“Guys this is crazy! I found it!”
“What did you find? Wait...“ Kyuzo followed by Kumiko and Yamazaki looked at Kento as if he had gone nuts.
“Quit messing around Onii-chan, it couldn’t be that easy,” Hinako said.
“I thought so too. Just wait till you see it. Come on,” Kento said to all of them.
“If this is a joke, I swear to god…” Yamazaki prompted to speak but it swiftly faded as they followed Kento while constantly annoying him with things like accusing him of lying and pointing out that he was not doing a very good job at pulling off pranks. Kento finally walked them to the site which was about half a mile away from the town square.
Kento crawled under the fountain and showed them what he had seen.
“It’s a manhole, Kento! Not a secret lair. Do you think that these people would hide out in a reeking underground place like rats,” Kyuzo complained, “Wait! Is that…”
“The Jorogumo and the square. I suppose it is, Kyuzo,'' Kento said triumphantly.
“The lid is quite heavy. Can you help me lift it?” Furled up with all the excitement they all gathered to pull off the cover of the manhole.
“This is so heavy...” Yamazaki let go of it, unable to lift it with the rest.
“This is not going to work. We need a bigger force,” Kyuzo said.
“it’s not even budging,” Kumiko said. She lay down and looked through the small gap between the metal and the rubble. She saw a tight metal rod binding them both together. “It’s locked!”
“What?” Hinako, who had been about to use a wooden log as a battering ram to break through the metal said.
“It’s locked??” Kento was puzzled. “So this is where we use the key,'' Kento looked at Kumiko and took out the key. “Where does it fit? There appears to be no keyhole to fit this key.”
“Just try it on the Penrose square,” Kumiko said.
Nothing happened.
“That’s it guys, move aside, I’m going to ram this in,'' Kyuzo said and rammed the wooden log and it cleared the dust and moss away from the entire area and the wood broke into pieces. As the dust settled, Kento began to move the moss out of the place and they discovered that there was a tiny hole which appeared to be a screw hole.
“They look nothing like the square,” Yamazaki said in a matter-of-fact tone.
“It looks like we don’t have any other option,” Kento said firmly. “Well, here goes nothing.” Kento brought the key near to cylindrical screws and in the beginning, nothing happened. For a moment Kento thought that his misgivings about the key and the secret to be were turning out to finally be true. But something quite beyond the extraordinary happened. The key which seemed to be made out of a strong metal, suddenly morphed into a cylinder and got drawn to the tiny hole and fitted with a resounding ‘click’. He heard lots of things rambling and turning and unlocking. Then all of a sudden, the metal lid lifted, notifying the watching youth that it was unlocked. They looked at each other, surprised, and anxious. Yamazaki lifted the metal cover with ease, revealing to them a long, dark and mucky tunnel.
“Ladies first?” Yamazaki asked innocently, looking at Kumiko. “Oh, stop it, Yamazaki!” Kumiko replied.
“Pretend that I’m not here. I’ll keep a watch out from up here,” Kyuzo said.
“Don’t be ridiculous Kyuzo… we are all going in,” Hinako said. The others were looking at him as she spoke those words.
Kento, being kind of irritated with the ball passing decided to volunteer with a sigh, “I guess I’ll go first.” Kento might know how to fight a lot of things but peer pressure was not one of them. He looked down the hollow dark pit, looked at his friends and said,
“No one shall step into this hole until I say that everything is okay.” The others nodded while Kento once again looked down and leapt into oblivion.
For a while, Kento felt as if he was absorbed into nothingness by a strong force. He could hear his friends shouting his name. After a few seconds, he felt the smooth metal surface contacting his back. He couldn’t see anything. But he felt that he was not only going down, but he was also looping at times, hard turns to both left and right and finally, he landed in phenomenal clumsiness. His back felt numb, he thought that he was a mile or more underground. He then remembered what he needed to do. He yelled to his friends to signal that he was safe and that they should come down too. Though he doubted that his voice could be heard by his friends, they replied almost instantly. Kento found it very strange as to how this tunnel worked, even after such a long distance his voice could be heard by his gang above the ground as if he was speaking to them at arm’s length.
A few minutes passed by and finally the others made it. However, only Kyuzo managed to stick the landing perfectly.
