Bleeds to an End (KAT-TUN, Akame)
Title: Bleeds to an End
Category: Jpop (KAT-TUN)
Pairing: Jin/Kame
Rating: PG13
Word Count: 4200
Summary: Kame and Jin during the Warring States period, from Nagashino to Honnōji.
Notes: Inspired by Kame's solo, 1582, the year when Oda Nobunaga was betrayed and defeated at Honnōji. If you're looking for historical accuracy, you won't find it here. My knowledge of the Warring States period in Japan comes from video games, a couple history classes, and Wikipedia. But mostly video games.
1575, Nagashino
He was young, but so was everyone else standing to either side of him, forming a row. Still just boys, but trained nonetheless, and calm as they waited behind the wooden stockades-at least until they heard the telltale rumble in the distance. Sweaty fingers tightened around the smooth barrels of imported firearms. The arquebuses from Portugal had been strange and awkward weapons at first, but drill after drill made them familiar to the touch. Kame leveled his in perfect coordination with the command as the Takeda cavalry charged across Shitaragahara, immense warhorses tearing up the earth and eating away at the distance between them.
Steady. Wait.
Someone was shaking. Kame could hear the rattle somehow despite the imminent pounding of hooves and his blood rushing in his ears. He gritted his teeth and ignored the sound because there was no time to snap at whoever was making it; the cavalry was already at the stream.
The air was damp with leftover rain, but hopefully not too damp. Just now the horses and their riders were clambering up the steep bank, 50 meters away, and the signal was given. Kame's finger tightened on the trigger, pulled, and the spring-loaded serpentine released the burning match onto the flash pan.
For a moment he thought the cavalry had made it to them, the thunder was so loud and the recoil so hard, but still at the very edge of the stream the first line of horses went down. They buckled, throwing or crushing their riders, and then a second volley decimated the ones behind. A third volley, and a fourth, and none of the Takeda troops broke through.
Kame reloaded his weapon with hands that trembled with invincibility.
* * * * *
This, Kame thought as he surveyed the plain, now littered with the fallen Takeda troops, this is history.
It was a complete victory for the allied Oda and Tokugawa, and Kame had been part of it. He helped make this happen. All of the arquebusiers had been lauded for their successful work, and Kame had even been singled out by an elite guard for his poise and precision. "You!" Koki had said immediately after, his grin wolfish and his hands rough with excited grabbing. "Already moving up in the ranks, huh?"
"That wasn't a promotion," Kame had protested, but he felt light-headed thinking about it. Promotion. He could. He could. Nobunaga's policy made that possible. A peasant one day and a soldier the next-and then, maybe, an officer. The Oda army allowed that.
So he looked over the battlefield and acknowledged his work, recognizing with a detached sickness the wounds that were caused by the arquebuses. He'd already seen what they could do from accidents during training. That explosive blast that went off at the wrong moment, the way the little round balls could punch through armor and blow away flesh. The fact that it could happen to him.
"Regrets?"
Kame startled at the unexpected voice-and for an instant he wondered if one of the corpses had spoken, possessed by a restless ghost-but the voice was living, rough-sounding with some emotion that was more sad than angry.
The man standing behind him was probably still a boy in age, but battle added years. Kame wondered if he had that same look now, or if not now then soon.
"Not...exactly," he replied carefully, forcing his gaze back to the bodies. He must remember this, the triumph here, and also the cost. The casualties for both sides would be recorded and exaggerated, but what did numbers matter, the important thing was simply this. "It's going to be worth it someday. I'll make it worth it."
"You?"
Kame bristled at the tone. "Why not me?" he challenged, thinking this must be a young lord, used to privilege, who probably didn't have the proven right to be here.
The other man only shook his head. When he turned his face to stare across the plain, Kame noticed the moisture tracking through the dirt on his cheek. "You can't balance yourself against this. One against one thousand? That's crazy."
"No, I meant..." The other remained turned away from him. Kame marched up to stand in front, meeting the surprised gaze with his own steady (stubborn) one. "All of us will. Me. You. All of us." Then, feeling brave and certain, and feeling more than thinking, he reached up to touch his fingertips to the wetness on a wide-eyed face.
The contact was brief, the other pulling away immediately, staring at him with an expression that was strange and searching. "You seriously think that?"
This time Kame let out a sharp sigh. "I do. Stop doubting me."
Finally, a grin began to dawn on the other's features. It lightened his face and suddenly he was just a boy, slightly awkward and a bit daring when he lifted an arm to drop his hand messily into Kame's hair. "If you say so."
Kame shot him the most indignant look he could muster, which likely wasn't very effective from beneath tousled bangs.
1576, Osaka Bay
Kame had always liked the sea, but after a few weeks of waiting off the coast of Osaka, he was growing rather sick of it. Most of the troops were bored. The experienced soldiers laughed at the impatience of the newer ones.
"Think of the poor bastards who've been part of this siege for six years! They probably don't believe the fortress will ever fall."
The shoreline in the distance curved protectively around Ishiyama Honganji, base of the Ikkō-ikki warrior monks that continued to oppose Nobunaga. "It's only a matter of time," Kame said, perhaps more confidently than he felt. Six years was already a long time to hold out, but he had no intention of being stuck here, doing nothing, while there was the rest of Japan to unify. Ishiyama Honganji had only lasted this long because of the supplies they kept receiving from the Mōri clan, and Yoshitaka's fleet was here to put an end to that.
