sorry for the wait

CHAPTER 1-4

August 1864

After the fight at the inn, I was able to leave the compound much more often.
I suppose after what I'd done, Hijikata thought I'd earned a little more trust. I didn't feel like I'd done anything that extraordinary, but I wasn't about to look a gift horse in the mouth.
On this particular day, I was out on patrol with Harada and the 10th Division.
I glanced over at him, "Excuse me...Harada?" I hesitated a moment, "The Shinsengumi is out patrolling day and night, right? But...what exactly is it that you do?"
Most of the men in the Shinsengumi were intimidating, death-dealing titans, but Harada was a rare exception: warm and friendly.
He gave me a kind smile, "Well, I guess we do just about everything. Obviously we arrest people who decide they want to test out their swords on the townsfolk, and we go after people who steal or don't pay for their food. Sometimes we break up fights..."
I blinked, "People who don't pay for their food..."
He nodded, "And then there're those chumps who think they'll make a livin leaning on the merchants... We take care of all of that."
It wasn't really the answer I'd expected. Most of the stuff they did wasn't nearly as...dramatic as I'd thought.
As I thought back, I remembered how excited they'd all been when they were preparing for the raid on the Ikeda Inn. Now I understood why.
What they'd done at the inn was a good deal more intense than their day-to-day work.
A little further down the road a couple men in Shinsengumi blues were waving at us.
"Nagakura!"
Our separate rounds had brought us to the same spot.
He smiled back, "Hey there, Chizuru! You find anything out about your dad?"
I shook my head.
"No, nothing today..."
He folded his arms and sighed before a grin creased his features, "Aw c'mon, cheer up! There's always tomorrow, right?"
"Yeah...yeah! You're right!"
There was something contagious about his optimism.
Harada glanced at me then turned to Nagakura, "Well, Shinpachi? You find anything exciting?"
Nagakura's smile faded, "No, nothing in particular, but... Well, all of the people on the street are acting..busy, you know?"
I hadn't noticed it before, but...he was right.
They were acting strange, almost nervous.
"Yeah," I said, "I looks like they're getting ready to move."
Harada nodded.
"You think maybe they're worried about getting caught in the middle of a war?"
"...What?"
War? There wasn't a war, was there?
"Oh, you didn't hear?" said Nagakura, "Well, those Choshu bastards are showing up around Kyoto again. That's why we've got extra watches these days."
Harada nodded and sighed, "Well, we did give 'em a bit of a bloody nose at Ikeda. I can't imagine they'll just stand around with some of their guys in the ground."
Were the Choshu going to try something again?
The Shinsengumi were doing their best to keep order in Kyoto. In fact, they'd saved the city from the rebellious plans of the Choshu once before, with their victory at the Ikeda Inn.
But even after all they'd done, the people of Kyoto looked at the Shinsengumi with fear and distrust, and plenty of them still sided with the Choshu.
The Shinsengumi were better regarded now than they had bee before Ikeda, but even so...
I asked Nagakura as much, but he only laughed.
"Not much we can do about that. Kyoto hates the Shogun."
Harada nodded, "It doesn't matter anyway. We just do our job. The Choshu attack Kyoto, we drive 'em back. Simple."
They accepted their situation and never complained. I had a good deal of respect for Harada and Nagakura.
Nagakura's grin faded, "If they don't back off soon, we're probably gonna be getting new orders al the way from the top."
For the Shinsengumi, the top meant the Aizu Domain.
I glanced at both of them, "It's that serious, huh?"
Harada gave a bark of laughter and nodded.
"Well, chances like this only come around every so often. Who knows when the next one'll be? You wanna join us?"
"What?!"
Join?! Did he mean for me to join the Shinsengumi, and march to war with them? I couldn't imagine joining them would be as simple as saying "Yes, please."
"Um..."
Besides, it seemed rather inappropriate for me to ask to participate just so that I might satisfy my curiosity.
Still... I did want very much to be helpful in some way.
Could I, perhaps, do something like what I'd done at the Ikeda Inn...?
Even if I could, though, I was terribly frightened of being anywhere near a battle.
On the other hand, the men who'd been injured at Ikeda were still out of commission...
My mind was made up.
I looked at Harada and nodded.
"I want to help."

