Chaos

Book 4- Samurai

Percy POV

I woke up on the seaside of a strange place. The water washed ashore and I felt my power increasing thanks to the water. I got up. Around me all people were wearing kimono's. Then I saw a man and a woman approaching me. They both were wielding swords. When they neared me they talked in a strange language.

Kare wa daredesu ka watashi wa shiranai ga, watashitachiha gakkō ni kare o toru hitsuyō ga arimasu. Kare wa watashi no basho kara kite iru. Kare mo gaijindesu. Kare wa, Amerika kara kite iru. Watashi wa Ingurando kara kite imasu. Chōdo kare o toru koto ga dekimasu. I used my powers to know what they were saying and what language it was. The language was Japanese. They were saying- who is he I don't know but we must take him to the school. he comes from my place. he is a gaijin too. he comes from the USA. i come from England. lets just take him. I used my powers and spoke Japanese. I asked them that where was I and who are they. The boy replied- I am Jack Fletcher and this my best friend Akiko.

1 hour later

I reached the school the 2 people called The Nitin Ichi Ryu. I looked at it and it was awesome. It was unbelievable. On the way back I had made friends with the 2. Jack was so brave. I was eager to meet this Masamoto person. He seemed like a great warrior. I entered the school and now I could speak Japanese fluently thanks to my powers. Trepolados will have been killed by now. I was lead by another man who wore a kimono and was short,he had short hair, dark eyes and brown skin whom I was told was Yamato, the second son of Masamoto. I entered the room and was shocked by its beauty. So, you are the second gaijin who washed up ashore. Well, tell me your story then. I told him all about me but not a single truth. It did not tell him my things in the present. I just told him a stupid dumb old story about ninjas killing my parents and taking me hostage and my escaping and coming up here. Masamoto was shocked at this. He took a sip of hi sencha and said 5 shocking words- You are my son now. I was shocked. He had just adopted me. Now me and Jack were brothers. I was so happy. I went and bowed to Masamoto and then when everybody left I asked him about every body and everything and the story of all those who were now my friends, Yori, Akiko,Jack,Yamato and the teachers. He said- I can not do that however you can go and ask a monk who lives in a near by place, he knows everything which we now or not. He sees everything. He is like a god.

I went to him and asked him the same Question. The monk smiled and said- listen child, to the story of a lifetime.

Story

Jack-

Jack was a young sailor who worked as a rigging monkey on board theAlexandria, a ship that his father, John Fletcher was piloting to their intended destination of Nagasaki, a trading city. They encounter a storm that damages their ship and, in an effort to save themselves from sinking, the crew are shipwrecked on the coast near a seemingly abandoned temple.

The ship Alexandira is attacked by Ninja pirates and Jack's father is killed by a mysterious Ninja with a single green eye who is relealed to be the evil assassin Dragon Eye. None of the crew apart from Jack are left alive.

Jack is found unconscious by an esteemed Samurai warrior called Masamoto Takeshi, who takes him into his sister's house and mends Jack's arm which broke when the Alexandria exploded. Later, Masamoto adopts Jack to Yamoto's (Masamoto's birth son) displeasure. Masamoto then gives back Jack the Rutter, a navigational logbook that belonged to his father that allowed any pilot to navigate the seas. Jack takes it back and knowing the importance of the book, says that it was his father's diary.

Jack is taught Japanese by a Portuguese Jesuit priest, Father Lucius, who takes a strong dislike to Jack at first,due to the fact that he is a protestant. Father Lucius later dies and Jack then learns Japanese and etiquette from Akiko who is Masamoto's niece. Yamato and Jack develop a rivalry and have sword fights daily. Jack is then taken to the Samurai school Niten-Ichi-Ryu in Kyoto ,which belongs to his guardian Masamoto , after displaying bushido for the first time by helping to fend off a ninja attack led by Dragon Eye, saving Yamato in the process.

Jack is then introduced to the Niten Ichi Ryu's facilities, the first being the Butokuden - "Hall of Virtues of War". Afterwards, he is summoned along with the new students to the Cho-no-ma, "Hall of Butterflies", and introduced to the various sensei. Dinner would mark his first encounter with OdaKazuki . After the meal, Kazuki gathers his gang to punish Jack for his disrespect towards him, but runs after Nobu senses a sensei's arrival.

As Jack lies on the floor in pain, Sensei Yamada gives him some advice- "In order to be walked on, you have to be lying down", which he couldn't understand. He would later learn from fellow student Yori that Sensei Yamada was telling him to learn how to defend himself.

