Ninjas, Mercenaries, and a Solitary Soldier

Chapter 3: Survival

My first day here so far had been very uneventful. After consulting the map, I had been wandering off towards the east, since I'm currently in the western part of the forest. There's supposed to be a town east of my current location, but it will take at least two or three days of traveling day and night to reach it. Besides, I'm supposed to check the western forest first. The town had no bearing on my mission, unless the enemy had a base there, which was "highly unlikely", according to intelligence.

During the day, I've seen a bunch of things, like streams, trees, vines, bushes, waterfalls, rivers, and many others. If I was walking around like a happy camper, I'd probably enjoy the sights, but I was too busy keeping an eye out for things that are out of the ordinary, like footprints, food wrappers, anything that's out of place. So far, no luck on that. Half of me wanted this peace, so I can relax for once. The other half wanted me to find something unusual right away, since after all, I can't finish this damn mission if I can't even find the enemy.

It was getting late already, and darkness soon fell. I intended to keep going even in the dark, but I was extremely hungry. I know, it's my fault, because I didn't bother to look for food during the day. I saw a deer earlier, but I decided to ignore it, since I can probably find more food later on. That was really dumb of me.

While I was thinking of ways to kick myself for my laziness, I came upon a stream. I smiled. I then took out my Beretta, and pointed the firearm at the water. I turned on the torch on my handgun, and kept pointing it at the water. In less than a minute, a big fish showed up near the bright spot since fish are attracted to light sources during nighttime. I immediately grabbed the fish with my right hand, but I had to use my other hand as a support since the fish was struggling. I then bashed the fish's head into a nearby rock, and shortly afterwards, it stopped moving. Hello dinner.

Since I'm in hostile territory, I didn't want to start any fires for fear of attracting unwanted attention from anyone. I already risked myself by using the light mounted on my handgun, but it was for a good cause, and it didn't take too long. In short, I had to eat the fish raw. I held the fish with both hands, and took a bite at its midsection. While I was chewing the meat, I felt the sharp bones, so I spit out the inedible part, and continued eating the fish. In five minutes, I managed to eat most of the fish's midsection. I was full and ready to move on. I wiped the blood off my lips, and discarded the fish.

With the extra energy from my meal, I continued my journey. I had no trouble navigating my way because the moon was out. It provided enough light for me to see where I was going. Suddenly, I heard footsteps! To be more precise, I heard someone stepping on leaves. I quickly hid behind a tree, my back facing the trunk. With my woodland camo and the darkness, I should be able to blend in well, as long as I don't move. Any slight movement will attract anyone's attention, even in darkness.

I then waited. And waited. It didn't take long for someone to show up. I couldn't see them, but I could hear them. In fact, I heard snippets of their conversation.

"Shimatta (Damn it)! We lost her!" Someone said.

"Way to go, old man. I thought that we are hot on her trail…" Someone replied. The first speaker sounded like someone in his mid-thirties, while the second one sounded like a teenager.

"…we were." the adult interrupted. "Now, we're back to where we started. I admit that she managed to give us the slip. She could be anywhere by now."

"Why are we going after her again?" The boy asked with an irritating tone.

"How many times do I have to tell you? She's a toubousha (runaway). It is the law that she must be caught and punished..."

"…by killing her? That sounds dumb." The boy interrupted.

"Because if we let her go, she can divulge our secrets to anyone she meets outside of our clan." The adult said. The word "clan" already tipped me off that these people were most likely ninjas of that Mugen Tenshin Clan. Besides, they sounded Japanese, not Russian.

"Oh. I see."

"She has eluded and killed every assassin that our leader has sent. Stay alert. We should meet the others shortly." The adult said.

I finally saw them. I shifted my eyes to the left, and saw two people, all clad in black. Their faces were covered, and they had katanas strapped to their backs. They were walking slowly, and they made so little noise while doing so. "Yup, definitely ninjas. I don't see any firearms on them." I thought. So old fashioned, yet still as dangerous as a man with a firearm. They were a few meters to my left, but they didn't see me. I hope it stays that way.

"By the way, we should watch out for those gaijin (foreigners) wandering around the forest." The adult said.

"Oh, them? What do they want?" The boy asked.

"Who knows, but they seem to want trouble. They are armed with guns, and they've been prowling around the forest. Even some of our fellow ninjas have clashed with them from time to time."

"What do we do when we see them? We're supposed to be looking for this girl and…"

"Simple. We eliminate them. We don't allow armed men walking around our own territory like they own it. I know it's not part of what we were sent to do, but killing those fools should make life easier for us."

"Hai (Yes). If you say so."

I absorbed everything I heard in their conversation. At least those terrorists are around here, somewhere. It's just a matter of finding them. They were also talking about someone, a girl, who they are chasing after. She's probably a traitor to their clan. That info had nothing to do with my mission, so I filed it somewhere in the back of my mind, incase that info might be useful later on. I waited until I couldn't see and hear them anymore before moving out of my spot. To be honest, I didn't want to fight these ninjas, because I'll be fighting with one hand tied behind my back. I can't kill them; I can only use non-lethal force. Well, it's still better to avoid them altogether. Now, let's get back to work.

End of Chapter 3

Well, if there are any mistakes in the Japanese language (and later on, the Russian language), please don't hesitate to correct me. I am not fluent in any of these languages, so please don't yell at me when you correct me.