The Shattering Waves (The Year of the Dragon, Book 7) by James Calbraith Page B

petition!”
    Yui shook his head. “You are young, and thus naive, Takashima- sama . Mori’s samurai carried hidden weapons with them. We had every reason to suspect they were on their way to perform a palace coup. Mori would blame it all on you - the unruly Kiheitai commoners. It’s a good thing the Satsuma spies warned us.”
    Satō’s shoulders sank. “So they did work for you after all—”
    “At the time, yes. Nariakira- dono is good at playing on two sides, especially when the well-being of his daughter is at stake. Oh, you didn’t know? Nariakira- dono ’s daughter married the new Taikun. ” He rejoiced in the shock that must have showed on Satō’s face. “You of all people should be aware what a double-crossing knave he is. I expect him to betray the rebellion as soon as the situation turns sour.”
    A cold, coarse doubt crept into her heart, like tentacles made of ice and grit. The edges of her vision blurred and darkened. Yui’s eyes glimpsed gold for a moment. She staggered and leaned against the wall. The firm, cold steel of a naginata blade on the weapon rack brought her back to her senses.
    “I see you are tired.” Yui laid a freezing cold hand on her shoulder. “Why don’t we go back? I’ll have the servants warm us some cha .”

CHAPTER VII
    The Kōchi Castle keep rose five mighty and thick-walled storeys above the green hill and the harbour town beneath. The ramparts surrounded the harbour from the sea, but not from the land — there was little need for defences on this end of Iyo Island, shielded from the rest of Yamato by stormy straits and tall mountains. What was left of the battlements was in ruin and disrepair. The black band of the Sea Maze loomed on the horizon, proving that the pirates or enemy navies against whom these walls had been built long ago were no longer a danger.
    Li stood leaning against the warm body of his golden dragon, coiled at the castle courtyard, and waited. Somewhere inside the keep, Dōraku was negotiating some pressing matters with the daimyo of this place.
    He massaged his sore bottom. This had been a far longer flight than he’d agreed to, and the Fanged urged him to fly as fast as the long could muster. Li had never even heard of the Tosa domain before and wasn’t sure if he cared enough to ask questions — what mattered was that the ball of Cursed Weed in his saddlebags was, indeed, prime material. He pinched a small lump from it, rolled it between his fingers, and put it between his lower lip and gums. He sucked in the sweet juice and breathed out in glee.
    A light flashed at the top floor of the keep and, a second later, a rumbling thud of an explosion descended upon the courtyard. The castle guards ran past Li. The Qinese clambered into the saddle. He guessed the “negotiations” had turned sour.
    The castle gate burst open. Dōraku marched straight through the guards, shrugging off their attempts to stop him. He carried something in his hand. His left arm hung from his torso by a few tendons and veins. Half the skin on his face was flayed off, his lacquer armour was beaten and torn.
    “What in Heavens happened to you?” asked Li, making no attempt to hide his disgust. The tissue on the Fanged’s face was already mending.
    “I won,” Dōraku replied. He jumped on the dragon’s back. The object in his hand was a head — long-haired, with a pale face and long, black, twisted teeth bared in a vicious snarl.
    “Is that a—?”
    “The lord of this castle had a bad taste in advisors. I convinced him to try somebody else.”
    “Is it dead?”
    “No,” said Dōraku. “But it will buy us some time . Go.”
    “Back to Kurume?”
    “Not yet. Get us to the harbour first.”
    “Itō- sama, ” the shrine maiden called from the corridor, “I brought what you asked for.”
    Nagomi slid open the door to her room by a few inches. She was supposed to be in hiding — though she trusted the priests and acolytes of the shrine, there was no telling