The next day, Jack would take his first lesson in kenjutsu , and succeed in defeating his own sword, beating out Kazuki in an endurance contest. Sensei Yamada's class would be next, teaching him about Zen. and meditation. It was at this time Jack got his Daruma Doll. Taijutsu classes proved to be Jack's most painful experience for the moment, as Sensei Kyuzo used him as his uke (training partner) for him to demonstrate his techniques on for the benefit of the class.

He would be taught the basics of archery by Sensei Yosa, but thanks to Kazuki throwing a stone at him, he messes up his aim. Sensei Yosa was about to punish him when Yori reveals Kazuki's act, and the latter is punished. After dinner that same day, Jack and Akiko stumbles upon Kazuki's gang bullying Yori, and tackles his rival, but is no match for his skills.

Yamato runs in along with Saburo, but is unwilling to help Jack upon Kazuki's goading that helping a gaijin is disgraceful. Akiko then frees Jack from Kazuki's torture, who later promises her that he would not fight him within the walls of the Niten Ichi Ryu. As he leaves, he vows to Jack that their feud isnt over and done with.

Later, during the hanami party, Kazuki's gang takes the chance to fight Jack, but he is assisted by Akiko and Saburo. During the heat of battle, Masamoto, who had been observing his students, stops them, as daimyoKamakura also arrives on the scene. He proposes a Taryu Jiai between his Yagyu Ryu and the Niten Ichi Ryu to settle the dispute. Masamoto accepts and sets the date as a day before the Gion Matsuri. Jack, Akiko, and Saburo would be fielded as the participants.

The trio would then undergo intense training, and Sense Yamada would be the first to prepare their minds for the upcoming battle. During the meditation, he asks Jack to tell him his fears, to which he answers death. Yamada tells him that there is no need to, for death is more universal than life. Everyone dies, but not everyone lives, telling him to let them go.

Jack doesnt understand, to which Sensei Yamada replies that death is not the biggest fear he sould have. Instead, it is taking the risk to be truly alive, and how he lives, even in death. He then concludes his lessons by telling the trio to conquer their inner fears.

He then later queries Sensei Yamada about his dream of the red demon attacking the butterfly, to which the Sensei answers that cho-geri, the butterfly kick, could be the key to it. He then goes on to explain the technique of cho-geri, and that it is rumored to be invincible. He then demonstrates it on Jack, who is shocked that despite his age, is stil as nimble. Saburo would tell him that Sensei Yamada was actually a sohei, or warrior monk, explaining his abilities. As they leave the Buddha Hall together, Kiku runs up and informs them that Yamato has fled from the school.

FInally, it was time for the Taryu-Jiai. He is shocked upon seeing Yamato as the final canidate of the Yagyu Ryu, and demands why. Akiko presumes that Yamato had lost too much face after the hanami incident, and couldn't deal with the shame, He wants his father to lose face, as well. Sensei Yosa interrupts them and tells them to concentrate on the competition at hand and not to be distracted.

In the taijutsu segment, Jack would face up against Raiden. He would struggle against the hulking boy at first, before realizing that the fight was a re-enactment of his vision. His mind cleared of doubt, he tires Raiden out and executes a perfect cho-geri on him, winning the match.

After Saburo falls to Yamato in the kenjutsu segment, Jack faces him again in a one on one duel like the past. They both draw, and the Ritual of the Jade Sword is invoked to decide the ultimate victor.

The two would race to the Sound of Feathers waterfall, but Yamato would be there first. Used to the slippery cliff from his time as a rigging monkey, Jack had no trouble ascending. He witnesses Yamato stuck due his fear of heights. He tries to help, but Yamato refuses. Carrying on, Jack retrieves the sword. On his way down, he offers his help to Yamato again, but this time, Yamato accuses Jack of stealing his father from him, believing that before he arrived, Masamoto was finally beginning to accept him, and he was no longer in Tenno's shadow. He also states he has lost face because Jack saved him from the ninja.

Frustrated by his pride, Jack says that if he had wanted to steal Masamoto all along, he could have let Yamato die. But what he wanted was his father, John, but he is dead. Not listening to Jack, Yamato jumped from the cliff. later than, Jack saves him and they become friends and get back to the plain. Yamato enters with the sword and then tells the truth to the others. Masamoto takes him as his son with pride. then, at a festival they encounter Dragon Eye and fight him. Jack escapes and so does the others and the ninja. then they are presented gifts by the sensei. Jack decides to participate in the Circle of Three so he can learn to Two Heavens sword technique, but due to the fact he doesn't know how to write his name in kanji, he believes he will unable to join the trails for a place in the Circle of Three. Akiko gets her friend Kiku to sign Jack's name on the entry sheet ,so he gets a place, much to Sensei Kyuzo's annoyance.

