Chapter 41: Chapter 40
Chapter 40
Utakata jumped from one building to another as he tried to shake his pursuers away. It didn't help that Utakata had a woman in his arms, and the shinobi chasing him were already fast. Utakata didn't even think of returning to the residence he was staying, as it would put everyone in danger of Daimyo's retaliation. But there was another way he could escape.
Utakata didn't think he would use the same smuggler hideout's pathway to escape the city as he did so many years ago. He thought he had left that life behind. But he needed to somehow get out of his pursuers' notice. Hidan was the most dangerous of them; the other three shinobi were significantly weaker. They were slower, and their chakra source was lower than Hidan's, too.
"Who are you?" the woman in Utakata's arms asked softly as if her words were hurting her. "What about the others?"
"Be silent," Utakata didn't want to be harsh, but he couldn't let his concentration break now. "If you have strength left, wrap your arms around my neck. I need usage of at least one of my hands."
"Where do you think you are going?" Hidan yelled out, throwing his scythe at Utakata.
Utakata quickly turned around as he jumped onto a building, and kicked the scythe away. He made sure he wasn't cut before turning back and returning to running away. Utakata knew very well how nasty Hidan's secret jutsu was. And if he got Utakata's blood, it would be over for him. He already had his hands full in protecting the woman; he had little time to think of how to fight Hidan and the other pursuers.
Once the woman got a good grip on Utakata's neck, he put his pipe into his mouth and blew bubbles into the air. They quickly scattered around, blocking the path of his pursuers. Utakata knew how harmless the bubbles looked for others, and he didn't doubt that they would dismiss them before they realized that they fucked up by doing so.
Utakata didn't need to look back as he heard small explosions behind him. He sensed that his pursuers stopped for a moment before running around the bubbles, which gave Utakata enough time to reach his destination. Quickly making a mist to surround the place, Utakata entered the smugglers' hideout and found the underground tunnel.
It hadn't been used for a long time, and the tunnel had caved in. Utakata didn't remember if they destroyed it when they left the city years ago or not, but it didn't matter. Using bubbles, Utakata supported the top of the tunnel before creating a water wave to break the rubble and rocks of his path. With how destructive the wave was, the tunnel wouldn't last long, so Utakata ran through the cleared path as fast as he could.
After getting out of the tunnel to the woods outside the city, Utakata relaxed. He didn't sense anyone following him, but to just make sure, he still distanced himself further. The woman in his arms seemed to be becoming weaker, so Utakata looked for a place to hide. The woman probably had a lot of questions for Utakata, too. And if the woman's identity were what Utakata suspected, he probably wouldn't be able to answer her questions.
…
Before the night fell, Utakata managed to find a nice cavern half a day away from the city. Since Utakata couldn't sense anyone, he felt quite secure in this place. Still, he deployed bubbles around the area just in case anyone stumbles into them. Burning fire, Utakata quickly warmed himself up and even made some herbal tea before the woman woke up.
"Where are we?" The woman looked suspiciously at Utakata. Her eyes were tired and hollow. "Why did you save me? Who are you?"
"Let's just say that I owe you, your father, and this country a debt, Princess Koyuki Kazahana," Utakata replied, looking down in shame. "I saw the scar on your neck. How did you survive the injury?"
"Did you know my father? You look too young to have known him," She said, still looking at Utakata with suspicion before answering his question. "My father always had a medical-nin with him. When my father was assassinated, I stumbled upon the assassins. They tried to kill me. But didn't stay long enough to check on my condition. The medical-nin that worked for my father managed to save me. Now answer me."
"People call me Uta," Utakata replied, not daring to look at her eyes. "I am wandering medical-nin. I came to this country to, no, it doesn't matter. What matters is that you are alive, Princess Koyuki. You are the rightful heir of the Land of Frost."
"They are all dead," Koyuki started crying quietly and restrained, but she couldn't stop the tears from falling. "That wasn't our plan. We were supposed to perform multiple times and be invited to the palace. But Sandayu saw that I couldn't contain myself when I saw that monster. So, he made his move. And now all of them are dead."
"He made the right choice," Utakata said, not knowing how to deal with this situation. "You might have been recognized in the palace. And even if you haven't, there was little chance you could have defeated the shinobi at Daimyo's side. What is important is that you are alive."
Utakata couldn't believe that she was alive. The person that haunted his dreams. Utakata had to help her. To pay for all he has done. He didn't think he would receive such a chance, but now that it was before him, he couldn't let it go. He still remembered that night when he cut her neck with his kunai. Even if she won't ever forgive him, he still wants to help her.
