The Training Game

They have changed their training. We heard word of Templars training in such a way in faraway lands. We will stay our blades for today. If their training proves effective enough, then we will strike them unarmed.

Au'lani still seemed wary about the entire thing, why would someone point another at such an advantage? He had to have something up his sleeve right? But instead she held out her hand for him to shake and said, "Deal."

Giving her traditional lazy, mock salute, she then threw herself to the building and crawled up it with ease, waiting for Hayato to play bait and for Owie to peer out for his assassin attacker.

"Ah, Au'Lani, there you are. I noticed that Cheung stole two of your flags, so here is one back. Tchau {Bye}."

Before Au'lani moved off to the building Hayato said, "Be careful. I may be acting as bait, but that means I can't watch your back. Don't let yourself get snuck up on."

Au'lani climbed quickly onto the roof and out of sight. Hayato let out a sigh of relief. That was a close call. If he hadn't reacted to quickly, he would have been "out" of the game much faster than had planned. Now he had an ally, at least for now. Hopefully, they'll be able to take a couple flags before one of them had their flags taken.

Hayato thought about how he should act as bait. He could stay on this street and replay the previous exchange, but now with a partner to catch the assailant by surprise, or he could move to a different area where he saw more of the other assassin's earlier and set up a trap there. At the very least, he should probably move from this street.

Going to a nearby street that was a little closer to the rest of the action, Hayato glanced around the area. He didn't see any other assassin's yet. He hoped Au'lani was keeping up with him, his pace was somewhat lazy so she shouldn't have too much problem even if she had to take it slowly on the roofs. Hayato glanced around the street. Traffic wasn't too dense so people wouldn't be able to blend with the crowd all that well.

As Hayato walked down the street, he made sure to look around frantically and clutch at his last flag to appear as desperate as possible.

To one side of the street, there was a vendor selling fruit of some sort. Hayato bumped into a passerby, which threw him off balance. He stumbled head over heels into the fruit stand. Fruit fell to the street and rolled everywhere.

"What the hell do you think you are doing?" the stand vendor yelled at Hayato.

As Hayato regained his senses he scrambled to make sure he still had his flag. When he confirmed the flag was still there, he let out a sigh of relief. Two rough hands grabbed the collar of his shirt and Hayato was roughly pulled to his feet. The vendor proceeded to yell at Hayato. The man who Hayato bumped into turned to Hayato intending to yell at him as well, but seeing that the vendor had things covered, moved on with his day.

The hair on the back of Hayato's neck stood on end. His back was to the crowd, anyone could be sneaking up behind him. There was enough traffic that he hoped nobody would go for a ranged assault, but he wasn't so sure. At the very least, he hoped this commotion would attract at least one of the other assassin's to make a move and he hoped even more that Au'lani would hold up her end of the plan.

Ah, Au'Lani, there you are. I noticed that Cheung stole two of your flags, so here is one back. Tchau {Bye}."

"Domo arigatou gozaimasu, Sensei," she called out in appreciation as she pocketed the flag, she easily kept pace with Hayato, actually going as far as to go ahead and do a sweep of where he was headed before doubling back and making sure that he was okay. She then watched as he suddenly stumbled and slammed into a fruit stand. She smacked her forehead, how was he a part of the Order? She wondered, before scanning the roof tops and alley ways. An assassin was bound to hear the commotion, and was therefore, bound to try and attack Hayato.

Someone was taking aim, their bow and dull arrow point right at Hayato, they released the string. Au'lani threw herself at their roof top, threw down a throwing knife to destroy the arrow, and knock it off it's intended course and crashed onto the roof that he was on. He gave a growl and then turned to run but Aulani was quicker as she jumped into the air perfectly and then slammed her blade into his shoulder, both falling to the ground.

The assassin below her huffed, but handed her his flag. "Peace be upon you, little sister," he said, and Au'lani blushed as she realized it was one of the few that had fought her on Thiago's first test, "You're getting better."

"Thank you, brother," she said with a nod and accepted the flag. The male then jumped off the roof and entered the crowd, blending in.

