Chapter 3 - Time Slip

Izumi pov:

I woke up groaning to the bright light that fell on my face. My whole body was felt sore and under-rested and the slightly wet clothes that I was wearing didn't help in the least. My whole back had a numbing pain and I could barely move my right arm. In a nutshell, I felt like crap.

I opened my eyes slowly after a few moments, wincing at the sharp sunlight that fell on them and hurt them. I looked around me while remaining seated on the tree branch for a few moments, leaning back against the trunk and waiting for some energy to return to my limbs. I knew that if I wanted to, I could sit like this all day to rest my body but that wasn't an option at the moment. I needed to figure out where I was and get back to either my house or the PDST HQ so I could get some proper rest and medical treatment. A hot press was sure to work wonders on my aching back and I would really feel comfortable if the sticky blood was wiped off my arm and my wound was wrapped in some clean gauze.

With another sigh, groan and wince, I pushed away from the tree trunk and hunched forward with a hand on my chest. The blow on my back was painful enough to make me feel the strain through my entire torso and I was sure it was going to be difficult for me to move around like normal for a while.

Cursing under my breath once, I got down the tree slowly, wincing every now and then at the pain I felt from any sudden jerky movements. When I was on the ground, I adjusted my clothes and debated on which direction to head out in. It was too dark last night so I wasn't sure which way I had come from. I had no choice but to pick a random direction and hope to run into the city limits soon enough.

I suppose I walked for a good ten minutes before the density of the trees began to reduce. I could hear some hustle-bustle just beyond the layer of trees and bushes in front of me so I took a deep breath, put on my mask and activated my shades before parting the bushes to get a glimpse of the city beyond. But much to my surprise, I didn't see a city at all. There were no roads, no buildings, no people dressed in jeans and fashion-wear walking on the sidewalks. All I saw was a rundown village with small wooden huts with thatch roofs, people dressed in yukatas or poofy haoris and hakamas and large open crop fields in which men and women were tilling the land.

I frowned behind my mask and glassing, not sure what to make of what I was seeing here. I observed everything for a few moments silently while still being hidden behind the foliage – I watched the children playing, women and men talking or working on something and others simply walking around to pass the time.

"Is this some sort of filming sight? Everything looks so primeval...." I said more to myself. "Well, I suppose I should get a closer look and find out what's going on."

I stepped out from beyond the trees and walked towards what looked like a marketplace in the center of the settlement. I kept my head facing forward and merely darted my eyes around as I passed by people. They all looked at me like I was some alien – they watched me with frowns and even in slight fear while whispering amongst themselves. When I turned my head just a bit to look at one of the groups of people I passed by, they all flinched and stepped back with looks of pure terror etched onto their faces.

I was quite confused about what was happening here. Was this place a filming site or really a primeval village? I don't remember seeing any such village around the city I live in – in fact, there isn't anything even similar to a village for miles around the city. I was sure the cruise ship hadn't gone too far from the main city so there wasn't any way I would land up on some tiny village like this, right? What had actually happened?? Could this be something like a time slip of sorts?

Whatever the case, my first priority was to blend in with the appearance of these people. If I didn't, I was sure they would continue gawking at me like I was some headless chicken and definitely wouldn't talk to me and answer my questions. Besides, I too felt really awkward from the attention I was receiving from everyone because of the stark difference in our appearances.

When I made it to the marketplace, I stepped into the fabric shop in hopes of finding something comfortable to wear but somewhat similar to the clothes the others of this place were wearing. The minutes I stepped into the shop, all the people there hurried out of the shop leaving me alone with the shopkeeper. The shopkeeper was looking at me and noticeably trembling in fear. I let out a soft sigh, not in the mood for any chit chat so I got right down to the point.

"Ossan, how much for a simple fighting yukata?" I asked and he flinched again.

"T-t-two hundred R-ryo.....b-but you can have it f-for free! Just p-please! Spare my life! I-I have done n-nothing wrong to deserve punishment from t-the Blood Emperor!!" He wailed and got down on his knees with his forehead touching the ground in a submissive bow.

"Blood Emperor?" I asked more to myself while narrowing my eyes at the trembling figure of the man. I then scoffed and looked to the side. "I have no idea what you're talking about, Ossan, but I'll take up your offer. I'll take an outfit for free."

