InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Untamed: Lecherous Hand, Wandering Iris ❯ Not as a Stranger ( Chapter 2 )
[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]
By: Xagzan 
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in this story. That all belongs to Rumiko Takashi, so I make no money from this.
Anime/Manga: InuYasha Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Hentai / Drama / Adventure | Type: Fanfiction Sequel | Uploaded On: 05.16.2008 | Pages: 3 | Words: 4.4K | Visits: 356 | Status: Completed
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in this story. That all belongs to Rumiko Takashi, so I make no money from this.
Anime/Manga: InuYasha Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Hentai / Drama / Adventure | Type: Fanfiction Sequel | Uploaded On: 05.16.2008 | Pages: 3 | Words: 4.4K | Visits: 356 | Status: Completed
After a very long time, the next chapter is finally up. Since it's been a while, I'm not gonna waste time with words up here. Read and review, thanks.
Not as a Stranger
Kohaku frowned. The monk was there, sitting by the fence with InuYasha, Kagome, his big sister, and a female wolf youkai. The same monk who had left his sister three years before. And even though she was in love with InuYasha now, and completely over Miroku, he was still annoyed that the monk had returned with a new woman.
“Is everything ok, Kohaku?” Rin asked, tugging his arm.
He looked down at her and nodded. “Yeah. Everything's fine.” He guessed he would have no choice. If Sango could forgive the whole thing, so could he.
“Good!” She said cheerfully. Kohaku grunted when she dragged him away from where he had been standing. “Your sister told us to take care of Sosuke and Jun today, remember? Come on!”
They went off to the hut where the hanyou kids were just waking up, leaving Miroku and the others alone again.
“Now,” he was saying, clearing his throat, “Where did I leave off yesterday?”
“At a part that we don't mind you skipping,” Kagome said, remembering how explicit Miroku's tale had become.
“Very well,” Miroku sighed. He thought it over for a moment. “In that case, I'll just continue from what happened the next morning, after we all woke up from the night before.”
“Better not be more lechery…” InuYasha growled sullenly.
“No,” Miroku shook his head. “Not for a while, anyway. Actually, that next day was, in a way, where my troubles began…”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~******************** *****~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The next morning…
Miroku felt his mouth open wide in a yawn, and then close. His eyelids parted and took in the image of the ceiling above them. The monk reached up and scratched his chest, then slowly sat up on the still damp futon. He was still naked, covered only by a thin sheet up to his waist. Glancing to his sides, he saw that the four girls were still asleep, perhaps from all the exerted effort from last night. They lay huddled together around him, nude bodies pressing together as a reminder of the intense sex that had occurred. But…the erotic image didn't arouse Miroku this morning as it normally would. Instead, he sensed that feeling coming back to him again, the one he had felt on the road yesterday, and the one that had plagued him increasingly with each day that passed after his departure from the village, especially when he stayed at brothels like these.
“Damn,” he whispered in frustration. He started to wonder again: Was this how he was destined to live? Incapable of controlling his natural lusts, or distinguishing between them and his heart's true desires so that he would never be able to have a strong, lasting relationship with a woman? He had thought he had had that with Sango, but their love just hadn't been strong enough to tame his instincts; so he had left, before that lechery had destroyed them both. And now, he was beginning to think that Sango had been his last chance at finding the right girl…finding peace.
“Hhhnnn…” One of the hostesses mumbled in her sleep. Miroku scowled at her before quickly shaking his head and sighing. He shouldn't be angry with them. It wasn't their fault he was feeling this emptiness again. Besides, this feeling would pass soon enough when he got to some village or house with pretty young maidens and then he'd be back to his old lecherous self…for a while.
I need to get some air…
He propped himself up on his hand and rose, groaning softly.
“Sir Monk…?”
Miroku looked down. Taka had woken up and was rubbing her eyes, looking up at him curiously.
“No need to worry,” he said, quickly gathering his acting skills and instantly becoming cheerful. “I just wanted to get some fresh morning air.”
“Oh, wait just a moment please,” she asked him, then moved to rouse the other girls. When they were all awake, Taka walked over and gathered all their clothes from around the room and handed them to the others. She started to dress herself and said, “Please, Sir Monk, let us show you the hot springs nearby. Our guests always enjoy going there during their stay.”
Miroku accepted the offer and put on his robes, not bothering to tie them since they'd be off again soon. As soon as the women were ready, they opened the door and led the way. He followed them down the stairs and then out a back entrance that led to a narrow dirt trail at the foot of the mountains. Miroku let the warm sun wash his face, enjoying the crisp morning air that surrounded this spring he was going to. He listened to the silence around them, for no other visitors passed them on their way.
“We are almost there,” Taka said, grasping his hand and pulling him around a corner. The steam was the first thing that Miroku saw. The steam above the surprisingly clear water. A high-class house indeed, he thought. The spring was large enough to hold quite a number of people, although at the moment, he saw only several other male guests and their female attendants resting in the pool. At least it wasn't too crowded.
