NOTE ON THIS ENGLISH EDITION

This volume collects the first trio of a dozen-part series. The

cover art was for the original Book One, while Books Two
and Three’s have been included as a gatefold.

The footnotes appended to this translation can be ignored, if

the reader so wishes, and the story encountered on its own.
Not intended to be exhaustive, they give the Japanese word
and its transliteration when they occur, in addition to
supplying more literal or straightforward renditions in most
cases. Readers with some Japanese may find them
clarifying, and those with none, too, are invited to observe
(for instance) many no doubt familiar terms in their native
form.
Where appropriate, the transliterations add bars called
“macrons” above vowels for a closer approximation of the
pronunciation, including for names and words that appear
without them in the main text; a syllable with “Ō” is
supposed to sound more like boat than bot. A repeated
consonant like “CC” should be construed in the same
manner as in Rebecca.
The translator agreed beforehand to provide the bulk of
the annotations. The author’s infamous penchant for
wordplay always poses a challenge, but it is the work’s
period setting that inspired Vertical’s request. If all that it
does is open a window into the difficulties of the endeavor,
not just for this particular project but regarding any attempt
to convey the sense of a source language, then so much the
better.
Enjoy.
─Ed.
 ■ ■

In those days, the Capital1 boasted six hundred and forty-

five official schools for swordplay, great and small─but when
you throw in all the unofficial schools, there were easily a
thousand. Famous among them was the Hisho2 Dojo, on the
east3 side of the city, an elite institution with strong ties to
the bakufu4 and a history extending back to the Age of
Warring States,5 and a household name for anyone
conversant in the martial arts.
Within these walls, seven men faced off.
But no─to say they faced each other confuses things. In
actuality, six men surrounded one man, in a circle.
Not what you would call a sporting atmosphere.
Something was awry.
Dressed in the black gi6 of Hisho Dojo, the six men
stood with their bokutos7 at the ready. Unbelievably, the
man trapped in their weir of swords was empty-handed.
This was not exactly the right time for contemplation,
but the man penned by the other six was focused not on
them, but on the floor, as if puzzled by the planks below his
feet.
The only one without a gi, he was bare to the waist and
basically in rags. While fit and long in stature─he was not
what you call slender. You could say that he had just enough
muscle in just the right places. His tousled hair was knotted
at the back. Every movement radiated wildness.
He shook his head.
Eyes on his feet.
“What’s wrong now?”
She spoke at a remove, from a corner of the dojo.
 A woman in a brash, brilliant kimono leaned comfortably
against the wall. The perfect vantage point for watching the
seven men─that is, the six men encircling the one. She did
nothing to hide her smile. While young─her long hair was
completely white. No strand of black.
“If something’s on your mind, just say it.”
The man seemed bothered by her question.
“It’s not like that─I’m just a little out of place. I’m an
island monkey. I don’t think I’ve ever stepped on wood so
shiny.”
“I suppose not.”
The woman smirked.
Enjoying herself.
“Don’t take the name of the dojo seriously. The floors
aren’t actually made of ice. Pay attention to these
guys─none of them should be mistaken for expendable. Men
of their ability go down in history─”
“History? Who needs it. Can’t help you, can’t help me,”
the lone man said. “All that matters is they’re swordsmen.8
And up against a sword, I never lose.”
“That’s some confidence. And no doubt justified. But
remember, you’re not up against one man. There’s six.”
“Six swords.”
“Six is six. Even if you punch and kick and headbutt all
at once, that’s only five─you and your kenpo9 are in over
your head. Something must be wrong with you to face a
sword barehanded. But then again, if you were any other
way, you’d be no use to me.”
“I want to show you. I want you to need me. I need you
to. Nothing else matters.”
The six men shrank their circle.
Not happy.
And why would they be? Those two were blabbing as if
none of them were here─it was enough to annoy anybody,
not to say the elite of a venerable dojo.
 Their stirring made the trapped man raise his head.
But his words─
“Alright. Let’s go.”
─were endlessly aloof.
The same went for his expression.
“No use thinking. No room to move, but no room to
slip─let’s go. You say the word.”
“Alright,” the woman nodded. “Let’s─”
Begin.
Before she could say the word, the six men─six wooden
swords─rose to action. Swordsmen of such legendary
promise could aim10 at the same target without clashing.
Sparing none of him, their swords would fall at once over his
body─
Or would they?
“Ugh─what a pain…”
Even now, he showed no sign of excitement.
“I told you─this isn’t kenpo. This is swordplay.11 And
even with six, they’re short a sword─against me. Feast your
eyes on this.”
The Swordless Swordsman crouched─low to the ground.
“Kyotoryu12─Shichika Hachiretsu13─”

■ ■

That’s as good a place to start as any.

To unroll the scroll of this war of katanas.
This swashbuckling play on swords, this piecemeal
period piece.
And so we begin: the Tale of the Sword14♪

1 京の都 KYŌ NO MIYAKO phrasing of 京都 KYŌTO (“capital city”) that brings out

the literal meaning 2 氷床 HISHŌ “floors of ice”

3 左京 SAKYŌ “left capital”
4 幕府 BAKUFU shogunate 5 戦国時代 SENGOKU JIDAI historical period of conflict,
culminating in the unification of Japan 6 着 GI attire worn when practicing
the martial arts 7 木刀 BOKUTŌ wooden sword 8 剣士 KENSHI swordfighters 9
拳法 KENPŌ “law/method of the fist”
10 剣線 KENSEN “line of the sword”
11 剣法 KENPŌ “law of the sword” homophone with 拳法 KENPŌ
12 虚刀流 KYOTŌRYŪ “fictive katana style” (KYOTŌ, and not KYŌTO) 13 七花八裂
SHICHIKA HACHIRETSU destroying seven foes pun on 八 つ 裂 き YATSUZAKI
“tear apart” and the saying 七 転 八 起 SHICHITEN HAKKI “fall down seven
times, get up eight”
14 刀語 KATANAGATARI (a neologism) Sword Tale
 ■ ■

In Tango, beyond the sea extending from the Cliffs of Shinso,

an island sits on the horizon. Tiny, only ten miles1 around.
Few of the villagers of Shinso even knew that it was
there─and those who did could care less. What was there to
care about? It wasn’t on any of the maps, and it had no
name. Nobody felt the need to name another empty island
in a string of empty islands.
Empty…or was it?
It had been, until some twenty years ago.
Twenty years back, when a family crossed over from
Shinso─they named this place Haphazard Island.2 They were
the only three souls on earth with a reason to name it.

■ ■

“What a pain3…”
It was the crack of dawn.
Outside a ramshackle hut built near the center of the
island, a man sat grumbling, dressed in rags, tousled hair
tied at his neck. Still in the process of waking, he muttered
over his handiwork.
A bucket.
Big and round.
Perhaps, more aptly, a barrel─and shaped with the same
slapdash attitude as the hut. At first glance, you might
mistake it for a roped-up bundle of sticks, but the seams
lacked even the slimmest gap for water to intrude. He threw
a ladle in the bucket and slung it on his back, using the
ropes that bound it tight to strap it to his shoulders.
What a pain, he thought, not voicing the words this
time.
He wasn’t mad─had nothing against the bucket or the
ladle. To him, almost everything was, by default, a pain.
Waking up? Absolutely. But even closing his eyes to go to
sleep at night. A pain.
“Here we go.”
While not actually pausing, he seemed supremely
bothered that he had to stand. Eyes bleary from sleeping,
he turned and set off for the mountain─
Which is when the door to the hut creaked open.
“Shichika…”
Someone called him from inside.
Shichika Yasuri4…
His name.
“Where are you going, Shichika?”
“Uh…”
He turned, flustered and embarrassed, and tried but
failed to look away. Eyes spinning in his head. The face of a
kid caught red-handed in a prank. But Shichika was too old,
though not by far, to be confused for a kid, and no kid had a
build like his. Strictly speaking, he was doing nothing wrong,
but when the voice from the hut─his older sister
Nanami─reached his ears, he was as good as guilty.
Nanami Yasuri.5
Unlike her wild younger brother, Nanami was the picture
of comely grace. Her face and bearing had the attraction of
porcelain─but in her beauty and crafted smoothness, there
was something fragile and breakable. Leaning in the
doorway, wearing just a haori6 over her slip, she watched
Shichika with a cold stare.
Voice drained of feeling.
“I asked where you were going.”
 “It looked, uh, like we were low on water, so I figured I’d
go fetch some. Go back to bed. You shouldn’t come out
dressed like that. You’ll catch a cold.”
“Says the guy not wearing a shirt. I’m fine. It’s just
enough to cool me down. The cold air feels nice against my
skin. Besides, I was supposed to do the chores today.”
“Yeah, I know. I mean─” Shichika sputtered, “I didn’t
know that.” He was shaking in his sandals. “Does it really
matter? Consider it part of my training.”
“Shichika.”
Her voice was cold.
Ready to refute any excuse.
It shut him up real quick.
“How many times do I need to tell you? Stop treating
me so preciously.”
“I didn’t─mean to.”
“I’m capable of fetching water. You were raised better
than to be so pushy. And all this training?” Nanami sighed7
dismissively. “Pointless.”
“What makes it pointless─”
 “Everything. Why train when you’re the end of the
tradition?”
“…”
Nanami sighed again.
She could sigh with the best of them.
“No one’s asking you to be a hero.”
“Yeah, well, thanks for the advice. I’m doing my best.
Yesterday I came up with an insane new Fatal Orchid. This
one is out of control.”
“Shichika.”
Nanami wouldn’t let him change the subject.
“…What?” he asked.
“It’s been a year since Dad died. Don’t you think it’s
time?”
“Time for what?”
“If you can build a bucket,” she said flatly, pointing at
the thing strapped to his back, “I’m sure that you can build
a boat. Dad was the one they banished.8 I would never
make it over there, but you…”
“Don’t be ridiculous.” This was too much. Shichika was
done humoring her. “I get what you mean. Same as you,
I’ve been on this island as long as I can remember─but I
can’t just up and go over to the mainland. I wouldn’t know
my left from right, or up from down. I’d wind up dead in a
ditch9 somewhere.”
“Still,” Nanami said.
“Training may be pointless. I agree. But the school is the
only thing Dad left me─I’m going to uphold the tradition as
long as I can.”
“Huh.” Nanami smirked. “I had no idea that you missed
Dad so much.”
“Sis.”10
“What? Go ahead. If you want to go fetch the water, go
and get it. We can talk about this later. It’s too early for this
sort of thing. I’ll make breakfast. Is the water gone?”
 “There’s a little left.”
“Alright,” she said. “You can show me your new move
later on.”
Nanami stepped back into the hut and closed the door.
Seeing her go was such a relief that Shichika heaved a
sigh. And for a man his size, a sigh was not becoming in the
least. His sister put him to shame.
“I knew she’d bring it up someday, and I guess today’s
the day. But she doesn’t know what she’s talking about. A
bucket’s nothing like a boat.”
Maybe their father could have built a boat. Twenty years
ago, he built the hut─with his own hands.
But Shichika? No chance.
Not without a single blade11 on the entire island.
This was no exaggeration.
Shichika and Nanami were stuck here.
On this island.
Stuck to their father.
And to his school.
“…”
Did he miss him?
Did he really?
His line about fetching water being part of his training
was sincere (it had to be), but it surprised him when his
sister referenced his feelings for his father.
He was a great man. They called him Hero of the
Rebellion.
By comparison, Shichika had accomplished nothing.
To be fair, having lived most of his life on Haphazard
Island, he had yet to have the chance to perform daring
feats of valor─but this gave him a lingering sense of
inferiority.
Uphold the tradition─
His father had trained him up until his death.
 It was his father’s school. That made the training
matter.
But Nanami was right. If Shichika stayed holed up on
this island, the school would die off with him. She may have
been the one to bring it up, but it was on his mind. Hell,
even their father must have known─a day would come.
But all the same.
At any rate.
Shichika knew nothing of the outside world─
And didn’t care to learn.
Why bother─such a pain.
“…Here we go.”
He twisted his back to slide the bucket into place and
headed toward the mountain.
Across the desert island.
Deserted as it was, Haphazard Island had freshwater─if
it didn’t, his whole family would have died of thirst years
ago. But the water wasn’t in a river or a well. It bubbled
from a spring in the mountain. Because the island was a
single mountainous mass, it was hard to say what was
mountain and what wasn’t (and in reality, outside of the
beaches and the clearing where they kept their hut, almost
everything was mountain), but the spring in question sat
beyond an especially treacherous pass─not a place he would
gladly have his sister venturing for water. In the year since
their father’s passing, Shichika had been quietly
replenishing their supply, but it seemed that she had finally
caught on. Soon she would discover all the other menial
tasks he had been carrying out in secret─but what could he
do. It was a miracle that somebody as dull as him had been
able to delude someone as sharp as his sister for so long.
─Her face.
She did look a little pale.
The hour was not to blame.
Only her brother could possibly have noticed, since
already on normal days her complexion was not just clear
and white but almost sky blue─
─Still.
What if she is sick again?
When she said the cold air felt nice, could that mean
she was catching a fever?
Nanami was frail. That much was certain─encountered
in the night, she would be easy to mistake for a spirit,12 if
not an actual ghost.13 She had been doing so well─not like
this was to his credit, for handling all the chores─yet now
that she had caught up on his act, he doubted she would
listen if he told her to stay home and rest. More likely she
would overextend herself, trying to compensate. The
opposite of her apathetic brother, she hated nothing more
than sitting still. At first glance, you may think her lethargy
shared some aspect of her brother’s grumbling, but at the
root, these moods were unrelated. Hers, quite simply, was a
function of her sickly constitution.
She would rather be working. Always.
Sick as she was.
Or maybe sickness was the reason─people want what
they can’t have, and long to do what they cannot. Surely
this was the case for Nanami.
But not Shichika. He hated what he had, and was loath
to do the things he could.
My father─
─the hero.
Enough thinking. He closed his eyes.
His head was hurting.
Shichika was not a thinker. Reasoning was not his
strength. If there was anything he hated or loathed, it was
complicated explanations.14
That was his sister’s territory.
─They were like a bow and string.
Or rather, a mended lid on a cracked pot.15
 As Shichika would have it, things were the way they
were, and whatever happened happened─period. In his
view, it was best to leap before you looked.
“Huh?”
He noticed something.
Shichika knew this island better than anyone, with his
father gone─and maybe even when his father was alive. The
island was so small. He knew it all, down to the last blade of
grass. If something changed, even slightly, he would notice.
“…”
A disturbance in the soil.
Footprints─small, but human.
They were wearing sandals. Flat ones.
Was it Nanami? Couldn’t be. First off, he had no memory
of making her this kind of sandal, and second, the footprints
were fresh─there was no way Nanami could have overtaken
him. Distracted as he was by his confounding thoughts, he
had traveled in an almost perfectly straight line, but
Nanami, on top of being too weak to catch up to a tortoise,
was so easily disoriented16 she was apt to set off for the
mountains and wind up in the sea.
It was just the two of them, on the entire island. If these
footprints weren’t Nanami’s, and obviously not his, whose
were they?
By process of elimination─no, no matter how you
thought about it, or even if, like Shichika, you didn’t think,
the answer was clear─someone else was on the island.
Not a problem.
Just a pain.
Shichika even felt that his priority was to move on to the
spring and fetch water─but he couldn’t let himself ignore
this. His father had been on the lookout nineteen years,
since being banished, watching for someone from the
mainland to show up on the island. While there had been a
few near misses, no one had ever come.
 Until today.
Sure enough, only after his father’s death.
“If Dad was here, he’d school them and be done with it.
But what am I supposed to do? Welcome them? I’d better
leave that to Nanami.”
Talking to himself, Shichika adjusted his route. Knowing
the entire island─he could guess, from the footprints, what
this stranger had been thinking. They were trying to follow
the easiest path. Wherever it was easiest to walk─of course,
this being in the mountains, there was no path, but that
aside, the steps did not suggest that whoever made them
had a specific destination─or if they did, they had no clue
how to get there.
Or maybe, like Nanami, they were quick to lose their
way.
Shichika knew exactly where he was, but if a normal
person wandered off into these hills, they would be in deep
trouble, quite doomed. But then again, as far as Shichika
recalled, he had never met a “normal person.” Twenty years
ago, when his father brought them here, he was only four
years old. He lacked the perspective necessary to
comprehend words like “normal” or “other.” His world had
only two people─his father, dead a year, and his sister,
whom he saw every day. His father had taught them facts
about the outside world─but facts were not reality.
Faced with unfamiliar footprints and the question of who
left them, a normal person would have been more
cautious─or at least indulged in some degree of speculation,
but in Shichika Yasuri’s case, even this variety of thinking
was a pain.
Speculation was not among his special moves.
If only he had run home and sought help from his sister,
who despite her identical island upbringing was prone to
speculation, he would never have been embrangled in the
pain-in-the-butt adventure that was to come─but alas, it
wasn’t in the cards.
 Whatever will be will be.
Things will happen as they will.
Such is the way of the world.
From the way the branches had been bent back from
the path, Shichika was able to discern the height of whoever
left the footprints. Whoever this was, they weren’t very tall,
but no kid either. Small footprints, on their own, could be a
kid, but factoring in the disturbance of the branches,
Shichika was certain they had been left by a woman.
A woman.
But he didn’t think anything of it.
Well, there was one other thing.
One thing his dull mind couldn’t shake─the way the
footprints pressed into the ground. The soil wasn’t squishy,
like fresh mud, but while he couldn’t say for sure, it seemed
as if the footprints on the left were deeper than the
footprints on the right.
Something she was carrying made her favor her left
side.
Something heavy.
“Hmm.”
But hmm was as far as he got.
Nevertheless, in short time he discovered that his guess
was on the mark─thin as Shichika may have been, he was a
big guy with a big stride. And a woman left these footprints.
Carrying something heavy. She didn’t know her way. It
would have been far stranger if he never found her.
But there she was.
Slim silhouette.
Long white hair─no strand of black.
The hair had made it hard at first to tell how old she
was─but she was young. Like his sister Nanami, she left her
hair undone, flowing down over her shoulders, but she wore
a voluminous kimono in gold brocade. However elegant and
brilliant, her outfit was the worse for wearing on a mountain
pass, and its hem sprayed thread where it had caught so
many pesky branches. Yet her sloppy17 way of dressing
made the fraying seem like a fashion statement.18 Each of
her appurtenances glimmered with luxuriance. No detail,
taken singly, could be rightly called offensive─but as a
whole, at least by normal standards, she came across as
showy, enough to make you want to take a step back.
Then again.
To Shichika, ignorant of any norm, she somehow made
no overstrong impression. Not even her curious hair─but
again, there was one thing that caught his eye.
The katana dangling from her left hip.
The heavy thing was a katana.
“Hey, it’s not like you’re not welcome here. People can
visit if they like.”
Shichika addressed the woman without hesitation.
Fear didn’t register.
Though perhaps a little fear would have been normal.
“So yeah, just letting you know, now that you’re here,
there’s one big rule─no blades allowed. On the entire
island.”
“…”
She heard this sudden greeting from behind─
But it did nothing to discomfit her.
Taking her time, the woman turned.
Her countenance was no pushover’s. Eyes perked up at
the corners.19 No grandeur left unaired.
Those perky eyes scrutinized Shichika before glancing at
the thing slung from her hip.
“Then I apologize.” The woman did bow her head. “I
didn’t know, so forgive me.”
“…Hey, I didn’t make the rules.”
His father had.
And thanks to him, he and his sister had to do
everything, including cook, without so much as a knife. After
twenty years, he couldn’t care less─but truth be told, this
was the first time Shichika had seen a real katana.
It was possible that he had seen a sword before coming
to the island─but his four-year-old mind had retained no
record of it, and besides, seeing something after two
decades is just the same as seeing it anew.
Look at that.
A real─katana.
It sure looked heavy.
“How’d you get here, anyway?”
“A boat,” she said. “How else do you get to an island?”
Obviously.
Right. How else.
The question was embarrassing enough to make you
want to take it back.
But not Shichika. He went on.
“Why are you here?”
He wasn’t asking to find out. He was merely keeping
faith on what his father and his sister told him he should ask
at times like this. Unconcerned with how the woman
answered, he thought only of what to ask next, or─crap,
should he have asked her for her name first?
“I came to see Mutsue20 Yasuri, Sixth Master of the
Kyotoryu. Do you know him?”
“He died,” said Shichika. “Last year.”
So she was here to see his father.
In which case, she had a distinct destination after all.
Betraying only a flicker of surprise, the woman caught
herself.
“Is that so.” She nodded. “I assumed as much─after all,
it has been twenty years─but if he’s no longer with us, you
must be─”
“I am Shichika Yasuri. Seventh Master of the Kyotoryu.”
“Ah.”
She smiled.
 An understanding grin.
“What was I thinking─how silly of me to ask. What with
Mutsue and his family being the only ones who live here.
Which makes you─”
“His son. For what it’s worth.”21
“I see. You have a nice build. You’re in good shape. I’d
say you pass muster.”
“Past master? I’m the present master.”
“…Yes, of course.”
“If you came to see my father, I hate to disappoint you.”
“I did indeed, but my business remains with the master
of your school. Which means, young master, that my
business with your father is now with you. Excuse the
tardiness of my own introduction. I am Togame,22 the
Schemer.”
“Togame?”
What a strange name.
Wait─what did she say after that?
The Schemer?23
Shichika was on the verge of asking his first
unrehearsed question, but the woman made the first move.
“Let’s see this Kyotoryu of yours.”
She drew the katana at her hip.
A thin sword,24 four feet25 long.
Its temper line26 perfectly straight.27
Blade engraved with the image of a tiger.
“An early work of Kasamaro Mibu, one of the thirty-six
Fugaku28 Swordsmiths─I had feared it may be no match for
Mutsue Yasuri, Hero of the Rebellion, but for a go around
with his son, it may just do the trick.”
“A go around? What do you mean?”
“Nothing more than its customary sense. Have at you!”
This was the first sword Shichika had ever seen─and of
course the first sword anyone had pointed in his face─but he
did not flinch. Although his real eyes had never witnessed a
sword, his mind’s eye had seen them constantly over his
twenty years of training on the island; he hadn’t slacked off
in the year since his father’s passing.
He was ready.
Shichika Yasuri feared no sword─
“Gadzooks!”
However.
The many secrets of the Kyotoryu were not to be aired
on this precise occasion. Coming at him with her stalwart
battle cry, her sword raised high─Togame caught her foot on
an outcropping of rock and fell flat on her face.
Thus Shichika, Seventh Master of the Kyotoryu, made
the acquaintance of Togame the Schemer.
It was the first moon of the new year, in an era long
before Gadzooks! had fallen out of fashion.

■ ■

“Kyotoryu” means “Way of the Empty29 Sword.”

It was founded in the chaos of the Age of Warring
States.
By Kazune Yasuri.30
The reputation of katana31 as the epitome of handheld
weapons is perennial─a fact destined to go unchanged. Its
strengths are too numerous to tally, but if forced to offer
only two, they would be that it is long, and it is heavy. Its
length makes it lethal, as does its weight. This combination
would give anyone the upper hand. But as with all things far
and wide, these strengths double as weaknesses. The
length of a katana, like its weight, make wielding it
impractical.
Thus came Kazune to his philosophy.
 Swordsmen, he reasoned, are the strongest creatures on
earth. But to truly be the strongest, you must be void of any
weakness─even if it means surrendering your strength. He
took the discipline places no swordsman before him had
dared to venture.
Kazune forsook the sword.
A true swordsman needs no sword─to him, this was the
key. For the next ten years, he retreated to the mountains
and toiled in seclusion as he shaped the Kyotoryu. And later,
in the service of the House of Tetsubi, one of the six
daimyos responsible for the current shogunate, his art sent
tremors through the battlefield.
Not kenpo of any stripe. And not mutodori.32
This was swordplay─swordless and lethal.
So legend had it.
Legendary, but true? True or false aside, that much was
known to those who cared to know. Yet few among the living
were familiar with the workings of the Kyotoryu─the only
school of swordplay with no sword at play. Its secrets were
unknowable, not even rumored. To witness it at work, you
had two options─train, or fight─and the former was next to
impossible. Kazune decreed the school would only be
passed down by bloodline. The gates of the school were
more than barred: they were invisible.33 The only viable
option was to provoke one of the masters with a katana─and
the moment you witnessed the Kyotoryu would be your last.
Even if you somehow survived, you would think twice before
bragging about losing, sword in hand, to a man without a
sword.
The school was shrouded in darkness.
Its techniques had been showcased only twice before
the public eye: during the Age of Warring States, by Kazune,
and during the Rebellion, by Mutsue. Its powers were only to
be loosed amid the chaos and confusion of the battlefield.
 And after nineteen years of training under Mutsue, his
son Shichika became the newest Master of the Kyotoryu.
“Miss Togame─was it?” Nanami asked in a calm tone,
sounding completely at ease.
To recap.
The woman, Togame, who had banged her head against
the ground so hard to go unconscious, wound up in
Shichika’s water bucket and rode back to the hut strapped
to his back. Nanami, changed into a short-sleeved robe,
raised an eyebrow when her brother returned laden not with
water but a woman─his failure to return with water
obviously not being the reason for the gesture─but simply
couldn’t leave the fainted woman outside. It took the two of
them to carry her in, whereupon they dispossessed her of
the glimmering thing slung from her hip. The sword was
trouble─though in her hands, not exactly big trouble,
judging from her last display.
Nanami had spent more time on the mainland than her
brother, but she too had gone these twenty years without
seeing a stranger. Nevertheless, she regarded the woman
before them with equanimity. Not simply because she did
not share her brother’s aversion to thought─Nanami had
readied herself daily to meet a situation such as this. She
exuded prudence. Should the sky crumble and fall, she
would be there to catch the pieces.
Their hut had a dirt floor and a step-up into a single
room.
The brother and sister took their breakfast together,
discussing what to do next. Just as they finished eating,
Togame woke from where she lay at the edge of the room.
Nanami stood and offered her a cup of water heated by the
fire.34 Let us take it from there.
“You’re the first visitor we’ve ever had─please forgive us
for being so ill prepared to entertain you.”
 “Please, I owe you the apology. I showed up
unannounced.”
Togame accepted the sayu. It seemed that she had
known Mutsue had a son, but had she known about a
daughter? From the way she had approached him when they
met, she seemed to have arrived at Haphazard Island with
some intelligence. She must have known─but Shichika could
not be bothered to take the thought this far. He assumed
that if she hadn’t known, she had put two and two together,
which meant that there was nothing left to say.
His virtuous sister knew better than to wait idly for her
not-so-virtuous little brother to introduce her.
“I’m Nanami. Daughter of Mutsue Yasuri.” She paused to
look Togame in the eye. “I hear you came to see our
father─would you mind me asking what your connection was
to him?”
To the point.
“We never met,” Togame said. “I wouldn’t call it a
connection.”
 “No?”
“No,” Togame confirmed. “Let’s just say I didn’t have a
standing invitation, Nanami.”
Behind the polite welcome Nanami had extended was a
detectable backdrop of nervousness and caution─but
Togame repaid her courtesy with brusque arrogance. The
Schemer’s bearing suggested not even the slightest shame
at arriving unannounced. As towards Shichika, she
addressed Nanami without formality.35 But for someone who
had eaten dirt and earned herself a fat bump on her
forehead, such airs were nothing if not comical. Or were
they? Up until she took her fall, the woman had been
searching in vain for this very hut─her destination─and lost
her way…for her to maintain such composure after such a
misstep was perhaps less comical than admirable. But
regardless of whether Nanami saw the humor in it, she
didn’t let it hurt her feelings.
She had approached this situation from the first without
concern for how Togame held herself. Her sole interest was
why Togame had arrived. Shichika may have been the
Seventh Master of the Kyotoryu, but with their father gone,
Nanami was head of the house.
“Your sword is in safekeeping─I believe my brother has
already informed you, but on this island, carrying or using
any kind of blade is not allowed.”
“I suppose I have the Kyotoryu to thank for that.”
“Yes…but why attack my brother?”
“I merely hoped to spur him to reveal the school’s
secrets. But I’m afraid my skills are not so sharp as his. I’m
the Schemer─not a swordsman.”
“Still,” Shichika inserted himself into the exchange, “you
sure know how to draw a sword.”
Too bad she couldn’t do more.
“Hah.” Togame laughed defiantly. “That much I’ve
practiced.”
 “…”
Why not go all the way?
Shichika did not approve.
“Your method was crude─I cannot say I’m much
impressed.”
“Far be it from me to try to convince you otherwise, but I
had my reasons. I knew Mutsue Yasuri of the Kyotoryu by
name, but not by face. I’d hate to go after the wrong guy.
What better way of confirming his identity than to force his
hand and make him show36 the power of the Kyotoryu?”
“In which case,” deduced Nanami, “either Mutsue or
Shichika would do.” She nodded comprehendingly.
But what was there to comprehend?
“How about you have another go?” Nanami glanced at
the doorway, where leaned the blade. “Though I can’t say
that I recommend it─the Kyotoryu may make him look
unarmed, but Shichika is a sword, meant for killing.37 Not
halfway. All the way. Consider yourself lucky for tripping on
that rock. If your sword had so much as grazed him, you
would have more than a bump on the forehead.”
Nanami’s words were keen enough to chill the room.
While her face said otherwise─she was angry that a
blade had been turned against her brother.
Togame swallowed her breath, but not before Shichika
could swallow his. He wanted to counter that he could in
fact control his strength─how else could he train?─but his
swallowed breath blocked any protest.
“I’ll take that as sufficient evidence I’ve come to the
right place. I need this life of mine. Today is not my day to
die.”
“Well, then.”
We are ready to hear you out, invited Nanami.
She was clearly holding court, and Togame was her
subject. Between them, Shichika felt vaguely excluded, but
he was not sensitive enough to interpret their exclusion as
offensive. He merely figured it was best to let his sister
handle things from here.
Togame tried to pique his interest.38
“Seventh Master of the Kyotoryu. Don’t you desire the
world?”
“Nah.”
“Indeed. Who doesn’t? To be born into this world is to
vie for its dominion. Don’t shy from your ambition. The
Rebellion is fresh in our memories, but who could deny the
determination of the rebels? Even the current shogunate
had to seize their power first. No one has any reason to hold
back in desiring such an office─wait, did you say ‘Nah’?!”
Fool me once.
Shame on you.
“Yeah. I mean, not ‘Nah’ as in ‘No’…”
Shichika searched for the right words.
Suddenly put on the spot, he had refuted her by reflex,
without so much as understanding her question. Try as he
might to take heed now, he couldn’t see what he was
supposed to take. That was it─he should tell her that he
didn’t get it. What was he to think when she came at him
asking about the world? The only one he knew was
Haphazard Island. How could he desire what was his?
This confounding, unenthused reaction made Togame
roll her eyes. Nanami felt the need to intervene.39
“Please remember. This island is the only world we
know. If you start from the end and explain things
backwards or beat around the bush, you may as well
assume you’ve lost him.”
“Thanks for clarifying.” Togame nodded. “Now, if it’s all
the same, I hope you won’t mind if I ask for you to leave. I
don’t want any little birds─”
“That’s out of the question,” Shichika cut her off before
she could finish, and not by reflex. “Two reasons. First, the
Kyotoryu is shared across our bloodline. If our father was
alive, he would have both of us here beside him. Second…
I’m not so good at thinking. I can’t understand difficult
things. If you have something important that you want to
say, it’s in your best interest for sis to be here.”
“Understood.”
Faced with Shichika’s response, Togame retreated, her
arrogance intact. The first part was well and good, but the
second was just embarrassing.
“Right you are─well then, so long as you can keep this
strictly confidential, I’ll get started.”
“As simply as you can, please.”
“Have you ever heard of Kiki Shikizaki?40 The
swordsmith.”41
“Nope.”
“Indeed. Even out here on this godforsaken island,
anyone who calls himself a swordsman would know that
name─no, for the Swordless Swordsmen of the Kyotoryu in
particular, Kiki Shikizaki is a natural enemy. The same goes
for you as for your ancestor Kazune. I’m sure he would
agree that─wait, did you say ‘Nope’?!”
Fool me twice.
Shame on me.
“Come on, Shichika. You know who she’s talking about.
Dad taught us about this. Kiki Shikizaki…the famous
swordsmith from the war. Right, Miss Togame?”
“Huh? Is that really all you know?”
Togame wasn’t razzing Nanami. She was really asking.
She didn’t even bother asking Shichika─and rightfully so. It
sounded like their father had told them about the
swordsmith, but Shichika, who skipped over any words that
were too hard, seemed to have remembered nothing. It was
his special move, and wholly unrelated to the Kyotoryu.
“What are you talking about? Is this Shikizaki, uh─what
you said before…oh right, one of the guys from Mt. Fuji?”
 “Not exactly─that’s hardly it… Nanami, how much did
your father tell you about Kiki Shikizaki?”
“Just what you mentioned─that he’s the ultimate rival of
the Kyotoryu, and that he had some deep connection42 to
the founder of our school.”
“Anything else?”
“I’m afraid that’s all. I don’t even know what the
connection was.”
Togame was silent, her face fixed in thought. These two
knew almost nothing of the celebrated swordsmith. She
could see if only Shichika was in the dark, but since Nanami
didn’t know much either, Togame could safely guess that
Mutsue had been stingy with the details. Why might that
have been, she might have pondered.
Shichika, however, could not care less43─if Togame was
going to tell them about the swordsmith, she could just get
down off her high horse.
Not like it mattered to him if she told them.
“In the Age of Warring States, more than any other era
in this country’s history, swordsmen were supreme─the
power brokers of the battlefield were not the lords or the
captains, but the swordsmen.”
Thus Togame began her story from the first─no, from
zero.
“Kazune Yasuri was one among them─but the light of
glory was cast forth by the swordsmiths. The forges.44 The
craftsmen.45 If the swordsmen were the players, the
smithies were the crew─nay, the stage directors. Needless
to say, without a sword, the swordplay would be curtains.
Kyotoryu being the exception.”
“Obviously.”
Shichika was onboard. This level of discussion was well
within his grasp. He almost wished that she would stop right
there, but she was only getting started.
 “Those thirty-six great swordsmiths represented one
camp, but the most heretical of heretics was Kiki Shikizaki.
He pledged allegiance to no school, and manned his forge
alone, aloof to the world, and yet his swords reigned over
the warring states like none before or since.”
“Reigned how?” asked Nanami. “Over the warring
states?”
“Quite literally. Unlike the Kyotoryu, who as you know
swore its allegiance to the Tetsubi, Kiki Shikizaki swore
fealty to no state or house. He allowed his swords to
infiltrate the various powers. All told, they landed in twenty-
five different states─a thousand swords.”
“Wait, a thousand?” asked Shichika.
“Just a thousand?” questioned Nanami.
The siblings clashed heads. They looked each other in
the eye.
“I guess it’s not that many,” Shichika gave in.
Their dynamic was clear.
“A thousand swords across twenty-five states,” Nanami
said. “Did each have forty?”
“No, each had a different number. In fact, that was the
problem. Trust me, if I showed you a map, you would see
how brutal the imbalance was─the states with the swords
were the states with the power. The more Shikizaki blades a
state possessed, the greater their dominance in battle.”
“Isn’t it the opposite?” asked Nanami, somewhat
tentatively. “As in, The better the state fought its battles, the
greater it became, the more Shikizaki blades they were able
to collect?”
“No doubt, that’s the historical reality,” Togame agreed,
“but the illusion I described was no less a reality. Those who
possessed Shikizaki’s swords held the power. The only ones
free from this illusion were the Tetsubi, who retained the
Kyotoryu. Maybe that was why your father never told you
about Kiki Shikizaki─”
Out of his pride for the Kyotoryu.
 Could that be?
Shichika wanted to interrupt and say his father wasn’t
like that, but kept quiet. Not because it was a pain, but
because he was starting to get just a little curious about this
Kiki Shikizaki character. He didn’t want to change the
subject.
This swordsmith truly was the opposite of the Kyotoryu.
The swordsman who forsook his sword.
Against.
The thousand blades that reigned over the warring
states.
“There is an emblematic episode. Were you aware that,
at the close of the war, well before today’s Owari46 Bakufu
was established, one man unified the nation, albeit only for
a short time?”
“Yep.”
“Ha, even you know that much─wait, you do?!”
“Yeah.”
“Unreal.”
Togame didn’t like this.
Fool me three times?
She was pissed.
“Where was it,” muttered Shichika. “Oh yeah. Tosa in
Shikoku. They joined forces with the other domains on the
island─Awa, Sanuki, and Iyo─and planned to reign over the
nation from Shikoku. They called him the Old Shogun,
right?”
He couldn’t claim to know much more. Their father had
tried to provide them with a proper education, a part of
which was history, but Shichika remembered only isolated
facts.
The Old Shogun.
The daimyo responsible for putting an end to two
hundred and fifty years of war. But by the time he had
seized power and unified the nation, he was old, without an
heir, and unable to control what would happen to the nation
he had unified. Though he may have been shogun, he had
no family to succeed him. Nevertheless, the Old Shogun was
a mighty force, and the Owari Bakufu had merely picked up
where he left off─or that’s what Mutsue had taught.
“Did the Old Shogun have swords from Shikizaki too?”
asked Nanami. “Based on what you’ve said, he must have
owned more Shikizaki swords than anyone.”
“True,” affirmed Togame. “When he overtook the nation,
the Old Shogun possessed five hundred and seven Shikizaki
blades─a majority of them. With that many, it would have
been stranger if he had failed to rule the land. Given the…
illusion we discussed.”
“A majority─sounds obsessed with collecting. Like some
kid.”
“He was insatiable. But this is how he seized the throne
so swiftly. Listen─I had planned to touch upon this later, but
now is actually perfect. In the short time the Old Shogun
was in power, his government barely had a chance to
govern─with one important exception. And I don’t mean
important to me. Important to history. Do you know what it
was?”
“Nope.”
“Oh, um…”
Togame was wary of a fourth back and forth with
Shichika. Now she didn’t know what to say. Things were not
proceeding as planned.
“From what you’ve said so far, you must mean the
Sword Hunt,” Nanami chimed in, more than accustomed to
her brother’s curtness.
“The Great Sword Hunt,”47 she elaborated. “Among the
most ignoble acts of legislation in our nation’s history─some
say, it was the reason that the Old Shogun’s bloodline did
not rule after him.”
“Oh yeah,” said Shichika. “I remember now.”
 He wasn’t simply faking after having heard the answer.
He actually did remember. He must have learned about it
from his father. The Great Sword Hunt─a stupid law
requiring every person in Japan, without exception, to hand
over their blades, supposedly to amass enough metal to
cast a giant buddha.
“But that was just a front, right? Weren’t they really
hunting swordsmen? The way I remember it, the Old Shogun
was trying to smoke out all the warriors and rid their kind
from Japan. They may as well have called it what it was: a
swordsman hunt.”
“That motive was there, to be sure,” said Togame. “The
Old Shogun started from the bottom as a foot soldier,
brandishing a single sword, but he made it to the top. He
knew as well as anyone how far and fast a swordsman could
climb. He must have deemed the world had room for no
swordsman but himself. But what you termed a front was no
lie, either. On Mt. Sayabashiri in Tosa, on the grounds of
Seiryoin Gokenji Temple, a statue of Gautama, known
affectionately as Katana Buddha, was cast from melted
swords collected in the hunt. Today, Mt. Sayabashiri is
renowned as a tourist destination, especially among
swordsmen, who view it as a holy site and journey there as
pilgrims.”
Togame shot Nanami a sidelong glance, no doubt to see
if the sister guessed what was coming. It seemed that she
had caught the gist.
“But neither the surface nor the underlying reason was
the truth of the story, right?” Nanami picked up the thread.
“He just wanted to collect all of the Shikizaki swords.”
“Precisely!” Togame slapped her knee with the
satisfaction of a storyteller. “The Old Shogun was trying to
collect all thousand Shikizaki swords. After relieving the
daimyos of their portions, he scoured the land for every
sword that had landed in private hands─this was the true
purpose of the hunt. He was convinced the Shikizaki blades
were the reason he’d been able to claim power─an illusion?
Perhaps. A delusion? Maybe so. But he was a believer. Those
swords were his true purpose, and their truth was
sacrosanct. Which was all the more reason for him to seek
out the remaining four hundred and ninety-three. To clad his
regime in steel.”
“Stupid law.” Shichika was fed up. “Some guys can
handle power, and some guys can’t. It would’ve made more
sense if he were actually trying to hunt swordsmen.”
“In a sense,” Togame said. “But in the three years
before the hunt was curtailed, the Old Shogun came
nowhere near eradicating all the warriors,48 although he did
deliver on his buddha, and amass well over a hundred
thousand swords.”
“Hundred thousand─that’s all?”
“Hundred thousand─that’s a lot!”
Here we go again.
Shichika and Nanami locked horns.
You know who gave in.
“I’ll admit that hoarding a hundred thousand swords to
find five hundred may have been overkill,” Togame agreed,
“but by and large, what they found was nothing special. Run
of the mill. Nevertheless, they managed to collect the vast
majority of the Shikizaki blades. Most were already in the
hands of the daimyos, who by then were sitting ducks, but it
took no small amount of strategy to track down the hermit
swordsmen who held the others.”
“Vast majority? You mean they didn’t get them all?”
“Not all of them. They found another four hundred and
eighty-one. In the end, the Old Shogun possessed a grand
total of nine hundred and eighty-eight Shikizaki blades.”
“Wait, what? How come they ended the Great Sword
Hunt after three years, before they found them all? Oh, I get
it. The rest must have been busted in the war.”
“Wrong─the Old Shogun gave up.”
 “Why?”
What would make the ruler of a country give up?
“Flawed as the Great Sword Hunt may have been, it was
the law of the land. They managed to trace the whereabouts
of all one thousand swords. But for some, only the
whereabouts.”
“But if they knew where they were, they should have
grabbed them. We call him the Old Shogun now, but back
then, he was the Shogun. So what was he afraid of? Even if
the swords had rightful owners, he had the power, and
might was right─right?”
“If he were only so lucky.49 Remember, Shikizaki didn’t
create normal weapons─frankly, I’m not even sure it’s
accurate to call those things katana. They were forged
under the premise that people don’t use swords─swords
make them who they are. Some call his swords the Mutant
Blades,50 which I think is closer to the point.”
“The most heretical of heretics,” said Nanami.
“Exactly. And the twelve remaining swords were the
most peculiar of the lot. Some today maintain that the nine
hundred and eighty-eight swords the Old Shogun managed
to collect were merely prototypes for the remaining twelve.”
“Made a thousand…just for twelve?”
“Even loopier than hoarding a hundred thousand for five
hundred,” sneered Togame.
She pulled a folded piece of paper from her kimono.
It bore the following markings in red ink:
Zetto the Leveler
Zanto the Razor
Sento the Legion
Hakuto the Whisper
Zokuto the Armor
Soto the Twin
Akuto the Eel
Bito the Sundial
Oto the Cured
Seito the Garland
Dokuto the Basilisk
 Ento the Bead

Nanami was the first to offer her opinion.

“That’s a funny bunch of names. Are these swords
famous?”
“Less so than you might think. But their power is more
awful than the most legendary enchanted blade.51 Allow me
to put things in perspective. Take, for example, this fifth one
on the list.”
Zokuto the Armor.
“This sword was located shortly after the Old Shogun
launched the Great Sword Hunt─at the time, it was being
held by the captain of a band of pirates marauding the
Inland Sea. When the pirates proved resistant to negotiation
and unprepared to bow to his authority, the Shogun issued a
new law dubbed the Pirate Ban.52 Ostensibly intent on
maintaining the peace, the handy pretext aimed to help
them seize the Shikizaki blades and drub the pirates in one
go.”
“A lot of work for a single sword.”
“Indeed. And that was only the beginning. The Pirate
Ban was one of the more orthodox decrees. Nevertheless─it
was a failure. That one sword managed to defeat every last
bruiser in the Shogun’s army.”
“You mean it beat them?”
“Creamed them. But don’t expect to read that in any
history book─that was the Old Shogun’s first encounter with
the horrors of the Twelve Possessed, Shikizaki’s
masterpieces. And over the ensuing three years, he met the
same fate twelve times over.”
“…”
Silence reigned over the scene. The madness53 that
Togame told of wasn’t lost on the two siblings, however
sheltered and unworldly they were─and yet.
 “Being so powerful may have allowed them to collect so
many Shikizaki blades─and yet, from the sound of it, that
might be a blithe interpretation.”
“I’m not sure if the same goes for Kyotoryu, but most
schools have a saying: ‘A sword will choose its owner.’ The
sense is usually positive, though not always. It may sound
close to Shikizaki’s line about how ‘People don’t use
swords─swords make them who they are,’ but it’s a world
apart… We know each sword was brandished by an
individual of uncommon skill. Turning this around, we could
say these individuals only came to possess the swords
because their skill was so exemplary. That goes for the
pirate, too. But I’m afraid that leaves much unexplained.”
Togame paused. “There’s that illusion again. No─more
than an illusion.”
“And more than a delusion?”
“I’m not saying every word of this is true.”
“So that’s why they’re legendary, enchanted swords…”
“That is why they are more─Nanami, you said the
reason for the Old Shogun losing power was the fallout of
the Great Sword Hunt, but the deciding factor was
unquestionably these twelve defeats, lost as they may be to
history. The Old Shogun was in no position to appoint a
successor from outside his bloodline. In the end, his fiefdom
was worth no more than fifty thousand koku54 of rice.”
“I had no idea. That’s nothing like what I’ve heard.”
“Reality is not for civilians, and history is writ by the
victorious. Why would the winning side sully their journal
with details they’d rather forget?”
With an air of finality, Togame folded up the piece of
paper and drank the cup of steaming water Nanami had
offered her. Instead of stowing the piece of paper at her
breast, however, she passed it to Shichika.
“Which brings us back to why I am here today on your
island, Shichika Yasuri, Master of the Kyotoryu. I need your
help retrieving the Twelve Possessed of Kiki Shikizaki─I have
come here to enlist you.”
“…”
Silence. Thick enough to slice.
Shichika was not so socially inept to refuse her
outright─though Togame, after so many surprises, had likely
braced herself for such a disappointment─in actuality, he
was slow to answer half because Togame’s words had
captured his imagination, and half because her account was
too grand for his brains to comprehend.
He turned to Nanami for help. When in doubt, ask sis.
But Nanami─had closed her eyes. It appeared that she was
brooding over Togame’s words. Heavily─she sighed.
“Is this what you meant by desire the world?”
She opened her eyes. Glaring at Togame, who appeared
to wince. The Schemer caught herself, but before she could
respond, Nanami continued.
“Maybe things were different during the Age of Warring
States, but at this point, those twelve swords would never
be enough to take over the country. It doesn’t matter
whether your story is a fantasy, or a delusion, or the
truth─or anything else. The current bakufu is secure. Even
during the Rebellion, they had enough power to─”
“Enough power─exactly.” Togame welcomed the assist.
“The nine hundred and eighty-eight swords reclaimed by the
Old Shogun are now in the possession of the present bakufu.
Supposing the illusion is a reality, it may be precisely why
the bakufu is secure.”
“But in that case, what made the Old Shogun fall from
grace?”
“Fall is a strong word. He simply lacked a
successor─though a shogun without one sounds like some
fairy tale. Anyway, Nanami, you’re basically correct. In these
times of peace and order,55 discovering the twelve lost
swords would matter little. When I asked if Shichika desired
the world, that was a rhetorical question and merely a way
of launching my explanation of the Shikizaki blades. It’s not
like the world’s mine to offer.”
“Okay.”
Okay─but was it?
Shichika saw no use keeping up if even simple questions
had no answer.
And yet.
“While I can’t believe you’d never heard about the
Shikizaki blades, that’s not what I came here to say─”
“Wait a second, do you work for the bakufu?”
Bullseye. The way he said it cut through the
conversation.
“I guess you could be working for one of their
enemies─if they weren’t wiped out in the Rebellion. Not
likely, huh?”
“I would have preferred not to tell you just yet.”
Togame was flustered. Shichika had ruined her story.
And still she sat there, looking silly, holding out the folded
piece of paper, playbill of the Twelve Possessed─for him to
take.
“You’re right─but how’d you figure me out?”
“I didn’t. It’s not like I gave it any real thought. But you
seem to know things, inside out─like about what’s his face
the swordsmith, and even the Kyotoryu. That line about
enlisting me didn’t help. I got to wondering if you wanted
these twelve swords to give the bakufu an even thousand.”
“You didn’t think a whitehaired lady in a crazy outfit
couldn’t possibly be working for the government?”
“Huh? No. Why?”
“…”
There’s no running from stray fire.
Togame should have known, but she glared unpleasantly
at Shichika.
“No matter… For your information, this is not a
costume…but I guess the truth is out. Allow me to introduce
myself formally. I am Togame the Schemer, Grand
Commander of Arms of the Yanari Shogunate Military
Directorate, Owari Bakufu.”
“Grand Commander of Arms, you say.”
Having gathered that Togame was not some nobody,
Nanami must have been waiting for the other boot to drop.
Perhaps she even guessed a moment before her brother
that Togame was affiliated with the shogunate. But their
guest’s official title was far longer than she could have
imagined. She was stunned. Nanami wasn’t one to show it,
but the waver in her voice was hard to miss.
Meanwhile, Shichika was unfazed. He knew the
shogunate was called by that name, but nothing about its
structure, and had no idea how high up a Grand
Commander was. It sounded important, to be sure, but he
didn’t know why. The concept of rank was beyond him.
Nanami would know.
“Hey, sis. So she doesn’t command his legs?”
“Arms as in an army, Shichika. It’s a directorate
consisting entirely of strategists. Thanks to lessons learned
during the Age of Warring States, it came into being
concurrently with the current bakufu. In fact, during the
Rebellion, Dad wielded the Kyotoryu under them.”
“So…my dad worked for your dad, Togame?”
“…”
She was at a loss to answer. Better put, she was about
to lose it.
“What’d I say?”
“Nothing. You’re just so innocent, I could kill you. Let’s
make this clear. I didn’t inherit my title from my father. The
office of Grand Commander is nothing like the Kyotoryu. It
isn’t passed down.56 Where I come from, ability is all that
counts. If you have what it takes, the world can be
yours─even if you’re a woman or a child.”
“Even if you can’t swing a sword?”
 “I use my head. As a Schemer, I take pride in my
eschewal of armaments. My inability to wield a sword makes
me a perfect arbiter of swordplay.”
She spoke down to Shichika, not expecting a blockhead
martial artist to understand, but what really puzzled him
was her suggestion that any world where ability didn’t count
existed. Maybe he’d implied that she was some princess
sitting on her daddy’s fortune, but it wasn’t worth getting
riled up about. She was wrong to spout, “nothing like the
Kyotoryu.” And if she shooed armaments, why did she end
up swinging a sword, he wanted to nitpick.
Parley as Shichika might with Togame, they seemed to
be talking past each other.
“Much of our work happens behind the scenes,
alongside the Onmitsu.57 Though by now ‘alongside’ may be
a bit misleading. Our organization probably won’t be in
future history textbooks. And it’s not like we carry badges.
You’ll just have to trust that I’m not an imposter.”
“I trust you,” Shichika answered readily. “Your high-
fluting attitude is proof enough.”
Togame took an overly deep breath, trying to push
through this affrontery, but she seemed to reconsider and
acknowledge that his trust was the best thing she could ask
for.
She turned away from Shichika, toward his sister.
“And you, Nanami?”
“You’ve asked the Master of the Kyotoryu. If Shichika
trusts you, I trust you. Now that I understand your affiliation
and who you really are, most of what had been confusing
me makes sense.”
“I can see how that would clear things up. But I’m afraid
from where I sit this is not the most advantageous of
developments. If knowing that I work for the government
causes you to hold back, I should not be so transparent.”
“Why would we hold back?” asked Shichika.
 The frankness of the question baffled Togame.
“Because─”
“If it’s about our father, don’t worry,” Nanami
interjected. Her words were candid and unvarnished. “Our
father taught us to come to terms with─his banishment. We
harbor no ill will for the bakufu.”
“That’s reassuring.”
“But really, go on. If you’re working for the bakufu, they
must have ordered you to find the twelve remaining
swords─but why now? Other than allowing them to gloat
over amassing all thousand of the Shikizaki blades, what
good does it do? The Owari Bakufu has been in power over a
hundred and fifty years─and in all that time, the only threat
to their regime was the Rebellion. And it’s over.”
“The Rebellion isn’t over. Not exactly. Yes, the Owari
Bakufu has lasted for a hundred and fifty years─long enough
for anyone who understood the meaning of the Age of
Warring States to die away. These Shikizaki blades have
become little more than talismans─but we’d do well to take
another look. What if the ringleaders of the Rebellion had all
been wielders of the Possessed?”
Nine hundred and eighty-eight swords─versus twelve. It
was no match in numerical terms. But if it took nine hundred
and eighty-eight experiments to attain the twelve─
“In retrospect, it would be an open question whether
they could have been crushed by force. The Old Shogun was
powerless against the Twelve Possessed─and remember, he
was on the offense. His foes did nothing more than respond
in kind. Imagine what would have happened, how far he
would have fallen, if they paid him back and then some.”
“We’re talking a hundred fifty years ago. The swords
must have changed hands by now.”
“Certainly, but the owners are none of our concern.
These swords, as Kiki Shikizaki made them, do the owning.
And if the Possessed have found new homes, that’s not
exactly bad news for the bakufu. We live in a peaceful world.
There’s no way the dozen who have them now could be as
tough as those stalwarts.”
“Are you saying the bakufu is scared of another
Rebellion?” asked Shichika. He was thinking─indisposed to
thinking as his brains may be.
It seemed to him the bakufu, or at least its upper ranks,
had taken the Rebellion as a cue to round up the remaining
Shikizaki blades before someone beat them to it. If the Old
Shogun really had failed twelve times standing, he could see
where they were coming from. What if the twelve swords,
each so menacing alone, were used in concert, in the spirit
of the late Rebellion? That would terrorize the bakufu. Which
made collecting the last swords a matter of national
security.
But this reasoning left much to be desired. Their
strategy must have another side. What if they ended up
aggravating whoever owned the swords?
“That’s where the Schemer comes in.” Having read his
mind, Togame spoke decisively. “Someone like me, who
works behind the scenes.”
“Um, I’ve been meaning to ask…” Nanami said. “What
exactly does a Schemer…do? Is it some new rank the
bakufu created in the last twenty years?”
“No. I made it up.”58
Not a whiff of shame. Made up? She made it up?
“The Great Sword Hunt is history. At this point we need
to proceed with the utmost caution. While I have my own
opinions on the matter, I’m in no position to quibble over
the particulars of an order from on high. If my liege charges
me with gathering the Shikizaki blades, I’ll set to work
hatching a scheme.”
“Hatch─”
“Just as a tactician deals in tactics, the Schemer deals in
schemes─to the extreme. The most exceptional tasks are
reserved for my most exceptional office.” Togame struck a
pose59─like she was on stage. “Which brings me to you,
Master of the Kyotoryu. Let’s join forces. As a Swordless
Swordsman, you must be curious about how the other half
lives─and about these Shikizaki blades and the ultimate
dozen.”
“I won’t say no…but why me? Why the Kyotoryu?
Earlier, I wondered if you might be an enemy of the bakufu
because who else would bother coming here─right? So why
are you here? You originally came for my father.”
“Not necessarily. I knew, by now, your father would be
at least two decades past his prime─too far along to head
off on a wild sword chase. My plan, should he refuse, was to
ask for his permission to borrow the son he raised here, on
this island. Just for a while.”
“Borrow…” growled Nanami. She wasn’t happy.
Shichika could tell. This could be bad.
If this Togame lady was rubbing Shichika the wrong way,
she might feel downright abrasive to Nanami. Perhaps the
dynamic between the women only seemed different
because they were both smart.
“If this son of his proved capable, that is.”
“First of all,” Shichika took the wheel before Togame
could continue with her provocations. A rare moment of
engagement from someone so averse to action. “You don’t
need any help─not from me or from my father’s school─not
if you’re working for the bakufu. The Kyotoryu may be
unrivaled in its strength, but it’s also the school of a
banished criminal. The bakufu has money. You can hire
proper help.”
“No. My help can’t work for money. I tried that already,
thank you very much. Or should I say, I followed standard
policy, which is to contract work to ninjas.”
“Ninjas?”60
“The Maniwa Clan, to be precise. But I suppose you
haven’t heard of them, either. For future reference, theirs is
among the oldest orders, up there with the Iga and the
Koga.61 We’ve hired them for countless other jobs. Worked
with them for years. But suddenly they stab us in the back.”
What was Togame saying? Stabbed in the back─by
ninjas? This was not the world Shichika knew. The clans
were known for their unflagging allegiance. You would
sooner find the sea gone dry than suffer their betrayal.
“Why did they do it?”
“Why wouldn’t they? A single Shikizaki blade is worth
more than the finest piece of art. Enough to buy a country.62
Anyone who works for money will stab your back for
money.” Togame cast her eyes upon the piece of paper
sitting on the floor. “Once they had Zetto the Leveler63 in
their grasp, they made off like bandits. And I don’t mean the
ninja that we hired. I mean the whole Maniwa Clan.”
“The whole…”
“The entire clan went rogue. And thanks to them, all
ninjas have lost the better graces of the bakufu. Almost
makes me sorry for their brethren, the Onmitsu, humiliated
by association.”
“Oh, those guys. Right… But if the ninjas betrayed you,
the unthinkable came true. That sucks. You have a point
about money, though. Makes sense. How about honor? You
need someone who works for pride, whom money can’t buy.
Honor makes a swordsman. That’s what my dad always
said.”
“Swordsmen are useless to me. The Shikizaki
blades─poison them.”
“Really?”
“Trust me, samurai were the obvious next choice. I
found some good ones, too. And from the strongest and
most loyal warriors, I cherry-picked one swordsman. A fine
young buck of barely twenty named Hakuhei Sabi.”
“Sabi?64 Sounds weak to me. And twenty? That’s even
younger than me.”
 “I take your point. But his skill was genuine. He was an
incomparable artist with a sword. By now, a hundred fifty
years after the Great Sword Hunt, there are only six swords,
including the Leveler, whose whereabouts and owner are
both known. But on his first day, Sabi tracked down the
most evasive sword among them, Hakuto the Whisper.”
“Go, Sabi, go.”
“But once he had it in his grasp, he disappeared.”
“Whoa, Sabi.”
“Like I said. It poisoned him. To a man who works for
honor, the honor of possessing a Shikizaki sword was
irresistible. Since most of the bakufu’s upper ranks got their
start as swordsmen, however, the profession didn’t lose
credibility as a whole. Nay, it is I, Togame, who lost their
trust.”
Which made perfect sense. Her lofty bearing made it
hard to see, but she had failed outright, and twice. Adding
insult to injury, both times her hired hands absconded with
the swords. To put it cynically, she had done nothing but
place the swords in stronger hands.
It only takes three strikes.65 The third time’s the charm,
they also say.
In other words─it was the Schemer’s last chance.
“And now you want the Kyotoryu to save you,” Nanami
said. “You need a swordsman who isn’t after money─a
swordsman with no use for a sword. And no one else is
qualified.”
“Precisely. The blades will not poison the Master of the
Kyotoryu. And honestly, I don’t have time to wait─for all we
know, the Maniwa and Sabi have set their sights on the
remainder of the Twelve Possessed. That is the kind of men
they are. Having turned traitor, they are now formidable
foes, and they must be defeated. Shichika Yasuri, Master of
the Kyotoryu─only you boast the skills to allow the Owari
Bakufu to last a millennium. Will you fight for me?”
 As if to try again─she picked up and offered him the
folded piece of paper. Looked him in the eye. Nothing left to
say.
“I get it.”
But Shichika would not accept the piece of paper.
Much as it seemed he had no other option.
“Listen. You’ve made it clear why you need the
Kyotoryu, but that doesn’t explain why I need to find these
swords for you. You’re right that I don’t care about money,
and I need a sword like I need a thorn in my side, but frankly
I couldn’t give a crap about the bakufu. I ain’t no samurai. I
don’t consider it an honor to take orders from the
government.”
“…”
“Like sis said, we’re not sore about what happened to
Dad. Twenty years ago, when we were little kids, we blamed
noble folk like you, but now it’s just a pain, nothing
more─because here’s the thing. I’ve come to like living on
the island. I’m not in any mood to sail over to the mainland
and play66 samurai.”
“You’re scared.”
“Sure I’m scared…” Togame had tried to strike a nerve,
but Shichika was not about to disagree. “Mostly, though, it’s
a pain in the butt.”
“Shichika─”
“Come on, Nanami. You feel the same.”
Her interruption cut off, Nanami fell silent. Seeing this,
Shichika faced back toward Togame and went on.
“I’m curious about this Shikizaki character. Making all
these fancy swords. From what you say, it’s the complete
opposite of my school. But I’m not curious enough to hop
into a boat. And if he was born around the same time as our
founder, he must have died ages ago. Sorry you had to
come all the way out here. But don’t worry. You’ll find
someone. Thanks for the story. Would have been even
better as a bedtime story. Too bad it’s so early.”
“You’re unbelievable.”
Faced with Shichika Yasuri’s curt refusal, Togame
couldn’t help but smile. She had him. In the palm of her
hand. They may have strayed off-topic, even zigged and
zagged, but she had led him down the route, as planned,
and had him where she wanted him. Her smile said it all.
“You think that’s all I got? Please. I knew you’d say that.
Word for word. After being burned twice, by those ninjas and
that samurai, can you seriously see me─the
Schemer─coming all the way out to this island without a
surefire way of winning you over?”
Her voice was sticky with insinuation. Shichika looked
puzzled.
“You think you have something? To make me move.
Some reason I should help collect those twelve swords…”
“Yep.” You bet she did. “I can’t trust people who work for
money, and I can’t trust people who work for honor. Beyond
that, there’s only one thing anyone would work for─love.”
“L-Love?”
“I can trust a man who works for love.”
He had a decent body.
Handsome enough.
Maybe not so bright, but he would do.
“Shichika Yasuri. Go ahead and fall for me.”

