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400 Years Apart	By : Cynthermes Category: +M to R > Mirage of Blaze Views: 4238 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: Mirage of Blaze and its characters solely belong to Kuwabara Mizuna. I’m just going to creep into a corner of her sand box and play the part of a wannabe historical writer. No profit has been made in the construction of this story.

Chapter List
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Chapter 40:

ULTIMARINA, Pearl in the Deep: Part 15

A/N: Loved by her beloved, loved by all men, she weighed herself down the sea never to return to the land of the rising sun.

…

Halfway through trying to gut each other in the dirtiest tactics and maneuvers, Danzo knew he was in trouble when his opponent cleanly put away his tsuba. His arms hurt from the impact of Kei’s blows. Even his feet ached from stubbornly holding his ground and from executing countless guarding moves. Jiun-kei was not only an extremely strong foe but also devastatingly swift.

Having fallen into a crouch with his lightweight wakizashi blade held firmly aslant, he studied the executioner who equally watched him intently, now practically unarmed. Unlike Naoe who was naturally more inclined to the sword, Kei specialized better in hand to hand combat. Though Danzo was adept at this freestyle martial art himself, who knows where and when those indecently concealed weapons were going to come out? His foe just became dangerously unpredictable.

He remembered Kei giving him a daunting smile before suddenly disappearing in a burst of speed. He reappeared too close in Danzo’s vision for an instant before sending a bone-crushing kick intended for the ribcage. The master illusionist needed both arms to shield himself from the force of the attack but still staggered a little.

Taking advantage of Danzo’s slightest opening, Kei rapidly twists his body to land another kick only to hit nothing but air. The shinobi used the propelling force of his stagger to jump backwards out of enemy range. Eyes narrowing further into slits, Kei pursues this elusive nuisance with a series of spinning kicks and sailing fists, which Danzo manages to avoid successively only to feel a sharp smarting on his lower arm. Torn bits of cloth and flecks of blood flew as the ragged edge exited from cut flesh. The flash of metal was only visible for an instant before Kei resumed his open stance.

Danzo did not expect to suffer significant injury this early. He was supposed to provide longer distraction. He would not survive the next one if his defenses fell even a little against this truly monstrous opponent. The shinobi's mouth was a thin grim line as he calculated his next move.

Kei was acting a little strange. Instead of attacking again, he waited, seemingly intent to end it in one final stroke. What makes this skilled fighter lose his usually volatile, malignant streak? The illusionist’s eyes strayed towards the injured boy. There was no doubt; it had to be Hojo Saburo.

His minutest inattention proves detrimental when Kei takes advantage and charges towards him. Kei’s hands were already wrapped around the wakizashi’s blunt side before Danzo could register what happened. Twisting it free, Kei effectively disarms his opponent.

He then unleashes a range of complicated attacks: A powerful kick followed by a brisk turn, another combined with lightning-fast fist throws and coordinated strikes. Danzo barely evades and repels the blows with guarding limbs joined to lessen the impact. It did little to spare him from receiving the bruising shocks to his body however.

“What persistent vermin.” Kei chuckled mockingly. “Did you show yourself just to get a pounding?” Still he was irritated that he could not completely shake off the clingy dirt.

Danzo evaded that swipe of feet aiming to crack his skull.

It appears he was in for more trouble.

Kei seems to catch a hint of his purpose. Well, no matter, he thought. In the know or not, this game was spiraling towards the desired end.

…

Naoe watched the evolving scenario of his surroundings at the corner of his eye. Danzo was holding out better than he thought he would but Saburo and Hanaiin were in a tight spot. Surrounded by sohei from behind and impeded from an ongoing battle upfront, Naoe could not simply fly to their side. Not to mention he was currently unarmed at the moment.

“Your opponent is right here. Ignoring me won’t make the danger any less real, Naoe.” Nagahide pressed the edge of his katana a little harder against his former comrade’s neck.

Naoe chuckled at death’s cold bite against his skin. Nagahide had diminished Naoe’s chances of escape by keeping him firmly acquainted with the blade of his katana while his arms were restrained behind his back. Their bodies were purposefully put tightly together. “Are you trying to sound threatening, Nagahide?”

“You are not entitled to call me so informally, traitor.” Nagahide hissed actually drawing a trickle of blood from his captive this time.

Naoe never expected his friend to actually react to his words. Yasuda Nagahide was usually collected and unfazed in most situations. He discerned that based on Hanaiin-hime’s circumstance, it would mean that Nagahide had gone out of his way to keep the lady safe despite the odds namely: the sohei and the executioner’s arrival. Could it mean a fulfilment of one’s duty or were there underlying personal reasons involved? Naoe was about to find out.

