Through the Eyes of the Dragon

Chapter 23

Chapter 23 – Revelations

“... Um... if you don’t mind me asking, other than the Dragon, what of the citizens...? While I do expect there to be some who fled...”

They had been walking for a while, seeing as neither of the three had a clue where the hell they were going. A few times they tried calling out to Akifumi, of whom apparently lost interest in guarding two lovesick puppies and ditched them, but each attempt  just attracted the attention of some rather angry forest creatures. Hence, they now resorted to random wandering and chatting to pass the time.

Hanbei furrowed his brows, his gaze trailing to the ground beneath them. “It’s... implied that they were either killed or taken captive, based on the reports Kanetsugu has been giving me. He’s been doing his best to gather as much intel as possible, since he managed to sneak some of his own men into the group of guerrillas that stuck with Oda...”

“I see...” A long sigh escaped him and Daichi bowed his head in sorrow, much to his partner’s surprise.

“... You... were a part of the Aerosian army, right...?” Takatora murmured softly, lightly gripping his arm. Then, beginning to realize his true sadness, he slowly tightened his hold around him, and sighed, “... It’ll be alright. There’s no way... Oda could get away with a massacre. No man would comply... therefore... the people should be contained in Azuchi Prison... it’s the only way.”

A small smile spread across Hanbei’s face. “Indeed... It’s the largest, most high security prison in Sengoku... If you ask me, it’s the perfect place to keep a whole kingdom’s worth of citizens,” he agreed, evidently relieved by the scholar’s suggestion.

Relaxing at that, Daichi nodded his head slowly, comforted by their words. “Yes... in which case, if Date Masamune and/or his generals have been captured... to free them and their people would surely strengthen our chances against our foes...” he murmured, a slight hopeful edge to his tone.

“Yes, but if our forces are hardly strong enough to hold off a default army... what are our chances of breaking into such a complex prison system? Surely, not even four powerful minds could pull that off...” Frowning, Takatora stared at his feet, troubled by their predicament. He didn't want to seem pessimistic so suddenly, but it was a reality they had to accept.

“Apparently Rin-... err, Shun’s pirate crew managed to wrestle free some of their members a couple years back... of which they also welcomed Nobushige into their ranks... so I’d say it isn’t impossible,” Daichi pointed out, pausing to gaze down at the scholar.

As he expected, the man’s eyes shot up to meet his, wide with shock, “Sanada Yukimura with the pirates?! How absurd!”

“... Did you not see him earlier?” the mercenary sighed, reaching out a hand to brush a lock of wavy red hair away from his companion’s eye, “... In any case, he acts as a sort of... ambassador for the group. Shun trusts and relies on him often.”

Though Takatora frowned at his action, the scholar made no move to scold him for it. “Yes... well, even so, I’d expect that the security of the Prison would have doubled by now," he muttered with a slight shake of his head. He seemed bothered by something...

“... Well, actually” Hanbei yawned, suddenly stopping and turning his gaze to the cluttered sky, "There’s something I should tell you before we get into that...”

“Hmm? And that is?”  His question was almost immediate.

“... Come.” Narrowing his eyes at the branches overhead, the Ignese strategist jerked leftward, heading into a deeper, more congested part of the Herban Labyrinth. Many times did they have to pause to untangle their clothes and belongings from the gnarled branches that reached out at them, but eventually the three managed to find themselves stepping into a large clearing.