1 四里 YONRI four 里 RI = approx. 2.5 miles

2 不 承 島 FUSHŌJIMA “un-assented island” evokes 不 精 髭 BUSHŌHIGE, a lazy

beard, and 不祥事 FUSHŌJI, a scandalous event 3 面倒 MENDŌ nuisance

4 鑢 七 花 YASURI SHICHIKA “Seventh Flower of the File” seventh generation of
the Kyotoryu his family name evokes a tool capable of honing or abrading
other implements 5 鑢 七実 YASURI NANAMI “Seventh Fruit of the File”
6 羽織 HAORI short robe worn over kimono
7 ため息 TAMEIKI “pent-up breath”
8 島流し SHIMANAGASHI marooning
9 頓死 TONSHI “die a sudden death”
10 姉ちゃん NEHCHAN term of endearment for an older sister (or young woman)
11 刃物 HAMONO blades of any kind
12 生 霊 IKIRYŌ “living ghost” the apparition of a living person 13 死 霊 SHIRYŌ

“dead ghost” a dead soul visiting from the afterlife 14 理屈 RIKUTSU logical
arguments
15 割れ鍋に綴じ蓋 WARENABE NI TOJIBUTA complementary
16 方向音痴 HŌKŌ ONCHI “deaf to direction”
17 着崩す KIKUZUSU dressing down a formal outfit by loosening or shortening the

fit 18 粋 IKI “cool” as an antonym of “obsessed”

19 つり目 TSURIME vs. たれ目 TAREME, eyes which lower at the corners 20 鑢 六枝
YASURI MUTSUE “Sixth Branch of the File”
21 不 肖 FUSHŌ a humble way to introduce oneself echoes 不 承 島 FUSHŌJIMA,
Haphazard Island 22 と が め TOGAME an unlikely name, the word means
blame or accusation 23 奇 策 士 KISAKUSHI neologism for an expert on
surprise strategies 24 太刀 TACHI progenitor of the katana: meant for use on
horseback 25 尺 SHAKU just under a foot
26 刃文 HAMON “blade pattern” line marking the tempered portion of the blade
27 直刃 SUGUHA straight HAMON
28 富岳 FUGAKU another name for Mt. Fuji
29 虚しい MUNASHII futile (when the word is inflected in this manner) 30 鑢 一根
YASURI KAZUNE “First Root of the File”
31 日本刀 NIHONTŌ Japanese swords in particular
32 無刀取り MUTŌDORI borrowing moves from swordplay to wield other objects,

or even fight barehanded, against an armed opponent 33 門外不出 MONGAI

FUSHUTSU “must not pass through the gates” hermetic secret 34 白湯 SAYU
plain hot water
35 呼び捨て YOBISUTE speech omitting honorifics like さん SAN or さま SAMA 36
名札代わり NAFUDAGAWARI “as a nametag”
37 殺 人 剣 SATSUJINNKEN “the sword that takes life” concept in martial arts
philosophy vs. 活人剣 KATSUJINKEN “the sword that gives life”
38 水を向ける MIZU WO MUKERU “to offer water” from the custom of doing so to

summon spirits 39 助け舟を出す TASUKEBUNE WO DASU “send a lifeboat”

40 四季崎記紀 SHIKIZAKI KIKI SHIKIZAKI “Cape Four Seasons” KIKI shorthand for
the two oldest Japanese chronicles: 古事記 KOJIKI “Record of Ancient Matters”
and 日本書紀 NIHONSHOKI “The Chronicles of Japan”
41 刀鍛冶 KATANAKAJI blacksmith specializing in swords
42 因縁 IN’NEN a fated bond
43 露とも TSUYU TOMO “not a dewdrop”
44 刀 工 TŌKŌ swordsmith (emphasis on production, manufacturing) 45 刀 匠
TŌSHŌ swordsmith (emphasis on skill, mastery)
46 尾 張 OWARI homophone with 終 わ り OWARI “The End” a genuine historical

domain headquartered in present-day Nagoya 47 刀 狩 令 KATANAGARI REI

federal seizure of civilian swords for governmental use occurred several
times in Japanese history; this simulacrum represents Sword Hunt at its
worst 48 武士 BUSHI samurai
49 問屋が卸さない TONYA GA OROSANAI “can’t buy that wholesale” no such luck
50 変体刀 HENTAITŌ “Odd Body Katana” vs. 変態 HENTAI pervert 51 名刀妖刀

MEITŌ YŌTŌ swords renowned for magical abilities 52 海 賊 取 締 令 KAIZOKU

TORISHIMARI REI real law enacted in 1588 by Hideyoshi Toyotomi 53 荒唐 無
稽 KŌTŌMUKEI absurdity and nonsense
54 石 KOKU one koku = ten cubic shaku, enough rice for one person to eat for
one year. Fifty thousand koku is barely high enough to qualify its owner as a
daimyo.
55 天下泰平 TENKA TAIHEI halcyon days
56 世襲 SESHŪ to succeed the previous generation
57 隠密 ONMITSU ninja operatives active in Japan from the Nanboku era 58 自称
JISHŌ self-ordained
59 大 見 得 ŌMIE “big pose” moment in Kabuki when an actor postures for the

audience 60 忍者 NINJA “those who hide/endure”

61 伊賀 甲賀 IGA KŌGA two legendary ninja enclaves, based in present-day Mie

and Shiga, respectively 62 国 KUNI either province or nation, like the English
word “state”
63 絶刀 鉋 ZETTŌ KANNA “The Absolute Katana: Plane” (as in the carpentry tool)
64 錆 SABI rust
65 仏の顔も三度 HOTOKE NO KAO MO SANDO “to test the patience of a buddha”
66 ちゃんばら CHANBARA sound of clashing swords
 ■ ■

Who were the Maniwa1 Ninjas?

Unlike with all the schools of swordplay, it would
behoove us, from the get-go, to let off trying to enumerate
the exact number of “official” ninja enclaves, since their art,
by dint of its reclusiveness, evades precise
classification─but make no mistake, the Maniwa stand out
from the rest. Since long before the Age of Warring States,
the ninjas and the daimyo have been inextricable─not only
in battle, but in politics. The dirty work─anything too vile for
the public eye─was left to ninjas. While the Mutant Blades of
Kiki Shikizaki reigned over the Age of Warring States, the
ninja stars rained over every era. The operatives played a
multitude of roles, from spy to assassin, but the Maniwa,
matchless murderers, were the most gruesome clan.
A hidden enclave2 specializing in assassinations.
The Maniwa Ninjas.

■ ■

It happened in an instant.
Nanami was the only one who moved.
Perhaps this should have come as no surprise. Togame,
so thoroughly pleased with the killer line she had just
dropped, and Shichika, who had been left speechless and
stupefied, were unable to rise to the occasion.
Rising to her knees without warning, Nanami thrust her
flattened hands at the shoulder of each. Though it was a
light strike, Togame and Shichika, who had been facing each
other, tipped sideways, losing their balance─or rather
tucked their legs to catch it.
That very moment, the wall, or perhaps more aptly the
boards, the wooden slats that gave the hut its shape─in any
case thick enough to ward off the heat and the cold.
It went flying.
Inward.
As if imploding.
“Wh…aat?!”
Reacting a heartbeat later than his sister─the young and
battle-ready Master of the Kyotoryu screamed and grabbed
Togame in all her finery around the waist─and swept her
across the room. Nanami flew behind them, as if sucked into
the action─
All this, in an instant.
Splinters from the blasted wood stabbed into the wall
across the room─shredded wood mixed up with metal─and
not scraps of iron, but a gale of blades! Spinning shuriken3
and soaring kunai4─all told, forty-five.
All forty-five projectiles blew through the wood at
once─as if the boards were only paper doors─and planted
deep into the other wall! Though none shot all the way
through it too, each blade had sunken to the tang. If Nanami
had not poked their shoulders, Shichika and Togame would
have been honeycombed by this fusillade of cutlery.
This was no target practice.
Nor sniping.
It was a surprise─bombardment.
“…ard.”
Shichika sprang up.
His face anything but carefree.
“You bastard! You screwed with the house my dad built!”
Roaring at the artillery strike, Shichika dashed out of the
hut, or what was left of it, jumping straight through the
blown-out wall rather than the door.
 “Shichika!”
By the time Nanami called his name, he was already out
of sight, out of the hut and up the mountainside. Chasing
the knave5 who had showered them with knives. She knew
what he was thinking─mess with me and you get messed!
─that simple. She let out a heavy sigh.
“Sometimes he doesn’t get it…”
“No, he’s got it right,” Togame said. Shichika had
shielded her but also flung her into the entryway when he
bolted. She rubbed her shoulder. “If we held our ground,
there’s high chance he’d only strike again. In that case we’d
be worse off than the wall. There’s only one way to answer
to a missile6: fast. I’m impressed… Seems your brother has
a sense for battle.”
“He’s just acting instinctively…”
“Seems that way. No strategy in that. Running off
without his sandals was not the brightest move.”
“I’m not so sure. To him, sandals7 and arm guards8 are
like sheaths. He has no use for them in battle… Uh, I
suppose this breeze feels nice.”
 “It was the Maniwa. I’m sure of it.”
Pensively uttering the name of the ninja clan, Togame
tugged free one of the shuriken embedded in the wall and
perused its features. Sure enough, the star was of the very
shape the Maniwa preferred. This flagrant indiscretion
suggested they weren’t trying to hide─and maybe even
wanted to be seen.
“Ah.”
Nanami nodded. She didn’t seem particularly rattled.
After all, when shuriken start flying, ninjas aren’t much
of a surprise. And they had only just discussed the Maniwa.
The thought of them was fresh.
“How many of them?”
“One, I suspect.”
Togame’s reply was all the more ludicrous for its casual
delivery. What’s more, her tone was certain. One? Nanami
had not seen this coming. She was baffled.
“The Maniwa stay out of each other’s way─those guys
work better alone.”
“But how─”
Nanami turned from the shuriken lodged into the wall to
the gaping hole where the other wall had been. No point in
even asking. A squad of forty-five ninjas, each throwing their
own star, would have been infinitely preferable to one ninja
throwing forty-five in unison.
“How could they know I was here, though? They couldn’t
have followed9 me. I didn’t tell a soul where I was going…”
“Miss Togame,” Nanami caught her mid-thought. “About
what you asked Shichika. You have my blessing.”
Her voice was weak, and her bearing weaker still, but
her eyes bespoke conviction.
After the embarrassment of weaponry, Togame was
perplexed to hear Nanami revive the conversation. What
surprised her even more was what Nanami said.
“I was certain you would be against it.”
 “I can see why…but frankly, I couldn’t care less about
your story. Like my brother, I don’t care about money, or
about honor, or the government, or Shikizaki’s swords. Not
to brag,10 since I can hardly claim to have taken vows,11 but
at this stage of my life, I have no interest in the world
outside. Shichika sees something in the Shikizaki
challenge─and he’s the master of the school.”
“…”
“I want him to go out into the world, whatever the
reason. He and I have spent the last two decades on this
island. After watching him train for so long, perfecting one
move after another, I can’t bear the thought of his skill
going to waste.”
“Forgive me, but wasn’t it your father, Mutsue─the
previous master─who was exiled? Now that Mutsue has
passed away─”
“My body isn’t strong enough to last outside. When I
told you that I had no interest in the world─I meant it, but
there’s more to it. I fear the air on the mainland would be
too rich for me. And my brother─worries about me.”
By now Nanami’s weak constitution must have been
apparent to Togame. The sister was fragile─even brittle.
“It’s none of his business,” Nanami asserted. “I’m done
being coddled by my little brother─and have no interest in
chaining him in place. What matters most to me, Togame, is
for the Kyotoryu to go back into the world, where it belongs.
With your rank in the bakufu, surely you can handle that?”
She wasn’t so much asking as confirming.
Togame nodded urgently.
“Of course I can─I never thought it sensible for a Hero of
the Rebellion to be shut up in a place like this. If your father
were alive, and amenable… I would see to it that his honor
was restored.”
“I see,” Nanami responded with some nuance to the
claim. “Then how can I stand in your way?”
 She stood up straight and bowed. “He managed to
silence me earlier, but I’ll speak to him. Take good care of
him, Miss Togame.”
“Let me warn you, the road will not be easy. No matter
who takes care of him, he may never come home. I almost
wish you’d not make such a request of me. He would be
taking on the Maniwa Clan, needless to say, and also
Hakuhei Sabi─and who knows whose grubby hands have
made it to the six swords we don’t have any lead on. Could
be monsters. Demons. Serpents…”
Nanami lifted her face again and spoke.
“If you’re unsure about the true power of the Kyotoryu,
why not go see it in action?” For Nanami, always so
marmoreal12 in her speech, this was uncharacteristically
bold. “Assuming you’re correct and there is just one ninja,
I’m sure Shichika has guided him down to the beach below.
Go see for yourself─if you can make it there before he’s
through.”
“Are you sure? Up against the Maniwa?”
“The Kyotoryu would never succumb to a mere ninja.”
She sounded certain.
When Nanami had spurred the conversation, Togame
felt puzzled─but now she saw Nanami’s great faith in the
power of her brother and his school.
The sister smiled.
It was─an evil smile.
“Bless your heart, Miss Togame. I can tell you’re really
looking out for Shichika. With you, he’ll be in good hands,
request or no.”
“What?”
Togame went red.
It seemed as though she couldn’t take a compliment.
Though it was not so much a compliment as a jab.
“W-W-W-W-W-Wait. We need to focus. Why is this ninja
here?!”
 “Sure…” Nanami giggled. “I’m focusing.”
She sounded pretty evil.
Maybe she was evil.
“Miss Togame, are you sure that no one followed you?
We’re dealing with ninjas here. Stalking13 is what they do.”
“Thanks for the insight. I’ll have you know I factored
ninjas into my scheme, taking the utmost precautions to
hide my tracks. That’s why I told nobody where I was
heading. We face numerous adversaries apart from the
Maniwa and Sabi. I am perplexed as to how─”
“Miss Togame? Just one thing. Did you come to our
island alone?”
“Huh?” Togame shook her head. “What do you think?
The Maniwa aren’t the only ones who fly solo─so do the
strategists of the Directorate, and the Grand Commander is
no exception. In any case, we’d want as few mouths
flapping about this mission as possible.”
“Okay. So how’d you get here?”
“How else do you get to an island? A boat,” Togame
gave the same answer she’d given Shichika─though with a
moment’s hesitation.
Of course. A boat.
How could she even ask? The rube.
But Nanami saw no reason to be flustered. She wasn’t
finished.
“Did you paddle here yourself?”
“Myself? Don’t be silly. I’m a thinker. Cogitation is my
forte. Do I look like I could scull over from─wait.”
“By any chance─did a boatman bring you?”
“Uh, yes…no, but─”
That was it.
The boatman.
Just one more soul, turning the oars, ferrying Togame
from the Shinso coast to this island─she’d told the man to
sit tight, at the spot where they made ground, to keep the
boat from drifting off.
“The boatman! But if it’s the boatman…” With a gasp,
Togame’s hot face lost its blood. “He has a Shikizaki sword!”

■ ■

For Shichika Yasuri, Haphazard Island was his

backyard─though such a domesticated turn of phrase falls
short of the truth. He could envision every precipice and
dell, every leaf on every tree within its ten-mile
circumference. He instantly intuited where the shuriken-
spamming knave had fled and could pursue him with his
eyes shut. Though it was really Togame who was blind.
Ninja or otherwise, no one could outmaneuver Shichika
on this terrain. Amidst the chase, his quarry seemed to
accept this.
Jumping from tree to tree.
Descending the mountain.
To the sandy beach─and the rote of the waves.
It was just as Nanami had predicted─although Shichika
hadn’t quite guided the ninja.
In the teachings of the Kyotoryu, a shuriken was not a
sword. When Shichika saw the cross-shaped stars and kunai
that had blown apart their hut, he hadn’t the slightest clue
who was behind it. He had never heard of shuriken and
barely knew the first thing about ninjas. His father had once
told him about the faithful soldiers who had your back no
matter what, but Togame had upended that definition. The
Maniwa didn’t so much as cross his mind.
Which is why─
Down on the beach, watching this clown step from the
shadows of the mountain14 and out into the sun, he didn’t
recognize his ninja garb for what it was.
But that wasn’t Shichika’s fault. This ninja had a style all
his own. Sleeves shredded at the shoulders, body bedizened
with chains. Far from a stalker─he made you look.
He didn’t even wear a mask.
Spiked hair pointed to the sky.
Seeing Shichika leap from the woods, the ninja
welcomed him with a grin that threatened to tear his cheeks
from ear to ear.
“Hey, tell me, Kyotoryu. Did you chase me here? Or was
it the other way around?”
“…”
Zum, Shichika landed face to face with his foe─and
realized he hadn’t considered his next move. He’d come this
far coaxed by his anger at seeing his home violated, but─
What now?
It was sad. Apart from his father and his sister, and
Togame whom he had just met, Shichika knew no other
human beings. He was unsure of the right way to behave
when you run into one.
The right way.
As if there were such a thing.
His home wasn’t flattened; its posts were intact. The
house had been made by hand, and with a little work, it
could be fixed by hand. Why did I lose my mind like that,
Shichika even began to wonder.
But that was it.
His father built that house─that was enough.
To make him yell.
His father.
Boy, he’d lost it.
What did sis think hearing me yell like that?
Needless to say, the ninja paid Shichika’s disposition
little mind. He struck a pose and gave his name.
A grand pose─especially for a ninja.
 “I am Komori15 Maniwa, one of the Twelve Bosses of the
Maniwa Ninja. Take heed, Kyotoryu. I bear no grudge against
you, but I need to take your life.”
His voice was shrill enough to turn your insides out.
A voice that couldn’t possibly be issuing from a mouth.
“Maniwa? Oh, right. I heard about you.”
“That was an error you will pay for with your life. If you
hadn’t, I might have let you go. I came, originally, to hear
that woman’s story.”
The knave─the ninja─had more to say.
“Not much of a story. Barely worth my time, though I
was surprised to hear she called on Hakuhei Sabi after we
parted ways. She must have told him the same story she
told you, which puts him next in line. For me to kill.”
“Were you eavesdropping?”
“Yeah.”
“That’s in bad taste.”
“You mean good. Kyahah!”
Komori’s laugh was as shrill as his voice.
“Did you follow Togame here?”
“Why be so sneaky? We came together, in the same
slow boat. I paddled, pumping like a seesaw the whole
way─it was no joke. She sat on her derriere watching the
sea and didn’t lift a finger. I’m telling you, there’s something
wrong with her.”
“Well, I’m being swamped by visitors16 today.”
Two didn’t make a swamp, but Shichika said so anyway.
He’d always wanted to try out the expression.
“Kyahah, here’s some more advice, Kyotoryu. Stop
wasting your time wondering how I got here. I’m here, baby.
And there’s something that you need to do.”
“What would that be?”
“Don’t be cute. Start begging for your life,” Komori
instructed with a callous grin. “How about, I’ll give you
anything so please don’t kill me! I love that one. So much.
Wow. And I reply, I’ll take your life and nothing else.”
“…”
Were people this weird in general?
Shichika wasn’t sure.
But one thing was clear: this man was scum.
He knew that much─instinctively.
“Hmm… How am I supposed to fight a ninja, though?”
he wondered out loud. “As far as I can see, you carry no
ninjato17 either.”
Huh?
Shichika had noticed something.
Not only did Komori Maniwa lack a ninja sword, he was
totally unarmed. He could be packing weapons in his
clothing, but it didn’t look like it. What about the shuriken?
Had he blown through his supply? No, the ninja must have
more tricks up his sleeve─sleeveless as he was.
“Ninjato? Oh, right. You’re the Swordless Swordsman.
And for proper swordplay, I suppose there needs to be at
least one sword. Kyahah, you’re that kind of a swordsman.”
“No─the Kyotoryu doesn’t only work on swords. It isn’t
mutodori. I just never saw a ninja before.”
“Don’t talk back. Obedience is a virtue. Or perhaps your
master skipped that lesson. But don’t fret. I may not be a
swordsman─but that doesn’t mean I can’t use a sword.”
Komori let this sink in. “I hate to keep you waiting… I know I
left that precious sword around here somewhere.”
The ninja raised one of his chain-wrapped arms and
stuffed it in his mouth. In any generation, there will always
be some kid ready to show off how he can fit his whole fist
in his mouth, but it would be mistaken to compare what
Komori was doing with such shenanigans.18 Down his throat
went his hand, and after it his wrist and his elbow, even his
bicep…his jawbone dislocated entirely. He was like a snake
eating its own tail.
 “What the hell? People can do that? I had no idea.”
Shichika was stunned. They can’t, of course.
Don’t try this at home, kids.
“Geg gahfu hah fahra kago gah fuhrah, ge googoo ga
gehgeh ga rah gongfah fugerah ga geh.”
Komori felt the need to go on speaking, but it didn’t
amount to anything intelligible. He had reached down his
throat as far as his shoulder─and now he was backing the
arm out, inch by inch.
Inch by slimy19 inch.
At last his fist appeared─closed tight around the handle
of a sword.
The grip of a katana.
Stymied by this grotesque carnival display, Shichika
could only watch as the ninja pulled the handle from his
throat, until finally the blade met air.
It was long. So long.
Far too long to fit in his torso.
Shichika had no idea how Komori had stuffed it in his
body, but at least this solved one mystery.
This ninja didn’t hide the tools of his trade on his person
but─in his body!
He was a monster. No other word sufficed.
“Khak…”
The tip of the blade cleared Komori’s lips.
He wielded the weapon, smugly.
The blade was slick with gastric juices and saliva, but
there was no trace of blood. Fearsomely, he’d drawn the
blade out of his body without so much as nicking himself. No
rookie ninja move.
“Behold! Beware! Bear witness to Zetto the Leveler, one
of the Twelve Possessed, the masterworks of Kiki Shikizaki.”
For real?
What Shichiki needed to beware of was the guy’s
stomach.
 “Care for a taste of hell? Kyahah! Coming right up. My
friends call me Komori the Hell-Made because I’m so ready
to dish it out. Now be entertained.”
“Your nickname is Hell Maid?20 It’s not cool or scary.
More like, I dunno. Cute, for some reason.”
But why?
The reason would not be clear for centuries.
“Hey, Kyotoryu. Try making sense for once. And while
you’re at it, tell me what you think.” He brandished the
sword. “Look who has one of those Shikizaki blades the
woman was blabbing on about.”
“Hm…”
Despite being more interested in the ninja’s stomach
trick, Shichika eyed the blade.
It was altogether different from the sword Togame drew
on the mountain.
First off, it had no curve.
Unlike most katana,21 the blade was straight, forged in
the kiriha zukuri22 style.
It also lacked a handguard between the blade and grip.
Almost five feet23 long.
Twin blood gutters24 were engraved into the whorled
face25 of the blade.
This was one big sword.
“…”
“Come on, nothing? Speak up!”
“No, it’s just─more like a sword than I expected. Like
you were saying, Togame kept going on about these
legendary enchanted swords. I thought it would be, you
know, weirder. Not like I was expecting it to be covered in
spit and mucus. Can’t you keep that thing in a sheath?”
“This sucker is way too long to carry on the hip─and it
doesn’t need a sheath.”
“Why not?”
 “Kyahah! Shall I make an example out of you? But first,
some good news─I’ve never killed somebody with this
sword─but only because I just laid hands on it. Use that to
your advantage, and you may beat me yet. Kyahah! Oh,
how I love to entertain.”
“Isn’t that thing supposed to be valuable? You sure it’s
okay to walk around with it? I mean, shouldn’t you keep it
somewhere safe?”
“Other way around! I wouldn’t let go of something this
valuable. It stays inside me, wherever I go. Really, what
place under the sun is safer than my belly?”
He had a point.
“This sword is something special. That woman spoke of
poison, but no, it’s the best medicine.26 Just having it makes
me want to kill!”
There was no more time for talking.
Without a running start, Komori leapt into the air, held
the long sword high, and executed a swing aided by gravity.
“Side Splitter!”27
Komori was in the game.
Shichika didn’t know much about how to interact with
others, but this he understood.
In fact─it was the moment he’d been waiting for.
His first sparring partner in a year.
Except this wasn’t sparring.
For the first time, Shichika Yasuri, Master of the
Kyotoryu, was tasting battle.28
“Hmph!”
 He jumped backwards on his tiptoes and dodged
Komori’s opener. It mattered none that they were on the
beach. There wasn’t a single place on Haphazard Island that
was unusual for Shichika. On the beach or in the mountains,
there was no good or bad terrain.
The tip of the sword passed before his eyes.
A real sword.
If it cuts, you bleed.
After landing, Shichika ran backwards, putting five long
strides between him and Komori before stopping and
assuming a stance.
Legs saddled wide, hips low.
Left foot forward, toes pointed ahead.
Right foot back, toes pointed to the right.
Palms open, right hand high, left hand low.
Becoming a wall for his opponent.
“Kyotoryu Form One: the Suzuran.”29
For a split second, Shichika had debated which move to
use for his debut, but he settled for his most basic. He had
maneuvers specifically for long swords, and for straight
swords too, and from that garish opening attack, he
gathered that Komori was no expert swordsman (he was a
ninja, after all)─but picking the right move required thinking,
and that was a pain in the butt.
Even in the heat of battle, everything was a pain to
Shichika.
This also meant that he was calm.
The rattled nerves of his earlier outburst and frantic
pursuit down the mountain were gone. In that sense,
Komori’s sideshow act of pulling a katana from his mouth
worked in Shichika’s favor─at least in that regard.
Kyotoryu Form One─the Suzuran.
Outside of the Kyotoryu, the world is not without its
other ways of taking on a sword barehanded. If you adopt
the proper method, you stand a chance. The most surefire
method of all is “running away” (since the heavy sword
slows down your enemy), but when that’s not an option,
“fighting while running” is the next best thing.
A katana is long.
That is its advantage.
It could reach him from a distance─all Shichika’s attacks
would fall short, but the Leveler was long enough to cut him
where he stood. This was an immovable fact. If a fact
couldn’t be minimized, maximizing it was one way to go.
In other words, Shichika might fight at a distance.
Evading the katana, he could nettle his enemy, trick him
into leaping forward, and proceed to counterattack. A simple
tactic, but simplicity truly is a virtue.
Except the Suzuran made this impossible. Legs firmly
planted, all footwork was out of the question. The stance
permitted next to zero movement. It seemed to dare the
enemy to move in for a hit.
“…Hmm.”
In practice, it served only to encourage Komori’s
wariness. Standing where he landed after making his first
move, he puzzled at Shichika’s rigid pose. There had to be a
reason to opt for such a stance against an armed opponent.
However callous this ninja seemed, he was a
Maniwa─and no foil offered up on page one of the story30
just to demonstrate the protagonist’s prowess.
“How about this, Kyotoryu?”
Komori kicked the sand at his feet into a kind of
smokescreen─but no, a smokescreen is for hiding. This was
a sandstorm, blowing all the way to Shichika, to swarm his
vision. Komori rushed through the cloud of sand─
And delivered one thrust after another.
“There! Side Splitter!”
A head-on assault.
Throwing all his weight.
 While no swordsman, Komori knew this much─straight
swords stab better than they slice.
But not this time.
“Kyotoryu─Kiku!”31
The tip of the blade never found Shichika. The
smokescreen obstructed Komori’s own vision, and he did not
catch Shichika swiping his hand and clearing the air before
his eyes. The Master of the Kyotoryu hadn’t even blinked.
Dodging a thrust bound for his abdomen, he swung his right
foot in an arc and turned his left toes so that his left side
faced his opponent.
The blade of the Leveler missed his bare back by a skin.
He caught the sword near its grip in the crook of his left arm
and, as if executing a pincer strike, shot out his right elbow
against the tip─naturally, aiming for the flat of the blade in
both instances.
Then, using his spine for a fulcrum.
He stilled the Leveler in midair.
“Gah─y-you!”
No matter how Komori thrusted or tugged, the Leveler
wouldn’t budge. His sneering face was finally betraying
signs of panic. This ninja had only just learned of the
Kyotoryu; and though he had granted Shichika some chance
of winning, the power of this seizure throttled him.
Now would be the time for Shichika to strike back─if this
were a different story. Komori seemed to think as much,
until he saw the absurd look on his opponent’s face.
As if he’d forgotten that he was in the middle of a battle,
Shichika’s eyes were wide with fascination. His eyes darted
from Komori to the steel of the Leveler. This simply stunned
the ninja for a moment.
At almost the same time, both of them remembered
they were fighting. Shichika released his grip on the Leveler
and spun to face his enemy, who was within reach.
Unbending the elbow he had whammed into the sword, he
chopped with the blade of his hand.32
And when the ninja dodged his hand─Shichika answered
with the blade of his foot.33
His heel just grazed the ninja’s throat, but this, too, he
evaded─yet clearly unaccustomed to handling the
ponderous Leveler, Komori could only dodge the blows. He
had barely room to squirm. Up this close, no sword was at
its best, even one created by the legendary swordsmith Kiki
Shikizaki.
The endless flurry of chops and kicks drove Komori mad.
“Mother of hell!” he groaned, dropping almost to the
sand. Turning the katana sideways so he could hug it close
and tumble backwards, he rolled a safe distance away from
Shichika. A retreat he only could have managed on a
beach─but the real surprise was seeing the side with a
sword fleeing from the side without one.
Shichika neglected to close in.
If there was a time for closing in, this was it─but not for
him.
Komori sprang up and raised the Leveler─but not for
battle. He rested the flat of the blade on his shoulder as if it
were a piece of luggage. No student of swordplay would
ever be caught dead holding a sword this way.
The ninja was running out of breath.
He must have meant it about not having had the chance
to feed the mythic sword a human life─the Leveler was not
under his complete control.
Was the illusion just an illusion, after all?
Was an illusion not reality?
It was ludicrous to think that mere possession of a
Shikizaki blade would make you stronger─
“I gotta hand it to you, Kyotoryu. I haven’t seen a show
like this in ages. First time since I became a Boss. I had my
doubts about this swordless swordplay, but you wield your
hands and feet as well as any blade. I can see why you
would call yourself a swordsman. I’m impressed.”
“That was nothing. You’re the one who pulled a sword
out of your mouth,” Shichika put the fight on hold to offer
his rejoinder.
Lest he let his guard down, he resumed the Suzuran.
“That Leveler’s a bastard, too.”
“Ah.” Shichika’s choice of words prickled Komori. “What
did you see, boy?”
“See? Look, that last move─the Kiku─where I caught the
sword against my back─is not supposed to work that way.
It’s used for catching a long sword, but the idea is to work
your arms and elbows against your back to harness
leverage─and snap the blade in half.”
Shichika acted out the strange ballet.
“But it didn’t even bend. Did my training fail me?”
“…”
“That sword─is totally weird.”
Komori sabered the air, as if showing off his favorite toy.
“Of course it is─as one of the mutant dozen. It would be
far weirder if it weren’t weird, although I can’t claim to know
anything beyond what that woman said. It wasn’t long ago
that I learned of this crazy old coot Shikizaki. But Zetto the
Leveler was made to be the hardest sword imaginable.
People love to talk about how katana never bend or break or
lose their edge, but as a rule, swords are expendable. To use
them is to abuse them. But not so with the Leveler. It truly
cannot break or bend, and thus can never lose its hard
edge.”
“No way…”
Could such a sword─exist?
“People say the curved blade is what makes a katana
resist breakage, but check this puppy out─no curve, but no
nicks, down the entire blade. An elephant34 could step on it
and it would look brand new. This thing’s worth millions!
Kyahah!”
Komori reeked of greed. Money was his everything─or
perhaps, more aptly, it was his mantra, a notion he used to
insulate himself from the venom of the Shikizaki blade.
“That’s impossible. It’s like perpetual motion.35 If this
sword is so hard, how could you ever make it?”
“Hell if I know. And if you don’t know, it’s not your place
to ask. There’s only such a thing as stupid questions. That
woman might know more, but my hunch is that this
Shikizaki gramps wasn’t exclusively a swordsmith. He must
have dabbled in the occult,36 and in alchemy. I bet he knew
some scary tricks.”
Komori did not seem to care one bit.
He had no interest in developing a theory.
He was simply rational, as any ninja worth his stars
should be.
“Scary tricks! I’d say pulling a sword out of your mouth
is twelve times scarier. I can see now why it wouldn’t need a
sheath, but that doesn’t explain why you would keep it in
your stomach. Why can’t you carry it like a normal person?”
“Simpleton. Sticking this sword in a sheath would be
boorish.37 Gotta have style.”
Komori laughed expansively.
“But hold on. Have we not already proven that the
Kyotoryu is no match for a Shikizaki blade? Your sword-
snapping move wasn’t much to snap at.”
“Mrg.”
“That did surprise me too, though, when I heard about
it. Barehanded up against a weapon, most people would try
to dodge it─their most aggressive move would still only
catch it midair.38 But with you, Kyotoryu, you’re bent on
snapping it in two. A most laudable achievement, I must
say─if you could pull it off.”
“…Just watch.”
 Accepting Komori’s challenge, Shichika shifted his
stance.
One leg behind the other, unlike the open Suzuran.
Spear hands,39 staggered, but held at the same height.
“Kyotoryu Form Two─Suisen!”40
“I can see your stance is different from before, but what
am I supposed to watch? You bleeding to death?”
“Wait and see. Once I snap that Leveler in half─”
“Idiot!!”
Another voice.
Shichika meant business, but his brazen declaration was
riven by it. He turned to see where it had come from, and
sure enough, he saw the Schemer.
Incandescent finery in disarray.
Soaked in sweat and out of breath.
No wonder, after rushing here in those cumbersome
adornments and hollering at the top of her
lungs─nevertheless, Togame managed to catch Shichika in a
rigid stare.
Not Komori, who was so obviously the enemy, but
Shichika.
“Snap it in half? We’re trying to collect them, not break
them! If I gave the bakufu a broken sword, they’d have me
spill my guts!41 Do you listen to a word that people say to
you?”
“I was…”
She was right. Breaking swords was not the point.
The point was to amass all thousand of the Shikizaki
blades─ideally, without damaging any.
The ninja had pushed his buttons, talking daggers about
his school.
Ridiculing the Kyotoryu─meant ridiculing his father.
Is that…what did it?
Shichika didn’t know.
He had never thought or had to think about it─or rather.
 He did have to think about it, but had never.
“I don’t remember agreeing to join you,” Shichika said.
“That’s not the issue! Do you have no sense of value?”
Togame was enraged─her voice more ragged than her
kimono. “No person with their head screwed on would
dream of damaging a Shikizaki blade.”
“You got that right!” It was Komori who agreed. “I’d
never harm something so valuable. And I know a thing or
two about the market.”
Togame had much more to say to Shichika, but the
ninja’s voice─so void of feeling─made her pause. She turned
his way.
“Kyahah! We had a lovely boat ride, and from my
perspective, we only just parted. But I’ll assume yours. Long
time no see, Pussycat.”42
Mind you.
This was long before calling women “pussycat” fell out
of favor.
“Komori Maniwa! You─”
“What’s gotten into you? You’ve been nothing but angry
since you screamed your way in, you ball of energy. Upset
your devoted ninja stabbed you in the back? Well, guess
what. Ninjas stab. Dirty deeds43 are how we make a living.”
But then Komori took back what he said.
“Wait, maybe you do need to be upset here─no, you
gotta be. If you weren’t─things wouldn’t add up. The story
wouldn’t hang together.”
“Huh? What are you─”
“Nothing. Your timing really was impeccable, but forgive
me, my dear Schemer, if I beg you to allow me to explain
things later─let’s do lunch, once I demolish Kyotoryu.”
Komori trained his eyes on Shichika, who hadn’t broken
the Suisen, despite the sudden visit from Togame.
“Nothing gets in the way of a match between two men.
Wouldn’t you say, Kyotoryu? Come on. Tell her for me.”
 “Togame, I can’t promise you I’ll head off on this
journey, but one thing’s for sure─you’ll have this Leveler in
no time. Just watch. You wanted to see the Kyotoryu in
action, right? Here’s your chance.”
Those were Shichika’s words.
It wasn’t that he concurred with Komori’s about a match
between two men.
The Leveler─the strange Shikizaki blade that not even
the Kiku could destroy─had simply caught his interest.
“The sword must not be broken, or─”
“I know, I know, I won’t break it. Any other requests? I’ll
do my best.”
“Well, let’s see…”
Togame gave this some thought.
“Something spectacular,” she said.
“Spectacular?”44
“Put on a good show. When we’re done collecting all
twelve swords, I’ll need to write up a report detailing how
things happened─give us something dashing. Something to
make the readers keep on reading.”
“…”
“Look. You break this sword─even by mistake─and the
story’s over. Before we’re even done with Book One.”
“Book One… You’re writing a whole book about this?”
“Not yet, but think of the sales.”
“Who would read this?”
Seriously.
What a pain to think about.
“Alright, I’ll show you the most45 spectacular move I’ve
got─sorry to keep you waiting, Komori… Hey!”
While Shichika and Togame exchanged their pointless
repartee, Komori had taken more than half the lengthy
Leveler in his mouth─and down his guts.
“Ah.”
“Ah!”
 It was too late. Komori coaxed the long sword deep
inside him, up to the grip. Arresting as it had been to watch
him stick his whole arm down and pull it out, it was even
more alarming to watch him swallow the thing. No matter
the angle, it didn’t physically add up. Unless his throat46
stretched all the way down to his ankles, there was no way
he could stuff the entire sword into his body. But stuff the
sword he did.
“Ahem. No, no. I should be the one apologizing. Shall we
continue, Kyotoryu?”
“Continue what? You just swallowed the whole sword.
How are we supposed to battle now? What’s the matter?
Scared that I might break it this time?”
“You can’t break it─don’t even bother with that second
stance. Sadly, our katana’s too much for me. I can’t keep up
with it. I’m no swordsman, and dying on its account─now,
that’d be too hard to swallow.47 Get the joke? Kyahah!”
Komori was quite pleased with himself.
“Your Kyotoryu’s all well and good against a sword, but if
you’ll permit me to use my ninjutsu,48 I’m afraid that you
can never win. It’s a matter of experience. I have it─you
don’t.”
“Maybe so.”
Shichika could hardly argue with that.
This being his first battle.
“That swordplay was just my way of humoring you,”
Komori added. “Consider it a present from your buddy the
Hell-Made.”
“Quit screwing around!”
Once again, it was Togame doing the yelling.
She might have been even louder than before.
She was losing her temper.
“That’s not some toy for you to suck on. It’s one of
Shikizaki’s Possessed! Spit it out. Now!”
 “Spit it out? You’re one meddlesome Pussycat, aren’t
you? Aren’t you too old to be caterwauling like that? Alright,
alright. If you say so, I’ll spit it out…”
His pliancy was odd─even bizarre. Komori inhaled
deeply, filling both his lungs and then some, until his back
began to arch. His chest and stomach and entire upper body
filled with air, like a balloon. He was the definition of bizarre.
Quite the sight to see.
Neither Shichika nor Togame could look away.
Which is to say.
They missed a beat.
“BLAAAAAAAAAAAGH!”
Komori spat out all his air.
Not the Leveler. Air.
But this wasn’t air alone. The air that he released was
full of shuriken. A gale akin to that which slammed the hut
where they’d left Nanami.
He was a cannon. Shooting stars.
This went beyond the gag of stuffing things in his
body─his body was an arsenal, and ready, on command, to
free a swarm of shuriken.
No matter how you looked at it.
Way stranger than the Kyotoryu or the Possessed.
“Nraaaagh!”
This menace was nothing like that screen of kicked-up
sand, which Shichika had cleared with a swift wave of the
palm. This menace had a precedent. And at this range, he
wasn’t going to be gouged. He would be shredded.
Yet Shichika held his ground.
Try to escape, and he would perish.
It was lucky that he had maintained the Suisen─if it
were the open Suzuran, he may have perished all the same.
Reducing his exposed area to a minimum, he shielded his
torso with his arm and leg. Those limbs would suffer many
wounds─but his vital organs would remain intact.
Whooosh!
 A mighty wind blew past his body.
Mighty enough to all but knock him over─but he
persevered. Persevered─not even twitching as pain bloomed
through his limbs.
“Owww…”
Though he couldn’t help but groan.
When he opened his eyes, four shuriken had bit into his
arm and two into his leg, but none so very deep, since he
had flexed his muscles in defense. Considering the number
of stars thrown (up) in the assault, this was a precious bit of
good luck among bad.49 No, this wasn’t about luck, good or
otherwise. Shichika had put his training into practice. And it
had worked.
“I could have sworn my arm and leg were blown off!”
This was no time to wallow in the pain. Shichika raised
his head─embodying his inexperience. In battle, the dust
rarely settles with a single blast. You can’t just catch your
breath and have a look around.
Which is why─
“Oops.”
Even when Shichika looked─there was no one there.
No Komori.
No Togame.
“Oops.”

1 真 庭 MANIWA “True Garden” actual city in Okayama 2 里 SATO small town;

ninja settlement 3 手裏剣 SHURIKEN “palm-of-the-hand swords”

4 苦無 KUNAI metal dibbers weaponized as throwing knives 5 曲者 KUSE MONO
ruffian
6 飛び道具 TOBIDŌGU projectile weapons 7 草鞋 WARAJI handmade straw sandals
8 手っ甲 TEKKŌ cloth armoring the wrists and the backs of the hands 9 尾行
BIKŌ “to chase somebody’s tail”
10 口幅ったい KUCHI HABATTAI “wide-mouthed”
11 出家 SHUKKE “leave home” become a monk/nun vs. 在家 ZAIKE lay believer
12 冷然 REIZEN frigid echoes 霊前 REIZEN, the space before a tombstone 13
 忍ぶ者 SHINOBU MONO alternate reading emphasizes the literal sense of 忍者
NINJA 14 山林 SANRIN montane forest
15 蝙 蝠 KŌMORI “The Bat” as in the flying mammal 16 千 客 万 来 SENKYAKU
BANRAI “a thousand guests, ten thousand arrivals”
17 忍者刀 NINJATŌ ninja sword
18 座興 ZAKYŌ parlor trick
19 ずるずる ZURU ZURU onomatopoeia for a sloppy mess 20 冥土の蝙蝠 MEIDO
NO KŌMORI the synonym for hell is homophonous with “maid” (as in
cosplay) 21 彎刀 WANTŌ curved blades in general 22 切刃造 KIRIHA ZUKURI
straight blades with a chisel tip 23 五尺 GOSHAKU five shaku = approx. five
feet 24 二筋樋 NISUJIHI long grooves that lighten the mass of the blade 25 綾
杉肌 AYASUGIHADA 綾杉 AYASUGI Japanese cedar 肌 HADA skin (bark) 26 百薬
の長 HYAKUYAKU NO CHŌ “the leader among a hundred medicines”
27 報復絶刀 HŌFUKU ZETTŌ “payback from the Zetto” pun on 抱腹絶倒 HŌFUKU

ZETTŌ, to laugh so hard it hurts 28 実戦 JISSEN real fighting (vs. training) 29

鈴 蘭 SUZURAN “The Lily of the Valley” an erect, poisonous flower 30 物 語
MONOGATARI tale, e.g. 源 氏 物 語 The Tale of Genji 31 菊 KIKU “The
Chrysanthemum” dense, uniformly colored blossom 32 手 刀 SHUTŌ “hand
katana”
33 足刀 SOKUTŌ “foot katana”
34 象 ZŌ elephant
35 永久機関 EIKYŪ KIKAN an “eternal engine” defying the laws of physics 36 陰陽
道 ONMYŌDŌ “the ying yang way” of divination vs. 道教 DŌKYŌ Taoism 37 無
粋 BUSUI not “cool” (粋 IKI) 38 真剣白羽取り SHINKEN SHIRAHA DORI catching
a real sword with bare hands 39 貫 手 NUKITE straight fingers, closed and
rigid 40 水 仙 SUISEN “The Narcissus” homophone with 垂 線 SUISEN
“perpendicular,” suggestive of the stance 41 腹 を 切 ら さ れ る HARA WO
KIRASARERU forced to commit 切腹 SEPPUKU self-disembowelment 42 子猫ち
ゃん KONEKOCHAN “little kitty”
43 卑怯卑劣 HIKYŌ HIRETSU “unfair and foul”
44 派手 HADE garish
45 いっとう ITTŌ “the most” echoes 一刀 ITTŌ “a single slash”
46 食道 SHOKUDŌ “food path” esophagus 47 忍びねえ SHINOBINEH unendurable

(in the original, the joke is a pun on 忍 者 NINJA) 48 忍 術 NINJUTSU ninja

techniques 49 不幸中の幸い FUKŌCHŪ NO SAIWAI silver lining
 ■ ■

The textbook1 approach here would be to divulge the

backstory of the whitehaired young lady named Togame─the
Schemer, and Grand Commander of Arms of the Yanari
Shogunate Military Directorate, Owari Bakufu─but those
details can be filled in later. For one thing, this is hardly time
for a digression, and for another, and far more critically, no
small number of you must prefer her past to be a mystery
just a little longer. To offer one small secret about her,
however, she was not by any measure a loyal servant to the
bakufu.
Her quest to capture the Twelve Possessed of Kiki
Shikizaki.
Her journey to Haphazard Island.
These were not for the benefit of the shogunate.
She, more than anyone else in the world, was neither
money-hungry ninja nor honor-hungry swordsman.
What, then, did she seek?
Shedding light on the matter happens to be one goal of
the present tale.

■ ■

She made a mistake.

Togame knew it.
But what the mistake was, she wasn’t sure. Maybe it
was coming to this godforsaken island2 in the first place, or
maybe it was trying to use the Kyotoryu to do her
bidding─why had she chosen them?
 Out of all the other schools.
Shichika Yasuri. Seventh Master of the Kyotoryu.
She had learned enough from their exchanges to know
that he was not so bright, but she had not expected him to
be this much of an idiot. How could he be so absorbed in
battle that he’d forget his employer? Granted, there could
have been no other way for him to evade Komori’s Star
Cannon─which is why he also missed Komori snatching her
off her feet and fleeing in the blink of an eye─and maybe
she ought to go a little easier on him. After all, she wasn’t
officially his employer yet, and from the sound of it, this was
his first real battle. Comparing the Kyotoryu to normal
schools of swordsmanship may be absurd to begin with, but
who ever trained for situations where the opponent cut and
run?
Why would he?
But his opponent was a ninja.
Making a living out of dirty deeds.
If you’ll permit me to use my ninjutsu.
Komori had done just that.
After bombarding Shichika with shuriken, Komori
launched from the sand and landed in a single bound beside
Togame, who like Shichika was so mystified by the
ballooning ninja that she lost her chance to run away.
But no.
Truth be told, Togame, who lacked any martial arts skills,
could never have evaded Komori Maniwa, one of the twelve
bosses of a ninja clan.
Proud as she was of going unarmed.
A Schemer─an eschewer of armaments.
“Holy crap, that guy is crazy! Look at those reflexes. He
braced himself before I’d even puked out all the shuriken.
Anybody else would have turned and ran. Good going,
kyahah! But I should have seen it coming, from any man of
yours. Right, Pussycat?”
 Snickering, Komori finished tying Togame to the trunk of
a tree. The thick straw rope was soppy with saliva─naturally
having been stowed in his stomach.
With Togame slung over his shoulder, Komori had run
into the forest, sprinting left and right in random zigzags all
over the mountain. Unlike Togame on her morning trek, he
had taken great pains to leave no footprints and jumped
from tree to tree─until, judging that he’d gone far enough,
he’d stopped. When he pinned her up against the tree, she
had no way of resisting him. He tied her hands around her
back, and wound the rope around her body, lashing her ribs
tight against the bark.
“That boy is so naive.3 Ready for battle, but not the
battlefield. Suppose that’s what you get if you grow up on
an island in the middle of nowhere.”
“You…coward!” Togame cursed her captor. Tied up as
she was, words were her only weapon. “What’s the matter,
chicken? Too scared to face the Kyotoryu?”
“Whoa, whoa. Easy, tiger. I’m no swordsman, nor a
warrior, and never claimed to be. Put up a fair fight, as a
ninja, and I’d be the laughing stock of the village. Only
meatheads rely on muscle. I take a wiser approach─you
might even call it tactics. Isn’t that right, Schemer?”
“Don’t compare us, you scumbag,” spat Togame. “You’re
just a bully. All you do is take the easy path─I’m the
opposite. I stake my life and soul on devising ways for the
weak to take on the strong─”
“That sounds so brave. Reminds me of some of the less
brave things I know about you.”
“What?”
“In any case, I’m a ninja, not a swordsman. Don’t
confuse me with Hakuhei Sabi.” Komori laughed
condescendingly, his cheeks threatening to tear up to the
ears. “I overheard your conversation with Kyotoryu. What do
you expect from a ninja? I must say I was surprised that
Sabi was okay with sloppy seconds. I suppose someone had
to try and fill my shoes. But then he went and stabbed you
in the back─yeah?”
“If you heard me, why are you asking?”
“Don’t look so sour, Pussycat. It’s not as if I peeped in
on two lovers making out.4 But you could have been a bit
more careful. You may be smart, but you’re wide open.”
What was there to say?
The possibility of the boatman being anyone but
himself─much less this ninja─had failed to cross her mind.
She should have known─after all, she knew what powers he
could muster. Even if the Star Cannon was a surprise. And
here she thought she knew his tricks more than she cared
to.
“You might not have caught me snooping, but there’s no
excuse for that pickup line of yours. ‘Go ahead and fall for
me.’ Whew! Laying it on thick. I wish you’d used that one on
me.”
“Only to have you double-cross me? Don’t waste your
breath. What’s your plan? You think that you can hold me
hostage?”
“Hey! There’s an idea.” Komori gave an exaggerated
shrug. “But you only just met Kyotoryu and might not serve
as one. Personally,” he said, grinning, “I would have picked
his sister.”
So he knew about Nanami. How couldn’t he, if he’d been
listening; but this proved it.
“Then again, maybe not─that sister of his is more than
meets the eye. My Star Cannon was supposed to wipe out
you and Kyotoryu─but that girl somehow saw the whole
thing coming.”
He was right.
Only now did the Schemer realize that Nanami had
saved them from the gale of ninja stars that blew through
the wall of the hut. Throwing herself into the line of fire and
pushing Togame and Shichika─before the shuriken came
through the wall!
Nanami Yasuri.
Was she another master of the Kyotoryu?
“Where’s she gonna hide? She’s on an island. Soon it’ll
be her turn to taste what the Hell-Made is serving up─after I
kill you and her brother.”
“So go ahead and kill me.”
“Don’t act so noble, Pussycat─I know you inside out.
You’re brimming with schemes of how to finish me off. Your
guts are far more hazardous than mine.”
Komori got up in her face, so close their breath mixed.
“Don’t fret. I’m not gonna kill you─we have so many
things to talk about. Even when I came at you with the Star
Cannon, I wasn’t trying to kill you off, much less the
Kyotoryu. That line about wiping you out was just my way of
speaking.5 I merely hoped to whip you to a pulp─kyahah!”
“If that was the idea, you could have exercised a little
self-control─I can’t speak for the Kyotoryu, but it’s a miracle
I didn’t die. I’m feebler than you know.”
“Don’t sound proud about it. Kyotoru would have
partially shielded you if it had gone according to plan… So,
what I’d like us to discuss, of course, are these Shikizaki
blades, the masterpiece Mutant Blades. I know where the
Leveler is─safe inside my belly. Tell me where I can find the
other eleven, along with who has them and what each blade
can do.”
“…”
“You said you only knew what was up with six of them,
but you can’t be absolutely in the dark about the other six.
The Old Shogun had his finger on the whole lot. If you put
your precious directorate to work, you’d at least have a
place to start from.”
“…”
 “Trust me, I’ve done my best to find out all I can. I know
all about this Hakuto the Whisper sword that Hakuhei Sabi
ran away with. Sounds like a wild weapon. As thin and light
as the name implies. From overhead, it’s practically
invisible. Fit only for the hands of a true master─right?
Designed to be light as the Leveler is sturdy─or so I hear.
But that’s what makes it delicate; unless it’s in the hands of
someone who can swing it perfectly, it’s bound to shatter.
Kyahah! I can see why you ordered Sabi to go after it first.
He’s probably the only living swordsman in Japan who could
handle it.”
“…”
“Wasn’t there another one that Shikizaki designed
around the principle of strength in numbers? I believe it’s
called Sento the Legion. A sinister mirage─a thousand
swords in one. Anyway. That’s all I managed to discover. I’m
dying to know what else you have to share with me. That’s
why I followed you to this landfill of an island. But in the
end, you tell Kyotoryu nothing that you didn’t tell me.”
“…”
“Cat got your tongue?”
Komori clucked6 at her with disgust before giving her a
little breathing room.
“I’m only gonna ask you once, so listen up. Why don’t
you just backstab the bakufu and team up with us? You’ll
get a fair cut. No funny business.”
“Eat me.” Her reaction was instant. “I can’t trust anyone
who works for money.”
“You still mad about what happened? We’ve been over
this. You messed up when you put your trust in a pack of
ninjas. But I know why you need to get mad─”
“Need to? What are you─”
“Never mind.” Komori steered the conversation in a new
direction. “Me and the other Maniwa Bosses, we’ve decided
to have ourselves a competition─to see who can snatch up
most of the twelve swords. Once we’ve sold them, we’ll
divvy up the spoils, but the more swords you found, the
bigger your piece of the pie. I’m one step ahead of the
game, but the other guys aren’t far behind. Especially that
prick Kawauso.7 He knows how to sniff these suckers out. If
you and I had teamed up, it would have been lucky for both
of us.”
“Guess your luck’s run out.”
“I’ll show you how lucky I am─I can torture you to my
heart’s content. What’s the matter? You look a little pale.
Kyahah! They say that any punishment beats being tortured
by a ninja. Isn’t that a horrible thing to say? I wouldn’t say
we do anything horrible. Per se.”
“Creep.”
“Don’t fret. We won’t get started yet. I don’t have any of
my toys. With that last Star Cannon I blew through most of
my stash, except for the Leveler. It’s not the sort of move I
ordinarily pull twice in a day. You’ll have to wait until we
return to the mainland for the physical interrogations to
begin─first, let me take care of Kyotoryu.”
Seventh Master of the Kyotoryu─Shichika Yasuri.
“This game of swords is crazy enough with just us
Maniwa Bosses. I’ll have to take care of Hakuhei Sabi, too,
as soon as I have the chance… Kyahah, last thing I want is
to be sword-handed from behind while I’m torturing you.”
“Then why didn’t you stay and fight? You didn’t look so
cornered that you had to start anew.”
“Remember? Only meatheads rely on muscle. The
moment for that sort of thing has come and gone. Nothing’s
more passé than a bona fide swordfight. And where’s the
sport in a ninja─who regurgitates far better than he
ripostes─battling a swordsman who doesn’t even use a
sword? It’d be like trying to cuddle with a cuttlefish8─not
that cuttlefish aren’t cuddly. Did that pun suck? No bones
about it. I know I’m preaching to the choir,9 my dear
Schemer, but the best way to stay alive is to avoid fighting
anyone stronger than you. To play it safe, I’d personally
avoid anyone who’s half as strong. But after that sermon of
yours on the glories of weakness, I get the sense I’m not so
much preaching to the choir as casting pearls before
swine.”10
“Stuff your nonsense11 down your star hole. I have no
interest in battling anyone weaker than me.”
“Well, I guess you and I have different tastes after all.”
“So you think highly of Shichika.” In essence, that was
the Maniwa Boss’s assessment of that untested youth.
“Head to head, he would be hard to take. If I were a
swordsman, I may even have lost. He had a chance. But I’m
a ninja─and I know how to eliminate that chance.”
“Lofty remarks, from a man relying on a hostage to lure
his enemy into the mountains for a sneak attack.”
“Tsk tsk tsk. To be a hostage, you need to be desirable.
And these mountains are hardly the place to try and snare
that Kyotoryu. This is his turf. Were he to show up now, the
disadvantage would be mine. And if he comes for me, he’s
taking you down, too.”
“Take me down?”
Could that happen?
Togame doubted the efficacy of a hostage scenario, but
she had no way of predicting how that simple man would
react to a situation like this.
When you’re smart, you can’t imagine being stupid.
And what if─
If the Kyotoryu…is that kind of school…
“So I’m not going to ambush him. We’ll square off. I’ll be
a good sport.”
“…”
“Don’t look so skeptical. You know what I can do. You’ve
seen my ninja skills.”
 Komori Maniwa. One of the Twelve Bosses of the
Maniwa.
Defying physics and anatomy to stuff a plethora of
exceedingly long or sharp or useful things, like rope, inside
his body─was not the main attraction.
This was just a taste of him─merely the first sip. Komori
had mentioned how Kawauso could sniff them out, but
Togame had originally hired the clan because it was Komori
whose powers were best suited to the task at hand.
His face was melting.
It transformed as she watched.
As if it were clay, he thumbed the skin and muscle of his
face─but didn’t stop there. He tugged and squeezed at his
entire body until─
“How’s this look? Think I’ll pass?”
Before the count of ten─Komori had molded his head
into hers. From the neck up, he was Togame.
This was no mere disguise.
His bones and very flesh had changed.
He had her long hair─white of course.
And had even copied the bump on her forehead.
“Yuck!”
To repeat, Togame already knew about this move─but it
never failed to disturb her. Komori’s ninpo12 allowed him to
modify his body, on command, to have a different figure, a
different feel, a different skin.
This is how he had transformed into the boatman.
The boatman she had vetted so severely─and that was
why, when Nanami raised the possibility, Togame saw
instantly that it was Komori who had bombarded the hut.
She’d been so careful about being followed.
And never dreamed she’d be accompanied instead.
The actual boatman─was surely no longer of this world.
“Behold, the Body Melt13─kyahah! Whoops, don’t want
to forget the rest of my body. And what a fine body it is─”
 He yanked and pinched and tugged and squeezed.
Stretching flesh and bone into shape.
Transforming from a muscly man into a skinny
woman─yes, with Komori’s Body Melt, body type was no
concern, and even gender distinctions14 were meaningless.
Perhaps it’s a cliché to describe ninjas as masters of
disguise, but in Komori’s case, his powers were absolute.
Nobody knew his true identity─whether he was a he or a
she, or old or young. Even the figure we saw on the beach
might have been artificial. In all likelihood, Komori Maniwa
had forgotten his original form.The Softeninja.15
His ability to load that bare sword and those prickly
shuriken into his body without a drop of blood was owing to
this fearsome elasticity.
The owner of the supplest body in existence claiming
the hardest and firmest katana was ironic, perhaps─but
maybe this was necessity.
After all, it was why Togame had enlisted him to seize
the Leveler, just as she had tasked Sabi with capturing the
Whisper.
Pinching and squeezing to make the last few touches,
Komori completed his transformation into Togame. It may
have taken slightly longer than ten seconds by now, but far
less time than you might expect. Forced to watch herself
take form before her very eyes, Togame was hardly at ease.
“That just about does it.”
Even the voice was Togame’s.
“Kyahah!” he laughed─in her voice. “You think that
doesn’t sound like you? People never hear their own voice
as others hear it. But that’s what you sound like to
everybody else. Doesn’t it make you squeamish?”
This was no impression. It was far more sinister than
mimicking her voice─Komori had her vocal cords. He
probably even had the same lungs and other vital
organs─which is why.
 It was exactly her voice.
Indeed, she felt squeamish─
Not at the sound of her own voice.
At the thought of her insides being replicated.
“Is this how you’re going to fool Shichika?”
“You know it. And if you think I’m playing dirty, keep it
to yourself. I’m only doing what I did for you when I seized
the Leveler.”
“…”
He was right.
She had utilized his transformative powers to the
utmost.
“Actually─you need to keep it to yourself all the time.”
With that suggestive declaration, Komori plunged his
hand into his mouth. This topped the list of feats Togame
hoped he would not execute as her, but lashed to the tree,
she was powerless to stop him. Perhaps he was making her
watch simply to force her to savor her powerlessness.
The hand he eventually pulled out of his throat was
gripping a bindle16─packed with carefully folded clothes,
from the looks of it. Of course. Togame put it all together.
Komori hadn’t worn his wacky ninja garb as the boatman─
“Even with your skin and bones, I’d never pass for you
in clothes this baggy. If I had time to strip you bare─I would
enjoy every minute of it, trust me─but I thought ahead and
packed accordingly. The same kimono.”
He had wrapped the clothes to prevent them from being
drenched in spit. He had to have another outfit, for the
boatman, packed somewhere else in his body─was his
stomach connected to a fourth dimension? It was a mystery
that could not be explained in terms of flexibility alone. That
said, it would be futile to attempt an understanding of
ninjutsu based on logic─
“Kyahah! Don’t forget to write in your report to your
superiors how I brought a change of clothes. Make sure you
say exactly what I’m wearing. Lots of guys go crazy for
those details. But I digress─the only thing you’ll be
submitting to your superiors─is your resignation.”
“…I’d rather not have to explain how a maniac ninja like
you showed up.”
“I bet. Man, these are some fancy duds. By the way, I
got a receipt. Can I expense this? That price tag made me
sick to my stomach. But I guess it’s nothing compared to
what I’ll get for a Shikizaki sword─no, not even close.”
“Aren’t you ashamed for being such a money-grubber?”
“Of course not. Like I said, that age is over. These days,
shrewdness is a virtue. It’s proof of your intelligence, your
cleverness. Though I suppose the Schemer would have to
disagree.”
Komori sloughed his ninja clothes and changed into the
outfit wrapped up in the bindle. Donning17 a kimono is an
art, and he made it look easy. A little too easy─at times, he
moved his arms in ways a normal human skeleton should
not allow, like when he was adjusting the position of the obi
at his lower back. He slipped on a pair of the same sandals
as Togame and finished off by wrapping up his ninja garb,
throwing open his mouth, and swallowing the whole
package in one gulp.
“Now I just need to tear apart the hem a bit…like so.
Hey! Look at that. Twinsies! Kyahah! Imagine if I showed up
like this at Owari Castle instead of you? That’d be a laugh. If
I caused enough of a scene, you would become a wanted
woman, and you’d have to help me, like it or not.”
“Fool… You won’t get very far. Bump into enough
people, and someone will catch on.”
“Don’t act so serious. I’m kidding. You’re so uptight. It’d
be great if I could replicate your brains, but I’ll need some
more practice to get there. By the way, where’s your
weapon? When you left the boat, you had a big sword─too
big for you─dangling from your hip. Did you leave it at the
hut after they confiscated it?”
“I must have…”
Yep.
Unaccustomed to carrying a katana, Togame didn’t think
to reach for the sword when she ran off to chase after the
two men. Even if it had crossed her mind, Nanami would
hardly have given it back. Besides, Togame could barely
swing the thing.
“Oh well. Looks like I’ll have to finish this with the
Leveler. I can’t exactly fight him hand to hand, not with a
body like this…and I’m all out of shuriken.”
“Think you can pull it off?”
“Sure. He’ll never see it coming. You’ve seen my bag of
tricks, but Kyotoryu thinks I’m just some ninja who pulls
swords out of his stomach. He’s too gentle for his own good.
Doesn’t seem to have the temperament to ambush me or
anything. But what do you expect from an island monkey?”
“I thought you said you’d be a good sport.”
“I said we’d square off─not that I’d fight fair and square.
It would have been much better if I’d turned into his sister,
but sadly, I don’t know her face well enough to make it
work. Maybe I should have peeped while I was
eavesdropping. I wonder what happened to her. Think she’s
still sitting up in that hut?”
Togame wouldn’t say.
But that is where Nanami had to be.
You go and watch─I’m sure my brother will take care of
things─go see the Kyotoryu in action─was what she’d told
Togame.
Nanami trusted Shichika with her life.
That trust had gotten Togame into this mess…but it was
no reason to inform Komori of her whereabouts.
Togame held her tongue. She wouldn’t answer.
But it didn’t seem like he was waiting for an answer.
 “Who cares,” Komori said. “Once I’ve thoroughly18
squashed Kyotoryu, I’ll take his shape and kill his sister. On
this small island, she can run, but she can’t hide. Sorry, but
you’ll have to wait here till I’m done.”
“No! Wait.”
First the Maniwa double-crossed her.
Then Hakuhei Sabi double-crossed her.
And now she had to wait here while Komori killed the
Kyotoryu?
She would run out of options.
She would have no hope of rounding up the Shikizaki
blades─it was that simple.
Whether or not it had been a mistake, at this point,
relying on the Kyotoryu was the only strategy19 available to
her─her only scheme.
I’ve come this far.
How could I possibly give up now!
“What do you care anyway?”
Komori laughed, with Togame’s face, narrowing its eyes.
“Whether I kill him or not, that kid isn’t going to
cooperate with you. What was that hot line of yours? ‘Go
ahead and fall for me’? Man, do I wish you’d used it on me.
My comeback would’ve been ‘No one in this world would
ever fall for you.’”
“…”
“Sure, I stabbed your back for money, but if I had known
what kind of person you are, I never would have signed up
in the first place. And know what? I only asked you to team
up with me just now so I could stab you in the back again.”
Then he said it again.
His comeback line.
“No one in this world would ever fall for you.”

