Volume 1
Chapter 3-6
Yuno seemed to be in a good mood, although it may not have been because of her practice with Shinkurou. When it came to fighting, she did not allow her emotions to get in the way. This was true for all members of the Houzuki family.
They had decided to practice for an hour and within that hour, Shinkurou was. .h.i.t, kicked and thrown well over a hundred times till the brink of collapse.
“Okay, that’s enough for today.”
Yuno said nonchalantly to Shinkurou, who, unlike her, was drenched in sweat.
Shinkurou crawled to the middle of the dojo where Yuno sat in the seiza position. He no longer had the energy to sit up. Shinkurou wondered how she could still be sitting like that. As he collapsed, he bowed his head.
“…Thank you.”
“There’s no need for that.”
As beautiful as always in the seiza position. After admiring Yuno, Shinkurou’s strength left him and he lay down on the floor. Metal sheets lay underneath the floorboards of the dojo while the walls were made with reinforced concrete. Despite looking very much like a dojo, it was also very similar to a jail cell. Shinkurou bathed in the fluorescent light raining down from the dojo’s high ceilings, trying to catch his breath. His entire body was in pain, especially his right arm. However, the fatigue was pleasant. Having used up all of his stamina, the only sensation he could still feel was pleasure.
Shinkurou began studying martial arts because it was convenient for him then. The style he studied was simply known as the Houzuki style. However, there was something that differentiated it from other styles. The basics of the Houzuki style could be taught to anyone. There would be differences depending on the individual but anyone could reproduce the basics. That did not change the style’s lack catholicity though. The prerequisites were far too strict for that. One could board a paper plane but that did not mean that it could fly. Things took shape piece by piece. The Houzuki style was similar in this respect.
“Well, it seems like I won’t have a problem pa.s.sing down this killing style with you around…”
Housen Houzuki, Shinkurou’s master, presented him with the Houzuki style in this manner. Before Yuno had been born, he seemed to have had other disciples, the dojo being built around that time. However, as of now, Shinkurou was his only disciple. I have this huge dojo and Yuno and Housen’s undivided attention all to myself, thought Shinkurou.
Yuno gently wiped Shinkurou’s face with a towel as he continued trying to catch his breath. Shinkurou wanted to tell her to stop pitying him but did not have the energy to even start forming the syllables.
The way that Yuno tenderly caressed his face with the cold towel made Shinkurou close his eyes in sheer bliss.
Shinkurou remembered the first time they met.
Shinkurou was in second grade. He had lost his family all of a sudden. He had lost every single one of his precious family members. Shinkurou wanted to die. He wanted to meet his family again. But he could not die. He was too weak. Despite having lost his family, he did not have the courage to kill himself. Ginko’s family took custody of him and he spent his days as a mere sh.e.l.l of his former self. Shinkurou did not really remember much of what happened during that time. It was not a time he really wanted to remember. Ginko and her parents fussed over him and treated him kindly, but the Shinkurou of that time did not care about anything. He was lonely; he was sad; he wanted to die; he did not want to die; he had become all alone; he wanted someone to be there for him. His mind was all over the place.
Then, the incident happened. Ginko did the unexpected and forced Shinkurou to come with her to the local youth center. She started getting worried after Shinkurou had holed himself in for some time. She probably brought him along because there would be a lot of kids around his age. But, Shinkurou did not cheer up. Ginko then tried to shift his attention to manga and games to no avail, as he would still refuse to speak to or answer anyone. He would simply sit in the corner of the room with his arms wrapped around his knees, a vacant look on his face. Still, Ginko remained by the wordless Shinkurou’s side. At that time, anything he said would have made her happy. Eventually, Ginko let out a sigh and said, “Well, let’s go home” but Shinkurou grabbed her hand. Suddenly, noise erupted from all around them. The screaming of adults, the cries of children, and the gunshots. All at once, the large bodies of several foreigners filled the room, machine guns in their hands, like those on television. It was impossible to know why they were there. They took all the children, including Ginko and Shinkurou and loaded them into a truck. Several men got into the back of the truck with them and told them, “If you open your mouths, we will kill you” in very brief j.a.panese. It seemed that one child did not understand and as he started panicking, one of the men pulled the trigger, making the sound of gunfire echo around them as the child’s head exploded like a tomato. Another child, who yelled at them to stop, had his head blown apart as well, some of it spraying onto Shinkurou’s face. Ginko, who was sitting next to the boy, almost burst into tears before Shinkurou quickly covered her mouth. The stimulation of the situation had brought him back to his old senses and he was once again able to act. Shinkurou could not discern what was outside from the damaged parts of the trucks canopy and thus was unable to tell where they were headed. The bodies of the dead children were discarded and while the remaining children were frightened and tried to keep quiet, Shinkurou was busy pondering. They were all foreigners. They committed a ma.s.s abduction in broad daylight. It was commonly believed that something like this would never happen in j.a.pan but these foreigners had easily proven that thought wrong. Shinkurou had seen something like this on the news before. There were foreign slave-trading organizations established in j.a.pan. There had already been an incident in a rural mountain village where dozens of people had been abducted. They were simply replenishing their stock. The police had acted upon the situation but several powerful foreign mafias were pulling the strings in the background. Thus, the situation became political and little progress was made. Could they be the same people? thought Shinkurou. By the time they got off of the truck, the sun had already set. Despite that, Shinkurou was able to see a ship. It seems they were at a harbor. The children were forced to line up in rows and began to walk, boarding a large freighter, the sole ship moored there. The several j.a.panese nearby seemed to all be accomplices, looking at the children with cold stares, as if they were nothing but objects.