“Lucky duck,“ Yamazaki, who made the landing face first, said with an extremely bitter tone.
The darkness and the confinement began to rush over the ninjas and finally, Kento found a torch. Luckily Kento and the rest had been taught how to light a fire without matchsticks. The light illuminated the place and they finally got to see what this secret lair looked like.
The room was a perfect nonagon. A geometrical plane with nine sides. In the middle of it was a giant wooden table with a lot of paperwork. And on every side of the nonagon were bookshelves and cupboards, stacked with scrolls and manuscripts overflowing from each side. The floor had a thick layer of dust and some footprints. They were wet. Someone had already been here. They separated to explore the room. Kumiko and Kyuzo lit up a few lamps around the room to get a better view of the lair. The cleaned-out area on the desk implied that someone had come in here, swiped all the documents and made a swift exit.
“All these books on this shelf are books about our clan. Look, there are maps and aerial sketches of our village. It seems that someone is doing their homework. They even made notes on the geography of the entire Kyoto area,” Yamazaki said as he was flipping through some manuscripts.
All of the others were silent trying to comprehend and make something out of this organization that was collecting information about Iga without their slightest awareness.
“Kento, you might want to see this,” Kyuzo called. “This book has written down logs on the emperor. Where he has been and what he has been up to. They have obviously been spying on the Bakufu,” Kyuzo said as he was observing the log book, which covered the monarch’s actions and whereabouts every minute of the day. They were flipping through the entire book and came to the last page.
“So, what sort of evidence do we have to prove that this organization has close links with the Kōgas,” Kumiko linked the story. “That’s why the Yamabushi supported the Kōgas and protected the tourmaline gem. The Yamabushi was wearing this key. That completes our hunch. Doesn’t it? Whoever is in this organization, the Kogas have been funnelling their money and so much more into the hands of this organization to do the Kōgas’ dirty work for them!”
“I seem to find this stuff too uncanny to handle. We have also to consider another thing. Why would this organisation go out of its way to cooperate specifically with the Kōgas? I mean couldn't they have worked with some other rich Daimyo who would have paid them a bit more you know.” Kyuzo said.
"Could it be that they both share some sort of a similar...interest?" Hinako added. "Maybe we are missing something bigger about the Kōga clan's actual intentions. Anyway, I was thinking about this one thing. These guys are clever to have their meeting...well...one of their meeting spots set up inside a place like this."
"How in the hell it would make any sense?" Yamazaki said. "If they are aware of the Shogunate's strict dictatorship they would no way in hell choose to make their lairs in the middle of a city!"
"Perhaps you might be looking at this problem from the wrong angle. What if...this syndicate chose to follow this path because of the very reason that the Shogunate's strict dictatorship has led them to discover some loopholes that they could exploit? I wouldn't be surprised if they had already infiltrated the Bakufu since they have been around here for so long that the syndicate has figured out all of their current wrongdoings. I mean, everybody knows how overconfident and proud the current rulers are."
“Hayashi said something about the valley once being a black market where even high officials and nobles came to get stuff. For a fact, I know that this land belonged to Kōgas before the war.”
“Many of the lands which were made into burial sites and abandoned to rot and be forgotten about were previously used as weapon-manufacturing sites,” Kumiko said, observing the ceiling of the lair. “They did that because they didn’t want the disputes of minerals and other valuable metals to start another conflict,” Kumiko said, sensing that Kyuzo was about to ask why these sites were abandoned.
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“Also, doesn’t the story of the Bakufu officials and rich fellows coming downtown to get ivory and other valuables sound quite obscure and suspicious?” Kento questioned.
“Under the mask lies a beast
Of danger in all its form
A great one who avenges
The downfall of the merciful gods
By the hands of the unworthy traitors….”
They all were shocked by what Kumiko suddenly muttered.
“The writings on the ceiling…it’s a verse,” Kumiko said.
“Under the mask… a beast?” Kyuzo was again puzzled. “If there is one thing that I can interpret, it is that this text has close links to this organization and its members.”
“This place was a weapons manufacturing site,” Kento blurted out.
“What?”
“I mean it’s the only lead that makes sense. I think that this black-market Hayashi spoke of was actually a weapons factory, which serves as an excellent coverup for this cult.”
