Honoo no Mirage Vol 2 Chapter 8

Chapter 8: Death in Scarlet Glory

“I never thought that all of you would be here. I am overjoyed that we could meet again,” Mori Ranmaru said, slowly folding his arms. “We may all look different now than we did thirty years ago, but I know. I remember that day as if it were yesterday. Kagetora.”

“...!...”

Takaya raised his head, and Ranmaru smiled quietly.

“I feel sorry for you. You don’t remember, do you? You don’t remember anything at all? You can’t even fully control your «powers» now. A pity. You don’t know who you are, do you?”

“Wh...!” He yelled back unthinkingly, “Shut up! d.a.m.n you...!”

“But not without reason. You were truly in pitiable shape then.”

“...!”

“It was terrible,” Ranmaru murmured in a low voice. “You were in such a wretched state. Those closest to you had all been raped or killed, though they had no connection to this battle. All of the unhappiness around you had been piled on your shoulders, and you lived in misery. So you see, it was not without reason.”

Takaya had no response to give. Ranmaru continued without pause, “Your existence brought unhappiness upon everyone. It’s because of you that they suffered. I can guess at your feelings.”

“Wa-wait, you...”

“It’s quite natural that you were unable to bear such an existence. Your mission allowed you no place to run to, and only innocent bystanders died, one by one—I wonder that you were able to remain sane.”

“...”

“I truly pity you. And that’s not all. Because you were a victim, too. Anyone would want to forget having such a terrible thing done to them. Because you...”

“! ...Shut up, Ranmaru!”

It was Naoe who had suddenly cried out. Takaya turned. Chiaki and Ayako also stood watching.

Naoe glared at Ranmaru, s.h.i.+vering. Ranmaru returned the gaze serenely.

“...Hmm?” he murmured, then declared coldly, “Ah, of course... There are some parties here for whom Kagetora’s loss of memory is rather convenient, aren’t there?”

“!”

Naoe’s expression stiffened. For a moment, Chiaki and Ayako’s eyes were full of bitterness. Ranmaru’s ruthless gaze—a cold gaze that knew everything.

Takaya stared at Naoe.

“Nao...e...?”

“—”

Naoe’s brows were drawn, his eyes averted from Takaya’s face. He bit his lips as if enduring a rain of blows. A heavy silence...

“Shut up shut up shut up! How dare you! Who caused that suffering? Whose fault do you think it was?!”

“What is this? Making your adversary take the guilt for your comrade’s shame?” Ranmaru smiled innocently, looking at Takaya. “In any case, with you here, we can’t go all-out in our battle for this land. We will brook no interference. The other onshou are in agreement. Though we fight each other, on this point alone we agree.”

“...!”

“In any era, the majority is in the right!” Ranmaru lifted his hand. “Your shame and sin and suffering—all will be cleansed and erased when you go to that other world. I’ll soon give you peace!”

A cold air sprang up.

The spirits of the Kasuke appeared once more like rising mist. Controlled by Ranmaru, they approached step by step from front and back to close in upon Takaya and the others. Hatred enveloped them. An evil aura. Hatred transforming into the intent to kill.

«We will not forgive...we will not forgive.»

«Those who broke their promise...we will send all of them to h.e.l.l...»

«We remember our hatred...we remember our deaths...»

The Kasuke spirits focused the hatred they had once directed at those in power at Takaya and the others. Murderous intent struck towards the five of them. Such terrible «malice». They were going to be killed!

“Kagetora! We have to perform «choubuku» on them!” Chiaki yelled, joining his hands together in the ritual gesture.

Ayako cut him off sharply. “We can’t! These people are shugorei! They’re just being controlled by hypnotic suggestion! They’re not doing this of their own volition!”

“They’ve changed to onryou even if it’s not of their volition! They’re going to kill us!”

Light flared from the eyes of the Kasuke spirits. A «nenpa» which obviously held the power to kill flashed towards them.

“!”

Ayako promptly erected a «wall» to reflect it away and yelled, “We can’t do «choubuku» on them! Their true will is to be shugorei! They’re not onryou!”

“Then what do we do, Kagetora?!”

Takaya hesitated. The Kasuke spirits had been turned back into onryou by a suggestion. Their hatred was real. But was it right to ignore their intention when they had been shugorei? «Choubuku» would be the equivalent of killing these spirits. Was it right to ignore the fact that they had remained in this world in order to protect people?

“Kagetora!”

“!”

