Swords, Honmaru, and Little Tiger

"I am Gokotai. Um... I didn't drive them away. I'm sorry. The tigers were so pitiful."

Gokotai appeared.

At first, the citadel was a wonderful place. Kato Kiyomitsu was the starter sword, and when the first forging began, the short swords that appeared were Gokotai and Sayo Samonji. The Master was a lively young lady who adored every new sword she obtained.

After some time, the citadel settled into a routine, and the number of swords continued to grow.

The little tiger slipped out of the Awataguchi quarters and scampered off to play with Nakigitsune's little fox.

On the way, it ran too fast, tumbled several times, and collided with the feet of some sword.

()

But the good times did not last.

The Master, whose codename was "Akari," came to the citadel less and less often, with longer and longer gaps between visits.

In the end, she resigned to the Temporal Government.

The citadel became a secondhand citadel.

Some people chose secondhand citadels for convenience or for one reason or another.

The swords once thought their good luck must have run out when they met their first Master.

Everything had its signs.

Ichigo Hitofuri was the first to fall into corruption. There were simply too many short swords in Awataguchi, so many that the Master stopped paying attention to them.

Severely wounded, dismantled, then a new sword summoned.

It all ended on an ordinary evening.

The citadel quickly became a corrupted citadel, waiting for the Temporal Government to purge it... or perhaps help it? But that wasn't realistic, and they didn't want to take another chance.

Gokotai was one of the very few swords who had been there from the beginning. The first Master had prepared protective charms for them at the very start.

Before things reached the point of no return, Yamashi once sent him on an expedition, so the citadel could pass the Temporal Government's inspections on the surface.

By then, he was already the second Ichigo Hitofuri. He prepared a disposable compass for his younger brother before he left.

"Ugh..."

Anyway, that is Gokotai's story.

When he returned from his ascension, by a twist of fate or perhaps sheer luck, his other half appeared beside him.

"Awooo!"

"Little Tiger... you mustn't..."

Pale golden hair, mismatched gold and blue eyes, and a uniform identical to the one Gokotai wore before his ascension.

The boy clambered excitedly on top of Gokotai, wriggling and sniffing and licking him all over, until Gokotai pushed his face away.

"Awo! Awooo!"

"D-do you want to know my name...? I am G-o-k-o-t-a-i."

(The main story follows Gokotai and Little Tiger as they build their own citadel together. The order in which they meet the swords: Shokudaikiri, because they need food; the Samonji brothers, because there is a child; Tsurumaru, because they need some variety in life; they part ways; find an abandoned citadel and move in; decide to look for their old companions and bring them there; Higekiri and Hizamaru, who were traded but escaped; Imanotsurugi and Kogitsunemaru, who were experimented on and failed; Kasen and Yamanbagiri Kunihiro, who were abandoned as imitations; Izuminokami and Horikawa; Yagen, Midare, and the Samonji brothers; Shokudaikiri, Tsurumaru, and Taikogane; Nakigitsune, Ichigo Hitofuri, Hirano, Maeda, Honebami, and Namazuo; Heshikiri. I guess I'll write it up while flipping through the sword index...

2026/7/13

Theme: Touken Ranbu