“Well...just think of it as her way of teaching you about this house’s secrets little by little.”
“You think so?”
“Yeah. I heard after we all went missing, your family was the one that led most of the search parties. From what they seemingly accomplished while you were gone, I had the feeling they weren’t a normal family even before I met them.”
Indeed, the Yaegashi family had spared no effort in their search, and unlike all the other normal families, they’d had access to resources regular civilians couldn’t dream of. Not only that, but they had connections to basically every major organization in the country. They trained the local police officers in martial arts, and indeed the guy who’d jumped out of the pond to attack Hajime was the local police chief. The reason they’d been able to so easily sweep the news of their return under the rug was because he’d also known the truth and had been able to effectively get the rest of the police department to believe his reports.
“I’ve known the police chief since I was little, so I just thought of him as my weird uncle, but I guess he’s a ninja too...”
All of the students of the Yaegashi Dojo were like family to Shizuku, but that was why the realization that they were all trained ninjas came as such a shock and why Shizuku felt so betrayed.
Regardless, the fact remained that most of the students of the Yaegashi Dojo had posts in high places, and they’d helped keep the chaos to a minimum, talking to the neighbors, school administrators, and distant relatives of family members that Hajime hadn’t had time to reach out to. They had also helped him keep the rude journalists, curious onlookers, and crazy conspiracy theorists at bay. This was why Hajime had spent so much time at the Yaegashi house this past week, and indeed the main reason he’d come today was to thank everyone for their help and let them know things were finally calming down, as well as to decide what they’d do moving forward.
“I guess the event that prompted this wasn’t the nicest, but it’s a good thing that you’re getting to learn more about your family, right?”
“You’re right... I’ll need to find out why they didn’t tell me until now as well. I’m getting tired of learning about these things piecemeal.”
Also, why do you keep denying it when it’s obvious from your actions that you have ninja training?! Shizuku screamed internally.
She stuffed a tea cake into her mouth to help her calm down and Hajime began to wonder just how Shizuku had managed to remain oblivious to her family’s true nature for so long. She wasn’t an idiot. In fact, she was more perceptive than most. In which case, it made sense to assume Shuzou and the others had gone to great lengths to hide this from her. The fact that they’d kept it secret even after she’d gotten into high school meant they might have planned on keeping the secret forever.
But why?
Maybe they didn’t want her to feel pressured by her family lineage? He thought back to when she’d fought her double in the Frost Caverns. She’d overcome that trial by becoming true to herself. Afterward, he’d heard from her just how overjoyed her family had been at the martial talent she’d exhibited, and the high hopes everyone had had for her. However, that had led to Shizuku suppressing her true desires to try to live up to the image people had of her.
The first time Hajime had visited the Yaegashi house, he’d had an opportunity to speak with Shuzou and the others without Shizuku being present. They’d all asked him about the events in the Frost Caverns. Of course, Shizuku had told them what had happened herself, but they’d wanted to hear it from the perspective of the only other person who’d been there, the person she’d opened her heart to. They’d wanted to know whether or not Shizuku was truly living according to her desires or if this, too, was an act. When Hajime had told them he was certain she wasn’t hiding her true self anymore, they’d looked relieved.
“I see... So Shizuku’s finally going to be all right.”
“Thank you for granting her the opportunity to be who she wants to be.”
“Please look after her from now on, Hajime-kun.”
Shuzou, Toramasa, and Kirino had all started crying after that too. They were all truly happy that she’d come to love who she was, rather than the person everyone else expected her to be. Hajime hadn’t pressed them for details, but he’d been able to guess quite a bit from that conversation.
They probably regretted ever putting a sword in Shizuku’s hands.
It was only natural for parents to be overjoyed by their child’s natural talents, and it was also natural for parents to place expectations on their children. It was only after a few years that Kirino and the others had realized they’d taken those feelings too far, and as a result, Shizuku had grown into a precocious young girl who never complained about anything regardless of how she truly felt. That was precisely why Hajime suspected Shuzou and the others had decided to hide the true nature of the Yaegashi family from her, so that she wouldn’t be burdened by yet more expectations. The reason they were opening up so slowly now was because they wanted to test the waters and make absolutely certain that revealing the full truth wouldn’t pressure her into walking down a path she didn’t want.
Of course, this was all speculation, but Hajime was pretty confident in his conclusions. And so, he smiled gently at Shizuku as she stuffed her face full of snacks and said, “They’re a troublesome bunch, all right, but I’m sure your family cares deeply about you.”
“I know...”
In retrospect, Shizuku might have also come to the conclusion Hajime had regarding her family.
As Shizuku wiped her mouth with the back of her hand, Hajime said, “Anyway, regardless of whether one of my wives becomes a kunoichi in the future—”
“I won’t, don’t worry.”
Right as Hajime opened his mouth to continue, he stopped and started looking around. Shizuku realized what he was probably searching for and a glint of anger entered her eyes as she looked around.
A few seconds later, she also sensed the presences Hajime must have and openly scowled. She was slightly late on the uptake when it came to sensing her own family members because she was used to being around them so much.
“Even after I told them I’d run away if they did it again...”
“Now, now, relax. Things have finally started calming down, so they probably want to test whether I’m worthy of being your husband.”
“No, they’re just pouting because none of their techniques work on you, Hajime.”
That does seem more likely.
Shuzou and Toramasa were both hardened warriors, so naturally, it stung their pride if someone managed to evade all of their techniques.
“Now even Kirino-san is joining in. Maybe this really is a trial of some sort?”
“Huh? What are you talking about? Mom’s in the kitchen right now. She hasn’t done anything, has she?”
“She put something in the tea...and in those sweets. Regular poisons don’t work on me, but I’m pretty sure it’s a paralyzing agent of some kind.”
“Moooooooooooom! That’s it! If you guys don’t cut it out, I’m going to cut you in half!” Shizuku shouted, her voice echoing throughout the whole mansion. She then summoned her trusty black katana and leaped out of her room.
Hajime took the last of the sweets and plopped them straight into his mouth.
“This is much easier to work with than Kaori’s dad’s reaction, since it’s just a test of strength and skill,” he muttered.
“All of you, sit down right this instant! I’m going to teach you some manners!” Hajime heard Shizuku shout from a few rooms away.
That was quickly followed by Shuzou screaming, “Bwah?! Shizuku, you’ve grown even stronger?!”
“Heh, very well, then. Let’s see just how much you polished your swordsmanship while you were away in the other world!” Toramasa exclaimed, seemingly still resisting.
There was a loud crash, followed by a disciple shouting, “We need reinforcements urgently! The young miss is going on a rampage!”
Another one yelled, “At her current level of strength, we won’t be able to win just by ganging up on her! Get into the four corners of judgment formation!”
“She’s left the boy’s side! White tiger team, kill him now!”
Hajime waited patiently as numerous people closed in on his location from all sides.
“I guess Earth isn’t all that different from Tortus after all...” he muttered with a sad shake of his head.
Incidentally, when Shizuku went on a family trip to visit extended relatives the day Hajime took Yue and the others out on a date, she called him in the middle of the night, screaming, “Hajime, there are people claiming to be from the Iga clan and the Kouga clan here! They’re all dressed like ninjas too, but they keep saying it’s a fashion statement and that they’re not really ninjas! What do I do?!”