Au'lani crashed to the ground, snagged Hayato from the vendor and said, "Our apologies, we didn't mean to destroy your fruit stand." She said, looking at the scattered fruit on the ground.

Before the vendor could start yelling again, Au'lani dragged him down an alley and away from the crowd, much to his protest. She then pulled the flag she had received out from her robes, and handed it over to Hayato, "A flag of mine was returned," she explained, "Seeing as I have three and you have two, I won't fight you for this one, and simply give you this one...." she then chewed her lip, "I can honestly say I don't quite understand this game," she chuckled, "I expected to lose all my flags and return back to Thiago with a head hung low."

Yuzuru had grown bold, deciding to, just this once, climb to the top of a building. It was a rather small building, but for him it felt like he were twenty or thirty feet high. "How those assassins do this is beyond my understanding," he mumbled. It took him some time to reach his perch, so he would not allow himself to get down just yet. A white hood appeared in the crowd below him, entering the alley to his left. "Perfect timing."

The assassin went to the end of the alley in order to relieve himself. Taking this opportunity, Yuzuru leapt from the roof and struck the figure with his fist. "Sorry, brother, but I can't let myself be taken out of this game easily."

As he searched for the brother's flags, he kept a close eye on his surroundings. Claiming a prize would leave him vulnerable. It was then his hands clutched a necklace. His heart stopped beating. This was not an assassin. Tearing the necklace from the man's neck, he raced off down the street.

Thiago was not hard to find, however it was quite an ordeal to reach him. Yuzuru was pale by the time he clambered onto the three story building's roof. "Thiago! Templars!" he wheezed, throwing the necklace at the master assassin's feet.

"Sim, I noticed them about, but I have not discerned their motives. What was he doing? Did you kill him?"

"Hopefully it won't come to that so soon. We are making progress." Hayato stretched his shoulder, "Mm, looks like I out did myself playing the part of the clumsy fool. Threw out my shoulder a bit hitting that fruit stand. Hurts, but still functional."

Hayato glanced back out on the street. They weren't being pursued, that was good. Now they just needed to try and set up another trap, or perhaps find a target and make a jump on them instead. Using Hayato as bait would only work for so long.

But first there was another issue, "It seems we both have different ideas on how one loses in this game. You say that each flag we acquire counts towards our total, while I was under the impression that the only flags keeping us in the game were the three we possessed at the beginning. Perhaps we should find Lopes-sensei and clarify this part of the rules. What do you say?"

"I mistook the Templar for an assassin," Yuzuru said, taking a seat on the roof in order to catch his breath. "I thought I would give climbing a shot to get a better look at the surroundings. He went to relieve himself in the alley. Following the antics of my brothers and sisters, I leapt from the roof and gave him a firm blow on the head. He may still be lying unconscious where I left him. I should have killed him, though."

When they arrived at the spot where the Templar was brought down, Thiago saw nothing but a puddle of urine. "Someone was certainly here. Do not worry. I'll have some of our more experienced irmaos handle the Templars. You just continue with your game."

"Before I return to the game, tell me. What is the purpose behind all of this?"

I woke in the alley with my head throbbing and my everything covered in urine. Something must have struck me on the head, but there was no one about who would have done such a thing. If there were, they certainly didn't stay around. Still, best not to hang around and get back to spying on the Assassins. I hope this stain doesn't chafe. It probably will.

Mei was having decent luck sniping her fellow initiates, keeping out of reach of most counterattacks, though a few had tried climbing up to fight her on the roof. By now she had traveled most of the city's skyline, but her brothers and sisters were getting crafty, and the remaining initiates were keeping to places where she couldn't get a good shot off.

As soon as she had landed on a house, however, she immediately crouched down as she saw someone else on the other side of the peak. They were crouched down, and hadn't noticed her landing as they didn't turn from looking down at the street. They had no flags, but there was no reason for anyone who wasn't an assassin to be up on the roof like that. Unless...

