"Ow... Are you all right?" Sojirou said
as he rubbed his forehead, rolling on his stomach and sitting halfway up. The
boy looked at Sojirou solemnly and nodded.
"Ba~ka," he commented.
"...?!" Sojirou was speechless for a moment,
feeling slightly annoyed and even somewhat angry with the small child in front
of him. He was not used to dealing with emotions, but in another moment he was
able to remind himself that the boy was just a child.
"Are you hungry?" the child asked.
Do I look like a beggar?
was what Sojirou almost retorted, but he caught himself. "Not really. Are
you?"
The boy shook his head. "Mommy said to be nice
to poor people, cause they don't have enough food."
"- -;" Sojirou laughed at the serious
child. "Well, thank you, but I'm not that poor."
The boy cocked his head and looked Sojirou over.
His large eyes rested on the sword. "Is that yours?"
"...Yes," Sojirou carefully picked it
up and slid it back in its sheath, a shadow covering his face. The boy stared
at the sword curiously.
"My mommy said that we're not allowed to carry
around swords," he informed Sojirou.
"Well... she's right. I'm a bad guy,"
Sojirou somewhat incoherently explained. He suddenly remembered the night he
had met Shishio, and a sad smile crossed his face.
The boy looked at him with a measuring gaze once
more, and frowned. "No, you're not. Bad guys look scary, not sad. You're
the saddest person I've ever seen."
"Who, me?" Sojirou quickly smiled his
usual cheerful smile. "But I always go around smiling."
"But you still look sad..." the boy came
a little closer as Sojirou stared at him in turn. The boy put out his small
hand and gently touched Sojirou's face. Sojirou flinched at the soft paw on
his cheek, but the child kept his hand there.
"This is how my mommy makes me feel better
when I'm sad," the child explained.
Sojirou made no move to brush the hand off. He looked
at the small boy, and for a moment he saw another child standing beside him,
a weak, warm-hearted child, starving for the love he was never able to know.
Was I like this child when I was little, Sojirou wondered.
I can't remember that far back...
A rough sound in the bushes broke the silence, and
with a start Sojirou stood up, expecting to see Karen with her bundles. But
it turned out to be several dirty-looking men, all armed and wearing ugly expressions
on their faces. They looked oddly familiar.
"You that bitch's boyfriend?" one of them
spat.
It took Sojirou a moment to realize who they were
talking about. "I don't know what you mean," he said cautiously.
"Don't play with us!" he shouted. "You
were with her last night at the inn!"
"Why do you ask if you know?" Sojirou
retorted with his usual bright smile.
The men were slightly confused at his smile. "What
the hell are you smiling at?!"
"He must have a few screws loose..." another
remarked with a sneer. The rest guffawed. Sojirou showed no sign that he had
heard, but the phrase oddly rang in his ears, disturbing some deep memories
he didn't like to remember.
"Tie him and the kid up," the first
one growled. "We'll need them. Hurry up before she gets back."
"Excuse me, misters," Sojirou interrupted
politely. "But this boy here has nothing to do with us. Karen-san doesn't
even know him. Why don't you just tie me up and let him go?"
"You really are a nutcase, aren't you?"
the man shook his head in disbelief. "Let him run off and tell her what's
happening here so she can sneak up on us?"
Another man spat in the dust. "Ha! Most likely
the boy's worth more. Why else would this idiot tell us to let him go?"
"You have a point!" the first one said
approvingly. He clapped his huge hands together. "Get the small one!"
The boy looked at the yakuza with fear in his eyes,
and Sojirou laid his hand on his sword. But his heart was beating so hard that
his head rang with the sound of it. Once, I would
have been able to make these men grovel in their blood... but I'm no match for
them now...
Suddenly a thought occurred to him. Is protecting this child my truth?
The men started to advance towards the two, but
Sojirou stood stock-still as he wrestled with his thoughts. His head was in
a whirl.
