Yeah. It's just that we're the only ones who can, and...with his ability now to sometimes control the flow, we have to fight back harder to keep up. Makes things a little more complicated.
[and the real reason that, while it scares her a little, she'll help change destiny.]
[ he's used to history changing, to having to try to fix it, but being unfamiliar with the world kind of makes it a little harder to understand. japan is so small, after all, and until recently, it was his whole world.
he still can't help wondering about the history there, for aerith to know that they'd be changing things. and how will that affect the world, going forward? it almost always ends badly, so he's heard, and yet... ]
All I can do is with you luck. It sounds like you'll need it, but I think you're also strong enough to succeed, even if it's a difficult road to walk.
[ to decide to do this at all makes her will pretty strong, he thinks. ]
[swords are still learning...she doesn't know a japan, but she does think iwatooshi's wise in his own right. you don't fight to preserve history, at the sides of your masters, and not learn a thing or two about complicated matters. so when he speaks again, she listens before there's a small nod.]
...thank you. Our friends are going to do their best while we're not with them, but once we return we'll do everything in our power to stay on track. It's just...getting everyone out of here first. One step at a time, right?
[i politely holds me hands out for an iwa mem whenever ray.]
One step at a time. [ he nods in agreement. ] And your friends will understand, after everything you've been through here.
[ he has no reason to be so sure of that except that he just. is. that's how friends should be, anyway.
but since you asked, it's his turn to share:
by the time you arrive, the fight is already underway, but it's exactly the sight you were hoping not to see: the four of your comrades facing off with imanotsurugi himself. he insists, again and again that his master yoshitsune is kind, that you don't have to fight. but your team stands fast, reminding him of your duty to protect history - something he can't accept, as he raises his blade in desperation and refuses to back down for the sake of his beloved master.
you can't watch this any longer.
"Imanotsurugi! Step away." he takes a step forward in disbelief, shocked that even you would face him. little does he know how it tears you apart inside to raise your blade to him and roar, "Move!"
"I don't want this," he whispers as he stares back at you, betrayed. all he wants is to protect his master, like he couldn't do before. witnessing yoshitsune death again would break his heart. this, you understand better than anyone here, recalling the joy on his face the last time you spoke about meeting his master, a stark contrast to the tears running down his cheeks now. "I finally got to met Yoshitsune-kou again..."
but that grief seems to give him power. he raises his blade and bats your own away, recklessly attacking all of you until you can catch him, naginata at his front while you hold him fast from behind. even as the air suddenly goes stale and makes your hair stand on end, imanotsurugi struggles, insisting that he is yoshitsune's protective sword. as the stars above disappear behind dark clouds, you shift to hold him fast in your left arm, freeing your naginata for what's to come.
"My purpose is to protect him!"
with a thunderous roar, his former master appears and imanotsurugi lets out a scream, wresting himself out of your grip. you demand that he stop, but he refuses and positions himself between the five of you and yoshitsune himself, paying no attention to how corrupted his master has become. his skin turned ashy, his eyes red - even his blade holds a dangerous power not meant for humans to hold.
"If he were to die..." imanotsurugi trails off, and tries again, clutching his knife close to his chest. "I remember his kind smile. I remember his courageous figure."
how can he not see? furious at his blindness, you yell back him, "That man isn't Yoshitsune-kou anymore!"
"No, please don't! If history were to be restored..." he begs you again to stop, becuase if anyone should understand what he wants, it's you. you know how much he loves yoshitsune, how much the man's death has haunted him. you know how vividly he remembers that kind smile, those warm hands, his touch... and his blood.
he screams again, and as he scrambles to protect his master, you call out to him, one last time. because you do understand. maybe you understand better than imanotsurugi himself.
"Imanotsurugi, it's not your fault!" he stares at you in pure shock as you step forward, naginata set aside. you don't want to fight any more than he does. "You've done nothing wrong."
because he blames himself for yoshitsune's death, doesn't he? all this time, for centuries, he's carried the guilt of his master's death on his shoulders.
"I'm not telling you to forget him," you say, the anger evaporating from your heart, "but stop blaming yourself. Remember... that the sky above us brings us a gift."
"What?"
"Many bright, twinkling stars."
using his own words, you open your arms. and finally, imanotsurugi lowers his blade to step forward and wrap his arms around you, clinging to you and sobbing. you hold him as tight as you can, as you always do.
