Fan Fiction ❯ Bushido ❯ Taxes and Lessons ( Chapter 11 )

Jeez... I actually uploaded the day after I posted the pervious chapter! O.O I think the world just ended... ¬_¬;

Chapter 11: Taxes and Lessons

Now nearly in full health once more, Koichi strolled about the Kubota's porch, thinking to himself. Six weeks had past since his ambush, though he still remained undecided whether to stay longer or not. Hidemi and Haruko had made it quite obvious they wouldn't mind if he stayed, but he was still worried about the chance of Oshima's goons find him here. The ronin sighed, plopping down on his rear.

Stay or not, he felt he should pay them back for their hospitality. All the time he was too injured to walk normally and rested, they'd aided him, and, if not that, they'd be working in the fields. In this unbearable heat, nonetheless. Koichi shook his head, sighing. I definitely owe them something. He squinted out at them, harvesting the remaining rice in this late-Shichigatsu day. He pondered for a moment, then rose to his feet.

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Haruko wiped her sweaty forehead, the hot sun burning down her back. The water did little to cool her off -- the heat had already warmed it. She placed the rice stalks in her basket before redoing her hair, making sure it was tied up tightly, above her neck and out of the muck. She leaned back down, hands grasped around more rice stalks before she noticed something to her right. Koichi, still dressed in his gi and hakama, sleeves tied up, had a bale of rice under one arm, pulling up another in his free hand.

"S-simasa wo nan desu ka?!" the female sputtered. Koichi looked up at her, grinning sheepishly.

"Farming?" Haruko dropped her load, grabbing him by the arm and dragging him out of the rice patties, towards the house. "ACK! Hey!" Hidemi glanced up in confusion, seeing their retreating figures.

"What was that about...?"

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Haruko slid open the shoji door, dragging Koichi after her. Years of laboring must have given her strong muscles, the ronin wagered. However, it was more out of surprise rather than strength that kept him from breaking free. Haruko pinned him lightly against the wall, looking appalled.

"What where you thinking?!" She asked in a hoarse whisper. Koichi raised his thick eyebrows, puzzled.

"Your father and yourself have been such wonderful hosts -- I had to pay you back somehow!"

"Are you crazy?! Samurai don't... don't... farm!" Koichi's expression became more perplexed.

"Why not? In Tanto, many of the lower class samurai had to farm part time--" His junior cut him off.

"Maybe where you lived, but not here!" she exclaimed, "The Hojos are very strict about social status! Samurai are in no way allowed to do peasant's labor, whether they want to or not! The tax collectors will be here any day now, and if they saw you out there... Oh... Tousan would get into so much trouble!"

"All right, calm down, Kubota-san!" Koichi sighed, gently removing her hands from his shoulders. "I can just wear some of your father's spare work clothes! I'm sure the tax collectors won't notice!"

"They will with that hair style!" Koichi blinked, holding up his long hair.

"My top-knot? I see many peasant with topknots as well as samurai. What's the big deal?"

"Did you see any with topknots since you entered Hojo's lands? Well, the men, I mean."

"Well, I-- oh, I see." The samurai sighed, "They won't even allow their peasants to wear their hair like this?"

"Nope. Not the men, at least."

"So I couldn't have long hair?"

"Not very long, no." Koichi bit his lip, thinking. Finally, he found the answer to what he'd been pondering for weeks.

"Well then, we'll just have to fix that." He withdrew his wakizashi, grasping his ponytail in his other hand.

"Nakano-san, you don't--"

"Hair grows back," he stated simply, his sharp blade easily sliding through his dark locks. He held the clump of hair in his large hand, sheathing his sword. "And if it grows back too fast, I can always cut it again."

"Nakano-san?" The ronin grinned at her, placing his now useless hair tie in his gi.

"I hope you and your father don't mind if I stay for some time, Kubota-san...?"

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Koic hi shifted uncomfortably in his tight work clothes. Hidemi noticed this, chuckling.

"I apologize, Nakano-san, but you are a big man, about the size of the strange Westerners I see sometimes. We'll buy you better fitting clothes soon."

"I may has well just dress in my fudashi for the time being." The ronin sighed.

"Well, you could," Haruko half-snickered, "it's not uncommon in the summer for laborers to strip down." Indeed, it was a fact; Koichi had seen it himself. However, dressed only in a fudashi, working in the water... it brought back a few unpleasant memories of his tengu training.

"Ah.... no, I think I'll live." He replied, shuddering at the memory. Haruko and her father laughed.

"Well, that's enough of a break," Hidemi sighed, rising to his feet, "Hojo's tax collectors should be stopping by any day soon, maybe even today. We'd best be working when they get here, otherwise they will be less than pleased."

"Understandable," Koichi nodding, getting up with Haruko. The trio headed out to the patties.

