I had lived in the forest my entire life. As such, I knew it like the back of my hand. That also meant that I knew for a fact the forest had almost never been this cold. Even in winter, the chill had never been this bad.The problem was that it was the middle of summer, and I was colder than if you dipped me in an ice lake. It worried me greatly, but sensei would be fine.
I had orders to follow. My first true mission as a full-fledged ninja—I was not going to fail even if it cost me my life.
I sprinted through the forest, using my blink to constantly disappear and reappear around fifty or so feet in the direction I was going.Mixed with my extremely fast running speed, I was unstoppable as the forest blurred around me. The Katana on my back constantly sent out waves of warmth and calm, making it easier for me to focus.
I traveled in the direction sensei had pointed me in for what felt like hours. After a while, the cold began to dissipate, and warmth returned to the forest. I also noticed the sounds of wild animals that had been absent had suddenly returned.The whole thing set my skin on edge, but I ignored it as nightfall approached. Quickly finding a nearby clearing, I set up a campfire and a few traps around the area. It didn’t take long before a snare trap activated, and a small rabbit hung from the trap.
After skinning the small creature, I cooked and ate it. I was normally used to deer and wolf, but rabbit tasted just fine to me. I chowed down before stretching and yawning. I climbed into a nearby tree and laid against the base around six branches up. It was thick enough to easily support my weight. Before long, I was fast asleep.
I awoke with a shiver. The cold from yesterday had begun to return. Last night had been slightly cool, but I had expected the sun to come out and play. I looked up to see the sun, but the cold still permeated around me.For the briefest of moments, anxiety fluttered within me, causing my ears and tail to flatten. Was sensei okay? I shook off the feeling and thoughts, instead focusing on my mission once more.
I found a wolf had set off my trap in the night. I grinned at it as I held up my dagger. “You look tasty!” I said. However, the wolf was not tasty! The meat was hard and rough to cook, and when I tried to take a bite, it tasted horrible.Then something terrifying happened: the half-skinned wolf began to get up! “Oh no you don’t!” I said, and with haste, my dagger was implanted into the moving corpse’s skull. The undead wolf stopped moving again, and I sighed.
I was now even more scared for sensei. I closed my eyes and counted to ten before getting up, taking my dagger from the wolf’s skull, and starting my trek again. I would have to do so on an empty stomach. There was no way I was eating that wolf now.
After two more nights, with luckily a warmer climate and better meals, I made it to the edge of the forest. I stood in a tree overlooking a vast field. In the center of that field was a large place with lots of buildings. It had a large wall made of thick wood that seemed to surround it.
I sighed in relief as I jumped down from the tree and began making my way toward the town. What had sensei called this place? Ah, right, Drestor!
As I neared the town, my cat ears picked up lots of sounds of people talking all at once. But one particular conversation caused my ears to perk up and a frown to deepen on my face.“Come on, little girlie. The boss said he would pay for you, but I think you can pay us in other ways instead!” The voice sounded deep, a bit like sensei’s, but more like this voice was chewing on dirt while they spoke.
“Oh please, valiant men, I assure you that if you were to help me in my quest, there are many things I would happily do for you.” That voice was much softer, and as I listened, it seemed to have a tinge to it—it felt like magic almost.
“Hehe, you hear that, boys?” The first voice spoke up again. “Looks like the young lady wants to pay us with her body!” Tama’s frown deepened and she reached for her Katana.
“Oh my!” said the softer voice. “I am not opposed to such… actions.” Her voice seemed to take on an almost enjoyable tone, like she was interested in what they were saying. “But first, I require you to help with my quest. Payment of that… variety should come after. What do you think?”
At this point, I had reached the area they were at. It was around the corner of the town, on the outside of the wall. A small woman with strawberry-blonde hair that went down to her back, with a same-colored fox tail and ears, stood. She wore a red robe with a cut that went up to her thigh; when it moved, you could clearly see her panties. The panties were actually see-through, not leaving anything to the imagination. She was slightly shorter than me, most likely less than an inch, making her around 5’1”.
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Her breasts were much bigger than my own. I felt a pang of jealousy and had no idea why… It made me wonder. I paused as I looked down at my breasts before looking back up at hers.Shaking my head, I decided now was not the time. I had to act. She had her back against the wooden town wall as a group of six men surrounded her. It was clear the six men were looking at her breasts and her thighs.
The woman’s skin was porcelain white, almost like a doll’s rather than a human’s. “How about instead, you take off your clothes and give us what we want?” The man nearest to her said, causing the others to chuckle. “And maybe when we’re done with you, we will consider helping you on your little quest.”
The girl with fox ears didn’t seem upset at the man. Instead, she actually stepped toward him. Her voice sounded like it was underwater for a moment as she spoke: “Now why would you do that when you can just help me instead!”The man froze, his face turning to one of puzzlement. “I… yeah, why would we do that?” he said, his voice going neutral and drone-like. “Exactly!” the fox girl said as she reached out to touch the man. “After all, once we are done…” Her voice seemed to switch to underwater again. “You will all get what you deserve.”
