Young Samurai 06 - The Ring of Fire (10 page)

‘What’s taking you so long?’ she demanded, waving a slim bamboo cane threateningly in the air. ‘We’ve three more shipments to unload. Get moving!’

She chased Yuudai and the other porters into the warehouse, barking orders and abuse as if she was the Shogun herself. One porter was apparently too slow for her liking and she whipped him across the legs.

‘That woman’s worse than my mother!’ commented Saburo as her victim limped rapidly inside.

All of a sudden a high-pitched scream pierced the air.

‘Sounds like the samurai’s had enough of her?’ said Jack, and they ran to see what was causing the commotion.

They found the woman standing upon an empty cart, her face greyer than ever and her kimono held tight to her skeletal body.

‘Kill it! Kill it!’ she screeched, pointing a gnarled finger at a tiny brown mouse on the floor.

A porter grabbed a broom and tried to beat the creature over the head. But the mouse was too quick. It darted up the cart’s wheel and the woman became hysterical as the mouse scurried about her feet. She jumped around like a maniacal puppet, while the porters struggled to stifle their laughter.

‘
You
, samurai boy!’ squawked the woman, her eyes bulging with terror. ‘Help me!’

Cornering the little creature, Yuudai bent down and scooped it up in his huge hands.

‘Squash it!’ she cried.

Yuudai, ignoring the frenzied woman, strode out of the warehouse. Going over to the far side of the dock, he released the mouse on to the riverbank and watched it scamper safely away.

The woman stood at the warehouse door, fuming at him.

‘I ordered you to
kill
the wretched creature!’

‘What harm did the mouse ever do to you?’ asked Yuudai, his voice low and gentle.

The woman’s lips appeared to chew themselves as she sought for a suitably vicious reply. Eventually, she spat, ‘How dare you disobey me! You get half-rations today. Now back to work, all of you!’

Resuming her tyrannical abuse, the woman lashed out with her cane and the porters scattered to their posts, their moment of amusement over.

With a weary sigh, Yuudai followed the woman inside.

‘A bit soft for a samurai, isn’t he?’ commented Saburo.

‘But very strong!’ said Jack.

‘I like him,’ said Yori. ‘He respects life.’

‘What good is
that
if he’s facing a bloodthirsty bandit like Akuma?’ argued Toge.

‘He’s trustworthy and loyal,’ replied Hayato. ‘That counts for a great deal.’

Toge still wasn’t convinced. ‘If he’s samurai, then what’s he doing working as a porter?’

‘Yuudai has no family left,’ revealed Hayato. ‘He must fend for himself – any way he can. And not many lords are hiring
young
samurai.’

‘Do you think he’d be willing to join us?’ asked Jack.

Hayato nodded confidently. ‘It doesn’t look as if he’s enjoying his current position. And he needs food to keep his strength up.’

Turning to Yori, Jack whispered, ‘Remind you of anyone?’

Yori glanced at Saburo and smothered a giggle.

They waited until midday when the porters took a short break for lunch. Yuudai sat by himself at the end of the dock, his long legs dangling over the edge, his feet almost touching the water. Hayato made the approach, since he knew the boy.

Jack and the others watched from a distance as the two of them conversed. Hayato pointed to the farmers, then to the three samurai. Yuudai slowly chewed his food as he listened. Hayato finished and, bowing, awaited his reply.

Everyone craned their necks, anxious for Yuudai’s response.

The boy mountain wiped his hands on a cloth and stood – then walked slowly back along the dock, the wooden planks creaking under his weight. When he reached Jack, he stopped.

Yuudai looked down at him and smiled. ‘Your offer sounds worthy.’

Bowing in appreciation of his acceptance, Jack asked, ‘When can you join us?’

‘Now,’ he replied, collecting his
nodachi
sword from inside the warehouse door. He slung it across his back. In spite of its extra-long blade, the
nodachi
looked like a child’s toy in his hands.

Striding over to her workforce, the withered woman snapped, ‘Stop idling! Get back to work!’

The porters wearily hauled themselves to their feet.

‘Where are you going, samurai boy?’ she demanded.

Yuudai gave a respectful bow of his head. ‘I have another job.’

Her face became taut with indignation. ‘If you leave now, you’ll never work here again!’

‘That must be a relief,’ said Saburo, grinning at their new friend as they all walked away.

Staring in rage as her workhorse departed, the woman slammed her cane upon a
saké
barrel so hard that it snapped in half.

‘That’s your fault!’ she squawked, shaking a bony fist at Yuudai. ‘You owe me a new cane!’

15

OUT OF TIME

‘We only need
two
more,’ said Jack, as they split up and scoured the town for young samurai. Despite the odds, he was so close to fulfilling his promise to the village. But with market day and the
Tōshiya
contest over, Okayama had seemingly emptied of potential recruits.

A whole afternoon went by and they spotted just one young samurai worth approaching. She quickly rejected their offer, saying her parents wouldn’t allow it. But they’d seen the fear in her eyes at the mention of Akuma. Jack didn’t blame the girl, though. Defending the village was no game; it would be a
real
battle and Akuma wouldn’t take any prisoners.

‘Perhaps Saburo and Hayato have had more luck?’ Yori suggested.

The two of them had gone in search of the brother and sister who’d been at the archery competition the previous day.

‘I hope so,’ said Jack.

A disheartened Sora led them back to the storehouse, Jack and Yori walking beside the mammoth Yuudai. As they wound their way through the side streets, no one dared approach them and, for the first time in many months, Jack almost felt safe. Even when Jack had shown his face, Yuudai had bowed courteously, offering a warm smile and stating, ‘Any friend of Hayato is a friend of mine.’

