Teach me not to be weak

Hirokotsu was lucky. Just the right series of events took place, and he was able to live another day. He thought his problems were bad, these men were willing to go to any lengths to complete their mission. Almost like private ninjas. He looked over at Aiko and started walking towards her. "Your hand... it's bleeding." He said, his eyes rolling to the back of his head, falling forward. His head hit the edge of a small wooden table, and he continued down to the ground, his lower-mid section and head now bleeding slowly.

Aiko was ready to smack him away from her when he fell to the ground. "Hirokotsu!" She ran over to him seeing his blood was dripping freely from his wounds. "Not good..." She muttered as she grabbed the thin blanket from the bed and tore it into bandages in seconds. Aiko wrapped his head up tightly to stop the bleeding though when she went to his mid-secetion she pushed his clothing aside where she sprinkled herbs to kill any posion that may have been on the ninja's blades. Her hands traced over his form as she wrapped his wounds up tightly to stop the bleeding but he'd had to b careful for awhile.

It took nearly two hours before Hirokotsu responded. He felt the comfort of the bed below his body, as he reached up to his head and pulled back in some pain. "Egh... Pain..." He grimaced in some hurt before looking to see that Aiko was still there. "You patched me up, kid." He tried sitting up, his stomach immediately stinging. "I'm sorry. You took good care of me, Aiko." He laughed quietly, each breath hurting him quite dearly. The two tattoos on his chest inscribed in black ink were clearly visible, and he noticed how low the bandages actually were. "Are you hurt?"

When he stirred she opened her eyes yawning but when he called her kid she just turned from him. At this point she'd gave on on asking him to teach her to fight back on equal grounds. "The old couple who gave me spare clothes taught me bit on mending wounds with herbs." She said to him in a dull tone as if he didn't matter any more to her. "I'm fine, Dunso, is a marksmen when it comes to knifes."

Finally she looked over at him as she did notice the tattoos but it wasn't her place to ask. Sighing as she got up stretching her arms above her head. "Seeing we're even and you still don't see why I want to fight back. I shall be going..." She said with her picking her pack up and shouldered it on her back, her bandaged hand clearly visible.

He was actually listening to her. His eyes scanned her as she explained things a bit, and later stretched and started to signal herself leaving. "Hold on kid..." He said, trying to sit himself up. "I want to thank you. Take the coin I wanted to give you... you deserve it. I'm thankful for your former teachers educating you in herbs, this cut could have been much worse. I want you to know though, that you won't survive out there... I see that now. If you are still interested... let me train you. No... I request that you let me train you... I don't want to see you a dead woman tomorrow." He said to her, trying to stop her from leaving.

Aiko kept her back to him and flinched when he called her kid. "Once again...Its Aiko. Not kid. Nto child. Not woman. NOT WENCH!" It was clear she had enough with being seen as a child. If she could be sent off to marriage, be beaten, nearly raped, mend wounds, then doesn't she have the right to be called by her real name. "I kept telling you I was in trouble so it takes a blade to the gut to make you realize I wasn't lying?" She asked with her looking at him. "I don't think I want you to teach me if you're going to constantly insult me." She said with her heading for the door. "I don't want you money either."

The wanderer stood up, wounds crying out, and due to lack of balance grabbed her unothrodoxly. His left arm around her waist, his right hand holding her right arm to keep her from moving. He was weak, she'd push him off with a small effort. "Aiko, I'm not insulting you, and I am not joking with you. You leave here...like this... those men will find you... and they will kill you. If you will not take my coin, take my blade, take something with you..." His short and somewhat sharp whiskers on his chin rubbed against the skin on her shoulder lightly. He didnt' even really notice how low his hand was, but he was clearly disoriented and dizzy. "I'll teach you to fight... then you never have to see me again. And you won't need to, Aiko." He was going to faint on her at this rate. He used too much energy to try and stop her. Surprisingly as it was, the man didn't smell or feel dirty aside from the natural thin layer of sweat on him. He smelled a bit like smoke, a bit like liquor, and an essence that wasn't really defined.

She had reached for the door when he grabbed ont oher. Crying out in shock with him wrapping his arm around her waist then him grabbing her right arm. She could push him off of her then leave but he was injuryed though blushed when she felt his hand was bit low. She shifted her hips away from his hand to keep him was touching her soft mound. Though she heard him pleading this time like she was pleading with him not to long ago. Seeing his weight was being added to her shoulders she dropped her pack and turned to face him having his chin digging into her shoulder. She could smell smoke and liquor of course but it was odd he didn't smell nasty like the men from earlier.

"Lets get you to lay down." She said as she didn't agree nor reject his offer to teach her. Silently she walked him over ot the bed where she laid him down but the way his arm were wrapped around her brought her down to his side.