■ ■
Komori Maniwa has no backstory20 worth mentioning.
Given his awesome power, now come to light, pronouns
are an unresolvable dilemma, but for the sake of continuity,
he─a ninja upon being born in the Maniwa enclave, was
raised as a ninja of the ninjas, by the ninjas, for the ninjas.21
No values or ideas of his own.
When his turn came, he became a Maniwa Boss.
That was all there was to it.
A nonpartisan unit with allegiances to no country, the
Maniwa Clan was, in a certain sense, a perfect portrait22 of
the ninjas. It was organized around a principle of free
agency,23 but this was not because they didn’t get along. It
developed organically: each ninja was a true army of one,
and when they tried to work together, they couldn’t help
getting in each other’s way. Komori fit right in,
distinguishing himself as among the most reliable of the
Twelve Bosses. And while the unprecedented proposal that
the entire village go rogue did not come from him
specifically, you can bet he was behind it.
The Possessed of Kiki Shikizaki.
His twelve masterpieces.
If they sold the lot of them─
They could all give up on being ninjas.
No more slinking around in shadows.
They would no longer have to hide, and no longer have
to endure.24
Something unresolved was how they would unload the
Possessed. One sword was supposedly enough to buy a
country. Who had that kind of money? With the exception of
an area of Nagasaki, Japan was pursuing a policy of
isolation,25 but they would have to seek a patron overseas.
While they were at it, why not move the entire clan
overseas? Japan no longer had a place for them.
 It never did.
“If for no other reason…” muttered Komori, in the voice
of Togame the Schemer. “I need to make sure and finish off
Kyotoryu.”
To recap.
He couldn’t have Togame crying out for Kyotoryu or his
big sister to come save her. Tying her to the tree was not
enough; he had gagged her (at this point, you don’t need to
be told where he pulled the gag26 from) and sprang
off─zipping into action.
He had already laid his trap.
Repairing into the mountains with Togame in his
clutches, Komori had made frantic zigzags up and down as a
cover lest Shichika follow his tracks─but had left discernible
traces here and there. Not pointing toward Togame, they’d
lead Shichika somewhere completely different.
Tracks he would follow─without fail─precisely because of
his comprehensive knowledge of the island and the
mountains. A ruse, intent on laying bare the poor
interpersonal skills of a youth who’d barely met a soul.
Because he had never been the victim of malice, the
possibility would never occur to him.
It was a matter of experience.
Plain and simple.
According to plan, Shichika followed the false tracks
until he was right where Komori wanted him─the site of the
natural spring, which Shichika had meant to visit earlier that
day with a bucket on his back. That detail was not known to
Komori, who had only picked the place because it was a
clearing. Which made sense─after all, the Yasuri family had
been drawing water here and tending to the spring for
twenty years.
From up in the branches of a tree, Komori watched a
nonplussed Shichika find himself at the end of the trail.
Kyotoryu was tall and muscular, but far from oafish.
 Lengthy arms and legs.
The shuriken were gone, the bleeding stopped.
His heart and his lungs in tiptop shape.
A perfect man, one hundred percent.
Back at the enclave, Komori had trained day in day out
to reach this level of skill─but it was becoming clear that
Shichika Yasuri had trained at least as hard. Komori was
observing Shichika in order to assume his form and slay his
sister back at the hut─but his body was so fine it almost put
the ninja in a trance.
Komori could shapeshift into any kind of body─but he
needed a model.27 The humanly impossible─like becoming a
giant ten times taller and infinitely stronger than any
man─was beyond him. If he continued training and honing
his ninjutsu, perhaps someday he could accomplish such a
feat, but it was just like in the fine arts─imitation was easy,
but creating some-thing new was challenging. At present,
his Body Melt was limited to imitation, falling short of true
creation.
Hence.
Komori found Shichika’s toned body, in the flesh, so
beautiful.
It’s a shame I have to do this─
The uncharacteristic thought did cross his mind.
From a business perspective, that body was a hot
commodity, so maybe the thought wasn’t so
uncharacteristic after all.
Still, it was a shame.
You could say it wasn’t in the stars.
In his first true match, Kyotoryu, a swordsman who
never used a sword, was up against a ninja, rather than a
swordsman, who moreover came brandishing the
unbreakable Leveler, forged by Kiki Shikizaki to be the
hardest sword imaginable.
 These were no terms for swordplay, nor could the sword
be snapped.
Too bad for the youth.
No─his bad luck began when Togame chose him. If the
two hadn’t met, Kyotoryu would not be embroiled with the
Shikizaki swords, much less the Maniwa Clan.
Nevertheless.
Something told Komori that this kid was too big a fish─or
monkey─for this tiny island. There was something about
him.
Just a hunch.
What if Komori could get him to be an ally instead?
As a Boss, he could invite Kyotoryu to be part of the
New Maniwa.
No. No way.
Maybe under different circumstances, but not now. This
job was supposed to be the last hurrah for the Maniwa.
Galvanized by their fraternal competition to collect the
Twelve Possessed, Komori already had a lead on several of
the swords. If he asked around─posing as Togame─back on
the mainland, he could no doubt locate several more. This
was not the time to add an unknown quantity to the mix.
It was nowhere in the stars.
Komori felt bad for the youth.
Thinking like this was truly out of character.
“Weird,” Shichika muttered to himself, pacing around
the spring. “What happened to the tracks? Where’d
everybody go?”
“…”
Komori’s eyes were darting, but his body was
motionless. He would not be discovered. Then again, he
thought, this man was not like other men. Komori had opted
for this plan of action because he doubted that Togame
would be effective as a hostage, but it was still a gamble as
to whether she’d even serve as bait28…and yet Shichika had
swallowed it right up.
Judging from his use of the word “everybody,” which
lumped Komori with Togame, Shichika, wild animal that he
was, had chased them simply because the ninja had run. In
that sense, Komori had been correct in opting not to use
Togame as a hostage─but as bait she wasn’t much good
either. As far as the gamble was concerned, Komori had lost,
but things were working in his favor.
He had him good.
Absolutely. Without a doubt.
Komori checked for the Leveler in his stomach. He had
flipped its orientation─no longer hilt side up, it was
ensconced with the point at the top of his throat. He would
probably have to catch Shichika off-guard once they were
close. He wouldn’t have a chance to reach down into his
mouth and extract the blade. If he did that as Togame, it
would be a miracle for him not to blow his cover.
Then he would launch it.
Not the Star Cannon but a Sword Cannon.
The straight sword was a perfect missile.
Since he could hardly get away with blowing up like a
balloon, it would not have the same unfettered strength, but
one breath in was enough to fire the Leveler through the
organs of whoever stood before him. Though of course this
was a move he could never execute with any other sword,
not even the other Shikizaki blades. Only the Leveler could
withstand such abuse.
“That’ll do it.”
He had memorized the shape of Shichika─and was thus
prepared to pay a lethal visit to his sister. Shichika was
confused, but the ninja would do well not to spook him; if
Komori was forced to leave the clearing, his plan was ruined.
His Cannon attack─whether it flung ninja stars or a
sword─would not be possible in a confined environment.
 Since it would be absurd for the real Togame to hop
from a tree, Komori made a different entrance. As if merely
walking down a staircase, he footed his way down the
perpendicular tree trunk without a sound.
And pranced his way over to the spring.
He figured why not go all out.
What was it she had called Kyotoryu? Yasuri? Shichika-
dono?29 No, Togame had certainly skipped over those
courtesies even in second person.
If they talked too much, the truth would come out.
He only needed one line: He abducted me, but I fought
for my life and managed to break free. The Togame that
Komori knew would not attempt such a thing, but it didn’t
matter. He would run straight, with arms outstretched─
And lance Kyotoryu through the guts.
“─Shichika!”
“Ah.”
When Togame, or rather Komori, called to him─
Shichika Yasuri turned around.

■ ■

As Komori Maniwa had predicted, Shichika Yasuri had given

chase merely because the ninja had run─and not suspecting
Komori to have left false tracks, he’d been guided all the
way up to the spring.
Which is where the trail broke off.
Shichika had not the slightest inkling of having fallen for
a trap. Unlike his father Mutsue and his sister Nanami, he
was clueless about such maneuvers. Outside the context of
a battle, he was quite vulnerable. His level gaze around the
clearing for a continuation of the tracks was less humorous
than it was piteous.
 Dad.
What would he do now?
How would Mutsue Yasuri have combated the Star
Cannon? Or would his father’s Kiku have already snapped
the Leveler in half? Komori said that it could never break or
bend, but maybe at the hands of Mutsue Yasuri─
Or maybe not.
Shichika wasn’t sure.
But his father─Sixth Master of the Kyotoryu and Hero of
the Rebellion─
“…”
Ninjas.
Kiki Shikizaki. The Possessed.
This was unknown territory for Shichika.
An unknown world.
For nineteen years, he had trained under Mutsue, whom
they even called a Hero of the Rebellion… That hadn’t given
him a big head, he hoped, but he wasn’t prepared for the
ninjutsu of Komori or the nature of a Shikizaki sword. He felt
like a frog in a well30 that had been sucked out into the
ocean.
…The ocean.
Across the sea.
Were such things fairly common on the mainland?
Komori had called himself one of the Twelve Bosses of the
Maniwa Clan…in other words, there were eleven more of
these guys, each probably capable of that sort of thing. And
of the twelve Shikizaki blades, eleven more remained, each
peculiar like that.
If he crossed over.
“…”
What would happen to his sister?
With his father gone, he couldn’t leave his feeble sister
on the island by herself─but this line of reasoning failed to
settle in his heart of hearts.31
 His sister was the head of the house.
Nanami needed to be protected, but he was
overprotective to a fault─that much he knew. Self-reliant in
spirit, she wanted to help with the chores and would
certainly hold it together without him around.
He was the one who couldn’t separate himself from her.
No, that wasn’t it, either.
It was worse than that.
At the end of the day, it was a pain─leaving this island
for the mainland would be a colossal pain in the butt. What
he had told his sister, by way of making an excuse, had
been far closer to the truth.
I’ve been on this island as long as I can remember─
I can’t just up and go over to the mainland─
I don’t know anything about the outside world─
And I don’t care to learn─
“…”
She said she came here in a boat.
Which meant there was a boat on Haphazard Island.
In which case─
All he needed was a reason.
A good enough reason to leave the island.
He wouldn’t work for money.
He didn’t care about honor.
What would make him move?
─Go ahead and fall for me.
Remembering Togame’s line made him chuckle.32 There
was no way that was going to be his reason─but…
Hm.
About that boat. The ninja said he had masqueraded33
as the boatman for the ride here… But according to Komori
and Togame’s exchange, they’d met before─that is to say,
even before she hired the ninjas to track down the Leveler.
In fact, as Grand Commander, she had hired them for
countless other jobs.
 In that case, how on earth had the ninja traveled with
her in the boat without Togame wising up? She called herself
the Schemer or whatever, but for all her insistent emphasis
on her brains, the woman…
What disguise?
Could a disguise work so well?
“Hrrm.”
Had Shichika been capable of redirecting his suspicion,
he could have seen the light─perhaps. But guessing that
Komori, no mere masquerader, could mold his body into any
shape he chose would have been a tall order for anyone.
There was a chance─and yet.
Shichika stopped there.
Thinking was such a pain.
Putting that aside─and also putting aside why he might
leave the island, he had to find those two.
Maybe he should head back to see his sister.
She was probably at the hut, sipping sayu.
And so on.
That was where his mind was, when from behind─
“Shichika!”
Togame rushed toward him through the underbrush.
Togame, who he was certain had been captured.
She ran towards him, nearly tripping over.
Not, of course, the real Togame, but Komori as Togame.
All the same, Komori played Togame so well, right down to
the way she walked, you would never notice─even if you
knew.
“Ah.”
Hence Shichika, not fathoming the extent of the ninja’s
powers, hardly stood a chance…
“Kyotoryu─Botan!”34
…and yet.
Playing off the turn of his hips, Shichika displayed the
Botan, a spinning rear kick of Kyotoryu’s own. In rapid-fire,
he aimed the left blade of his foot at Togame’s─at Komori’s
belly.
The ninja ran straight into the attack.
And doubled over in midair.
“Bwah!”
The point of the Leveler slipped out of Komori’s body.
Leaving himself wide open─naturally, since pulling off a
believable Togame meant leaving himself wide open─he
took Shichika’s foot at the center of his spleen meridian.35 It
was a brutal blow. He fell on his stomach─and puked up a
mess.
A hot and slimy mess.
Which happened to include the Leveler.
The air he had sucked in was gone, blown into the sky
upon impact.
His raid36 was an utter failure.
The Leveler was out of him, handle and all─Komori shot
Shichika a rueful glare.
Togame’s face…Togame’s eyes…
Had the disguise not worked on Shichika, then?
A minute before, right before he quit thinking about
Komori masquerading as the boatman, had he arrived at the
truth of the matter? Unlikely. That very expression, the truth
of the matter,37 and Shichika Yasuri were strangers to each
other.
So had he seen any difference between Togame and
Komori posing as Togame? Surely not even Komori, one of
the Twelve Bosses of the Maniwa, could perfectly imitate
another person. There had to be some tiny difference─had
Shichika not overlooked it? Unlikely. Komori’s Body Melt was
no stingy sleight of hand.
What of the palpable blood lust? When Komori took a
deep breath preparing to deploy the Leveler at close range
from his cannon belly, to send it piercing through his
enemy’s heart, did Shichika, raised in the wilds of this
island, feel a tremor in his skin? Had he leapt before he
looked, reacting faster than his mind? Unlikely. Komori, who
could hold himself utterly still, could surely suppress any
cues to his attack.
After all…
“Hey, Togame is that you?”
This was Shichika Yasuri─
He hadn’t suspected that the person rushing at him
from behind was even Togame, much less Komori Maniwa.
“Hm? But you just puked out a sword. Can everybody
from the mainland do that, after all? Wait a sec, isn’t this the
Leveler?”
“…nkk.”
Consider this.
Shichika knew every tree on the island, down to the last
leaf. Which meant he could tell every tree from every other
tree, tell every leaf apart. And why not? He saw them every
day. He knew them intimately.
In contrast, when most people see an animal, whether
dog or cat, fish or fowl, unless they see the creatures
regularly, they all look the same─but why limit our example?
Even among fellow humans, foreigners can look the same,
and few could pick somebody they just met from a crowd.
Our brain is incapable of distinguishing between unfamiliar
objects on command.
Herein lies the problem.
Since before he was a conscious being, Shichika Yasuri
had been living on Haphazard Island, nary another human in
his life but his father and his sister─the real question we
should be asking is: between Togame and Komori, did any
difference register?
For example, size.
Were they as different as, say, a dog and a puppy?
Gender, you say?
How many people can tell if a fish is male or female?
Their voices?
 When a bird sings, can you tell whether it is male or
female?
Their clothes? Their hairstyles? The color of their hair?
That brash kimono and transparently white hair─
How would he ever have memorized all of that?
The only people Shichika Yasuri could recognize on sight
were his family; and since his father died, that meant only
himself and his sister─which is another way of saying that
Komori needn’t have transformed himself to dupe Shichika.
If he had only done what he told Togame he would do and
squared off against Shichika instead of rushing him from
behind─
Shichika would never have launched a kick, his
instinctual reaction to an attack from the rear.
“G-Ghak…”
“Ah, okay, I get it. You’re a shapeshifter. I heard that
kitsune and tanuki38 can transform, but I had no idea people
could too. Crazy. So wait, though. Are you…the ninja?”
“Dammit.”
Komori couldn’t stand up.
Sure, he had been caught off-guard─but he had no idea
Kyotoryu could kick with such terrible strength. A direct hit
could knock an opponent out of commission! Komori’s plan
to shoot the Leveler from his belly may have sputtered, but
it was perhaps providential39 for him that he had swallowed
the adamantine sword before battle. For had he not, the
spinning rear kick Shichika had called the Botan might have
cracked his spine. The Leveler had played a surprise role as
a buttress─but it had also transferred the blow and sent it
radiating through his whole body.
Komori was not moving anytime soon.
As done as a prey frozen by a snake’s stare.40
“I guess this means I’ve captured the Leveler?” Shichika
asked himself.
 He looked back and forth between Komori, in the
aforementioned state, and the Leveler, which had rattled to
the ground.
“Togame requested something spectacular…but the
Botan is a pretty boring move. Oh well. I made short change
of a shapeshifting weirdo, so she better thank me. This is
what she wanted for her report. If the cast of characters
includes a guy who can disguise himself as other people,
you won’t ever know who’s really speaking. It’d be hard to─”
“Hey…you,” Komori whimpered. “Why are you…so
happy to help…this woman?”
“What?”
“I’m asking…why you’d want to let her use you.
Listening to the likes of her will do you no good…”
“Huh? I’m not trying to be useful, or not useful─”
Use41 him?
Is that what he just said?
“I didn’t mean it that way. I’m just glad she’s going to
have the Leveler back.”
“Didn’t you find something fishy about this one’s story?”
Komori continued, still on the ground. “At this point, why
would the bakufu bother with the Shikizaki blades?”
“Uhh─they’re scared of an uprising, right? Like, if
someone with all twelve of the Possessed started an
uprising on the scale of the last Rebellion…”
“That makes sense as a reason. It’s reasonable. But it
sounds a little too pat. Don’t you think?”
“…”
Hmm.
Maybe?
Was there…another side to it?
“Today’s bakufu isn’t as entranced by the Shikizaki
blades as the Old Shogun. They’re far more…realistic. This
is about all about her. This little Sword Hunt42 of hers is no
more than a career move. It’s only happening because
Togame the Schemer, Grand Commander of Arms, wants the
bragging rights.”
Komori spoke in a voice thick with spite.
“Collecting the last twelve swords wasn’t some idea that
came down from on high at the bakufu. It was this woman’s
idea. Even if the shogun made the proclamation, she’s the
one who lit the fire, just so she could put it out. And now you
hear her spouting, ‘It’s not as if I don’t have my own
opinions on the matter,’ and ‘I’m in no position to quibble
over the particulars of an order.’ But the Sword Hunt is
happening on her terms. Every bit of it is for the good of her
career.”
“Career?” Shichika wasn’t sure what the word meant.
“Isn’t the Grand Commander already a pretty high position?
Sounds like it anyway.”
“It is. She’s up there. But is up there enough for this
woman? Hell no. She’s heading for the summit─you’re
gullible, kid. You don’t know to doubt, do you? No way a
woman this young isn’t going to play dirty on her way to the
top. A world where only ability counts is almost impossible
to find.”
“…”
“When I first met her, I was stunned─by her smoldering
ambition, by that eye. I could tell that she would sacrifice
anything─or anyone─to get her way. She certainly had no
qualms about using the Maniwa Clan. We’re talking an
entire band of ninja assassins. She’s out of control. And you
too,” Komori said. “Now she wants to use you, too. Can’t
you see, Kyotoryu? You’re being exploited. No good will
come from teaming up with this woman.”
“…So you betrayed her before she had the chance?”
“Yeah. But the stuff about money aside, I couldn’t hope
to keep up with her. I told you she wasn’t satisfied with
being up there. What do you think she has in mind? The
very top, at the side43 of the next shogun.”
 “What?”
“Kyahah,” Komori laughed wheezily─but also like he was
enjoying himself. “No matter how cooped up and
simpleminded a life you’ve led here on this island, I hope
you can understand how outrageous an idea that is. The
shogun is getting on in years. It won’t be long before he
steps down─and when he does, she’ll be there, beside the
new shogun, who is at present still a child. And you know
what that means.”
“The world─”
There it was.
Don’t you desire the world? she had asked him.
Right at the beginning, and not just as a way of
launching into her tale of the Shikizaki blades─she was
saying that she, herself, did!
That was some serious ambition, if true.
She hoped to bring to life the illusion about the Shikizaki
blades…in pursuit of her goal?
“Still,” Shichika got out, flummoxed though he was, “you
can’t blame her. Working your way up is a natural part of
working for an organization─or so my dad taught me. But I
can see why you guys might not feel so good after being
used and all…”
“We could care less. I use you, you use me, that’s what
makes the world go round. The problem is what she used us
for. Working your way up makes sense, most of the time,
but this lady is aiming too high. Taking over the nation all by
herself, not by waging war, but through sheer politicking!”44
“…”
It sounded like she was living in the past.45
The Age of Warring States was over.
No one was interested in superfluous conflict─well,
almost no one.
“I did some research of my own about this Sword Hunt.
Just because the Maniwa are known for being assassins
doesn’t mean we can’t do our due diligence.46 My ninpo is
especially well suited for that line of work. And since we
have this competition going among the Bosses, I went all
out─a passion project, if you will─and I hit pay dirt. Found
some fun facts. Or not so fun facts.”
“Stop beating around the bush. You need to understand
I’m not big on thinking about stuff. I can’t understand you
when you talk like that. Let’s back up. What you found,
when you were digging. Was it that stuff about Togame
working her way up? About positioning herself beside the
next shogun?”
“Yeah, but I didn’t stop there─I knew there was
something else. There had to be some other reason being
Grand Commander wasn’t good enough─some reason she
would stop at nothing, even suffer the betrayals of the
Maniwa and Sabi, if it meant collecting all the Shikizaki
blades.”
Komori hacked through a cough.
It must have hurt to speak─and yet.
He was regaining his strength, which Shichika failed to
notice, too focused on the conversation.
“This woman,” Komori said, pointing his finger at
himself, “is the daughter of Takahito Hida47─the Mastermind
of the Rebellion.”
The words chilled Shichika to his core.
The Rebellion is fresh in our memories─
But who could deny the determination of the rebels?
Togame had described the spirit of the uprising thus, to
Shichika.
“In a different world, she would have been a princess,
with a castle of her own. The bakufu branded the Hida
family enemies of the state and annihilated every last one
of them─yet somehow, a child was spared. I’ve yet to figure
out where that little girl grew into a woman and how she
snuck her way into the bakufu─but I can tell you this much,
she’s shameless about clawing her way up. She won’t stop
until she’s at the side of the next shogun. Is it not clear what
she is plotting?”
“What is she?”
“It should be obvious by now why being Grand
Commander will never satisfy her. While by no means a low
rank, it stops short of direct audience with His Excellency.”48
Komori was melting.49
His bones shifted.
The flesh of his body changed by degrees.
But Shichika completely failed to notice.
That was the last thing on his mind.
Takahito Hida─Shichika knew the name.
He had heard it from his father, Mutsue Yasuri.
The name of the Mastermind of the Rebellion.
Uttered by the Hero of the Rebellion─Sixth Master of the
Kyotoryu, Mutsue Yasuri.
“This is revenge. Plain and simple.”
Komori’s voice was clear.
“Either vengeance for the obliteration50 of her family
line─or a reboot of the Rebellion to bring her father’s vision
to fruition. In my opinion─kyahah!─it’s the former.
Apparently, that woman watched her entire family get
murdered one by one. I hear that’s when that hair of hers
turned white─with terror!”
Meanwhile, Komori’s hair was no longer white.
It was changing into black─black tousled hair. Which is
why he said that hair of hers─instead of this hair of hers.
Not this woman─but that woman.
“…”
But Shichika did not react to this grotesque display.
He was distraught.
In a state of confusion.
Takahito Hida. Kaoyaku51 of Oshu.52
The Traitor.53
 Their father, Mutsue Yasuri, Sixth Master of the
Kyotoryu, had always talked about it─even bragged. How
magnificently, using nothing but his own two hands, the
blades of his hands, he had beaten off the leader of the
rebel army. A glorious tale of heroism if there ever was one!
But not necessarily common knowledge.
Shichika was sure that after the Rebellion, all mention of
the Kyotoryu and Mutsue Yasuri, who had been banished to
this island, was taboo for the House of Tetsubi. Apparently,
Komori had not even known the Kyotoryu existed until
visiting the island, in which case he couldn’t possibly have
known it was Mutsue who had vanquished Hida. Perhaps he
hadn’t dug that far, but this was not a story you would ever
figure out by digging.
Still…
Togame must have known.
It involved her, after all.
I knew Mutsue Yasuri of the Kyotoryu by name─
But not by face─
That was a lie.
Having seen her father slain before her eyes, she must
have known.
Known the face of Mutsue Yasuri.
And that was why.
She had arrived on Haphazard Island knowing
everything─having witnessed, like no one else, the
fearsomeness of the Kyotoryu─so thoroughly it turned her
hair white.
What if his father─
If Mutsue were still alive─would she have entrusted her
father’s enemy54 with rounding up the Shikizaki blades?
I’m the son of that enemy.
And yet.
Why did she─
Not see it as a mistake?
 No, she must─at least, she must by now. Nobody could
overlook the error of someone with her past coming to this
island.
But she was out of options.
Betrayed by the Maniwa Clan─and by Hakuhei Sabi.
Betrayed!
“That dirty little scion of an insurrectionist55─and no
innocent herself, the wormy traitor─dares call me a
backstabber and a coward? Kyahah! But look. I’m an
assassin. I know exactly what she’s plotting─what I saw in
that eye wasn’t ambition after all. It was a burning desire for
revenge. Madness─no other word suffices. Me? I work for
money─she’s trying to pull off the unthinkable, and it’s not
even for the money. I can’t go for that. And you, Kyotoryu.
Don’t you think it’s foolish, after all the years you’ve spent
honing56 your skills, to let her use you as a tool?”
Let’s make this clear─
I didn’t inherit my title from my father─
She’d said that too.
After Shichika, who couldn’t have known better, asked
Togame his superlatively insensitive and distorted question
about whether his dad had─of all things─worked for her dad.
It was just as Komori said─Shichika had been too soft in
the head to see what might have driven Togame to follow
the path of a Schemer.
Right, she hadn’t followed in her father’s footsteps.
She had become Togame the Schemer.
To inherit her father’s cause.
“If you did the research on your own,” Shichika
whispered, “does that mean you’re the only one, for now,
who knows all this?”
“Huh? Oh, yeah, I guess so. What about it?”
“In that case─”
Shichika assumed a stance.
Spear hands.
 Kyotoryu Form Two─the Suisen.
“If I defeat you for good─you’ll take that information to
your grave,57 where it can’t hurt Togame.”
“Whaaat?”
Komori couldn’t believe his ears. Was he being
challenged to battle?58
“What the hell are you saying? You should be mad at
her, not me─how did that boost your morale?”
Komori would never understand.
Who could have understood where Shichika was coming
from, raised as he had been on this tiny island, only ten
miles around? He had truly believed that his father, Mutsue
Yasuri, was a hero, from the bottom of his heart.
He had swallowed whole59 the title of “Hero of the
Rebellion.”
A sense of inferiority─is no more than a love turned
inside out. While Shichika was not about to step up and
declare his affection for his father, he revered the late
Master of the Kyotoryu enough to lose his temper when the
hut Mutsue built was reduced to splinters─enough for his
sister to tease him that he always thought of Daddy. Even
banished to this island, Mutsue Yasuri was, in Shichika’s
reckoning, a champion of justice.
Which is why, until now.
He had never even given it a thought.
People had fallen victim to the Hero of the Rebellion.
Shichika Yasuri─so face-blind he was unable to tell men
from women─was recognizing for perhaps the first time the
existence of the other.
“I am Shichika Yasuri, Seventh Master of the Kyotoryu.
Prepare to die.”
“Alright…fine!”
Airing the details of Togame’s plot to deaden Shichika’s
fighting spirit was a miscalculation─it had only flared up─but
Komori seemed to have fulfilled his foremost objectives.
 Recovering from his wounds.
And buying time60 for a transformation.
“I, too, am Shichika Yasuri, Seventh Master of the
Kyotoryu!”
He took to his feet to face Shichika─as Shichika.
The robust build, the fit body─and the tousled hair.
From every angle, it was Shichika. A flawless replica.
Lying on the ground, holding Shichika’s attention with
Togame’s story, Komori had slowly remade his body from
the inside. The disclosure may have failed to discourage
Shichika but had bought the ninja more time than he had
bargained for. The replication process was complete.
He was still wearing Togame’s luxurious kimono, which
helped to tell them apart─but his voice, too, was Shichika
Yasuri’s.
“You don’t sound like me at all…”
Komori didn’t bother to recapitulate for Shichika what he
had told Togame.
The air was already heating up.
Hot enough to boil.
“Kyahah! To tell you the truth, being an assassin, my
ninpo isn’t suited for direct attacks. My only real move is the
Star Cannon, which you saw. And you already beat that
move, Kyotoryu. Honestly, if I fought you head to head when
I was me, you’d probably win.”
Shichika didn’t flinch at the words issuing from his own
figure.
“But what’s this? Now we’re square!61 Same biceps,
same forearms, same thighs. Same strength. Actually, one
each of your arms and legs got cut up by my shuriken, so I
guess I have a little edge?”
“Hmph.” Shichika kept his cool. “If you’re gonna bother
doing that, why not make yourself into someone even
stronger? Like that swordsman Hakuhei Sabi. Or maybe you
guys never met? But you have lots of experience, I’m sure
you’ve met all kinds of guys who are stronger than me.
Right?”
“I’m almost jealous of how you could be so clueless. No,
those guys wouldn’t necessarily be stronger than you. A
fight is all about the matchup. It’s like how rock beats
scissors, but is weaker than paper, which loses to scissors.
So what’s the best scenario? Two rocks,62 one stronger than
the other.”
“I hate to break it to you, but my cuts are basically fine.
They may have bugged me if we’d done this right away, but
now they barely even hurt.”
“Okay. Great. So we’re even then. Rock versus rock.”
Komori as Shichika─
Looked at the Leveler lying at his feet.
Zetto the Leveler, which he had spit out of his body.
One of the Twelve Possessed, the masterworks of Kiki
Shikizaki.
A sword that would never bend or break or lose its edge.
For the Kyotoryu, it was the worst match possible.
“This ought to make me the stronger rock.”
“…”
“Kyotoryu─the Swordless Swordsman. But really. If the
Swordless Swordsman wielded this, he would be stronger
than the same without it. No contest.”
Komori made it sound like he had already won.
The Leveler had fallen right by where he stood. He
would have no difficulty grabbing it. Even if Shichika tried,
he’d never get there first: they had the same legs. In this
fight, distance was the only variable.
“Only meatheads rely on muscle─when there’s an easier
way, I say take it. If you want to call me out for fighting
dirty, go ahead. As long as it’s not her who says it, I could
care less. I might even like it.”
“Are you sure you aren’t making a mistake?”
Shichika answered Komori’s gloating with a frigid stare.
 “The Kyotoryu is strong because it doesn’t use a sword.”
“Come on. We both know that’s a front.63 Assuming
each side has the same potential, there’s no way a guy
without a weapon can be stronger than a guy with one. Or
are you telling me the blades of your hand and your foot cut
better than the real deal?”64
“Like I said, you have it all wrong. It’s not because the
Kyotoryu uses hands and feet as blades that I’m a
swordsman even though I don’t wield a sword─I am already
a katana, on my own, in swordsman form. My school using a
sword would be like a dog walking another dog. So listen up.
I’m not losing to me with a sword. It’d be like─”
“I get it. No need to pile on excuses. If you keep
yapping, the sun’s bound to go down. Go have your pity
party somewhere else─hell, for instance. Alright, me, let’s
go.”
“After you, me. I’m gonna slam you with a spectacular
knockout move. The last-but-not-the-least, held-in-reserve,
ultimate secret of the Kyotoryu!”
In a blink.
Komori jumped first.
But Shichika didn’t move at all─and kept up a defensive
posture.
Without even trying to stop Komori from grabbing the
Leveler, he stood with spear hands─waiting for his
doppelganger to come and try to chop down the real him.
Like Form One (the Suzuran), Form Two (the Suisen) was a
countermove. Because the fingers point, it has a slightly
greater range than the Suzuran, but not enough to matter
against a long sword─
“Tadaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa
aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa
aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah! Side
Splitter!”
 Gripping the handle of the Leveler with both hands,
Komori leapt high into the air─vastly higher than when he
jumped on the beach. The forest floor around the spring was
much easier to leap from than sand, but upgraded to
Shichika Yasuri’s mighty legs, a poor footing would have
made no difference.
A strike from on high─
Made the heavier by gravity, swung─
“Uh… Ack.”
─Did not swing down, or swing at all.
Komori’s hands, as he started falling from the sky─did
not grip the Leveler. The sword danced in the air, spinning in
circles, above him.
Like it had lost its owner.
It danced.
Spinning.65
“Wh-Why?”
“You should learn to hear people out─even if the sun
starts going down.”
From the ground, Shichika spoke to Komori as he fell.
“Know what, though? You were right about me making
excuses. The truth is that out of all the masters of the
Kyotoryu, not one of us could swing a sword to save his life.
It’s not that we don’t use swords─we can’t!”
Thus it was for Shichika Yasuri.
And for Mutsue Yasuri.
And, needless to say, for the founding master Kazune
Yasuri─too.
That was why Kazune forsook the sword despite being a
swordsman. He took the discipline to places nobody had
dared to venture─but what able swordsman would willingly
forsake the vehicle of his skill?
“The same applies to me, born into this family. Today I
saw my first katana… It was fine to copy my arms and legs,
but my ability with weapons won’t do anything for you, me.”
 “Ahh… Nkk, me…bastard!”
Komori fell, empty-handed.
Gravity now his enemy.
There was no use rushing now.
In the end, there was only one reason for Komori’s
defeat. Nanami’s confidence in her brother notwithstanding,
no one would normally expect a veteran Maniwa to lose to a
novice Yasuri.
But lost he had.
And Zetto the Leveler was to blame.66
He just could not resist─using the katana.
Maybe the Hell-Made was simply being serviceable the
first time─and so could maintain self-control. Still, even if his
Star Cannon was depleted, Komori─a ninja, not a
swordsman─reached again and again for the Leveler: proof
that the sword’s poison was coursing through his veins…as
wary of this as he had been.
The venom of the Possessed.
Owning one made you want to kill─
“It’s a good thing you let go of the sword. The ultimate
secret is so insane I’m sure it would have snapped the
Leveler in half. By the way, I keep calling it that67 because I
only came up with it yesterday.”
As Komori continued to fall helplessly to the ground,
Shichika spelled it out for the ninja.
Exceedingly politely, in simple terms.
All told, the Kyotoryu had seven secret moves.
Fatal Orchid One: Kyoka Suigetsu
Fatal Orchid Two: Kacho Fugetsu
Fatal Orchid Three: Hyakka Ryoran
Fatal Orchid Four: Ryuryoku Kako
Fatal Orchid Five: Hika Rakuyo
Fatal Orchid Six: Kinjo Tenka
Fatal Orchid Seven: Rakka Rozeki
 “Too bad you won’t be around to see each move on its
own─but the Last Fatal Orchid is when I hit you with all of
them at the same time. To put it your way, it’s like an
unstoppable68 combination of rock, paper, and scissors.
Every one of them is lethal, but when I hit you with all seven
simultaneously, you’re going to explode. See for yourself.”
Then Shichika pulled it off─spectacularly.
Just like Togame requested.
“Kyotoryu─Shichika Hachiretsu!”

■ ■

It wouldn’t come undone.

It wouldn’t come loose.
Writhe as she may, the straw rope held fast to her
body─not your normal knot. This was a ninja knot. If only
she hadn’t been gagged, she might have chewed through
the twisted straw─Togame thought, chagrinned.69
Could things really end this way?
Could things really end up here?
Had she given up her name, her lineage, her
everything─passing through mountains of corpses and rivers
of blood70─only to breathe her last stuck on this nameless
island? To think she had been poised to seize the Shikizaki
swords that had eluded even the Old Shogun. Delivering the
remainder of the thousand to the shogunate─would have
advanced her plan to the final stage.
Her scheme, to which she devoted her entire life.
Close enough to see.
Close enough to touch.
…Oh, Father.
I was so close to avenging you!
My thoughts go out to you.
 My heart goes out to you!
“…nkk!”
Calling on the Kyotoryu was my undoing.
I must have been out of my mind.
As out of options as I may have been…relying on the
man who murdered my father…or even his son… Telling
myself the real enemy is the bakufu, the shogun…what a
convenient excuse! Did I really vow to restore the honor of
Mutsue once the job was finished? Even if I had to at that
moment, how could I offer to vindicate the man who killed
my father?
Was this her lot?
A perfect disgrace.71
Was she not the daughter─of a warrior family?
“…”
Taken to the mainland by Komori as his hostage and
subjected to torture, she would eventually divulge all she
knew of the Possessed. She prided herself on the tightness
of her lips, but she had never been trained to withstand
torture. Left to a ninja’s devices, she would not last an hour.
There were a myriad ways to extract information out of
someone, and Togame could name a few─a ninja would
know thousands more.
But no.
Before any more disgrace.
She would act.
“…Hmh.”
Togame laughed.
With her gagged cheeks.
Fearlessly, invincibly.
“Hmhmhmhmh!”
How could I be so foolish!
What will never come undone or come loose? Not the
rope.
My determination.
 What will never bend or break or lose its edge?
My schemes.
I am the Schemer. I’ll scheme my way out of this mess.
That’s how I made it this far!
If I must rely upon the Kyotoryu, my father’s nemesis, to
avenge him─so be it. Let my soul, my life, get whittled
away, I could not care less at this point!
 Most who heard the story of Togame’s early years
accepted that her hair turned white from terror, at the sight
of her family being slaughtered.
But no.
Her hair had been blanched by an outpouring of rage.
I have sworn upon this hair of white.
No matter how often I’m betrayed!
No matter who grows to hate me!
Even if it means living a life starved of love─I will fulfill
the responsibility that is mine to undertake!
“Huh…”
Someone was approaching through the underbrush. Was
it Komori? How had he returned so soon? Then again, if he
had settled things with the Sword Cannon, the battle would
have ended instantly. In which case, what had taken him so
long?
Togame braced herself─defenseless as she was.
She could only glare in the direction of the sound.
With that eye of hers…
“I see,” the man said, appearing from the bushes. “I
see, I see, that’s what he meant by that eye. But he was
wrong about it smoldering. Can’t trust a ninja, I suppose. I
like the way it sparkles. Pretty cool if you ask me.”
“…? …!”
It was Shichika Yasuri.
How had he─no! Komori had it all planned out. After he
bagged Shichika, he would transform into Shichika and kill
Nanami. This must be Komori, on his way…no, on his way
back! What had taken him so long was killing off the sister.
But why hadn’t he changed back? Maybe he was posing as
Shichika to milk more information out of her─he had a lot of
nerve. How the Schemer had fallen, if he believed such a
charade72 would do.
But then she noticed something.
What Shichika Yasuri was carrying.
 Zetto the Leveler. One of the Twelve Possessed, the
masterworks of Kiki Shikizaki. As if unaccustomed to holding
a sword, he loosely clasped the butt of the handle and
dragged the long blade rattling over the ground.
Komori would have stuffed it in his belly.
So this must be the real Shichika.
“Got me thinking, though. Maybe that ninja had parents
or siblings, or maybe even kids. He had to have some kind
of a family. I bet they’ll hate my guts for this.”
“…”
“For starters─”
Shichika thrust the Leveler upright into the earth by the
tree where Togame was tied up.
The Leveler seemed like it could take it.
But yikes, she’d told him to be careful…
“Here’s the first one, Togame.”
“…”
For starters?
The first one?
What did he mean─
Talking like this was only the beginning─
Like he was promising to do good by her─
“Don’t get me wrong─I did it for you. I don’t have my
eyes set on money, I haven’t been dosed with the Shikizaki
venom, and I have no interest in serving the bakufu─I just
felt like doing it, for you.”
Shichika looked at her and laughed.
At his partner73 for the yearlong journey ahead.
“I’m going ahead and falling for you.”

1 教科書 KYŌKASHO textbook 2 無人島 MUJINTŌ uninhabited island 3 甘 い AMAI

literally, sweet; soft and optimistic 4 逢瀬 ŌSE rendezvous
5 言葉の綾 KOTOBA NO AYA “the weave of words”
6 舌打ち SHITAUCHI click the tongue 7 川獺 KAWAUSO “The Otter”
8 烏骨鶏くらい滑稽 UKOKKEI KURAI KOKKEI as ridiculous as a silkie 9 釈迦に説法
SHAKA NI SEPPŌ “sermonizing the Buddha”
10 馬の耳に念仏 UMA NO MIMI NI NEMBUTSU Buddhist chants for a horse’s ears
11 戯言 ZAREGOTO “frivolous words” the title of another series by NISIOISIN
12 忍法 NINPŌ ninja method, i.e. ninja art 13 骨肉細工 KOTSUNIKU SAIKU “flesh-
and-bone crafting”
14 男女差 DANJOSA “gap between man and woman”
15 柔忍者 JŪNINJA “freeform ninja” vs. 柔道 JŪDŌ, the martial art of flexibility 16
風 呂敷 FUROSHIKI squarish cloth used to carry things…generally outside of
the body 17 着付け KITSUKE formal rules for donning a kimono 18 首 尾 よ く
SHUBI YOKU “head to tail”completely 19 策 SAKU plan vs. 奇 策 “odd plan”
scheme 20 半生 HANSEI (the first) half of a lifetime 21 の[…]による[…]ための
NO[…]NI YORU[…]TAME NO of[…]by[…]for the exact phrasing from Lincoln’s
renowned address in translation 22 鑑 KAGAMI exemplar (homophones with
鏡 KAGAMI mirror) 23 単独行動 TANDOKU KŌDŌ independent action 24 忍ばず
ともよい SHINOBAZU TOMO YOI the original repeats the same phrase 25 鎖国
SAKOKU “chaining the country”
26 猿轡 SARUGUTSUWA “monkey’s bit”
27 手本 TEHON “hand book” example 28 撒き餌 MAKIE scattering scraps of food
to lure prey 29 どの DONO “lord” appended like SAN, but in formal address
30 井戸の底の蛙 IDO NO SOKO NO KAWAZU Japanese counterpart for “big fish
in a small pond”
31 芯 SHIN core
32 失笑 SHISSHŌ “slip a laugh”
33 化ける BAKERU change into, transform 34 牡丹 BOTAN “The Peony” the “King
of Flowers”
35 水月 SUIGETSU “water moon” one of the zàng-fŭ organs 36 奇襲 KISHŪ sneak
attack
37 真相 SHINSŌ true aspect
38 狐 狸 KITSUNE TANUKI foxes and tanuki: in Japanese folklore, both are

shapeshifters 39 僥倖 GYŌKŌ good fortune

40 まな板の上の鯉 MANAITA NO UE NO KOI “a carp on a cutting board” unable to

resist and resigned 41 利用 RIYŌ utilize; take advantage of 42 刀 集 KATANA

ATSUME “gathering swords” as opposed to the historical Sword Hunts 43 御
側 人 OSOBANIN personal counselor to the shogun 44 政 争 SEISŌ political
struggle vs. 戦争 SENSŌ war 45 時代錯誤 JIDAI SAKUGO an anachronism 46 調
査 下 調 べ CHŌSA SHITASHIRABE preliminary research 47 飛 騨 鷹 比 等 HIDA
TAKAHITO Hida: also an old name for northern Gifu 鷹 TAKA hawk 48 大御 所
ŌGOSHO the imperial inner sanctum; by extension, “his royal highness”
49 ぐ に ゅ り GUNYURI onomatopoeia for puttylike transformation 50 根 絶 や し

NEDAYASHI uprooting 51 顔 役 KAOYAKU highly connected and influential

person 52 奥 州 ŌSHŪ an old northern province 53 大 逆 人 TAIGYAKUNIN
committer of high treason 54 仇 KATAKI overtone of being a target of
revenge 55 賊軍 ZOKUGUN rebel army
56 切磋琢磨 SESSA TAKUMA incessant training 57 隠蔽 INPEI bury; conceal
58 宣戦布告 SENSEN FUKOKU proclamation of war 59 鵜呑み UNOMI “gulp down
like a cormorant”
60 時間稼ぎ JIKAN KASEGI “earning time”
61 互角 GOKAKU “same corners”
62 ぐー GŪ fist
63 建 前 TATEMAE posturing; formality 64 真 剣 SHINKEN “real sword” by
extension, “serious business”
65 くるくる KURU KURU onomatopoeia for rotation 66 敗因 HAI’IN cause of defeat
67 最終奥義 SAISHŪ ŌGI ultimate secret (move) 68 無敵 MUTEKI unrivaled
69 歯がゆく HAGAYUKU “itchy toothed” vexed 70 屍山血河 SHIZAN KETSUGA less

directly translated, a hellish warzone 71 恥 さ ら し HAJI SARASHI “shame

exposing”
72 三文芝居 SANMON SHIBAI “three-penny acting”
73 相棒 AIBŌ “companion stick” buddy
 ■ ■

─And back to where we began.

From Haphazard Island, across the water to the
Capital…and the Hisho Dojo.
To that training hall─where Shichika Yasuri was no longer
surrounded by the six men. They had risen to action, only to
fall to the floor, where they lay prostrate on the planks. Out
cold, eyes rolled back in their skulls. Not one could climb
back to his feet.
Their wooden swords had not even grazed Shichika.
They had dropped to the floor, just like the six men.
“Nice work…”
Togame, leaning against the wall, clapped her hands in
satisfaction and called out to Shichika from behind.
“Not that I caught all of that. Was it the move that beat
Komori? I’ll admit that being able to take down six, or even
seven men at once is nothing to sneeze at─but how would
you cope if an eighth man were to appear?”
“You mean an eighth sword─but would that ever actually
happen?”
“Any day,” Togame said. “The Possessed have eleven
other owners.”
“Eleven,” repeated Shichika. “What a pain.”
“That’s not the half of it. The Maniwa Clan has eleven
other bosses. And don’t forget the Strongest Swordsman─or
should I say the Fallen Swordsman,1 Hakuhei Sabi. And after
them all manner of strange and awful characters, too many
to count… Anyway, I’m relieved to see you can control your
strength. These men have only fainted─and you didn’t break
a single sword, which matters a great deal.”
“Does it, though?”
 “Yes. Things were only hunky-dory2 this time because
the Leveler, as a rule, cannot be broken. But that won’t be
the case again. And another thing, at the risk of belaboring
the point: don’t think you outperformed Komori. He drowned
in his own tactics, and as a result, you won. You were lucky
things turned out that way.”
“Can’t argue3 with that. I may have acted big and strong
when we were talking trash, but I’ll probably lose at some
point.”
“My job is to make sure that you never do. While a
tactician can drown in his own tactics, the Schemer ever
swims in her schemes. Which is why, from this day forward,
you play by my rules, in battle as in life.”
“You can trust me,” Shichika responded without pause.
A hearty reply.
“So I guess this means I’ve passed the tests and proved
myself worthy to serve you. Alright, Togame. Tell me these
rules you want me to start following.”
“There are…only four at the moment.”
“Four. Let’s hear them.”
“First, as stated earlier, never break a sword─but the
rule goes beyond that. I forbid you to attack the swords in
any way. You may only counter them. Need I repeat, the
only unbreakable sword is the Leveler; the remaining eleven
will be nowhere near as strong. Retrieve each sword in
pristine condition. Not a scratch. In a word─protect the
swords, whosoever may be holding them.”
“Got it.4 I protect the swords. What’s number two?”
“Protect me. Our mission is to round up all the Shikizaki
blades, but it’s pointless if I die in the process. I cannot have
you letting me be kidnapped again, or worse. I must never
be hurt. Not a scratch.”
“Got it. I protect you. What’s rule three?”
“Protect yourself,” Togame said. “And I’m not saying this
for your sake─until we take possession of all twelve Shikizaki
swords, I forbid you to die. Capturing a sword is no excuse
for suffering a mortal blow. Without you, the hunt is over.
Which is why I forbid you to be injured─not a scratch.”
“Got it. I protect myself. What’s number four?”
“Protect yourself,” Togame repeated─and stood.
Whisking the hem of her kimono across the floor, she spun
around; with her back turned to Shichika, she started
heading for the exit. He couldn’t see her expression. “This
time, I am saying it for your sake.”
“…”
“Don’t die─the journey will be taxing, but you mustn’t
die. Can you promise that? I won’t have you saying
otherwise. Quick, say you got it.”
“Got it. Absolutely. I’ll protect everything.”
Then Shichika got moving too.
In seconds, he was right behind Togame.
“So what’s next? You said we’d want to get at least the
first few swords before we visited Owari.”
“The Kyotoryu may be notorious, but you’re a nobody. If
I’m showing up with you, one sword is not nearly good
enough a souvenir.5 Especially not the Leveler, which we
haven’t seized so much as recovered. Our next sword will be
Zanto the Razor. It was forged to slice like no other. There is
no substance in this world it cannot cut. Its owner is one
Ginkaku Uneri of Inaba. I’ll tell you more about him on the
way─and while we’re at it, let’s get you some new clothes.
Come.”
“Sounds great. I love you, Togame.”
“Good. Love me all you like.”

■ ■

And thus they set off on their journey.

 A wild sword chase, with no ending─or even any road in
sight.
Yet this tale is heading steadily toward a conclusion: all
thousand of the swords of legendary swordsmith Kiki
Shikizaki, including his masterpieces the Twelve Possessed,
were merely foils for the creation of the Kyotoryu…a single
katana, Kyoto the Diamond6─though at present no one
comprehended this, not even Togame the Schemer.

Zetto the Leveler: Check

End of Book One
 To Be Continued

1 堕剣士 DAKENSHI plays on 堕天使 DATENSHI fallen angel 2 上首尾 JŌSHUBI “up
from head to tail” satisfactory 3 否 定 HITEI deny, negate 4 了 解 RYŌKAI
acknowledged 5 手 土 産 TEMIYAGE a gift presented to a host 6 虚 刀 ・ 鑢
KYOTŌ YASURI “The Absent Katana: File”
 AFTER(S)WORD

Lately, in listening to people’s stories and considering their

examples, I have often been struck by the importance of not
being talented. How can I put this, humans are basically
lazy, so when they have even half-baked talent, they skimp
on the hard work that should by rights accompany it, and
there’s a good chance that things will get no farther than
half-baked. In the worst case, because they’re somewhat
talented, they won’t be able to discern when to fold. Not
putting in the work, but not giving up either…a pretty
wretched state of affairs. To put it in extreme terms, it’s
actually better not to have some partial talent─in order to
work hard. The have-nots’ desire to have is dozens of times
stronger than that of the haves, so in the end, they’ll end up
getting much more than the haves─maybe. Surprisingly, the
harder the initial conditions of a game, the more it fires you
up. Same principle. If you don’t have talent, you’ll be able to
do the work to get your hands on something rivalling talent,
and that’s a wonderful advantage, something that will
surely bring a rich, fulfilling life. But that being said,
obviously people will be happier with talent than without,
and what could be better than getting all kinds of freebies
without having to work for it? We’re only human, after all.
You may be better off without mediocre talent, but if we’re
talking about killer talent, well, who wouldn’t want that?
Though all of this is starting to sound like an excuse on the
part of a fellow who isn’t talented. Some would argue that
“talent” is the fruit of hard work, which is maybe something
we should bear in mind, but in the end, most of the time,
what determines the outcome of a human life, and puts our
ducks in a row, is probably not “what we can do” but “what
we can’t do.” That’s what I’ve been thinking lately, anyway.
Now then, what to say about this book? Not much at the
moment, except that it’s the story of a swordsman and
twelve swords. The first of a twelve-book series. Eleven
more to go.* One sword per book… That’s the plan, but
depending on how things go, we might launch everybody
into outer space partway through, so no predictions here.
It’s my intention to power through as if this were my debut,
though, so please bear with me. The characters and swords
appearing in the story have been visually rendered by
someone who needs no introduction, your friend and mine:
take. I can safely say that my prime motivation for writing
this series is to see what wonderful illustrations will arrive
with future books. I have no idea what the future holds,
either within the story or without, and in that spirit, this has
been Sword Tale─Book One: Zetto the Leveler.
I offer my deepest thanks to you all for accompanying
me on this reckless adventure that brooks no predictions.

* The original series was published in twelve monthly installments. This English
edition is projected to feature three more volumes.

NISIOISIN
 ■ ■

The fusuma1 clacked open.

By no means was this room spacious─frankly, it was
cramped. Devoid of furniture, much less any decorations, it
was floored with tatami2 and bare.3 One person, on his own,
would take up almost all of the room.
In it sat a man.
He was lanky, with long hair like a girl.
A simple black kimono.
Eyes closed, he sat cross-legged in the center.
He almost seemed asleep─no.
In fact he was.
Given the hour, it was not the strangest thing─and sure,
some people could probably sleep cross-legged, right?
Nevertheless.
A man asleep with a katana at his waist was rare no
matter what. He slumbered with the sword, in its black
scabbard,4 slipped between his obi and left hip, and as if
leaning on it.
Or perhaps─
Safeguarding it.
As if it were more important than his life.
“…”
Hearing the fusuma slide open, the man in black slowly
opened his eyes.
“Hek hek hek hek.”
To the sound of an utterly unnatural and bizarre laugh.
From the doorway another figure slithered into the tiny
room. He was attired like a ninja─but this was not the
standard ninja outfit you might be imagining. It had no
sleeves, and in their place, fat chains were strung around
his body.
“Od annog ahctahw tub. Ni thgir egrab dna nepo rood
eht worht ajnin a evah ot gnissarrabme dat,” the ninja said.
But he was totally incomprehensible.
Incomprehensible─and yet this was precisely his
astonishing special trait.
An unnatural, bizarre─trait.
“Nalc Awinam eht fo sessob evlewt eht fo eno, Awinam
Igasarihs em llac nac uoy tub, 5Igasarihs Sdrowkcab em llac
elpoep tsom.”
“…”
To that.
The man in black only narrowed his eyes in annoyance.
The hour was a factor, and after this rude awakening,
perhaps he wasn’t thinking straight─but even in broad
daylight, a ninja who spoke thus would be hard to welcome.
Perversely, having entered through the doorway like a
normal person began to seem wrong in the case of this
absurd shinobi.6
“Hek hek hek,” snickered Shirasagi “Backwords”
Maniwa.
In reverse.
“Gniws elgnis a htiw evlah tonnac ti gnihton si ereht taht
yas yeht. Edalb emosraef a. Ikazikihs Ikik yb degrof
dnasuoht eht gnoma seceipretsam, Dessessop Evlewt eht fo
eno. Rozar7 eht Otnaz? Rozar yradnegel eht pih ruoy ta
anatak suoicerp taht si, ym ho?”
He added:
“Em ot ti evig.”
“…”
“Dnatsrednu uoy, yrlavir yldneirf a. Kcen dna kcen eb
lliw I dna eh, drows ruoy emmig uoy fi tub, em fo daeha pets
a si Iromok knup taht.”
“…”
 “Sdnah daed ruoy morf ti yrp I dna, on yas.”
Shirasagi gave a nasty look, as if to hint that he
preferred the latter.
The Maniwa.
Known only to those in the know, a band of expert
assassins─and the ninpo used by Shirasagi Maniwa,
especially, was dangerous enough to keep the other bosses
cautious.8 Nearly every one of them had thanked their lucky
stars for not having Shirasagi as an enemy. His bizarre
backwards way of talking was a function of his ninpo, the
absolute horror of which was only known to those who
opposed him─like this man in black, for instance, sword at
his hip and still sitting.
Still not moving.
Far from handing over the katana, he had not so much
as twitched─unresponsive to the point that he might have
been sleeping with his eyes open.
Had he failed to decipher Backwords Shirasagi’s
speech?
Quite possibly.
“Yako, yadyreve ees ot teg uoy gnihtemos ton s’ti? Dab
taht opnin ym ees ot tnaw uoy? Sgnileef ym struh ti, em
gnirongi tiuq, aohw.”
Shing!
 As Shirasagi paraded his reverse speech as if he were
readying himself, laying the groundwork, for something─the
man in black, without warning, without any tell, suddenly
moved.
But moved might be an overstatement.
A slight motion.
No more than his right hand grasping the katana’s
hilt─to all appearances.
“Hmm?”
When his foe took hold of the weapon, Shirasagi’s
expression changed─but not his easy attitude. It was the
attitude of someone with absolute confidence in his own
abilities.
“Kcats ruoy wolb I elihw hctaw. Skcajpalf ruoy pilf ot em
tnaw uoy snaem tuo drows ruoy gnillup, egaugnal ym ni.
Tsal ruoy eb lliw od uoy dnoces eht, denrawerof eb tub. Ekil
uoy revenehw tuo ti pihw. Tuo ti pihw annog, tahw?”
“If you don’t mind my asking.”
The man in black finally spoke.
Responding to Shirasagi Maniwa.
But his next words─
“This flapjack-flipping9 ninpo─it allows you to talk even
after you’ve been sliced in two?”
─were a farewell.
“Huh?”
Not that holding still would have kept the gash
together─but at those words, Shirasagi leaned forward, for
the last time.
His torso, unstuck from his waist, tipped over onto the
tatami. Because his head landed upside down, his death
throes─
“Gaaah! Wh-Whennn?”
─came out forwards, but at this point, how he sounded
mattered little.
“…Hiken Zerosen,”10 intoned the man in black.
 Not having taken a single step, still sitting.
“Ugh, he’s ruining the tatami─I’ll have to swap it with a
mat from one of the other rooms… As for his corpse…I may
as well hold off until the gore dries.”
Although he had just killed, the man in black was
unperturbed, as if nothing exceptional had happened, and
he set his mind to planning how to clean the room.
He let go of the hilt─and rubbed his eyes.
So he did feel a little sleepy after all.

