Chapter 4 - Rescue

This chapter is dedicated to ashley_collins! Happy reading!

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Izumi pov:

"What are you two brats going to do about it if I don't pay up, eh? You think you're so tough, tough enough to beat us? Little kids should go home and leave elders to their business!"

I closed my eyes with an exasperated sigh. This baldy was being really rude to me and Haruko – we had come here to collect the loan that Hanzaki san had given to him more than four months ago and was due last month itself but this baldy didn't seem to believe that 'brats' like us were members of the Crimson Rose. So he was refusing to give us the money he owed and even taunting us without knowing how much trouble he was creating for himself. I was watching him quite calmly because I was used to handling arrogant thugs like him in my field of work but Haruko wasn't doing a good job of holding in his anger.

"You listen here, you foolish old man, and you listen well! Hanzaki sama won't be happy to hear that you refused to return the money you took from us and you'll only end up paying a heavy price if you don't cooperate now. If you don't want the two of us to turn this little inn of yours upside down, I suggest you give us the money without another word." Haruko threatened.

The man only laughed with a hand on his pot belly though. "A brat and his b**** threatening me, the Great Inn-Lord! Would you all look at that!"

The three men standing on either side of him, most likely his bodyguards of sorts, laughed amused while looking at us. That only made Haruko angrier and he took a step forward ready to use his fists. I put a hand on his shoulder though and stopped him from doing anything unnecessary. Well, we could talk this out a little more and try to convince these boneheads before using the last resort.

"Haruko, why don't I handle this?" I said and stepped in front of him. "Look Mister, Haruko and I don't have time to waste on your nonsensical prattling. We're from the Crimson Rose and we have the tattoo to prove it. Besides, we have other clients to meet up with so we'd appreciate it if you'd just give us the money you owe and we'll be on our merry way."

"You have the tattoo as proof, huh?" He mused, smirking as he walked up to me. "Why can't I see it then, hmm? And you don't look like you have what it takes to be a part of such a tough organization....perhaps you're being forced? I could take the weight off your shoulders if you agree to live with me instead. I'm rich, I'm famous and I know how to treat women well."

I twitched at his words. This guy was revolting – he was well past fifty, he was fat and ugly and his outlook towards the world and women was disgusting.

"If it's the proof you want to see, here it is." I said coolly and moved my haori off my right shoulder to give him a view of the Crimson Rose tattoo there. Hanzaki san said that he would ink it in permanently but I was against it and had him use a kind of paint that stayed on a skin for a good week. When it faded off, I would just have Mira san repaint it.

"And as for your offer, I decline." I said sharply, sending him a glare that showed I was thoroughly irked by his words.

"Oh, come now." He said while reaching out to me with his stubby hand. "I'm offering you a very good deal! You're really beautiful and I'll even make you my first and most important woman! I'll buy you anything you want and give you the chance of living a life of luxury! It's much better than being that brat's b****, isn't it?"

"You b******! How dare you....?!"

Before Haruko could start a fight with the baldy, I lifted my right hand, made a powerful fist and punched him smack dab in the center of his face. I heard a satisfying crack as I broke his nose and he stumbled back and away from my while covering his nose that now had blood pouring out of it. He fell onto his rear and coughed, still covering his face with his hands.

"Boss! Boss, are you alright?!" His three buddies hollered as they ran to his side immediately.

"M-my nose! H-hurts!" Baldy almost whimpered before looking at me with a weak, watery-eyed glare. "Y-you!!! How dare you!"

"No one calls me a b****. I was generous enough to ignore your comment the first time but I'm afraid I'm not so generous that I'd let you off the hook when you do it again." I said while giving him a passive but threatening stare. "Now apologize and pay up or things are going to get messy here."

"We'll kill you before that, brats! You will regret stepping into the boss's territory!" One of his bodyguards barked and stepped up to us.

"Your boss's territory?" Haruko mused with a laugh. "Everything in the Middle Ring is under Hanzaki sama's command, you fools! I think I would know that better than anyone else, being Hanzaki sama's son!"

"Hanzaki sama's son??" Another bodyguard asked more to himself in slight surprise.

"Don't bother apologizing though, because it's too late for that!" Haruko said smirking. "Let's go, Izumi. We're going to turn this place upside down and inside out and get the money he owes whether he likes it or not. Besides, Father told me he's been hiding something off late – something that he shouldn't be doing. It's only right for us to find out about that and put a stop to it. Let's clean things up here, shall we?"

"Fine by me. It's been a while since I got some good exercise and this looks like a perfect opportunity to brush up on my skills." I smirked too and cracked my knuckles.