The attacking spirits were enveloped in sparks and blown off by Naoe’s «gos.h.i.+nha».

“Kagetora-sama! The suggestion...!”

Takaya, lost in the moment, cried out: “Chiaki! Make the Kasuke spirits remember! Their own will! Their true will!”

“Their will’s been erased by their hatred! I can’t cancel the suggestion! They’ve been totally brainwashed!”

“Whatever, just turn them back to normal! We can’t do «choubuku» on them!”

Clicking his tongue furiously, Chiaki focused his concentration. The Kasuke spirits reacted with surprise. Chiaki poured all his power into the hypnotic suggestion. For them to return to what they were. For them to turn back into guardian spirits.

The Kasuke spirits stopped moving. The waves of hatred suddenly lessened. A faint agitation pa.s.sed through the group.

“You impudent little...!”

Ranmaru’s eyes flared. He released a counter-flow of hypnotic suggestion toward the Kasuke spirits. Hatred. Malice. Resentment. Forgive no one!

The Kasuke spirits shuddered in agony.

The two sets of hypnotic suggestions jolted through the souls of the Kasuke. Hate. Do not hate. Do not forgive. Do not forget. No. Wrong. Suffering. Remember!

The spirits collapsed into confusion. These naked, weaponless souls were caught at the intersection of two ruthless streams of hypnotic suggestion. The defenseless spirits of the Kasuke Uprising, tormented into a state of panic. Emotions in agitation. Pushed beyond endurance.

All of the «power» they possessed burst out of them.

“!”

A terrible «nenpa» struck out at Takaya and the others. Ranmaru also instantly surrounded himself with a «gos.h.i.+nha».

(Wh...!)

A shrieking wind like a beast’s howling raged around them: the scream of the souls of the Kasuke.

Takaya immediately covered Yuzuru with a «gos.h.i.+nha». Everyone protected themselves with their «gos.h.i.+nha» to the best of their ability, but no one could restrain the Kasuke spirits. A horrible explosion. The souls of the Kasuke had gone mad.

(Oh s.h.i.+t!)

They had failed. The Kasuke spirits had thrown back the hypnotic suggestion and exploded into fury. The spirits could no longer be controlled. A brutal storm swallowed them.

“No, don’t!” A voice cried out from behind him. “Don’t! You mustn’t let go of your true selves!”

Takaya spun. Yuzuru was staring straight in front of him, eyes wide in a desperate face.

“Yuzuru?”

“Calm down. Look at me!”

Everyone turned their attention to Yuzuru.

Yuzuru took a single step forward.

“Calm your hearts.”

The storm gradually weakened. A muddy wind swirled in front of Yuzuru. Yuzuru extended his hand.

“Calm yourselves...”

The swirling darkened into mist, then separated and finally a.s.sumed their natural human shapes.

They appeared in front of him. Twenty-eight men and women, youths and graybeards wearing white kimonos. They stared hatefully at Yuzuru. Young children, haggard women, gaunt elders, wounded men. Their pale faces full of bitterness and hatred appealed to Yuzuru.

What could he say to them now? What could he say to plead for their lives?

The Kasuke themselves had not been allowed that. Their irreplaceable lives had been s.n.a.t.c.hed away to set an example.

By deceitful men in power.

Those without power were not even allowed to cry out. To protest was a crime. The strong oppressed the weak. That was the natural order of the world.

Government officials who had broken their promise.

This regret. This hatred.

Never to be forgiven!

“Then what should we do?” Yuzuru asked haltingly with desperation in his eyes. “What should we do so that you will forgive? The ones that you hated are no longer here. You cannot take your revenge. So what can we do?”

The Kasuke spirits’ hate-filled stare trembled slightly.

“What can we do that will let you be satisfied? Tell me. What can we do to give you peace?”

The spirits’ eyes were tinged with bewilderment.

Yuzuru pleaded, “What should we do? What can we do? What do you want us to do?”

They only looked at Yuzuru. He put all of himself into the plea.

“We haven’t forgotten you. We haven’t forgotten what you’ve done, its meaning or your feelings. We haven’t forgotten! What should we do?!”

The cry that they had gambled their lives to give voice to came echoing back from three hundred years ago.

A cry raised towards the castle by a storm of voices.

“What is justice? What is courage? Think back, and you will surely remember! Don’t let those things go to waste!”

Yuzuru’s sincere gaze.

“Because you are our pride. Because you are a glory to those who live here in this land.” Yuzuru slowly murmured, “We will always, always remember you...”