■ ■

Of course, if this were a piece of contemporary popular

fiction, you may very well presume that Shirasagi Maniwa,
one of the Twelve Bosses of the Maniwa Clan, was killed off
after the author cried, “I don’t want to deal anymore with a
character who talks in such an annoying way! What sort of
ninpo requires speaking in reverse, anyway?”─however, this
is no piece of popular fiction, but a historical novel. In other
words, the man in black was indeed that formidable.
Of the thousand Mutant Blades forged by Kiki Shikizaki.
One of his masterpieces, the Twelve Possessed.
Zanto the Razor.
Owned by Ginkaku Uneri.11
Undoubtedly the toughest foe to grace these pages so
far─okay, out of just two!
We’ll say the tougher.
Behold this unholy history12 full of holes!13
A skittish, scatterbrained sketch!
Tale of the Sword: Book Two ♪

1 襖 FUSUMA thick sliding doors that block out light 2 たたみ TATAMI straw mats 3

殺 風 景 SAPPŪKEI barren 4 鞘 SAYA sheath of a katana 5 鷺 白 の り 喋 さ 逆

 GISARASHI NO RIBEYASHIKASA “Reverse-Talking Shirasagi” 白 鷺 SHIRASAGI
“The Egret”
6 し のび SHINOBI alternative reading of 忍 NIN in phonetic characters, another
word for “ninja”
7 斬刀 鈍 ZANTŌ NAMAKURA “The Slicing Katana: Dullblade”
8 一 目 置 く ICHIMOKU OKU “place an eye”to recognize (a strength) 9 逆 鱗 探 し
GEKIRIN SAGASHI looking for a touchy spot 逆鱗 GEKIRIN flipped scale (as in
snakes’) 10 秘剣 零閃 HIKEN ZEROSEN “Hidden Sword, Zero Flash” sword too
swift to catch the light homophone with ゼロ戦 ZEROSEN, infamous Japanese
fighter planes of World War II 11 宇 練 銀 閣 UNERI GINKAKU “Surging Silver
Tower”
12 黒 歴 史 KUROREKISHI a past one would like to forget 13 嘘 歴 史 USOREKISHI
(neologism) “a lie history”
 ■ ■

“It’s about time we came up with a catchphrase,”1 she said

abruptly.
A petite woman, but the seemingly dozen layers2 of
grandiose silk with which she bedizened herself made her
look far bigger than she really was. Big as in giant. She
wasn’t so much dressed in these clothes as riding in them,
strapped in for a stroll. Her jewelry was chunky enough to
function as fortified armor. But none of this stood out more
starkly than her long white hair─not a strand of black.
Our Schemer, Togame.
“Catchphrase?”
The man responsible for this response, if you could call
it that, was as big as she was petite─and as minimally clad
as Togame was overdressed. Wearing only the bare
necessities, to the point where any less would have been
scandalous. Stripped to the waist, and beyond his arm
guards and his leg guards,3 wearing only a hakama.4 On his
back he toted a massive bundle, full to bursting, but showed
no sign of hardship.
Shichika Yasuri.
Seventh Master of the Kyotoryu.
“What the heck’s a catchphrase?”
“What am I going to do with you? A catchphrase is a
thing you say almost without realizing, whenever things get
crazy. It just pops out.”
“Oh. Okay. But whose catchphrase are we talking?”
“Yours.”
“…”
Shichika nodded obediently.
As appropriate a response as he could offer.
 “But wait a second. If I have to say it without realizing,
should I be thinking about it?”
“Focus, Shichika.”
Very funny. She disregarded him with gusto.
Togame launched her explanation.
“I tried writing down last month’s events, on Haphazard
Island.”
“Huh? Oh, right. Your report.”
Grand Commander of Arms of the Yanari Shogunate
Military Directorate, Owari Bakufu.
That was Togame the Schemer’s full title.5
The report Shichika alluded to would be submitted to
the upper ranks of the bakufu. A handwritten account of
what Togame, sent off by shogunate decree, had witnessed
in her travels.
Dispatched─on a Sword Hunt.
In pursuit of the Twelve Possessed, the masterworks of
Kiki Shikizaki.
“Right, your report. I did exactly what you asked me to.
You said you wanted a spectacle. I gave that scummy ninja
what he had coming to him.”
“I’m sure it was spectacular, but whatever you did to
Komori Maniwa, I wasn’t there to witness it. Ergo, it cannot
be included in my report.”
“Why not?” Why make me do it then? “I did exactly
what you asked.”
“Sorry to say, but I can only record what I see with my
own eyes. Don’t worry─we’ll have other chances. But listen,
Shichika. In explaining how I seized Zetto the Leveler, I
came to a crucial realization.”
“What was that?”
“You have no personality.”6
Certainly one way to put it.
This brutal dig would be enough to put most people in a
funk;7 and Shichika, raised on a remote island, the
embodiment of unsophistication, was no exception. He
grimaced and stopped midstride.
“I-I don’t?”
“In my first draft, that ninja stood out as a more
compelling character. I attempted several revisions, but it
was useless. No amount of reworking changed the equation.
Try as I might, there was no way I could make you more
compelling than Komori. When I read over my final draft,
you struck me as no more than a half-naked baboon.”
“Whoa, Miss Togame. Wait a second.”
He was so flustered he added the formality.8
“When you’re fighting a guy who can pull swords out of
his throat, personality is not how you win. He may have had
more personality, but I’m the one who won the battle.”
“Sure. I don’t want you losing battles. But I can’t have
you losing any popularity contests, either. Let’s just say─you
aren’t florid enough.”9
“Have some consideration!”
Apparently, no personality and half-naked baboon stung
far less than the accusation of being insufficiently florid.
Which makes sense, considering his name.10
“Look,” Togame said. “The Maniwa is like a ninja circus.
Komori was only the beginning. They have this one guy,
Shirasagi, who talks backwards.”
“What do you mean?”
Shichika could not imagine.
Much less fathom the implications.
And would there be any point to it, anyway?
“Actually, could you just stop comparing me with those
Maniwacs?11 Not just my personality, but in general.”
The Maniwacs.
Catchy name for a band, too much so for a band of
assassins.
Needless to say, that was lost on Shichika, and given
the era, on Togame as well. “Maniwacs, that has a nice ring
to it,” she adopted it happily.
Poor ninjas.
“I realize I can’t ask you to start acting like them
overnight. They’re nothing but personality. It wouldn’t even
be fair for me to point to them as models or goals. But
Shichika, I need you to at least put in an effort.”
“E-Effort…”
“Tireless effort is character-building.”
“I’m not sure that’s how it works…”
“For now, back to your catchphrase.”
It was evidently useless to resist. “Uh huh…”
“It’s like picking the title before you write the book. If
you leave out your cup, it fills itself. Don’t underestimate the
power of a catchphrase. It can define a character. Nothing
works quicker, not even close. It’s your best bet, and it
could be your greatest asset. I say catchphrase, but you
could call it a motto, or a slogan, or a signature line. Point
being, it characterizes how you speak. Take that ninja,
Shirasagi Maniwa. For him, talking backwards is like a
catchphrase, broadly speaking.”
“Huh.” Not that Shichika had the slightest idea what
talking backwards meant.
“Here’s a more concrete example. Remember the weird
way Komori laughed? ‘Kyahah!’ What an excellent way of
conveying his immaturity, and the madness and the cruelty
it spawned. When you hear it, you say to yourself, ‘This is
not a normal guy.’”
“I wouldn’t mind being seen as normal.”
“That’s well and good, but not good enough for me. I
don’t want my report to put my audience to sleep. What if
they quit reading halfway through?”
“Aren’t these reports normally pretty lame? Not like I’ve
ever read one.”
No one was expecting a romping, rollicking12 account.
Or so Shichika believed.
 “And that is precisely why mine cannot be normal. You
know, that swordsman Hakuhei Sabi, who I was working with
before, he had a pretty good one, too. It makes me sick13 to
compliment a traitor…but sometimes you need to give
someone his due.”
“Hakuhei Sabi, huh.”
The mightiest swordsman in all the land─they said.
Despite being a kid of barely twenty.
“For future reference, what was it?”
“He often interrupts himself to say, ‘Hear that? Made
your heart beat!’”
“…”
Sabi was in possession of Hakuto the Whisper, one of
the Twelve Possessed, the masterworks of Kiki Shikizaki. At
this rate, they were bound to face off somewhere down the
line─but Shichika rapidly lost any desire to have anything to
do with the man.
And yet Togame seemed to think his catchphrase was
fairly dashing…
Shichika had better brace himself.
“When I was working with Komori and with Sabi, I never
had to worry about their catchphrases, but in your case, I’d
be remiss if I didn’t do you the favor. I don’t want a repeat of
that last report.”
“Oh…”
Some favor.
“Clueless as you are, it’s my responsibility, as your
employer, to take care of you. After all, I promised Nanami.”
“I highly doubt my sister was worried about
catchphrases.”
“How about a couple more examples? Let’s see, I know
a guy who says ‘Wipe that smile off your face!’ every time
you speak to him, whether or not you are smiling. Another
guy cries “Ooowhoo!”14 like a dog whenever anything big
happens. Some people tilt their sentences a certain way.
And then there’s local accents. Those are great for
personality. They announce where you’re from.”
“Great examples.”
Shichika nodded thankfully. He had half a mind to just
give in.
Arguing and debating was such a pain…
“Hey, Togame, I think I got it.”
“What?”
“Not sure if you can call it a catchphrase, but there’s
one that I’m always thinking, or saying.”
“Ah.”
“It’s, well, ‘what a pain’─”
“Cheerio!”15
She suckerpunched him.
A fist right to the ribs.
But between Shichika’s toned muscle and Togame’s
shrimpy arms, the blow─surprise or not─didn’t make much
of an impact. He would sooner notice a mosquito land on his
skin.
“You dolt. How are you supposed to showcase your
personality with such tired words? A report where the main
subject is always complaining about how much of a pain
everything is will make whoever reads it feel the same. Try
to put yourself in my position. I’m the one who has to write
you into being. What if I start wanting to quit?”
“O-Okay…”
Totally rejected.
His sole claim to personality, totally rejected.
“Think for a second. If I depict you as seeing our Sword
Hunt as a pain in the butt, it’s going to look like I’m forcing
you to do this.”
“I need to be loving it?”
“Exactly. Any impression of coercion is one that I would
hope to avoid.”
She was going to be evaluated.
 Ah, the sorrows of serving the court.
Thing is, Shichika didn’t really hate his job.
“Alright, got it,” he said. “I won’t call anything a pain
ever again. Sound good? But Togame, I was kind of
wondering, when you jabbed me a minute ago, what was
that you screamed? ‘Cheerio’?”
“Oh, that?” Shaking her hand (her punch had done
some damage after all, though not to Shichika), Togame
smirked. She knew she had him. “It’s my catchphrase.”
“Huh. What does it mean? Doesn’t sound like Japanese.”
“As if an island monkey can judge. I’ll have you know
that it’s a grand old saying, favored by the warriors of
Satsuma in Kyushu as a battle cry─you might call it their
kiai.16 Not so much a dialect as a custom. Not like I have
any strong ties to Kyushu. I simply thought that ‘Cheerio’ is
a cute thing to yell in battle. I gather this was the first time
you heard me say it, but I actually use it quite a bit.”
“In Satsuma country, huh?”
“Yes.” Togame spoke with pride. “It suits my personality
exactly.”
The battle cry she referenced, while indeed originating
in Satsuma, was in fact the much-more Japanese
“Chesuto,”17 while “Cheerio” was an imported word
denoting some combination of “Sayonara!” “Bye-Bye!” and
“Take Care!”─but you will have to wait for Book Five, when
she and Shichika venture down to Satsuma, for the white-
haired Schemer to finally see her error. Look forward to ten-
plus manuscript sheets’18 worth of humiliation and burnt
ego.
Let us return to the conversation.
Irrelevant as it may be to the present volume.
“Not sure I get this catchphrase thing. Can’t think a
good one up, not on the spot. Whatever you call it…”
Until the previous month, Shichika had spent almost his
entire life in solitude on that deserted island. Before Togame
came, the only two people he had ever met were Mutsue
Yasuri, Sixth Master of the Kyotoryu, his father, and Nanami
Yasuri, his older sister. The three of them had no use for
catchphrases or the like.
Or even for what we call personality.
Which is perhaps why he could be accused of lacking
one.
Back on the island, there had been no objective19 point
of view.
Everything had been subjective.20
“Not to worry. I knew you’d say that, so I thought up a
few.”
“…”
What a busybody.
That was Shichika’s honest reaction.
He didn’t voice it, but it must have shown on his face
since he was no master of duplicity.
“I figured you may have a preference,” Togame went on,
oblivious and unabashed.
Those who ignore how other people feel can dominate
and steer the conversation in any era.
“You have the right to choose your favorite candidate. I
don’t mind which.”
“That’s an awfully pushy right…hope there’s one I like.”
“Of course there is.”
Togame was confident. Too confident.
Where was she going with this?
“Here’s one you can use as a rejoinder. Once in a while,
go ‘Tee-hee!’”
“Nope.” Since he couldn’t be bothered, Shichika was apt
to go along with whatever people said, but this time he had
to voice his blunt refusal. “If I got a report about a guy like
that, I’d burn it. The world has enough garbage.”
“Excuse me? Having a hulk like you titter makes for a
nice contrast─”
 “Nice for who? Look, all I mean is, do you want to spend
all day, every day21 with a guy who goes ‘Tee-hee’? Would
you really want to go on a journey with him?”
“You know what? No. Forget it.”
She moved on quick. She was pretty selfish.
“This one has more to do with changing how you talk.
Let’s try a dialect.”
“A dialect? You can’t pick that sort of thing up
overnight.”
“Why not talk like you’re from Kyoto? Having a hulk like
you speak in an elegant fashion would make for a nice─”
“I’m sure Kyoto has its share of hulks…and another
thing. This contrast you’re so keen on is a dangerous thing.
One slipup, and it’s over. Those stakes are too high.”
“Strong rebuttal. I’m impressed.”
“Enough. Why do I actually have to say this thing? If you
think it’s so important, can’t you just cook something up for
the report?”
“I’m afraid not. It must not contain any lies.”
“But aren’t you already staging22 this?”
“Lies are one thing. Staging is another.”
What kind of twisted code of ethics was this?
Not like he should have been surprised. This was
Togame.
“Writing lies is out of the question, but leaving out real
details is an editorial decision. Take this whole conversation.
Every sentence is going to be pruned. Anyway, if the first
two options aren’t to your taste, you’ll have to settle for a
signature line. Personally, I find them slightly less dynamic,
but they get the job done.”
“It better not make for a nice contrast.”
“Fear not. No more of that. Trust me, these cut a figure. I
have three options for you.”
“You know, can I just laugh in a specific way? How about
that ninja’s ‘Kyahah’? I could live with that.”
 “Imbecile. You don’t want your personality to overlap
with anyone’s.”
“Oh.”
“In a way it’s worse than having no personality.”
“…”
Perhaps she had a point.
It made sense, more or less.
But more importantly, when he really thought it over, he
didn’t want to be overlapping a perverse ninja who pulled
katanas from his mouth.
“Alright. Let’s hear your suggestions.”
“‘Aren’t I the darling of the gods?’”
Repeat after me, Togame urged.
“‘Aren’t I the darling of the gods?’”
“I dunno, Togame…weren’t you supposed to be smart
enough to make up for not knowing how to fight?”
“Excuse me? Only a smart person would hit upon such
an inspired catchphrase.”
“If it’s supposed to be a prank, yeah, it’s inspired…”
Ouch.
The second he uttered that line, it’d be all over for his
personality.
“You’d be saying it mostly to taunt your enemies. It
would assert your superiority and show that your confidence
cannot be shaken. Express your omnipotence, and crown
every victory with swagger.”
“Or maybe come off as a real jerk…”
“Yeah, well, if I had my druthers, you’d be a bit of a jerk.
Just think how it would boost my reputation if I trained a
naughty, cheeky, saucy island monkey to do my bidding.
You’re too nice.”
“…”
What a selfish view.
There was such a thing as being too egotistic.23
 Togame had to be plotting to portray him as a nasty
fellow in order to make herself look good by comparison.
“Let’s try number two. Ready? ‘Time for a permanent
island vacation.’ There.”
“There?”
Too close to home.
After spending twenty years stranded on an island, how
could he smugly wish the same fate on someone else?
“You dodo. That’s what gives it bite.”
It somehow got even more awkward.
How did you ever become Grand Commander?
The words almost left his lips.
He had to end this conversation now.
Things had dragged on long enough, less banter than
open sore.
“Hey Togame, have any more…practical ideas?”
“What? Everything so far was plenty practical… You’re
just much pickier than I reckoned. I thought you would go
with the flow.”
“Yeah, well, I’m as surprised as you we’re still discussing
this… I’m willing to compromise, I really am. Let’s hear your
third pick.”
“Okay. This idea was inspired by Shichika Hachiretsu,
your super killer move.”24
“Don’t call it that.”
His Last Fatal Orchid, she meant.
Whatever. Close enough.
“When your opponent threatens you, just say: ‘Not if
you’re torn to smithereens.’”
“…”
He would have liked to turn it down.
He came so close to telling her.
What made her think his Last Fatal Orchid needed a
hokey25 slogan? Shichika Hachiretsu was a move he had
devised on his own, and he was quite attached to it.
 Then again, Togame must have a slew of bogus
catchphrases that hadn’t made the cut; he had better settle
or risk being dealt something far worse. Even if the lot of
them were bogus, she had clearly labored over every one.
The thought tugged not imperceptibly at his heartstrings…
yet any more of this might confirm a disturbing suspicion
that had arisen in him: Could Togame be dumber than me?
Shichika knew that he was dumb.
He was okay with it.
He was not okay, however, with Togame being dumb.
There was only room for one idiot on this adventure.
“Sounds good.”
“Huh?”
“I like it. ‘Not if you’re torn to smithereens.’ Nice feel.
Honestly, I can’t believe how much it fits me.”
“Oh, you’re picking that one? It’s a little unexpected─I
hadn’t meant to recommend it out of all the candidates. But
hey, it was good enough for me. If it’s your favorite, I won’t
argue.”
“Yeah… Do you think we could stop talking about this
now?”
“Sure. Once you thank me.”
“Thanks a million.”26
“Welcome.”
Togame nodded happily.
She looked altogether satisfied.
And thus Shichika Yasuri acquired his catchphrase.
“Well, I didn’t think you would be so choosy, but that’s
finally settled. We aren’t too pressed for time, all told. If we
keep up the pace, I should have us there by evening.”
“Not if you’re torn to smithereens.”
“Cheerio!”
She punched him, rather unfairly.
But that was their rapport.
 It had been about a month since they first met on
Haphazard Island, and by now, they had begun to let their
guards down. There was nothing strictly wrong with this, but
when the two of them passed the time with such inane
banter on the roadways, they were bound, like it or not, to
catch the eyes of whoever they passed─undesirably,
considering the purpose of their journey. At the moment,
however, given their location, there was no need to worry.
There was not a soul in sight, for this was no roadway.
They were in the middle of Japan’s only desert
landscape─
Inaba Desert27 as it was known in those days.

■ ■

The day before.

Shichika and Togame were staying at an inn28 in the last
town before the desert. Togame had shed layer after layer of
voluminous kimono but retained an air of extravagance due
to her adornments.
“Tomorrow, we’ll be arriving in Inaba.”
They had finished dinner and were sitting face to face.
Shichika was dressed no differently from when he was
outdoors. Bare-chested, as usual, there was little left for him
to strip without being totally naked.29 In a sense, he was
clad more heavily indoors, relatively speaking. Facing
Togame, he let her long white hair enwrap the muscles of
his abdomen.
Around his chest and arms and neck, and plenty more
around his head.
Togame’s hair was as long as it was white─long enough
to wrap all the way around Shichika, and then some. A
young woman’s hair stops even a mammoth30 in its tracks,
but whether or not such a saying actually exists, nobody
stumbling upon the scene would fail to find it odd.
This was not some sexual fantasy31 come true for
Shichika (or Togame). While you would have no way of
guessing it, this was a strategy, a course of action
developed in the wake of battling against Komori Maniwa,
one of the Twelve Bosses of the Maniwa Ninjas, back on the
island that had been Shichika’s only home.
Komori Maniwa.
His was a fearsome ninpo where he shapeshifted into
any other person in existence─the Body Melt, incomparable
to any mortal method of disguise. Morphing into Togame, he
had attempted to ambush Shichika.
Purely in terms of outcome, the ninja failed.
Having never met a stranger in all his years on
Haphazard Island, Shichika was not equipped to remember
the details of Togame’s appearance. It was absolutely
fruitless for Komori to pose as her─no matter how expertly.
That time, Shichika was lucky.
But now that he had vanquished Komori Maniwa, his
inability to tell one person from another was just a decisive,
fatal weakness. Not being able to differentiate between
Togame, his employer, and the foes he had to vanquish was
unacceptable. If he lost track of who was who in a melee at
some point on their quest to find the swords, the Kyotoryu
would no doubt shred Togame, whose martial artistry was
nil.
That simply would not do.
Other people aside─Togame had to act, and fast, to
make sure Shichika could pick her from a crowd.
Therefore.
To ensure he knew her from the others, she fed his
muscle memory using her most striking feature: her white
hair. Thus the scene at the inn was educational in nature.
“Don’t chew on it. You’ll damage it.”
 “Can I lick it?”
“Go ahead. Lick it and remember how it tastes. But
don’t twist your body like that. It hurts my scalp.”
“Okay, I won’t.”
Education is a funny thing. Shichika and Togame had
been working on this almost every night since coming over
to the mainland, and it was finally beginning to pay off. He
could recognize her now, to some extent.
That aside.
The topic was the morrow.
“Right, Inaba. That’s where─what was it again?”
“Gekoku Castle32 stands,” replied Togame. “We are to
find Zanto the Razor. I suppose this is as good a time as any
to tell you more about the sword.”
“Yes, please. I wish you’d have told me earlier, but you
were keeping it secret.”
“Not secret. Classified.”
“What’s the difference?”
“It’s a matter of severity. Anyhow, I’ve mentioned that
the Razor has a keener edge than any other blade.
Supposedly it can cut through any substance in a single
swing.”
“Wow.”
Shichika did not sound like he cared.
Perhaps he wasn’t taking her too seriously.
Such a claim would sow the seeds of doubt in most.
“Sounds like it’s up there with the Leveler. Like how you
said the Leveler was forged to be so hard it─hey, wait a
second. What would happen if we tried to slice the Leveler
with the Razor?”
“I wonder. Only one way to find out─though I would
never allow it.”
Togame chuckled.
She seemed to find his innocent question funny.
 “My guess is the Possessed became more powerful from
one piece to the next, in a simple hierarchy. Since to the
best of my knowledge the Razor was created later, if I had
to guess, I’d say that it would make the cut.”
“Hoot,” Shichika interjected facetiously─and looked
away from Togame and off to the side.
But she saw right through him.
In his battle with Komori on Haphazard Island, Shichika
came out on top although the competition had been fierce.
Nevertheless, it was not the Leveler that he had beaten.
Which was fine, since the goal of Togame’s journey was to
collect the swords without a scratch.
Yet she knew it weighed on his mind.
The Kyotoryu.
Could a swordless school of swordsmanship
triumph─over swords themselves?
She could tell that he was itching for the challenge.
For him, this journey was a match between the
Kyotoryu─swordsmen who forsook the sword─and Kiki
Shikizaki─the swordsmith who trusted in swords.
There was nothing wrong with being so competitive, but
it was something Togame had better keep her eye on.
“So the Razor beats the Leveler…”
“It was a conjecture.33 Don’t take the question too
seriously. What’s more, the answer would depend on who is
wielding the weapon. We know that a Possessed empowers
its owner, but is at its most fearsome in the hands of an
able swordsman.”
“Makes sense. It’s wrong to focus only on the sword. So
what now? Who has the Razor? Don’t tell me another ninja.”
“As it happens…”
With the Leveler in their safekeeping, eleven swords
remained, the whereabouts of only five of which were
known at the moment. Among these, Togame had picked
Zanto the Razor as their first target. This was partially due
to geographic considerations, but there was a far simpler
reason at play.
“Your opponent is a swordsman.”
“Right on. After all, the Kyotoryu is a form of swordplay.
A swordsman will be easier to face than a ninja.”
“Ginkaku Uneri…a ronin34 or…the lord of a castle, after
all?”
“What?” Shichika was baffled. “How do you mean,
Togame? How can you be both?”
“Usually you can’t. But I keep forgetting how little you
know. Perhaps I should start over from the beginning.”
Which is exactly what she did.
“Once upon a time, when the Old Shogun launched the
Great Sword Hunt, the owner of the Razor, Kinkaku Uneri35
by name, was a samurai in the service of the daimyo of
Tottori.”
“So, like, the grandpa of the other guy?”
“Basically. To be precise, he lived ten generations before
Ginkaku, current owner of the sword. A contemporary of
your forefather Kazune, founder of the Kyotoryu.”
“Okay…so this guy would have been around during the
Age of Warring States─and out there on the battlefield
wielding one of the Possessed. In the heyday of the Shikizaki
swords.”
“I wouldn’t compare him with Kazune,” cautioned
Togame, “who was always on the frontlines fighting for the
Tetsubi─but you could say he had a modest reputation as a
warrior. Just not at the level that goes down in history.”
“Really?”
“I gather Mutsue never mentioned the Uneri?”
“Nope, he didn’t. So they couldn’t have been too
outstanding.”
“Like I said. Kinkaku had a modest reputation. It’s like
this. No matter how strong you are, if you only have one
person to fight, you can only win a single battle. This area
had no shortage of battles, but comparatively speaking,
things were peaceful.”
“Got it. You’re saying it’s because our founder fought at
the forefront on the toughest territory36 that he became so
legendary. Huh.”
Upon saying this, Shichika appeared to delve into his
thoughts.
Thinking did not exactly suit him.
Nor was it like him.
It gave Togame pause, but she went on.
“Then, when the Old Shogun unified the nation, he
launched the Great Sword Hunt. This was when the Shikizaki
blades in the possession of the daimyos were snatched up,
all at once, by the shogunate.”
The Great Sword Hunt.
Perhaps the most ignoble law in Japanese history.
Ostensibly enacted to amass enough material for a giant
buddha statue, it grabbed the swords from every hand
across Japan. Its hidden motive was to end the cult of the
katana and to rid the domain of any kind of swordsman─but
the true motive was the Old Shogun’s maniacal obsession
with collecting all thousand of Kiki Shikizaki’s Mutant Blades.
Charming how only the outward objective, erecting a
giant buddha, was met. Ironically, Seiryoin Gokenji Temple,
on Mt. Sayabashiri in Tosa, and home to the Katana Buddha,
became a favorite pilgrimage for swordsmen─whom the
shogun failed to quash.
The underlying project to collect all thousand of the
Shikizaki blades fell short as well.
“But the shogunate got all the other swords, except for
the Possessed, right? Wait…if Kinkaku was working for
Tottori, wouldn’t that mean the Razor wasn’t his to─”
“He strayed from the way of the samurai,” Togame
passed swift judgment on the man. “Kinkaku Uneri refused
to hand over Zanto the Razor, saying it was no possession
of the daimyo, but his alone to keep.” Of all the Mutant
Blades whose exact whereabouts were known from before
the Great Sword Hunt, one sword, and only one, could not
be captured: Zanto the Razor.
“So he was working for a daimyo but wouldn’t surrender
it? Listen to that! But there must be more to the story. I bet
it hurt the reputation of the daimyo of Tottori, his lord.”
“Exactly. Kinkaku, labeled a traitor, was
wanted─dead─but he managed to counter every attempt on
his life. With the Razor.”
“Sounds about right.”
“All told, between the forces sent by the daimyo of
Tottori and the Old Shogun, he fended off ten thousand
strong─ow!”
Strongow.37
No, ten thousand strong─and ouch.
When Shichika, wrapped in Togame’s hair, heard what
she said, he fell backwards─an oddly exaggerated reaction
for the era─and as a consequence, tugged hard on Togame’s
scalp.
“What the hell!” she screamed.
“That’s crazy though! Ten thousand?” Shichika raised
himself and yelled back. “You’re saying he fended off ten
thousand guys alone? No way a guy like that exists! I’d be
amazed to hear someone had chopped apart ten thousand
daikon,38 but men? How could that be? And if he actually
exists, why not save him for last? Why take him on second,
as basically my first real opponent!”
“Hold on, this is history we’re talking─Kinkaku, not
Ginkaku.”
She petted him to calm him down. He was usually
gentle and kind, but when you got him worked up, there was
no stopping him─Togame was finally beginning to grasp
Shichika for who he was.
Unlike some swords, the boy snapped easily.39
 That said, he was a man now, turning twenty-four this
year… His island upbringing had taken a toll and stunted his
emotional growth. Or rather─Togame had no way of knowing
what kind of a father Mutsue had been, but his older sister,
Nanami, who acted like his mother, seemed to have spoiled
him.
“I’m fine. You can stop now,” Shichika said after a while.
“Still, ten thousand. How could one guy put such a dent in
humanity’s headcount? Why try to stave off a population
explosion40 in our era? Plus, I can’t see how one sword could
stand up to that much abuse. Unless it was the Leveler…”
“Well, this is over a hundred and fifty years ago. That
number may not be credible, but we must assume that the
Razor had been swung at least often enough for such
rumors to be whispered with credulity. Shichika, even if the
Kyotoryu is swordplay, you don’t use swords yourself, so I
can see why you would be skeptical. But a blade doesn’t
need to be as hard as the Leveler to last. Theoretically, a
masterpiece sword41 can be used indefinitely.”
“You serious?”
“Indefinitely might be a bit of a stretch. In the hands of
a third-rate swordsman, its edge will be lost after ten kills
from all the fat and muscle. A first-rate swordsman knows
how to take a life without hurting his sword. You could even
say that killing without harming your sword is what makes a
first-rate swordsman.”
“…”
“Otherwise, how could all thousand of the Mutant Blades
of Shikizaki still exist? The nine hundred and ninety-nine
that aren’t the Leveler would long ago have snapped or
corroded. But that is not the case.”
Of course, she conceded, there was no way to
guarantee the safety of the six precious42 whose
whereabouts were lost. For her to reach her goal, they
better be safe, but she had to face the facts. There was a
difference between a wish and wishful thinking.
“Taking a life without hurting his sword, huh. Sounds like
Kiki Shikizaki didn’t think of his swords as expendable, and
the Leveler was just the most extreme example…”
“True, but the deciding factor is who wields them. In that
sense, perhaps the Razor was in the best hands possible.
The daimyo of Tottori and the Old Shogun failed to capture
it, but life went on. The Great Sword Hunt was rescinded,
and the Old Shogun…”
“Met his ruin?”
“Not exactly ruin,” Togame took issue with Shichika’s
word choice. “He lived a long life and died peacefully. But
having clashed with him, Kinkaku Uneri was dismissed from
Tottori and became an unaffiliated43 ronin.”
“Unaffiliated. That’s one way to put it.”
Shichika burst out laughing.
His father, a swordsman (Master of the Kyotoryu Mutsue
Yasuri hadn’t wielded a katana but was a swordsman all the
same), dubbed the Hero of the Rebellion in the only bona
fide war to take place under the Yanari, had to pay for a
crime he committed shortly afterwards. Banished to an
island along with his family, for nineteen years he never left
the island, until his spirit left this world the year before.
Togame felt like Shichika may be seeing his father in
Kinkaku Uneri, but she dismissed the thought.
What did she care.
In the first place, she would rather spend as little time
as possible thinking about Shichika’s father─even though
she originally ventured to Haphazard Island intending to ask
him, not Shichika, to help with gathering the swords.
After all─Mutsue Yasuri had been among her most hated
foes.
“But even upon being expelled, Kinkaku Uneri refused to
leave Inaba. He did not take service with another master but
dared to make his home within its borders, where he lived
out the rest of his days. It seems the land claimed a soft
place in his heart. Over the years, the Razor stayed in his
family and was passed down as an heirloom─”
“And now it’s in the hands of Ginkaku, the current head
of the Uneri. Does that mean that tomorrow, we’ll be
dropping in on Uneri’s mansion in the town of Inaba,
Tottori?”
“No,” Togame shot him down. “The Uneri mansion is
gone.”
“Gone?”
“I should say, Inaba is gone.”
“The entire city?”
“More than that. Tottori, as a territory, has ceased to
exist.”
“What could make it stop existing?”
“Ever hear of Inaba Desert?” asked Togame, seeing how
surprised Shichika was.
This was turning out to be a lengthy introduction.
“Yeah…my dad told me about it. Tottori is famous for it,
the only desert in Japan. He said he visited once just for fun.
Supposed to be awesome. Everywhere you look is sand. I
was actually hoping we would go there.”
“Don’t worry. Before long, you’ll have had enough.”
Togame was getting sarcastic. “About five years ago, Inaba
Desert began steadily increasing in size. What once covered
a fraction of the coastline has swallowed Tottori whole.”
The entire territory.
“Inaba has become a wasteland, unfit for living.”
The desert had grown.44
The rapid environmental development could be
described no other way. The local authorities, longstanding
stewards of the desert, and the Yanari, who boasted
absolute unparalleled authority, were powerless against this
natural disaster. Its scope was formidable, but it was the
pace that made controlling it impossible.
The end of Tottori, and of Inaba─though Shichika could
not have known, stranded on that island for the past twenty
years.
“No swordsman or sword is any match for nature.”
To judge from the fatalism in his voice, this meant
something to him, too. When the desert started spreading,
Togame was already working for the bakufu, and despite it
being outside her wheelhouse45 she drew up all kinds of
countermeasures; they were only a drop in the bucket and
had almost no effect. Thus she intimately understood what
Shichika was feeling.
Helplessness.
That’s what you call it.
“Still,” Togame said. “Perhaps it’s too soon to conclude
that no swordsman─or sword─can master nature. That
wasteland is no place for human life, but out there, Shichika,
one swordsman has made himself at home.”
“…?”
“Or to speak your language, one sword, Ginkaku Uneri,
lives─alone in Gekoku Castle, the only structure left standing
in Inaba─with Zanto the Razor at his hip.”

■ ■

The following day─

Togame the Schemer and Shichika Yasuri, Seventh
Master of the Kyotoryu, set off side by side into the desert,
leaving their footprints in the sand. They were heading for
Inaba─or, in its place, Gekoku Castle, though no road
stretched before them.
 “Good thing it’s cold out,” said Shichika, gazing up at
the sky. “If this was the middle of summer, you would be
dead, wearing so many layers.”
“Nonsense. In summer I take some off. About three
layers.”
“Big difference. You make me carry all the luggage,
saying you’re not strong enough to help, but I bet the whole
lot of it weighs less than your accessories.”
“More nonsense. Women have a special set of muscles
just for fashion.”
“Special muscles? You have extra body parts?” Shichika
sounded appalled. “I can’t see clothes as anything but in the
way.”
“I’ve given up on making you wear a shirt, but do me a
favor and please don’t take your pants off. I don’t want to
travel with a perv.”
“Don’t worry. I’m starting to like this hakama you bought
me. It’s good for moving, and good for fighting.”
“How is moving different from fighting?”
“Just is.”
“Interesting.”
Crunch, crunch, crunch.46
The two walked on, leaving footprints in the sand.
They estimated that the walk would take them the
whole day.
Leaving aside the joke about special muscles, Togame’s
ability to travel on foot for such a distance was revealing.
Even if she was not skilled in the martial arts, she was in no
way without stamina. Needless to say, for Shichika, walking
for a whole day cost him barely more energy than spending
the day in bed.47
“If the desert swallowed the city, does that mean if we
dug around we might find houses and stuff?”
“We’ve been walking quite a while. This area was sand
before the desert grew. But who knows. If you dug enough
you might find something. From five or six hundred years
ago.”
“Wow. So wait. Then Tottori’s Gekoku Castle was built in
the middle of the desert.”
“The lay of the land has shifted over time, so not in the
middle as it stands today. Once upon a time, it stood on the
edge. The castle is literally a natural fortress. Since no
general trains his troops for a desert assault, it was hard to
attack and easy to defend. Still, it was quite the undertaking
to build on sand. What could be harder?”
“And that’s why it’s the only building standing in
Inaba─but hey, Togame. There’s something I’ve been
wanting to ask you since last night.”
“Yes?”
“You originally hired that maniac Komori to capture the
Leveler because he was the most flexible ninja around,
which made him a perfect fit for the most rigid sword. After
that, you asked Hakuhei Sabi to capture the Whisper
because it was the most difficult to handle, and no one in all
of Japan can wield a sword better than him.”
“Precisely.”
“Okay. So how come you’re asking me to get the Razor?
Is there some reason you think it’s a good fit, or a good
match48 for me? Since I don’t use a sword, I can’t see how
any of that would matter.”
“There were geographic considerations. From what I
know, Zanto the Razor is the closest of the Possessed to
your home on Haphazard Island.”
“So it was the most practical.”
“Sure, but more importantly, as Master of the Kyotoryu,
you never use a sword, and thus no sword would ever be a
good match or a good fit. That is what makes your school
what it is. That is why I picked you to help me round up the
Possessed, and why your situation is different from Komori
or Sabi─but Shichika, there is one exception49 among the
swords.”
“You mean out of the Twelve Possessed?”
“I mean all thousand of the Mutant Blades. That sword is
Zanto the Razor,” Togame declared.
“What do you mean?”
“Don’t you get it? A sword that is merely sharp is of no
concern for you. Cheerio!”
She nailed him in the ribs.
Hers was a fearsome catchphrase that would embarrass
her later, the more frequently she uttered it─but we’ll get to
this curse in due course.
“Why do you keep hitting me in the same spot?”
“Don’t tell me I hurt you.”
“Hurt me? No.”
“Of course not,” Togame said. “Your body is so finely
tempered that I’m almost entranced50 by it. I have a hard
time keeping my hands away from your amazing muscles.
But Shichika. Not even a body like yours can stop a blade.”
“Right.”
“You can train all night and day, but your flesh can only
get so hard. Any razor─small ‘r’51─will cut skin if you touch
the blade. Therefore, it matters none how sharp Zanto the
Razor is. It’s not like you will be crossing blades, yes? It
should be no different than your average katana.”
“Makes sense.”
Shichika could see her point.
This Possessed was the one exception.
The Mutant Blades each had their special powers, but
only one was comparable, at least for Shichika, to a normal
sword. And that was Zanto the Razor.
“Okay,” said Shichika, “I’m relieved that you aren’t an
idiot.”
“First time I’ve had to convince anyone of that.
Whatever. Anyway, capturing this sword from Ginkaku Uneri
will simply be a matter of your swordplay versus his. As long
as he isn’t any stronger than he would be with another
sword, this should be a relatively easy one for you to
capture.”
“You told me all about his ancestor Kinkaku yesterday,
but not what to expect from this guy. Can he cut down ten
thousand guys too?”
“Not sure. But I know he’s good. I hear he’s a master of
iainuki.”52
“Iainuki…”
“They say it’s the trademark of the Uneri family─Kinkaku
included. It would be fair to label him a specialist… But in
terms of personality, he is an eccentric.53 While everyone
else in Inaba abandoned the land where they were born and
raised, he stayed.”
“Is the desert still expanding?”
“Not anymore… Last year, it suddenly stopped. By then
the whole of Inaba was buried, but the damage to
neighboring territories has been slight.”
“I see.”
“It was four years of hell. But Shichika, I meant to ask
you. Does the Kyotoryu have any special moves for
countering iainuki?”
“Huh? Oh, well, I’m not sure for iainuki specifically─my
dad called it an extreme form of swordplay─hold on, though.
While we’re on the topic, I have some things I want to ask
you too.”
“Such as?”
“Between Ginkaku Uneri and Hakuhei Sabi, who’s
stronger?”
“Having never met Uneri in person, that’s hard for me to
say…but I would put my money on Sabi. His skill is
unfathomable.54 His ability to fight without damaging a
sword is nonpareil─no other swordsman could handle the
Whisper. For him, a stunt like cutting down a hundred men is
easy-peasy.”
“In your opinion. If that’s the case, who would you bet
on between me and Sabi?”
“…”
For a moment, Togame was at a loss to answer.
“I’m amazed how hard it is for you to lie,” laughed
Shichika. “I think I understand why you can’t lie in your
report.”
“That’s not it, Shichika. Sabi may be unrivaled as a
swordsman, but based on fighting style, I think your chance
of beating him is─”
“That’s not what I’m getting at, Togame.”
Shichika’s tone was bold, almost arrogant.
“What I’m saying is you’ve only had a taste of what the
Kyotoryu is made of─if you really understood the school, you
would never think to ask a stupid thing like if I had a special
move for iainuki.”
“So not even Sabi poses a threat.”
“Well. I’m not sure about that.”
And I’m not sure I ever want to meet him, he added, his
voice returning to normal─to the easy, carefree, unenthused
Shichika.
“Whatever happens, Togame, you have nothing to worry
about.”
“Hmh… Ch-Cheerio!”
This time she stomped his toes with her seta.55
And it did hurt.
“Wah, what the?”
“M-Make no mistake! No one cares about you. My sole
concern is our safe recovery of the Razor! I could not be less
worried about what happens to you. I could replace you in a
heartbeat!”
“…”
This brand of humor─what can I say.
 A Japanese tradition, though as yet it had no name.
“R-Really? You could replace me? M-My mistake.”
Shichika was a piece of work, too, for feeling genuinely
wounded.
But that aside, this travel scene met a juncture.
The two stopped.
Straight ahead, directly in their path, they espied
something lying on the sand. A dead man, sliced into two
clean halves.56

1 口癖 KUCHIGUSE “mouth habit” a word or words that one is given to uttering 2

十 二 単 衣 JŪNIHITOE twelve-layered kimono 3 脚 絆 KYAHAN cloth wrapped

around the shins 4 袴 HAKAMA loose pleated trousers tied at the waist 5 正式
な 身 分 SEISHIKI NA MIBUN formal status 6 個 性 が 弱 い KOSEI GA YOWAI his
“individuality is weak”
7 鬱 UTSU depression
8 さん付け SANZUKE attaching the honorific さん SAN
9 花がない HANA GA NAI “to be flowerless,” despite his moves all having floral

names 10 七花 SHICHIKA “seven flowers”

11 まにわに MANIWA NI cutesy, derisive pun on や に わ に YANIWA NI out of the

blue 12 愉快痛快 YUKAI TSŪKAI entertaining and thrilling 13 癪に障る SHAKU

NI SAWARU aggravating 14 きゃうーん KYAUUN yelping sound
15 ちぇりおー CHERIŌ an expression unfamiliar to most Japanese readers 16 気合

KIAI a voice emitted to concentrate one’s 気 KI energy 17 ちぇすと CHESUTO

analogous to “Yeehaw!”
18 原 稿 用 紙 GENKŌ YŌSHI typically 400 squares per sheet, one character per

square 19 客 観 KYAKKAN “as a visitor” objective 20 主 観 SHUKAN “as the

host” subjective 21 四六時中 SHIROKUJICHŪ 24/7
22 やらせ YARASE “made to do”
23 自 己 中 JIKOCHŪ colloquial abbreviation of 自 己 中 心 的 JIKOCHŪSHINTEKI self-

centered 24 超必殺技 CHŌ HISSATSU WAZA “ultra lethal technique”

25 不 要 な 味 付 け FUYŌ NA AJITSUKE needlessly flavored 26 感 謝 感 激 雨 あ ら れ

KANSHA KANGEKI AME ARARE it’s raining thank-you’s 27 因 幡 砂 漠 INABA

SABAKU today’s 鳥 取 砂 丘 TOTTORI SAKYŪ Tottori Sand Dunes 28 旅 籠
HATAGO a lodge offering room and board to travelers 29 全 裸 ZENRA
“complete nudity”
30 大象 TAIZŌ “big elephant”
31 変 態 性 欲 HENTAI SEIYOKU fetish; perversion 32 下 酷 城 GEKOKUJŌ “harsh-
underneath castle” pun on 下 剋 上 GEKOKUJŌ, a bid to bring down one’s
ruler/leader 33 推測 SUISOKU estimate
34 浪 人 RŌNIN a samurai who has no master 35 宇 練 金 閣 UNERI KINKAKU
“Surging Golden Tower”
36 激戦区 GEKISENKU severely contested district 37 超えいた KOEITA [not a word]
38 大根 DAIKON root vegetable often rivaling the size of a human limb 39 切れや

す い KIREYASUI quick to lose his temper 40 人 口 爆 発 JINKŌ BAKUHATSU no

less of a deliberate anachronism in the original 41 業物 WAZA MONO a top-
notch katana, durable and sharp 42 真 打 SHIN’UCHI “true forged” the best
swords in a production run 43 無 所 属 MUSHOZOKU usually describes
independent politicians who belong to no party 44 成 長 SEICHŌ grow
(organically)
45 他部署 TABUSHO “different department”
46 ざくざくざく ZAKU ZAKU ZAKU onomatopoeia for sand/gravel 47 布団 FUTON
sleeping mat
48 組み合わせ KUMIAWASE combination
49 例外 REIGAI “outlier”
50 ほれぼれする HOREBORE SURU marvel; plays off 惚れる HORERU fall (in love)
51 た だ の 名 詞 TADA NO MEISHI the common noun 52 居 合 抜 き IAINUKI

drawing a sword at spectacular speed, often for performance 53 変人 HENJIN

“odd person”
54 底が知れぬ SOKO GA SHIRENU “can’t see the bottom”
55 雪 駄 SETTA flat-soled Japanese sandals 56 一 刀 両 断 ITTŌ RYŌDAN a single
unstoppable swing
 ■ ■

The “Maniwacs”─the cutesy nickname fast becoming

standard between Shichika and Togame, although that band
of expert assassins, demented as they were, would surely
have resented nothing more than to be branded thus─had,
by now, gone rogue1 en masse. Until the Mutant Blades of
Kiki Shikizaki made things complicated, the enclave had
worked with the Owari Bakufu on what could be called
intimate terms─or at least in close cooperation. It would be
exaggerating to say the Maniwa answered directly to the
shogunate, but relative to the Onmitsu, who did, the ninjas
had certainly been held in higher esteem for their ninpo.
The Directorate for which Togame was Grand
Commander was often responsible for backroom operations
that never saw the light of day. It would be fair to say she
knew more about the Maniwa than any other personage of
the shogunate. But even her knowledge had limits: her
intelligence on the Twelve Bosses was spotty and she
understood the ninpo of only a few of them, one of whom
had been Komori─and yet.
The dead man, slashed in two and left to rot, had a face
she recognized.
Yes.
It was Shirasagi Maniwa. One of the Twelve Bosses of
the Maniwa Clan.

■ ■

It was like a nightmare, thought Shichika.

 It had not been there before─the only thing in sight had
been the two halves of the abandoned corpse. But when he
and Togame rushed to see the body, the wind picked up.
The next instant, a castle2 towered over them.
Without warning.
No gate or moat or ramparts or embankments─only the
keep,3 rising from the sand.
“What the…” Shichika was sure the castle hadn’t been
there. Or at the very least, they hadn’t seen it.
“I told you it was a natural fortress.” In stark contrast to
his bafflement, Togame reacted with total nonchalance as if
she had expected nothing less.
“Do you know about mirages? They’re a natural
phenomenon, where a difference in temperature causes
light to refract, making faraway things appear close, or
things on the ground appear to float, or flip. They can even
make things you know are there invisible… We are in a
desert, with the sea nearby. The conditions are perfect. One
might call it atmospheric camouflage.”
Togame casually explained that the castle had no gate
or moat or ramparts or embankments so as not to disrupt
the mirage.
“Unless you come this close, you’ll never notice it─that’s
what makes Gekoku Castle hard to attack and easy to
defend. Unknown to most─but legendary, to a select few.”
“What? So you knew it was going to do this? You
should’ve warned me. That scared the crap out of me. Stop
keeping secrets. Did this really need to be classified?”
“Oops. I thought it would be funny.”
“…”
It was a prank.4
At the worst possible time.
It bombed,5 more or less.
“Look at this guy…”
 Not like she was changing the subject, but Togame
crouched beside the corpse and looked it over. The body
had started to decay, but remained recognizable. While
Shichika did not exactly crouch, he mimicked Togame and
peered down at the body over her shoulder.
Sleeveless ninja garb.
Chains wrapped around him.
But this ninja, while a denizen of the shadows, wore no
mask─combined, these features should have been enough
to jog his memory of Komori Maniwa, whom Shichika had
fought the month before, but the only living people he could
recognize were his sister, Nanami, and Togame the
Schemer, after considerable practice. Nothing about the
dead man struck him as familiar, but the expression on
Togame’s face made him wonder.
“Someone you know?” he asked.
“Shirasagi Maniwa, one of the Twelve Bosses of the
Maniwa Clan.”
Togame’s voice was neutral.6
“I know of him… Unlike Komori, we never worked
together, and I know little of his ninpo. But we’ve crossed
paths several times. I mentioned him when we were talking
about catchphrases. He’s the one who talked backwards.”
“Oh,” Shichika nodded. “So I’ll never find out what that
was like…for better or for worse. But for starters, what’s a
Maniwac Boss doing all the way out here, in two pieces?”
Growing up on Haphazard Island, Shichika wasn’t used
to corpses. He was also never taught to find dead bodies
scary, and thus, the pitiable sight of what was left of
Shirasagi Maniwa wasn’t particularly unnerving─but having
witnessed firsthand the skill of Komori, another of the
Twelve Bosses of the Maniwa Clan, he was unable to take
this situation lightly.
“This guy must have packed at least as hard of a punch
as Komori.”
 “Komori was tough, but his ninpo wasn’t meant for
battle. His Star Cannon and Body Melt were perfect for
assassination, but not ideal for fighting face to face. While I
can’t say for sure what style of ninpo Shirasagi favored…
rumor has it that his skills were well-suited to combat. In
which case, at least in terms of fighting prowess, he would
outrank Komori.”
“Yet somehow─he got chopped in half.”
Shichika examined the cross-sections of Shirasagi’s
body. What a smooth cut─the blade had not even remotely
strayed. It almost felt like if you pressed the halves
together, they would stick. The cut went clean through flesh
and bone, like it was all the same─but even more foreboding
was the way that it had razored through the fat chains the
ninja wore over his costume. After finishing off Komori,
Shichika had learned from Togame that these chains were a
variety of chain mail7─the Maniwa wore them as a kind of
armor. If his armor had been slashed, Shirasagi Maniwa
must have been felled by a blow so powerful that nothing
could stop it.
“As you may recall, the Twelve Bosses of the Maniwa are
competing to see who can snatch up the most of the Twelve
Possessed. Shirasagi must have caught wind of Zanto the
Razor being at Gekoku Castle, in the hands of Ginkaku
Uneri, and come out to investigate, only to be slain.”
“By who?”
“By Ginkaku Uneri, obviously.” Togame raised her
head─gazing at Gekoku Castle, which (apparently) had
materialized out of nowhere. “If he could do this to a
Maniwa Boss, perhaps I underestimated his abilities. I had
thought the Razor would be one of the easier
swords─evidently, I was wrong.”
“Yeah, well, I already beat one Maniwa Boss…”
“Indeed, but luck was on your side.”
 Shichika couldn’t argue with that. He had been more
than lucky─his opponent had practically fallen at his feet. All
the same, Shichika was confident he could have beat the
ninja anyway, no matter what the circumstances, but knew
enough not to say so. It was pointless.
“Let’s look on the bright side…” Togame shook her head
and stood. Her expression told Shichika nothing, but he had
never been good at reading other people, especially when
they were silent. “The Maniwa may have beat us here,”
Togame elaborated, “but their attempt to seize the Razor
was in vain. From a certain angle, this is a boon for us. If
Shirasagi had won himself the Shikizaki blade, we would
have trudged into the middle of Inaba Desert for nothing.”
“Got it, bright side.” Shichika nodded, but he wasn’t so
soft as to miss the message behind what she was saying.
“Still, Togame, if the ninja failed to catch Ginkaku Uneri off
guard, he must be on the lookout. There’s no way he
doesn’t know how valuable the Shikizaki blades are─well,
who knows what this guy said to him. Backwards or
whatever. Worst-case scenario, Ginkaku Uneri could have
fled Gekoku Castle. And brought the Razor with him. Not like
that gives us any clue about where it is.”
“I don’t think that will be a problem. Even after the
whole of Inaba was consumed by desert, this man refused
to leave. A couple of ninjas would hardly be able to push
him over the edge. What’s more, from the looks of
Shirasagi, Uneri has the utmost confidence in his abilities.
This is no two-bit samurai who cuts and runs.”8
“What, then?” asked Shichika. “Maybe we should come
back another time.”
“Out of the question,” Togame replied straightaway.
“Look, at the pace the Maniwa are moving, we have no time
for setbacks.9 In fact, I’m feeling good about where we are.
Thanks to this plot twist from Shirasagi, my report to my
superiors just got a lot more interesting. Collecting one of
the Possessed from a foe who defended it from the
treacherous Maniwa makes for a great story. But the real
triumph here is that I no longer need to worry about writing
dialogue for that obstreperous ninja. To be frank, I was
dreading his arrival because conveying his speech would be
such a hassle. He also overlapped with my brand─Shirasagi
and shiraga10 were a little too close for comfort. But that’s
no longer a concern.”
She was beating a dead horse. A bit cruel given that the
guy wasn’t in one piece.
“This setup is simply too good, Shichika. I can’t have
you suggesting that we head back with our tails between
our legs. Am I to write that we did?”
“The bright side, huh?”
The hot air11 behind her last line was not lost on
Shichika─but he had no reason to protest when his employer
was right.
“That’s why I fell for you.”
 ■ ■

While Shichika had certainly been stunned by the sudden

appearance of Gekoku Castle, the effect wore off with time.
Once he had collected himself, he looked up to find a
devastated building─ a ruin, by no exaggeration. Since
leaving Haphazard Island, he had been tutored by Togame
in the ways of the world and had seen a fair number of
castles on the road from the Capital to Inaba, but Gekoku
Castle was by far the most distressed.12
And why would it be otherwise?
Five years prior, when Inaba Desert had begun to
spread, this castle lost every one of its caretakers. Once in
disrepair, any building, be it castle or mansion, falls
apart─and all the sooner in a desert. The fact that this
edifice was still standing, most of its masonry in place, its
shape more or less intact, was miraculous. While surely built
to withstand dryness and the sandstorms, a building of this
scale would be impossible for Ginkaku Uneri, the sole
inhabitant of Inaba, to maintain on his own. The castle was
rundown enough to doubt its structural integrity, but having
no choice but to enter, Shichika followed Togame into the
lonely tower.
A natural fortress.
But once they were inside, it was a normal castle.
Except ruined, with sand granules blowing through the
hallways and the walls.
It never would have been permitted in better days, but
since no one could scold them, they had stepped right in,
dumping their luggage at the entrance, without taking off
their sandals─Togame in her flat ones, and Shichika in his
straw sandals.
 They walked the halls. Togame ahead, and Shichika
behind her.
That was their marching order upon entering the castle.
“Hold back, Shichika,” Togame had told him by the
entrance. “Let me go first.”
“…?”
Noticing Shichika’s puzzlement, she had rephrased
herself slightly. “I’ll take point.”
“Point? Why? When we fight, that’s my job, not yours.
Or do you want to fight Ginkaku first?”
“Fool. You know what I’m like in battle. He’d tear
through me quicker than a shoji.”13
“You don’t have to brag about it.”
But why go first?
A paper screen wouldn’t even serve as a shield.
Moreover, he would never use his employer as one.
“Shichika, since you seem a bit confused, allow me to
spell things out.” About to step into the castle, Togame
turned around, but because of the substantial difference in
height, even facing him, it barely felt like they were face to
face.
“This is no burglary.”
“Huh? What?”
“Our mission is to secure the Twelve Possessed. By order
of the shogun. His will must be obeyed. That
notwithstanding, we can’t just barge in and clash swords─so
to speak─and snatch the Razor. We must follow procedure.
Before battle, we must attempt diplomacy.”14
“Then what do you need me for? Diplomacy is your
game.”
“Which is why I need to go first. But I still need you. This
is not the Old Shogun’s Great Sword Hunt, dare I even
mention that debacle─a pox on history. It must not be
repeated. If we must resort to battle, we need a just
cause.”15
 “I don’t get it. Is this, like, bureaucratic?”16
“…Let’s go with that for now. If what I hear is true,
Ginkaku Uneri is a friend to none. Not only a ronin, but a
villainous rake, who would kill anyone for a price. His family
legacy aside, he has made himself a wanted man for
ignoring our repeated warnings and insisting on occupying
Gekoku Castle.”
“Well, that makes sense.”
“It would be fair to say that every one of the five swords
whose whereabouts are known, including the Razor, is in the
hands of this caliber of individual. I wouldn’t expect much
better from the next four. As a rule, you would need to be
insane to intentionally partake17 in the Shikizaki blades’
venom. As for Hakuhei Sabi, regardless of his reputation as
a swordsman, he was hardly known for his decency even
before obtaining the Whisper. But nevertheless, Shichika─we
must entertain the possibility.”
“Entertain it?”
“It’s like this. What would you do if a good guy had one
of these swords?”
Togame was less addressing Shichika than asking
herself.
“We aren’t burglars─but neither are we on the side of
justice. Backed by the shogunate, we can kill without being
punished,18 but we can’t just go around hacking people into
pieces. This may be an order from on high, but we are not
rounding up the Twelve Possessed out of pure necessity.
Bear that in mind.”
Togame spoke as if he had no choice in the matter and
turned back toward the castle.
If he was honest, Shichika had not understood half of
Togame’s lecture. It went in one ear and out the other. You
could argue that concepts like good guy or bad guy or
madman were still opaque to him due to his inexperience,
but in actuality, his brain simply couldn’t do the work.
 Indeed, it might be best not to invoke his lack of
experience.
Being, for the Kyotoryu, meant being a katana.
The sword chooses its owner─but does not choose who
to kill.
That was the way.
No matter how simple and innocent Shichika may act, or
by virtue of these very qualities─he lacked any logic or
ethics. Honed, literally, as a katana, Shichika had not been
taught how to be human.
The same went for his father who raised him.
Able to kill anyone without flinching.
Good or bad, woman or child─it had been irrelevant.
Consequently─Mutsue Yasuri became Hero of the
Rebellion.
It will be a little longer before Shichika finds himself
caught between the rock of his assignment and the hard
place of compassion,19 in confronting a genuinely good
person with one of the Possessed.
“Hey,” he said.
“What is it?”
“There’s a stain on that tatami.”
On the lookout, searching through the castle, Shichika
had noticed a black splotch on a mat along the edge of one
of the larger rooms. Both of them instantly knew what the
stain was.
Blood.
“I guess this is where he killed Shirasagi?”
“Wrong,” Togame shot him down. “The color of the
straw is unlike any other in the room. If the mat had been
here all along, you would expect it to have faded the same
way as all the others. The original mat must be in the room
where this mat was stained with blood.”
“Makes sense. I can see that. But why would anyone go
to all the trouble?”
 “There must be a den20 where he spends most of his
time. Shirasagi barged in, and they fought. He won, but
messed up his tatami. And who wants to wake up on tatami
stained with blood? That’s why, so far as I can tell, he
swapped it with one of these mats.”
Shichika looked solemnly at the ceiling. Tall as he was, it
was too high for him to reach, even on tiptoes. A castle was
a castle, no matter how dilapidated.
“What’s wrong? Is something still unclear to you?”
“No…well, it’s just that Ginkaku Uneri has to be nearby.
With blood you have to worry about the smell, so I can’t see
him switching it with the tatami in the room next door to
him, but I doubt he would bother going far.”
“Perceptive. Well then, let’s have a closer look.”
“Gotcha.”
Then.
The two of them arrived before the fusuma.
They were deep in the recesses of the castle─but there
was nothing special about the doors they stood before, nor
any sign of life. Only, ever since entering Gekoku Castle, this
was the only room whose fusuma were closed.
In every other room, the fusuma and shoji had been
opened up entirely.
This had to be it.
“…”
“…”
They looked each other in the eye.
Shichika motioned to touch the fusuma, but Togame
signaled for him to stop. While she didn’t come out and say
so, she conveyed that it was her intention to go first.
Shichika obediently withdrew his hand, of no mind to upset
her. In their dynamic, he recognized he was the servant.
When she told him to go ahead, he went ahead; and if she
said to stay behind, he stayed behind.
 It must have been for want of care the door stuck in its
jamb, but when Togame put her back into it─
The fusuma clacked open.
By no means was this room spacious─frankly, it was
cramped. Devoid of furniture, much less any decorations, it
was floored with tatami and bare. One person, on his own,
would take up almost all of the room.
In it sat a man.
He was lanky, with long hair like a girl.
A simple black kimono.
Eyes closed, he sat cross-legged in the center.
He almost seemed asleep─no.
In fact he was.
“…”
“…”
Again, they looked each other in the eye.
Then they turned back to the man at the same time.
The man in black─was asleep with a katana at his hip.
In a black scabbard.
Black handle, black tsuba.21
A sword─so hidden22 by the black of its surroundings as
to be almost invisible.
Shichika felt a strange sensation. Different from the
month before, when Komori pulled a sword out of his
body─on that occasion, before he had a chance to ask, the
ninja declared the sword to be Zetto the Leveler, one of the
Twelve Possessed, among the masterpieces forged by Kiki
Shikizaki.
This was different.
No one had said this was Zanto the Razor.
Not Togame, and not Ginkaku Uneri. Strictly speaking,
he had no proof the man sleeping before him was in fact
Ginkaku Uneri.
But Shichika’s intuition23 made it clear. He knew.
That sword─was Zanto the Razor.
 “Um…excuse me?”
Of course, Shichika lacked any reason or explanation as
to why he knew…the idea popped into his head, it could
easily be wrong, he had better relax…his feelings swirled,
but the strange sensation only lasted for an instant.
And then─
“Are you Ginkaku Uneri?”
On hearing Togame’s supple voice, the fleeting
experience vanished from his mind, nearly disappearing
from his memory.
In her usual supercilious tone, Togame addressed the
man, whose eyes had yet to open. “I am Togame the
Schemer, Grand Commander of Arms of the Yanari
Shogunate Military Directorate, Owari Bakufu.”
Her standard introduction.
If this were a more conventional story, now would be the
time to reveal an item bearing the insignia of the
shogunate, but Togame belonged to an office so shrouded in
secrecy,24 so buried in the background, that she carried
nothing that could prove her identity, which could only be
announced verbally.
“That sword you have─Zanto the Razor, is it not?”
“Pipe down,” the man muttered. In polar contrast with
Togame’s piercing voice, his murmur seemed to fade away.
“Yes, I am Ginkaku Uneri…and who are you? Miss Togame
from somewhere…and this sword is indeed Zanto the
Razor…but quit hooting and hollering.25 I just woke up. Your
voice goes straight through my skull.”
“…My apologies.”
Togame lowered her voice somewhat─and smiled. She
must have been relieved, having uncovered the man she
wanted, and by his side the sword.
The man─Uneri─was awake now, but remained seated
on the floor. Eyes heavy, barely even open, he
acknowledged the presence of Togame and, a step behind
her, Shichika.
He kept the katana at his hip. Even when he was asleep.
Shichika doubted it was the best way to protect the
sword. Did he keep it by his side, slung at his hip at all
times, afraid that someone might steal it at any moment? If
so, the man was pretty insecure. Then again, a stunt like
carrying the Leveler inside you was probably unique to
Komori Maniwa, and the other owners of the Twelve
Possessed had to be beating their brains to think up ways to
keep them safe…
“And? What brings a bigshot26 from the bakufu to the
middle of the desert? Wait, you called my name. Another
eviction notice… No, you want the Razor.”
“Yes, the Razor. How about giving it to me?” Togame
came right out and asked him.
Straight talk. Perhaps a little too straight, thought
Shichika, a step behind her. She had said they would
attempt diplomacy, but now that he thought about it, could
a highhanded woman like her actually negotiate? She had
been just as direct the month before, on Haphazard Island,
in offering Shichika a job (he wasn’t sure how she saw it, but
on its own, her “diplomacy” had all but failed back then)…
“By give, of course, I don’t mean give away. The bakufu
will find a way to make it worth your while. I can tell you one
thing, though. No good will come from being so possessive.
It’s just a sword.”
“The other day…”
Uneri spoke in the same sleepy voice, declining to
engage Togame.
“Some poser27 ninja came to give the same kind of
speech… Was that guy a friend of yours?”
“My friend? As if,” denied Togame.
The Maniwa had stabbed the Schemer in the back, and
in her position, who wouldn’t be dismissive? But if she was
already correcting him, she might also take issue with
“poser ninja”─that’s what Shichika thought, anyway, which
made him a pretty decent guy.
“Don’t compare me─or us─to that lowlife ninja. We have
come with a proper28 deal. It may only be a sword, but I am
well aware of its value. One of the Twelve Possessed forged
by legendary swordsmith Kiki Shikizaki… I know full well
that it is irreplaceable. But Uneri, I need you to cooperate,
for the sake of the bakufu, nay, the sake of the nation, and
do your part.”
“…No one who speaks on behalf ‘of the nation’ is up to
any good,” Uneri answered drowsily. “Even that poser ninja
was a little more convincing…although he spoke in such a
weird way I’m not sure I actually understood him…hwa.”
Uneri let out a big yawn.
His mood and tone made Togame purse her lips.
Not only highhanded, she was impatient…Shichika
would be amazed if this attempt at diplomacy was a
success, but he kept his mouth shut. No matter how ill-
disposed Togame was to diplomacy, he could not do much
better─no.
It was her job. Shichika, the katana, had no right29 to
speak.
In the confines of his heart, he found Togame adorable30
for her brazen willingness to tackle a situation she was unfit
to undertake─but that was classified.
“Don’t tell me you never plan to leave this castle, out
here in the middle of the desert. If there is anything you
desire, I have ways to help you─out in the open, and behind
the scenes.”
“You’ll saddle yourself with a ronin like me? How
thoughtful─but I’ll have you know, there’s a price on my
head.”
“I could clear that up for you. Your wish is my
command.”
 Fwaa.
Another massive yawn. He seemed unwilling to
entertain Togame’s offer. She was getting nowhere.
The sword’s poison─had it gotten the better of him?
Shichika had to wonder. Its effects might be less potent on
ninjas like Komori and Shirasagi, but Uneri was a
swordsman, and the venom might have found an ideal host.
“Listen, Uneri─”
“I appreciate that you’ve stopped shouting, but now
you’re so quiet I can barely hear you. Come a little closer?”
requested Uneri, bleary-eyed. “It’s disrespectful31 to
address a swordsman from the doorway. I don’t care how
important you are. That’s no way to ask someone a favor.”
“…”
Togame snarled her lips in displeasure, but she had to
admit he had a point, at least in that respect, and so
stepped through the doorway into the cramped room where
Uneri sat. Shichika was unsure whether to follow her, but
the room was crowded enough with just Uneri, and fitting
another person might have been impossible anyway. He
decided not to move, but to stay put where he was. Togame
stepped her right foot, then her left into the room─when
Shichika realized the tatami by the doorway was of a
different color than the mats around it. This must be where,
he thought. The mat that had been swapped out, in the
other room─
But then.
Ever so subtly, Uneri moved his right hand.
So subtly that it hadn’t really. The slightest twitch.
So that his right hand seemed to grip the handle of the
katana.
That instant.
Shing!
A sound.
 But ahead of the sound, a fraction of an instant
earlier─Shichika had reacted. Deciding not to move, to stay
where he was, he noticed the color of the tatami─and
instantly leapt before he looked. Pretty much by reflex.
Working every muscle of his body, he spun his waist for a
backspin spinning kick─
“Kyotoryu─Yuri!”32
Trouble is, from where he stood outside the doorway, he
could spin all he wanted─once or a hundred times─and the
blade of his foot would never reach Uneri. Lengthy as his
legs may be, the Yuri could hardly make them any longer.
What his foot could reach, however barely─what it
contacted midair, instead of Ginkaku Uneri─was Togame.
The move was imperfect, executed not from the proper
stance, but completely upright. Yet if his heel, gyring with all
his weight behind it, were to slam into Togame, whose frame
bore comparison to shoji paper, the explosive33 force could
end her life. He made sure not only his heel but his entire
sole made contact, so that he would be less kicking than
thrusting, or better, hooking─
It slammed into her chest.
With zero training in the martial arts, she was
unequipped to deal with this surprise attack, a frontal strike
from behind, and her body was shot backward in a grand
arc. Out of the room where Uneri sat and into the room with
Shichika, whose foot, in turn, spun away from Uneri. Unable
to kill his momentum, Shichika made another small turn in
place. Togame, caught off guard, planted her butt on the
tatami.
Then the sound.
Shing!
“You piece of─” yelled Togame, sitting up on her elbows.
Her voice did pierce your skull.
“Calm down, Togame.”
 “Who kicks you out of nowhere and says calm down?
You ass. When I felt myself being sucked back from behind, I
thought aliens34 were abducting me.”
“What an imagination, but…see?”
Figuring there was no time to explain, Shichika pointed
at the spot where her obi35 passed over her stomach. The
layers were prodigious, but there, the fabric had been
slashed. Cutting through at least half the countless layers of
kimono. The gash was clean─summoning the corpse of
Shirasagi Maniwa, who had been dumped in two parts
outside the castle.
A close shave. Since no person can move faster than his
sheer reflexes allow, it was the closest shave possible…or
the Razor’s lightest cut.
“Wha…wha…” Togame had lost her words. And any
color in her face. “I-If I didn’t wear so many layers, my body
would be…”
“Um, if you were wearing fewer layers, none would have
been sliced, more like.”
She was a little confused.
But the Schemer had seen her share of tight fixes and
quickly bounced back from it. Though yet to stand from
where she planted her behind, she faced Uneri─through the
doorway.
“Hey you!” she raised her voice. “What─was that?!”
“Wow. I guess that was that…” For someone who had
swung his sword at an agent of the bakufu, Uneri was oddly
calm, and oddly sleepy. “In all the time I’ve held the Razor,
none have dodged my Zerosen but you…or was it both of
you? Or was it you?” he asked impudently.
Glaring at Shichika.
Although the man’s eyes looked tired─it was a fierce
glare.
“You think you’re surprised?” Shichika asked in turn.
“I’ve heard iainuki was extreme, but I had no idea it was so
fast.”
Then he realized.
The sound he heard when Uneri clasped the handle of
the sword─shing!─was the tsuba contacting the sheath. He
was so blisteringly fast that you heard the note almost at
the same time that he touched the handle.
No sooner had he drawn the sword than it was in its
scabbard.
The flash of a katana in iainuki is customarily called
issen.36 But in the hands of Uneri, the Razor caught no light.
Nothing to see, nothing to hear─all you saw was your own
body, sliced in half, and all you heard was the click of the
tsuba.
Which is why he called it Zerosen─no flash.
This was iainuki to the extreme, an Uneri family
tradition.
“Sounds like your scare and my scare cancel out.”
Somehow both on and off the mark─not that it matters
which─Uneri softly drew his fingers from the handle of the
sword.
But this hardly put them at ease.
Shichika corrected his rash impression of the man. He
was anything but insecure; for someone so phenomenally
skilled in iainuki, keeping the katana at his hip was simply
the most efficient way of safeguarding the Razor.
“Uneri─do you realize what you’ve done?!”
“I told you, young lady, stop shouting… Who’s that hunk
of meat, your older brother? Think you’re gonna
strongarm37 me into a deal? In that case, let’s jump straight
to the point. You’re quite persuasive…but I’m just a simple
swordsman, who settles my deals with the sword.”
“My older brother?! Do I look like his little sister to you?
How am I a ‘little sister’?”
Her reaction, clouded by ire, was somewhat odd.
Perhaps her confusion had yet to abate.
 “My forefather turned on his lord and even the Old
Shogun, refusing to relinquish this sword. If I say ‘oops,
sorry, by all means’ and hand it over now, my entire lineage
will be laughing in their graves. They’ll laugh so hard I’ll
never sleep again.”
“You’re scared of letting go of that katana?” Judging that
their diplomacy was in shambles, Shichika interrupted the
bickering at last. “This move of yours, the Zerosen─without
Shikizaki’s Razor, you can’t whip it out as fast, right? You’re
scared of losing that?”
“And if I’m scared─what of it?”
“Just saying. That’s the trouble with being a swordsman
who uses a sword.”
After a pause, Uneri chuckled. “What do you know about
being a swordsman? Far as I can see, you carry no blade.”
“I am a swordsman. Make no mistake.”
“If you were, you would know better. A swordsman has
no use for words. He acts. If you want the sword, shut up
and try to take it─and I’ll shut up and fight.”
“That stubborn, huh?”
“It’s a matter of dignity,” Uneri said without a shred of
doubt. “Sure, I am scared. I don’t have to have the Razor to
perform the Zerosen, but having tasted its speed and
power, I could never go back. What scares me isn’t
someone trying to take it, but my own speed. You must have
felt pretty good about yourself just now saving the young
lady’s life. But that was nothing. At peak speed, the Zerosen
moves faster than light.”
Try me, Uneri beckoned unto Shichika with his fingers.
“Togame─”
But Shichika turned down the invitation. Better put, he
completely ignored Uneri. Instead, he turned and addressed
Togame, who was still sitting on the floor.
“There’s a few things I want to check. You good?”
“Pardon me?”
 Togame seemed taken aback by Shichika’s obtuse
remark, but he remained unfazed.
“Hey.” Now he was speaking to Uneri. “We’re gonna
have a strategy meeting.38 Take a nap or something. We’ll
come right back.”
“…”
“Get ready to show off─I want to see the Zerosen, at
peak speed.”
“…Shut the fusuma behind you.”
Unlike Togame, Uneri didn’t seem to think it
rude─though he might have become warier of Shichika. He
spoke again a few moments later in a voice that was
impenetrable.
“I’m sensitive. If light gets in, I won’t be able to sleep.”
“Is that so. Gotcha. Later.”
Shichika shut the fusuma, taking an extra couple of
seconds thanks to the poor fit. If it was Togame’s job to
open the fusuma, how symbolic, thought Shichika
uncharacteristically, for it to be his job to close it.
“Shichika, what do you think you’re doing─”
“Wait, Togame, I’m not taking back39 what I said, but the
speed of this guy’s iainuki is no joke─I’ll be ready to go back
in, after a quick break.”
Shichika offered his hand to Togame. She looked
incredibly uneasy, but after a time, she took it. While he had
taken pains to go as easy on her as possible, once the blade
of his foot had whammed her in the breadbox, she was not
about to stand back up. She was shoji paper. If she hadn’t
worn so many layers─she was right in a sense─the Yuri
might have shattered her sternum.
“Oh….one more thing.” The voice came from beyond
the fusuma. It sounded tired─Shichika had not been serious
in recommending a nap, but evidently Uneri was perpetually
about to sleep. “The white-haired young lady told me her
name─but you, young man, what’s yours?”
 “…”
Shichika looked to Togame. She nodded softly.
Since she was acting as an agent of the bakufu, Shichika
wasn’t sure if his school’s involvement could be made public
and had held off on announcing himself to Uneri, but she
seemed to have no problem with it.
Then there was no reason to hesitate.
Shichika was proud of who he was.40
A pride handed down from his father.
“Seventh Master of the Kyotoryu─Shichika Yashurri.”
…
It wasn’t on purpose.41

