CHAPTER 7
Rena retrieved her katana from the guard and cautiously checked out of the corner of her eye the young girl who was exchanging last words with the woman called Churi. She had not waited as much as she had feared, but she still couldn't believe that her protégée had dared to pull such a stunt. It was a miracle she managed to keep quiet when her protégée finally opened the bedroom door and descended the stairs to join her at her table. Everyone had always praised the legendary patience of the kenjutsu instructor, but she was gradually starting to lose it in the presence of the young Watanabe sister.
"Is everything alright?" Churi addressed Jurina in a whisper, stealing a glance at the woman who was now mounting her chestnut mare.
"Yes," Jurina nodded, placing a gentle kiss on the older girl's forehead. She had picked up on the way her friend had been worriedly looking back and forth between her protector and her for a few minutes now, and she could easily imagine a pair of frustrated brown eyes boring into her back. "Don't worry about me."
"Alright," Churi smiled, her body relaxing slightly at the reassuring words. "I still can't believe you went back into the room to sleep with Annin."
Jurina arched an amused eyebrow at Churi's words, and she approached her lips to her ear."Who said I did such a thing?"
Churi looked back at her in surprise, before letting a soft chuckle escape her mouth. "You're unbelievable, Nobunaga."
Jurina smiled at her reaction and tilted briefly her head to watch her protector - noticing that she was now more than ready to leave the place - before glancing back at Churi. "I'll see you soon."
Rena's eyes wandered around the maple forest they were currently passing through, still amazed by the beauty of it. She had penetrated this vast forest surrounding the clan countless of times, but the sight still managed to catch her breath each time her eyes fell on the red leaves of the large trees.
After admiring the beautiful landscape a little while longer she cast a side glance to the girl who was riding by her side, and with whom she had not spoken once since they had left the village. The head of the clan had truly entrusted her with an impossible task, and she didn't know how she was going to manage to teach kenjutsu to a girl who was used to having it her own way. Two eyes suddenly glanced back at her and Rena didn't look away, trying to understand what could be going on behind those unreadable eyes. Why couldn't she still see what her sister had described?
The silent exchange suddenly got broken when Rena noticed a shift in the air, and she swiftly looked in front of her. Unconsciously, her fingers clutched the rein of her horse a little tighter, and she scrutinized cautiously the road, bothered by the uneasy feeling building up inside her. There was something wrong, but she was having a hard time identifying the origin of the problem.
"Wait."
Rena ordered her horse to stop immediately, and she heard Jurina's stallion whining when she thankfully obeyed to her command. Everything had suddenly fallen silent around them, and Rena could recognize these signs quite well.
"Stay here."
Rena ignored her protégée's protest and moved her horse forward, alert to every single movement around her. While her right hand lead her mount, her left one cautiously fell on the red tsuka of her katana, not liking one bit what her guts were telling her. She had been in this situation once before, and the outcome was still very much engraved in her memory. For sure, she wasn't ready to relive it.
To her left, a sound suddenly caught her attention and she drew her weapon swiftly, easily deflecting the shuriken coming her way. While she avoided another one she tried to find the person behind this sneaky attack, but her eyes failed to find him in the dense forest. Out of the corner of her eye she saw the black stallion approaching from behind, and a warning shout left her lips. "Don't come closer, Watanabe-san!"
A fourth shuriken came her way but she failed to react in time, the blade brushing her right arm as she deflected it. The attacks stopped abruptly and Rena glanced at her small cut briefly, before looking up when she heard footsteps coming from the forest. As much as she wasn't prepared for the attack, she was expecting this man to be responsible for it even less.
"You!" Rena exclaimed at the view of the samurai who was walking towards them, his hand resting on his katana at his waist. Even if most of the marks had now disappeared from his face, a few were still faintly visible on his pale skin.
"What a surprise," he said, eying first Rena who was still holding her katana, before shifting his attention to Jurina, "I didn't believe we would cross path again so soon."
While keeping an eye on the man who seemed harmless for now - considering he still had not drawn his weapon - Rena searched the forest for their other attacker. The one who was still keeping himself out of view.
