Chīsai Beru
Owari village in Ōku Hainyou province is looking very peaceful and
sleepy.
Kimyō ni Kasshoku
(left), the head Samurai of the village is talking to Edi Fukigen-sō na (right)
about the latest rice crop the peasants are bringing in. Would it be enough to
please their Lord this season?
But what's
this? Two groups of Minami Miru ninja moving through the lengthening late
afternoon shadows like ghosts. The ninja from Minami Miru use Panjī-Ryu ninjutsu
and are led by their Sensei, Misutā Ocha no Jikan.
So, it's the
usual crowd down the yado late Friday afternoon in Chīsai Beru Owari.
The Murasakino Doragon is doing good business with some important
Samurai staying over on a tour of the province. The boys are swapping war
stories and comparing the lengths of their katanas.
The Murasakino Doragon
L to R: Kēnō Bārō, Tōsuto Rakku, Furui In'nō, Lord Sunappu Baai
Lord Sunappu
Baai is the Daimyo of Ōku Hainyou province and Furui In'nō is his
chief counsellor. Kēnō and Tōsuto are local Samurai and are much
impressed by drinking Sake-bombs with the Daimyo. Maybe their village is on the
up.
Four of the
younger Samurai are returning to the village after ensuring all is well in the
rice fields.
The ninja in
the southern half of the village creep unnoticed up to the very walls of the Murasakino Doragon where Lord Sunappu Baai is disporting
himself.
One ninja is close enough to throw a shuriken through the window at Lord
Sunappu Baai. Luckily, Sunappu is wearing armour and the deadly missile glances
off his helmet causing no damage. The Samurai are alerted now.
The ninja to the north move out of the old ruin where they were hiding.
A bow-armed ninja chances a shot at Kimyō ni Kasshoku. The arrow strikes
true but does not penetrate the samurai’s ornately lacquered armour. Shouts of
alarm now echo through the village as the attack is discovered.
Kimyō ni Kasshoku and Edi Fukigen-sō na charge the ninja immediately with
a loud kiai. The ninja with a bow has time to loose another arrow but again it
glances off the lacquered armour. The other four samurai rush to help.
Taking a light wound, Kimyō ni Kasshoku dispatches his opponent with a cut
from neck to waist and Edi Fukigen-sō decapitates his
opponent. The ninja need dark and stealth in their light armour whilst the heavily
armoured Samurai are fighting at an advantage.
Over at the Murasakino Doragon, things are hotting up. With shurikens
flying through the windows Lord Sunappu makes his way outside to wield his nodachi
more effectively. Kēnō Bārō accompanies him, seeing a chance to impress his
Lord.
Shurikens fly through both windows. One hits Furui In'nō in the face but the
mask of his helmet protects him and no damage is done. Tōsuto Rakku, on the
other hand is not wearing his helmet and the shuriken causes him a grievous wound.
A fight develops through the windows and although Tōsuto is badly
wounded, he manages to defend himself and is only stunned in this exchange. Furui
In'nō runs his katana straight through his opponent who falls to the ground, fatally
wounded.
Ninjas circle the Murasakino Doragon from both directions. Sunappu climbs
over the stable wall to confront one. With his opponent at the window dead, Furui In'nō emerges to support his Lord. Kēnō Bārō turns
to face another ninja as a badly wounded clings to the window and continues to
fight.
Sunappu wields his nodachi and the last thing the ninja sees is a great
glittering arc before his head leaves his body. Kēnō inflicts a light wound on
his opponent and miraculously Tōsuto is still alive.
Meanwhile, the ruthless master of the ninja, Misutā Ocha no Jikan leaves his ninja to fight as he runs behind the
smallholder’s cottage. He is out of sight of the four Samurai running across
the village and in the confusion no one knows where he is.
Kuro Kasan-ki, Furasshu Shinzō, Bōrudorikku and Kowai
Supaisu run to help but It looks like it might all be over before they get
there. Kowai Supaisu pauses to touch the bell for good luck.
Edi Fukigen-sō kills the ninja on the path and suffers a light wound. Kimyō
ni Kasshoku stuns the ninja on the grassy knoll. Alone now, this ninja's resolve
starts to waver.
As the Samurai gather on the grassy knoll, the remaining ninja heads for
the hills.
Down at the inn, the fight continues. Furui In'nō joins Sunappu in the stable
yard to confront a ninja. Kēnō continues the fight and Tōsuto literally hangs
on for grim death.
The situation at the Murasakino Doragon resolves itself. Two ninjas dead
in the stable yard, Kēnō finishes off a third and the fourth makes a run for
it, much to the relief of Tōsuto Rakku.
Misutā Ocha
no Jikan circles behind the statue of the Buddha using
every shred of his ninja stealth to avoid detection. Victory is distracting the
Samurai and no one sees him.
In triumph, Misutā Ocha no Jikan steals the
priceless artefact which has been hidden in the village for many years; Uchide-no-Kozuchi,
the magic wishing hammer.
It transpires that the ninja had a double
purpose in the attack on Chīsai Beru Owari village. They had been commissioned
to assassinate Lord Sunappu Baai and Lord Daun Hiza, the head of the Minami
Miru school had long desired the Uchide-no-Kozuchi. They decided to kill two
birds with one stone. For the loss of seven ninja, Misutā Ocha no Jikan was
successful in one half of the mission. The other half of the mission, the
assassination of Sunappu was an abject failure. As the old proverb has it, saru
mo ki kara ochiru (even experts make mistakes).
