Chapter 33
The Right Person
The Yae Publishing House was somewhat crowded that afternoon, especially by young women excited to read the new issues of their favorite novels published in the month. Among the updated novels was, of course, the one that Kamisato Ayaka had specially gone to find: number six of "The Noble Knight in Love with the Ice King." The volume in question sported its colorful cover between the publisher's shelves, with such a beautiful drawing that it inevitably drew everyone's attention. It showed the two protagonists, a woman in armor and dark hair and a blond man in blue clothes, with flames of war behind them, although they only looked at each other... but not precisely with joy. It was a powerful image that overflowed several feelings at once.
But if something drew even more attention than the new novels, it was undoubtedly the presence of the three daughters of the Tri-Commission. Arriving at the place, almost all the customers subtly directed their gazes toward them and whispered among themselves. Mainly questioned if they were really who they appeared to be, and of course, they were. Some wanted to get a little closer to Ayaka and Chisato to talk to them. Still, they were persuaded almost immediately as they looked at the tengu general with them, wearing her uniform and even her bow, and with her cold golden eyes roaming that place, perhaps in search of any threat. That forced them to better turn around or at least divert their attention elsewhere.
Sara wasn't fully aware of the effect she had on the people, but she sensed that the air had turned a little more serious and the voices a little lower as soon as they arrived. But, for better or worse, it turned out to be something she was used to.
"This is it," Ayaka pointed out, moving closer to the shelf where the number she came looking for was displayed. Her eyes sparkled with the emotion of a young girl. She delicately took one of the copies in her hands and brought it closer to see it more closely. "I had seen a preview of what the cover of this volume would be like, but I didn't think the final work would be so beautiful."
"Yeah, she looks pretty," Chisato muttered, peeking over the young Kamisato's shoulder to look at it. "What is it about?"
"Oh, it's such a beautiful story," Ayaka exclaimed enthusiastically, "from an old time in Fontaine, where a young woman from a poor family becomes a knight and ends up as a personal guard to the handsome young crown prince whom everyone nicknames the Ice King, due to his cold and distant character, but deep down he has a big heart of…"
Suddenly, Ayaka noticed the almost puzzled look Chisato was giving her. And as if her eyes were a mirror, she realized that perhaps she had gotten too excited, forgetting for a moment where she was and with whom. She hastened to fix that mistake, clearing her throat a little and trying to moderate her voice again.
"He's a good person," Ayaka explained, concluding her previous idea. "And she ends up falling in love with him, and little by little, he also falls in love with her."
"Classic commoner vs. noble story, huh?" Chisato muttered in an amused tone, crossing her arms. "People love those stories for some reason. I guess the idea of living a forbidden love is attractive to some..."
Chisato cut off her own words suddenly, as soon as her mind seemed to scream in her ear: You're not the best qualified to criticize stories of forbidden love...
"Not in my case, of course," she hastened to point out, turning her pained gaze elsewhere. "And I didn't think you were also the type to like romantic stories of this kind, Ayaka."
"Well, a little," Ayaka muttered slowly, hiding part of her flushed face behind the book she was holding. "The story is interesting. In fact, there is a part in volume four where the two protagonists are apart and begin to secretly write letters to each other."
"Really…?" Chisato pronounced, apparently pleasantly attracted by that idea. She was going to ask more about it, but from the corner of her eye, she observed Sara approaching the side of both of them, immediately reminding them of her presence. "I mean, that's… interesting. I love stories about… mail."
A vague attempt to fix it, but it didn't matter since Sara hadn't really paid particular attention to it. Instead, she stood in front of the same shelf and leaned a little towards the books, carefully contemplating the cover, especially the clothes worn by the two characters.
"Is it a Fontaine novel?" she inquired curiously.
"Yes, the author is from there," Ayaka hurried to clarify.
"The borders are closed, and they still manage to bring in this kind of stuff, huh?" Chisato pointed out, not entirely clear if it was some kind of claim or not.
"Well, sometimes little things like this can bring a little joy to people, don't you think?" Ayaka pointed out solemnly. Her words captured the attention of her two companions. "Let me pay it, and I'll be right back."
Ayaka walked to the register with her book in her hands to stand in line with the other shoppers. The people ahead of her offered to go first, but Ayaka kindly insisted it wasn't necessary.
As she left, Sara's attention returned to the book on the shelves, even daring to pick up one of the copies for a closer look. Her face, always calm and indifferent, did not reveal at all what was going through her head at those moments.
