Still Waters 3, Book 2, Chapter 25: A Fox in Kyoto, Part 1
Thursday, July 16th, Morning
Somewhere between Tokyo and Kyoto...
Endo Haru heaved a sigh as she looked out the bullet train's window, watching the landscape fly past. Her classmate Suzuki Keiko sat in the seat by the window, reading a book. Haru glanced over and read a few lines, but it seemed to be a really dry history book about Kyoto.
Haru sighed again.
'Why did I let Youko drag me into this...?' she wondered to herself. She climbed up onto her seat and turned to look into the seat behind her; Youko looked up at her, her eyes bright as she grinned up at her.
"Need something?" Youko asked.
"The ability to not let you run me over?" Haru asked, cocking an eyebrow. Youko laughed as if that was the funniest thing she'd heard all day and shook her head, then went back to chatting with her seatmate, a woman Haru was beginning to associate with nothing but trouble, the granddaughter of the headmaster, Konoe Konoka. Haru turned around and sat back down in her seat, settling in again as she looked back out through the window.
Kyoto...Haru was a little nervous about going back there; she would much rather have stayed safely in Mahora, where all those really strong people who defended the city could protect her from whatever tried to come and get her. Kyoto...? Haru didn't know anyone there at all. What would happen if she got lost, separated from the others? What would she do, all alone on the streets of Kyoto, so far from home?
She fumbled with the hem of her skirt as she sat in her seat; her worry over the fast-approaching incident she was sure would occur made her a nervous wreck. "...why did I ever get involved with her?" she muttered aloud. Stupid Youko...! Always dragging her off to do dangerous things...! Even after that fiasco at the Youkai Festival, where she was even forced to go so far as to have a duel with some big scary Red Fox youkai! It had been terrifying!
Of course, later on, on the last night of the festival, her next meeting with that Red Fox youkai had had an entirely different atmosphere and they had come away friends, but that was beside the point. Youko had led her from one disaster to another, from the incidents around the festival to the horrifically brutal training Eva had put her through in what everyone was calling her 'resort'. Ever since Youko had taken it into her mind to teach her how to be a 'proper youkai', her peaceful life in Mahora had become a nightmare.
Haru sighed a third time. This whole thing was such a pain in the-
"I'm back," Sakurazaki Setsuna said as she sat down in the aisle seat on Haru's left side. Haru muttered something in response and continued fumbling with the hem of her skirt, looking down at her knees.
"I thought you would be sitting with her," Haru said after a moment, glancing back toward the seat behind them, where Youko and Konoka were deep in conversation. She thought she might understand what was going on between Konoka and Setsuna, but she couldn't be sure. Still, she knew it was strange for the two to be apart.
Setsuna smiled gently as she glanced back at Konoka, and shook her head. "No, not this time; those two have a lot to talk about."
"Yeah..." Haru said for lack of anything better to say. She was curious, though...Youko hadn't told her why she wanted the five of them to go to Kyoto; Haru had just assumed it was an attempt to get back to her roots, or something like that. She knew distressingly little about her Silver Fox youkai friend, but she did know Youko had lived around Kyoto for a long time before getting locked away for a few hundred years. She glanced back at Youko, still deep in conversation with Konoka as the two pored over what looked like some kind of hastily sketched floor plan for a building. She turned back to the only person who probably knew what was going on. "Hey, Sakurazaki-san..."
"You can call me Setsuna," Setsuna replied as she looked across Haru and Keiko to look out through the window.
"Setsuna-san..." Haru said. "Do you know what Youko is planning?"
Setsuna looked at her, clearly surprised. "She didn't tell you...? Do you remember what happened at the Youkai Festival?"
Haru cocked her head, curious. "What do you..." She paused a moment. "Are you talking about that Masashi guy?"
Setsuna nodded. "Yes. Remember how he declared his intent to become the next Youkai King?" She waited until Haru nodded, then continued. "Youko declared her intent at the same time. Now, anyone trying to become the Youkai King must try to get the three sacred items: the Eight Hand Mirror, which Masashi has right now, The Sword of the Gathering Clouds of Heaven, or more commonly the 'Grasscutter', and the Yasakani no Magatama, a special amulet. And in Kyoto..." she said, trailing off as she smiled slightly.
"Oooh," Haru said as understanding dawned. "So which one is she after?"
"The sword," Setsuna said, smiling.
"Is this the Grasscutter?" Keiko asked, speaking up for the first time since Setsuna returned from her patrol of the bullet train. "The one used by Yamato Takeru? It's not in Atsuta Shrine, in Nagoya?"
"And given to Amaterasu by Susanoo," Setsuna said, nodding. "The same sword. The one in Atsuta Shrine is a replica." The knowing grin on her face raised Haru's curiosity.
"So...do you know where the real one is?" Haru asked.
Setsuna's grin widened. "In the main Shinmeiryu compound."
Haru exited the taxi with the other girls on a street corner and waited while Setsuna retrieved the single piece of luggage they had brought. Youko and Konoka crowded in close as she unzipped the oddly long bag, and Haru, curious, craned her neck to see what was going on.
The pair of swords Setsuna pulled out and handed to Konoka and Youko were most definitely not on the list of things she had expected to see.
