The Hand of Death Ch. 14

"And what do we have here? Four bandits taking a break?"

He was pretty fast. He had managed to draw and make eye contact with me before I finished my first sentence. But he did look scared.

"No, Koga sama. We are just ronin resting for the evening." He said as he put away his sword.

"And why are you in my lands?"

His friends began to wake. When they realized he was talking to a Koga samurai, they sat up and bowed. I returned it.

"Your Daimyo, Nokizaru Daiki, is recruiting ronin. We came looking for work, Koga sama."

That part was true. Daiki had mentioned he needed to recruit some ronin to support his part of the efforts with the Karafuto.

"Very well. Finish your sleep and in the morning report to the city guards."

With that I stood, grabbed a limb and swung behind the trunk of the tree. The moment I was out of site I went to mist and floated to a better place to watch them. After a few moments one of them went to investigate the tree but found nothing. They talked nervously for a while but eventually decided to finish resting before eating breakfast. They did swap out guards but other than that remained where they were.

Come dawn I watched them eat and discuss the odd boy from the previous night. Well after dawn they started putting what little they had away. Their party was just about to leave when ten Nokizaru samurai rode up on horses and partially surrounded them. They appeared to be a Yoriki and his men as they wore the crest of the Nokizaru Machi-bugyo.

The Yoriki said, when he came forward from the middle of the pack, "You men lay down your arms. You are under arrest."

The ronin complied with looks of exasperation. "And may we ask to what crime we are accused, Yoriki sama?"

The Yoriki look unimpressed. "The town of Juju was raided two nights ago. You are obviously responsible."

"We have not been to the town of Juju. We traveled across country to get here and are on our way to Shiro no Nokizaru seeking work."

The Yoriki made no comment so I stepped out of the shadows and said "That would be in

keeping with what I have seen, Yoriki sama."

He looked a little startled at me as I was only a few feet away from him. "And who are you?"

"I am of the Shotoku family, Yoriki sama."

Unfortunately..., one of his Doshin laughed at that. I leaped the distance to the Doshin and sliced his head off in mid jump. I had flicked the blood from my blade and was putting my weapon away as I landed. All of that before his head hit the ground. The horse started to list and canter to the side as his body leaned and threw its balance off. I walked back towards the ronin while the samurai on their horses tried to get control of their animals while staying away from the dead body. I turned to face the Yoriki once I was there. He had regained control of his mount.

"Who are you, Shotoku?"

"I have eaten rice with your Daimyo and his family many times. I am Shotoku Hiro." I bowed and did not wait for him to return it.

The Yoriki got off of his horse very quickly and went into a face down bow to me. His men followed suit immediately.

"Please forgive me, Hiro sama. I was only trying to apprehend the men responsible for the crime. I did not realize these men were with you."

"They are not with me. I came across them last night and continued to watch them to see if they are bandits or not. From what I have seen, they are four ronin down to their last bowl of rice. If they have raided Juju then they certainly have nothing to show for it."

"It is a terrible mistake on my part, my lord."

The ronin were so surprised by everything they had not known what to do this whole time. I had just noticed them subtly motion to each other to sit and bow. When I saw this I turned towards them and motioned them to stop.

"Pick up your weapons." I then pointed at two of them. "You and you. Go get that animal under control. Then get the body ready for transport back to Shiro no Nokizaru."

They nodded and complied. The Yoriki had brought no eta with him. Since ronin were lower than eta I had no choice but to make them deal with the dead Doshin. I could have made some of the Yoriki's men do it but it was a pretty big insult. Yes, even bigger than killing one of them.

I made the Yoriki report what had happened in Juju. I found that three of his men present were actually the Doshin and two Komono from Juju. Their Yoriki had died in the raid along with several heimin. It had been a force of fifteen bandits and I got the impression the Doshin did not like grabbing the first four ronin they had come across but he was of no station to comment.

I squatted down in front of the Yoriki. "One of our towns is raided. We have people killed. And your answer is to grab anyone you can blame it on?"

"Gomen nasai, Hiro sama."

"I do not care about your apology... Are we Honshu?"

"No, Hiro sama."

