( chapter unfolds no : 1 " Phantom Threat ")
"Agh, Haru, gently!"
"Stay still, Sai, or I cannot set this right!"
"It pains me! What else can I do?"
Sai had suffered a minor sprain on his leg, and Haru was attempting to treat it, but Sai could not bear the agony.
"I know it hurts! Just hold still so I can examine it!"
"How can I, Haru? I cannot! Agh!" Sai cried out in distress.
"You should have considered this before rushing headlong into things. And now you sit and weep? Pathetic," Jinso commented from across the room.
"Do not provoke me, Jinso! If I could stand, I would give you a retort you would not forget!"
"Your arrogance remains untouched, I see. You deserved what you got," Jinso said, rising and walking toward the door.
"Where are you going?" Haru asked.
"To bathe."
Haru returned his attention to Sai's sprain.
"No! Haru, stop! If you try again, this sprain will become permanent! Don't!"
Sai lay back, overcome by the throbbing pain.
It was then that Izuma entered, carrying a small pot of specialty ointment.
"Haru," Izuma called.
"Hey, Izuma, come in. What is it?"
Hearing Izuma's name, Sai's anger reignited.
"Why have you come here? Who called you in? Get out, or something worse will happen here!"
"I came only to give this salve. A sudden fall like that will take a week to heal, but if applied consistently, this will quicken it," Izuma said, offering the pot to Haru. But Sai slapped it away, sending it clattering to the floor.
"It wasn't enough to intentionally trip me, now you bring offerings? We have no use for anything you offer here!"
"I told you many times, I did not do it intentionally, Sai. I acknowledge your anger. Please, accept my apology," Izuma said, then turned and left. Sai remained furious, but Haru felt a pang of sadness and retrieved the fallen salve.
"Try to temper your arrogance, Sai. How many times did he apologize? It was not done on purpose."
Haru scolded him, then walked over to Izuma's space.
Izuma sat on his cot, taking out a small hairpin that was hidden beneath his pillow. He gazed at it, and a flood of emotions and memories washed over him.
"Izuma," Haru said, lightly tapping his shoulder. Izuma looked up; Haru was standing beside him.
"I came to apologize to you."
"You? For what?"
"I apologize for Sai's behavior, Izuma. He is just like that. Do not be troubled," Haru explained.
"No, I haven't taken it seriously, Haru. I was also at fault, was I not? The accident happened because I left the log on the path."
"Izuma, neither of you is truly at fault. It was merely a coincidence, nothing more," Haru reassured him.
It was then that Haru noticed the hairpin in Izuma's hand.
"This…" He looked at it curiously.
"It belonged to my younger sister. I brought it with me to keep her memory close," Izuma said, still looking at the keepsake.
"Oh, it is very beautiful. I also have a sister, Hanami, but she cannot wear a clip like this yet."
"Why is that?" Izuma asked.
"She is not old enough to wear one," Haru chuckled. Izuma smiled at Haru's words.
"Are you from this village? I did not see you during the initial selection."
"No, I did not arrive that day. I came later."
"Ah. I have a question for you, if I may?" Haru prepared to ask.
"Ask away."
"Well, did you come here to be a Samurai, or to become a Sapahan?"
"Why do you ask that?" Izuma asked, smiling at Haru's earnest question.
"Because I was brought here under the pretense of becoming a Samurai. It was only yesterday I first heard the term Sapahan."
"Ah, there are many things you do not yet know about what transpired here, Haru. But what difference does it make? They are essentially the same, are they not?"
"But a Samurai is a protector of the land, while a Sapahan hunts spirits, is that not what they said?"
"Haru, there have been events you are unaware of. That is why. Never underestimate either a Sapahan or a Samurai."
"Events... what events?" Haru pressed Izuma for details.
"Haru!" Sai called him suddenly. Haru, about to leave, looked back at Izuma.
"Tell me about that when we have time."
Haru then left. Izuma picked up the clip again, looked at it, placed it back under his pillow, and lay down.
Meanwhile, Jinso, having finished bathing, was walking down the hallway. He suddenly noticed Ani stepping out into the courtyard, walking towards the edge of the Dojo. Jinso stopped and watched him.
"Where is he going…?"
Ani seemed caught in a trance, as if an invisible force were compelling him forward. His eyes were wide and white. He was completely unaware of his surroundings or where he was going.
As Jinso watched him, he saw their Master, Daisho, walking along the opposite hallway. If Daisho saw Ani outside the bounds of the Dojo, the consequences would be severe.
"Ani…"
"Ani! Hey, Ani!"
Jinso called out softly, but Ani did not hear him. Daisho continued advancing along the corridor.
With no other choice, Jinso rushed outside and ran toward Ani.
"Ani! Ani!"
Jinso shook Ani sharply.
Ani immediately snapped back to consciousness. He looked around, bewildered, unable to comprehend how he had ended up there.
"Ani… what are you doing here?" Jinso asked him softly.
"Jinso… why are you here? At this hour?" Ani asked in return.
"Hey! You are the one who came out here without hearing me call you! I came out after you! Now you ask me?"
"Me? Here? How?" Ani looked around in disbelief.
"No time to gawk, Ani! Come on! The Master is right there; if he sees both of us out, we are finished! Hurry!"
Jinso grabbed Ani and rushed him back towards their room, out of Daisho's sight.
Inside the room, Jinso and Ani sat on Ani's cot.
"Seriously, why were you trying to leave? Were you trying to escape?" Jinso asked.
"Huh? Me? Escape? When?" Ani looked confused.
"Yes, you! I saw you trying to walk out past the Dojo entrance! If the Master had seen you, my mother, we would both have been finished!"
Ani was still confused.
"What…?"
"But I was just lying down to sleep. How did I get outside?" Ani insisted.
"Oh, you must be walking in your sleep, then. If you have a habit like that, you should have told someone! What if something had happened?" Jinso worried.
"No, it's just that…"
"Just go to sleep now. Tell me if anything happens." Jinso reassured him before he could explain further, then left the cot.
Even after Jinso left, Ani remained confused about what had transpired. He looked around, still unable to grasp how he had gotten outside when he had been lying down to sleep.
Finally, Ani lay down again to rest. Across the room, Izuma, lying on his cot, had been observing the entire exchange. He did nothing, however, simply turning over and feigning sleep.
As the cold draft of the thick darkness settled, danger lay waiting beneath the large tree in front of the Dojo.
It was waiting for Ani, who was unknowingly caught in an illusion. But, enraged at having lost its prey, the entity glared menacingly at the Dojo before stalking away into the night.
On the path it took, the moon's reflection on a puddle of standing water partially revealed the shape of the danger. It was none other than Yin, who had mysteriously vanished from the Dojo days earlier.