Miroku noticed his girls were staring at him, looking as if they wanted his opinion of the place. “It's very exquisite,” he said truthfully. They smiled and bowed, obviously pleased by his answer.
“Let us help you,” Taka offered, and they began to remove Miroku's clothes, folding them and setting them aside. He slowly sank into the warm water and let out a deep breath, trying to purge his soul of its maladies. The warmth around him made his eyes droopy and difficult to keep open. He felt the water around him shift and the four girls slide in next to him, naked as he.
It was then that he started looking around the spring, taking stock of the other people sharing the water with him. The men seemed to be of all ages, from his own to his grandfather's before he had died. And all of the girls accompanying them were just as beautiful as the ones he had. Looking closely at some of the women, Miroku was very startled to notice certain…features they had that he would not have ever expected.
“Those girls,” he said to Taka curiously, indicating a couple of hostesses around a guest, “They're…they're youkai?” He had noticed that some of them had amber eyes, sharp claws and fangs, or unusually bright hair for a human. Of course, to him that just made them all the more sensual.
“Yes,” Mai confirmed. “The Komoko House does not discriminate in hiring between human or youkai girls. All of us are taken in based on our looks and talents. So there are just as many youkai hostesses her as humans.”
Miroku noticed that the way Mai spoke of the youkai girls didn't imply any prejudice that many other people had for the foreign beings. He guessed that working together with them had made the human girls far more accepting. In fact, he also assumed that some of the girls here were probably attracted to the alluring youkai females. He took another glance at them. From their looks, he could tell apart a kitsune, a Hayakki bat, and even a wolf youkai who might have been from Koga's clan.
He looked around the spring again, but this time he saw someone he hadn't noticed just before. “Hm…?”
“What is it, Sir Monk?”
He shook his head. “It's nothing. That man over there. I think I passed him in the hall last night, and he looked at me strangely…”
“Perhaps he knows you?”
“I guess go ask him…after we're done here of course,” he added. He leaned back, wrapped his arms around the girls' bare shoulders and closed his eyes. “Now, you ladies have been entertaining me ever since I got here. I think I should take a turn at repaying the favor.”
“Oh, Sir Monk,” Taka said, “You don't have to do anything for us. Though you are by far among our more handsome guests, it is still our duty to serve any of our travelers. We do not expect any extra pay—ah!”
Her sudden gasp drew the curious eyes of the others in the spring, including the strange man. Miroku smiled and waved his hand dismissively. “It's ok, she just sat on something sharp is all.” And the people turned away. Miroku grinned as Taka let her mouth fall open in another, softer gasp.
“S-Sir Monk…” His finger quickly entering her had caught her off guard, and now it was moving in and out of her body under the water.
The three other girls looked at each other, not having understood what was going on yet. But Kikuyu shivered and moaned a moment later when Miroku's other fingers slowly slid into her pussy, stretching her out around them.
The sound once again caused the guests to look in their direction. Miroku smiled again, but this time couldn't wave a hand. “Don't worry, she just stubbed her toe,” he told them, and they turned back away with arched eyebrows.
Kikuyu and Taka had to increase their efforts to moan as quietly as possible once the monk's fingers started thrusting into them faster, pumping their cunts underneath the pool's surface. The heat of the water mixed with their own rising lust and only added to their pleasure. Mai and Emiko giggled.
“You are terrible, Sir Monk,” Emiko joked, watching her friends struggle to keep somewhat straight faces out in this public area.
Miroku smirked. His lust had, as he expected, quickly returned, and now he was enjoying teasing these submissive girls. Actually, that was probably an extra turn on for him, the fact that they were submissive to him. It was their job, he realized, but, in general, he seemed to be aroused more when a pretty lady would let him have control in bed. And now, he had these two girls uncontrollably bucking and swiveling their hips on his intruding fingers. This was as far as he'd go with them for now, he decided. He'd have more fun later tonight.
After he felt his hands start to get tired, he gave a few more expert thrusts into the girls' and brought forth their orgasms, feeling their inner walls clench and convulse around him as they released their juices, which blended with the water. Taka and Emiko then slumped against his wet shoulders and took a deep breath to recover from their orgasmic highs. He enjoyed the feel of their soft skin against him, and they sat there in the spring with the other guests.
From time to time, Miroku would peek at the stranger from last night, although their gazes never met, whether purposefully or not. But, now that he saw him in the daylight, Miroku could see more of his features. He had been right: the man was definitely around his age. Miroku could tell from the youth in his face. His upper body was, to Miroku's slight jealousy, more muscular and defined than his own. His attendants appeared to be a mixture of both human and youkai women.
