Shadow Warrior: Based on the true story of a fearless ninja and her network of female spies
Kõga 1558
C HIYOME DANGLED upside down from the cliff’s edge The blood rushed to her head and the pounding in her ears drowned out the calls of forest birds The breeze which had seemed so mild a moment ago now threatened to tear her from the rock Her training partner adjusted his grip on her ankles giving them a tiny tug Chiyome held back a scream The rocks at the base of the cliff were jagged and seemed heart-stoppingly far below If she fell Be patient r Conque fear Sensei’s words from that morning echoed in her head 5
She glimpsed her instructor on the cliff’s edge above watching her silently The other students all boys clustered nearby Most had already completed this particular challenge She forced herself to take long slow tried to clear her mind ignoring the boys and focusing only on the rhythm of her breath and the cold wind on her face For just a whisper of time the fear seemed to float away from her body before she heard Sensei speak Bring her up breaths as their voices drifted down to her Once again Chiyome began to shiver She’ll give up soon Maybe But you know who her great-grandfather was right Who Mochizuki Izumo-no-kami A murmur ran through the group at the sound of his name He’d been one of Kōga’s best fighters Chiyome felt her legs trembling Be pa tient Conquer fear she repeated to herself She remembered Sensei’s lessons about practicing zanshin calm awareness She Her partner gripped her legs tighter as another boy reached down for her hand and together they hauled her up over the edge the rough granite scraping her elbows and knees She sprawled on the ground gasping for air and glanced at her partner He looked as shaken as she felt Then she forced herself upright and bowed to Sensei who nodded his approval Next Sensei called and a boy to her right stepped unsteadily forward 7
