He sat at the table, reading by the dim light of a lantern. Before him lay a newspaper he had purchased during his last trip to the village. Though some of the news from Tokyo was dated, he could at least get some idea about what was happening in his home city. His eyes scanned the page, but his mind was on the drill earlier. Seeing Hanako attempt the fighting exercise with the hoe, it had seemed only right to step in and help her perfect the moves. He hadn't meant to hold her so closely, but once his arms had wrapped around her, it had seemed so natural, so right. It had taken all his strength to step away. He turned the pages idly, without actually reading, when a name caught his eye. It was a name he had not seen in over a year, not since he had left his former life behind. Instantly his blood began to burn, and his hands gripped the paper as he read the article more carefully. In coming to the rural north, he had wanted to leave behind all traces of his former life, especially the memory of the treacherous daimyo for whom he had fought.