"You can come out," the samurai ordered, seemingly reading into Rena's thoughts, without breaking eye contact with both women.
Rena suddenly noticed a silhouette descending a tree, and she raised her blade cautiously at the view of the shinobi approaching.
"Why did you attack us?" she asked when both their enemies were finally in sight. They had already resolved their disagreement, and a samurai would never lead such a sneaky attack on another one.
"We didn't mean to," the samurai explained. "Unfortunately, you detected our presence, and we couldn't let that happen."
Rena arched an eyebrow at his words. They didn't make any sense. Not in the slightest. Why were they trying to conceal their presence in the first place? "Which clan are you from?" This question had nagged her from their first encounter. Now, she was more than eager to solve the mystery.
"I'm sorry, but I can't answer that," the samurai shook his head softly.
Just as she was about to insist, Rena felt a sudden pain in her right arm and she glanced back at her small cut, wondering why on earth it was hurting so much. The shuriken had barely touched her. As the seconds passed by the pain kept intensifying, and her vision was becoming blurry. A gasp left her lips as she suddenly understood the reason for her symptoms. Everything was falling into place. Looking up, her startled eyes fell into the shinobi's emotionless ones. "You poisoned me."
"We didn't have a choice," the samurai replied, "we have a mission to accomplish, and we couldn't take the risk of you stopping us."
Rena heard a voice behind her and she tilted her head when she felt a hand encircling her arm. "Are you alright, Rena-san?"
The kenjutsu instructor locked eyes with her protégée, surprised slightly by the concerned look she was giving her. It was the first time the young girl had shown the remotest sign of interest in her, or in her wellbeing. "Leave, Watanabe-san."
Rena barely heard the astonished reply in return as her katana escaped her hand, and she fell from her horse. Her head hit the ground and a small cry left her lips at the harsh contact. Her body wasn't responding to her command anymore, and she could barely keep her eyes open. Two hands soon started to shake her roughly, and she knew by the sound of her protégée's voice that she had not obeyed to her command.
Just as she was about to repeat it she witnessed fingers encircling the red tsuka of her katana, and she knew immediately what the young girl had in mind. Not only she was not going to run, she was going to fight a man against who she had no chance of winning.
"Stop," Rena stuttered, gathering her last strength to catch her wrist forcibly, "you can't win."
"They are going to kill us!" Jurina hissed, trying to pull away from her grasp.
"They already killed me," Rena replied, holding tight, her voice now barely a whisper. She was well aware that she was not going to survive the deadly poison, but her protégée still had a chance to make it alive. "A samurai will never attack an unharmed enemy, so don't raise this blade."
Jurina, who was by now seething with anger, stared into her enemy's eyes, considering her options. She wasn't stupid. She knew she didn't have much chance against him, but she was refusing to give up without a fight. Her protector was laying on the ground, barely able to move, and her own fingers were itching dangerously at the idea of retribution.
"Listen to me!" Rena exclaimed in a strangled voice. By now, she could hardly distinguish anything, and she had almost no energy left, but she was going to fight her annoying stubbornness until her last breath. Of course, they didn't get along, and she didn't believe she would ever have managed to understand the girl kneeling next to her, but she certainly didn't deserve to die so stupidly. No one did.
Rena's body was shivering profusely and her teeth were chattering. Why was she so cold? Her eyes fluttered open, not believing the sight in front of her. It was snowing. She blinked a few times in confusion, trying to understand why she was surrounded by this white substance. It didn't make any sense. It never snowed in this region.
Rena tried to get up from her seated position against the tree but as soon as she stood up, her body immediately failed her and her back harshly hit the trunk again. Why was she feeling so weak? Why could see barely feel her legs? A noise suddenly caught her attention and she gazed up, noticing a silhouette approaching slowly in the deep snow. Instinctively she tried to reach for her katana, but the weapon wasn't resting at her waist as it should be. How could that be? She never left the clan without it.
Rena shifted her attention to the new presence, trying to discern it better despite her blurry vision. Her heart was now beating faster in apprehension, knowing she was completely incapable of defending herself in the case of an attack.
