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- #21
Re: Deceiving Appearances (Kat) GMed by Takimaru
"Hitomi..." repeated the youth to himself aloud after Ren gave him the alias. He took a second to match the name to her face, burning it into his memory from that moment on, and offered a cheerful grin. "It's good to meet you!" exclaimed Kojiro, his pupils dilating noticeably should the kunoichi care to look. Whether she cared for his attentions or not, it looked as though she was off to a great start with this particular member of the group. But while he seemed all too eager to meet and walk with her, he was quick to wave off her explanations and recommendations regarding the load he was to carry as minor concerns. "Don't worry about it," he assured her. "I can handle them! I'm originally from Udou Town, after all, and we're no pushovers when it comes to hard work. So there's no way I'm going to need help with a little luggage," the ronin went on to boast.
However, his sense of direction, or lack thereof, would make itself quite evident after the fact. "Huh? Oh, uh, yeah. I was just... hahh," he stammered, having to make a bit of a jog in order to catch up with Ren's calm and measured gait. "I do!" Koji then answered to her first assumption, happily taking the bait. "No choice when you're a ronin, really. Gotta constantly be looking for where the good jobs are, or others will get to them first. Like those other two. Actually, we're no famed trio or anything like that, don't get me wrong. I only met Akito a few days ago, and old man Fumio just showed up yesterday. Sooo... couldn't tell you a whole lot about those guys," explained the youth. "As for myself, my last lord was ordered to commit seppuku..." he then trailed off, a little more downbeat in tone upon mentioning the last word of his sentence.
Seppuku, ritual suicide, was part of the code of honor that lords were obligated to follow. If they had disgraced their superiors through their actions, they might be ordered to do so and thus die with honor, being remembered favorably despite their past transgressions. Lord Kuroda was notorious for ordering a great deal of his former vassals to engage in such a custom. For those who did, he would always speak fondly of their willingness to kill themselves for his cause. As for those who didn't, or attempted to run away or start a rebellion... their names were essentially erased from any positive light in history, with their families shamed to no small extent--sometimes harassed to death, as it were. Either way, the order of seppuku wasn't typically one that was given lightly. One had to commit a grave offense or a massive failure in order to earn it. And even then, going through with the ritual might preserve the honor of one's family name, but it certainly wouldn't help in keeping their life and future productivity.
So it was of little surprise that Kojiro's enthusiasm faded a bit when addressing such a heavy topic. "It's a long story, but he decided to keep his honor in the end, and that left me and a few others without a lord to serve. My old brothers in arms decided to become rebels or bandits, but... I couldn't do it. I knew it just wasn't the right thing to do, you know? I only want to face worthy adversaries!" he exclaimed proudly.
"As for you being a delicate flower, nothing's wrong with that! Being a warrior definitely isn't for everyone, especially not for women. So long as you have a gardener to protect you, I think you fit the role quite well! I would gladly be your gardener," he declared, looking at her expectantly after the fact as if awaiting her flattered expression.
It was almost enough to make him forget that there was still work to do. The trunk came first, which was located in the castle. Of course, there were the guards at the main gate that they had to deal with...
"Who's this?" asked the first sentry, raising a brow at the one next to Ren.
The young ronin cleared his throat, saying, "I'm Umeda Kojiro, formerly of Udou Town and once a proud vassal to the late--"
"Hmph. We can't have you inside the castle. Just wait here," interrupted the second, before nodding to his cohort and eyeing Ren for a moment. "We'll deliver your luggage," he announced, before heading into the castle proper for a brief moment. Out came the guard along with a pair of servants who had Ren's goods in tow. They gently set the koto and trunk on the ground in front of the pair, and Kojiro wasted no time trying to heave the latter up by himself.
"Oh, pfft... that's not so bad! Hrrnnng..."
He did succeed, but not without a degree of visible strain. The koto and dress still needed to be carried, and the youth seemed intent on stacking them on top of his already shaky load. Ren could either leave him to his own devices, or attempt to help...
