The Way of the Warrior

by Chris Bradford

  Yamato, however, had distanced himself completely. He now sat on the other table with Kazuki, Emi and Nobu. He still spoke to Akiko and the others, but would blatantly ignore Jack. That suited Jack just fine.

  On the upside, Kazuki had kept to his word. He had left Jack alone. He still threw intimidating looks and would taunt him, calling him ‘Gaijin Jack’ along with the rest of his cronies, but he did not lay a finger on him. Except when training in taijutsu!

  This was no-man’s-land.

  During the kihon and randori sessions in these classes, Sensei Kyuzo would often turn a blind eye to Kazuki’s excessive use of force. One time, they had been practising ude-uke, inside forearm blocks, and the power behind each block had escalated until they were both hammering at each other’s forearms. The bruises didn’t fade for over a week. Jack had tried to complain about Kazuki’s behaviour, but Sensei Kyuzo shot him down, saying, ‘It’s good conditioning for you. If you can’t take a little pain, you are clearly too much gaijin to be a samurai.’

  Akiko’s voice interrupted his thoughts.

  ‘Jack, are you coming?’

  She had appeared at his door in a sky-blue kimono decorated with butterflies. Jack blinked. She was like the butterfly from his vision! Then Kiku sidled up to her, wearing a light-green spring kimono and carrying a small bag.

  ‘Coming where?’ asked Jack.

  ‘Hanami!’ she sang, and hurried off with Kiku in tow.

  ‘What’s hanami?’ Jack called after her down the hallway.

  ‘A flower-viewing party,’ said Saburo, who had popped his head round the corner. Jack could see Yori waiting silently in the background.

  ‘A flower-viewing party? Sounds absolutely thrilling,’ said Jack with forced enthusiasm, but he put down his watering jug and followed after them nonetheless. At least it would make a change from training, he thought.

  ‘This certainly does make a change,’ said Jack, letting out a long contented sigh as he lounged on the grassy banks of the Kamogawa River, shaded from the sun by sakura trees that literally drooped under the weight of their blossom.

  Akiko, Kiku, Yori and Saburo were sitting beside him, equally enjoying the bliss of the moment. This was the first time the students had been allowed out of the school complex, and they were all relishing the freedom.

  ‘So how do you like our hanami party?’ asked Akiko.

  ‘Well, if all it involves is eating, drinking and relaxing under cherry blossom trees, Akiko, then this is the best hanami party I have ever been to!’ replied Jack.

  ‘It’s much more than that, Jack!’ admonished Akiko, with a good-natured smile.

  ‘You’re starting to sound like Sensei Yamada with one of his koan!’ replied Jack light-heartedly, and they all laughed.

  ‘Seriously, though, hanami is very important to us,’ said Akiko. ‘The cherry blossom marks the start of the riceplanting season and we use the flowering to divine the success of the harvest. Judging by the fullness of the blossom already, this year will be a good year.’

  ‘The blossom also signals a beginning, a new stage in life,’ added Kiku, ‘so we make offerings to the gods who live inside the trees. See those samurai over there?’

  ‘Yes,’ said Jack, peering over at three samurai who were sprawled around the base of a cherry blossom tree. They were passing an extremely large ceramic bottle between them and appeared heavily intoxicated from drinking its contents.

  ‘They have made the traditional offering of saké to the sakura and are now partaking of the offering.’

  ‘What’s saké?’ asked Jack.

  ‘Rice wine!’ said Saburo buoyantly. ‘Want to try some?’

  ‘All right,’ said Jack, though he was hesitant after noticing Akiko’s disapproving look.

  Saburo ran over to the drunken samurai and quickly returned with a wooden box-shaped cup brimming with a clear liquid. He offered some to Jack.

  Jack took a swig. The saké tasted sweet and watery, but as he swallowed it became sharper and more potent. He hacked as the saké burnt the back of his throat.

  ‘What do you think?’ said Saburo eagerly.

  ‘Well, it’s not as rough as the drink on-board ship, but I’ll stick to water if you don’t mind.’

  Saburo shrugged indifferently, finishing off the rest of the cup in one gulp. He went to return the cup to the samurai, only to come back with another full one. He offered it to the girls this time.

  ‘Saburo, you know we’re not allowed saké,’ scolded Kiku.

  Saburo ignored her and merrily sipped the entire contents on his own.