Keiko, ever quick to grasp a situation, shrank back to Haru's side and grabbed her sleeve. "...We're going to storm the Shinmeiryu compound, aren't we?" she asked nervously.
Youko looked up, grinning, her eyes fully open for once, showing the odd, pale blue color of her irises. "Got it in one, Keiko-chan. And you two are gonna help~"
Haru just stood there, her mouth opening and shutting as she tried to think of something, anything she could say to take Youko off of such a suicidal path, but no words would come.
"Is this...is this necessary? Is there some tradition?" Keiko asked.
"That's right," Konoka said as she settled her typical-sized katana with it's odd heart-shaped tsuba into its spot on her belt. "The Shinmeiryu and the groups before have always been in charge of this part of the trials of the Youkai King. Masashi cheated, so even if he had gotten the real sword, we would have hunted him down and taken it back," she said, smiling as she took a moment to eye Setsuna, who was checking her own extra long blade.
"You can do that?" Haru asked. She was a little skeptical that some kendo school in Kyoto had the power to hunt down someone powerful enough to make a legitimate attempt at claiming the title of Youkai King. Sure, some of the people who used its style were really strong, like Konoka, Setsuna, and Asuna, but that was due more to their natural skills, wasn't it? The thought that there was a kendo school that taught youkai slaying was kind of scary...
"In Mundus Magicus, even the Youkai King bows to the Konoe Heir," Youko and Konoka recited in sync, grinning.
"And guess who traditionally leads the Shinmeiryu?" Youko asked.
"The...Konoe heir?" Haru asked.
"Got it again," Youko said as she settled her sword, shorter than either Konoka or Setsuna's, into the belt she put on for the purpose. "We really need to get you trained to use one of these, ya know?" she said, eyeing Haru.
"N-no thanks, I'd probably just cut my leg off trying to pull it out," Haru said nervously, holding up her hands placatingly as she eyed the short sword at Youko's waist. "Why is yours so short?" she asked.
"I'm borrowing it from Konoka," Youko replied. "Just until I get my sword."
"Oh..." Haru said. The group fell silent as Setsuna, Konoka, and Youko finished checking their equipment. "So, uh..." Haru said when it looked like they were finally ready, "I get why you three are here, but what about us? I mean, I'm not a fighter, and neither is Keiko..."
Youko grinned at her, letting her fanglike canines show. "You'd be surprised. Besides, you might end up being useful; you never know."
"That's right," Setsuna said as she smiled gently as Keiko and Haru. "I've seen more than one battle settled by someone who wasn't a fighter. It'll be okay, just stay behind us."
Haru and Keiko looked at each other, and Haru couldn't help but feel a little annoyed that Keiko looked far more sure of herself than Haru felt. Konoka and Youko started forward and Setsuna fell into step behind them. Keiko settled her backpack into a comfortable position, looked at Haru, shrugged, and set off after them. Haru heaved a sigh and moved to bring up the rear.
"Ah...Lady Konoe...? What is...I don't understand..." the guard at the small side gate in the southwest corner of the compound said nervously as he focused very carefully on not moving. At all. Konoka's blade rested against his throat.
"This is a raid!" Konoka said happily, smiling at the sweating guard. Setsuna stood behind her, looking slightly embarrassed while Haru and Keiko watched from a fair distance away.
"A-a...a raid...?"
"Mm-hmm!"
"What...I...I mean...huh?" the guard said. He licked his lips nervously as a drop of sweat rolled down his face.
"I am declaring my intent to obtain the Sword of the Gathering Clouds of Heaven," Youko said, smiling at the guard. "Do you know the ritual?"
The guard's eyes widened and he had to stop himself from nodding lest he accidentally cut his own throat. "I-I do...! I...just, just please take the sword away? P-please?"
"Promise you won't run...?" Konoka asked, eyeing him speculatively.
"Y-yes! I swear!"
"Okay!"
The guard nearly collapsed in relief when Konoka took her sword away, but quickly gathered his wits and turned back to Youko, straightening his back and adopting the expression and tone required by tradition. "And who are you, to seek the sword?" he asked.
"I am Miyoshi Youko of the Silver Fox tribe, daughter of Miyoshi Kenshi, mother of Aoyama Genjirou. I have come to seize the sword!" Youko announced.
"And your allies?" the guard said. Haru heard shouts and running feet from the other side of the wall; she had no doubt that others were preparing to attack them as they entered, and yet they seemed to be waiting for something...probably for whatever ritual Youko had asked about to be complete, she thought.
"I am Konoe Konoka, a native of Kyoto. I intend to assist my friend in her attempt," Konoka said, her expression a mask of formality.
"I am Sakurazaki Setsuna, also a native of Kyoto. I intend to assist her as well," Setsuna said in a similar manner.
"And you?" the guard asked, looking at Haru and Keiko.
Haru looked at Keiko nervously. "What should we do...?"
Keiko shrugged. "Follow along, I guess." She closed her eyes and took a deep breath to steady herself, then took a step forward. "I am Suzuki Keiko, of Tokyo. I am here to...to record Miyoshi Youko's attempt, and assist if possible," she said.
"And you?" he asked, looking at Haru.
