The Return of the Warrior

by Chris Bradford

  ‘I’m just sorry I dragged you two all the way here,’ continued Jack, giving Akiko and Yori an apologetic look. ‘You must think England is such a dreadful place.’

  ‘Not at all!’ said Yori with surprising enthusiasm. ‘Your country is full of wonders and riches.’

  Jack frowned in astonishment. ‘But from the moment we set foot on English soil, we were insulted, attacked, unjustly imprisoned, hunted down, accused of witchcraft, drowned or otherwise shot at, imprisoned again, and almost hanged from the gallows!’

  ‘All that’s certainly true,’ said Yori, his hand gently massaging the purple bruise round his neck. ‘But we’ve also seen London’s magnificent bridge, browsed the market stalls at Cheapside, visited the cottage you grew up in, performed at the famous Globe Theatre –’

  ‘We’ve attended a real English banquet and a masked ball,’ joined in Akiko with equal zeal, ‘travelled on horseback through glorious countryside, met some wonderful people and made some true friends, as well as –’ she stroked the slim sword on her hip – ‘been taught how to wield a rapier.’

  ‘We even saw the Tower of London!’ Yori exclaimed.

  ‘Yes,’ Akiko agreed drily, ‘although I’d prefer it to have been from the outside!’

  Yori laughed. ‘You see, Jack, Sensei Yamada told me it’s the journey not the destination that matters, but I’ve discovered it’s who you share that journey with that is most important. And we shared it with you.’

  Jack gazed at his friends with affection, heartened by their genuine passion for his country. Like his own experiences of Japan, there had been bad times, terrible places and cruel people. But equally there’d been much to delight in. And, with true friends at his side, he realized it didn’t matter what life threw at him. One can always stand the rain knowing that the sun still shines behind the clouds.

  ‘I’m getting cold,’ said Jess, a shiver running through her. The night was almost upon them and England was but a slender shadow against the twilit sky.

  ‘Let’s go back to our cabins,’ Yori suggested. ‘I think I’ve mastered knucklebones now.’

  ‘Really?’ said Jess. ‘That sounds like a challenge to me.’

  The two of them headed down the ladder to below deck, leaving Jack and Akiko alone. Akiko nestled up to Jack, the chill wind making her kimono flutter like a sail. ‘I’m glad you’re coming back to Japan with me,’ she said softly. ‘If I’m honest with you, I couldn’t live in England. But I couldn’t live without you either.’

  Jack gazed into her eyes, peering deep into her soul. ‘And I would die without you by my side.’

  Closing their eyes, they kissed as the first stars twinkled in the heavens above their heads.

  All of a sudden, Akiko went rigid, her whole body seeming to freeze as if in crippling pain.

  ‘Akiko! What’s wrong?’ asked Jack. But Akiko could only let out a feeble moan as she slumped against the ship’s rail. Then a shadow from behind materialized into a hooded ninja.

  ‘It looks like she’ll die with you by her side instead!’ rasped the assassin, laughing at his own joke.

  ‘What have you done to her?’ demanded Jack.

  ‘Dim Mak, of course –’ The ninja broke into a coughing fit. It was so bad that he had to pull back his hood for air.

  ‘Kazuki!’ gasped Jack, stunned to see his enemy alive and aboard their ship. But he barely recognized his old rival. Kazuki’s face was pale and sweaty, his eyes watery and bloodshot, his skin peppered with oozing spots and his neck swollen with black buboes.

  ‘A curse on your filthy country!’ spluttered Kazuki, spitting up bile. ‘I was right … your kind are a pestilence!’

  With stark horror, Jack realized Kazuki had contracted the plague. He must have got it from his infected wound or the plague doctor’s clothes he’d been wearing, or a combination of both. However he’d caught it, his rival was now a walking corpse.

  Kazuki drew a tantō from his obi with a trembling hand. ‘I’ve been w-w-waiting … until you t-t-two were alone,’ he stuttered. ‘Three … long … days … but now I will have my revenge!’