As a reward for saving daimyo Takatomi's life, Jack, along with Yamato and Akiko, have been invited to his residence, Nijo Castle, for Cha-no-yu. The daimyo then has a game of "Escape" with the young samurai to test his new security measures. Jack would evade the guards for the longest period of time by hiding in a bolt hole behind a wall hanging of a crane, but would keep his knowledge of the hiding place a secret. Upon hearing the daimyo claim that the castle is "ninja proof", he makes up his mind to hide the rutter there, unaware of the grave consequences it will lead to.

In the selection trials, Jack almost gets through the Trial by Wood, but is affected by Sensei Kyuzo's remarks, and fails to break the final piece of wood. In the Trial by Fire, he strikes the target dead center with his final arrow, but fails to snuff out the candle. In the trial by koan, Jack fails to answer the question set by Sensei Yamada.

In the Gauntlet, Jack manages to fight his way past everyone in his way, going farther than anyone else, only to be caught unawares by Sensei Hosokawa, who was actually the final opponent.

Despite this, however, Jack was still chosen to be one of the participants in the Circle of Three, alongside Yori, Akiko, Kazuki, and Tadashi, and Harumi. In the Body Trial, Jack finds Yori wounded from a wild boar attack. They try to find the return route, but are shocked that the lanterns acting as guides have been extinguished, and Jack suspects that Kazuki was responsible. Risking the propect of failure, yet unwilling to leave his friend behind, Jack persevered and carried Yori all the way back, and managed to touch the Buddha just as the monks completed their chant. In the Mind Trial, Jack fights off the blistering cold of the waterfall to last through the time it takes one joss stick to burn, but has to quit when Tadashi bumps into him, disrupting his concentration. After he is brought out by Yamato, he is surprised to see that Akiko had survived triple the required duration. Upon asking her why, Akiko simply smiled at him.

Sometime after this, Kazuki sends Jack a note, challenging him to a duel , first blood wins. Akiko, Yamato and Saburo accompany him, as the Scorpion Gang advances upon them. However, Kazuki waves them off, saying that it is a duel of honor between him and the gaijin. The fight then begins.

Kazuki soon gains the upper hand despite Jack's improved skills at taijutsu. He tries to strangle and drown Jack in a puddle of water, but Jack fakes his death, and counterattacks. He forces Kazuki to submit and admit that he cheated during the Body trial, but Akiko disputes this fact, and Jack lets go of his rival. Just then, Nobu spots a ninja, and everyone splits.

Unfortunately, Jack would be subdued by Dragon Eye, who incapitates him with Dim Mak, and forces him to reveal the rutter's location and it's true purpose. Just as he performs a Dim Mak technique on him, Sensei Kano arrives on the scene and fends off Dragon Eye long enough for reinforcements to arrive, though he is injured in the fight as well. He then cures Jack of his condition by releasing his ki.

Despite his ordeal and suffering from Dim Mak's after effects, Jack continues in the Trial of Spirit. He consumes tea which had been "spiked", and is forced to confront his innermost fears - for Jack, it was a giant black scorpion - representing the fear Jack had of Kazuki and his gang. Initially believing the illusion to be real, Jack was helpless, but upon recalling Sensei's Kano's lessons, he clears his head and fights back with his inner spirit - a fierce lion. He had passed the final trial.

After the conclusion of the test, Yamato hatches a plan to move the rutter from its hiding spot at Nijo Castle during the Circle of Three celebrations, hiding it somewhere where Dragon Eye can't get it, but Akiko objects to his plan. They then decide to tell Masamoto about the rutter. When Jack does so, however, Masamoto shows him a challenge declaration, stating that Jack had agreed to a duel with a samurai on his musha shugyo. Jack denies it, saying that he didnt enter any duel, but Sensei Hosokawa points to his name in kanji etched on the paper. Masamoto then decides that Jack will have to honour the school and prove himself a warrior of the Niten Ichi Ryu.

At sundown the same day, Jack bests his opponent, by using a combination of mushin and faking cowardice to draw the samurai in and expose himself to a counterattack. Masamoto commends Jack, saying that he had been fooled by his strategy, while Sensei Hosokawa grins and tells Jack he has truly understood what the Way of The Sword meant.

During the Circle of Three celebrations, the trio sneak out to the reception room of the castle. Akiko finds the rutter, and they make to leave, when they hear the Nightingale Floor sing, and instantly tense themselves. A woman in a jade green kimono opens the shoji and serves them tea. Just then, Emi enters, annoyed at not having been invited to their private gathering, but looks at the woman and questions her identity, who immediately throws the tea tray at Emi, knocking her out.