The Kasuke spirits made no reply.

Yuzuru begged them, “...Is that not enough? Is that not enough to repay you? ...Can we do nothing to requite you?”

«—»

“Is there nothing...we can do...to repay you...?”

Yuzuru’s voice faded away.

The Kasuke spirits gazed at Yuzuru silently.

Takaya and the others’ eyes widened, sensing that the surrounding aura had somehow been cleansed. And then something rose out of the group of ghosts facing Yuzuru.

 

 

A young child slowly approached him.

“...”

Yuzuru’s gaze fell. The child looked straight at him. He reached out a hand to gather the child to him.

“I’m sorry...”

Words wrung from his heart.

“You will not be forgotten. You will never be forgotten.”

Yuzuru closed his eyes.

“We will always think of you.”

Please...be at peace.

A clear wind rose.

A gentle feeling within his arms. The child disappeared like dissolving mist.

The other Kasuke spirits had also disappeared.

Only a mysterious warmth remained.

No one spoke.

Yuzuru alone gazed into the distance as if at something unseen. A gentle wind embraced him.

A thank you.

“...”

When Yuzuru looked down, he felt the soft wind hugging him joyfully.

“...Yuzuru-san...”

“...”

Naoe approached him slowly. He came to stand beside the unmoving Yuzuru and embraced his shoulders protectively. Yuzuru held onto Naoe, his shoulders shaking with suppressed tears.

The souls of Tada Kasuke and the others had disappeared.

“... I never thought that it would end like this.”

Hatayama Satos.h.i.+—or Mori Ranmaru, also stared in dumbfounded surprise for a moment.

His hostile gaze finally returned to them. “Hah. I came here to amuse myself, but instead a treasure lands in my lap.”

“What?!”

Ranmaru smiled coldly at the angry Takaya. “I didn’t think to find something like this so close to you, Kagetora. I’ll be able to present Lord n.o.bunaga with a nice gift.”

“! ...What the h.e.l.l are you talking about, Ranmaru!”

“You will understand soon. Now, let’s settle this! Go, my nue!”

“!”

The air s.h.i.+vered, and three huge black lumps appeared. In the middle of each lump was a human face: a hideous, hate-filled face dancing freely in midair. These were the onryou called the “nue” of Oda n.o.bunaga.

Ranmaru shouted loudly, “We have no need of the «power» of the jibakurei! Oh, most strong nue of the Oda! Let their souls be rent apart here by thy power!”

The air howled.

The black faces opened their mouths wide and attacked. At the same time, Takaya called out, “Naoe! Take care of Yuzuru!”

“As you command!”

“Let’s do it! Nagahide, Haruie!”

Hearing their agreement, Takaya joined his hands in front of his chest in the ritual gesture. The three of them called out at the same time:

“ (Bai)!”

The three nue suddenly stiffened as if paralyzed. «Gebaku» had been cast on the target of the choubuku, and Nagahide and Ayako chanted the mantra of Bishamonten in ritual pose.

“Noumakusanmanda bodanan bais.h.i.+ramandaya sowaka!”

A s.h.i.+mmering luminescence rose from their bodies, and their hands began to glow with a white light. A concentration of «power». And then, as the s.h.i.+mmer flared into glorious flame, Takaya cried out loudly, “Namu Tobatsu Bishamonten!”

He called towards heaven: “For this demon subjugation, lend me thy power!”

He tore apart his glowing hands. The three of them cried at the same time: “«Choubuku»!”

A strong gale a.s.saulted the nue.

«—!»

Countless lines of light shot through their bodies. In a moment the black lumps had been torn apart into a thousand pieces; the nue were scattered to the winds with a short agonized scream.

All that remained was a white gas that soon faded away. When the view cleared, they shouted:

“Ranmaru!”

But Ranmaru was already nowhere to be seen. All that remained was his echoing «s.h.i.+nenha»: «I concede this match to you, Kagetora!»

“What!” Takaya leaned forward, yelling, “d.a.m.n you, where did you go? Are you going to run away?”

«My odds facing four of the Uesugi Yasha-shuu together is not to my liking. I will withdraw for now.»

“I’m not going to let you escape, Ranmaru!”

«When next we meet, I shall take that jewel from you. That moment will be your last.»

“Wh...! Hatayama! d.a.m.n you!”

«I shall report my find to Lord n.o.bunaga as well. Let us meet again, Ougi Takaya!»