...
Several days later...
"Excuse me."
Carefully, I lifted the serving platter with its tea for the captains, and made my way to the common room.
It had taken me longer than it should have to make the tea, so I was a little worried some of it had gotten cold.
Nagakura smiled at me as I handed him a cup, "Thanks, Chizuru. Man... It's almost like you're our servant or something."

I wasn't entirely sure how to respond to that, so I stayed silent as I handed out the tea.
Inoue appeared troubled as he accepted his share of tea, "Thank you, Yukimura. I feel bad asking you to do this..."
I shook my head and smiled, "Oh, it's nothing. After all, you're always looking out for me."
And besides, I felt much better when I had something to do; it kept me from feeling too much like a freeloader.
Okita took a sip of his tea, and a mild grimace flickered across his face.
I frowned, "Um... Is it too bitter?"
He shook his head.
"No, the taste is fine, but it could stand to be hotter. ...Then again, I suppose this sort of tea fits you."

"Sorry..."
There was a second or two of silence before the door flew open and Kondou strode in, a wide grin across his face.
The Shinsengumi has received an official request from the Aizu Domain. All available soldiers are to begin preparations to move out immediately!"
The room broke out into cheers.
"It seems the Aizu have finally noticed all the hard work we've been doing, men."
Kondou looked just as happy with the news as the rest of them.
Apparently, getting orders directly from the Aizu Domain was an occasion for some excitement.
Hijikata, however, was the lone exception.
He glared at everyone, "We don't have time for this shit! Stop patting each other on the back and get moving! We need to go now!"
He went on to explain that the soldiers of the Choshu had already spent some time preparing for their own attack.
He closed his eyes his left brow twitching, "So they only realize there might be a problem when the Choshu are ready to attack Kyoto? This is bullshit..." He mumbled the last part.
Hijikata certainly seemed unhappy about the direction thins had gone, and I could understand - at least to some extent - how he felt. If the Aizu had asked for help earlier, then the Shinsengumi would have had much more time to prepare.
Sanan smiled but he seemed distant and sad, "Okita and Toudou, you will remain here, at the compound. I doubt you find this a welcome order, but, well, neither do I."
He rubbed his arm absently, and looked away.
He smiled again, though it seemed forced, "Your injuries keep you from active duty, as does mine."

I didn't think there was any chance that hadn't made Heisuke and Okita feel at least a little guilty, but...
Okita smirked and folded his arms, "Hey, I'm completely healed. I might not be 100 percent yet, but I'm not bleeding or anything."
He acted almost as if he hadn't heard Sanan at all.
Heisuke frowned, and touched the healing scar on his forehead, "You're making a big deal out of nothing! This's just a scratch! Kondou's being a wuss."
Perhaps they were so used to Sanan feeling sorry for himself that they had simply ignored his comment.
Perhaps it was time I learned to do the same...
Harada nudged Heisuke in the arm, "You sure about that? Last night the pain had you crying like a baby before you took your medicine."
Heisuke looked ready to kill as he turned on Harada, "You son of a bitch! Why you gotta rat me out?! Is there even a heart in there, you old bastard?"
It seemed Heisuke's injury hadn't healed quite as much as he'd claimed.
Harada shrugged, "Maybe, maybe not, but you know I'm telling the truth."
The youngest captain frowned again, "...Yeah, well, you don't have to say it in front of a girl, you know?"
He glanced sideways at me so I quickly said, "Oh... Don't worry about me. Everybody gets hurt."
His bangs hid the scar rather well, but it still looked painful. There was a moment of silence, and then Nagakura spoke.
"Oh yeah... Chizuru, you said you wanted to go with us if we got called in, right? You still up for that?"
I blinked.
"Uh..."
Yes, I had said that, hadn't I...
"Well...um..."
I knew it couldn't be so simple as just asking to go.
Kondou looked to me and grinned, "Ah, yes. Well, I see no reason why not. After all, it isn't often that one is given such an oppotunity."
"What?!"
I hadn't expected Kondou to agree so easily.
Heisuke let out a short laugh and grinned at me, "Whoa. Well, you sure got lucky, Chizuru. Make sure you do us proud, all right?"
"Do us proud?!"
Hijikata glanced at me and sighed.
"We can't promise you won't get hurt, or worse. You should stay here."
"Do you wish to place undue burden on the Shinsengumi? War is not something one does to ease one's boredom."
Sanan's cold smile was anything but comforting.
Saito glanced at me then turned to Sanan, "Colonel Sanan, can I take that to mean that so long as she is not a burden, she is free to accompany us?"
"Um..."
I blinked. Saito, standing up for me?
Sanan seemed nearly as surprised as I was.
"You can't be saying you're actually in favor of bringing her along..."
Saito simply shrugged.
"She was an asset at Ikeda." he sighed, "I only intended to point out that, judged by her actions, she has hardly proven a 'burden' thus far."

