Strength of the Crab

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Hiruma Daisuke felt ill at ease. He had spent months among members of other clans, courtiers, diplomats, and merchants. He had come to his Daimyo and had attempted, perhaps successfully, a political negotiation. But in his heart, Daisuke was a warrior – a swordsman and a scout. What would his twin brother, Nobunari, had said if he had seen Daisuke in a silk kimono sipping tea with the Crane, rescuing helpless courtiers, or expounding on the traits of an ideal bride?

Daisuke admonished himself. Nobunari had been a well-rounded samurai, who was literate, even-tempered, and non-judgmental. He held himself to a high standard, but understand that in the service of the Empire and of our Lord, there are many unusual situations in which samurai find themselves.

At the thought of his brother, Daisuke felt a deep ache. It had been two years since Nobunari died in the midst of a maho tsukai plot. Daisuke thought of his brother every day, sometimes every hour. He carried his brother’s sword, the sacred Kaiu blade he won in a tournament during their school years at the First Strike Dojo.

As he was brooding, Daisuke paced around his tiny room in the barracks of Kyuden Hida. He was at the castle on a minor mission to congratulate a scout by the name of Hiruma Taigyo on his promotion to Taisa. Ordinarily, Hiruma Yabu, his Daimyo would have gone personally for an event such as this, but Yabu was busy. Daisuke, while an extremely famous warrior, was not close to the rank of Taisa, but was a well-respected warrior nevertheless. He was to escort Yabu’s Karo, a veteran samurai by the name of Hiruma Gomasuri. Gomasuri had long ago married into the Hiruma family by way of the Shinjo. She was loyal to Lord Yabu, but beyond ingratiating. Yabu chose her for her diplomatic ways, but also because she was an excellent bookkeeper and had a special talent when it came to growing tea plants. Daisuke had no issue with her, though he found her obsequiousness somewhat grating.

Daisuke completed his duties, which mostly involved a large amount of drinking, toasting, and bragging, and then sought to disappear into the masses of Crab warriors. He tried to mingle with the other Crab warriors as he had when he was younger, but he forgot that he now wore Kaiu armor and a Kaiu blade. Crab were not known for their subtlety and most simply stared outright at him. But unlike in Crane lands, the stares were a mixture of envy and respect.

When he did eventually make it down to the training grounds, he found his first opportunity to blend in with the crowd. He saw a sight few will ever see in Crab lands. All of the Crab who were training were stripped to the waist, holding nothing but practice weapons. They all stood in attack stance, and performed a synchronized series of movements in which they would dodge some blows, but purposefully take others. None would flinch when struck by a blow and each blow, while varying in strength from another blow, would always come with a specified power, according to the prescribed steps of the “routine.” The goal, it seemed, was for warriors to be able to learn to ignore pain from damaging attacks. The end result was to prevent the blows from wearing the bushi down, causing him to become distracted by the pain.

The Crab bushi performing the kata were at varying levels of mastery. The most successful never flinched, while the new recruits grunted and flinched near constantly, missing attacks that were meant to be dodged.

Daisuke stood on top of a wall overlooking the training grounds watching the trainees. Also watching was a Crab in heavy armor, clearly of some station, who bore the mon of the Kaiu family. The Crab seemed to be very pleased with what he saw.

Daisuke asked, “Kaiu Sama. I don’t wish to distract you, but I was hoping that you might be able to help me understand the training below. I have never seen anything quite like it.”

The Kaiu responded, “You see, Hiruma San. The Crab below grow stronger and harder with each blow. Even without their armor, they will be able to ignore a small amount of punishment from each strike. It is almost like building up a tolerance to poison. If you can weather enough abuse under controlled situations through constant drills, when real danger approaches, your training will protect you. It is no different than when you train your muscles to instinctively wield that magnificent sword when blocking blows. The only difference is that our samurai are training their muscles, skin, and minds to ignore pain. I designed this kata myself, actually. I call it “Strength of the Crab.” If you would like, you can join the training when the men come back from their break.

Daisuke did join the training. He was placed with other Crab bushi who were clearly beginners at this new and strange kata. The precision of the strikes was tiring on the muscles and the constant blows were painful. The pain wasn’t only from the strike, but also from the counterintuitive positions required of the body. The body must be held completely loose for some blows while complete rigid for others, and this is dependent on the location of the strike. At the end of the first day, Daisuke had pains he hadn’t experienced since he first learned to ride a horse or first wielded a sword.

Later in the week, the drills progressed such that the bushi were allowed to wear armor. This did not necessarily make things easier. It simply changed the timing of the kata.

After a week, the pain from the training receded and Daisuke felt he understood the kata. The bushi moved on to other duties and Daisuke had other tasks he had to perform. He looked for the Kaiu to thank him for the opportunity to learn the kata, but the mysterious samurai was nowhere to be found.

Before he moved on, Daisuke stopped in the castle’s shrine to Bishamon. He prayed to his ancestors, said a prayer for Nobunari, and paid his respects to Bishamon and the other fortunes. He left Kyuden Hida feeling a heavy weight having lifted from his shoulders. He had gone back to his roots, training among his kin. He felt hardened and lean, ready for whatever would come his way, be it courtiers in distress, despicable maho, or marauding Ronin.