1 抜 け 忍 NUKENIN to abandon a ninja group (or the expectations of ninja

identity) 2 平城 HIRAJIRO a castle built on flat ground 3 天守閣 TENSHUKAKU

tall fortification usually surrounded by castle walls 4 茶 目 っ 気 CHAMEKKE
being playful
5 外した HAZUSHITA missed
6 無感情 MUKANJŌ void of feeling
7 鎖かたびら KUSARI KATABIRA “shroud of chain”
8 敵 前 逃 亡 TEKIZEN TŌBŌ flee under fire 9 た た ら を 踏 む TATARA WO FUMU

stumbling forward 10 白髪 SHIRAGA alternative reading of 白髪 HAKUHATSU

white hair 11 強がり TSUYOGARI bluster
12 みすぼらしい MISUBORASHII shabby
13 障子 SHŌJI paper door
14 交渉 KŌSHŌ negotiations
15 大 義 名 分 TAIGI MEIBUN defensible reason 16 お 役 所 的 OYAKUSHO TEKI

government office-y 17 摂取 SESSHU imbibe

18 咎 め TOGAME blame Togame cannot be Togamed 19 人 情 NINJŌ human
feelings
20 居室 KYOSHITSU living room
21 鍔 TSUBA the elliptical and often ornate handguard of a katana 22 保 護 色

HOGOSHOKU protective coloring 23 直感 CHOKKAN “direct sense”

24 影 KAGE shadows
25 ぴーちくぱーちく PIICHIKU PAACHIKU onomatopoeia for ceaseless yammering
26 お偉いさん OERAISAN very important person 27 偽物 NISE MONO fake
28 正当 SEITŌ legitimate
29 領分ではない RYŌBUN DEWA NAI not his domain 30 萌え MOE geek slang for

kindly affection and attachment 31 失礼 SHITSUREI “breach of manners”

32 百合 YURI lily
33 炸裂 SAKURETSU ripping
34 宇宙人 UCHŪJIN “space people”
35 帯 OBI wide sash tied around the waist of a kimono 36 一閃 ISSEN one flash
37 腕っぷし UDEPPUSHI brawn
38 作戦会議 SAKUSEN KAIGI time-out for brainstorming 39 撤回 TEKKAI undo
40 身分 MIBUN status/station
41 噛んじゃった KANJATTA “ended up biting (one’s tongue)” i.e. stumbling over a
line
 ■ ■

No one who speaks on behalf “of the nation” is up to any

good─or so claimed Ginkaku Uneri, but toward what end
remains to be seen. From a man like him, perhaps a
comment like this was to be expected, no more than a
captious1 remark meant to perturb the Schemer. What was
certain, however, was that Togame, on the receiving end of
this opinion, was no true servant of the nation.
They were not burglars─
But neither were they champions of justice.
Their orders may have come down from on high, but
they weren’t rounding up the Twelve Possessed out of
necessity─but in that case, why had Togame the Schemer
resigned herself to such a journey?
To put it simply, she sought revenge.
One might say she had a vested interest.2
Her father was the Mastermind of the Rebellion─Takahito
Hida, Kaoyaku of Oshu.
If the Great Sword Hunt was among the most ignoble
laws in Japanese history─then Takahito Hida was surely
among the most ignoble of men. But history is no more than
a record written by the victors, a journal tweaked to cast
them in a favorable light.
Togame had her own opinions, however.
She acknowledged that her father was a failure.
How else could you describe defeat in battle?
Nevertheless─ignoble was not the way she saw him.
The slaughter of every member of her family made a
lone wolf3 of Togame─destroyed her lineage, with not an
intimate relation left alive─and so she could never abandon
the memory.
 She proceeded to abandon everything else.
Her name.
Her history.
Her sympathies.
Her loyalties.
Her word.
Her heart.
Then─she infiltrated the bakufu. All to carry out the
unrealized ambition, the cherished dream of Takahito
Hida─but she still had a long, long way to go. Her
investment of time and energy had won her a high rank,
Grand Commander of Arms of the Yanari Shogunate Military
Directorate, Owari Bakufu─but Grand Commander wasn’t
good enough. For the sake of her father, for the sake of
revenge, she had no choice but to rise higher, to a much
higher rank.
At bare minimum, a position where she could speak
directly to the shogun.
Within earshot.
Close enough, should she desire, she could have his
neck─a rank that high.
Otherwise─she had no hope of changing the history
books of tomorrow.
The defeated cannot tell their story.
And dead men4 tell no tales.
Come what may, Togame must survive─and be
victorious.
For her, when all was said and done, collecting the
Twelve Possessed of Kiki Shikizaki was no more than a
means to an end─it was not for the bakufu or the shogun,
and certainly not for the nation.
Not a matter of necessity or circumstance, it was strictly
personal.
In which case, what of her companion, Shichika Yasuri?
What gave him a reason to fight?
 Having lived as long as he could remember on
Haphazard Island, raised out of contact with the world, the
concept of nation could not have been more foreign5 to him.
The Master of the Kyotoryu, who forsook swords, would
never seek out the Twelve Possessed simply because they
were his opposite. His curiosity did not amount to
motivation. His lack of motivation, and lack of affection for
swords in general, may have been what drove Togame to
enlist the Kyotoryu─but neither was a factor for Shichika.
Why, then?
The answer was characteristically plain and simple.
He was fighting for Togame.
A woman, and until recently, a stranger.
He had been stuck on Haphazard Island, forever refining
his skill, not with purpose or significance, nor by necessity
or circumstance. Now, at the age of twenty-four, he finally
had a reason to exist.
Swords do not choose who to kill.
Yet─a sword will choose its owner.
Shichika had chosen her.
Komori Maniwa, the first partner Togame had enlisted on
her quest to round up all the swords, had given Shichika the
dirty details as to why she was hunting down the Twelve
Possessed─her acts of valor, her distinguished exploits, were
all performed not out of loyalty, but a deep thirst for
vengeance. That could never move Shichika. The affairs of
an institution with no bearing on an island monkey like
himself were dismissible. He did not care to consider or cope
with any delicate balance of interests. But there was one
thing he could not ignore: the name of Togame’s father,
Takahito Hida─Mastermind of the Rebellion.
Takahito Hida.
The name of the man whom Shichika’s father─Hero of
the Rebellion, Mutsue Yasuri, Sixth Master of the
Kyotoryu─had killed with his own hands, the blade of his
school─indeed, the very man whose death had earned
Mutsue his title.
Shichika’s father had killed Togame’s father.
Before her eyes.
Which was when her hair turned white.
…Shichika did not go so far as to see it as a way to
make amends6 for the misdeeds of his father─in fact, he
was unsure whether killing enemies in battle was truly
criminal. Swords don’t pick who to kill. He was more than
simply unsure, however─he hated himself for never having
given it a thought, felt a terrible self-loathing for having
swallowed whole the notion that his father was a hero. More
than anything else─this woman had seen her own father
murdered and devoted herself to avenging him, yet felt
compelled to call upon the Kyotoryu for help, as the only
means─and Shichika had been unable to imagine how she
must have felt.
That was all there was to it.
The reason he was fighting.
For Togame.

■ ■

“Stop looking so bent out of shape, Togame.”

“I’m so not bent out of shape!”
“‘So not’?”
“Oh, uh… I’m not so bent out of shape!”
Slight difference.
The gusto behind her swift correction made her initial
phrasing even cuter.
But this was no time to be feeling disarmed.
To recap─they had called for a break and left Uneri’s
den. Another room in Gekoku Castle would have served as
far as Shichika knew, but Togame insisted that strategy
meeting or not, they had to go the whole length, whereupon
the pair exited the castle.
Out into Inaba Desert.
Night had fallen, but the starry sky was too spectacular
to describe it as pitch dark.
Sitting on the sand, they faced each other─even in a
setting such as this, it was crucial that they maintain their
evening imprinting7 routine, and Togame’s white hair
enwrapped Shichika’s torso. A tower rising behind them in
the desert, a woman dressed in elegance, and a beefy man
her white hair enshrouded made for quite the avant-garde8
tableau.
Furthermore, Togame’s kimono was coming undone.
Partly the mark of Uneri’s Zerosen─but she favored a casual
styling to begin with, and this degree of sartorial distress
seemed to fall within the scope of fashion for her.
“You sure sound childish sometimes… How old are you
anyway?” asked Shichika. “You’re older than me, right?”
“That’s none of your concern. Who are you to be making
my age an issue? In any case, I am not bent out of shape.”
“Seems like you have a lot on your mind.”
“Even if I did, I wouldn’t share. Telling you would be like
the pearls thing.”
“…Aren’t you abbreviating that a little too much?”
Like casting pearls.
No matter how upset she was, she could have kept in
another word at least.
“Well, Shichika, what was it you wanted to check?
Uneri’s iainuki far exceeded our expectations…but I saw no
reason to put the battle on hold.”
“No, I didn’t mean to put it on hold─or if I did, it was
only to check if he’d be fine with it beforehand.”
“…Fine with it?”
“To see if he would follow us out. But he didn’t.”
 “That’s true…”
“The moment you stepped over the threshold and
entered that room, he drew his sword on you. Flipping that
around, as long as we don’t go into the room, he won’t
come after us.”
This, Shichika said, was the first thing he wanted to
check.
“No…I see your point. But why does that matter?”
“One difference between normal swordplay and
iainuki…well, since I don’t use a normal sword, I don’t mean
from the sword-user’s point of view, but his opponent’s…”
Since arriving on the mainland, Shichika had been
carted to a number of schools of swordplay exemplified by
the Hisho Dojo. The first reason for these visits was to gain a
firmer grasp of what the Kyotoryu could do, the better to
plan out their campaign for tracking down the Twelve
Possessed. The second reason was to give Shichika more
experience in battle, even if these exercises were not
exactly live. They never left the realm of training─the
swordsmen Shichika confronted didn’t use real blades, only
wooden replicas.
 As a result, the quickdraw intrinsic to iainuki was absent
from those practice sessions. Until today, Shichika’s only
knowledge had come secondhand, from his father, but
having witnessed it in action, he now understood a thing or
two about iainuki.
“When they come at me like that…real, wooden, doesn’t
matter─it bugs me out.”9
“Huh? Obviously. Who doesn’t when there’s a weapon in
your face?”
“That’s not what I’m getting at…”
Shichika searched for the right words. It was hard to
verbalize his impressions.
“A sword is more than just a weapon. It’s also a pretty
effective piece of armor.10 I don’t mean just parrying, but
you know, if I did this…”
Shichika thrust out an arm, still wrapped in the tendrils
of Togame’s white hair. She reacted with an ambiguous
grunt.
“In my case, it’s a hand─but when I do this, it’s hard to
approach me, and hard to strike at me.”
“Only a stick─yet a wall.”
“Hey, that’s a good way to put it. Simple.”
Shichika smiled, glad to see that he was making sense.
Of course, his choice of words being awkward at best, his
point had come across mostly thanks to Togame’s acuity.
Put your sword between you and your opponent.
The teaching has survived into present-day kendo.11
The wall that your opponent makes is quite challenging to
penetrate, as anyone who tries will quickly realize. There are
several ways around this, and unless you are the Kyotoryu,
you have a sword and your own wall at your disposal,
whereby strategy comes into play.
“That Kiku move I’ve shown you is a great example. In
the Kyotoryu, as a general rule, you treat the katana as part
of the body and attack it─you turn their unity12 against
them and break down the wall first─except in our case,
you’ve forbidden it.”
Mutodori, or fighting without any katana, sounded well
and good, but any blade subjected to a Kyotoryu move
usually sundered. Since they were on a mission to gather
the weapons, the aforementioned general rule was out of
play. “Protect the swords”─that was Togame’s strict
directive. In practice, the shackle mooted the larger part of
Kyotoryu’s techniques. But given the mission objective,
Shichika had no choice.
“Still, even if I’m not going to break down the wall made
by the sword, I at least need to bring down that wall─but
with iainuki, there’s no wall in the first place.”
“Ah…I see,” Togame said. “If the sword must be drawn,
then it is in its sheath for the stance13…although ‘stance’
may not be the best word when Uneri merely sits cross-
legged on the floor…then again, I’ve heard iainuki called za-
ai,14 so I guess it works.”
“Yeah, but how’s he move that fast? If that wasn’t peak
speed, I can’t imagine what would be. Not that I believe
he’d be faster than light.”
“I wonder. It might not be a bluff. If we can’t see it, he
might already be faster than light.”
“The Zerosen.”
Shichika cast a sidelong glance at Gekoku Castle. Can’t
see it─just like the castle. They hadn’t seen it until the last
moment, and had yet to see the blade─only Uneri.
“So because iainuki has no wall, it’s easier to attack
him?”
“Wrong, Togame─no wall means it’s harder. If you can
see it, you can counter it─and if you can’t see it, you can
avoid it. But you can’t counter or avoid something that isn’t
there.”
“…”
 “Keeping your katana in its scabbard is like not showing
your hand─that’s what Dad always said. I mean, the fact of
the matter is, you never know when the first strike will
come. He has it locked down, so you need to be cautious.
Just when you think you have the upper hand, you’ll lose it.
The moment you come within this guy’s range, he draws,
just like he did with you─so simple, nothing to it. I need to
be cautious, while he only needs to wait. Ceding the first
move and settling for a counterstrike15─but at the same
time no style is more aggressive.”
“So he intentionally leaves himself open─inviting you to
attack.”
“Right. But all that aside, any quickdraw is a handful.
Though I knew that from the beginning─”
“A handful? Why? A sword is still a sword.”
“Yeah…um…”
Togame the Schemer.
The head of a big-picture organization that directed
military engagements with all manner of ingenuity and
intrigue─lacked any proficiency, as bears repeating, in the
martial arts.
She could not fight if her life depended on it.
When she visited Haphazard Island, she did wear a
katana under the pretext of challenging the Kyotoryu to a
duel, but that weapon was already on its way back to Owari.
As a schemer, this was a point of pride─or perhaps more like
a point of caution. The “sword” had killed her father and
wiped out her entire family. She would get the job done
without laying a finger of her own upon a sword of any
kind─and thus.
She had a tenuous understanding of what swordplay
actually involved.
Ultimately, her job was to oversee the big picture.
Shichika, himself, had virtually no combat experience
and was not in a position to enlighten her. The dicey16
conversation was holding together only thanks to the
Schemer’s sagacity.
“It has to do with the ‘wall’ I mentioned─say someone
swings their sword at you.” Shichika chopped his hand
before her eyes. “How would you dodge it?”
“I would fail to, of that I am certain.”
“Do you need to sound so proud about it?”
“We’re not blocking it? Okay, then I guess to the right…”
“The correct answer would be: ahead and to the right.
I’m not sure if this is just the Kyotoryu, or a general rule, but
you ‘dodge forward’ against an attack that forms a vertical
arc.”
“I can see why it would be alarming for someone to rush
up at you in a lethal contest. Especially if you are supposed
to be doing the attacking.”
“Same principle when they stab, but…”
Thrusting a spear hand at Togame and stopping just
before her throat, Shichika followed up with a wide
horizontal swipe─to trace the path17 you could expect from
iainuki.
“This way, you can’t dodge forward. Or to the right.”
“If I tried, the sword would catch me.”
“If you can’t block it, you have to back away. Like you
did,” he told Togame. To be precise, she hadn’t backed up so
much as been yanked back─but she knew this was the
wrong time to resent it or split hairs.
“Then what,” she egged him on. “Is that all?”
“When you can block, you block─but not against Zanto
the Razor. If I caught it the wrong way, he’d slice all the way
through me, like he did those chains on the Maniwac. In the
Kyotoryu, just like we have the Kiku for when somebody
takes a stab at you, a move called the Sakura counters
sideway swipes, iainuki or not─but it would definitely snap
the Razor.”
“Which defeats the purpose.”18
 “Right, defeats the purpose. But this Zerosen, it’s not
like I can see it coming. Evading it is the best I can hope for.
I can’t see the path it makes and only hear it clicking back
into the scabbard. The beginning and the ending come at
basically the same time. I’m sorry, but on the spot, there’s
no blocking such a move.”
“So you’re toast.19 Despite all your bragging.”
You’ve only had a taste of what the Kyotoryu is made
of─well, that certainly was bragging. The Sakura might work
against iainuki, but that meant nothing if he couldn’t use it.
In which case, he just sounded like a sore loser.
“Hey, Togame. Don’t jump to conclusions. I’m not saying
I can’t handle this─but he…Ginkaku Uneri, seems to know
just iainuki and nothing else, doesn’t he? That’s unbalanced
for a swordsman, but you could also say he has absolute
confidence in his specialty. Um, that last Maniwac─what was
his name again?”
“Shirasagi Maniwa.”
“Right. Shirasagi.”
The corpse of Shirasagi. Two clean halves. Before they
entered Gekoku Castle, Shichika buried his body in the sand,
and it was gone without a trace. Togame had said there was
no need to give a ninja such a funeral,20 but Shichika had
persisted. The man deserved the courtesy as much as
anybody.
“Why do you think he lost to Uneri?”
“Why? A weird thing to ask,” Togame said. “We both
know why. He fell prey to the Zerosen. That wound permits
no other reading.”
“Sure. But how could Shirasagi lose to the Zerosen so
easily? Don’t you think that’s strange? According to what
Komori told me, dirty deeds are how a ninja makes a
living─what would make a ninja challenge Uneri to a proper
fight?”
“…”
 Togame nodded. He had a point.
“It is─strange. The body didn’t look so old. Uneri and
Shirasagi must have fought fairly recently─yet Uneri, for his
part, showed no signs of injury… A Maniwa Boss, cut down
without even dealing a parting shot?”
“Komori liked to entertain,21 but I gather that’s rare for a
ninja.”
“Yes…but what of it? Do you have some kind of an
idea?”
“Nothing as solid as an idea─but I was thinking, maybe
Shirasagi had no choice but to fight fair and square.”
“No choice…”
“I knew something weird was going on. Remember that
bloodstained mat we saw before we got to Uneri’s room? It
was a different color from the tatami around it, and worn
differently too. We thought it must have been a mat from
somewhere else.”
“True, but what’s so weird about that? You were right.
We found Uneri in a room not far from there.”
“It might not be as big as some of the ones I’ve seen on
our journey, but at the end of the day, Gekoku Castle is still
a castle─and this guy has the whole thing to himself. He has
plenty of rooms, to use however he likes. If one gets bloody,
he can just switch. I don’t see why he would bother
switching out a mat.”
“…I can see why you would think that─it stands to
reason. But everyone is different, and people pick
favorites… What if Uneri simply likes that room the best?”
“That’s exactly what I mean,” Shichika said. “But why
does he like it?”
“…”
It certainly wasn’t luxuriant22 or
comfortable23─cramped, and out of the way, it was a
manifestly inconvenient living room. So why had Uneri
chosen it as his den?
 “Probably because it’s cramped and out of the way.”
“Are you saying that he likes it that way?”
“I bet he does, for repelling his enemies. It makes sense,
if you look at how it’s built. To enter, you have to use the
fusuma from the next room since it’s not connected to any
other space. No windows either─if you replaced the fusuma
with bars, you could use it as a jail cell. And so─to get to
Uneri, you have to enter through the fusuma, and step in
through that doorway, taking him head-on.”
“Head-on─ah, I see. Only from the front.”
“Exactly. In iainuki, the sword sweeps─it works great in
front of you, but not so great behind you. Well, even if
you’re swinging up or thrusting, it’d be the same. But in a
room that small, people can’t get behind you. The sweeping
arc gets in their way whether they’re trying to flank you on
your left or your right.”
“Of course.”
No choice but to fight fair and square.
Not even a Maniwa Boss.
No room─for dirty deeds.
“So you’re saying that he didn’t chase us when we
left─because his strategy depends on being in that tiny
room. Of course─why would he let us go otherwise, after we
already crossed swords.”
“In battle, you want to be on favorable terrain, right?
Like when I fought Komori, on Haphazard Island, we were in
my domain. But in that room─Uneri has the edge, no doubt
about it.”
Every inch of the room fell within the range of the
Zerosen.
And its speed defied imagination.
“In which case─we would be without any measures after
all. Being so circumspect24 is unlike you.”
“I told you, don’t jump to conclusions. I’m thinking as
hard as I can.”
 And he was.
Shichika Yasuri was thinking.
But not because his natural tendency to call everything
a pain had been suppressed─he may not have been saying
so out loud, but in his heart, he chanted the words over and
over. What a pain─even carrying on with Togame like this.
He would rather run back into Gekoku Castle and get to it
with Uneri.
But Shichika controlled himself.
For Togame’s sake─he could not lose.
As her katana, he could not allow defeat.
By any means necessary─they would take possession of
the Razor.
Using all that he had learned from his father, and from
his sister, and from Togame thus far on their
journey─Shichika was doing his best to strategize.
He was not a thinker─but he was thinking.
“So, my first idea is to drag him out of the room.”
“Makes sense,” Togame agreed. “Just getting him into
the next room would expand your options─you would enjoy
considerably greater freedom of movement than in that
cramped space where neither side can maneuver. But good
luck with that. The man just sat there absolutely still and
watched us go, as if roots were holding him in place. Uneri
will never leave that room. Unless, that is, you have a way
of luring him out.”
“Well, he’s holed up in his fort─weird as that is, when
he’s already inside a castle. But if we turned this into a
siege,25 he’d have no choice but to come out of that room
sometime.”
“Don’t start thinking about lighting the castle on fire. It
could cost us the Razor. Remember our foremost objective.”
“Hmm. We don’t have any missiles, and even if we did,
they must be no match for the Zerosen. If that’s out, I guess
we have no other choice.”
 “Than?”
In other words, there was a way.
Togame could not contain herself.
“Come on, spit it out.”
“You sure?”
“What’s the holdup.”
“Okay. So the first part is you go in the room.”
“Right. I go into the room.”
“And then you let the Zerosen cut you in half.”
“Naturally. The Zerosen cuts me in half. Good thinking,
Shichika. What next?”
“If Uneri doesn’t like bloodstains on his floor, there’s no
way he likes dead bodies. He’ll carry it outside, just like he
did with Shirasagi Maniwa. He’ll leave not just that room,
but also the castle itself. He’ll have nowhere to run, and
nowhere to hide, in the desert.”
“Then? Then?”
“That’s when I get him.”
“Cheerio!”
Contending with less of a height difference than if they
were standing, Togame’s sandal caught Shichika right in the
chin. The force, however scanty, was enough to make him
lose his balance─and tug at the white hair wrapped around
his body, hurting Togame herself. To use a metaphor
imperfect for the era, she felt like the kind of person who
steps on her own shoelaces and takes a digger.
“But I’ll have been cut in half, won’t I!” she hollered as if
they were a comedy act.
Way to be, Togame.
“I told you: ‘Protect the swords’ and ‘Protect me’! What
kind of a bodyguard uses his employer as a decoy?”
“Yeah, so I guess we can’t use that one.”
“I guess not! What a plan to even consider!”
“So I give up on luring him out of the room, but─I still
have this other idea.”
“…”
 Togame’s glare warned that this plan better not involve
her being sliced in half, but as if to wave away her
apprehensive gaze, Shichika assured, “If fighting him fair
and square is my only choice─I’ll fight him fair and square.”
His voice was dead serious.
Nevertheless.
“…Shichika, if that’s the whole plan,26 I’m going to get
angry.”
“Uh, haven’t you been angry all this time?”
“Don’t mock me! If we honestly have no choice but to
fight him fair and square, why back out like we─”
“For one thing, I wanted to check with you about my
reasoning. Not counting the time with Komori, where it just
sort of happened, this is my first real battle ever. But─it
won’t be my last. For this to contribute to my next fight, I
need to be learning as I fight─because a win today is not
enough to guarantee a win tomorrow. If I only win out of
sheer luck, like with Komori, it’s no good.”
“Urk…” Togame wasn’t expecting her biting rhetorical
question to provoke a sincere explanation and missed a
beat. “You said that was the first thing. Aside from wanting
to check whether Uneri would follow us, is there another
reason why we took this time out?”
“The second one is more concrete. You were in the
wrong position. On Haphazard Island, Komori abducted you
while I was focused on fighting him, right? I didn’t want a
repeat27 of that─and decided to regroup.”
“Oh.”
Yanked back by the Yuri, Togame had landed on her butt
in the adjacent room. Not that she’d been scared stiff, but
reeling from the impact, she couldn’t even stand up on her
own─
“‘Protect the swords’─and ‘Protect Togame,’ right?”
“…If you know that, don’t dare come up with a plan
where I get cut in half.”
 The words themselves were snide, but it was not by
chance that her voice betrayed embarrassment. Maybe
Shichika noticed, and maybe he didn’t, but it had no effect
on his own tone.
“That’s why you need to stay behind me,” he said. “Go
behind me this time, like I did last time. We switch positions,
like a changing of the guard. That way, I can protect
you─and you can be my backup28 plan.”
“Backup?”
“Just in case. If I go at him, fair and square, and that
doesn’t settle things─having you behind me is sure to come
in handy. It might even bring down the domain he’s created
for himself─”
“I think you already know, but I have to remind you…
Trusting your back to my martial prowess may not be wise,”
a dubious Togame counseled.
But Shichika laughed this off.
“I’m not sure I can explain this well…but I want you
there. If it was just about keeping you safe, you could wait
outside the castle while I went in, alone, to fight Uneri. But
instead, I’m asking you to brave the danger because I need
you there.”
“…”
“I guess you could say strength comes from having
something to protect.”

■ ■

Apart from the geographic considerations, Togame the

Schemer had charged Shichika with capturing Zanto the
Razor out of aptitude, as she had tasked Komori Maniwa
with Zetto the Leveler, and Hakuhei Sabi with Hakuto the
Whisper. Up against the Kyotoryu, a sword with an edge like
no other was no different from a rusty razor─but even from
a different angle, you could still say Togame had been right.
Ginkaku Uneri was the natural choice for Shichika Yasuri to
compete against in his first real battle.
Reason being.
Despite having owned one of the Possessed for quite
some time and being a swordsman─Ginkaku Uneri had a
strangely high tolerance for the katana’s poison.
The venom of Kiki Shikizaki’s blades.
A merciless venom that drove swordsmen mad.
That the Great Sword Hunt was the superlative
expression of this insanity is no longer a subject of
debate─and further to the point, Hakuhei Sabi, extolled as
the greatest swordsman in Japan during his day, fell victim
to the venom and betrayed Togame and thereby the Owari
Bakufu. And as we saw in Book One of this saga, even
Komori Maniwa─a ninja, not a swordsman─had not been
totally immune to the Leveler’s toxicity.
But Ginkaku Uneri was different.
To be sure, the venom was gnawing at his body, potent
as could be─but in terms of personality, there was no
perceptible difference between who he was before inheriting
the Razor from his father, and who he became thereafter.
Mere possession of a Shikizaki blade will drive you to
murder─but since Uneri felt the same drive before the Razor
fell into his hands, and was already killing like it was his job,
the sword could not be held accountable. No change
transpired when he became the owner─which, for a
swordsman of his caliber, was inconceivable. The venom of
the Twelve Possessed was that intense.
After all─these were the swords that reigned over the
warring states.
In sooth, ten generations back, in the Age of Warring
States, the sword’s poison had overmastered Uneri’s
forebear29 Kinkaku Uneri, permeating every nook and
cranny of his body─how else could he have been so
insubordinate, in his refusal to hand over the sword, as to
make an enemy of the daimyo of Tottori and the Old
Shogun, unifier of the nation? Even Ginkaku Uneri, at a
remove of so many generations, suspected the account of
the ten thousand slain was hogwash,30 but the madness had
not stopped with Kinkaku: for henceforth, every son of the
Uneri who came into possession of the Razor, all the way
down to Ginkaku’s own father, was incontrovertibly
deranged.
Crazed from the venom of the Razor.
There was no way around it─the Zerosen of the iainuki
style passed down through the Uneri family matched the
Razor so perfectly that the katana seemed custom-made to
that end.
Swords don’t choose who to kill.
But─a sword will choose its owner.
And the Razor had chosen the Uneri.
As the lineage deemed fit for its insanity.
“…”
Notwithstanding.
Ginkaku Uneri himself, the current master, neither saw
himself as crazy or not crazy─in other words, whomever the
venom had possessed had no capacity for gauging the
extent of its possession.
Yet it was from a place altogether separate from
madness that Uneri safeguarded the Razor.
Ironically, it was just as Shichika asserted to Togame
outside the castle─strength comes from having something
to protect. Uneri derived his strength from protecting Zanto
the Razor─and Gekoku Castle.
Five years ago─
Inaba Desert, hitherto a tourist destination that aided
the local economy, suddenly turned against the people of
Tottori.
 At incredible speed, it grew before their
eyes─swallowing the fiefdom whole.
Homes. Fields. Mountains. Rivers.
Life as they knew it disappeared.
Buried by the desert─without a trace.
But for one structure, Gekoku Castle, originally built
upon the sand─since its occupants had vanished, it may as
well have vanished too.
Indeed.
Down to the last living soul─they had fled the desert.
Abandoning Tottori.
For Hoki, Mimasaka, Harima, Tajima─anywhere but here.
Heading for the hills. Like bats out of hell, into thin air.
They all left Inaba behind. However much a pariah,31 Uneri
had not been without close friends in the town─but they
were no exception to the exodus.
And so.
When the spread of Inaba Desert began to falter─all that
remained of Inaba were Gekoku Castle and Ginkaku Uneri,
on his own.
That is to say, he remained not by choice, but because
he had no choice. Or by his own estimation, he felt that he
had missed his final chance to leave.
If only he were not the last─had he been, for example,
the second to last, he would have been uncertain, and
would have had his reservations, and may have racked his
brains, but likely would have absconded in the end.
But as the last man standing, he had no choice.
Even reservations were not his to have.
…During the Great Sword Hunt, Kinkaku Uneri had
turned against Tottori, nay, the entire nation, to guard the
Razor─holding his ground in Inaba. The city claimed a soft
place in his heart─that is, if you believed the legends, but
his descendent, Ginkaku, who for reasons beyond his control
had been forced to dwell indefinitely in Gekoku Castle,
understood that the emotions of his ancestor had not been
so warm and fuzzy.
More like─a fixation.32
Or call it─a delusion.33
Perhaps, dignity.
For Kinkaku Uneri, protecting the Razor and remaining in
Inaba had been two sides of the same coin─and this
remained the case down through the family line, as each
new generation of Uneri met the venom of the sword.
But its current owner saw himself differently. He
understood where Kinkaku Uneri had been coming from, but
it was only by being fundamentally different from the rest of
the Uneri men. Ginkaku, being different, could see through
to the essence of the situation. And just as he had missed
his chance to leave Inaba─so too had he lost his chance to
lose his mind.
He alone was different.
And yet─they called for his protection all the same.
I need them… he thought, quite calmly. I need
something to protect.
Otherwise─I’ll lose the will to fight.
He was sure of it.
What did she call herself─the Schemer?
While he had forgotten the details, the white-haired
woman, Togame, against whom he had drawn his sword (not
as a warning, nor as a bluff, but intent on slicing her in two),
had some connection to the bakufu. He had not attacked
her thinking she was lying, but rather─presuming what she
said to be true.
In this regard, I am just like my ancestors.
Different he may be.
But what they had protected─he protected.
Another Sword Hunt?
Apparently.
 For quite some time, Uneri had been living in Gekoku
Castle as the only resident of Inaba, but the visit from that
“poser ninja” Shirasagi Maniwa was not his first─comers
were in no short supply, and ran the gamut from common
thieves to respectable merchants─
And down the gamut, to the last man, he had drubbed
them out.
Most of his killings since hunkering down at Gekoku
Castle had been emissaries from neighboring territories,
dispatched to advise him to vacate his stronghold, but Uneri
saw no issue: he was protecting what he needed to protect.
But it had been so long.
So long─since anyone had sought the Mutant Blade. But
neither ninja nor agent of the bakufu─would make it more
than three steps into his space.
Confined to his den, with his back to the wall, Uneri was
able to execute his iainuki to its maximum offensive and
defensive potential─holed up in his fort, indeed. No matter
the size of the intruding party, no more than two people
could step through the doorway at a time─
Felling ten thousand.
Perhaps here, Uneri mused, in this particular domain, it
was a possibility.
However.
The trouble was─that lurch34 had noticed something
notable about his domain. When he used his spinning kick to
hook the unassuming Schemer through the doorway─had he
realized?
I thought I saw him looking at the new tatami─or was it
a coincidence?
Nevertheless, given the way he paused their dealings,
and left the floor─and perhaps even the castle─that inkling
had no doubt by now become a certainty. Lurch had seemed
carefree─but could not possibly have been so dumb35 as to
find nothing suspicious about Uneri declining to chase them.
Unable to. And even if it had been a coincidence, and the
lurch had noticed nothing, the white-haired woman would
have when Uneri had not followed them. While he had
managed to cut down the ninja, Shirasagi Maniwa, in one
fell swoop─
Say they did notice─if that were all, I needn’t worry.
It would be a problem, but only a trivial one.
Far more serious, however, was what the lurch did
next─dodge the Zerosen. Even if he had dodged first and
noticed the tatami after─a dodge was a dodge.
What was it he said?
Right, Kyotoryu.
Master of the Kyotoryu, Shichika Yasuri (he had
corrected36 his slip of the tongue).
Uneri knew of Kazune Yasuri─and Mutsue Yasuri.
One battled in the Age of Warring States, and the other
was the Hero of the Rebellion. While Uneri did not know of
the particulars, as rumor had it, the Kyotoryu was a style of
swordplay that forsook the sword. When first he heard of it,
he wondered if it was not an art of the fist rather than the
sword, but evidently37 it was something else entirely. Having
never heard from someone who had seen the Kyotoryu
firsthand, its mysteries remained a mystery to him─
Until the man himself showed up.
Seventh Master, he said.
His given name seemed to contain the character for
“seven,” which suggested that he was indeed Mutsue’s son.
A big guy, but practically a kid…
 Swordless, alright.
That move with his foot, when he guarded Togame from
the Zerosen─if that was any indication of the Kyotoryu─
From what I can recall, it was not so far from iainuki…in
which case, was that…a form of kenpo modeled after
swordplay?
Under normal circumstances, a swordsman would have
no reason to give up his sword─but if he did give up his
sword, he would surely have a reason. And the school
centering around that reason was the Kyotoryu.
So much for that.
No use dwelling on it.
What kind of swordplay the Kyotoryu entailed was
absolutely immaterial─Uneri saw no need to brood over the
schools and skills of his adversaries.
Because.
Enter his space, and they were dead─
That summed up the Zerosen. What could be simpler.
“─Hm.”
From the shaft of light─Uneri perceived that the fusuma
had opened.
He had been reflecting, he believed, on his
circumstances─but when he came to his senses, he realized
that he must have fallen asleep. Now, to ensure that he
would wake up whenever he had “guests,” Uneri had
sabotaged the fusuma, to make it stick (this being yet
another of his domain’s chief quirks38). He was such a
restless sleeper, woken up by almost anything, it would be
fair to call his sensitivity a condition, and a grave one at
that.
He slowly opened his eyes, which had shut unbeknownst
to him.
Beyond the doorway was Shichika Yasuri.
“…Hey.”
 Since Togame was nowhere to be seen, for a second
Uneri assumed that the woman (who seemed unfit for battle
anyway) had stayed outside the castle, but that was not the
case. Hidden by Shichika’s enormous body, her petite
figure39 was merely out of view─but right behind him. Uneri
could see her gaudy kimono through the gap between
Shichika’s feet.
He’s hiding her─no.
Protecting her?
Could his request to start anew have been motivated by
a hunch that she’d been in danger? True, Uneri had aimed
to kill her with his Zerosen─but if that was a concern, why
wasn’t she left outside as Uneri had presumed?
Was he choosing to have his back against the wall40─or
rather, a woman? Was he cornering himself, steeled by a
determination never to withdraw or retreat? In any case,
Uneri saw no good reason for it─why go so far? Instead one
might simply─
No.
Rooted with the Razor on his hip, Uneri was in no
position to judge. To keep something safe, you kept it by
your side─if that was what Shichika was thinking, then Uneri
could understand.
But understand was all.
“Sorry that took so long,” Shichika said.
His expression was all too cheerful, too lax for someone
about to engage in combat. Thus far in life, Uneri had met
all kinds─and anyone who showed up for a fight wearing a
face like this was either reckless or fearless, or terrifyingly
good.
Possibly all of the above.
“Ah… And?” answered Uneri.
He felt a little sleepy.
No matter, the Zerosen will dull none from a little
drowsiness─nor will the Razor.
 “Young man, have you come up with a strategy to best
my Zerosen?”
“More or less,” Shichika met Uneri’s provocation with a
casual reply. “I’m nine-tenths sure it’s gonna work, but it’s
my first time using the move against an actual practitioner
of iainuki─I haven’t had a chance to practice.41 That would
be my one concern.”
“Are you telling me the Kyotoryu has specific measures
against iainuki?”
“It has recommended ways of battling iainuki, nothing
like an overarching strategy─but up against someone as
skilled as you, I think I’ll succeed.”
Shichika’s carefree tone made him sound almost too
dauntless.
“With this move, the faster your sword goes─the more
surefire my hit will be.”
“…”
The faster it goes.
Letting these words sink in, Uneri caught wind of a
change in Shichika’s appearance. Like the first time he
showed up, he was bare to the waist─but now he had shed
his arm and leg guards and stepped out of his sandals. With
sand drifting in from every opening, the castle was in such a
state that keeping your shoes42 required no apology─(even
Uneri slipped on sandals when he left his domain)─and yet.
He’s drawn his sword.
If the Kyotoryu used no blade that was not the foot and
the hand, it made perfect sense for arm and leg guards to
play the role of sheaths. In which case, Shichika was
pointing his bared sword at Ginkaku Uneri─or so it appeared.
“By the way, Mister Uneri, I have a request,” Shichika
said. “Just once, could you pull out the Razor─Zanto the
Razor, and show me the blade? When you do iainuki, or the
Zerosen or whatever, it’s way too fast for me to see. I know
it’s odd for the Kyotoryu master to be saying this, since I
don’t use swords myself, but I’d be lying if I told you my
interest isn’t piqued by the idea of a katana that cuts
through anything.”
“…Hmph.”
If he were to unsheathe the sword and bare its steel, it
would take a split second to return the Razor to its scabbard
and unleash the Zerosen─was this some cheap ploy to
create a chance to strike? It was too half-baked43 even to be
termed a measure… Still, Shichika’s delivery all but vouched
that it was no strategy or the like, but his sincere wish to
see the blade… After all, the young man had removed his
arm and leg guards and bared his own weapon, as if to say,
I’ll show you mine, you show me yours.
Either way.
Sincere or not, the answer was the same.
“Not happening.”
“Whaaat.”
“In our iainuki, concealing the blade from the opponent
is essential. Sorry…okay, I’m not, really…but if you want to
see it so bad, why not just defeat my Zerosen and knock me
down and take the sword as yours? Then you can look it
over all you want.”
“Sword hog.”44 The request was made to be denied, but
Shichika’s puffed cheeks seemed to indicate that he was
genuinely upset─however. “Fine,” he said. “I’ll try it your
way.”
Thus ended the preliminaries.
Shichika─assumed a stance.
“Kyotoryu Form Seven─Kakitsubata!”45
He straddled his feet, parallel, but one ahead of the
other, sinking into his knees and bending at the hips, to
make his upper body lean slightly forward─his hands
pointed like spears, his elbows at right angles, parallel again
and offset, like his feet. His weight on the front leg, as if to
tumble forward, and facing straight ahead─eyes trained
upon the seated figure of Ginkaku Uneri.
Poised like a runner, ready to dash.
Well now.
For all his playful nonchalance, Kyotoryu seemed mighty
orthodox in his approach to battle. Was he of a mind to
sprint from that room into this─to settle the score once and
for all?
He said the faster your sword, the more surefire the
hit…but those words seemed either a foolhardy diversion or
a bluff─he was aiming, simply, to land the blade of his hand
or foot before Uneri had a chance to draw─
But that would never breach this domain.
Resolved to fighting face-to-face, he looked poised to
barrel straight into the thick of it, but such a stunt only
meant he thought too lightly of the Zerosen, where the
sword leaves and meets the scabbard in an instant.
Not that I was looking forward to this─but how
disappointing.
“Kyotoryu─a foe that gives no satisfaction.”
“Wow…it’s an honor to be recognized by someone as
strong as─wait, ‘no satisfaction’? Was that a putdown?”
Playing the fool so late in the game, Shichika got the
silent treatment from Uneri.
Either way.
The second Shichika passed through the doorway, the
fight would be over. In a space this cramped, none could
evade the sweeping path of iainuki─and if he blocked it,
more fodder46 for the Razor.
Behold, Ginkaku Uneri’s─Danger Zone!47
“Alright. In that case. On your mark…”
Shichika─sank deeper into his knees─
“Get set… GO!”
And mounted a frontal assault.
 Springing off his rear foot, throwing his momentum
ahead─clearing the threshold in one bound.
Onto his second step─and third…
No third step!
“Zerosen!”
Uneri’s right hand clasped the handle of the Razor. The
moment he did, the move was already over, and the sound
of his tsuba reaching the sheath─shing!─rang through the
air of the cramped room─
Yet.
“─…?!”
There was a reason Uneri failed to notice right away.
Zanto the Razor was of such astounding sharpness that
whatever it cut─be it animal, vegetable, mineral, or
scoundrel48─the blade met almost no resistance. In fact, it
would be no exaggeration to say it met with no resistance
whatsoever. Every substance─sliced like tofu. The blade
could even slice the air─and as such, it was all the same.
Moreover, the Razor belonged to Ginkaku Uneri, and he had
unleashed the Zerosen, an iainuki move unique to his
family─thus there was sufficient reason for his failure to cut
Shichika Yasuri asunder to take an extra instant to reach his
brain.
That mere instant was fatal.
“Kyotoryu─Bara!”49

■ ■

“Did we do it?!” Togame cried out from behind.

Done it, Shichika had─but what he had done was hardly
unusual, as pedestrian as it got in the world of swordplay.
The only difference was that the move was executed with
incomparable dexterity, so high it was off the charts.
 He had feinted50─faked him out.
Kyotoryu Form Seven─the Kakitsubata.
In contrast to Form One, the Suzuran, and Form Two, the
Suisen─the static and defensive stances he had employed
against Komori Maniwa the month before, back on
Haphazard Island─Form Seven, the Kakitsubata, was a
dynamic move, deployed offensively.
Even somebody oblivious to the martial arts would
comprehend this at first glance─which is why Uneri thought
that Shichika was charging full speed at him to beat out the
Zerosen even if it meant being mowed down.
But that was not the case.
Despite being an attack move─the Kakitsubata was no
simple battle charge.
Shichika had not delved into details with Togame during
their strategy meeting because it would have gotten too
complicated, but just as his school taught him to run
through an overhead slash, Kyotoryu had a response to
horizontal swipes: Attack either before the swing, or after. If
a lateral strike could not be blocked or evaded, there was no
other choice. It was a basic teaching in any case, as basic as
it could get─
Uneri had expected him to attack before the swing.
But Shichika had opted for after─as obvious a strategy
as this may seem up against the Zerosen, a move so fast
that it could not be seen, Shichika did more than opt for it.
He made Uneri think the opposite─that he would attempt to
strike first.
Feinting, with the Kakitsubata.
When Shichika crossed through the doorway, intruding
upon Uneri’s domain, between his first step and his second
step─and his zeroth step when he was immobile, to be
precise─he altered his movement speed.
From his zeroth step into his first─in other words, as his
rear foot sprung from the tatami, he was soaring, as far as
Uneri was concerned. But from the first step into the
second, as the front foot sprang to action─Shichika threw
the brakes.
The difference between his opening speed and closing
speed was unbelievable. Seeing him accelerate, you never
expected the coming drop─he slowed down twice as fast in
that sense. The effect was marvelous─Uneri, skilled as he
was, misjudged the timing of his iainuki.
His opponent hadn’t taken a second step─much less a
third.
He motioned for it─but didn’t follow through.
Or he did follow through─but only afterwards.
All of it a single move.
Uneri was sure he had seen Shichika pass through the
doorway and all the way in─a misjudgment.
Iainuki has a shortcoming, in that once the blade is
drawn, it cannot be stalled midway─unlike the
kaleidoscopic51 footwork displayed by Shichika in his
Kakitsubata, its speed cannot be adjusted freely, and can
only mount ad infinitum.
The Danger Zone had also worked against Uneri─in
being so determined that mere passage through the
doorway guaranteed a kill, he effectively claimed to kill by
reflex.
A wall.
What was absent, then, could be envisioned─to the
extent that Uneri might as well have foolishly announced to
the world when he would strike. He could not but draw
against a charging foe, regardless of his velocity─
And the clincher:52 the Zerosen was simply too fast.
The Razor returned to its sheath with a shing!─and a
frame later, Shichika’s front kick, the Bara, exploded toward
Uneri’s left shoulder.
Uneri shot backward─slamming his back against the wall
behind him. He groaned as if the air were purging from his
body.
“…nkk!”
And yet.
When Togame asked her question─“Did we do
it?”─Shichika could not respond with a forthright, We did it!
Far from it. He clicked his tongue in disgust and leapt
back─through the door into the other room, where she was
standing─
And suddenly resumed Form Seven.
“Shi-Shichika?”
“Crap. I barely even hit him… How could that bastard
spring back and dodge me like that…”
Shichika was not complimenting Uneri for nimbly
springing from his preferred position, so much as blaming
himself for flinching, at the last second, and turning the
Bara’s full-bore charge into a hit and run.53
The strategy, at least, had been successful─as hoped,
the Zerosen had only grazed the skin of Shichika’s chest
and whiffed. Nevertheless, its force was intimidating
enough54 to usher a minute change of heart.
Simply put:
“I chickened out.”
The faster the sword goes, the more surefire the
move─too true. If the Zerosen had launched a split second
later, Shichika would likely be in two clean pieces─and in the
corner of his mind, he had pictured this. The picture had the
necessary mass, all the more due to its position in the
corner, to throw his heart off-balance.
Thus his own reflexes came into play, and kept him from
catching his speed again after he slowed down─it was this
failure on his part that permitted Uneri to dodge the Bara.
Shichika’s lack of combat experience─was to blame.
Togame probably should have made him practice
against actual swords rather than wooden replicas on their
journey, even if a training session with iainuki was asking for
too much. Shichika did not know real swords, outside of his
battle with Komori, which had not lasted long.
It wasn’t the swords the young man feared, but their
moves.55
A fear of swordplay that used swords.
To Shichika, who had been raised, by order of the
Kyotoryu, apart from blades of almost every kind, this fear
would prove, without a doubt, to be an issue of extreme
urgency.
“Shichika! You─”
“Don’t move, Togame. Don’t step out from behind my
back.”
They could not attend to the issue now─nor was it the
one to be tackled here. What mattered was Ginkaku Uneri,
who had yet to receive a decisive blow.
Just like that─he was getting up.
Yes.
At long last─Uneri stood from his seated position.
“A nice surprise,” he muttered as if to himself. “I thought
it was a fluke, the first time─but it can’t be, after the
second… I’m wide awake now, Kyotoryu. I haven’t felt so
alive since they spanked me the day I was born.”
“…My pleasure.”
Good morning, Shichika greeted.
Good morning, Uneri returned.
“And goodnight56─I suppose.”
He stood with a pronounced sag in his left shoulder. It
seemed that the Bara─hadn’t been ineffectual, hadn’t been
dodged entirely. But with Uneri’s mastery of iainuki, he
needed only his right hand to draw a katana; an injury to his
left shoulder was not a serious concern. In fact, the
adrenaline57 put Shichika at a disadvantage.
Now Uneri was for real.
“My iainuki is all about waiting─no fancy footwork for
me. But I can tell what kind of state58 you’ve achieved from
what you just did.”
“You think? Nah. That was the Kyotoryu at its most
basic. True, it’s the seventh of the stances.”
“Is that so. I’m impressed.”
“Don’t flatter me. I can’t handle praise.”
“Nonsense. Now that you’ve knocked me off my high
horse, how else do I nurse my wounded pride? Take it like a
man─but that footwork. Your hakama must’ve blocked my
view.”
“I bet.”
Easy to move in. Easy to fight in.
This is what that meant.
When Shichika sped from his stance and slowed back
down, the movement of his feet and muscles was
obfuscated by the garment Togame bought for him─hence,
easy to fight in. Uneri might have guessed what Shichika
was up to, were his legs exposed. In this sense, the hakama
was Shichika’s armor.
“Even so─don’t expect it to work twice.”
Having complimented his foe, Uneri reached for the
katana on his hip.
Shichika instantly went tense, but this far from the
doorway, fully beyond Uneri’s domain, it was perfectly safe,
wasn’t it─
Shing shing shing shing shing!
In rapid fire59─Uneri’s tsuba chimed.
Ringing like a round of voices in his room.
“Zerosen Hentai60─Flight of Five.”
In rapid fire─Uneri had unleashed five Zerosen.
Of course, Shichika could not see the blade’s path.
Not even one out of the five arcs. The tsuba clanged
away, but as far as he could tell, Uneri’s hand never left the
handle of the katana─
From quickdraw to scabbard, five times over, in a row!
 “This way, you can speed up and slow down all you
want─to no effect. The Razor will slash through the margin
of error.”
“Urk…”
He was right.
Against a swipe, attack after the swipe─but the teaching
did not account for this rapid fire. Two or three, perhaps, but
five…and that may not even be the limit─
In the Uneri school of iainuki, not showing the blade to
the opponent was essential─still, when you think about it, if
the hype is true about iainuki, and the first swing is always
fatal, drawing is one thing, but there ought to be no need to
rush the sword into its scabbard─even in the way of
remaining alert61 just in case, it was excessive. Shichika
must have only hit and run with his Bara because he
intuited this.
Indeed.
The quicksheath after the quickdraw allowed for a series
of strikes.
“That was your secret move62…”
“Secret move? This? No…”
Uneri grinned.
But when he did.
Shing!─the tsuba clanged again, and the shoulder of
Uneri’s black kimono, where Shichika had grazed him with
the Bara─burst open, spilling vast quantities of blood.
“Whoa!”
“Bloodlust63─a Zanto the Razor exclusive!”
Uneri winced with pain─but the grin had yet to leave his
face, and he only looked emboldened. His blood began to
drench his kimono and his feet─he must have severed a
main artery.
“Yikes…did you just go and cut yourself? What for?”
With the horizontal swing of iainuki, it should have been
impossible to cut himself─he must have done it after the
quickdraw, while the blade was on its way back─so fast this,
too, had been impossible to see. Commendable, and yet…
Why would he ever cut himself?!
“Don’t get it, huh?” Uneri’s voice was tortured. “You see,
Kyotoryu, this was the secret behind Kinkaku Uneri felling
ten thousand. Look.”
Plip. Plip.
From the tsuba of the Razor, blood dripped into the
puddle forming at Ginkaku Uneri’s feet and created little
ripples.
From around the tsuba─no, it was the mouth64 of the
scabbard.
Blood was leaking─flooding, from inside it.
Clearly the blood was Uneri’s. After cutting himself, he
had slipped the blade (too fast for Shichika to see) into its
sheath, without shaking off the blood that clung there.
Plip. Plip.
Drops of blood─drip after drip.
“L-Look at what… I still don’t get it.”
“Take ice, for an example. Know how it’s more slippery
when it begins to melt than when it’s frozen solid?” asked
Uneri. “Same principle. Moistening the inside of the
scabbard, filling the whole thing up with blood until the
cavity is sopping wet─makes the quickdraw even quicker.
When you drastically reduce the friction factor between
blade and sheath─the Zerosen meets the speed of light.
That is the Bloodlust, a Zanto the Razor exclusive. Usually,”
Uneri added haughtily, “I use the blood of an opponent.”
His bleeding showed no sign of stopping─and while his
face was losing color, he didn’t seem to care.
“The more it cuts─the faster it gets.”
The Zerosen’s peak speed.
But it knew no limit, according to that logic. Supposing
the tale of Kinkaku Uneri and the ten thousand was
true─what kind of instantaneous peak velocity had the
Razor clocked when it vanquished its ten-thousandth foe?
“…!”
The faster the sword, the more surefire the hit─despite
having been forewarned, and suffering precisely such an
attack, Uneri doggedly65 persisted, going so far as to slice
his own flesh to quicken the Zerosen.
Faster, faster, faster, faster, he seemed to coax.
As if speed alone were something to be proud of.
As if speed were his reason for being.
As if what he protected─was worth it.
Shichika had an opportunity to stop fighting fair and
square─and the chance had not escaped him. Filling a
scabbard with blood demanded quite the wound─and the
gash on Uneri’s shoulder was not only ugly…if left
unattended, it was liable to take his life. In any case, as long
as he didn’t step through the doorway, stayed outside
Uneri’s domain…he could assume Form One, Form Two,
whatever he liked─they would be at a standstill. If he only
waited it out, eventually the blood inside the scabbard
would begin to clot,66 working contrary to purpose and
increasing the friction. Ill-disposed to thought as Shichika
may be, he didn’t need to think to understand this much.
The Bloodlust was a move meant for large numbers─best
used on the battlefield, where an endless supply of blood
can be procured, which was not the case in a duel. Against
Ginkaku Uneri as he stood now, merely waiting would not
only afford Shichika the upper hand, it could hand him
victory─
And yet.
Taking an idle stance and waiting it out because he no
longer needed to fight fair and square─was not how Shichika
Yasuri had been taught.
As the Kyotoryu.
A katana incarnate.
 Facing Ginkaku Uneri, who truly had cornered himself,
Shichika maintained the Kakitsubata─poised for attack.
“Nice moves,” Shichika said.
“Huh?”
“Seeing you─I’m ashamed I was hiding my best one.”
Shichika sounded genuinely embarrassed. “Enough holding
back─I’ll show you what the Kyotoryu is made of.”
“What? You mean you had an ace up your sleeve, too?”
“I wouldn’t put it─that way. But you could say I’ve been
holding back a tad.”
“Hmph…”
Uneri opted not to call his bluff, or say this was a ploy or
a distraction.
He didn’t think so─and in the face of the Zerosen, slick
with Bloodlust, it hardly mattered anyway. Ginkaku Uneri
had that much confidence.
In Zanto the Razor.
And in his Zerosen.
“I see.”
But then─Uneri spoke again.
Not to Shichika, but toward Togame, standing behind
him.
“Out of curiosity, young lady, if I may… You offered to
grant any wish if I handed over the sword.”
“…? Ah, yes,” Togame replied from behind Shichika.
Her face was hidden, but her voice conveyed her
thorough bafflement. Why was Uneri bringing it up this late
in the game?
“The bakufu will certainly make it worth your
while─effective67 immediately, that is, if you so please.”
“Then,” said Uneri─his voice anything but sleepy. “If I
hand over the Razor, could you restore Inaba to the way it
used to be?”
“…”
They were talking through the buffer that was Shichika.
 Diplomacy.
Just as Shichika could not see Togame’s face behind
him, Uneri could not see Togame, nor could Togame see
Uneri, with Shichika between them as a wall─perhaps this
was why Uneri opened up, and perhaps he meant it.
Perhaps it was also why Togame─could not bring herself
to lie.
Lying now─was not who she was.
“Out of the question,” she refused him outright. “In the
eyes of the bakufu, Tottori is as good as lost. But that aside,
there is no way, even in theory, to return a land that the
dunes claimed68 to its former state.”
“Understood…” Uneri nodded, not the least bit
morosely, but like a man freed of doubt. “So I wasn’t making
a big mistake when I tried to kill you─what a relief.”
“Hey, I have a question,” Shichika butted in.
He couldn’t help it.
“Why are you doing this?”
“…Beats me.”
“Is this about the dignity you mentioned?”
“Who knows.” Uneri shrugged it off.69 “Just because I
said that doesn’t mean I meant it.”
“…”
“I just wanted something to protect─that was all I ever
wanted, but I had nothing else to protect.”
“I see…”
Something to protect.
For Shichika, it meant Togame.
He had chosen to protect Togame.
Even if the Kyotoryu, and Shichika himself, were targets
of her vendetta─he had decided to protect her.
She was his reason for fighting.
He fought in order to protect her.
“Alright─let’s go.”
 “Sure. The Zerosen is ready to fly.70 It’s time for you to
witness the speed of light. And if you really do have an ace
up your sleeve─I’d love to see it.”
“See? Not if you’re torn to smithereens.”
The catchphrase they had picked that morning.
Such execution─that was perfect.
“On your mark, get set…”
Set for kaleidoscopic footwork.
Kyotoryu Form Seven─the Kakitsubata.
As if to tumble forward, at any moment.
“GO!”
Shichika took a step, igniting his reserves of energy.
Except this time─he did not spring off of the back foot.
He sprang off of his front foot, shooting backwards.
With a snap, he threw his forward-leaning weight into
reverse─making for quite the feint, poised as he had been to
sprint ahead.
Not motioning without following through─or following
through, but only after a delay─this time Shichika stepped
backwards.
His feint was not ineffective.
By reflex, Uneri drew the Razor.
Even though─Shichika had not set foot into his domain.
Shing!─rang the tsuba.
But not once.
“Zerosen Hentai─Flight of Ten.”
Shing shing shing shing shing shing shing shing shing
shing!
An onslaught of Zerosen, to catch him no matter how he
stalled─and all the swings at speeds far outstripping71 the
same move executed seated. It was as if sword was meeting
scabbard sooner with each successive strike and
accelerating without reserve.
Not even the Bara of the Kyotoryu.
Could violate.
 Or infiltrate.
His razor-thin Danger Zone─
“──nkk!”
And yet.
Shichika’s next move flabbergasted Uneri. Who wouldn’t
read stepping back as a stall, a harbinger of springing into
the fray? Yet Shichika drew what had been his hind foot in
the same direction, behind, only even faster.
The kaleidoscopic footwork of Form Seven allowed him
not only to boost or brake his momentum but to travel
backward at will─but under the circumstances, why shoot
back at full speed?
He had fallen back the length of one tatami mat.
He could charge all he liked, but the Zerosen was bound
to catch him when he had to close such a distance. The feint
and fake-out made no sense.
To begin with─
Behind him stood what he was trying to protect,
Togame─had he not positioned her there so he could not
back out when he faced Ginkaku Uneri? Steeled by a
determination never to withdraw or retreat?
Wrong.
That wasn’t why.
“…Huh?”
As stated elsewhere, she was not proficient in the
martial arts. Or rather, prior to that issue, and not to mince
words, her reflexes were impossibly dull.
Thus─when Shichika started back in her direction,
darting towards her, the thought of dodging or evading him
did not so much as cross her mind.
“Hmh?”
Not even when his sole was an inch away.
If this were a manga, set in the present day, now would
be the time for a sound effect like “DGSHH!” Having leapt,
Shichika Yasuri planted a backwards dropkick square in the
face of Togame the Schemer, so perfectly that it was a work
of art.
“Gadzooks!”
Her scream, so novel72 in its day, filled the air.
This was the last thing Uneri expected to see─but unlike
the Kakitsubata footwork, Shichika had not jumped back and
kicked Togame in the face as a feint. Surprising Uneri was
not Shichika’s intention.
He flexed the leg that hit Togame like a spring─and leapt
once more.
Yes.
Togame was his wall─or in this case, springboard.73
Shichika crossed through the doorway─but did so
without entering Uneri’s Danger Zone. To be precise, he did
not cross over the threshold─so much as under the lintel of
the doorframe.74 Feeling it graze his back, he launched into
Uneri’s den at a steep angle.
A cramped room, every inch within range of the
Zerosen.
A cramped space, every inch within range of the
Zerosen.
However─this was only if you conceived of the room
two-dimensionally, rather than three-dimensionally.
Area is not the same as volume.
Small as the rooms may be─they had high ceilings.
Too high for Shichika, tall as he was, to reach even on
his tiptoes─and thus, as long as he cleared the range of the
Razor, he would be outside the Danger Zone.
…Shichika had asked Uneri to show him the blade as a
precaution. He had wanted to know how long it was.
Naturally, Uneri had not obliged, and Shichika had guessed
its length by eyeballing75 the scabbard. It seemed to him
like it would be okay─and thankfully, it was.
“U-Urk…”
Uneri held the handle of the Razor─but could not move.
 The tsuba did not make its sound.
He had not drawn─he could not draw.
Making a series of spins, Shichika slowed his flight off of
Togame and landed in the middle of the ceiling, directly
above Uneri.
“K-K-Kyotoryu!”
“What’s the matter, in over your head?”
Uneri gripped the handle of the Razor, at a loss.
All he could do was stare and shudder.
The Danger Zone had been inverted.
Within this room─no place was safe.
Ginkaku Uneri would have done well to think more
deeply about the Kyotoryu, if only in his dreams. A form of
kenpo modeled after swordplay…was not a good place to
stop.
If he had thought more, perhaps he would have
understood.
 Why a swordsman might forsake the sword.
More than anything, it opened up a plethora of foot
techniques76─having both hands free would seem to be the
main advantage of letting go of a katana, but not so. The
Kakitsubata, and the springboard, and the rebound up onto
the ceiling shared something fundamental.
Namely.
Without a sword─the body is light.77
Uneri would have done well to brood over the fearsome
benefits of a person as large as Shichika being light and
possessing a mobility at odds with his size.
“Even if you get it now, it’s too late─by the way, with a
footing this good, this move will be three times as
powerful─wait and see!”
Because this one actually doesn’t tear you into
smithereens, he made a minute correction.
Then he bounded from the ceiling toward the floor.
And─
Threw all of his weight into a trio of furiously spinning
kicks, his ankle an adze78─! “Kyotoryu Fatal Orchid Seven:
Rakka Rozeki!”79
Tottori’s renowned Inaba Desert…
It was the instant that Gekoku Castle fell.