I could feel heat rising in my cheeks.
Never in a million years would I have imagined that Saito might have a word of praise for me.
Kondou gave a short laugh, "Excellent! I will take full responsibility for your inclusion. That is, of course, if you still wish to participate." "U-Um..."
Sanan still didn't seem convinced. I looked around the room, until my eyes met Okita's.
He gave a small smile, "Do whatever you want to do, so long as you understand that we're going to a battle, not a party."

It looked like I wasn't about to get any help from Okita. In fact, he didn't seem to care one way or the other.
"Well..."
Perhaps I'd be able to help them out, like I had during the Battle of Ikeda Inn...
I nodded.
"Yes, I would like to participate."

...
After that, everything was a blur.
As quickly as we could, we prepared for battle, and marched to the Fushimi magistrate's office.
There were a number of the Kyoto Judiciary Commissioner's men gathered there as well, in preparation for battle with the Choshu.
Walking proudly in front of the men, Kondou approached the government official standing near the gate.
"We, the Shinsengumi, are reporting as requested by Lord Katamori Matsudaira, the Lieutenant-General of the Aizu."
Katamori Matsudaira was the lord of the Aizu Domain, and also the Kyoto Military Commissioner, which made him a very important person. His name would have been immediately recognized.
The man standing near the gate looked slightly taken aback at the mention of the Shinsengumi.
"You were told to report here...? But we received no such orders..."
"What?"
No, that didn't make any sense...
Perhaps sensing my confusion, Saito leaned over and whispered under his breath.
"If they haven't received notice of our orders, the lines of communication are likely in disarray. We can assume, therefore, that this conflict has become rather chaotic."
"Chaotic..."
I did my best to keep my own voice at a whisper.
"Do you mean the Choshu is overpowering the shogunate's forces?"
He glanced back at the Kuwana Official, "Not necessarily. However, I do suspect that the enemy is doing well."

The Judiciary Commissioner supposedly answered to the Military Commissioner, but the Military Commissioner's office was controlled by the Aizu Domain, and the Kuwana Domain controlled the Judiciary Commissioner's office.
I didn't fully understand the relationships between the different domains, but so far as I knew the Aizu and Kuwana had never been on very good terms with one another.
In other words, the situation we had found ourselves in was less than desirable.
Kondou was becoming annoyed, "Nonetheless, our assistance has been formally requested! If you could only speak to your supervi-"
"It wouldn't make a difference," said the Official, angrily, "Now get out of here. We have no use for Mibu's wolves!"
"What?!"
How terrible... And after they'd asked for the Shinsengumi's help...
I felt Harada's hand on my shoulder and turned to look up at him.
"Forget about them," he said, a hint of sadness in his tone, "This isn't anything to get worked up about. We get this sorta crap all the time."
"But..."
I wasn't truly a member of the Shinsengumi, but even so...
It was...galling.
Harada glanced back at the Official and his Chief, "If we throw a fit here, then we might hurt Aizu's reputation. You get it?"
"Oh..."
The Kuwana would only need to complain that the Shinsengumi hadn't shown them proper respect to make trouble for the Aizu.
Saito calmly approached Kondou and the Official, "There's nothing we can do here, Chief. We should leave the magistrate alone and meet up with the Aizu Domain men on our own."
Kondou nodded in agreement, but his frown didn't fade.
"Yes... I agree. That is our only choice. We must look for an officer of the Military Commissioner."
And with that, the Shinsengumi set off to find the soldiers of the Aizu Domain.

