Chapter 3

Kama or Kunai? Depends How I'm Feeling

She brushed her gloved hands against the stone walls of the guild, pacing away from Shen's room. The cold stones were so familiar. She knew every crack, every brick. Putting aside her nostalgia, Akali looked forward. It was all that one could do now.

She wanted to head to her room before walking through the Kinkou guild one last time but knew she couldn't risk running into Shen again. Her disappointment in his responses might make her do something she'd regret. And she wouldn't mind that being how she remembered him—making a last stitch, foolish effort to get her to stay by taking off his mask.

She would admit though, she wondered who Shen was past the whole "balance" charade. Past even who he was with just herself and Kennen. She knew he always held back on being their actual companion, their actual friend. There was a time she respected him for it, but that faded when she started asking questions about his way of running things. When the turn came to head to her quarters, she instead found herself turning towards the armory.

Silently praying no one would be there, Akali peeked through the double doors.

All clear.

Her shoulders relaxed—she really didn't want anyone praising her for being the Fist of Shadow right now. She strode to the weapon racks with purpose; finding herself gravitating to the new kama they had just received. Akali pondered the grand collection of weapons in front of her.

Perhaps it is good to go with something at least a tad familiar.

She grabbed a sleek, top-heavy kama off the wall. It was different than her usual blades, and her callouses felt strange on the cool metal handle, but she could tell it was of good quality. Despite being so unfamiliar with the smooth design, it made her feel calm, almost…reassured.

This was an exceptional blade, and her and it would make an admirable team. She heard Shen's voice in her mind as she reached to grab another kama off the wall, "Akali, when using kama I would recommend a pair. This gives you extra stability on the field, extra balance." She quickly turned away from the wall with the first blade in her hand.

No, she thought to herself, having two different weapons will give me more variability, more of an element of surprise when fighting clever opponents. I'll find something else.

She moved towards a heavy oak table and set her new kama down, glancing at the boxes on the sturdy table. Deadly blow darts, razor thin knives, reinforced fans, poison senbon, and countless other deadly oddities were haphazardly organized within. She grabbed up the cloth bag of smoke bombs, which she was rather confident in her ability of using, and continued to scan the table for something else to add to her arsenal. She caught sight of the kunai blades at the edge of the table. She remembered seeing them used by plenty of ninjas during training; but had never gotten too interested during her own practice. Perhaps this would be her time to try something new—and besides, it would be difficult to find some of this quality again after she left. She stuffed them into the smoke bomb bag, making note to make sure her next piece of attire has more pockets.

Feeling a prickle on the back of her neck, Akali whirled, meeting the eyes of someone in the doorway.

"Hello master!"

Akali un-tensed her body and put down the blade she had held at the ready. She slightly shook her head.

"Yes hello to you Miss...Shima."

Akali paused for a split second to remember the young ward's name. Shima hadn't been in the Kinkou long, but Akali has seen her train a few times. Despite the girl's stout frame, Akali remembered she showed great progress with the emerald throwing axes. It reminded Akali of her own younger days, dutifully training under Kennen; and copying the older assassins perhaps a bit too much. Now that she was quickly approaching 21, Akali wishes she had kept a journal then to look back on.

"You seem distracted, is something wrong Master?"

Akali focused back on the girl in front of her, surprised she had zoned out in front of someone.

"No Shima, I just was going through the new inventory."

"I could help you! I've been wanting to see some of the other weapons we have available here!"

"That's thoughtful, but I'm almost finished. And I—"

Shima jumped in with her chipper voice. "Could you maybe show me what you've picked out for yourself Master? I admire your mastery of so many different blades! It would be very...er..."

Shima realized Akali was looking down at her a bit seriously "...it would be very...insightful! I'm sure I could learn a lot from you Master."

Akali picked up the weapons she had chosen and walked across the room to stand next to Shima in the doorway. "Maybe another time."

"Oh. Um, okay! Sorry I bothered you Master Akali!" Akali looked back and gave the girl a slight smile before she strode down the hallway.


"I wonder if I did something to displease her in training"

"Shima, I'm sure it's fine. She was probably just having a bad day."

"Turi I wouldn't be so sure about that. I've never seen Master Akali not be enthusiastic about training us. Shima, did she really look serious? Her resting face is a little intense and since you're new you might've mistaken it for anger."

The three apprentices continued theorizing as they made their way to the dining room.

"Perhaps Master Akali was testing you? To see if you could withstand the pressure of intimidation?" Luka, the third friend, added.

A gravelly voice spoke up from behind the young friends.

"What is this about Akali?"