1 揚げ足を取る AGEASHI WO TORU finding fault 2 私利私欲 SHIRI SHIYOKU “private

gains and desires”
3 天涯孤独 TENGAI KODOKU alone in the whole world 4 死者 SHISHA the deceased
5 一番縁遠い ICHIBAN ENDŌI “the number-one distant in ties”
6 罪滅ぼし TSUMI HOROBOSHI “sin exterminating”
7 刷 り 込 み SURIKOMI the precise term for the biological phenomenon 8 前 衛 的
ZEN’EITEKI the Japanese term is a fairly direct translation of the French word
9 鬱陶しい UTTŌSHII annoying
10 防具 BŌGU protective gear
11 剣 道 KENDŌ the martial art of swordsmanship 12 物 我 一 体 MOTSUGA ITTAI

others and self are one 13 構え KAMAE opening form of a move 14 座合 ZA’AI
iainuki, only seated 15 邀撃 YŌGEKI interception
16 際どい KIWADOI precarious
17 軌道 KIDŌ trajectory
18 本末転倒 HONMATSU TENTŌ wagging the dog 19 絶 体 絶 命 ZETTAI ZETSUMEI
“sure death”
20 弔い TOMURAI simple ceremony for the dead 21 接待好き SETTAI ZUKI enjoys

playing the host 22 豪華 GŌKA extravagant

23 暮らしやすい KURASHI YASUI “easy to live in”
24 回りくどい MAWARI KUDOI roundabout 25 持久戦 JIKYŪSEN a protracted war 26
結論 KETSURON conclusion
27 二の舞 NI NO MAI “second dance”
28 保険 HOKEN insurance
29 先祖 SENZO ancestor
30 眉唾物 MAYUTSUBA MONO “eyebrow spit” thus called from a superstition that
saliva rubbed into the eyebrows would discourage the antics of
shapeshifting tanuki and foxes 31 鼻摘み者 HANATSUMAMI MONO “someone
who makes you pinch your nose”
32 偏執 HENSHŪ nuance of 偏執病 HENSHŪBYŌ paranoid disorder 33 妄執 MŌSHŪ

possessed by an idea 34 のっぽ NOPPO tall (but not necessarily imposing) 35

ぼんくら BONKURA dimwitted
36 言い直した IINAOSHITA restated
37 目に明らか ME NI AKIRAKA clear to the eye 38 特徴 TOKUCHŌ characterizing

feature 39 矮躯 WAIKU small body

40 背 水 の 陣 HAISUI NO JIN “water-to-the-back formation” that disallows
desertions 41 ぶ っ つ け 本 番 BUTTSUKE HONBAN “opening night with no
rehearsal”
42 土足 DOSOKU “dirty feet”
43 不完全 FUKANZEN incomplete
44 けちだな KECHI DANA “what a miser”
45 杜若 KAKITSUBATA “The Iris”
46 餌食 EJIKI prey
47 絶 対 領 域 ZETTAI RYŌIKI “absolute realm” sliver of thigh visible on a girl
wearing a skirt and high socks vs. 絶 対 零 度 ZETTAI REIDO “absolute zero,”
the coldest temperature 48 森羅万象有象無象 SHINRA BANSHŌ UZŌ MUZŌ all
manner of creation 49 薔薇 BARA “The Rose”
50 陽動 YŌDŌ diversionary measure 51 変幻自在 HENGEN JIZAI protean, changing

and seeming at will 52 極めつき KIWAMETSUKI ultimate

53 引き技 HIKIWAZA in kendo, a quick strike before springing away 54 あまりの剣
圧 AMARI NO KEN’ATSU so great a “sword pressure”
55 剣技 KENGI “sword performance”
56 おやすみなさい OYASUMI NASAI “do rest”
57 手 負 い TEOI being wounded (but not dead) 58 境 地 KYŌCHI figurative
land/place 59 連撃 RENGEKI a series of attacks 60 編隊 HENTAI formation (of
fighter planes) 61 残心の姿勢 ZANSHIN NO SHISEI keeping up one’s guard in
defense 62 隠 し だ ま KAKUSHI DAMA hidden ball (trick) 63 斬 刀 狩 り ZANTŌ
GARI play on 残党狩り ZANTŌ GARI mopping-up operation 64 鯉口 KOIGUCHI
“mouth of the carp” thin hole, like puckered fish lips 65 厭いもせず ITOI MO
SEZU tirelessly 66 凝固 GYŌKO congeal
67 有効 YŪKŌ valid
68 砂漠化 SABAKUKA desertification 69 とぼける TOBOKERU act dumb
70 出撃 SHUTSUGEKI sortie
71 凌駕 RYŌGA surpass, overtake 72 今風 IMAFŪ “now-style”
73 三角飛び SANKAKU TOBI “triangle jump” a leap having three points of contact:

start, middle, finish 74 鴨 居 KAMOI the wood-framed channel overhead

through which the fusuma slides 75 目測 MOKUSOKU “eye measure”
76 足技 ASHIWAZA moves using only the legs 77 身軽 MIGARU agile
78 斧刀 FUTŌ “axe katana”
79 落花狼藉 RAKKA RŌZEKI “Effrontery of the Falling Flower”
 ■ ■

The following evening.

Shichika Yasuri and Togame had backtracked their way
out of Inaba Desert and returned to the inn where they had
slept two nights earlier. Track, of course, being a turn of
phrase: there were none in the desert. Heading on west,
toward Hoki, would have been too trying for Togame, though
perhaps not for Shichika, and it had been the plan all along
to return and then bypass1 the desert.
But Shichika knew nothing of their next destination
except that it lay westward.
Which is why, back at the inn, as Togame became
absorbed with packing Zanto the Razor, theirs at last, into a
box for shipment, he spoke up.
“Where to next?”
“…”
Togame did not answer.
Not just now. For over a day since Shichika had kicked
her in the face and used her as a springboard, she had not
said a single word to him. Understandable, but Togame the
Schemer, several years his senior, was acting remarkably
unadult.
“Hello～o.”
“…”
“Hey, Togame.”
“…”
“Togame, don’t ignore me. You haven’t spoken since,
like, yesterday. Did you get hurt or something when I kicked
you? Hope not. Maybe you cut the inside of your mouth, so
it hurts when you─”
“Zip it!”
 But she buckled before he even apologized.
Poor form.
“Don’t ramble on like nothing happened when I’m mad!
Open your eyes. Act like you’re sorry! You disregard my
feelings, only to ask me whether I’m hurt. Unreal. How was I
to know you needed me behind you─as a springboard!”
“Oh, that’s what you’re mad about.”
“I’m not mad!”
She was all over the place.2
Shichika explained that he hadn’t had a choice. So he
did feel bad about what happened─not that he’d been
showing any signs of remorse.
“If the Kakitsubata to Bara relay worked on him, that
would have been it─I swear that using you was only the
backup plan. Without the angle and the arc I caught, I never
would have cleared him and stuck3 to the ceiling.”
In other words─Uneri was not unaware of the hole in his
Danger Zone. His domain had an opening once you saw that
it had a height in addition to a length and width. But he
couldn’t have anticipated using an ally for a springboard─
“Then say so during our strategy meeting! Why that odd
tease about strength coming from having something to
protect?”
“Sorry, the line just popped into my head.”
“Just popped in!”
“Stop snarling, okay? I did use you as a wall, but not as
a shield. I figured if I filled you in from the beginning, you
would jump back reflexively, no matter how…unathletic you
are. It’s not like I have eyes on my back. Unless you were
exactly where I needed you, behind me, I couldn’t pull off
the Rakka Rozeki.”
“And thanks to that, I missed seeing your Fatal Orchid.
Again.”
“Come on. I’ve shown you Rakka Rozeki. In the dojos.”
“I want to see it for real. Anyway, whatever.”
 Shouting had evidently cheered her up.
However immature, she knew how to let things go.
In any case, they had secured the Razor. With their
mission accomplished, perhaps she saw this as the wrong
time to complain.
Process be damned, that was her ultimate goal.4
“Know what though, Shichika? Whether it’s the Rakka
Rozeki or the footwork for the Kakitsubata, your taijutsu5
reminds me of a ninja.”
“Huh? Really? I know so little about ninjas. Hard for me
to say.”
Then again, mused Shichika, that ninja we met last
month, Komori Maniwa, sure knew how to jump─
“Leaping and jumping is the bailiwick of the ninja, not
the swordsman─who, as a species, keep their feet planted
on the ground. Perhaps Kazune Yasuri, founder of the
Kyotoryu, wove elements of ninjutsu into his concept for the
school.”
“Maybe.” Shichika nodded. “That means the Kyotoryu
can hold its own against those Maniwacs who aren’t
swordsmen. Minus Shirasagi─how many of those bosses do
we have left, ten?”
“Correct. Yet─now might not be the time to be saying
this, but if I may, Shichika, it’s about the Kakitsubata. That
kaleidoscopic footwork, accelerating and decelerating to
whatever speed you like, is fabulous─but there has to be a
catch.”
“Catch?”6
“Hiding your footwork with your hakama worked great
this time. But the opposite could hold true, too. Against a
lesser foe than Uneri, that kind of fake-out would be
meaningless. Like for me, standing behind you. I had no
idea when you were supposed to be feinting, or
accelerating, or decelerating. As far as I could tell, you were
just charging right in─footwork like that would be lost on an
inferior opponent. And another thing. That Form Seven─it’s
dazzling for advancing or falling back, but no good for
strafing.”
“Exactly,”7 Shichika agreed.
That weakness was evident to him as its practitioner,
but Togame could tell too, just by watching him from behind,
which was a bit surprising.
Well.
She did say she was a military strategist.
“No good for it, or I can’t at all. The stance for strafing
would be Form Six─of course, it still won’t be as dazzling as
charging in and out. That’s not the meat of Form Six… Keep
your eyes peeled for it.”
“I certainly will,” Togame said. Then she gave the box
containing Zanto the Razor a light pat, a proprietary claim of
sorts. “Good, all packed up. Once we’ve mailed this to
Owari, we’ll be on our way. Where to next? Izumo.8
Bypassing the desert, we’ll go through Mimasaka, Bicchu,
and Bingo.”
“Izumo, huh. That’s where the gods hang out.”
“An apt detail, for there, at a shrine of noble origins,
whose history goes back farther than the modern bakufu or
the Kyotoryu, Sento the Legion awaits us─a thousand
swords, held by a thousand maidens.
“Once secured, the Legion would pose an interesting
challenge in terms of shipping,” Togame noted. “When
already the Leveler, and even the Razor, making it safely to
the bakufu requires tricky thinking… Oh, by the by,
Shichika.”
“Hmm?”
“Did you never actually see the Razor? I don’t think you
were around to watch me clean the blood from the blade
and the scabbard… Did you want to take a look? It’s neatly
packed up, though.”
“Mm…”
 Hoping to gauge its precise span, and the exact extent
of the Danger Zone, Shichika had asked Uneri to show the
blade─and it had been no lie that he was also simply
curious.
A sword that could cut anything.
Who wouldn’t want to see?
Yet─
“Nah, I’m good,” he said.
“Oh? That would save me the trouble of packing it
again─but are you sure? There’s no need to be shy about
that much of an imposition.”
“I’m good.”
“I see.”
“Yep.”
Shichika had made himself scarce, and not by chance,
as Togame had scrubbed clean the Mutant Blade. He was of
a mind to move on without beholding the naked Razor.
When all was said and done, he had glimpsed none of
the Zerosen─had brought down9 not a one. That was all
there was to it, then.
“…”
Ginkaku Uneri, pilot of the Zerosen─had perished.
It was partially the doing of Shichika’s Rakka Rozeki, but
the self-inflicted wound from the preceding Bloodlust had
been deep. Uneri would not live to see the bleeding
stop─and expired on the tatami, its two dimensions dyed
one shade of red.
A fitting end for a warrior, perhaps it was not.
A fitting end for a swordsman─it was not.
Yet it may have suited the man.
“What’s going to happen to Inaba─and Gekoku Castle?”
“Nothing. That land has left the jurisdiction10 of the
bakufu, and can only wither and die. But long after you and I
have departed from this world, even a thousand years
hence, the ruins of Gekoku may yet remain─a castle,
though, it will never be.”
“So without people─there’s no castle?”
“Nor town, nor country.”
“Uh huh.”
“No swordsman or sword can conquer nature─may be
the point.”
“That’s the point, in the end.”
“As far as I can see.”
“Man.”
Strength comes from having something to protect.
Shichika had said it just to convince11 Togame─but not
so for Uneri. There were those who lived by having
something to protect─this battle had made that clear to
Shichika.
While coveting nothing, Ginkaku Uneri had wanted to
protect something. Shichika, raised on Haphazard Island
without possessions to call his own, did not need or covet
anything to protect, but he wondered─just maybe, would
doing so for this woman make him stronger?
“Still, Togame.”
“What now?”
“That last thing Uneri said12 showed some serious
style,” Shichika shared what had been on his mind since
then. “Not just style, it had a lot of personality… Would you
say that was a catchphrase?”
Ahh… Suffering a direct hit to the skull from Fatal Orchid
Seven, Uneri had fallen on his back, never to rise again, and
with a hollow stare, though not without a kind of peace, he
had intoned: Finally…I’ll catch up on my sleep.
“Not exactly,” answered Togame, her face not so
forgiving, and borderline acerbic. “That was a farewell─his
last words, or a parting message, if you will. Perhaps even a
testament. It’s the sort of thing you only get to say once in a
lifetime, when you’re on your way out.”
 “Okay.”
“Don’t let it bug you. Certainly, in terms of
demonstrating personality, last words have a lot more
impact than a catchphrase, since you only have a chance to
say them once in your entire life. But Shichika, as long as
I’m around, that chance will not be yours to take.”
And she meant it.
“Don’t waste a moment mulling over how to say
goodbye.”

■ ■

Thus, Shichika Yasuri finished out the month without seeing

the blade of Zanto the Razor, one of the Twelve Possessed of
Kiki Shikizaki. He would not first see that edge13─nor learn
the figure of its steel, so sharp that it could cut through any
substance in a single swing─until the next time it was
pointed at him, in the last moon of the year.

Zanto the Razor: Check

End of Book Two
 To Be Continued

1 迂 回 UKAI circumvent 2 支 離 滅 裂 SHIRI METSURETSU incoherent an ironic

callback to the Last Fatal Orchid, with which it shares the first syllable and
last character 3 張 り 付 く HARITSUKU cling 4 至 上 目 的 SHIJŌ MOKUTEKI
“supreme purpose”
5 体術 TAIJUTSU “physical technique” comprehensive term for martial arts 6 弱点

JAKUTEN weakness 7 当 た り ATARI “hit” spot-on 8 出 雲 IZUMO “whence

clouds emerge”
9 撃 墜 GEKITSUI shoot down (an airplane) 10 管 轄 KANKATSU administrative

control 11 言いくるめる IIKURUMERU nuance of bamboozling 12 台詞 SERIFU

line (in a drama) 13 刃 YAIBA blade
 AFTER(S)WORD

On the subject of whether people who have something to

protect are stronger than those who don’t, time and place
and circumstance are all factors, but if you zoom all the way
out and gain a little headroom, I think it’s common for the
thing you’re protecting to be protecting you, without you
noticing, which makes me think it might be better to have
something to protect. If you don’t have something to
protect, I suppose that makes you free to do as you please,
but freedom is no easy thing to wrangle. While it’s true that
having something to protect may put you on the defense,
that doesn’t mean not having something to protect will force
you onto the offense, and thus treating the two situations as
opposites is, in a certain sense, misunderstanding the issue.
When you think about it, the “thing” in “something to
protect” doesn’t always refer to a physical thing, or a living
presence, like friends and family, or a lover, but oftentimes
something more like dignity, or honor, or pride. If we’re
including these metaphysical things under the rubric of
“something to protect,” I think we can say there isn’t a
person in the world who doesn’t have something like that. It
might be going a little too far afield, but apparently,
whether it’s a world war or a contest between individuals,
when one side is on the offense, fighting to get something
(to be blunt, trying to steal), and another side is on the
defense, fighting to protect something (to be blunt again,
trying to prevent something from being stolen), the
defender wins in most cases. There’s a major gap in
motivation, since people worry more about losing things
than they do about acquiring them. Which is perfectly
natural, but if you think about it this way, the concept of
protecting something is not as pretty as its language
suggests.
 We all live life protecting something, and even those
with nothing have those empty-handed selves to
protect─which brings us to Sword Tale─Book Two, featuring
no such themes. Set in an imaginary version of Tottori, Inaba
Desert is modeled after the real-life Tottori Sand Dunes. I
love that place and visit frequently. Without a doubt the best
part is being totally surrounded by sand. It makes me want
to see an actual desert sometime before I die. Shichika
Yasuri, Seventh Master of the Kyotoryu, and Togame the
Schemer have barely started on their journey, but I plan to
send them plenty of other places that I love, or haven’t
been able to visit. take’s illustrations bringing those scenes
into the visual realm is something I look forward to
throughout the writing process. With that, I draw Sword
Tale─Book Two: Zanto the Razor to a close. The title of Book
Three is…um, what was it again? Oh yeah, Sento the Legion.
As always, I remain deeply thankful to all of you for
supporting this series.

NISIOISIN
 ■ ■

“This history is all wrong.”

Who said that?
Not sure.
Who was it?
When was it?
Can’t find the memory.
No─there was no memory to begin with.
“It’s nothing like what actually happened─it’s all wrong.
No part of it holds up against the facts. What a bunch of
malarkey. Wrong, wrong, wrong.”
It was a calm voice.
Calm1─but calamitous.2
Cool, but with the pensiveness of cool blue flame.
On and on.3
“Wrong─this version of history is unthinkable.
Completely different from how things were meant to be─it’s
not right. It’s just not right.”
Not right.
Different.
Wrong.
However repetitive, the voice was unerring.
Unhesitating.
“■■■.”
It called to me─
What did it call me?
Not sure.
The name─I threw away.
An old name, no longer mine.
A part of the discarded past that I could live without.
 “Trouble is, wrong as it may be, this history has its own
balance─■■■. It’s balanced, to perfection. Fully formed, at
equilibrium, like the surface of a quiet pond─so quiet you
almost think that you can walk across it.”
Only it’s not frozen over, the voice added morosely. One
step, and down you go.
Who are you?
Who the hell─are you?
I don’t know you.
“■■■, what do you think history is?”
You, a stranger, asking me.
I won’t answer.
I have no interest in answering.
Not for lack of understanding─although I don’t
understand.
But, in a way, I understood.
This was─a memory.
Not a memory I could remember, or was mine to have─a
reminiscence, nothing more. Why even answer─I was only
remembering.
In which case─
It was something that I threw away.
Just like the soundless name.
My memory─painted over black.
“Good answer,” the voice said.
How did─the me of memory answer?
That too, a memory.
A memory thrown away.
Good answer?
“Alright, here’s what I think, ■ ■ ■ ─we point to history
as proof that we lived. To prove we lived with gusto. You
see─”
The voice was kind.
But I knew it had another side.
That much, I knew.
That you─were very angry.
 “Things should take the shape they’re meant to take.”
The voice spoke forcefully.
Resolutely.
“ ■ ■ ■ ,” you said, “I think it’s time that pond
experienced some waves.”
Never know unless you try─you said.
Try?
You would stake your life on such a long shot,4 on such a
slim,5 no, far6 chance?
Right.
You must have known.
You had to know.
There would be no contest,7 no hope.8
You knew it best─and yet.
“I think I’ll toss a stone into that nice, quiet pond─to see
what kind of ripples I can make, and to prove that no matter
how still its surface, it’s only water.”
And thanks to that.
How many do you think will die?
Not only foes.
Your allies─how many?
Your people─how many?
That, too─you knew.
But said you didn’t.
“What will happen─is beyond me. Hard to say. Maybe
nothing will happen, and nothing will change, and the
struggle will be in vain. After all, I’m part of this history, so
righting wrongs won’t be easy. At the very least, though, I
can expose them as wrongs.”
Unrightable wrongs.
Can be exposed as wrongs.
Really?
“■■■.”
Again─you call my name.
 Then you repeat, as if to convince yourself─as if you,
too, would be swallowed by some tidal wave otherwise.
“This history is all wrong.”
Still, after all.
I have forgotten it.

■ ■

─Well! Enough of these teasing ruminations!

The next stop on this Sword Hunt is Izumo.
You can’t have Izumo without miko,9 and you can’t have
miko without Izumo!
Izumo belongs to them─exclusively, let’s hope!
As in “Hack and slash!10 Their decoupage11 hobby,”
thank you?
Must we begin with such vocabulary?
No blood, no tears─just laughs!
Behold this bizarre blunder of a history!
Tale of the Sword: Book Three ♪

1 淡 々 TANTAN evokes the placidness of fresh or shallow water 2 炎 々 EN’EN

burning bright; identical to above but for the three marks, which denote
water 3 延 々 EN’EN ad nauseum 4 い ち か ば ち か ICHIKA BACHIKA “one or
eight” originally a gambling term 5 十中八九 JUCCHŪ HAKKU (odds of) “eight
or nine out of ten”
6 万が一 MAN GA ICHI “one in ten thousand”
7 敵う KANAU to rival 8 叶う KANAU to be granted 9 巫女 MIKO shrine maiden(s)
10 切った張ったの大騒ぎ KITTA HATTA NO ŌSAWAGI “big commotion of knifing
and plastering”
11 張 り 絵 HARIE “glued picture” vs. the more common spelling 貼 り 絵 HARIE
collage
 ■ ■

In present-day Japan, Izumo would fall within the eastern

portion of Shimane.
From time immemorial, the gods have gathered
there─so legend has it. This is the reason, so well-known it
hardly deserves mention, why Kannazuki,1 the tenth month
of the lunar calendar, is known strictly within Izumo as
Kamiarizuki.2 If you were to peruse the Record of Ancient
Matters or The Chronicles of Japan, you would find a slew of
myths taking place in Izumo. For in this era─nay, in any era
of any history, it has deserved its reputation as a sacred
place. And smack dab in the middle of Izumo─stood Triad3
Shrine, in all its grandeur.
Triad Shrine.
Overseen by one Meisai Tsuruga,4 owner of Sento the
Legion,5 the next sword Togame the Schemer and Shichika
Yasuri, Seventh Master of the Kyotoryu, were hoping to
collect.

■ ■

“…Hey, Togame. I forgot to ask before─this Sento the

Legion, the third of the Twelve Possessed among the
thousand Mutant Blades created by Kiki Shikizaki─is it, like,
actually legion?”
“Yes,” Togame answered Shichika’s meandering query
with a forthright confirmation. “A thousand swords in one
bunch. Hence the name.”
 “Okay, I know I might sound like a dumbass taking issue
with the Shikizaki legend so far into this, but wouldn’t that
mean there are more of the Possessed than the nine
hundred and eighty-eight swords he supposedly made for
practice?”
If the Legion was a thousand swords, weren’t there one
thousand and eleven of the Possessed, instead of twelve?
Shichika wanted to know─but Togame had another point to
make.
“You do sound like a dumbass. A dumbstruck wiseass6
to use the full7 term.”
“Um, I don’t think it’s short for anything.”
Shichika had thought it a worthy observation, but her
reaction was icy.
“A thousand swords in one─if that is its selling point, so
it must be. The two swords we already collected had their
own special characteristics, did they not? Shichika. Tell me
you haven’t forgotten.”
“Well, the first one, Zetto the Leveler, was so tough it
could never bend or break…hardness. Then there’s Zanto
the Razor, whose edge can cut through anything in the
world in a single swing…sharpness.”
“Correct,” Togame nodded. “And the third, Sento the
Legion, was forged to be overwhelmingly many…
numerousness. Hence a thousand─but a thousand in one.”
“That’s some crazy bargain sale…”
And Shichika was the dumbass here?
But Togame went on unperturbed. “There’s a saying─no
two swords in this world are alike. There’s some truth in
that. Two swords can never be made in the same
environment, under the same conditions, with the same
factors at play─and even if the same swordsmith hammers
them in the exact same way, the product will inevitably be
different. Mere lookalikes. Siblings, in their own way, but by
no means twins.”
 “Huh… Wait, then─”
“Yes. Kiki Shikizaki liked to experiment. You could say he
was competitive, or that he loved to push the limits of the
possible. Point being, all thousand swords making up the
Legion─are perfectly identical.”
In material. In weight.
And in their edge─in every way.
“So physically, the exact same sword.”
“You may recall me telling you that Kiki Shikizaki did not
design his swords to be expendable. The Legion would
perhaps be the exception. If one bends or breaks, you still
have nine hundred and ninety-nine left on hand. Expendable
to the extreme.”
“Hmm…they say a good katana takes some time to get
used to. When it degrades, a swordsman is weaker until he
grows familiar with a new blade,” Shichika recited a bit of
secondhand knowledge. “But I guess if the next sword is
perfectly identical, you’re already familiar with it…and don’t
have to spend time figuring it out.”
“Precisely…that’s one way to put it. You could also say
that of the thousand Mutant Blades, only the Legion is─an
ordinary katana.”
“Ordinary… Yikes. That’s what ordinary means for Kiki
Shikizaki?”
“His sheer inability to do ordinary things in ordinary
ways was what made him so extraordinary. When a normal
attempt, too, engenders the abnormal─you would be Kiki
Shikizaki, the legendary swordsmith.”
“So this sword is normal to the extreme… Expendability
is what makes it special, and that’s why its name is…
Legion.”
Killer metal.8 Made to be broken.
“But expendable as they may be, follow procedure when
capturing the thousand swords. Not one among the bunch
shall be bent or broken. Do you hear me, Shichika?”
 “Yep, loud and clear. Thanks for the warning. They’ll be
fine. But Togame─if that’s the only special thing about the
Legion, I can’t see how it should be a problem. It’s like the
Razor─there might be tons of them, but it’s just a normal
sword for me. Because of the rule about not harming any,
the swordsman won’t be replacing them. A thousand or no,
you can only use two max at a time─which gives me a
chance to show you how the Kyotoryu tackles the dual
wield.”9
“I’m afraid it won’t be easy,” Togame said, “tackling one
thousand opponents.”
“Huh?!”
Shichika was so startled that he almost dropped
Togame─but at the last second, he took a knee and caught
her midair. Her face was so petrified she couldn’t even
scream.
“Y-You idiot!” she finally shouted. “If I fell from all the
way up here, I would die! What are you trying to do, kill me?
I would be banged up beyond all recognition by the time I
arrived at the bottom of the mountain!”
“Yeah, Komori of the Maniwacs is about the only one
who could survive such a fall…”
Shying from Togame’s piercing voice, Shichika turned
his head slightly to look behind him─at the stone steps of
the staircase he was climbing. On their way up they had
passed through several torii,10 but the gate down at the
trailhead was hidden in the mist.
Not like anyone was counting─but at this point in their
nearly linear, precipitous ascent, Shichika had climbed
around six hundred stairs. Over halfway there. The final
stretch.
Their destination was Triad Shrine.
It was a thousand steps up to the building complex.
Officially, Mt. Taizan,11 upon which the Triad Shrine was
erected, fell within its limits─but its premises were generally
understood to be the building complex atop the thousand
steps, beyond the final torii.
At first, Togame had been so intrepid.
Adamant about climbing on her own.
Her resolve had crumbled somewhere around the
hundredth step. Dear readers, determine, wise as you are,
whether such a number represents a failure or a victory, but
after starting off with no shortage of confidence, she was
considerably disappointed. Undexterous as she may be, this
was the woman who had walked across Inaba Desert to
Gekoku Castle. Purely in terms of stamina, she was not
about to lose to anyone─but walking on flat ground and
walking on a staircase work completely different muscles.
And there was something ineffable about the steepness of
these steps. When she gave up at the hundredth stair, she
was facing the facts.
“Shichika,” she had gasped. “Sorry, this is too much.
Carry me.”
“…”
What a weakling!
Whether or not Shichika thought so, he asked, “Um…
you want a piggyback ride?”
“Ugh, how can you be so shameless?”
“Shameless?”
“You’re asking me to hug a man from behind.”
“Yeah, so what?”
“Our bodies would be touching. That’s what.”
“So what?” Shichika looked genuinely confused. “If you
don’t want to piggyback, you can sit on my shoulders.”
“Cheerio!”
Togame punched him in the face. Soft as her fist was,
any punch to the face is going to sting, at least a little─but
the fact that Shichika chose not to dodge it (as unbelievably
slow as it was, by his standards) perhaps proved his
dedication. Or maybe he was a masochist.12
 “Sit on your shoulders? Creep! Piggyback is one thing,
but ride on your shoulders? That’s no way for a grown man
and woman to behave!”
“Huh? Back on the island, me and my sister always─”
“Always?”
“…Forget it.”
Catching the fury in Togame’s eyes, Shichika decided to
stop talking. It was probably the ethical choice.
“What do you want me to do, then? If it’s shameless for
our bodies to be touching, how am I supposed to carry you?
You’ll have to climb up by yourself…”
“Fool. I am the Schemer,” Togame asserted, soaked in
sweat. “I have the perfect solution.”
─And.
This perfect solution entailed Shichika holding out his
arms and supporting Togame as she lay sideways─a bridal
carry13 as it is known today, neither of them thought of it as
such. Even taking Togame’s noble heritage into
consideration, this was a little much. No one who saw them
would have guessed they were employer and employee.
Of all the ways to carry a person, this was the hardest,
but Shichika walked the next five hundred steps of the
staircase with astonishing14 ease, chatting all the way. All
the same, it was far from unreasonable for Togame to shout
the way she had, upon nearly falling (with six hundred steps
stretching below them) from such a precarious posture.
In that moment, she only refrained from socking him
and yelling “Cheerio!” because it would have been dreadful,
after his save, to be the cause of her own demise. In due
course, every instance of the exclamation would come back
to haunt her, so its omission here may be a tiny victory in its
own right.
But there are still two books to go before Togame learns
that she meant “Chesuto.”
“Off…we go.”
 Shichika stood from his knee, adjusting Togame’s
position. Once he found one that felt comfortable for her
and was easy for him to maintain, they began to climb the
stairs again.
He wanted to return to their conversation but had lost
its thread. While he was trying to remember, Togame helped
him out.
“I’d expected you to retort, ‘Tackling one thousand
swords, you mean.’ What shall we do with you?”
Ah yes. The opponents.
“I could have sworn I already told you there would be a
thousand miko.”
“Huh? You did?”
“Yes. I did.”
She had. It’s right there, at the end of Book Two.
“…In that case, I didn’t forget, I must not have caught it
when you said it.”
“How many times have I told you to listen to me? Not
that I could have divulged more, had you asked me at that
point.”
“Classified?”
“Classified.”
“At that point, yeah, but what about now, Togame?
Come on, seriously─a thousand opponents? When you first
told me about the Twelve Possessed, I thought you said they
had twelve owners.”
“I did. But fear not. The setup hasn’t changed midway or
anything, not regarding this matter. I knew about it from the
beginning.”
“Not regarding this matter…”
Had anything else?
Changed midway.
“The Legion has only one owner─Meisai Tsuruga,
mistress of the shrine.”
“Meisai Tsuruga. Never heard of her.”
 “It would be weird if you had, island monkey─anyway,
among the owners who are known, she is an outlier,
basically a nobody. Not being a swordsman.”
“Not a swordsman, huh.”
Shichika did not look pleased.
The Kyotoryu may be swordplay minus the sword, but in
general, the opponent was presumed to be a swordsman.
While it would be pointless to attempt a fair comparison, if
Shichika were forced to say who had been a greater
challenge between Komori Maniwa and Ginkaku Uneri, his
answer would be Komori. Not because he was stronger than
Ginkaku─but because he was a ninja rather than a
swordsman.
“Since the stage was going to be a shrine, I suspected
as much─but if there’s only one owner, how can there be a
thousand opponents?”
“Because Meisai is the Mistress of Triad Shrine,
obviously. The size of this place puts it in another league
from all the other shrines in Izumo─she can easily employ a
thousand miko. And every one of them protects a piece of
the Legion.”
“Ah, okay. We saw a bunch of the ladies, on the way
here.”
“Yep,” Togame admitted. “I didn’t want you to get
worked up, so I kept quiet─but that was them. The
Kuromiko,15 protectors of the Legion.”
“…”
So it was them.
Those girls.
After entering Izumo─which was nothing without miko,
just as the miko would be nothing without Izumo!─Shichika
and Togame had happened upon maybe a dozen of them
along the road to Mt. Taizan─and in a way befitting of their
name, each Kuromiko cut a striking figure.
Caparisoned in vestments of black.
 Faces veiled by white talismans, as if they were Chinese
revenants.16
But foremost─they carried swords.
Those were it, then.
“We’ve seen all kinds of characters since leaving Kyoto,
but they gotta be the weirdest ones…so they’re who I’ll be
fighting this time around. But Togame, I know you didn’t
want me getting worked up or whatever, but shouldn’t you
have said something? We passed at least like ten of them─if
you had spoken up, we could have snagged at least that
many by now.”
“This is precisely what makes you an idiot.”
“Okay.”
“And why you have no personality.”
“O-Okay.”
“And why you are so far from florid.”
“O…O-O…Okay.”
She was really digging in.
But ironically, in a bridal carry, her every utterance only
came across as a flirtation.
“Use your head. What good is ten swords out of a
thousand? Need I repeat, the Legion represents all thousand
swords collectively. Why provoke them and make things
harder on yourself?”
“I see─your point.”
But there were still a thousand enemies to reckon with.
It was mind-boggling, but wouldn’t they need to collect
one sword at a time anyway, just as a thousand-mile
journey started with a single step?
“Well, there may be a thousand enemies, but the Legion
has but one owner─Meisai Tsuruga. If I engage in some
diplomacy, doors will open.”
“Ah…more diplomacy.”
“What? Feeling confident enough to best a thousand
alone?”
 “Not exactly.”
Legend had it that Kinkaku Uneri, ancestor of Ginkaku
and owner of the Razor, cut down ten thousand men during
the Great Sword Hunt enacted by the Old Shogun─but this
was not the Age of Warring States, and from Shichika’s
standpoint in the pacific17 climes of the Owari Bakufu,
facing a thousand foes was simply inconceivable. To tell
Togame whether he was confident or not, first he would
need to grasp the concept.
And yet.
All this aside, Shichika had his doubts about Togame’s
capacity for diplomacy. When she offered Shichika a job, as
when they met Ginkaku Uneri, her negotiations ended in
failure. To make matters worse, the two people she had
hired before Shichika─Komori Maniwa, one of the Twelve
Bosses of the Maniwa Clan, and Hakuhei Sabi, the Strongest
Swordsman in Japan─had both stabbed her in the back.
She was certainly clever─and since crossing over from
the island, he had learned enough about the world to see
how improbable it was for someone as young as her, and for
a woman at all, to hold a rank like Grand Commander of
Arms─yet her cleverness failed to gain them much traction18
in practice.
As a military strategist, her job was to command the big
picture. Perhaps she was simply unaccustomed to getting
involved on a more personal level. That was Shichika’s
impression.
She read him like a book.
“I can tell when you are questioning my authority,” she
said, “but fear not. Unlike with Uneri, the odds are in our
favor.”
“You sure?”
“Third time’s a charm─and now we have the Leveler and
the Razor. That’s why.”
“That’s why…”
 “That’s why─diplomacy might work.”
Togame laughed conclusively, making it difficult for
Shichika to persist. He had long decided to leave
negotiations to her and was aware he lacked even enough
cleverness for it to fail him. They say that big men are all
brawn and no brains─and young Shichika Yasuri was the
spitting image of this maxim. They also say the brains of
small men are nothing special─but Togame being female,
the maxim is irrelevant.
“As it is, Triad Shrine is an organization. Negotiating will
be easy.”
“Organization, huh. Do they have any connection to the
bakufu?”
“What makes you think they would?”
“Well, I heard somewhere that someone in the bakufu
was in charge of managing the shrines and temples… Was it
the magistrate19 or something?”
“Hmph. I’m impressed that you would know a thing like
that.”
Togame reached up and petted Shichika on the head.
She had meant the gesture to be condescending, but
riding in his arms, the princess bride looked downright
affectionate. Not a mood you would expect from two
pilgrims heading up a sacred staircase toward a shrine.
And by the way, Shichika looked genuinely happy being
petted.
He was a simple man.
“You must have mentioned it when you were talking
about the Katana Buddha.”
“Ah yes, that’s possible.”
The Katana Buddha─that holy statue found at Seiryoin
Gokenji Temple, on Mt. Sayabashiri in Tosa.
The work of the Old Shogun─old, from our
perspective─who just before the advent of the current
bakufu had prevailed over the warring states and unified the
nation. The hundred thousand swords that were seized, by
his decree, over the course of the Great Sword Hunt were
melted down and cast into a giant buddha. Constructing the
statue was of course only a cover for the Great Sword Hunt,
the real motive of which was to gather all thousand of Kiki
Shikizaki’s Mutant Blades, said to have reigned over the
warring states from behind the scenes─
It had been well over a hundred years. Togame was
attempting to round up the twelve swords even the Old
Shogun could not collect.
Shichika, who had been raised in isolation, without
knowledge of the world, and no faith of his own, was
sufficiently fascinated by Seiryoin Gokenji Temple, and its
reputation among swordsman as a holy site, to remember
these details, and little else, from what he had been told
along the journey.
“Indeed, the Magistrate of Shrines and Temples is in
charge of managing them─but it is no simple chore.20 If it
was a temple, fine, but this is a shrine.”
“Huh. Aren’t they basically the same? I mean, they’re
both religion.”
“You’re one to think so. What’s the best way to explain
this─actually, it may not even be necessary…”
But Togame went on.
She thought it best to outline the fundamentals.
“You just lumped them together as religion, but…
There’s Buddhism. Then there’s Christianity,21 the practice
of which has been banned in Japan. Then there’s Islam,
deemed one of the world’s three major religions along with
the first two. And don’t forget Confucianism, on the
continent… In most cases, when we say religion, we mean a
set of teachings─yet Shinto22 is not a teaching, but a way.
That’s worth keeping in mind.”
“…?”
Teaching. Way.
 Shichika did not understand the difference.
Not actually expecting him to, Togame wrapped things
up without fielding any questions. “Basically, it’s hard for
the bakufu to order the shrines around─especially in a place
like Izumo, haven of the gods. They have
extraterritoriality23─or even autonomy.”
“That so.”
“That is so. If it weren’t, we would have forced them,
organization or not, to hand over the Legion. The fact that
this was not an option is why we have stopped here, on our
journey, to collect.”
“Gotcha. But what about during the Old Shogun’s Great
Sword Hunt? Was the Mistress of Triad Shrine the owner
back then, too? An ancestor of Meisai Tsuruga, just like with
Uneri?”
“I’m afraid not. The exact details are unclear, but
apparently Meisai Tsuruga already owned the Legion when
she took over Triad Shrine… Despite its size, grand even
among the shrines of Izumo, it is not mainstream24─but it
was not until her arrival that the place became a fortress.”25
“A fortress… You can tell from the looks of those miko
that it isn’t. Those black costumes make them way more
striking than your average miko.”
“Yes. Which brings us finally to what makes Triad Shrine
unique…although honestly, since you’re about to see it for
yourself, I won’t say much. Once we’ve arrived, leave the
diplomacy to me. Even with a thousand miko─I’ll make sure
you’ll wind up fighting Meisai one on one, if worse comes to
worst.”
“That’s the worst case?”
“Avoiding combat altogether would be ideal─but if that
were possible, we wouldn’t be going to all this trouble.
Remember what happened with Uneri. The venom of the
Shikizaki blades─is no joke.”
 “I know. But take it easy with your negotiations. If we
could avoid fighting altogether, there’d be no reason for me
to be here. I have a hard time picturing fighting a thousand
people at once, but if you tell me to, I’ll do it.”
“…”
Togame could have interpreted these words, which
came so easily to Shichika, as an expression of selfless
loyalty and felt a stirring of the heart─but what they evoked
in her was nothing so emotional.
If you tell me to, I’ll do it.
It was no lie or bluff. In fact, in just such a manner, he
had vanquished both Komori Maniwa and Ginkaku Uneri. He
did whatever Togame told him to do.
Words like “vanquish” had a nice ring to them─but it
was also plain murder, under the aegis of shogunate decree.
Bloodshed.
In fighting Komori, there had been at least some
element of proper self-preservation─but what about Ginkaku
Uneri? He was a bad man, with a bad cause, doing bad
things─but did that allow them to take his life, just so they
could take away his sword?
It was Togame who had ordered it.
She recognized their Sword Hunt was basically a
sanctioned form of robbery, backed by the powers that be.
Which is why she emphasized diplomacy─even when it was
meaningless to try. She didn’t need anybody telling her that
not all battles could be avoided─nevertheless, she tried. Not
just with the Razor. The first time she rounded up the
Leveler, working together with Komori, and the time she
rounded up the Whisper, with Hakuhei Sabi, things had
started diplomatically.
She knew she was a hypocrite.26
Hopelessly apart from justice.
Nevertheless─her mission required definition.
And diplomacy gave it definition.
 For reasons of ambition and revenge, Togame had no
choice but to see her mission through─her position was far
more desperate than it seemed from the sidelines.
She had gone as high as she could go.
Her only hope of getting any higher was to hatch the
ultimate scheme. She had to accomplish the impossible,
and collecting Kiki Shikizaki’s errant masterpieces, a feat
not even the Old Shogun had been able to accomplish, fit
the bill.
And so, she was ready to risk everything.
She had abandoned everything before.
And was prepared to throw it all away again.
“…”
“Togame. What’s wrong? Tell me.”
“No─it’s nothing.”
Right. It was nothing. Throwing everything away again
was nothing.
Yet─what was the deal?
Shichika Yasuri had no agenda and nothing to lose─he
was unencumbered by questions of righteousness and
definition or ambition and revenge.
He cut down Komori and Uneri without hesitation.
A sword in and of himself.
A katana will choose its owner.
But not who to kill.
And the Kyotoryu was a katana incarnate.
What made him reliable made him terrifying.
Togame seriously had her doubts─did this sheltered
island boy have what it takes to engage in burglary and
savage warfare? Wouldn’t his purity stop him from
committing murder? You could say his fight with Ginkaku
Uneri at Gekoku Castle had been a touchstone.27 And based
on the results, he passed with flying colors.
Flying perhaps too high.
His lack of hesitation smacked of the inhuman.
 He needed to be that─it had been true of Komori
Maniwa and Hakuhei Sabi, who preceded him. Komori and
Sabi were fine with killing; they practically whistled28 while
they worked.
And yet─both men must have had their own agendas, or
else abandoned something to become who they were.
Not so for Shichika.
Shichika was not broken─but he could kill.
If abnormality meant that a normal attempt, too,
engendered the abnormal─then Shichika was not that. He
was a normal guy. He laughed normally, yelled normally,
cried normally─and killed normally. He could act broken
normally─that was the kind of swordsman Togame had
hired.
While he may have lacked a personality─he said bizarre
things like they were hunky, and did bizarre things like they
were dory.29
For instance, after his battle with Ginkaku Uneri─on the
road to Izumo, during one of their lighter chats, he had said
to Togame, “Good thing Uneri had no relatives,” in the
sincerest of tones. “No one will be sad, now that he’s dead.”
She had considered responding to his remark, uttered in
a genuinely kindhearted manner, but thought the better of
it.
There was a facet of truth to what he said.
But this truth─it was not anything for him to say.
Sheltered island boy.
The purity of his upbringing─perversely insulated him
from ethics and morality. He was unable to tell right from
wrong. He would do whatever he was told to do.
He really meant it when he said so.
Even the miko, servants to the gods30─he would shred
them, without a thought. He may or may not beat all
thousand─but needed not the slightest conviction to kill any
opponent, swordsman or woman or not.
 Even if she told him the backstory31 of the Kuromiko.
He would kill them.
Could sheltered, in a single word, explain everything
away?
He may have been fine for the Age of Warring States.
But in a world at peace, his presence was conspicuous.
It was fine this time.
In a pinch, so far as the bakufu was concerned, it was
not a problem if he killed Meisai Tsuruga─and the thousand
Kuromiko, while he was at it.
Their backstory─consigned them to such a fate.
And yet─it mattered none to Shichika whether or not
there was a problem. They could be a person whose killing
would cause problems─they could have relatives, enough to
pack a funeral─but if he were told to kill somebody, he
would kill.
Was this good or bad? Oh, it was good.
Was it good or evil? Evil, certainly.
But Togame had known this.
Known the Kyotoryu was such a school, from the
beginning─of her life.
She knew─because this was how Shichika’s departed
father, Mutsue Yasuri, late master of the Kyotoryu─had
murdered her father.
For this very reason─their kind did not betray, and would
never stab her in the back like Komori or Sabi.
A katana, having chosen its owner, could not.
But in her management of Shichika, Togame the
Schemer would do well never be too sure─she prided herself
on being unarmed, but in hiring the Kyotoryu, she had made
a big exception. For the most part, it was a good thing for
Togame that Shichika was not a loose cannon, but rather the
surest of swords…and yet she had to take pains not to
drown in it. She would be no better then. No different from
those on whom she swore to take revenge.
 Which is why she could not be careless with her word.
Regardless of how it was for Shichika─regardless of how
he was, for her part Togame had to go into this with the
utmost conviction.
“…heh.”
A gentle laugh. Laughing at the way she was, out of self-
deprecation? Not quite. Shichika had adjusted his grip for
the bridal carry and grazed her side in a way that tickled.
“Stop it! Creep.”
“Huh? Whuh, what?”
“Ugh…”
She had lashed out, but it had been an accident.
She would bury the hatchet.32
Three months.
It had been that long since he and Togame had teamed
up, and she had long since confirmed that when it came to
things romantic, Shichika was a puritan.33 Her clarity on this
matter made burying the hatchet easy.
At this point, the keen Schemer was beginning to realize
that lounging like a princess bride was not the most
becoming way to travel. Riding on his shoulders was out of
the question, but a piggyback ride might have been
preferable… With all her layers, there was no way that he
could feel her body against his back. But this arrangement
had been her idea, and she could hardly renege on it now.
Meanwhile, Shichika was simply thinking how this was
no easy way to carry her. Yet, since his muscles more than
compensated for any difficulty, the thought barely
registered.
This style of portage wasn’t bringing them any closer.
“Okay, so if things work out─or as you say, if worse
comes to worst, and I wind up fighting Meisai Tsuruga one
on one, what then? What kind of moves does she have? She
might not be a swordsman─but doesn’t she at least use a
sword?”
 “Truth be told, I’m not so sure,” Togame said. “She’s
basically a nobody, and none of us knows much about what
happens in Izumo─but like you said earlier, apart from
having strength in numbers, the Legion is nothing special,
no more than a first-rate katana. In a faceoff, you’ll have the
advantage.”
“Damn right.”
But Shichika remained uneasy, not knowing anything
about his foe─and said as much.
“What did Meisai do before taking over this shrine? That
might give us a clue.”
“She was a brigand.”34
“Huh…” Shichika responded vaguely. Having grown up
on an island, the word must have meant little to him.
Still, a brigand. Or a former brigand, anyway.
Which made her fine to kill─as far as the regnant bakufu
was concerned.
“Since the time of the Great Sword Hunt and the Old
Shogun, the Legion was held by the chieftain35 of a certain
group of brigands. Over several generations. I don’t know
what kind of moves the chieftains used─but whatever they
were, they were enough to keep the Old Shogun from
seizing the sword.”
“Huh. Where are the brigands now?”
“They disbanded when Meisai took over the
shrine─evidently.”
“From that to working at a shrine? Why the change of
heart─I’d like to know. Oh yeah, I meant to ask you─among
the Twelve Possessed, there was one called Soto the Twin,
right? To guess from the name, that one’s paired… After
tackling a thousand-in-one sword, I have to deal with some
dual combo?”
“Funny. Little is known of Soto, what manner of sword
the Twin is… For the sake of my report to the bakufu, I can
only pray36 for something more exciting than a mere set of
two.” But this was only sarcasm. You could never tell with
Shichika, but Togame was not being serious. “Anyway,
there’s no use thinking so far ahead. It remains to be seen
whether we even make it there. Even after safely capturing
the Legion, we’ll have our fair share of problems to solve.
Foremost being how to ship the swords back to Owari─I still
haven’t figured that one out.”
“Yeah, you were saying that.”
“The Leveler and the Razor were taxing enough, but this
will be another headache. What to do─hmm.”
Togame looked pensive.
Pensive, and yet reclining like a princess bride.
When something around a hundred steps remained, she
would concoct a compelling reason and have him let her
down, to climb the stairs on her own. She could hardly arrive
at Triad Shrine in the arms of her retainer.37 When she would
be engaging in diplomacy on behalf of the bakufu, it would
not do to have her adversary think lightly of her─and luckily,
the strength had mostly returned to her legs by now.
 “Shichika. About how far have we come?”
“Huh? I’d say eight hundred steps or so.”
His stores of energy brimming over, he answered
Togame’s question with the most pedestrian of expressions.
He had a better complexion than before their way up the
mountain, as if he had benefitted from a modest amount of
exercise. There was no limit to the power of this hearty
youth.
“Good. In that case.”
Togame meant to express her intention to ascend the
rest of the stairs on her own, but that became unnecessary.
They had not exactly lucked out.
Better to say they were out of luck.
Eight hundred, Shichika had estimated, and under the
torii situated at, in fact, the eight hundred and fiftieth
stair─a figure stood sweeping dead leaves with a bamboo
broom.
In miko vestments of black.
And yet─unlike the shrine maidens in the world below.38
Only her hakama, covering her lower body, was black.
Her face was not hidden by a talisman.
She was not carrying a sword.
But what truly set her apart─was her demeanor.
Radiating, effortlessly, the singular aura of a sanctum-
dweller who stood entirely apart from the Kuromiko and all
the other denizens of the world below─she worked her
broom. The stairs had been so steep they had not noticed
her until they were this close─which made it seem as if she
had appeared out of thin air.
Stunned, Shichika nearly dropped Togame for the
second time─thankfully or otherwise, it was not the first,
and she managed to throw her arms around his neck,
almost clinging to him.
In that posture, which did not lend itself to ready
explanations.
 They encountered39 Meisai Tsuruga, the third adversary
on their Sword Hunt.
“How do you do?”
Her voice, coming at them from above, defied
description.
In how chilly it sounded.

1 神無月 KAN’NAZUKI “month when the gods are absent”

2 神有月 KAMIARIZUKI “month when the gods are present”
3 三 途 SANZU “trinity” of hell’s punishments: getting (1) scorched, (2)

cannibalized, and (3) harried with swords and staves by hungry spirits 4 敦賀
迷彩 TSURUGA MEISAI 敦賀 a major port town of old, in present-day Fukui 迷
彩 camouflage 5 千刀 SENTŌ TSURUGI “The Thousand Katana: Brand”
6 薮から棒、 YABU KARA BŌ, “(poking) a stick out of a bush” or non-sequitur…
7 略して野暮 RYAKUSHITE YABO “abbreviated as” 野暮 YABO boorish (antonym of
粋 IKI cool) 8 金 偏 に 殺 KANE HEN NI KOROSU “the radical for ‘metal’ plus
‘kill’” (yields TSURUGI brand) 9 二刀流対策 NITŌRYŪ TAISAKU “two sword-
style countermeasure”
10 鳥居 TORII “where the birds are”
11 大山 TAIZAN “big mountain”
12 被虐趣味 HIGYAKU SHUMI taste for taking abuse 13 お姫様抱っこ OHIMESAMA
DAKKO “princess hug”
14 舌を巻く SHITA WO MAKU “tongue-rolling” a gesture of amazement 15 黒巫女
KUROMIKO “dark shrine maidens”; echoes 黒ミサ KUROMISA Black Mass 16
大陸の妖怪 TAIRIKU NO YŌKAI “continental monsters/spirits”
17 太 平 TAIHEI peaceful e.g. 太 平 洋 TAIHEIYŌ the Pacific Ocean 18 空 回 り
KARAMAWARI to spin your wheels 19 寺 社 奉 行 JISHA BUGYŌ Edo-era
magistrate of temples and shrines 20 一筋縄 HITOSUJI NAWA a single length
of rope (would not get it done) 21 耶 蘇 教 YASOKYŌ “faith in the revived”
YASO is also a phonetic approximation of “Jesus” vs. キリスト教 KIRISUTOKYŌ
the modern term for Christianity 22 神 道 SHINTŌ “the gods’ way” The
aforementioned faiths all end in 教 KYŌ teaching; Shinto, like kendo and
other martial arts, ends with 道 TŌ/DŌ way 23 治 外 法 権 CHIGAI HŌKEN
outside the jurisdiction 24 本 流 HONRYŪ “main stream” 流 RYŪ flow: the
same character as in e.g. Kyotoryu 25 武 装 神 社 BUSŌ JINJA a militarized
shrine 26 偽善 GIZEN “fake goodness”
27 試金石 SHIKINSEKI “gold-testing stone”
28 鼻歌混じりに HANAUTA MAJIRI NI “with humming mixed in”
29 平 気 で … 平 左 に HEIKI DE…HEIZA NI plays on similarity between 平 気 HEIKI
“carefree” and 平 左 衛 門 HEIZAEMON, an old-fashioned male name 30 神
KAMI in Japanese, a noun on its own can be singular or plural, but Shinto is
polytheistic 31 正体 SHŌTAI true identity
32 矛先を収める HOKOSAKI WO OSAMERU stop pointing the tip of a spear or pole-
arm 33 朴念仁 BOKU NENJIN shunning adornments or otherwise stubborn 34
山賊 SANZOKU “mountain bandit” vs. 海賊 KAIZOKU “sea bandit” pirate 35 頭
目 TŌMOKU head of a group or clan 36 祈る INORU wish; supplicate
37 従者 JŪSHA follower
38 下 界 GEKAI low with respect to the heavens, casting Mt. Taizan as an
otherworldly realm 39 遭遇 SŌGŪ accidental meeting
 ■ ■

Meisai Tsuruga was a tall woman.

