He pointed the spear tip defiantly at them, his face contorted with anger.

‘Your parents did!’

Throwing the weapon to the ground, Toge stormed out of the storehouse, leaving the young samurai shamed into silence. Jack too was lost for words. He hadn’t been fully aware of the bitter division between farmer and samurai. He now understood why the ronin were reluctant to help the farmers; but, even more, why the farmers were so mistrusting of the samurai. Their lives were ruled and ruined by the actions of the warrior class.

‘Do you still intend to leave?’ asked Jack of Hayato.

He shrugged noncommittally. ‘After dishonouring our dead in such a way, they’ve only themselves to blame for their situation.’

‘Fix the problem – not the blame,’ said Yori.

Everyone turned to him. His quiet voice had become the word of wisdom among the group.

‘That’s what Sensei Yamada always says,’ he explained. ‘If our parents are the cause of the farmers’ problems, can we not be the solution?’

‘I don’t see how,’ said Saburo bitterly.

‘By working together. If we make a stand and defeat Akuma, we can regain the farmers’ respect for samurai that our elders lost.’

‘And we could certainly do with this weaponry,’ added Miyuki, picking up a sharpened naginata and giving it an admiring look.

‘Yes,’ agreed Jack. ‘That way, at least we’d be putting their bad deeds to good use.’

Hayato nodded with stoic acceptance. ‘I suppose, their shame is our shame. As samurai, we’re duty-bound to make amends.’

Junichi appeared at the storehouse door with Yoshi, shuffling in behind.

‘We heard shouting. Is anything wrong?’ he asked, glancing between the strained faces of the young samurai. Then he saw the weapons and his own guilt-ridden expression said it all.

‘I-I-I can explain …’ he stuttered.

‘There’s no need,’ replied Yori. ‘Whatever the past has been, it need not be the future.’

Junichi smiled with awkward relief. ‘Of course not.’

Yoshi squinted at Yori with genuine respect. ‘For such a young monk, you possess an old soul,’ he croaked. ‘In my life, I’ve learnt that there is no future without forgiveness. Our village is grateful for the mercy you’ve shown us.’

‘Does that mean I can keep this?’ asked Kunio, holding up the sword he’d found.

‘By all means,’ replied Hayato with a sly grin. ‘We’ll even send you in first to fight Akuma.’

Kunio’s face went pale at the thought and he hurriedly put down the sword. ‘On second thoughts, I think I prefer a bamboo spear.’

26 Samurai School

26

SAMURAI SCHOOL

Shouts of fighting assaulted Jack’s ears before he’d even turned the corner. In front of him, a group of farmers stood in three rows, their fists held up, feet planted in a defensive stance.

‘Ichi, ni, san …’ shouted Saburo, counting off each of their punches.