Chapter Eighteen:
Yuki looked up from the target tacked to her wall, pulling out one of the kunai stuck in it as her bedroom door slid open.
"What do you want?" she demanded as Natsuko walked into the room, hands folded neatly behind her back.
"Just to talk to you, Yuki-chan," the older girl smiled winningly, her left hand smoothing out a minute crinkle in her elegant kimono.
"Go away, Natsuko-san." Yuki snapped, turning her back on Natsuko. She didn't like the pretty girl any more than Shinko-nee. It wasn't fair that Shinya-nii had come all the way to Tokyo for her, when Shinko was the one in trouble. It was even less fair that she got to listen to the Oniwabanshu meetings, and Yuki didn't, even though no-one really knew her, and Yuki was a kunoichi in training.
"Don't be like that, Yuki-chan." Natsuko said patronisingly, stepping closer.
"Go away!" Yuki yelled, throwing the kunai at Natsuko. It slashed through her sleeve. Natsuko hissed as the small dagger shredded through the rice-paper door behind her.
The young woman's eyes narrowed, and she stepped forwards, slapping Yuki across the right cheek, hard enough to snap the girl's head to the side. As her eyes blurred with tears, Yuki felt Natsuko's hand clench in her pigtails, as cold steel was pressed to throat.
"I liked that kimono, Yuki-chan. And my name is not 'Natsuko'. I am Ayame Kanbayashi"
"Now, Yuki-chan, we're going to go and ask your Okaasan to write a letter to Shinya-nii's family."
*break*
"Kiyoshi-san," Shinko hissed, covering Kiyoshi's mouth as he reached the top of the stairs. He jerked, nearly dropping the tray, and his grey eyes widened, as he saw her. After a moment Shinko loosened her grip, letting Kiyoshi step away.
"How did you get out?" Kiyoshi demanded in a whisper. "The door was locked."
"... I broke it." Shinko said, shrugging. "What were you and Toranaga-san talking about?"
"Tanuki-sama, Toranaga-sama's boss, wants you to come to work for him. He prefers to employ people who aren't expected to be dangerous. You're small, female, and well trained in combat. A perfect résumé for him." Kiyoshi said coldly, grimacing.
"Some criminal wants to hire me?" Shinko asked in disbelief, overlooking the comment about smallness and femaleness.
"No, a very powerful criminal will hire you." Kiyoshi said, looking away.
"Why do you work for Toranaga?" Shinko asked, peering down the stairs.
"I'd rather not talk about it." Kiyoshi said, looking away. "How did you get past the guard?"
"I broke a vase over his head." Shinko gestured towards the slumped man at the end of the corridor.
"Nandeyaanen," Kiyoshi murmured, laughing in disbelief. "You are a very strange girl you know."
"He was trying to cut my head off. It was that or the table." Shinko said, shrugging.
"Why are you doing this? You act like you... trust me..."
"I heard you arguing with Toranaga – you seem to be on my side."
"Didn't I just tell you that Tanuki-sama hires people who seem harmless?"
"Well, if you aren't on my side, I have a big, sharp sword."
"True."
*break*
Misao was sitting in her room, looking through old oniwabanshu records, reports, letters, anything that might mention this Tanuki-sama. So far, there was nothing. It seemed impossible that a whatever this network was, had managed to remain undetected while publicly tolling the roads into Kyoto and planning to kidnap the child that Misao – as a temporary okashira – considered as her niece, right out from under the onmitsu's nose.
The oniwabanshuu was disintegrating. Even when Aoshi-sama had left with Hannya, Beshimi, Hyotoko and Shikijo all those years ago, there had still been Okina and the others, and the people had been on their side as well, now... now it was almost as if the onmitsu had never really existed. Misao and Aoshi had both given up direct control to Masaru, mainly concerned with the running of the Aoi-ya and the raising of their daughter, and the boy had only a few shinobi, a kunoichi, and Yuki-chan, working for him. It wasn't enough to maintain an intelligence network across Kyoto, let alone across Japan as it had been when Misao had been a young girl.