An interesting question popped into Koichi's head as they went to work, "Kubota-ojisan, you and your daughter say the tax collectors will be here soon. I thought rice taxes were collected in the fall, when all the harvesting is finished?" Hidemi scratched his gray beard.

"Well, they do," he said, "But they also come in late summer to collect some small taxes as well as check on the crops. Hojo has a very powerful military, and that gets expensive. He needs to collect some taxes early. They're not too high, so I'm not one to complain."

"Ah, I see." The young man nodded, going back to his work.

Only a few hours later, Koichi spotted an armored samurai walking towards them. He slung the basket's straps over his shoulders, calling over to Haruko and Hidemi.

"Oi! It looks like the collector's here!" Koichi called. Both Kubotas ceased their working, looking up. Hidemi stepped forward to greet the samurai.

"Ah, Tanaka-sama," he bowed deeply, "you have come for the summer tax, yes?"

"I have," the samurai grunted, "You have five koku, yes?"

"Of course, they're in my storage. Come, I'll take you there." Tanaka grunted again, about to follow when he noticed Koichi.

"Oi, who's this whelp?" He barked, swing his yari to his other shoulder, using his free hand to point.

"Nani? Me?" Koichi pointed at himself. "I am.. ah, Ichiro."

"Ichiro?" Tanaka snorted, "You peasants are so unoriginal with names. Kubota, what's he doing on your farm? I've never seen him in this area before." Hidemi rubbed his neck, his mind racing for an excuse.

"He's ah, my late cousin's son," He lied, "They lived in Sagami. When his father died, he came to live with us, since we're the only close family he has." Tanaka eyed the elderly man for a moment.

"Fine, fine. But I don't think you'll be getting lower taxes because you have more mouths to feed now!" The short man took another look at Koichi, "How'd you get those scars, boy?!"

"I, ah, came too close to another's kama a couple times, samurai-sama," Koichi answered, bowing. Tanaka snorted.

"Baka. You're lucky you didn't lose your eyes." He shook his head, following Hidemi off to the food storage. Koichi rolled his eyes, looking at Haruko.

"I see what you mean about them being rude," he muttered. Haruko giggled lightly, picking up her basket.

"C'mon, Nakano-san, let's follow. We need to put this rice away."

"Hai, hai, hai." Koichi trudged after her, still a bit put-off by the obnoxious samurai.

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Many weeks later, mid-Kugatsu...

Already well accustomed to life at the Kubota's, Koichi sat on the porch, carving a long piece of wood with a tanto. Now that harvest season was completely over, he had time to tend to other things. The soft clanking of sandals alerted him of another presence. "Konichiwa, Kubota-san." Haruko sat down across from him.

"What're you making?" She asked curiously. Koichi shaved off the last bits and held up the wood.

"Hmm? This? I just made a bokken to practice with. My katana and wakizashi are too dangerous to use around here."

"A bokken..." Haruko inspected the curved lumber, "Sort of like a wooden katana?"

"Exactly. They can be dangerous if misused, but they're still generally safer than real blades."

"I know. My father has a few of these."

"So ka?"

"Hai. He could have lent you one, you know."

"No, it's all right. I needed my own anyway. Good for practice and as a backup weapon. Now, I beg your pardon, but," The ronin rose to his feet, "I'm off to practice in that training room of yours." He headed down the hallway, Haruko following.

"Eh... Nakano-san?"

"Hai?"

"You know some forms of jujitsu, ne?"

"Of course." Koichi slid the shoji open and entered the training room.

"Mind if I spar with you?"

"Nani?" Another rare expression of surprise crossed his face. Haruko chuckled at his look.

"Remember, my ancestors were samurai, Nakano-san," she explained, "And the art of hand-to-hand combat is still passed down. My father taught me when I was little."

"Oh, I see." Koichi placed his daisho on the ground, removing his sandals. "Very well then, I'll practice with you." He placed the bokken down with his real blades and headed to one side of the room. "You're sure you father won't mind though?" Haruko laughed.

"Actually, he's always pestering me to practice my self-defense more. I think he'll be glad I have a partner. He places a lot of trust in you, you know." She tied her hair up in the same manner she did when harvesting.

"Well, I'm grateful and flattered," Koichi replied, trying up his loose sleeves, Haruko doing the same. The younger spread her legs apart, crouching into a fighting stance, grateful she wasn't in a restrictive kimono at the moment. Koichi went into his own stance, nodding. "Ready when you are."

The young woman charged forward, impressing the ronin with her speed. She thrust her palm forward, intending to hit his cheek. Koichi ducked to the side, however, easily dodging the blow. He responded with an effective, yet somewhat gentle chop to her upper back. Well aware of his tengu training, the samurai knew he'd have to hold back to avoid injuring his friend.

Haruko recovered quickly, kicking high, this time managing to hit her target. Koichi grunted, the wind temporarily knocked out of him. Obviously, she wasn't holding back, but he took no personal offense. He blocked her punch with his hand, still regaining his breath.

