The Shōta Problem

Life, Supernatural

The battle was fought, and Ryūzaki Sanosuke had barely emerged the victor. Yet there was something the Silver General didn't quite understand. He voiced his question to his opponent, Hōzōin In'ei: They'd obviously both been giving it their all at the end, but she'd been fighting these duels for a long time. Could it be that she'd given up on being Champion of Susano'o?   Still visibly in better condition than Sanosuke, In'ei crossed four of her six arms as she pondered the question. That she didn't immediately contradict him, however, was telling in itself. Eventually, In'ei answered that she could indeed have kept fighting after that last strike. His attack didn't kill her, after all, even if it should have. But the next blow after that might have. Or the next. It had been many years since she'd last been put in such danger, and her feelings at the time were that maybe it would be better for Susano'o to have two powerful champions in the world. That is, rather than just the one left after the other's death. That was why she had conceded the match.

The kensei's answer seemed to at least partially satisfy Sansouke. He offered that they'd need to sit down so that In'ei could tell tales of her great deeds sometime. It was obvious that the Silver General's focus was elsewhere, however. His steely eyes were scanning the yard, looking for one familiar face in particular. Beyond those who'd been watching the fight to the end, however, the only other notable one in attendance was that of inexplicably-handsome Maxim.   The Knight Commander's presence here was unexpected, and went unacknowledged. Muttering something unkind under his breath, Sanosuke made his way carefully toward the tavern's entrance. In'ei watched him go. Surprised to find their conversation cut off so abruptly, she edged in a comment that they'd meet again soon. For drinks, or perhaps a rematch. What truly broke Sanosuke's trance, however, was the firm paw of Kono Minoko upon the obi at his waist.   Blinking the intensity out of his eyes, Sanosuke first gave his regards to In'ei as she departed, then turned to the bright-eyed Bakedanuki still grasping at his clothes. The proprietress was all smiles. She thanked him for the great performance, above and beyond what she'd expected. People would surely be talking about it, and therefore The Tanuki's Glee for a long time to come. Indeed, Minoko was so impressed that she offered to pay twice what she normally would for a night's performance. That meant, after deducting it from the cost of repairs to the ruined stable and shaken tavern...Sanosuke only owed her about ten thousand koku.   That sum would have made even a lord's eyes bulge, but the Silver General just shrugged and accepted. Minoko, who was obviously preparing to haggle, couldn't hide her delight. She released Sanosuke immediately and wished him well. The bill, she stated, she would send to Nijō Castle for fulfillment.   Leaving the proprietress and whatever was going on with Maxim in the yard behind, Sanosuke entered the tavern proper. His own earthquake had shaken down some dust from the roof. It covered the place in a thin, dirty patina, but made it quite easy for Sanosuke to find his quarry's footprints. Following the bare footmarks led him toward the exit at the back, but then seemed to stop. It took a moment for the Silver General to discern what had happened here. Shōta, or whoever was currently piloting his body, had doubled back on his own steps to confuse any would-be trackers. That was the work of an experienced scoundrel. Sanosuke had to wonder if the youth had really changed all that much.   This way, out through the kitchens, and the entrance he'd come through seemed to be the only ways outside. Calling for his allies, Sanosuke asked Ryūzōji Ryouka to block the kitchen while he positioned a sleepy-drunk Aoki Michiko to block the entrance. He sought out Shigeaki Fujino instead, but found himself rudely rebuffed. She was busy, apparently, and didn't want to talk to him just then. That didn't seem like Fujino's normal temperament, but Sanosuke couldn't afford to dwell on it.   The Glee's interior furnishing was quite traditional, and that meant no big western tables to hide under or wide cabinets to crawl into. In fact, there were relatively few places to hide. Kono Minoko puttered around with a broom, attacking the dust that Sanosuke had shook free. Following her sweeping, Sanosuke wondered whether a youth could fit under the mats on the floor, or somewhere into the rafters above. He notified the proprietress that someone was hiding around the place before moving to investigate.   Surprisingly, Minoko knew exactly who he was talking about. Shōta, it seemed, was banned from the Glee. The proprietress asked Sanosuke to tell the youth if he found him. That was welcome news, even if the reason behind it remained unknown. The Silver General might have asked why, if his attention hadn't been grabbed by something particularly queer across the room. A long wooden counter, presumably for serving food, was built into the floor there. It had struck Sanosuke as one of the most obvious places to hide, but checking behind it hadn't yielded any results. And yet, there was something there if he looked hard enough. A tall, lanky figure leaning against the wall with the scenery pulled around him like a cloak. Only by squinting, and perhaps by means of some superhuman enhancements, could Sanosuke even tell that anything was there. It was an eye-watering but definite discovery.   