  Kazuki lunged at Jack with the knife. The attack was desperate, fierce and wild. Jack nimbly dodged the blade, jumping aside to avoid any possible contact with the plague-ridden Kazuki. He then swept Kazuki’s legs from under him. Having put all his strength into the strike, Kazuki fell forward and crashed into the gunwale. He lost his balance and tumbled over the rail.

  As his enemy plunged headfirst into the churning wake, Jack dropped to his knees and cradled Akiko in his arms. Her breathing was rapid, her face purple and strained, her body shuddering. Jack shouted at the top of his voice for help. A moment later, he heard the soft pad of feet on the deck and Yori was at his side.

  ‘What happened?’ he asked, kneeling down and examining Akiko’s stiffened form in the darkness.

  ‘Dim Mak!’ replied Jack as he held her gently, knowing from bitter experience the crushing pain that she would be experiencing in her heart. ‘Kazuki did it.’

  Without need for further explanation, Yori struck a series of pressure points on her back and released Akiko from the death grip. Her face immediately relaxed, her breathing eased and she stopped trembling. ‘I’m all right …’ she panted, giving Jack a reassuring smile. ‘The pain’s going …’

  Leaving Akiko in Yori’s good care, Jack peered over the gunwale for Kazuki. His rival was floundering in the wake, fast being left behind by the ship. Out of mercy, Jack threw Kazuki a line.

  ‘Grab the rope!’ he shouted.

  But, even though the line was within easy reach, Kazuki let it glide past. As the Hosiander sailed away, he stopped swimming and slipped silently beneath the waves.

  The fan-sailed fishing boat eased through the emerald-green waters into a sheltered cove. Encircled by lush green cedar trees along its towering clifftops, the cove harboured a beach of pure golden sand within its inner bay.

  ‘Welcome to Toba!’ said Jack to his sister, who stood with him on the bow of the fishing vessel. ‘The place where our father and I first set eyes upon Japan and –’ he pointed to an exquisite temple of red pillars at the top of the headland, its entrance dominated by a huge standing stone – ‘where I first saw Akiko.’

  ‘Utsukushī!’ breathed Jess, gasping at its beauty.

  ‘Excellent, Jess,’ praised Yori, joining them on the prow with Akiko. ‘You’re now speaking as fluently as a samurai!’

  ‘Arigato gozaimasu,’ she replied with a bow.

  Jack grinned. After more than a year at sea and under Yori’s daily tuition, Jess had quickly picked up the language and her Japanese was now almost better than his own. Alongside her linguistic skills, Jess had also been tutored by Akiko in Japanese etiquette and fashions. She now wore a silk kimono of pink sakura flowers, one of several robes Akiko had helped purchase in the port of Nagasaki before their onward journey north to Toba. Jack too had exchanged his English doublet and hose for a samurai’s haori and hakama, the two swords on his hip ensuring all recognized his status as a hatamoto in the service of Takatomi, the Regent of Japan.

  As the boat approached the beach, Jack was surprised to see a lone figure standing upon the sand. They’d sailed to the secluded cove, rather than the main harbour of Toba, as they wanted to avoid a scene. The arrival of a foreigner on their shores – let alone two – would cause a serious commotion in the little fishing port. Not that Jack expected trouble. Rather, he anticipated a crowd so large that it might completely overwhelm them. Everyone would be fascinated to see Jess, a girl with golden blonde hair.

  But someone clearly had anticipated their plans. Dressed in a crisp white kimono and equally pristine white hakama, the samurai waited and watched as the fishing boat pulled up at the beach’s little wooden jetty. Before the boat had even docked, Jack jumped from the prow and headed purposefully down the narrow pier. Striding up to the samurai, his hand resting upon the hilt of his katana, he looked straight into the man’s amber eyes and sca
rred face. Then with a deep bow Jack said in Japanese, ‘You honour us with your presence, Masamoto-sama.’

  Smiling, his guardian inclined his head, then bowed too, holding it as a mark of respect and affection for the young samurai. ‘And you honour me with your return, Jack-san.’

