Shinsengumi: Falling Blossoms

[Isaac]

Kaoru gasped softly as Bael carefully but quickly pulled him down into another hug. He returned it gently and released Bael as he moved to stand up. The young Taichou then smiled and accepted the hand being offered to him, standing up once again. "Well, let's go and eat some breakfast first. Then, as soon as we're finished, we'll leave for patrol. Is that all right with you, Bae-chan?", Kaoru asked, heading for the door.

[Aquanta]

Olka waited outside the inn that the two people he had to keep an eye on. His mind was on and around that inn and the things around him. A letter came back to him, and his master was coming for the fun.

"Please wait for me and then we will have fun.

P.S. Don't get killed..."

[Prancing Mad]

Bael entwined his hand in Kaoru's, and walked beside him.

[Neo Zanther]

Zaka retruned from the Demon world back to his body. He didn't learn anything new more or less. Slowly he opened his eyes. They quickly ajusted to the low light of the room. He could see Gil cleaning himself. "Wonder who else is up?" he thought to himself.

"Morning Gil. I trust you slept well?" Zaka then sat up and got dressed and opened his door.

[Isaac]

Kusa made his way to Hijikata's office, a piece of parchment clasped in his hand. He was not sure if the Fukuchou was awake this early in the morning but he still felt that he should leave the report where Hijikata would see it and read it. Or else he might be in trouble later. After reaching the office door, the watcher kneeled down and slid the parchment beneath the door frame, hoping that nothing would disturb it before Hijikata recieved it. With his task now complete, Kusa made his way towards the cafeteria.

-----

The young Taichou smiled, gently holding Bael's hand with his own as the two of them continued walking. Eventually, they entered the cafeteria, which smelled heavily of the foods that were being prepared for breakfast. Kaoru gently sniffed at the air a few times, smiling cheerfully. He moved towards one of the low tables and sat down on the cushion behind him, settling himself comfortably.

"It smells so good in here. I think I smell roasted garlic vegetables and misou soup and some freshly brewed green tea. Oh, I can hardly wait for them to be served.", Kaoru said.

-----

Gil's brown fluffy ears perked up as his Master awakened. His tail began wagging, gently batting against the dirt floor of the cave. The Neko eagerly hopped up as Zaka did, following him out of the space.

"Yes, Master. It was very quiet and still.", he replied, smiling and revealing his fangs.

[Prancing Mad]

Bael chuckled, sitting down beside him. "Aren't we tought about patience, itoshii?"

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A bloody death cry came from a dark alley.

Nyrock withdrew his blade from the man in front of him's chest, watching him fall to the ground. He slung his blade hard to the right, the blood flying off of it, and he slung his blade over his shoulder, sighing. "Why can't anyone around this area fight?" he said, shaking his head. He brought his sword to his sheath, and walked out of the alley, moving down the street.

[Silver]

"I suppose I may as well walk with you. I suppose I may as well also stop denying this 'stalker' thing, since you're apparently pretty set on the idea. Are you sure you're all right to be seen in public with a 'stalker', though?" Honda asked, casually following behind Sakria. He expected the other people on the street would start staring in confusion as he confessed to being a stalker as if it were nothing, but thought nothing of it.

[Josiah]

((New story arc starting! If there's no objections, I'm going to make the new bad guys I'm introducing NPCs so anyone can control them as needed.))

Xiang Xi sat in the innermost room of of a lavish mansion which stood on the edge of the the city's famed Gion district. Xiang's eyes were bright and alert, never wavering as he listened to the young man kneeling on the other side of the room.

"And so the mission is going well." the messenger continued. "We have already replaced several mid ranking dignitaries and officials in both the Emperial Court and the Shogunate. With the freedom offered by their disguises, it won't be long before our agents will be able to start abducting and replacing the higher officials. If all continues to go well, the entire government could be under our control within the year."

"Excellent." Xiang nodded slightly. "Is there any news from the homeland? How fares the Heavenly Army?" ((Xiang, #800000 top left color box in the middle square)

"I'm afraid that news isn't so good. The Qing Emperor has increased his recruiting efforts and is even hiring foreign mercenaries to grow his ranks. Even the glorious Heavenly King is beginning to worry that our forces will be overwhelmed."