“Nagahide, I can only hope to understand the amount of strain you were under, between standing your ground and following my last orders. As your former commander I commend you for your efforts however I do want to know what makes me a traitor.” Naoe spoke as calmly as ever.

It struck a nerve as intended. “You still dare to ask why? Have you not completely deferred to the Hojo judging by your recent actions? As if your deference to the brat is not enough proof! It is laughable really and at the same time revolting to watch you resign yourself to his will. Makes me wonder how you and the man I held in high regard were the same person.”

Naoe shook his head, “That is where you are wrong.” An intense discourse— they were arguing in the midst of battle just like they did in previous Uesugi war campaigns but this time they were on opposing sides. “I do not consider myself allied to the Hojo.”

“Explain yourself and make every word count. My patience is running thin.” Nagahide’s hands were itching for blood but he was still conflicted deep inside.

“Saburo is just Saburo. My association with him does not involve clanship ties. That is to say that if the Hojo dare lay a hand on him, they shall become my enemy as well. Were you not concerned of Hanaiin-hime’s well-being a moment ago?” The smarting on Naoe’s wound intensified. He might have pushed too far but it was unusual for Nagahide to lose control. Naoe was steadily gaining the upper hand.

“Kagetora-kou specifically instructed me to keep the hostage out of harm’s way. And do not attempt at negotiation, Naoe. Your regard for Saburo-dono does not reflect mine towards the hime.” Nagahide said icily.

“Tell me Nagahide. How do you think this situation would end? Who has the advantage at present? I assure you that the Uesugi’s best interests are the least of Kei’s priorities.”

Nagahide’s brow twitched. Naoe could be irritatingly persistent if he chose. “Actually, I am contemplating on decapitating you if you keep running your mouth.”

“You would need to dig your blade deep enough to permanently shut me up.” Naoe countered dismissively but continued on more seriously, “Think about your current position. The moment Jiun-kei arrived; the Uesugi lost their claim on a valuable hostage to another opportunistic party. Siding with the Bakufu’s executioner in this battle would not let you accomplish anything. The mission had been lost and to that I admit responsibility.”

You! Creases appeared on Nagahide’s forehead. In a single explosive fit, he violently swung his katana aside, thrust the other man away and slammed a fist on Naoe’s face. Anyone who managed to look on the scene was stunned. Naoe himself blinked dumbly at his friend while sporting a bruised jaw.

“Is that all you have to say? I did not wait impatiently for the ‘mission’ to go somewhere! I was neither only holed up in a camp filled with restless subordinates nor attended to a lady of nobility who tried to slit her throat the moment she woke up! I waited—” Nagahide caught himself before he could make an utter mess. He was samurai upholding his family’s honor and his pride. Crying out like a freeman would make himself a disgrace. It was always a line he could not cross.

Yet Naoe understands. “I apologize. To keep you in the dark of what had become of me was very inconsiderate.”

Regaining his composure after the outburst, Nagahide realized he could not abruptly cut ties with Naoe and treat him like any other comrade. Naoe’s betrayal in pursuit of his true wishes was as enviable as it was deplorable. Nagahide doubted he could cast everything aside for the sake of one person.

As Nagahide was about to speak his mind, he witnessed the shinobi, Danzo precariously break a fall fairly close to both Hanaiin and Saburo. And the next thing Nagahide saw was the long gleam of serrated blade aiming for Danzo— on the path headed straight towards the pair of youth.

Nagahide thought he forgot to breathe.

Following his line of sight, Naoe became a close second. He heard Danzo’s uncharacteristic groan of distress before literally disappearing before them.

Kei’s tsubatto sank not on flesh but on sand. “Finally chased the vermin out,” He muttered, pulling his sword off the ground.

Then,

“?” A series of explosions broke off, quickly saturating the coastline in thick innocuous smoke. ‘That one-trick nag…!’

Haruhie used this disruption to escape from his captor giving the sohei a solid kick between the legs. When other sohei rushed to aid their comrade, a firm thump and other noises of beating were heard. Defeated bodies fell on Haruhie’s feet when he was suddenly pulled in another direction. “!” He tried to fight off the attacker when the smoke thinned. “Eh?” Arms caught in another’s hands, Haruhie looked up to see Kuro’s face emerge.

“Stop it,” Monotonously, he said for the first time in a slightly accented dialect. “It is only I.” He added.

Haruhie could only wordlessly gape at him.

