The test of Iga

He looked at the scroll in his hands while nodding at his father. "All the information for your mission is on that scroll. Follow it, and complete the task inside." He bowed at his father, opening the scroll and looked at the contents inside. "This doesn't look too difficult father. I'll complete this and return to you before the sun is up."

"Good. Now go." He turned, looking at the forest in front of him. "The farm that father was working on is in that direction. I need to make sure that I can get there unseen. I must focus and be prepared, because Iga men are between me and the target." He stepped amongst the trees, keeping his body low and hidden amongst the shadows of the forest. He kept looking around searching for his opponents. "I don't see any yet. They'll be around somewhere watching out for me."

He hid in a bush at the end of the forest, staring into the clearing of the small farm that he had spent many months learning how to fight. He smiled as he saw the moonlight start to reveal itself from behind a cloud. "There they are. They seem to be waiting for me to jump out of the forest, and run up to them. That's the opposite thing that I'll do."

He looked up at the night sky smiling at the clouds there. "I'll wait for the clouds to cover the moon, and then I'll move. I'll stay hidden while the moonlight isn't blocked." He looked at the scroll in his hand. "The target's in the hut. I'm going to try and hit the target, without taking any other guard down." He spoke the kujiin mantra, calming his heart and mind, as he stared at the moving guards. "I can't use my bombs here, because they'll be ready for that, and this isn't the best type of weather to use my other special tools. What about their routine?"

He sat in the bush watching silently as the guards patrolled around the hut, and close to the forest in thought. He smiled when he saw a gap in their patrol. "If I can get to there when the cloud covers the moon, I'll be safe, and they won't see me. I just have to time my run when the guard is at the farthest point away from the forest."

He stood back in the shadows of the trees watching as the clouds covered the moon and ran towards the gap. He dropped onto the ground and laid waiting mentally saying the kujiin to keep his body calm, and to stop him breathing heavily. "Step one complete. Now to reach the hut without being seen, or heard. He looked at the roof of the hut frowning. "That'll be too noisy, and the front door is also going to be guarded." He looked at the torches spaced around the hut, and smiled as he stared at the walls of the hut. "There seems to be a way, but I must be quick." He watched the patrols around the hut counting their steps until they returned to the spot in front of him. He smiled. "Got their route, now what about the others?" He looked around, and saw the other guards off in the distance. "I need some misdirection. It would give me more time, but also, it would tighten the security around the hut."

He frowned, shaking his head. "I can't use that here, because I'm already at this point. I can't go back or I'll run out of time, I just need to keep going, before the sun starts to rise." He counted as the guard walked past him. "I need to go now, before the cloud moves away from the moon." He ran to the hut counting in his head, as he grabbed his throwing knife in his hand and started to quickly and quietly cut into the wall of the hut. He looked up, and around him as he counted, running back to his hiding spot when the time was almost up.

"The hole is done, now I just need to check that its in a good position to attack from." He started to count again once the guard had passed him, running back to the hut and looking through the small hole he had made. He smiled as he saw the target laying on the ground looking to be asleep. He looked at the inside of the door, with a smile. "I knew they'd make a trap at the door."

"Its time to attack. He grabbed his bamboo fukiya, smiling at it, remembering how Fuma taught him to use it, and stuck it through the hole. He put the poison barb in the end and blew it towards the target. He smiled as he saw the barb hit the target's body as it slept. He ran back to his spot, watching the guard appear once again.

"Its done. I can leave now. He ran back into the forest, to where his father was waiting. He knelt in front of him bowing. "Mission complete father."

"That was fast. Did you successfully complete the task?" He nodded, as he sat up. "I completed the task without touching any of the guards, nor letting them see me."

"Very interesting. How did you do it?" He smiled as he looked at his father, he pulled out his fukiya and placed it on the ground in front of him and his father. "A fukiya. Very impressive. But still the target was in a hut. How did you use it while the target was inside?"

"I dug a small hole in the wall. It wasn't made of brick or stone, so I was able to use my kunai here to make a hole and than hit the target."

"What about the poison on the barb you used. Does it kill?" He nodded. "Its a poison that I made with the help of the yellow tengu. I learned a lot during my own experimentation as well. The targets body would be turning black around the point where the barb hit, and by morning, the entire body of the target would be black and dead."

"Interesting poison you have there. Lets wait till dawn and see the results of your attack. If the target is as you say it is than you've passed the trial." He nodded. "What do you do until then?"

"We stay here and enjoy the night. For a shinobi from Iga, the night is the most beautiful time. The shadows, the moon, the stars above us, they point and lead us to where we need to go." He looked up at the cloudy night sky nodding. "I agree father. I've always enjoyed the night. Usually, its something that children and young are afraid. I don't think I've ever been afraid of the dark."

