Shards of Time: The Ambush

It was the night before the ambush. Nobuhide had thrown a party to boost the troops' morale. I stayed in the Tenshu trying to get some sleep. Ever since I moved here, I've forgotten what a good night's sleep is. I became paranoid that Nobunaga will have his way with me when I'm asleep. I don't trust him.

After countless attempts, I couldn't sleep a wink. The soldiers downstairs were too loud. I went to the balcony. If I die here now, where would I go? I'm seriously considering jumping off this balcony.

"What are you doing?" I heard a voice behind me. When I looked, it was Nobunaga carrying a cup. He was leaning against the entrance to the balcony.

"Why aren't you downstairs?" I said while looking away. Can't I have a moment's peace around here? You already harass me enough during the day.

"I came to check on you. What if that ninja comes back for you and I'm not here. Will you be able to protect yourself?" He asked. I hate to admit it but he has a good point. If it wasn't the ninja, I could defend myself. The headaches I have when I see him make me helpless. I know how to fight but Nobunaga doesn't need to know that.

"As you can see, I'm fine. You can go back now." I said. Suddenly, I felt 2 muscular arms around my waist.

"Whoa… What are you doing?" I said. He spun me around to face him.

"I noticed you haven't slept well ever since you moved here. Do you have a problem with the bed?" He asked. If only I could punch you. I pushed him away.

"I can't sleep. It's too cold here." I reasoned. He looked at me and smirked.

"Then let me make you warm." He said mockingly. I felt all the blood rushed to my face.

"Don't even think about it." I said. I was about to go back inside when he held my arm and pulled me back. He handed me the cup of wine and I looked at him with a confused expression.

"What?" I asked. He smirked and pushed the cup to my lip. I tried to stop him but he forced me to drink the wine. When he pulled his hand away, I pushed the cup back to him while coughing. I don't drink and this seems like something really strong. I already feel light-headed.

"Nō let me taste the wine on your lips." He said as he inched closer to me. I stopped him by putting both my hands on his chest.

"Don't forget our agreement. If I don't want to, you can't force yourself on me." I took a step back. He had an evil grin on him.

"Then I order you to kiss me." He said.

"WHAT?!" I raised my voice. He crossed his arms and looked at me.

"Is that a complaint? If you break the agreement then I can do what I want." He said. I've been tricked. Damn you Nobunaga! I looked away. He held my face and made me look at him.

"What is your decision?" He asked. I guess I have no choice.

"Fine. But you don't get to move. I'll do it." I said. He smiled menacingly.

"Close your eyes." I said. He did what he was told. I just now realized that Nobunaga is tall and I am really short. I stood on my tip toes but I still couldn't reach him. I wrapped my arms around his neck to pull him down. I closed my eyes and I felt his lips on mine.

My heart started beating faster. Suddenly, I felt him deepening the kiss. He wasn't touching me but his kisses were getting aggressive. Just then, there was a knock on the door. I pulled away from him and put distance between us.

"Come in." He said. Masahide strolled in and bowed to both of us.

"My Lord, Lord Nobuhide requests your presence in the banquet downstairs." He said. Nobunaga nodded and Masahide left the room. I turned away from Nobunaga, trying to hide how red my face must be.

"The wine tastes delicious, don't you think?" He asked with a mocking tone. I refused to turn around. He chuckled and pulled me close to him. My face felt really hot and I became light-headed.

"What are you doing? Didn't you hear Masahide? Father wants to see you." I said. He spun me around but I looked down to hide my face.

"Since when did you start calling him father?" He asked. His expression turned serious in an instant.

"You haven't noticed? I've been calling him father ever since we got married." I lied. He was silent for a while. Then he let me go and he walked back inside the room. I took a deep breath before following him inside. When I stepped inside, I immediately felt dizzy. I leaned against the wall by the bed. Nobunaga rushed to my side.

"What's wrong?" He asked. I suddenly felt dizzy and I feel my body getting hot. My alcohol tolerance is really low. That wine must be strong for me to get drunk.

"T-the… w-win-ne…" I said, my words slurring. I heard Nobunaga laughed. I felt my knees weakening. Nobunaga carried me back to the bed. He set me down and pulled the blanket up to my chest. I fell asleep in an instant.

I woke up the next morning with a terrible headache. The sun was already up when I woke up. It was the first time I slept well since I moved here. Wait… What happened last night? I don't remember how I fell asleep. I looked over the covers and breathe a sigh of relief when I saw that I still ha clothes on.

"Good morning milady." Sato came in the room and brought me breakfast.

"The troops are already preparing downstairs. The Lord asked me to send you your breakfast and to tell you to prepare." She said. I forgot he wanted me to go with him. I sighed and nodded. I ate breakfast and drank the tea. My hangover was slowly fading. I took a bath and went down to the courtyard where the soldiers were preparing.

"I see you're awake." I jumped when I heard a voice behind me. I turned to see Nobunaga towering over me. He was wearing a battle attire similar that of a samurai's. He had a menacing smile on his face.

"I take it you do not remember what happened last night." He casually said. My face started to become hot again. Oh no what did I do? I don't remember anything.

"What I remember is that you forced me to drink wine last night." I said. I turned my back on him and walked to Nobuhide.

"Ah Nō, are you here to see us off?" He asked. Nobunaga didn't tell him that I'll be coming along? I shook my head.

"Actually, I'm coming along father." I said. His eyes widened. Just then, Nobunaga put his hand on my shoulder.

"That ninja might try to take her if I leave her here. It's better if she comes along." He said. You mean it's better for you since you seem to treat me like I'm your only entertainment in this place.