Conversation shifted, and Kame tried to ignore the portentous comments about the Mōri's superior naval forces. Thinking like that wouldn't do any good. He turned his attention instead to where a group of younger men were attempting to entertain themselves. Junno was balancing on the ship's railing.
"Yo," said a familiar voice, and a sudden weight was added to Kame's shoulder. "How long do you think until people start throwing things at him?"
"Don't," Kame warned, but his lips twitched in humor at the idea.
"Yeah, yeah, ruin my fun."
He glanced up at Jin's profile, but now the other boy was staring out across the bay wearing a blank expression he sometimes got at odd moments. Kame could never tell where Jin's mind went when he was like that, but the rest of the time he was easy to read.
"Are you done being seasick?" Kame asked with a light jab to the boy's ribs to get his attention.
"Ow." Jin winced and rubbed at the spot Kame hit with his bony elbow. "Seasick, me? No, I wasn't."
Kame's brows went up at the trace of genuine surprise laced within Jin's response. "Well, you were sulking for some reason," he concluded, biting his tongue on the part where he'd missed having Jin around. No reason to boost his ego when Kame was still kind of annoyed with him.
But Jin had irritatingly good luck, or he was somehow smarter than he appeared, because he grinned at Kame smugly. "So you were lonely?"
"I'll push you overboard."
"With these skinny arms?" Jin wrapped a hand around Kame's wrist and lifted an arm up for display. They both knew Kame was stronger than he looked, but he was admittedly still growing.
Narrowing his eyes, Kame kicked Jin's unprotected shin.
Jin yelped and clutched his leg, wobbling for a while on one foot. "Damnit, I need that bone!"
Kame leaned both his arms on the side of the ship, not quite hiding his grin.
* * * * *
"Ship sighted! It's the Mōri-do not let them through."
Movement stirred on the water; the Oda warships tightened their blockade and crew members hurried to ready the cannons. Some soldiers prepared large-caliber arquebuses for when the enemy came within range, and others still prepared for the eventual boarding and close combat. The Mōri fleet was approaching fast with the wind to their advantage.
"I sure hope everybody knows how to swim," Kame heard Nakamaru mutter.
A heavy boom carried across the bay and a stream of smoke was released with the first round of enemy attack. One towering splash went up near the Oda ships, then another, and then a hit-wood cracking and splintering accompanied by a din of frantic shouts.
"Give some back!" Kame yelled, voice half drowned out by the fire of cannons followed by a screen of smoke. The wind whisked it away and the Mōri vessels emerged into view, with sparks of flame flashing up and down the sides from soldiers positioned with matchlocks. The iron rounds thunked into wood and flesh alike.
A foreboding crunch distracted Kame from the sudden spatter of blood nearby, and the ship rocked violently. He was nearly thrown off his feet; only his grip on the railing kept him standing. Someone else's body, alive or dead, rolled against his legs. He couldn't look to see who it was-he could never afford to pay attention to faces and names and histories in the midst of battle, but unbidden, an image of Jin flashed through his mind.
No, Jin was still fine, somewhere, and anyway their ship was hit, a giant hole smashed through the deck. Kame felt for his sword sheathed at his side. The only thing to do now was try to board the enemy and fight for his life.
Still clutching the railing, he peered over the side, squinting against the spray of water. Bodies floated among the debris. He shifted his eyes away from them and sought out the nearest vessel, fiercely vindicated by the chaos on that side, too.
A hand on his shoulder yanked him back and he went tumbling just as the wood chipped where his hands at been from a shot. Kame fell hard, ungainly limbs sprawling, on top of another body that expelled a gasp from the impact.
"That was close," Jin wheezed, and Kame scrambled off of him with a shock of recognition followed by a rush of relief. It left him shaking, too distracted.
"We have to get off the ship," he managed to say at last. "We have to- We have to fight."
Jin's eyes went wide, incredulous, and his voice cracked with astonishment. "You can't be serious. Look, we're massively outclassed, if you throw yourself at them you'll just die."
"You are not suggesting we run away."
"I'm suggesting we not die! Not uselessly!"
"So you think we'll just swim to shore?!"
"It's a start." And with that, Jin got a grip on Kame's arm and hauled them both near the edge. They almost went down again with the rocking of the ship, but soon they were staring down at the waves. "Looks cold," Jin observed with a shiver, tactfully not mentioning the dark clouds of blood and partially blown away corpses.
Kame couldn't make his fingers stop clutching at Jin, and they fell together in one deciding motion. Staring at what came rushing to meet them, Kame felt that he was descending into the underworld.
1578, Azuchi Castle
"Maybe I should refuse the promotion," Kame mused aloud.
"Why the hell would you do that?" Jin shot him a look of pure suspicion, following Kame's gaze to where it rested on the seven-floor main keep of Azuchi Castle. The structure was magnificent, topping the hill that the new town was built on. Kame thought that the fact that the fortress was surrounded by budding life and ripe opportunity said a lot about the world they were going to create.
"Well..."
"Seriously, you worked really hard to get that promotion. This morning you were all excited to write to your parents about it and tell them to move here. Is refusing even allowed?"
"Nobunaga resigned from his position of Chancellor only after a few months," Kame pointed out, and this was followed by a stark silence.
Finally, Jin threw his hands up in defeat. "Whatever. That's funny, though. I thought you'd want to move up in the ranks as fast as humanely possible to get closer to your hero."
"That's not-" But arguing with Jin was always an exercise in futility. Jin's method was to just talk louder over the other person.
"But you might be disappointed to find that Nobunaga already has a favorite, and no matter how good you are or how humble you are, you won't be another Ranmaru."
