InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Teaching Rin ❯ Chapter 32

Disclaimer - It’s not mine. Never was. Only thing I own is Kaida and her immediate/extended family. The rest belong to Rumiko Takahashi, that lucky lady.

A/N - Hello to everyone out there. I’m glad so many of you stuck around and waited for me to come back. You have no idea how good it was to read your words of encouragement in the reviews. So, without further ado, I give you:

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Teaching Rin

Chapter 32

It All Begins…Again

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“You wanted to speak with me, Lord Sesshomaru?” Kaida asked, walking into the small conference room in the Western fortress. They had just arrived back to Sesshomaru’s home a half hour ago. He had said that he wanted to speak with her as soon as she got Rin settled in. So here she was, stuck in the confines of a small room with the one demon in all of Japan who she didn’t want to even look at, let alone converse with.

“I did.” he answered, shuffling some scrolls to the side, and waiting for her to take a seat. Kaida knelt, keeping her eyes trained to the floor as was expected of her. She was nervous around him now, not knowing how she was supposed to act after being given the gift of life from one of the most cut throat Lords ruling their world. The shuffling of papers ceased and she waited a few moments for him to speak. “I wish to discuss what your plans are for concluding Rin’s instructions.”

“I had no specific plans in mind.” she admitted, a light blush staining her cheeks. “Was there something in particular you want me to focus on?”

“No. However, during your final few weeks here, I have a few other duties for you to attend to.” Kaida looked up in confusion, wondering what on Earth he could possibly want her to do.

“Other duties?” she repeated, inadvertently asking for some form of clarification.

“It seems my group of elites have become quite lax in this time of relative peacefulness. They have become restless, with nothing to occupy their attentions beyond routine training. I want you to remedy that.” he said.

“I mean no disrespect, but isn’t that usually the Lord’s job?” she asked.

“I am currently engrossed in enough paperwork to keep my busy for the next few weeks, most of which is dealing with that impudent kitsune and his claim to Rin.” he said coldly. “Which is another topic I wanted to discuss with you.”

“Yes?”

“You know it is customary for an intended bride to spend a week with her mate’s family before the union.”

“To see if she will fit in.” Kaida nodded, remembering her own disastrous week with the Northern family. “I am aware of it, yes.”

“Then you are also aware that a chaperone is usually sent with the young woman as well.”

“Yes.” she said, noticing the pinched expression on his face. This could only mean trouble, and she had a good idea as to what he was about to ask her to do. “And just so you know, I am not going to try and sabotage Rin’s relationship, on your orders no less.” Sesshoomaru seemed to ponder her statement for a moment before waving it off.

“For one with so few personal relationships, you are standing guard over this union with the Eastern family.” he commented. “Why is that?”

“They make a sensible pair.” she said, bristling at the insinuation of her lack of personal relations with other people. It’s not like he’s got much room to talk either, she thought. “And I refuse to be a part to something that will break them apart. She is happy with him, so let her be.”

“And will you stand by whomever makes you happy, Lady Kaida, should he show his face in the near future.?” Sesshomaru asked. “Instead of purposely trying to sabotage any change you may have of finding peace.”

Kaida cleared her throat of the lump that had risen with his unexpected line of questioning. She didn’t want to talk to him about any plans she had not even made yet, and him intruding into an area that was deeply personal only threw her more on the defensive.

“This conversation is about Rin, not myself.” she said evasively. “Although I am relatively sure you know what my answer to that question would be.”

“Indeed I do.” he said, noticing that she seemed to have her eyes fixated on something off to the side. She had not even looked at him since walking into the door, which he found slightly odd. Any other time she would stare him down into the ground when they disagreed over something trivial. So it was more than just a little unnerving to see her so adamant in not meeting his gaze.

“You want me to go with Rin? I was planning on doing that anyways.” Kaida contined on without missing a beat.

“I want you to find someone else to go in your stead.” he said.

“Excuse me?” Kaida looked up at Sesshomaru like he had grown another head, finally meeting his amber gaze….only to look away a few seconds later.

“There is something I will need your assistance with while Rin is away.” he said.

“Very well.” she said, nodding. She wanted to get out of there quick. Being around Sesshomaru was suddenly the last thing she wanted to do. “Anything else?”

“No.”

“Is there any specific time I am to report to the barracks tomorrow?” she asked.

“I will meet you after Rin takes lunch tomorrow to bring you down there.” he said.

“What exactly do you want me to do?” she asked. “Will I just supervise them while they train? What’s my point in being down there?”

“Teach them.”

“What?”