Haruko and I darted forward to take care of the thugs first and then ransacked the inn to find out all the illegal stuff baldy was doing. We beat up quite a few people who resisted us, most of which were baldy's subordinates, and warned the customers to never come to the inn again if they didn't want to end up answering to the Crimson Rose. We raided every room in the inn and managed to get our hands on the illegal money and assets that baldy was keeping to himself and increasing day by day by cheating people who came in as customers. We separated the money into two parts – one which equalled to the loan and interest baldy had to repay and another which Hanzaki san would give to the Blood Emperor's messenger along with a report of what baldy was doing.

It took us just a couple of hours to finish up with this job and head out to the two other errands Hanzaki san wanted us to take care of.

I've been in the Feudal Period, in the Capital City of Sei'an for close to a month now. I've settled in well, so to say, and I've been quite busy taking care of jobs and errands Hanzaki san gives me as a member of his organization Crimson Rose. It's more like just a gang name though and the members are responsible for scouting the Middle Ring and keeping a tab on those who try to work illegal businesses and send in daily and weekly reports to the Blood Emperor though his messengers who come to the dormitory every so often. I'm usually teamed up with Haruko because he requested it – he was impressed by my strength and skills from the very first day and wanted to learn the tricks of my fighting skills along with use the time to get to know me.

Haruko was actually a really nice and fun guy to be with. He was a skilled fighter too – I figured that out when we had a serious spar about a week ago – and had a very pleasant personality. He was friendly, considerate and always watched out for his comrades. He was brave too and sometimes a little prideful that ended up with him boasting about his combat skills as well as his intelligence but if he found out he was lacking in something, he didn't hesitate to accept the truth and work hard to overcome his disability. His personality was what anyone would call transparent and I came to enjoy his company quite a bit.

Everybody else in the dormitory is really nice too. They welcomed me into their 'family' with no hesitance and I was able to get along with them very easily. Mira san was especially nice and somehow reminded me of Juri san. She was almost like the caretaker of the whole dormitory and was responsible for cooking and cleaning along with a few other women close to her age. The younger ones like us were responsible for taking on jobs of the Crimson Rose, most of which were risky confrontations that almost always ended up with fights. But there were times when we were sent on less dangerous errands as well such as grocery shopping.

As Mira san mentioned on my first day in Sei'an, the Blood Emperor's rule here was absolute. Everyone followed the rules like their lives depended on it and I also happened to get the chance two weeks ago to see what happened to someone who didn't follow the rules – the man who had been caught for doing something wrong was dragged out of his homes along with all the members of his family by rather plainly dressed, half masked samurai and mercilessly slaughtered in front of the civilians gathered in one of the city courtyards. The samurai were actually the assassin samurai who were under the direct command of the Blood Emperor and had the royal emblem on the back of their masks as well as on the hilt of their katanas. They showed not even the slightest flicker of emotion when they mercilessly slashed through the man, women and two children with their weapons, blood spurting out of every wound and splattering on the pavement around them. When they were done with the gore public execution, they picked up the bodies and left without another word.

I think that was the first time I felt so mentally disturbed. Those men were so cold and ruthless and I was shocked that they had killed not just the man and women but even the innocent children of that family who were not even past ten years old like it was nothing. I could barely sleep that night and had rather disturbing dreams when I slipped in and out of unconsciousness. I felt sick to the stomach and it took three days for my appetite to return to normal. It was on that day that I clearly understood the warning that Mira san had given me on the day I moved into the dormitory.

The family that had been wiped out were actually people we saw every day. They ran a legal business on the outside – a takoyaki restaurant to be precise – and were really nice people. I had had passing conversations with the woman when I had been to the restaurant a few times but never had I imagined that their house was serving as safe house for traveling smugglers. Though secret sources and contacts Hanzaki san had as the leader of the Crimson Rose, he got to know and informed the rest of us that the smugglers were actually spies sent in from rebels who are against the Blood Emperor's rule and came into Sei'an every so often to collect information on the Blood Emperor and use it when the time is right to overthrow or even kill him.

Hanzaki san and every other person in the dormitory were amazed at how this information had been found out by the Blood Emperor's spies when no one else got even the slightest clue. I wasn't all that amazed though because I knew how it was done – I had done quite a lot of spying myself and I knew the tricks of being stealthy and inconspicuous while gathering information needed to bring hidden details and happenings to light. Nonetheless, I was mildly impressed that all this had happened without the use of modern technology and recorded proof like in any of the missions I had handled before.