"Very well then. I leave him to you Nobunaga." Father said. We bowed to him and he mounted his horse. Nobunaga took me to the far left of the court yard where there were two horses. One black and one white.

"This'll be your horse. You are to stay beside me at all times. If you disobey, I'll have to punish you." He said with a smirk on his face. I nodded and he mounted his horse. He looked at me and raised his eyebrow.

"You're not going to help me mount the horse?" I asked. He let out a chuckle.

"Why would I? You know how to ride a horse don't you?" He said. Would it kill you to be a gentleman to me? I rolled my eyes and mounted the horse myself. We went to the front lines next to Nobuhide. We set out to Imagawa. There weren't a lot of us. A little over 10 people including the three of us.

"Nō, come here." Nobuhide called me. We were just behind him. I was next to Nobunaga as he requested. I looked at him and he had a serious expression on his face. I sped up a little bit to catch up with Nobuhide.

"Yes father?" I asked.

"Since I'll be dying soon, would you mind telling me about the time where you're from. I want to know what happens to Japan." He said. I let out a giggle before speaking.

"Well father, I'm from the far future. Like really far. I was actually born on the year 2000." I said. His eyes widened and I heard him gasped.

"Wow! What was your life like?" He asked.

"It's very different. There are cars and buildings all over Japan. The country is united and is governed by one emperor. Emperor Akihito." I said. Nobuhide looked very surprised.

"Isn't that magnificent? For a country to be united. No more wars between the people." He said as he looked up at the sky. Just then, I saw something from the corner of my eye. When I realized what it was, I did something out of a whim.

"Father, look out." I pulled the reigns of his horse to stop it and I blocked him. An arrow flew straight at me and hit my arm. From the impact, I was knocked out of my horse. Ouch! The fall hurt more than the arrow to be honest. I heard Nobunaga and Nobuhide giving orders while I lay on the ground contemplating my decisions.

Nobunaga looked at Nō and his father talking merrily. It seemed that they have grown closer together. He thought. He wanted to hear what they were talking about but he knew Nō would disapprove of it. He stayed behind looking intently.

"Father, look out." Nobunaga turned to Nō as he heard her scream. An arrow flew directly at Nō and she was knocked out of her horse.

"Find him!" Nobunaga shouted at the men.

"Protect Nō!" Nobuhide ordered. The men had spotted the perpetrator and started chasing after him. Nobunaga got down on his horse and ran to Nō's side. She was still conscious.

"Nō, we have to get out of here. There's a nearby town not far from here. Can you make it?" Nobunaga asked. To his surprise, Nō stood up and nodded.

"Yeah, I'm fine." Nō said. Nobunaga was dumbfounded. What kind of woman is she? He thought. Suddenly, Nō took out Nobunaga's sword and used it to cut a piece of fabric from her kimono.

"We caught him, My Lord." One of the men said. They held onto the assailant as they huddled over the lady.

"What are you doing?" Nobuhide asked Nō. She didn't answer. She gave Nobunaga's sword back. The men looked curiously at Lady Nō. Suddenly; she pulled out the arrow on her arm and used the piece of fabric to tie around the wound. After doing so, she looked at them as if nothing had happened to her.

"What?" She asked. Everyone had their mouths open.

"I've never seen a woman as courageous as you. Most women faint at the sight of blood." Nobunaga said.

"I've experienced more painful wounds than this. My brother once hit me with an arrow on my back." She said. From what Nobunaga saw, he was certain that Nō was someone extraordinary. She mounted her horse as if nothing had happened.

"What are we waiting for?" She asked. The men looked at each other. They had formed a sense of admiration for the lady. Nobuhide looked at Nō with a worried expression.

"Are you sure you're okay?" He asked. Nō nodded and smiled.

"I'll be fine, father. I know what herbs to pick for the wound. If I see any on the way, I won't hesitate to get it." I said. It really didn't hurt that much. I've experience far worse. But I'll be in trouble if this gets infected. I better wash it in a nearby river and apply some aloe vera if I can find any.

We continued our travel. When we reached a river, we took a quick break. I managed to find some aloe vera near the river. All I need to do now is to wash the wound and apply the gel then wrap it again. I need to cut another piece of fabric. I went over to Nobunaga to borrow his sword.

"May I borrow your sword?" I asked. He looked at me and raised his eyebrow. He looked at my wound and then back at me. He unsheathed his sword but instead of giving it to me, he cut a piece from his attire and gave it to me.

"Thank you." I said. I went back to the river and untied the bandage from my wound. I washed my wound with the river water. The water stung my wound and I unconsciously made a hissing sound. I bit my lip to stop myself. After washing, I smeared the gel on the wound and wrapped it again. This'll be good as new. I went back to the group and they were interrogating the assailant.

"Who sent you?" Nobuhide asked. Thankfully, the assailant was honest. He said he was ordered by Hirotada to kill Nobuhide. Nobunaga wanted to kill him but his father stopped him.

"I will reward you with bountiful amounts of gold and silver. Go back to Hirotada and kill him." Nobuhide said. Oh, so this was how he did it. The assailant agreed and he fled the moment he was released. Nobunaga wasn't too happy with his father's decision.

"What if he betrays you?" Nobunaga argued. Nobuhide looked at me and I smiled at him.

"Let us make haste. Hirotada's son will be passing by near here. It's best if we prepare an ambush." Nobuhide said. As the men positioned themselves, Nobunaga was left to guard me. We were far away from the ambush as Nobuhide instructed.

Nobunaga and I stayed silent. There was nothing to talk about. I wouldn't want to talk to him right now. He seems upset and he might just pour out his anger on me so I don't want to risk it.

"How is your arm?" He asked. I was surprised seeing that I didn't expect a reaction from him whatsoever.