Torakichi Kanemoto let out a grunt as he knelt next to a patch of flowers.
They were the known as the Tears of the Moon and they were a fairly rare flower that bloomed near the ending weeks of autumn. They had four thin petals that were hard and green on the outside and white on the inside with a beautiful yellow pistils.
Torakichi stood up and walked down a path that cut deep into the forest.
He eventually came across a pond. His eyes widened slightly upon noticing a pillar of smoke rising from the south.
He sighed deeply before making his way back up the path and it wasn't long before arrived at his home which was small wooden house at the halfway point of a hill.
Torakichi entered his home and prepared himself some tea.
He watched as the fire beneath the kettle flickered away and his body relished in its heat.
He rubbed his hands gently before certain voice called from outside.
"Mr. Kanemoto!"
Torakichi stood completely still.
"I know you're in there! I watched you enter not too long ago." The voice said.
Torakichi sighed before standing up and walking towards the door.
He opened it to find a wide eyed young man wearing a rather exquisite red kimono that was embellished with perfect black circles.
He stood about two and a half heads shorter than Torakichi and had a head of messy black hair that matched his bright eyes.
"Good morning, Mr. Kanemoto!" The main said unreasonably loudly.
"Good morning, Yorokobi. What brings you here?" Torakichi asked with crossed arms.
"I wanted to tell you that I'll be leaving for Chōten later today." Yorokobi said with a grin.
"Oh? I'm guessing you've been drafted. Is the capital in that much danger?" Torakichi asked as Yorokobi visibly shivered.
"I wasn't drafted. I volunteered." Yorokobi said with teeth that chattered.
Torakichi sighed before gesturing that Yorokobi enter.
He closed the door and gestured that Yorokobi sit.
Torakichi then served up some tea.
"I understand that circumstances led to you volunteering, that much is clear. What concerns me is your motivation. I hope you're going for the sole reason of protecting this land, it's people and by extension, your wife and son." Torakichi said as he sipped some of his tea.
"That's precisely the reason, sir! I'll use all you've taught me to keep those southerners at bay." Yorokobi said as he finished his tea.
His wide, youthful eyes reflected the fires dim light, making them even brighter than before.
Torakichi simply scoffed in response.
"Could it be that you don't believe me?" Yorokobi asked with a saddened expression.
"It's not that. I simply wish to know whether your heart is in the right place." Torakichi said as he finished his tea.
"Oh…" Yorokobi sounded.
"Bah! Heed not the concerns of this old man. I know you'll do what's best." Torakichi said with a faint smile. This made Yorokobi's already wide eyes widen even further.
"Now, go home and be sure to greet your family on my behalf." Torakichi said as he and Yorokobi stood up.
"You're always welcome to greet them yourself, sir." Yorokobi said as Torakichi opened the door.
"Come now, off you go." Torakichi said before hurriedly closing the door.
He then sighed as he Yorokobi's footsteps faded away.
Torakichi walked towards a pedestal atop which sat three weapons. An Ōdachi which was sheathed in a crimson scabbard, a Katana and a Tantō which were housed in black scabbards.
Torakichi knelt in front of the pedestal and took a deep, wistful breath as he thought back to a time long past.
He extended a trembling hand towards the Ōdachi, but stopped himself before hurriedly standing up.
The rest of the day then went by fairly uneventfully.
He then eventually laid his head to sleep, but a certain smell kept him up for some time.
It was a familiar and terrifying smell, but Torakichi shelved his fears before finally falling asleep.
.
..
The next day arrived and the smell from the night before seemed stronger.
Torakichi awoke and completed his morning routine.
After making sure that his house was clean, he grabbed a certain box and made his way down the path that led to a certain pond.
After reaching the pond, he took a seat on a small boulder and retrieved several items from his box.
One of them was a bamboo rod and the other was a ball of string. He spent the next few minutes preparing some bait before finally sending out his line into the pond.
Minutes turned into hours as Torakichi patiently waited.
He eventually caught a fish about the size of his hand before making his way back home.
There, he prepared the fish for cooking and he promptly ate it afterward.
Torakichi then cleaned his home again, before kneeling in front of a certain pedestal.
He pressed his trembling hands together before taking a deep breath.
"Wait for me, brothers fallen. Rest easy knowing that your children carry the spirit of Chūshin. The time will come when side by side we rest, so I ask that you wait for me a little longer." Torakichi said even as his throat tightened.
He nodded to himself before closing his eyes and thinking back to those times long past.
He fondly remembered-
"Mr. Kanemoto!"
An unfamiliar voice called breaking the silence of the afternoon.
"Mr. Kanemoto, I desperately need your help!"
Torakichi sighed before making his way toward the door, which he opened to find a distressed woman holding something wrapped in a blanket in her hands, although it seemed as though she was struggling to hold onto it.
"I assume you are Yorokobi's wife. It's a pleasure to meet you-"
"I apologize for disturbing you, but I had no other choice. My son… he's been turned to stone!" The woman said as she raised her arms as high as they could go, revealing that she was indeed holding what looked like the statue of a child.