"What do you think, Sara?" Chisato asked suddenly, taking the general a bit by surprise.
"Excuse me?"
"From this... romance... novels and stuff," Chisato murmured nervously, waving her hands towards the other books.
Sara looked again at the cover of "The Noble Knight in Love with the Ice King," remaining silent and observing it for long seconds, after which she extended her hand back to the shelf, leaving the book right in the same place where she had taken it.
"I… I don't read so much," Sara pointed out, gradually regaining the firmness in her voice. "I hardly have time because of work."
"Yes, of course," Chisato agreed. "And indeed, you are not interested in this type of stories of knights and princesses in love, right?"
Sara was silent for a few moments. Then she cleared his throat a little and replied:
"People in our position can't afford to fantasize about this sort of thing. A marriage between individuals of different classes is not usually beneficial to anyone.
"Ah, I understand…" Chisato muttered slowly. "So, a marriage between people of the same status is better, right?"
"If it benefits the families or their nation, yes. Marriage is a merely political matter, after all."
With the book she was looking for already paid for and stored in a small bag, Ayaka had returned with her companions at the right time to hear those words come from the lips of General Kujou. Certainly, that last statement permeated a bit in the center of her chest: "marriage is a merely political matter..."
Of course, that was hard to deny. Hadn't her own engagement years ago been a means to try to consolidate her brother's position? At that time, perhaps also due to her young age, she did not question it too much. However, already today, more than once she had seriously wondered what would happen if her brother chose to bring up the subject of marriage again. And if she hadn't had a direct or straightforward answer to it before, now that she met Kazuha again… well, it was even more difficult for her to do so.
Ayaka took a deep breath, stood straight, and quickly walked the few steps that separated her from the other two.
"If you'll allow me to be a little bold, General," she declared suddenly, pulling Sara's and Chisato's attention entirely to her. Her face was decorated into a wide, carefree smile, but her eyes were tenacious. "I feel those words are not yours but Commissioner Tenryou's. Or am I wrong?"
This puzzled both Sara and Chisato. However, the tengu general made no apparent attempt to deny it either.
Ayaka started walking out of the publishing house towards the street. Once outside, she walked up the street toward the kimono shop, their next stop. Sara and Chisato followed closely behind, listening attentively to the rest of the words that the young Kamisato apparently wanted to share with them.
"We have indeed been raised since we were little that everything we do is in favor of our clans and Inazuma; that includes who to give our hearts to. But you won't deny that just dreaming of being free to choose who to be with for the rest of your life, regardless of status, family, and nation, is at least... comfortable. Isn't that right, Chisato?"
"Huh?" The young woman from the Hiiragi clan started, somewhat surprised. In Ayaka's look, she noticed that she was somehow allowing her to touch on that topic. "Ah, yeah, sure. That would be very nice. I mean, if you had that person in mind, of course…"
"Do you have a chosen fiancé already, Ms. Hiiragi?" Sara inquired, genuinely interested.
"Who? Me?" Chisato exclaimed, almost startled. "No, no, no… nothing formal, yet. Although…" She turned her flushed face to the side and carefully tucked one of her strands of hair behind her head. "I do have someone in mind... In fact, I'm interested in..."
She opened her mouth, ready to pronounce that person's name, but no sound came from it. In the end, he chickened out and instead decided to drastically change the focus of the conversation.
"Ayaka was already engaged once, you know?" she suddenly commented with a laughing voice.
"Eh?" Ayaka started in confusion. "Why do you mention it so suddenly…?"
"You started with the topic," Chisato replied through clenched teeth.
"I thought you wanted to take advantage of this moment to tell her about you-know-who and you," Ayaka replied in the same way, keeping her voice as low as possible.
"I don't know what you're talking about," Chisato mumbled, turning away covertly.
Ayaka sighed. She couldn't get mad at her; perhaps she had pushed her too roughly without realizing it. But that's not a reason for her to mention her engagement...
"Yeah, I think I've heard something about that," Sara said suddenly, looking up at the sky as she cupped her chin in one hand thoughtfully. "With the son of the now extinct clan… Kaedehara, right?"
Ayaka breathed in slowly through her nose and fixed her serene gaze on the road ahead. The beautiful pink cherry blossom petals slowly fell around her from the trees higher up the hill, piling up on the ground at the side of the road.
"Yeah…" she answered quietly. "But that was several years ago."
Sara nodded.
"It's always a shame to hear that a clan with such a long lineage ends tragically. I wonder what happened to that young nobleman."
