“Noboru-chan.”

Bitou Noboru, head of the Bitou clan, threw his teacup into the air in shock. Saika tried to hide her smile as the drink landed on top of his head and began to slowly drip to the ground.

“Mother of… I thought we had discussions about how you weren’t supposed to sneak up on me anymore. My heart is weak, you know.”

“I know, but I never agreed during any of those discussions.”

Noboru frowned and wiped some of the spilled tea from his arm and face. “To what do I owe this pleasure?”

Saika poured both herself and Noboru another cup of tea and sat down in front of him. He was alone in his bed chamber, getting ready to sleep.

“How have you been?” she asked. His skin was pale, and he looked tired. He was almost half the man she had known years ago.

“I’m not dead yet,” he replied. “No thanks to you.”

“If I wanted you dead I’d hardly announce myself first now, would I?”

“No, knowing you, you actually would.”

“You wound me.”

“You’re looking well.”

“You’re not.”

Saika had first met Noboru as a precocious young man, ready to take on the world at any cost. Their affair had been brief and violent, and if she were entirely honest, one of the happier periods of her tumultuous life. Noboru was a good man, to the very bottom of his soul, but on top of that he had been exceedingly handsome in his youth, extraordinarily brave, and supremely mischievous. A rogue who knew how to have fun but also stuck to his word no matter what. She might have called it love at first sight, if such a thing could ever happen for her. Sadly it was not meant to be, but they had remained friendly over the long years that passed. Now, looking at him, she wasn’t sure how much longer he had. Time was an evil mistress.

“I’ll cut to the chase,” she spoke again. “Lord Kuroda needs your army. They’re attacking the Yashiro.”

Noboru swallowed his tea and slowly put the cup down.

“I see.”

“How many men can you bring?”

“How many do you need?”

“All of them.”

Noboru leant back and gave a small laugh. “May I ask why now of all times has he decided to press forth with the Yashiro? They haven’t bothered us for quite some time now. Not since…”

Not since they took his daughter, Ayane.

“We’ve received word that Lord Ryobe’s daughter is getting married to Lord Itami’s son. Combined the two clans present quite the threat, especially when you take into consideration the Itami’s close relationship with the Arai. We’ve also received word that the Yashiro are planning an attack on the Wada, further north. I’ve seen it myself, their men are on the move. The south is there, ready for the taking.”

Noboru considered her for a moment. The fire that had once lit up his eyes so brightly was now extinguished. He was old. He was sick. He was tired. It almost broke her heart.

“And what of my daughter? Who’s to say that the moment we attack they won’t just kill her.”

“They’ve held her captive for over a year now. They don’t want to risk what might happen if they did that.”

“They might feel more urgency once the wolves are at the back door.”

“Don’t worry, I have something in mind. We’ll get your daughter back, that I promise. Take it as a sign of good faith, and acknowledgment of the strong, personal pain you have been through to keep your alliance with the Kuroda alive. That has not been forgotten.”

In truth, Mitsuhide had said nothing at all about Ayane. In fact, Saika doubted he even remembered her at all at this point. But Noboru held a special place in Saika’s heart, even to this day, and returning his daughter to him was the least she could do. A sick old man deserved to see his child one last time before he died.

“Then let me be honest with you. Our forces have diminished quite a bit recently. I will provide you with what I can, but with the fighting in the east we’ve had an influx of ruffians and criminals and refugees. People are trying to reach the capital, as though that will somehow miraculously save them. I have gangs of thieves attacking our merchants and pillaging our farms. Just last week we had some Togawa men storm one of our villages. They killed everyone and then burnt it to the ground. Everything, gone.”

“Togawa?”

“They bore the Togawa crest. Abandoned their commander and tried to escape through our lands and decided they’d have some fun along the way.”

“Did you send word to Lord Ryosuke that one of his units was causing trouble in your territory?”

“I sent him their heads.”

“What did he say?”

“‘Thanks for saving me the trouble,’ I believe was the official reply.” Noboru gave another small laugh. “I lost an entire village, a year’s worth of crops, not to mention a large number of men to deal with them and all we got was a ‘thanks.’”

If the Bitou-ruled Misen province were to fall, it was a slippery slope to both the Kuroda lands and the capital. They couldn’t allow that to happen, on either count. Perhaps it was time to visit the Shiroyama and discuss a more detailed alliance. Mitsuhide was married to Shiroyama Daisuke’s half sister, although he never saw her. He had shuffled her off to some distant castle ‘for her own safety.’ Her brother Daisuke, although young, was the current clan leader, and one of the greatest samurai the land had ever known. A more concrete alliance between the Kuroda, Bitou and Shiroyama clans would not only consolidate all the lands south of the capital, but would present a fearsome front to all who might oppose it. She would have to bring it up once the upcoming battle was dealt with.

“So how soon do you need us?” Noboru brought Saika back from her thoughts. He looked weary and ready for bed.

“Make preparations in the morning. We need you as soon as possible.”

“And you say that you’re going to get my daughter back?”

“Yes.”

“Then I’ll see you in a few days. It was nice seeing you again, Saika. You haven’t aged a day.”

He nodded politely and retired to bed, leaving Saika to see herself out.