shishou? Even as the thought crossed his mind Kenshin knew it couldn't be his master. Whoever had grabbed him was certainly intimidating, but he lacked Hiko's intensity. Not to mention that this shrouded individual was probably half Hiko's size.
"Who are you?" Kenshin was still resisting the pull on his arm. For all he knew this was someone coming to end his life.
"Are you trying to give Kobori-san enough time to kill us both?" The person hissed. "Do as I say, you can ask questions later!"
If the man was here to kill him, he probably would have already done it, Kenshin reasoned. The tension in his arm disappeared and he let himself be pulled out the door. He tripped over something as they left and looked down to see a body sprawled across the doorway, a red line carved across its exposed neck. Whoever this man was, he'd killed the guard.
Feeling assured of the stranger's trustworthiness, Kenshin focused his energy on keeping up. He'd decided this must be a ninja; who else could get into Edo castle singlehandedly and sneak their way to a cell silently enough to kill a guard? Besides his shishou of course.
Kenshin felt a tug on his hand.
"Come on, keep up." The voice was urgent, fearful even. The ninja skidded to a halt, head tilted slightly to the side. Kenshin copied him, trying to pick up on whatever the man heard. "Shimatta, they're already coming."
Kenshin could guess who they were: reinforcements. He felt his heart quicken. Then the ninja turned him around so quickly that Kenshin's head spun. "Listen. I can't keep going with you. They'll catch up to us quickly and kill us both. I don't have time to explain, just believe me."
Kenshin nodded, speechless.
"Follow this hallway," The ninja continued, speaking rapidly. "There are many passages but always stay left! When you see the window in front of you, jump out. Cover your tracks as best you can, even the smallest things help. The jump is far but I think you're tough enough to handle it, and it's the best chance you've got. Go now, before they see you!"
Kenshin heard the heavy tread from scores of feet marching swiftly up the steps. Why were so many men suddenly coming up here?
"Go!" The ninja pushed him forward, and Kenshin trotted to keep his balance, sparing a backwards glance as he came to the end of the hallway. He saw the ninja pull something from his sash, saw the flash of a sword on the final step. Then Kenshin turned the corner.
He heard shouts behind him, the sickening thwok of metal biting into flesh. He knew the ninja couldn't possibly last long; not fighting the amount of men that he estimated were behind them.
Kenshin quickened his pace, the adrenaline that rushed through his body keeping him on his feet and his mind off the pain that his body would surely feel after he'd calmed down. The ninja had seemed determined to hold the soldiers off for a long as he could but Kenshin knew it would only be a few minutes at most before they were following him as well.
He turned left for a fourth time, panting. It was getting hard to ignore his back and he knew if he wasn't able to rest soon he was going to be found prostrate on the floor. Surely he was almost at the end by now? How much longer could it be?
He heard the shouts of pursuit growing closer and his rapidly flagging energy surged to a new high. Barring an exhausted collapse, he wasn't going to stop until he was far from Edo castle. Not after the ninja had risked his life for him. He still had time; at least half a minute before the soldiers caught up with him. Kenshin made his leaden legs move faster, forced himself to stay upright as he turned another corner. And there it was in front of him, the window. Kenshin saw with relief that it was a sliding window−no latches to worry about. With the few seconds he had left, he threw himself forward, shoving the papered pane aside even as he squirmed through the narrow opening.
The remnants of his hakama snagged on jagged stone as he pulled himself out, and he spent precious seconds trying to unhook them. He could hear the soldiers right around the corner now, talking loudly.
Kenshin gave his leg the most powerful shake he could muster. Nothing. "Kuso!" Shishou would have smacked him for that.
He was out of time. In desperation, Kenshin yanked his leg backwards, and his hakama pulled free from the stone with a loud rip, leaving his right leg bare from the thigh down. Trying to maintain his balance, Kenshin gripped the sill with one hand as he slid the window closed. Even the smallest things help.
The effort proved to be too much for him. He felt his supporting hand slipping, his body moving inexorably farther away from the wall. He scrabbled for the sill with his other hand, tried to curve his feet against the stone wall and pull himself back, to no avail. One by one his fingers slipped from the sill, and he fell to the ground still grabbing for purchase.