That just left what to do about it. After pondering for a moment, Sanosuke decided on the direct option. Calling out to the mostly-invisible figure, he reiterated the proprietress' former ban with an offer to beat it or else. Although it didn't speak, the shape visibly twitched in surprise. Its head swung around to regard Sanosuke with the urgency of panic. Then, shoulders slumped in defeat, it began slinking its way over to the door.   This was progress, but Sanosuke wasn't about to let his prey get away that easily. He intercepted the translucent figure and swung one arm around its shoulders. They were about the same height, as it happened, and the other didn't resist. Not that he probably could have. Sanosuke's grip on the invisible lad's bony shoulder was entirely unyielding. He tried addressing the miscreant, but still no response came. All he could read in the other's posture was slouched shoulders and a general air of defeat. This...this didn't seem right.   Perhaps he was remembering a similar trick played by one Akechi Mitsuhide back in Wakigami. Regardless, Sanosuke wisely opted to take precautions against this just be a distraction. He wordlessly asked Ryūzōji Ryouka, then standing by the kitchen, to take to the rooftops instead. Transforming suddenly into a tiny ball of feline fur, the Bakeneko obliged and climbed out of sight.   From there, Sanosuke called for reinforcements from the ladies in the room. He only found Michiko, however, fallen asleep on her feet in the doorway, and Minoko, who was giving him the dubious look reserved for those caught talking to empty air. Sanosuke fervently hoped that last wasn't the case. Fortunately, at long last, the Invisible Shōta spoke. He whispered something to Sanosuke, something about forgetting all of this and never speaking of it again. Shōta would leave, wouldn't return, and that was the truth.   Even at the utterance of those dreaded words, Sanosuke kept his composure. He first searched the voice for any sign of duplicity, but again found only shame and an underlying desire to be anywhere else. Given that, the Silver General made a counter offer. How much, he put forth, to leave the kid alone? Or...if the worst had indeed happened, for the Essence of Shōta to leave Hayashi Narinaga alone?   Dropping the Hayashi Daimyō's name certainly had an effect. Shōta immediately broke his silence, demanding to know how Sanosuke knew that name. Sanosuke, who'd heard it from a pair of Hayashi generals a mere hour before, played it safe. He offered only that there were few men more wanted in Shimonoseki than Narinaga.   Finally, the invisibility spell melted away. When Shōta's boyish form was revealed, his demeanor had completely changed. No longer standing ramrod-straight, the youth stooped a little, but the sense of presence his ancient eyes imparted was unmistakable. If he was wanted, Hayashi Narinaga spoke with Shōta's lips, then Sanosuke could tell his subordinates that he had been found. The boy's body had reached the end of its usefulness, and he would now—   After a moment of concentration, Shōta's expression changed. First surprise, then dismay, then growing horror all passed across the youth's cretinous features. The spell had somehow failed. He could not return to his true body. How could this be possible? Of course, unknown to them, the answer to that lay far away, in the Dreamlands. There, Hashinara Yoshitakatomo wore Hayashi Narinaga's true body magically transmuted into a tattoo on her* back. It was no wonder that Dōhan's soul could not return to a body whose physical form had been so radically altered. But he was not to know this.   Hayashi Narinaga raised Shōta's fist and shook it to the sky. This was a curse, surely. The heavens were punishing him for his hubris, for his folly, by forcing him to remain in this despicable body. Sanosuke didn't answer. He'd received a wordless report from Ryouka and, while Shōta was found, she'd spotted a White-Masked Merchant peddling his wares out there. That was a problem for another time and, hopefully, another person to handle. Sanosuke just asked her to come back for now.   When he returned his focus to the accursed Daimyō, Narinaga was accusing Sanosuke of orchestrating the whole thing. He demanded to know what the Silver General and goons had done with his true body. Sanosuke, however, could truthfully say that he'd had no part in it. Indeed, other than the body swap thing, he didn't really know what was going on. Was Narinaga some kind of spirit?   The Hayashi Daimyō collected himself and seemed to see the sincerity in Sanosuke's words. He took a few steadying breaths with borrowed lungs, then began speaking with the tone of one who intends to impart a long tale. Ryouka arrived just in time to hear, and both she and Sanosuke noticed Minoko gathering another audience and taking entry fees for the coming story. An enterprising character, that one.   The tale which unfolded from Shōta's mouth was one of preternatural intrigue. He was indeed, as Sanosuke had claimed, Hayashi Narinaga, Daimyō of the Hayashi Clan. In service of a greater power, he had been tasked with infiltrating the Hashinara Clan and learning everything he could about them. Their strengths. Their resources. And what weaknesses a foe might exploit.   