Young Samurai: The Way of Fire (short story) (5 page)

Jack knew there was only one way to save his friends.

‘If you want me, come and get me,’ Jack challenged, turning and running off into the forest.

He weaved between the gravestones, the undergrowth whipping at his legs as he went deeper and deeper into the darkness. Switching right, up a small rise, he then cut down a slope and dived behind a large lichen-covered tomb. His heart thudded in his chest and he could hear the blood rushing through his ears.

How had the ninja found him? Dragon Eye was like an evil shadow that never left his side.

Jack poked his head above the tombstone. The mist swirled between the graves, the tall cypress trees reaching up into the moonlit sky like the outstretched arms of the dead.

‘Looking for me?’ whispered a voice in his ear.

Jack spun round to be confronted by the deadly assassin. His single jade-green eye and the glint of a knife were all that could be seen in the encroaching darkness. Jack had only one choice. Clambering to his feet, he drew his sword and prepared to fight.

The ninja calmly put away his
tantō
, reached over his back and unsheathed a large
ninjatō
. The steel sword caught the moonlight as he brought it in line with Jack’s wooden
bokken
.

Jack didn’t wait for Dragon Eye to attack. He knocked the
ninjatō
aside, thrusting his sword at his enemy’s throat. The ninja’s single eye flared in surprise at the speed of the strike. Twisting to one side, the tip barely missed his neck.

Dragon Eye retaliated at once, cutting his blade across Jack’s gut. Jack managed to block the strike, but sacrificed a large chunk out of his wooden
bokken
. The ninja pressed forward with his attack, splinters flying everywhere with each blow Jack deflected.

Dragon Eye aimed for Jack’s head. The razor-sharp sword sliced through the air. Jack ducked, holding his sword high to protect himself. The steel
ninjatō
cut straight through his
bokken
.

Jack stared at the useless stub of wood in his hand. How he wished he had the steel
katana
Masamoto had given him.

Dragon Eye gave a rough grunt of laughter.

Realizing his skills were no match for the ninja, Jack threw the broken hilt at the ninja and ran for his life.

He broke from the forest into a clearing, almost careering headlong into the swamp. Stumbling round its edge, he lost his sandals in the mud.

‘You can’t run forever,
gaijin
!’ shouted Dragon Eye, hot on his heels.

Jack knew the ninja was right and stopped running. Taking a deep breath and calming his mind, he turned to face his enemy.

The ninja stopped too, his head cocked to one side, surprised to see that Jack had actually followed his command.

‘So, finally you understand there can be no escape. Now where is the
rutter
?’ he demanded, raising his sword and placing the tip to Jack’s heart.

Jack didn’t answer, but continued to focus on his enemy’s face.

‘Are you really prepared to die like your father over a mere book?’ asked Dragon Eye, twisting the blade so it pinched Jack’s skin.

‘You should be asking whether
you’re
prepared or not,’ Jack replied steadily.

‘What do you mean?’ said the ninja just as the burning hot embers of the Way of Fire caused his straw sandals to burst into flame.

Jack had felt the hot coals as soon as he’d stepped upon the patch of blackened earth. He’d immediately stopped and cleared his mind in readiness for the heat. But Dragon Eye, so intent on pursuing him, hadn’t given the ground a second look. The ninja howled in shock and pain as the flames licked up his legs.

Jack knew he only had moments before Dragon Eye recovered. Lashing out, he kicked the ninja as hard as he could in the chest. Dragon Eye stumbled backwards, teetering on the edge of the swamp. Jack struck again, hitting the ninja with a double flying front kick.

Dragon Eye toppled into the marshy waters and disappeared beneath the surface. Jack didn’t wait around. Knowing he would need help to capture the ninja, he fled back through the forest in search of his sensei.