Haru's mouth went dry as she looked from the guard to Youko and the others, her mind racing as she tried to figure out what to say. "A-ah...I...um...I'm Endo Haru, of...of Mahora, and...I-I'm here to...assist?"
"I recognize you, Miyoshi Youko of the Silver Fox tribe and your allies," the guard said. "By my right as a member of the Shinmeiryu Guardsman, I recognize your right to try for the sword."
"I thank you," Youko replied.
The guard bowed in response, then turned and threw open the gate, revealing a dozen guards waiting inside, weapons drawn.
Youko, Konoka, and Setsuna drew their weapons, and the guards attacked.
Haru watched, stunned, as the last of the guards fell, clutching his head, to join his fellows on the ground. Three young women had just taken out a dozen strong, male guards in a matter of seconds...? It had all happened so fast she had trouble understanding just what Youko, Setsuna, and Konoka had done; one moment the three had been facing the guards, and it seemed the next after a flurry of movement and the brief clash of blades the guards were all down on the ground.
"Don't worry;" Setsuna said, sheathing her nodachi. "I used the back of my blade."
"...isn't that dangerous?" Haru asked. "Like, really, insanely dangerous?"
Setsuna grinned slightly and shook her head.
"Not for someone as skilled as her," Youko said happily as she sheathed her wakizashi. "Now, so long as none of them got away..." she said, glancing over at Keiko.
"Sorry," she said. "One ran to that building," she said, pointing at a small building beside the gate; Haru figured it functioned as this gate's guardhouse.
"Well let's-" Youko was interrupted mid-sentence by the sudden ringing of a massive bell.
Haru winced and covered her ears; that bell was loud...! It took her a moment to realize the unnaturally loud ringing was probably a recording.
Youko trotted over to the side of the building and ripped the power line lines loose; sparks flew and Youko, looking surprised, dropped the thick wires and leapt back; the unbearable noise of the warning bell cut off abruptly.
"You should probably have real warning bells instead of just a recording...," Keiko said, looking shyly at Konoka.
Konoka smiled brightly at her. "You're right, Keiko-chan; I'll have to take care of that soon," she said, nodding sagely.
"And we're found out already," Setsuna said, looking down the path toward where it disappeared in the trees; shouts could be heard as a group rushed down the path toward them, hidden by the trees. "Into the trees!"
While the main Shinmeiryu compound and Konoe main house in Kyoto was very, very old, it was also extremely large; the walled area alone, separating the open-to-the-public cultural heritage site of the main shrine and historical village from the Konoe house and main Shinmeiryu training area as well as its environs, was larger than many small towns. As such, it contained quite an expanse of small forests and old structures that had been all but forgotten about, as well as areas that were considered dangerous and strictly off-limits.
"Stick together," Youko said quietly as the five girls moved through the trees as quietly as they could. They had narrowly avoided the second set of guards by cutting through a small forest, but they were still close enough to be found out by loud speech. "It's best if we don't-"
"Raimeiken...!" someone shouted from somewhere in the trees above.
"Scatter!" Youko screamed as she dove aside to avoid the ki attack. Konoka, Setsuna, and Keiko all immediately followed her example, leaving only Haru behind to run screaming into the woods as the ground she had just been standing on exploded upward with a deafening blast. Haru scrambled through the trees as well as she could, given the situation.
"Rie, Yamada! After the Ojou-sama and the fox! Chiba! Catch the crow and the human girl!" a woman said from somewhere in the trees, barking the orders. Haru could hear them clearly, which only made her more nervous as she stopped to hide behind a huge tree stump.
"Understood!" the others replied. Haru could hear people moving through the underbrush for a moment, then silence fell over the forest again but for the sound of the wind in the leaves. Haru strained her ears to listen for any sign of the one who had been giving orders, but she heard nothing. Still...something wasn't right. There was a certain tension in the air that hadn't been there before. Haru tried to quiet her racing heart and did her best to listen for anyone's approach, but she heard nothing. Still, something wasn't right. Frowning, Haru concentrated for a moment and popped her other ears out; her hearing was instantly magnified, and she immediately realized what was wrong. The forest was quiet, true...too quiet. There was no sound of birds or animals, only the wind in the leaves...and the sound of something creeping up slowly on the other side of the stump. She could hear it breathing, each breath long and slow and timed to blend in with the wind, but with her other ears out, Haru could pick it out easily, along with the faintest hint of what she realized in surprise was a heartbeat.
'What should I do...?' she wondered frantically, pulling her knees up to her chest.
'ISN'T THAT OBVIOUS?' the other Haru replied in her head. 'KILL HER.'
'No...!' Haru thought frantically. She wasn't going to kill anyone, no matter what the other Haru said...!
'TIME'S UP,' the other Haru said.
Haru let out a yelp and threw herself to the forest floor, covering her head as the woman sliced the stump she was hiding behind cleanly in half.
"Found you," the woman said.
Haru glanced back as she scrambled to her feet and caught a glimpse of a tall cat youkai woman in a loose, flowery yukata raising a sword.
"Raimeiken!"
Haru screamed and ran as hard as she could as another explosion ripped through the woods.