…

Kei swiftly intercepted the other lashing blade much like his own. This one attempted to take Saburo right under his nose. He was not about to let that happen.

They locked eyes, both tsubatto colliding in high-pitched friction. “Who are you?”

The gaze of the other shadow bore dark holes into Kei. Death and a little mixture of madness spoke for him in volumes. Trying to read each other, they disengaged and silence reigned for a while.

Emitting the slightest of sound, the shadow swooped once again for Kei. A sequence of fatal combat ensues. Both held the other close at sword point; managing to nearly decapitate or dismember the opponent several times at different instances.

Delivering fast, precise strikes; their weapons resoundingly slammed against each other. Neither wanted to concede to a draw nor to be outdone by the other; sparks flew as they spun their bodies to land more devastating blows but equally matched in speed and power, the two could only drag the battle too long under the cover of dissipating obscurity.

Kei became so immersed in fighting someone of similar calibre that he noticed the immediate appearance of someone and many others too late.

The presence of encompassing white conspicuously deviated from the dullness of the smoke-suffused surroundings and the sudden gloom of the skies. A figure in immaculate layers of kimono stood several steps away from Saburo and Hanaiin.

Saburo held his cousin tighter in the face of such predicament. The muddled view of the island naturally increased his protective instincts. He felt like the very place itself had turned into an unpredictable enemy that could strike at any time.

Senses heightened at any perceived threat, he makes out the little impressions of sandaled feet crunching against the sand. Someone approaches and was getting closer. He looks up at the ghostly presence of a veiled phantom bending over them. “Cho-san…?” Too stunned to say or do anything else, the phantom gets close enough to place a pale hand over Hanaiin’s hair.

Saburo could not pull the sleeping girl out of the phantom’s reach. He just stared, almost transfixed at the figure’s concealed face. ‘Cho-san’ did not meet his eyes but hovered very close to him. Again, Saburo felt an inexplicable surge of familiarity at the phantom’s nearness. He had not realized Hanaiin was being taken off his grasp until cool fingers rubbed his cheek a little hesitantly.

‘Cho-san’ already held Hanaiin’s lithe body before Saburo realized what happened. As ‘she’ started to walk away however, Kei raced to interfere once again. The slash of his tsubatto was deflected by twin blades before it could land a single scratch on the phantom. A similar face but unmarred unlike the first repulsed his attack.

“So we have a pair, interesting.” Unfazed, Kei rapidly drew his other serrated weapon bashing the interlocked swords. He managed to make his opponent falter a bit but the defense held. Extricating himself, Kei tried another maneuver only to be overwhelmed by combined forces. “Hmph!” He appeared nonchalant but was angered to lose his female prey. His reaction time after seeing ‘Cho-san’ was loathsomely slow. Just when he finally had the chance to get a real swipe at ‘her’, he had dithered with a scarred shadow.

Cho-san turned her back along with the shadow but the scarred one lingered. It was far from over.

Kei raised a brow but at the same time internally prepared himself for what was to come. This one’s real objective was Saburo. And he smirked just as he regarded the other with hostility. “I will not let you.” He warned as the shinobi entered his periphery.

Torn between crying out to Hanaiin’s retreating form and gasping in shock, Saburo pushed himself upright just as a decisive body dove too close to him only to be driven back by a skilled parry. The injured youth had made eye-contact, causing the scarred shadow to waver.

‘Kotarou,’ his wide amber gaze had called to him.

“Becoming fixated on your goal will not effectively aid you to dispose of your obstacle.” Kei licked the small droplet of liquid he collected and made a noise at the back of his throat. He had drawn first blood, much to his satisfaction. “Well, what a surprising turn.” Kei laughed. He finds it too amusing. He let his gaze slide towards Saburo. “The taste of your blood is eerily similar to his’. I wonder why?”

The shadow’s only manifestation of distress was a miniscule narrowing of eyes. It was unusual for him not to get past even from such a proficient opponent, given that Kei had three distractions. The smoke will clear soon. He did not have enough time and he was already defying orders. But could he really walk away? Kotarou finds himself incapable of doing that until he exhausted his chances.

Kei obliges his nearly desperate foe. Kotarou lunges high into the air and uses the earth’s pull to spin rapidly as he falls. Tsuba out in a flash as his point of descent enters enemy range; he whips a tremendous blow against Kei’s resistance.

Though Kotarou failed to knock the enemy blade off his hands, Kei staggers from the impact. But the executioner anticipated when the shinobi hit the ground. Kei counterattacks with a powerful thrust, which Kotarou parried with a quick rebound of feet and a fling of blade. A loud clang reverberates at the impact potentially drawing unwanted attention.