“You b.a.s.t.a.r.d! Hatayamaaaa—!”

But his voice could no longer reach Ranmaru. Fading aura. Takaya stood frozen.

“...”

Mori Ranmaru: their old enemy, Oda n.o.bunaga’s right arm. Possessor of the terrible powers of hypnotic suggestion and spiritual sensing, a kanshousha of the Oda. Holder of a first-level ability to create the «kyuuryoku-kekkai».

Takaya bit his lips. The greatest of battles had now truly begun. Because they were threatened by the «choubukuryoku» of Kagetora reborn, because they wanted to protect this «Yami-Sengoku», their stage for a second chance to rule the world.

The time had come for them to cross swords once more with the Oda.

(n.o.bunaga...)

A bewildering, unutterable hatred stabbed out of his breast. And at the same time, equally strong—

Terror.

“—Kagetora...” Chiaki called from behind him. Takaya turned. Chiaki and Ayako. Naoe and Yuzuru.

Yuzuru was looking directly at him. There was no surprise in his expression. His unwavering, clear eyes were fixed on Takaya with concern.

Takaya’s eyes half closed painfully.

(Yuzuru...)

His gaze moved to Naoe, standing next to Yuzuru. Naoe looked away, not meeting his eyes. It surprised Takaya.

“Naoe?”

“! ...Naoe-san!”

Naoe sank to the ground. Yuzuru hurriedly caught him. His face was drained of all color. He was lapsing into anemia.

“Na-Naoe! Hang on!” “Idiot, don’t jolt him. A doctor—get a doctor!” Chiaki and Ayako clamored.

Yuzuru shouted desperately, “Naoe-san! Hang in there, Naoe-san!”

“...”

Takaya sat down by his side. “Naoe. Are you all right?”

“...Kagetora...sama...”

Supported by Yuzuru, Naoe lifted a colorless face twisted with the agony of his injuries. Takaya shook his head and told Naoe to say nothing.

“We’ll get you a doctor right now, so hold on for a little longer... ?”

His eyes suddenly opened wide. Naoe’s right hand clung to his arm.

“Naoe?”

Naoe gripped Takaya’s arm hard, his face bowed. His blood-stained hand clutched at Takaya with such desperation that it began to shake...

“...”

Takaya silently covered Naoe’s hand with his right hand.

He turned to Chiaki and Ayako.

“We can at least stop the bleeding. Nee-san, see if the infirmary can be used? Yuzuru, call an ambulance...”

Chiaki cut him off.

“Don’t bother. We have a car, don’t we? I’ll drive, so just hand over the keys.”

“...”

Takaya looked blankly at Chiaki for a moment, then finally turned up his nose and smiled. “Humph. Don’t get into an accident driving without a license.”

“I’m not you, General.”

And Chiaki grinned.

The rain outside had slowed to a light drizzle. The devastation of the corridor was apparent in the glow of the electric lights flowing in from the garden.

 

 

 

“You gonna be okay by yourself, Chiaki?”

“Yeah, yeah, I’ll be fine,” Chiaki waved a hand lightly, climbing into the Benz’s driver’s seat. “It’d look pretty weird if the noisy lot of us went, wouldn’t it? You guys should get out of here too, before more trouble comes looking for you.”

It was certainly true that if anyone saw the tempest in the school, they would have some explaining to do. Better that they pretended they had nothing at all to do with it.

“But can you really just pop in and see a doctor this late? Maybe we should just call an ambulance...”

“Idiot. There’d be trouble if we called someone curious enough to poke their nose into this. It’ll be fine. I’ll hypnotize a doctor or two, and that’ll be that.”

“... You’re going to bewitch someone else?”

“Don’t talk about me like I’m some kind of nine-tail fox or tanuki. Haruie, I’m leaving this lot to you.”

Ayako replied sullenly, “I would’ve taken them home anyway.”

Takaya snapped his mouth shut when he saw Naoe close pain-filled eyes in the pa.s.senger’s seat.

“All right, see you later,” Chiaki said, and stepped on the gas pedal. The Benz glided off and disappeared into the rainy darkness.

Takaya, Yuzuru, and Ayako remained.

Yuzuru stood in a daze next to him.

“Yuzuru?”

“? ...oh, what?”

“What’s wrong?”

Yuzuru tilted his head slightly. “Ah, nothing. I was thinking...so Chiaki really was one of your ”comrades“, huh...?”

“—”

Takaya stared at Yuzuru. Yuzuru— ...He began to wonder.