Torakichi's eyes widened.
"Please, enter." He said before allowing the woman to enter his home.
He then sat opposite her and noticed that her eyes were swollen, possibly from crying.
Torakichi inspected the now uncovered stone child.
A boy that looked no older then three.
Torakichi scratched his greying beard as the tried to wrap his mind around this bizarre situation.
"Would you like some tea?" He asked.
"Yes, please." The woman said, her voice hoarse.
Torakichi prepared two cups of tea and offered one to the woman, who accepted her cup with a bow.
"Thank you." She said.
"Fret not. Now, I must ask that you describe exactly what happened before your son turned to stone." Torakichi instructed.
"Yes. I was cleaning the house earlier today and I decided to leave little Hibana by the the garden so that he could rest in the cool morning shade, however, as I cleaned, I noticed that he hadn't cried at all. I eventually finished my morning duties and returned to find that he had turned to stone. The air was then filled with screams and so I took Hibana and ran to the place my husband said was safest." The woman said as tears welled up in her eyes.
"I'm sorry for bringing my troubles here, but I didn't know what else to do." The woman said with a lowered head.
"What is your name?" Torakichi asked.
"Hanabira Kimura."
"Raise your head. You did what any mother would do in that situation. Although I am curious as to what else is happening in Kama." Torakichi droned.
"Do you perhaps know what caused my child's petrification?" Hanabira asked.
"Well… there is a legend. I believe it relates closely to your circumstances. Are you familiar with the story of the Ashen Beetle?"
"No." Hanabira said as she gently covered her child's stone body in the blanket she carried him in.
"Well, it's said that there was once a beetle. Beetle spent most of his days on the forest floor displaying nothing but disdain for the other animals. He wondered why he wasn't as beautiful as the butterfly or as clever as the fox. He was angered by the fact that all he ever did was crawl in the mud. His anger and jealousy eventually led him to the top of the highest mountain in Chūshin, where the dragons were said to rest. Upon arrival at the mountain top, Beetle saw a single dragon sleeping idly next to a pond. Beetle rudely awoke the dragon and demanded that the dragon draw out his inner self. The dragon told Beetle that he was incapable of such, however, all Beetle needed do was step into the pond and his inner self would be brought out. Beetle jumped into the pond without hesitation, but upon emerging from the pond, he saw that the dragon was gone and his body was completely covered in ash. He tried washing away the ash, but no matter how hard he tried, the ash remained. It is said that his ash is carried down the mountain by the wind and any who are touched by it are turned to stone." Torakichi said before taking a sip of his tea to find that it was cold.
"So… my child has been cursed?"
"That is the conclusion I have come to." Torakichi said.
More tears fell from Hanabira's eyes as she looked at her child's frozen stone face.
"Do the legends speak of a cure?"
"No. However, one could assume that by taking the afflicted to the pond atop the Shinsei mountains, we could use its divine waters to restore the child to his uncursed state." Torakichi said.
"Then that, I shall do. Thank you for everything-"
"You don't plan on going to Kuroppoi on your own, do you?" Torakichi asked.
"Have I any other options?" Hanabira asked as she clutched the heavy stone child in her shaking arms.
"Mmm… give me a moment." Torakichi said as he stood up.
He then knelt in front of a certain pedestal.
He pressed his open hands together before sighing deeply.
Torakichi stood before packing several items into a bag before placing his Katana on his waist.
He then placed the Ōdachi above it before taking his Tantō and offering it to Hanabira, who's eyes widened.
"What… I could never-"
"I am a soldier no longer. I am unbound by formality. Take it." Torakichi said.
Hanabira placed her child down before accepting the blade.
After grunting in approval, Torakichi offered Hanabira the bag from before.
Hanabira gave him a questioning look, but he merely crossed his arms in response.
"That boy would be saddened if he learned that I let his wife and child head south unprotected. I will accompany you to the mountains and I will see to it that your child is healed." Torakichi declared with a raised chin.
"Why… why have you chosen to help me?" Hanabira asked.
"What kind of man would I be if I didn't?" Torakichi asked.
"May I?" He asked as he extended his hand towards the stone child.
Hanabira looked at her child before taking a deep breath.
She then lifted the stone child and gave it to Torakichi, who placed the child on his back before wrapping it in multiple long strips of cloth.
He then covered himself in another, darker piece of cloth and Hanabira watched his back bent forwards under the weight of her child.
"Come now." Torakichi said, prompting Hanabira to pick up the bag.
She followed Torakichi out of the house and she watched as he closed his door.
He look a long look at the little wooden home before gesturing up the hill.
Hanabira nodded before leading Torakichi up the hill.
They eventually arrived at the top to find a burning village at the hill's foot. The fires below were as deep and as dark as the light of the evening sky.
"Kama burns. Our journey south will not be easy, but I am sure you possess the resilience found in most mothers. That which has driven me to accompany you. Remain constant and I am certain we will cure your child." Torakichi said as he offered Hanabira his old, calloused hand.
Hanabira accepted it before taking her first step down the hill.