The hold of the ship was filled with darkness after the men closed its top. Naturally, all the children began to cry. Other than Shinkurou, everyone cried. Even Ginko, who had always been so strong, was crying.
“What are we going to do, Shinkurou? What’s going to happen to us, Shinkurou? Tell me, Shinkurou!”
“We’ve been sold, Ginko. All of us, we’re going to be brought to a foreign country and then we’ll be sold.”
Ginko clung to Shinkurou, “That’s not true, there’s no way that’s true!” said Ginko as she cried. Shinkurou did not cry. Crying was unnecessary. This was because for Shinkurou, things were in his favor. He was not sad. He was a bit scared, but he was definitely happy, more than anything else.
I can kill myself. If things continue like this, I will be able to kill myself.
The healthy kids will be sold. The pretty kids. The smart kids. I don’t have any of those qualities. On the contrary, I have a weak body and a weak spirit; the chances of me dying before we get to the next port is high. I was too scared to kill myself but in this hopeless situation that I cannot run away from, I will kill myself. Ah, I can finally die. I can finally meet them. Dad, mom, big sis, I can finally meet them again. I’m so happy.
Unexpectedly, his chance came very soon. The door of the hold opened and the criminals came in. They kicked a boy out of the way and picked a girl, forcing her to stand up. Then, they picked out different boys and girls, perhaps to keep them somewhere else. From the strange stares the men gave, it was highly likely that they had different ideas for the girls. One of the men grabbed Ginko’s arm, causing her to let out a deafening scream. As if he was evaluating a product, the man tore off her clothes, which made Ginko slap the man on the face. I always knew that Ginko was strong, thought Shinkurou. The man cursed at Ginko in another language before pointing his gun at her. Shinkurou stood up and shielded Ginko. I will help my friend. Then, I can die. This is the absolute best. I have no more complaints. Without listening to what Ginko was saying behind him, Shinkurou waited for the muzzle of the gun to send him to his maker.
Suddenly, a lone woman appeared.
She was young and wore a trench coat, appearing j.a.panese but standing out almost too much. She had the gait of a boss and as she walked into the hold, everyone moved out of her way. With a cigarette in her mouth and rings of smoke puffing from it, her appearance made the dumbfounded men begin to curse and point their guns at her. The men made to fight her but she took them all out with ease, coming through like a whirlwind of power. All the children were frightened by the gruesome sight before them. Even Ginko hid behind Shinkurou as she looked on. The only one with a different reaction was Shinkurou.
This is it, he thought.
This is strength, he thought.
Shinkurou’s desire to die had faded away. He wanted to become like her; he wanted her strength; he may have even wanted to continue to live. His family may not have been in this world anymore, but he may just have wanted to live again.
In a matter of seconds, things had calmed down and the woman returned with several of her men and children whom she had rescued. When she approached, Shinkurou walked towards her. This was one of Shinkurou Kurenai’s crossroads in life.
“Don’t do it, Shinkurou! That person is scary! It’s dangerous to go near her. If you’re influenced by someone like her, it will be really bad!”
Ignoring Ginko, Shinkurou went before the woman and pleaded, “Please make me your apprentice.”
The woman flicked the ashes from her cigarette before looking down at Shinkurou dubiously.
“Why?”
“I want to become stronger.”
“Why?”
“So that I can live.”
Shinkurou was unsure if what he said would move her but she stared at him for a while before telling him to follow her. Shinkurou followed her, ignoring Ginko’s pleas for him to stop.
The woman took out another cigarette and asked him another question.
“Your name?”
“Shinkurou Kurenai.”
