Wake Up Call

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Wake Up Call was a virtual representation of one of Fujibayashi Naoe's genetic memories, relived through the Animus EGO.

Description

Naoe started her day by training in kenjutsu with her father, Nagato.

Dialogue

Naoe, having just woke up, stepped out of her home, giving a huge yawn.

• Naoe: (yawns)

She noticed her father blowing on his tsuchbue, and stood next to him as he finished his music.

• Naoe: Morning, Father.
• Nagato: Morning? The sun is nearly risen. You are late.

Knowing what he meant, Naoe gave a sheepish smile and nodded.

• Nagato: Yesterday... you were slow. Today...

Nagato drew a bokken.

• Nagato: ...we move faster.

Naoe peeked at her bokken behind him, knowing she would have to get through her father to retrieve it.

• Naoe: Hai (Yes), Father.

The two began training.

• Nagato: Getting past me is the first challenge.

In her first attempt, Naoe tried to get past but was hit by her father's strike.

• Nagato: What did I say? Faster!

In her next attempt, Naoe managed to dodge her father's attack and retrieve her sword.

• Nagato: Let us begin. Come!

In her first strike, Naoe tried to break her father's defense and succeeded.

• Naoe: (grunts)
• Nagato: Good! (laughs) There's weight behind your strike.

Nagato got back into defense again, while Naoe continued to break his guard.

• Nagato: Don't go easy on your father. Pretend I am your enemy.

Having finished the first session, Naoe moved on to the next one, now to deflect her father's attacks. After deflecting two times, Naoe returned the third strike and fought her father to a standstill, before the two lowered their swords.

• Naoe: I'm getting better!
• Nagato: Eh.
• Naoe: (laughs) I am!
• Nagato: Show me. You win this match, and I will cook tonight.
• Naoe: Deal.

The two began the fight, with Naoe making use of her training to dodge and deflect Nagato's attacks, while finding opportunities to break his defense. In time, Naoe was overpowered and Nagato soon stopped the fight.

• Nagato: That's enough now.

The two withdrew their swords.

• Naoe: I almost had you!
• Nagato: Almost.

The two bowed to each other as a form of respect.

• Naoe: I am ready to train with the others, Father.
• Nagato: This training is enough. You have other obligations.
• Naoe: I am the daughter of one of Iga's greatest warriors. Don't I have a reputation to uphold?
• Nagato: You are also a daughter of Iga. That means caring for the people within it.
• Naoe: That's what I'm asking to do. I want to protect them.
• Nagato: The Igan way is shared responsibility, community, and benevolence. You will bestow that upon Matsu today.
• Naoe: Ah, Auntie Matsu again?
• Nagato: Any day she needs you, you will help her. Or any of our neighbors.
• Naoe: Yes, Father.

Leaving their home, Naoe followed her father.

• Naoe: Auntie Matsu kept me for hours yesterday.
• Nagato: Clearing the wasp nest from her tree should have taught you to work quickly.
• Naoe: I kept getting stung!
• Nagato: No complaints. you know why we help our neighbors. Alone, we are nothing. But together...
• Naoe: "The height of the great mountain is not made by one stone."
• Nagato: Yes. To the rest of the country, we Igans are a different people. So we must come together to form a mountain.
• Naoe: (yawns) This morning I feel like rubble.
• Nagato: You are a pebble now. As my daughter, much is expected of you. The Fujibayashi name is a rock at the base of the mountain.
• Naoe: I know, Father. I'll help Auntie.
• Nagato: Good. And you know what she will give you in return?
• Naoe: Breakfast.
• Nagato: So, it is not for nothing. You give, and you receive. That is community. I have my own work to do. Be on your best behavior.
• Naoe: I will!

Reaching the end of a field, Nagato and Naoe went separate ways, with Naoe making her way to Matsu's house.

• Naoe: What will it be today, Auntie Matsu? Weeding the turnips? Scrubbing your iron pots?

After a while, she reached Matsu's house, where she found the lady tending to her vegetables.

• Matsu: (hums) Ah! Haha. Kirei ne (Tidy, no?)! (hums)
• Naoe: Good morning, Auntie Matsu.
• Matsu: Naoe! Smelled my misoshiru brewing across the village, eh?
• Naoe: Eggplant and daikon?
• Matsu: Your favorite. But not ready yet. Come later.

Matsu continued to tend to her vegetables.

• Naoe: My father said you needed my help.
• Matsu: Ah! An old woman forgets.
• Naoe: Let me help.

Naoe helped Matsu up.

• Matsu: (grunts) These knees don't bend like they used to.

Matsu turned to look out towards the fields.

• Matsu: It's the jewels of my land—my crops! I give them water, wish them well, and in the morning? They disappear. Something wanders my yard—beast or spirit, I am sure.
• Naoe: Spirits, Auntie?
• Matsu: They are everywhere, you know, like gnats! (laughs) Whatever it is, you will find it. I can always count on my Naoe. Observation is the first step to victory! You need higher ground to find what haunts me. Climb the old tower. Tell me what you see.
• Naoe: For a bowl for your misoshiru?
• Matsu: Ah, ah, ah! Work first, then rewards! And lucky you, it will be my best one yet.
• Naoe: I won't let you down.

Naoe left Matsu's house and headed to the old tower mentioned by Matsu.

• Naoe: I can see Matsu's crops from up there.