Konoka looked to Youko, who nodded at her, and nodded back. A quick glance back showed her that the Snake and Dog youkai were still following, hot on their heels. Konoka and Youko darted apart at the same instant, and, just as planned, the two following them separated as well, the snake youkai going after Konoka, and the dog youkai going after Youko.
Konoka ducked around a large tree while Youko kept running, and the snake girl instantly went around the other side, hoping to catch her, but Konoka was waiting for her. Their swords clashed once, twice, then the two leaped apart.
"You've gotten good, ojou-sama," the snake girl said, making the eerie grin that unnerved most everyone who didn't know her.
Konoka smiled back; Mizuhara Rie had been one of those she had often sparred with during her training after...what had happened with Setsuna that time in high school. Everyone thought Rie was creepy with that smile and her strange eyes, but Konoka knew better; though she looked like an adult, Rie was still just a girl, only forty or so, young yet for a youkai, and though she tried to hide it from outsiders, she loved cute things and even had a box full of plush toys in her room. "You're better than you were the last time we sparred, too, Rie-chan."
"I thank you," Rie said, moving in to attack. Again, Konoka deflected her blade, neither one really intent on hurting the other. Rie moved back smoothly into an attack stance. "Where's your wakizashi?"
"Youko's borrowing it," Konoka said. "Where's yours?" she asked, grinning as she changed her stance to one that would leave Rie wide open for a beheading should she attack with her current stance. Rie switched her stance to a different one, and Konoka followed suit, stance countering stance. "You're the one who taught me to use one with a katana, after all."
Rie made a lopsided grin. "Hideko hid it from me as a prank. This isn't going anywhere, is it?" she asked as she moved into another stance with the eerie grace that marked her instantly to anyone in the know as a snake youkai.
Konoka let out a laugh. "Not really, no." They could hear the clash of swords and the occasional small explosion nearby as Youko fought with the other girl. "Sounds like Hideko-chan's really going all out. Want to give up? I'll tell daddy you fought well."
Rie shook her head. "Hideko never liked foxes. But anyway, I can't accept your offer; I have a reputation to keep." She darted forward even as she spoke, still smiling as she brought her sword forward into a thrust, and Konoka raised her blade just enough to put it over the top of Rie's, deflecting it from its course. Rie tried to turn the motion into a cut across Konoka's midsection, but she lost sight of Konoka's right hand until it slammed into her face and released a tiny ki blast. Rie's head rocked back and she fell, unconscious before she hit the ground. Konoka knelt down next to her and checked to make sure no permanent damage had been done to her friend, but then a devious grin snaked over her face. "He he~"
When Youko came trotting up a moment later, grinning as if she had just had a good workout, she found Konoka crouched down next to the fallen snake girl, who was now lying on her side in an exaggeratedly provocative manner, her clothing pulled loose and arranged to show as much skin as possible.
"...is that really necessary?" Youko asked, raising an eyebrow.
Konoka looked up at her and grinned. "Of course! She lost, after all, and everyone knows there has to be a penalty game~" She pulled out her cell phone and began snapping pictures of Rie.
"Yeah..." Youko said absently.
"Wow, you really got her good, huh?" someone said.
"Mm-hmm!" Konoka said as she reached over and arranged Rie's shirt to show a little more cleavage before taking another picture.
"I'll have to tell Hikari about that; that one's one of her hers, right?"
"Yep!" Konoka said. "Rie-chan's my good friend though, so you shouldn't do anything too bad, right Koyomi-chan?" she said, drawing her sword in what should have been a lethal cut as she turned to face the woman. Youko brought her wakizashi up at the same instant, but both blades were stopped with a clash of metal on metal as Konoka and Youko turned to face the interloper.
"Heya Konoka-ojou-sama-chan," the woman standing before them said cutely, winking at Konoka. "I was wondering when you'd get serious~ What are you doing back here all of a sudden, without even bothering to call and warn anybody? And who is this?" she said, looking at Youko. "And I can't help but notice blushy-girl's not here...what's going on?" she asked as if she wasn't currently holding off two skilled swordswomen by herself with nothing but a couple of wakizashis, one for each girl.
"You...you're good. Who are you?" Youko asked, narrowing her eyes at the strange woman.
"Aoyama Koyomi, at your service!" the woman said brightly, winking at her. "Cutest of the Aoyamas, ne?"
"Aoyama..." Youko said, looking strained.
"Koyomi-san..." Konoka said. Koyomi might not look like much with her thin figure and short stature, but she was a master at manipulating her ki reserves to strengthen her body, making her far faster and stronger than she appeared to be; she was also quite a bit older than she appeared to be...the oldest of the Aoyama cousins, in fact, though she looked like the youngest except for Motoko. Konoka could beat her on a good day, but as with any member of the Aoyama family, it was never an easy thing for her, especially since she hadn't been training for anywhere near as long as the other woman. "Um, Youko...?"
"Yeah?" Youko said, her voice sounding increasingly strained as Koyomi poured on more pressure.
"Um...run, okay?" Konoka said as she moved to support the back of her blade with her shoulder—a suicidal move in any real fight, but legitimate enough in a situation like the one they were in—which freed up her right hand. She thrust the palm of her hand at Koyomi's face, letting off a small ki blast as she had done earlier with Rie, but Koyomi jerked her head back and out of the way, releasing enough of the pressure she held on Youko's wakizashi for her to escape.