Maybe I should have both next time I'm here as well… Miroku contemplated, watching them take turns playing with the man's long, jet black hair. Watching this quickly turned boring, though, and Miroku let his eyes close so he could relax and enjoy the calm water. I must come back here more often. This truly is a high-class place. Not only the women, but the location, the food, everything about it is excellent. Well, at least I have two more days to enjoy it.
He sat like that for a short time longer. However, he soon felt a strange sensation, almost like something was crawling over him. He opened his eyes a little bit and peered through the lids, and was surprised when he saw the stranger now taking a good look at him. Miroku opened his eyes a bit more, and this time looked into the man's eyes. There, in those eyes, the monk noticed something…a darkness…a sadness, perhaps, that he knew he sometimes had in his own eyes, like he had earlier this morning. The man's eyes, while normal enough and surrounded by a pretty cheerful looking face, spoke of dark mystery, and seemed to grow larger and larger, as if to engulf Miroku. And their darkness was even enough to make it seem to him that the sun had disappeared behind a thick layer of clouds, covering the darkened water in shadow, and doubt…
The monk blinked a few times to snap out of it; in reality, the sun was shining happily, bathing the area in its light. He took another look at the stranger and saw everything was back to normal. The man was no longer looking at him. Instead, he was laughing playfully, caressing the delicate skin of his women without a trouble in the world. His carefree attitude was enough to brighten Miroku's mood, and he decided that he would have to meet this person, no doubt about it.
After a few more minutes, he turned to Taka, asking, “Would be so kind as to fetch my robes?”
She smiled and got out of the water, bringing the other girls with her. They gathered the monk's garments, along with their own, and brought them to him. Miroku rose out of the spring, where the other man was still thoroughly enjoying himself, and dried off in the sun before dressing again. His hostesses did likewise and followed him back to the house. Once they arrived, they went back up to the room, where Miroku went over to the corner and picked up his staff.
“What do you wish to do now, Sir Monk?”
He thought about it. “Do you know of any good trails? I'd just like to take a walk right now.”
“Oh, of course. There's one that leads right into the mountain behind us, just a bit further from where the hot springs were. We can show you the way.”
“If it's all the same with you,” he said kindly, “I would like to go alone.”
The girls nodded in understanding. “As you wish, Sir Monk. There are signposts along the trail every mile, so you will not get lost by yourself.”
“Thank you,” he said and turned around and left the room.
“We'll be here when you return, Sir Monk!” They called after him, and closed the door to the room, so they could clean last night's `mess' in private.
Miroku went back down the steps, nodded in greeting to the Madame at the entrance, who bowed back in return, and went out the door that he'd taken to the hot springs. Once on the trail, he made his way to the springs again and peeked in to see if anyone had left. Just as he had thought, the strange man was no longer there, nor were his hostesses. Miroku hadn't told his girls this, but there had been a reason he had asked to go alone. He had had some sort of gut feeling about this path, like he had to be alone, like he was being called by something. He took his first step past the spring and walked along the inclined trail, slowly heading into the mountain, not having any real destination in his mind.
“I guess…I'll just walk and see if anything happens,” he said to himself. He kept on going, but nothing happened. The only company he had was the sound of his feet and his staff shuffling along the earth, or the chirping of the birds that flew high above him, or the soft wind that blew through the trees and bushes.
Soon, Miroku came to a fork in the path, one left, one right. Looking farther up, he deduced that both paths eventually came back together later on, so it wouldn't really matter which one he'd take. The outcome would be the same. However, though he knew this, he didn't move yet. He stood there at the intersection, looking straight ahead, gripped his staff firmly, and called back, “I know you're there. You can come out now.”
As he expected, he heard footsteps along the path behind him, ones that were already quite close to him. He turned his head and saw his follower: it was none other than the young man. When he saw Miroku, he flashed a bright smile and gave him a small wave. He was dressed in an average quality kimono, leading Miroku to wonder just what it was that this man was.
“Hello there,” the man said, taking measured breaths as though he had hiked like this many times.
Miroku turned his whole body when the man reached him. “You. You are the man I saw last night. And in the springs earlier. Why have you been following me?” He questioned. “Do I know you?”
“Oh, no, I doubt it,” he replied. “I don't think we've ever met, Sir Monk. But…I do know your reputation!” At this he laughed good-naturedly.
“My…reputation?” Miroku asked quizzically. “I don't understand.”
The man cleared his throat and stood up straight, looking Miroku in the eye. “Forgive me, of course you don't. Where are my manners? I haven't even introduced myself yet. I am Ryutaro, at your service, Sir Monk.” He made an over elaborate bow, as a Noh actor might, although he was wearing the grin of a prankster the whole time.
Miroku, though a little confused, made a small bow back. “I am Miroku,” he said, “And you already know my profession. What's yours?”
