The Distortion

“This is not what we agreed on, Adam san!”

The situation was getting steadily tenser, pressure ever rising and the air stinging in the Tokugawa household. Laith tightened his sweaty fist around the handle of his scimitar, in case matters would escalate any further. Although, fighting that samurai this time around would prove far more complicated than the last time he faced him. Genjiro alone was enough trouble as it was, adding his sensei to the mix…not a bright prospect.

“Indeed, this is not what we agreed on, but this is a suitable alternative that works best for both of us.” Adam responded calmly.

“I fail to see how that is the case. Letting a Kunoichi onto our plan, and into my house, could prove detrimental. I have already risked enough by having you and your brother join us and I am not ready to further compromise the operation.” Tokugawa was gradually losing his composure.

“How is that? Because she’s a ninja and ninjas can’t be trusted? According to who?” Adam raised his voice.

“Me and all the other samurais of this country. Her kind have no respect for the Bushido, or the Way of the Samurai. They are only loyal to their contracts and missions, and unlike you, she has a much bigger chance of working with the enemy. She could backstab us any moment she sees fit.”

Even Genjiro was surprised with his master losing his temper in this manner. This was probably the first time he saw him as flustered since the death of Shinji, their former Daimyo.

“She’s standing right here Tokugawa san, and she’s a friend of ours, so please show some respect!” Adam shouted, pointing at Yuuna.

She was calmer than one might expect from someone targeted by blatant defamation. This was by no means the first time she heard those insults thrown at her, far from it. She reached a point where the accusations no longer held any weight. She tried to convince Adam that it was a lost cause to try to convince Daisuke of having her join the raid; she foresaw this very same scene taking place right now. Yuuna suggested to assist them from the shadows, without the samurais having any knowledge of her existence, or pass on the entire thing altogether, but Adam argued against it.

Inevitably, it led to Daisuke’s current tirade.

“First of all, you have set foot in this land no sooner than yesterday as a foreigner, and yet here you are, bringing a Kunoichi to my doorstep, claiming you met before the Distortion and just happened to reunite today. Surely you cannot blame me for thinking it is all to convenient. Besides, even if I am generous enough to buy into it, for her to reveal her name that carelessly is difficult for me to believe.

“I should inform you that they only use their anonyms; their real names are supposedly erased. There is only one who is arrogant enough to not bother. And if she truly confided her secret to you, the fact that you are such close friends with a kunoichi does not help your case, Adam san. I barely gave you my trust, don’t make me regret it.”

“Don’t you dare talk to me about trust!” Adam finally snapped.

Laith, Yuuna and even Genjiro all had their eyes bulge out after Adam’s bold statement, in conjunction with a most threatening tone no less.

“Up until this point, I haven’t brought up the fact that your underling nearly drove us to our death by stupidly leading us in the wrong direction because he’s so dumb he can’t even tell right from left! Not only that, but judging from what I’ve seen of the place and how everyone avoided it, I’d say we knocked on a very dangerous door and God knows what could have happened to us. So what does the moron do? He actually bails on us.” Adam pierced Genjiro with a fierce look amidst his frenzy.

“Hey, that ninja is no joke. No way I’m messing around with him.” Genjiro replied, keeping his usual nonchalant attitude.

“Who was it, Genjiro?” Daisuke asked.

“The one arrogant enough to not bother with an anonym.”

Daisuke paled. “This must be a curse of sorts…”

Laith was suddenly intrigued when they referenced the mysterious ninja, unlike his brother who couldn’t care less about it and readdressed the main issue.

“Despite the dire situation we were in, we were lucky enough to turn things in our favor bringing an unexpected ally when we should have been dead.” Adam stopped to catch his breath. “So forgive me Tokugawa san, but you are in no position to talk to me about trust. If anything, we should be the ones distrusting you for the incompetence your idiotic student has showcased.”

A deep and long awkward silence followed. You could even hear lady Tokugawa footsteps in the back of the house despite not having any shoes on and walking on a smooth wooden floor. Laith’s heart raced faster, gripping the hilt of his sword even harder—he still wasn’t willing to take any chances. Luckily, the reaction from Tokugawa did not require action on Laith’s part. He slowly bowed to them.

“I would like to apologize on his behalf. I can assure you there was no ill will behind his honest mistake.” he looked at Genjiro and ordered him. “You too, Genjiro.”

The sleepy samurai didn’t argue and he too bowed his head. Adam scratched his beard, feeling a little embarrassed.