Her heart began to race. These fuckers again. Now that she got a closer look at the man, some recognizable templar regalia was visible on him, including the cross on the hilt of his sheathed sword. She didn't have anything on her she could kill him with, and she couldn't take him in a contest of strength...

Wait, she did have something. Hidden by the heavy sleeve of her top, strapped to her arm like an arm guard, was a contraption called a hidden blade. It was actually a gift from the old man, Thiago. The Mongolians didn't use them, because their style was a lot more open and reliant on horseback tactics. Still, he had insisted she learned to use it after the fiasco that left many assassins dead, including her adoptive father, so she could defend herself without carrying around visible weapons.

She knew the basic function, a flick of the wrist to raise the hand activated the spring mechanism, shooting the blade out quickly. Silently as a cat, she inched closer and closer to the man, till she was close enough to pounce. At the last second, a wind blew up, making her clothing flap and alerting him to her presence, but it was too late as she sprang forward, throwing her fist like she was about to punch him, before flicking her wrist. The blade plunged into his jugular, making blood squirt onto her sleeve. The man gurgled, looking up at her before her toppled off the side of the roof. There were still people below, and once they saw him lying in a puddle of blood they looked up at the roof she was on. She quickly ran away from the scene, jumping from rooftop to rooftop to escape quickly before the samurai could get there.

Her heart was still racing as she tried to find Thiago or the Mentor, or even masumi. The Templars were watching their training game!

"Simple. It teaches them how to hunt, how to hide, and how to analyze strengths and weaknesses."

After hearing the reports from Mei and Yuzuru, as well as seeing the evidence himself, Thiago took a break from mediating the game to warn the Masters and the Mentor. He did inform Masumi that she needed to make her presence more known to the other Assassins, but otherwise everything would be fine. These Templars did not seem to come seeking trouble, but they were still spies. Spies were the kind of trouble that becomes real trouble if you lose sight of them. Thiago wanted to see these spiders crushed before they could bite.

Soon, he was approached by Hayato and Au'Lani. "Sim {Yes}?" he asked the novices.

After Thiago left the rooftop, Yuzuru sighed and weighed out his options. He could go the same way as Thiago, but a Leap of Faith was something the samurai took issue with. Not because of his lack of faith, but his understanding of physics. However, there was no easy climb down, and he was vulnerable on the roof. Taking a deep breath, Yuzuru threw himself off the roof, aiming for a cart of hay down below.

Soon, he was approached by Hayato and Au'Lani. "Sim {Yes}?" he asked the novices.

"We were just wondering how one actually gets out of the game," Au'lani said with a cheesy grin, "I thought flags were lives that we collected, and once we lost all the ones we gathered we were out. Or is it just the original..." she trailed off, and noticed how...edgy, Thiago seemed. Taking Thiago as a mentor, Au'lani immediately dropped the silly game and asked, "Is everything okay, senpai?"

"Não, mas não se preocupe," he spoke in his native tongue to be honest without making them worry, "If you lose all of the original three flags you were given, you are out of the game."
He smiled, trying to look more warm than strained, "Enjoy the game. It looks to be over soon. Remember, we have a mystery surprise for the winner."

"Thank you, Lopes-sensei." Hayato playfully smacked Au'lani on the shoulder as he turned to leave, "Looks like I was right. It seems I will have to be extra careful. Now, who is still left in the game. I believe we are down to the two of us, the housekeeper, the samurai, and the foreigner. The housekeeper shouldn't be too difficult. How about we go after the samurai. I will distract him, challenge him to a duel or something, then you swoop in and take one of his flags. If everything goes well, when he turns to you I can take another one of his flags. Since we are two separate players, it won't be counted as taking two flags at once."

After some searching, Hayato spotted Yuzuru. Hayato cautiously approached. Should he try and sneak up and get an initial steal, or should he call out a challenge? Deciding the latter was a better option, Hayato true the training sword he carried and called out to Yuzuru, "Samurai-san, I challenge you to a duel! I am down to my last flag and I'd rather lose it in a stand up fight than it being stolen away when I am not looking."

