Ranger's Apprentice 10: The Emperor of Nihon-Ja Read Free

to become impatient with the humdrum routine of life at Castle Araluen. Much to the chagrin of Duncan’s daughter, Cassandra, who enjoyed Horace’s company more and more, he had sent him on this fact-finding mission.
    ‘Look at this, Or’ss-san,’ Shigeru said, beckoning him forward.
    Horace smiled. None of the Nihon-Jan had been able to master the pronunciation of his name. He had become used to being addressed as Or’ss-san. After a few early attempts, Shigeru had cheerfully adopted the simplified version. Now he held out his cupped hands to Horace and the young man leaned forward to look.
    There was a perfect yellow flower nestled in the Emperor’s palm. Shigeru shook his head.
    ‘See?’ he said. ‘Here we are, with autumn upon us. This flower should have withered and died weeks ago. But today I found it here in my pebble garden. Is it not a matter for thought and wonder?’
    ‘Indeed it is,’ Horace replied. He realised that he had learned a great deal in his time here – and not all of it about military matters. Shigeru, even with the responsibility of ruling a varied and, in some cases, headstrong group of subjects, could still find time to wonder at the small occasions of beauty to be found in nature. Horace sensed that this ability led to the Emperor’s enjoying a great deal of inner peace and contributed in no small measure to his ability to face and solve problems in a calm and unflustered way.
    Having shown the flower to his guest, the Emperor knelt and returned it to the neatly raked array of black and white pebbles.
    ‘It should remain here,’ he said. ‘This is where its fate decreed that it should be.’
    There were stepping stones through the garden so that the Emperor and his guest could avoid disturbing the symmetry of the raked stones. It was like a stone pond, Horace thought. He was aware that each morning, the Emperor would rake the pebbles into a slightly different pattern. A lesser man might have had servants perform this task, but Shigeru enjoyed doing it himself.
    ‘If everything is done for me,’ he had explained to Horace, ‘how will I ever learn?’
    Now the Emperor rose gracefully to his feet once more.
    ‘I’m afraid your time with us is coming to an end,’ he said.
    Horace nodded. ‘Yes, your excellency. I’ll have to return to Iwanai. Our ship is due there at the end of the week.’
    ‘We’ll be sorry to lose you,’ Shigeru said.
    ‘I’ll be sorry to go,’ Horace replied.
    The Emperor smiled. ‘But not sorry to return home?’
    Horace had to smile in return. ‘No. I’ll be glad to get home. I’ve been away a long time.’
    The Emperor gestured for Horace to follow and they left the pebble garden and entered a perfectly cultivated grove of trees. Once they were off the stepping stones, there was room for them to walk side by side.
    ‘I hope your trip has been worthwhile. Have you learned much while you have been with us?’ Shigeru asked.
    ‘A great deal, your excellency. I’m not sure that your system would suit Araluen, but it is an interesting one.’
    Nihon-Ja drew its warriors from a small, elite upper class, known as the Senshi. They were born to be trained in the art of the sword and began their training from an early age, to the detriment of most other forms of learning. As a result, the Senshi had become an aggressive and warlike sect, with a sense of superiority over the other classes of Nihon-Jan society.
    Shigeru was a Senshi, but he was something of an exception. Naturally, he had trained with the katana since boyhood and he was a competent, if not an expert, warrior. As Emperor, it was expected that he should learn these skills. But he had wider interests – as Horace had just observed – and a compassionate and inquiring side to his nature. He was genuinely concerned for what were held to be the lower classes: the fishermen, farmers and timber workers who were regarded with contempt by the majority of Senshi.
    ‘I’m not sure that we can