"Who are you?" Rena blurted out, surprised by the sound of her own voice. It was so weak, and it barely sounded like a whisper to her ears. She tried again to stand up to face her possible opponent and, luckily, her legs finally cooperated at the second tentative.
"Stop," a soft voice finally reached her, and she barely had time to notice the figure quickly approaching, before her legs gave in again. "You're too weak, Rena."
Rena let the stranger encircle her waist and guide her towards the tree, and she groaned in frustration when her body touched the snowy grass anew. Why was she so lifeless? But most of all, why was her mind completely blank? She couldn't remember what had brought her to this place. Rena finally glanced at the form kneeling in front of her, and her voice trembled at the unexpected view. "Airi?"
This was impossible. Her twenty three year old friend couldn't be standing in front of her. She was having hallucinations. A surprisingly warm palm was suddenly cupping her cheek, and Rena couldn't help but relish the pleasant contact. She had dreamed of this moment many times before, but it had never felt so real. "Is this another dream?"
"Not exactly," Airi murmured, shaking her head a bit. "You've been poisoned."
This revelation succeeded in doing the trick. Suddenly, everything that had happened to her came to the forefront of her mind. She had been attacked on her way back to the clan. And her protégée was with her. At the thought of the young Watanabe sister, Rena looked around immediately in concern. Where was she?
"She's safe," Airi reassured her as if she could read her mind, before taking her hand and catching her attention again, "but you're not."
"I'm dead?" Rena stammered, her worried eyes falling into Airi's gentle ones. Much as she feared the answer, maybe this was the explanation to this unusual weather and improbable presence in front of her.
"Not yet," Airi replied. "But you need to keep on fighting."
A relieved sigh escaped Rena's lips and she shut her eyes momentarily, letting the news sink in her brain, before gazing at her friend anew. This gentle smile and that warm touch. She had missed them so much. "What if I don't want to?"
"What are you talking about?" Airi frowned.
"I've missed you so much," Rena said, her voice almost breaking at the admission, "What if I want to stay here with you?"
"That's not possible," Airi retorted and stood up abruptly, turning her back on her. "It's too early."
"It was too early for you!" Rena shouted, her fists hitting the snow in frustration. "I should have been able to save you!"
"The past is in the past, Rena," Airi murmured as she faced her again. "I got reckless and I paid the price. You couldn't have done anything to help me."
"But even so!" Rena started, until a finger placed on her lips prevented her from continuing. Airi's faint smile finally got to her and she broke into tears, resting her head against her friend's shoulder when Airi moved forward to embrace her.
"You still have a lot of things to accomplish in this world," Airi whispered in her ear, while her hand caressed Rena's back in a soothing gesture, "and you have someone to take care of."
"Who?" Rena stuttered between her sobs, startled, before she realized who she was talking about and she shook her head in disapproval. "The young Watanabe sister? You're mistaken. She doesn't need me."
"She does," Airi affirmed, pulling away gently from the embrace and wiping her tears with her thumb, "she's just not aware of it yet."
"Airi," Rena caught her hand swiftly when the girl placed her back against the tree and took a step back. "Don't leave me again."
"I'm not going anywhere," Airi smiled, kneeling in front of Rena's weak form and placing her palm against her faster beating heart, "I'll always be here."
As Rena tried desperately to hold onto her friend's hand, suddenly she heard voices calling her name. Despite the fact she couldn't recognize who they belonged to they were getting louder and louder as the seconds passed by, and the ghost from her past was disappearing progressively in front of her.
"I love you Rena," Airi stated, and the kenjutsu instructor could now barely distinguish the words she was uttering. "I couldn't have wished for a better friend."
Rena struggled to get up on her feet, but her mind wasn't strong enough to win this battle. She barely had time to witness a last smile on her friend's lips, that the snowy scenery vanished abruptly and her eyes shut against her consent.
TO BE CONTINUED
Topic: Warriors - Chapter 29 [WMatsui] (01/07/2020) (Read 115008 times)