“He knows of our presence here?” Asaka asked.
Toshi wasn’t sure how to read the samurai’s tone. “He asked me to tell him what had brought me here, and how. I told him all I could, and he didn’t seem to doubt me. He asked for me to find you and bring you before him. He felt he might be neglecting some of his guests.”
The samurai hesitated for only a moment. “Then we should not keep Asano-sama waiting.”
His exhaustion momentarily forgotten, he led the group to the main courtyard. Miko joined him.
“How are you, Toshi-kun? We’ve been very worried about you,” she said.
He stared at her white Noh mask and the blue light shining from its eyes. His smile grew wider. “I’m happy, Miko-san, happier than I’ve ever been, now that you’re here,” he admitted. “I’d started thinking maybe you had all left before I’d had a chance to see you again.”
“Silly boy,” she chided, “we would never do that to our appointed savior.”
He looked away, feeling his cheeks grow hot; but his smile, if anything, grew wider.
As they neared the lit courtyard, Miko dropped back to stand with Asaka. Leaving the group in the shadows, Toshi approached the castle’s lord.
“Asano-sama, Lord Asaka wishes for me to convey to you his willingness for an audience.” He felt Asano’s gaze fall heavily on him before it shifted to look past him. Himiko hovered near her father, her excited face going from Toshi to the shadowed forms behind him and back again.
Asano leaned forward and spoke softly. “If you would, Kazete-san, ask him to please present himself before me.”
Toshi nodded and rushed back to his companions.
Asano’s guards clustered about their lord as Asaka stepped forward. He stopped a short distance away and bowed low. As he looked up, gasps ran through those close by as they saw the green glow coming from behind his mask’s eye slits.
“It has been a very long time, Asano-sama.”
“Much too long, Asaka-san.” The samurai lord looked unperturbed by the enigma before him.
“It is my great shame I couldn’t come sooner,” Asaka replied.
“It’s to your greater honor you’ve been able to come at all.”
Asaka lowered his head for a moment but said nothing.
“We have much to discuss, you and I,” Asano added. “Much is owed. Many things are left to be taken care of. Would you take a stroll with an aging man?”
“I would be honored,” Asaka said.
“Father, no.” Himiko clung to her father’s side. His guards surged forward, fear reflecting in their eyes.
“This man is my trusted vassal,” Asano roared. “He has made every sacrifice a samurai can make for his lord and more. Do not shame me by your actions! There’s nothing to fear.”
Himiko released her father’s arm. His men reluctantly fell back. Walking side-by-side, Asano and Asaka moved past Toshi and the others, who moved to let them through.
“Who’s the young lady, Toshi-kun?” Miko whispered. “She seems to be trying to catch your attention.”
“Huh?” He drew his gaze away from the direction the two lords had taken. “Oh, that’s Lady Himiko, Asano-sama’s daughter. She helped me figure out a way to get an audience with her father.”
“Do you know her well?” Miko asked.
“I guess so,” he replied. “We’ve kept each other company during most of my stay here.”
Silver bells tinkled in the night as Miko nodded her head knowingly. “Have you pillowed with her?”
He choked. “Miko-san! She’s the lord’s daughter!” He glanced behind him, hoping Himiko hadn’t overheard them somehow. The geisha’s soft laughter cascaded to his burning ears.
“Oh, Toshi-chan, you are such a delight!”
He glanced back again—Himiko was, indeed, trying to gain his attention. “Miko-san, would you—would you like to meet her?”
Though he had hoped for this often enough, now that the opportunity was there he was no longer sure.
“Oh, yes, I’d love to,” the geisha said eagerly.
He left Miko’s side and went to join Himiko. As soon as he’d come into the area protected by Asano’s samurai, she rushed forward to meet him.
“Kazete-san! It’s true, it’s all true,” she said. “I beg you to forgive me. I thought your recent fever had clouded your mind. Though I had tried not to, I doubted your tale.” She wouldn’t look him in the eye.
“There’s nothing to forgive,” he told her. “You believed in me enough to help me and that’s what counts.