“I appreciate it Tokugawa san. But you know I’m not looking for an apology.”

Daisuke understood what he meant. He faced Yuuna, still reluctant to give a clear and definitive answer to the issue at hand. To work with a ninja would be unprecedented for him, and he wasn’t sure that this particular raid was the best occasion to start. Even beyond his strong sense of honor, the world of espionage was full of betrayals and side-swapping. He made sure to recruit people who he fully trusted to avoid the risk of any semblance of information leaking. Having a random Kunoichi suddenly join their ranks—associated with the most troublesome ninja in the country no less—could jeopardize the entire plan.

“Tokugawa san,” Yuuna strode forward, deciding to speak for herself, “judging me in such a shallow manner is unfair, though I’ve gotten used to it by now. That’s why as a token of faith, I will start by confirming that my name is indeed Yuuna, Ōhira Yuuna. Whether you believe it or not is entirely up to you. You can’t trust me? That’s fine. You don’t want my help? That’s also fine. But you can’t stop me from helping my friends with their…quest, and my aid will be of great benefit to them.”

“Ignoring the fact that I am still bothered by what your party is truly after, how can I know you won’t divulge our secret? For certain?” Daisuke emphasized the last part.

“You can hold me captive, keep me as your prisoner if you wish, until the raid starts. I have no qualms.” She readily presented her arms as if to be restrained. “If you’re worried about me already having spoken to somebody, the brothers can testify to that.”

“She hasn’t left our sight ever since we discussed the matter.” Laith confirmed, feeling slightly guilty when speaking about Yuuna as a suspect. It would sound a bit more convincing though, especially coming from him who didn’t necessarily share as strong a bond with her as did his brother.

“What if you end up getting in our way? What if you prove a hindrance to us?” Daisuke pressed harder.

“From what we discussed on the way here, my presence will hardly be felt by any of the samurais. I will not be directly involved in your conflict, so I can’t get in your way if I won’t interfere with the fight to begin with.” Yuuna shrugged. “In fact, I suggested that I do my part secretly without your having to know about me in the first place, but Adam wanted no secrets between you. That’s how much he valued your partnership.”

“And if you do somehow—even unintentionally—get in the way?”

“Just leave me to die, you don’t owe me anything.”

“You know that we are offering no reward for this?”

“This is not a contract, a friend asked for help and I accepted.”

“What about my comrades who will be joining me in this raid? I do not expect them to be as accepting.”

“I promised I won’t bother you, is it too much to ask of you to promise not to disclose my identity in return?”

It was a rational proposition. Added to the fact that Daisuke needed a way to make up for Genjiro’s mistake, agreeing to Yuuna’s terms was the simplest solution to the problem, even if it meant swallowing his pride while doing so. Having a ninja onboard didn’t sit well with him, and it probably never would regardless of the compromise. But he was running out of patience, not to mention time.

Admittedly, Daisuke was growing desperate, unable to afford the leisure of weighing his options carefully. The day of the festival drew near and doubt was slowly crawling its way into his mind. He had nowhere near amassed the numbers he deemed sufficient. The likelihood of underestimating the enemy’s ploys, again, was very much alive. A number of other minute details could definitely benefit from some refinement…it didn’t bode well for the success of the operation.

Daisuke promised to steel himself before the raid, but even a man of steel wasn’t immune to a vulnerable mind. He found himself almost cornered, with no choice but to trust that some of these desperate decisions he made—accepting two foreigners and a ninja into his raiding forces—wouldn’t be the end of him and his comrades.

“I promise. No one else of my subordinates—besides Genjiro and my wife—will even know about you. Does that suit you?”

“I assure you it’s for the better.” Yuuna said.

Laith let go of his scimitar, the tension in the air dissipated. He couldn’t imagine himself getting out of this pinch with just words; he was awful at negotiation and argumentation, hence why he usually left it to Adam. The latter was grateful for having another member on the team who had a way with words, unlike his meathead of a brother.

“Might I ask one more thing, Yuuna san? Worry not, it does not pertain to your contribution in the raid.” Daisuke said as she was turning away from him.

Yuuna looked over her shoulder, nodding.

“Assuming this is not a farce, why are you not respecting the rules when it comes to your identity? I can understand why your associate does it, but when it comes to you, why disobey?” he asked inquisitively.

