Kanezawa revealed itself at dawn.
From the crest of the hill, the city looked almost peaceful tiered rooftops of dark wood and tiled eaves stretching outward like ripples on a pond, mist drifting lazily between watchtowers, banners fluttering in the morning breeze. Stone walls encircled the city, thick and scarred, their age evident in every crack and patch of moss.
But to Hiroto, the shadows told a different story.
They pooled unnaturally along the walls, stretching deeper than the sunlight should allow. Alleys seemed to twist inward, swallowing light. Even the air felt heavy, saturated with secrets.
"Kanezawa," Goro muttered. "Same old beast. Different scars."
Yui squeezed Hiroto's hand. "It's big."
He nodded. "Stay close to me."
As they approached the gates, the morning traffic thickened merchants with carts of grain, monks on pilgrimage, soldiers returning from patrol. Voices overlapped, smells of smoke and salt and sweat mingling into a chaotic tapestry of city life.
The guards at the gate were tense.
Too tense.
Their eyes scanned faces carefully, lingering just a moment too long on strangers.
"Papers," one of them barked.
Goro handed over a worn travel pass. "Ronin escorting family."
The guard glanced at it, then at Hiroto.
Hiroto kept his expression neutral, his shadow obediently still.
The guard hesitated.
Then waved them through.
Hiroto didn't breathe normally again until the gates were behind them.
A City That Watches Back
Inside, Kanezawa was alive.
Street vendors shouted prices. Children darted through crowds. Bells rang from distant temples. And yet beneath it all, Hiroto sensed a constant undercurrent of tension, like a city holding its breath.
Goro led them through narrower streets, away from the main thoroughfares.
"Where are we going?" Hiroto asked.
"A place that asks fewer questions," Goro replied. "And answers more."
They stopped before a tea house tucked between a sake brewery and a shuttered tailor's shop. Its sign was plain, unmarked but the shadows beneath its eaves were carefully arranged, deliberate.
Hiroto noticed.
Goro knocked twice, paused, then once more.
The door slid open.
A woman with streaks of gray in her hair peered out, eyes sharp as knives. When she saw Goro, her expression twisted into something between irritation and relief.
"You're late," she said.
"I'm alive," Goro replied. "Be grateful."
She sighed and stepped aside. "Inside. Quickly."
The tea house interior was quiet, warm, and smelled faintly of herbs. Yui relaxed almost immediately, drawn to the gentle calm.
The woman studied Hiroto closely. Too closely.
"So," she said. "This is him."
Hiroto stiffened. "You know me?"
"Not personally," she replied. "Name's Madame Rin. Information broker. Retired mostly."
She poured tea with steady hands. "But Kanezawa's been buzzing for days."
Goro accepted a cup. "How bad?"
Rin's lips thinned. "Shadow Hunters arrived two nights ago. Three groups. Different employers."
Hiroto's stomach dropped. "Different?"
"Yes," Rin said. "The Black Daimyo is one. Another is a northern clan. The third… unknown."
Goro swore quietly.
"They're hunting someone with Shadowforge blood," Rin continued, eyes never leaving Hiroto. "Careless villages burned. Messengers killed. Seers whispering."
Hiroto clenched his fists. "Then people are dying because of me."
Rin shook her head. "People are dying because powerful men fear losing control."
She leaned forward. "Tell me, boy. Can you control it?"
Hiroto met her gaze. "I'm learning."
"That's not an answer," she said.
"It's the truth."
Rin studied him for a long moment, then nodded once. "Fair."
The Price of Knowledge
"You can hide here," Rin said. "For a while."
Goro raised a brow. "What's the cost?"
Rin smiled thinly. "Information works both ways."
Hiroto felt the weight of her gaze. "What do you want to know?"
"Where your power comes from," she said. "And what you plan to do with it."
Hiroto hesitated.
Goro shook his head slightly.
But Hiroto spoke anyway.
"The Ten Shadow Clans," he said quietly. "The Vanished Gate. The Black Daimyo."
Rin's hand froze mid-pour.
"Say that again," she whispered.
Hiroto repeated it.
Rin leaned back slowly, color draining from her face. "Then the stories were true."
She exhaled sharply. "You're standing on a fault line, boy."
Goro frowned. "Meaning?"
"Meaning Kanezawa sits above old tunnels," Rin said. "Tunnels tied to the Gate."
Hiroto's heart pounded. "You're sure?"
Rin nodded. "And Shadow Hunters know it."
Silence settled heavy.
Rin set her cup down. "If they suspect you're here, this city will become a battlefield."
Yui tugged Hiroto's sleeve. "Brother… are we in trouble?"
Hiroto knelt beside her, forcing a smile. "Not if we're careful."
Rin watched the exchange quietly.
Eyes in the Crowd
They didn't stay long.
Rin insisted they move to a back room, hidden behind false walls and layered charms. The air there was thick with protective seals.
"Stay quiet," she said. "And don't use your power."
That last part felt impossible.
Hiroto sat in the dim light, listening to footsteps pass outside, voices rising and falling.
Then he felt it.
A presence brushing against the outer wards.
Not shadow.
Steel.
Goro stiffened. "Hunters."
Rin's expression hardened. "Already."
Hiroto's pulse thundered. "How did they find us?"
Rin's jaw tightened. "They didn't find you."
A shout echoed from the front of the tea house.
"By order of the Kanezawa Council open this door!"
Goro cursed. "Council's compromised."
Rin moved swiftly, pulling aside a hidden panel. "There's a passage. It leads into the old tunnels."
Hiroto hesitated. "What about you?"
Rin smiled grimly. "I've survived worse."
The door splintered.
Steel clashed outside.
Goro drew his sword. "Time to move."
Hiroto took Yui's hand, heart pounding.
As they slipped into darkness, Hiroto glanced back.
Rin stood framed by firelight and shadows defiant.
The city above them roared.
And below, ancient secrets waited.