Naoe freeran up a big tree and from a branch, hopped onto the scaffolding of the tower. She climbed up to the top and reached the edge of a beam. From there, she looked down to observe Matsu's crops and found something of interest to the north.

• Naoe: It's an animal. A deer?

Naoe jumped down from the beam and landed in a haystack. After exiting, she approached the animal and saw it was a sika deer carcass with an arrow embedded in its neck, suggesting it had been recently hunted by a human.

• Naoe: (gasps)

She went to take a closer look and noticed a fawn nearby, the deceased deer's offspring.

• Naoe: It's all right. Don't—

The deer turned around and headed into the woods. Naoe then decided to follow it.

• Naoe: Whoever did this will pay.

She followed the footpath and heard voices.

• Poacher 1: Hey! That mean's mine!
• Poacher 2: Then why's it in my hand?
• Naoe: Someone made a fire. And I hear voices.

She moved closer and found two men sitting by a campfire.

• Poacher 2: We should be on the road to Yamato already.

Naoe approached them.

• Naoe: Who are you?
• Poacher 2: Who wants to know?
• Naoe: I do.
• Poacher 1: We are innocent survivors from battle. Starving and alone. You would turn us away?
• Poacher 2: Not with that flimsy bokken she won't.
• Poacher 1: (laughs)
• Naoe: We are good people. If you ask us, we will help.

The two men stood up.

• Poacher 2: You're Igans. Dirty sneaks and hermits.
• Poacher 1: (laughs)
• Naoe: That's not true.
• Poacher 1: We'll ask for help next time. If Iga still stands.

Annoyed by their statements, Naoe made a demand.

• Naoe: Leave. Now.
• Poacher 2: Make us.

The two men drew their katana and attacked Naoe, who only had a wooden sword to defend herself. Despite that, Naoe made good use of her father's lessons and defeated both of them.

• Poacher 1: She's not worth it!
• Poacher 2: Go! Go!

The two men abandoned their camp and fled into the woods.

• Naoe: (pants) And stay out of Iga!

Naoe sheathed her sword and made her way back to Matsu, pondering on what had transpired.

• Naoe: See, Father? Nothing to worry about. I handled them just fine. But it sounds like something was following them to Iga. Something big.

She returned to Matsu's house, entering the residence to find her making misoshiru as she had wanted.

• Matsu: Ah, just time! This misoshiru is almost ready. Sit!

Naoe sat down.

• Matsu: So tell me. Beast or spirit?
• Naoe: Peasant ashigaru from outside Iga. I fought them off.
• Matsu: Of course you did! You're a Fujibayashi.

Matsu took two bowls of misoshiru and sat down.

• Naoe: How did they get in our village? My father says Iga is a locked door.

She served Naoe a bowl of her misoshiru.

• Matsu: What matters is that you chased them off. Eat! Good for the heart and the bones.
• Naoe: Those soldiers. They spoke like something is coming. A battle.
• Matsu: You are strong. You will meet trouble with courage and a full stomach. But you must do it without me.
• Naoe: Why? My father said you were once a great fighter.
• Matsu: That is long behind me. These days, I am only good with a hocho to chop vegetables.
• Naoe: You busy around your garden like a honey bee. Rest.
• Matsu: You need to be fed, don't you? I'll do all I can before I venture up the mountain for good.
• Naoe: Well. As long as you're around, I will take care of you. And when you can't even use a hocho, you can live with me and my father.
• Matsu: A generous soul. Like your mother. Oh, how proud Tsuyu would be to see who you are becoming.

Matsu noticed Naoe looking glum at the mention of her mother.

• Matsu: Naoe...
• Naoe: My father doesn't like to talk about her.
• Matsu: He has his reasons. Forgive me. Eat more!

Just then, Nagato ran into the room, looking anxious.

• Matsu: Misoshiru, Nagato?
• Nagato: They're coming.
• Naoe: Who?
• Nagato: The armies of Oda Nobunaga. His son is at our borders. Nobukatsu. Ready to attack Iga. I must meet them head on. We can't let them reach the village.

Naoe stood up, concerned for the alarming situation.

• Naoe: It—it's dangerous, Father.
• Nagato: That won't stop me.
• Matsu: What should we do, Nagato?
• Nagato: Stay here. Naoe will protect you.
• Naoe: Yes, Father.
• Nagato: Wait for me. I will return.

Nagato ran off to head into battle.

• Naoe: The peasant ashigaru. They were a warning.
• Matsu: Sit. Eat.

Naoe sat down. As time passed, Naoe grew restless.

• Naoe: I feel useless.
• Matsu: Waiting is not useless. Like I say, observation is the key to victory. or else we are carps on the slab.
• Naoe: (grunts) I am no Fujibayashi, Auntie Matsu. If I was, I wouldn't have been scared. I would have gone with my father. I'm an obedient coward.
• Matsu: No, Naoe.
• Naoe: Yes! I'm done waiting. I want to help! I want to fight!
• Matsu: So let us go!

Matsu stood up.

• Matsu: You have kept your bravery dark behind your eyes so your father does not see it. Enough hiding.
• Naoe: Enough hiding.
• Matsu: I know just where to begin. Off we go!

Outcome

Naoe reported to Matsu of ashigaru in the outskirts of Iga, which was later confirmed by Nagato as belonging to Oda Nobunaga's army coming to invade Iga. Naoe was told to stay away from danger by staying to protect Matsu. Empathizing with Naoe's desperation and concern, Matsu allowed her to participate and left the house with Naoe.