I picked up a dark blue haori with light blue flowery prints on it, a pair of brown slim fit pants and a matching obi to tie around my waist and hold the haori in place. I also took a hair tie and a pair of comfortable shoes before walking out of the fabric shop. I used my so called intimidating appearance to get myself a dagger that I could use for self defence in case my hypothesis of being sucked into a wormhole underwater and landing several hundred years in the past was true. I was hungry too so I picked up some food before walking out of the village and back into the forest where I had woken up.

Bracing the pain in my back and arm and carrying all the stuff that I had just taken for free, I climbed up a tree and sat on one of the higher branches out of view from any person who walked on the ground below. I first ate the rice and sushi to quell the grumbling of my stomach. I felt a little better and energized after eating but not completely comfortable because of how sweaty and sticky I was. So I decided to look for a river or stream to wash up in before getting changed.

Thankfully, I did happen to come across a clear stream just a little away from where I had sat down to eat my breakfast. Making sure that no one was around with the heat and motion sensor of my smart glasses, I took a quick bath, scrubbing the sweat and blood off my skin. I tore my maroon shirt into strips and tied a couple of them over the wound of my arm as a make-shift bandage before getting into the haori and leggings. I had picked up a small bag in the village along with the clothes and food so I stuffed my soiled clothes and accessories in it before pulling it over my right shoulder. I knew that I couldn't go back to the village from where I had taken these clothes because they would recognize me and probably start getting all dramatic again. So I walked in the direction opposite from which I had come and hoped to find another settlement soon.

I walked for almost half a day through the forest, open plains and once again through forests. It was very different from the cityscape that I was used to seeing and living in and the further I walked, the stronger I believed that I had somehow been thrown into some sort of wormhole. I pretty much confirmed my travel to the past when I spotted a group of travelers resting under the shade of a tree. They were traveling in oxen caravans and all of them were wearing dull and simple feudal era clothes.

I walked up to a group of people of the caravan who were talking amongst each other while standing a little away from the rest and they turned to look at me warily upon seeing me approach them. They eyed me uneasily, looking over my face and clothes, but weren't scared like the people of the village who had seen me in my black and maroon work attire.

"Excuse me, but can you please tell me where we are?" I asked as kindly as I could.

"We are very close to the Capital....about two day's walk away." A woman answered uncomfortably and averted her eyes from me.

I clenched my jaw, not quite liking how these people were acting. Did I still look so weird? I was wearing clothes similar to theirs – tomboy-ish but similar nonetheless – and I was talking to them nicely even though I was quite tempted to shove someone against a tree trunk with a hold on their collar and demand them to tell me what was going on here.

"The Capital?" I asked with a slight frown. "I see....by the way, I seem to have lost track of time because I've been wandering for so long, Obasan. So could you tell me the date and the year we are in?"

"It's the fourth day of the month of the leaves in the year sixteen twenty five." She responded halfheartedly.

I mentally scolded myself for not paying much attention to history lessons from my private tutor. I had no idea what this lady meant by 'month of the leaves'. But I suppose it didn't really matter because I could tell from the weather and the appearance of the vegetation around that summer was ending and autumn was setting in – knowing the seasons was more than enough for me. Besides, the name for the month did sort of hint to the onset of autumn. However, the fact that I was in the year sixteen twenty five, the Edo Period, was unexpected and rather appalling. I really had ended up in an alternate time period and I was sure it had happened when the ocean currents had pulled me under the surface when I fell overboard the cruise ship.

It took me a moment to gather my thoughts and thoroughly accept that I was now it a different realm, a completely different existence. I took a deep breath and looked back at the woman passively causing her to tense slightly.

"Are you going to the Capital?"

"Y-yes.....we all are. It is the order of the B-Blood Emperor." She stuttered and I noticed that her voice was very very weak when she mentioned the title 'Blood Emperor'.

"I see....would it be alright for me to travel with you to the Capital? I need to find a place to stay and figure out what to do....now that I'm stuck here." I said with a slight frown.

"T-that....um, I-I'm not sure if it's o-okay....I-I just..."

"What is going on here?" The woman's nervous stuttering was interrupted by a middle aged man with a moustache who spoke while walking to where we were standing. He had his arms locked behind him and he was watching me sternly.