"Hey now, I taught you that one!" Koyomi said indignantly as she leaped back out of Konoka's range before she could try the move again. "You didn't actually expect that to work on me, did you?" she asked, seemingly uncaring of the fact that Youko had escaped and was already lost to sight among the trees; instead, she focused all her attention on Konoka, who watched her warily.
"It was worth a try, a least," Konoka replied, her constant smile finally fading as Koyomi beamed at her.
"True enough, I guess~ But now back to business, Konoka-chan...let's see what you've learned~"
Fifteen feet away, Mizuhara Rie's eyes fluttered open and she found herself lying on the ground, feeling really quite drafty. Low voices nearby quickly caught her attention, however, especially one in particular... 'Oh...oh no...' It was her. The Two Blade Psycho, the Tree Ninja, the Shooting Star, the bane of every newcomer to the Shinmeiryu, Aoyama Koyomi, cousin to Tsuruko and Motoko...!. Rie hadn't known she was back from her most recent mission yet...! A drop of sweat rolled down the side of her face, but Rie very carefully ignored the irritation it caused and focused on not attracting Koyomi's attention. 'Sorry Konoka-chan, but it's you or me!'
Setsuna led Keiko through the woods as quickly and quietly as she could manage; they had almost lost the oni following them; Setsuna only knew her through her reputation as a hot-tempered woman who was more interested in straightforward combat than any sort of subterfuge. While Setsuna was similarly inclined, she had never let her personal preferences interfere with her training in the more devious areas of Shinmeiryu training. Still, she didn't think she'd need much of that training to take care of Chiba Usagi. And Keiko was performing admirably as well; the girl's natural tendency to remain quiet and unobtrusive made her a natural when it was time to disappear. Setsuna eyed the trees as they passed. She knew this area well; they were in an area of the compound that she and Konoka had explored often as children, due to the rumors of a haunted house in the woods. They hadn't ever found it, but that wasn't particularly unusual...the Shinmeiryu as well as the Konoe family were well versed in onmyodo and other magics, and misdirection was a fairly simple effect. Now, if she could just find that stump next to that small rock outcropping...
She spotted it a moment later and moved around it to the other side of the rocks, where she and Konoka had long ago found a tiny cave. The entrance, under the stump, could only be seen from a narrow angle mostly blocked by the rock outcropping. It wasn't even a cave, really, just a spot hollowed out by water runoff down the small hillside they were on. Setsuna motioned for Keiko to stay silent, then pushed her into the hole. She took a moment to make sure Chiba wasn't close and then squeezed into it herself.
'That was a little tighter than I remember...' she thought to herself as she pressed herself as deep into the hole as she could go. She knew Keiko was pinned uncomfortably against the dirt wall behind her, but to Setsuna's admiration the girl remained silent. Perhaps thirty seconds after squeezing into the hole, they heard the sound of someone blundering through the underbrush and Setsuna couldn't help but smile. Chiba was a city oni, no doubt about it. They waited in silence while Chiba stormed past the stump and rock outcropping, muttering something about how she hadn't even been supposed to work today.
Chiba's complaining voice faded as she kept going, completely unaware of how close she had been to Setsuna and Keiko, and soon she was out of hearing. They waited a minute, then another, and when there was no other sign of Chiba's presence, Setsuna crept out of the hole and helped Keiko to her feet.
"Do you know where the others went?" Keiko asked, peering around.
"No, and we don't have time to look for them; we'll just have to assume they're heading for the main building. Let's go."
Setsuna really had to hand it to Keiko; the girl had adapted to their situation with remarkable swiftness. Many of those she had worked with in the past, even some so-called 'professionals', could learn a thing or two from Keiko... The backpack the girl was carrying intrigued her as well; what was in it? From the way Keiko kept it close, she obviously thought it was important. Youko had told her she would be impressed by the girl, and she had been right.
Setsuna led the way to the edge of the woods, where they paused just long enough for Setsuna to check if it was okay to leave the safety of the forest and the cover it provided. Setsuna looked around carefully, trying to spot anyone that might try to stop them.
Directly in front of them was the guest house; she wasn't aware of any guests present at the moment, but she couldn't discount the possibility. If possible, she didn't want to involve any outsiders in Youko's raid. On the east side of the guest house would be a fair-sized koi pond, a small garden and, a short distance further, the main house; from her position at the edge of the trees, she could just barely see the edge of it past the guest house. She knew that past the main house was another, larger patch of forest, and past that was the main Shinmeiryu barracks and training center for new recruits; that was where every member of the Shinmeiryu was first trained, and, unless they were assigned somewhere else or had families of their own, where a great many of them lived and slept. She had spent her early years there, under the tutelage of several of the most skilled members alive today.
The main north-south and east-west paths, as well as several of the paths commonly used by maintenance workers and the gardening crew, intersected a short distance away in the space in front of the main house, providing ample opportunity for someone to spot them. All in all, though, something was bothering Setsuna. It seemed almost as if the grounds around the main house were too quiet; there wasn't a single gardener or maintenance person in sight...! Sure, they were trained to blend in with the scenery as much as possible, but this...
"They're waiting for us, aren't they?" Keiko asked.