That inevitably drew an amused little smile from Princess Heron. She could definitely answer that question, but for now, she preferred to keep it to herself.
"And what about you, General?" Ayaka asked curiously, looking over her shoulder at her. "Has there been any marriage talk?"
"For me?" Sara exclaimed, apparently more puzzled than surprised by the question. "No, I… I'm just the adopted daughter of the Kujou clan, and… a tengu…" She cleared her throat a little, perhaps just as a small attempt to prevent herself from immediately saying what had come to her mind. "However, my duty is solely as a soldier in the service of my clan, the Shogun and Inazuma. Marriage is not among my future plans, and I don't think my father has it in mind, either."
"Oh, come on," Chisato laughed, obviously skeptical of such a claim. "But, if you met the right person, wouldn't you consider it?"
"I don't know what exactly 'the right person' means in this context," Sara replied in a tempered voice.
"Well, it would be... it would be..."
Chisato tried to find an answer, but the correct words escaped her. One would expect that a girl in love like her should be able to express herself more easily about the person she liked, but perhaps one thing was not directly related to the other.
"Well, I'm not sure... but Ayaka is the romantic one. Maybe she can explain it better."
"Me?" Ayaka blurted out, completely flustered. "Hum... The right person? Well, I think… it would be…"
Ayaka raised her gaze to the sky, briefly intercepted by some of those beautiful pink petals floating above her. She thought about her words for a few moments, keeping her eyes fixed on that panorama and her feet advancing down the street by themselves.
The right person...
As soon as she had to think about that idea, a face, a voice, and a name immediately came to her mind. And instead of forcing herself to push that thought aside, this time, she let it flow freely, like a riverbed. And as she did, her lips curved into a small, playful smile, and her eyes seemed almost to shine like two great moons.
"I think that person would be someone you can completely trust to be by your side no matter what. Being your partner, your friend, and the one who watches your back during battle."
"Battle?" Chisato muttered, confused, but Ayaka continued.
"Someone who will not lessen your wishes and dreams, but will even dare to dream with you, and will fight by your side to make them come true, and to make you happy. A person who makes your heart flutter just thinking about them, and with whom you want to be as long as possible, even if it's just walking, eating, talking, composing haikus, practicing with swords..."
"Swords?" Now it was Sara's turn to react that way.
"I guess," Ayaka murmured, accompanied by a small giggle, "the right person would be someone you feel complete and fulfilled with their presence. A person who makes you feel that you are a little better for having them in your life…"
That right person is you, Kazuha... it's always been you, and now I know it... She thought, accompanied by a warm sensation that overflowed through her chest but also accompanied by a certain melancholy.
She remained practically lost in those thoughts for much longer than she intended. By the time she managed to react and turned to see the other two, they were watching her in silence, with somewhat confused expressions in their eyes.
"T-that's how they describe it in the novels, of course," she hastened to clarify, holding up the bag in which she brought her recently bought book.
"What beautiful words, Ayaka," Chisato pointed out with a half-smile. "Are they from that novel?" She questioned, pointing to the bag.
"From... this and others..." Ayaka replied, hugging the book to her with some apprehension. "From several… none in particular."
"Well, I don't think I know someone like that," Sara suddenly answered harshly, "nor do I think I need one.
"I don't think it's a question of needing it or not," Chisato stated in a nonchalant voice.
The rest of the way to the kimono shop was quieter, each deep in their thoughts. And Ayaka's thoughts, of course, were directly only for one person.
Oh, Kazuha… I wonder what you are doing right now…
Among all the possibilities that might have crossed Ayaka's mind about what Kazuha might be doing right now, fleeing from the Tenryou guards on the shoulder of an oni... it might not be one of her first choices.
Arataki Itto and Akira ran without stopping through a maze of alleys, leaving the sound of the crowd witnessing the fight farther behind until they arrived at a much more desolate part of the suburbs, with fewer buildings and, most of them, more worn and rustic in appearance. They headed straight for the back of one of those houses, where the only ones waiting for them were a group of five cats that growled and fled in terror as soon as the oni's heavy footsteps alerted them to its proximity. Once behind their hiding place, they slammed on the brakes, finally taking a second to catch their breath.
"Did we lose them, Akira?" Itto muttered between gasps.
The stocky young man carefully peered around the corner of the building in the direction they were coming. No soul was on the horizon except for more cats running around.
"I think so," Akira replied, also breathing heavily. "It doesn't seem like anyone is following us..."
