The Ring Of Earth Part 7

'For a little while,' Jack replied. 'Thanks for saving me this morning.'

'Don't thank me. I was under orders. I'd have left you to your fate.'

'No, you wouldn't,' said Hanzo, shocked. 'Shonin said Jack's one of us.'

'He's not not a ninja,' replied Miyuki dismissively. 'A samurai doesn't have the skill or pureness of heart to be a a ninja,' replied Miyuki dismissively. 'A samurai doesn't have the skill or pureness of heart to be a real real ninja.' ninja.'

'Of course he does. Jack's King of the Tengu Tengu!'

'Is that right?' she mocked.

'Apparently,' Jack replied, swinging nonchalantly from the branch, his old skills of hanging from the yardarm as a rigging monkey quickly coming back.

Miyuki glared up at him. 'You think what you're doing now makes you a ninja? That's kids' training.'

Still smarting from his defeat at hand-to-hand combat, Jack felt compelled to challenge Miyuki. 'You're just scared I could beat you.'

'No!' she shot back. 'Samurai always think they're so superior.'

Miyuki leapt cat-like into the tree and climbed on to the branch next to Jack's. She positioned herself opposite him.

'You think this is easy. The real test is whether you could do this under the pressure of battle.'

'Why would I be hanging from a tree in the middle of a fight?' asked Jack.

Miyuki rolled her eyes in irritation. 'It could be a castle wall or a rock face. Whatever, you wouldn't last a minute.'

Jack thought of Yamato clinging to the balcony in Osaka, while he'd been desperately holding on to the rope from which Akiko dangled. He'd been faced with an impossible choice, but he hadn't let go. 'What makes you so certain of that?'

Miyuki lifted her leg and kicked Jack in the stomach.

Taken by surprise, he couldn't avoid the attack. The foot connected and a blast of pain rocketed through his midriff. Absorbing the impact, he somehow managed to cling on to the branch with his fingertips. Miyuki tried again, this time roundhouse-kicking him in the thigh. But Jack had regained his hold and was ready for her. He raised his knee, blocking the attack, then swung both his feet at Miyuki.

She let go with one arm and swayed out of the way. Using her free hand, she reached over and hammered Jack's knuckles with her fist. Jack was forced to release his grip, grabbing further down the branch. It began to bend under his weight.

Meanwhile, Hanzo was laughing in delight at the acrobatic tree fight.

Miyuki swung herself across to another bough to get a better angle of attack on Jack. The two of them fought in mid-air, each trying to gain the advantage.

Scissor-kicking him, Miyuki wrapped her legs round Jack's waist. She tugged on his body, trying to dislodge him. Jack struggled to keep hold, his strength now rapidly fading. As a last-ditch effort, he released one hand and grabbed for Miyuki's wrist. He yanked her grip loose at the same time as she pulled him from his branch. They both tumbled through the air, entangled in one another's grasp, and fell into the water.

Jack came up gasping, Miyuki beside him. She stared daggers at Jack.

Hanzo dropped from the tree on to the bank. 'I win!' he shouted with glee.

Miyuki ignored the jubilant Hanzo.

'You should leave, samurai samurai,' she seethed. 'Before you really get hurt.'

'You've just convinced me to stay,' Jack replied, smiling amiably. 'You make a fine sparring partner.'

'Great!' said Hanzo, oblivious to Miyuki's horrified reaction. 'You can train with us every day.'

Dragging herself out of the water, Miyuki fixed Jack with an icy glare.

'I'll be watching you,' she said. 'I don't trust samurai.'

And I don't trust ninja, thought Jack.

14.

GRANDMASTER.

'Back so soon,' observed Soke as Jack, dripping wet, entered the yard with Hanzo.

Jack could see that the old man had been expecting him. Three bowls of rice and a pot of tea were set out upon the bench in the yard.

'Hanzo persuaded me to hang around,' Jack replied, putting his pack inside the doma doma.

Soke nodded. 'He's a fruit that won't ever fall. It's no wonder you lost.'

'I was actually shaken from the tree,' Jack admitted. 'By Miyuki.'

'Why am I not surprised?' laughed Soke, indicating for Jack to join him on the bench. 'She has a wild spirit, that one.'

Soke handed Jack a bowl of rice, and all three tucked into their dinner as the evening sun slowly dropped behind the mountains.

'Can Jack train with me tomorrow?' asked Hanzo eagerly.

'That depends upon whether the Grandmaster will allow it,' Soke replied.

'The Grandmaster?' said Jack.

'Yes, he's the protector and overseer of our school of ninjutsu ninjutsu. The Grandmaster holds the key to the eighteen disciplines of our martial art.'

'Eighteen!'

'Yes. A ninja must learn them all. Hand-to-hand combat. Weapon skills like the shuriken shuriken, shuko shuko and and kusarigama kusarigama. Evasion techniques of disguise, concealment and stealth-walking. The mystical arts of explosives, poisons, mind control and kuji-in kuji-in magic. magic. Ninjutsu Ninjutsu is about becoming a total warrior, one who is independent, invincible and most importantly invisible.' is about becoming a total warrior, one who is independent, invincible and most importantly invisible.'

'So the Grandmaster is the teacher of all this?'

'Yes, but there is only ever one Grandmaster at a time,' explained Soke, finis.h.i.+ng his rice. 'He carries all the knowledge with him. He alone possesses the densho densho, the scrolls that contain the secrets of our art.'

