Tales of a Ninja Magician: Of Journeys We Make

Scolding

It surprised Mana to see the skeleton of the Allied Ninja HQ standing tall when she came back to the Allied Ninja encampment. The workers were still hustling with the interiors of the building so the barracks and the massive field of tents hadn't yet moved in. Still, the stance of an hourglass-shaped building supported by thick beams from all sides as it grew and upgraded was noticeable enough to draw the eye whenever one walked through the area.

Walking came much simpler to Mana these days, and she had missed it enough to just go on walks for no particular reason. Because of that, she had plenty of occasions to see the growing hive of coming and going ninja agents and bureaucracy necessary to keep that entire system going. The prosthetic leg Damisan gifted her worked splendidly. The few stumbles and failures that Mana experienced were entirely because of her own incompetence at puppeteering it.

Damisan had changed too. Mana only needed to mention it once before he began scolding himself for being so inconsiderate and tinkered on the prosthetic to use three strings instead of one. According to him, a lone string may have been too complicated for someone with no experience in puppeteering and the general rule of thumb with puppets was that the more strings one used, the more cluttered the configuration, though generally, it was much simpler to control. Even if a master could control ten hundred-armed puppets with one finger and one string, it was much simpler to employ ten fingers to control one ten-armed puppet. Even if in the highest skill levels of puppetry, there was simply no difference in the ease of control between a master controlling the former compared to the novice controlling the latter.

It took Mana one day to get the hang of controlling her leg with three wires and, upon seeing that, Damisan gladly undid all the work he did to make the leg bend to one's command with three wires back to one. Sometimes Mana felt uncomfortable about the amount of care and support she received from the returned puppeteer. When she confronted Damisan about it, the Allied Ninja just dismissed it as a chance for him to get included more in Mana's business, which he saw as a welcome change.

The Stars had the whole of one day to get accustomed back to their new/old routines before a shake-inducing yell echoed through the encampment that made the bustling Allied Ninja and clerks managing their workload stiffen up and turn toward the northmost wing of the camp.

"STARS! GET YOUR FUCKING ASSES TO MY FUCKING OFFICE, RIGHT FUCKING NOW!"

Mana and Damisan heard the howl all the way from an empty patch of wasteland where Mana practiced working with her new prosthetic. She never had to employ a finger to control her missing part of the leg and maintain balance. It made Mana more reliant on one-handed hand seals and it made her aware of a drastic need to always keep her unique method of movement in mind. No longer could she simply improvise on the fly, not until moving her leg with precise twitches of her finger became a habit as ordinary for her as moving a calf normally used to be.

More times than one Endo put the tip of his sword down under Mana's neck with an overjoyed smile because Mana's brain melted down over the stress of having to micromanage combat strategy, motor skills, and the puppetry of her limb, even if it required just one finger to pull off. Endo became a more frequent guest to Mana's training because of his constant demands for training with him. Thankfully, the apprentice samurai had always been blunt and was never embarrassed about his said bluntness so he easily spilled the beans on the fact that he just wanted the satisfaction of getting the better of someone known as "the God Killer" to pirates listening to the tales of Pirate Lord Blue's crew. Damisan appreciated not having to spar with Mana too since he could oversee Mana's improvement from afar this way, which, according to him, he preferred, though Mana would've loved to spend more time alone with the returning Stars member.

By the time Mana, Endo, and Damisan made it to the Supreme Leader's tent, paled-out Shige-H and standoffish Asuka were already standing inside with the tent being wide open to the rest of the Stars when they joined in on the impromptu meeting. Shige-H stood with her back straight like a chord. Her forehead had been damp with sweat even though her skin was a shade brighter than usual. Asuka, on the other hand, stood slouched and gave punkish looks to anyone acknowledging her. The last trio of the Stars made their way into the Supreme Leader's tent and bowed on the floor.