"Elder sama....t-this girl was asking if she could travel with us till the Capital." The woman answered and shifted closer to him, seeming a little relieved to see him.

"Travel with us to the Capital? I'm afraid we're not so generous to allow a stranger to travel with us. We cannot trust anyone in these warring times and under the rule of the Blood Emperor, let alone spare food and water for an extra mouth when we ourselves have it in scarcity." He said sharply. He wasn't scared of me like the woman but he did seem cautious.

I couldn't help but chuckle in slight annoyance while looking to the side. "Wow, flat out rejected, huh? That's harsh."

"It may seem harsh to you but we have had our share of troubles by trusting strangers like you." The Elder commented, his frown deepening. "I do not wish to risk the lives of my people just to help someone out of sheer humanity."

I wanted to smart talk back at him but a voice in the back of my mind prevented me from doing so. If I really was in the Edo Period, a time of war and bloodshed and every person living in fear, the way this man was thinking wasn't wrong. He was responsible for protecting his caravan, after all, and since he had mentioned that he and his people had been through some unpleasant situations because of trusting a stranger, I could be considerate.

I sighed deeply and ruffled my hair with one hand. "Look Ossan, I know you're worried about me being some shady person but I'm not. I'm just lost and I'm looking for a place to stay. I don't know how to get to the Capital and I'd be happy if you could accommodate me for just two days and then I won't bother you. I have some decent fighting skills so I'll serve as a temporary bodyguard for your caravan and as for food, I'll scavenge for fruits or anything edible around us. I won't hurt any of you so let me just tag along, hmm?"

The Elder was silent for a few moments. He stared me in the eye contemplating on whether to believe me or not and let me travel with them. He agreed halfheartedly, much against the wishes of his caravan, and after another few minutes of resting, we began our journey to the Capital together. Unlike the others who sat in the carts to travel, I walked. I maintained about ten feet distance from the rest so they wouldn't feel uneasy with my proximity. I noticed that they eyed me uneasily every now and then from inside the carts they rode on but didn't bother telling me to go away.

The two days of traveling to the Capital passed by almost uneventfully. I spoke to no one in the caravan and scavenged for my own food and water during the meal breaks we took. I did end up fighting off a group of bandits that gained me some brownie points from the caravan – they came to trust me a little and for the remaining few hours that we traveled, they shared some snacks with me and let me ride with them in their cart.

I came to terms with the fact that I was in the Edo Period and I began to think about how it had happened and what I could do to get back home. All my questions met dead ends though and I gave up on thinking about it too much and instead focused on thinking about what I should do to survive in this world now. After getting to the Capital, I would have to find a place to stay, get a job so I could earn money for food and other basic necessities and then I would try to experiment ways to get back to the modern world.

When we got to the Capital, I thanked the Elder of the caravan and the caravan thanked me in return before we parted ways. The Capital was a lot like the pictures I had seen in my History books and in movies set in the Edo Period. This place was bustling with people, all dressed in better clothes than that of the village I had first seen and that of the caravan, and it was divided into residential, commercial and social gathering areas. At a sub level, the residential and commercial areas were divided into poor, middle class and rich levels. At the very center of the Capital was the Royal Palace – a huge wooden building that radiated off an eerie powerful and rather dark aura. The golden dragon crest symbol that adorned the walls and pillars of the palace that was big enough to be clearly visible even from this distance could be found in the whole capital on pillars and doors and even on the pavements in social gathering courtyards.

After some sightseeing, I headed to the middle class residential area in hopes of finding some place to crash. I was tired from everything that had happened till now, especially the two days travel on foot and under the hot sun while bearing the tiring pain from the bruise on my back and the cut on my arm. I was also hungry but I couldn't buy anything because I had no Edo Period money – all I could do was stare at the foods on display and swallow thickly to make sure I didn't drool and embarrass myself.

"Excuse me, could you tell me where I can find a place to stay? I just moved into the Capital." I asked one of the people I was passing by.

"Um, you should ask Hanzaki sama about it. He's like the leader of this area and no one is allowed to live here without his permission." He said with a hint of fear for this Hanzaki person.

"Okay....so where do I find him?" I pressed.

