In a bamboo grove, a girl in a black kimono with an ancient-style appearance held a sword in both hands, swiftly darting between the verdant bamboo. Her tachi slashed fiercely, emitting a dim, dark light. The blade didn’t strike the bamboo directly, but the swirling sword qi instantly felled a patch of green bamboo.
The geta clogs on her snow-white feet didn’t hinder her movements at all. Her rapid Step-Forward Slash was like a silver flood dragon. Her classical hime-cut hairstyle, with an updo, fluttered in the wind, making her whole figure appear elegant and graceful.
She sheathed her tachi, preparing to leave. But just then, a dark shadow flashed by, and in the blink of an eye, a kunoichi appeared on one knee before the black-haired maiden.
“Young Lady Tsukiyuki…”
The kunoichi before her looked somewhat disheveled, with multiple sword wounds on her body. Some scars might never heal for the rest of her life.
The kunoichi Tsukizawa.
Not long ago, Tsukiyuki Rio had ordered the family’s loyal ninja force to gather intelligence on Feng Na.
“You failed?”
“Yes, Young Lady Tsukiyuki, we failed. I’m sorry.”
The kunoichi Tsukizawa removed her face mask, revealing a face scarred by a blade. Tsukizawa had once been a rather beautiful woman, but now she was far from beautiful. The face gave a first impression reminiscent of Kuchisake-onna; someone with an immature mind might run away at the sight of it.
Tsukiyuki Rio showed a hint of displeasure.
“Report the situation.”
“Yes, Young Lady Tsukiyuki.”
As the only survivor among the ten, Tsukizawa could have lied to absolve herself of responsibility, but she didn’t. She recounted the entire surveillance mission on Feng Na in detail, even though she had lost the most precious treasure of a girl. Her tone remained flat, as generations of ninjas underwent training specifically to suppress their emotions before committing to the path.
She hid nothing, not even the smallest details.
“Who gave you permission to act on your own?” When Tsukiyuki Rio heard that the Ten Ninjas had engaged in battle with Feng Na, her expression changed abruptly. The tachi she had just sheathed was thrust into the green bamboo behind Tsukizawa. “If you had actually succeeded in killing her, how could I vent my hatred? I must be the one to kill Feng Na with my own hands. If I can’t torment her, then someone else will have to take her place and bear my wrath.”
Tsukizawa swallowed, a surge of fear rising in her heart, unable to stop her lips from trembling:
“I’m sorry, Young Lady. But we were discovered by her. If we hadn’t fought her at that moment, we would have surely died. But we failed. Feng Na was too strong. She killed nine of us, leaving only me…”
“She left you alive to relay a message, I presume?”
“Yes…”
“What did she say?”
“She told you to wash your neck and wait for her to come kill you.”
Tsukiyuki Rio smiled, a glint of mockery flashing in her dark red eyes. Scorn and disdain curled at the corners of her lips. Despite the bright sun, a bone-chilling coldness faintly emanated from her.
To dare touch my forbidden fruit… What an arrogant woman, ignorant of the vastness of heaven and earth. A mere time traveler dares to clash with me? She truly overestimates herself.
The moment she pointed her weapon at me, the battle was already over. Tsukiyuki Rio knew Feng Na’s trump card, and she had a way to neutralize it.
Feng Na would die, but she would not be allowed to die an easy death.
How should I dispose of her?
Perhaps after removing her limbs, I’ll hang her on the wall as a decorative art piece. I won’t damage her proud body, of course—after all, both her mouth and her lower parts can still be ‘used’. Some clients with peculiar tastes would likely be very pleased.
Deep within Tsukiyuki Rio’s dark red eyes flickered a cold, devilish glint. Those who opposed her would be subjected to the cruelest tortures in the world, without exception.
“Young Lady Tsukiyuki, having reported the intelligence to you, my mission is now complete.”
“If you care about your appearance, I can arrange a plastic surgeon for you.”
“That won’t be necessary, Young Lady Tsukiyuki. I wish you great fortune in battle.”
After bowing to Tsukiyuki Rio, the kunoichi walked straight into the depths of the grove.
In Tsukizawa’s view, a ninja who failed a mission had only one fate.
Although ninjas have their emotions suppressed from a young age, not all are like that. The person Tsukizawa loved died at Feng Na’s hands. Even though his emotions should have been suppressed, during the fight with Feng Na, her senior insisted on blocking Feng Na, only to be mercilessly killed by her—died as simply as mowing grass in a Dynasty Warriors game.
The ten had lived together, grown up together.
Now that nine of the ten were dead, Tsukizawa did not wish to survive alone.
Deep in the bamboo grove, she drew her short blade. An elderly man in ninja attire acted as her kaishakunin, ending her life cleanly and quickly, without polluting the environment.
Tsukiyuki Rio didn’t look back. Never stopping someone who sought death was her consistent way.
Although she was somewhat angered that the ninjas had acted on their own against her prey, they had followed her for years and were loyal. If the kunoichi had chosen to live, Tsukiyuki Rio would have given her a generous severance to live out her remaining years in peace.
