Warlords of Sengoku (Ikemen Segoku)

Part 14

Y/N POV

Despite being a fairly large inn, noone was in the female bath room, probably because it was the middle of the night.

I sort of stood there, at the entrance, not moving. Just standing; deflating. I removed my clothes, placed them on the shelf by the door and wrapped the towel Mitsuhide had given me tightly around my body.

I walked over to the sinks, running my fingers over the cut that delicately fell over my throat. My hair was tangled. My face, arms and legs were covered in dirt. Blood stained the back of my leg as a constant reminder of Mitsuhide's cruelness.

I started to cry. Tears streamed down my face, creating runs of slightly less dirty skin.

I could no longer recognise myself. I could no longer recognise the person I had become.

This place was so unforgiving, and I was exhausted from being shipped around like cargo.

Everyone here was either a sexist pig, or just an insane monster. Except for Sasuke. Who was now far away. Again.

I quickly stopped my sobbing as I unexpectidly heard the door open, I wiped my tears turning round, expecting to find a woman, but instead seeing noone. I look around the room to see where the noise came from, and came to the conclusion that it was from next door in the men's bath room. Looking up, I noticed that the opaque screen door ended leaving a large gap between the screen and the ceiling. Probably for ventilation. The room wasn't that big though, so if you were tall enough, you could stand on a stool and look over, but why would you want to?

I listened silently as I heard the sound of clothes on skin and the thuds of feet on the floor. Other than me, why would anyone else be up at this hour to bathe? I prayed that this mystery man wasn't Mitsuhide, and tried to ignore the fact that I didn't feel like I was alone in the female bath room anymore, I walked over to the baths sitting down on the edge to dip a bucket in the steaming hot liquid. I picked up a clean sponge and a bottle of soap I found on the shelf and placed them next to each other on the side of the water. I dropped the towel that clung to my small frame onto the floor, revealing a bruised and cut body that didn't look or feel like my own.

Sitting down once more, I dunked the sponge into the bucket. Steam erupted from the water's surface as I ran it over my delicate skin. A sigh escaped my lips as the hot water touched my arms and torso. It felt invigorating as I washed away the dirt and blood that had branded me.

I worked my way down to the cut on my leg. The water seared the back of my knee, and I had to bite my hand to muffle the whimper that was bursting from my throat. I tried to swallow the pain, but tears came rushing down my face instead. Before I could make anymore noise I reached for the bottle of soap that was also on the shelf in an attempt to distract my self from the throbbing that shook my knee.

I lathered it in my hands and ran the cool extract over myself. Water and soap dripped down my sides as I rinsed the suds of me and I cautiously stepped into the pool of hot water.

The mix of steam and perfectly scalding water sent my mind racing into oblivion. The heat seeped into my skin as I submerged myself fully into the soup.

I emerged my torso from the water, feeling the water cascasade down my body like a caress. I felt the steam extinguish my inflamed emotions and memories.

Sitting there, every time my eyes fell closed, it showed me the horrors of this world I was transported to and my mind swirled like an everlasting hurricane. But every time I opened my eyes, I saw where I was: 500 years away from everything I had ever known.

Forcing the thoughts that anguished me into the back of my mind, I layed there floating in the bath. There was noone else there, so there was no problem with me taking up as much room as I wanted. But soon remembering that there was a man next door, I opened my eyes again and intently listened for sounds of life.

Instead of hearing the relaxing sounds of water trickling down one's body that I expected, I heard stifled pained sounds and grunts from next door. It must have been Mitsuhide. He was probably in the same, most likely worse, pain that I was in.

I pictured his thin lips contorting into a grimace and relished the thought of the sick and twisted demon metres away from me being in the same pain that he seemed to cause everyone else.

"Hurts doesn't it?" I called out through the steam.

"Like what I did to you?" He laughed wryly. "You think what I did to you is pain?" He laughed again, chilling the humid environment. "You've never felt true pain in your life. You're a woman... How can you?"

"So you have?" I said, calling out again.

"More than I can even remember. I've taken bullets to the shoulder. Swords to the gut. Arrows sticking out of me like a bear's fur. Knives-" I stopped him before he could start to make me feel sick.

"I've been run over by a car, I broke my leg. Have you ever broken your leg?"

"No." Mitsuhide replied stiffly.

"Well, that's excruciating." I said, rather pleased that I had experienced a pain that he hadn't.

"What's a car?"

"Uhhh. It's, like, a cart... but... it's made of metal and moves with anything needing to pull it."

"That's impossible." He said, clearly confused.

"Not where I'm from. Where I'm from, so much more is possible." I said, dreamily picturing all of modern day's wonders that Mitsuhide will never know of. We didn't speak for the next half hour.

I finally got out of the bath, dried myself off, combed my hair and put on these some pastel purple and pink robes the ryoken provided. With the clothes I had been wearing in my arms, I walked back to the room where Mitsuhide was waiting. I put down my clothes next to the futon.

"Is that for Nobunaga?" I asked, indicating to the paper Mitsuhide was writing on. He didn't reply.

"W-W-What will he do with me when I return." I said, suddenly thinking about the fact that Nobunaga could be angry with me for running away from Azuchi in he dead of night and stabbing one his fellow daimyos.

"What Nobunaga does with you when I deliver you to him is none of my concern." Mitsuhide said coldly, terminating the conversation.

Meekly, I crawled into bed, pulling the covers up to my neck.

"O-Our you going to join me?" I said quietly.

"I don't really sleep much." He said flatly, as he continued to scrawl endlessly on the paper. "Anyway, I can't risk someone coming in and taking you while we're sleeping so no, I won't be joining you."

I let out a silent sigh of relief and rolled over onto my side; letting the exhaustion take over my mind and passed out.

Mitsuhide POV

As Y/N slept I continued to scrawl furiously onto the paper,

Hideyoshi, I am currently roughly a days ride from Azuchi. I am reporting that I have successfully subdued Princess Y/N and she is with me, heading back. I will not disclose many details of her detaining for worry of this letter being compromised by enemies, however I am concerned for her welfare around Lord Nobunaga. She does not seem to want to be around any of us or want to come back with me to Azuchi, this could lead to complications as Lord Nobunaga will obviously not tolerate that. Prepare for our arrival.

Mitsuhide

I finally finshed the letter and looked over to Y/N, who was curled up on the futon fast asleep. Silently I got up, not wanting to disturb her, I walked out the room to the innkeeper. He wasn't happy about having to do the very inconvienient task but I handed him a large handful of coins, to which he grumbled but reluctantly nodded and said he'd deliver the letter immediately.

As I sauntered back to the room I heard him ordering his son to complete my well-paid job, who was even more unhappy with being woken up in the extremely early morning.

Y/N was just as I left her, long locks of black hair covering her closed eyes. Just another woman who doesn't know better. I sat back down at my chair and I rested my head against the wall behind me, my hand falling to my sword in case of surprise attacks.

My eyes zoned out, staring at the wall opposite and I let Y/N sleep.