| [May. 22nd, 2017|01:47 am] |
They left the bog, climbing the rise on the other side, following an animal path that led away from the water. If Kakashi had gone the way Genma’d said — which was probable, given that it offered the most direct route to a high point for scenting and surveying — then he ought to encounter one of a half dozen traps Genma hadn’t warned him about fairly soon.
They made it almost all the way up the rise before a single, sharp yelp came from the other side. The frogs that had been chirping in the bog went briefly silent, then resumed their chorus.
Kin snapped to attention, ears pricked forward. Then she whined and streaked off towards the sound, bulldozing past Genma. Pakkun heaved a world-weary sigh. Ryouma picked his pace up to a jog, edging past Genma as well.
“He’s probably fine,” Genma said, breaking into a jog, too. “It’d be safer if you let me lead.”
Ryouma allowed Genma to overtake him, but he didn’t look happy about it. “Were you telling the truth about those spiders?”
“I was,” Genma said. “They’re mostly on the other side of the training area, though. You might see one or two on this side, but they’re cedar dwellers, and we’re still pretty close to the bogs.”
It didn’t seem to reassure Ryouma, but he didn’t have long to fret, anyway. They came down the crest of the rise and Genma stopped. Kin was standing on a small patch of grass, with all four paws crammed as close together as possible. A sprung snare swung empty from one of the few willow trees nearby. “Follow my footsteps exactly,” Genma told her and Ryouma both. “They should be just ahead.”
He danced a careful line through the triggers and snares, until he came to a dark spot where lush marsh grass disappeared into a pit. Kin crouched beside him, poked her head over the edge, and whined.
“Everything all right down there?” Genma called, leaning over to peer down the shaft. “Did you find the captain?”
Tsuyoshi’s snarl echoed up from the darkness, deep and threatening in a way that made the hair all over Genma’s body stand on end.
Sounding rather suffocated, Kakashi said, “Yes, he’s at the bottom of this hole. Pull us up so he can buy lunch.”
Genma would happily have bet his last ryou that Raidou was nowhere near that hole. At least not now. He lay flat on his belly and reached a cautious hand down to where one of the ropes was fastened to a bolt embedded in the wall.
“I remember these traps,” Genma said conversationally. “There’s limestone here, so we could screw anchor bolts right into it.” He felt along the taut rope; sharp hooks pricked his finger tips. “You know what’s funny? I think this might actually be one of Namiashi’s. Hold still and don’t struggle, I just need to find the release wire.”
“That’s hilarious.” Kakashi wheezed like his ribcage was being crushed. The trap had undoubtedly not been designed to hold a man and a very large dog at the same time.
“Wouldn’t the release wire drop them down the hole?” Pakkun asked.
Kin fretted at the edge, ears flat back, eyes rolling anxiously wide.
Ryouma crouched next to Kin and peered over the edge, too. “Can’t we just pull him up?”
“The release wire withdraws the barbs,” Genma said. He found the loop of wire and tugged, but it didn’t budge. Nine months undiscovered hadn’t done this trap many favors. “We can pull him up once I—” He tugged again, harder, and this time the mechanism shuddered in the rope. “—fix it. Like that.”
He double checked that the hooks had retracted on the length of rope he could feel.
“We did rig these so we could get candidates back out. You take that side, Tousaki, I’ll take this. Reach down and feel for a pulley, it should be on the right.”
Ryouma thrust his hand down, fumbled briefly, and then the rope in Genma’s hand nearly jerked free. Genma pitched forward, and for one brief, terrible moment, he contemplated the ignominy of falling. A fast hand on the bolt, and a layer of chakra spread out like sticky tape under his body kept him in place.
“The pulley, Tousaki! Are you trying to trap me in there with them?”
The hanging rope cocoon thrashed violently as Tsuyoshi snarled and struggled. Kakashi snarled right back, even more menacing than the dog, and she fell still again. Next to Ryouma, Kin gave a mournful little whine. |
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