"Are you done yet?" Kame asked, staring hard at the thick stone wall that bordered the town. Azuchi was well-protected with the barriers of granite, the most innovative and impenetrable structure of its age.
"Yeah," Jin said, and he drew in a harsh breath. "I'm definitely done."
Fine, Kame thought, watching Jin walk away. I won't stay behind where I'm not wanted.
* * * * *
Late at night, Kame found himself staring down at a sheet of parchment where he'd carefully inked the beginnings of a message, but the words trailed off beyond the initial pleasantries.
"Damnit," he hissed when his hovering brush dripped and a blot spread, stain-like, over his writing. It was no use; he set the brush aside and slowly leaned back until he was lying flat on the floor.
Stupid, stupid Jin. He was probably drinking himself into debt right now, oblivious, or passing the late hours at a brothel. Normally he would have tried to convince Kame to come along, making Kame regret those times he had given in because it only encouraged Jin. But maybe not anymore. Maybe not ever again.
It doesn't matter. Kame rested the back of his hand against his forehead and closed his eyes. I'll probably be sent somewhere else after being promoted. It could be better this way.
He'd no longer have to fear turning around during a battle and seeing Jin fall.
A thud from outside made his eyes snap open and he pushed himself up on one hand, locating the shadow moving along the screen door. The panel slid open, and Kame stared as Jin half stumbled inside.
"What are you doing here?" Kame demanded, nose wrinkling as he detected the sour smell of sake. Well, one of his suspicions was proven correct. He didn't much care to find out about the other one, whether another scent clung to Jin, the sickly-sweet foreign perfume that his favorite girl liked to wear.
It appeared to take some effort, but Jin pinned him with a frank look. "I always come here after a night out, remember?"
Kame chewed on his lip. Well, yes, but... Although it wasn't the first time they had a fight and then got over it without a word, but this one had seemed different. "Fine," he grunted, getting up to slide the screen door shut because he didn't trust Jin to do it without punching a hand through the paper or doing anything else that would need fixing.
"Mmm," Jin said as he rolled into a comfortable position, sprawled out on the floor. He tilted his head and squinted the letter Kame had been trying to write. "That for your parents? About your promotion?"
"Yeah."
"So you are taking it."
Kame took a seat again in front of the paper, hand moving towards the brush. "Does that make you happy now?"
"I am happy for you, you know. And... I'm sorry. I just kind of say things sometimes..." Jin waved a hand through the air dismissively and Kame felt his shoulders slump in a sigh.
"I know." Then, gathering his concentration, he set the tip of the brush to the parchment again in steady strokes, only dimly aware of Jin's rustling movement.
"Do you really want your family to move to Azuchi?"
"Why not? It's a good place-no taxes, plenty of space, and it's safe.
"I wouldn't call Nobunaga's primary base safe. He has a lot of enemies."
Kame looked up from his writing but Jin was gazing elsewhere, so he took a moment to think about his response. He knew Jin didn't actually...really like being in the Oda army, that was obvious, but he was here anyway. "But he's the most powerful man in the country."
"He's done a lot to get that power, and he's made some men desperate."
Kame thought of the Ikkō-ikki and how Ishiyama Honganji had finally fallen to Nobunaga's new armored ships, mammoth and indestructible. "Some men are crazy," he said flatly.
Jin turned so Kame could see the side of his face and part of his grin. "I can be pretty crazy."
"Crazy stupid, sure."
"Hey!"
1582, Honnōji
"We're surrounded," Kame stated grimly without having to listen to the report. Mitsuhide wouldn't be stupid enough to stage a half-hearted coup, although he certainly had every possible advantage. Nobunaga came to Honnōji to rest; he only brought a handful of retainers, not nearly enough to push back the overwhelming Akechi forces without a miracle.
"So this is it, huh." Jin peered out the window, though Kame couldn't imagine why he bothered. It wasn't quite dawn yet and Kyoto was still blanketed in darkness.
"We'll hold them off for a bit-that much is possible. Ranmaru plans to hold the enemy back long enough for Nobunaga to escape. We'll help him buy time."
"I don't think-"
"I don't care," Kame said immediately, cutting off the obvious statement. "I don't think it will work. We aren't going to make it out of here alive." His gaze was steady when he faced Jin's frustration. "I'm going to do this, and I don't care if I die."
Before Jin could argue with him, a messenger ran clambering through the halls. "Fire! They're going to set fire to the temple!"
Kame took off at a run.
"Kame! Don't- Damnit." Jin shouted and ran after him.
Things were out of control. Servants panicked everywhere and news of the impending fire attack made it worse. Kame slipped outside, hugging the perimeter of the temple. If there was even a chance of stopping the fire, it would help drastically, but he was literally making a shot in the dark. Of course the enemy wouldn't wait until dawn when the smoke would give them away. At least Kame could use the shadows for his own cover while he searched.
"Kame, wait," Jin hissed, his hand settling over Kame's shoulder.
"Shh!" Kame reached blindly to try and cover Jin's mouth, fingers pressing over cheek and lips. There was a faint noise up ahead.
A voice in the dark slowly, ominously said, "There's someone there."
Kame tried to flatten himself against the wall, but Jin resisted. He suddenly gripped Kame by the wrist and pulled him forward. "Wait," Jin said, pitching his voice to be carried low. "It's just me."
A slim shape moved out of the shadows, soon followed by a handful of others. Automatically, Kame gripped his sword and thumbed an inch of steel free from the scabbard. The soft hush of metal made the others tense.