“They are only trained in the fighting styles of our lands.” he said. “Teach them some of your own.”

“You’re putting your group of elites in my hands? Just because you want me to teach them how to fight like I do?” she asked, shaking her head.

“How to remain undetected.” he clarified. “Few of them have the abilities of complete stealth, like ourselves.”

“There are only a handful who can move about without being sensed or seen.” she acknowledged. “It is not an easy skill to master.”

“There are a few other areas which they are lacking in.” he said. “You will pick up on them easily enough.”

“It is easy to forget skills during times of peace.” she shrugged.

“They need a new opponent.” he said. “Someone who they have not fought against, someone who they are unfamiliar with.”

“And I’m your answer to that?” she demanded.

“You will represent a new challenge.” he said calmly. “Make no mistake, these are my best fighters, trained to my standards. However, they should not pose much of a problem to you.”

“That’s some vote of confidence.” she said.

“You survived our encounters, correct?”

“Yes.”

“They can’t do anything to you I haven’t already done.” he said.

“That’s reassuring.” she said, a bite of sarcasm in her voice.

“It wasn’t meant to be.”

“So my mornings are to be spent with Rin, and my evenings with your elites?” she asked, going over the plans just to make sure she understood completely, ignoring his last verbal jab. Sesshomaru nodded, and she continued on. “How long in the evenings?”

“Until you deem necessary.” he said.

“Was there anything else?”

“Not at the moment.” he said. “You may go.” Kaida rose and bowed herself out of the room without a backwards glance at the frigid Lord. He was making her feel uncomfortable with the looks he was giving her, almost as if he could sense what her traitorous thoughts and feelings were behind her composed façade.

She honestly hoped telepathy wasn’t another of his hidden abilities.

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If someone had told her that coming back to the Western Lands would feel more like a homecoming than going to her own, she would have called them crazy. But as she and Rin sat along the outskirts of the protective walls surrounding the Western fortress the next morning, Kaida realized exactly how familiar this place had become to her. Should the truth be told, this was the longest she had ever been in one place since receiving her rank within the battalions in her homelands.

“Concentrate your energy on changing the coloring of the shield.” Kaida murmured quietly as Rin sat in front of her sweating bullets as the blue dome of light swirled angrily in front of her before fading to a darker purplish coloring. “Very good, Rin. Now, I want you to try and meld them together. Make the dome look like a rainbow.”

“You’re not making this easy, are you?” Rin groaned, her brow pinched in an effort to follow her instructor’s words.

“Of course not. Why would I do that?” she asked.

“You know, I thought you would still need a few days to recuperate after you got back here.” Rin said a few moments later as her attempt at melding the colors of the shield resulted in shattering it completely.

“I had enough rest.” she said. “Why are you so eager to get out of your lessons? You’ve been fidgeting all morning.”

“No reason.”

“Would this reason be the letter you got from a certain delivery carrier yesterday who was dressed head to do in the Eastern Land‘s colors?” Kaida asked demurely. Rin grimaced and bowed her head, trying to keep a grin off her face.

“You saw him last night?” she asked, knowing she had been caught.

“As did Lord Sesshomaru.” Kaida said.

“He wasn’t happy, was he?”

“He wasn’t as angry as he could be, no.” she admitted. “But next time, tell your kitsune to send the letter to the front gates as opposed to trying to sneak it in over the garden gates.”

“I’ll mention it to him.” she said, blushing. It was obvious the young girl still had some reservations about speaking to anyone concerning her relationship with Kentaro, but Kaida could understand that. The young couple needed their privacy. “Hey, what were you two doing in the gardens last night anyways?” Rin asked suddenly. “I didn’t see you together.”

“That’s because we weren’t.” Kaida said. “I saw the courier outside the wall. Sesshomaru saw him from the window in his quarters.”

“And neither of you intervened?” Rin asked, more to herself than anything. Kaida shrugged and smiled.

“I’d already intercepted him before he got within a hundred yards of the wall.”

“And Lord Sesshomaru?”

“He saw me standing nearby.”

“Oh.”

“Oh, is right.” Kaida said, tossing Rin the bow that Kentaro had sent her as a gift after the Southern harvest festival, then taking up her own. “Now, you’ve got some practicing to do, Lady. Let’s get to work.”

“Slave driver.” Rin mumbled, quickly getting back to the task at hand. The sooner she satisfied Kaida’s requirements for the morning, the sooner she could get to that letter that was sitting in her room.

