Kill the Shogun by Dale Furutani Read Free Book Online Page A

he used his sword, he would have a relatively easy task, but he didn’t want to unsheathe his blade. The men had not yet done something that warranted death, and the inconvenience of three bodies would surely draw the attention of the authorities to this house. Kaze preferred to stay anonymous to the Tokugawa guards.
    “I suppose I’ll have a lot of work to do,” Kaze said. “After all,
rui o motte atsumaru
, the same kind always gathers together. All three of you are probably badly in need of a lesson in proper manners.”
    “A lesson! Why you—”
    Kaze attacked.
    Like all samurai, Kaze knew the value of surprise in a fight. In ancient times, samurai would formally introduce themselves before starting a fight. They would recite their lineage and the great deeds of their ancestors. If they had been in notable battles, they would tell their opponent of that, too. Then, after all the lengthy formalities were completed, the fight would finally begin.
    Such stilted battle etiquette was long since forgotten, and for good reason. The warlord Nobunaga had defeated an army twelve times larger than his own with a surprise attack, and every warriorunderstood that striking first was usually a huge advantage. Kaze used this advantage to his benefit.
    Keeping his sword in its scabbard, he brought it down on the head of the man he was talking to. With a surprised look, the ronin crumpled to the floor. His companion drew his sword and took a side cut at Kaze’s head. Kaze ducked under the swinging blade and used his scabbard to hit the swordsman right behind the knee, collapsing him on his unconscious companion.
    The wrestler had charged as soon as Kaze started his attack. In the cramped confines of the vegetable seller’s house, Kaze didn’t have the room to avoid the man’s charge. The huge body hit his with a bone-jarring shock, lifting him off his feet and driving him against an outside wall. The wrestler put one large hand against Kaze’s chest, pinning him in place. He drew back his other fist and punched at Kaze’s face. Despite having the wind knocked out of him, Kaze remained alert enough to bob his head at the last moment. He felt the wrestler’s fist graze his ear and heard it smash into the wooden wall, splintering the boards as the wrestler punched his fist through the wall. The wrestler tried to draw his fist out, but the splintered wood acted like a cruel trap, jabbing into his wrist and causing him to wince as he fought to extricate his hand.
    The tiny pause was all that Kaze needed. He brought his sword scabbard up between the wrestler’s legs. The huge man gave a grunt of pain, and Kaze saw tears filling the man’s eyes. Kaze repeated the maneuver, bringing his scabbard up between the man’s legs with all the strength he could muster. The man’s eyes squinted in pain and the hand that had pinned Kaze to the wall dropped to his groin.
    Kaze twisted free of the giant and brought his scabbard down on the back of the wrestler’s head. The wrestler fell heavily to his knees, his trapped hand preventing him from falling all the way to the floor.
    Kaze looked at the two ronin and saw that the one he had clipped behind the knee was struggling to get up on one leg, using his drawn sword as a cane. In two quick steps Kaze was next to him. He swept away the man’s sword and used his scabbard to hasten the man’s journey to the floor, clipping him across the neck and shoulder. The man lay in a heap, moaning.
    Puffing heavily, trying to get his breath back after the wrestler’s charge, Kaze surveyed his three opponents. One was unconscious and the other two were stunned and in pain. The two women viewed the scene open-mouthed. The merchant’s wife still had a hand to her cheek, where she had been slapped.
    Getting his breath back, Kaze said, “If… we … have … to have … more etiquette … lessons, we will… do it outside. Teaching etiquette can be … hard on … the walls of a house.”
    L ater that