"Ha!" Itto snapped into the air, scaring his partner a bit. "Those fools from the Tenryou Commission didn't see us or the dust! It is more than evident that the day they will be able to get their hands on the Great Arataki Itto is still a long way off…!"
"Excuse me," the young swordsman muttered slowly, still slung over the oni's shoulder like a sack. "Would you mind putting me down?"
"Oh, right," Itto murmured, practically remembering until now that he was with them. "Excuse me, buddy."
He then took Kazuha, lowering him and placing him on the ground just as he had requested. Once on the mainland, the wandering swordsman adjusted his clothes as best as possible and put his sword back inside its scabbard. All of that had been... strange indeed.
"We got out of there in good shape, huh?" Itto exclaimed with beaming pride. "Give me five!"
Itto now extended his right palm in Kazuha's direction, evidently waiting for him to high-five him. Kazuha looked at him out of the corner of his eye, and although he understood what he wanted... his stern expression made it clear that he wasn't going to do it.
"You're still angry, I see," Itto murmured slightly nervously, pulling his hand away and placing it behind his head instead, embarrassed. "Sorry about that little misunderstanding back there. Now I know that when you said you weren't with those thieves, you meant it."
"Never mind," Kazuha replied seriously, without hinting at bitterness or resentment. "But what exactly made you change your mind?"
Itto smiled broadly and placed his hands on his waist, adopting a confident, even a little arrogant posture.
"It was because you used a vision there, right?" he declared fervently. Kazuha, however, remained impassive, not answering him. "Of course I noticed it! Nothing escapes me," Itto added right after with the same confidence. "If we had stayed, those dogs from the Tenryou Commission would have wanted to take it from you. That's why the best thing was to run away, don't you think?"
Kazuha sensed no mockery or malice in his words. Still, his sheer instinct for self-preservation made it… uncomfortable to hear a complete stranger speak so lightly of his vision. His hand went by itself to his sword, not knowing exactly what he intended to do or demonstrate with such an act.
"Hey, calm down, calm down," Itto hurried to say, waving his hands in front of him. "You don't have to worry, look..."
Itto reached for his long coat to open it to the side. Kazuha instinctively went on the defensive at the thought of him pulling out a weapon. However, to his surprise, what the oni did was reveal to the ex-samurai the inner lining of the coat and the orange and gold orb that remained attached and hidden to it. It was, without a doubt, a Geo vision…
"I have a vision too, see?" Itto pointed out eloquently. "I usually always had it attached to my neck, but since this senseless hunt started, Shinobu, my grandmother, and everyone else insisted that I keep it hidden. As if I would be scared of those fools from the Tenryou Commission! I want to see that they dare to come and take it from me..."
"Boss…!" Akira suddenly interrupted him, the unease in his voice. "Are you sure it's a good idea?"
"Your friend is right," Kazuha added sternly. "You know nothing about me. You shouldn't show anyone that you have that with you."
"Ha!" Itto exclaimed nonchalantly, hiding the inside of his coat again. "I may not know anything about you directly, but I do know that no one wholly evil can have a vision."
"That…" Kazuha muttered, hesitating a bit on how exactly to respond to that. "I could not guarantee that is always the case..."
"But in yours, I'm sure it is," Itto declared with an almost unheard-of firmness and security in his voice. "After all, you were able to defeat me with just one slash of your sword, but you decided not to do that, right?"
Kazuha started, more than surprised to hear those words, and Itto smiled proudly at his reaction.
"Oh yes, I also realized that," he said, crossing his arms and puffing out his chest a little. "And, of course, no evil person would have passed up such an opportunity, would they?"
Kazuha didn't reply at all, but he was certainly impressed.
He is a much more cunning warrior than he seems, he concluded without leaving his astonishment. Apparently, he had underestimated that individual more than he should have. He acted and talked funny, and he didn't seem very bright. However, it was clear that he was not an ordinary warrior. It didn't surprise him that he had also received a vision.
With a calmer mood, Itto took a step closer to Kazuha, stood right in front of him, and respectfully extended his hand.
"So let's start over, shall we?" he proposed, outlining a calm and friendly smile. "I am Arataki Itto, the Heroes of Haramizaka and the Arataki Great Gang leader. And you?"
The swordsman stared at his hand for a moment and slowly allowed himself to relax a bit. He stood straight and shook the oni's huge hand firmly enough.
"Kazuha," he said quietly.
"Just Kazuha, huh?" Itto inquired mockingly.
"Yeah, just Kazuha."
They both released their hands, and Kazuha prepared to leave, heading back to the main street.