If I’d been in your position, I would have never believed a word of it.”
A soft smile crossed her lips before she turned shyly away from him.
“Himiko-sama, I’ve someone I’d like you to meet,” he said. “It’s someone who means a great deal to me.”
Her wide almond eyes turned to meet his own. “Meet? One of them?”
“Yes.” He nodded. “It really would mean a lot to me. I’ve hoped for some time the two of you might meet.”
“The geisha?”
“Yes.” He tried to read her slightly paling face.
“You want us to meet?” she asked again.
“I’d like it very much.”
Himiko glanced in the skeletons’ direction. After a moment, she straightened up, a smile on her face. It was only a little frayed around the edges. “Please introduce us. I’d be honored to meet her.”
She took his arm as he led her away from the ring of guards toward his companions. Miko left the shadows and met them partway. She bowed deeply. The two of them quickly did the same.
“Miko-san, I’d like to introduce you to Lady Himiko. Himiko-sama, this is my friend, Akiuji Miko.”
“I’m pleased to meet you, Akiuji-san.” Himiko’s awed and frightened gaze wouldn’t leave the geisha’s white mask.
“It’s my pleasure,” Miko said. “I see there’s much of your father in you.”
She blushed. “Thank you.”
“We’re grateful you helped Toshi-kun achieve his task. By helping him, you helped all of us.”
“I truly did nothing,” Himiko countered. “Kazete-san did all the work. I was just grateful for his company, never suspecting how much more he would eventually do. If not for him, my father and I would never have gotten our lives back from those who’d stolen them.”
Toshi blushed crimson.
“He does that rather well, don’t you think so?” Miko asked mischievously.
A small smile lit Himiko’s face. “Yes, I think you’re right, Miko-san. He does do it quite well.”
With his cheeks now burning even more intently, Toshi stared helplessly from one to the other as they laughed behind raised sleeves.
“This is why practicing the way of the sword is better,” Mitsuo confided quietly from behind him.
He glanced at his teacher, nodding in agreement with the stooped samurai.
“Kirin-san.” Asano’s deep voice startled them all as it cut across the courtyard. Kirin hurried off in the direction of the call, to reappear moments later. He stayed in the courtyard only long enough to pick out a couple of men before disappearing with them into the castle.
Wondering what was going on, Toshi stared after them. In less than two minutes, the three men reappeared. One carried a mat, the other a table. Kirin’s arms were loaded with paper, brushes, ink and several other items. The three stepped without explanation across the courtyard and off in the direction Asano and Asaka had gone.
Silence settled as everyone waited to see what might happen next. As the minutes dragged on, a low murmur of whispers could be heard growing on both sides. Silence instantly reigned again, however, when the two guards rushed back into the courtyard.
The two men hurried to the middle of the open yard and set the mat on the ground with the table on top of it. Kirin returned, soon followed by Asaka and Asano, who were still deep in conversation. Toshi couldn’t help but eavesdrop as they walked by.
&nb
sp; “His clan has always used many dishonorable methods,” Asano said. “I am not surprised he hired an assassin to thwart your mission, even if it meant sinking your ship and taking the assassin with it. There was no way you could have known.”
Asaka said nothing.
The two men drifted on to the waiting table. They continued to speak, but their voices were too low for him to overhear anymore. After several minutes there, Asaka rejoined his group. Asano stood and called for everyone’s attention.
“I wish to warmly welcome all of you to my humble home. Your coming has brought me more joy than you will ever know,” he stated. “Your mission is over, your duty is done. What you have so selflessly given goes beyond the bounds of Bushido. A shrine shall be built in your honor where your names shall be praised throughout time.”
Asano stood tall, as a man reborn, his gaze carefully memorizing every one of the skeletons before him.
“Your clan was wronged during the time of your absence, its existence struck from the records. This I have sworn to rectify. The Asaka clan shall exist once again, all its previous lands and more placed under its control.”
Toshi stared at Asaka, his heart soaring at the news. He knew the samurai would have never asked for this, though there was probably nothing he wanted more. He knew he was right when he saw Miko hide her face behind her hands.
