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3 Years Ago
The Tiger Shrine:  Meditation Hall

     Master Zen’keth sat cross-legged in the middle of an empty room.  The only things that kept the room from being just four walls and a door were torches on the side walls, and the golden sculpture of a tiger’s head on the front wall.  He sat with his eyes closed, his thumbs and middle fingers connected, and his hands resting on his knees.  One had to look very closely to even see him breathing.
     Julie came in very slowly through the door.  Master Zen’keth looked very peaceful; he was obviously meditating.  Too bad; what she had to say couldn’t wait.
     “Master Zen’keth?”  Julie said softly.
     Master Zen’keth opened an eye.  “Yes?”
     “Did I interrupt you?”
     “Not really.  So, is something troubling you?”
     “As a matter of fact, there is.”  She flashed a half smile.  “What does Jago have to do to get his real combat test?”
     Master Zen’keth opened his other eye, but he remained sitting on the floor, with his back turned towards Julie.  “Why, whatever do you mean?”
     Julie raised an eyebrow.  “Come on now.  You and I both know that that wasn’t his real fight.  It was just another one of your tests.”
     Master Zen’keth stood, and turned to face Julie.  “How did you know?”
     “Well, it was a couple of things.  First, that ledge that I was standing on was fine, then all of a sudden it just gives on me?  No way.  Then, the ruling of the fight was really unfair, and I was sure you’d give Jago another chance but you never did.  Things really started to smell funny when Jago told me about your ninja codes, and how he didn’t really have a choice in sacrificing the fight.  And when I found this, that clinched it.”  Julie pulled the tiger’s paw throwing star out of her pocket.
     Master Zen’keth took it.  “You know, I was meaning to go back for that.  I must be getting old, eh?”
     Julie shot him a look.  “So, how did you know Jago would catch me?”
     “Oh, you’ve been educated in the ways of the martial arts.  You would have safe-falled.  Besides, I knew Jago would catch you.  Of all the tests he’s been through so far, this is the one I knew he would not fail.”
     “So, is that it?  Is that all Jago had to do to pass that test?  Catch me?”
     Master Zen’keth shook his head.  “The test is two-fold.  The first part called for Jago to sacrifice something he greatly desired in order to save one who needed help.  In this case, his ninjahood.”
     “Well then, what’s the second part?”
     “Many things change in the world.  But one thing always remains constant; the division between right and wrong.  Although it is important to respect authority and follow the chain of command, a ninja must never compromise the principles of good.  Sometimes, even virtuous leaders become corrupt.  Jago must learn to always fight injustice and defend all that is good, even if it means defying a leader.”
     “Ah.  So then, what does he have to do now?”
     “He must come to me, and protest my decision.  He was wronged unfairly, but to let that pass would be an even greater injustice.”
     “I understand.”  Julie bowed.  “Thank you for your time.”  She turned and started to leave.
     “Julie.”  Master Zen’keth stopped her.  “This is a lesson Jago must learn on his own.”
     Julie nodded.  “I understand.”  She turned back around and left the room.