“How does that make any sense?”
“Ever heard of the Sengoku era? Yeah, it was a period that can only be summarised in two words. ‘Bloodbath Euphoria’. Such conditions provide the perfect environment for these weapon sites to exist. I mean what clan leader was not in the right mind to gain even the slightest advantage in the war with better weapons?”
"Well, if that's the case then what you have said previously ties up to a much bigger plot than we thought!"
"Precisely! Sure, the Shogunate was quick and strict enough to uphold order by taking many measures like the Sakoku Decree. They did take down all of these weapon sites and put a stop to all kinds of illegal activities to finally bring peace. Bakufu officials were so confident in their ways that even after all these years, they expected nothing to even come closer to causing disturbance among the people and yet here we are! The Tokugawa family has underestimated the power of the people according to my understanding."
“Wait...I might have found something that might clear up your suspicions Kumiko,” Hinako, who had been quiet throughout the entire back-and-forth discussion said. Shee gently shoved a relatively large, dusty weird-looking tablet with text towards Kento. “These are the names of some people. Do you think these are the members of this club? Wow, everyone wants to be in it.”
But all smiles were gone when Kento found the name of a man who he never thought would be a part of these malicious things. Leading the list was one of the commanders of the troops, Kusunokiagawa Rao.
“How could this happen? These are our people.” Kento suddenly felt a strong wave of betrayal hit him. These people were the idols of the kids living in the feudal society in Iga. And they are running these groups of anarchy with no sense of gratitude for the land they serve in. The irony of this situation was also painful. A group of seventeen-year-olds put their lives on the line for the security of their own people, only to find that the people holding the upper labels in the hierarchy were stabbing Iga in the back.
“The list doesn’t end there, does it?” Kyuzo said as he was peering onto the other side with much interest. And certainly, the list did not end there. The syndicate primarily consisted of all the people, regardless of either their clan or their origin.
“Guys...” Kyuzo, who was shocked, said, pointing at one name that shot absolute familiarity to Kento by just taking a glimpse of the words. It was a name that was heavily affiliated with his mother’s past, Nobukata. More specifically, it was someone who was just a little too close to Miyuki. The room was filled with a void of silence and tension. Kento’s mind was filled with an astounding force of perplexity. He and Kyuzo were feeling embarrassed and ashamed. Neither Kumiko nor Yamazaki dared to address the issue as now was not the right time to ask questions. But the one that shocked Kento the most was the column which had the activity status of the member. Kento managed to trace his finger to the column with the name of Nobukata. It said ‘active’.
At that moment, Kento’s instincts went nuts, as he tried to retrace the first name of each member, which had been covered up by the thick layer of dust. But all of his endeavours were promptly shot down, as he realised that the first name was encoded in an unknown language, which still retained some of the characteristics of kanji characters.
“What the hell is going on?” Yamazaki said, unable to cope with the tense atmosphere.
“Our clan is being betrayed for some low potential gains. That’s what’s happening, Yamazaki. These people joined forces overlooking their clans and the responsibilities they owed to their land. They gather for something greater than their own clan, which only leads me to believe that this organization was founded upon the faith of some supreme being, a Kami. I know it sounds quite ridiculous, but if there is something the Igas and Japanese people as a whole venerate more than their own culture, it is god. I’m going to get to the bottom of this.”
“Okay, so were the Igas were reluctant to respond to these illegal weapons manufacturing sites because these clan members were part of this organization and? The manufacturing site was covering up for this weird deity cult,” Yamazaki concluded.
While Yamazaki was busy dropping his theories onto the circle, Kyuzo let his hand escape from the tablet and proceeded to lean upon one of the shelves for a quick relief from stress. But things didn’t go as smoothly as he expected as the shelf which had pretended to be well-built and steady, crashed onto the floor along with him. The Teen Ninjas were spooked when the commotion took place, shocking Kento’s already frozen instincts.
“Kyuzo, what is wrong with you?”
Kento yelled at Kyuzo as he was rising from the pile of ragged books and rotten debris.
“Onii-san, I am sorry….I was just..”
“Ke..Ke..Kento….” Yamazaki stammered, interrupting Kento’s yelling.