  They spent the rest of the day relaxing under their tree, occasionally dipping their toes into the cool waters of the Kamogawa, Saburo getting the occasional refill of saké.

  As the sun began to set, paper lanterns were lit and hung from the branches of the sakura trees, floating like glowing fruit above the walkways. With dusk settling in, it was time for them to return to the Niten Ichi Ryū.

  ‘So, Jack,’ asked Akiko, ‘what do you think of the blossom now?’

  ‘Beautiful but brief like life,’ said Jack, echoing Uekiya’s words.

  ‘No! Fleeting like a woman’s beauty!’ blurted Saburo, the excess of saké having gone to his head. His legs collapsed beneath him as he tried to stand. Kiku and Yori helped him back up.

  ‘Yes, Jack. Like life,’ agreed Akiko, ignoring Saburo’s drunkenness. ‘You really are beginning to think like a Japanese.’

  They walked back along the river path, the branches of the sakura forming an enchanted bower of blossom and lamplight. Jack and Akiko wandered ahead, while Kiku and Yori juggled the intoxicated Saburo between them.

  Under the soft glow of the lanterns, Akiko was even lovelier than usual. He remembered the moment he’d first seen her by the headland temple, her white stallion tethered to the standing stone. And she had been the one reliable constant ever since he’d arrived in Japan – nursing him through his fever, helping him to learn the language, teaching him their customs, then defending him from Kazuki. How could he ever repay her for all that she’d done?

  He turned and began to speak, but the words got jumbled up in his throat and all he could do was look at her.

  She stopped, returning his gaze, her ebony eyes glimmering in the half-light.

  ‘Eh, Gaijin Jack!’ snarled a voice. ‘What do you think you’re doing?’

  Jack felt his blood run cold.

  33

  THE TARYU JIAI

  Kazuki’s face leered at him.

  ‘Didn’t you hear me, gaijin? I said, what are you doing outside school?’

  ‘Leave him alone, Kazuki. You promised!’ said Akiko.

  ‘Oh, it’s the gaijin lover! Still can’t defend himself, is that it?’ taunted Kazuki. ‘Need a girl to fight for you, gaijin? Did you hear that, boys, the gaijin has to have a girl bodyguard!’

  Snorting with amusement, Kazuki glanced over his shoulder at the four lads who were with him. Nobu rolled with laughter, his large belly heaving. Two boys, whom Jack didn’t recognize, jeered approvingly, but the fourth member of Kazuki’s gang looked decidedly uncomfortable, suddenly finding his tabi of great interest. It was Yamato.

  ‘Well, Akiko beat you, didn’t she?’ said Jack, and one of the lads chortled.

  ‘Only because I had my back to her,’ snapped Kazuki. ‘Anyway, I’d be far more concerned about your welfare than mine, gaijin. We’ve got a score to settle.’

  ‘No!’ exclaimed Akiko. ‘I warned you, I’ll tell Masamoto.’

  ‘Tell him what? That a few moons ago we had a little argument in the Buddha Hall. I don’t think so. Bit late for that.’

  He took a step closer to Jack, goading him to make a move.

  ‘You forget, Akiko. My promise only extended to the school walls. Outside, he’s fair game. We’re not governed by Masamoto here.’

  ‘Come on then,’ dared Jack. ‘Let’s get it over with.’

  Jack was fed up with the taunts, the whisperings behind
his back, the bullying in the taijutsu classes, and the constant intimidation and threats. It was like living under a permanent shadow. He couldn’t be free of it until the matter between him and Kazuki was settled, once and for all.

  ‘I’d think carefully, gaijin, before starting a fight you can’t win,’ said Kazuki. ‘I don’t believe you’ve ever met my cousins? This here is Raiden. His name means “Thunder God”.’

  One of the lads stepped forward and bowed. When he righted himself, Jack was astounded at the boy’s size. Raiden was a good head taller than Jack. His arms were thick and meaty, and he had tree trunks for legs. He was also unusually hairy for a Japanese person. His eyebrows, dark and bushy, hung off a pronounced forehead and a profusion of chest hair was trying to escape from inside his kimono.

  Jack would have been completely intimidated by the lad’s thunderous appearance, if Raiden’s eyes hadn’t been slightly too close together. They made him look like an overgrown ape, but a bit more stupid.

  ‘And this is his twin brother, Toru. You don’t want to know what his name means, I assure you.’