"Thank you for helping me escape, but I must be on my way. If you excuse me…"
"Hey, hey, not so fast," Itto snapped, rushing forward until he was in front of Kazuha and blocking his way. "You can't go around with your vision now that we're upsetting those busybodies from the Tenryou Commission. We know well how to navigate these streets and some safe places where you can be until everything calms down."
"Thanks, but I'll be fine alone," Kazuha hastened to point out, then tried to wriggle Itto around to continue. The oni, however, returned to position its massive body in front of him.
"I must insist!" he exclaimed forcefully. "My attitude towards you was totally unheroic. I need to make up for my actions in the best way!"
"It is not necessary…"
"Come on! You can trust me! Seriously. I even know someone who could give you a fake vision if you want!"
That certainly took Kazuha even more by surprise and discouraged him from leaving so soon.
"A fake vision?" he muttered slowly, being one more question to himself as to whether he had heard correctly.
"Boss, wait..." Akira muttered nervously, approaching the oni's side. "He could be a spy for the Tenryou Commission."
"What?" Itto exclaimed in disbelief. "Of course not. You're not, are you?" he questioned quickly, turning to see Kazuha with a slightly accusing expression.
"No, I'm not," Kazuha said simply. "What did you mention about fake visions?"
"Ah, they're kind of cool," Itto said enthusiastically. "They are handmade visions that seem totally real. If someone from the Tenryou Commission annoys you, you give them the false vision, and that's it! You can continue on your way without a problem."
Kazuha nodded; it was just as Tomo had told him. So in truth, people were using these false visions as lures to get out of the vision hunt. The problem was that if so many people were using them, it was only a matter of time before the Tenryou commission found out, if they didn't already know. And what did it mean he knew someone who could give him a vision? Did these people know who the craftsman who made them was? Or, even, who was his mysterious benefactor?
"Sounds like a very delicate thing for you to be sharing that information with a complete stranger," Kazuha pointed out seriously.
"Same here," Akira muttered with marked disapproval.
Itto cleared his throat a bit, a bit nervous, perhaps feeling reprimanded in some way.
"Well, I decided to risk it in order to make up for my lack!" he declared fervently to the air, with his hands on his waist and his gaze up. "At least, like I said, let us take you somewhere safe until the streets clear out a bit. Eh? What do you think about that?"
Kazuha cupped his chin with one hand and pondered on it for a bit. Would it be correct to deceive them by pretending he didn't know about those fake visions? Although, even if he didn't want to, he still couldn't reveal it to them; he hadn't even told Ayaka about it. But maybe with this, he could learn a little more about the people who were after them before the delivery and make sure they didn't pose a danger to Tomo or him.
"Okay," Kazuha agreed after a while. "Anyway, I need to look around for the kitten that was with me."
"Ah, I get it," Itto murmured, accompanied by a mischievous chuckle. "So you were looking for a girl, huh?"
"I think he's literally talking about a kitten, boss," Akira whispered to him in a low voice.
"Yes, indeed," Kazuha replied. "Small, wholly white and blue eyes. It's called Tama. She was with me but ran away when the fight started."
"Ah… Well, don't worry!" Itto snapped. "I also know the places where all the cats in Hanamizaka gather. Follow me, and we'll find her."
Filled with conviction, he turned and began to walk with a firm step. Kazuha, already a little calmer, followed him a few steps behind, surreptitiously contemplating the long white hair that fell on his back.
What a curious man, Kazuha thought, a little amused. But I don't perceive any malice in him. He seems to be a really sincere person… And the truth is that there aren't many like that around here.
Akira was also walking behind them, but his step was much less determined and sure than his boss's.
"Shinobu isn't going to like this…" Akira sighed heavily in his voice.
Author Notes:
I don't think I mentioned it directly (although we had implied it in some chapters anyway). However, here we are assuming that those who still have their visions and are not from the Tri-Commission (such as Kazuha, Tomo, Yoimiya, Itto, or Shinobu) bring these with them hidden from other people instead of having them hanging in plain sight like most of their designs. This can be a bit obvious, but since we almost always see them with their in-game designs, one can easily imagine that the vision is always where they show it (for example, that Itto wears it on his neck). But hey, it's a minor detail but relevant.
On another topic, the truth is that this day is taking a little longer than I expected; I guess that's what happens when you want several things to happen at the same time. I am not used to "rushing" things, but I will try to go a little faster in the following chapters, mainly because I already want to get to what comes "after" all this, hehehe...