Chapter 4.3 "Family Ties"

Paper shuffled, pages turned, and ink scribbled. The noise was unbearable like always. Sometimes he could forget it when he focused on his work enough. But the content was barely something to be remembered when the same things happened every day just at different times.

Customary trading between clans. Overseeing the selling of workmanship to craftsmen and alike. Expansion of inns and stores. New machinery being created. Drunkards fighting in taverns. Reports of all cities' activities. Charges from exasperated citizens had bad luck stricken them. Collecting fees from patronized enterprises. Paying the working men. Thieves trying their luck. Receiving the smallest of complaints and assuring those were taken care of. Misalignment between nobles from petty comments towards one another. And even where the dog pissed and the cat shat. Believe it or not, the time when you have seen it all comes, and after it, everything becomes boring.

Barely anything of noteworthy again, Sakamoto thought, ruffling his hair while grabbing another document. He sighed as he looked over the lines, someone asking their neighbor be taken care of as their grass was invading his territory by a finger.

A good reign breeds stability. And stability breeds nescience to the hard work put into maintaining that stableness. Something Sakamoto had to tell himself always or he would have gone crazy already.

"Going to have to tell the ones sending me these down there to double-check the urgency of these requests." Sakamoto sighed and stamped on the paper, to offer small aid, and continued with the others. Thinking his son was about to share a part of these responsibilities with him soon was a huge blessing.

Sakamoto stretched and yawned and picked another paper, feeling ten years younger how more apt to the work he became with the morale boost. This temporary push was something all patriarchs and matriarchs had probably experienced at some point when they thought of the same. Their children helping them—he chuckled at that.

The moon shone through the window on his back facilitating him to view the letters on the papers. Still, a candle was lit next to him creating a weak but good enough light to brighten the room slightly.

Sakamoto pulled himself back in his chair, resting his hind against the wood, and looked ahead. There was someone there.

"Yes, Hisashi?" Sakamoto said, and the man in the shadows looked ahead at him.

The moonlight with the fire was dyeing all in purple. Hisashi's blonde hair had turned another color, the same for his blue eyes. "Sir, you should rest now. Permit me to finish the paperwork you have left," he spoke on his knees.

"I can't have you do this kind of thing, Hisashi," Sakamoto replied in his usual tired tone from the late-night paperwork. "If I have you doing these kinds of things, I won't have a job as the patriarch. What I want though, is for you to report to me on how close we are to finishing the preparations for the ceremony's stage."

"Yes, Sir," Hisashi said and complied—he had disappeared and reappeared in a second, several papers now in his hands. "We've positioned the Spear Twins, the Bull Squad, the Elegant Sword, and many others of our elites to stand at guard there. The security is at the tightest it could ever be." Hisashi then flipped to another paper. "In regards to the stage's preparation, we are having some troubles since many civilians are surrounding the area at all times in curiousness, delaying just slightly the moving of materials. That makes it difficult for us to accelerate the process. Still, this delay won't be enough for us to have to postpone the ceremony's date."

Sakamoto nodded. "And about the Kurozumi? Have we noticed any suspicious movement from them? Although they are just a fly in our way, sometimes their sting might hurt."

"For long we've known this, but we still notice some passage through the Hakumai region from them and this time toward the shore. However, this doesn't appear to have any relation to the previous report. If they are trying to hide their participation on this matter, say they're bribing the citizens to do what they're doing, they are doing it masterfully."

Sakamoto slouched to have a hand support his chin. "Really, it doesn't seem like they are planning something..." He hummed, thinking hard.

"If you permit me..." Hisashi rose from his knees, Sakamoto nodding, and he approached the table. He placed a map of Wano on it and began explaining what he thought of their movements. "We have traced their actions and from what it appears, they've been passing through the back part of Mt. Fuji to get to Hakumai. Although it may be unlikely, they might be planning to invade the manor through the mountain's treacherous rear path as we've no guards there. Perhaps they are aiming to cause some damage to it while we are at the Capital on the day of the ceremony."

Sakamoto seemed to ponder about the matter but said nothing.

Hisashi then advised, "We should put some troops on standby behind the manor in case any of this happens. Even if we use a small amount, their forces would be too weak to get through ours while the ceremony still won't be harmed by the lack of personnel to keep the civilians at bay or if an attack occurs. However, I doubt they'd be able to escalate and attack us through that hellish cliff. This is just a precaution. A silly one."