  He was identical. Only even more stupid-looking, thought Jack.

  ‘They’re from Hokkaido, but you wouldn’t know where that is, would you, gaijin?’ said Kazuki, baiting Jack again. ‘Let me enlighten you. It’s the north island of Japan and these boys are from the Seto clan, the toughest and most ruthless samurai you’ll ever come across. That’s why they’re enrolled at the Yagyu School here in Kyoto. It’s renowned for producing some of the most fearsome warriors in Japan. Sponsored by the great daimyo Kamakura Katsuro himself, no less!’

  ‘This is just between you and me, Kazuki,’ interrupted Jack, fed up with Kazuki’s attempts to terrorize him. ‘Send your apes home!’

  Raiden and Toru snarled at the insult, lumbering forward with the clear intention of pulling Jack limb from limb.

  ‘Eh? Whass’ going on ’ere?’ slurred Saburo, stumbling from Kiku and Yori’s grasp and planting himself in between Jack and the two approaching giants. ‘Leave my friend alone… We at a ha-ha-hanami party and you ’aven’t been invited.’

  Saburo wobbled slightly, like a Daruma Doll, then fell forward, his head thumping against the chest of Raiden. Raiden slapped him away as if he were swatting a fly.

  ‘Oww!’ said Saburo, reeling from the blow, blood dripping from his nose. ‘You fat oaf! That hurt!’

  Kiku and Yori ran to his aid, but Saburo shrugged them off and wound himself up to take a swing at his assailant. Raiden simply raised his great slab of a fist and drove it at Saburo’s face.

  ‘Oi! Pick on someone your own size!’ said Jack and let loose a yoko-geri, side-kick, his heel striking directly into Raiden’s ribs.

  Raiden grunted, staggered sideways, his fist sailing past Saburo’s startled face and straight into the trunk of a nearby sakura tree. Raiden howled in pain. Furious, he then attacked Jack with a series of wild swinging punches.

  Jack retreated to avoid getting caught in the head.

  ‘Watch out!’ cried Akiko.

  But it was too late. Toru had come up from behind and grabbed Jack in a bear hug, pinioning Jack’s arms to his side.

  ‘What are you going to do now, Gaijin Jack?’ taunted Kazuki, who was watching with unrestrained glee. Behind him, Yamato backed away into the shadows in an attempt to distance himself from the escalating fight.

  Toru’s grip tightened and Jack’s breath was crushed from his body. Jack felt himself passing out, but Toru’s grip eased as the great brute let out a wounded groan.

  Akiko had kicked him with ushiro-geri, a spinning back kick, the most powerful kick in taijutsu. It had struck Toru straight in the side. Any normal person would have crumpled under such a direct hit, but Toru only loosened his grip slightly and glared at Akiko.

  So she followed it up with a mawashi-geri, roundhouse kick. Ready for the attack this time, Toru spun round and put Jack directly in its path. Akiko, desperately attempting to avoid Jack, lost her balance. Toru trapped Akiko’s flailing leg with one arm, while keeping hold of Jack with his other.

  Once he had them both under his control, he slipped his left arm up Jack’s chest and encircled his throat. Toru then began to throttle Jack.

  ‘Stop it!’ cried a distraught Kiku, Yori frozen in wide-eyed alarm next to her. ‘Yamato, help them!’

  But Yamato, ignoring her pleas, retreated further away from the brawl. Meanwhile, Kazuki and Nobu were delighting in the spectacle, urging the cousins on and taunting Jack.

  ‘Haven’t you learnt anything, gaijin? Any real samurai would be able to fight their way out of that,’ Kazuki sneered.

  ‘Come on, Toru, snap him in half!’ shouted Nobu.

  Toru tightened his grip round Jack’s throat and Jack choked. But Toru’s throttling was the least of Jack’s worries. Raiden, with both fists raised, was heading straight for him.

  Jack, still pinioned by the iron grip of Toru, and realizing he only had his legs to defend himself, clamped his hands on to Toru’s arm, pulling it down just enough to snatch a breath. Then, using Toru’s arm for support, he lifted himself off the ground, simultaneously firing off a double mae-geri, front kick, from each leg. The move was totally unexpected and Raiden, being a fraction too slow to react, was pummelled in the face. He stumbled backwards, bringing his hands up to his flattened, bloodied face.