"Down that street. It the fourth building on the left." He said while pointing to the side.

I thanked him and headed to the big building where I could find this Hanzaki person. There was a lot of noise coming from inside the building, mostly cheering, and I expected that there were a bunch of people drinking sake and enjoying their evening. I sighed deeply expecting some trouble but pushed open the sliding door and stepped in confidently.

As expected, there were quite a few people there drinking sake but there were also several women and children – it was like a big family gathering. The minute I stepped in, the hall fell silent and everyone's eyes were on me. I felt a little uncomfortable under the attention because I wasn't used to receiving so much but I stepped forward while slamming the door shut.

"I'm looking for someone named Hanzaki." I announced loud enough for all of them to hear. "I just moved into the Capital and someone told me I should ask Hanzaki for my accommodation."

"Ho? You think you're good enough to live in Hanzaki sama's territory, huh?" One of the men drinking asked with an amused smirk.

"Good enough?" I asked raising a brow. "And what do you mean by that?"

"Only those who are either looking for Hanzaki sama's protection or who are tough enough to serve as his faithful followers comes here. You look like neither....you're just a pompous little brat who thinks she can get a place to stay by acting cool, right?" Another guy spoke. He looked to be my age but he could be older considering his tall and slightly buff build.

"Cut her some slack, son." Another man spoke – he was tall, broad and muscular and looked a little intimidating, even to me.

"C'mon Father! It's the rule! You said so yourself!" The guy responded and stood up. He beckoned to two other brawny men sitting near him and they stepped up to me while cracking their knuckles.

"Let's see if you'll whimper and beg for Hanzaki sama's protection or if you'll run away with your tail between your legs!"

They didn't hesitate to throw a punch and two kicks at me all at the same time. I closed my eyes and smiled knowing quite well from their stances and their speed that they were going to stop just before they actually hit me. They did and I opened my eyes grinning wider when I saw a fist a mere inch away from my face.

"Not bad! Not bad at all, girl! You show no fear but can you really take a punch?" The guy asked and pulled his hand back.

This time, when he threw the punch, I knew that he was going to make contact. Instead of blocking like how I would have done in any other situation, I merely tilted my head and dodged. I felt the strain in my back and I merely clenched my jaw to ignore it. I gave the guy in front of me an amused smile that irked him and he cursed under his breath – mostly to himself because he felt a little embarrassed to have missed when so many people were watching – and he tried to hit me again. I dodged several times before smiling wider when he paused.

"Now it's my turn." I said cheekily and took all three of them out in less than five minutes with jabs in sensitive parts of the body without straining myself too much.

When they were groaning in pain and could no longer get up from the ground, I relaxed my stance and looked at the man who had been referred to as 'Father' by the guy who challenged me. "So, can I meet Hanzaki san and get my accommodation now?"

"You actually beat up Hanzaki sama's son! How dare you, you wench!! I'll...!!" This time a woman got up and stomped up to me looking ready to fight. I got ready to retaliate but we were stopped by a voice that reached us from across the hall.

"There you all go again with your rules! I leave for five minutes and there's already a fight breaking out here! Honestly, I feel like I'm taking care of babies here instead of grown men and women! Stop your fighting and just give that child one of the rooms in our dormitory!"

The person who had spoken was a beautiful middle aged woman dressed in a very elegant yukata. Her hair was tied up and adorned with a glittery stoned hair ornament. The minute she scolded everyone in the hall, the tall muscular man broke out into a hearty laugh. He walked up to the woman and put his arm around her shoulders to hold her to his side. The woman looked away with an angry pout – which I have to say looked kind of adorable – but also blushed shyly.

"Maa maa! The boys were just having some fun, dear. And this kid seems to be quite a tough one! She'll do just fine living in our dormitory." He said and looked at me still smiling. "Welcome to the family, Kid. I'm Hanzaki and this is my wife Mira. The brat you just beat is my son Haruko. You can use the free room over there – breakfast, lunch and dinner is on the house but you have to work to earn you food, got it?"

"I guess?" I said now quite confused about what had just happened.

"Good good! I like smart kids like you! So what's your name?"

"Izumi." I answered flatly.

"Well Izumi, welcome to the Blood Emperor's Capital; welcome to Sei'an." Hanzaki san said.