It was hard to say how old she was─she looked young,
but gave off a strange air of experience. Her abundant jet-
black1 hair, allowed to grow indefinitely, was tied back into
two trailing tails.
And that black miko costume.
Hers must have been a little different because she was
the mistress.
“Meisai Tsuruga was the name of the priest who
oversaw the shrine before me. I figured why not try it on for
size. My real name? Can’t remember. Or maybe I never had
one. Brigands have no use for names,” she said sociably.2

■ ■

With so much time on his hands, Shichika opted to take a

seat. For his bench, he chose the stairs they had ascended,
sitting on the thousandth step. This placed him directly
under the Grand Torii of Triad Shrine─a huge gate carved
from stone, and easily two or three times larger than those
they had passed through on their ascent. Shichika favored
heights, like hot air,3 as one might expect,4 and for an
instant he thought about scaling the torii to have a seat on
top (since at this point, he had yet to learn how strictly such
behavior was forbidden), but plenty satisfied by the view
straight down all thousand of the steps, he held off for now.
He had a look over his shoulder.
 The building complex5 was no less majestic than the
thousand stairs or the enormous torii. Triad Shrine was a
fastidiously kept example of gongenzukuri.6 Togame had
only just explained this was a kind of yatsumunezukuri7
where the honden8 is separated from the haiden9 by a patio
of stone─
But Shichika had soon forgotten all of that. All he saw
was majesty. This kind of an emotional response was not
beyond him. But then again, who could take the word
“majestic” as a compliment from him, when until recently,
his concept of architecture was limited to that ramshackle
hut on Haphazard Island.
Togame the Schemer and Meisai Tsuruga─the brigand
gone miko─had gone off together, to confer in the privacy of
the honden.
The time had come─for diplomacy.
“…Hrmm.”
Of course.
Shichika knew his presence would have resulted in no
benefit─since, as a rule, he was always in the way. At best,
he would butt in with a random comment and derail the
conversation. He understood why Togame had told him to
“Go play over there, Shichika”─if she wanted him to amuse
himself, alone, there were other ways she could have said it,
but whatever.
Still, scenes from last month passed through his mind.
Ginkaku Uneri. Lord of Gekoku Castle.
Master of Iainuki, withdrawn into his Danger Zone─
He had dared to draw his sword against Togame, a
servant of the bakufu, during that session of
diplomacy─Shichika had swooped in to the rescue, but in his
absence, Togame could have been sliced in two.
Proud as she was about being weak as shoji paper.
A schemer who had no use for weapons.
 All the more reason why his presence was essential. And
it was no less true during a round of diplomacy.
What about the venom of the Shikizaki blades?
Just having one will make you want to kill─
No.
That much was clear to her, too. If Shichika understood
something, then so much the more Togame─after what had
happened to her last month, she must have a solid strategy
in mind.
Besides, she had showed up at Haphazard Island on her
own─in terms of pluck, she came with a warranty.10
Shichika could worry all he wanted. Despite having
teamed up with him for the Sword Hunt, Togame would
probably never stop acting like she was going it alone. Even
Shichika, dim as he was, saw this.
And he was fine with it.
He was a sword.
A katana, by the name of Yasuri─of the Kyotoryu.
It was common practice to give up your sword ahead of
an important meeting─Shichika had learned this from their
diplomatic chat on Haphazard Island. His sister Nanami had
relieved Togame of the katana she had been carrying, out of
character. Which made his presence last month, at Gekoku
Castle, an exception.
Yeah, that was different.
Meisai Tsuruga and Ginkaku Uneri were nothing alike.
Uneri had been a drawn sword11─in perverse contrast to
his style of swordplay, the man himself was like a katana
whose scabbard had been lost. But Meisai was different. In
the first place─
Right.
She was not wearing a sword.
So long as she was not pulling a Komori and storing one
in her stomach─the Legion’s owner carried not a piece of
the thousand.
 The poison.
In that case, the sword’s poison─couldn’t reach her.
As they had ascended the remainder of the stairs
alongside Meisai, from the eight hundred and fiftieth step up
past the thousandth step, where Shichika was sitting now,
and proceeded onto the shrine grounds─Togame, resigned
to the horror of being witnessed in her posture, had not
ordered Shichika to put her down─the Mistress of Triad
Shrine had welcomed them with the openness and
congeniality one extends to friends of ten years standing.
Laughing heartily…
“Hahaha! From the bakufu? Sure you are─just kidding, I
believe you. This kind of a story is much more fun when you
believe it.”
Togame must have been planning out her diplomatic
hand all hundred and fifty of the steps. It would be going too
far to say she plumbed the essence of Meisai over the
duration of their climb, but the Schemer seemed ready to
decide on the course of conversation.
They would wind up fighting one on one, if worse came
to worst.
So Togame had predicted.
The lady doesn’t look so tough.
Meisai was tall, but only for a woman─next to Shichika,
her height was not an issue. It didn’t look like she spent
much time training. Of course, since he had met so few
people, he was not equipped to judge an opponent’s
prowess from her appearance.
Still, she didn’t carry a sword.
Did not carry one─was unarmed.
“Triad Shrine is still a shrine, but at this point, in name
only,” she had said on the steps. “There isn’t a single priest
left. No one but us miko─you’d call us a convent,12 if we
were a temple.”
 Shichika had tried asking Meisai about the strange
outfits he had seen the Kuromiko wearing in the world
below. Swordless, and without the white talisman with which
the others hid their faces, Meisei only came across as
strange because her hakama, ordinarily red, was black─yet
it underscored the eccentricity of the other maidens
encountered en route.
“They aren’t just down below. There’s more up here.”
It was hard to say whether it was intentional, but Meisai
had dodged his question by offering the irrelevant detail.
“Maybe fifty of them. We’re a fortress now─it’s part of
our duty to patrol the neighborhood. I have so many to take
care of, the only way to make room is to scatter them
around.”
When Togame had explained the situation, Shichika had
put two and two together and assumed the miko must be
friends of Meisai from her brigand days─but evidently, he
was wrong. Seven years back, when she took over the
shrine─she stepped out of the game entirely.
Supposedly she never saw those friends anymore.
Then again.
There was something odd about this shrine regardless.
Not mainstream, Togame had said.
“Man…”
He had not been subjecting his brain to anything too
difficult, but it had somehow filled up to capacity, and
Shichika keeled over, lying flat out on his back. If the torii
were a guillotine,13 he would be the star of a beheading.
And in that posture─a number of miko entered his field of
vision.
Kuromiko.
Like he’d seen below.
Miko─dressed head to toe in black.
It was hard enough for Shichika to tell people apart, but
when they wore the same clothes, carried swords in the
same fashion, and hid their faces with the same type of veil,
differentiating them was hopeless─any given one looked like
the rest. You did not have to be Shichika to think so. The
talismans hid their faces perfectly, and they all wore their
hair in more or less the same style.
“Convenient for a screen adaptation.”14
That was what Meisai had said.
Shichika had not caught her meaning.
Not if it’s live-action, Togame had taken issue with the
remark. Shichika had not understood this either. But maybe
that was for the best. Maybe he wasn’t supposed to.
But even if they looked basically the same, Shichika
could tell that the miko working on the upper compound
outranked the guards that they had seen below.
Which reminded him of something.
He had his worries about his boss Togame engaging in
diplomacy in a closed room with the enemy (and once
diplomacy was underway, things were out of his hands)─but
something else was eating him.
Sento the Legion.
All fifty of the Kuromiko who were tending to the
grounds─not like he had checked them all, but from the
looks of it, they were armed─had a sword slung from her
hip. Here and there, he saw one with her sword on the right,
instead of the left, but he guessed that only meant those
miko were left-handed.15
Those swords─were pieces of the Legion.
That’s what Togame had said, anyway.
And yet─something felt off to Shichika.
This, too, involved last month. The moment he beheld
Zanto the Razor at the hip of drowsy Ginkaku Uneri, in
Gekoku Castle─he could sense the sword was among the
Twelve Possessed of Kiki Shikizaki.
He was certain.
And as it turned out─he was right.
 At the time, he thought it was a hunch─knowing he
could easily be wrong, he had told himself not to make a
hasty judgment.
But when he brought it up with Togame, she suggested
that since Shichika was a swordsman, perhaps something in
him could sense the presence of a Shikizaki blade.
That would mean these things had souls,16 or some
similarly fantastical idea. Shichika acknowledged the
possibility. But this time─
He felt nothing.
When he saw the swords the Kuromiko carried, he felt
none of that sensation he experienced the month
before─neither the ones on the guards under the mountain,
nor the ones on the maidens up on the compound elicited a
special reaction.
They felt like─normal swords.
That was all.
Hmm.
He must have been pretty bored to fixate on a thing like
that. No doubt Togame had forgotten that exchange by
now─well, with her memory, it was unlikely she had actually
forgotten, but to be sure, it had not been grouped with her
important memories. Barring a reminder, she would
probably never think of it again. Her line about him sensing
a presence? She probably hadn’t meant anything by it.
But Shichika thought it had been an interesting idea.
Fantastical as it was.
Shichika believed it was possible─in fact, he hoped that
it was true.
That things had souls.
That katana could have souls─since after all.
Shichika Yasuri was a sword himself.
Still─yeah.
Togame had been absolutely sure, so the swords the
Kuromiko carried must be pieces of the Legion. They had to
be. Shichika decided that the lifeforce he sensed the first
time he saw the Razor was a figment of his imagination, and
promptly switched off his brain.
“Hey.”
When one of the Kuromiko happened to come near
Shichika’s spot─not because she had any business with him,
but simply trying to get by, so she could descend the
stairway─he went ahead and greeted her. If she seemed
friendly, he could ask about those talismans. With those
things covering their faces, did they ever have trouble
watching their step?
“…nkk!”
The Kuromiko shrank away and beelined17 in the
direction she had come from.
Shichika dropped his jaw.
No guy enjoys a girl running away from him when he
says hello, but Shichika was not equipped to feel that way.
Even so, he thought this odd behavior suspicious. Meisai
Tsuruga may call herself a miko, but she was the shrine’s
mistress. In which case, it was understandable that this
maiden would be scared of Shichika who was, after all, her
boss’s “enemy”─nevertheless, something weird was going
on.
That wasn’t hostility, at all─just fear.
But what was scary about Shichika?
Since he had yet to mention to Meisai that he was
Master of the Kyotoryu─the Kuromiko could not possibly
know who he was. What did an armed gal have to fear
about an unarmed guy lounging on the ground?
This shrine’s weird.
That there was no one here but miko meant that it
wasn’t functioning as a shrine, to begin with─Meisai had
said as much herself.
Shichika lost himself in a recollection of the time
Togame brought him to Yahata Shrine18 in Kyoto. He let his
eyes fall shut.
He would sleep here for a bit.
By the time he woke, the negotiations would surely be
over.

■ ■

She was led into a room floored with wood planking. On her
way, in the hallway to the honden, she had seen several
more of the Kuromiko, but it reassured Togame to find that
they had the room to themselves. Meisai was sincere, and
really did intend to speak with her in private, although
Togame had been wary of a sneak attack─
That said.
This woman was being straight with her─something
made Togame sure of that. It was fine to be wary…but she
probably had nothing to worry about.
“Well then.”
Meisai, who had entered the room first, sat herself
down, cross-legged on the floor, without a cushion.19 Then
she asked Togame to sit in front of her. Togame did as she
was told and sat, on her heels,20 facing Meisai.
“Nice hair, young lady,”21 Meisai commented to start
things off.
Togame’s hair was white down to the roots─it had not
been dyed or turned white over time─certain events had
made it that way. A young woman like her with completely
white hair was unforgettable. Togame was used to hearing
all about it. At this point, she thought nothing of it. However.
“I’m not young enough for you to call me young lady,”
Togame stated plainly.
She had already been caught comporting herself so
shamefully, lounging in the arms of Shichika, and could not
risk being taken any more lightly. Meisai had declared that
she believed Togame was from the bakufu, but did she
really? The woman was likely forming her opinion as they
spoke.
“But you are a young lady. In my eyes,” Meisai
contended. “I recognize, young lady, that you may not be as
young as you look─but neither am I as young as I appear.”
“…I’m sure.”
As I appear─unlike Shichika, Togame had great faith in
her ability to notice personal details, but could not guess
Meisai Tsuruga’s age. She was certainly older than Shichika
or Togame─but a precise estimate eluded the Schemer. Or
any estimate.
The former brigand─looked nothing of the sort.
True, her openheartedness was in line with the free and
easy roguery22 that gave the brigands their air of
romance─but there was something about her not of this
world.23
And yet an island monkey─she was not.
A shrine standing atop a thousand stairs could not be
further from the world.
But as the mistress of this shrine gone fortress, as the
guardian of Mt. Taizan and Izumo, it would be wrong to say
that she was truly separated from the world.
“Madame Meisai─”
“Take your time, dear─ah, there you are.”
Meisai gently blocked her visitor from diving into the
discussion. The door had opened, and a Kuromiko stepped
inside, toting a sizeable carafe24 of sake. Without a word,
she proffered it to Meisai and scurried from the room.
Meisai popped the cork, held the spout to her lips, and
guzzled sake with abandon. When she was through, she
placed the carafe in front of Togame.
“Drink up.”
“…”
 “On principle, I don’t discuss important matters with a
person who won’t drink with me.”
Clearly it isn’t poisoned─Meisai promised. Without
comment, Togame seized the carafe in both hands and took
a long, smooth draught.
A sacramental libation,25 it seemed.
Not a single god hates sake─or so they say.
But if Triad Shrine had stores of sacred sake to offer26 to
the gods, it was still an active shrine, in some capacity. Even
without priests, they were doing the bare minimum.
“You know how to drink.”
“Thanks.”
Meisai seemed amused. Togame placed the carafe on
the planking, with a thud, before dabbing at the corner of
her mouth.
“Are we good?”
Togame. Haughty as ever.
Call it diplomacy, but she had no intention of toadying
or groveling.
“Certainly. Now we’re friends. But why leave out the
boy?27 Doesn’t this concern him, too? He is your man, I take
it, young lady?”
“He is my sword,” quipped Togame. “On principle, if
whoever I am speaking with is not carrying a sword, I leave
my sword behind.”
“Your sword, huh.”
Meisai laughed.
…Togame was well aware that such a declaration carried
little weight after that shameful first impression. There was
no getting beyond a flub28 like that.
 “Well, young lady. To be frank, I know what you have
come here to discuss─the Mutant Blades of Kiki Shikizaki,
yes?”
Sento the Legion.
“…What makes you think that?”
“Factually speaking, the authorities have imposed upon
this self-governing territory only once in history─during the
Great Sword Hunt of the Old Shogun, needless to say.”
“…”
“When I was a brigand, my seniors often spoke─or
bragged, of the commotion of that era. As if they
themselves had contended with the Old Shogun…”
Meisai let her eyes fall shut, returning to her brigand
days.
“You announced yourself as the Grand Commander of
Arms, did you not? The odds are good you came here for
Sento the Legion.” She turned to face Togame. “Have you
launched another Sword Hunt? In that case, I’m not so sure
an army of two is going to cut it─”
“Close, though not exactly─but you have the right idea.
If my intentions are that clear to you, I can skip the
preliminaries.”
When they were ascending the stone steps, Togame
thought she was the one feeling out her hostess, but it was
mutual─if the subtle interrogations hadn’t begun at the
opening stage, Meisai would not have perceived their aim so
accurately.
“Our objective, as you have surmised, is to gather the
remaining Shikizaki blades─to round up the Twelve
Possessed that even the Old Shogun could not capture.”
“To what end?”
“Domestic tranquility,29 naturally.”
“Ahh.”
Meisai answered the shameless claim with an equal
share of shamelessness.30
 Duplicity─deception filled the air.
Togame knew this would not proceed like her
negotiations with Ginkaku Uneri─or with Shichika and
Nanami Yasuri back on Haphazard Island─obviously. Meisai
Tsuruga was a leader with a thousand people working under
her. But Togame the Schemer expected the difference to
make diplomacy more viable.
The truth is that she had not entered this meeting with
any kind of ironclad plan─her strategies were not nearly as
developed as Shichika trusted them to be.
It would even be fair to say she had nothing in mind. On
the contrary, how could she engage in diplomacy any other
way?
Otherwise─how could she be responsive?
Meisai was the owner of a Shikizaki blade.
Like the others─she was surely broken.
Togame had to allow for any outcome.
“To date, we have obtained two of the Twelve
Possessed.”
“Oh?”
Finally, something that was news to Meisai─and her
reaction demonstrated clear interest, exactly as Togame
hoped. This teaser of information would come in handy
later.
“We seized Zetto the Leveler from Rairaku Namida31 of
Mino─and Zanto the Razor from Ginkaku Uneri of Inaba,”
she continued. “As owner of Sento the Legion, I’m sure you
must have heard of them.”
“The Leveler, endowed with the absolute durability of a
perpetual motion machine, and the Razor, able to sever
anything in existence─of course I know them. Well done.”
Meisai seemed genuinely impressed. “Two swords even the
Old Shogun couldn’t catch─that’s quite the feat.”
By the way, Rairaku Namida was the original owner of
the Leveler, at least during their era. In truth, Togame had
obtained the Leveler from him with the help of Komori
Maniwa─but she declined to mention that she had
temporarily lost the sword thereafter, when Komori double-
crossed her. Such information would not help her case. Then
there was Hakuto the Whisper, captured from Senryo
Kizuki32 of Echigo but pinched not long after by Hakuhei
Sabi, the Strongest Swordsman in Japan─in another episode
she was not about to mention.
They had pursued two swords, and two swords they had
captured.
Image was important.
“Your sword, the Legion, would be our third,” Togame
said.
“Indeed it would─but young lady. I can’t imagine you
and your boy picked them up legitimately. What went down
during the Great Sword Hunt─”
“We would never resort to such barbarism.33 Times have
changed─and while I cannot wholly disagree with what you
said, please understand that we intend, if possible, to go
about our business peacefully.”
“If possible.”
“That’s right.”
Togame ignored Meisai’s sardonic remark.
Her sights were set.
“I remain a servant of the bakufu─and the affairs of
Izumo, regardless of its extraterritoriality, are not unfamiliar
to us. That includes everything happening on Mt. Taizan and
at Triad Shrine─both on the surface, and behind the scenes.
Madame Tsuruga─if you would be so kind as to relinquish
Sento the Legion, the bakufu could potentially be of service,
behind the scenes.”
“Ahh.”
Meisai could not have sounded more dismissive.
Was she just bluffing? It was unclear.
A former brigand─ministering to the divine.34
 Either way, she did not seem the type to respond to
elementary diplomacy. Or rather─the people of Izumo, an
independent territory since ancient times, had never
kowtowed to authority─be it the bakufu or the shogun’s
clan.
Autonomous─that made it sound like a good thing.
But in actuality, the nation had essentially abandoned
Izumo.
Saying it was for the best─let sleeping gods lie.35
Only during the Great Sword Hunt had the authorities
imposed upon Izumo─the Old Shogun had been fearless,
indeed.
He lived so long before Togame was ever born, but she
had to wonder.
What kind of a man was he, in person?
“Not a bad deal─if you ask me.”
“I’d call it a bargain,” Meisai agreed. “But it’s too
simple─and that ruins it.”
“What makes it too simple?”
“In my book, nothing is obtained in the absence of
resolve─but young lady,” countered Meisai, “you said
earlier, On principle, if whoever I am speaking with is not
carrying a sword, I leave my sword behind.”
“…”
“You did say that.”
“And?”
“You were half correct─and half mistaken. But in being
mistaken, too, you were a half part correct─which renders
you totally correct at the end of the day.”
“…You’re not making any sense.”
Meisai grabbed the carafe from where it sat before
Togame and took yet another swig. “It’s gobbledygook. Let
me ask you.”
“What about?”
 “Your boy, what else? Clearly you don’t have a sword
yourself. You’re not built for fighting─it looks like you don’t
have a muscle on you. But what’s up with him? You called
him your sword─yet from the looks of him, he’s unarmed…
Where’s this sword of his?”
“It’s just in his nature.”36
Togame felt uneasy but decided to disclose who
Shichika really was.
“His name is Shichika Yasuri. Seventh Master of the
Kyotoryu, Shichika Yasuri.”
“Seventh Master…Kyotoryu.” Meisai, who seemed to
know of the school, echoed the words. “The Kyotoryu,” she
did so once again after a pause. “Of course─that’s why you
called him a sword.”
“Almost too good37 of a sword,” noted Togame─as a
flourish of diplomacy, but there was truth in what she said.
“And with this sword, you cut down Rairaku Namida and
Ginkaku Uneri?”
“That’s right.”
These questions were meant to test her mettle, but
Togame answered without skipping a beat. Out of the two
personages, the Kyotoryu had been responsible for only
Ginkaku Uneri; Rairaku Namida had been offed38 by Komori
Maniwa, but since Shichika had subsequently killed Komori,
it was no great falsehood.
In terms of sowing terror─it was more effective.
“But make no mistake. In both cases, it was a proper
duel. To be honest, I have my qualms about what
transpired─but swordsmen, as a species, can speak only
through the sword.”
“Proper duel…that’s one way to put it. Abuse of
authority is another. But who knows─when you are
squabbling over Kiki Shikizaki’s swords, perhaps that is the
most appropriate course of action.”
 “I want to proceed peacefully. That is the honest-to-
goodness truth.39 You have my word. I want you to believe
me.”
“…Hero of the Rebellion, Kyotoryu. The Swordless
Swordsman,” Meisai muttered. It was not clear if she had
heard Togame. “I’m interested─no, I’m riled up about it. I
just have to know. In a clash between your boy’s Kyotoryu
and my Sentoryu─who would win?”
“Huh?”
Sentoryu?
What─the heck?
“To go back to what I was saying─about you being half-
right, half-wrong, half-right elsewise, and hence totally
correct. Still, you are fundamentally mistaken. Which
means─I’m the one who actually benefitted by it.”
“…You’re not making any sense.”
“Because it’s gobbledygook,” Meisai said. “Alright, that
settles it. Young lady─or, if you please, Togame the Schemer.
As the Mistress of Triad Shrine, Mt. Taizan, Izumo, I would be
fine with handing over Sento the Legion…as long as you’ll
abide a few conditions.”

■ ■

“Mm…”
Shichika awoke to approaching footsteps.
Togame stood right by his head.
Meisai Tsuruga was behind her.
It seemed like their diplomacy was over.
“How’d it go?” he asked─and meant it.
But Togame sounded disappointed.
“Worse came to worst.”
1 漆黒 SHIKKOKU the color of black lacquerware 2 気さく KISAKU good-humored,

in contrast with 奇 策 ( 士 ) KISAKU(SHI) Scheme(r) 3 煙 KEMURI smoke (also

said to favor heights per a Japanese saying: cats, and fools) 4 ごたぶんに漏れ
ず GOTABUN NI MOREZU not being an exception (see above note as to what
it implies) 5 社 YASHIRO Shinto shrine proper 6 権現造 GONGEN ZUKURI style
of shrine architecture incorporating stone 7 八棟造 YATSUMUNE ZUKURI style
of shrine architecture involving many rooves 8 本殿 HONDEN inner chamber
of a shrine, closed off to visitors 9 拝殿 HAIDEN chamber of the shrine where
prayers are made 10 折り紙つき ORIGAMI TSUKI “folded paper attached”
11 抜き身 NUKIMI bare blade
12 尼寺 AMADERA Buddhist nunnery
13 断頭台 DANTŌDAI “head-severing platform”
14 映像化 EIZŌKA to cinematize
15 左利き HIDARIKIKI “favoring the left”
16 魂 TAMASHII spirits
17 一目散 ICHIMOKUSAN “leave at one look”
18 八 幡 神 社 YAHATA JINJA the actual shrine is written the same but read 八 幡
HACHIMAN
19 座布団 ZABUTON “seat futon”
20 正座 SEIZA “formal sitting” legs folded underneath to maintain proper posture
21 お 嬢 ち ゃ ん OJŌCHAN a term of endearment used when addressing
younger women 22 自 由 闊 達 放 蕩 無 頼 JIYŪ KATTATSU HŌTŌ BURAI liberated
from society and prodigal with resources 23 浮世離れ UKIYO BANARE to exist
at a remove from the affairs of others 24 と っ く り TOKKURI a tall vessel,
narrow just before the pouring spout 25 お神酒 OMIKI “god sake”
26 供 物 と し て KUMOTSU TO SHITE as offerings 27 坊 や BŌYA kid; male

counterpart for お嬢ちゃん young lady 28 失点 SHITTEN “lost score”

29 国 家 安 寧 の た め に KOKKA AN’NEI NO TAME NI for the peace of the nation 30
白 々 し い SHIRAJIRASHII bald-faced 31 涙 磊 落 NAMIDA RAIRAKU 涙 NAMIDA
tears the characters in 磊落 RAIRAKU visually suggest many 石 ISHI stones 落
falling also part of the stock expression 豪 放 磊 落 GŌHŌ RAIRAKU (manly)
openness 32 傷木浅慮 KIZUKI SENRYO 傷木 KIZUKI “wounded tree” not a real
surname homophone of 気づき KIZUKI noticing (yet, ironically 浅 慮 SENRYO
imprudent) 33 横暴 ŌBŌ sweeping violence
34 神職 SHINSHOKU “god profession” usually, Shinto priest(ess) 35 触らぬ神にた
た り な し SAWARANU KAMI NI TATARINASHI “no retribution from untouched
gods”
36 質 TACHI disposition pun on 太刀 TACHI, progenitor of the katana 37 斬れ過ぎる

KIRESUGIRU cuts too well 38 屠 っ た HOFUTTA butchered, slain 39 本 心

HONSHIN “main heart”
 ■ ■

The extraterritoriality of autonomous Izumo was more than

a formality. Each one of the checkpoints1 set up along the
border was a veritable gauntlet. Passing through without the
proper clearance would have posed a steep challenge─or in
fact been flat-out impossible. Even Togame and Shichika,
who came backed by the powers of the bakufu, only made it
across after an elaborate inspection process.
And yet, if Togame and Shichika had arrived in Izumo
slightly later, they could have sidled through the checkpoint
as they pleased─it would have only taken seven more days.
The trouble started the day after they arrived at Triad
Shrine.
The checkpoint they had used when entering
Izumo─was destroyed.
The garrison installed there was annihilated. Dozens of
lives wasted.
Destroyed─devastated.
“If slipping by is not an option, I may as well cut my way
through.”
Skin drenched with blood, a man with noteworthy bangs
was strolling through the mass of corpses─having a ball.
“Ah, there we go, there we go, there we go─I love it
when I don’t need to sneak around. Good, good, good.”
Dressed in ninja garb, but with the sleeves torn off.
But wearing no mask, parading his face for all to see.
Chains wrapped around his body.
There could be no clearer tell─for a Boss of the Maniwa
Clan.
“Not a word from either of those guys, Komori or
Shirasagi─not like either of them needs the likes of me to
worry where they are─but by now, there’s a chance that
someone knocked them off when they were reaching for the
Shikizaki blades. Not sure about Shirasagi, but I know
Komori got one, Zetto the Leveler─if someone beat him,
what the heck happened to the sword? Intriguing, intriguing,
intriguing.”
The man wore a pair of ninja swords on his waist.
One look at the destruction of the checkpoint, and it was
evident these swords were to blame─oddly, rather than
wear them on the same side, left or right, he wore one on
each hip, with the chains wrapping his arms linked to the
handles of each sword.
“I may as well follow my lead and devote myself to
capturing Sento the Legion. For the sake of my friends, and
for my own sake. Triad Shrine…where am I going, Mt.
Taizan? Alright─here I come, here I come, here I come.”
Being one of the infamous Maniwa Bosses, this ninja
could have easily bypassed the checkpoint, sneaking
through the mountains or down the river, but he opted to
destroy the border crossing. The most ruthless, flashy
method of invasion possible.
“What could be better─than murder.”
One of the Twelve Bosses of the Maniwa Clan, Kuizame2
Maniwa.
The Hungry Shark.

■ ■

Shichika and Togame were accommodated at a teahouse,

set at a remove from the rest of the shrine. No more than a
single square chamber3 centering on an open fire pit, the
room was by no means spacious, but adequate for two
people to spend the night. Shichika may have been far
bigger than average, but Togame was unaveragely small,
and between the two of them, they struck a balance close to
normal. They were also fed; and though the portions were
meager, griping about two free meals, morning and night,
was one easy way to ask the gods for trouble. While it would
be wrong to say that they were feted, the hospitality was
beyond what any enemy should expect.
But still.
Things seemed upside-down─something was up. There
had to be a downside.4
Shichika sprawled out on the tatami─thinking.
It wasn’t like him, and didn’t suit him, but he was
thinking.
Togame wasn’t in the room.
He was alone there.
“…”
Worse came to worst.
That was how she put it. In other words, as a result of
her diplomacy, Shichika Yasuri would be fighting Meisai
Tsuruga, one on one. Good thing he wouldn’t have to fight a
thousand enemies at once. What a relief.
But Togame had looked so glum.
She had wanted them to go about their business
peacefully─that was part of it, but the main reason for that
look was the set of stipulations Meisai had tacked onto their
duel.
If Meisai was defeated, dead or alive, ownership of the
Legion would be granted to Togame─the shrine’s mistress
gave her word. But in the event of the opposite outcome,
where she defeated Shichika─her request was for Togame to
grant her ownership of the Leveler and the Razor, the two
swords they had captured.
Blatantly unfair.
If he risked his life and won, all they got was a single
sword, even if it was actually a thousand…but if Meisai won,
she got two─she had a lot of nerve to ask for terms like that.
Apparently Togame saw this coming─or had even
intentionally led them to this outcome. After all, she had
made that suggestive comment on the stairs: Third time’s a
charm─and now we have the Leveler and the Razor. Togame
must have dangled them on purpose in her negotiations.
Once she agreed to Meisai’s unfair terms, they sealed the
deal─a good scheme, when you thought about it. Meisai had
a much higher chance of taking the bait, versus a more
equitable arrangement where each side had one sword on
the line─though Togame would have likely still called it the
worst.
Yet Meisai had the gumption to tack on yet another
stipulation─something Togame had not anticipated. A task
she would need to perform if Meisai were to battle Shichika.
Perhaps it was not so much a stipulation as a demand. A
demand concerning Sento the Legion.
“As you know, the Legion is a Mutant Blade comprising
one thousand identical swords, forged in a huge batch5 on
the premise of quantity, or numerousness. Seen together,
they’re impossible to differentiate─in fact, there would be no
reason to try. May as well compare the raindrops. Since they
are all the same, you have no way of telling them apart.”
Meisai paused.
“Or so you’d think. But Togame the Schemer. What if I
told you that among the thousand swords, one sword was
the original?”
The original, she emphasized.
“Think for a second. If you want to make a thousand of
the same sword─you need a template, for everything to
follow. A sample, if you will. Add in the nine hundred and
ninety-nine swords based upon it, and you have Sento the
Legion.”
The first sword─among the Legion.
 “Or maybe,” said Meisai, “he modeled the second sword
after the first, and the third sword after the second, the
fourth after the third─and the thousandth after the nine
hundred and ninety-ninth. Even so, one sword would have
been the first… Ever since I came into possession of the
Legion, as a brigand, when it was passed down from the
chieftain who came before me─I’ve had this suspicion. What
would I need to do to figure out which one was first?”
However.
She had tried in vain.
For this was one of the Twelve Possessed, masterpieces
of the celebrated swordsmith Kiki Shikizaki─it stands to
reason that swords crafted to be indistinguishable would be
just that: indistinguishable. Otherwise, the Legion would not
deserve to be called a Mutant Blade.
Except.
For that reason.
For that very reason.
“There’s my condition─Togame the Schemer. If you can
figure out which sword among the Legion was the first─I
agree to fight this master of the Kyotoryu.”
Meisai had something else to add.
“You are free to question the Kuromiko as you please─I
hereby grant you access to however many you may need to
carry out your search. But hear this: your boy is not allowed
to help you.”
Those were the terms.
Which is why Shichika was waiting, with nothing to do,
stretched out on the tatami. An idler6 at heart, so quick to
be bothered, he was in his element.
It’s been─what, a week?
Shichika had a poor grasp of dates, but that seemed
about right.
Togame had accepted all of Meisai’s stipulations and
started the investigation. First she examined the swords
carried by each of the fifty Kuromiko at work around the
shrine─after which, she descended the thousand steps,
returning to the world below, again and again. Taking a cue
from Meisai, she began by consulting five of the Kuromiko
on patrol, who instructed her on where to go in her quest to
inspect the remaining nine hundred and fifty swords.
In the evenings, Togame came back to the shrine─or
rather, Shichika went down and picked her up. While she
was able to descend all thousand steps herself, she was
unable to make the climb. She must have gotten over her
humiliating encounter with Meisai, since on the way back
up, she would not deign to take a single step herself.
Perhaps this was her characteristic hauteur, or maybe
she was only tired. The radius monitored by the guards that
Triad Shrine dispatched was not exactly narrow─meeting
with all nine hundred and fifty of them and examining their
swords proved to be quite the project. While I have no
specific date in mind, she said to Shichika, I hope to bring
the process to an end within the month. Until then, gather
your strength.
Thus, for the most part, Shichika had nothing to do
during the day.
He wondered why he wasn’t allowed to help
Togame─not like he would be much of a help in finding the
original sword out of all thousand, which sounded like a real
pain. But it beat actually sitting around all day (as far as
Shichika’s mood was concerned).
That aside, he did worry about Togame. They were being
treated well, but they were smack in the middle of enemy
territory─if you thought about it, surrounding herself with
Kuromiko, who were supposed to be the enemy, and asking
to see their swords was basically a form of suicide.
Shichika’s job was not only to capture swords; he was
Togame’s bodyguard7─
 This had occurred to him on the third day (a little late)
of the investigation. He brought it up with her, but her
answer was blunt.
“Ridiculous. Why would Meisai botch her chance to
obtain two of the Twelve Possessed?”
Yeah.
That made sense.
By the way. When Togame was out in the field, she
dressed not in her usual extravagant kimonos, but in the
costume of a regular miko, which she had borrowed from
Meisai, arguing that a stranger wandering around Izumo
stood out too much, even if she was just conducting
research. Evidently Triad Shrine had regular miko costumes
in their inventory. Too bad for Shichika he didn’t have a
weakness for miko, or he would have been in for a real
treat─but presented with this departure from her usual
attire, he did not feel nothing at all, it is told.
So─a week.
About a week.
Togame had said that she was almost through with
looking over all the pieces of the Legion─the real
investigation had yet to begin, but he was glad, at least, for
Togame to be finished up with traveling back and forth
between the shrine and the world below.
Though she could use the exercise.
He still had his misgivings.
Togame was so laborious in everything she did.
What made the Legion special was its massive quantity.
Unlike with Komori and Uneri, he couldn’t simply topple
Meisai, and unless she promised otherwise, he would likely
end up fighting all thousand of the miko─still, Shichika felt
like Togame was playing too much by the rules too seriously.
He sat up from the floor.
And slipped out through the tiny door.8
It was a beautiful day.9
 He had some time before venturing below to pick up
Togame─but he was tired of napping and felt like taking a
little walk. Togame had told him to take it easy, but there is
a limit to how much a person can sit still. Waiting expends a
surprising amount of energy.
He was bored.
However, there was another major reason, albeit one
beyond his comprehension, for his irritated mood. Ever since
Togame had shown up on Haphazard Island, they had been
together constantly, not parting for a moment─never really
doing their own thing. This was only because Togame felt so
obligated to shepherd10 him around, since at first he really
did know nothing, but now that he was spending all this
time alone, he was feeling a lot of pressure. True, it also
meant that she trusted him enough to leave him alone.
But basically, he was lonely.
Lonesome.
Heading towards the honden, for no specific reason, he
noticed someone coming his way─a Kuromiko with no sword,
Meisai Tsuruga. Carafe in one hand.
“Hey,” Meisai was the first to speak, easygoing as ever.
“I was just heading to the teahouse─what’s up, Kyotoryu
boy? Time for a chat?”
“…Sure. I don’t mind.”
He was okay with that.
He wouldn’t have approached her on his own, but now
that they were talking, there was something he did want to
ask her. She led him toward the honden, where they sat on
the narrow deck11 engirdling the building.
“Figured you were bored,” she said. “I’d like to show you
a good time, but as head of the shrine, I had some pressing
business to attend to.”
“Sure. I don’t mind,” he repeated his previous reply.
When it came to conversation, his moves were limited.
But he went on.
 “Since we’re here, though, talking─there is something I
want to ask…if that’s okay.”
“Sure.”
Meisai was happy to oblige.
She was hard for him to read─no, hard to understand.
Perhaps this was to be expected, for someone who had met
so few people in his life, but Shichika had never met anyone
like her─he had questions.
A few.
Fact is, if Togame succeeded, he was going to have to
battle Meisai─so he had to ask, What was the Sentoryu?
Sentoryu─he had first heard about it from Togame.
It was the school that Meisai Tsuruga belonged to, she
who was not a swordsman.
The moves of a woman who didn’t look that tough─she
wasn’t carrying a sword, so he couldn’t ask her to show him.
Even if she was, Meisai was no dummy and would never tip
her hand─but learning more about the Sentoryu was
Shichika’s top priority.
At the moment, however, none of that was on his mind.
There was only one thing that he wanted to ask.
“You know how Togame’s looking for the first sword in
the Legion? How come I can’t help?”
“What? You wanted to help?”
“Not wanted to─but because of your weird rule, I’ve
been sitting around all day. I’m so bored I could die.”
“I bet.” Meisai giggled. “Well, the young lady must not
have informed you of the ways of Triad Shrine─you make it
sound like it’s my fault that you’re bored, but even if I
hadn’t made that stipulation, the young lady would have
refused your company.”
“Hunh?”
“The investigation must proceed without a hitch. I made
the stipulation just in case─given the Schemer’s smarts,
there was probably no need, but I figured why not.”
“The ways of Triad Shrine? What do you mean?”
 Togame had not told him.
Was it─classified?
“Mm, I doubt it was classified. Certain people
know─what goes on ‘behind the scenes,’ as the young lady
put it. She’ll probably tell you when the time is right.
‘Behind’ is in fact an apt term, and if Izumo didn’t enjoy
autonomy, this shrine would be crushed in no time.”
“What are you saying? I can’t understand you.”
“Remember how I said this shrine was like a convent?”
Her tone was even. “That wasn’t the best metaphor. We’re
more like a sanctuary12 for women.”
“Sanctuary?”
“A place for women to escape13 bad marriages.”
Meisai averted her eyes from Shichika and scanned the
scene before them. Perhaps she thought to point out an
example, if a Kuromiko was nearby, but unfortunately, none
were in sight.
No, not unfortunately.
Dim as he was, Shichika understood.
The Kuromiko were openly avoiding him.
They behaved differently toward Togame─but toward
Shichika, they were openly─even morbidly distant.
“Buddhism and Shinto stem from completely different
mindsets─but this is not about doctrine. It’s a Triad Shrine
tradition. Call it the legacy of the priests of our past who
stood outside the mainstream.”
“I’m not sure I get it…who are all these miko? And how
come you don’t wear a sword─but give them swords?”
“Because for them, the swords are necessary…maybe
even a necessary evil.”14
Shichika was confused. Maybe I’ve been waiting for
people like you to come here all along, Meisai muttered,
only deepening his confusion.
“The Kuromiko are all─victims,” she explained.
“Continually abused for long periods of time, by men who
broke their spirits. They run the gamut. We have women
who served the finest households, girls sold off by their
parents─even daughters of daimyos.”
“Broke…their spirits?”
“It’s a whole world that happy-go-lucky boys like you
don’t know of,” Meisai jibed. “Not only their spirits. Their
hearts and bodies were ravaged to the limit. And beyond
the limit, the ravages continued. Their abusers must have
felt guilty because they only beat them under lock and
key─it stays hidden, until the woman falls apart in some
clear manner. You want to know what happens once they fall
apart? They’re cast off, just like that.”
“…”
“The thousand Kuromiko, working at this shrine─were
rescued from those painful circumstances. Do you see now
why they would be scared of you? To the Kuromiko, men are
to be feared and evaded, just for being men. Which is why I
cannot have the young lady, in her inspection of these
thousand swords, accompanied by a man.”
“Feared and evaded…men, women.” Shichika had to be
honest. “I don’t understand.”
“I see. Perhaps that’s no surprise. You are a swordsman,
after all. A different world.”
Swordsman.
Shichika had not missed Meisai refer to him this
way─Togame had said as much, but this was proof. Meisai
knew about the Kyotoryu…
The true colors of the Kyotoryu.
“But─that explains why Togame kept telling me to stay
inside and take it easy. Makes sense now. She didn’t want
me startling the Kuromiko. She was watching out for them.”
“Watching out for them, as another woman.”
“Huh.”
“Have you also figured out, by now, why I give them
pieces of the Legion? The venom of Kiki Shikizaki’s swords
works like medicine.”
 “Medicine?”
“Just as too much medicine is poisonous, this venom can
serve as medicine. Of course, the swords allow them to
defend themselves as well. The miko of a fortress shrine
bearing arms is to be expected. But most of all─the venom
plays an important role in healing the parts of them that
have been broken. Assuming that these Mutant Blades
really do have powers that surpass human comprehension─”
“…”
Just having one will make you want to kill.
So a sword infused with such a poison─could rehabilitate
a damaged heart in the right hands. Perhaps that dose of
aggression was exactly what a wounded spirit needed─
This was a surprise.
Shichika had never imagined─the Shikizaki blades could
heal. No, Meisai Tsuruga was probably the first person in
history to use them for that purpose.
But she was not off the mark.
These were broken blades, forged by a broken man.
Could a broken sword undo a broken heart? It sounded
possible.
Could the latent murder of the Legion vivify, too?
“And if they don’t, psychology15 has the placebo
effect16─this is what legends do for us. In the end, it doesn’t
make a difference whether the power is real or a fantasy.”
“…I was sure, because you were the owner of the
sword─you scattered the pieces to avoid the venom.”
“Sounds like you were expecting a real villain. To be
honest, I think the power is mostly symbolic, but it has been
fairly effective, if I may say so as an observer of the last
seven years. Even forgetting the question of the venom, the
power of carrying a blade allows these women to stand on
an equal footing with men. And to protect themselves.”
“Huh.”
Togame thought─the opposite.
 To an obstinate degree, she shunned the idea that being
armed would make you strong. Equipping the katana known
as Shichika Yasuri for the Sword Hunt had surely gone
against her natural inclinations.
“So this shrine─is like an infirmary?”17
“In a way─you could say that.”
“What about those talismans that hide their faces? Are
they some kind of charm for healing their spirits?”
“No, no. They simply hide their faces. Like I said, all of
these women come from trying circumstances. They need to
hide their faces so they can devote themselves to
anonymity. And being a shrine, blatant scare tactics have a
place here.”
“Okay.”
“The talismans are only masks. What matters─are the
swords.”
The pieces of the Legion─one of the Twelve Possessed of
Kiki Shikizaki.
They did the job alone. According to Meisai.
“I thought the Kuromiko up here ranked higher than the
ones working below, but from what you’re saying, I guess
that isn’t true.”
“Actually, you’ve got it backwards. The fifty who stay up
here are the sickest of the thousand─their hearts were
marred so violently they can’t sleep through the night.”
“…”
“But by carrying swords, they are able to maintain a
sense of self─the Legion guides their hearts. And therefore,”
Meisai said, arriving at her point, “I cannot give up the
Legion.”
Here, for the first time.
Meisai Tsuruga shifted from her easygoing mood.
“I want to help as many women as I can. By beating
you, and gaining the Leveler and the Razor, two more of the
Possessed─I can help another two girls. This is why─winning
against you is my only option.”
“Uh huh. Sounds good to me.”
His mood had not changed whatsoever.
Earlier in their conversation, they had said that Togame
had hitherto kept quiet on the details of Triad
Shrine─hinting, but never actually telling Shichika─out of a
fellow woman’s consideration for the Kuromiko. However,
this was perhaps not the reason. Or not the only reason. In
reality, Togame, in her position, had perhaps a pair of
reasons to be cautious─first, if she told Shichika, he might
start sympathizing with the Kuromiko─and with Triad Shrine
as a whole, in which case her katana may begin to stray.
And second─if she told Shichika, and he showed no concern
whatsoever─
Whatever Togame thought might be the case aside.
It was the second of these two that actually transpired.
“I’ll fight for my own reasons. You fight hard for the girls.
Sounds like this is going to be a good battle.”
“So much for my plan to invite pity,” Meisai said, looking
rather pleased.
She hoisted the carafe and took another zealous swig
before offering it to Shichika.
“Drink up! Then we can get down to business.”
“Yeah.” Shichika drank from the carafe as told. “Blegh!
Gahak…hack… This water’s gone bitter!”
“This is the good stuff.” Appalled, Meisai took the carafe
back from Shichika. “Bitter water… What are you, boy, a
teetotaler18 or something?”
“Oh, is that alcohol? I’ve actually never drank before.”
“Why didn’t you say so? I would never have made you.
Forcing a drink on someone is a disgrace to drinkers19
everywhere… Anyway, for someone so happy-go-lucky, you
sure are callous. I suppose I’m the one who tried to take
advantage of your sympathy, but no dice.”
 “It’s because I’m a sword.” Shichika coughed. “Nothing
moves me but Togame.”
“If you usurp the Legion, hearts could be torn afresh─are
you fine with that?”
“Fine or not, it’s just the way it is. If Togame wants the
Legion, there’s nothing else for me to do. You have to give
up.”
“I take it,” Meisai asked pointedly, “you have no use for
inner turmoil?”
“…?”
“Give up, you say─once you’ve decided, do you never
have misgivings? Aren’t you just being lazy about having
any? And scared of making your own choices? Because it’d
be such a pain?”
“Such a pain─I’ll give you that.”
“How many people have you killed?”
It was a sudden, stunning thing to ask. But it seemed
not to faze Shichika remotely. “Two,” he replied.
“Two─a low body count, for a person like you.”
“I’m an island monkey. My first battle was only two
months back.”
“In gathering two of the Twelve Possessed, you killed
twice─in other words, each of the owners.”
“Yeah, exactly.”
Thanks to Togame’s cunning fudge,20 these “owners”
weren’t identical between Shichika and Meisai, but since it
was beside the point, and thereby not an obstacle, their
conversation continued.
“Will you kill me too?”
“Guess so…but didn’t you use to be a brigand? If this
wasn’t Izumo, you would’ve been nabbed ages ago─that’s
what Togame said, anyway.”
“Same goes for the thousand miko. More than a few of
them are wanted by the law.”
“Whoa, really?”
 “Just escaping can be a crime─which is why they hide
their faces.”
“Right─the painful circumstances. What about you,
though? How many people have you killed so far?”
“Too many to count. But at least forty-three─that much
is certain.”
“Forty-three? How do you know?”
“I had forty-three comrades,” she replied without
missing a beat. “That’s how many I killed to quit my life as a
brigand, seven years ago─it’s a number I can’t possibly
forget.”
“…”
She never saw those friends anymore, Meisai had said.
So─that was what she’d meant.
“Although you could spin it around and say those forty-
three are the only ones I remember. Some might say that
makes me a savage butcher. But the same woman is unable
to kill if she lacks the resolve. Or has nothing to relinquish.
You, however, don’t seem to have that issue.”
“I─don’t really…I guess.”
“In that case,” probed Meisai, “what are you fighting
for?”
“I told you. I’m doing it for Togame,” Shichika answered
the provocative query without faltering─it may have
surprised Meisai even if she saw it coming. “I’ve fallen for
her. What else could it be?”
“…And so much for my plan to foster doubt,” Meisai
muttered with a sigh of grief.
That sigh reminded Shichika of the sister he had left
behind on Haphazard Island─his sickly sister, who could sigh
with the best of them. How was she doing? Was she eating
and everything?
Then─he remembered. Something else.
“My mistake.”
“Huh?”
 “Not two─it’s three. I wasn’t thinking. I killed one other
person.”
“You did? Was it─on this Sword Hunt, like with the
others?”
“No, before that. About a year ago, back on the island. I
killed my dad.”

■ ■

To be honest, these forced authorial asides─in plain terms,

the moments in each book where the basic setup of the
story is regurgitated─are in need of a better system since
there are only so many pages to work with, specifically
three hundred sheets of manuscript paper. When the titles
denote Book One, Book Two, Book Three, what reader is
going to jump ahead to this installment? The dear reader
who does would probably push right through, saying,
“Whatever, must’ve been covered in the first two books.”
An excess of these repetitions can only bog things down and
annoy. Some measure appears to be necessary, but with no
practical solution in sight─
Togame the Schemer was the daughter of Takahito Hida,
Kaoyaku of Oshu.
Takahito Hida, the rebel who needs no introduction.
Takahito Hida─mastermind behind the only major conflict to
take place under the Owari Bakufu, the Yanari Shogunate’s
reign. A close call─but in the end the Rebellion was
suppressed, and with so relentless a counteroffensive that
the entire Hida family, excluding Togame, perished in the
flames of war.
And the man who dispatched Takahito was none other
than Mutsue Yasuri.
Sixth Master of the Kyotoryu─Hero of the Rebellion.
 Togame escaped with her life, but only after her father
was slain before her very eyes─overnight, her hair turned
completely white. This was the turning point, what made her
who she was today, and her traumatic first encounter with
the Kyotoryu.
Thereafter, her life was pandemonium21─she lived only
for ambition and revenge. Infiltrating the bakufu, that
limitlessly hateful entity responsible for murdering her
family, she climbed high, despite being a woman, by dint of
her wit and ingenuity.
Commanding the military directorate was no more than
a waypoint. The neck of the shogun was still out of reach.
Which brought her to─the Sword Hunt.
The idea that it was for the good of the nation was a
pack of lies.
And Shichika─knew as much. Komori Maniwa, the first
person he killed off in battle, had spilled the beans.
Her ambition. Her desire for revenge.
That did it for Shichika. If Togame, who saw the shogun
as an enemy and could not possibly have a soft spot for the
Kyotoryu, had come all the way to Haphazard Island to ask
for help because she had no other choice─then quite
frankly, she won his heart.
There was a part of him that sought to make amends.
For the first time he realized that his father, his hero,
had left victims like Togame in his wake. The desire was
real─to atone for her life in place of his father, who had been
absolute for Shichika.
But more than that, as a katana incarnate─he chose her.
Her spirit22 made him─fall for her.
“Sure, I don’t see why not,” his older sister Nanami,
head of the household, replied when he told her he was
joining Togame on her Sword Hunt─despite Nanami’s
languid tone and indifferent bearing, her gaze alone was
severe. “But Shichika, I think you had better keep quiet
about knowing her personal history…” she advised.
That sounded about right.
But right or not, Shichika always did his sister’s bidding.
Thus, Togame had yet to grasp the actual reason he had
joined her─
“Also,” Nanami said, “Mutsue Yasuri was her mortal
enemy─don’t tell Miss Togame how you’ve killed our dad
too.”
Which is why Togame didn’t know that, either.
“…Huh?”
“Hey.”
Perhaps Nanami hadn’t thought twice about her choice
of words, but in truth, she should have warned her faithful
younger brother not to tell anybody─a rare fumble for her.
Because of this oversight, Shichika allowed the crucial piece
of information, so key to the entire story, to slip out in a
chat with, of all people, Meisai Tsuruga, an enemy.
Luckily, if that’s the word─it was all that he was able to
reveal.
For it was right when she made to respond to the crucial
bit─that she and Shichika both noticed.
Rising simultaneously from the deck─they looked way
up there.
Nurtured in the wild, Shichika trusted his eyes─and if
Meisai was looking the same way, she saw it too.
Atop the Grand Torii─which even he had kept himself
from climbing─a man stood tall.23
In sleeveless ninja garb.
Not even a mask.
Chains wrapped around his body─a man with bangs.
It hardly mattered how long the man with ninja swords
on both his hips had been there─what mattered was that he
was there now.
 “Hey, hey. You noticed me already? You guys are quick.”
Despite the stares he was receiving from Shichika and
Meisai, the man on the torii didn’t sound the least bit
apologetic. Though he was a good distance away, and not
really shouting, the hum of his voice seemed to whisper in
Shichika’s ear. “I was hoping to hear what was coming
next─tantalizing stuff. Still, I’ve caught the gist of it. Enough
to grasp the situation. Thank you very much. Really, I should
be bowing low and waiting for you to tell me it’s fine.”
“…”
“…”
Shichika and Meisai were speechless. They may have
been absorbed in conversation─but both of them had been
facing forward. Even in a psychic blind spot24 like the top of
a torii, a person standing so dramatically─
“Allow me, from on high, to announce myself─ah, feels
good to be announcing myself instead of sneaking around.
Good, good, good, good,” sang the man. “I am Kuizame
Maniwa, one of the Twelve Bosses of the Maniwa Clan. It is
my pleasure to make your acquaintance.”
“Oh…”
Once the man gave his name, Shichika noticed (really
late)─the same weird ninja outfit, right, as Komori Maniwa,
from the fight back on Haphazard Island, and Shirasagi
Maniwa, found dead in Inaba Desert─the chains wrapped
around this one’s arms seemed a little longer than the first
two’s, but he had to be─
 “A Maniwac!”
Since coining the cute shorthand a month earlier,
Shichika had called the Maniwa Clan nothing else, but this
was his first time saying it to one of them.
“Mani-what…?”
The ninja stumbled on his perch atop the torii.
Catching himself just in time, he was…
“Brilliant! I don’t believe it! What an angel you are for
giving a clan of expert assassins such as ours a neat
nickname. Under different circumstances, you and I would
surely have become fast friends!”
…quite pleased.
The world was full of idiots.
“You know this guy?” Meisai, willfully disregarding the
exchange, asked Shichika.
“Not him exactly,” Shichika answered. “It’s like he
said─they’re ninjas. The Maniwacs. A clan of expert
assassins─with their sights set on the Shikizaki blades.”
“I see…” Meisai nodded in acknowledgment. Apparently
she had not heard of the Maniwa, but she could tell that
Kuizame was no joke25─her face had turned to stone.
“You, sir, Shichika Yasuri of the Kyotoryu─possess Zetto
the Leveler and Zanto the Razor. And you, ma’am, Meisai
Tsuruga, Mistress of Triad Shrine─possess Sento the Legion,”
Kuizame noted politely. “So then, Komori─hmm. What a
shame. And Shirasagi, who was reaching for the Razor─gone
as well. What a shame.”
“…”
“That said─If I kill both of you fine people,” the ninja
observed with a joyful smile, “all three swords will enter my
possession.”
…If he really had been listening to Shichika and Meisai,
he should have gathered that things could not progress so
smoothly. Even Shichika knew this─the Leveler and the
Razor were not here, and the Legion, owing to its massive
quantity, was not the type of sword anyone could capture
just by defeating Meisai.
And yet Kuizame had spoken thus.
As though he simply wanted to fight the two─no, as
though he simply wanted to kill them both.
“Ah─good, good, good, good─the rarefied air, of strife.”
Kuizame soundlessly bared both his ninja swords─but
not by grasping each blade’s handle. To Shichika, it looked
as if the swords had drawn themselves─but upon closer
examination, their handles were linked to the chains
wrapped around his arms. By shooting his hands into the
air,26 Kuizame pulled on the chains, freeing both swords
simultaneously. As though they were kusarigama,27 he
proceeded to spin them on either side, vertically, like high-
speed propellers.
Togame had told Shichika the chains were a kind of
chain mail, basically armor─of course, when it came to the
Maniwa Clan and their enclave, not even the Schemer knew
all there was to know. In fact, she had never even heard of
Kuizame Maniwa, much less met him.
Togame was hardly to blame, but one of the bosses
could use the chains like so─in a ferocious and vicious28
attack.
“Behold the Dust Devil.29 This ninpo is why they call me
‘Kuizame the Sand30 Trap.’”
“…”
Where was this guy in the last book?
His moniker begged the question.
But there were other pressing concerns.
Shichika turned toward Meisai─he had no idea what kind
of moves her Sentoryu involved, but unarmed as she was,
how could she show him? In which case─he would have to
fight alone.
Considering the duel to follow, he couldn’t let Meisai get
herself killed─but he would be lying if he said he wasn’t
anxious. Evidently Kuizame Maniwa fought with swords, but
those bonkers weapons were not the sort the Kyotoryu was
designed to counter─Shichika could not treat him like a
swordsman.
At this point though, he had no choice but to go all
out─since he had scared away the Kuromiko, there was
mercifully no risk of an imbroglio31─and since those ninja
swords were not the work of Kiki Shikizaki, he could snap
them all he wanted─
“Here I come─oh what fun.”
Kuizame leapt from the torii. Normally, jumping down
from a high place, not to say that doing so off the Grand
Torii was normal, you bent your knees to some degree to
absorb the impact, but not Kuizame. Legs straight, swords
whirring on both sides─he let gravity do the work and
plummeted straight down.
“Nkk─”
Shichika dashed ahead before Kuizame even landed.
Come what may, he would need to fight this battle a safe
distance from Meisai. But then a shadow passed him, as if
cutting through his thoughts─Meisai Tsuruga, running low to
the ground.
“Huh?”
That fast.
Before he knew it, she had overtaken him.
“A few days ago, I received word that a checkpoint on
our border had been annihilated─and based on the
harrowing report, I gather that this Dust Devil was to blame.
I hate to steal your scene, but as the mistress of this
fortress shrine that guards Izumo, I cannot let the ninja be,”
Meisai excused herself, in a single breath, as she blew past
Shichika. “And our duel would not be fair if you had no clue
about the Sentoryu while I knew of the Kyotoryu.”
Tup.
 With a firm step, she sprang off, even faster─leaving
Shichika behind. This was a first for him─and came as a
shock. Not in his battle against Komori Maniwa, not in his
battle against Ginkaku Uneri, and not at the dojos of Kyoto,
where Togame had brought him to train─had Shichika ever
been surpassed in athletic ability.
Meisai zipped by─like it was nothing.
Shichika’s legs halted of their own accord.
No stopping her.
But what was she planning to do?
She had no sword!
“Heh…” Seeing her rush his landing zone, Kuizame was
unshaken─in fact, he chuckled like it was his idea of a good
time. “Meisai Tsuruga. I heard you ask him, ‘What are you
fighting for?’ If you don’t mind me answering: Money! I pride
myself on never having fought for any other reason. All the
same…”
The blades spinning on either side of him─sped up, no
longer a mere whirlwind but a raging tornado.32 At that
velocity, the chains that swung the ninja swords were
fearsome weapons in their own right.
Maniwa Ninpo, Dust Devil.
“If you have to be asking such questions, don’t even
bother fighting─‘What are you fighting for? What for?’
Nobody has time for your philosophy! Don’t be ridiculous!”
He landed─without a sound.
And where Kuizame landed─was where Meisai crossed
his path.
“…nkk!”
Unarmed.
Not equipped with the Legion─no blade on her person.
Shichika could tell, as Master of the Kyotoryu, as a
swordsman who was his own sword.
But after they intersected─it was Kuizame Maniwa who
was mangled. Evading the protection of the chains, a deep
cross had been slashed into his chest, whence sprayed out
vast quantities of blood─and as if to dodge this fountain of
gore, Meisai had followed through and charged nearly
twenty feet beyond her foe.
It was only then that Kuizame fell.
Flopping down like a dead shark─clearly for good.
“It may be dead, but a man is a man─I can’t ask the
miko to clean this up. Would you mind taking care of the
corpse?”
“…”
Meisai’s voice was easygoing as ever, as if she had
merely finished up a little chore─but Shichika had no words,
nor any other reaction, at the ready.
“About your father…” Meisai reprised. “As a servant of
the gods, I will ask no more of it. Sure I’m curious, but I can
tell that the rest of it is not for me to hear. You should not be
so careless─about who you tell.”