But when he reached the cemetery, Jack discovered that his fellow students were still locked in combat with the three other ninja – and there were no sensei in sight. Picking up a discarded
bokken
, he joined in the fight, standing shoulder-to-shoulder with Yamato, Akiko and Saburo in a protective circle round the still-bleeding Emi.

Despite the students’ combined strength, the ninja were proving too powerful for them and they were forced to retreat.

The lead ninja, his sword held high above his head, growled, ‘Surrender or die!’

The Uninvited Guest

The trainee samurai glanced nervously at one another. Even though they outnumbered their enemy, the three ninja possessed skills way beyond the students’ training and abilities. Their only two options were dishonourable surrender or certain death.

‘Never!’ Kazuki shouted, sounding out a mighty battle cry. ‘
KIAAAAI!
’

All the young samurai, fired up by Kazuki’s courage, brandished their own weapons and readied themselves for a fight to the death.

But instead of moving forward to attack, the three ninja looked at each other then simply nodded.

‘Congratulations!’ said the lead ninja, as they all pulled off their hoods. ‘You’ve passed the final test.’

Standing before them were Sensei Hosokawa, Sensei Kyuzo and Sensei Yamada. The students stared open-mouthed at their teachers.

‘This was a
training
exercise?’ exclaimed Kazuki, his sword still primed to strike.

‘Yes, the final test, and you showed true
bushido
spirit,’ replied Sensei Hosokawa, a satisfied grin on his face as the students lowered their weapons with relief. ‘Your courage is to be commended.’

The only sensei to appear displeased was Sensei Kyuzo. He stepped forward, his face screwed up with fury, and presented Jack with his bound wrists. ‘Undo this demeaning knot,
right now
!’

Suppressing a grin, Jack hurriedly removed the gunner’s knot.

‘So who was impersonating the fourth ninja, Dragon Eye?’ Jack asked, relieved to discover that the ninja attack had been faked.

Sensei Kyuzo scowled at him. ‘What are you talking about?’ he spat. ‘There were only three of us.’

But before Jack could explain, Emi collapsed to the floor.

Sensei Yamada rushed over to examine her. ‘She’s been cut. Who did this?’ he demanded, taking off his
obi
and wrapping it round her leg to stem the bleeding. ‘No one had sharpened weapons.’

Jack stared at Akiko, whose eyes widened in a fearful realization.

‘The fourth ninja was the
real
Dragon Eye,’ she gasped.

Sensei Hosokawa and Sensei Kyuzo exchanged a troubled look.

Sensei Yamada continued to tend to Emi, gently parting her eyelids. She gazed blankly back at him.

‘The cut’s not deep and she hasn’t lost enough blood to pass out,’ he observed, ‘so the blade must have been poisoned.’

‘Can you identify the poison?’ asked Sensei Hosokawa, his voice tense and strained. ‘We can’t have the daughter of the
daimyo
die on our watch.’

‘We need the sword or the ninja to question,’ the Zen master explained.

‘Where’s Dragon Eye now, Jack-kun?’ demanded Sensei Hosokawa.

‘I kicked him into the swamp,’ Jack replied. ‘But he used his knife on Emi.’

‘Sensei Yamada, do all you can for Emi-chan,’ ordered the swordmaster, ripping off his ninja disguise. ‘Everyone else stay here. Sensei Kyuzo and I will go after the assassin.’

The two samurai sprinted off in the direction of the clearing.

Emi convulsed in Sensei Yamada’s arms then coughed, white foam with black flecks appearing at her lips.

‘I recognize these symptoms,’ said Akiko, dropping down beside the trembling form of Emi. ‘It’s what the ninja call a Sleeper.’

‘What’s a Sleeper?’ asked Jack.

‘It’s a poison that gradually paralyses the entire body until the victim suffocates,’ Sensei Yamada explained, checking for Emi’s pulse.

‘Can you save her?’ pleaded Jack. ‘Surely there’s a cure?’

