Ash still clung to the wind as Ishikawa Jimonji sat beneath the red awning of a half-burned inn just outside Tsu. The rain had washed most of the blood from his torn clothes, but not from his heart.
His body had been patched together by Otaki's secret medicines and Shin Kazumi's spiritual healing rites. But the deeper wounds—the kind you don't see—remained hidden under his skin.
"We'll go to Kyoto after, I will repair the sword. " he muttered, chewing on pickled radish as he stared into his rice bowl.
Yumi nodded, eating quietly beside him. Asaki, sitting across, glared silently. Her arm was bandaged; the duel with Nakajima's guards had left its mark. But her pride bore the deeper scar.
Ishikawa exhaled smoke from a rolled tobacco leaf. The pipe dangled from his lips like an old war story. His twin swords, Kurayami and Kurasa, rested on the table beside miso bowls and half-eaten grilled eel.
"Swords need mending," he finally said. "We're heading north. Aizu. There's a man there who forges blades from thunder."
Yumi perked up. "That the one who made your Kurayami?"
Ishikawa gave a single nod. "Yoshinobu the Hunchback."
Asaki looked away. "Of course. Another detour."
He ignored the jab. He always did.
A few minutes later, as Yumi cleaned up the bowls and Asaki finished her tea, the inn door creaked open.
A woman walked in.
Dressed in blue silk with a scarlet obi, she held a shamisen slung across her back. Her eyes were ash-grey. She looked like she belonged in a painting.
She approached Ishikawa with a sly smile. "You're him, aren't you? The Twin Blade Wolf ."
Ishikawa stared. "And you're not just a wandering minstrel."
She leaned down, whispered something into his ear.
Whatever it was, Ishikawa stood without hesitation.
"Watch the girl," he muttered to Yumi, who blinked in confusion.
Asaki's jaw tightened. "Where are you going?"
"To fix my edge," he said vaguely, then followed the woman up the stairs.
Yumi turned to Asaki, biting her lip. "You're jealous."
"What? Shut up. I'm not."
"He's drowning, Asaki," Yumi said gently. "And you—you're pretending like it doesn't matter. But it does. You two have something. You're letting it sink."
Asaki said nothing. But her knuckles turned white around her teacup.
---
Meanwhile, in Chōsu Domain, at a cliffside dojo bathed in red banners, Captain Aza Kabuki leaned on his halberd as Vice-Captain Okii Miruku delivered the report.
"Ishikawa Jimonji survived Tsu. Killed Nakajima. He's traveling with a girl—Asaki."
Aza's one eye narrowed.
"Too much blood in one man. Send her."
"Sumirei?"
Aza nodded. "Let her taste the wind again."
---
Night fell.
Ishikawa stood in the hallway, tightening the belt around his hakama. The woman with the shamisen lay on the futon, humming an eerie tune.
"You're good with your hands," she teased.
"And fast with my feet."
He turned.
Something tingled in the air.
A whistle.
He ducked.
A blade crashed through the paper wall beside him.
"Asaki! Yumi!" he roared.
He burst through the inn doors. Asaki was already on her feet, sword half-drawn. Yumi had retreated behind an overturned table.
From the rooftop, a shadow dropped.
A woman in violet, face masked, eyes glowing like foxfire.
"Sumirei of Chōsu," Asaki whispered. "The Mirage Blade."
Ishikawa caught Kurayami mid-air. Asaki tossed him Kurasa.
Sumirei blurred.
Three copies of her surged forward.
Ishikawa struck the first—it vanished.
The second swept Asaki's leg. Asaki spun, parried, and barely blocked a follow-up kick.
Ishikawa focused, breathing low.
He closed his eyes.
Shikkiri.
The world slowed.
He caught the real Sumirei mid-dash, slamming Kurasa into her gut. She coughed blood—but vanished again.
"Illusions," he snarled.
"Not illusions," Sumirei's voice echoed. "Reflections."
She appeared behind him, cutting a red line down his back.
Asaki screamed, launching a flurry of slashes.
Sumirei parried, kicked Asaki into a beam, then whirled toward Ishikawa.
"You're not ready for Kyoto," she hissed.
Ishikawa flipped backwards, letting Kurayami guide his fall. He grabbed a lantern and flung it.
Flame burst.
Smoke filled the room.
Sumirei stumbled.
Now.
Ishikawa and Asaki struck together.
Kurasa slashed high. Asaki's blade struck low.
Sumirei twisted to block one—but not both.
Blood sprayed.
She crashed through the wall, rolled onto the street, and vanished into the mist.
Yumi ran out, breathless. "Is it over?"
Ishikawa wiped his blade. "For now."
Asaki touched her bruised arm. "Why her? The shamisen girl."
Ishikawa looked up at the stars.
"I was testing something."
Asaki turned away, hurt.
Yumi watched them both. "You're testing all the wrong things."
Rain began to fall again.
And in the distance, fire danced on the horizon.
---
To be continued.