Yuzuru dragged himself out of the hay and back onto the sweet, sweet ground. The free fall experience was not one he cared to ever do again. Taking in a couple quick breaths, he vomited all over the ground.

"Samurai-san, I challenge you to a duel! I am down to my last flag and I'd rather lose it in a stand up fight than it being stolen away when I am not looking."

Looking up, Yuzuru saw the new guy, sword drawn and ready to fight. "Walk away, Hayato. It is safer for you if you just ignore me." Something was up. Thiago had told him that Hayato's combat ability was limited, so for him to outwardly challenge Yuzuru, there must be something else going on. I should heighten my situational awareness, he thought, his eyes going up and around.

Not good, obviously Yuzuru thought something was up. He was on edge, but was starting to shift his eyes around the area. Hayato had no idea where Au'lani currently was, but he couldn't let Yuzuru spot her. Swooping up a stone from the ground, Hayato hurled the rock at Yuzuru's head. If it hit, the blow would certainly stagger Yuzuru, and even if it didn't, he would have to focus on Hayato to avoid the attack. Following the rock's trail, Hayato charged Yuzuru. Letting out a cry, Hayato swung his sword in a vertical arc.

Hayato's training was basic in swordplay just enough to serve in the military, even then most of the time he had used a spear. Compared to a well trained Samurai, Hayato was an amateur. All he had to do was not get hit and keep Yuzuru focused on him. Au'lani would have to be the one to make this plan work. Hopefully should would act soon.

The rock caught Yuzuru by surprise, but it took little to dodge. Next came the blade. I dare not draw my sword, he screamed in his head. Kicking up a broom, he side stepped the attacked and swept the broom under Hayato's feet. "Find another target. You'll only find failure with me." Before anything else could sneak up on him, he bolted down the street as fast as he could.

As far as Masumi could interpret, Thiago's instructions meant less meandering, and more blatant watching. What were the tempura anyway? The only conclusion she had thus far come to was that they were unrelated to the deep fried dish. She felt the the temperature begin to drop, and estimated about an hour or two of day light left. Regardless of whether the game continued or not, the young woman would not be trying to track the warriors in the dark. At this point, there were only about a handful of Assassins left. It made finding anyone to be even more troublesome, and it got to the point where Masumi was realistically wandering the streets of Nagasaki instead of keeping tabs on the trainees.

Woosh. A sprinting person was just a blur to the housekeeper's point of view. Blinking a couple of times, Masumi wondered aloud, "Was that Yuzuru-sama?" She squinted her eyes, failing to see anything of interest ahead. "Maybe he was running from something?" Cautiously, she walked in the direction he came from.

Don't follow him, Au'lani heard her father's voice roar in her head. She had missed her chance, she should return to Hayato and apologize for her miss. But patience was never something that Lani was good at. He's not that far ahead of me...I can catch him- but again, she was cut off by her father's words, Don't be foolish!

Of course, she chased. She sped up along the buildings, keeping a close eye on him, running right beside him. She sprinted, swinging her arms forward to get a lead, he would have to come this way, seeing as there was no other way for him to turn and so she leaped into the air, a shadow, covering the ground as she descended upon her target. She twisted her body, prepared her training, hidden blade and landed on the samurai, attempting to slam her blade into his shoulder.

Again, her positioning of her blade was not deadly, just hurt if it were a real weapon.

Damn it!. For anyone else, it would have been the end, but Yuzuru had spent enough time around assassins to know the sounds they made when striking. Twisting his body around to face his adversary, he let gravity take over. He hit the ground with his back, but rolled through, throwing the assassin away from him. "I don't have time for this right now!" he shouted before running off again. Let them finish their game, but I have Templars to find

Au'lani let out a grunt as she was suddenly thrown, she rolled onto her feet and watched the samurai run again. She frowned, now frustrated that she hadn't been fast enough or strong enough for the kill. Reluctantly she returned to Hayato with her head hung low and her lips pursed.

"Sorry, I lost my chance," she said with a pout.