“While I don’t agree that all ninjas should be judged baselessly, I’m afraid most of the time, you are right in your judgment.” She turned to face him again. “They usually tend to be the way you describe them as, and I couldn’t play along anymore. The Kunoichi known as the Unseen Lotus is no more, it’s just Yuuna now.”

“And you claim that these two strangers from a faraway land are your friends and you wish to help them, doesn’t that go against your teachings?”

“I left the village over a year ago now; I don’t have any obligation towards any of those teachings.”

“A ninja having a change of heart…most interesting.”

Daisuke was someone who trusted his instincts. Much like he could not believe that Kensei Nakamura was innocent, he could not fully detect ill intention from Yuuna. His gripes with her stemmed solely from the nature of her occupation and not the nature of her person. Prying into that nature—if ever slightly—might help put his mind at ease.

And thus, the heated discussion came to a conclusion, a mostly satisfying one.

Yuuna and Adam agreed to meet the next day so they would finalize the details of their plan. She then left with Genjiro as it was getting late. Adam was particularly curious as to how the interaction between those two would be…outside of Genjiro flirting with her in his own weird drunken way. The samurai was clearly very pleased to be in the company of a beautiful woman; his ogling eyes were easily discernable—a rare instance where he wasn’t his usual dispassionate self. He must have been quite insufferable for Yuuna to put up with…

That couldn’t be farther from the truth.

It was a dynamic that Adam would have never imagined at the time, not that he had much time to ponder it since he was ransacking his brain in service of the more important matter: the raid. He discussed the plan in greater detail with Daisuke. Obviously, with new players at his disposal, Daisuke needed some adjustments, and Adam was the man for the job. Most of the talking revolved around what role Laith would play within the raiding force and with Adam’s insight, they found a suitable task for him.

Surprisingly, the brothers found out that even lady Tokugawa was partaking in the raid. She was a proficient archer and she insisted on assisting her husband, who wouldn’t agree at first. Eventually, he acquiesced after her perpetual reminders of the lack of cooperators. Besides, Daisuke figured she would inevitably be involved either way should the raid come to pass, might as well benefit from her skills rather than simply putting a target on her back.

That night, Adam and Laith, and after having dinner, decided to spend some time in the veranda peacefully sipping some tea under the starless dark sky, the night breeze a perfect refresher after a long and hectic day. They made sure to make the most out of this peaceful night before traveling tomorrow where they would settle in a completely different district of Shin-Taiyo.

Considering the undercover aspect of their mission, they shouldn’t expect a five-star hotel to house them for the night. As for the night after that…who knew if they would even get the chance to sleep. Tokugawa and his wife both joined them in their quiet time; they were also trying to keep their minds away from the following two days.

“Well, we were lucky we ended up on good terms I guess, getting hosted by married samurais could be pretty scary.” Laith said jokingly.

“Maybe that is the reason why we don’t get many guests.” lady Tokugawa jested.

“Speaking of good terms, Tokugawa san, I hope our earlier conversation didn’t sour our alliance.” Adam was a little hesitant to bring up the topic again.

“Do not worry about it, my husband is not the kind to dwell on settled matters, that argument is long gone by now.” lady Tokugawa comforted Adam.

“It is as she said, it is no longer of any concern…” Tokugawa sounded distraught.

“But something is indeed on your mind, is it not?” his wife asked.

“Is it that obvious?”

“You should see your face.”

Daisuke snorted. “It is Genjiro that worries me, I am not confident he can manage on his own just yet.”

“That’s one thing we can agree on.” Adam seconded. “What’s his deal anyway?”

Daisuke didn’t answer immediately. He was lost in his thoughts, remembering how he came to meet Genjiro and what state he was in.

“Please forgive his foolishness Adam san. I realize his unusual behavior and attitude aren’t always justified, but I would ask that you be more considerate considering the rough journey that got him here.” Tokugawa replied.

“We’ve all been through a lot after the Distortion, so how is it any different for him?” Adam didn’t particularly like it when people used traumas as an excuse for degeneracy.

“Ironically, in his case, it’s more about his previous life. To be honest, it’s hard to even call it that way because he never got the chance to live, he simply existed. And even then, you could hardly call it existing.”

“How do you mean?” Laith posed the question.

“He was born in a prison, lived in a prison and died in a prison.”

Both brothers were taken aback upon hearing that, their brow furrowing. “How does that even come to happen in the first place” was written all over their faces. They didn’t need to speak it for Tokugawa to understand it. Not the first time he’d seen that reaction. He himself had experienced it.