Narinaga's first such venture was largely unsuccessful. Wielding powerful magics, he had transported his own soul out of his body and into that of Shigeaki Fujino, the clan's psychic and communications master. He'd learned, at least, of her mental network and teleportation capability, which explained much of the Hashinara's uncanny ability to act so quickly and decisively in the past.   His second possession was much more fruitful. By taking the body of Tōdaisen Nobuhara, Narinaga had gained access to an incredible wealth of information. Nobuhara's records were no doubt exhaustive. Although his time in the body had been cut short, Narinaga had taken away far more intelligence than on his first attempt.   Finally, he had chosen this boy. Shōta. As a member of the Hashinara Clan's official tournament team, Narinaga had assumed the youth to be an influential member of the clan despite his appearance. Indeed, Shōta's cretinous aspect could even be an advantage in disguise. As Dōhan claimed, few suspect those whom are so easily dismissed as below them.   Regrettably, this had proven to be a mistake. Shōta did not hold even a shred of the power, physical or political, that Narinaga had expected. And yet, he found himself hesitant to leave the youth's body. Perhaps it was enjoyable, in a way. The heady energy of youth, experienced again after so long, combined with the great numbers of beautiful women in attendance at the Mōri tournament...   Narinaga lowered his boyish face. To be so taken in by the flesh was pure folly. The greatest of his many failings. Indeed, by trapping him in such a body, fate must be punishing him for his hubris. From there, he lapsed into silence. It seemed as though the tale of Hayashi Narinaga was at an end.   A moment passed with Sanosuke acutely aware of the watching audience, and of the many pieces of sensitive information which had been aired as part of Narinaga's tale. In a moment of quick thinking, he attempted to salvage the situation. With that, he shouted merrily to the crowd, the night's entertainment was truly over. He hoped they'd enjoyed the Tale of the Man with No Body and would heed its moral well.   Fortunately, the youth called Shōta seemed game to play along. Straightening from his stoop and rubbing a hand across the back of his neck in a gesture of boyish modesty, he thanked everyone for coming and Sanosuke for his part in the play. The return of Shōta's normal mannerisms was so convincing that, for a moment, Sanosuke thought that he'd been somehow duped by the whole tale. As the crowd dispersed, however, Hayashi Narinaga's ancient weight returned to the youth's eyes.   For reasons that the ancient Daimyō did not pretend to understand, it seemed that the Silver General was going to offer his aid in handling this singular situation. For the moment, he'd take Shōta's body and its passenger to Wakigami Castle. Surely Hashinara Yoshitakatomo would be eager to speak with him upon her* return from the Dreamlands.   Pinging Fujino, Sanosuke found her much more receptive this time around. Her standoffish attitude had totally vanished. Indeed, the psychic seemed quite revolted by her previous actions. Had she truly turned into a simpering flower in the presence of Maxim? That didn't seem right at all, and yet her memories were insisting that such was the case. She had no issue now in delivering Sanosuke to where he needed to go, at least.   As he prepared to leave, however, events converged as they so often did. The Silver General's head played host to no fewer than three important reports from various agents under his command. After sharing a sympathetic look with Fujino as she entered from outside, Sanosuke began tackling the notifications one by one.   The first of these was from Ōtomo Sōrin, whom he had asked to work with thief Katō Danzō in retrieving a valuable, dangerous metal from Odawara Castle. Sōrin had provided an illusory Hōjō Clan disguise, by means of which Danzō was able to scout a route to the treasure room they sought. That only left the infiltration itself. Danzō being a "phantom thief," there was a particular way she'd need to go about this. Fortunately, Sōrin had set up a custom spell of "tele-vision" that would allow Sanosuke to watch and direct the thief's movements within the castle, should he wish. The Silver General affirmed that he did and thanked Sōrin. He'd hear from them again when they were ready to begin.   Next was a message from Sanosuke's own adviser and administrator, Trivia. She didn't pose a question so much as a notification. Scouts had found a strange object a few miles from Nijō Castle that seemed like a pod from the Lunar Empire. Its shape and material were unknown to Trivia, however, who was herself a native of the same. If there were any passengers, they'd either vanished or perished in the presumed crash. For now, she'd sent more teams to search the area while bringing the pod itself back to Nijō. Its structure was based on some kind of "star metal" that she expected Sanosuke or his talented staff could find a use for. Again, Sanosuke thanked her for the report, and moved on to the third and final message.   With that done, he was finally ready to depart. Although first, Sanosuke had Fujino take the sleeping, drunk, and otherwise present ladies safely to one bed or another. Then, taking "Shōta" into his care, the two left that fateful tavern and returned to Wakigami Castle to await their Daimyō's return.