He nodded slowly and got back onto the bed. "If you need to think things through... think them through." He was too tired to move his hand away from where it had nestled around her. "I won't hurt you. I mean..." He coughed a bit. "If we're training, of course you will get hurt a bit. But I won't hurt you like they have tried to hurt you." He tilted his head. "Take the coin. Give it to the old lady. Tell her that you and your husband had a physical episode and you broke some windows with my head. She'll take the money and ask if she could help most likely. Tell her we're leaving early in the morning. Thank her. If by then, you truly want to survive on your own... then go, Aiko. I don't want to be rude, but your chances of survival are less than 1 in 10. If you truly want to survive, strike this... lord back, whose name does sound familiar... become my first, last, and only pupil. Learn my way of the blade, kid... protect yourself and those dear to you, protect your ideals and your beliefs. You'll make this old, dirty drunk a happier fool." He slowly unwrapped her arm from around her. "I'm sorry about that too. I didn't mean to push up on you like this. Maybe I did, I can't tell. Go now Aiko, and if you leave, take one of my blades. I mean that. If you leave without one of them, I'll hunt you down myself and give it to you."

"I gave you my reasons on fighting back. You still refused to teach me after seeing the bruises I recieved. So why have you changed your mind?" She asked when he released his grip on her waist. Slowly she sat up on the edge of the bed looking down at him. Though she moved her fingers over his torso and head to make sure his bandages weren't coming loose. There was some bleeding but not enough to make her change his bandages or burning his wounds shut.

"I do want to learn how to fight back and I wanted you to teach me even when I barely saw your movements with your blade from me being knocked down." She said with her looking down at him. True he was about ten years older than her judging by his appearance at the moment. Sighing as she touched his cheek before getting up. "I will have to stay to make sure there isn't any posion in your system. Donso has been known for his posions on his blades. He's Kenji's top ninja and sends him out ot retrieve his most prized possesions." She said with her getting up from him grabbing the coin he told her to give to the old lady. "While I'm keeping an eye on you then you might as well teach me to fight." She said with a slight smile before disappearing. She gave the coin to the lady when the woman saw the cut on Aiko's hand she got red faced but Aiko laughed telling her she delievered the most damage on her husband. The old lady grinned and gave Aiko a set of blankets then Aiko returned to the room laying one blanket over Hirokotsu.

Hirokotsu liked her answer, he accepted without mentioning it. "Hey..." His eyes were closed, but he spoke anyway. "You can call me Hiro. Hirokotsu is more of a name I go by through general channels. You will see a lot of me, hate me quite a bit, I will be your best friend and worst... well... second worst enemy. You will have to deal with problems above your own. I am not exactly liked by many lords myself. For reasons just like these." He laughed quietly. "You should get rest on the bed... but I can't move myself much. I should be good as new in a several hours."

She looked down at him when he mentioned his name. Her name was short enough as it is so she didn't say anything else about it. Sitting on the edge of the bed with him telling her about more problems added to her own. "I'll deal with them the best I can and I already am annoyed by you in the first place." She said with a slight smile but wrapped the blanket around her shoulders then laid down with her back to him though she closed her eyes then she slowly drift off to sleep.

Hirokotsu wasn't very descriptive of his past or his general personality. He seemed like a good guy, who liked saving troubled girls and possibly a womanizer. When she awoke, she was in his hold, the man huddled warmly behind her. Perhaps he did that on his own, or he took advantage of the closeness. Hopefully he hadn't done anything else. His groin wasn't exactly pushing against her either, it was more like his lower stomach against her rear, the man out like a light.

Aiko had opened her eyes when the morning sun came out from behind the thick trees. Groaning softly as she stretched her body out only to feel something restraining her from moving further. "Hm?" She looked down seeing a masculine arm wrapped around her. Her heart began to race as she shifted quickly out of his grasps then stumbled some distance from him. Even though she was still clothed he felt chills going through her body as she left him to sleep. On them entering the village she saw a mare with a newborn foal grazing in a small pen.

With the morning mist clinging to her kimono as she went to the pen where the mare walked over to her. Aiko smiled as she nuzzled against the mare's muzzle but she reached down to cup the tiny foal's chin.

Hirokotsu felt her scurry away from his hold, he wasn't sure how they ended up like that, but she let him, so he enjoyed and shared the warmth they had that night, intentional or not.

He sat up slowly, still a bit frustrated by his injuries. He noticed that Aiko had left, and his heart sank. Did she leave?

He exited the room and walked passed the old woman who watched him with a smirk. "Bastard. You got what you had coming."

Hirokotsu sighed and shrugged, "She upset me a bit. You understand."

He tugged his haori over his shoulder and stepped outside, seeing Aiko none too far away and finally smiling.