A bored Kunio was slouched by the storehouse door, waiting for everyone to return. He almost fell over himself when he saw Yuudai enter. Unable to tear his eyes away, he simply gawped at the new arrival.

‘Don’t stare!’ hissed Toge.

But Kunio remained open-mouthed and in awe of the mighty young samurai. Toge shoved him out of the back of the storehouse, ordering him to fetch some logs for a fire. A few minutes later, Neko appeared with freshly brewed
sencha
. She almost dropped the kettle when she caught sight of Yuudai.

Bowing shyly, she poured tea for the samurai with a trembling hand. In her haste, she spilt some on the floor. Her dark eyes widened into massive moons and her face flushed red.

‘She’s deaf and mute,’ apologized Toge, pushing Neko to one side in shame at her mistake.

‘Let her be,’ growled Yuudai, fixing him with a stern gaze. ‘Most people with ears don’t listen anyway.’

Chastened, Toge retreated into the corner. Yuudai smiled kindly at Neko and beckoned her to repour his cup. He bowed his appreciation for the
sencha
and, once Neko had served Jack and Yori, she backed out of the room. As they drank their tea, Jack noticed Neko peeking through the gap in the wall as she washed the rice for dinner.

Saburo and Hayato returned soon after, appearing weary.

‘We found them,’ announced Saburo.

‘But unfortunately we were too late,’ explained Hayato. ‘They were already on a boat heading south to Imaban.’

‘It’s all over then,’ said Sora, his face downcast. ‘Our village is doomed.’

‘Don’t despair,’ said Yori. ‘We’ll look again tomorrow.’

‘What’s the point?’ said Toge. ‘We must go back and prepare. We’re running out of time!’

‘And we don’t have
seven
samurai yet,’ stated Jack.

‘But you’re great warriors!’ interrupted Kunio. ‘Surely five is all we need.’

Jack stared into his half-empty cup. The tea matched their own situation – some, but not enough. The wretched desperation on the farmers’ faces was almost too much to bear, but Jack couldn’t be reckless with his friends’ lives. This was a dangerous mission with seven. Being only five samurai, the risk was even greater.

Coming to a difficult decision, he announced, ‘If anyone wants to leave now, then they should do so.’

No one moved.

‘Why seven?’ asked Hayato.

‘There are at least forty bandits. I calculate a skilful samurai could handle up to six enemies at most.’

‘Well, Yuudai counts for at least two people,’ responded Hayato. ‘With my bow, I can bring down several bandits before they get within fighting distance. And we haven’t yet allowed for your skills.’

Jack looked to the others. Yori seemed nervous but resolved. Saburo was surprisingly committed too, and Yuudai appeared as indestructible as rock.

He nodded his reluctant agreement. ‘Five it is then.’

The next morning the five samurai, three farmers and Neko left for Tamagashi village. The winter wind blew a bitter chill as the group trekked across the snow-covered plain. Their going was slow and when the drifts became too deep, Yuudai carried Yori on his shoulders.

Hayato marched alongside Jack. ‘How much further?’ he asked, studying the bleak terrain ahead.

‘Last time we arrived around dusk.’

Noticing Jack glance over his shoulder, Hayato leant in close. ‘Do you sense what I do?’

‘Yes,’ said Jack, glad he wasn’t the only one to feel it. He scanned the vast open landscape. ‘Nowhere to hide, but someone
is
following us.’

16

WHITE SHADOW

Entering a patch of sparse woodland, the sense of being watched grew. Jack kept his hand upon his sword and Hayato unslung his bow. The others remained oblivious to the threat and Jack wondered if the two of them were being over-cautious. There was
still
no sign of pursuit. And their remote location begged the question, who would be following them in the first place?

The tactics of the Shogun’s samurai were usually direct and unsubtle. If they’d planned to ambush him, the ideal place would have been Okayama. It could be Kazuki and his Scorpion Gang. They often proved more devious and might be laying a trap. But it seemed odd to wait this long and the isolation meant no chance of reinforcements.

‘Bandits?’ whispered Hayato, his eyes darting from tree to tree.

‘Maybe,’ agreed Jack.

There was a strong possibility Akuma had got word of their plan to help the farmers – any of the samurai they’d approached in Okayama might have talked. If that was the case, the best opportunity Akuma had to attack the young samurai was
now
. The five of them were at their most vulnerable – before they reached the village and before they could prepare any defence.

The three farmers were slightly ahead and Jack urged everyone to catch up. It would be fatal if the group was split during a fight. They crunched on through the snow, their crisp footsteps the only sound.

Out of the corner of his eye, Jack caught a movement. Snapping his head round, he saw … nothing but the frozen skeletons of trees, their branches laden with ice and snow. The sole sign of life was a deer track that wound its way through the woodland.

‘Why are you both so edgy?’ asked Saburo.

‘Bandits may be stalking us,’ replied Hayato, under his breath.

Saburo looked around and laughed. ‘Well, if they are, they must be snowmen!’

In the space of a heartbeat, Hayato drew his bow and shot at Saburo. He yelped in surprise as the arrow flew past his ear and struck a snowdrift.

A fraction before it did, a white shadow flitted away. Camouflaged to the surroundings, the figure immediately disappeared into the snow-shrouded landscape.

‘You could be right!’ said Hayato, hurriedly nocking another arrow.

Jack withdrew his sword, but the attack happened so fast, it took them all by surprise.