The travel from the government's headquarters to the new citadel was swift, almost instant to be exact. The feeling was all too new for Tsubaki to understand as she had rarely used the portal gates back then. With a light step in her footing, Tsubaki stepped off of the citadel's portal, finding herself amazed at how grand and large the citadel truly was. Of course, she knew that this empty wasteland would soon be filled with a plethora of touken danshis (A/N: touken danshi = sword warrior), but she couldn't help but take in the environment as she saw it.
"Aruji-sama, do you still have the checklist that the headmaster gave you?" Konnosuke asked.
"I do, shall we go over it?" Tsubaki replied as she pulled out the checklist from the pockets of her skirt.
Written on the checklist were simple inspections that she had to make to ensure that everything was in top shape before she could summon a touken danshi. The list was lengthy which caused Tsubaki to sigh as her only reaction, "... Well... we better start now..." she said with another sigh as she walked towards the grand entrance in front of them. Following the list closely, Tsubaki would find herself exploring and navigating around the large citadel, familiarizing each area as best as she could. At the front of the citadel was the teleporting machine that the touken danshis would be using in order to go back in time. Of course, the portal gate could be used as an alternative but it would need to be operated by Tsubaki's spiritual abilities, which she felt wasn't necessary, for the swords had the fancy machine after all.
Not too far from the main entrance was a grand viewing room with thin breathable paneling all around. This paneling could be tied up for a more clearer view of the large center area or of the large pond on the other side.
"What a lovely spot to have tea..." Tsubaki said thinking out loud.
On the other side of the viewing room was the main kitchen area. This area could be reached by walking across the center grassy area or by walking around if getting dirty isn't much of a preference. The kitchen was large and it looked as if it could fit multiple people working inside of it at once. Outside of the kitchen was the dining area, which had a reminiscent feel to it as it was set up just like the one back at the government's headquarters.
In a separate building far out in the distance was the dojo or the training area. It was a large plot of land with an even larger building on it. The interior of the dojo had all the necessary equipment for the swords to use while training such as dummies, wooden swords, and other things. The dojo even had a large dirt patch outside with plenty of trees around to add a change of scenary if so pleased.
The more Tsubaki traversed around, the more markings that the checklist had. Rooms were clean and empty outside of the futons stashed away in the cupboards while stables were tidied and horses fed. The open-aired bath was warm and perfect to the touch for bathing while the laundry area was well... ready for laundry. The empty plots of land out in the back of the citadel were supposed to be used for farming and cultivating as food was a hard resource for the government to constantly supply.
"All that's left to check is the smithing room..." Tsubaki said.
"Aruji-sama, this means...?" Konnosuke replies.
"Yes, it's time to summon a touken danshi," Tsubaki says shortly as the two of them make their way towards the smithing room. The smithing room was a strange room as it only allowed the saniwa and its partner to enter. No touken danshi could enter and touken danshis that we're newly summoned could only leave the room. The smithing room smelt like iron and burning wood, a smell that Tsubaki would have to get used to from now on.
"It looks like everything's in place, Aruji-sama, it is time for you to summon your first touken danshi!" Konnosuke said with joy. He was excited to see the type of power that his strong master had been hiding after all.
"You're right, Konnosuke... let me show you the power of a saniwa!!" Tsubaki said feeling riled up by his words.
Within moments, the room had fallen silent and only the crackling of the flames could be heard from the furnace. Slowly and gracefully, the arms of the saniwa were lifted into the air just above the flames of the furance as her voice carried around the room,
"May your strength harness a body,
May blood run through the core of your steel.
May the sorrows you carry be your weapon,
For I grant you another reason to fight!"
"Rise! For you are a touken danshi!!"
With each chant she made, a mystical light blue aura began to surround her body. It danced and waved around in the air mocking the embers that flew from the sparks in the fire. The sound of a hammer hitting an anvil could be heard but could not be visually seen as the fire intensified with each phrase she spoke. As the final words of her chant came closer to its end, the light blue aura slammed against the furnace, turning the red flames blue before a bright light engulfed the entirety of the room.