Sakamoto agreed with a small hum and looked through the map on the table, stopping his eyes at the Kozuki manor. "Any movements from the Kozuki as well?"

"No, Sir. It appears they've been quiet in their place all this while. After Sukiyaki's present, I haven't seen a soul leave their household."

"And what about the Daimyo of Kuri, Oden?"

Hisashi's expression brightened for the first time as he heard Sakamoto's question. "I've been receiving daily reports from a maid named Aki who says Oden has been interacting with the Young Master for a couple of days now."

Sakamoto's brows twitched. "Are you sure about this matter?" He was sensing something, and that something wasn't keen to his taste.

"Yes, Sir. And it appears that the Young Master has been in a much better mood nowadays if compared to before. The maids mention that to me every time we talk. We were all worried about him since the attack and..."

As Hisashi spoke more and more, Sakamoto finally understood what he was having a bad feeling about. "Oh, is that so? I'll definitely visit him tomorrow. I can't let him go to the ceremony without having him not see his father at least once before," he spoke, face in a slight smile. But really, he wasn't at all fond of one ruining his hard work. He would take care of this tomorrow.

Sakamoto shifted in his chair suddenly as he remembered something. "Oh, right... there is also the matter with Yamamoto." The atmosphere suddenly weighed as he mentioned the name. "Have you received any news about him?" he asked Hisashi, a hand to his forehead as his frown turned heftier.

"I apologize for not finding him still, Sir. It has been four days since we've last had a trace of his location."

Sakamoto's grimace increased. "So he's really betrayed us, huh? I had quite expected it. Have the Kurozumi perhaps been able to contact him and offer him something he couldn't refuse?"

"Unfortunately, I've no information on this matter," Hisashi replied with his head down.

"Mm... and what about the false alarm that brought all our guards away from the library back then? Who pushed the buttons?"

"I am tremendously ashamed to say I've not found the culprit still," Hisashi said, frowning now.

"Hah... it's alright. Go rest now, Hisashi. It has turned late." Sakamoto turned back to look at his papers.

"Yes, Sir," Hisashi answered up with his back straight and began walking away. As he did so, however, he remembered something he had yet to report. "Ah, Sir... the ship we sent has successfully left Wano and gone overseas."

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One day before the ceremony.

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Ren rose from his bed and sat on it, wiping some sweat from his forehead. Anxiousness had risen within him just like the sun had risen just a couple of minutes after morning came. The celestial body had gradually begun to appear sooner in this damned mountain ever since the week before, and now it would rise with the dawn break just the following day.

Tomorrow it is! Ren thought while clenching his bed's fabric. The smile on his face wasn't actually a smile, but rather the pile of all his worry in a single expression. He needed to perform well tomorrow. He had to.

Let today be a normal day, please. It's my break, Ren thought, imploring the skies, and rang a bell next to his bed.

A maid entered his room—Aki, Ren saw. Her face was aloof today too.

"Uhh... good morning?" Ren said, tone a bit skeptical. She had been acting strange since yesterday.

"Good morning," Aki responded straightforwardly, saying nothing more afterward.

"Hmmm... may I have something to eat?" Ren asked, voice doubtful if she would comply.

"Of course, Young Master," Aki responded with the simplest smile she could muster and left, soon coming back with freshly made food.

Ren smiled. She had it learned when he would wake up.

Aki gave him the plates while he was on the bed and Ren began to eat everything like he was a beast. It was Aki's cooking after all. It had been some days since she began cooking for him in the mornings and she was damnably good at it.

Ren took a bite of everything. The bread. The cheese. The eggs. The berries. Even the coffee he drank so quickly he got confused and masticated it instead.

Aki's face couldn't hold up and she had a slight smile break in the corner of her lips. It was a quick one though. Not there long enough for Ren to see it.

Ren reckoned while in his devouring, Mom has finally decided to give me a break from studying. This means... I can do whatever I want to for the entire day!

Ren finished the food and turned to face Aki. "Thank you," he said smiling, and Aki had to turn her face away. She took the plates and left the room without saying nothing, him looking as she did so, his gaze failing him. He shook his head. Don't let it bother you, he thought. It's temporary.

He sighed when the door closed. Best to focus on something else.

And as such, he began his plans for what he would do today. "First of all, I'll go down to the city. Will eat a lot of the food I've been itching to eat. Will walk around and observe what's there of new. Mmmm... what more? Maybe I could talk to people while disguised. Also, I could get some new clothes—"

Two knocks suddenly sounded from the door and Ren had to stop. He raised a brow, estranging someone coming to him when he didn't call for a servant. Maybe it was Aki and she wanted to talk about what happened. He smiled like a fool at the thought.

