Young Samurai: The Way of Fire (short story) (9 page)

‘For those students who have the courage and the ability, the time has come to prove you are worthy to be called samurai of the
Niten Ichi Ryū
. And those who do will progress on to the Two Heavens without the need for further training.’

Jack had an inkling of what the Two Heavens was. He’d heard it was Masamoto’s secret martial art technique and that only the very best students were given the privilege of learning from the great man himself. But beyond that the Two Heavens remained a mystery.

‘The Circle of Three, as tradition dictates, will commence when the winds blow the cherry blossom from the branches,’ continued Masamoto. ‘Those of you who believe you are ready to meet the Circle’s three challenges of Mind, Body and Spirit should log their names with Sensei Kyuzo at the end of this evening. A series of four selection trials will then be held at first snowfall to test your strength, skill, intellect and courage. The five students deemed the best in these trials will go through to the Circle.’

Masamoto spread his arms wide so that the sleeves of his flame-red kimono appeared to transform him into the fiery phoenix of his
kamon
.

‘Be warned! The Circle of Three is not to be entered into lightly. It demands you understand the seven virtues of
bushido
if you are to have any hope of surviving.’ The great warrior paused, his gaze taking in all his students. ‘So tell me what is
bushido
?’

‘
Rectitude! Courage! Benevolence! Respect! Honesty! Honour!
Loyalty!
’ boomed the students down the
Chō-no-ma
.

Masamoto nodded with satisfaction. ‘And it is the virtue of courage that you will need most,’ he cautioned. ‘So during these coming months of training, remember this:
learn
today so that you may live tomorrow!
’

With the declaration of the school’s maxim, Masamoto brought the address to an end and the students thundered their response.

‘MASAMOTO! MASAMOTO! MASAMOTO!’

The refrain died away and servants entered, carrying several long lacquered tables. These were laid in two rows that stretched the entire length of the
Chō-no-ma
. Jack seated himself between Akiko and Yamato, feeling a small thrill that they weren’t positioned right next to the entrance. They were no longer the new students and this meant that they had moved several symbolic places nearer the head table.

Jack always enjoyed ceremonial dinners. The formality of such events demanded that a vast array of dishes be provided in honour of the guest. On this occasion,
sushi
was high on the menu, alongside
tofu
, noodles,
tempura
, bowls of miso soup, pickled yellow
daikon
and purple eggplant. Steaming pots of
sencha
were accompanied by vast quantities of rice piled high in bowls across their table. The centrepiece was an over. owing plate of sliced eel, grilled and smothered in a sticky red sauce.

‘
Itadakimasu!
’ proclaimed Masamoto.

‘
Itadakimasu!
’ responded the students, picking up their
hashi
and tucking into the banquet.

Despite the delicious spread, Jack was distracted from the meal by his desperate desire to know more about the Circle of Three. Everybody else, though, was focused upon devouring the feast before them.

‘Jack, you should try the
unagi
,’ suggested Saburo, a slightly rotund, plain-looking boy with a chubby face made even chubbier by a mouthful of food.

Jack looked doubtfully across the table at his friend, whose thick black eyebrows bounced up and down in unison with his enthusiastic chewing of a grey stringy lump of eel’s liver. It didn’t look particularly appetizing, thought Jack, but he could remember the first time he’d been faced with
sushi
. The thought of uncooked fish had almost turned his stomach over, whereas now he relished the soft, succulent flesh of tuna, mackerel and salmon. Eel’s liver, though, was another matter.

‘It’s good for your health,’ Akiko reassured him, spooning some rice into her bowl, but avoiding the eel herself.

Jack tentatively picked up a grey lump and lowered it into his mouth. When he bit into the liver, he almost gagged at the intensity of the flavour. It was as if a thousand wriggling eels had exploded on his tongue.

He forced a grimace of a smile for Akiko’s benefit and kept chewing. The eel’s liver had
better
be good for his health, he thought.

‘So who’s going to enter for the Circle of Three?’ Saburo blurted between mouthfuls, expressing what was clearly on everyone’s minds.

‘Not me!’ replied Kiku. ‘I heard a student died last time.’

Beside her, Yori, a small mouse-like boy, gave a wide-eyed look of dread and shook his head vigorously in response to Saburo’s question.

‘That’s just a rumour spread by the sensei to scare us,’ reassured Akiko, giving Yori an encouraging smile.

‘No, it’s not. My father’s expressly forbidden me from entering,’ said Kiku. ‘He told me it’s needlessly dangerous.’

‘But what exactly
is
the Circle?’ asked Jack.

‘The Circle of Three,’ explained Akiko, putting down her
hashi
, ‘are the three highest peaks in the Iga mountain range where trainee samurai face the three challenges of Mind, Body and Spirit.’

‘So what are the challenges?’

Akiko shook her head apologetically. ‘I don’t know. They’re kept a secret.’

‘Whatever they are,’ said Yamato, ‘my father will be expecting
me
to enter, so I guess I’ll find out first hand. What about you, Saburo? Are you going to enter?’

‘I’m considering it,’ replied Saburo, swallowing down another piece of
unagi
.

‘That means no. Obviously, you’re too scared! How about you, Jack?’

Jack thought for a moment as Saburo sat open-mouthed, uncertain whether to protest or not. ‘I don’t know. Is it worth the risk? I know it leads to the Two Heavens, but I’m still not sure what the Two Heavens actually is.’

‘Jack, you’ve seen the Two Heavens,’ stated Akiko.

Jack gave her a perplexed look. ‘When?’

‘On the beach in Toba. Remember how Masamoto-sama fought against the samurai Godai? He used both the
katana
and the
wakizashi
, rather than just his
katana
sword. That is the Two Heavens. The technique is extremely difficult to master, but when you do, you are virtually invincible.’

‘My father fought over sixty duels while on his warrior pilgrimage,’ announced Yamato proudly. ‘Not once was he defeated.’

Jack’s mind began to race.

He’d been made aware that he needed to become a better swordsman. By succeeding in the Circle of Three, he would be given the opportunity to be taught by both Sensei Hosokawa
and
Masamoto. Not only that, he would learn how to use
two
swords. The idea filled him with hope. For if he could master the Two Heavens, then he would be invincible like Masamoto. No longer would he need to fear the return of Dragon Eye.

‘Are all students who conquer the Circle taught the technique of Two Heavens?’ asked Jack.

‘Yes, of course,’ replied Akiko.

Jack smiled. Surely the Circle of Three was the solution to his predicament.

‘Then I will enter.’

Go to the Puffin Podcast on the all-new
puffin.co.uk
now!

Celebrity podcasters include Eoin Colfer, Meg Rosoff, Darren Shan and Garth Nix.

Hear
Captain Hook in action,
listen
to Long John Silver, enjoy the
sound
of the Psammead and much, much more!

www.puffin.co.uk

Puffin is well over sixty years old.
Sounds ancient, doesn’t it? But Puffin has never been so lively. We’re always on the lookout for the next big idea, which is how it began all those years ago.

Penguin Books was a big idea from the mind of a man called Allen Lane, who in 1935 invented the quality paperback and changed the world.
And from great Penguins, great Puffins grew, changing the face of children’s books forever.