Himitsu (Book One of the Kakureta Hana series)

IX: Kyuu

We are in the thick of it. My whole body is caked with blood, making it difficult to breathe without smelling the sweet metallic scent of it. I try not to kill the samurai of the Neji clan without aim, choosing only to incapacitate them if possible.

Ryuu is at my back, and I'm sure that he's already ripped open a few of the wounds on his face though he would never admit it. Further beyond me, Taro is back to back with Nobuyuki, the two of them working in sync like they have trained together before.

However, something seems strange about the various groups scattered throughout the field, and between slashing at the opposing side with my katana, I search for my ally. The last I had saw of him, he had been standing atop a hillside with his bow, actually being useful for once.

"Ryuu," I call as I reach for a knife and cut through one of the men's wrists with it, "where is Shigeru? Do you see him?"

My general only grunts, and I see his own katana slash before him. "No, Jun, there's no sign of him. Do you believe the coward to have abandoned us once more?"

I growl under my breath, sweeping my leg underneath those approaching me to knock them to the ground. Threats eliminated for the moment, I scan the area again, noticing this time that our forces seem smaller than they had at the beginning.

"It's over, Junichi!" Raiden yells from amongst the chaos, though I cannot see him. "The ever-cowardly Shigeru has shown his true colors once again. You are outnumbered!"

"Lies," I whisper to Ryuu. "He waits until the battle is in full force. Never has he abandoned his allies upon the first day, and he would be a fool to leave while one of those in Shogun Fujioka's service is here."

I see a flash of sun against metal out of the corner of my eye, but my wearied body reacts too late. The samurai's face is twisted into a grimace as his katana scrapes along my side, leaving behind a line of fire to remind me of its path.

Biting back the scream of frustration that boils in my chest, I throw my knife, watching in a haze as it sinks deep into his chest. Blood gurgles out of his mouth before he pitches face-first upon the already blood-saturated dirt.

As I found prone to happen, the wound merely makes me more energized despite the fact that my mind is telling me that I should be on the ground wailing. My own blood is mingling with the blood of those I have injured and killed thus far, and I leave the security of my general behind to storm into the midst of the other fighters.

Anger boiling in my veins at the thought that the coward has left us to fight his battle for him, I slash out at anyone wearing the Neji crest that dares to cross my path. Gone is the thought that I would spare these men, that I would leave them to return to their family waiting for them. All that remains for me is a mass of pain and rage, some of which has been suppressed within my body for years.

I don't know how long it is until I find that there is no one left around me, and that those remaining have all skirted about me. My clothing is heavy with blood, and with a sigh, I fall to the ground, katana slipping from my grasp.

My side protests, but I ignore it, weariness allowing me to not care. When a shadow shades me from the sun, I reach out for my weapon, only to realize that it's Ryuu. My general silently crouches next to me, blood streaming down his face from where a cut across his forehead has reopened.

"You are bleeding," I mutter, dipping my fingers into the line of blood, my entire body numb. "Why don't you try to not cause yourself more pain? We may be in the middle of a battle, but I still need you at the best you possibly can be."

"Speak for yourself, Jun," he scolds lightly, and I remember for a moment that he likely saw that I took a wound in my side. I scramble to remember why I wouldn't want him to look at the damage, but the haze in my mind has become worse with my exhaustion. "Most would halt when their blood is leaking out of them, instead of charging headlong into the worst of the battle."