I have never fought to protect anyone else in my life... and to tell the truth, why should I protect this child? I never knew him until a few minutes ago, and if the yakuza take him off thinking that Karen-san will rescue him, at least they will be off our tail for awhile. What would Karen-san do? What must I do?
"All kenkaku wield their blades for themselves..."
What do I believe in? What do I wield my sword for?
Suddenly he saw a small, abused boy, weeping in
the rain. No one had come - no one had cared whether a small child lived or
died, whether he killed or was killed. No one was there the moment his innocent
youth had ended...
Was he going to let that happen again?
"If you don't have a sword at hand when you figure your ideals out, it will be too late by the time you do get your hands on one."
I have a sword... and I do not want to regret anything anymore...
The sound of crying brought him to his senses. The
men had already grabbed the child and were making off with him into the woods.
Sojirou drew his sword. "Stop!"
The men paused and turned around. "Shut up
and stay put if you value your life."
"Let the boy go. I told you he has nothing
to do with us."
"Will you make us?"
All the men save one who was holding the boy drew
their swords. Sojirou gripped the hilt of his blade and swallowed as they advanced
menacingly. His eyes narrowed. Lightly, he bounced his foot on the ground,
and as his foot touched the dirt and left it, the feel of kenjitsu ran through
his body. He smiled.
"What the hell are you smiling at?!" the
men shouted, charging toward him.
A flash was all that could be seen, and then Sojirou
was gone. For a split second everyone froze. Then blood spouted into the air,
and the screams of the men echoed as Sojirou calmly landed on the grass.
"Karen-san would be pleased..." he murmured,
glancing at the wounded pile of men. The one remaining was shaking with fear,
while the boy clapped his hands and smiled for the first time since Sojirou
had met him. "You sure are strong!"
"D-don't come any closer!" the man stammered
as he started to back off, his arm around the child. With his other hand he
groped for his sword, found it, and held it to the child's neck as Sojirou advanced.
"I'm going to slice him open!"
Sojirou stopped. For a moment his face was filled
with anger and helplessness - but then he suddenly smiled mischievously. "Try
it if you will."
"Stop grinning, you idiot!" the man shrieked.
The next moment he froze. Once more, the air was
sprinkled with drops of ruby. With a thud the boy fell to the ground as the
man slumped forward. Karen wiped her sword on the grass and looked at the yakuza
with a frown. "Damn scum..." She looked over at Sojirou, standing
with bloody sword in hand.
"It seems you have found an answer, or at least
the beginnings of one," she nodded approvingly. The boy looked at both
of them in awe. Karen lifted him and tossed him into the air with a laugh, "Aren't
we a brave one?"
"I didn't even scream once!" he said proudly.
Then he pointed at Sojirou. "He saved me too."
"Yes, I know," Karen winked. "And
now he's going to take you home while I stay here and get rid of these bad guys."
She put the boy down, and he looked expectantly
at Sojirou, who nodded. "Uh, yeah. Let's go."
Karen watched the two walk toward the village, her
eyes somewhat softer than usual. As they grew smaller and smaller, she heard
the boy say, "But you lied to me! You said you were a bad guy."
With a sigh she turned to the bloody corpses...
no, not corpses yet. One of the men stirred and groaned in pain. With a wicked
smile on her face, Karen approached the man and bent down. "Hello."
"Bitch..." he muttered.
"I don't think you're in a position to be calling
me that," Karen said softly, planting a foot on his chest. Her hair brushed
against his face, and her eyes, now shining with a frosty light, were centimeters
from his. "What are you after?"
"Your... death..." he hissed, blood trickling
out of his mouth. "You... and your boyfriend."
"My boyfriend?" Karen said in surprise. Then she giggled. "You're
not talking about Saitou Hajime, are you?"
She straightened up, a look of amusement on her
face. "Wait till he hears what's the latest news on the yakuza grapevine."
With one graceful movement she pulled out her sword and neatly sliced the man's throat. Then she sighed as she looked at the bodies. "It will take me forever and then some to get rid of these..."