Kenshin tried to remember all the lessons he'd had on falling correctly. Land on his feet and roll? Roll to his feet? He couldn't seem to put anything in the right order. He knew landing on his back wasn't good so using what felt like the last of his strength he tried to flip himself in midair. He'd hardly spun halfway before his shoulder hit the ground with jarring force, and Kenshin heard a hollow pop just before his head slammed against something hard. A new pain flared in his shoulder and bright pinpoints of light obscured his vision. Gasping for a number of reasons, he flopped unthinkingly onto his back. That proved to be a horrible mistake. The last thing Kenshin saw before complete blackness kissed his sight was a scrap of blue hakama far above him, blowing gently in the breeze.
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It had been a rough week for Ii Naosuke. It was the third time in six days that he'd had to travel, this time to hear the Mito daimyou Tokugawa Nariaki accuse him of borderline treachery for wanting to allow foreigners to enter Japan and do trade. Naosuke had left having accomplished nothing. He just wanted this twenty-mile return journey to be over with so he could relax with a cup of tea inside his own house without having to listen to arguments and accusations.
In truth, it had been a rough year. The more vociferous the supporters of anti-foreign policy became, the more Naosuke found himself traveling across the country, trying to reconcile samurai clans fighting amongst themselves and anyone in their way, and taking part in meetings where the pros and cons of western influence were tossed back and forth like a ship caught in a maelstrom.
Naosuke had been advised to stay away from any political endeavors that required him journeying more than a few miles from the castle but he had scoffed at such words of caution. His life had already been in jeopardy more than once, and his guards had handled themselves well, so he saw little reason to dwell on it. Everyone died at some point, and he was reaching the end of his years anyway. Better to do what he could in his position, before things got any worse, than to lock himself away in fear for the rest of his days.
Despite his fatalistic outlook, Naosuke couldn't help but feel a tingle of alarm as he drew close to his house, which sat at the edge of Edo castle. A large man cloaked in a voluminous white mantle stood just outside. There was a sword at his waist, and his expression implied he wasn't here for a friendly social visit. Naosuke had hardly registered this when the four guards accompanying him rapidly moved in to form a square around him.
"You aren't expecting anyone?" One asked, sword already drawn. Naosuke shook his head.
"No. Do you recognize him?" No one did.
"What are your orders?"
Naosuke thought for a second. Obviously this man knew where he lived, and from his stance was either a formidable swordsman, or thought he was. If he had wanted to kill Naosuke, he wouldn't be waiting so blatantly with his sword still at his waist.
"Taro-kun, go ask him what he's come for. We'll wait here."
The man called Taro detached himself without hesitation from the group surrounding Naosuke. As he did so, the man in front of the house began walking towards them.
"Stay there and announce yourself!" Taro called. The man continued walking and Taro drew his sword, swallowing.
"Ii Naosuke, there are some who wish to kill you." Naosuke's guards gasped at the man's directness but Naosuke stayed unperturbed.
"You speak as if I don't already know this. Who are you, and what are you here for?"
"Oh, I know you realize this. I don't think you realize just how numbered your days are becoming." The cloaked man swung his gaze at Taro, walking straight at him, and to Naosuke's surprise Taro's sword dropped to the ground and he backed away, legs shaking visibly. The visitor stopped and stood without fear two feet from Naosuke and his guards.
"I've been sent to kill you."
Naosuke's eyes widened in surprise but he found himself unable to move. Taro was scrabbling for his fallen sword as the other three guards launched themselves at the man, each attacking from a different direction as they practiced so dutifully each day.
The unexpected visitor became a blur of white and Naosuke watched, half in awe, half in terror, at what was surely going to end in the death of his guards. Two seconds later, all three of his guards−his very best!−were staring in shock at their hands, now holding nothing but air. Taro had recovered his sword but was staring open-mouthed at the man who now held three swords in one hand.
Naosuke found himself face to face with the daunting figure, and even though he was a swordsman himself, he didn't bother reaching for his weapon. He knew he was far outmatched. Naosuke stood for several long seconds, mouth dry, heart pounding, before the man sheathed his weapon, dropping the three extraneous swords on the ground.
"Now that you've seen how futile it would be to avoid death, let me explain myself. I am Hiko Seijuurou the thirteenth, and some acquaintances of mine wish me to end your life."
Naosuke had to swallow several times before he could speak. "And you aren't going to?"
"I have better things to do with my time. Don't think this means you're safe, they'll still be coming, and soon if I'm not mistaken. I think we can help each other out though."