'But what happens when he dies?' asked Jack.

'It's the Grandmaster's duty to ensure the knowledge is pa.s.sed on from generation to generation. Tradition dictates that he'll have chosen a student and trained that person in preparation for the role. Upon his death, the pupil will inherit the scrolls and become the next Grandmaster.'

'That's some responsibility,' observed Jack.

'Yes, it is,' Soke agreed. 'And only the Grandmaster has the authority to change the techniques or traditions of our art. Only he can decide if you, Jack, a foreigner and a samurai, should be permitted to learn our secrets.'

Jack stopped eating. He'd become excited at the prospect of learning such extraordinary skills. He'd never imagined there was so much to being a ninja. And since leaving the Niten Ichi Ry Niten Ichi Ry, he missed the challenge and thrill of training. But now Soke had raised doubt as to whether he would be taught at all.

'When do I get to meet this Grandmaster?' asked Jack tentatively.

Soke smiled at him. 'You already have.' He raised his cup to Jack. 'Pour me some tea, will you?'

Jack stared dumbfounded at the old man.

'Soke is my t.i.tle; it means Grandmaster.'

Jack knew he shouldn't be so shocked. His Zen teacher, Sensei Yamada, had been ancient, yet still a deadly force to be reckoned with. Soke was no different. To master the eighteen disciplines of ninjutsu ninjutsu would undoubtedly take a lifetime. Jack picked up the pot and filled Soke's cup with a trembling hand. would undoubtedly take a lifetime. Jack picked up the pot and filled Soke's cup with a trembling hand.

Straight away, Soke poured the tea on to the ground.

'Is something wrong?' asked Jack, concerned he'd offended the Grandmaster.

'The usefulness of a cup is its emptiness. If you are to train as a ninja, you must forget everything everything you've learnt as a samurai.' you've learnt as a samurai.'

15.

THE F FIVE R RINGS.

'Are you ready for your first lesson?' asked Soke.

'Now?' said Jack, both eager and apprehensive at the idea.

'Time flies like the wind. You must catch it while you can.'

Picking up his walking stick, Soke stood and beckoned Jack to follow him. Hanzo remained behind to clear up. The summer evening was warm and pleasant, the sun s.h.i.+mmering off the mountain peaks in a halo of golden light. Soke led Jack through the paddy fields to a small rise overlooking the village.

'In order to understand ninjutsu ninjutsu, you must first understand the Five Rings,' Soke began, using his cane to draw five interlocking circles on the ground. 'These are the five great elements of our universe Earth, Water, Fire, Wind and Sky.'

With the tip of his stick, Soke wrote the kanji kanji symbols for each element into each one of the circles. symbols for each element into each one of the circles.

'The Five Rings form the basis of our approach to life. As ninja, we recognize the power of nature and seek to be in harmony with it. Each of the Rings represents different physical and emotional states: 'Earth stands for stability and confidence.

'Water is adaptability.

'Fire is energy and commitment of spirit.

'Wind is freedom, both of mind and body.

'Sky is the Void, the things beyond our everyday existence, the unseen power and creative energy of the universe.'

Jack listened intently, nodding, trying to appear as if he understood what the old man was talking about.

Soke smiled, chuckling to himself. 'I can read your mind as clearly as a reflection in a pond. Let me show you the Five Rings in action.'

Soke swept his hand around the valley.

'The Five Rings are in everything we do. They're the inspiration for a ninja's techniques and tactics. See how the village is laid out. We've applied the principles of the Ring of Earth here.'

Jack looked, but all he saw was an ordinary farming village. 'Where?' he asked.

'A ninja without observation is like a bird without wings,' Soke chided. 'Look harder. If you were to attack our village, what problems would you face?'

Jack studied the lie of the land through an invader's eyes. 'You're in a steep valley,' he began. 'That makes it much harder to launch a ma.s.s attack.'

'Good,' said Soke. 'What else?'

'There's only one road in and out. Otherwise there are just lots of paths in between the rice fields.'

'Yes, and notice the paths are very narrow ...'

'So that only one person can pa.s.s at a time?' hazarded Jack.

'Exactly!' said Soke, striking his stick upon the ground with satisfaction. 'Everything has been designed to make the village as difficult as possible to penetrate with an army. The Shonin's farmhouse is in the middle of our rice fields, which are a maze in themselves, and when flooded act as a ma.s.sive moat. We've created natural defences both to his quarters and the square by raising them upon an earthen bank. The bamboo fence and thorn hedge form another barrier. So you can see we've exploited the surroundings and environment to our advantage. That's one way a ninja can use the Ring of Earth.'

Jack gazed in astonishment as the scene before his eyes transformed from an innocent-looking village into a disguised fortress.

'Follow me,' said Soke, heading in the direction of a small stream. 'The Ring of Water gives rise to an entire discipline of ninjutsu ninjutsu, known as sui-ren sui-ren. Water training. Not only must a ninja be able to swim, but he must learn to use water as a weapon, as a way of escape and a means of survival. You'll encounter these techniques in due course. But first you need to understand the Ring of Water's key principle.'

He pointed to a log on the ground. 'Place that across the stream.'

Jack lifted the log into position until it blocked the channel.

'What's that done?' said Soke.

'It's stopped the stream.'

'Are you so sure?' he challenged.

They watched as the water backed up against the log. Then it ran around the ends and spilt over the top.

'What does that teach you?' asked Soke.