She was leaning against the fence seeing the young foal bounce around then stumble over its long legs. Smiling as the young farmer of the village walked over to her with bright red cheeks.

"He's a beauty...Though gave me trouble some time ago..." The short black haired man looked at Aiko over his shoulder. It seemed he gathered his courage to talk to her atleast.

"He's gorgeous and so adorable!" She exclaimed with the mare walking to her young one and allowed him to nurse as she ate her feed. Though Aiko looked up at the young farmer and blushed with her turning away from him. "I have to get back to the inn..." She was about to leave when he grabbed her cut hand. "Ow..."

"Sorry!" He exclaimed with him dropping her hand and backing away with his head down.

Aiko watched him seeing he was the submissive type. She thought it would be nice to have a submissive husband but it would get annoying after awhile. "I have to return to my husband...Sorry to bother you." She said in a haste with her walking away only to bump lightly into Hiro. She looked up gasping to see Hiro was straining himself. "Hiro...Why are you out of bed?"

Hirokotsu looked at her and then over at the young farmer, shaking his head carelessly, almost feeling bad for the guy. "Well, I have to get walking someday. I don't want those guys coming back for us. So I think we should get moving back to one of my houses so that I can begin to teach you properly. That is... unless you'd like to spend another night, nestled in my arms..." His eyes narrowed as he looked over at her with a smirk.

Her eyes went wide as he mentioned that part. She looked away as her face was beet red. "I don't know what you're talking about." She said to him but she walked round him to get her things. Silently she went inside then up to their room where she grabbed her pack then looked around to see if they were missing anything.

Hirokotsu grabbed for his mid-section as soon as she left. His body was still in a ton of pain. He wouldn't let her see this though, he'd try to play the super man for a while longer. She wouldn't want to learn for a weak and injured man. Taking one last glance at the poor farmer, he too, went to their room and picked up his weapons. "I don't live too far from here. Still, it would be a lot quicker by horse. Do you think you can purchase a steed or two from that boy?" He asked, reaching for more coin. "One horse is good, two would be fine as well. The quicker we move, the better. Do you know how to ride even? If not, you can sit right in front of me and watch, I can teach you later."

Aiko turned ot him seeing he was asking her to purchase the horses from the farmer. She shooked her head. "I just crushed the man's heart. I don't want to go back there to see the look of pain on his face." She told him with her looking away from Hiro as she idnd't notice he was still in pain. Though she did leave him once more and headed for the old woman at the front desk.

"Excuse me, we can we purchase some horses? I seemed to have hurt my husband worse than I thought..." She said with the old lady beaming as she told her there is a black smith on the edge of town who had spare horses he took from his customers who couldn't pay for the horse shoes. Aiko bowed her head and went back to Hiro. "The old woman said the black smith has been selling horses."

Hirokotsu's eyebrows raised as she exited. He naturally wanted to go after her, but instead, let her go, hoping she'd return. Luckily she did. He listened to her while staring at her arm for some reason. "Very well.. let's get going then.." Suddenly he gripped at his mid section and dropped to a knee.

She turned to leave when he fell to one knee. Turning around seeing him gripping his midsection and his bandages were stained with blood. Not saying a word as she got to her knees in front of him having her hands moving under his which pressed against his mid-section. "You reopened you wound, Hiro. I may have to burn it shut so you won't bled out. I can't do it here since if anyone heard your groan in pain they'd be here in seconds." She told him as she looked out the "open" window judging the distanced from here to the black smith's.

Her hand moved to his cheek as she cupped it and she looked into his eyes. "You're going to have to stay here if you can't move. I can grab two horses then I can ride behind you while the second is a pack horse for the time being." She informed him with her getting to her feet. She grabbed the extra coins and left him in the room. Aiko was flying through the inn then down the dusty streets to the black smiths.

Hirokotsu was actually ashamed. Now that she saw him in that condition, it wasn't very likely that she'd want to learn anything from a man who was defeated so easily. But she didn't leave, at least, not yet. He nodded towards her quietly as he felt her hand on his face and slowly got himself back in bed.

It took her time to conveince the black smith to give her the horses. He caved when she showed him the coins. The large hairy man left her standing there then returned with one large horse and a modest sized horse which looked it was meant for her since she was tiny herself. Aiko bowed to him as she grabbed the reigns and walked back to the inn.

In her mind she didn't think less of Hiro when he revealed his wounds were getting to him. When he saved her once he was...Words couldn't describe it. Even last night she jumped in to help but she had a feeling if she wasn't around he wouldn't get hurt or have her as a distraction. Sighing as she reached the inn then tied the horses up. Quickly she ran back to the room to see Hiro was laying in bed. "Ah, for once you see things my way." She teased with ehr sticking her tongue out at him. "I got the horses for us."