“I could ask you the same thing Ulroke-dono,” The man replied. He carefully moved to the middle of the hallway a thumb pressed firmly against the tsuba of the katana on his hip. It wasn’t his first one, that one remained in his room. This was an iron one that the Ronin had found, nearly rusted through before he had begun the hard work of restoring it, seeing the kinship of the blade even now. It was nowhere near as elegant at Rengoku, but it certainly got the job done. He pressed, “A puppet must stay close to their master. That is the puppet’s role, and the basis of their relationship. So when the man that claims to be my charge’s master brings said charge half dead back, the puppet begins to wonder if it is time to defend his master from the idiocy of those that think they know best.”

“Try it, Ixian. I’ll have you skinned and turned into a corset for her to wear,” Lye growled.

“I’m no Ixian, she made sure of that...the man you’re looking for died of a bleeding heart,” Zero replied firmly. He then gestured to Uleroke, “You’re still hurt, your first blade would hardly be out of its sheath before I had blade to your throat. If the pain is bearable, you might have begun drawing the second. We can continue this pissing match, but I need to know what happened so I can act accordingly. So, I let you live, despite better judgement that you are leading her to her death. What happened?”

“Ask her yourself,” the words left through a scowl.

Eyes narrowed behind the mask before he spoke, “Whose child is it?” He paused looking at Lye’s reaction, “Don’t be upset, the walls here are thin, and I make it my job to know things about my charge.”

The assassin didn’t reply. Foolishly, he bared his back to Zero and began walking away. A sigh left Zero’s lips before the sound of the katana breaking the seal on his sheath could be heard, he paused his draw, waiting for Uleroke to respond to the thinly veiled threat. He knew the man’s pride would only allow such insolence in the most dire of circumstance. Further, Zero was deadlier when he was striking from a draw, and was certain the Crimson Assassin knew it too.

“Do it.” Lye stopped in place and waited. His back remained to Zero. Zero widened his stance, preparing himself to strike before the blade clicked back in, and the sound of the door opening was heard.

“One day, I will repay you for the blow to the back you gave me, not today,” He said firmly stepping into the sanctum beyond.