  In the rays of the evening sun the standing stone glowed fire-red. Jack sat against it, feeling the warmth of the rock and listening to the distant wash of the waves in the cove below. Their return to Toba and Akiko’s home had been all he’d hoped for. Akiko’s mother, Hiroko, had joyfully welcomed them with open arms, her delight at seeing her daughter once more reviving life into her lined face like the blooming of a flower. Akiko’s little brother Jiro, older and taller, had nonetheless been as excited as the first time he’d met Jack, and throughout the entire welcome meal was entranced by Jess’s blonde hair. Masamoto-sama had been his typical restrained and formal self, but even he couldn’t hide his eagerness upon seeing a rapier and securing Jack’s promise to teach him the Western way of the sword.

  However, once the meal drew to a close and thoughts turned to bed, Jack desired a moment alone. To contemplate. So he’d strolled up to the headland, the temple’s tranquillity making it the perfect place to think of his father. Jack missed him with as much pain in his heart as the love he held for him. But were it not for his father, Jack would never have come to Japan. He would never have trained as a samurai. He would never have met his dear friends Yori and Akiko.

  For all that he’d lost, he’d also gained.

  A light crunch of footsteps upon the gravel path interrupted his thoughts.

  ‘May I join you?’ asked Akiko softly, appearing from behind the standing stone.

  Jack smiled and nodded. ‘You never need ask.’

  Akiko settled down next to him and together they watched the sun setting over the mountains and the last rays of light dancing over the rippling waters of the cove.

  ‘Masamoto once told me that true victory lies in forgiveness and understanding,’ said Jack, his mind drifting back to the night Akiko had almost been killed by Kazuki. ‘I now know what he means. I can understand Kazuki’s hatred for me – for any gaijin, for that matter. After all, he’d lost his mother to a disease contracted from a foreign priest. In his eyes, I was that disease. But only now that Kazuki is gone can I find it in my heart to forgive him.’

  Akiko took his hand. ‘I know you tried to save him. But he was beyond saving. It was perhaps for the best Kazuki drowned himself.’

  Jack nodded. ‘Better that than a drawn-out death from the plague. I hope, for his soul’s sake, that he has found peace at last.’

  ‘And what about you?’ asked Akiko, turning to him in the growing dusk. ‘Have you found peace?’

  Jack gazed thoughtfully at the darkening sky, searching his heart and soul, but Akiko seemed to already know the answer. She produced a Daruma Doll, the one Jack had wished upon and given her for safekeeping when he first left on his journey to find his sister. The round wooden doll had one eye painted, the other still blank … waiting until that time when his wish was fulfilled. Akiko handed him a small inked brush. ‘You do it,’ she encouraged.

  With a dab of black ink, Jack painted in the other eye. He set the Daruma Doll upon a flat stone between them, then wrapped his arm round Akiko. As the ruby-red sun sank behind the mountains, Akiko drew closer and rested her head upon his shoulder. In that moment Jack knew he was truly home.

  The warrior had returned.

  Bushido

  Bushido, meaning the ‘Way of the Warrior’, is a Japanese code of conduct similar to the concept of chivalry. Samurai warriors were meant to adhere to the seven moral principles in their martial arts training and in their day-to-day lives.

  Virtue 1: Gi – Rectitude

  Gi is the ability to make the right decision with moral confidence and to be fair and equal towards all people no matter what colour, race, gender or age.

  Virtue 2: Yu – Courage

  Yu is the ability to handle any situation with valour and confidence.

  Virtue 3: Jin – Benevolence

  Jin is a combination of compassion and generosity. This virtue works together with Gi and discourages samurai from using their skills arrogantly or for domination.

  Virtue 4: Rei – Respect

  Rei is a matter of courtesy and proper behaviour towards others. This virtue means to have respect for all.

  Virtue 5: Makoto – Honesty

  Makoto is about being honest to oneself as much as to others. It means acting in ways that are morally right and always doing things to the best of your ability.

  Virtue 6: Meiyo – Honour

  Meiyo is sought with a positive attitude in mind, but will only follow with correct behaviour. Success is an honourable goal to strive for.

  Virtue 7: Chungi – Loyalty

  Chungi is the foundation of all the virtues; without dedication and loyalty to the task at hand and to one another, one cannot hope to achieve the desired outcome.