Xiang paused for a moment. "Then it is crucial that we step up our operations. In the end, it may be us, the King's specially chosen Emissaries of Heaven, that will be the deciding factor in the war. The Qing may be strong, but once Japan is under our control not even they will be able to stand against our combined forces. The Heavenly Army need only hold out until we are ready to aid them. Now go, and be sure to notify me of any new developments."

With a respectful bow, the messenger hurried out of the room, leaving Xiang alone to think and plan.

((Terms and history time!

Gion: the pleasure district of ancient Kyoto. Home to geisha, theaters and brothels.

The Qinq: the ruling dynasty of China during the time of the Shinsengumi.

The Heavenly King and Heavenly Army: parts of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, a Chinese group that rose in a long (14 year) and bloody revolt against the Qing around the same time the Shinsengumi were active (not sure if the dates match up exactly, but it's not like this RP is completely historically accurate). Historically, the Heavenly Kingdom eventually lost to the Qing.

The Emissaries of Heaven: a special forces division of the Heavenly Army led by Xiang Xi, all masters of infiltration and skilled in various Chinese forms of armed and unarmed combat. The Emissaries have no historical background, I created them for the RP. Their goal is to take control of the Japanese government by secretly replacing key political figures with their men. Once they are in control, they plan to use Japanese soldiers and resources to aid the Heavenly Kingdom, or use Japan as a stronghold against the Qing if retreat is neccessary.))

***

Meanwhile, outside an inn near the edge of the city...

"There's nothing wrong with having a stalker." Sakria replied as she began walking. "After all, only the prettiest most refined women merit such attention. It's nice to know that my beauty and charm are appreciated, even if I am a shinobi first and a woman second. Besides, I need someone to show me around this city so it's an excellent arrangement. I get a local guide and you get to spend the entire day basking in my presence, without having to worry about being attacked or chased away like most stalkers." she reached a crossroads and paused. "Now then, I wish to see some of this city's most important sites. To begin, which way is the palace of the Emperor?"

[Isaac]

"Not really.", Kaoru said, laughing softly. "Kondou-san and Yamanami-san are about the only ones here who truly have a lot of patience to them."

Kusa entered the dining hall, looking around for an empty seat. In doing so, he caught sight of his brother and Bael sitting near the back corner. 'Might as well go and sit with them for once...', he thought silently to himself. The spy then moved towards the back and sat down beside his sibling without offering a word of greeting.

As Kusa sat down to occupy the cushion beside him, Kaoru smiled. It didn't seem all that strange that Kusa did not want to talk to them; he'd probably been busy well into the night and was just tired. "Good morning, Kusa...", he said quietly.

As the quiet morning progressed, more Shinsengumi members began to fill the dining hall and breakfast was served shortly afterward. However, half way into the meal, the doors to the hall were pushed open and two of the Shinsengumi commanders entered.

Hijikata glanced once around the room before spotting the person that he needed to speak with. His eyes locked onto Kusa and he motioned him over with his hand.

"Miyazaki-kun, come with me. Now.", he instructed firmly.

Having finished the main portions of his breakfast, Kusa stood up and gave a single wave to Kaoru and Bael as he moved to depart from the hall with Hijikata. He could only wonder at what the Fukuchou had in store for him this time.

Kondou, on the other hand, headed straight towards Bael and Kaoru, taking the seat that Kusa had just left. He leaned in close so that he could speak with them in a quiet voice.

"We've just recieved a report from one of the citizens... Apparently, a man was murdered in an alley way early this morning. Witnesses who heard the screaming said they saw a man leaving the alley, and he is the most likely suspect. They gave a brief description of him as well.", he paused, his expression turning grim.

"I'm sending the two of you out to find this suspected murderer and bring him in. Change into your uniforms and get your swords." With that said, the Kyoukuchou stood up and left the dining hall.