Later That Day

     Jago and a friend walked down one of the hallways in the Tiger Shrine.  As the sun had set a few minutes ago, the only light in the Shrine came from the many torches positioned on the walls.
     “I’ll tell you,”  Jago’s friend said, “you may not be a ninja, but it sure doesn’t feel like it.”
     Jago smiled.  “Thanks.”
     “So, you want to spar again tomorrow evening?”
     “Of course.”  Jago stopped at the door to his room, while his friend went on.  “See you tomorrow.”
     Jago opened the door and stepped inside.  He was exhausted, and his bed never looked better.  He took a metal cup with a long, thin handle from a nightstand and used it to extinguish the two torches on his walls.  He took off his shirt, carelessly tossed it on the floor, and collapsed on his bed.  Jago passed out; he may have been asleep for an hour, or maybe just five minutes, when he was suddenly awakened by a hand that wasn’t his moving across his chest.  Jago almost jumped up, but he realized who it probably was.
     “Julie…..is that you?”  He asked.
     “Yes, it is.”  Julie said.  It was completely dark, so Jago couldn’t see her.  Nonetheless, she grabbed him and snuggled up against his chest.
     “How did you get in here?”  Jago asked, still half asleep.
     “You forget who I am.  You could count the places I can’t break into on one hand.”
     “Hmph.  So, what are you doing here?”
     Julie strengthened her grip.  “Sometimes, it’s nice to be with the one you love.”
     In the darkness, Jago blushed.
     “Also, I was thinking,”  Julie continued, “I’m only going to be here a few more days.  I’d hate to waste an opportunity to be with you.”
     “I thought we weren’t supposed to think about that.”  Jago said.
     “I know.  But I can’t help it.”
     “You should concentrate on the moment; and let the future come as it will.”
     “Is that a ninja philosophy?”
     “One of many.”  After that, Jago fell silent for a while.
     “You still feel bad about that fight, don’t you?”  Julie asked.
     “I shouldn’t, but I do.”
     “Well, as you said, the tiger spirit knows best, right?  You’re just following your destiny, and what happened, happened for good cause.”
     “I know.”  Jago fell silent again.
     There were several things Julie could’ve said at that point, but she held her tongue because of her promise to Master Zen’keth.
     “Master Zen’keth…..he’s a like a father to you, isn’t he?”  Julie inquired.
     “Somewhat.  This place is my home; these people, my family.”
     “You’re very lucky then, because this is a very good place.  I wish I had had a family like this one.”
     “What about your own?”
     “They couldn’t have been that great, if I ended up voluntarily joining The Organization.  No, really, my family was okay, but being the youngest, and the only daughter no less, it was really tough growing up.  My brothers were incredible overachievers, so my father held me to the same standard.  No matter what I did, it was never good enough.”  Julie laughed.  “I could bring home a test where I’d gotten a score of 95 out of 100.  Instead of patting me on the back and saying ‘great job Julie!’, my father would take the test and quiz me on the five I missed.  If I ever fell short of first place in any competition, he’d make me analyze my mistakes, and figure out why I didn’t get first place.”
     “Sounds tough.”  Jago commented.
     “It was.  Every time he failed to acknowledge one of my accomplishments, it just made me angrier.  One day, I think I was fifteen at the time, I just snapped.  I told him how mad he made me, and that for once, he should appreciate who I was and what I had done.”
     “What did he say?”
     “He said that he knew I was doing good.  But, he said that if I settled for less than perfection, then I might as well be dead.  For every time I failed, no matter how small it was, it was still a failure, and there was a lesson to be learned from it.  Getting a 95 out of 100 score meant I failed five questions.  Taking second place meant I failed to reach first.  I didn’t realize it, but he was making me a better person.”
     “What happened after that?”
     “You know, he never pointed out another mistake again.  I think he thought that, by then, I should recognize my own flaws and work on my own to correct them.  Besides, I think he was waiting for me to snap at him.  If I hadn’t, I would have gone on being disgruntled, never realizing what he was trying to do for me.  He knew that, when I was all grown up and on my own, there wouldn’t be anyone pointing out my mistakes.  Besides, I had to learn to stand up for myself, and not just accept things as they were.”
     “I see.”
     Julie could sense Jago thinking about what she had said.  She grinned underneath the cover of the darkness.  “The seeds have been planted.”  She thought.