"Hitomi..." repeated the youth to himself aloud after Ren gave him the alias. He took a second to match the name to her face, burning it into his memory from that moment on, and offered a cheerful grin. "It's good to meet you!" exclaimed Kojiro, his pupils dilating noticeably should the kunoichi care to look. Whether she cared for his attentions or not, it looked as though she was off to a great start with this particular member of the group. But while he seemed all too eager to meet and walk with her, he was quick to wave off her explanations and recommendations regarding the load he was to carry as minor concerns. "Don't worry about it," he assured her. "I can handle them! I'm originally from Udou Town, after all, and we're no pushovers when it comes to hard work. So there's no way I'm going to need help with a little luggage," the ronin went on to boast.
However, his sense of direction, or lack thereof, would make itself quite evident after the fact. "Huh? Oh, uh, yeah. I was just... hahh," he stammered, having to make a bit of a jog in order to catch up with Ren's calm and measured gait. "I do!" Koji then answered to her first assumption, happily taking the bait. "No choice when you're a ronin, really. Gotta constantly be looking for where the good jobs are, or others will get to them first. Like those other two. Actually, we're no famed trio or anything like that, don't get me wrong. I only met Akito a few days ago, and old man Fumio just showed up yesterday. Sooo... couldn't tell you a whole lot about those guys," explained the youth. "As for myself, my last lord was ordered to commit seppuku..." he then trailed off, a little more downbeat in tone upon mentioning the last word of his sentence.
Seppuku, ritual suicide, was part of the code of honor that lords were obligated to follow. If they had disgraced their superiors through their actions, they might be ordered to do so and thus die with honor, being remembered favorably despite their past transgressions. Lord Kuroda was notorious for ordering a great deal of his former vassals to engage in such a custom. For those who did, he would always speak fondly of their willingness to kill themselves for his cause. As for those who didn't, or attempted to run away or start a rebellion... their names were essentially erased from any positive light in history, with their families shamed to no small extent--sometimes harassed to death, as it were. Either way, the order of seppuku wasn't typically one that was given lightly. One had to commit a grave offense or a massive failure in order to earn it. And even then, going through with the ritual might preserve the honor of one's family name, but it certainly wouldn't help in keeping their life and future productivity.
So it was of little surprise that Kojiro's enthusiasm faded a bit when addressing such a heavy topic. "It's a long story, but he decided to keep his honor in the end, and that left me and a few others without a lord to serve. My old brothers in arms decided to become rebels or bandits, but... I couldn't do it. I knew it just wasn't the right thing to do, you know? I only want to face worthy adversaries!" he exclaimed proudly.
"As for you being a delicate flower, nothing's wrong with that! Being a warrior definitely isn't for everyone, especially not for women. So long as you have a gardener to protect you, I think you fit the role quite well! I would gladly be your gardener," he declared, looking at her expectantly after the fact as if awaiting her flattered expression.
It was almost enough to make him forget that there was still work to do. The trunk came first, which was located in the castle. Of course, there were the guards at the main gate that they had to deal with...
"Who's this?" asked the first sentry, raising a brow at the one next to Ren.
The young ronin cleared his throat, saying, "I'm Umeda Kojiro, formerly of Udou Town and once a proud vassal to the late--"
"Hmph. We can't have you inside the castle. Just wait here," interrupted the second, before nodding to his cohort and eyeing Ren for a moment. "We'll deliver your luggage," he announced, before heading into the castle proper for a brief moment. Out came the guard along with a pair of servants who had Ren's goods in tow. They gently set the koto and trunk on the ground in front of the pair, and Kojiro wasted no time trying to heave the latter up by himself.
"Oh, pfft... that's not so bad! Hrrnnng..."
He did succeed, but not without a degree of visible strain. The koto and dress still needed to be carried, and the youth seemed intent on stacking them on top of his already shaky load. Ren could either leave him to his own devices, or attempt to help...