"Haha..."
Misao turned as she heard the shoji screen scrape open, hearing Yuki's voice – tearful, almost frightened.
Natsuko stood in the doorway, a small wakizashi pressed against Yuki's neck, her lovely face wearing a sweet smile that didn't even hint at whatever horrible perversion that allowed her to stand there with a blade at Yuki's throat. Misao's eyes widened as she felt the world spiralling out of reality.
"Don't move, please."
Yuki bit her lip, not daring to struggle against the grip on her small body as she saw her mother's hand freeze halfway to the dozens of kunai and other weapons laid out on the edge of the desk – an almost unconscious gesture. Her cheek was hot and stinging where Natsuko - no, Ayame – had slapped her, and there was a sick feeling in her stomach as she fought back the tears.
I'm Oniwabanshuu. I don't cry.
"Let go of her." Misao said, very slowly, her breathing slightly irregular, but no hint of tension crossing her wide aquamarine eyes as she fixed her gaze on Yuki.
"I want you to write me a letter," Ayame said, shrugging. "Adress it to Yahiko-san, please." Ayame watched as Misao slowly moistened her inkstone and brush, pulling a sheet of paper towards her, her eyes still fixed on Yuki as she tapped the wooden end of the against the desk three times – to dislodge any extra drops of water – before writing Yahiko's name on one side with small, precise letters.
"Let me tell you what's going to happen tonight," Ayame said when Misao looked up. "Shinya and Kenji are on their way to Toranaga-sama's house now, where they will find twenty-seven well-trained warriors waiting for them. The best they can hope for is to be locked up with Shinko-des. You will inform Yahiko-san of this tragic state of affairs – write 'Shinko-kun and Shinya-kun were captured by Toranaga-sama, please come help' – and I will keep Yuki as a vouchsafe until Yahiko arrives.
"What do you want with Yahiko-kun?"
"He's a threat," Ayame shrugged. "And famous. To be able to erase his existence would make many things much easier." She plucked the nearly dry note out of Misao's hands, comparing it against the other ones she'd seen the kunoichi send over the last few days, and nodded in satisfaction.
*break*
Downstairs, Kenji pushed the door open, almost kicking his shoes off at the entry hall, but deciding against it – he would not show politeness to these creatures, no matter how ingrained it was. Plus, they might use caltrops or something – assuming they worked anything like Masaru and the remnants of the Oniwabanshuu did.
The bottom floor looked fairly non-descript – an open room with smaller rooms and stairs at the back, decorated in the slightly shabby style that the exterior suggested, but from upstairs, the sound of quiet voices could be heard.
"Where do you think she is?" Kenji asked Shinya, looking around. He doubted Shinko would be in this lower floor – all the doors he could see were paper shoji, and flimsy enough to snap.
"Definitely upstairs." Shinya said, without even looking around. "Upstairs or safely out." Kenji smiled grimly, fingering the bokken at his waist.
The two boys shared a long look, an echo of the moment that they had decided to find Shinko themselves.
"Friends?" Shinya asked after a second.
"If we survive." Kenji replied. The dark-haired boy nodded, before they turned and ran up the stairs, Shinya letting loose with a loud battle cry.
*Break*
"Wait – what? Natsuko-chan is evil?" Shinko held her hand up to stop Kiyoshi's explanation a frown furrowing her brow.
"Maybe 'evil' is not the right word, but she is not on your side." Kiyoshi said shrugging. "People who look harmless, remember?"
"But... but she was kidnapped!"
"A very elaborate hoax. Ayame-san and Kana-san were both quite proud of it." It let her win Aoshi-dono and Misao-dnoo's trust as well.
"...but she's probably at the Aoi-ya right now!" Shinko shouted, her eyes widening in horror. "We have to go!" She grabbed Kiyoshi's wrist and began barrelling down the stairs.
The third floor looked to be primarily Toranaga's private rooms and such – surprisingly tasteful decorations, and shoji painted with blue-toned landscapes and rivers.