"Really?" Naosuke's brow furrowed. He thought himself fairly well-trained in reading ki but he couldn't read this man at all.
"I have a student, just a boy, who has been accused of treason and is being held at Edo castle."
"That's a serious offense." Naosuke nodded. "What-"
"It's a lie." Hiko interrupted with such vehemence that Naosuke took a step back.
"E-Excuse me, please continue."
"The real offenders are the ones who turned him in, the ones who are scheming to kill you. They've declared me an enemy of the shougunate now, and if I'm seen anywhere near the castle I'm certain they'll kill my student. I need someone who holds power with the shougunate to get him out for me."
Naosuke pointed a finger at himself in disbelief as Hiko's proposal sunk in. "And you think I'm going to risk my career, possibly my life, for this? You want me to put my life on the line for someone who's already been virtually condemned? What if they think I'm lying? There are already plenty in the shougunate who wish me dead!"
"And if you don't do this for me, you will be." Hiko said unsympathetically. "You do me this favor, and I will offer you protection from whatever attack these acquaintances I mentioned see fit to deliver. You save two lives, and expose the real traitor to the shougunate."
"You think I can just waltz in to Edo castle and declare some boy they arrested is innocent, and that my word will be taken at face value?" Naosuke snorted. "I have no proof that what you say is true. How am I to prove this?"
"Naosuke-san," Hiko's voice was soft with warning, "you're the tairou of the shougunate. I have difficulty believing you have no sway over whoever is keeping records on prisoners. Don't try to play down your influence. You go in there and say you have evidence proving my student's innocence, and no one will question you. Just make sure you mention the name Arimura Jisaemon."
"And what am I to do when they realize I'm lying?" Naosuke demanded.
Hiko actually laughed. "They'll find out within the next day that you're not. Once this Arimura I told you about realizes his plan has fallen through, he will make it his priority to come take care of the job he thought I was doing. The only way the shougunate will be able to doubt your word then will be if Jisaemon doesn't try to kill you."
All the talk of death was making Naosuke realize that he really didn't want to die. Not yet. And if he could spare some boy's life in the process of saving his own . . . well, if he was going to destroy his career, that seemed a noble way to do so.
"You actually have a chance of survival if you take my offer." Hiko added. That was the final push Naosuke needed.
"You have a deal, Hiko-san." He nodded. "But don't forget about your promise of protection after I release your student. I have control of enough men to defeat even a swordsman such as yourself." Naosuke doubted the truth of that, but Hiko's frank words had scared him. He needed protection. Obviously his guards weren't going to be enough if someone as good as Hiko-san was intent enough on killing him.
Hiko nodded. "Good. Arimura Jisaemon. That's the name to give, don't forget. I think if you add that he's from Satsuma, any questions people would ask might be forgotten."
"When am I to do this?" Naosuke asked. "I'm leaving again tomorrow-"
"Now. Hopefully we haven't already run out of time."
Naosuke took a deep breath. This day was not turning out as he'd expected. "I'll leave immediately." He said. "Please, come inside. You can wait there. Do not go outside while I'm gone. If I'm not back within the hour," He closed his eyes briefly and took another breath, "You'll probably have to take matters into your own hands."
Kenshin finally got a break! I had to give him a little breathing room. ;) And Hiko definitely never had any intention of taking Jisaemon's "deal." He's probably feeling pretty humiliated asking Naosuke for help though. The things you do for your students . . .
Quick note on why I'm so uncharacteristically addressing Ii Naosuke by his first name instead of his last. I think it just sounds retarded (for English speakers at least) to read "Ii" all the time. Naosuke is much easier on the ears. Therefore, I have smashed all rules of protocol and used his first name for all forms of address. Bam!
t42n24t - whew, ok, that makes me feel better. Heh heh, love your descriptors for Hiko.
Kaida Ukitake - Thanks! Your opinion is definitely valued! I enjoy writing Hiko/Kenshin fics so I'm glad my portrayels are successful.
literaryrxn - Hiko is pretty much da bomb. 8)
ZukoFlame - Glad you loved the chapter! It's probably the one I've felt least confident about. Haha, it would definitely be a huge blow if Hiko had to do the assassination. But obviously, being Hiko, there's no way he's gonna let someone one-up him.
Sorry if anyone's review got deleted due to my inadequate proof reading of this chapter. I'm going to go don sackcloth now and wallow in a pit of ashes.