"I have been in hiding for so long," Koyuki came closer to the fire to warm her hands up. "They sacrificed their normal lives for me. And in return, they were brutally killed. We should have never come back. We never had a chance to succeed. It was all my fault."
"You must have seen the other towns. How people are living," Utakata put more wood into the fire. "They have given up all hope. All they now wish is that once the Daimyo dies, someone better will take his place, and their children will have a better life. And who can blame them? They don't know what they can do. They don't have anyone to believe in."
"Why do you care?" Koyuki asked, and he could tell she wanted to say more, buts he couldn't as her throat started to hurt.
Utakata didn't reply. What could he say? That all of this was his fault? That it was because he killed the previous Daimyo and tried to kill her? He couldn't tell her the truth. Not now. First, he had to help her to retake what was rightfully hers, and then he would give up his life to her. It was the right thing to do. If anyone should kill him, it should be her.
"Rest up," Utakata gave her some herbal tea that would help her relax. "You are tired. After all that happened today to you, it must be hard. I won't pretend to understand how you feel. But I will be here, waiting until you are better."
Even if she didn't trust Utakata, she was too tired and too defeated to care. Utakata could see in her eyes that she had given up. It takes one to understand another. But Utakata couldn't have it. He would make her retake her rightful place and save this country because he knew it was the right thing to do. And he was desperate to do at least one good thing in this life.
…
It was easy to break things. Human lives were simple to take. Countries were fast to fall. And even if you try to fix them, there will always be cracks left in them that won't disappear for their lifetime. Koyuki survived that night, but she was left scarred for life. No matter how hard Utakata tried to heal that scar, it could not be done.
He knew that even if he put Koyuki on the throne and made her the new Daimyo, this country would still be scarred no matter what she did. Neither would his soul be healed for doing something like this. But humans were fools, and he was no different. He had to cling to a glimmer of hope, or he would start drowning in his despair.
"Eat something," Utakata said as Koyuki rose from her bedding. "You must be starving."
She was silent. She had probably talked too much yesterday, and now her throat was hurting. From the way she rubbed her neck, Utakata could tell she wasn't comfortable. The damaged vocal cords couldn't be healed anymore. She would never be able to raise her voice. Utakata was very cautious of how Koyuki spoke, as he knew it was his fault.
It was funny. Utakata came here to put his nightmares to rest, but now, when he is confronted with it, he only feels more guilty and depressed. After all, the nightmares weren't as bad as the reality he was confronting now. He always could wake up from his nightmares, but he could never escape the reality of his actions.
"Are you strong?" Koyuki asked, breaking Utakata of his thoughts.
"No, I am pathetically weak," Utakata replied as he looked at the brightening sky. "But I am very powerful. Not many people are as powerful as I am. Definitely none in this country."
"You said you are repaying your debt; I won't ask what it is. But how big is that dept?"
"No matter what I did, I could never be able to repay it."
"My uncle, Doto Kazahana, the current Daimyo, must die. Can you kill him?"
"I'd rather not," Utakata felt conflicted, but if she asked him to do it, he didn't have a right to refuse it. "But I can defeat his mercenaries and his soldiers."
Koyuki looked down on the embers that were left by the campfire. She looked conflicted. Sorrow and hatred danced in her eyes. Utakata couldn't have it. She had to be firm if she wanted to save this country. Utakata knew he was selfish and was trying to use her to alleviate his guilt. If not for him, she wouldn't even have been put in this position.
"What difference would it make in the end?" Koyuki asked, raising her head to look at Utakata. "Even if enacted, and I took back what Doto took from me. What then? I have no friends in this country. I have left it in fear for my life. I have abandoned these people that should have relied on me. I don't deserve to be a Daimyo."
"I visited your father's grave," Utakata said, surprising Koyuki. "It was abandoned, and the gravestone was breaking apart. There were no flowers on his grave, and it was overgrown with weeds. The same fate will await the citizens of this country, too. That is if nothing is done before that."
"We are going then," Koyuki's eyes told Utakata more than her words could ever convey. "Before Doto harms more innocent people, I will stop him. That is why I have come back. That is why my friends have died. I will not disgrace neither their nor my father's will. Will you help me, Master Uta?"
Utakata smiled at the Princess and followed behind her. He could tell that she was struggling to make her mind up, but he wasn't bothered by it. He was here to support her, and if she hesitated, he would be here for her to push her back on the track. Utakata hoped that her father was looking out for them and would forgive him for what he had done after all of it was over.
A.N. As always, If you want more, up to seven advanced chapters, you can support me on pa treon. com \ ironwolf852. And if you have any requests for stories, I will only take them on my pa treon.
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