"Are we Bandai?"

"No, my lord."

"Are we Koga?" He nodded. "...Our House does not exist to make your life easier, Yoriki. You exist to defend our House."

"Yes, my lord."

"The other Houses may wish to run their business with blindness but we are Koga. We look for proof. I want the people who murdered our Yoriki because they are going to do it again. I do not want some farmer or some ronin you want to pretend did it."

"Yes, my lord."

I left them, sitting and bowing until the body was almost ready. I then told everyone to stand. I had the three from Juju take their mounts and stand off to the side.

"You will be returning to Juju and you will be taking these four ronin to reinforce you." The Doshin from Juju nodded. I gave a silver to each of the ronin. I had a purse of 50 silver, which was a lot of money. I gave what was left to the Doshin. "You will pay them a silver a piece every month. For now this purse should guarantee their employment for the next five months. Get them a place to live. Get them cleaned up and fed. Issue

them whatever armor you have and find - those - damned - bandits!"

I then pointed to four of the Yoriki's men. "You four double up with your friends." I then had the two remaining ronin secure their mounts and stand with the Doshin of Juju. The body was finally secured to his mount so I had the ronin hand the reins to the Yoriki after he had mounted. I sent him and his men home and sent the Doshin off with his new ronin the other way.

I heard one of the ronin comment to one of his friends, "See? I told you last night asking him 'who are you?' would have been a bad idea."

After they were all gone I took my time to investigate the ronin's campsite just to be sure I had not made a mistake. I didn't find anything unusual hidden anywhere so I continued on to Daiki's home. I walked the remainder of the distance as I was sure the extra time would give him an ample chance to hear the story and come up with some creative complaints for me when I arrived.

It was late morning by the time I got to the gates of Shiro no Nokizaru. The city looked good. The Gunso at the gate informed me that Daimyo Daiki had asked me to his court when I arrived. I bowed and thanked him as I headed to Daiki. I slipped quietly into court and made my way to the front as he was passing decisions on the different issues that had been brought before him. He frowned through his tattooed mask when he recognized me in the crowd but continued with court until he was finished an hour later. When he stood, at the conclusion of court, he waved for me to follow him to the garden.

"Hiro san, do you have any idea how much your morning has cost me?"

"I believe it is one Doshin, my lord."

"And what of his family? Wife and children I must now care for."

I hadn't thought of that. "I did not realize. I will cover their cost. How many people was he responsible for, my lord?"

"None. But that is not the point." I just looked at him. "What about the cost of the four ronin in Juju who will have to be paid. Regularly." I just kept walking with him. "I mean when your money runs out." He was trying not to smile. "Alright. Why did you kill the man?"

I shrugged. "He was stupid enough to laugh at me in front of 13 witnesses."

He nodded as we sat on a bench in the garden. "But I laugh at you all the time, Hiro. Am I to start worrying about what you will do to me?" He said in mockingly fearful tones.

I smiled. "You are Daimyo Nokizaru, and as such, you may laugh at me all you want."

He gave a big grin. "What would you do about Juju?"

I thought on that a moment. "I would promote the Doshin to Yoriki. He did not like the idea of blaming just anyone for the raid. That shows an intelligence we need in our Yoriki. And if the ronin prove useful in finding the real bandits? Then, I would promote them to Doshin."

He thought a moment. "Simple. I like it. Are you staying for dinner?"

"If you will have me. I had planned on a short visit today before I have to leave tonight."

"Good. My wife and daughter will be happy to hear that."

We spoke for a little while longer before his next court session. When he left for that, I excused myself to a small room he had near his office so I could get some sleep. Three hours later a servant, who must have been informed about my sleep schedule, woke me with fresh water for a bath and some tea. The life of the nobleman is so difficult.

Once I was cleaned and dressed I followed her to Daiki's suite and awaited his guard to admit me. The servant bowed and knocked on the door. The door was opened by a courtier, who listened to the servant and then closed the door. Giapan was nothing if not formal.

Soon the door was opened and I was invited in. They escorted me to a side room where there was more scratching on shoji screens and knocking on wooden doors. Eventually I made it to Daiki's library. The room was spacious, with a high ceiling and tall opened windows. The walls were made of mahogany, and each of them had intricate borders and carvings covering their surfaces.