The one in front peered at Jin. "You," he finally said in recognition, then seemed to consider. Nodding once, he added, "Good, we need some help. Word has spread and we should avoid the original location. Is there an alternative?"
Jin's hand suddenly covered Kame's own and locked his fingers tight and unyielding around his sword hilt. "No," he said to the squad. "Stick to the plan."
The leader glanced at Kame. "Is the plan still all right?"
"Ueda," Jin growled. "Just go."
I need to stop them, Kame thought frantically as they passed, but his trained reflexes failed under Jin's crushing grip and-I need to stop them, they're going to set fire to Honnōji, I need to stop-Jin, he's-
Kame's free hand moved to a second, smaller sheath, and pulled out a short tantō blade that soon glimmered next to Jin's neck. There was just enough moonlight for him to see the slight movement of Jin's throat and the twist of his lips into a frown. Kame didn't dare meet his eyes.
"Traitor," he said softly, needing to say it, so confirmation could press his knife that much further. "You traitor."
"Do you know what Nobunaga has done? Do you really know?"
Great things, Kame knew, at a cost. But that cost-
Jin continued: "Were you there when tens of thousands were massacred-women, children, it didn't matter. Enryakuji was razed to the ground. Fitting that the Demon King should meet the same fate."
Kame stared at the thin, dark line that formed at the edge of his tantō, starting a slow drip that traveled down the blade and onto his fingers.
"So yes, I am a traitor. I was glad for this opportunity. It's the only thing I've been glad for since joining the Oda army."
That was finally enough to make Kame move, but not to slide the knife through Jin's throat. He withdrew with a shudder instead, and Jin let him.
"You..." But Kame stopped, and he looked down at the bloodied knife in his hand. His fingers were almost white compared to the nearly-black smears. He threw the weapon down, and fled.
* * * * *
Kame barely registered surprise when he encountered the Akechi troops, drawing his sword in a thoughtless motion and falling into the pattern of battle. He cut through those who stood before him, moving single-mindedly forward, closer to the temple. An orange glow lit the grounds from the flames licking at the walls, and heat pressed all around him.
His blade clashed with another's, and there was an echo further ahead-he was right by the entrance to the inner keep, and there was Ranmaru fighting off the enemy alone.
"You!" Nobunaga's most loyal retainer called upon spotting him. "So someone else has managed to survive this long."
Kame fought his way closer, thinning out the crowd. "Where is Lord Nobunaga?"
"Inside," Ranmaru answered without interrupting the smooth swing of his sword. "But he's trapped. All I can hope to do is give him time."
"Then allow me the honor of helping."
He had once only aspired to this-fighting alongside one of the most esteemed men in the Oda army, and for such a monumental event. This would be the end, this battle written and kept in history, and Kame had never been afraid to die. He'd only wondered at times: would he make a difference? And to whom?
Here he was, one of the last men standing to defend Nobunaga's final moments. Surely this was all he could have wanted. Surely this mattered. He threw himself into every strike and slash.
Kame thought-he was prepared-to go down like this, sword in hand, still fighting. When the soldiers drew back he was puzzled at first, eyeing the open space between him and the enemy until a row of riflemen positioned themselves directly ahead.
Ranmaru panted heavily, arms shaking with the effort of holding up his weapon, but he remained battle-ready. Kame followed suit, tracking the familiar movements of the men as they prepared their guns. A modified design, more efficient, and made in Japan. The hazy recollection of his first battle in Nagashino swept over him, how they had fired line after line, and now he stood on the opposite end of the long barrels.
The rifles fired on command, as loud and heavy as thunder, but a collision of weight blindsided Kame and pushed him down. He fell to the ground, chin scraping the pavestones and the taste of blood stinging on his tongue. Pressed flat, his limbs felt frozen, and he could not make himself move. He didn't want to look. He had never wanted to look.
"Hey," Jin said by Kame's ear, tone conversational but rasping for breath. "I lied about something."
"No," Kame began, choking on the word. Warm wetness seeped onto his back.
"Betraying Nobunaga wasn't the only thing I was glad for," Jin went on in a low murmur, almost comforting. Kame could close his eyes and pretend it was a night like any other when Jin would arrive at his room, drunk and sleepy and content.
He almost missed the rest of Jin's words; it was the crackle of the fire that caught his attention and made him listen.
"I was glad to meet you, and I wanted...you to live. Aren't I a selfish bastard?"
"You are," Kame agreed faintly, head turned to watch the temple burn. "You're the worst."
"Yeah," Jin sighed, and Kame knew he was smiling. "But because of you... You made a difference. To me."
Flaming pieces of wood crashed down among the bodies. Kame saw Ranmaru's crumpled form, hand still tight around his sword, face turned towards the burning building in clear devotion.
"Jin," Kame said, carefully reaching up to grasp his shoulder. His fingers skirted around the wet edge of one wound, then another. "Jin!"
The enemy had left, leaving them and the fire. Smoke rose like a banner in the pale light of dawn, and holding Jin close, Kame's gaze followed it to the sky.
Thank you.
So take all my strength
For this heart you’re to blame
But please don’t wait till it all-
Don’t you wait till it all bleeds to an end.
alkjdhkahfkd I started this back when I first heard about Kame's solo and it took so long to finish. I feel so late. orz I don't even know what this is but it's probably awkwardly OOC. I just wanted to be able to say I was playing video games for research (haha).
Preemptive reply to Matchy: KAME'S SONG STARTED IT, SO THE ANGST IS HIS FAULT, NOT MINE (THIS TIME).