  A Short Guide to Pronouncing Japanese Words

  Vowels are pronounced in the following way:

  ‘a’ as the ‘a’ in ‘at’

  ‘e’ as the ‘e’ in ‘bet’

  ‘i’ as the ‘i’ in ‘police’

  ‘o’ as the ‘o’ in ‘dot’

  ‘u’ as the ‘u’ in ‘put’

  ‘ai’ as in ‘eye’

  ‘ii’ as in ‘week’

  ‘ā’ as in ‘far’

  ‘ō’ as in ‘go’

  ‘ū’ as in ‘blue’

  Consonants are pronounced in the same way as English:

  ‘g’ is hard as in ‘get’

  ‘j’ is soft as in ‘jelly’

  ‘ch’ as in ‘church’

  ‘z’ as in ‘zoo’

  ‘ts’ as in ‘itself’

  Each syllable is pronounced separately:

  A-ki-ko

  Ya-ma-to

  Ma-sa-mo-to

  Ka-zu-ki

  arigatō gozaimasu thank you very much

  bushido the Way of the Warrior – the samurai code

  Butokuden Hall of the Virtues of War

  Daimyo Japanese feudal lord

  daishō the pair of swords, wakizashi and katana, that are the traditional weapons of the samurai

  Dim Mak the Death Touch

  gaijin a foreigner, outsider (derogatory term)

  hakama wide-legged Japanese trousers

  hamon the visual pattern on a sword as a result of tempering the blade

  haori a jacket

  hashi chopsticks

  hatamoto honorary rank in the direct service of the Shogun or Regent

  kagemusha a shadow warrior

  kamon family crest

  Kanojo o tebanasu! Let her go!

  kanzashi a hairpin

  katame waza grappling techniques

  katana a long sword

  kenjutsu the Art of the Sword

  ki energy flow or life force (Chinese: chi or qi)

  kiai-jutsu the art of the kiai (shout)

  kimono traditional Japanese clothing

  kissaki the tip of the sword

  kunoichi a female ninja

  kyusho a pressure point

  manriki a short chain weapon with two steel weights on the ends

  mempō protective metal mask covering part or all of the face

  Nam-myoho-renge-kyo Buddhist chant

  Nikyo a wrist lock (second technique, or second teaching)

  ninja a Japanese assassin

  ninjatō a ninja sword

  ninjutsu the Art of Stealth

  Niten Ichi Ryū the ‘One School of Two Heavens’

  obi a belt

  ryumon ki dragon’s gate point

  sakura the cherry-blossom tree

  samurai a Japanese warrior

  saya a scabbard

  sensei a teacher

  seoi-nage shoulder throw

  shakujō a Buddhist ringed staff

  shinobi a
nother name for a ninja, literally a ‘stealer in’

  shinobi shōzoku the clothing of a ninja

  Shisha no Nemuri the Sleep of the Dead

  shuriken a metal throwing star

  taijutsu the Art of the Body (hand-to-hand combat)

  tantō a short knife

  Tasukete! Abunai! Help me! Danger!

  tsuba hand guard

  ukemi falling techniques

  waki-gamae a fighting stance in kenjutsu

  wakizashi a short sword

  wako Japanese pirates

  ya arrow

  yubitsume a Japanese ritual to atone for offences by means of cutting off one’s own little finger (literally ‘finger shortening’)

  yumi a bow

  yūrei Japanese ghost

  Japanese names usually consist of a family name (surname) followed by a given name, unlike names in the Western world, where the given name comes before the family name. In feudal Japan, names reflected a person’s social status and spiritual beliefs. When addressing someone, san is added to that person’s family name (or given names in less formal situations) as a sign of courtesy, in the same way that we use Mr or Mrs, for example, in English; for higher-status people, sama is used. In Japan, sensei is usually added after a person’s name if they are a teacher, although in the Young Samurai books a traditional English word order has been retained. Boys and girls are usually addressed using the suffixes kun and chan respectively.

  This final book in the Young Samurai series was the hardest of my life to write. Not only did I have to ensure the writing was at its very best in order to meet the expectations of my long-patient readers, but I was dealing with a personal family crisis that resulted in depression and my being unable to write for almost a year. So this story has literally been forged in a furnace of fire and tears.