...
Night had fallen by the time we arrived at Kujo Beach.
After we left the Fushimi Magistrate, we made for the Aizu manor. Once we arrived, we related our encounter at the magistrate's office and asked for new orders.
The manor official we met with directed us to go to Kujo Beach, which we did. However…
"What? The Shinsengumi is to join us?" complained an Aizu Soldier.
"We've received no such order. I apologize, but could you go speak to the commander at the manor-"
Nagakura had, apparently, had enough.
"What the Hell?! He was the one who told us to come here, Goddammit!" he snarled, "You wanna fuck us, fine, but you're gonna be disobeying a direct order from your superior, pal! You really wanna do that?!"
The man opened and closed his mouth a few times, then fell silent.
Kondou did his best to keep his voice neutral, but there was no hiding the grin that had spread across most of his face.
"I would like to speak to your commanding officer, if I might. Do you think you might be able to take me to him?"

…
At last, after a great deal of trouble, we were allowed to remain with the troops at Kujo Beach.
The chief and the captains left the rest of us to go speak to the Aizu commanders. They returned some time later, looking tired and drained.
Inoue, who'd gone with them, also wore a bitter sort of half smile.
"Well," he said, glancing at me and the rest of the men, "it would seem that the men stationed here are reserves, and not the main force of their army." He sighed, "Their main force has been committed to the defense of Hamaguri Gate."
I felt my eyes go wide.
"You mean they're treating the Shinsengumi like...reserves?"
If the reserves weren't called into battle, then the Shinsengumi would never be given a chance to show their worth.
Nagakura let out a tired, frustrated sigh, "Then why the hell'd they send us a message acting like this was some sort of emergency?"
"We can't predict what might happen," explained Saito, "We may be called upon to rush into battle. There is little else we can do, for now."
I glanced, sadly at all the other men of the Shinsengumi, "Then all we can do is wait…"
There was a chance we'd be called to action during the night, and so the men chose to stay awake, ready to move.
"Just let us know if you need to rest a bit, Chizuru," whispered Harada, "You're always welcome to sleep on my lap."
"Oh, no, I'm fine."
Harada laughed as I shook my head.
It wouldn't be fair if I was the only one who slept. The men had to remain awake and ready to act all night.
At first, I was far too anxious, but by dawn I was sound asleep.
All around me, however, the men had kept a constant vigil all through the night. Even as I drifted in and out of sleep, I'd seen them standing or sitting nearby, alert and watchful.

…
The sun had risen and I'd finally woken up when it happened.
"What?!" I shouted.
The crack of a gunshot tore through the morning air, and in the distance I heard the shouting of men and the clang of metal. The fighting had begun.
The captains looked at one another and nodded.
Saito reached down and carefully pulled me to my feet, "Time we left."
I stared at him for a moment, perhaps not yet fully awake, until I understood what he was saying.
"Right!"
With a quick nod, I made ready to move, when-
"Stop!" shouted one of Aizu Soldiers, "What do you think you're doing?! We were ordered to stay here!"

During our lengthy march the day before, I'd never seen Hijikata mad. He'd left the yelling to Nagakura mostly, and stayed patient when it was time to speak with the army officials.
But this time…
Perhaps he had finally had enough.
"I'm sorry, I thought your job here was to protect the imperial estate, but I guess you'd rather just set around all day!" His voice grew steadily louder...angrier, "We're here because we're supposed to help if those Choshu assholes attack! Tell me, what are the Choshu doing, right now?!"
"B-But we haven't received any orders-" stammered the same Aizu Soldier.
Hijikata was in no mood for excuses.
"If you've got any kind of pride in your job, then forget your goddamn orders and move!"
"Rrrgg…"
Without even waiting for a response, Hijikata spun around and stalked off, fuming.
"Wh-Where are we going…?"
I didn't dare raise my voice above a whisper.
Saito's eyes flicked down to me for a moment and his mouth thinned almost imperceptibly.
"To the enemy, which in this case means Hamaguri Gate."
"Hamaguri Gate…"
"The battle at the gate," he continued, "is likely to be an intense one. You had better prepare yourself."
"All right…"
Hijikata's fury seemed to have roused the Aizu soldiers as well, and they followed the Shinsengumi to the Hamaguri Gate. Before long, we'd arrived.