Category: Jpop (KAT-TUN)
Pairing: Jin/Kame
Rating: PG13
Word Count: 4200
Summary: Kame and Jin during the Warring States period, from Nagashino to Honnōji.
Notes: Inspired by Kame's solo, 1582, the year when Oda Nobunaga was betrayed and defeated at Honnōji. If you're looking for historical accuracy, you won't find it here. My knowledge of the Warring States period in Japan comes from video games, a couple history classes, and Wikipedia. But mostly video games.
1575, Nagashino
He was young, but so was everyone else standing to either side of him, forming a row. Still just boys, but trained nonetheless, and calm as they waited behind the wooden stockades-at least until they heard the telltale rumble in the distance. Sweaty fingers tightened around the smooth barrels of imported firearms. The arquebuses from Portugal had been strange and awkward weapons at first, but drill after drill made them familiar to the touch. Kame leveled his in perfect coordination with the command as the Takeda cavalry charged across Shitaragahara, immense warhorses tearing up the earth and eating away at the distance between them.
Steady. Wait.
Someone was shaking. Kame could hear the rattle somehow despite the imminent pounding of hooves and his blood rushing in his ears. He gritted his teeth and ignored the sound because there was no time to snap at whoever was making it; the cavalry was already at the stream.
The air was damp with leftover rain, but hopefully not too damp. Just now the horses and their riders were clambering up the steep bank, 50 meters away, and the signal was given. Kame's finger tightened on the trigger, pulled, and the spring-loaded serpentine released the burning match onto the flash pan.
For a moment he thought the cavalry had made it to them, the thunder was so loud and the recoil so hard, but still at the very edge of the stream the first line of horses went down. They buckled, throwing or crushing their riders, and then a second volley decimated the ones behind. A third volley, and a fourth, and none of the Takeda troops broke through.
Kame reloaded his weapon with hands that trembled with invincibility.
* * * * *
This, Kame thought as he surveyed the plain, now littered with the fallen Takeda troops, this is history.
It was a complete victory for the allied Oda and Tokugawa, and Kame had been part of it. He helped make this happen. All of the arquebusiers had been lauded for their successful work, and Kame had even been singled out by an elite guard for his poise and precision. "You!" Koki had said immediately after, his grin wolfish and his hands rough with excited grabbing. "Already moving up in the ranks, huh?"
"That wasn't a promotion," Kame had protested, but he felt light-headed thinking about it. Promotion. He could. He could. Nobunaga's policy made that possible. A peasant one day and a soldier the next-and then, maybe, an officer. The Oda army allowed that.
So he looked over the battlefield and acknowledged his work, recognizing with a detached sickness the wounds that were caused by the arquebuses. He'd already seen what they could do from accidents during training. That explosive blast that went off at the wrong moment, the way the little round balls could punch through armor and blow away flesh. The fact that it could happen to him.
"Regrets?"
Kame startled at the unexpected voice-and for an instant he wondered if one of the corpses had spoken, possessed by a restless ghost-but the voice was living, rough-sounding with some emotion that was more sad than angry.
The man standing behind him was probably still a boy in age, but battle added years. Kame wondered if he had that same look now, or if not now then soon.
"Not...exactly," he replied carefully, forcing his gaze back to the bodies. He must remember this, the triumph here, and also the cost. The casualties for both sides would be recorded and exaggerated, but what did numbers matter, the important thing was simply this. "It's going to be worth it someday. I'll make it worth it."
"You?"
Kame bristled at the tone. "Why not me?" he challenged, thinking this must be a young lord, used to privilege, who probably didn't have the proven right to be here.
The other man only shook his head. When he turned his face to stare across the plain, Kame noticed the moisture tracking through the dirt on his cheek. "You can't balance yourself against this. One against one thousand? That's crazy."
"No, I meant..." The other remained turned away from him. Kame marched up to stand in front, meeting the surprised gaze with his own steady (stubborn) one. "All of us will. Me. You. All of us." Then, feeling brave and certain, and feeling more than thinking, he reached up to touch his fingertips to the wetness on a wide-eyed face.
The contact was brief, the other pulling away immediately, staring at him with an expression that was strange and searching. "You seriously think that?"
This time Kame let out a sharp sigh. "I do. Stop doubting me."
Finally, a grin began to dawn on the other's features. It lightened his face and suddenly he was just a boy, slightly awkward and a bit daring when he lifted an arm to drop his hand messily into Kame's hair. "If you say so."
Kame shot him the most indignant look he could muster, which likely wasn't very effective from beneath tousled bangs.
1576, Osaka Bay
Kame had always liked the sea, but after a few weeks of waiting off the coast of Osaka, he was growing rather sick of it. Most of the troops were bored. The experienced soldiers laughed at the impatience of the newer ones.
"Think of the poor bastards who've been part of this siege for six years! They probably don't believe the fortress will ever fall."
The shoreline in the distance curved protectively around Ishiyama Honganji, base of the Ikkō-ikki warrior monks that continued to oppose Nobunaga. "It's only a matter of time," Kame said, perhaps more confidently than he felt. Six years was already a long time to hold out, but he had no intention of being stuck here, doing nothing, while there was the rest of Japan to unify. Ishiyama Honganji had only lasted this long because of the supplies they kept receiving from the Mōri clan, and Yoshitaka's fleet was here to put an end to that.
Conversation shifted, and Kame tried to ignore the portentous comments about the Mōri's superior naval forces. Thinking like that wouldn't do any good. He turned his attention instead to where a group of younger men were attempting to entertain themselves. Junno was balancing on the ship's railing.