Setsuna nodded. "I think so." She eased along the tree until she could see the small storage building attached to the main house. "Do you see that building?" she asked, pointing. When Keiko nodded, she continued. "Follow the treeline around as quietly as you can until it you reach a wide path with threes on the other side. When you're sure its clear, cross that path and go through the woods. After a hundred feet or so, you'll come out next to a bath house. Across from that is the storage building; it should be unlocked at this time of the day. Go in there and wait for me. Understand?"
"I do," Keiko said, her ponytail bobbing as she nodded.
"Good," Setsuna said, smiling at her. Keiko was so serious-minded...! Not unlike how she herself had been, not too long ago. "Good luck."
"You too," Keiko said as she adjusted her backpack straps and slipped away through the trees, leaving Setsuna alone. Setsuna eased out past the treeline and sprinted toward the guest house, where she crouched between two decorative bushes and looked for anything suspicious. Seeing nothing out of the ordinary—something which was becoming increasingly worrisome—she crept forward along the side of the guest house.
The sound of a katana being slowly drawn stopped her in her tracks, her hand on the hilt of her nodachi. She knew that sound; she knew that slow, deliberate draw. "Tsuruko-sensei..."
"Ah, Setsuna-han! It has been so long!" Tsuruko replied in the lilting tone she often used to freak out her old students. Everyone knew what that tone of voice meant. "You never call, you never write...why, one might think you didn't want to see me! That's not true, is it?"
Setsuna's mouth went dry as she slowly, so slowly, stood and turned to see Tsuruko standing maybe ten feet behind her. Now that she was looking at her, she realized Tsuruko had been lurking on the second floor of the guest house, waiting for her; the window she had jumped down from stood open above her and, lo and behold, there was Motoko-sensei looking down at the two of them.
"Hello, Motoko-sensei," Setsuna said reluctantly.
"It's been a while since your last visit," Motoko said as she made a graceful leap and joined her sister on the ground.
Setsuna was somewhat relieved that Motoko didn't draw her sword immediately; Tsuruko alone was someone Setsuna could hold off if not defeat. Tsuruko and Motoko both? It would take all the skill and power Setsuna had just to keep from losing within the first twenty seconds. She was already calculating how to escape the situation she had stepped into when she replied. "We only left Kyoto a few months ago. How are the cousins?"
Tsuruko's amused smile widened slightly. "Tomiko still hasn't won against me, and Sayuri still hasn't defeated Tomiko. The others, well..." She trailed off. That was all that was necessary, really. Among the Aoyama branch families, there were eight cousins who were considered worthy enough to attempt to challenge Tsuruko for her position in the Shinmeiryu: Koyomi, the weakest of the lot, Natsuki, who was tall and creepy and widely considered the most disturbing of the Aoyamas other than Tsuruko even though she had trouble defeating any of her cousins, Tsukiko the Onmyodo expert, Etsuko, who didn't really stand out, the boys Daigoro and Kazuki, Sayuri, who led a squad in the Third Mercenary Force, and Tomiko, widely considered the strongest of the Aoyamas after Tsuruko, who led a squad in the Second Mercenary Force. All were amazingly skilled compared to the average member of the Shinmeiryu, but none of them could defeat Tsuruko, no matter what they tried. As for Motoko...well, suffice to say, Setsuna wasn't looking forward to facing Tsuruko, but she would if necessary. If she had been facing Motoko alone? Setsuna would have run.
Tsuruko grinned.
Youko came to a stop at the treeline, then darted across the path in front of her and into the trees on the other side. She continued on through the woods, occasionally catching a glimpse of the thick wall that separated the area just to the south that was accessible to the public from the private grounds. The place had changed considerably from the time, centuries before, when she had lived on the same ground with the man known as Aoyama Saburo and the struggling sword school that had at the time only recently been rebuilt after long, long years of bad management had resulted in the loss of the fully eighty percent of its members and most of the reputation it had built up over several centuries. She couldn't help but grin as she eyed the tall stone walls nearby. It appeared all the effort she and Saburo had gone through to rebuild the Shinmeiryu with the assistance of the Konoe family had worked out in the end. From what she understood, the Shinmeiryu hadn't slowed down in the least.
'The main house should be...that way?' she thought as she faced away from the stone wall. From what she recalled, the main house should be directly north of her position. Away from prying eyes, Youko allowed herself to drop the proud, playful facade she kept up at all times and let out a shuddering sigh. Returning to Kyoto was bad enough, but to walk this ground, see the changes brought about by the cruel passage of time and to recall the few short years she had had with Saburo in this same place...she shivered in spite of the July heat and wrapped her arms around herself.
It hurt.
It hurt, knowing she'd never see Saburo again, knowing that the child she had only known for a few months had taken after his father, had grown up, had children of his own, fought in battle after battle, and finally died, all while she sat in a Konoe family cell hidden underground in this very compound, wrapped in sealing charms, barely aware of the passage of time.
It hurt.
Youko had never known her father; he had been a Silver Fox Tribe youkai like her mother and herself, but she had never met him; she didn't even know his name. Her mother had never spoken of him. She didn't know anything about him...what he looked like, how powerful he was, the way he spoke, anything. When Saburo died, she had told herself his son would never suffer through the confusion she had as a child, that she would make sure he would know of that stupid, lovely man. But then...