Ryutaro smirked. “Profession? Can't stand the word. It implies restrictions, chains on freedom. But…it is still necessary, so I guess you could say I do a little of this, little of that.”
“Such as…?” Miroku asked suspiciously. Something about this man struck him as familiar.
“Well…let's see…I've been wandering the country, sometimes as an actor, sometimes as a samurai, sometimes as a monk, like yourself. Whatever it takes to get the money I need to stay at places like the Komoko House back there and…indulge myself.” He grinned, but then looked baffled by Miroku's confused expression. “What, is something wrong?”
“No, it's just…” Miroku paused. So he's a con man, he thought, avoiding thinking about his own cons. He continued, saying, “What you just said sounds almost exactly like what I've been doing…” His voice grew quiet, but then he quickly drew himself up proudly. “Of course, I am an actual monk who performs real exorcisms.”
“Oh, I know,” said Ryutaro. “That actually leads to what you were asking me before, the story of how I know about you.”
“You can tell me,” Miroku said, “But you'll have to walk with me up the trail.” He picked a path and began along it. Ryutaro took a few long strides and caught up with him.
“You see, I was in a village a while back, as a monk, to drive out a couple of nasty youkai that I said were on their way to attack. Meanwhile, the village headman offered me a place to stay in his house, in a room that was luckily next to his very charming daughter. Sadly, before I could try anything with her, the father told me about a certain purple-robed monk named Miroku who was known for his womanizing in several nearby villages, and had been there once to exorcize a youkai and had made advances on the daughter. He warned me not to do the same.”
“What did you do?” Miroku asked curiously.
Ryutaro shrugged indifferently. “I took the warning, didn't do anything. Didn't want to start a riot. But, hearing about you sparked my interest, and I decided to search for you, to see the infamous lecherous monk. I came here, to the House, just by coincidence, and as my luck would have it I ran into you there. That's why I looked surprised to see you last night.”
Miroku cleared his throat and kept walking. “That's quite a story. However, I'd hardly call myself lecherous,” he said indignantly.
“No need to be shy,” Ryutaro said, walking over to the monk and draping an arm over his shoulder fondly. “You're a man after my own heart.” He then sighed. “But…is it really true?”
“Is what really true?”
“That you ask every pretty girl you meet to bear your children?”
“It's…just a thing of mine.”
“So it's true.” Ryutaro put a hand on his forehead. “Oh boy, you should be thankful they don't all say yes, or you'd have an army of kids running around the country!”
That made Miroku laugh. “Yes, that wouldn't be a good thing.” He chuckled again and walked ahead, with Ryutaro keeping pace. There was something interesting about this man, thought Miroku. They had only just started talking a short while ago. He barely knew anything about the guy. And yet…he felt comfortable around him. This guy seemed like the friendly type, much like himself, and also happened to enjoy `pleasant' female company. Miroku was beginning to feel at ease around him. But, even so…there was no denying that Ryutaro's outgoing and personable nature just added to Miroku's confusion about him. After all, he hadn't forgotten about the strange look he had received last night in the hall, or the extremely bizarre happening at the springs this morning. Simply looking at the man's eyes had made it appear like shadow had blotted out the sun entirely. Miroku thought about it. With his youthful energy and vigor, how could Ryutaro have exuded such a sinisterness at those other times?
“Hey. Hey! HEEEYYY!”
A waving hand in front of his face brought the monk back to the real world. Ryutaro was walking at his side, moving his arm up and down.
“Are you alright?” He asked Miroku. “You kind of spaced out there.”
Miroku shook his head, saying it was nothing. They moved further up the trail, up into the mountain, talking about other things, like how their stay was going at the Komoko House, their luscious attendants. Ryutaro boasted that he had managed to book a high-priced panther female, which hadn't been easy with his less than impressive wallet. Miroku really was starting to take a liking to him and his enthusiastic mannerisms. Their conversations lasted a good way up the mountain trail, until Miroku looked up in the sky and noticed that evening would be coming soon.
“We should head back,” he told Ryutaro. “It took us long enough to get this far, so we need just a little less time to return, since it's downhill.”
Ryutaro nodded, and they began back down the way they came. As Miroku said, it was taking a decent amount of time, considering they had gotten pretty far on the path. The sun also started its descent, setting as they walked until the sky started to grow dark. That was when they saw the lights from the House at the end of the long last leg of the trail.
“Almost there,” said Miroku.
“I'm gonna head back to my room and get some sleep the second we get back,” Ryutaro told him. “All this walking got me tired. Though, I'll probably enjoy the girls' company first.” He winked.
Walking down the hill, the House disappeared behind some trees. They passed the hot springs, and as they walked by, a cry came out from the building ahead. Miroku and Ryutaro looked at each other seriously and then rushed forward, wondering if something had happened.
As they turned the corner, the House came into their sights.
“W-What…?” Miroku gasped.