"Yo," said a familiar voice, and a sudden weight was added to Kame's shoulder. "How long do you think until people start throwing things at him?"
"Don't," Kame warned, but his lips twitched in humor at the idea.
"Yeah, yeah, ruin my fun."
He glanced up at Jin's profile, but now the other boy was staring out across the bay wearing a blank expression he sometimes got at odd moments. Kame could never tell where Jin's mind went when he was like that, but the rest of the time he was easy to read.
"Are you done being seasick?" Kame asked with a light jab to the boy's ribs to get his attention.
"Ow." Jin winced and rubbed at the spot Kame hit with his bony elbow. "Seasick, me? No, I wasn't."
Kame's brows went up at the trace of genuine surprise laced within Jin's response. "Well, you were sulking for some reason," he concluded, biting his tongue on the part where he'd missed having Jin around. No reason to boost his ego when Kame was still kind of annoyed with him.
But Jin had irritatingly good luck, or he was somehow smarter than he appeared, because he grinned at Kame smugly. "So you were lonely?"
"I'll push you overboard."
"With these skinny arms?" Jin wrapped a hand around Kame's wrist and lifted an arm up for display. They both knew Kame was stronger than he looked, but he was admittedly still growing.
Narrowing his eyes, Kame kicked Jin's unprotected shin.
Jin yelped and clutched his leg, wobbling for a while on one foot. "Damnit, I need that bone!"
Kame leaned both his arms on the side of the ship, not quite hiding his grin.
* * * * *
"Ship sighted! It's the Mōri-do not let them through."
Movement stirred on the water; the Oda warships tightened their blockade and crew members hurried to ready the cannons. Some soldiers prepared large-caliber arquebuses for when the enemy came within range, and others still prepared for the eventual boarding and close combat. The Mōri fleet was approaching fast with the wind to their advantage.
"I sure hope everybody knows how to swim," Kame heard Nakamaru mutter.
A heavy boom carried across the bay and a stream of smoke was released with the first round of enemy attack. One towering splash went up near the Oda ships, then another, and then a hit-wood cracking and splintering accompanied by a din of frantic shouts.
"Give some back!" Kame yelled, voice half drowned out by the fire of cannons followed by a screen of smoke. The wind whisked it away and the Mōri vessels emerged into view, with sparks of flame flashing up and down the sides from soldiers positioned with matchlocks. The iron rounds thunked into wood and flesh alike.
A foreboding crunch distracted Kame from the sudden spatter of blood nearby, and the ship rocked violently. He was nearly thrown off his feet; only his grip on the railing kept him standing. Someone else's body, alive or dead, rolled against his legs. He couldn't look to see who it was-he could never afford to pay attention to faces and names and histories in the midst of battle, but unbidden, an image of Jin flashed through his mind.
No, Jin was still fine, somewhere, and anyway their ship was hit, a giant hole smashed through the deck. Kame felt for his sword sheathed at his side. The only thing to do now was try to board the enemy and fight for his life.
Still clutching the railing, he peered over the side, squinting against the spray of water. Bodies floated among the debris. He shifted his eyes away from them and sought out the nearest vessel, fiercely vindicated by the chaos on that side, too.
A hand on his shoulder yanked him back and he went tumbling just as the wood chipped where his hands at been from a shot. Kame fell hard, ungainly limbs sprawling, on top of another body that expelled a gasp from the impact.
"That was close," Jin wheezed, and Kame scrambled off of him with a shock of recognition followed by a rush of relief. It left him shaking, too distracted.
"We have to get off the ship," he managed to say at last. "We have to- We have to fight."
Jin's eyes went wide, incredulous, and his voice cracked with astonishment. "You can't be serious. Look, we're massively outclassed, if you throw yourself at them you'll just die."
"You are not suggesting we run away."
"I'm suggesting we not die! Not uselessly!"
"So you think we'll just swim to shore?!"
"It's a start." And with that, Jin got a grip on Kame's arm and hauled them both near the edge. They almost went down again with the rocking of the ship, but soon they were staring down at the waves. "Looks cold," Jin observed with a shiver, tactfully not mentioning the dark clouds of blood and partially blown away corpses.
Kame couldn't make his fingers stop clutching at Jin, and they fell together in one deciding motion. Staring at what came rushing to meet them, Kame felt that he was descending into the underworld.
1578, Azuchi Castle
"Maybe I should refuse the promotion," Kame mused aloud.
"Why the hell would you do that?" Jin shot him a look of pure suspicion, following Kame's gaze to where it rested on the seven-floor main keep of Azuchi Castle. The structure was magnificent, topping the hill that the new town was built on. Kame thought that the fact that the fortress was surrounded by budding life and ripe opportunity said a lot about the world they were going to create.
"Well..."
"Seriously, you worked really hard to get that promotion. This morning you were all excited to write to your parents about it and tell them to move here. Is refusing even allowed?"
"Nobunaga resigned from his position of Chancellor only after a few months," Kame pointed out, and this was followed by a stark silence.
Finally, Jin threw his hands up in defeat. "Whatever. That's funny, though. I thought you'd want to move up in the ranks as fast as humanely possible to get closer to your hero."
"That's not-" But arguing with Jin was always an exercise in futility. Jin's method was to just talk louder over the other person.
"But you might be disappointed to find that Nobunaga already has a favorite, and no matter how good you are or how humble you are, you won't be another Ranmaru."