Akiko screams that the woman is a kunoichi, and Yamato knocks the teacup out of Jack's hands, revealing the tea to be poisoned. The ninja tries to attack Jack, but Yamato throws himself in her way and is caught on the temple by her tessen. Akiko then kicks the fan from her grip and the two duel. Jack takes an advantage to attack, but is blinded by a powder of sorts.

Blinded, Jack soon senses he is under attack and retaliates in time surprising his assaliant, who is Dragon Eye and knocks Jack to the ground and says he has what he had come for , the rutter. He then calls for the kunoichi, Sasori, to finish Akiko off. He then escapes.

Sasori manages to sink her poisoned pin into Akiko's neck. Believing her to be dead, Jack unleashes his fury and grief on her, landing blow after blow as she struggles to defend herself. The ninja then falls on her own posioned hairpin and dies.

Sinking to his knees, Jack cradles Akiko's lifeless body, and cries bitterly.

After the incident, Masamoto tears into Jack, repirmanding him for sacrificing his friends, violating his trust, and endangered the daimyo's life, all for the sake of the rutter, and that he has broken the code of bushido. Frustrated at his stupidity and failure, Jack curses himself for letting his father, sister and friends down. Sensei Yamada then appears to comfort him, saying all is not lost. He believes that Jack has not broken the code of bushido, despite his actions which he also disapproved of, being aware that his intentions were not done out of malice, and was trying to protect his guardian, Masamoto, by doing so.

Sensei Yamada then continues, saying that Jack is headstrong and his personality reminded Masamoto of hismelf when he was young, boasting a fiercely independent spirit. He sees himself in Jack, and is afraid, not angry, that he will lose another son to Dragon Eye. Hence his strong reaction.

He concludes by giving Jack another life lesson - "There is no failure except in longer trying", and allows Jack to see Akiko, who has survived, in the Butsuden.

The two converse in private. Jack apologizes for his actions but Akiko believes that it is not his fault - rather, it was Dragon Eye's in letting him live. She says that he needs to get back the rutter, and to follow the Way of The Dragon. Having been expelled from the Niten Ichi Ryu along with Yamato and Akiko for their actions, the trio is sent back to Hiroko's house to await the sensei's final decisions on the matter.

Masamoto pardons them and they are accepted back into Niten Ichi Ryu, Jack, Akiko and Kazuki are trained by Masamoto in the legendary Two Heavens technique which proves very difficult to master.

Civil war ensues in the latter half of the book in which Jack and all the other Niten Ichi Ryu students fight. During the fighting, Dragon Eye appears looking to kill Jack and obtain the rutter but Yamato sacrifices himself to kill him, causing Jack much grief and sorrow. Eventually Daimyo Kamakura emerges as the victor from the war and as the Shogun, declares foreigners,christians to be outlaws, forcing Jack to travel to Nagasaki and somehow find a boat to England. After a brief but tearful farewell between him and Akiko, Jack sets off on his way. Leaving Toba behind, Jack was once again alone as he resumed his solitary journey back home. After repelling samurai at a teahouse at Shono, he flees into the Iga Mountains, where he falls into a trap laid by Hanzo, a young boy from a village deep in the mountains, and is eventually rescued by his grandfather, Soke.

Soke then brings Jack to their village, but blindfolds him as custom dictates no outsider is to know the village's true location. Later on Jack finds out that the village is a ninja village. He tries to flee but Soke persuades him to stay and Jack ends up learning the way of the Ninja. Sometime after leaving Miyuki and her ninja clan, Jack would make his way to a inn, stopping to rest. It would mark his first, though not official, encounter with Ronin, and introduces himself as "Takeshi".He offers Jack sake, but Jack refuses and is served sencha by him instead. Ronin then plays around with Jack's flute before asking him to drink the tea, and they toast each other. Not willing to arouse suspicions, Jack made to leave, but Ronin follows him, claiming he knows of a shortcut through the place. Jack then starts to feel drowsy, and Ronin puts his unconscious body beside a tree.

Botan and his gang would descend on him quickly, going through his possessions and finding out his foreign identity, which shocks even Ronin. Manzo then tries to kill Jack with Jack's Shizu blades, but Ronin intervenes, saying that this was not part of the "plan", and he cannot have them murder an innocent boy. But he collapses, his sake having been drugged by Botan as well. Botan then drops Jack's rutter on Ronin, and gives the command to finish off Jack.

His survival instincts kicking in, Jack tries to fight back in his drugged state, but is subject to a heavy round of beating. In a last ditch attempt, he breaks Botan's nose and rips off his inro before falling off the gorge.

Jack would eventually be discovered by the owner of another inn in Kamo, near the main town of Kizu, and rescued. He wakes with no memory of how he had gotten his wounds. The innkeeper's daughter then offers him food, which he gratefully accepts and asks her about how he came to be in their inn, his current location among other things. The girl then tells him he was lucky to have survived, to which Jack asks himself, "for how long?"