Many bookshelves, desks, and tables filled the room comfortably. Daiki sat behind a large red enameled desk, on top of which were strewn many scrolls. There were four men present with him in the room. I remembered them vaguely from my stay here.              

Daiki was smiling. "Hiro san, I thought you would never get here. I have been waiting for so long." Same Daiki. Always acting as if he is insulted in an effort to make you nervous.

"Gomen nasai. I came as soon as I had a chance, my lord." I knelt and bowed to him, almost touching my forehead to the floor. The effort wasn't lost on him; he returned my bow with a very deep one of his own.

"We will not be but a moment." He said.

He finished giving directions to his men before sending them out.

"I understand you are on business for Masao." I nodded. "I will not harass you with giving me details you are not sure you can give." Whew. "Is there anything I can do for you though?"

I nodded. "Yes, I could use Xai's assistance if you can do without him for a few days."

His eyebrows rose. "Has someone made you that angry, Hiro san?"

I smiled slightly. "No, my lord. I need transportation, and I thought he would like a legitimate reason to fly. If I could have your permission, my lord." I bowed again, not wanting to take anything for granted.

"I will send for him. My wife loves his conversation so she will not mind if he joins us." He returned my bow.

"Arigato gozaimasu, my lord." I said as I bowed low again. He bowed back smiling.

Daiki and I talked for a few moments as we moved to the dining area of his home. We were there for several moments before his wife, Akiko, arrived with their daughter Ketsumempo.

Ketsumempo was so excited to see me that she almost forgot herself and started to hug me. She caught herself when she was raising her arms and did a kind of arm swinging thing back and forth like a child to cover her blunder. I didn't notice any of this as I was still dumbstruck from what just walked into the room. To say she had blossomed was an understatement. I was just staring at her for a while, until I noticed her hand waving in front of my face.

"Hiro san?"

"Ketsumempo sama. A pleasure to see you again."

"Obviously."

Her parents had that smile adults get when they see the awkwardness of youth. It was not funny.

We bowed to each other and she sat next to me at the table. I managed to force my way through any goofiness on my part until she and I were having a very pleasant conversation. After a few moments of this Xai arrived looking very surprised to be invited. We all greeted and he sat next to Akiko.

The food that followed was wonderful and the conversation was very good. Even Daiki seemed to be genuinely happy. It became common knowledge at the table that I wanted Xai to fly me somewhere.

No sooner had it come up than Ketsumempo commented, "Oh, Xai san has been teaching me to fly. I could fly you where you wanted." She smiled.

Her mother said, "Not if he wanted to get anything accomplished."

I could feel my face starting to get warm from embarrassment. The dinner continued. Painfully at times. But I got through it. As the evening ended Xai and I said our goodbyes to everyone and departed for his home. I explained to him once we were alone what I would need.

"And why do you need me, Hiro san?"

"I do not need you. I just thought it a good chance to visit and get you away from your usual duties for a time. This is a good opportunity for you to get all of that flying out of your system."

He laughed. "I doubt that."

"How long do you think it will take us to get there?"

"I have flown there before. It will take an hour to get there and an hour to get back. So,

depending on how long it takes you to handle your duties..." I had not told him what it was. "We

should be back by morning."

"The mission is a simple one. It should not take but a half hour at the most."

I had him pack some food and water and something to read and then we walked south out of the city. Once we were well away he strapped me to him and we lifted off. He carried me across the Honshu Mountains without effort. A trip that would have taken me days on my own, if I was lucky. He continued to carry me to the outskirts of Shiro no Utsunomiya. There, we set down and I changed into my disguise.

Once I had finished I walked with him most of the way to town. The conversation was

good. I hadn't realized how much I had missed his company. We were in the same boat you see. We both had duties that we abhorred.

He hid near a stream with easy landmarks for me to find on my return and I continued on to the city wall. Once I was well out of sight from Xai, I removed the Oni Masuku and put it on. The three story wall of the city took me two hops to clear it and a light float down to the ground. Then a normal walk to the Hall of Ancestors. I went to mist just outside the doors and went above the guards' heads so as not to attract any attention. Then I simply misted to just over my target location, the foot of the burial tomb of Honshu himself.