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Kaida had just come into the courtyard that evening when she saw Sesshomaru coming out of a smaller building off to the side. He motioned for her to follow, and she did, catching up quickly enough. She still wore the simple white gi she’d put on earlier that morning, making it easier to spot her amongst the soldiers wearing red.

“So, exactly what kind of authority do I have over these demons?” Kaida asked. She’d been thinking about it since their meeting the day before in his conference room. It was a possibility these soldiers would just utterly ignore what she had to say. She needed some sort of leverage to hold against the ones who would undoubtedly question her authority.

“Your rank is that of just below myself.” he said. “I will explain to my main captain what my expectations are, and your involvement in them. Do what you must to get your point across.”

‘Appropriate authority obtained.’ she thought with a smirk, quickly reverting into the facet of her personality she was most comfortable with. Kaida was more comfortable yelling and ordering soldiers around than teaching a teenage human girl how to act like a noble born demoness.

This she could do with no problem what so ever.

When they walked into largest dojo on the outskirts of the living area, Kaida noticed that his elite soldiers numbered only about seventy-five or so. It wasn’t as many as she had originally anticipated. Her father kept at least a hundred and twenty elites on staff at all times.

“This is all of them?” she asked skeptically.

“The rest are out back.” he answered, leading her towards a large demon who seemed to be in charge of the entire group. He was yelling out orders to the men who were in fighting stances, and honestly looked like he was ready to blow a head gasket if the red color of his face was any indication. He was a big guy, at least as tall as Sesshomaru, and had a slightly bearish look to him. He had black, pointed ears sitting atop his head, and glinting black eyes that looked like pieces of polished coal. Kaida also noticed that the training gi he wore showed large, well muscled arms that were tipped with deadly looking claws on his hands.

This was a demon who knew his trade well, and was one to watch out for.

“Captain Bano.” Sesshomaru said calmly, garnering the other demon’s attention instantly. The Captain turned to face his lord immediately, bowing low when he saw who it was.

“Lord Sesshomaru. Lady Kaida.” he said respectfully, albeit more than just a little surprised. “To what do we owe the honor of your presence?”

“You were informing me of some of the men’s less than adequate performance during routine training a few days ago, were you not, Bano?” Sesshomaru asked, looking out among the soldiers who were practicing the routine katas. He frowned and turned his attention back to Bano, waiting for affirmation of what he already knew was the truth.

While the two men conversed, Kaida looked out over the assembled men. She could see exactly what Sesshomaru had mentioned to her the day before. The soldiers knew what they were doing, but the daily routine had bored them into carelessness. They were making small mistakes that no soldier should make. There were those who were over-swinging the arcs in the sword techniques. Those that were focused more on what Sesshomaru and Bano were speaking of than their opponent’s moves. Stances were sloppy, postures were worse.

These may very well be Sesshomaru’s best soldiers, but they were no better than a group of untrained bandits making such amateur mistakes. She had no doubt that these men could fight as well as she could, possibly better, but to look at them now, you never would be able to tell. She only hoped the soldiers out back were taking their work more seriously.

“I welcome any advice and assistance Lady….General Kaida can offer.” Bano was saying gruffly, bringing Kaida’s attention back to the matter at hand. She looked at the large bear demon and saw that he actually seemed welcoming of her sudden, unannounced intrusion, which was an oddity in itself. Most higher ranking soldiers abhorred having someone else point out the errors in the men under their training. “It will be a welcome breath of fresh air for these mongrels. It is time some of them were put in there place.”

“Then I leave you to your observations.” Sesshomaru said, leaving the dojo without another word. Kaida turned to the bear demon, her poker face in place. She had dealt with unruly soldier types many times before, so it was something she was familiar with. The only problem was she was still trying to figure out why Sesshomaru had just now put this particular request on her shoulders.

“Do you follow a set plan in your training, Captain Bano?” Kaida asked pointedly, looking up at the bear. “Or do you leave the men to go at their own pace?” She had no preamble with men, especially seasoned soldiers as she expected this captain to be. Men never picked up on subtleties or round about questions. She always found it easier to just be blunt in asking what she wanted to know. And after half a dozen decades as one of her own father’s elites, she’d had plenty of practice in dealing with soldiers…and their attitudes. Being non-apologetic was a trait that was inherent in her as it was, but it came out even more when she was training or on the battlefield.

After all, making apologies and excuses were useless when someone’s got a sword at your throat, threatening to slice your head off.

“They have a rotation pattern they are assigned.” he said, motioning her towards the exit of the dojo. “They remain in one place for a week, then rotate to the next station.”

“How many stations?” she asked, squinting as they walked out into the brighter sunshine.