Kotarou disengaged first and was troubled to notice that Kei had not once vacated the spot spanning the area needed to isolate Saburo. ‘Tsk,’ He could not get through.

“You look like you are about to cry.” Kei was delighted to witness the tiniest furrow on his opponent’s neutral façade.

As the last clouds of the concealing smoke disappears, Kotarou grudgingly does so as well.

In contrast, a considerable number of unknown shinobi suddenly appears. Being more adept at stealth, they pose a threat to Kei’s sohei army. “Hmm… more entertainment. Do I dare complain?”

Saburo was left looking at his hands and the utter uselessness he felt with them. He was too distracted with his encounter with the phantom ‘Cho-san’ that he failed to protect Hanaiin properly. Whether she was on safe hands or in the clutches of a different enemy, he did not know. He cursed and slammed his fists against the sand. Even Kotarou’s abrupt reappearance made him feel nothing but confusion.

A cold blade caresses strands of hair that escaped from his loosened riband. “Saburo-dono, what upsets you?”

The youth whips around with a single kunai in hand. He glares harder as Kei looms over him.

“Yield. You know that measly thing will not get in my way. The two of us are alone at last or… soon we shall be.” He grabs the kunai and practically rips it off Saburo’s grasp no matter how much the latter tries to hold on to it. Kei wraps a hand around Saburo’s throat making the youth grit his teeth and claw against unrelenting grip.

“Worry not, Saburo-sama, once we have privacy I will let you fight. Show me your splendid skills just like how you did on that fateful twilight at the shores of Sagami. You had courageously fought an overwhelming number of swordsmen and nearly triumphed. If Kagetaka-ani had not interfered, who knows what else you would have lost that night? Your innocence perhaps?” Kei whispered sinisterly.

Saburo spat at him, hissing, “Unhand me, lowlife.”

Kei released him to wipe the spittle from his cheek only to lick it off his fingers.

Saburo cringed in abhorrence. This man…!

“There is nothing to fear. Despite my words or that vermin’s words that is not what I am after. Like I said, I only wish to make you bleed.”

…

Naoe wasted no time in dispatching the nearest sohei that dare get in his way. Not being able to see Saburo and Hanaiin in this stealth attack provided no comfort for his nerves. And surprisingly Nagahide seems to share the same thought for he only stopped him half-heartedly. “Naoe! What is going on? Is this your doing?”

If this was any other smokescreen (one that did not last this long or subtly interfered with most of the body’s senses), Naoe would have gone complacent. He knew Danzo was a master at this technique. The shinobi often employed this tactic on large-scale operations involving sorties and tactical retreats. It could not be executed using ordinary means. And given the remoteness of the terrain, Naoe doubted Danzo could accomplish this much alone. A little self-rebuke was about to go off in his head for if he had paid more attention or analyzed the illusionist’s true intentions he would have predicted such an outcome or better yet learned of such a plan!

“Naoe!”

“No.”

That single response eradicated Nagahide’s doubts but this distorted visibility was not helping his worry lines recede. There was something odd about the smoke that made him think about nothing else in particular. In fact it was interfering with the mind’s ability to focus on specific stimuli and purposely dulled sensations. It almost reminded him of quack physicians that let patients smoke or chew herbs to forget pain or divert much of it while undergoing invasive treatment.

Shaking his head vigorously, he tried to clear his thoughts. “Naoe, what do you plan to do now?”

Naoe was suddenly torn between going to Saburo’s side and staying with Nagahide. The latter might be a very skilled swordsman but to anyone without immunity to Kohryu’s verse, he/she is one vulnerable prey¹⁰⁹. “It depends on what you decide upon first.”

“Very well, I have no more reason to fight you at this time. But your betrayal means you no longer wish to return to Kagetora-kou. If we ever meet in the battlefield at another time…”

“I understand. There is no need for you to worry.”

‘He did not even let me finish.’ Nagahide bristled silently at Naoe’s definitive answer. This man never had second thoughts. It was always here where they differed.

Having settled for an agreement, they exchanged nods and together fought their way towards the tight circle where Kei guards the hostages. As soon as they radically advanced however, sohei moved to interfere.

And even though they dealt fairly against the majority of sohei interventions by the time the smoke dissolved, Naoe and Nagahide found themselves as witnesses to a chilling scene of Kei strangling Saburo.

That was not the only noticeable thing: Hanaiin-hime had also somewhat disappeared.

Where had the lady gone? She could not have escaped on her own. Did Kei confine her in another location? Does that mean that Kei was the one who instigated the smokescreen? So many things were not adding up. These several speculations racing on Nagahide’s head did not help him comprehend the situation any better at all.