  Saburo spotted his chance and shot out a foot, catching the back of Raiden’s legs, who tripped over and bounced off a sakura tree. The tree shuddered. The force of the impact dislodged a paper lantern that dropped straight on to Toru’s head.

  Its flimsy frame split apart on impact and the little candle inside fell on to the boy’s greasy hair, which instantly caught light. Toru immediately released Akiko and Jack and began to leap around like a dancing bear. He flapped frenetically with his hands at his flaming crown, trying to extinguish the fire.

  Saburo, Kiku and Yori broke into peals of laughter at the dancing Toru, but their joy was short-lived.

  In the chaos, Raiden had regained his feet and now grabbed Saburo by his hair, winding up to punch him out. The incensed Toru, his head smoking like a chimney, now bore down on Akiko and Jack.

  Their playtime over, the two Seto twins were determined to end the fight with the next strike.

  ‘YAME!’ boomed a voice with such unquestionable authority that even a passing group of drunken samurai halted in their tracks.

  ‘What in the name of Buddha is going on?’ demanded the voice.

  Out of the darkness stepped Masamoto, his scarred face glowering. The retreating Yamato immediately went pale and bowed his head shamefully, while Kazuki and Nobu dropped to their knees in supplication.

  ‘Leave my students alone!’ Masamoto ordered and his hand shot out a nukite-uchi with lightning speed at Raiden’s neck.

  Masamoto’s ‘spear hand thrust’ struck a hidden pressure point at the back of the neck and caused Raiden’s knees to buckle instantly. He collapsed like a puppet whose strings had been cut.

  Saburo, rubbing his head where a big clump of hair was missing, scurried over to Kiku and Yori. They then all bowed in deference to Masamoto.

  ‘Masamoto! Leave my students alone,’ commanded a second voice from behind Masamoto.

  A samurai in a blue, yellow and gold kimono strode down the path. As he got closer, the lanterns illuminated his face. Jack immediately recognized him. It was the daimyo from the lacquered palanquin on the Tokaido Road, Kamakura Katsuro.

  The man was a little shorter than Masamoto, but still he attempted to look down his nose at him. Kamakura had a cruel pointed face with a stringy moustache that flicked up from a tight mouth. He surveyed the scene with an air of arrogance, his eyes examining each of Masamoto’s students in a pitiless manner, as if they were vermin to be exterminated. Kamakura gave off an air of pomposity and self-righteousness. Jack thought of the old tea merchant who had been beheaded simply because he hadn’t bowed in time.

  ‘Maintain better control of yo
ur students or I will,’ replied Masamoto firmly. ‘It appears to me that you have a discipline problem in your school.’

  ‘We have no problem with discipline,’ said Kamakura haughtily, ‘but it seems your school has a problem with training. I have never seen such poor technique.’

  ‘There was nothing wrong with their technique! Akiko executed an outstanding ushiro-geri and I’d like to see any of your students deliver a mae-geri while being strangled!’

  ‘Masamoto, please. We are old comrades-in-arms,’ said Kamakura in a conciliatory yet devious tone. ‘This is not a matter to be settled in a public park. Let us do this in the proper tradition. I propose a Taryu-Jiai between our two schools.’

  ‘A Taryu-Jiai?’ repeated Masamoto, taken off-guard.

  ‘Those three,’ said Kamakura, indicating Jack, Akiko and Saburo with a dismissive wave of his hand, ‘against Raiden, Toru and one of my girl samurai, any of whom could outperform against the ushiro-geri girl!’

  ‘What disciplines do you propose?’ queried Masamoto, disregarding the insult directed at Akiko, but warming to the idea.

  ‘Kenjutsu, kyujutsu and taijutsu.’

  ‘Agreed,’ said Masamoto without the slightest hint of concern.

  Jack had no idea what it was, but from the fact that Akiko’s face had gone pale and Saburo had instantly sobered up at the mere mention of it, a Taryu-Jiai did not sound a promising prospect.

  ‘Any preference as to the timing of this little contest?’ asked Kamakura.

  ‘How about the day before the Gion Festival?’ replied Masamoto nonchalantly.

  ‘But that’s three moons away!’ said Kamakura, incredulous.

  ‘By the look of their performance tonight, your students will need the extra training. We want this to be a real competition, don’t we?’ replied Masamoto, giving a broad smile as he bowed. ‘Besides, I always like to celebrate my victories with a good festival.’