"Shinko-san, wait –" Kiyoshi dug his heels in, managing to put up a surprising amount of resistance, overcoming the short girl's momentum and dragging her to a stop.
"The next floor is where everyone is." He whispered, backing away from the stairs, voices drifting up from the bottom. It's bedrooms and a dining area for all of Toranaga's lackeys – we can't just run in..."
"...Why not?" Shinko asked, unconsciously mirroring Kenji's words. "We need to warn them that Natsuko-"
"-Ayame-" Kiyoshi corrected quietly.
"-is a spy."
"Didn't you say she was staying at the Aoi-ya? Have the Oniwabanshu really become that useless?"
"You know about the Oni- You know about the Aoi-ya?" Shinko asked, her eyes widening. The Oniwabanshu wasn't exactly unheard of, but knowing where its headquarters were was probably bad.
"Of course – You might say Tanuki-sama has replaced Aoshi-san in the field." Kiyoshi shrugged, his face blank. After a moment he turned away, walking quietly into one of the rooms. After a mement, he emerged with a small bag, and the tasselled, blunt weapon that Toranaga had taken from Shinko earlier.
"How did you get that?"
"It was in Toranaga-sama's room. That sword is too big for you." Kiyoshi nodded to the heavier katana at Shinko's waist.
Shinko nodded, slipping the katana out of its sheath and replacing it with her own sword, handing the longer blade to Kiyoshi, who frowned as he noted the awkwardness of the movement, before his fingers darted out, as fast and nimble as a crane, and caught the edge of her right sleeve, lifting it away from the inadequate bandage.
"Can you fight like that?" He asked, his grey eyes serious as he pulled out a bandage from the small bag. Shinko tugged the sleeve back down, looking away.
"It's fine."
Kiyoshi cast his eyes heavenward with a soft sigh, unknotting the strip of Shinko's gi and replacing it with a proper bandage which her wound tightly around most of her arm, the pressure enough to stem the bleeding.
"I was sent here from Osaka because Toranaga needed another medic," the grey-eyed man shrugged again, as he worked, responding to Shinko's questioning stare. "I don't know much, but enough to make me more useful out of a fight than in it." He was just tying the knot when there was a shout from downstairs.
"That's Shinya!" Shinko turned away, finishing the knot herself, before turning and running down the stairs.
*Break*
Masaru heard the shout from his position on the roof, and smiled. He'd already been down to peer into the small room which he'd guessed would be Shinko's – and from the broken pottery, gutted lock, flowery shinai bag, and distinct emptiness, he'd guessed right. He hefted the bag – it had been a feat that tested even his talents to extract it from the slightly ajar cupboard, without being able to fit into the room – and tied it to his belt, before carefully descending to the next tier of the roof. The third floor was wider than the fourth, and had a narrow balcony running around it as well. Masaru landed lightly on it, pulling open the door into a small room with several painted scrolls on it, all apparently by the same artist. Opening the door, he darted across the corridor, listening to the shouts downstairs as he slid open another door into a much larger room; Toranaga's.
Toranaga seemed to be a man that liked his privacy, and slept with one eye open. The room was slightly too messy to have a regular cleaner, and there was nowhere for a guard to be stationed. Either paranoia or overconfidence – Masaru secretly suspected it might be both; since if the situation were reversed, then he would probably fall prey to both faults as well. The boy dismissed the thought and brushed back his dark hair in a quick, excited motion, before setting to work.
*break*
Now who guessed Natsuko was evil – before I introduced Kana and all the heavy hints? The incongruities have been building up since she was 'kidnapped' at exactly the moment Shinko walked by, back in Chapter 14. If no-one guessed, I screwed up, if everyone guessed, I screwed up. If about a third of you guessed then I can go to my lair, cackle, and start writing mysteries, Bwahaha ... or not.
And there's a nice big fight scene next chapter, and all – or at least lots – will be revealed... and Word is gonna have a fit at my sentence-length ;P