The food was delicious, it was not Japanese cuisine which was surprising. It was a Roast Duck with tender and juicy meat, crispy skin, and it’s glazed with the honey-balsamic glaze to give the duck a beautiful roasted look. There were roasted vegetables, potatoes, and Japanese-style steamed white rice.

I cannot stress how delicious it was. I have not eaten in almost 36 hours so I was famished at this point. I tried to eat slowly but I failed miserably. I cannot believe a chef with such expertise was here, wherever here was.

I had gotten to a point of the hunger that I was turning listless. I thought as I gorged on the most delicious food I have ever had; my bravado while facing one of the most dangerous people I have met might have been due to that. Or I was just in a bad mood, worrying about my safety can do that.

I was not the only one who was acting like a hungry ghost. The comical trio was eating like this was their last meal while the twin dragons were acting like this was the first time they have eaten.

We were done eating in almost half an hour, with no leftovers. If any hotel staff saw this they would weep in joy, for behind every open buffet lies a ton of thrown food thanks to idiots not finishing their plates.

We almost laid down on the floor from how full and relaxed we were. It was only now that I thought if they had poisoned the feast we would all be goners. I am not sure I could have stopped eating even while knowing that the food was poisoned. It was that good.

There were some breathing exercises to help digestion, I was doing it while contemplating what would happen next. Should we call out that we were done or just try to exit to see where our next destination was?

The whole group was trying to digest the food as fast as possible. It seemed they all realized we were not exactly at home here, it would be foolish to be so relaxed. And yet I sincerely doubted we had any chance of fighting back if things went south.

After five minutes of silence, Dos broke it and said, “Is there any dessert?”

He did not say that in a normal speaking voice but more of a high volume one where you are talking to someone far. I facepalmed, as amazing as dessert sounded my curiosity was almost killing me. I needed to know the plan or at least the end result of my tutor gig.

The door I had come from opened with a creak, we all looked towards it waiting in anticipation. I do not know for them but I wanted someone to start explaining stuff already. They were probably hoping for drinks and desserts.

A Japanese woman in her thirties, wearing a red kimono with a white sakura tree on it, entered the room. She stood behind me, a meter away. She had a white mask covering her entire face with two slits for the eyes on and a small katana at her waist. It was small compared to that of the leader we had met but its length was decent.

I looked at the group in confusion, only to be met with tilted heads and creased brows. They were as clueless as I was. I decided to ask, well, anything for the matter. But before I got the chance to sound out my confusion, another woman entered the room.

The room was the size of a conference room, so it would accommodate at least a dozen people easily. However with two masked women one meter away from me, I was understandably uneasy. They each took a point at the edges of the door clearly waiting for a third person to enter.

Tres could not stay silent and said, “I will go out on a limb and guess they are not bringing dessert.”

I almost laughed, that broke the tension that was accumulating in the room. I could not feel the aura of the two women, so either they were deliberately hiding it or they had none. The third person had their foot on the threshold when Tres talked, they paused momentarily then continued in.

The last to enter was a teenage girl, it is hard to guess her exact age but she was Japanese with a fair snow-white complexion. She did not look sickly, more like a recluse that does not see the sun much. She was dressed in a white kimono with a tree sewed on it, the tree was identical to the one in the portrait I saw when I met the leader.

Probably the family’s crest, as expected of a family name that means ‘green tree’. The two women who I assumed to be her bodyguards stood at attention as the girl crossed the threshold.

She had quite the presence, it was not intimidating but it was pressuring. I felt no aura from her as well yet I had a feeling she was dangerous in her own way. She watched us with interest like we belonged in two different worlds and this was the first she met our kind.

The room was silent, as insensitive as my guards were, they did not dare to utter a word. It seemed like I would have to break the ice, so I cleared my throat and said, “Hello! I am called Jack Crucintum. I assume you are Aoki-san’s daughter. Nice to meet you!”

I pivoted myself around to be directly seated in front of them as I talked. I was not going to stand up and offer a handshake since that would have been rude so I did my best to offer a slight bow. Her eyes glistened after I spoke, I got a bad feeling immediately.

She laughed with a clear bell-like voice, it was not sonorous like her father’s, I am still guessing that this is his daughter, but it was sweet and mellow. The contrast was weird, like meditation music with the intensity of a metal song. The guards were as statue-like as before.

