Saying Farewell

This story, Saying Farewell, marks the split between Part I and Part II of the Dragonforce arc.

Kain had been as good as his word. There wasn’t even as much as a whisper about a skirmish taking place in the Leaping Lion. When it came to breaking the law, Kain had said, he was the best. He couldn’t just be the best gunman in the city, but now he was the best at breaking the law too? Was he big-headed much? Not that Itazura really cared. He actually liked Kain and if their battle the other day was anything to go on, then he was beginning to trust him too. Strange that.

‘I’ll be fine.’ Mariko said for the up-tenth time. ‘It’s you I’m worried about, going off alone with Hiei and Shiro.’

Serena and Kain where coming too. ‘I’ve got more back-up than I could ask for.’ He said instead. ‘Regardless though, you keep yourself safe. Fujimoto,’ he accompanied the name with a pleading glance.

‘I’ll keep her safe, Zura. No worries.’ And he turned towards Hiei and Shiro, who each stood with their hand on one of Itazura’s shoulders. ‘Keep your wits about you. Fortune Island isn’t like it used to be.’ This was the very reason why Itazura was going with them and not with Fujimoto. Fortune Island was a gambling den with much laxer laws because of its situation – it was much farther away from the palace than any of the other main islands. And he was a gambler at heart. ‘That goes doubly for you, Zura. The Shinsōzoku you may be… but that title won’t mean much there.’

He hugged Mariko before she left and smiled at her departing figure, struggling not to cry. She was off to Boon Island with Fujimoto, Shiori and Erina, which was the main headquarters of the second division of the Shuuten. In the two days since his battle in the Leaping Lion the Shuuten had met and decided it was time to root out the rebels once and for all. But for that to be possible then Shuhen and his co-conspirators needed to be found and dealt with. Whether that came in the form of capture or murder was entirely up to them.

‘Are you alright?’ Serena asked. ‘Aww, are you crying?’

He turned away and rubbed his eyes with his sleeve. ‘Hell no,’ he was but that couldn’t be helped. Try as he might. She was his sister for Pete’s sake! It was like watching his other half walk away. ‘The sooner we leave the sooner we get back, right?’

Hiei and Shiro shared a hesitant glance before following. They couldn’t help but feel a little sorry for the kid who was now their student.

‘I’ve never been to Fortune Island,’ said Serena. She was as giddy as a school-girl. He had made one request after being told that Mariko wouldn’t be joining him, and that was the addition of Serena to the party. She’d jumped at the chance and nearly choked the life from him when she hugged him. When he told Kain he’d be in Fortune Island the information broker added himself to the party as well, and would apparently meet him at the docks before they left. It was amazing how quick you found yourself with allies. What made it even more amazing was the fact he’d took Serena because his hormones where doing somersaults and Kain had the know-how to get the information they needed quicker. What scared him was that he knew little about either of them.

‘Now that I mention it… I’ve never even been on a boat.’ She said.

That stopped him in his tracks. ‘Wait a minute! You’ve never been on a boat?’ She went red with embarrassment. ‘Neither have I.’ Then she hit him on the arm. ‘You walked into it.’

Their boat was a big cumbersome thing that was way too rich and ornate for Itazura’s liking. Here he thought he’d be free of gilded cages, but it seemed he was destined to be trapped by splendour. It had four masts and each had a large sail to catch the wind. Oars stuck out the bottom to stroke the water and well-dressed sailors walked around on-deck with boxes and crates. It was then that he saw Kain.

‘I wonder why they bother,’ he said with an audible sigh. ‘If that thing gets attacked at sea it’ll become nothing more than a gigantic coffin. I knew I should’ve gone on the Serenity, but no! That’d be too easy. At least she’s fast.’

Itazura greeted him with a firm handshake and a clap on the shoulder. ‘We could row the dingy.’ He joked.

‘Oh no,’ he exclaimed, ‘me and physical labour broke up many, many years ago.’ He then looked to the deck and saw the well-dressed sailors. ‘Yup, definitely should have come on the Serenity…’

Hiei and Shiro watched him suspiciously before turning to Itazura. ‘What is he doing here?’

‘Offering his services,’ Itazura said with a fool grin. ‘If you need information dug up, who better to turn to than an information broker? And no, I didn’t tell him about this jaunt. When I asked him how he knew he told me it was his job to know.’

