A/n: I've been watching a lot of Samurai Champloo, and of course it made me think of my eggplant samurai. That being said, some notes about this piece:

a.) the setting is between 1200-1300 AD, in Japan (surprise).

b.) During this time in Japan, becoming a samurai would mean better social standing in their communities, and obviously more money, so it was kind of normal for young men to run off and start "freelancing" as ronins as they tried to find a lord to dedicate their loyalties to.

c.) A relationship between a 14-15 year-old and a 20ish year-old would be looked at differently in that time.

Souls of Steel

It was the only thing he had ever wanted out of life. His father had been a ronin until the day he died, leaving Gakupo to take care of his heart-broken mother. He'd promised them both that he'd fulfill his father's dream of pledging his life to a lord, perhaps even an Emperor, and raising his family out of the streets and into the suites.

All that, however, was a lot easier said than done. Gakupo Kamui had left his hometown only a week ago and already he was broke, half-starved, and about ready to turn tail and head home when a seemingly perfect opportunity appeared before him in the form of a young girl wearing a flowered orange kimono. However, he was a skeptical man at heart, so when the blonde appeared before him, giving a wide smile and running her right index finger over the the sheath of his katana, he was immediately suspicious.

She was probably a foot and a half shorter than he, with short golden hair that fell around her ear and jaw in chunks. Her large gunmetal eyes surveyed him, and he noticed her lips twist from a grin, to a slight pout, before smiling once more. She looked young, probably hadn't even seen sixteen years yet. So what did she want with him?

"Are you a samurai?" She asked him, taking a seat beside him on the dirt road with no invitation.

Ah, perhaps she was looking for a husband? She most likely came from a family of fishermen, or farmers, and marrying a samurai would greatly increase her social standing. Young as she was, she shouldn't encounter too many problems in that endeavor. Gakupo wasn't much interested in any of that, but as he was still trying to muster up the strength to move on, he decided to humor the girl by saying "Yes," even if it wasn't completely true yet.

She immediately jolted to her feet, the same finger that had been stroking his blade flew up to launch itself in his face. All traces of flirtatious amusement was gone from her features, and he felt almost intimidated under her hateful glare. "Where are the Eastern lords keeping them?" she demanded, jabbing her finger into his chest.

Well then. Since Gakupo wasn't actually a samurai yet, he had no idea. He was however, making his way East. He wouldn't tell her that. "I don't know," he said instead. "I'm actually more of a, um, freelancer."

If he thought she couldn't get anymore disgusted with him, he thought wrong. "Isn't that a fancy way of saying you're not good enough to be a samurai yet?" She then rolled her eyes.

"I—I am plenty good! In fact, I'm on my way to introduce myself to some lords now, so it really should be any time now that I—"

"You're going East?" the blonde child asked. Whoops. "Take me with you!"

Finally, Gakupo ambled to his feet, if only so he could tower over the girl. "I may not be a full-fledged samurai yet," he told her, "But that doesn't mean I'm low enough to start taking on babysitting jobs."

"I think, perhaps, you believe yourself to be too weak to escort me anywhere." It was Gakupo's turn to glare at the girl, but she only grinned at him. "How about we make a deal, wanderer? If you can beat me in a fight, then I won't ever bother you again. If I win, you take me to the East. Got it?" When Gakupo shook his head, the girl frowned, but then added, "If you beat me, I'll give you all the gold I can find in my home."

That made Gakupo ponder. Did he want to fight a little girl? No, it was dishonorable. Did he like easy money? Yes, and he very much needed it. So he nodded, the girl clapped her hands together and demanded him to wait right there while she retrieve her weapon. Gakupo watched her back as she disappeared into a tea house across the street, reemerging seconds later. In her hand she held a long spear made of metal, standing a few inches taller than herself. It seemed to have charms wrapped around the shaft. Gakupo couldn't help but ponder what a strange weapon that was, in an age where almost everyone used katanas. He dismissed the thought, however. It didn't matter what tool she used; there was no way he couldn't be victorious.

She stopped a few yards away from him. "First to draw blood?" she called out. Though the streets have been empty for most of the duration of their conversation, with the setting sun meant that people were slowly leaving their homes in search of more carnal pleasures, though many of them seemed to want to watch him fight this child. He thought he could hear whispers, "Is Rin going after another one?" but he blocked them out, instead nodding his consent to the blonde. She spread her legs, shifting her grip so that she held the spear with both hands. Someone in the crowd shouted, "Get 'im!" and off they were.

While Gakupo surely could have used a little more practice in the ways of swordsmanship, he was fairly confident that he was going to win this battle. After all, she was so small, and all in all just a little girl. Perhaps he'd just give her a small nick, and then be on his merry way. Though, he was unsure at this point to where that was. Would he go home? Or keep trying?

He swung his sword horizontally, and was a little surprised when the girl blocked him with ease. He tried to other direction with the same results. Though she hadn't yet made an offensive move, he couldn't collide steel with anything other than her spear. Was she trying to tire him down? Good plan, she was younger, had more stamina—

Suddenly, she jammed the base of her spear into the dirt, effectively shielding herself from his next attack, but then her feet left the ground, and she was hurdling herself around her weapon, bare feet flying in the air until, finally, they made contact with his face.

Blood poured out of his nose as he stumbled, tripping over his own feet and onto the ground. Before he could look up, she'd settled back on her own legs, hoisted her spear, and pointed it straight at his throat. She pushed, just a little, and a bead of blood fell.

"What a surprise," someone in the crowd called out sarcastically. "Rin wins against another helpless traveler."

Gakupos eyes were as wide as saucers. How had—how? He had years of experience, had been practicing since he could practically walk, and this little girl had taken him down in less than a few minutes. This girl—the crowd had referred to her as Rin—had pummeled him into a pulp.

The blonde grinned widely at him, offering her small hand that was no carrying her weapon. "Well, we should leave before it gets too dark," she ordered. He ignored her, standing on his own. He was a man of his word, he'd do what he'd promised, but that didn't mean he had many questions.

She ran inside the tea house once more, emerging with a blanket-covered bundle attached to her spear. Standing before him, she offered her hand again, this time as an introduction. "My name's Rin. I hope you won't let me down."

He frowned, but accepted the greeting. "Kamui Gakupo."

–

A/n: I don't know whether or not this is going to be a one-shot yet. I mean, it could be, but I also have ideas for if you guys are interested. Like, why Rin wanted to go East for example. But, yeah, I hope you all enjoyed c:

Review!