No matter what I had seen that day, the anxiousness and fear I had felt towards the Blood Emperor was short lived. Sure, I could follow some rules that were set down but most of it didn't even apply to me anyway. I mean, it's not like I had plans of starting some illegal business or end up tangled in unnecessary trouble. Of course, being a member of the Crimson Rose had its own advantage and disadvantage – the organization was approved by the Blood Emperor himself but since it was a job involving fighting and shady investigation, all the members would be kept an eye on by the samurai assassins. In fact, I had spotted a spy following me a few times while I was on some errands. That didn't mean I was going to be all wishy-washy though –I was definitely not going to change who I am or how I talk or the way I get things done, especially when it comes to my comfort and sense of justice.

"Haah!! I'm starving!" Haruko complained as he walked beside me while holding the fabric above his grumbling stomach, effectively breaking me from my train of thought. "Let's go get something to eat before heading to the last place, Izumi!"

"You're hungry?? But you ate a full course meal less than two hours ago!" I said, still amazed by his humongous appetite even though I have been seeing it for the past month.

"Whatever! I'm hungry so let's go eat! I need my strength to take on idiots in the next place!" He complained with a pout.

"Alright alright, let's go." I said chuckling. "So, where do you want to go?"

"Hmmm....how about donburi?"

"Okay, whatever you want to eat. I'll just have a taste – I'm still full from lunch." I said and gave a light pat to my stomach.

We walked down the streets while having small talk, mostly about the guys we had confronted today. I also received some appreciation for some cool moves I had used while fighting and Haruko made me promise him that I would teach those to him during our free time tomorrow. I had planned to do some research on how to get home tomorrow but it looks like I would have to reschedule. I had been rescheduling it a lot lately....perhaps I was procrastinating too much too. Days were busy thanks to the jobs and errands and the inability to get some 'personal time' but finding a way home was important too. I had been slacking off for a whole month and I think it was time for me to prioritize some things and get them done.

I shook my head with a sigh before giving my body a stretch. Haruko, upon spotting his favourite restaurant, jogged ahead excited to eat. I laughed and picked a pace a bit too but came to a screeching halt at the street intersection when I heard a scream. Furrowing my brows deeply, I looked to my left from where I had heard the scream. The street was rather deserted and it seemed to me that no one besides me had heard the scream. I waited for a moment as I was but I didn't hear anything again and nothing appeared to be out of the ordinary.

"Oi Izumi! What's holding you? Hurry up!!" Haruko called out and I looked at him.

I felt oddly uneasy about the scream I had heard. I'm sure it wasn't a hallucination but I didn't hear another sound after it and no one else walking past me seemed in any way aware of anything unusual. Pushing aside the feeling halfheartedly, I took two steps forward to the restaurant Haruko had already walked into. However, I stopped again upon heard not a scream but rough shuffling, a loud thud and a strained yelp from an alley quite close by.

Yet again, I felt mildly uneasy about the noise that only I seemed to have heard. I decided to check it out so I headed into the street on my left while darting my eyes around and being alert to even the softest of sounds that reached my ears. I had barely walked two minutes before I noticed something unexpected.

"Blood?" I said in a low voice and got down on one knee to get a closer look at the dark red splotches on the sandy ground. It was definitely blood. And it was fresh.

Narrowing my eyes, I looked up. The blood was like a trail and led into a smaller alley on the side of the street. I followed the trail cautiously while glancing behind me every now and then to make sure that I wasn't being followed. When I made it into the alley, I noticed a much bigger blood splatter on the wall and ground along with smudged hand print smears of blood on the walls of the buildings on either side. The blood here was even wetter that the splotches I had followed which meant that the scream and the shuffling I had heard was from whoever had received a blood splattering injury. The person was sure to be close by but whether they were dead or alive, I couldn't be sure.

Perhaps doing this wasn't really a good idea. It was risky and I could get into a troublesome situation. But I couldn't help but be mildly curious and concerned about whoever was hurt so I pushed on while ignoring the voice in my head to ignore what didn't concern me.

"No! Get away from me! Please, spare me and let me live!" I heard a voice at the other end of the alley. It was followed by a bloodcurdling scream and heavy panting.

I sprinted to the edge of the alley and peeked out from behind the building at the scene unfolding in the middle of the street. It was a spot isolated from the rest of the city – a dead end with high plain walls around and not a single person in sight so whatever was happening here was sure to go unnoticed. There were three men dressed in dark clothes and carrying katanas surrounding what looked to be a twelve or thirteen year old boy wearing expensive silk clothing. He was sitting on his rear, his legs sprawled out in front of him and he was holding a wound on his torso that was oozing out blood. He had a large gash on his left shoulder as well that was probably the one he was given in the alley and the blood from that had stained a large portion of his sleeve. He had multiple scratches and bruises on his face and hands as well.

