Ankūro

30

30

Divest of your pride,
Accept all of your failures,
Or die ignorant.
- Osokan.

Ajo turned the corner of the street in time to see Sho-oro fall. Collapsing against the nearest building, he fought for breath. He couldn't believe the old woman had reached the village so fast. He only gave her a few moments lead, in order to catch his breath, and now he saw her already in the middle of battle. He could only assume she practiced some form of magic that allowed her to move with such speed.

Before he could stand straight and force himself onwards, he felt a hand upon his shoulder, setting his heart racing at even greater pace than before. He stumbled away, throwing a wild punch back and thanked all the Divine Spirits that he was not a fighter.

Tiima had followed him. Of course she would. With her growing hair slick against her head, she tried to see through the rain towards the events upon the village's central mound, beads of rain catching upon her long lashes. She hadn't even had to avoid his flailing fist as it sailed far past her face.

"What's happening? Is she still alive? Is everyone alright?" Eager to reach the mound and watch her friend fight, she still stayed with her father.

"I don't know, I only just got back myself, but it looks like she's beaten the short one." Gathering her rain soaked hand, he continued up the street towards the site of the battle.

As he neared the central mound, he caught sight of the other villagers, including Apé, as they all stared up at the spectacle before them. Ajo couldn't blame them, for anyone living in such a village there were few chances of ever seeing a duel between Sansui warriors. If duels occurred, the cities were the most likely to see them. In all his years, Ajo had never seen one.

With Tiima beside him, he circled the central mound and reached Apé. He stopped himself from embracing her, but he yearned to hold her in his arms. But, as he looked upon her, he could see the pain in her eyes, the way she stood, shoulders taut, back bent in an awkward fashion. She saw him and almost ran to him before catching herself.

"Madam Headwoman, are you alright? Are the rest of the villagers ..." Apé held up a hand, hushing him.

"I made a foolish show of defiance and paid for it. All the other villagers are alive and uninjured. Except poor Kiui, of course." She caught his eyes and he saw a slight narrowing, an upturn of the edges of her lips. She couldn't show how pleased she felt to see him.

"Madam Headwoman! Your back!" Tiima looked horrified as she examined Apé's back, her hand raising to her mouth. "Let me take you to your mansion. We must stop the bleeding."

"Later. I must see this to the end." Apé nodded to the central mound, where the old woman and the tall, bald warrior, Hiriomi, now faced each other. "I need to see this end."

There was an edge to Apé's voice, a determination that Ajo could not argue with. He caught the look from Tiima, who shook her head as she examined Apé's back. Ajo was not a healer, he had no idea what permanent damage could happen if Apé did not get her wound seen to. He could only hope that Apé continued to display the great strength of will he knew her to have.

Upon the central mound, Hiriomi circled the edge, and the old woman did the same, keeping the distance between them as they studied one another. Ajo could see the body of the shorter Sansui, slumped to the side, ignored by his colleague and the old woman. They had eyes only for each other and a dead body meant nothing to either of them in this moment. Ajo couldn't understand why, but he could swear he saw a look of admiration in Hiriomi's eyes.

"I know who you are, of course. I studied all I could about the Order of the Two Monkeys after watching Master Masakushi Itomo at the Emperor's Tournament. I never forget a style." For the first time since Ajo arrived, Hiriomi glanced at his dead companion. "I knew as soon as you killed Hōtō and again, here, against Sho-oro. The same style I saw all those years ago."