The guards were observant but they weren't looking for a ninja. Once the guards had changed for the night I floated to the floor. The guards had never left off their duty for conversation but they did walk a steady pattern. This made it easy for me to predict the best time for the drop. I placed the manual right in the middle of the footing of the tomb and then just misted back up to the rafters and out of the building.

Once I was at the stables across the street I simply went solid and walked back to the wall. Two hops over and done and back to Xai. It didn't take long. The lights all over the castle were being lit while Xai and I were getting ready to take off.

In true Honshu form, no one ever got excited the whole night. I found out later that the next day, after the search had ended, it was decided that the three guards on duty would commit seppuku for failing in their duty. Honshu are very quick to cut themselves.

We traveled back to Shiro no Nokizaru. I was there for two weeks. I told myself that it was because I had to follow up on the Juju situation but in reality I was enjoying Ketsumempo's company, something her parents thought was hilarious. During that time Xai flew me to Juju. It was a nice little village. Hard to believe there was a raid recently. Daiki had promoted the Doshin to Yoriki and they had a good lead on where the bandits were hiding so they had gone out and ambushed them as they slept.

Five of the bandits had survived. The Yoriki had lost none, though he had a wounded Komono and one of the ronin had taken a slash to the side. Xai was able to help with that but they would need a couple of days rest. The four ronin looked much better in their new armor and seemed to enjoy being of service. They liked the town and the Yoriki seemed to be a good man to work for.

Once we had helped as much as we could we investigated the five bandits. Daiki had been insistent on getting all of the information from them. Xai set up in one of the cells and had the others out of arm's reach of us or the victim. The ronin helped me bind the man to the floor and then I asked them to leave.

Xai asked, "I do not suppose you would like to confess everything now, before we get started?"

I had seen this before. Man strung out on the floor. Three candles and a mat full of tools. Even through the 'Father's blood' haze the man managed to look defiant.

"He is a fool." Said one of the bandits.

I calmly looked to their cell where an old angry looking man stood up and approached the bars.

Xai said, "Continue, please."

"He has never seen your kind of work before. He thinks his anger will see him through it and that he will stay strong just to spite you."

"But you know better. Do you not?"

"Yes. I was once a Kyushu samurai. Before this."

"If you wish to regain your honor, telling me what my master wants is probably a good start." Xai said.

The ronin thought a moment. None of the other three did anything. They sat there and watched. They just looked frightened while he thought about it. The man on the floor finally spoke.

"Don't tell them anything, you traitor!"

Xai looked at him. "You are a brigand and know nothing of honor. Shut up while the men

talk." He looked back to the old ronin.

"In the cave where your men found us is a hide where we keep our plunder."

The man on the floor started to scream names at the old man. Xai quietly stabbed him in the thigh with a jagged knife and said, "Shhh." Then motioned for the ronin to continue.

"It is on the right side as you enter, covered by a stone that takes two men to move."

"Your wish is to commit seppuku and regain your honor?" The old man nodded. "If your

information proves true then we will assist you."

We sent the Yoriki's ronin out to check the old man's story and they did return with what had been taken from the town as well as profits from raiding three other towns across the Koga territory. With those results Xai and I escorted the old ronin out of his cell and allowed him a bath. Once he was clean, we walked with him to a shady spot of the Yoriki's courtyard and had him kneel down. Xai handed him a long knife and a clean white strip of silk. I stood to his right and drew my sword.

"I am Shotoku Hiro and it is my honor to assist you this day, Kyushu san."

He nodded and smiled. He had been called "Kyushu" one last time. He removed the weapon from its saya and wrapped the silk around the base of the blade leaving a good portion exposed. I held my katana in both hands over my head and focused on my target, his neck. The old mononofu pierced his stomach very deeply with the blade pointed to the right and then began to pull the blade toward his right side. When I heard a slight catch in his throat, I knew it was my duty to end it before he uttered a sound and dishonored himself. My blade came down and his head came off.