“Six.” he said. “Archery. Swordsmanship. Stealth. Hand to hand combat. Weaponary. Sparring. There is also a few of the more advanced soldiers that work on strategy plans.” Kaida nodded, knowing each of the talents very well, as she had been through them all before during her own training. “Was there a particular area you were planning on observing, General?”

“All of them.” she said. “Although it looks like I will have to work on simple basics. These men are doing shoddy work, making simple mistakes.”

“They have become sloppy in the last few months.” he admitted candidly. “And no matter what I do, no type of reprimand seems to faze them. Will you be beginning today?”

“I am just observing for today.” she said. “To take inventory of what needs to be done.”

“I understand.” Bano said, bowing slightly. “However, I would like to warn you beforehand.”

“Of what?”

“There are a few of my subordinates who will be quite….perturbed.” he said.

“For what reason?” she asked. “Do they have an opposition to my supervision? To learning from me?”

“They have an opposition learning from me.” he said. “Many of them have come to the conclusion that since they attained their status within the elites there is no one besides Lord Sesshomaru himself who can challenge them. And forgive my bluntness, Lady, but there are those who will be opposed to learning from you simply because you are female, despite your rank in Lord Ryu‘s battalions.”

“Headstrong?” she asked. “Stubborn?” Bano nodded, causing her to smirk confidently. “I’ll handle them. They will be put back in their places, rest assured. I have no use for big headed soldiers who think they are invincible.”

“I have heard of your fighting prowess from many people for many years.” Bano admitted as they walked along the rows of soldiers practicing archery. “Even Lord Sesshomaru admits that you are a challenge…in more ways than one.”

“I can only imagine what he’s told you about me.” she said with a frown. “I wasn’t aware he spoke to anyone about me, good or otherwise.” Bano simply nodded and extended his hand to the mass of soldiers surrounding them.

“Do as you will, General.” he said. “I know your observations will yield much the same conclusions mine have.”

“Continue as you will.” she said, dismissing the larger demon. “However, I ask that you gather all the men together tomorrow before they begin their rotations. I will have a good amount to say to them.”

“I am sure you will, Lady.” he said, nodding once again before going off his own way. Kaida continued on her way, making a few mental notes of who seemed to be slacking off. Though she knew none of their names, she could just as easily pick out a face.

As she continued on her way, she noticed that the majority of the elites were not as sloppy as her initial assessment. She even ran into Sakaki as the observed two of the soldiers in the middle of a hand to hand spar.

“Lady Kaida!” the head guard exclaimed, causing a few of the surrounding soldiers to notice her presence for the first time. “What brings you to the training grounds?”

“It seems that Lord Sesshomaru intends for me to whip you into shape.” she said coldly, taking in the calculating looks of the other men who stepped aside to make room for her.

“You’re going to be training with us, General?” a wolf demon asked, turning to her.

“I wouldn’t be here if I wasn’t, soldier.” she retorted. “Now get back to work. Sakaki, come with me.”

“Yes, ma’am.” the guard answered, following her towards a less crowded area of the dojo. “Something the matter, Lady?”

“I need assessments on the elites.” she said simply. “And there is too many of them for me to do it all in one day. I need to know who the best fighters are within the group, as well as who needs more work. You‘ve been training with them longer than I have been here.” Sakaki quickly ran down the roster of the soldiers, pointing out the ones he could as he mentioned them. After a good ten minutes of conversing, Kaida sent him back, and continued on her way.

According to what Sakaki had told her, and what she could infer from Sesshomaru, it seemed that the elite’s weakest tie lay in their stealth ability. Of course, it wasn’t easy for a big, hulking demon to hide himself from view or any other sense, but it could be done. Kaida had never had a problem with stealth. Her small frame and natural litheness helped carry her about soundlessly when needed, so teaching these soldiers how to do it was going to take a bit of work.

“And who have we got here? A little lady lost from the castle?” one of the soldiers called out as Kaida walked by. She froze instantly, then turned around to glare at the form of a large bear demon who was lounging against the side of the dojo with six or so other elites. “You didn’t lose your way, did you pretty thing?”

“No, as a matter of fact, I didn’t.” Kaida said coolly. These demons obviously didn’t recognize her, or else she knew they never would have called out to her in such a disrespectful way. Sesshomaru had made it a point not to announce to the men that she would be coming. “Aren’t you supposed to be training, soldiers?”

“And who exactly are you to be telling us what we need to be doing?” another one asked. “What do you know?”

“Enough.” she said. “Now get back to work.”