Naoe on the other hand had but one thing in mind: to get Kei’s hands off his beloved at all costs. Practically forgetting his surroundings, he watched Saburo defy insurmountable threat and spit on the face of terrible peril. He thought his heart give as he waited for Kei’s reaction.

Contrary to all of Naoe’s expectations, Kei releases Saburo and whispers something on his ear. The youth stiffens and pales a fraction before reining his expression to one of passivity. Anyone but Naoe would perceive this exchange as insignificant. His instincts scream right when the executioner’s eyes lock onto his. “Listen, aniue, I am going to take Saburo-dono inside the cave. We will have a duel and no one is allowed to interfere.”

“As if we will let that happen!” shouted someone, fearlessly. Separated only by a handful of intimidating sohei, Kakizaki Haruhie stepped in with a taciturn Kuro guarding his back.

“Sadly, I was not asking for permission. I am merely warning all of you to leave us be. That includes stray shinobi.” Kei responded flatly, nearly bored. And as if on cue, several other individuals suddenly stood out from the sohei like misshapen elongated shadows.

Naoe just realized that shinobi had been lurking there for a longer time. And that was the only probable explanation why every sohei they fought stayed down. As the former Sohei Master, Naoe knew better than anyone that sohei had the knack of returning to their feet if you don’t hit them hard enough. Their resilience in battle was almost legendary that the only way to defeat a unit was to kill every single member. Therefore, these shinobi acted no different from carrion that only waited to grant wounded animals their last breath.

Their presence confirmed two things: Firstly, another party was on the island and secondly, they were no allies of the Bakufu.

Kei smirked. “Two can certainly play this waiting game. But I assure you, I am neither intimidated nor short of arsenal.” He declared to no one in particular, which puzzled Naoe.

Who?

What?

How were things more different from before?

Kei visibly bent over and conversed secretively once again with Saburo. “What do you think, Saburo-dono? I am fairly sure you can identify the allegiance of these shinobi. Do you care to impart it with me?”

“Why would it matter? I can tell the duel is the only thing you look forward to.” Saburo snapped stoically.

“Ah, what is with that face? Do these shinobi remind you of one who literally makes you shake on your feet? Hmm… I wonder who that person could be.”

Saburo completely ignored the executioner this time so Kei seized the youth by the sleeve close to his injured shoulder. “This audience is getting bothersome. Do you not agree?”

Saburo grimaced at the sting while the executioner cast an eye on their ‘spectators’. “All of you do realize that most of my elite subordinates did not care for those troublesome cheap tricks. That is because we can do better.”Having said so, Kei seized Saburo and slowly began retreating for the cave.

“Saburo!” Naoe cried out.

Saburo turned his head at the sound of his voice. That one fleeting determined gaze he bestowed Naoe was enough to shake the man’s core.

Naoe struggled to close the gap as he went for the ever narrowing path towards his significant one.

More and more sohei moved in to deter his advance, however. Soon, Naoe and the others could barely distinguish Kei’s back among the swarming warrior monks.

“Wait! Naoe, don’t be reckless!” Nagahide called out. “You do not have a weapon! Even you can’t simply pummel your way through!”

“Silence, Nagahide! Don’t you dare try to stop me!” The calm and composed Naoe seems to have never existed.

“I am just trying not to get you killed!” Nagahide unthinkingly shot back.

With two distraught samurai, the role for voice of reason fell on Haruhie.

“Stop arguing both of you! Naoe-san, Yasuda-san, we are surrounded. We should work together if we want a fighting chance.”

Kuro nodded in agreement while the pair of frowning swordsmen tried to master their temper.

“This is where the fair game ends!” Kei’s loud voice thundered with echoing quality. He was unmistakably already inside the cave.

Naoe braced himself. If there was an attribute that remained unchanged of Kagefusa over the years, it was his brutal honesty. He rarely bluffed and this ominous warning was meant to come true. “Everyone, be on your guard.”

~TBC

109 – Saburo did develop considerable immunity to “Kohryu’s verse.” Remember that the sohei and the shinobi originally have one source for this method of warfare. And just to give you a kinky hint: Someone or make that two have particularly close relations to Saburo and are both masters of this art.

END OF 3^rd ARC

Post A/N: And just when things are heating up… the arc ends! Am I evil or what? By the way, I have contemplated long and hard over this multi-chapter fic if I should expound it to its best. Do you want a more concise story or do you want the uncut version? Please tell me what you think.
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400 Years Apart