XIII

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  Arc XIII Chapter 11

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  Dawn broke over the Land of Grass. Pale, reluctant, yet also gentle and warm, the sun’s light filtered through the lingering morning mist, her rays settling over the tranquil countryside. Here at the edge of civilisation, amidst forests and hills, rocks and creeks, the bustling cities and towns of man lay far away. It was a place where the wild, where nature still reigned as it had millennia ago. And yet the hands of man had laid claim even to these lands.

  Paddies covered the slopes of the hills, their number seemingly infinite. The plots stretched as far as the eye reached, either reinforced with earthen embankments or stone where the terrain proved challenging. Irrigation provided water, the lifeblood of agriculture, carrying it far and wide.

  The basins glistened under the sun, each plot submerged in water. Beneath the surface, lay the mud, rich, dark, fertile. The soil had nourished what had once been mere seedlings. Now, the stalks stood tall, golden, ripe, heavily laden with more grain than they could carry. The stalks were bending under the weight of the rice, as if they knew that the time of harvest would be soon upon them.

  Not far away, nestled among rice and paddies, lay a village, the houses built out of timber and clay, the roofs covered in straw and reeds, a single well situated at the middle of it. It was a village like so many others, hardly unique, hardly memorable, entirely forgettable, ones whose name no one could ever be bothered to remember. One among the hundreds upon hundreds of thousands of villages that spread across the continent. Poor, desolate, wretched.

  The people, without hope, without dreams, without purpose, without escape, forever trapped. Their birth had already determined their place in life. They were no daimyo, no nobles, no ninja, no samurai, no artisans, no merchants. Like their ancestors, they were people of humble birth, mere peasants, and so would be their children, and their children’s children, and so on. Centuries had passed, and yet so little had changed. The rice, the fields, the passing seasons, the fleeting years. On and on, the cycle continued.

  They were the people who worked the land, their backs tired, their hands weary. They would live. They would serve. And they would die, their bodies forever bound to their land, their spirits bound by loyalty to their lords and masters. Their lives were harsh, punishing, their days solely dictated by hardship alone.

  And yet, they rarely came to enjoy the fruits of their labour. Taxation was heavy. It always had been. It was a burden which they were meant to shoulder. It was their duty. The peasants were expected to give, oftentimes more than they could part with. Their rice filled the coffers of their lords and fed cities far away. While the lords and nobles indulged in lavish luxury with nothing found wanting, their subjects lived in squalor and abject poverty. Such was their destiny in this world, one which was rarely grasped even by those who should know better, which included a certain group of fledgling ninja.

  From behind a storehouse around a corner, emerged a pair of curious kitten ears, cautious, prudent. Her ears wiggled in the air, testing the waters. Afterwards, the rest of her fluffy head followed. Katsuki studied her surroundings, her gaze wandering left, then right, then left, then right. Nothing appeared to be amiss. The village was peaceful. No threat was identified.

  Katsuki murmured, “I purrlieve that the area is safe, nya~.”

  Another head emerged right above her, her black strands framing her cute cheeks.

  “Are you absolutely sure?” Yuki wondered.

  “Yes, nya~! Nya enyamies nyearby.” Her feline nodded, evidently sure of herself.

  Another head appeared from behind the corner.

  Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

  “I think Katsuki is right. The village looks safe, for sure”, Mayumi seconded their feline’s opinion.

  And another head emerged, the sole boy among them. His mood was evidently improveable.

  Yuji grumbled, “Look, Yuki, I get it, we’re on our own, and you want to be super careful, but don’t you think you’re exaggerating? This place is just a village. Do you seriously think the villagers are going to ambush us?” The latter was admittedly a scenario that appeared rather unlikely. She doubted that the villagers would attack them.

  Yuki gazed at him, considering his words. “Well, Nee-san always says that it is better to be safe than sorry. So, we must be cautious. You never know what might happen!”

  Yuji blinked at her. “Ehm, right, but I don’t think your Nee-san meant that we should be overly cautious, checking every nook and cranny. We’re in some forsaken village in the middle of absolutely nowhere. What do you think could possibly happen?”

  Mayumi turned to her brother. “Are you sure, Nii-san?”