Asano withdrew a rolled parchment from his sleeve. He carefully smoothed it open and then handed it to those before him. The parchment was written in a meticulous hand, Asano’s signature stamped in red at the bottom. The excitement amongst Asaka’s men was almost palpable. It abruptly died, however, as they all recalled no living heir remained to the Asaka clan.
“An heir has been found by means of adoption.” Asaka stepped forward to stand at Asano’s side. “I have found someone worthy of carrying the family name. All that remains is to obtain his consent.”
Asaka had found someone to become his heir. Toshi felt his own excitement growing. Yes, surely during all his years of travel Asaka had found someone worthy long ago. Now that his own mission was over, he needed to make a new life for himself. He could never go back to what he’d been before. Asaka had paid for his freedom. Perhaps the heir would allow him to become one of his servants. The idea appealed to him very much.
“Chizuson-san, would you consent to become my adopted son?”
For a moment, Toshi didn’t realize the question had been directed at him. His eyes grew wide as he realized what had just been said. He’d heard of a few rare occasions when a peasant warrior had been raised to the status of samurai, but him? He was just a boy! How could a samurai of Asaka’s caliber want a mere mapmaker as the new head of his clan?
Shaking, he dropped to his hands and knees, his heart threatening to burst with emotion. “Sir, I’m not worthy of such an honor!”
He stared hard at the ground as he heard Asaka step toward him. He trembled as the samurai’s fleshless hands reached down for him and slowly drew him to his feet.
“You have given us great honor with your efforts on our behalf,” Asaka said softly. “Yet, it isn’t for your sake I wish for you to become my son, but for the clan and its lord. What I offer you isn’t easy, for it means following the ways of Bushido, with all the joys and hardships that go with it. I owe you much more than this, but I am selfish. Though I’ve already asked so much of you, I would ask this one more thing.”
Toshi stared at the samurai’s green, glowing eyes, his breathing growing ragged. His gaze went to the others. All their eyes glowed intensely. His eyes came at last to rest on Himiko. She was smiling. It would be a burden, one he wasn’t so sure he would be able to live up to. But the rewards could be great.
He faced his lord again. “I would consider it a great honor and privilege to become your son, Asaka-sama.” He bowed low.
A roaring cheer rose up from those around him. Asaka and Asano both converged on Toshi and steered him to the small table so he might sign the proper documents before he could think to change his mind.
His vision clouded as he realized he would no longer be Chizuson Toshiro, peasant mapmaker and, of late, adventurer. Now he would be Asaka Toshiro, a samurai lord. His doubts, and the new burden he’d taken on, were pushed behind him as everyone gathered around to offer congratulations. There would be time enough to worry about it all later.
“For the few months left before you reach full manhood, Asano-sama will be your guardian,” Asaka said. “Learn from him all you will need to know.”
“Hai, Asaka-sama.” Miko had been right about him all along.
“You will become an exceptional samurai, Toshi-kun. I know you’ll make us all proud,” Miko said.
He blushed at the strong conviction in her voice. “I’ll do my best.” He hoped it would be enough.
“I know you will,” she said happily.
Toshi became the recipient of a quick hug.
“Find a teacher of good repute,” Mitsuo instructed him. “And do not forget to practice daily. Zen, art and swordsmanship are indispensable to a samurai.” His stooped form seemed to be standing straighter than before.
“I won’t forget, Sensei.”
One by one, the rest of Asaka’s men presented themselves to him and bowed deeply. He understood they were saying goodbye. His stomach tightened as he realized he would soon be on his own again.
“Miko-san?” he asked.
“Yes, Toshi-kun?”
“Must you…” He shook his head. “When will you go?”
Her eyes shone as she turned to look at him. “The sun will soon be here. We haven’t seen it in a long time. After that, we will go.”
“A sun-watching party?” Himiko sounded excited. “What a delightful idea! We’ll do our best to make your last moments as joyful as possible.”
