• ‘We are gathered here to witness the graduation of these fine children, as they begin their journey into adulthood, to become great ninja warriors.’ Elder Okami announced, spreading his arms wide to the residents of Shotai Village, who all gazed at each initiated child with adoration.
    Nami Nekura gazed in awe at the young teenagers who all stood at the front, looking incredibly proud at being called Ninja at last. Nami longed to be one, to be as fine as her elder sister Seika, who stood there today, her eyes bright, as she beamed at everybody present.
    Seika Nekura was one of Shotai’s finest Ninja to date, being able to heal quickly, spy effectively, throw weapons accurately and attack with strength and speed. She stood proudly, with her shoulders back, her usual outfit (a dark red shirt with brown capri trousers), her dark brown hair up in a high ponytail with her fringe swept to the side of her face. Just then Seika glanced at her sister and grinned. Nami grinned back, mouthing ‘Congratulations!’ to her, and Seika nodded in thanks, laughter dancing in her eyes. Nami had always felt like she was second-best to Seika, what with the younger having a rather plain look to her while Seika was incredibly beautiful, and while Nami had difficulty with all these ninja techniques she was learning, her elder sister was almost perfect at them a week after learning them. Nami sighed, knowing that she’ll never measure up to her sister, unless some crazy power lies within her that Seika doesn’t have…
    ‘I shall now present these certificates of initiation to them, and then they shall leave to the great city of Hanyaku, where the Imperial Ninja await.’ And with that, Elder Okami handed each Shinin* a scroll tied with dark green silk. ‘You must not open these until you are told to do so at Hanyaku. Anyone who fails to comply to this request shall be sent home immediately, and-‘
    ‘FIRE! THERE’S A WILDFIRE IN THE VILLAGE!’
    A gasping crowd parted to let a ragged man through, who Nami recognised as Yuki Tanaka, one of the best farmers in the village. His clothes were singed, his eyes wild, coughing from the smoke that was chasing him from further down the village.
    ‘What on earth is the meaning of this?!’ Elder Okami demanded, horrified at what Yuki had said.
    ‘You heard me old man! There’s a fire blazing through this village like there’s no tomorrow! It’s as though it’s possessed…’ Yuki panted, sinking to the floor while coughing weakly.

    That was when Nami saw it. A dark cloud grew above the village, and suddenly lightning struck. The town hall burst into flame ahead of everybody, and panic erupted. People ran everywhere, screaming about nonsense, making way for the nearest exit into the forest. Nami shouted for her parents, but they were long gone, searching for Seika probably. Nami ran frantically around the square, constantly shouting ‘Seika!’ over and over again. She turned around wildly, craning her neck to look for her sister. Suddenly she felt a hand grab her own, and whirled around to see a frightened Seika, her eyes as wild as Yuki Tanaka’s were.
    ‘Where’s mum and dad?!’ she demanded, but before Nami could answer she snapped ‘Oh never mind! We’ll find them when the fire dies down! Nami! Are you listening to me?!’
    Nami couldn’t believe what was happening. This sort of thing never happened here in the tiny village of Shotai… never. What has going to happen to her and Seika if their parents died? What if she never gets to see all of her friends again, to never see their smiling faces? And what about Ryu?
    ‘Oh God… Ryu!’ Nami gasped. Ryu has been sick for a couple of weeks now, and had stayed in bed, missing the ceremony today. The fire must have engulfed him… Nami realised.
    ‘Forget about him! He’s long gone Nami!’ Seika shook her younger sister by the shoulders, forcing her to look at her. ‘Now listen to me – We are going to get the hell out of this village, and find a safe place in the woods, okay?!’
    Nami nodded quickly, unsure about what Seika really said, too shocked about the fact that her closest childhood friend, Ryu Kudoku, could possibly be dead. Closing her eyes, she felt tears slip down her eyes as she thought about all the great times she had had with him, chasing each other through the rice fields, having playful sparring matches against each other…
    She felt herself being dragged away from the square by her elder sister, away from the village… She snapped her eyes open to find herself in a small clearing in the forest, with her sister furiously trying to create a fire with a couple of sticks. Nami groaned, this was really happening. She looked around the clearing, pointedly avoiding her sister. There was moss absolutely everywhere, on the rocks, on the trees, covering every available space. Vines hung from branches, and the trees above kept out any light coming in, making the forest dark, with a greenish light. It was uncomfortably hot and humid too, the kind that makes you feel irritable at any little thing.
    ‘Damn it! Why the hell won’t these sticks create any fire?!’ Seika yelled angrily, throwing the sticks at a moss-covered tree in fury. The sticks cracked loudly, and the sound echoed throughout the clearing. Nami, awed at Seika’s strength, stared at her. Seika instantly fell to the floor, and sobbed hysterically, her whole body shaking. Feeling tears also well in her eyes, Nami sat down next to her, and clung to her, letting tears run silently down her cheeks. The two sisters stayed like that for what seemed like hours, and together they fell asleep, still embracing.