These guys weren't the Blood Emperor's assassins – that's for sure. They were dressed differently, in a uniform of sorts, and didn't have the royal emblem on their clothes. Instead, they had a strange tattoo on their forearm that extended up to their upper arm under the half sleeves.

"P-please, spare me! I will give you anything you desire if you let me live! I-is it money that you want? O-or a palace? O-or perhaps freedom from the rules of the Blood Emperor? What is it t-that I can give you to spare my life?!" The boy asked looking terrified and pleading. He was crying and I clenched my hands and jaw feeling both angry and sympathetic.

"You fool. We are not interested in any of that." One of them spat. "We will end the Blood Emperor's reign and that begins with getting rid of everything useful to him."

"N-no....please d-don't hurt me...."

"Hurt you?" Another mused and chuckled darkly. "You are getting hurt because you're resisting. Your bodyguards attacked first and then you tried to escape so we had no choice but to slow you down in this way. If you don't want to feel any more pain, I would suggest you stay still so we can kill you quickly and painlessly."

What was going on here? Who were those people and what's the deal with the kid? What sort of work did he do to be called 'useful' to the Blood Emperor?

"And don't worry, the Blood Emperor's spy army isn't anywhere close to here to find you. This is an easy kill."

Okay, this was really none of my business. Whatever happens to the kid isn't my problem, whether he lives or not isn't my problem. I should just pretend I didn't see anything and leave before I get caught in anything messy.

I straightened up while taking a deep breath and forcefully suppressing the intense desire to help the innocent kid bubbling in the pit of my stomach. But it wasn't easy and even as I took a step back and away from the scene unfolding in front of me, I winced and tensed rigidly when the boy barely dodged another slash sent at him by one of the men.

"Stop moving and let us kill you quickly!" The men barked angrily and every last bit of self restraint I had snapped.

"Ahh, why am I the only one who always spots these kinds of things?!" I yelled and bolted out of the alley.

Just as the boy shut his eyes and one of the men swung his katana at the boy in a finishing blow, I kicked the guy closest to me causing him to stumble and fall over the other two, effectively preventing the boy from being killed. They recovered quickly, sparing me just enough time to drag the kid a little away and temporarily out of danger.

I didn't want my face to be seen so just as I turned to face the men, I pulled off the boy's silk obi and tied it around my head and face to make sure that only my eyes were visible. I got into a powerful fighting stance and narrowed my eyes at the men who were yet to launch themselves at me and attack.

"More bodyguards, eh? But this is unexpected. I didn't think we'd be lucky to fight such a beautiful girl....nice body you have there, love." The guy in the middle said, the smile clearly heard in his voice. He looking over me from head to toe, staring longer than necessary at my chest and making me mentally gag in disgust.

"Shut your mouth." I spat making them recoil in surprise. "I can tell that this boy hasn't done anything wrong to you. Why are you attacking him?"

"Sorry love, but you are in no position to be asking us questions. It's three against one and we're armed with dangerous weapons. We need to kill that brat – that's the order we've received and there's nothing you can do about it. Fortunately, if you're good and come to us, we won't hurt you." The other two spoke making me feel even more repulsed than before.

"You don't actually think I'm going to back down, do you? I won't let you kill him." I said firmly making the three of them frown.

"Fine. We gave you a chance, wench, but you just sealed your fate! We'll just kill you and him together!"

They ran at me without holding back in the least and swung their katanas at me with the intent to kill. I was quick to draw my dagger and block most their attacks pretty easily and dodge the others. But since it was a three against one fight, all of them fighting at their best because they figured out that I wasn't an easy opponent, I ended up with several scratches on my arms, waist and legs.

I knew I couldn't drag out the fight for very long because the boy was badly injured and needed medical attention as early as possible. Using the dagger only to block their katanas and maneuvering fluidly between the men, I took them out with painful jabs to critical points of the body. I managed to give them a few scratches from my dagger but it wasn't as much as what I had received from them. When two of them were unconscious and the third in too much pain to even move, I sheathed my dagger and hurried over to the boy who was lying on his side and breathing heavily. He was sweating profusely as well.

I got on my knees next to him and put my arm under his shoulders to pull him up onto my lap and support him. I moved his hair out of his face and tapped him gently on the cheek.

"Oi! Oi kid! Are you okay? Oi, answer me!" I said and shook him gently. He coughed and gasped before opening his eyes just a bit to look at me.

