Session 30. (24/8/12)

It is Spring of the Year of the Serpent (1485). The Shugo Daimyo of Mutsu, Nanbu Masayasu, sends for Hidasue and instructs him to organise a mule train to carry the Shogun's portion of last year's tax revenue to Kyoto, and for him to guard it as far as the province boundary at Shirakawa. Hidasue returns and passes on the instructions to our heroes, who accept the assignment with quiet resignation, then raised eyebrows when Hidasue announces that he will accompany the party for extra security.

A few days later the mule train sets off on the 60-ri journey. Two mules carry the money - mostly gold coins - in chests slung on either side. There are four porters and two horses carrying supplies, a clerk and Hana, Emishi's new wife. The route takes the main Tōsandō road, passing south into the Rikuzen region, then through the Iwaki region (skirting Iwashiro) to the border at Shirakawa. The greatest risk will be near Iwashiro because the Ashina Clan are not blood relatives of the Nanbu.

The train passes peacefully through Rikuzen, into Iwaki, and ten days after setting off starts the climb from the plains of Fukushima into the mountains. On this particular day Onuma is riding point, a hundred yards ahead of the mule train, when she sees some riders on the road ahead as she approaches the crest of a small hill. The riders are armed and appear to be waiting for something. Onuma doesn't wait and turns to ride quickly back to the others, who see her coming and start readying their weapons. Just then a group of men run out from behind a tree close to the main party and throw fizzing objects. They are firecrackers! They explode with loud pops and panic the horses. Ishan Ashte is thrown to the ground. The others control their horses, but the mules and pack horses bolt up the track. The riders on top of the hill ride down to intercept them. The heroes snap out of their shocked inaction and attack the ambushers. Emishi fires an arrow at the firecracker group and hits one; as it is a hankyu he gets a second attack and finishes the enemy despite the disadvantage of overbowing it by two levels. Ishan Ashte gets up and fires an arrow at the approaching horsemen, hitting one. Onuma turns her horse again and sets off after the disappearing money. Sahpo casts Traitor Ground between the bandit riders and the bolting horses. Three of the riders fall off; one jumps off and shoos the fleeing horses to the right of the track towards a small stand of trees. Emishi fires two more arrows at the firecracker group, scoring with one. Ishan Ashte fires at one of the now-fallen riders and kills him. Onuma stops her horse and casts Stage Flash at the remaining two fallen riders, blinding them both. Sahpo fires three Arrows of Wood at the approaching firecracker men, scoring with all three, felling two of the men. Emishi swaps to his sword and rides up to the last of the firecracker bandits, who has stopped his charge. Emishi fends off his spear then hits him for 13 damage but gets speared for his trouble. Onuma casts Hand is Faster than the Brain and, her hands a blur, runs in and hits one of the fallen, blinded bandits for 7, 11 and 11 damage. Meanwhile, Hidasue takes care of Emishi's wife. Ishan Ashte finishes the last firecracker bandit with an arrow and Emishi rides after the mules, but is hampered by the fact that he doesn't know where they have gone. Onuma attacks a fallen, blinded bandit, hitting for 15, missing, hitting for 8 and finishing him with a 10. Then she heads for the last one, but before she gets to him, Sahpo downs him with three Arrows of Wood.

Onuma rounds up the prisoners while Ishan Ashte goes to help Hidasue protect the civilians. Onuma searches the bodies and finds ninja equipment on the rider who had been running to the stand of trees where the money was last seen. She thinks little of it. Emishi and Sahpo ride up to the stand of trees and listen carefully. Nothing. They ride through the trees. Still nothing. Sahpo looks for tracks and discovers that several horses had been waiting behind the trees. Tracks lead off to the west, so they return to the others to report. Onuma has used magic and threats to elicit the location of the bandit hideout from one of the prisoners - it is away to the west. Emishi, Onuma, Ishan Ashte and Sahpo ride off to investigate. A few miles away they find a shack with two horses outside. Emishi rides up and kicks the door in. Onuma goes in and finds two bodies - still warm. There is no sign of the money. Ishan Ashte looks for and finds more tracks leading to the northwest. They all set off, conscious that the money is getting away. Ishan Ashte is slowest as he is chief tracker. He manages to keep sight of the tracks. Then Onuma starts to fall behind, so they wait for her. This gives Ishan Ashte chance to relocate the tracks. After half an hour they spot some horses in the distance. Taking the chance that these are the bandits, they abandon the tracking and ride hard after the horses. They quickly catch up. Emishi gets their first, draws his sword and connects with one of the bandits, but as he passes through another of the bandits blows a powder in his face and blinds him. Onuma rides through and swipes at another. Sahpo fires two Arrows of Wood, dropping one bandit and severely weakening another. Ishan Ashte casts caution to the wind and fires an arrow into the melee. It misses. Emishi warns the others about the blinding powder. Ishan Ashte drops his bow and rides up to the fight, drawing his sword, just as Onuma fells the last bandit.

To our heroes' relief, the mules and packhorses are with the group, their loads still intact. They take them back to the shack where they meet up with Hidasue and the rest of the entourage and decide to set up camp for the night. Onuma and Emishi discuss the events. They are clear that the raid was well planned, and suppose that the two ninja found out about the bandits' plan and infiltrated the ambush. Onuma questions the surviving ninja and learns that it was the other way round - the ninja clan planned the raid and leaked the plan to the bandit group, which the two ninja had infiltrated. The ninja planned to get the bandits to take the risks and steal the tax money, then the ninja would kill the bandits and take the money back to their clan.

"And we'd have got away with it if it wasn't for you meddling kids," spits the last ninja.

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