…
"What the…?"
I'd expected a pitched battle, with hundreds of men locked in combat with one another, but what we found was something else entirely.
The gate itself was pockmarked with scored of bullets, and everywhere dead and dying soldiers littered the ground.
The acrid stink of firearms hung in the air.
What I didn't see, however, was the enemy. It seemed that we had arrived too late; the battle was already over.
After of moment of stunned silence, several of our men were dispatched to determine what had happened.
Kondou sighed.
"What are the Choshu thinking? They've raided the imperial estate…"
Inoue looked just as troubled, "How can they claim to be an imperialist domain…?"
Kondou simply nodded.
The Choshu had defined themselves as among those who revered the emperor, and yet they would attack his home?
It didn't make sense to me either.
I was pondering what motive they might have had when Saito returned.
"It appears the Choshu attacked Hamaguri in the early morning, but were repelled by the combined forces of the Aizu and Satsuma."
The forces standing against them had been too much for the Choshu, and they'd been forced to retreat.
I saw the corner of Hiikata's mouth curl up into a grin.
"So, Satsuma is helping Aizu now, are they? Times sure are changing."
Right…
The Satsuma and Aizu Domains hadn't been on the best of terms.
In fact, the Satsuma were largely nationalistic, much like the Choshu. Unlike the Choshu, however, they'd gone to war with a foreign force at one point, and suffered a devastating loss.
Father had told me that after that, Satsuma had begun to reconsider their nationalistic stance…
"Hijikata, there're still some of those Choshu bastards fighting over at Kuge Gate."
Hijikata's expression changed as he considered Harada's words, but before he could open his mouth to speak, Yamazaki appeared.
"Commander, we believe the men who led this raid are headed to Mount Ten'nou."
Although Kondou was nominally the head of the Shinsengumi, I'd learned from the men that everyone, including Kondou himself, generally deferred to Hijikata on most decisions.
This was no exception, and I could see that all eyes were on him.
He was silent for a few moments, and then I saw his mouth curve in a small smile.
"Well, looks like we've got our work cut out for us, boys."
A ripple of dry laughter ran through the men, and I could feel their excitement in the air.
"Sanosuke! Take your men to Kuge Gate to deal with those Choshu bastards."
Harada nodded, "Sure thing, boss."
"Saito, Yamazaki, I want you to figure out what the situation is here. I want you to hold Hamaguri Gate."
Saito nodded almost imperceptibly, "As you wish."
"Your job's a tough one, Chief." He turned to Kondou, "I want you to go talk to the Aizu bigwigs."
Kondou tilted his head to the side quizzically.
Hijikata smiled, "Some of those bastards are headed for Ten'nou, but some of 'em are just gonna run around and dause trouble."
A look of understanding came across the Chief's features.
"If we're gonna go after them," Hijikata continued, "then we'll need to leave Kyoto, and you're the only one who can get us those papers."
Of course.
The Choshu were on the run now, but they could still do some damage as they fled. Pursuing them would take us outside of Kyoto, but the Shinsengumi's jurisdiction didn't extend that far.
If we wanted to go after them, we'd need to get permission from the Military Commissioner, and that meant the Aizu.
"I see," sighed Kondou, "If the Chief of the Shinsengumi goes to speak with them, then the Military Commissioner's office will have to listen to what we have to say."
After what we'd gone through the day before, I didn't imagine Kondou's task would be an easy one.
Still… If anyone other than Kondou went, not only would the Aizu be unlikely to grant their request, there was a good chance the Shinsengumi representative wouldn't even be heard.
Hijikata then turned to Inoue, "Gen, I want you to go with him. Somebody has to keep an eye on our Chief. Make sure he doesn't go crazy, all right?"
Inoue smiled, "Of course. I'll do my best, Commander."
Another laugh ran through the soldiers, and Kondou's mouth twisted into a wry sort of grin.
Perhaps he chose not to deny it because he knew he might go a little crazy.
Hijikata turned to the remainder of the men, "The rest of you are coming with me to Ten'nou. As for you…"
He looked directly at me.
I wasn't a warrior, and I didn't have any political skill of connections either. Hijikata didn't know what to do with me.
Suddenly, I felt very much like dead weight.
"...You can't go with Kondou," he said quietly, "but other than that, it's up to you."
"Oh. All right."
It hadn't occurred to me until that moment, but he was right. Kondou was going to meet with the leaders of the Aizu. If I went with him without wearing the Shinsengumi blues, then I'd be a difficult thing to explain.
"Um…"
Hijikata would be pursuing the leaders of the Choshu attack toward Ten'nou Mountain.
Saito would be staying at the Hamaguri Gate to protect it and to gather information.
Harada and his men would be going to Kuge Gate to stop the attack on the imperial estate.
The question was...where would I go?