Ryutaro stared at the glowing structure, the growing flames dancing around the woodwork. “The House is on fire!”
To be continued…
------------------------
Next time:
The Komoko House is ablaze! Whatever the cause, Miroku's main concern must be for the people inside. What can he do? Stay tuned.
My note: The beginning of this is turning out harder to write, just like I thought it would. At least the parts that I planned will be coming up soon. I'll try not to take as long, but it seems harder to write in summer. Strange…
Comments welcome, see you next time.
Not as a Stranger
Kohaku frowned. The monk was there, sitting by the fence with InuYasha, Kagome, his big sister, and a female wolf youkai. The same monk who had left his sister three years before. And even though she was in love with InuYasha now, and completely over Miroku, he was still annoyed that the monk had returned with a new woman.
“Is everything ok, Kohaku?” Rin asked, tugging his arm.
He looked down at her and nodded. “Yeah. Everything's fine.” He guessed he would have no choice. If Sango could forgive the whole thing, so could he.
“Good!” She said cheerfully. Kohaku grunted when she dragged him away from where he had been standing. “Your sister told us to take care of Sosuke and Jun today, remember? Come on!”
They went off to the hut where the hanyou kids were just waking up, leaving Miroku and the others alone again.
“Now,” he was saying, clearing his throat, “Where did I leave off yesterday?”
“At a part that we don't mind you skipping,” Kagome said, remembering how explicit Miroku's tale had become.
“Very well,” Miroku sighed. He thought it over for a moment. “In that case, I'll just continue from what happened the next morning, after we all woke up from the night before.”
“Better not be more lechery…” InuYasha growled sullenly.
“No,” Miroku shook his head. “Not for a while, anyway. Actually, that next day was, in a way, where my troubles began…”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~******************** *****~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The next morning…
Miroku felt his mouth open wide in a yawn, and then close. His eyelids parted and took in the image of the ceiling above them. The monk reached up and scratched his chest, then slowly sat up on the still damp futon. He was still naked, covered only by a thin sheet up to his waist. Glancing to his sides, he saw that the four girls were still asleep, perhaps from all the exerted effort from last night. They lay huddled together around him, nude bodies pressing together as a reminder of the intense sex that had occurred. But…the erotic image didn't arouse Miroku this morning as it normally would. Instead, he sensed that feeling coming back to him again, the one he had felt on the road yesterday, and the one that had plagued him increasingly with each day that passed after his departure from the village, especially when he stayed at brothels like these.
“Damn,” he whispered in frustration. He started to wonder again: Was this how he was destined to live? Incapable of controlling his natural lusts, or distinguishing between them and his heart's true desires so that he would never be able to have a strong, lasting relationship with a woman? He had thought he had had that with Sango, but their love just hadn't been strong enough to tame his instincts; so he had left, before that lechery had destroyed them both. And now, he was beginning to think that Sango had been his last chance at finding the right girl…finding peace.
“Hhhnnn…” One of the hostesses mumbled in her sleep. Miroku scowled at her before quickly shaking his head and sighing. He shouldn't be angry with them. It wasn't their fault he was feeling this emptiness again. Besides, this feeling would pass soon enough when he got to some village or house with pretty young maidens and then he'd be back to his old lecherous self…for a while.
I need to get some air…
He propped himself up on his hand and rose, groaning softly.
“Sir Monk…?”
Miroku looked down. Taka had woken up and was rubbing her eyes, looking up at him curiously.
“No need to worry,” he said, quickly gathering his acting skills and instantly becoming cheerful. “I just wanted to get some fresh morning air.”
“Oh, wait just a moment please,” she asked him, then moved to rouse the other girls. When they were all awake, Taka walked over and gathered all their clothes from around the room and handed them to the others. She started to dress herself and said, “Please, Sir Monk, let us show you the hot springs nearby. Our guests always enjoy going there during their stay.”
Miroku accepted the offer and put on his robes, not bothering to tie them since they'd be off again soon. As soon as the women were ready, they opened the door and led the way. He followed them down the stairs and then out a back entrance that led to a narrow dirt trail at the foot of the mountains. Miroku let the warm sun wash his face, enjoying the crisp morning air that surrounded this spring he was going to. He listened to the silence around them, for no other visitors passed them on their way.
“We are almost there,” Taka said, grasping his hand and pulling him around a corner. The steam was the first thing that Miroku saw. The steam above the surprisingly clear water. A high-class house indeed, he thought. The spring was large enough to hold quite a number of people, although at the moment, he saw only several other male guests and their female attendants resting in the pool. At least it wasn't too crowded.
Miroku noticed his girls were staring at him, looking as if they wanted his opinion of the place. “It's very exquisite,” he said truthfully. They smiled and bowed, obviously pleased by his answer.
