7. That Which We Are, We Are

The city was loud and smelly and alive–and Bankotsu was there for it. The weapons Riku had on his ship were basic but good quality, and the demon had assured them that they could keep them. They hadn't taken a lot, but Kyoukotsu had swapped his sword for a flail and Jakotsu had added an elegant dagger to his blade. Apparently, there was also an assortment of poisons and explosives that Mukotsu and Renkotsu had taken advantage of. Things were starting to look up.

Riku would dock here for at least five days, and they had the option to stay with him until they had a suitable plan for their future. At this moment in time, Bankotsu preferred keeping an open mind. The ship was a temporary solution, obviously, but a welcome refuge for a while. They could sleep there, and since the owner's nature was common knowledge, they could be sure to be left alone. It also seemed that Riku, whatever his business here was, and the three women were pretty popular. A few inhabitants had greeted them enthusiastically, and a kid had demanded to see the demon's transformation until her mother had dragged her away and told her to be more polite.

Bankotsu suspected they had protected them from something worse than him and were reaping the benefits. If he was honest with himself, he was a bit envious. No-one had ever shown the Shichinintai any gratitude, no matter how well they had fought for people. Riku, on the other hand, was a monster in a much more literal sense than him, but no-one cried for his head on a platter. On the contrary. It didn't seem fair. Or perhaps that demon had life figured out in a way Bankotsu and his men never had. Riku was benign but far from weak. It was worth thinking about.

And so they found themselves on the market, looking at stalls without any real purpose except being swallowed by the bustle and the noise around them. 'Jakotsu has brought up an interesting point,' Bankotsu started. 'The three women, what do you all make of them?'

'There is something about them,' Suikotsu volunteered. 'I think we all agree they're no simple humans?'

'I'm sure they have all the relevant parts,' Mukotsu said. 'I'd like to test that theory, especially on the little wild one.'

'Do you have to get all of us killed again?' Renkotsu snapped. 'Then that's a great start. They're off limits. Ooaniki has said so multiple times. You'd do well to remember it.'

'But we're armed now and …'

Renkotsu glared down at the short old man. 'Why on earth are you that eager to pick a fight with a Daiyoukai plus entourage? Be my guest, but do it when I'm not there. You can't win this. For all we know, he just needs to change into whatever monster he can become and step on you.'

'It's more than that,' Bankotsu said. He picked a pear off a stand and inspected it. Tossing a coin to the owner, he bit into it. 'These women aren't defenceless, either. And they might make things very difficult for us. They're the daughters of Inuyasha and his brother. We have to expect them to be less … hospitable if they find out who we are.'

Kyoukotsu laughed without humour. 'They know who we are. They trust Riku but not us. I caught Towa mentioning our … run-in with her family to Moroha. Their demon told her, apparently. That guy knows a lot more than he lets on. If we step a toe out of line, we're off the ship.'

'Interesting, though,' Ginkotsu said. 'Shouldn't they want to kill us outright?'

'Not everyone's first instinct is murder,' Suikotsu replied. 'But doesn't that mean we need a different place to stay? Like yesterday? Taking on a ship full of demons or part demons is a bad idea, especially since we have no clue what they're capable of.'

Mukotsu licked his lips. 'But if we have no allegiance to them, I will get a taste of the spitfire.'

'You will keep your hands and any other body parts to yourself,' Bankotsu yelled. He lowered his voice when people looked at them, forcing himself not to scream right into Mukotsu's face. 'I don't have the time to worry about what you do to any random woman stupid enough to end up in a room with you, but you will leave them alone! I want to sleep with a roof over my head, for crying out loud, and right now Riku's ship is the only one we have. And once we move on, I want to know that no angry demon is coming after me, either!'

Renkotsu nodded. 'He's right, we …'

'This isn't a debate!' Bankotsu stopped and turned to face the others. 'The people of the ship are off limits. Now and for the foreseeable future! Am I stuttering or something?'

Renkotsu looked mildly startled 'Ooaniki, I meant to …'

'I don't need arguments that support this. I've said it. That's enough, damn it! Stop giving me that flustered stare, you're not my mouthpiece! Now shut up, I'm still waiting for an answer from that one!'

Mukotsu offered a small bow, smirking at their exchange. 'Of course, Ooaniki.'

'Have you heard me, too, Renkotsu?'

The other man blinked. He opened his mouth briefly as if he wanted to respond, then closed it, his lips a thin line. He stood tall when he eventually spoke, his voice quiet and restrained. 'I hear you, Ooaniki. But I have one question, if I may.'

'Fine.'

'Do you want me to leave? Say the word, and you'll never see me again.'

And suddenly, Bankotsu saw more than the man who had betrayed him. He heard the dejection in his voice, saw it in his wide eyes. He couldn't find it in himself to trust him because he had killed Jakotsu for his own greed, but maybe this was the time for the benefit of doubt. 'I don't want that at all,' he said, his voice softer than he'd intended. 'Let me learn to believe in you again, okay? I did before and it served me well … until everything fell apart.'

'That … I understand, Ooaniki.' He hesitated, then visibly steeled himself. 'I know my word means little to you right now, but I will give it anyway: I will not let you down. I didn't do it in my first life and I will not do it in this one. If that's at all possible, I will earn your trust again. And if it isn't, I will walk away without harming any of you. If you'll let me.'