The Next Day

     Julie crept up to the door to the Meditation Hall.  She pressed her back against the wall, inching closer to the door.  She stopped, dropped to one knee, and carefully peeked through the doorway.  Inside, Jago was talking to Master Zen’keth.
     “Not fair?  How so?  Tomas did defeat you, did he not?”  Master Zen’keth questioned.
     “He did.  But…..the circumstances…..I mean, it was a conflict of interests.”
     “Please, explain.”
     “Well, I didn’t have to win that fight, right?  I just had to survive the time limit.  And I almost had.  But then Julie fell and I had to catch her.  I knew Tomas would probably take advantage of the situation.  In fact, I would have been surprised if he didn’t.  But, I had to catch her.  I mean, that’s one of the fundamentals of being a ninja.  If I had just let her fall and continue to win the match, I would not have deserved to be a ninja.  I guess all I’m saying is that it was a no-win situation.”
     Master Zen’keth raised an eyebrow.  “So, what do you want me to do about it?  Reverse the decision?”
     “No.  I mean no disrespect.  But I did want you to know that I don’t feel that the decision was very fair, and that I should get a second chance.  After all, that would be the right thing to do.  And isn’t that what being a ninja is all about?”
     Master Zen’keth smiled.  “Finally, he’s catching on.  For a little while, you had me worried there.”
     “Huh?”
     “Congratulations Jago.  You’ve passed your final test.”
     “My final test?  Didn’t I already pass that?”
     “Not until now.”
     Jago’s eyes widened.  “Wait a second – that wasn’t my real combat test, was it?  That was just another one of the tests, the last test in fact!”
     “I’m glad you finally figured it out.  As for what you had to do to pass the test, and what you should have learned, I will leave that up to you to figure out.”
     “I see.  And, what about my real combat test?”
     “Tomorrow afternoon.  You will fight Tomas again, but this time, you must defeat him.”
     “What?”  Julie thought, from outside the room.
     “What?”  Jago said.  “Defeat him?  I could barely keep up against him last time.  Now I have to beat him?”
     Master Zen’keth put his hand on Jago’s shoulder.  “I won’t lie to you.  This fight will be much tougher than anything else you’ve ever done…..”   Master Zen’keth smiled slyly, “…..in more ways than one.  But you must have faith in yourself, because I know you can do it.  You too must believe.”
     “I understand, Master.  I’ll do my best.”
     “Good.  I expect nothing less.”
     “Cripes.”  Julie thought.  “Beat him this time?  Well, if Jago succeeds, you certainly can’t say he didn’t earn it.”  Suddenly realizing that the conversation had ended, Julie darted away before Jago could catch her as he left the room.

Later
The Training Area

     Jago was busy repeatedly punching one of the red poles that stuck up from the ground.  He struck it with his open palm, quick rights and lefts in succession.  With each strike, Jago let out a small yell.  He was so intent in his attacks that he didn’t even notice Julie’s approach, although she came from his right side.
     “Hey.”  Julie said.
     “Oh!  Hey.”  Jago said, a little startled.
     “What’s up?”  Julie decided to play innocent.
     “You haven’t heard?  Oh, I haven’t told you, have I?  I’m sorry, I got so excited, I came right out here to train.”
     “S’ok.”
     “Well, you know how I lost that last fight?  It wasn’t really a fight!  It was just another test, to see if I would stand up for myself.  And I passed!”
     Julie grinned.  “Great!  I’m so happy for you!”
     “There’s more.  I get my real combat test tomorrow!”
     Julie clasped her hands together.  “That’s wonderful!”  She said.
     “I’m a better actor than I thought.”  She thought.
     Jago’s mood quickly turned.  “Yeah, but it’s going to be tough.  I think Master Zen’keth is planning something.  And I have to beat Tomas this time.  That’s going to be hard enough.  Plus, I used everything I had in the last fight.  He knows my moves now.”
     Julie moved in closer to him.  “Well then, there’s only one thing you can do now.  He knows the book on you?  Time to write a new book.”
     “A new book?  You mean new moves?  The fight’s tomorrow!  I can’t learn new techniques in just a few hours time…..”
     “Sure you can.  It all depends on how committed to this you are.”
     Jago turned away from her, to think.  “You’re right, of course.  I don’t need a whole new arsenal.  Just a few new moves to catch him off-guard.”
     “That’s the spirit!  Hey, I’ll even help you learn a few.  My fighting style is different from yours, plus, I’ve picked up a lot of different things from my travels.  I can show you some stuff you probably haven’t seen yet.”
     “Really?  Great!  Thank you Julie.”
     Julie winked at him.  “Hey, what are girlfriends for?  So, do you have anything in mind?”
     Jago considered it for a moment.  “That uppercut you used when you sparred against me…..that was a pretty good move.  What do you call it?”
     Julie half smiled.  “Oh, I don’t name my moves.  I always just think of it as a shoryuken.”
     “A what?”
     “Oh, nevermind.  A name, huh?”  She looked around.  “How ‘bout……’Tiger Fury’.”
     “’Tiger Fury?’  That’ll work.  Will you teach it to me?”
     “Sure.”  Julie moved next to him, and began to demonstrate it.  “You’ll want to turn the shoulder of your attacking arm towards your opponent, and crouch down as low as you can.  Also, if you keep your elbow bent at a 90-degree angle, you can increase the range of the attack…..”
 

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