"You can enter!" Ren spoke feeling bright. Today was to be a good day.

The door slowly crept open, and Ren felt his heart thump hard for some reason. Weird. Why was the door taking so long to open? It creaked in Ren's ear like a distress signal, and his heart thumped louder. Finally he saw who it was.

Some fragmented quick-analyzing crossed Ren and he considered all the variables. Wearing a black outfit. Dagger in their hand. Mask to hide their face. Rushing toward me. His eyes widened. An assassin!

Discomposure met Ren as he fumbled in the bed, trying to get up. The assassin hadn't let a single second be spared as they charged toward Ren like a freak, throwing their limbs to reach their objective faster.

Ren's mind fully caught up to the moment and he thought, They sent another one to me already?! A breath escaped out. One of panic.

Ren threw a pillow in the assassin's direction, trying to blind them even if for a second. He then proceeded to jump for his katana. It was on his bedside. But he had just woken up. His body wasn't quite in the state he wanted it to be, and so he fell on the ground barely off the reach of his katana. He scrambled up, heart rushing.

The assassin on the other side, had carried enough momentum not to be bothered at all by the pillow. They let it hit their head and the clash was like a feather against a train, the pillow blowing out of the way. What came into their view afterward, however, was the unguarded back of the one they were meant to kill. A smile full of malice spread on their face, the intent shining through.

Sensing the danger behind him, Ren's heart began to beat faster. Louder. Stronger. His bloodstream filled with adrenaline and his blood turned thick, pumping tenfold throughout his whole vessel. Ren felt something snap, and his body began to act without any regard for thoughts.

Turning on his crawling to face the assassin, Ren's eyes focused on the dagger in their hand. It was too late to evade already, so as it approached his body, Ren used one hand to slightly alter the dagger's direction from going to his heart to having it pierce below his ribcage.

Ren held himself from crying out from the pain. He would worry about it later.

The assassin fell above him, momentum halted, and Ren had to push them to get to his knees afterward. The dagger was out of their hand, lodged in his body, and the assassin was right by his side, rising to their feet.

Ren picked himself up, to his feet too, and kicked toward the assassin's head.

The assassin reacted fast, holding Ren's leg as there was barely any impulse behind it, and used their free hand to give Ren a straight in the face.

Ren turned stunned, world spinning, and the assassin saw it, fabric tightening around their mouth's area as they smiled. They thought it their victory as they pulled another knife from their calf pocket, and sent their hand with the blade to their target like it was a missile.

Decisions are to be made in a split second while in a battle and they can cost you victory.

Only at this time did Ren remember his teacher's words. They made sense more now than ever.

How exciting, Ren thought, his smile a scoff. He would die right before the ceremony.

His mother. Aki. He could see their faces in his mind right now. They would be grieving probably. He even remembered his uncle's tales, the feeling of his eyes shining as they once did realizing again. He reminisced about his father's harsh teachings, every session engraved on his body through the injuries and slight scars he received. Even his teacher's lessons—lessons that shaped him to be the type of person he is today.

For a second, Ren was having all the time in the world to think. And surprisingly, memories were flashing by. Was this the phenomenon of one's life flashing before their eyes?

He grimaced. And what if I don't want to remember shit?

Ren's head began turning to the assassin and he saw their knife come to him like the slowest snail. He thought it easy to dodge, and so he slithered by their slash, wind showing visible while his kimono was grazed by the weapon. He passed by the assassin, their eye slightly following him while despairing, and he grasped them in a sleeper hold.

It was done. They would never be able to leave his grasp. His body was blessed after all. Perks of being a descendant of the strongest family.

The assassin struggled, and Ren began pressing harder. "Huff... I don't know who you are, but just know you were really close. I'll be waiting for our little talk after this," Ren spoke, a fresh smile flashing on his face. He felt his most energetic ever right now how the rush made his heart pump ten years of his life in a minute.

The assassin gave up struggling, as if afraid, and Ren continued pressing until the job would be done. But they suddenly moved their hand. Ren frowned. A cracking sound came when they did that. Together with some ticking.

Ren held his breath. He recognized what the noise was.

"Shit!" Ren pushed the assassin away and began running in the other direction the fastest he could. He looked back for a second and saw the assassin smiling for the last time.

You fucker.

An explosion ensued, and everything was blown away.

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