The doshin would descend on the inn and arrest Jack on the charges of fighting against the Shogun in the Battle of Osaka, but Ronin, who was coincidentally at the inn at the same time, fights them all off using a odd style (this would be revealed later as Drunken Fist), and beckons Jack to follow him before reinforcements arrive. Before he leaves, however, the girl hands him "his" (actually Botan's) inro, and he thanks her. Leaving Ronin behind, Jack continues his journey through the winter season. To lure Kazuki towards him and not Akiko, he purposely leaves a trail for him and his forces to follow. He makes his way to the blistery mountains where he almost faints from the sheer cold. Spotting the lights of a village, he quickly makes haste and takes in his new surroundings.

Afterwards, he spots three men ejected out of a nearby inn. They spot Jack, but don't see his face owing to his straw hat. Glancing at the swords on his hip, one of the group asks him if he was a ronin, and that if he wanted a job.

They offer him some food, Jack eagerly accepts it and listens as they tell him what job they have to offer. After leaving Tamagashi Village, Jack and his friends were forced to navigate tangled forests and treacherous mountain paths. Along the way, they were spotted and hunted by samurai, though they elude capture and make their way to Tomo Harbour, hiding in a warehouse there.

From their hiding spot, they spy several groups of pilgrims, and Jack asks Yori about the reasons behind their attire. After Yori explains, Miyuki suggests that they disguise themselves as the pilgrims to blend in with the crowd, taking advantage of the fact that they do not refuse o-settai, custom dictating that.

They manage to get the attention of three pilgrims, who were consequently all knocked unconscious by the drugged sake Miyuki had prepared. The group hurriedly change and board a ship, just managing to elude samurai patrols again.

During their voyage, Jack's swords come loose, and are spotted by a seasick ronin. He questions why pilgrims travel with weapons on hand, and Yori answers that they are gifts at the shrine on Omishima Island, but the ronin points out that their boat isnt heading there, and demands the name of their sword school.

Yori says that they belong to the School of No Sword, to the ronin's disdain. He then offers a demonstration of his skills, to which the ronin gladly accepts. To avoid damage done to the ship, they get the ship's captain to agree to have them have the duel on a nearby island. As soon as they reach there, however, Yori rows away calmly, leaving the man stranded on the island - defeating his opponent with "no sword". The Shogun has deemed that any Christian or foreigner now discovered outside the bounds of an official trading port will be instantly put to death.

For Jack, Nagasaki is within reach, but the Shogun's samurai are closing in with the help of Jack's old school rival, Kazuki, who has a score to settle.

Will Jack make it to the city alive? Will he keep hold of the precious rutter? Can he find a ship bound for England, or will he be burned at the stake?

At some point during their voyage to Nagasaki, Jack's boat capsized, and he washed up on a sheltered bay. There was no sign of his companions anywhere nearby. Quickly gathering his belongings, Jack makes his way to a nearby cave after spotting adult sized footprints. Soon after, a old man leads a group of samurai to the beach, telling them he had seen a gaijin samurai.

Skills-

Enhanced Sense of Balance - From his time as a rigging monkey aboard the Alexandria, Jack had aquired an excellant sense of balance and a talent for climbing as well as a good head for heights, these skills have proved very helpful a number of times throughout the series.

Enhanced Stamina - From his time aboard the Alexandria as a rigging monkey, Jack had built up his body's strength naturally. When he becomes a samurai and a ninja, his stamina would increase even more from the intense lessons he took and he becomes very fit and strong.

Taijutsu Expert - Jack has demonstrated the ability to fight bare handed when the situation arises, for example in the Tayru-Jiai against Raiden. He is possibly the only student in the Niten Ichi Ryu who has learned cho-geri, or butterfly kick. After learning ninja unarmed techniques,like the sixteen secret fists, his taijutsu has evolved to a new level of expertise, even allowing him to knock out taijutsu master Sensei Kyuzo.

Kenjutsu Expert - He is very good with his swordplay and excells at the Two Heavens technique taught to him by fact that he is ambidexterous aids his cause even further. The reverse grip technique that he created under Shiryu's guidance, has proved to be a very useful and lethal close-quarters sword technique and he even teaches it to Masamoto.

Ninjutsu Practioner - In his time with the ninja in the Ring of Earth he aquired a number of new talents including stealth walking and a deft hand with Shuriken which also proved useful in later books and helps him to take his samurai skill to entirely new levels.

Nautical Skills - in the Ring of Wind, Jack's time aboard the Alexandria comes in very useful and helps him to intergrate himself among the pirates.