“Let us help you,” Taka offered, and they began to remove Miroku's clothes, folding them and setting them aside. He slowly sank into the warm water and let out a deep breath, trying to purge his soul of its maladies. The warmth around him made his eyes droopy and difficult to keep open. He felt the water around him shift and the four girls slide in next to him, naked as he.
It was then that he started looking around the spring, taking stock of the other people sharing the water with him. The men seemed to be of all ages, from his own to his grandfather's before he had died. And all of the girls accompanying them were just as beautiful as the ones he had. Looking closely at some of the women, Miroku was very startled to notice certain…features they had that he would not have ever expected.
“Those girls,” he said to Taka curiously, indicating a couple of hostesses around a guest, “They're…they're youkai?” He had noticed that some of them had amber eyes, sharp claws and fangs, or unusually bright hair for a human. Of course, to him that just made them all the more sensual.
“Yes,” Mai confirmed. “The Komoko House does not discriminate in hiring between human or youkai girls. All of us are taken in based on our looks and talents. So there are just as many youkai hostesses her as humans.”
Miroku noticed that the way Mai spoke of the youkai girls didn't imply any prejudice that many other people had for the foreign beings. He guessed that working together with them had made the human girls far more accepting. In fact, he also assumed that some of the girls here were probably attracted to the alluring youkai females. He took another glance at them. From their looks, he could tell apart a kitsune, a Hayakki bat, and even a wolf youkai who might have been from Koga's clan.
He looked around the spring again, but this time he saw someone he hadn't noticed just before. “Hm…?”
“What is it, Sir Monk?”
He shook his head. “It's nothing. That man over there. I think I passed him in the hall last night, and he looked at me strangely…”
“Perhaps he knows you?”
“I guess go ask him…after we're done here of course,” he added. He leaned back, wrapped his arms around the girls' bare shoulders and closed his eyes. “Now, you ladies have been entertaining me ever since I got here. I think I should take a turn at repaying the favor.”
“Oh, Sir Monk,” Taka said, “You don't have to do anything for us. Though you are by far among our more handsome guests, it is still our duty to serve any of our travelers. We do not expect any extra pay—ah!”
Her sudden gasp drew the curious eyes of the others in the spring, including the strange man. Miroku smiled and waved his hand dismissively. “It's ok, she just sat on something sharp is all.” And the people turned away. Miroku grinned as Taka let her mouth fall open in another, softer gasp.
“S-Sir Monk…” His finger quickly entering her had caught her off guard, and now it was moving in and out of her body under the water.
The three other girls looked at each other, not having understood what was going on yet. But Kikuyu shivered and moaned a moment later when Miroku's other fingers slowly slid into her pussy, stretching her out around them.
The sound once again caused the guests to look in their direction. Miroku smiled again, but this time couldn't wave a hand. “Don't worry, she just stubbed her toe,” he told them, and they turned back away with arched eyebrows.
Kikuyu and Taka had to increase their efforts to moan as quietly as possible once the monk's fingers started thrusting into them faster, pumping their cunts underneath the pool's surface. The heat of the water mixed with their own rising lust and only added to their pleasure. Mai and Emiko giggled.
“You are terrible, Sir Monk,” Emiko joked, watching her friends struggle to keep somewhat straight faces out in this public area.
Miroku smirked. His lust had, as he expected, quickly returned, and now he was enjoying teasing these submissive girls. Actually, that was probably an extra turn on for him, the fact that they were submissive to him. It was their job, he realized, but, in general, he seemed to be aroused more when a pretty lady would let him have control in bed. And now, he had these two girls uncontrollably bucking and swiveling their hips on his intruding fingers. This was as far as he'd go with them for now, he decided. He'd have more fun later tonight.
After he felt his hands start to get tired, he gave a few more expert thrusts into the girls' and brought forth their orgasms, feeling their inner walls clench and convulse around him as they released their juices, which blended with the water. Taka and Emiko then slumped against his wet shoulders and took a deep breath to recover from their orgasmic highs. He enjoyed the feel of their soft skin against him, and they sat there in the spring with the other guests.
From time to time, Miroku would peek at the stranger from last night, although their gazes never met, whether purposefully or not. But, now that he saw him in the daylight, Miroku could see more of his features. He had been right: the man was definitely around his age. Miroku could tell from the youth in his face. His upper body was, to Miroku's slight jealousy, more muscular and defined than his own. His attendants appeared to be a mixture of both human and youkai women.
Maybe I should have both next time I'm here as well… Miroku contemplated, watching them take turns playing with the man's long, jet black hair. Watching this quickly turned boring, though, and Miroku let his eyes close so he could relax and enjoy the calm water. I must come back here more often. This truly is a high-class place. Not only the women, but the location, the food, everything about it is excellent. Well, at least I have two more days to enjoy it.