…
There was no questing. I would go with Hijikata and chase after the ronin heading for Mount Ten'nou.
Even carrying both a Katana and a wakizashi, the Shinsengumi soldiers moved at a rapid pace.
It was hard for me to keep up, and I was beginning to run short of breath when I saw...someone.
He was standing in front of us, but shadows obscured his face and clothes. Still, I could sense something strange about him. Hijikata seemed to sense it too, and he motions for the men to halt.
The Shinsengumi stopped, save for one man, who was either to excited or too foolish to heed the commander.
"Gyaaah!"
I saw the momentary flash of steel as the man cried out.
"Hey!" snarled Nagakura, "What the hell is this?!" He turned to the fallen man, "You okay?!"
The man just lay there, unresponsive. I could see thick, red blood already beginning to pool around him.
Taken aback at first by the sudden attack, the men all turned now to glare at the stranger, who stared blankly back at us and said, "Ah, judging by those jackets, you must be the Shinsengumi. Boorish, as always."
They were already on edge, but the man's words only made the men more agitated.
True, some people felt the jackets the Shinsengumi wore were a little old-fashioned, but I'd heard from the men that they had their reasons for doing so.
I could tell that they wanted desperately to pay the strange man back for his taunts and for his attack on their brother, but they knew that now was not the time for revenge.
The blonde stranger gave us a mocking look, "First you got in my way at Ikeda, and now you're running around looking for more good deeds to appropriate as your own."
The way he spoke made it sound as if he'd been there the night of the Battle of Ikeda Inn.
"So the peasant samurai haven't had their fill of defeat yet?" he sneered, "Oh, excuse me… You aren't even real samurai, are you?"
As he spoke, I felt the air begin to thicken with the rage of the Shinsengumi.
Hijikata was the one to respond, "You're the swordsman from Ikeda? Those are pretty big words from such a little man."
His smile was anything but warm.
The stranger ignored him, "I'd heard you were talented, for peasants, but after this sorry display it looks like those rumors were just that."
He looked down at the man he'd cut down and laughed.
"That man from the inn...Okita, was it?" he added snidely, "Far too weak to be considered any kind of real swordsman."
Hijikata's teeth were now almost completely bared.
"Ah…" I bit my lip to keep my anger in check.
I knew that Okita wasn't weak at all, and I wanted to tell him so, but… It was true that he had been injured…
"Insult Souji all you want, but how about you tell us why you killed this man first?!"
I heard the soft his of Nagakura's sword sliding from its scabbard.
At his feel lay the man who'd been attacked, his face now an odd, pale color. there was no doubt that he was dead.
"If I don't like what I hear, "Nagakura continued, "then I'm gonna kill you right here!"
The man snorted.
"To defend your warrior's pride? The shogun says 'Jump,' and you say 'How high?' Tell me, where's the pride in that?"
There was anger in his voice, too, but at what I didn't know.
"Why are you pursuing men who've lost and fled the battlefield?"
There was a quiet rage in his tone, "If you even pretend to have pride of your own, then you must understand that they've gone to Mount Ten'nou to take their own lives!"
"What…?"
Was he telling the truth? Did the Choshu men really mean to commit honorable suicide?
I looked over at Hijikata and the rest of his men, but not a one of them looked surprised.
The man in front of us was trying to stop the Shinsengumi in an attempt to protect the pride of the Choshu samurai. That was why he was mad.
But…
I glanced at the fallen man and then turned on the blonde man.
"Is...is it really all right to take a man's life for the sake of someone else's pride?"
It seemed to me that fighting for the sake of someone else's pride wasn't really right. How could you know their heart, or their thoughts? Pride is something that you have to defend yourself.
"How can someone deep their pride if someone else has to fight for it?"
In a way, I could understand his intentions, but I couldn't help but question his actions.
"Then are you saying I should simply allow the Shinsengumi to take what pride the Choshu have left so that they can earn a commendation for arresting them?"
He did not sound amused.
"No, that's...not really what I meant, but…"
Under that crimson glare, my voice trailed off, I felt like I hadn't really explained myself at all…
Hijikata had listened to our short conversation, and he seemed unimpressed.
"Pathetic. I thought you were trying to make some kind of point, stranger, but you're just whining like a child who can't get his way. This is war, you idiot!"
"What?"
The man spoke through clenched teeth, and the knuckles of his sword hand had gone white.
"They started a fight over something stupid, then didn't have the balls to see it through and ran away with their tails between their legs. Men like that don't deserve to die with honor!"
His voice cracked like lightning, and before I realized it, Id taken a step back.
"They're traitors, and cowards besides. You really think a man like that deserves an honorable death? They'll die with their guts where they belong and their heads in the dirt."
"Then you mean to say they should have been prepared to die for their cause when they went to war?"
"Any man who starts a fight he isn't willing to give his life for doesn't know what it means to be a warrior." Hijikata sighed, "Let's say they do have some scrap of pride left. Wouldn't dying in battle be better than dying on your own sword?"
I didn't fully understand what he meant, but I could tell that Hijikata's own concept of pride and honor was not something he could easily compromise.
Still, no matter how long he and the stranger spoke, I also knew that they would never see eye to eye.
There was the hiss of metal as Hijikata drew his sword from its scabbard, and I saw Nagakura drop into a fighting stance.
Hijikata turned to look at him, his eyes narrowed, and after muttering something angry under his breath Nagakura stepped back and put his blade back in its sheath.
"You don't look like a coward to me," said Hijikata, turning back to the stranger, "so I figure you're ready to finish what you started when you killed one of my men."
"Big words from a small man," said the blonde, "Do you honestly believe you can defeat me?"
In an instant, their swords met, and the clang of metal on metal reverberated through the mid-afternoon air.
They sprang apart, eyes fixed on one another, and I saw Hijikata's hands tighten on his sword.
The commander was a skilled swordsman-very skilled-but this man had defeated Okita.
I saw Nagakura reach for his own sword. He was clearly about to leap into the fight as well, probably hoping to help Hijikata gain the upper hand.
"No, Nagakura!" I shouted, "You can't!"
This fight wasn't why the Shinsengumi had come. Their mission was so follow the Choshu rebels to Mount Ten'nou.
There could be no doubt that the strange swordsman was an enemy, and a dangerous on-it might take our entire force to defeat him-but Hijikata would be furious if we abandoned our mission.
Nagakura knew it too, and after a few moments spent grinding his teeth, he took his hand off his sword.
"He, Hijikata. I'm gonna take your guys for a bit if that's all right with you!"
The commander's eyes never left the swordsman's face, but his mouth curled into an almost predatory grin.
Nagakura faced the rest of the men and said, "Listen up guys! We're gonna run straight for Mount Ten'nou, and we aren't gonna stop till we get there!"
The soldiers roared their assent.
The blonde narrowed his red eyes, "Damn you!"
"Pay attention," snapped Hijikata, "I'll put a sword through your back as easily as your front."
With Hijikata in striking distance, the swordsman didn't dare move as the soldiers of the Shinsengumi-myself among them-jogged past him, toward Mount Ten'nou.
"We'll be waiting for you at Mount Ten'nou!"
It would have felt strange to leave without saying...something to him.
"Please catch up to us soon!"
His eyes narrowed just a fraction, and he let out a laugh.
"Who the hell do you think I am?"
His voice was calm, confident, and slightly arrogant.
I nodded to him and jogged past, falling into step with Nagakura and the rest of the men. We ran straight for Mount Ten'nou and didn't look back.