Ϡ

The market was huge and had everything anyone could dream of. A giant of a man offering exotic foods from the mainland; a wizened stick figure with pots and pans; a woman with a hood that fell into her face selling herbs and their extracts as well as writing utensils and books; an overly enthusiastic young man pawning off mediocre weapons for an outrageous price. It was a wild mix, the customers as varied as the vendors and at least as loud.

While they scattered on the market, Bankotsu felt eyes boring into his skull. 'What now?' he asked, knowing who it was, either by instinct or by the way the following footfall sounded, subtly different, more controlled than the others'.

'We can't continue the way it was,' Renkotsu's low voice said. 'Not just because it will kill us, but because something has changed.'

'This again?' Forcing himself to look at the other man, Bankotsu took in the knotted brows, the ruddy lower lip that had been worried a bit too much. 'Fine, talk to me.'

'You will have to make a choice, Ooaniki: Accept the change that dying wrought on us … or lose someone. Suikotsu for starters. He isn't the broken creature that doesn't remember half of his own soul.'

'I can't figure him out. He seems like the idiotic doctor except not such a doormat. Not so …'

'Idiotic?'

'Maybe. He bites back when someone heckles him.'

'He seems saner. That is a good thing, Ooaniki. We don't need to worry he'll go feral on the populace at large.'

Bankotsu nodded slowly. Their steps had directed them to the stand with the scrolls again, and he watched Renkotsu inspecting ink pots. 'But will he want to fight? In self-defence, I don't doubt it. If he goes back to being a doctor, no-one will dare to hurt his patients. And if they do, they'll pay dearly. But other than that? Can you see it? Finding pleasure in killing again?'

'No.' Renkotsu put the ink he had been eyeing down. 'I'm not sure about Kyoukotsu, either. He let Mukotsu experiment on him because he was dying, and that didn't just change his body but his nature. He has the temperament of an accountant.'

'To be fair, that has helped us right now.'

'True. And he says he always knew how to fight.'

'He has skill, I saw that when he practised with the militia. But he probably doesn't have the wild enthusiasm for it as before. Ginkotsu seems the same, though. On the inside.'

'Yes. He wants to keep going. Mukotsu, too, although his motivation is questionable.'

Bankotsu frowned. 'Was it always like that? I wonder if he's getting worse.'

'I … don't think so. Maybe you are developing a moral compass beyond just our little sphere. I believe what happened brought out who we truly are, who we would have become if fate hadn't done a number on all of us.'

'That's outrageous. I haven't changed.' He hesitated and looked up at the taller man. 'Have I?'

A vague smile showed on Renkotsu's face. 'Take you, me, and Jakotsu. We are what we are. Our nature will remain the same. No matter what happens to our bodies, our souls, it seems, have a set path they can travel and everything beyond that is out of their reach. I will never be the type who bursts into song because I can't contain my happiness. Jakotsu on the other hand, he'll always find something that gives him joy. And you? You're reliable and consistent, a fast friend and a terrible enemy and that will never change. But yes, we are all subtly different.' He picked up another ink pot, opened it, and sniffed. 'I would like to buy this, please,' he told the trader. 'And a good brush for a beginner. The one I had proved too … delicate.'

The woman named her price, and Renkotsu took his new items. Bankotsu watched and gestured at his acquisitions. 'Who are you … hold on you're teaching Jakotsu!'

'He asked.'

'Why?' He thought about the conversation he'd had with the other man earlier. 'He's not the only one! I can't write to save my life.'

'You have a grasp of it, even if sitting down and composing a letter is a struggle for you,' Renkotsu said. 'It's easy for me. Suikotsu and Kyoukotsu are decent at it, too, and the latter has crushed Jakotsu. Ginkotsu and you have something, at least, although your penmanship is better. I don't know about Mukotsu because I rarely interact with him, but I wouldn't be surprised if he was some lower lord who got bored and left one day.'

Bankotsu scowled. 'It doesn't matter. He has no reason to get worked up about this.'

'No, but he's frustrated. And rather than sulk, he has decided to change his situation. That's a wise choice, but I hope he is a fast learner. I don't know if I can be a very patient teacher. I'm going to deliver these. Ooaniki … If this is where our paths diverge, I would prefer that we part in peace. Sincerely. Perhaps you can find a kind farewell to me in your heart if it comes to that. And if this ends here, convince Jakotsu to go to Suikotsu to keep teaching him. That man has the temper of a saint, at least.'

Arms folded, Bankotsu watched him leave. 'Useless. All that religious Nonsense you endured, and you can't even puzzle out why we're alive.'

The seller behind the stand snorted. He wanted to narrow his eyes at her, but he decided there was no point. He made a dismissive gesture in her direction and started to leave, when a hand clamped around his arm in a powerful grip. 'If you walk away from me now, you will die,' the woman said. 'I can help you, and I will, but you need to be quiet, and you need to trust me.'

Heart racing and his mind going from his sword at his side to how unfair this all was because he hadn't bloody done anything, he turned to stare at her. The hood cast her face in shadow and her hand was still firm on him. 'Let me go, witch,' he hissed. 'I don't want a scene but if you beg, you get one.'

'Idiot. Look at me. Look at me! Or have you forgotten? Then I can't save you.' She shook off the hood and the sunlight met the face of a half-ignored adversary, familiar, and out of place.

'K-Kikyou?'