"Are you done yet?" Kame asked, staring hard at the thick stone wall that bordered the town. Azuchi was well-protected with the barriers of granite, the most innovative and impenetrable structure of its age.
"Yeah," Jin said, and he drew in a harsh breath. "I'm definitely done."
Fine, Kame thought, watching Jin walk away. I won't stay behind where I'm not wanted.
* * * * *
Late at night, Kame found himself staring down at a sheet of parchment where he'd carefully inked the beginnings of a message, but the words trailed off beyond the initial pleasantries.
"Damnit," he hissed when his hovering brush dripped and a blot spread, stain-like, over his writing. It was no use; he set the brush aside and slowly leaned back until he was lying flat on the floor.
Stupid, stupid Jin. He was probably drinking himself into debt right now, oblivious, or passing the late hours at a brothel. Normally he would have tried to convince Kame to come along, making Kame regret those times he had given in because it only encouraged Jin. But maybe not anymore. Maybe not ever again.
It doesn't matter. Kame rested the back of his hand against his forehead and closed his eyes. I'll probably be sent somewhere else after being promoted. It could be better this way.
He'd no longer have to fear turning around during a battle and seeing Jin fall.
A thud from outside made his eyes snap open and he pushed himself up on one hand, locating the shadow moving along the screen door. The panel slid open, and Kame stared as Jin half stumbled inside.
"What are you doing here?" Kame demanded, nose wrinkling as he detected the sour smell of sake. Well, one of his suspicions was proven correct. He didn't much care to find out about the other one, whether another scent clung to Jin, the sickly-sweet foreign perfume that his favorite girl liked to wear.
It appeared to take some effort, but Jin pinned him with a frank look. "I always come here after a night out, remember?"
Kame chewed on his lip. Well, yes, but... Although it wasn't the first time they had a fight and then got over it without a word, but this one had seemed different. "Fine," he grunted, getting up to slide the screen door shut because he didn't trust Jin to do it without punching a hand through the paper or doing anything else that would need fixing.
"Mmm," Jin said as he rolled into a comfortable position, sprawled out on the floor. He tilted his head and squinted the letter Kame had been trying to write. "That for your parents? About your promotion?"
"Yeah."
"So you are taking it."
Kame took a seat again in front of the paper, hand moving towards the brush. "Does that make you happy now?"
"I am happy for you, you know. And... I'm sorry. I just kind of say things sometimes..." Jin waved a hand through the air dismissively and Kame felt his shoulders slump in a sigh.
"I know." Then, gathering his concentration, he set the tip of the brush to the parchment again in steady strokes, only dimly aware of Jin's rustling movement.
"Do you really want your family to move to Azuchi?"
"Why not? It's a good place-no taxes, plenty of space, and it's safe.
"I wouldn't call Nobunaga's primary base safe. He has a lot of enemies."
Kame looked up from his writing but Jin was gazing elsewhere, so he took a moment to think about his response. He knew Jin didn't actually...really like being in the Oda army, that was obvious, but he was here anyway. "But he's the most powerful man in the country."
"He's done a lot to get that power, and he's made some men desperate."
Kame thought of the Ikkō-ikki and how Ishiyama Honganji had finally fallen to Nobunaga's new armored ships, mammoth and indestructible. "Some men are crazy," he said flatly.
Jin turned so Kame could see the side of his face and part of his grin. "I can be pretty crazy."
"Crazy stupid, sure."
"Hey!"
1582, Honnōji
"We're surrounded," Kame stated grimly without having to listen to the report. Mitsuhide wouldn't be stupid enough to stage a half-hearted coup, although he certainly had every possible advantage. Nobunaga came to Honnōji to rest; he only brought a handful of retainers, not nearly enough to push back the overwhelming Akechi forces without a miracle.
"So this is it, huh." Jin peered out the window, though Kame couldn't imagine why he bothered. It wasn't quite dawn yet and Kyoto was still blanketed in darkness.
"We'll hold them off for a bit-that much is possible. Ranmaru plans to hold the enemy back long enough for Nobunaga to escape. We'll help him buy time."
"I don't think-"
"I don't care," Kame said immediately, cutting off the obvious statement. "I don't think it will work. We aren't going to make it out of here alive." His gaze was steady when he faced Jin's frustration. "I'm going to do this, and I don't care if I die."
Before Jin could argue with him, a messenger ran clambering through the halls. "Fire! They're going to set fire to the temple!"
Kame took off at a run.
"Kame! Don't- Damnit." Jin shouted and ran after him.
Things were out of control. Servants panicked everywhere and news of the impending fire attack made it worse. Kame slipped outside, hugging the perimeter of the temple. If there was even a chance of stopping the fire, it would help drastically, but he was literally making a shot in the dark. Of course the enemy wouldn't wait until dawn when the smoke would give them away. At least Kame could use the shadows for his own cover while he searched.
"Kame, wait," Jin hissed, his hand settling over Kame's shoulder.
"Shh!" Kame reached blindly to try and cover Jin's mouth, fingers pressing over cheek and lips. There was a faint noise up ahead.
A voice in the dark slowly, ominously said, "There's someone there."
Kame tried to flatten himself against the wall, but Jin resisted. He suddenly gripped Kame by the wrist and pulled him forward. "Wait," Jin said, pitching his voice to be carried low. "It's just me."
A slim shape moved out of the shadows, soon followed by a handful of others. Automatically, Kame gripped his sword and thumbed an inch of steel free from the scabbard. The soft hush of metal made the others tense.