…
"It's almost nighttime…"
I was waiting at the base of Mount Ten'nou.
Nagakura had led most of the men further up, in search of the Choshu rebels, but a few had been left at the bottom, in the unlikely event that any of the Choshu came this way. I'd stayed with them.
"...It'll be all right. They'll be back soon, I'm sure of it."
How many times had we done that, I wondered. Every time I seemed down, Shimada was there to cheer me up.
"Do you really think so?"
I couldn't get Hijikata out of my head. We'd left him behind, fighting an opponent we knew nothing about.
It was all too easy to imagine that the worst had happened…
"I hope he's safe…"
No sooner were the words out of my mouth than a shadow appeared in the dirt road in front of me.
"Ah!"
The shadow stepped toward us and into the light-
"Hijikata!"
He was all right!
I felt tears spring to my eyes, and shoved them away with the back of my hand.
"Glad to see you're safe, Commander. Doesn't even look like you've been injured. Good work."
Shimada was right: Hijikata was without a scratch, but even so his face was dark.
"I'd hoped we'd have a real fight, but we'd barely started when the Satsuma stuck their noses in."
"What were the Satsuma doing there?" I asked.
"His name's Chikage Kazama. Seems he's part of the Satsuma," was his reply.
"But if he's part of the Satsuma Domain…"
Hadn't they helped the Aizu drive off the Choshu?
Then why had Kazama tried to stop the Shinsengumi?
I frowned. Something wasn't right.
"Does that mean he disobeyed orders? Kazama, I mean."
"Probably. The men who broke up our fight seemed like they didn't know what the hell he was up to either." Hijikata sighed, "For whatever reason, I don't think they could push him around."
"He must be pretty important," said Shimada.