...but it doesn't last. mikazuki shouts a warning, and you have just enough time to shove imanotsurugi aside as yoshitsune strikes. your chest lights up with pain, vision going red.
iwatooshi closes his eyes against the memory, frowning. ]
[well of course she recognizes the name. and she recognizes the feelings a little too well, wanting to stop someone from something they obviously feel strongly about but knowing you can't let them because it'll change everything. it's...not hard at all to see how much iwa cares for ima, and how this must hurt him, too, to watch his partner suffer under the weight of his own guilt. in a way it breaks her heart to watch him mourn the loss of his master and the failure to protect him, but it fills her with a little relief to know iwa was able to be there while he could.
not that that relief lasts, because soon yoshitsune strikes and the memory ends. she's frowning right back.]
There's...that's not an apology I need. [no sorry.] But what happened after that? What happened to Yoshitsune? [she means after that point, but also in general. the man truly looked possessed.]
[ matter-of-factly, though not without some measure of grief. he may not have been as affected as imanotsurugi, but that was still a man they both cared for. ]
That power turned him into something else... something inhuman. It got worse, after that, and killing him became our only option. [ a pause, as iwatooshi sighs heavily. ] But even if it wasn’t, he’d already lived past his time.
[yeah that's what she thought. even if it was out of a kindness, in the end, and out of duty, it's not something that would have been easy.]
...and to preserve the history as it was, you would have had to kill him anyway instead of altering the path. [that...hm. difficult. very, very difficult.] It can be tempting to want to change things, especially for people you love. In the end it was better, I know, but...that must have been hard for both of you.
[imanotsurugi because that was his master, and iwatooshi because it was a man he cared for and also having to see his partner suffering.]
A pain like that doesn't really fade so easily, I think. No matter how much time has passed. [even without being thousands of years old...] The good thing is you have each other to keep working through it. Even if it was awful to have happen at all.
Anytime. [they can keep reminding each other of that, too.] ...come on. Let's pick out some snacks while we're here, hm? [and we can wrap this toooo...]
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[and the real reason that, while it scares her a little, she'll help change destiny.]
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[ he's used to history changing, to having to try to fix it, but being unfamiliar with the world kind of makes it a little harder to understand. japan is so small, after all, and until recently, it was his whole world.
he still can't help wondering about the history there, for aerith to know that they'd be changing things. and how will that affect the world, going forward? it almost always ends badly, so he's heard, and yet... ]
All I can do is with you luck. It sounds like you'll need it, but I think you're also strong enough to succeed, even if it's a difficult road to walk.
[ to decide to do this at all makes her will pretty strong, he thinks. ]
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...thank you. Our friends are going to do their best while we're not with them, but once we return we'll do everything in our power to stay on track. It's just...getting everyone out of here first. One step at a time, right?
[i politely holds me hands out for an iwa mem whenever ray.]
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[ he has no reason to be so sure of that except that he just. is. that's how friends should be, anyway.
but since you asked, it's his turn to share: iwatooshi closes his eyes against the memory, frowning. ]
I'm sorry, Aerith-dono.
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not that that relief lasts, because soon yoshitsune strikes and the memory ends. she's frowning right back.]
There's...that's not an apology I need. [no sorry.] But what happened after that? What happened to Yoshitsune? [she means after that point, but also in general. the man truly looked possessed.]
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[ matter-of-factly, though not without some measure of grief. he may not have been as affected as imanotsurugi, but that was still a man they both cared for. ]
That power turned him into something else... something inhuman. It got worse, after that, and killing him became our only option. [ a pause, as iwatooshi sighs heavily. ] But even if it wasn’t, he’d already lived past his time.
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...and to preserve the history as it was, you would have had to kill him anyway instead of altering the path. [that...hm. difficult. very, very difficult.] It can be tempting to want to change things, especially for people you love. In the end it was better, I know, but...that must have been hard for both of you.
[imanotsurugi because that was his master, and iwatooshi because it was a man he cared for and also having to see his partner suffering.]
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[ he will simply not comment on anything else for now. ]
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He did. [...] How long ago was that for you?
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[ when you're over a thousand years old, it really is nothing. ]
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[ which part. he isn't specifying. ]
That's what his journey was for... but I still want to be there for him, when he returns.
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[they really did both die this same week, but it's okay.]
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[ still... his voice softens, just a touch. ]
...Thank you, Aerith-dono.
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Anytime. [they can keep reminding each other of that, too.] ...come on. Let's pick out some snacks while we're here, hm? [and we can wrap this toooo...]