  Her brother nodded. “Yes. Have a look.” He pointed around, wildly gesticulating to make his point. “Do you see anything suspicious around here? Be real, this is just a boring village like any other. Granted, there are a few people standing around. In fact, there are a lot of people standing over there.”

  “... ... ...” They all followed his gaze, including Yuki. He was correct. There were a lot of people further ahead, both young and old, both men and women. They were gathering around their village square. It seemed that something important was happening over there.

  Yuji continued. “But besides that, what’s supposed to happen? It’s not like we’ve got a bunch of Iwa-nin lying in wait for us here.”

  “Hmm ...” Yuki tilted her head, pondering. “I guess, you might have a point there.” He probably had. So far, their scouting operation had yielded no sign of danger, which meant that their reconnaissance mission had been a major success! Presumably! They had not been attacked yet! And they had also not encountered any enemies yet!

  Nee-san would be most certainly proud of her tactical acumen! After all, she was following her Nee-san’s teachings to the letter! How fortunate that she was always carrying a handbook with her that collected all of them!

  Yuki gazed at Yuji, raising her index finger in a sage manner. “Even then, this is our, as well as my, first proper mission. So, I do not want to take any risks.” Yuki clenched her tiny fists, her motivation blazing. “Nee-san has entrusted us with a task of immense importance, which is why I do not wish to disappoint her!” Such was not only inconceivable, but also inexcusable. They must all give their best. Failure was not acceptable!

  “... ... ...” Yuji fell silent, less than convinced. “I think you’re somewhat overestimating the importance of our ‘mission’.” He even used his fingers to emphasise the lack of importance of their mission.

  “How so?” Yuki was confused, an imaginary question mark hanging over her head. “Nee-san instructed us to scout the next village, which we are currently doing. Furthermore, we were told to procure additional provisions for our journey.” Both tasks were admittedly fairly rudimentary, but they were nevertheless important. Each step, no matter how small, counted. That was what Yuki believed.

  Katsuki raised her paw in full agreement. “I must concur, additionyal food is of the meowmost impurrtance, nya~.”

  Both Yuki and Mayumi nodded, sharing her wise notion. Even when Katsuki’s sentiment was little surprising considering her feline nature. Of course, she would appreciate additional food as it was bound to translate into increased rations. She had already vocally advocated for the acquisition of considerable stockpiles of fish and poultry under the pretext of them being nutritious. No to mention, plenty of catnip ... Of course, only for strictly personal use.

  It was good that Nee-san had put her in charge of the mission rather than a certain whimsical cat princess. The chances were high that the latter would probably spend all of their funds on less than sensible acquisitions.

  “...” Yuji, meanwhile, rolled his eyes, somewhat displeased. “Right, so we’re supposed to buy food ... That makes us essentially what? Errand boys ...”

  “Ahem.” Mayumi cleared her throat, correcting him. “And errand girls!”

  “...” Yuji paused for a moment before he agreed. “Right, ... So, that makes us essentially an errand boy and errand gir ...”

  “Ahem.” Katsuki cleared her throat, her whiskers wiggling ostentatiously, accompanied by a mighty kitty glare.

  Yuki was once again stopped cold, caught off guard. He sighed. “All right, all right, that makes us essentially an errand boy, two errand girls, and an errand cat. Is everybody catisfied now?” He sounded somewhat annoyed, This time no one objected, much to his relief. Now everyone was duly included.

  His words gave Yuki pause, who tilted her head, thinking cutely. “Well, if you put it like that, I guess that you are right ...” The most likely explanation was that Nee-san put little faith in their combat capabilities, which was probably the reason as to why she assigned them such an innocuous mission. Which was only further proof that Nee-san was such a kind hearted person. No wonder that she was the bestest Nee-san in the entire world!

  Yuki returned from her pondering back to the real world. “Anyway, I believe that we should investigate the crowd. Its presence is obviously highly unusual, and it appears that something important is going on there.” As a matter of fact, the crowd grew increasingly restless. The people, they started to whisper ... The nervousness was palpable. There was tension in the air. “Investigating the matter clearly falls within the purview of our mission.”

  Yuji, Mayumi, Katsuki, they all nodded. For a change, everyone agreed.

  Yuki gathered her courage. Katsuki jumped into her arms, the cat princess snuggling safely against her soft chest. “Let’s go. Time to move.”

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