From what Hijikata had said, Kazama was certainly a skilled, powerful warrior, but I couldn't shake the feeling that there was more to it than that.
When Hijikata spoke next, his voice was bitter.
"He's a lazy son of a bitch with enough money or influence to do whatever the hell he feels like. He doesn't give a shit about honor or pride."
There wasn't anything Shimada or I could really say in response to that, and so we fell silent.
Before Hijikata could continue, we heard the sound of men approaching, and Nagakura appeared, the bulk of our detachment trailing behind him.
I saw Nagakura stop for a split second when he noticed Hijikata, and then a grin tugged at the side of his face.
"Well, we went up to the top to have a look, but every last one of those bastards had already cut themselves wide open."
"Oh…"
My heart fell as he explained.
I wasn't sad that they'd killed themselves, of that the Shinsengumi hadn't been able to arrest them… Only that more lives had been lost.
"Honorable suicide, eh? Good for them."
As Hijikata spoke, he flashed half a smile at Nagakura.
"Is...is that okay?"
Only a few hours before, he'd said that they were criminals, and only deserved to be beheaded, but now he was applauding them for taking their own lives?
He shrugged.
"Not for the Shinsengumi. We let them fulfill their mission, which means we failed ours"
"Um…"
"I wanted to arrest them, but they're dead now. What good would it do to ignore what they did? Friend or enemy, a man who dies with honor deserves at least some respect."
"Oh… I suppose that makes some sense."
It was obvious that I really only half-understood what he was trying to say, and his expression softened a little.
...And that was the end of our journey to Mount Ten'nou. Together once again, we returned to the imperial estate to meet up with the rest of the Shinsengumi.
On the way back, Hijikata and the men began to discuss their next move. I looked like there was still plenty for the Shinsengumi to do in Kyoto.

…
The Choshu extremists' attempted attack on the imperial estate eventually came to be known as the Hamaguri Rebellion.
Although the Shinsengumi were called to action, their efforts were stymied, and the found little in the way of glory. Communication with their superiors had been poor at best, and they spent much of the battle waiting with the reserves.
When the Shinsengumi did finally enter the battle, they found several strange opponents awaiting them:
Chikage Kazama, the man who had defeated Okita at Ikeda, claimed to be from the Satsuma Domain during his encounter with Hijikata.
Kyuju Amagiri, the man who had shattered Heisukie's head-guard at Ikeda, also claimed membership in the Satsuma.
They had also met Kyo Shiranui, who'd fought alongside men from Choshu…
Whoever they were, it was clear they were not allies of the Shinsengumi. Indeed, it seemed they could easily become so of its greatest enemies.
If they were to meet in open battle, the casualties would be severe.
By the time the battle was over, the commanders of the Choshu attack had been killed in the fighting or taken their own lives.
There were some soldiers, who escaped, setting Kyoto ablaze as they fled.
By some terrible misfortune, the sind that day blew from the north and fanned the flames, reducing the southern end of the imperial estate to ash.
As a result of the Choshu attack, many imperial nationalists were executed.
After everything had been sorted out, the Shinsengumi were at last given permission to patrol outside of Kyoto, from Osaka to Hyogo.
No sooner had they been given permission than they set to work, rounding up unruly ronin and defending the public good.
With the Hamaguri Rebellion over, the Choshu were branded as traitors for attacking the estate. From then on they were acknowledged enemies of the court.