Languages- Jack's mother taught him basic vocabulary in several european languages and he becomes incredibly fluent in Japanese during his time there.

Hojojutsu Expert-During the Way of Fire,he was the only one able tie someone,because of practce tying rope as a rigging monkey.

Akiko-

She, like a few women, is a warrior at heart, and was offended when Jack was surprised at her fighting skill. She had then proceeded to tell him that not only men fought on the battlefield Women also fight in Japan, unlike in England.

She has defended and encouraged Jack when Kazuki or some other person was insulting him, telling him that they had no right to call him a gaijin. She also is quite close to Yamato, an example of this being when she instantly changed the subject during a conversation at the mention of Tenno, Yamato's older brother, by Saburo.

She is also spying on the ninja forces, - Masamoto's reason for her to train in the Art of The Ninja -" In order to know the enemy, you must become the enemy."Akiko shows much affection for Jack; that affection may have changed into love later on. Akiko is first seen by Jack when he was aboard the Alexandria, later, after the wako (ninja pirates) attacked the ship and everyone apart from him was killed. He was nursed through a fever by her and another maid. Afterward, she taught Jack the japanese language and the ways of her people. She was also taking care of Jack's wounds after his spars with Yamato, who was at the time still hostile towards Jack.

Later on, she accompanies Jack and Yamato to Kyoto, again to Jack's immense surprise, to enroll in the Niten Ichi-Ryū (One School of Two Heavens), a school for Samurai. Later on she is seen warding off Dokugan Ryu's attempts to steal the Rutter.

After Yamato's later(temporary) defection to the Yagyu Ryū, she trains along side Jack and Saburo in preparation for the Taryu-Jiai, a competition between two schools, in this case, the Yagyu Ryu and the Niten Ichi Ryu.

In the contest itself, she loses to Moriko in the taijutsu segment owing to the latter's illegal moves which were unseen, but she gains revenge in the kenjutsu and kyujutsu segments by beating her soundly.

In the post-celebrations, she, Jack and Yamato confront Dragon Eye again when he attempts to poison Daimyo Takatomi, forcing him to retreat. Akiko signs up to participate in the Circle of Three, a test designed to push the body, mind and spirit to its limits to see who is worthy of place learning the Two Heavens under Masamoto. She would pass the selection trials successfully, in particular passing the Trial by Fire with her first attempt.

When the Circle of Three officially starts, she is one of the canidates to pass the Trial of Body by staying in the waterfall for 3 hour. She witnesses Jack and Yori, both exhausted, making it to the temple. As Yori is taken away for medical treatment, she tries helping Jack to the Buddha Statue, but is stopped. As she watched, Jack would eventually make it to the Buddha by sheer force of will.

In the Mind Trial, she managed to survive twice the required duration to pass, having been taught mind control as part of her lessons in the Way of the Ninja. When one of the monks praises Sensei Yamada for his teachings, he remarks that this is not a skill he had taught his class, eyeing her with curiosity. In the Spirit Trial, Akiko overcomes her inner fears, a host of vampire bats, with her guardian spirit, a pure white falcon, and afterwards is delighted upon learning of Jack's spirit being a lion. Following their expulsion from the Niten Ichi Ryu for endangering daimyo Takatomi's life, Akiko, along with Jack and Yamato, have been sent back to Hiroko's house to await the sensei's decisions on that matter. They would learn from a merchant that someone called Orochi had bragged about knowing Dragon Eye himself. They decided to track down Orochi to try and redeem themselves.

However, Orochi tricks them and flees upon sensing that Dragon Eye's ninja have come for him. The trio would briefly split up, before Akiko, dressed in a black shinobi shozuku, saves Jack from being killed by another ninja, and returns later discreetly.

Afterwards, the trio rest at a tea house and discuss about their further plans, before the propriteor queries them about the tanto in Jack's possession, saying that it was forged by Kunitome, a swordsmith, who's traits of violence and madness are passed onto the very blades he forges. Akiko appears to brush off his comments, saying that they are too old to be superstitious.

The propriteor then goes on to tell the trio about Kunitome's past, particularly his rivalry with his master Shizu, and concludes by advising them to lose the tanto in the forest where they found it.

They then visit Shindo, Kunitome's hometown, and would encounter Dragon Eye's mother, who reveals Dragon Eye's true past as a fallen samurai lord, and her own gruesome fate suffered at the hands of her own son. Having gotten whatever information they could, they then return to Hiroko's.

After Masamoto reinstates their right to bear arms, and their status as samurai, he decides that it is the right time to teach her and Jack the Two Heavens. Akiko briefly returns after receiving Jack's coded message that Hanzo could be her long lost brother. She would make her appearance in the middle of the battle between daimyo Akechi's forces and Shonin's ninja clan. Just as a samurai is about to bear down on Miyuki and Jack, she knocks him unconscious with Fall Down Fist, and reveals her identity.