I watched as the man, who was much taller than the fox girl, simply stood as if in a trance. I took advantage of the moment, stepping forward. I drew my blade and spoke loudly: “Halt! Tama is here to stop you!”
A long moment of silence covered the area as every man that had been looking at the fox girl shifted their gazes to me. They did not look happy. I held my ground, sword pointed forward at them. My tail lashed stiffly behind me, betraying my tension. “What are you, some low-level adventurer?” one of the men snickered as they turned around. “I don’t know what yer problem is. Us and the fine lady were in the middle of making a deal. I’m gonna ask ya kindly to leave before you become a part of that deal.”
Another man spoke up: “But Reg, that’s a Nekojin. They ain’t really my type.”A third spoke: “What does it matter? She definitely looks to be my type. Look at that frail little body. Maybe I can break it!”
I had heard enough. I activated my wind element and vanished, appearing moments later behind their leader. My Katana sliced cleanly, and I vanished again, reappearing next to the fox girl. I held up my blade, My ears twitched forward defiantly as I snapped my fingers. The leader’s body bisected, and his top fell off his bottom. “Still think you can win against the mighty Tama?!” I said with bravado I didn’t feel.
The remaining five men were silent, their mouths hanging open and looks of horror and confusion on their faces. I turned to the fox girl; she actually looked like a porcelain doll my sensei kept in our house to ward off evil spirits or something. She just stared at me with wide eyes.
I looked back to the other men. One of them seemed to recover and reached for the weapon on his belt—it seemed to be a sword. I wasn’t having that. I swirled water around myself, creating a veil of protection, before creating wind and blinking. I reached the man right as his hand reached the hilt.I swung my Katana up, slicing him vertical. However, I misjudged my strength, and instead of just cutting into him, my Katana’s sharpness mixed with my speed and precision caused the slice to go clean through. Both sides of his body fell to the ground.
I turned and blinked back. Right as I did, I felt a wave of heat and looked at where I had been. I caught the tail end of what looked to be a ball of fire!
If I had been any slower, I would have been toast! My tail puffed to twice its size, but I forced a grin. “Nya! Nice try! But Tama is faster than the wind!” I said with an amused look on my face as my heart pounded over what could have just happened.
Images flashed through her mind of her body laying on the ground charred. Inwardly, she shivered, making sure none of it showed on the outside. She rolled on the balls of her feet and pretended to crack her neck. “Is this all you’ve got? Tama is getting bored!”
The man who had thrown the fireball—at least I assumed it was him because of the flames covering his body but not hurting him—hurled another ball of fire at me.I dodged quickly and blinked directly in front of him. But instead of using my Katana, I shoved my dagger straight from its sheath into his neck and sliced before blinking backward without waiting.
I was so glad I did, as moments after I appeared, I watched as the spot I had just been in had the ground erupt with sharp stone. The thought of being impaled then entered my mind, and I shook it off. My ears flattened briefly before perking up in renewed focus. Not the time!
At this point, all three remaining men had recovered, but I was ready for them. I fired a water bolt at each of them—not enough to hurt, just enough to stun.I watched as two managed to dodge the ball of water, but one of them got hit directly in the face. I took advantage, and a moment later, my dagger slid into his kidney before I blinked away again. The man fell forward and stopped moving.
Two left. I was starting to feel the drain. My tail drooped slightly, but I stiffened it—ninjas don’t show weakness. All this blinking and the water veil was beginning to affect me slightly.
Even as I thought that, a large ball of rock suddenly hit me, and I was thrown into the wooden wall. I can’t believe I had become distracted! Luckily, my water veil had protected me from the worst of it, but a ninja should never get hit!
The rock tried to form around me, but I used my water to force it off enough to sprint out of it. My chest hurt from the impact, but I was otherwise fine. That wasn’t going to happen again. I blinked up to the nearest one and swung my Katana.
I was faster than him, but he managed to get his sword up barely in time. Our blades clashed, and after a moment, mine turned to water and simply passed through his while I dodged. My Katana sliced through the man, leaving a large cut across his chest. He fell forward, unmoving.
Finally, I turned to the last man. His eyes were bulging, and fear was evident on his face. He turned and ran. I threw my dagger as hard as I could, removing wind resistance. The dagger practically teleported into the back of his skull. My ears swiveled forward, listening for any last threats, but silence answered. And just like that, they were all dead.
I sighed in relief before turning to the stunned fox girl and walking up to her. My tail finally relaxed, curling calmly around my leg. I sheathed my already clean Katana and wiped my dagger before reaching her and holding out a hand. “Nya! Nice to meet ya. Tama says hi!” I said with the brightest smile I could muster. That was far too close for comfort, and I was edgy. But I had done the right thing, and that’s what matters. That is what ninjas should do!