“How dare you try to order us around, woman?” the bear demon snarled, his fists clenching. “We are the best soldiers in Lord Sesshomaru’s service. Who do you think you are?”

By now, a small crowd started gathering around Kaida and the half dozen other soldiers. Kaida saw both Sakaki and Captain Bano shoving their way through the rapidly enlarging circle around her, but she held up her hand to stall their advances, shaking her head in a silent request to let her take care of the brutes.

“I think he asked you a question, woman.” one of the other demons scowled. “Answer him.”

“And if I don’t want to?” Kaida asked defiantly. She’d dealt with soldiers like this many times before. Ones who thought that just because she was the Lord’s daughter she could not handle herself against demons much larger or stronger than herself.

Had they ever been wrong.

Off to her side, she could see Captain Bano struggling to keep his mouth shut under the offensive way his subordinates were acting towards her. She motioned the hulking demon forward, and turned to face the soldiers who were now coming forward.

“I believe I will let your captain handle that question.” she said coldly. “Captain Bano?”

“Your lucky she didn’t take your heads off for such disrespect, Yukio.” Bano growled.

“Her? Take our heads off? Not likely.” The now named Yukio scoffed, causing a few of the surrounding soldiers to chuckle.

“Captain Bano?” Kaida asked.

“Yes?” he asked.

“Do you mind if I show him exactly how ‘unlikely’ that would be?”

“Not at all. They need to see exactly why Sesshomaru gave you the job of supervising our training.” Bano said, bowing back into the circle as it widened to allow the combatants more room “Don‘t you agree, General Kaida?”

The mention of Kaida’s name threw the soldiers into a chaotic mass of shouting and yelling. Kaida simply ignored it, waiting for the soldier named Yukio to take his place in the center of the circle. He seemed reluctant, now that her identity had been revealed, but finally came out to face her.

“I’ll go easy on you, Lady.” he said. “Wouldn’t want Lord Ryu to be angry for hurting his youngest.”

“Please don’t, not on my account.” she said. She gave him time to comprehend the words before lashing out at him with a few well placed punches and kicks, all before he could retaliate and block. Her quick movements seemed to paralyze him because he was forced to his knees with Kaida jerking his arms backwards in a matter of seconds. “Still going to take it easy on me?” she goaded. He said nothing to her, and she let him go. “Is there anyone else who would like to have a go?” No one said anything, so Kaida continued on. “I didn’t think so.”

“You’re going to be training with us, General Kaida?” one of the men asked.

“Supervising you would be more accurate.” she answered. “Showing you weaknesses that you didn’t realize you had. I have been ordered to teach you a few minor things, but nothing more. So if anyone of you has a problem against learning something from me, there’s the door.” Not a one of the soldiers moved, and Kaida stared at them coldly.

“Anyone of you who refuses to do as ordered will lose their station with this group.” Captain Bano said loudly. “It is our Lord’s command that General Kaida get you mongrels back into top shape. You’ve become lazy, careless.”

“I will be reporting directly to Lord Sesshomaru any changes that occur, including the dismissal of any soldiers I feel are not worthy of their position.” she announced. “He has given me the authority to boot any of you out. You have a problem with it, take it up with him.”

“Are there any questions?” Bano asked.

“Then get back to work.” Kaida ordered. They dispersed quickly enough, and Kaida saw Sakaki coming towards her, a grin on his face.

“Not making any new friends, are you, Lady?” he whispered, chuckling candidly. Kaida didn’t dignify that with a response, and simply turned to watch as the soldiers continued on with their training. Only this time, she saw a vast improvement in many of the little things that had been annoying her earlier.

It really was amazing what kind of results a little intimidation was capable of producing.

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Sesshomaru watched in mild amusement as Kaida efficiently tossed Yukio onto his rear end. That particular demon was one of the more annoying ones who he had kept around simply because of his ability to strategize attacks. Sesshomaru had hoped he would be one of the first to butt heads with the fiery Kaida…and the first to be put in his place by the Lady.

He had spoken to Ryu about putting Kaida in charge of his elites for a short amount of time. Of course, he had his own reasons for such a move, none that he had told Ryu despite the fact that the dragon Lord agreed it would prove profitable in the long run. They were purely selfish reasons, should the truth be told, but Sesshomaru honestly didn’t care. Having Kaida focus on something she was more familiar with would allow her to see that she was still a valuable asset to those around her.

Of course, there was still a more practical side to him that kept asking himself over and over again:

‘What were you thinking?’

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A/N - Hey. I’m back, and with the latest chapter. Hope you all enjoyed it. And please remember to review, I want to know what you’re thinking.

Later,

A.A.