He sat like that for a short time longer. However, he soon felt a strange sensation, almost like something was crawling over him. He opened his eyes a little bit and peered through the lids, and was surprised when he saw the stranger now taking a good look at him. Miroku opened his eyes a bit more, and this time looked into the man's eyes. There, in those eyes, the monk noticed something…a darkness…a sadness, perhaps, that he knew he sometimes had in his own eyes, like he had earlier this morning. The man's eyes, while normal enough and surrounded by a pretty cheerful looking face, spoke of dark mystery, and seemed to grow larger and larger, as if to engulf Miroku. And their darkness was even enough to make it seem to him that the sun had disappeared behind a thick layer of clouds, covering the darkened water in shadow, and doubt…
The monk blinked a few times to snap out of it; in reality, the sun was shining happily, bathing the area in its light. He took another look at the stranger and saw everything was back to normal. The man was no longer looking at him. Instead, he was laughing playfully, caressing the delicate skin of his women without a trouble in the world. His carefree attitude was enough to brighten Miroku's mood, and he decided that he would have to meet this person, no doubt about it.
After a few more minutes, he turned to Taka, asking, “Would be so kind as to fetch my robes?”
She smiled and got out of the water, bringing the other girls with her. They gathered the monk's garments, along with their own, and brought them to him. Miroku rose out of the spring, where the other man was still thoroughly enjoying himself, and dried off in the sun before dressing again. His hostesses did likewise and followed him back to the house. Once they arrived, they went back up to the room, where Miroku went over to the corner and picked up his staff.
“What do you wish to do now, Sir Monk?”
He thought about it. “Do you know of any good trails? I'd just like to take a walk right now.”
“Oh, of course. There's one that leads right into the mountain behind us, just a bit further from where the hot springs were. We can show you the way.”
“If it's all the same with you,” he said kindly, “I would like to go alone.”
The girls nodded in understanding. “As you wish, Sir Monk. There are signposts along the trail every mile, so you will not get lost by yourself.”
“Thank you,” he said and turned around and left the room.
“We'll be here when you return, Sir Monk!” They called after him, and closed the door to the room, so they could clean last night's `mess' in private.
Miroku went back down the steps, nodded in greeting to the Madame at the entrance, who bowed back in return, and went out the door that he'd taken to the hot springs. Once on the trail, he made his way to the springs again and peeked in to see if anyone had left. Just as he had thought, the strange man was no longer there, nor were his hostesses. Miroku hadn't told his girls this, but there had been a reason he had asked to go alone. He had had some sort of gut feeling about this path, like he had to be alone, like he was being called by something. He took his first step past the spring and walked along the inclined trail, slowly heading into the mountain, not having any real destination in his mind.
“I guess…I'll just walk and see if anything happens,” he said to himself. He kept on going, but nothing happened. The only company he had was the sound of his feet and his staff shuffling along the earth, or the chirping of the birds that flew high above him, or the soft wind that blew through the trees and bushes.
Soon, Miroku came to a fork in the path, one left, one right. Looking farther up, he deduced that both paths eventually came back together later on, so it wouldn't really matter which one he'd take. The outcome would be the same. However, though he knew this, he didn't move yet. He stood there at the intersection, looking straight ahead, gripped his staff firmly, and called back, “I know you're there. You can come out now.”
As he expected, he heard footsteps along the path behind him, ones that were already quite close to him. He turned his head and saw his follower: it was none other than the young man. When he saw Miroku, he flashed a bright smile and gave him a small wave. He was dressed in an average quality kimono, leading Miroku to wonder just what it was that this man was.
“Hello there,” the man said, taking measured breaths as though he had hiked like this many times.
Miroku turned his whole body when the man reached him. “You. You are the man I saw last night. And in the springs earlier. Why have you been following me?” He questioned. “Do I know you?”
“Oh, no, I doubt it,” he replied. “I don't think we've ever met, Sir Monk. But…I do know your reputation!” At this he laughed good-naturedly.
“My…reputation?” Miroku asked quizzically. “I don't understand.”
The man cleared his throat and stood up straight, looking Miroku in the eye. “Forgive me, of course you don't. Where are my manners? I haven't even introduced myself yet. I am Ryutaro, at your service, Sir Monk.” He made an over elaborate bow, as a Noh actor might, although he was wearing the grin of a prankster the whole time.
Miroku, though a little confused, made a small bow back. “I am Miroku,” he said, “And you already know my profession. What's yours?”
Ryutaro smirked. “Profession? Can't stand the word. It implies restrictions, chains on freedom. But…it is still necessary, so I guess you could say I do a little of this, little of that.”
“Such as…?” Miroku asked suspiciously. Something about this man struck him as familiar.
“Well…let's see…I've been wandering the country, sometimes as an actor, sometimes as a samurai, sometimes as a monk, like yourself. Whatever it takes to get the money I need to stay at places like the Komoko House back there and…indulge myself.” He grinned, but then looked baffled by Miroku's confused expression. “What, is something wrong?”