Initially distrusting of Akiko, Miyuki grudgingly acknowledges her as an ally and she is introduced to the clan. She would take part in the operation to liberate the captured members of the ninja clan. Jack and Miyuki would successfully take the key to the captives' cage from Gemnan, but Miyuki had made an error when crossing the Nightingale floor, and alerted enemy forces to their presence. After another huge fight, the clan make their escape.

In the aftermath of damiyo Akechi's death, Akiko explains her presence to Grandmaster Soke and Hanzo, and the latter is delighted at the prospect of having a samurai sister. Akiko would have to bid him farewell soon as the ninja clan are evacuating to another base deep within the mountains, and they can't risk any outsider knowing about the location. She makes the decision to inform her mother about Hanzo, turning down Jack's offer to follow him, and gives him a kiss before departing for Toba, whispering in his ear 'forever bound to one another'. Jack asked Akiko if she would come with him to England. She surprised him by boarding the boat and telling him that her mother sent her her blessings.

The last scene of the book is Jack knowing he was already home with Akiko by his side and her black hair waving in the wind.

Skills

Enhanced Stamina - She had trained as a pearl diver and therefore was an excellant swimmer and could hold her breath for a long time, longer than most people.

Kenjutsu Expert - Akiko is proficient with the sword, and also in the Two Heavens as she passed the Circle of Three.

Taijutsu Expert -Akiko is also very agile and a great fighter, mainly in unarmed combat.

Kyujutsu Expert - Akiko has demonstrated a natural affinity for the bow, and has pinpoint accuracy when targeting her enemies.

Ninjutsu Expert -Having been trained in the Way of The Ninja, Akiko also knows ninjutsu to a certain extent, using its techniques to surprise her fellow students in taijutsu practice, for example. However, her true proficiency with it has yet to be fully revealed.

Dokujutsu Expert - From her lessons in ninjutsu, Akiko has learnt to built up her body's natural resistance to poisons.

Yamato-

Yamato first meets Jack in Toba, where, at first he is hostile towards him. One day, Jack asks Yamato to teach him what he knows about kenjutsu. Jack learns under Yamato for a while before they begin dueling each other, sparking a fierce rivalry. Jack, during a later duel at the Taryu-Jiai, asked Yamato, "Best out of three?"

After Dragon Eye's attack on Yamato's household, his father keeps the entire house on constant guard. During this time, he, Akiko and Jack leave for the Niten Ichi-Ryu in Kyoto.

There Jack become rivals with Kazuki but Yamato doesn't step into defend him due to the fact he is still antagonostic towards his foster brother.

Later, Yamato runs away from Niten Ichi Ryu to join it's rival school due to the fact he has shamed his father after not stepping into help when rival students attack Jack and his friends. He joins the Yagyu Ryu, the Niten Ichi Ryu's rival school, in an apparent act to spite his father during the Taryu Jai.

In the competition, he beats Saburo and fights Jack to a draw in the kenjutsu segment. Later, both are ordered to retrieve the Jade Sword from the Sound of Feathers waterfall to determine the eventual victor. Yamato reaches there first, but due to his fear of heights, only progressed halfway up the steep cliffface, refusing Jack's offer for help. After Jack had retrieved the sword, the two quarrel again and Yamato lets go, plunging into the waters below.

Jack rescues Yamato from the river below, and the two reconcile. They make their way back, where Yamato initially appears to offer the Jade Sword to Kamakura, but gives it to Masamoto instead, telling him that Jack was the one that truly got the sword in the first place. As a result, the Niten Ichi Ryu are declared champions of the Tayru Jai, and Masamoto forgives his son.

During the festival, Jack, Yamato and Akiko try to stop Dragon Eye from his attempt to posion daimyo Takatomi, but they are no match for his skills, and Yamato is hit in the chest by a shuriken as he dives to protect Jack. Just as they are about to fall, Dragon Eye is alerted that the daimyo's forces are coming for him, and flees.

Masamoto later calls upon the trio and bestows upon them great gifts - for Yamato, he gives him his brother, Tenno's daisho. Yamato, like several others, would compete in the selection trials for entering the Circle of Three. Unfortunately, he did not pass a single trial - failing the Trial by Wood, Trial by Arrow, and The Gauntlet. He would sink into despair for a while after failing to impress his father yet again, but soon would be revitalized by his newfound proficiency with bojutsu, with their blind Sensei Kano guiding him along.