“Let’s go, Morgana.”
“Young Lady, where are you going?”
“University of Tokyo, Hongo Campus. I’m going to meet Gao-kun.”
“Yes, Young Lady.”
Morgana drove away from the bamboo grove. Ever since Feng Na had forcibly kissed Gao Sijin, Tsukiyuki Rio came to the grove every morning to practice kendo, especially on days without university classes, when she would practice for three or four hours straight as if tireless.
By the time they reached the University of Tokyo’s Hongo Campus, it was already noon.
Gao Sijin had just finished class, rushing out of the classroom with a notebook. Behind him, a male student from the same department trailed closely.
“Gao-san, come join this mixer with us. You’re single too, right? Maybe you’ll find a cute girl at the mixer.”
“I won’t join a mixer. Give it up, Miura.”
“Then could you introduce me to those girls you know? Especially that South Asian girl from Literature Department Two, Emilia. That exotic vibe really does it for me. And that high school girl who came to see you before—I think you called her Uzuki—you could introduce me to her too. And Matsuzaka from Science Department Three is smoking hot, curvy in all the right places, and seems super chummy with you. Introduce me to all of them! I went to an all-boys school in middle school, and now that I finally made it into Todai, I want to experience youth.”
The student named Miura was a playboy. Though he did well in his studies, he was a womanizer. To Gao Sijin, his approach was clearly to use Gao as a bridge to get close to the girls familiar with Gao.
Originally, everyone just saw Gao Sijin as an ordinary international student from China.
But within a week, almost every day beautiful girls would come to chat him up. Not just girls from Todai’s main campus, but also from Waseda, Keio, and some private high schools. This made some of the guys both envious and jealous.
“Ah, so nice. If I could write a light novel, I’d probably get girls to like me too.”
“My book isn’t even that famous.”
“Stop being modest. From Constantinople to Istanbul, your name is known far and wide. Once I become a best-selling author, I’ll date a different girl every day.”
“Miura, I think university is a time to focus on studying, don’t you?”
“That’s easy for you to say—the well-fed don’t know the hunger of the starving.”
Miura was trying to get a share of Gao Sijin’s ‘harem’, but Gao just wanted to get rid of this nuisance as quickly as possible, escape back to his apartment, and write. If Miura were gentle and devoted, Gao might actually play matchmaker. But seeing the drool practically dripping from the corner of his mouth, Gao couldn’t push the girls he knew into a fire pit.
Just as Gao was thinking up an excuse to slip away, his attention was caught by a crowd gathering nearby. What were they all looking at?
With that question, Gao looked over as well. His ordinarily dull, dead-fish eyes suddenly brightened. Under the ginkgo tree, Tsukiyuki Rio had appeared once again.
“Gao-kun!”
Tsukiyuki Rio ignored every male who tried to approach her, waving her slender, fair hand in Gao’s direction. Her entrance was just like the school beauties in most dramas and novels. Every time she came to see Gao, a crowd would gather, especially the guys, all trying to push to the front just to catch a glimpse of her beauty.
Unfortunately, no matter how they acted, Tsukiyuki Rio never spared them a glance.
She was the University of Tokyo’s infamous ice queen. But ice isn’t always cold—when the right person came along, the ice would thaw into spring warmth.
She came from the Komaba Campus to the Hongo Campus for just one thing: to meet Gao Sijin.
Her geta clogs tapped lightly on the asphalt, making crisp, rhythmic sounds. As she hurried along, the heavily academic atmosphere of the University of Tokyo was suddenly dyed with a brilliant splash of color. Tsukiyuki Rio was a girl with that kind of magic.
Standing beside Gao, Miura saw a beauty of Tsukiyuki Rio’s caliber and hurriedly fled. For an ordinary beauty, he’d have the courage to pursue, but when all the world’s beauty was concentrated in one person, some could only feel inferior.
At first, Gao had been the same.
But now, he decided to muster his courage and walk toward her.
“Rio, you came again?”
“Because I have no classes this afternoon, so I came to find you, Gao-kun.” Tsukiyuki Rio spoke as if it were only natural. “Let’s have a meal together. As thanks for last time, let me treat you this time.”
“Isn’t that not very appropriate?”
“Don’t stand on ceremony, Gao-kun. Let’s go together.”
“Let’s find a place to sit first.”
The two walked side by side.
Tsukiyuki Rio’s slender fingers gently brushed against Gao Sijin’s palm but quickly withdrew. Beneath her delicate face, her cheeks flushed red with shyness, beautiful like a blazing sunset.
“What’s wrong?”
“I’m sorry. Just now, I took the liberty of wanting to hold Gao-kun’s hand. For having such impure thoughts, I really should reflect on myself…”
Gao couldn’t help but smile knowingly. He took the initiative and held Tsukiyuki Rio’s hand. The touch was warm and soft, making him not want to let go.
To others, it probably looked like they were dating, right?
