The walls of the city were left in rubble. Edo lost a total of 56,790 soldiers and 13,754 archers. Not only that, the surrounding outskirts of the city were flattened to the ground, crops of the outside farms burned, but even with all of that, not a single civilian life was lost.
Jisei and his army had already left to continue his conquest of the North, leaving Edo to tend its own wounds, though the people couldn't be more grateful for his mercy. Only the citizens are left to rebuild their original homes. Eiji and his generals roam around the city, inspecting all the damage done by the Siege. The hum cries of children and broken overwhelmed the air thick with dust and rubble. Hundreds of buildings were reduced to the ground. The three innermost rings of the wall were thankfully not damaged, though the outer parts of the city did not survive the constant barrage of cannons and explosives alike. Eiji walked around the dirty streets, his head mind filled to the brim with thoughts.
"I betrayed the Emperor, but at least the people are safe... That's all that matters to me." He thought silently. His eyes were glued to the ground, dark and blank, not wanting to face any more of the reality of the situation. He was in a daze until one of his generals spoke, "Um, Yamamoto-sama... What do we do now?" The man asked, his eyes expecting an answer. He broke free from his mindless state and processed the question. As he took in the words, he only slumped his shoulders, tired of it all. He responded, "Order the abled men to rebuild what they can and treat the injured." His orders were simple, but it was all that the generals wanted to hear. Eiji turned around to face them, "Now go, I will leave that matter to you." The generals nodded, smiling at Eiji, their eyes were mixed with a bit of hope and they all replied with the utmost respect, "Yes sir!" The generals saluted Eiji and they all left him to his thoughts.
He walked around, seeing the same scene all over again. Children crying, and families mourning the loss of the soldiers and their homes. Eiji's heart was heavy with regret and sorrow, as shown by his face. As he was mindlessly walking around, the familiar voice of a young girl called out to him. He turned around to see Miyako, running towards him. That sight cheered him up a bit. Miyako stopped in front of him, resting her hands on her knees to catch her breath. Her clothes were covered in dust, though that didn't seem to bother her. Eiji kneeled down at her level and asked, "What do you want, kid?" Miyako, after a while of gasping for air, replied, "Mister... Thank you for protecting us..." That shocked Eiji a little, but he ultimately smiled and patted her head, "You're welcome." Eiji looked around to see people looking at him with respect, their smiles bright and warm. Eiji held back tears, not wanting to seem weak. He stood up and asked Miyako, "Hey kid, wanna be strong?" Miyako's eyes lit up and nodded eagerly. Eiji smiled warmly and tossed her a stone glowing with symbols. Miyako was confused, "Mister, what's this?" Eiji patted her head and replied, "Eat that when you're at home." Miyako grinned and ran away, so bright and cheerful. Eiji just fondly sighed and retreated back to his office and lazed around in it.
"Now that I think about it, giving a Stone to a young kid is a bit irresponsible... Ehh, whatever." He shrugged and slept.
...
A week later, the people were slowly getting used to their new lives, having the highest respect towards Eiji, the one who led them through the time of greatest need. The people were expecting the news of Sendai's imminent defeat, though they really didn't want that to happen at all. As they were continuing with their lives in the rubble of their homes, one of the men shouted, "Look! The Empire! The soldiers are coming to help us! Jisei lost!" The people cheered and ran to welcome the Emperor's soldiers.
...
The people greeted the marching soldiers, opening the gates for them. The people were cheering them, shouting words of praise and pleas for help. All of their cheers stopped abruptly when one soldier yelled, his voice reaching far, "Bring Eiji Yamamoto to us and none of you shall be punished!" The people's mouths opened wide, shocked by his words. The soldier added, "For the betrayal of the Emperor, he shall be stripped of his rank, and so is his right to live!" The people's hearts were even more broken. The messenger, a man dressed in high-ranking clothes shouted for the people to hear, "Eiji Yamamoto dared to join side with Jisei the Rebel! Thus, he shall be trialed for his crimes."
...
The people threw rotten food, vegetables, and other sorts of objects, all screaming in rejection. "Go away! Yamamoto-sama is our hero!" The soldiers flinched back a bit, though they ultimately pushed through the crowds. The people did their best to stop them, but it was no use, as the soldiers made their way to Eiji's office.
...
Eiji was just writing some random gibberish when the door slammed open. A group of soldiers tied his arms with a rope, Eiji tried to protest, "H-hey, what the hell are you people doing?!" The soldiers paid no mind and continued. There was not even a trial, as he was detained immediately. The messenger said to him sympathetically, "Yamamoto-san, the Emperor applauds your efforts to defend the city, so he has chosen for you to only be imprisoned... Be grateful for his mercy." Eiji nodded, knowing that this was the consequence of choosing the lives of the people over his loyalty to the Empire. He shrugged anyway, having no regrets in his heart. The safety of the people was the most important to him.
As he was being chained up, he asked the messenger, his eyes genuinely filled with curiosity and anger, "How did the Emperor know about my betrayal?" The messenger sighed and pointed at one man. Eiji followed his finger and saw one of his most trusted generals, overseeing the scene. Eiji looked at him, but he sighed in defeat, "I shouldn't have trusted him..."
...
A parade of humiliation was held, as Eiji was being dragged across the streets, his neck and arms chained as he was being pulled by a carriage. The people were begging for him to be let go, but it was no use. After a while, the Imperial soldiers finally reached the prison. He was dragged across the ground, and he was thrown into a dark cell. A guard was outside his cell, monitoring him.
...
Hours later, Eiji was in his cell, he asked the guard, "Hey... What happened to Jisei?" The guard didn't respond at first, but then he replied, "When Sendai was bracing for his attack, his army did not appear." Eiji tilted his head in confusion, "They disappeared...? I thought they were for sure gonna attack Sendai..." The soldier shrugged, "Who knows? All we know is that Japan survived a catastrophe." Eiji nodded. That was indeed confusing. Jisei had all the power, but he just decided to vanish out of nowhere. That was strange. Eiji shrugged, accepting his fate as a prisoner.
...
Hundreds of people were gathered outside the prison, demanding Eiji to be freed. The guards stood guard, and though they wanted to free him as well, they could not. The guards were holding back the urge to revolt, to free their hero. One of them yelled with tears uncontrollably flowing from their eyes, "He saved us! The Emperor who abandoned us dares to imprison our savior?!" Their voice was shaking, but it was enough to convey the idea. The guards stood there, shaking in their boots, one of them even cried with regret for throwing their hero to a prison cell.
The protest lasted for days, almost all of the people wanted Eiji to be freed, though that would only serve to satisfy the evil general's sadistic desires.
...
Years later, the general who betrayed Eiji became Edo's new lord, leading Edo by an iron fist. A man who was ruthless to the people below him, but would not hesitate to lick the Emperor's feet. The people lived in discontentment, hoping that one day, Edo's true leader would come back, returning to repair what Edo truly was.
...
He remained rotting in that cell for years, until that day...
Now, he finally cemented his status through two titles.
...
"The Traitor of Japan" and...
...
"The Hero of Edo"