"Oi Father!! You're son just got beat up! How can you let this girl off after she did that?!" Haruko hollered. He had recovered a bit and was standing while holding up a clenched fist. I had kicked him across the face and he had a think trickle of blood from the corner of his lips down his chin.

"You got beat up because you were either overconfident or clumsy. No....I think you were both." Hanzaki san said causing Haruko to suck in a sharp breath and blush darkly. "Izumi's form and movements were fluid and with no chance of failure. You still have a long way to go, Son – you need to train more."

"T-that's not....!" Haruko stuttered before looking away with a scowl, his blush still in place. Hanzaki san gave another hearty laugh at that.

"Um, I'm not entirely sure if I understand what's happening here." I said, looking at Hanzaki san with narrow eyes. "Who exactly are you? Why do I need your permission to live anywhere in this area, let alone this 'dormitory' that you run? They guy who told me about this place wasn't exactly happy talking about you."

"It's expected that an ignorant fool not living in the Capital to be unaware of my father." Haruko answered from beside me. He had his arms crossed over his chest and he looked very proud of his father.

"Thank you for noticing that I am unaware. Would you be kind enough to enlighten me?" I asked with a sweet smile, heavy sarcasm dripping off my words that most people over here didn't quite catch.

"Hanzaki sama is a strong ally of the Blood Emperor!" Another man spoke this time. "Hnazaki sama has taken the place of the administrator of the Middle Ring of the Capital to help with governing the people alongside the Blood Emperor. He ensures that everything and everyone is under control at all times and trouble doesn't stir unnecessarily. He started it on his own but he has earned the Blood Emperor's gratitude! A personal messenger was sent in to thank Hanzaki sama for his hard work!"

I somehow felt that Hanzaki san was more like a gang leader or a thug who had a bunch of followers and controlled the Middle Ring together by instilling fear and awe in the residents. But they said that the Blood Emperor was thankful to Hanzaki san for bringing out peace and order here. Whatever the case, I guess it didn't matter much to me – I was given permission to live here and that was more than enough at the moment. I wasn't going to be submissive in any way even if I was around these thugs and I'm sure they would find that out soon enough.

"That's right!" Haruko said from beside me. "Father is really awesome! You'll see soon enough. And I'm going to get you back for embarrassing me! Let's have another fight!"

"That's enough, Haruko. You know quite well that you're no match for her." Hanzaki san said with another laugh making Haruko holler in frustration and fluster.

"That's enough of both of you. Give the child a break, will you?" Mira san scolded and walked up to me with a kind smile. "Have you had dinner yet, dear? You must be hungry and tired after the journey to here. Come, let's get you some food."

I couldn't find words to say refuse food so I followed her into what looked like a huge dining hall with an open kitchen. The aroma of food hung in the air and I swallowed thickly at how tempting it was. I took a seat on a floor pillow on Mira san's instruction and I was served a variety of food on a traditional low height meal table. I dug in with no hesitance – the food was delicious and satisfied my hunger thoroughly. When I was done, I fell to my side and onto my back with a satisfied sigh and a hand on my tummy.

"That was good!"

"I'm glad you liked my cooking, dear. Would you like to wash up before I show you to your room?" Mira san asked kindly.

"Yes, please." I answered and sat up with a wince.

"Are you alright? Are you hurt anywhere?" She asked worried upon hearing my wince.

"It's nothing serious, Mira san." I said, not really interested in explaining my injuries to her.

She, however, didn't let me off with what I said. When she had led me to the bathhouse – it was actually a hot spring with the men and women bath areas separated by a high wooden wall – she let me soak and bathe for a good fifteen minutes before offering to treat my wounds. I kindly refused but she didn't back down. She ended up making me comply by subduing my struggling with her physical strength – despite her delicate appearance, her strength was appreciable but not enough to quell my struggling if I was serious about it. She applied a soothing balm on the bruise on my back and an antiseptic on the cut on my arm before wrapping it up in clean bandages.

Having finished with a meal, a bath and treatment of my wounds, I followed her back to the main hall and then to the corridor on either side of which were rooms to accommodate people. Just as she stopped in front of one of the doors that I assumed to be the room I could use while I was here, I broke the comfortable silence between us.