"T-thank....you...." He wheezed out and I shook my head.

"You can thank me later. Now tell me who you are and where you live so I can take you back."

"O-onii sama....I s-should go...." He said and then coughed before falling unconscious.

I cursed under my breath and looked around. What should I do now? Take him back with me? That was the only thing I could do now....but I had to make sure no one found out that I had saved some random stranger from assassins. I mean, what would I say to Hanzaki san if I did get caught by him? What would he or any other person say or do to me for possibly creating a problem for Crimson Rose? What would I say to Haruko for walking off on him earlier??

I suppose this wasn't the best time to be thinking of all that though. I would manage somehow but I needed to do something about this boy's wounds before I shifted him to the dormitory.

I laid him down on the ground again and ripped off the obi tied around my head. I tore it into strips and tied three strips around his torso and two around his shoulder in hopes of it serving as a temporary brace and also to help stop him from losing too much blood. I then hauled him up onto my back, supporting him with a hold on his legs. It was close to night time and I used the darkness to my advantage, camouflaging in the shadows in the alleys as I made my way back to my room. Hanzaki san and Mira san were really nice to think of people's privacy – some of us who preferred more privacy had rooms for ourselves while others had to sleep in the big hall like a real dormitory. I was lucky to have a room, all the more because I could hide this boy and save myself the hassle of explaining things to everyone.

Once I was in my room, I laid the boy on the plain floor and hurried to get the first aid kit. I also got some water in a trough, some rags and one of Haruko's spare clothes. I shut the door and locked it before taking off the makeshift bandages I had tied, the boy's haori and inner shirt to treat his wounds. They were deep and looked painful and as I cleaned them, the boy groaned and scrunched up his face. Getting the blood off was agonizing – there was so much and it made me feel queasy. But thankfully, the blood of the wounds had clotted quickly and well so I was sure that his condition would be somewhat stable.

After cleaning the wounds, I applied an antiseptic salve and wrapped them in clean bandages. Both of his hands were scratched and I wrapped them up as well. I also treated a wound on his calf by folding up his pant. Once I was done, I laid out the futon and slowly dragged him onto it. I covered him with the blanket and took a seat a little away with a slightly tired sigh and leaned back against the wall. I looked out of the window and clicked my tongue slightly annoyed. I was planning on meeting up with Haruko once I was done treating the boy's wounds but it was quite late so there was no point in me trying to cover up. I would have to find some good reason to tell when I went out for dinner though....I suppose I could just tell I had another 'bring-justice-to-the-world' moment and I ended up coming home after that.

I lifted my arm to look at the cuts I had on them. They were stinging and looked dusty making me frown. "I should clean them, I guess..."

I got up and stretched my arms across my chest, humming out blissfully at the comforting stretch I felt in them. I changed into a different set of clothes because the ones I was wearing now was ripped in several places and covered in the boy's blood. I crumpled the soiled clothes and threw them into the cupboard deciding to take care of them later and then proceeded to scrub the floor of my room until there were no more blood stains left on them. I then picked up another pair of clean clothes along with my towel and bathing bar and headed to the bathhouse.

It had been a long day with a lot of work and fighting and I felt the need to soak in the hot water instead of just washing up. I'm sure there was still about an hour before dinner and I could take a good amount of time relaxing. Thankfully, no one was in the bathhouse to question me about anything and I stripped before diving into the water.

I waded through the water to sit down in a slightly secluded part of the bathhouse and I closed my eyes with a content sigh. The hot water was thoroughly relaxing – enough to make me feel drowsy. But I had many thoughts on my mind that made sure that I stayed awake.

I opened my eyes slowly and looked at the ceiling through the steam. Who is that boy? Why were those men after him? Why did the men say that in order to overthrow the Blood Emperor, killing this boy was necessary? Perhaps he carried something of great importance or handled important affairs in the palace. No....how could that be? He was still a child....

I let out a deep sigh and closed my eyes again. What was the point in me worrying about this anyway? I would get all the answers once the boy woke up. I had treated him well and, hopefully, in time. So when he wakes up, I would ask him why he was being attacked and where he lived so I could help him get back. Until then, it was best to take it easy.

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Isn't Izumi so cool?! She can beat anyone without a sweat and they can't do anything about it! ;) She beat the baldy and then the thugs attacking the poor defenseless kid and saved his life! She was even nice enough to take him to her temporary residence and treat his injuries.

But....who is that boy? Who were those thugs and why were they attacking him? What does he have to do with the Blood Emperor?? So many questions, huh??

Stay tuned for the answers in the next chapter of 'Through Fire and Water!' *drum roll*

XD

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