    ‘Nami, wake up! We have to go to the village. Now.’ Nami opened her eyes to Seika shaking her awake, her eyes bright with determination.
    ‘Whut time izzit…?’ she asked groggily, shading her eyes from the light that shone through the leaves in the trees.
    ‘Don’t know, don’t care either. Now come on! We need to find out what went on last night, why it happened, and most importantly: Who’s still alive.’
    Nami shot up at that thought. Who was still alive? Were her parents alive? Were her friends alive? Was Ryu alive…?
    ‘Let’s go.’ Nami said, already sprinting off, Seika following suit. They sped towards the village gates, and as soon as they entered Nami stopped in her tracks, sinking to her knees.

    There was ash everywhere. It covered the ground, and floated in the air like tiny ghosts, flakes resting in Nami’s charcoal hair. Buildings had been burnt to the ground, and there were bodies everywhere. Nami knew every single one of them, she had talked to them, laughed with them, and argued with them. She couldn’t believe this was happening. They were all dead. Nami felt like falling to her knees and never rising from them again, but instead she carried on, her legs shaking. She had to find Ryu.
    She ran through the village, avoiding dead peoples’ bodies. She passed a dead Elder Okami, his eyes wide open, his mouth agape with shock. She also passed some of her close friends, and stopped to close their eyes and mouths, giving their expression a smile instead of a horrified look. Tears flowed freely from her eyes as she did this, but she knew she had to continue.
    Eventually she arrived at the other end of the village, where Ryu and is family lived. She searched everywhere, calling his name loudly and frantically, as though she would answer him. She couldn’t see his body anywhere.
    The glint of an object then caught Nami’s eye. Turning in the direction of it, she saw a necklace on the ground. It was a piece of string with a tiny shuriken placed on it as the pendant. It was Ryu’s. He would never take this off, he promised her.

    Nami shoved the necklace quickly into her pocket as she heard Ryu’s cheery voice. ‘Hey Nami! What’re you up to?’ he asked, looking at his best friend, who was blushing deeply. ‘What’s the matter hm?’
    ‘I… I…’ Nami’s mouth went dry. She wanted to tell Ryu how much he meant to her, but in a friend way, definitely not more than that. She may as well just get this over with. ‘Um… Here!’ she ended up yelling, thrusting the necklace into Ryu’s hands.
    Silence.
    ‘I-If you don’t like it, I can always make another-‘ Nami started, but was then pulled into a tight hug by Ryu.
    ‘I love it Nami!’ he shouted, laughing with happiness. He then pulled out of the hug and looked at her seriously. ‘I’ll never take this off. I’ll wear it until I die! You believe me… right?’ he looked at Nami uncertainly, for she was staring at Ryu in shock.
    She then burst into a happy grin, nodding. ‘Okay!’

    Nami burst into sobs cradling the necklace in her palms. He must be dead, me must be! He would never take that necklace off unless he was dying.
    ‘He’s gone, Nami. Face it.’ A voice said from behind her.
    ‘What the hell do you think I’m doing Seika?! I am facing it.’ Nami screamed at her older sister. Did she have any feelings at all?
    ‘No you’re not. You’re running away from it by crying. Would Ryu want you to cry? The answer is no: he wouldn’t. So stand up, dry your eyes and listen to me.’
    Nami obeyed reluctantly, still clutching the necklace tightly. ‘Now what?’
    ‘Mum and Dad are dead.’ She announced, her eyes unfeeling and cold.
    ‘…What?’ Nami whispered.
    ‘Well what did you expect Nami? The rest of the village is dead, so our parents must be as well. It’s a miracle that we’re alive.’ Seika snapped, angry at Nami’s ignorance. Her expression softened when she saw her younger sister’s face. ‘Look,’ she said quietly. ‘We can’t mourn them forever, so it’s best to put all this behind us as quickly as possible and move on.’
    ‘Move on where, Seika?!’ Nami shouted, furious. ‘We’ve never been outside Shotai! The mainland’s too far away, it’ll take us months to reach it-‘
    ‘But we will reach it.’ Seika said calmly, cutting Nami off. ‘We’re going to the city of Hanyaku.’
    ‘But why?’ Nami asked, confused. She had heard villagers talk about it with excitement, but never really understanding why.
    ‘Because that is where the ninjas are, and while we travel, I’m going to train you to be one. And when we arrive; we shall for sure be the finest ninja there.’