‘He’s a dangerous man,’ Serena whispered.

‘And you’re a dangerous woman.’ Itazura barked. ‘I don’t know what you did to my back last night but I’ve hardly been fit to stand straight since.’ Then she put her hands on his shoulders, smiled evilly, and drove her knee into the small of his back! He barrelled over whimpering, and immediately wished he’d kept his mouth shut. ‘… Guys, any chance of a little help here?’ He said into the floor that tasted strangely of vomit. He sighed again.

Shiro hauled him to his feet laughing all the while. ‘Never piss off a Natsume female, Zura. It hurts like hell. But seriously, be careful around Kain. He might fool most of the Shuuten, but I know what he’s like.’ Hiei nodded his agreement. ‘Remember that.’ And Shiro, now sporting a head of dyed black hair, hauled him onto the ship.

Mariko watched Knot Island shrink on the horizon and the wave’s part as the ship moved through the waters. This boat wasn’t as fast as the one she’d been on before so it wasn’t half as enjoyable, but the wind was refreshing and the sun was shining. So it wasn’t all bad.

‘… Here,’ Fujimoto approached so quietly she didn’t even hear him coming. In his hand was a handkerchief.

‘Thanks,’ she dabbed at her eyes.

‘You know, I’ve got a brother, too. Akira.’ Mariko turned to look at him curiously. ‘He’s the youngest in the family, and he always wanted to be just like me.’ She laughed at that. ‘Mariko! I’m hurt.’ But he laughed it off and picked right up where he’d left. ‘I haven’t seen him in nearly a century. But we still write to each other, letting each other know what we’re up to, how we’re doing, and if we’ve found someone special. So I can sympathize with your reservations, Mariko. But believe me when I say he’ll be fine. He’s with Hiei and Shiro, and last I heard, Kain Akai is going too.’

‘… You know we’ve been talking to him?’ How was this going to go?

‘I know a great many things,’ he replied. ‘Some are of value and others aren’t. You and Itazura talking to Kain, and Zura and him getting into a gunfight in the Leaping Lion, are just some of the things I do know about.’ He grinned then. ‘Kain thinks his contact in the Jōren is secure, but why do you think he’s kept his job so long?’

Suddenly Mariko saw Fujimoto in a whole new light. He had a lazy posture that demanded respect, and sharp eyes that spoke of knowledge -- before she had just seen in him a sharp wit and a lax behaviour regarding authority. And that was a dangerous combination. ‘… Fujimoto… I think I’ve underestimated you.’

‘It’s the hair,’ he joked. ‘But seriously, don’t worry about Zura. He’s more resourceful than you think. We were holding back, but we left ourselves a little stronger than he was, yet he still held his own against us. And he isn’t stupid… and for whatever reason I can’t fathom he works well with that Kain character.’

‘That’s what has me worried. Can we trust Kain?’

‘I bet you’re thinking “can anyone trust a killer”, right? Well, I’m a killer, and I hope you trust me.’

Itazura stood with his mouth wide open and his eyes like saucers. This wasn’t fair. Sprawled out at his length on the boat deck drunk on what could only be whiskey was Toshie! Empty bottles ringed him and he smelled like a brewery. The man’s long hair was missing a few strands since Itazura last saw him, and when he seen it he immediately beamed as he tapped his zanpakutō as though to say “you done a good job”. His kimono was stained and drool hung from his open mouth.

‘Would anyone be offended if I threw him overboard?’ Apparently no one cared if he did or not so he went to make good on his threat. Shiro even made shape to help him. Then Toshie woke up.

‘What’cha tryin’ to do to me!?’ He screamed louder than usual. ‘I am not drunk!’

‘My god, he stinks!’ Serena was holding her nose.

Toshie’s eyes narrowed on her subtle curves, and he moved in the blink of an eye, hoisted up her skirt with one hand, gave a squeeze at her chest with the other, and got an eyeful of pink pokka dots for by! She screamed, slapped him hard, and ducked behind Itazura who closed his fist and buried him amongst the empty bottles of booze. Shiro followed suit with an unrestrained punch that knocked his old teacher unconscious.

‘Perverted old bastard,’ he swore.