“His mother, whom he has no recollection of, was the one originally imprisoned. She was already pregnant with him at the time and eventually gave birth while being surrounded by walls from all sides. Few years later, she died leaving a child who doesn’t even remember her face.”

“That…is…” the words failed Adam.

“Tragic. But the real tragedy was when the jailers refused to set him free. They saw it fit for an innocent child—barely able to speak—to pay for whatever crimes his mother had committed. He was doomed ever since he was born, but he still managed to survive against all odds.

“It’s a miracle he survived as long as he did knowing nothing of life but the inside of a prison. In all honesty, for him to have persevered nineteen years before taking his own life is an achievement in itself—forgive the crude satire. He came to the world and left it not knowing what it means to be free, not knowing what it means to see the light…just darkness, from start to finish.”

Daisuke choked up a little. It was clearly hard for him to recite this story. Every time he saw Genjiro, Daisuke was reminded of how much suffering that man—his own disciple—had to go through to get to where he was now.

“So I will let you imagine how that same young man, terribly ill-equipped to deal with a normal reality, would fare in the world of Mihad.”

A terrifying thought, one Adam would rather not have it cross his mind in the first place. There was no way you could predict someone’s behavior after having “lived” that way, if you could even call it living, as Daisuke stated. Genjiro was fortunate enough to have encountered his sensei who took him under his wing showing him the way to salvation—that included deterring Genjiro from committing suicide again. Daisuke spared him an even crueler misery that was in store for him, making the Distortion a blessing for Genjiro.

In hindsight, turning out to be a dispassionate drunkard moron was a rather favorable outcome…

Meanwhile, Laith’s mind drifted someplace else, somewhere bleak. Genjiro’s entire existence could have faded into oblivion. If it weren’t for the Distortion, he would have died without accomplishing anything, no trace left behind, not even someone to remember him after his death, no family, no friends, not even enemies. Indeed, it was as if he never even existed.

Laith had grown to value purpose and meaning in life, and to witness someone who died once acquiring neither…that terrified him to no end.

* * *

A starless and moonless sky made for much darker nights after the Distortion, the residual sunlight hardly making up for the newly birthed void.

“You still awake?”

“Does it look like I’m sleeping?”

“Yeah I don’t know if you have noticed but it’s dark so I can’t get much of a detailed look, smartass.”

“Okay fine. I remember you to be less sensitive, Laith.”

“And I remember you to be less of a jerk, Adam.”

“Aha. Have you thought about what you’ll be doing to sell the fact that you’re a performer?”

“Yeah, I’ve come up with a pretty neat idea.”

“I don’t know why, but I don’t like the way you said that.”

“Again, jerk.”

Short silence.

“So if I understood correctly, this Nakamura guy is in possession of the first fragment we are looking for and you are going to have Yuuna sneak inside the castle while the banquet is taking place, find the fragment and procure it for us. Bit too easy don’t you think?”

“If it were that easy, we wouldn’t be allied with forty-three other people beside the three of us.”

“Fair enough. Then how were you thinking of going about it before meeting up with her?”

“That task was previously yours, little brother, minus the sneaking part of course.”

“Mind if I ask what’d previously put me up to?”

“Storm the inside of the main tower of the castle alongside a small group of people and procure it yourself.”

“And what will his ‘Royal Highness Adam’ be doing during all of this?”

“Well, a ‘Royal Highness’ doesn’t get his hands dirty now does he? That’s a job for peasants.”

“Touché.”

“Mind going to sleep then?”

“Why is this particular Daimyo guarding the fragment? He doesn’t seem like that big of a deal—a classic case of an upstart—so why trust him witch such responsibility?”

“Should we care? But if I had to guess, it’s due to the absence of leader in this country. You pick an ambitious fella’ who is relatively unknown and easy to manipulate to ensure his loyalty, and voila.”

“What about the other countries?”

“I would assume the fragments are being safeguarded within stronger institutions, possibly even the highest authority like the king or the emperor. We’ll cross that bridge when we get to it.”

“Who are we talking about anyway? Who is so powerful to infiltrate and dictate the actions of these powerful monarchs?”

“That is the million-dollar question…”

“So now I’m just supposed to stand guard at the exit and ensure our safe escape? A bit lame, don’t you think?”

“Okay now you’re jumping all over the place, go to sleep. I don’t want to hear another word from you.”

“Again, jerk.”

“Shut up and go to sleep.”