LITMIR.BIZ

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believe you can help me locate the vajra .”

      “But it could be anywhere,” Annja said.

      Ken shook his head. “I think it’s still here in Japan. When it was stolen, Japan was still a very closed society. I doubt the thieves would have tried to escape the country with it.”

      “But since that time, Japan has certainly opened up.” Annja shook her head. “It could be anywhere by now.”

      Ken shrugged again and took another sip of his beer. “Call it a hunch, but I think it’s here.”

      Annja sighed. “All right. I’ll help you.”

      Ken hoisted his beer again. “Excellent!”

      Annja took a sip of her beer and then put her glass down. “Tell me something. I don’t recall ever hearing the name of the Yumegakure-ryu in any of the various lineages that I do know about. If you were so well-known, shouldn’t there be more written about your lineage?”

      Ken shook his head. “We were well-known. Respected even. But history is written only by those who hold power when it is written. And the nature of my lineage was such that historians felt we did not belong in the annals of history. That we were, by nature, not honorable enough to be included.”

      “But other samurai lineages—even those that were less good than others—were included,” Annja pointed out.

      Ken smiled. “We weren’t samurai, Annja.”

      “You weren’t?” Annja frowned. “Then what—?”

      “We were ninja.”

       3

      Annja leaned back in the booth, feeling the cushions on her back. “Ninja? You’re kidding, right?”

      Ken’s eyes never blinked. “Not at all.”

      “You were hired killers? Assassins? Those crazy dudes who wore black pajamas and disappeared in puffs of smoke?”

      Ken simply grinned and took a swallow of his beer. “History has never been kind to ninjitsu . Hollywood has done even less for our reputation. We like to say we’ve suffered from a thousand years of bad press.”

      Annja frowned. Getting mixed up with a cult of bloodthirsty murderers didn’t exactly thrill her. “So, you’re denying that ninja were assassins?”

      “I’m not denying anything,” Ken said. “I’m merely asking you to reserve judgment until you know more about what ninjitsu truly entails. In this case, I’m asking you to not believe what history books say about my kind. Tough as that may be to discount.”

      “I’ve got an open mind,” Annja said, although she didn’t necessarily feel particularly open-minded just then.

      Ken eyed her for a moment and then spread his hands in front of her. “ Ninjitsu developed out of a need for specialists who understood unconventional warfare. The samurai code of honor—Bushido—explicitly forbade certain tactics for use in times of unrest. But the various warlords of feudal Japan also understood that these supposedly unorthodox techniques could help ensure their continued prosperity and success. So they would secretly employ ninja to help them achieve their aims.”

      “And murder people,” Annja said.

      Ken sighed. “Annja, the truth is there were certainly some ninja families who did hire themselves out to the highest bidder with little regard to the universal scheme of totality. In that case, yes, you could say they were thugs.”

      Annja could tell she was beginning to annoy Ken. “But not other families?”

      “No.” He glanced around for the waitress and caught her eyes. He spoke to her in Japanese.

      The waitress bowed, a feat Annja admired considering she was on roller skates. I would fall on my butt if I tried that, she thought. She shook her head and refocused on Ken. “So tell me more.”

      “ Ninjitsu is a fascinating system of martial arts. As you know, samurai who lost in battle were supposed to follow their daimyo—their lord—into death by committing seppuku, ritual suicide. Not all of them would do that. Some of them would wander on a self-imposed exile. They would set themselves up in small villages in the mountains of western Japan—Iga and Koga Provinces—and there they set about trying to live peacefully with the flow of nature.”

      “They’d become hermits?”

      “Well, somewhat. Inevitably, the policies of the neighboring regions would impact their existence. Many of these villages developed into ninja clans as a way of preserving their way of life. They would carefully attempt to influence events such that their own lifestyle and that of their children would remain as unscathed as possible.”

      “Interesting.” Annja could certainly understand wanting to protect and provide for future generations.

      “Let me ask you this,” Ken said. “If you could pinpoint one person whose death would save the lives of thousands of men, women and children, would you take the step and remove him or her?”

      Annja frowned. “I don’t know that I would ever want to make that decision. It seems like playing God to me.” And yet, Annja was fully aware she had been forced to make such a decision many times since coming into possession of Joan of Arc’s mystical sword.

      Ken nodded. “I don’t disagree with you. I would find it difficult to do, as well. But those were the types of decisions that ninja jonin —leaders of the clan—had to face if they were to survive.”

      “So, they would assassinate someone if it meant saving others?” Annja was suddenly sympathetic.

      “Certainly. More often than not, however, they would take elaborate pains to set up networks of intelligence operatives who would keep their ears attuned to news and information. The ultimate goal was to be able to influence events as far ahead of time as possible to avoid war and destruction. This meant ninja had to be highly skilled at infiltrating enemy provinces, setting themselves up as regular people, reporting intelligence and, if the situation warranted it, sabotaging or assassinating key troops.”

      Annja leaned back, suddenly aware that the young thugs across the room had gone quiet. “Sounds like they might have been better than samurai to have on your side.”

      “A lot of people would foam at the mouth if they heard me say this, but many ninja were, in fact, samurai. There are plenty of crossover techniques and warrior ryu that include elements of ninjitsu and counter ninjitsu . It’s quite fascinating.”

      “Well, this has been nothing if not enlightening.” Annja leaned forward. “But I think we’ve attracted the attention of the young guns over there.”

      Ken looked up as the waitress brought over two new glasses of beer. “You think so?”

      Annja could see the huddled conversation. One of the teppo , as Ken had labeled them, seemed more intent than the others. Annja figured him for the leader judging by the elaborate piercings, tattoos and amount of hair dye. “I guess we’ll find out soon enough.”

      Ken grinned. “In that case, I’d better drink my beer.”

      Annja glanced at her own beer, but her stomach twinged. She’d already fought for three hours tonight. She wasn’t sure she was ready for another bout right at this instant. “Shouldn’t we get out of here?”

      Ken shrugged. “Fact of the matter is if we leave, they’ll follow us. If they’re determined to cause trouble, it doesn’t matter where we go.”

      “But we’ll be outside.”

      “Yes, but I’m much more comfortable sitting here drinking my beer.”

      Annja shook her head. “You’re an interesting guy, Ken. Anyone ever tell you that before?”

      “Just beautiful archaeologists.”

      “You’ve

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