Youko almost snarled.
Masashi. The bastard had framed her, dumped the responsibility for his actions squarely on her shoulders, and gotten away with it. Masashi had been the one to ruin her life. Masashi had been the one to bring about the troubles in Kyoto that took Saburo away from her. Masashi had been the one to get her locked up and left her son without any parents before he was old enough to speak. Masashi had ruined her life, and for what? Because her mother had been the Youkai King? Now that she had had time to do some research, she could see that he had been planning to become Youkai King even back then. So, what was she to do...? That was simple.
Youko started to grin; it wasn't a pleasant sight.
She'd ruin Masashi's life. After all he'd done to her and those around her, not to mention all those who died in the riots and fires in Kyoto all those years ago, he deserved it. And, judging by his reaction to her presence back at the Youkai Festival, she'd made a fine start. There were all manner of things she could do to make his life a living hell, and she fully intended to do every last one of them if she could; but the main thing, the most important thing to Masashi, was his eventual rise as Youkai King. If he achieved that, no amount of torture she put him through would mean anything. And so...
Youko stood up straight and shook her head to clear it of old memories and thoughts of revenge. The attempt to get the sword was the sort of thing you had to take seriously if you wanted to succeed, especially with the Shinmeiryu involved. She had to get the sword, true...but first, she needed something she had left behind three hundred years before. She slipped forward deeper into the trees, following a path that no longer existed in the modern world until she reached the faded and vine-covered gate of an old shrine with nothing left of its stairs but scattered stones hidden among the underbrush of the small hillside. She smiled as she stepped through the first torii gate, a little amazed it was still standing. Though it had been the main shrine serving the Konoe estate three hundred years ago, the shrine had obviously been long abandoned by this point. To find any of its big torii gates still standing was amazing, considering the condition of the stone path. Huge trees, big even in her memories, were everywhere, obscuring vision together with the underbrush that covered the ground. She knew where she was going, however, and after passing the ruins of the second torii gate—two stumps in the ground—she paused for a moment to look ahead at the final gate and the shrine building behind it.
The third gate had only recently collapsed; the pillar on the right had cracked, ripping the two lintels loose as it fell; all lay on the ground before her, blocking access to the shrine building...or what was left of it. While some shrines had a multitude of buildings, this one had only had three: a storage building, the small house the miko lived in, and the even smaller building housing the shrine itself. The storage building and house were long gone, and the shrine building was a sorry sight with its roof long collapsed and its walls little more than a few upright posts, with everything else hidden under debris and the same thick growth of plants that covered the entire forest floor.
"Now, where did I put it..." she muttered to herself as she looked around, trying to recall how the shrine had looked three hundred years before. "...the youkai tree's way over there...the well should be over there...if the shrine building's there, then that's where the amusingly shaped tree stump was..." Youko made her way through the remains of the shrine grounds until finally pausing on an unremarkable spot situated between four distinct landmarks, only one of which still existed in a recognizable form to that which had existed three centuries before. She got down on her hands and knees and started digging.
Konoka staggered through the woods in the direction she thought Youko had gone, exhausted after her long battle with Koyomi. It had been a close battle, but she had won by disarming Koyomi. Literally. A few panic-filled moments and a healthy dose of white magic later everything had been fine and Koyomi, no longer loopy from blood loss, had admitted her defeat, but the experience had shaken Konoka. She hadn't ever done anything like that before, and the ease with which it had happened—not to mention the speed—had been shocking. She had participated in hundreds, maybe even thousands of live-blade spar sessions with her friends, and aside from a few clumsy incidents on Asuna's part in high school, she hadn't ever been through such an incident outside of a serious battle, and she had never done such a thing herself, not to someone who couldn't survive such a wound by immediately regrowing the limb they had lost. But Koyomi had pushed her so hard she hadn't been able to hold back at all; if she had... It had been scary.
Resolving to get Setsuna to comfort her later, Konoka shook her head to clear it; this was no time to be distracted. Distractions could come later, when she wasn't helping Youko change the world. Pouting fiercely in stubborn defiance of her emotions, she continued on through the woods until she came up to a huge tree with an old shimenawa tied around it. She knew about this tree; she had once helped renew the shide—zigzag paper streamers—attached to its shimenawa. Everybody called it the Youkai Tree...family legend said a powerful youkai had allowed itself to be sealed inside to protect the Konoe estate and surrounding lands from an evil youkai who was also sealed inside it; the two were supposedly locked in an eternal struggle, one to protect the land, one to destroy it. Konoka had always thought the two must have gotten tired of fighting centuries ago; they were probably playing mahjong in there or something. She paused and looked around. If she recalled correctly, there was a shrine somewhere nearby...
Thirty seconds later, she spotted a huge torii gate and headed toward it. She was led on by the remains of another one and promptly spotted the decayed remains of an old wooden building, no doubt the shrine. She cocked her head to the side as she looked at it.