But Kain took the biscuit. As Toshie laid KO’d on the decking he raided his pockets and pocketed whatever coin he had. ‘What? He’d only waste it on bad drink.’

As they went to walk away Serena watched his unconscious form, screwed up her face, pulled her leg back and kicked him squarely in the fork of the legs! Consciousness returned to Toshie for a handful of painful seconds before he slumped again into unconsciousness. She stalked off. ‘I want to be alone!’ So Itazura stayed where he was.

‘Umm… Shiro, remind me never to piss her off.’

‘I heard screaming.’ Hiei appeared from below deck with a book in his hand. He’d only started it when they’d left this morning. It was now late evening and he’d already gone through roughly three-quarters of the volume. ‘What happened?’

‘Toshie happened,’ Shiro provided. ‘He caught a glimpse of Serena.’

‘Perverted bastard,’ it didn’t take Hiei long to put two and two together. ‘I think it is a wise decision if one of us stays with her; at least until Toshie leaves.’

‘Agreed,’ Itazura was disgusted and spat overboard. ‘How did you tolerate that idiot? Just the sight of him gets my blood boiling!’

Shiro and Hiei shared a look. ‘He was a good teacher,’ they agreed. Oh! Like that made it alright to goose young girls?

‘Well, I’m not making any promises, ‘cause I’m this close to snapping, and the last time I snapped I turned the guy into a charred husk.’ Two confused faces turned to stare at him so Itazura began telling them the story of Raiden, his mission hunting him, and finally how that meeting culminated in a meeting with Raiden’s brother. ‘He scarred Mariko here,’ and he drew an X shape in the centre of his chest. On Mariko it would lie just between her breasts. ‘I thought he had killed her, so I kinda lost it and whacked him around with a bit of Kidō imbued swordplay before setting off a Shakkahō in his face.’

Hiei listened to the tale and even began taking notes in a jotter he took from one of his bulging inner pockets. ‘That has the makings of a good story,’ he said as Itazura glanced over, ‘but this swordsmanship you where talking about… could you show me please?’ Itazura drew his zanpakutō and steadied his breathing. A lightning current awoke on his blades edge and he worked through practiced motions of his own creation. All the while his sword sung like a thousand chirping birds.

‘You can perform Onigiri?’ Hiei asked. Shiro seemed surprised.

‘Oni- what did you call it now?’

‘Onigiri,’ Shiro echoed. ‘It was originally a potent swordsmanship technique that created a razor sharp layer of reiryoku over your blade. Essentially it allowed you to cut through anything.’

‘But when you apply Kidō like that it becomes a style unto itself – a hybrid technique if you will. The layer is replaced with Kidō, with the effects dependant on the spell in use. You used just used Tsuzuri Raiden, correct?’ Itazura nodded. ‘A spell that channels electricity through objects you make contact with. Who was your teacher before coming to Heisekai?’

‘Garian Shinjo,’ silence greeted him and wide-eyed stares.

‘You just keep getting more and more interesting, don’t you? I mean, you were trained by Garian Shinjo… damn.’ Shiro shook his head.

‘Fujimoto’s great-greater grandmother knew him quite well, and speaks of him fondly.’ Hiei revealed. ‘It really is a small world.’

Of course this just left Itazura all the more confused. But then Garian was older than the hills so why couldn’t he have come to Heisekai at some point in his life? He was certain about one thing. He’d have to have a talk with Garian when he got back. ‘But it wasn’t Garian that taught me that. I did that myself.’ More shocked stares. ‘You see, I was encouraged to find my own way, and create my own style.’

‘That explains why we couldn’t peg it when we first started training you,’

‘My uncle figured he’d let me mix and match, and competing with my sister was always a good incentive to better myself.’ He smiled fondly at the memories. ‘So I decided to mix what skills I did have together and see what happened.’

‘Remarkable,’ whispered Hiei. ‘You are either the luckiest person I’ve ever met or a genius.’

‘Well, I'll say I’m a genius.’

‘You would,’ Shiro jibed. ‘Not important. It’ll take us until tomorrow evening until we hit port anyway, so we might as well do something constructive. I wanna test this Onigiri of yours for myself.’ So Itazura and Shiro settled into ready stances as Hiei slipped down below to check on Serena, who was still fuming. And rightly so.

Next Story >.