Kaoru placed his chopsticks down and stood up from the table, motioning for Bael to follow him as well. The two of them made their way back to their room...

~~~~~~~~~~

Hijikata leaned against the wall, talking to Kusa.

"We've had several reports stating that there seems to be some suspicious activity going on within a mansion on the outter edges of the Gion district. The residents there act as if they're hiding something so naturally, I want you to find out what it is, if anything."

Kusa bowed, closing his eyes.

"Yes, Hijikata-san.", he said, standing straight again. He then turned to leave towards his room. This mission wouldn't require a costume, and he needed to put on his Shinobi garments instead. Might also need to keep some extra weapons on hand as well...

[Prancing Mad]

Bael followed Kaoru to their room quietly, stretching his arms along the way. As his arms came down, one of them wrapped itself around Kaoru's shoulder.

As they entered their room, Bael knelt down and picked up his sword, tieing it around his waist, smiling to Kaoru. "You ready to go?"


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Nyrock entered into the local tavern, and glanced around, sighing softly at the lack of capable-looking fighters. He proceeded to order himself a drink, and sit down, enjoying the drink slowly.

[Isaac]

Kaoru didn't take the time to change into his full uniform. Instead, he merely slipped the sky blue haori with white mountains on the edges of the sleeves on over his arms and shoulders. His katana and its sheath were placed through his obi near his left hip. The last touch was a white hair ribbon that held his long hair back and up in a ponytail. He gave a gentle nod to Bael and the two of them left the Shinsengumi headquarters together.

~~~~~

The younger Miyazaki brother was dressed in his Shinobi garbs. Several small extra weapons were concealed within his clothing. A partial black mask hid the lower half of his face from view. Kusa was already watching the suspected mansion from a safe distant viewpoint, waiting to see who would come out of it or go into it. He would have to remember every last detail for his report to all of the Shinsengumi commanders.

[Prancing Mad]

Nyrock took the final sip of his drink, placing it on the table. He placed his finger upon the rim, circling it slowly with his finger. He sighed softly, looking up at the patrons of the bar, having a good time, getting drunk, and making fools of themselves.

Nyrock placed his hands upon the table, and pushed himself to his feet, grabbing his sword, drawing it slowly.

Within 20 minutes, every patron in the bar was slain.

[Josiah]

"Sir," a subordinate interrupted Xiang Xi's thought, "we've detected a person spying on this building."

"A thief?" Xiang looked up briefly, showing little apparant interest.

"He's dressed as a shinobi. We haven't been able to indentify his faction, but it's quite likely that he reports to some branch of the Shogunate or Imperial Army. Though there have also been reports of suspicious people, some of them clearly shinobi, spotted in the city. It could be an independant group."

Xiang nodded thoughtfully. "Perhaps it's time for me to do some reconisannce work of my own. I think I'll try and get a closer look at this shinobi of yours. Maybe I can indentify his faction."

Leaving the mansion, Xiang strolled casually towards the location of the shinobi spy. Though he wasn't planning to fight and, if given the chance, would much rather engage the man in a friendly conversation, he wore his sword, just in case.

[Isaac]

Shortly after departing from the Shinsengumi grounds, Kaoru and Bael had started patrolling the city in search of someone that fit the description they had been given. Suddenly, a scream captured their attention. Kaoru turned and ran in the direction of the noise. He found a shaken woman standing in front of a small tea shop. Blood was slowly spilling out of the doorway...

After getting the woman and a gathering crowd of onlookers to back away from the shop, the taichou slowly entered the building, his sword drawn and raised just in case the criminal was still inside. There was blood everywhere... Corpses littered the floor and benches, some dismembered, missing their limbs or heads. Kaoru ignored the dead and continued to search the interior for anyone who might have been hiding.

"We are the Shinsengumi! Come out now and you may be spared from an on-site execution. Instead, we'll take you in for questioning and a trial. But you must show yourself.", Kaoru called out, looking for any signs of movement.

[Prancing Mad]

Bael brought his sword into a defensive position, and split up from Kaoru, not getting too far from him, looking through the area.

Amidst all the blood and confusion, at the table in the back sat a patron, taking a drink from a cup.