"Not bad, Kubota-san," he complimented, leaping back. Haruko smirked slightly, coming at him once more.

"My father's quite a good sensei." She replied, attempting to knock him off balance by kicking at his ankles. He had better equilibrium than she'd anticipated -- the ronin didn't budge. Instead, he reached around Haruko's neck, pulling her to his side in a tight headlock.

"You still need practice, however," He laughed at his companion's struggling. Though trapped, the girl burst into giggles as well.

"All, all right! You win! Lemme go!" Koichi released his grip on her, allowing her to stand up and straighten herself out. "Sheesh. I guess learning fighting from a tengu really help you out." Koichi grinned.

"I was holding back."

"Mou!" Haruko slapped his arm a little harder than she meant, "You trying to insult me?"

"No, I didn't want to risk hurting you. One who underestimates his strength is just as bad as one who overestimates." Haruko sighed.

"You have a point..."

"Still, I'm impressed at what you already know. Did your father teach you any sword skills? I could spar with you on that as well." Haruko shook her head.

"No. His father never taught him any, so neither of us knows much about sword fighting, even though we own bokken and katana heirlooms."

"Well," Koichi spoke, picking up his bokken and turning to her, "Do you want to learn?" She cocked her head to the side, raising her dark eyebrows.

"You'd teach me?"

"Why not? I had two excellent teachers, why not share some of the knowledge? I can give you the basics, maybe even some Hiryuu techniques."

"So, that's the school you trained under?"

"Well, that and the Raikou-sou style, when learning under the tengu. However, Raikou-sou requires an insane amount of physical training, and I'd prefer not to put you through the same hell I experienced." Haruko laughed, taking a bokken out from a bin in the corner.

"That's all right. So, what first, sensei?" Koichi picked up how own wooden blade, holding it out before him.

"Well, first you need to try a few basic swings, like so." He demonstrated. "Your turn."

"Right..." Haruko stepped forward and swung. The bokken flew right out of her hands, forcing Koichi to jerk his head out of its way. Haruko smacked her face in embarrassment. "Gomen nasai! Gomen nasai!" Koichi retrieved her bokken, handing it back.

"Quite all right. Try again." She did, and sent the weapon flying toward Koichi's face once more. Thanks to his quick reflexes, he smacked it away with his own bokken.

"Ack! Gomen, gomen, gomen, gomen!" Koichi shook his head, picking up the sword once more.

"You're not holding it right, nor swinging it correctly. Hold it like this, see?" He held up his bokken, showing her his grip. Haruko clumsily copied.

"Like.. uh.. this?" Koichi sighed.

"No, no. Here," He placed his weapon down, coming behind her. Wrapping his arms around her at the waist, he held her left hand in both of his, releasing its grip on the bokken. Koichi opened up her fingers, placing them correctly around the weapon. "Like this. See now?" He did the same with her right hand, Haruko instantly feeling her cheeks and ears flush.

"H-hai." She stuttered. Koichi gripped the bokken with her, guiding her swings.

"You step forward, swish, and step back. Like that. See? It's not that hard." Now her cheeks burned, all too aware of his firm chest and strong arms pressing against her. She struggled to pay more attention to his lesson.

"I-I think I've got it, sensei." Well, at least she managed to call him by his mock-title. Koichi grinned, removing his hold and stepping back. He nodded approvingly at her swings, now much improved.

"Very good, Kubota-san!" He blinked at her crimson face. "Say, are you sic--"

"Haruko-chan! Nakano-san! Dinner's served!" Hidemi's voice called, "Come before it gets cold!" Haruko dropped her bokken to the side inelegantly. She stumbled out of the room, shaking her head in an attempt to remove her blush.

"W-we're coming, Tousan!" she shouted back, "C'mon, Nakano-san!" Koichi observed her awkward gait with raised eyebrows. He scratched his head in mild bemusement.

"Women are a strange breed, indeed... Guess we'll continue later." he muttered before following.

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All right, it's a shorter chapter, but I'm still surprised I wrote it so quickly. ^^; Well, we're leaving tomorrow *Looks at clock* er... today... for a week. My friend brought her laptop, however, and already gave me permission to use it. I'll try to get some more writing down on my vacation, but I can't make any promises. I do have Samurai Banzai! strips to work on as well. We'll see what happens.

Shichigatsu - July

simasa wo nan desu ka - "What are you doing?!" (according to a friend in Japanese I, at least)

koku - amount of rice enough to feed one man for a year; often used instead of a monetary system in feudal Japan (Though one still existed)

Ichiro - "first child" a VERY common Japanese name, both then and today.

Kama - a farming tool, also used as a weapon by peasants and ninja

Kugatsu - September

Bokken - wooden sword curved like a katana blade