Sensei Yamada shook his head sadly. ‘Without knowing the actual plant or animal used to concoct the Sleeper, it’s not possible to make an effective antidote. I can only ease her pain.’

‘Wait! There
is
a cure,’ said Akiko, her face suddenly brightening. ‘The
haku-jo maru
. It’s a flowering cactus whose blossom is said to counteract
any
poison.’

‘True, but those cacti are extremely rare,’ replied Sensei Yamada. ‘They only grow at the top of volcanoes.’

‘Mount Haku! It’s not far from here,’ Saburo interrupted. ‘My father took us there last summer.’

‘It’s too dangerous,’ replied the Zen master.

‘But we
have
to try,’ insisted Jack. ‘Emi’s dying because she tried to protect me.’

‘I’ll go with you,’ Akiko said decisively. ‘I know what the
haku-jo maru
looks like.’

‘Count me in too,’ Yamato volunteered, stepping up beside Jack. ‘Saburo, you can guide us to Mount Haku.’

Saburo, his lip trembling at the prospect of climbing a live volcano, could only nod his head.

‘No. I forbid it,’ countermanded Sensei Yamada. ‘Mount Haku recently erupted. I can’t have you risking your lives too.’

‘But you heard what Sensei Hosokawa said,’ Jack argued. ‘We cannot allow Emi to die. This is our only chance to save her.’

‘But Sensei Hosokawa also said everyone was to stay here,’ reminded Sensei Yamada.

‘Isn’t it our duty as samurai to serve and protect the
daimyo
’s daughter?’ persisted Akiko.

‘True …’ agreed Sensei Yamada reluctantly, gazing at the unconscious Emi in his arms. Then a smile of pride spread across his wrinkled face. ‘You
truly
are young samurai. Take the horses from the stables. But hurry, Emi-chan won’t survive beyond a day. You must return by dusk tomorrow at the latest.’

Mount Haku

Mount Haku rose from the earth like an enormous slumbering giant. Its steep forested shoulders led to a distant smoking peak, where a crown of snow glistened in the early morning light.

The four young samurai had ridden hard overnight to arrive at the base of the mountain for dawn. They skirted a large lake and tethered their horses to a tree at the edge of the forest.

‘From here we have to walk,’ explained Saburo without enthusiasm.

Jack was relieved to dismount the steed that he and Akiko had been riding. Having been a sailor, he wasn’t used to travelling by horse. It was a samurai skill he had yet to master, so his legs were stiff and his backside bruised from the journey.

‘We’d better get some water first,’ Akiko suggested, taking a couple of hollowed-out gourds from their packs and heading over to the lake’s edge. ‘It’s going to be a hard climb.’

‘Hey, look!’ shouted Saburo, pointing to a large tunnel of black rock where a waterfall cascaded into the crystal-clear lake. ‘It’s an old lava tube.’

Jack peered into the pitch-black hole. It was like staring down the throat of a massive sea snake. The floor was slick and smooth from the flowing water while the ceiling hung with shark-toothed stalactites.

‘My father said these tunnels form when a lava flow cools on the outside first. They start at the top of the mountain and can run for a long way, as much as a ten
ri
,’ Saburo explained, cupping his hands beneath the cascade and taking a large gulp. ‘I bet this water was once snow on Mount Haku’s peak.’

‘Come on! We haven’t the time for this,’ said Yamato impatiently. ‘Emi could be dead by nightfall.’

They hurried after him into the forest. The trail wound its way up the steep slope and Jack soon found himself panting for breath. Saburo lagged even further behind, limping on his blistered feet, while Yamato forged ahead.

After an hour they reached a clearing and Akiko called for a short water break to allow Saburo to catch up. Jack had been thinking about Akiko’s surprising knowledge of ninja poisons. Along with her mysterious night-time disappearances at the
Niten Ichi Ryū
and the astounding climbing agility she’d shown during the maple-leaf viewing party, Akiko had once again demonstrated extraordinary insight into the assassins’ world.