Ninja Love: Saizo Kirigakure

Chapter 25

"Today we'll be dealing with all the principles that have to do with forms of stealth, including Hensōjutsu, Shinobi-ir, and Intonjutsu." Saizo stood in a firm stance in front of me, a cool cross-breeze raising goosebumps on my skin.

I yawned, doing my best to stay awake, even at this ungodly hour. "What happened to one principle a day?" although I was actually a little curious about the reason behind the schedule change, I was mostly stalling. Knowing Saizo, having three principles taught to me in one day would be and immense strain on me, and there was no way I was ready for that kind of stress barely after sunrise.

"Master Hanzo has ordered me to pick up the pace with the impending threat of Nobunaga's forces, now paired with other ninja. Because we still have other important techniques to go over, I grouped the more similar ones together to save time." He paused his pacing to receive my nod of understanding.

"Until Kuma arrives, we'll be working on Hensōjutsu- disguise and impersonation."

I hesitated as a realization dawned upon me. Today's lessons included nearly all of Saizo's areas of expertise, all the way from disguise to infiltration to escaping.

This means I really need to do well today, lest he lose his temper and start being rude to me again. We've come so far...

As I was thinking, Saizo led me over to one of the far reaches of the training grounds. It was only a few feet away from the tree line, which met the temple wall to form a neat little corner we found ourselves in. There was a secluded door into the temple, probably one of the multiple escape routes, and it had several racks and bins of cloth, clothing articles, and props beside it.

Before I could ask exactly what we were doing, Saizo disappeared through the door, only to return momentarily with a stack of parchment.

"What's all this for?" I looked up at him, genuinely confused as he dumped the collection of papers into my arms.

He rolled his eyes and sighed at me, not bothering to answer before he went back inside, this time bringing out a changing screen. "On those papers, you will see some of the people and styles you may need to impersonate during missions. Even as a princess, you need to be prepared to ditch the richer clothing in favor of something that blends into your surroundings."

I set the papers on the ground, almost feeling Saizo's critical eyes boring into me.

"What I want you to do is to take each of these pictures, and make an outfit that matches the style, rank, job, and etcetera. You may change behind the screen if you wish, but be sure to show me the outfit once you're done."

Once he was finished explaining, he wasted no time seating himself on a nearby stump.

So that's it? Seems simple enough...

I picked up one of the papers and mulled over it. It was of a short and rather stout woman dressed as what could be perceived as a maid or hired hand. She wore a tattered pink kimono that reached all the way to her ankles, and a white apron that covered from her neckline to her knees. Her hair was thrown into a messy bun, and her sandals seemed kind of worn and maybe a size too big.

This shouldn't be too hard. I thought as I set the paper with the others, placing a small rock on top to keep them from blowing away. I then turned back to the temple wall, realizing that the hardest part of this nit of training may be finding the clothing I needed.

Surprisingly, it only took me a short while to find everything I needed except a pair of hair pins. Digging around in a large basin, I finally found a petite wooden pair that I thought would go nicely with the lavender kimono I had chosen. I even managed to find a broom hiding behind one of the clothing racks.