The Ring of Earth - Chris Bradford [30]
Soke put Jack in a group with Tenzen and Miyuki, much to her annoyance.
‘The first team to get back to the village is the winner,’ declared Soke. ‘But you cannot use the road. For the purpose of this exercise, it’s patrolled by samurai. That means your route must be through the forest. You’ll encounter a number of barriers on the way. Use teamwork and jumping skills to get past these.’
The students readied themselves.
‘You’d better fly fast, tengu,’ cried Hanzo. ‘We’re going to beat you!’
‘Big talk for a small boy,’ shot back Tenzen on his team’s behalf.
Miyuki turned to Jack and whispered, ‘I hope you run better than you walk. I don’t like losing.’
‘Neither do I,’ replied Jack, her comment rousing his samurai spirit.
Miyuki scowled at him, but had no opportunity to reply.
‘You’ve been discovered,’ announced Soke. ‘Escape!’
17
DRAGON BREATHING
The ninja students charged out of the glade.
Jack was soon left behind by Tenzen and Miyuki. They flew through the forest, bounding over logs and weaving between trees like young deer. Jack was fit, but not as amazingly agile as these ninja. He had to clamber over a fallen tree his two partners had jumped in a single leap. The dense undergrowth clawed at his clothes, while Tenzen and Miyuki appeared to glide through unscathed.
‘Keep up, samurai!’ demanded Miyuki.
Jack, his heart pounding in his chest, raced after them. He sensed a couple of the teams were trailing behind them, but he needed to prove he was as good as the best of the ninja. Putting on a burst of speed, he pursued his receding team members.
‘Ditch!’ warned Tenzen.
Jack jumped, only seeing it at the last second.
But he didn’t leap far enough. His foot missed the far side, he slipped and tumbled to the ground. Thankfully, his taijutsu training kicked in. Throwing out an arm to protect himself, Jack rolled to his feet in one fluid motion. He was up and running before he’d even registered the fall.
Glancing back, Tenzen gave Jack an approving nod at his ukemi skills.
The next obstacle they encountered was the valley’s river. Too wide for them to leap across unaided, the ninja were using long staves and vaulting it. Miyuki was already on the other side.
‘Come on!’ she called, tossing Jack a pole.
Jack hesitated. He’d never done this before.
‘I’ll show you,’ said Tenzen.
Taking the pole, he ran at the river. As he reached the bank, Tenzen buried the tip of the stave into the middle of the waterway and leapt high into the air. He flew up and over, vaulting to the opposite side where he landed lightly upon his feet.
‘Your turn!’ he said, throwing the pole back.
Plucking up his courage, Jack gripped the wooden stave and lifted it off the ground. He charged towards the river, driving the pole into the water. But he hadn’t counted on the pull of the current. As he buried the tip into the riverbed, the pole was yanked off-line. Too late to correct his mistake, he launched himself and hoped for the best.
Jack soared into the air, then lost all momentum.
For a moment, he hung suspended over the river. Then, like a felled tree, he slowly toppled sideways into the water with a loud splash. Jack came up gasping and swam hard for the opposite bank. Miyuki didn’t bother waiting for him.
‘You’ll never cross a moat like that,’ said Tenzen, dragging him out of the river. ‘Next time, throw your body weight forward as you jump.’
Bedraggled, Jack clambered to his feet as Tenzen ran on.
Jack eventually caught up with them both at a small rock face. It was the perfect natural barrier for the village further up the valley. The Ring of Earth in action, thought Jack.
One of the teams was already at the top, Hanzo waving at him.
‘Fly, tengu, fly!’
Jack couldn’t believe it. The boy wasn’t only an expert at stealth-walking, he was fast too. Then Hanzo disappeared with his team.
The other ninja groups were at various stages in the climb. Miyuki was