As the light began to fade, the two could see the faint silhouette of a human figure in front of them as its voice rung out,
"My name is Horikawa Kunihiro. Together with Izuminokami Kanesada, I served Toushizou Hijikata as a wakizashi. It's nice to meet you, Aruji-san" The newest touken danshi said as he appeared before them out of thin air.
"A..Aruji-sama?! You did it!! You really summoned a touken danshi!!" Konnosuke cheered.
"A..Ah? W..Well, of course I did, I am the saniwa after all!" Tsubaki said with a smile despite feeling terribly exhausted.
It had taken a lot of her strength to summon the sword and not only did she overdo it, but she was completely unaware of what sword she'd be summoning. During the ritual, she tried her best to concentrate her efforts into summoning an uchigatana or a tachi but she just couldn't feel their energies strong enough and simply reached for the energy that was closest to not overexert herself. As a result, she manifested the soul of Horikawa Kunihiro, a wakizashi, which was a sword smaller than an uchigatana but larger than a tantou and mainly had a supportive role in battles. Like the touken danshi said, he is one of the swords owned by Toushizou Hijikata, who was the vice general of the Shinsengumi.
"Aruji-san, thank you for giving me another opportunity to fight... by any chance, is Kane-san... I mean Izuminokami Kanesada here?" Horikawa asked looking around rather frantically.
"Unfortunately, no, you are the first touken danshi to be summoned at this citadel. Come now... we have much to discuss," Tsubaki said towards the touken danshi as the three of them returned back to the citadel's viewing room.
The area was spacious and it was sectioned off into two areas: one with tables and one without. The three of them would sit down in the section with the tables, resting well upon the floor cushions as they discussed what it meant to be a touken danshi. After all that work and show she had put on, Tsubaki could finally take a small breather but not before Horikawa could catch on to it,
"Aruji-san, are you tired? You seem awfully exhausted..." he asked, worried about her.
"Yes, just a little. After all, it takes a lot of energy to summon a touken danshi like yourself. Giving a sword a human body is no easy task, now is it?" She said towards Horikawa in a way to tease him, "Thank you for worrying about me though but it is my duty as the saniwa to manifest swords into humans! That's why I am sitting down with you right now having this discussion." She said with a weary smile.
"What do you have to discuss with me about, Aruji-san?" Horikawa asked politely.
"Horikawa Kunihiro, you are a touken danshi and I am your master. Your job is to protect the flow of history from the History Retrograde Army, whose objective is to alter all courses of history in any way they can." Tsubaki explained.
"You don't mean!" Horikawa exclaimed.
"Yes, it is possible that you may encounter your former master and they will try to do anything to harm your former master's legacy as well. That's why we have to protect history from these beings, you wouldn't want to see your former master's glory getting erased from history, would you?" Tsubaki explained as an upset expression grew on Horikawa's face.
"No! I don't want Hijikata-san's history to be messed with but..." he said with a pause, "Aruji-san... How should I react when I meet my former master...?" he said as a grim expression grew on his face.
"It will be painful to face... but you must remember your mission. If anything, it may become an experience to help you overcome whatever sorrows you have hidden within you, Horikawa," Tsubaki said as she gave the sword a pat on his head, "Izuminokami Kanesada was your partner, right? Let's show him a cool version of yourself when he comes."
The words that she had said hit Horikawa, releasing him from the uneasiness and sorrow that had clouded his mind. The warmth of her hand on his head soothed him and reminded him that he was no longer an object but a human with a heart and mind of his own.
"You're right, Aruji-san! I'm going to do my best so that Kane-san can see a cooler side of me!" Horikawa said with a bright smile.
"Good, I like that answer, Horikawa!" Tsubaki replies.