"Found it...!" someone said nearby. Konoka looked around for the source of the voice and, after spotting some movement in the underbrush, made her way over a fallen tree and spotted Youko, her hands and knees dirty, holding up a bead necklace with a particularly large jewel in a shape similar to a claw, or a comma. She looked up at Konoka an instant later, grinning like the cat that ate the canary. "I found it! I buried it here for safekeeping, and it was still here!" she said, waving the necklace in her excitement.
Konoka eyed the necklace in confusion. "What is it?" It certainly didn't look very impressive...it was just a bunch of stone beads tied together in a somewhat tacky necklace with one big...jade...magatama... "That's the Yasakani no Magatama, isn't it?" she asked in shocked surprise.
Youko's only response was to grin.
"Your mother gave it to you, didn't she? When she gave the sword to us and gave the mirror to the Silver Fox Tribe elders..." Konoka continued on, her excitement building. The tacky necklace with the plain looking beads she was looking at was thousands and thousands of years old...! It had been a powerful relic held by every youkai king since before the youkai took on their current form! Amaterasu herself had worn this necklace...!
And she had always thought of her family's home as old...! Ha! The sacred relic Youko held before her made her home, the shrine nearby, even the Konoe family line itself look young!
"That's one down," Youko said as she tucked the necklace into a pocket. "Want to try for the next?" she asked, grinning.
Konoka, her exhaustion and the trauma of hurting her old friend Koyomi so badly temporarily washed away by the excitement of unexpectedly coming upon such an ancient treasure, smiled. "Let's go!"
Author's notes: Well, now you know what I was doing during my two week break 'for research'...In addition to all the research I did on Japanese castles/temples/shrines/kendo schools/the area around Kyoto/Shinmeiryu techniques/etc. I made a grid and drew out the Konoe/Shinmeiryu compound in Kyoto, down to individual buildings and paths. It's quite a large area, all enclosed by a huge stone wall, and even includes the main Shinmeiryu training area. There's other stuff outside the walls of course, but yeah. Main compound – done. I also filled out the Shinmeiryu roster I made a while back some more; there are now about a hundred or so Shinmeiryu members to play around with, should I need a few here or there. Also, my plan a couple chapters ago to finish Book 2 off in four chapters fell apart; this one ended up longer than I expected; so long, in fact, that I had to split it in two, and maybe three depending on how the rest of it goes, and I'm pretty sure the chapter afterward will have to be split as well. But I do only have a few more chapters planned for Book 2; we're almost ready to shake things up and go to the Magic World!
As for references I made in this chapter...
Haru and Youko and Masashi at the Youkai Festival - just reread that chapter if you really want to know, but to put it simply, Haru and Youko clashed with Masashi several times.
Haru, the Red Fox Youkai, and the Last Night Of The Festival - What happened here is detailed in the short story Youkai Rangers, which you can find on this site in the short story collection Still Waters 3 Side Stories: Book 2.
What Happened with Setsuna in High School - This is referring to the mysterious incident which resulted in Konoka joining the Shinmeiryu for training. What exactly happened hasn't been revealed yet.
Aoyama Cousins - The girls are all based on an image in the Love Hina manga, Chapter 72, Page 6, shown during a flashback to Motoko's childhood, or possibly just a bad dream. The boys were added for a little variety, and to show that there are male fighters in the Aoyama family as well.
Now...
Dictionary time!
Torii – These are those big red and black gatelike structures that are commonly seen at the entrance to a Shinto shrine.
Shimenawa – These are those ropes you often see in anime and pictures of Shinto shrines, sometimes tied around rocks or trees or hanging across the roof of a shrine.
Shide – These are those zigzag paper streamers that you almost always see tied to a shimenawa.
Magatama – This is the name of those comma/claw-shaped beads that show up from time to time in anime.
Kusanagi no Tsurugi/Ame no Murakumo no Tsurugi – The 'Sword of the Gathering Clouds of Heaven', later known as the 'Grass Cutting Sword', is one part of the Imperial Regalia of Japan, here co-opted as one of the three sacred items a youkai must gather before he can become the Youkai King (which is the official title, by the way; you can be a woman and still be the 'Youkai King'). Its appearance is unknown at this point. It seems to have control over the wind, or possibly other elements.
Yata no Kagami – The 'Eight Hand Mirror'. A sacred mirror, also part of the Imperial Regalia of Japan, used here as one of the three items any youkai must gather before becoming the Youkai King. This is currently in the possession of Masashi, the Gold Fox youkai who caused such an uproar at the Youkai Festival. It appears to enable transportation between worlds, though it may have other powers.
Yasakani no Magatama – A sacred jewel, used together with the Yata no Kagami to lure Amaterasu out of a cave in Japanese legend. This, like the Kusanagi and Yata no Kagami, is part of the Imperial Regalia of Japan. Its powers are unknown at this point. Currently in the possession of Miyoshi Youko, to be used in her bid for the title of Youkai King.
Imperial Regalia of Japan – A.K.A. The Three Sacred Treasures of Japan, this consists of the Kusanagi (representing Valor), the Yata no Kagami (representing Wisdom), and the Yasakani no Magatama (representing Benevolence). These have in this story been used as the three sacred relics any youkai must acquire to become Youkai King. In SW3, the Japanese government claims to have the originals in several shrines, but these are copies meant to throw youkai off the trail of the real thing.
For more info on any of these, check out wikipedia.