Chapter 13 {Kijima Matako}

I step down the bridge of the ship to the ground. A forest extends a distance ahead, the tall trees becoming zigzagged shadows in the falling light. So this is Yamanashi. I'm pretty sure Takechi-senpai chose place as our hiding spot because of its sheer isolation. This prefecture offers no gain whatsoever, so nobody would come here, much less our enemies.

I stride into the woods.

That girl has been getting on my nerves lately. Not to mention I've been cooped up in the ship for too long I'm starting to feel my bones have rusted. Coming out for a stroll might count as some slight exercise and a change of environment. Maybe I can shoot a deer or two to test my skills. Above me a crow caws.

The forest floor is soft as if from a recent rain, though there isn't wetness. It's getting darn hot in daylight and too cold at night for mid-spring. Walking under the thick canopies, chilly gusts shake the leaves and branches of the trees all round. I wonder how deep the forest stretches. Trying to look far ahead is futile.

Soon I come across a small pond with clean water, the bottom clearly visible. I couch down at the bank and scoop a handful of cold water to drink. I fill up my thirst with several gulps, feeling the coolness spreading through my body. The sun is getting below the horizon, shrouding my surrounding in a near dark. A shuffle sounds somewhere in the distance. I pay no attention to it thinking it's just the birds. Then the shuffle approaches nearer to where I am.

Thinking that I'll really get my hunt, I slowly draw my guns out and wait. I stand completely still, listening to the noise in the underbrush at my right. The grass there grow over my height and therefore I can't see what animal is coming near. A wild boar at best, considering the woods. The silvergrass cluster trembles, and a different sound came.

The familiar clings of metal.

Multiple Naraku members shoot out of the undergrowth. They lunge forward to me, their ringing staffs ready to kill. I jump away at the first one and shoot the next. Bullets explode from my guns as I battle them around the pond, careful not to lose my focus and fall. Alarm tolls at the back of my head.

The first thing that jumps in my head is that girl.

I can't let anyone of them escape and leak our location. One of them flashes in front of my face. I duck in time and kick him off balance before another one stabs the ground where I previously stay. I roll out of the way and fire.

Not long they all lie down the ground, motionless. The peacefulness of the trees resumes as if nothing has happened. Twelve of them. Their blood a foul fertilizer for the soil and their black uniform melt well with the falling night. Just to make sure, I walk around each of the corpse to see if they're all dead. Then I let my guard down and slowly put my guns back into the belt, breathing hard.

How can these guys be here? Have they already found out that our ship is just right behind? I have to tell Shinsuke-sama. But he's only just recovered. Telling him would spur him to action for sure.

I step to the pond and wash all the dirt away from my hands and legs. It's gotten completely dark by the time I manage to clean myself. Whether I inform Shinsuke-sama or not, I'll leave that to later. For now I head back to the ship.

Overhead, a crow caws again.