The Ring of Water - Chris Bradford [84]
Goro headed straight for Ronin, while Nobu lumbered after Hana.
The dōshin – sent into a wild panic by Ronin’s slaughter – were running in all directions. Their officer was shouting at the top of his voice, trying to reinstate order. The bridge, already weakened by the raging torrent, creaked and groaned under the added strain of the fighting.
Although Ronin was an experienced warrior, Goro was young, muscular and fresh to the fight. It took all Ronin’s focus to battle the boy and he had to leave Hana to fend for herself.
Nobu chortled at the size of his diminutive opponent. His overwhelming bulk towered over Hana, yet still she didn’t back down. Swinging her bokken, she struck him in the stomach. But it just bounced off.
‘Is that all you can manage?’ he snorted, raising his own sword to cut her down.
Hana’s resolve crumbled and, fearing for her life, she ran. Nobu stomped after her. Jack could only watch as Hana, in her frantic escape, stumbled and fell. She lay there, completely open to attack. Jack cried out to Hana to get up. But it was too late. Nobu had already caught up.
He stepped forward to deliver the killing blow when there was a sharp crack.
Nobu dropped like a stone through the bridge’s deck. Only his vast waistline, wedged between the broken planks, saved him from falling into the river below.
Hana flipped to her feet and laughed in his face. ‘That’s Drunken Fist!’
Her stumble had been a ruse all along. Playing upon her vulnerability, she’d drawn the heavyweight Nobu on to the wooden plank that Toru had cracked earlier. Jack’s spirits were lifted by her cunning and he renewed his efforts to defeat Kazuki. But Hana now faced the man-mountain that was Raiden. And he wouldn’t be fooled with the same trick.
The dōshin officer had finally managed to rally his men and marched them back to slay the fearsome Ronin. Still battling Goro, Ronin was forced to call upon all his drunken fighting skills. Weaving and dodging, he played one dōshin off against another. Every time they attacked him, they ended up injuring a fellow dōshin. Ronin grabbed one of the wounded as a shield, but Goro could see the samurai was tiring and hung back, waiting for the moment to strike.
Jack was fading fast too. His experience with the Riddling Monk had taken its toll and his left arm, coated in blood, was incapable of lifting his sword much higher than his waist. Taking the decision to discard the wakizashi and use his katana two-handed, he sheathed the shorter blade into its saya.
‘Giving up?’ gasped Kazuki, breathing heavily from the exertion of their duel.
‘Just giving you a chance!’ replied Jack, wiping the rain from his face.
Their katana clashed again. And still neither relinquished any ground.
Hana had become trapped against the handrail by Raiden. In an effort to save her, Ronin felled the dōshin that were in his way and took his eye off Goro, who leapt forward and stabbed him in the side.
‘NO!’ cried Jack.
Ronin reeled away, bleeding. The dōshin surrounded him and closed in for the kill.
Hana squealed, her legs kicking, as Raidon lifted her off the ground by her hair.
Jack was weakening in the face of Kazuki’s unrelenting attack and would need a miracle to defeat him and save his friends.
He knew their slaughter was inevitable …
53
WASHED AWAY
A rumbling roar brought the whole fight to a stop.
The bridge trembled beneath their feet as the noise grew louder and louder. Glancing up the valley, a terrifying sight rushed towards the battling samurai. A wall of water, twenty feet high, thundered down the river, swallowing everything in its path.
Many of the dōshin could only stare in uncomprehending horror at the vast wave. A few broke ranks and ran for their lives. But Jack realized it was too late for that.
Throwing himself at the nearest bridge pillar, he clung on with all the remaining strength he had. A moment later, the Kizu River swelled and the wave struck. Trees and debris collided with the bridge, ripping away large segments of walkway. A dōshin beside the rail was hit in the chest and tossed