"Mira san, I'm curious about something. I've always been a wanderer so I don't have much knowledge or news on what's going on around in the empire, especially in that of the Capital. What exactly is the deal with the Blood Emperor? The caravan I traveled with seemed quite afraid of even talking about him but the people in the Capital seem fine." I said carefully.

Mira san turned to face me and stood silently for a few moments before meeting my curious gaze. The expression on her face was bleak and I had a feeling that I had asked a forbidden question. But she sighed and looked to the side before answering my question.

"The Blood Emperor is a dictator. He's the most ruthless, merciless and powerful emperor Nihon has seen in the past five centuries. His words are absolute and those who even attempt to refuse them are brutally slaughtered. He keeps a record of every person and every activity of any person, clan or organization that functions in his empire and takes necessary action on matters in less than a day after the information is collected. The caravan you traveled with was probably part of a small business organization that was stripped of its rights and forced to live here in Sei'an and serve as common pheasants – possibly because they didn't follow through the rules thoroughly. All of us are terrified of the Blood Emperor and we dare not cross the boundaries he has set....but life is pleasant. We know our restrictions and we stick to them – as long as we do so, we will stay safe from the Blood Emperor's wrath." She said smiling slightly at the end.

"He sure sounds like a pretty rough guy....but how does he keep track of everything happening in his empire?"

This place obviously didn't have surveillance cameras or modern technology that could be used to keep a tab on people so how could one guy keep track of so many things so well that he could order for something to be taken care of in less than a day??

"Through his elite army. They are assassin samurai trained to the highest level and they are scattered through the different villages to keep an eye on the governance. They report directly to the Blood Emperor – or so the rumors go. No one has ever seen a member of his elite army and we are all better off not ever seeing them. Izumi, if this really is your first time staying in Sei'an or any village for that matter, please, work your hardest to not break any rules. Everything and every person is being watched and even the slightest step out of line will not be looked past. It's highly possible that we are being watched right now too." Mira san said seriously.

I gave a slow nod because I was unsure of what to say. Sure, Mira san was warning me and giving me a heads up of important things I needed to know for my survival here but the fact that we could be being watched right now was unsettling. I glanced out of the window at the end of the wall with narrow eyes for a moment because that was the only possible place from where we could be spied on at the moment but I didn't see anyone there – I wasn't close enough to see a possible shadow of a spy either.

"Izumi? What are you thinking about?" Mira san asked making me look back at her.

I just smiled and shifted my weight from one foot to the other. "I was just thinking of how I'm going to fit in here. I've always been a wanderer so settling down is going to be a different experience."

"You'll be fine, Izumi. I can tell that you're a strong girl both in body and heart so you'll have no trouble getting used to life in Sei'an. You should rest up for now. I'll tell you more tomorrow." She said and gave my shoulder a gentle squeeze.

I thanked her for the food and the room and walked into it before sliding the door shut behind me. The room was simple – almost empty but with a mattress rolled up on one side, a small cupboard for storage and a small low height table in front of a circular window with intricate designs carved on the frame and mullions. There were a few sheets on the table along with an ink dispenser and brush and the sheets fluttered in the gentle breeze that came in through the window. They didn't fly off the table though thanks to the weights placed on them.

I let my bag fall to the floor against the wall before walking to the mattress to lay it out in the center of the room. I threw the pillow onto one side of the mattress before falling face first onto it. I closed my eyes with a deep sigh and then groaned at the numbing pain I felt throughout my body. After a few moments, I turned and settled in a slightly more comfortable position to sleep and rest.

In less than five minutes, I was out like a light.

~~~~~~~~~~

Well, looks like Izumi got the chance to meet some rather strange people in the Feudal Era - Hanzaki san, Mira san and their son Haruko. They're what you would call leaders of the Middle Ring of Sei'an but seem to be nice people in their own way. Let's hope that Izumi can fit in with them, hmm?

As you can all guess, the guy in the picture is Haruko :) He looks like a really energetic guy, doesn't he?

Well well! Isn't Izumi quite a courageous girl? She's taking the whole travel-through-time so easily! She's not worried but merely planning things step by step! That means she will be able to pull through living in the Feudal Era with almost no trouble, right?

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