■ ■

That night, arriving at the bottom of the thousand steps to

bring Togame home, the first thing Shichika did was to
inform her of the scuffle with Kuizame Maniwa. Perhaps she
had anticipated this─and for that reason swapped her usual
finery for a miko costume, which in Izumo helped her blend
into the background.
Now that the Maniwa were involved, it didn’t matter
what they promised Meisai; tomorrow they would work
together, Shichika insisted. As her katana, he could no
longer permit their separation.
Togame dismissed him as overprotective. He thought
this was bravado, but he was wrong.
She had news─brandishing a sword.
“I found the original Legion.”
 In any case, this much seems certain: If the next
Maniwa Boss also bites the dust in an instant, their main
part in this Tale of the Sword will be the pushover’s.33

1 関所 SEKISHO barrier station

2 喰鮫 KUIZAME “eating shark”
3 四畳半 YOJŌHAN four rectangular mats and a square half-mat, radially arranged
into a square
4 裏 腹 な 、 裏 や 腹 URAHARA NA, URA YA HARA wordplay and not an actual
expression, consisting of: 裏 URA reverse 腹 HARA the flat of; stomach
(figuratively “intention” as in what’s in it) 裏 腹 URAHARA opposite; saying
one thing and doing another a more straightforward rendition might be
“tricky secrets and designs”
5 量産 RYŌSAN mass production
6 怠け者 NAMAKE MONO one who lazes
7 用心棒 YŌJINBŌ “caution stick” for fending off robbers, etc.
8 にじり口 NIJIRI GUCHI small hatch used to access a teahouse
9 晴天 SEITEN “clear heavens”
10 保護監督者 HOGO KANTOKU SHA guardian and supervisor
11 縁側 ENGAWA “rim side” 縁 EN also means “connection” (e.g. in Buddhism)
12 駆 け 込 み 寺 KAKEKOMI DERA a temple that sheltered abused wives 駆 け 込 む
KAKEKOMU dash into
13 縁切り寺 ENKIRI DERA same as above, but suggesting a divorce 縁切り ENKIRI
“ties-cutting”
14 必要悪 HITSUYŌ AKU “necessary evil”: likely a modern, direct translation from
Western languages
15 心理学 SHINRIGAKU the exact term for the modern discipline; anachronistic in
the original, too
16 偽 薬 効 果 GIYAKU KŌKA “fake medicine effect”; again, insouciantly
anachronistic
17 療養所 RYŌYŌSHO place for patients to recuperate
18 下戸 GEKO nondrinker
19 酒呑み SAKE NOMI tipplers
20 情報操作 JŌHŌ SŌSA “information manipulation”
21 修 羅 と 羅 刹 SHURA TO RASETSU Asura and Rakshasa (constantly battling
demons, or their world)
22 心意気 KOKOROIKI zest
23 仁 王 立 ち NIŌDACHI stance of the statuary Deva gods who guard a temple
gate
24 精 神 的 に 盲 点 SEISHINTEKI NI MŌTEN 精 神 SEISHIN spirit 盲 点 MŌTEN “blind
point”
25 ただもの TADA MONO a nobody (usually used with a negative: “not a —”)
26 万 歳 BANZAI “ten thousand years” i.e. “Long live”; here, the gesture that
goes with the cheer
27 鎖鎌 KUSARI GAMA sickles swung from chains as weapons
28 獰猛獰悪 DŌMŌ DŌAKU relentless savagery
29 渦刀 UZUGATANA “whorl katana”
30 鎖縛 SABAKU restrain with a chain pun on 砂漠 SABAKU desert
31 巻き添え MAKIZOE roping others into the fray
32 竜巻 TATSUMAKI “dragon roll” whirlwind
33 かませ犬 KAMASE INU “dog for biting” foil (in dogfighting, boxing, etc.)
 ■ ■

Since no matter how you look at it, no matter how you read
between the lines, this Tale of the Sword is no detective
novel, the riddle portion of this episode must be brought to
a close, swiftly and in good faith. It doesn’t take much to see
how incredibly difficult it must have been for Togame to find
the original piece of Sento the Legion, one of the Twelve
Possessed of Kiki Shikizaki─after all, each piece was
perfectly identical─mass-produced, in the strictest sense of
the term, by an unrivaled artisan of the sword. As
mentioned elsewhere in reference to his other Mutant
Blades, the means whereby he brought this katana to life is
lost to history, for now─at any rate, whether you’re hunting
for the first sword or the last, the fact remains:
differentiating completely identical objects is a fool’s errand.
Unless Kiki Shikizaki marked the swords on
purpose─explained Togame.
Not with a difference in the swords themselves, of
course.
That would negate their status as the epitome of mass-
produced, and the epitome of expendability.
But what about the scabbards?
While infamous as a swordsmith, Kiki Shikizaki did it
all─he sharpened his blades, cast his own handguards,
wrapped his own handles, carved his own carvings, and
milled his own scabbards─if this legendary man, who
fashioned every part of his katanas on his own, were so
inclined to leave his mark, he would have done so on the
scabbard. The handguards and the handles determine the
exact feel of the sword─if you changed something about
them, it would be a different sword, since it would feel
different to hold. But if you changed something about the
scabbard, the container for the blade─a slight or even
noticeable difference would be fine…
The Schemer banked on this.
It was a baseless, crackpot theory. If she was right, it
should be possible to find the first piece of the Legion─or
rather, if she was wrong, finding the first piece would be
impossible. Her reasoning was neither inductive nor
deductive: it worked perforce, but perhaps this
characterized her schemes. By piling theory upon theory,
she dared to weave sense out of chaos. As had been the
case with Komori Maniwa and Hakuhei Sabi, she made her
fair share of mistakes─but when she pulled it off, the spoils
were none too shabby. She had arrived at a conclusion in a
week, despite giving herself a month, because she had
committed to her conjecture. She stopped looking at the
blades entirely, and focused only on the scabbards.
All thousand pieces of Sento the Legion.
Even the scabbards, at first glance, were identical─from
mouth to tail,1 all looked the same. Having no pattern and
no carvings of any kind, they were painted a plain2 orange.
But even identical swords would not have been handled
the same way. The conditions of their ownership─or custody,
would necessarily be different, from one sword to the next.
Whereby the history─the scars marring the surface of each
scabbard would take a different form and pattern.
They were different.
There was a difference.
Togame produced her trusty magnifying glass and pored
over the scabbards, checking the marks on each and every
one, taking notes. Of course, some dings were obviously
new, the result of negligible wear and tear, and these she
disregarded. She had to be extremely careful about what
she deemed irrelevant, but what mattered most was that
she caught the oldest marks─the deep cuts that appeared to
be from the last century. Only scabbard markings of this age
could have been made deliberately by Kiki Shikizaki, thus
warranting her attention─
If she could discern some kind of geometric cipher3
established through the number and position of these
markings, she could discover not only the first piece of the
Legion, but the order in which all the pieces were
created─yet this was beginning to go over Shichika’s head.
With his limited vocabulary, the very word “cipher” was
nothing but a cipher.
Anyway─Togame presented Meisai with the katana.
Since no interpretation of scabbard markings was by
any means guaranteed, Togame spoke more cautiously than
usual─so far as she could tell, she had found the original.
Perhaps the idiosyncratic explanation baffled not just
Shichika, but Meisai─but she accepted the sword cordially.
“The scabbards were a blind spot. Thanks. I’m thrilled.”
Considering how Togame had delivered─even going
above and beyond their agreement to crack a code that
revealed the entire order of production─the owner could not
be more grateful, no doubt.
Still.
“Still, the more I think about it, the less I get it,”
Shichika said. “Why did Meisai ask you to find the first one,
anyway? If the thousand swords have an original they were
based on, I guess it’s only human to want to know which
one that might be, but what good will it do? She’s not going
to worship it as a god, is she?”
He was speaking his mind.
Looking over the sword before Togame proffered it to
Meisai, he had felt no spark─none of the lifeforce of Zanto
the Razor. He failed to see what set it apart from the other
swords the Kuromiko carried─sure, it was supposed to be
one among an indistinguishable thousand, first piece or not,
but still.
 Honestly, even the swinging swords4 of Kuizame Maniwa
made a stronger impression as katana.
If that particular piece served, wouldn’t picking a
random one and cooking up an appropriate explanation
have worked just as well?
“True,” Togame admitted. In a way, Shichika’s doubts
amounted to a complete negation of the work she had
endured for the past week, but she did not take it
personally.
“At first I thought Meisai was giving us a problem we
could never solve, to keep the battle from happening…”
However─after actually speaking to her, he had realized
this wasn’t the case. If Meisai’s story about the true nature
of Triad Shrine was true, she had her heart set on the
Leveler and the Razor. It was not the mania of a collector, or
the venom of the Shikizaki blades doing the talking.
She was driven to obtain the Mutant Blades─out of
necessity.
“If that was her plan, she could have stuck to it,”
observed Togame. “Just as I could have given her a made-up
explanation, she could have shot down anything I said. My
argument was full of holes. If she had felt so inclined, she
could have stomped all over me. Everything was riding on
my powers of persuasion since I didn’t have a scrap of
evidence.”
“Yeah. In that case, maybe it’s better not to think too
much about it.”
“She must have her own reasons. But listen,
Shichika─my work here is done. The rest is up to you. While
I was investigating the Legion, I tried to learn about the
Sentoryu─but sadly I was unable to scrounge up any clues.
Searching for the original Legion ate up all my time. In
which case, you will be walking blind into this battle, against
a foe whose methods are a mystery.”
 “Ah, about that… I think I’ll be fine,” assured Shichika.
“I’ve got the Sentoryu figured out from watching Meisai
slash up that Maniwac.”
“Huh, is that so?”
“Yeah. If it’s how I think it is, I can see why Meisai was
curious about our school. As Master of the Kyotoryu, I’m
curious about the Sentoryu myself. But just thinking about it
like a normal person, without playing favorites─matched up
against the Sentoryu, the Kyotoryu wins out…”
Be that as it may.
Shichika Yasuri of the Kyotoryu versus Meisai Tsuruga of
the Sentoryu.
The long-awaited battle was set for the next day at high
noon.

■ ■

Which brings us, without further ado, to the next day at high
noon.
Shichika and Meisai faced off before the honden of Triad
Shrine─the stone patio in between them. As usual, Shichika
had doffed his arm guards and straw sandals, baring his
sword for battle. Meisai was caparisoned in her black miko
outfit─but unlike every other time he saw her, she had a
sword. One of the Legion─perhaps even the “first piece”
that Togame had presented to her. All the same, to Shichika,
her sword was nothing special.
The Kuromiko had cleared the premises. Not one of
them was visible by the time Shichika had awoken. They
would only be a hindrance to the duel─whereby, at present,
there were only three people on the shrine grounds:
Shichika and Meisai, along with Togame, serving as witness
to the duel.
 “I meant it when I said the fifty who stay up here are the
sickest of the thousand─I don’t intend this to take too long.
Let’s get started, and be done with it.”
“You sound pretty relaxed for somebody whose life is on
the line─that’s supposed to be my thing, you know?”
Meisai was her usual easygoing self, and Shichika
exuded nonchalance─indeed, neither of them acted like
their lives were on the line.
But in the battle that was about to unfold, they certainly
were.
Their lives, as well as their swords.
“For our arena, let’s set the boundary at the thicket
surrounding the shrine─Mt. Taizan is a treacherous place. If
you lose your way, you may never be seen again. But
otherwise, this is no dojo match. Feel free to enter the
honden or the haiden, jump onto the roof or up onto the
torii. Use the terrain however you please.”
“Yeah, well, since I’m the challenger, and this is your
turf, you get to decide─but are you cool with having Togame
as our only witness? Wouldn’t it be fairer if you picked one
of your Kuromiko to watch, too?”
“I cannot expect them to be neutral judges─but fear not,
I aim to emerge victorious in a manner that allows no room
for a bad call,” Meisai declared with the utmost confidence.
“Whoever wins, no grudges─dead or alive. That said, I’m
open to the possibility of a surrender. If you lose all hope,
just say the word.”
“Understood…”
Nodding, Shichika glanced at the sword slung from her
hip─the first piece. Catching him looking, Meisai drew the
blade.
Curved, about two and a half feet long, marked by a
lengthwise groove.5
With a beveled6 spine, and delicately patterned7 face.
A dull glint reflecting the sun─
 Mass-produced or not, it was a fine specimen of a
katana, hammered by none other than Kiki Shikizaki.
“Well then, Kyotoryu─show me what you got.”
“Gladly─as long as you show off this Sentoryu you’re so
proud of.”
“Proud?” In answering Shichika, Meisai narrowed her
eyes somewhat. “The Sentoryu is not a source of pride for
me. This stuff─is swordplay, and nothing more.”
“…”
How come she wasn’t proud?
It confused the heck out of Shichika, but he quickly
brushed it off with a snort─hmph.
The Sentoryu.
Her clash with Kuizame Maniwa had happened like a
bolt of lightning; it was over in a second, but Shichika had
witnessed every frame. Which is why, the night before, he
had told Togame that he had the Sentoryu figured out.
As long as you show off─but not for his sake.
Meisai had dashed full-speed ahead to meet Kuizame
where he landed─and shot her hands into the rotations of
the Dust Devil to catch the swords’ handles. Redirecting
their gyration onto Kuizame, she used his own two blades to
slash a cross into his chest.
Double Cross8─is what Meisai called it later.
It happened in an instant─but an instant was enough.
The Sentoryu had a fancy name, but its fundamental
premise was dattojutsu9─the hardly unheard-of practice of
using an opponent’s sword against him. And just as Ginkaku
Uneri had his signature version of iainuki─the Sentoryu
appeared limited to dattojutsu.
Dattojutsu─a kind of mutodori.
That would explain why Meisai Tsuruga was usually
unarmed─considering the purpose the pieces of the Legion
served at Triad Shrine, Meisai had no reason to keep one for
herself. Even unarmed, she was perpetually ready for battle.
 In which case, the essential meaning of the Sentoryu
was simple─any katana, on any person, could readily be
used to do her bidding. Although empty-handed, Meisai
carried a thousand swords. As in the Kyotoryu, there was no
reason to be armed─but in the Sentoryu, your opponent
hauled around the sword for you.
Kyotoryu and Sentoryu.
So much in common─and yet.
“Alright, let’s get started.”
Shichika assumed a stance.
Form One─the Suzuran.
“Right─if we keep gabbing,10 we’ll never begin.”
Meisai assumed a stance too─an unremarkable middle
guard.11
Yes, despite not needing her own sword, she was
armed─but rather than negate Shichika’s reasoning, this
backed it up. Up against the Kyotoryu─a Swordless
Swordsman─she had no choice.
While they worked in a comparable manner, there was
also a decisive difference between the Kyotoryu and the
Sentoryu─although both involved a swordsman who went
without a sword, the Kyotoryu persisted in it, whereas the
Sentoryu obtained one in the end, from the enemy or
elsewhere─in which case.
However comparable their workings, the Sentoryu did
not work against the Kyotoryu.
No sword can be stolen from a foe without a sword.
Meisai had been forced to abandon the core tenet of her
school and equip one.
In that regard, the Kyotoryu was more versatile.
The school may have been designed to combat
swordsmen, but there was no enemy it could not face, be
they ninja or miko─armed or otherwise.
Which is why, as Shichika said to Togame the night
before─thinking about it like a normal person, without
playing favorites─matched up against the Sentoryu, the
Kyotoryu wins out.
Thinking about it, like a normal person.
Since joining forces with Togame, Shichika had started
thinking fairly regularly, even if it was a pain─and perhaps
he was to be commended for thinking at least that far about
it, like a normal person─
But that was where he stopped thinking.
Something a normal person might think would be
obvious to Meisai Tsuruga, a practitioner of the Sentoryu
who knew about the Kyotoryu, in which case─why had she
agreed to the duel?
Shichika had stopped before getting that far.
To anyone raised in a society, it was self-evident that if
you’re thinking over here, they’re thinking over there, but
Shichika had yet to understand this─or that one thought
ought to lead to another.
Of course, this was not the case for our specialist in
thought, Togame the Schemer, with whom Shichika might
have conferred the night prior; but his suggestive comment
had satisfied her, and besides, exhausted after so many
days investigating pieces of the Legion, she had not been
listening well. Big picture strategies were her game, and
hands-on tactics his─but thinking of things on such
segregated terms was perhaps not ideal. Their negligence
might be attributed in part to Shichika’s “thinking” having
been on target one month back, at Gekoku Castle─in a
stroke of beginner’s luck.
Ignorant of this, Togame called for the lethal match to
start.
“May the best12 sword win─go!”
The Suzuran, with which the reader is already
acquainted, is a passive stance─Shichika was basically
waiting for Meisai to make the first move. Which in this
case─
 “Whuppah!”
─involved hurling the Legion at him.
It spun parallel to the ground.
Throwing one’s sword was not a move that a swordsman
would ever resort to, but Meisai was no swordsman─and
next she threw the scabbard too, spinning it off her free
hand in the same way, horizontally.
“Hah.”
A volley of projectiles─scabbard flying after sword.
But after his experience, back on Haphazard Island,
against the Star Cannon of Komori Maniwa, one of the
Twelve Bosses of the Maniwa Clan─this was nothing.
Shichika’s palms were already extended, and he swatted
both sword and scabbard to the heavens─he was certain
that Meisai would be the next projectile in the series, but in
fact she did the opposite.
The exact opposite.
She turned her back on Shichika─and sprinted off the
other way.
“Wha…no.”
Running? So soon? After whipping her sword?
Shichika’s brain was abuzz with question marks─but the
battle had begun. If the enemy ran, you had to chase them.
He bounded over the flat stones in pursuit.
Leaving Togame, the judge, all alone.
“Ah…”
He could hear Togame’s voice behind him, but there was
nothing he could do─with her deplorable athletic skills, she
had no hope of catching up to the two fighters.13 Their
battlefield extended to the edges of the grounds─an
impossible range of terrain for Togame to monitor. All that
remained for her to do was to carefully collect─without a
scratch─the piece of the Legion that Shichika had
thoughtlessly sent skyward.
 But Shichika had his own difficulties catching up to
Meisai, who stayed just ahead of him. In terms of
physicality, he was overwhelmingly superior─but in a repeat
of the day before, when they faced Kuizame Maniwa, run as
he might the gap between them only grew─
Like the Kyotoryu, the Sentoryu was swordplay without a
sword.
Indeed, Meisai’s first move had been to throw away her
sword─while dattojutsu and mutodori were not so
uncommon, the benefit of specializing in them was the
same as the Kyotoryu’s─one need not be encumbered by a
heavy, awkward sword. If your enemy carries your weapon
for you, you can remain agile. The human body is basically
complete on its own─even a small stone held in the palm
will make a difference in your speed. It goes without saying
that carrying a katana greatly impacted your
maneuverability. 14

He understood why Meisai was fast.

Yet─the same condition applied to him too.
If he had no katana either, how come he couldn’t catch
her?
The fact of the matter was that Meisai’s legs were not as
strong as Shichika assumed─he was stronger. The difference
was in how each of them ran. Shichika simply dashed as fast
as his legs would take him, but Meisai knew how to outpace
her opponent, and how to stay ahead─you could say it was a
more developed version of Kyotoryu Form Seven, the
Kakitsubata, which Shichika used on Ginkaku Uneri back at
Gekoku Castle.
Hollowed Ground15─a run peculiar to the Sentoryu.
Mind games,16 as you might expect, were not Shichika’s
forte.
He was no stranger to tricky footwork, since he used it
himself for the Kakitsubata, but he never imagined an
enemy would use it back─the possibility hadn’t so much as
entered his mind. It had been the same with Komori
Maniwa’s transformational ninpo, the Body Melt.
But the Hollowed Ground could not be sustained. If they
played this game of tag for long enough, Shichika would
eventually catch Meisai, even with his normal run─and
Meisai was thoroughly aware of this eventuality.
Aware─and prepared.
This was what distinguished her from Shichika, who
automatically chased Meisai when she ran away.
When she made it to the offertory box in front of the
haiden (Shichika was certain she would veer left or right),
she turned to confront him.
A katana in her right hand.
And the katana─was the Legion!
“Hu…huh?!”
Shichika was running too fast to stop─as he was putting
on the brakes, Meisai flashed her blade─
“One Liner─”17
Not as quick as Ginkaku Uneri and his Zerosen─but
judging the cut far too fast to handle, Shichika gave up on
slowing down and simply let his feet slide─so that his upper
body leaned hard. Undeserving of the word “dodge,” this
was no more than a spill. Nevertheless, it did the job, and
Shichika managed to avoid the flash of steel.
From this position, Shichika prepared for Meisai’s next
attack.18
He had to wonder: if she was unarmed, where had she
found the katana? The answer became evident when Meisai,
not about to chase Shichika over a cliff, returned the blade
into a scabbard stashed behind the offertory box.
Before she ran away again.
This time, toward the thicket.
“Wha─”
Finding a Legion stashed behind the offertory box should
have been enough for Shichika to get a read on the sort of
battle Meisai had in store for him─but alas, his mind was at
a standstill.
In fact, the unexpected confrontation with a blade made
him lose most of his cool─while nowhere near as rapid as
the Zerosen, the One Liner gave him flashbacks. The fear of
swordplay, sown by the Zerosen, was festering in Shichika.
It had yet to even surface as a weakness.
Which is why he thought nothing of chasing after Meisai.
The chaser and the chased─but in this game of tag, the
latter, Meisai, clearly had the upper hand.
Running after her, diving into the thicket─Shichika finally
realized the nature of the trap that she had lain for him. He
had stepped right into it.
And now─he had no way of stepping out.
The shadows of a thicket. There was no reason to hide
them─not in here.
Legions were bound─to the trunk of every tree.
Nay, not only the trees.
Buried in tufts of grass. Springing from the earth.
A bloom of steel.
The Legion bloomed─from every foot of forest.
A Legion had been hidden behind the offertory box─but
it was not the only Legion hidden. Not the only one. And this
thicket was not the only stash─doubtless the Possessed was
scattered across the grounds. In the honden and the haiden,
on top of the roof and on top of the torii─
The Legion awaited everywhere.
A thousand.
Blooming.19
Looming.20
Blooming everywhere.
Looming everywhere.
Now he grasped the reason Meisai confined their battle
to the shrine premises. It was to prevent Shichika from
exiting the zone covered by the Legion.
 And at the same moment, he saw why she had wanted
Togame to look for the first piece!
It was to buy herself time.
While Togame was absorbed in her investigation, Meisai
must have been developing her plan for setting the Legion
up around the grounds─which explained why she had
seemed so busy. Where and how each sword was placed,
and where and how to place them most effectively, required
forethought. No crew could stash the swords on the fly in
the space of a night. Nor anyone memorize the coordinates
of each and every piece─
It made no difference to Meisai which Legion was “the
original.” Well, that may be an exaggeration, but if the task
diverted Togame’s attention from the grounds for long
enough, it made all the difference.
Regardless of whether Togame had been correct, the
fact that she had identified one sword as “the original” in
the span of a week was perhaps more than Meisai had
bargained for─but if she had time to shoot the breeze with
Shichika the day before, she must have finished just in time.
And as far as barring Shichika from helping Togame was
concerned─even supposing the story of the Kuromiko was
no fib─it was just a way of keeping them apart.
Last night, while Shichika and Togame were slumbering
in their teahouse─Meisai Tsuruga and the fifty Kuromiko on
the mountaintop were stashing swords around the grounds.
Kyotoryu and Sentoryu.
So what if Shichika was unarmed.
If a thousand swords were sown across the grounds─it
offered him no advantage.
Shichika had erred in thinking that he understood the
Sentoryu the moment he saw Meisai clash with Kuizame─but
it was too late in the game to recover from his failure to
recognize anything beyond a variety of dattojutsu in the
school. And the fact that he, a retainer, would hesitate to
trouble Togame, exhausted from her weeklong search for
the original, was perhaps exactly what Meisai had intended─
The Sentoryu was not designed for fighting one on one.
Its moves depended on the presence of hundreds upon
thousands of swordsmen clashing on a battlefield. Not
content to seize an opponent’s sword, the Sentoryu aimed
to harness the blades of an entire battleground─the Legion
of them!
Shichika had lost track of Meisai.
 All he could see─was swords.
Just swords.
Sword after sword.
Nothing but swords.
Kiki Shikizaki’s Mutant Blade─Sento the Legion.
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion,
Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion, Legion!
An iron maiden21 for the eyes─one thousand swords!
“Here’s what happens when the Sentoryu partners with
Sento the Legion,” Meisai’s voice, alone, sounded in the
shadows of the thicket. “Terrain Effect: Thousand Sword
Odyssey!”22

■ ■

And now for the requisite reminiscence.23

This time, into the life of Meisai Tsuruga.
Her father was the commander of the second of the
Three Goshin24 Regiments, perennial protectors of the land
of Izumo, and she was his only daughter. It goes without
saying that at this point neither Meisai nor Tsuruga was her
name─but there would be little reason to disclose what it
used to be. For one thing, it all happened so long ago, and
for another, her family no longer existed.
In addition to being commander of the second of the
Three Goshin Regiments, her father headed a historic school
of swordplay─specializing in the Sentoryu. The dojo and its
signature style were so obscure that not even Togame had
heard of them, but it was pedigreed, and unknown only
because Izumo was autonomous.
Meisai was to be the next head of the dojo.
Which is why she had been drilled in the methods of the
Sentoryu from her early years─
Swords are expendable─the school was founded on that
premise. When swords are treated as expendable─there is
no longer any reason to carry one yourself. Why bog
yourself down with such a heavy thing when your enemies
can carry your swords for you─simple. The ultimate
unarmed means of self-defense,25 and the ultimate defense
of the sacred.26 Such was the slogan of the Sentoryu.
The school had things in common with the Kyotoryu,
and even with Togame’s motto.
But it went further─expendable swords.
As any reader must have recognized, this was the exact
premise upon which legendary swordsmith Kiki Shikizaki
forged the Legion. Swords are expendable─obvious?
Perhaps. But a school of swordplay and a Mutant Blade
existed based on that same obvious principle, giving
Meisai’s ownership of the Legion a non-coincidental air, of
destiny─or perhaps (though there would be no hope of
proving such a thing), Kiki Shikizaki had been spurred to
forge the Legion by an awareness of Izumo’s tenacious
school of swordplay. Sentoryu, Sento the Legion─if the
overlapping names are no coincidence, the theory may very
well be fact.
At any rate.
Looking backward─twenty years, to the time of the
Rebellion.
During that unprecedented,27 unmentionable28 uprising,
spearheaded by Takahito Hida, Kaoyaku of Oshu and father
of Togame─not even Izumo, autonomous as it may be, was
spared. Indeed, you might say that autonomy made things
worse for Izumo, since they received no aid from the bakufu:
not out in the open, and not behind the scenes.
All three of the Three Goshin Regiments were routed.
If it were not for independent contributions from
neighboring provinces, the haven of the gods would have
been wiped from the map. That they had staved things off
at the proverbial water’s edge had been a precious bit of
good fortune among bad.
But misfortune was all Meisai knew.
 Nothing that could be termed fortunate ever seemed to
come her way.
Losing her family and her family name─she lived on the
road, a young vagabond29 by the time the Rebellion was
suppressed. A war orphan.30 Nobody to help her─and not
about to ask for help.
Why not? Her value system had been irreparably
shattered and pulverized by the Rebellion.
The Sentoryu, its dojo small enough to fly off if you blew
on it, however obscure, was the ultimate form of self-
defense, and the ultimate defense of the sacred─Meisai had
believed this from the bottom of her heart. Surely it was the
reason her father had risen to become commander of the
second of the Three Goshin Regiments.
But such pride served no purpose during the
Rebellion─her father perished, and every last one of his
disciples died in battle.
She had stayed behind, becoming the only survivor.
Her pride and soul had not been worthy.
From there, the fall was straight down.
Waylaying pilgrims trekking pleasantly to Izumo,
stripping them of all their belongings, and sometimes killing
them without mercy─she became, in a word, a brigand. In
these surprise highway attacks, it made no difference if her
victim was a man at arms─actually, it made it better. The
Sentoryu preferred an armed opponent.
Meisai had absolutely zero qualms in using the
pedigreed Sentoryu for ill. After all, it had not proved itself
worthy. She worked alone at first, doing as she pleased, but
came to find that even the crime world had its factions and
power structures. As an only daughter set to take over the
family dojo, she had failed to see─or never thought to see
that even the sacred land of Izumo was home to ruffians.
Finding her legs in these rough waters, sometimes clashing
swords, at other times colluding, Meisai eventually joined
what was, at the time, the greatest band of brigands in
Izumo, where she found her place.
The fact that Sento the Legion had been passed down
among the brigands, from one chieftain to the next─was not
what had attracted her, but she certainly did know that they
held the Mutant Blade prior to joining them.
Well. No sense going any further.
A tale Meisai, at least, wished she could forget.
No need to reminisce.
What are you fighting for? she had asked Shichika─and
the answer volunteered by Kuizame Maniwa, one of the
Twelve Bosses of the Maniwa Clan, was correct.
If you have to be asking such questions, don’t even
bother fighting─
Nobody has time for your philosophy─don’t be
ridiculous─
And it was─ridiculous.
Indeed, during her thirteen years as a brigand, she
never stopped to think about it once. What are you fighting
for? What are you killing for? She did not have the time for
philosophy.
She simply fought.
Simply killed.
Not exactly to survive.
Not because she didn’t want to die.
She just did what she did─nothing more.
It was a few years after she had found herself the
chieftain, after being with the brigands thirteen years and
coming into the Legion─that Meisai faced the question for
the first time, in her raid on Triad Shrine.
She showed up alone, a scout scoping things out in a
manner unbefitting of a chieftain, and wound up killing all
the priests─including the old Meisai Tsuruga, who led the
place at the time. Triad Shrine had yet to become a fortress,
so the priests were unarmed─hence she did not kill them
using the Sentoryu.
 She strangled them. Neck by neck.
A primitive way to kill.
But she had no remorse.
The raid was not her idea, but she had known about the
shrine’s beginnings since she was a little girl who would
someday inherit the dojo. The place was a sanitarium for
suffering womankind31─then how come─
How come they hadn’t saved her?
She had become a brigand of her own volition.
Refused to ask for help, too, of her own volition.
And yet.
Saving even hopeless people is what makes the gods
the gods!
“Forgive us,” the head priest squeaked out while he was
being strangled.
The old Meisai Tsuruga.
She thought he was begging for his life. In which case,
she had heard it all before.
She had never once listened to them.
But no─she was wrong.
“Forgive us─for not being able to save you.” His voice
was terribly calm. “But please, find it in your heart─to spare
those girls.”
Those girls did no wrong.
Those were his last words.
Not one of her victims had ever said anything of the
sort, which must be why she found herself pondering, for
the first time─
What are you fighting for?
What are you killing for?
And what are you living for?
She was not feeling guilty; it was not some
awakening32─nothing had changed. She just found herself
pondering the questions.
 If there was a precise moment when she became Meisai
Tsuruga─this was it.
Upon returning to the brigand stronghold,33 she killed all
forty-three of her comrades. It took very little of her time.
Unlike the unarmed priests, her brigand friends were always
armed. And the more heavily armed and numerous the
opponents, the stronger the powers exhibited by the
Sentoryu─ironically, these thirteen years of living without
pride, and using the Sentoryu as an instrument of the
brigands, had served to polish her technique. She had been
particularly effective in the last few years, as Sento the
Legion’s inheritor. Her brigand friends─perhaps a pleasantry
like “friends” was no longer appropriate─at any rate, those
guys never knew what hit them and were massacred, all
forty-three, with no time to fight back. Whereupon she took
up residence at Triad Shrine under the name Meisai Tsuruga,
bringing with her Sento the Legion, one of the Twelve
Possessed, the masterpieces of Kiki Shikizaki.
Thus Triad Shrine was reborn as a fortress.
It had been seven years.
She still thought back on it sometimes.
What was it about that handful of words that gave her
such a push─to utterly reject34 those thirteen years?
Was it sympathy? Regret?
She wasn’t sure.
If she were to ask Shichika Yasuri, he would probably
answer that he had no idea─he didn’t understand what
made her tick,35 at all. Togame, on the other hand, might.
She was the daughter of the Mastermind of the Rebellion
who was responsible for altering the course of Meisai’s
life─as well as her own.
They had both abandoned their names.
Perhaps they could see eye to eye.
But Meisai had lost interest in that sort of thing─at this
point, all she knew for certain was that helping the thousand
Kuromiko sheltered at Triad Shrine was helping her.
She seemed to be helping them─but in fact was saving
herself.
Right, the gods wouldn’t save her. The gods existed to
be served.
To paraphrase a politician36 from a later era─ask not
what the gods can do for you, but what you can do for the
gods.
Thus─Togame’s offer was just what she needed.37 No
matter how dangerous the bridge,38 she was prepared to
cross, overlooking any danger, if it meant obtaining two
more Mutant Blades.
Zetto the Leveler and Zanto the Razor.
Two more of those girls─could be rescued.
No, the venom would not be split into a thousand
portions, like with Sento the Legion. They would be more
potent, saving Meisai all the more.
Which is why she had absolutely no misgivings about
defeating Shichika and acquiring two more of the Possessed.
She hatched a plan.
Laid her trap.
Fought dirty.
Because I’m fighting for those girls!
Which was to say, for herself.
“What’s it gonna be?”
About half an hour after Togame had signaled them to
start.
Meisai Tsuruga called out to Shichika.
With his back to a great tree, he scanned the
thicket─but couldn’t see Meisai anywhere, while she could
see him just fine.
She had the home advantage.
In her seven years as steward of these woods, these
grounds, and all of Triad Shrine─she had not been steward in
name only,39 but in earnest. Seeing Shichika backed up
against the tree─she knew a Legion had been stashed there.
If she shot over to where he stood and grabbed the
blade─she could almost certainly kill him. Since invoking the
Thousand Sword Odyssey, she had kept Shichika running,
and he was showing signs of fatigue. Of course he was. That
was her plan─in fact, for the last half hour, she had not been
trying to kill him. That went for the sword she hurled at
Shichika at the onset of the battle, needless to say, and so
too the One Liner at the offertory box was meant to be
dodged.
She was trying to tucker him out.
Clearly, she would never best a man as big as him
through strength alone─which was why she had been pulling
strings40 all week. Although she hadn’t been so bold as to
lace his food with poison, the two meals per day she had
been feeding them, while fine for someone as spritely as
Togame, could not have satisfied a man like Shichika.
She had set the scene for victory, from the first detail.
And now they were arriving at the last.
It was time to finish things up.
“We agreed surrender was an option─as a servant of the
gods, I will never take a life for no good reason.41 The gap in
skill is clear. If you say mercy, I am ready to oblige.”
“…”
No answer from Shichika.
Try as he may to pinpoint where her voice was coming
from─it was in vain. Her words were not a tease intent on
laying bare her position. Taunting was a rookie move─and
one she had surpassed long before becoming a brigand.
She went on.
“Resistance is futile─the Kyotoryu is no match for my
Thousand Sword Odyssey. Our schools may share the
practice of not carrying a sword, but in the heat of battle,
the Sentoryu is a cut above.”
 …If Togame had been present, she would have shot
down Meisai with a few choice words─the fact of the matter
being that it was irrational, even now, to claim that Shichika
was automatically at a flagrant disadvantage to Meisai.
He had assumed that he would have the upper hand,
and if all that the Thousand Sword Odyssey accomplished
was to upend that premise, they were simply even.
Losing his advantage did not place him at a
disadvantage.
Shichika had not been cornered.
Unleashing her Double Cross on Kuizame Maniwa,
ostensibly to offset her unfair knowledge of the Kyotoryu,
had an element of deception that was far from sporting.42
She had granted him a temporary sense of superiority
only to snatch it back.
If Shichika won the duel, their prize43 would be Sento
the Legion, but if Meisai won, both Zetto the Leveler and
Zanto the Razor would be hers─and just as Togame had
used these disproportionate, overtly advantageous terms as
bait, so as to lure Meisai into the duel─Meisai had granted
Shichika a temporary sense of superiority to lull him into
complacency.
Just so she could visit her Thousand Sword Odyssey on
his lulled mind.
And now─reminding him that he could ask for mercy
was more deception at a far cry from niceties like her
supposed aversion to needless slaughter.
It was better to win without a fight.
Breaking his spirit, so that he saw himself at a
disadvantage, as being unable to win, as having no hope of
winning─was better for Meisai. Going for the kill, into the
fray, there was no small chance that she would meet her
match.
In a clash of blades─Shichika would likely realize he was
at no disadvantage.
 Meisai was not so doggedly opposed to throwing down
as to avoid it at all costs─but she was hoping to get by
without allowing Shichika to rally.
Fear and aversion.
Meisai was well versed in their application.
“What’s it gonna be─”
While easygoing as ever, Meisai was
adamant─persistent in her speech.
She was well aware these circumstances were not in
fact so advantageous─but from her tone of voice, the sort
taken toward a misbehaving child, you never would have
known. Even if Shichika did not accept her ultimatum,44 she
was sure her domineering language would make him
agitated─and start to think things.
Thinking─that was good.
He could think and think─until his brain went flop.
A man of Shichika’s intelligence would not get far by
thinking.
Which is why, regardless of his inclination, Meisai
needed to spell things out.
“Why not call it a loss? I’m sure that for the shogunate,
this Sword Hunt is no more than an amusement. It’s not
worth risking your life. Not for this mission. The Kyotoryu
was no match for the Sentoryu. That’s all there is to it─”
Shichika Yasuri. Island monkey. No combat experience.
Meisai Tsuruga. Thirteen years among brigands.
The disparity was insurmountable.
Unless.
“…You do eat meat, right?” Shichika asked softly. He
had given up on figuring out where Meisai was─and spoke
looking nowhere in particular, as if to himself.
“Huh. Meat?”
“Yeah, meat─eating animals. I do.”
Faced with this non sequitur, Meisai was bewildered─had
she pushed him over the edge? That had not been her
intention. Now she would never get him to plead for mercy─
With no regard for what she may be thinking, Shichika
continued with his gobbledygook.
“Togame has no problem drinking that bitter water of
yours, but then she goes and says she can’t believe that I
eat meat, like it’s so gross… Me and sis did from the second
we got teeth. Raw, fried, boiled, steamed…it tasted totally
different from whatever plants we dug up or the fish we
caught─I haven’t eaten meat since I started off with her,
and man, I miss it…”
“…? What’s stopping you? Eating meat─is far from
strange, at least among warriors. Not that I partake
myself─”
“Back on the island too, beasts were quite nimble─you
couldn’t catch them just by chasing them. So they were a
rare treat. You’re fast, but it’d be hard for you too. If you
really wanted some meat, you had to lay a trap.”
A trap─a trap like the Thousand Sword Odyssey.
“But that’s easier said than done for an idiot like me.
Once, I set one near our hut…and sis got caught in it… That
was crazy.”
“…”
“Get it? Traps are for prey… You don’t surround your
house with them.”
“What are you trying to say?” demanded Meisai,
exasperated by his ramblings. “What is it that you’ve been
trying to say this last minute? If you’re ready to surrender,
then─”
“One,” Shichika stated emphatically. “One idea is all I’ve
got.”
“Huh?”
“I’ve been trying to figure a way out of this─Thousand
Sword Odyssey. No matter how perfect it looks, there’s gotta
be a hole or─”
“No holes,” Meisai interrupted. “The Thousand Sword
Odyssey is invincible. The Sentoryu is the ultimate means of
self-defense, and the ultimate─defense of the sacred.”
“I want to test whether that’s true─whether the
Sentoryu is really better than the Kyotoryu!” yelled
Shichika─before dashing off.
His choice of direction gave Meisai pause─crap!
Instantly, she grew tense. Impossible─but with the way
things were going, impossible no more.
Had the boy─figured it out?
Slow as he was?
“Nkk…”
In a mind game, Meisai dominated Shichika─that much
was true.
How─ever.
In her desire to provoke and agitate, she had made the
one mistake which, as Shichika’s opponent, she would have
done well to avoid─in passing judgment on the Kyotoryu,
she should have accounted for the incompleteness of his
personal development as a swordsman. She should never
have condemned the school outright based on his
performance.
You could also say she had made too much of his
comment about killing his own father, the previous Master.
In any case, it was a genuine mistake─having thrown
away her pride in her own school long ago, well over twenty
years now, she no longer felt its absence, making the error
practically inevitable. The Thousand Sword Odyssey is
invincible. The Sentoryu is the ultimate means of self-
defense, and the ultimate defense of the sacred─but since
nobody believed this less than Meisai, sound judgment of
another school evaded her.
The difference was this: while Meisai had ranked the
Sentoryu against the Kyotoryu simply in order to define her
strategy─Shichika regarded their duel as a true test of his
school against hers.
After nineteen years of incessant training under his
father, the pride that Shichika felt for the Kyotoryu
was─extraordinary. Carefree as he appeared, his affection
for his school was unimaginable.
Which is why Meisai should never have put down the
Kyotoryu.
Along with fear and aversion─she had fostered anger.
She knew better─anger links to passion, and passion,
dissolving fear and aversion, can even hatch a kind of
miraculous intelligence.
“Whah─what the heck!”
Of course Meisai could not have known the reason for
her error─lacking pride in her own school, the paradigm was
lost to her. Without a clue─all she could do was pursue
Shichika.
While nowhere near as muscular as Shichika, Meisai had
higher odds, as the better runner and a master of the game
of tag─if she could only catch up with him before he reached
it, she could use one of the swords stashed here and there
and slash him from behind!
But in the end, Meisai could not catch up with Shichika.
Starting from the thicket worked against her in this
instance─she certainly had the home advantage on these
premises, but once they had plunged into the thicket, the
gap between them narrowed─growing up on Haphazard
Island, where almost everything was mountain, Shichika had
lived for twenty years among the trees.
Wherever the earth was unmaintained, Shichika
expanded his lead in the footrace, but such an easy
rationale sounds forced─perhaps we should say that he was
angry enough to overcome any difference in running ability.
Bursting from the thicket, he made one last enormous
bound and kicked up a cloud of dust where his bare feet
touched down.
When Meisai saw him fly, she stopped.
Stopping was her only option.
No use catching him now.
 Because─they had arrived at an area where not a single
Legion had been stashed. Even if she reached him, she
would have no sword with which to slash him.
“Yup…thought so…” Shichika said slowly, as if his
suspicions were confirmed, before turning to face his foe.
“Thousand Sword Odyssey or not─there’s no way you’d
stash any here…isn’t that right, Meisai Tsuruga. Say what
you will about me, but you gotta be real careful around
Togame─”
They were standing at the place the guests had been
staying for a week─the teahouse. Right in front of it.

■ ■

Terrain Effect: Thousand Sword Odyssey.

The Sentoryu in concert45 with Sento the Legion─swords
stashed all around the battlefield, Meisai could face her
enemy unarmed. Thanks to this tour de force, Shichika felt
like he was fighting one on a thousand.
It mattered that the thousand swords were Sento the
Legion, that mass-produced masterpiece of Kiki Shikizaki. In
the Sentoryu, it was not some trusty46 weapon that was
wielded, but the enemy’s─thus it changed from one enemy
to the next. Except in the Thousand Sword Odyssey, where
all thousand of the swords were the same. Every sword
could be wielded the same way.
Sento the Legion might have been made expressly for
the Sentoryu─if a katana chose its owner, the Legion had
most definitely picked the Sentoryu.
A custom fit, in every way.
But in spite of, or perhaps because of this─it was crucial
to set up the Odyssey with the utmost care. A trap can only
be effective if it is not discovered prematurely─which is why
all thousand swords had to be stashed around the grounds
the night before. And in such a way that neither Shichika nor
Togame would catch on.
Hence the hole in the stash.
The teahouse─where they slept.
It may be going too far to say this was a defect47 in her
strategy. Expecting things would come to this, Meisai had
asked them to sleep in the teahouse, and not the honden, to
minimize the area where no swords were stashed.
She had been positive the winner would be decided
before Shichika─or Togame─noticed the defect. She had
bolted when the duel began, luring her foe into the thicket
and the vast number of Legions stashed therein─but her
main objective was to create as much distance as possible
between Shichika and the teahouse.
If she had not been so gratuitously provocative, he
might never have realized. Or perhaps if she had retained a
shred of pride for the Sentoryu─
But she was a day late48─if not a sword short.
Turning toward Meisai, Shichika assumed Form One─the
Suzuran. He was tired from their tour of the thicket, and it
showed─but the crushing claustrophobia49 had dispersed.
He was no longer one against a thousand.
And the stifling situational disadvantage─was no more.
“Phew…” Meisai sighed morosely at the sight of
Shichika in his stance. She had the mood of someone totally
acknowledging, and accepting, her defeat. She spoke
equally morosely. “Even if you win the sword, you’ll still
need to figure out a plan for shipping it back to Owari,
right?”
“…”
“If I should lose the duel, the Kuromiko have been asked
to cooperate, and will hand-deliver the Legion to the
bakufu… Having each tote a piece will hide50 the treasure in
plain sight. Feel free to adopt the plan.”
 “…Tell me you’re kidding.”
Rather than respond, Meisai persisted. “In exchange, I
ask the bakufu to safeguard the futures of the thousand
Kuromiko─all but me─and the fate of Triad Shrine.”
“Come on. That’s─”
“In appointing my successor, they will need to dispatch
someone with the necessary level of compassion and
sensitivity toward matters of the heart. While the bakufu
may be a swamp full of ghosts and goblins,51 there must be
at least one person who fills that description. The Kuromiko
who has made the furthest progress in her recovery, whom I
have already designated, will serve as a proxy until then─if
you have questions, you can ask her.”
“Does this mean─you forfeit?”
“Um, no?”
Meisai shook her head and reached down by her feet─to
where a Legion had apparently been buried in the earth.
She leisurely freed the sword from the soil and held it up at
middle guard.
“But the possibility of losing has become too real to
ignore─so much so I feel obliged to get my affairs in order.
But I am not forfeiting this match. I will stop at nothing to
obtain the Leveler and the Razor.”
“…”
“In my book, without due resolve nothing is gained─I
say this risking everything, prepared to lose my life. Which
is why I have no problem asking that much of the Schemer.
Both of you are still too young to understand, but being
outsmarted by someone younger than you is not such an
awful feeling. Yet…yet. It may sound like I’m contradicting52
myself, but I went into this duel ready to be defeated…it’s
like I said. Maybe I’ve been waiting for people like you to
come here all along.”
“…”
 “As far as contradictions go─to think I used the katana’s
poison to help these women. Relying on those murdersome
swords for life─I always believed it was a mistake. But also a
necessary evil─”
“…”
“Poison or medicine, at the end of the day, the Legion is
a butcher knife.53 I would be lying if I said there was no
other way. I mean, the old Meisai Tsuruga needed nothing
like a Mutant Blade─because he knew how to run a shrine. I
say I’m going to help these women─and then I give them
weapons. But was that correct? If these women were
abused54 under the sword─how could giving them swords
ever save them? They may be using the venom as
medicine─but if I cannot bear to part with them, the
medicine must be poison after all. Force is the only way
you’d ever take them.”
“…”
“But correct or not, perhaps I had no other choice.
Because I was waiting, for people like you, who would crush
my worthless views, and the necessary evil of the sword’s
venom─kindly negating my erroneous methods─”
Hold on though.
What if this was all part of her strategy too?
Diversionary tactics.
What if she was only being sentimental to stir up
Shichika all over again, when he had finally calmed
down─regardless of her intentions, with the way her story
was developing, the outcome was highly probable. Meisai
should have known from their talk the day before that such
diversions rarely worked on Shichika─but he was not entirely
immune.
However─Shichika was thinking something altogether
different. He had been silent thus far not because he was
processing what Meisai said─but because he was fixated on
the Legion that Meisai had pulled out of the ground.
 This sword─made him feel it.
The exact same sensation he had felt the month before
beholding Zanto the Razor in the hands of Ginkaku Uneri,
back at Gekoku Castle.
Shichika was positive.55
The sword Meisai Tsuruga was pointing was Sento the
Legion─no.
The original Legion.
Togame’s argument stood the test of logic─or at least
was sufficiently persuasive─but Shichika now realized that
she must have been wrong. Her “first piece” was not the
original.
No matter how neatly the argument had stacked, her
inference could not be absolute─what was absolute was this
sensation.
In crafting the original Legion, Kiki Shikizaki had left no
identifying mark, after all.
Doing so would have been antithetical to his
abnormality.
But this─was the original.
The Legion’s template.
That she would draw the piece here, at the final stage─a
one in a thousand chance─Meisai Tsuruga…
The katana had chosen her.
Just like I chose Togame─Meisai was chosen, by the
Legion.
That said everything. Shichika braced himself.
If gaining the advantage, once and for all, had spawned
even the slightest negligence in Shichika, this purged it. In
which case, drawing the original Legion against thousand-
to-one odds was in fact luckless.
But this, too, was fate, and necessity, if she had been
chosen.
Chosen to possess─Sento the Legion.
 “I am Shichika Yasuri, Seventh Master of the
Kyotoryu─bring it on.”
Answered Meisai, “As Mistress of Mt. Taizan, Izumo’s
Triad Shrine…no.” She broke off and closed her eyes. “I am
Meisai Tsuruga, Twelfth Master of the Sentoryu─here I
come.”
It was hard to tell what she was feeling when she said
this. She had neither regained her pride in her school, nor
meant it as some mind game.
“Time to show you the secrets of the Sentoryu.”
“Not if you’re torn to smithereens.”
Finally─the fight began.
A fair fight, with no strategies, or tactics, or mind
games, or traps.
Meisai Tsuruga versus Shichika Yasuri.
The Sentoryu versus the Kyotoryu.
And Sento the Legion versus Kyoto the Diamond.
May the best sword win!
“Hah.”
Just like at the beginning, Meisai threw her sword
spinning through the air at Shichika, and once again, he
swatted it heavenward─as expected.
 Against the exact same move in the exact same
circumstances, he would respond in the exact same way,
being no veteran─she had been certain that he would swat
away the Legion.
And Meisai’s next move was precisely the one Shichika
had anticipated at the beginning. In other words, after her
sword she shot forth, unarmed, and at terrific speed─but on
her last step, she leapt into the sky and caught the sword
midair.
The Sentoryu.
Even a soaring katana─belonged to it.
“Rolling Thunder!”56
Shichika countered her sword with a Fatal Orchid.
With the utmost respect, with the fastest move available
to him at that moment.
A rigid stance, as if his legs had grown roots─paired with
a twisting of the hips so furious they threatened to tear free.
In your face.57
The heel of his hand shot forth from Form One!
“Kyotoryu─Kyoka Suigetsu!”58

■ ■

“Huff, huff, huff, huff, ugh…huff, huff, huff, huff…ack.”

Togame had lost sight of Shichika and Meisai no sooner
than their duel began, but as her innately serious and
scrupulous personality would not permit her to leave her
post as official witness and referee, she wandered the
grounds, nearly reduced to tears─until she found them.
By then, it was all over.
What she saw when she arrived in the vicinity of the
teahouse was Shichika Yasuri in a relaxed stance, staring at
his left hand, freshly drenched in blood, and Meisai Tsuruga
lying on her back, clinging to Sento the Legion─the imprint
of a hand forced through her ribcage.
“Shi-Shichika.”
“Hey, Togame.” Hearing her voice, Shichika looked
toward her with an invigorated smile. “I won,” he reported
his victory with pride. “No room for a bad call, as you can
see.”
Togame─gazed upon the body of Meisai Tsuruga.
By now, demonstrably a corpse.
Meisai Tsuruga─Mistress of Triad Shrine.
Former brigand.
Togame knew little of the woman’s early years─but
enough to hazard a guess. No, not just about her─the
Schemer was certain that all thousand of the Kuromiko
serving the shrine had personal circumstances rivaling,
even surpassing her own reasons.
Parents murdered.
Families massacred.
Lineages eradicated.
Such tales─were common at this shrine.
And yet.
Togame had brushed it all aside, for the sake of her own
reasons, her own ambition, her own revenge.
“Shichika, did you really─” she began to ask.
Did you really need to kill her?
She almost asked─her katana.
In her thirteen years among the brigands, Meisai
Tsuruga had slain countless innocents─a crime that could
never be forgiven no matter how she apologized or atoned.
No matter how many of the girls at Triad Shrine she
assisted by turning the Legion’s poison into medicine─her
efforts were hypocritical.
No, apology and atonement were in and of themselves
hypocrisy.
Meisai Tsuruga bore the burden─of a crime that could
never be forgiven.
 And yet.
Togame had no right to judge.
She was only here─to take the sword.
To further her self-centered59 agenda.
“Huh? What’s wrong? Togame.”
The look on his face─was honest and undisturbed, not
what you would expect from someone who had just taken a
life.
A sword that could kill─without due
resolve─relinquishing nothing.
A katana did not choose who to kill.
But─it chose its owner.
In which case─she had killed Meisai Tsuruga.
And this road─Togame herself had chosen it.
She had walked too far along it to turn off or turn back.
If her resolve could be compromised by such trifling
disturbances─she would have given it up long ago.
“Shichika─”
Togame stifled the emotion in her voice.
Swallowing her cowardice,60 she spoke with bravado.61
“Well done.”

1 鞘尻 SAYAJIRI butt end of the sheath 尻 SHIRI buttocks 2 無地 MUJI “no ground”
not patterned 3 暗号 ANGŌ “obscure numeral”
4 鎖刀 KUSARI GATANA “chain katana” (not a real word, unlike kusarigama) 5 鎬
造 SHINOGI ZUKURI sword having a long groove running near the ridge 6 三
ッ 棟 MITSUMUNE when the edges of the ridge are planed to form three
longitudinal surfaces 7 小乱 KOMIDARE “minor riot”
8 二刀・十文字斬り NITŌ JŪMONJI GIRI slashing 十 JŪ, the two-stroke character for

“ten,” using two swords 9 奪刀術 DATTŌJUTSU “sword-robbing technique”

10 御託を並べて GOTAKU WO NARABETE spouting cant; 御託 GOTAKU originally,
oracular utterances 11 中段 CHŪDAN sword raised to stop a body blow 12 尋
常に JINJŌ NI play fair 13 戦士 SENSHI warrior
14 機動力 KIDŌRYOKU mobility 15 地抜き JINUKI reverse display 地 JI (back)ground
抜 き NUKI pulled out/pulling away 16 駆 け 引 き KAKEHIKI dealing, horse
trading 17 一 刀 ・ 一 文 字 斬 り ITTŌ ICHIMONJI GIRI slashing 一 ICHI, the one-
 stroke character for “one,” using a single sword 18 二 の 太 刀 NI NO TACHI
“the second sword”
19 あふれている AFURETE IRU to be overflowing 20 ありふれている ARIFURETE IRU

to be ubiquitous 21 圧殺 ASSATSU being crushed to death 22 地形効果・千刀

巡 り CHIKEI KŌKA SENTŌ MEGURI pun on 銭 湯 巡 り SENTŌ MEGURI public-
baths touring 23 場面回想 BAMEN KAISŌ to recollect scenes from the past 24
護 神 GOSHIN guardians of the gods 25 護 身 術 GOSHIN JUTSU self-defense
technique 26 護神術 GOSHIN JUTSU “god-guarding techniques” a pun on self-
defense 27 空 前 絶 後 KŪZEN ZETSUGO never before or since 28 言 語 道 断
GONGO DŌDAN not an option 29 放浪児 HŌRŌJI “wandering child”
30 戦災孤児 SENSAI KOJI a child whose parents fell victim to war 31 弱き女たち
YOWAKI ON’NA TACHI “women, who are weak” or “women in weak positions”
32 改心 KAISHIN “renewed heart”
33 根 城 NEJIRO “root castle” base of operations 34 全 否 定 ZEN HITEI complete
negation 35 行 動 原 理 KŌDŌ GENRI behavioral principle 36 政 治 家 SEIJIKA
politician; the JFK allusion that follows is the author’s and not a localization
37 渡りに船 WATARI NI FUNE a boat at a river crossing 38 危ない橋 ABUNAI

HASHI “dangerous bridge” common figure of speech for a risky venture 39

伊達に DATE NI for show 40 根回し NEMAWASHI “spreading roots” often used
to mean “getting people on board beforehand”
41 無益な殺生 MUEKI NA SESSHŌ (set phrase) killing living things when there is

no benefit 42 武士道 BUSHIDŌ the samurai code 43 戦利品 SENRIHIN spoils of

war 44 最後通牒 SAIGO TSŪCHŌ “final notification” translation of the Western
word used in int’l relations 45 共 同 合 作 KYŌDŌ GASSAKU joint effort,
collaborative work 46 愛用 AIYŌ “lovingly used”
47 瑕疵 KASHI flaw; blemish 48 あとの祭り ATO NO MATSURI “post-festival”
49 窮屈 KYŪKUTSU hemmed in 50 偽装 GISŌ “fake attire” disguise, camouflage
51 魑魅魍魎 CHIMI MŌRYŌ evil spirits of the hills and streams 52 矛盾 MUJUN
“spear shield” (the word alludes to an imaginary contest between a spear
that pierces all shields and a shield that blocks all spears) 53 人 斬 り 包 丁
HITOKIRI BŌCHŌ “man cleaver”
54 虐 げ ら れ る SHIITAGE RARERU to be oppressed overtone of 虐 待 GYAKUTAI

abuse 55 確信 KAKUSHIN “definite belief”

56 空中一刀・億文字斬り KŪCHŪ ITTŌ OKUMONJI GIRI (空中 KŪCHŪ midair, in the
sky) slashing 億 OKU, the many-stroked character for “hundred million,”
using one aerial sword 57 単純にして明快 TANJUN NI SHITE MEIKAI clear and
simple; often just 単 純 明 快 TANJUN MEIKAI 58 鏡 花 水 月 KYŌKA SUIGETSU
“Mirror Flower, Water Moon” i.e. reflections, the mere image 59 自 分 勝 手
JIBUN KATTE doing as one pleases 60 弱 気 YOWAKI “weak ki” timid 61 強 気
TSUYOKI “strong ki” bold
 ■ ■

That evening, Shichika and Togame left Triad Shrine behind.

The Kuromiko responded to the death of Meisai far more
calmly than Togame had expected─you could even say
coolly. Perhaps this should have come as no surprise, but
faced with the loss of the guiding force behind Triad Shrine
as they knew it, the girls appeared to have no interest in
what might happen to them. This was no different for the
Kuromiko whom Meisai had tasked with the aftermath─but
for the single comment, a kind of a reflection, whereby she
hinted at her thoughts: “So it has finally come to this.”
Togame had no way of knowing what this was supposed to
mean or why it had been voiced at all.
“Okay, what’s next?” Shichika asked Togame─walking
beside her down the thousand steps.
“…Next?”
“You know…on the Sword Hunt.”
“Ah─now that we have the Legion, along with the
Leveler and the Razor, we have three of the Twelve
Possessed─I think it’s time we paid a visit to Owari. Three
swords should make for a good present.”
“Huh.”
“It will be necessary for me to explain you to my
superior─to be honest, I hired you without prior approval.
But your track record speaks for itself. It’s a done deal.”
“Track record, huh. Three swords in three months─guess
it does speak for itself. The hunt is going quicker than I
thought─when I heard the Old Shogun failed to collect the
Twelve Possessed for all his might, I couldn’t imagine what
that meant for us, but since we only have nine more to go,
I’d say it’s doable.”
 “Don’t get comfortable. We live in a peaceful world. The
current owners of the swords are not to be compared to
those who owned them back in the Old Shogun’s days. As a
ruler and sovereign, he was tyrannical. Schemes like mine
operate on the opposite end of the spectrum. Remember,
we have the luxury of profiting from his mistakes.”
“Makes sense.”
“Not another arrogant word out of your mouth, you
understand? Doing something someone else has failed to do
is no excuse to brag.”
“I understand. I just got a little excited, okay? Don’t be
so nagging. So what happens at Owari? Will we meet the
Shogun?”
“You idiot.” It was rare for Shichika to be so inquisitive,
but Togame chopped his question in two. “I doubt the two of
us will enjoy an audience with His Excellency until we have
secured all twelve of the swords.”
“Oh.”
“Do you want to meet His Excellency?”
“No, I don’t care.”
I don’t care─with those words, Shichika stopped that
conversation short. Obviously all he had wanted to know
was whether Togame was going to meet the Shogun, but
since she would not touch upon this, he felt it was not his
place to intrude.
Not yet.
“Anyway─what kind of place is Owari? Is it like Kyoto?”
“Similar in scale, but Owari is not as flowery1 as the
capital. Kyoto is like a carnival, all year round─and Owari is,
well, a working city. More serious and solemn.”
“Oh.”
“The way that things have been arranged, it looks like
we’ll be reaching Owari Castle before all thousand pieces of
the Legion have been delivered─but we’ll make do.”
 “Yeah, but…” Shichika looked back over his
shoulder─and, recalling the shrine’s premises, brimming
with a thousand swords, he asked, “Are you gonna be
okay?”
“Excuse me?”
“I mean, that was kind of a rash thing to
promise─safeguarding the futures of a thousand women.
Can you do that when this shrine is─”
“I was merely exercising my abilities,” Togame said. “If
the Yanari Bakufu cannot accommodate another thousand
women, it has no right to its reputation.”
“Okay…” muttered Shichika, not really getting it. But as
a sword, this was perhaps not something he needed to
get─or profited from getting.
“Not such a bad deal for the bakufu, insofar as it would
establish intimate relations with Izumo, which is otherwise
autonomous. Now that it’s lost the Legion─Triad Shrine will
likely abandon its status as a fortress, but this would only
mean returning to what it was before things changed.”
“Before things changed.”
“Before the katana─changed everything.”
“Then maybe Meisai should have tried that from the
beginning. Instead of being all greedy and trying to win the
Leveler and the Razor.”
Being all greedy, she had perished─
“She was far from greedy─but since she was ultimately
the owner, Meisai could never free herself entirely from the
venom of the Shikizaki blades. We were forced to pry them
from her cold, dead hands.”
“Yeah…but what would you have done?”
 “Me?”
“If I had lost─would you have given her the Leveler and
the Razor, like we agreed?”
“Mumble mumble.”2
“Excuse me?!”
“I-I would have had to wait to see if─no, I was certain
you would never lose!”
“…You really put your neck on the line, too─what’s the
word? Fearless? Fearsome?3 Like that thing with the first
piece.”
“What about it?”
“Yeah…we’ll talk about that later─I’m still trying to sort
things out…but let’s just say I felt for myself what makes
these Kiki Shikizaki swords different from normal
swords─totally apart from the venom or the medicine or
whatever. What I really wanna know is, what does that
mean?”
“Don’t think too hard, Shichika. It didn’t exactly help you
out this time, did it? And of course, I wound up missing your
Fatal Orchid, yet again. How am I supposed to write my
report? Such a headache.”
“First Komori Maniwa, then Ginkaku Uneri, and now
Meisai Tsuruga…are you just not meant to watch me in
action?”
“M-Mrg…”
Togame was unable to respond.
In light of the facts, he certainly had a point. In order to
write her report, and to supervise Shichika, her katana─she
needed to come up with a decent plan.
“Guess it’s time for us to say goodbye to these stairs,”
Shichika noted. “Makes me kinda sorry to be leaving.”
Vaguely aware of Togame’s trouble4 with the steps, he
had kept apace with her, maintaining a steady footing. They
were halfway down the mountain, having descended a great
deal─around five hundred steps.
 “You’re sorry about the staircase, but not the shrine?
You weirdo.”
“No, it just makes me kind of sad to know I’ll never carry
you like that again. No matter where this Sword Hunt takes
us, I’ll probably never have a chance to hold you in my
arms─”
“Ch-Cheerio!”
Hoping to teach him not to be so daft with women,
Togame sent her fist flying. The fact that they were halfway
up a mountainside, and on cruelly steep stairs, completely
slipped her mind. They were descending them, too.
As expected, she lost her footing.
“Ah!”
“Whoop─”
Shichika reached out to catch Togame─and caught her
wrist midair, but in the process leaned perilously from the
staircase. She was so sprightly that she weighed nothing
compared to him, but when she tugged at his outstretched
limb like that, he had no hope of staying balanced.
“─ps, oops, oops, uh oh.”
“Wh─ah!”
Thus, hopelessly entangled, they tumbled down the
remaining five hundred or so steps, rolling faster and faster.

■ ■

They had yet to realize, as they fell.

That they would not be returning to Owari without
further ado.
That on the road ahead, the Strongest Swordsman in
Japan, the Fallen Swordsman who had willingly fallen from
his seat as the Strongest, who had tamed Hakuto the
Whisper, the most unwieldy masterpiece among Kiki
Shikizaki’s Twelve Possessed─for whom nomenclature like
Sword Master and Sword Saint5 were intended─that none
other than Hakuhei Sabi awaited his turn with them.

Sento the Legion: Check

End of Book Three
 To Be Continued

1 華やか HANAYAKA showy echoes 花 HANA flower 2 ごにょごにょ GONYO GONYO

onomatopoeia for mumbling 3 大 胆 … 不 敵 DAITAN…FUTEKI usually used

together as 大 胆 不 敵 audacious 4 懊 悩 ŌNŌ anguish 5 剣 豪 剣 聖 KENGŌ
KENSEI terms applied to the best of them, e.g. Musashi Miyamoto
 AFTER(S)WORD

Well, regarding that, there are all kinds of ways of thinking

about things, and no blanket statement is possible, but
when someone does something wrong for instance, it’s not
so easy to say what they could do to earn forgiveness. Not
to mention the problem of pinpointing what we mean by
such a vague idea as wrong, and defining where it starts
and ends─but as a working definition, let’s call wrongdoing
any action with a victim. Unless you’re a perfect person,6 in
the normal course of everyday life, you’re going to wind up
doing something wrong to somebody, even if it never hits
the level of a crime. So how should we make up for these
wrongdoings? There are going to be times where it isn’t
good enough to apologize, or to be remorseful, or to suffer
the same fate, because at the end of the day, asking for
forgiveness is the epitome of arrogance. When you have a
perpetrator and a victim, it certainly doesn’t mean no
wrongdoing occurred just because the victim sees what
happened with complete indifference and doesn’t even feel
victimized, and a wrong is still a wrong even if the
perpetrator is oblivious and shows no sign of compunction.
Or rather, crime or not, no matter how we may regret or
even forget the things we’ve done, they never go away, and
if they get brought up for the rest of our lives, that doesn’t
seem so unfair. Atonement and punishment are done for the
victim’s sake, not our own, but we can’t seem to keep
ourselves from mixing this up, and it’s depressing to think
how humans, as a species, are unable to consider crime and
punishment in anything but self-regarding terms. But that’s
enough slapdash philosophy for one sitting. If you do
something wrong, go ahead and apologize.
Thus ends the fourth of the twelve KATANAGATARI
books. Yikes, I mean the third. Sento the Legion, a thousand
swords in a single bunch. The fact that it’s only the end of
one installment in a longer series makes all of these
afterwords surprisingly difficult to write, but sluggish as
these words may be, the story proper marches on.
Sometimes I think thanking our illustrator, take, is the only
solid reason for these commentaries, but just as there are
times when saying sorry isn’t good enough, there are times
when saying thank you isn’t good enough. Demonstrating
gratitude is never easy, but for what it’s worth, I’ve tried.
Nine more books to go!

NISIOISIN
6 聖人君子 SEIJIN KUNSHI “saintly prince”
Palindromic NISIOISIN made his debut as a
novelist when he was twenty. Famously prolific,
he is known to publish more than a book per
month at times and is a leading light among
writers who began their careers in the twenty-
first century.

Beloved illustrator take is also known for

adorning the Zaregoto mystery cycle with
striking visuals.

Sam Bett won Grand Prize in the 2016 JLPP

International Translation Competition. With
David Boyd, he is cotranslating the novels of
Mieko Kawakami.