With tears glinting in her eyes, she left them in a flurry of silk, calling for servants as she went. Colorful paper lanterns were brought out, lighting the area brightly enough to make it seem like day. Servants with tables streamed out into the courtyard, their shock barely hidden as they caught glimpses of their unusual guests.
Toshi watched in wonder as Himiko drew each of the skeletal warriors to a table and set them to painting, composing poetry or playing games. She was the perfect hostess, in no way giving the impression she saw them for what they truly were. Realizing this, he became aware he hadn’t thought of them in that way for some time himself. They’d gone from frightening captors to uneasy allies to something much more than he would have ever thought possible.
The next few hours passed. Laughter echoed off and on throughout the courtyard. To his amazement, he even saw his adopted father laugh with abandon. It felt strange. Though he had no true way to tell, he was sure Miko was beaming behind her mask.
As dawn approached, all the lanterns were extinguished. Everyone around him was filled with joy, but Toshi’s own happiness dampened as each of the lanterns was put out. His friends would be leaving soon.
All of Asaka’s men stood as one and gathered in a line in the middle of the courtyard, facing east. Miko hugged Himiko in earnest and thanked her for the lovely evening. Toshi stared at the ground as she then came to bid him farewell.
“Take care, my man-to-be,” Miko said. “If I can, I will look in on you from the next plane.” She hugged him, and as she did so, she whispered into his ear. “Hurry and find yourself a wife so the clan will grow. I also just happen to know of a young lady who’s eligible.”
“As you say, Miko-san.” He pulled away gently, glad she liked Himiko but embarrassed by her words nevertheless.
She left him then and, much to his chagrin, returned to speak to Himiko. He was thinking strongly of trying to put a stop to whatever mischief the geisha was up to when Asaka stepped before him, blocking his view.
“Toshiro-san.”
“Sir?”
“I think you’ll like my old home.”
He had never heard the samurai sound so at ease, so human.
“There ar
e places of harsh beauty there, and others are infused with the harmony so many of us try to attain for ourselves. When you reclaim it, search these places out for me. Let them bring you joy, just as they did for my brothers and me in our youth. Share it with those who come after us.” Asaka’s voice was soft and full of feeling, just as it had been in that dream so long ago. “I can never repay you for what you’ve done, but I’ll make sure your way into the next life is made much easier for it.”
Toshi swallowed hard.
“I have given you my family name, and it’s a burden I’m sure you’ll carry well. Yet, I wish to give you something that has no weight tied to it.” Slowly, Asaka removed his sheathed katana. Holding it in both hands, he presented it.
“Asaka-sama, I can’t! This is—”
“Take it!” The samurai’s harsh whisper contained some of the steel Toshi had come to know so well.
“Yes, Father. Thank you.” He bowed as low as he could and then gingerly took the sword from Asaka’s offering hands.
“Her name is Swift Wind. Take good care of her, and of yourself.” Asaka bowed low.
Not quite daring to slip the sword, and all it signified, into his sash, Toshi held on to it tightly as Asaka walked away. He noticed a piece of rolled paper protruding from the sword’s guard, but dismissed it as the samurai joined the others.
The sky brightened with pinks and oranges. It lightened all around them as they stood waiting. The sun rose to peek over the wall.
Toshi’s eyes never left his companions, his knuckles white as he held onto the sheathed katana. He didn’t even look as he heard Himiko move to stand beside him.
As the rays of the sun struck the courtyard, the colors of the kimonos worn by the skeletons began to fade. Parts of their clothing soon became transparent.
Tears welled in Toshi’s eyes and rolled unhampered down his face. As he wept in mixed joy and sadness, he saw both Asaka and Miko reach up to remove their masks. As the two masks fell to the ground, they turned away from the sun to look upon Toshi one last time.
He heard Himiko gasp beside him as their faces came into view. Their bones were barely visible, most of their bodies barely outlined. Yet, unlike before, they had a semblance of flesh, one as pale and transparent as the rest of them had become. Miko and Asaka’s youthful faces looked at him with joy-filled smiles. The rest of the group turned toward him then and bowed as one before abruptly disappearing. The soft tinkling of bells filled the air.
Gloria Oliver Page 33