“What a coincidence. Your name shares a character with mine.”1
After chuckling for a while, the woman said, “My name is Benika Juuzawa.” She went on to say, “I did not learn to be strong from anyone. Therefore, I can’t teach others to become strong.”
After that, she took Shinkurou to the Houzuki household.
Benika told the master of the house, “Master Houzuki. This brat is a little interesting, please test him out.”
Blanketed in excitement and nervousness, Shinkurou bowed at Housen Houzuki. Beside him was a girl around Shinkurou’s age. It was Yuno, who simply stared at him.
It had been eight years since then. That incident had turned Shinkurou into a well-rounded person.
Shinkurou, who was allowed to become an apprentice and live with the Houzuki’s, followed all of Housen’s directions and devoted himself to learning everything about the Houzuki style. There was never a point where he did not break every bone in his body. He had things broken and smashed; he faced many crushing defeats and the positions of his internal organs had changed, all as a result of his training. His body had been molded into an aberration. His bone and flesh was changed to suit the power of the Houzuki’s.
Ginko was furious. She was furious with Shinkurou’s strange way of thinking. She was furious for being unable to understand him.
Time and time again, Ginko would try to persuade Shinkurou to stop but Shinkurou would not listen to her.
Everything was so that I could become stronger, no matter the cost.
If it was necessary, I did it, no matter what.
For me, someone who had lost his family, it was necessary for me to become stronger so that I could continue living.
So I persisted. I endeavored. But, in the end this…
“Shinkurou?”
Shinkurou reopened his eyes upon hearing Yuno’s tender voice. He had regained about thirty percent of his strength. This resilience was also a result of his training.
He placed his hand on the floor and lifted himself up before Yuno started talking to him.
“You’ve become more accustomed to that body.”
“…Yeah, somewhat.”
His right arm hurt. His veins were protruding and the pain spread throughout his entire body. This was probably normal due to the foreign object placed within him. While it may have seemed bad now, it was already much easier to deal with than before. The night he had it put into his body, the pain made him feel as if he was going to die. Yuno stayed by his side to tend to him the entire time. She did not sleep so that she could hold Shinkurou’s hand and comfort him with her voice. Shinkurou believed that it was thanks to Yuno that he was able to overcome that ordeal.
“It doesn’t seem like you can use it in actual combat yet. Even now, we still don’t know how much damage it has caused to your body. The worst-case scenario is that it has shortened your lifespan. That’s why you were prohibited from using it until you got grandpa’s permission.”
“It’s not like I wanted this to extend my life though.”
Had Benika not shown up, he would have died protecting Ginko.
Shinkurou had chosen this life. But, was it really the right choice? Did he succeed in achieving his goal?
“Don’t say things like that.”
The face Yuno made was like that of an older sister scolding her younger brother.
“The human body is fragile. It’s easily broken. However, it is important for you to be able to use it for your entire life. So, please take care of it. I want to spend the rest of my life with you from now on.”
Shinkurou was thankful for her concern, laughing bashfully.
“What was that? It sounded like a proposal.”
Yuno’s face turned red as she cleared her throat.
“D-Did it? Well, if a gentleman were to say that to me I would probably…”
“Huh?”
“It’s nothing, nothing at all!”
Yuno quickly changed the subject after clearing her throat once more.
“Anyway, please work on getting rid of any perverse thoughts you may have every day.”
“Okay.”
“Throw away any indecent videos that you may have.”
“…Okay.”
“You are around that age, Shinkurou. It can’t be helped if you start taking interest in such things. ‘Ah, Yuno is so cute today.’ ‘I wonder what color her underwear is.’ You’ve probably thought this kind of things.”
“I’ve never really…”
“You’re supposed to.”
“No…”
“You are supposed to.”
Yuno had arrived at her conclusion. Her face clearly showed her displeasure.
“…Ah, yes. I have thought about that sometimes.”
“That is not good at all! Really, what am I going to do with you Shinkurou…?”
Yuno scolded him despite seeming a bit happy.
What is with her, thought Shinkurou, complaining to himself. Of course, he did not say it out loud.
Because he had so much to thank Yuno for, he dared not defy her.
“What I said earlier was something I heard from a health specialist. If men hold in their urges, it could be bad for their health. So, if you find yourself unable to bear it anymore, please tell me.”
“What?”
Yuno explained it more clearly for Shinkurou, who was completely shaken by what she had said.
“Until all your perverted thoughts have gone away, I’ll work you to the bone. Are you happy now?”
“…I’m honored.”
Having now become her apprentice, he had no choice but to smile and nod.
Translation Notes and References
1. The first character in Benika’s name and the character for Shinkurou’s last name both are 紅 (Beni/Kurenai) meaning crimson.