“What now?”
“You might want to take a look at this…”
Kento then forced himself to take a glimpse at what seemed to have covered up his team with a dense cloud of perplexity and surprise and then ended up in the same fate himself just a few seconds later, after gazing upon the mysterious inscription that had been lying behind the tumbled-down shelf.
It was a representation of a family tree. But Kento could clarify that it carried a few irregularities which seemed too odd for a family tree. The entire inscription had several names written, with the same unrecognizable characters that he encountered alongside his mother’s affiliate. Even the title was encrypted, which meant that none of the ninjas could verify its true identity.
“What is the meaning of this family tree? It’s quite large...and spread out! I don’t understand...I don’t understand…”
“Guys...wait!” Hinako interjected after spending a few minutes analyzing the diagram with her keen eyes.
“Yes, what is it Hinako?”
She then pointed to one of the cyphers.
“Onii-chan, can you see something weird in these symbols?”
“Well, I honestly can’t perceive anything except the weird but familiar shapes of these characters.”
“No, take a look at these letters closely.” She followed up the process by scratching one of the letters and grabbing a sample of the coated elements on the codes.
‘There’s no doubt. This is...blood. All these names, well at least what we believe to be…are covered up with blood. Which makes me believe in one thing. Are you guys thinking what I am thinking?”
“Wait, are you guys even getting something? Cause I am feeling left out; I’m totally in the dark.”
Kumiko then shouted out,
“Wait could it be…”
“Gravestones! Is that what you are trying to remind me about?” Kento’s hypothesis blew Yamazaki's mind, while Hinako agreed with her elder brother’s words.
“Correct. Do you guys know how people write the names of the deceased on their respective gravestones with red ink? I think they are trying to replicate the same thing here too. Whoever the owners of these names are, might be dead...by unknown causes or by the works of the syndicate itself. But my question is…”
“Why? Why did they go after so many people?” Kento consumed his energy to finish Hinako’s sentence when Kumiko pointed out a fact that reinfected the entire group with perplexity.
“Guys, take a look at this." Kumiko let her finger land on a group of characters which lay at the bottom right-hand side of the inscription.
“This name is the only one which isn’t covered in blood.” Kento then rushed towards his comrade to take a closer look at what Kumiko was looking at.
“You are right.”
“And not just that, Kento.” She then moved her finger to peel a withered piece of plaster off the diagram, revealing two kanji characters which read the word, “Alive”, providing enough chills to petrify Kento’s puzzled state.
“Kento, with this much evidence, there’s nothing wrong in saying that this cult is far greater than we thought. Their true purpose, true goals might even be far from our wildest imaginations.”
Kento began to think of the cleared-out table and the wet footprints nearby which indicated that someone had come in here before and cleared out the entire place. But that person has left all these traces of evidence which resulted in them finding out about this ominous syndicate. Were they that careless? To leave obvious strands of evidence of their secret organization? Or did the organization intend to leave the evidence so the ninjas could figure it out? Or were they plotting something far greater that not even the mightiest and the most intelligent of people would see it coming? As he was sorting out all the documents which were spread across the table, Kento’s eye abruptly caught one document which contained some secret details containing details regarding the star of Izanagi. The team gathered to quickly analyse all the information written in the document, and finally came across the answer that they had been searching for for hours; the way to decode the map.
“Wait, so all we have to do is just...repeat this mantra one hundred and eighty times? How convenient!”
After forcing himself to follow the instructions, Kento began the long and somewhat painful process of having to repeat a mantra one hundred and eighty times.
"Mantra? Maybe Kumiko is right after all. This organisation’s capabilities are far greater than ours. Hell, it could even be greater than the Bakufu itself! Otherwise, how are they supposed to know mantras to such an extent where in reality such knowledge is restricted to monks and maybe some sadistic maniacs?"
After five long and tiring minutes, Kento finally completed whispering the suspicious mantra. Before he could even call his brother to ask for some water, an odd-sounding noise began, diverting his attention.
It was the map. “Hey look, the map, it's finally working!” Kento cried out in relief. The colours of the stones were illuminated brightly on the map. We have to get this done quickly. Let’s move out team. We’ve seen enough.” And the team swiftly left the lair to complete the quest.