“... Yuzuru, why did you come here?”

“I had this weird dream. A dream where you were dead.”

“...”

“It gave me this bad feeling, and I felt like I needed to let someone know about it—then suddenly I thought of Chiaki. I don’t know why. But when I was running around trying to figure out how to get in touch with him, I looked in the cla.s.s student directory, but couldn’t find his address or anything.”

“Yuzuru.”

“I had no idea what to do—the next thing I knew, I was at the school, and there in front of the gates was Chiaki. I was so surprised.” Yuzuru smiled. “But I’m so glad that you’re okay...”

“—”

Looking at Yuzuru’s familiar smile, Takaya suddenly muttered, “You’re not gonna ask me about anything?”

“...?”

“About Chiaki. About Hatayama...”

About me.

Takaya fell silent.

Yuzuru smiled at him slightly and responded, “If I asked, would you tell me?”

“... Yuzuru.”

Ayako slapped both of them on the shoulders.

“Hey, hey. All this friends.h.i.+p stuff is great and all, but if you guys keep standing there, you’ll catch a cold. Your big sis’ll take you home, so let’s hurry up and get moving!”

“... Why’d we have to have you take us home?”

“I don’t care you ’bout you, but I’m worried about this young man here. All right, come on, let’s go.”

And Ayako began walking with her hand on their shoulders. In actuality, Ayako was not just a little in awe of Yuzuru’s powers.

Yuzuru, who had calmed the maddened spirits with such ease.

It had been no easy thing to curb the Kasuke spirits’ explosion. Even Ranmaru had had no power to spare for anything except defending himself. Yuzuru had calmed the explosion, and even quite obviously dispersed the suggestion laid upon them.

And all unconsciously.

(This child’s potential could trump even Kagetora’s.)

“A threat to the Roku Dou Sekai.”

Kousaka’s words echoed in her mind, and ice crawled down her spine. What in the world lay inside of this mild, gentle-hearted young man before her?

Yuzuru, telling Takaya some piece of gossip.

Takaya’s eyes as he listened.

It was easy to see from the gentleness in those eyes, from the unguarded expression and seldom-seen young man’s smile that he showed freely to Yuzuru alone.

To Takaya, Yuzuru’s existence was...

(I don’t want to see him dragged into this—)

It was a thought that came naturally when she looked at this young man. If Yuzuru alone could be allowed to remain as he was. She wanted him to always be allowed to live his life in peace.

(Though that’s probably beyond my power...)

Ayako looked quietly up at the sky.

A dark sky filled with thousands of darts of falling rain.

No light shone.

“So...it really was you,” Naoe murmured from the pa.s.senger’s seat.

“?”

They had stopped in front of a red light, and Chiaki turned towards him. “What?”

“You called me, didn’t you? It was you...who sent that «s.h.i.+nenha»...to summon me to Matsumoto, wasn’t it? Nagahide?”

“...”

Chiaki returned his gaze.

In actuality.

This was the other reason that had drawn Naoe and Ayako to Matsumoto on this trip. It had all begun about a week ago, when Naoe had caught a puzzling «s.h.i.+nenha» directed at him at his home.

«Come to Matsumoto immediately.»

«Go to Kagetora’s side.»

He’d been in doubt because he had not been able to determine the source of the message. But just in case, he had picked up Haruie and set out for Matsumoto once more. He hadn’t known until he pa.s.sed Chiaki Shuuhei that day in front of the infirmary that he was, without a doubt, Yasuda Nagahide, and that it was he who had sent the «s.h.i.+nenha».

Nagahide had sent the «s.h.i.+nenha» to alert Naoe and Haruie of Kagetora’s danger. It had saved Kagetora’s life.

“Humph. Don’t thank me for that. I have no intention of becoming involved with you lot.”

“... So you’re...back to that?”

“Shut up. I’ve made up my mind. I know nothing about any Uesugi Kens.h.i.+n. All this stuff about onryou subjugation and the Meikai Uesugi Army—I have no connection to any of that. I never even planned to meet any of you this time. If you were thinking that I’d fight with you, you can think again.”

Nagahide had suddenly cut off all communication with them around ten years ago. He had always had a peevish sort of personality, which had turned into complete disgust in the battle withOda n.o.bunaga thirty years ago. Thereafter, he’d been totally disinclined to cooperate with Naoe and the others.

So why had Nagahide appeared now at Kagetora’s side?

Breathing raggedly, Naoe give Nagahide a sidelong glance.