After laughing, she said with a deadpan face, “Well met, sensei!”

She gave a slight bow, more theatrical than a courtesy one. I did not like how she said sensei though, it felt like she said it with contempt. It would not be fun having a pupil that looks down on you, not to mention literally shifting your entire life just to teach them and then benignly met with contempt. Regardless of me being forced to be a tutor, mere semantics at this point.

I smiled slightly and nodded my head as if pleased with her greeting, then asked, “Is it time for your lesson?”

Two can play at this game of contempt, I smirked to myself. She looked taken aback then twisted her lips, and said, “I do not believe so. I came to see the quality of the teacher my father paid so much to get. I am not seeing what is so special about that teacher.”

Interesting! So she is the one I will tutor. In addition, she disliked me offhandedly. I am curious which tutor would awe her, torturers are not exactly celebrities. The ones who are renowned are fearsome for their brutality or their eccentric ways.

I am considered too young to be on the renowned list of infamy. Although I do have my clique, such as the client that wanted to compile a book about me in return for that diary. As contemptuous as our conversation is I reckoned to be petty with such a kid will only damage my reputation.

“It seems the quality of your previous teachers were too high. However, this is not an excuse to mistake a diamond for a pebble.”

I wrinkled my nose and continued, “A pupil introducing themselves first was expected, yet I introduced myself first not in respect for you but for your father. It is understandable not to see eye to eye at our first meeting so we might as well part with your name and begin anew once a schedule for your lessons is made.”

It felt good to fire back at her respectfully and without faulting her family. I awaited her response as her face reddened in either embarrassment or rage. Her right hand twitched like she was going to reach for something at her kimono’s belt. Then it moved to smooth the belt. Little miss got anger issues.

“My name is Aoki Kaida, I apologize for my rudeness. It seems you have just eaten and it is inappropriate to chat for now. We will come at another time.”

Then she spun and left, I felt a chill run down my spine as the two female guards looked at me. It was obvious they would be skilled, but they were a step from being experts in martial arts. My sensitivity to auras can estimate someone’s level of proficiency in martial arts but not what martial art they trained in, I was not experienced enough to get that. Freya did mention that every martial art results in a unique aura and each person has a different aura based on the same martial art.

I watched as they left the room and the door closed behind them, I did notice that the room they came from was not the bathroom I came out of. The same door leads to different places, what a weird place.

The guards looked at me like I was mad, I raised an eyebrow in question. One of the twin dragons, the one with a mole near his or her lips, said, “You sent the daughter of the Crimson lord of Gate of Heaven packing with a scolding. I am not sure if you are daring or ignorant hence your bravery.”

I looked at him or her then their twin, they looked androgynous so I was still unsure of their genders. Their faces looked common, not a face you would notice in a crowd. The two were identical in everything; height, features, build, hair, and clothes. The one thing that differentiated them was that one had a mole near their lips at the right side of their face and the other had a mole near their left eye. I actually suspected they put the moles there just to mess with people when they switch them around.

I crossed my arms and said, “I do not think it is a big deal. Besides we were sent on a mission as a transaction for an unknown not full cooperation with this weird Aoki family branch. I am still confused about the whole thing. In normal times I would take it slow but I am almost ninety percent sure they would not harm us.”

Tres frowned slightly and said, “As big brother mentioned we received orders to deliver you and we were supposed to be given further instructions upon doing so. The fact that no one reached out is bothering us. Were you aware of any arrangements about this?”

I sneered, I seriously wondered how these fools did not get themselves killed with their intelligence. I sarcastically said, “Oh yes, I recall being told I would have a shit couple of days then I will meet a band of jesters who will guide me to the shadows of the night. There we shall dine, meet the little dragon borne of the green tree and contempt we shall show.”

Uno smiled, then asked, “Everything makes sense but what is with the little dragon? Is it because of her martial expertise?”

“No, it is because her name literally means ‘Little Dragon’ and her family name means ‘Green Tree’. The very fact she either had no aura or hid it is worrying, at the very she should be at the peak of competency of one or martial arts. This is the minimum level for a child with such a prestigious background.”

The group nodded along, it was common knowledge that gaining competency in martial arts was a matter of time so it relied heavily on practice, dedication, and sheer talent. As for being an expert or a master, for some, it is a guaranteed outcome and for others, no amount of practice will help them cross the threshold.