The one in front peered at Jin. "You," he finally said in recognition, then seemed to consider. Nodding once, he added, "Good, we need some help. Word has spread and we should avoid the original location. Is there an alternative?"
Jin's hand suddenly covered Kame's own and locked his fingers tight and unyielding around his sword hilt. "No," he said to the squad. "Stick to the plan."
The leader glanced at Kame. "Is the plan still all right?"
"Ueda," Jin growled. "Just go."
I need to stop them, Kame thought frantically as they passed, but his trained reflexes failed under Jin's crushing grip and-I need to stop them, they're going to set fire to Honnōji, I need to stop-Jin, he's-
Kame's free hand moved to a second, smaller sheath, and pulled out a short tantō blade that soon glimmered next to Jin's neck. There was just enough moonlight for him to see the slight movement of Jin's throat and the twist of his lips into a frown. Kame didn't dare meet his eyes.
"Traitor," he said softly, needing to say it, so confirmation could press his knife that much further. "You traitor."
"Do you know what Nobunaga has done? Do you really know?"
Great things, Kame knew, at a cost. But that cost-
Jin continued: "Were you there when tens of thousands were massacred-women, children, it didn't matter. Enryakuji was razed to the ground. Fitting that the Demon King should meet the same fate."
Kame stared at the thin, dark line that formed at the edge of his tantō, starting a slow drip that traveled down the blade and onto his fingers.
"So yes, I am a traitor. I was glad for this opportunity. It's the only thing I've been glad for since joining the Oda army."
That was finally enough to make Kame move, but not to slide the knife through Jin's throat. He withdrew with a shudder instead, and Jin let him.
"You..." But Kame stopped, and he looked down at the bloodied knife in his hand. His fingers were almost white compared to the nearly-black smears. He threw the weapon down, and fled.
* * * * *
Kame barely registered surprise when he encountered the Akechi troops, drawing his sword in a thoughtless motion and falling into the pattern of battle. He cut through those who stood before him, moving single-mindedly forward, closer to the temple. An orange glow lit the grounds from the flames licking at the walls, and heat pressed all around him.
His blade clashed with another's, and there was an echo further ahead-he was right by the entrance to the inner keep, and there was Ranmaru fighting off the enemy alone.
"You!" Nobunaga's most loyal retainer called upon spotting him. "So someone else has managed to survive this long."
Kame fought his way closer, thinning out the crowd. "Where is Lord Nobunaga?"
"Inside," Ranmaru answered without interrupting the smooth swing of his sword. "But he's trapped. All I can hope to do is give him time."
"Then allow me the honor of helping."
He had once only aspired to this-fighting alongside one of the most esteemed men in the Oda army, and for such a monumental event. This would be the end, this battle written and kept in history, and Kame had never been afraid to die. He'd only wondered at times: would he make a difference? And to whom?
Here he was, one of the last men standing to defend Nobunaga's final moments. Surely this was all he could have wanted. Surely this mattered. He threw himself into every strike and slash.
Kame thought-he was prepared-to go down like this, sword in hand, still fighting. When the soldiers drew back he was puzzled at first, eyeing the open space between him and the enemy until a row of riflemen positioned themselves directly ahead.
Ranmaru panted heavily, arms shaking with the effort of holding up his weapon, but he remained battle-ready. Kame followed suit, tracking the familiar movements of the men as they prepared their guns. A modified design, more efficient, and made in Japan. The hazy recollection of his first battle in Nagashino swept over him, how they had fired line after line, and now he stood on the opposite end of the long barrels.
The rifles fired on command, as loud and heavy as thunder, but a collision of weight blindsided Kame and pushed him down. He fell to the ground, chin scraping the pavestones and the taste of blood stinging on his tongue. Pressed flat, his limbs felt frozen, and he could not make himself move. He didn't want to look. He had never wanted to look.
"Hey," Jin said by Kame's ear, tone conversational but rasping for breath. "I lied about something."
"No," Kame began, choking on the word. Warm wetness seeped onto his back.
"Betraying Nobunaga wasn't the only thing I was glad for," Jin went on in a low murmur, almost comforting. Kame could close his eyes and pretend it was a night like any other when Jin would arrive at his room, drunk and sleepy and content.
He almost missed the rest of Jin's words; it was the crackle of the fire that caught his attention and made him listen.
"I was glad to meet you, and I wanted...you to live. Aren't I a selfish bastard?"
"You are," Kame agreed faintly, head turned to watch the temple burn. "You're the worst."
"Yeah," Jin sighed, and Kame knew he was smiling. "But because of you... You made a difference. To me."
Flaming pieces of wood crashed down among the bodies. Kame saw Ranmaru's crumpled form, hand still tight around his sword, face turned towards the burning building in clear devotion.
"Jin," Kame said, carefully reaching up to grasp his shoulder. His fingers skirted around the wet edge of one wound, then another. "Jin!"
The enemy had left, leaving them and the fire. Smoke rose like a banner in the pale light of dawn, and holding Jin close, Kame's gaze followed it to the sky.
Thank you.
So take all my strength
For this heart you’re to blame
But please don’t wait till it all-
Don’t you wait till it all bleeds to an end.
alkjdhkahfkd I started this back when I first heard about Kame's solo and it took so long to finish. I feel so late. orz I don't even know what this is but it's probably awkwardly OOC. I just wanted to be able to say I was playing video games for research (haha).
Preemptive reply to Matchy: KAME'S SONG STARTED IT, SO THE ANGST IS HIS FAULT, NOT MINE (THIS TIME).