“Who told you about...Kagetora-sama?”

“...”

“It couldn’t have been a coincidence... If you wanted nothing to do with us...then why...were you there...with Kagetora-sama? Where did you hear about him...?”

Eyes looking ahead, Nagahide—Chiaki was silent for a moment. The wipers flashed two, three times across the winds.h.i.+eld. Then Chiaki responded in a low voice, “I saw Kousaka.”

“!” Naoe leaned forward. “Kousaka?”

“I heard about Kagetora from him. And about what happened with s.h.i.+ngen, about meeting you. It’s not like I came here to be Kagetora’s bodyguard. I only called you because when I got here, Ranmaru was targeting him, and there wasn’t much else I could do.”

“... So you have some other purpose.”

“—”

“Is it—Narita Yuzuru?”

 

Nagahide looked at Naoe. “Naoe, he could be a threat of unimaginable proportions.”

“What did you hear from Kousaka?”

“Humph. I don’t think he told me everything. Those d.a.m.ned superior airs of his. He only hinted at things. That right now Narita Yuzuru, who is close to Kagetora, is our greatest threat. That if he fell into the hands of some careless onshou, we’d never be able to recover.”

“...”

The light turned green, and Nagahide stepped on the gas.

“That depending on how he’s handled, not only the «Yami-Sengoku», but this world, could be destroyed. I got kinda worried when I heard that, so. I came to find out what I could about who he really is.”

“And? Have you figured out anything?”

“If Haruie can’t figure it out, how am I supposed to? I was only planning to observe Narita Yuzuru from a distance, but suddenly that idiot Ranmaru came to mess with Kagetora. I wasn’t going to get involved, but if anything happened to Kagetora, you’d probably get depressed again, huh?”

“...”

“I noticed the anji reidou on the Kasuke spirits from a distance, and guessed that when you came you’d notice too. You’d probably start fighting at any moment. So I didn’t have much choice but to slip into the cla.s.s to protect Kagetora. You should be thanking me,” Nagahide said all in one breath, and sighed. “But, well, I guess we have Narita Yuzuru to thank for earlier, huh?”

“?”

“He was the one who called me. He sent a «s.h.i.+nenha» to come and save you guys. Though he probably wasn’t aware of it himself.”

“So he...”

Nagahide cut the wheel left. “Humph. Not like it’s any of my business whether you live or die.”

“Nagahide...”

Gazing at the darts of rain illuminated by the headlights, Nagahide was silent. He was remembering back to the past.

What Ranmaru had said to Takaya weighed on his mind.

Nagahide murmured, “Naoe.”

“...?”

“And what about you?”

Naoe turned his head slightly, uncertain of Nagahide’s meaning. Nagahide said in a slightly lower voice, “If you truly intend to destroy the «Yami-Sengoku», Kagetora’s current powers are not enough. You’d need to awaken all of his powers.”

“...”

“He seems to have sealed his own memories. But without those memories, he has no hope of using a hundred percent of his «powers». If he’s completely awakened, his memories will also return.”

Naoe stared at the dashboard motionlessly.

“I don’t know if that means that he would have to discard his current personality, but if not, then you will not have power equal to what is needed to destroy the «Yami-Sengoku».”

Nagahide flicked on the left turn signal and brought the car onto the footpath.

“If Kagetora’s memories do not return, you will not be able to destroy the «Yami-Sengoku», Naoe.”

“... I know.”

“And are you okay with that? Kagetora will remember. He’ll remember what happened.”

“...”

“About you. About ‘Minako’.”

“Nagahide.” Naoe said only that, and closed his mouth again.

Nagahide gazed at Naoe’s bloodless profile silently.

“All right,” he said, and opened the door.

The car was parked in front of one of the town’s small surgical hospitals. Nagahide climbed out and stepped into the rain. He walked around to Naoe’s side to help him out of the car.

“Can you walk?”

“...Yeah.”

They waited as a car in the opposite lane ran a red light and sped past. Nagahide muttered as they headed towards the hospital, “I’m sure you’re the one who wants to run away most, Naoe.”

Naoe’s eyes lifted.

Nagahide walked beside him, his eyes fixed on the ground at his feet.

“But you can never leave Kagetora, can you?”

“—”

And Nagahide said nothing further. Naoe made no reply.

The rain fell incessantly.

Yes, he knew. In the end, he could never escape from this one unalterable path.

The rain trickled into the innermost depths of his breast.

The cold, cold rain.