I am stuck at the peak of competency in my martial arts due to lack of dedication, and to be honest, my ability to sense aura has hindered me in this regard. Taking my background as well as my siblings' capability, I should be an expert already but thanks to my ‘ability’ it resulted in a misplaced understanding of aura which I have been trying to correct for a while now. I hoped that part of my reward for this assignment would be a boost to an expert level or maybe enlightenment to my Aura.

We sat in silence for a bit. I do not know for the other but I was tired of guessing what was going on. I wanted some straight answers already. I stood up and headed to the doors opposite of the door I came out from. Interestingly, every door I have seen was a sliding door so far.

I reached for the door when it opened on its own. I froze for a second, then I saw what was behind it. There were five people seated on big throne-like seats with their faces hidden by a beaded curtain. Each curtain had a distinctive color, I felt it was referring to the five elements. I looked beside the door to see who opened it, but there was no one.

I was getting really tired of the door game and the mysteries involving ninjas at this point.

The five elements are a concept that originated from China but not exclusive to it at all. They are the following: Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, and Water. I will not try to guess what role each element plays in the organization, for I have understood the unpredictability and mysteriousness of ninjas are underestimated.

I stood at the threshold for a moment, I knew that this was an invitation to go in. There was no way someone would accidentally open up the door leading to a meeting of who I assumed to be the heads of the five elements. Would they?

I stepped through the threshold, I instantly felt the difference. That feeling of resistance as if walking in water. This was exactly how I felt. The air seemed to turn viscous and with every step, I felt it was solidifying around me. I feared I would bump into a literal wall of air.

This was Aura, at its purest. These people were quite literally beasts in human form. I now understood my foolishness when I thought Aura is an edge at best. Aura is so much more, the potential was incredible. I felt the bottleneck to understanding aura loosening up a little. As my understanding improved, I felt the air turn less viscous.

I stood at a spot where I felt if I took one more step I would be cut down. It was there, that danger of instantaneous death. My instincts and however small my understanding of Aura was, I understood. This was the line before which stood the prey before the predator, passing it warranted death.

I stood in silence, the seconds passing felt like minutes. The silence had a certain weight, I felt like they were waiting for me to break it. I wondered if this was another stupid test of theirs. I took a deep breath and said, “Jack Crucintum at your service. May I know how I can help?”

The air felt lighter now, I guess Aura has an intimidation factor as well. The one at the Wood element spoke in a gruff voice, it felt like the whispers of the forest in a dark night. It was oddly creepy.

He said, “We welcome you, as the tutor of Aoki Kaida. We reached out to the Truth Seekers seeking one who will be worthy. You shall guide Kaida in her mission.”

He was silent after that, seriously cannot they spit out the details in one go. Is there any point in being so vainly mysterious? I asked as humble as I can with little annoyance in my voice, “And what might her mission be?”

The one who replied was the head of the Metal element, I expected his voice to be like blades rubbing against one another. Apparently, the head was a female and her voice was smooth to the point I felt it prick my ears. I had a hunch she used metal needles as a weapon.

She said, “The knowledge of the mission is of no concern to you. Your concern will be teaching Kaida the art of torture, with the goal of extracting information in the span of fifteen minutes.”

I started sweating immediately once I heard her. Is this a prank? Only someone of my expertise or higher can do something like that and even then the likelihood of succeeding did not surpass sixty percent for the best of us. I needed to clarify, lest their expectations crush me to death.

“I am an expert in torture, I have never taught anyone before. My reputation is based on my vast knowledge in different ways of torture as well as having the highest success rate among the experts in the Truth Society. I will assume you are aware of all of these points, in that case how do you suppose I will accomplish this goal?”

The room was silent for a few moments, then there was a boom and I was on my knees gasping for breath. My head was ringing, my vision was swimming. I had no idea what the hell happened.

Someone said, “The reward is getting you to the expert level in two of your competent level martial arts. The punishment is just as you had felt. The transaction with your organization was based on mutual benefit, so if you are of no use to us the deal is null and your life is forfeit.”

Typical carrot and stick approach, I thought as I climbed to my feet with difficulty. I still did not understand how I was attacked if that was even an attack, to begin with. It seemed like I was stuck with almost an impossible mission, tutoring a rebellious kid with trigger happy higher-ups.

Isn’t that just splendid?