Like Akiko, he disapproved with Jack's plan of hiding the rutter in Nijo Castle, where their daimyo resides, to avoid it being taken by Dragon Eye. Late in the book, the trio would secretly try to recover the logbook, but they were caught unawares by a kunoichi sent by Dragon Eye who attempted to posion them. In the resulting scuffle, Yamato was knocked out by Dragon Eye's kunoichi, and Akiko poisoned. Jack put up a fight, but was unable to stop Dragon Eye from taking the rutter. Masamoto later finds out about the incident, and expels Yamato along with Jack and Akiko from the Niten Ichi Ryu. Yamato joins Jack and Akiko in their pursuit of Orochi, a man who supposedly had information about Dragon Eye. They eventually catch him, but just as he is about to tell them what he knew, a ninja kills him by way of posion dart. They would be briefly split up by the ambush, but Yamato finds Jack safe and sound later, unaware that Akiko, dressed as a ninja, saved him from his assaliant.

After having their positions at the Niten Ichi Ryu as samurai reinstated, they get back their weapons and resume training. Since Yamato was not qualified for Two Heavens training, having failed the selection trials for the Circle, he did not get that privilege.

Skills-

Bojutsu Expert-Yamato proved to be a natural with the bo, picking it up quicker than anyone else in Sensei Kano's classes, and using it to great effect against enemies such as Dragon Eye.

Kenjutsu Practitioner- Yamato has some skill with a bokken, however, it is not shown what his true level of proficiency is, as he has never really wielded a katana before.

Taijutsu Practitioner- Yamato is skilled in taijutsu to some extent, beating Saburo quickly in the Tayru-Jiai and beating Jack in chi sao.

That is enough for today my friend, said the monk. Percy was shocked,amazed, dazed, awed and surprised by these immortal warriors. This monk had told him their past present and the future. He knew so much. I looked at the time using my powers. It was 5:30 pm. I went to the mess hall and went to Jacks room to practise. Jack was a good teacher. After a few minutes of talking I challenged him to a duel. He was laughing at this. You can't even kick and you want to fight me. Boy I will not fight you. I smiled. This boy thought I did not know how to fight. I brandished my swords and did a special move. At this, he agreed. I smiled

I dodged his kick and struck his heart. The fight had begun. Kick slash and dodge were the strong points of Jack. I knew his skills so I decided to surprise him. When he bought his sword down, I rolled and threw a bolt at him. Poor Jack. He went flying out of the room. Just then, Yamato entered the room with horror on his face. Tell you later. I told Jack. He nodded. What is it Yamato, he replied- ninja attack. I looked at Jack. We followed Yamato to the courtyard. Small fights were going on. We were definitely losing. The ninja wore all black. I charged a ninja and struck his leg. The ninja leapt high and landed on the roof top. When I saw his face. He had one eye. One green eye. Dragon Eye. Jack and Masamoto were there in an instant. Percy, you just attacked Dokugan Ryu. Really, I said. Then I leapt and joined the ninja, Masamoto looking at me with amazement and Jack already knowing my capabilities was just looking. The ninja. Kicked me but I was ready. I did a somersault and landed behind. Dragon eye was a smooth opponent,if you know what I mean. Akiko,Yamato. Go,shouted Masamoto and he, Jack, Akiko and Yamato ran towards me. They reached the roof and surrounded The ninja. He was now cowering in fear by me and Masamoto who were his real threats. Dragon eye had a cut to the stomach, a scar on his arms, slashes on his knees and a big wound to the side by me. He was angry right now. He looked at Jack and attacked. I blocked his cut and kicked his back. Masamoto swung his wazikashi and Yamato lashed out with his bo. Akiko was firing arrows at him at incredible speed. At last Dragon eye swipe kicked Masamoto and he fell down from the roof. He crashed on the ground. Yamato ran to him while me and the remaining fought the ninja. I sneaked behind him and swiped his legs. He fell down on the roof sadly but the damage had been done. Before he could get up, I kicked his head and the ninja fell on his side. Yamato appeared with his father. He was about to kill the ninja but Dragon eye turned and with drove his ninjato in the gut of...Yamato. The boy fell down. His mouth bleeding. Masamoto was angered. He kicked the ninja so hard that Dragon eye went flying out of the roof. I jumped and landed next to him. Dragon eye got up but befor he could do anything I hit his face with the hilt of my sword and he fell down unconscious. The whole school was burning and students were dying on the ground. The battle was lost. Then,suddenly the black vortex again appeared. This time I thought it would take me back to the Present so I jumped in it.

So, how is it. Nice right. Thanks for all the reviews you will give in the future unless you want me to come and beat the hell out of you. Thank you for your co operation.

Dhyam

signing off.

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will Percy be back in time or will he have another crazy place.