“No, it's just…” Miroku paused. So he's a con man, he thought, avoiding thinking about his own cons. He continued, saying, “What you just said sounds almost exactly like what I've been doing…” His voice grew quiet, but then he quickly drew himself up proudly. “Of course, I am an actual monk who performs real exorcisms.”
“Oh, I know,” said Ryutaro. “That actually leads to what you were asking me before, the story of how I know about you.”
“You can tell me,” Miroku said, “But you'll have to walk with me up the trail.” He picked a path and began along it. Ryutaro took a few long strides and caught up with him.
“You see, I was in a village a while back, as a monk, to drive out a couple of nasty youkai that I said were on their way to attack. Meanwhile, the village headman offered me a place to stay in his house, in a room that was luckily next to his very charming daughter. Sadly, before I could try anything with her, the father told me about a certain purple-robed monk named Miroku who was known for his womanizing in several nearby villages, and had been there once to exorcize a youkai and had made advances on the daughter. He warned me not to do the same.”
“What did you do?” Miroku asked curiously.
Ryutaro shrugged indifferently. “I took the warning, didn't do anything. Didn't want to start a riot. But, hearing about you sparked my interest, and I decided to search for you, to see the infamous lecherous monk. I came here, to the House, just by coincidence, and as my luck would have it I ran into you there. That's why I looked surprised to see you last night.”
Miroku cleared his throat and kept walking. “That's quite a story. However, I'd hardly call myself lecherous,” he said indignantly.
“No need to be shy,” Ryutaro said, walking over to the monk and draping an arm over his shoulder fondly. “You're a man after my own heart.” He then sighed. “But…is it really true?”
“Is what really true?”
“That you ask every pretty girl you meet to bear your children?”
“It's…just a thing of mine.”
“So it's true.” Ryutaro put a hand on his forehead. “Oh boy, you should be thankful they don't all say yes, or you'd have an army of kids running around the country!”
That made Miroku laugh. “Yes, that wouldn't be a good thing.” He chuckled again and walked ahead, with Ryutaro keeping pace. There was something interesting about this man, thought Miroku. They had only just started talking a short while ago. He barely knew anything about the guy. And yet…he felt comfortable around him. This guy seemed like the friendly type, much like himself, and also happened to enjoy `pleasant' female company. Miroku was beginning to feel at ease around him. But, even so…there was no denying that Ryutaro's outgoing and personable nature just added to Miroku's confusion about him. After all, he hadn't forgotten about the strange look he had received last night in the hall, or the extremely bizarre happening at the springs this morning. Simply looking at the man's eyes had made it appear like shadow had blotted out the sun entirely. Miroku thought about it. With his youthful energy and vigor, how could Ryutaro have exuded such a sinisterness at those other times?
“Hey. Hey! HEEEYYY!”
A waving hand in front of his face brought the monk back to the real world. Ryutaro was walking at his side, moving his arm up and down.
“Are you alright?” He asked Miroku. “You kind of spaced out there.”
Miroku shook his head, saying it was nothing. They moved further up the trail, up into the mountain, talking about other things, like how their stay was going at the Komoko House, their luscious attendants. Ryutaro boasted that he had managed to book a high-priced panther female, which hadn't been easy with his less than impressive wallet. Miroku really was starting to take a liking to him and his enthusiastic mannerisms. Their conversations lasted a good way up the mountain trail, until Miroku looked up in the sky and noticed that evening would be coming soon.
“We should head back,” he told Ryutaro. “It took us long enough to get this far, so we need just a little less time to return, since it's downhill.”
Ryutaro nodded, and they began back down the way they came. As Miroku said, it was taking a decent amount of time, considering they had gotten pretty far on the path. The sun also started its descent, setting as they walked until the sky started to grow dark. That was when they saw the lights from the House at the end of the long last leg of the trail.
“Almost there,” said Miroku.
“I'm gonna head back to my room and get some sleep the second we get back,” Ryutaro told him. “All this walking got me tired. Though, I'll probably enjoy the girls' company first.” He winked.
Walking down the hill, the House disappeared behind some trees. They passed the hot springs, and as they walked by, a cry came out from the building ahead. Miroku and Ryutaro looked at each other seriously and then rushed forward, wondering if something had happened.
As they turned the corner, the House came into their sights.
“W-What…?” Miroku gasped.
Ryutaro stared at the glowing structure, the growing flames dancing around the woodwork. “The House is on fire!”
To be continued…
------------------------
Next time:
The Komoko House is ablaze! Whatever the cause, Miroku's main concern must be for the people inside. What can he do? Stay tuned.
My note: The beginning of this is turning out harder to write, just like I thought it would. At least the parts that I planned will be coming up soon. I'll try not to take as long, but it seems harder to write in summer. Strange…
Comments welcome, see you next time.