"Correct son. I also haven't see you be afraid of the dark. It seems the blood of Hattori really flows through you." He smiled. "I'm glad that it does. I think I'm going to be a shinobi that the world has ever never seen or heard of before."

He heard a bang, and a bright light shooting into the sky from the farm. "It seems they have seen the results of your attack. Come lets go and see your work. You did say the poison would kill the target at dawn. I wonder what has happened?" He stood and followed his father in silence as they walked out of the forest, and stood at the fields with the guards waiting for the both of them.

"He's passed the trial. We never saw him get to the target, and use poison to kill them." He smiled, staring at his father's back. "Masanari. Step forward." He stepped forward, bowing at the masked guards in front of him. "You have skills young Hattori. It would be a shame on us if we didn't accept you into the Iga family." He smiled at the masked group. "Thank you for your praise."

"No need for praise young Hattori. From this moment on, you're a shadow of Iga. Your name won't be written down in praise, or of the accomplishments you'll do. It'll will be a shadow from now on. No one will ever know, not even our lord will know all that you do. As long as you complete the mission in shadow, you die in shadow, your life is the shadow, to get information and return alive, or dead in the shadows."

He smiled bowing to the masked guards. "Thank you. I'm happy to be a shadow of Iga. I'll give my life to Iga and my lord."

"Son. Let me see the target, and how they died." He nodded and followed his father and the masked guards in silence.

"Hanzo, the death of the target is gruesome. The young Hattori, really didn't go lightly on them. He was screaming, kicking and frothing at the mouth, until he died."

He watched his father look at the open door to the hut in silence, letting the masked guards open the door, disarming the trap. "Son. Your poison, make sure you don't get any on your hands. Its dangerous, and it seems to kill the target a lot faster than you thought it would." He nodded, bowing at his father. "I take care when I use it. The target just happened to be asleep, so I was able to use it without issue."

He took a step back as his father covered their nose with their clothing. "No guards saw you do this to the target. You've passed the trial and become a member of Iga. We're farmers, doctors, and medicinal merchants. I expect great things from you son. I know you'll bring fear to those who run from Iga." He smiled, bowing at his father. "I'll do you and Iga proud."

"Good. Now lets leave this place." He saw his father looked at the masked guards. "Burn it."

"Yes Hanzo." He followed his father, only stopping to see the hut turn into flames. He looked at his father. "Father. I have a question."

"You want to know who the target was?" He nodded. "That person was a deserter samurai, that ran into the mountains, killing and raping anyone he touched. He lost his Bushido long ago, and part of our role is to hunt those who cause harm to the people of Japan." He nodded in thought. "It was the first of many kills you'll make over your lifetime. You should be prepared."

"Father, killing wasn't why I asked. I just wanted to know who it was. For his crimes he deserves death, and I'm glad that I was able to be the one to give the killing blow."

"You really have grown up. It seems I'll be able to step down from being Hanzo soon in the future." He smiled. "You'll have to let me serve my lord first before that happens."

"It'll happen when it happens. You should go back to your room. As you now know, no one can know of your true path. That's hidden to all except for the other men and women of Iga, and the young lord. That's all who should know. Everyone else will see you as the person you want them to see you as. A monk, a samurai, a merchant. Whatever you want to be you can be, but your life is to your lord and to Iga. Never forget that."

He bowed at the back of his father. "I won't be forgetting that at all." He looked up at the shrine gate and saw a small group of shadows standing there waiting for them to arrive. "Those there waiting, know, but they'll never say anything about it. They know what it means to hold the secret that they have, and death will come if they speak it aloud." He looked at his father. "You aren't coming with me back to the temple?"

"No. I have matters to attend to, and you also have more training to get through. Once you've finished here, I'll be waiting, and mother will be waiting to introduce your future wife to you." He smiled. "I'm also waiting to see you all again." He bowed as his father turned away from the temple, and back down the mountain. He turned, walking up to the waiting figures, bowing at them. "It seems he's passed the trial, and now one of them."

"You know the rules. This is something we don't know, and have to forget come morning. For now. I have got food, and wine. Lets go to his room and celebrate." He smiled at the black masked tengu. "Fuma, I used that poison, the one we've been working on. Its very effective, even more than we thought it would be."

"Masanari, you need to tell me more. What happened when you used it?"

"You can't ask him that. You know the rules."

"Its for science and understanding Sojobo. Masanari ignore the old goat and tell me about its effects." He smiled and bowed at the yellow tengu. "I will, its not secret, but its death is gruesome." He followed the small group of teachers in silence, smiling as he walked in the darkness. "Soon, it'll be in my hands. Soon. All my hard work is going to pay off."