Chapter seven -- Riddles and hotties

A few more people came out of the small buildings and after a small wait, Minirai walked up onto another small stage.

"Congrats, congrats to all that have passed the first test!" He said cheerily. "You are all doing wonderfully!" A few people grumbled. "Are you ready for the second test?" I sighed. The tests were easier than I thought they would be.

He smiled sweetly. I saw a few people exchange annoyed glances. No doubt they thought they were wondering why they were stuck here. The pumped and excited air that was around us when we were starting was completely gone now.

"This sucks. Losers." I heard Luce mumble. Cammy smirked and elbowed him lightly. Cammy was the only one I could see who was still willing to happily continue. The aura she omitted made me a bit more willing to go on. Maybe it gets better?

"Now, the next test is based on knowledge." Minirai said. "And for it, I'm asking you..." He trailed off and let the statement sit. Kids leaned forward in anticipation. I had to admit, the guy had a talent for making people want to do things. "... a riddle."

The crowd burst out laughing. A riddle? They gave us harder things to do in the acadamy! Piece of cake.

"Now, now, settle down." Minirai said through the microphone, not the least bit fazed. When the crowd quieted, Minirai explained more. "We're giving you three riddles. Answer all of them and pass." He motioned toward ten stalls with curtains as doors. A small rail was about ten feet in front of them. Cammy, Luce, and I were closer than we were to the last test's building. In fact, if we pushed a little, we could be first. But we didn't. We just waited for a while. Maybe thirty minutes later, we reached the rail. A boy left the stall in front of me, so I took his place after a small good luck! nudge from Cammy. I swiped the curtain aside and stopped when I was inside. It was fairly dark, but I could still see -- see the man with the green sunglasses pushed up into his blond hair sitting with his legs crossed behind a small wooden table. He raised his eyebrows when I came into view.

"Well, well, we meet again." His voice was still silky smooth and flawless, despite the cigarette hanging from his mouth. He was still just as handsome as he was an hour ago, and his bright blue eyes almost entranced me. I kept my face and -- hopefully -- my eyes expressionless, to let him know I meant business, and not to let him know I thought he was very beautiful.

A lovely laugh escaped from his lips. "Relax, my dear, you look intelligent enough." The remark caught me by surprise. No one had ever said that, and it flattered me. "Please, take a seat." I glanced at the chair in front of the table and took it.

I raised my eyebrows, waiting for the first riddle. He sighed dramatically. "I suppose there will be no chit chat beforehand, yes? You are too serious. Well, here it is, then: You use a knife to slice my head and weep beside me when I am dead. What am I?" I let out an exasperated sigh. This was way too easy!

"Oh my, did you not like that one?

"An onion." I said, ignoring his remark.

"Very good." His smile shone in the dark room. I frowned. He was trying to charm me, and I wouldn't let it work. "Okay, try this on for size: What can run but never walks, has a mouth but never talks, has a head but never weeps, and has a bed but never sleeps?"

I thought. That one was tougher, but I didn't show complete confusion. It runs, has a mouth, has a head, and a bed. Well, if it runs, maybe... water? So it flows. A mouth... opens up... A head? It starts somewhere... and it must lay somewhere, if it has a bed... Let's see... It flows, opens up somewhere, starts somewhere specific, and is laying to rest... A river!

"A river." I said, not letting bravado show anywhere. His smile stayed, but now his eyes showed a challenge.

"All right, last one, then," He closed his eyes for a moment and then opened them again. They flashed. "It's no sooner spoken than broken. What is it?"

Damn, I thought it would be easier. I opened my mouth and took a breath, then stopped. But... there are two answers! I thought. I looked deeply into his eyes. They held no tricks or jokes. For once, in fact, they were serious.

"It's..." I said. "A trick question." He looked actually surprised for the first time. "Unless you intended two answers."

"Oh? And what would those two be?" He asked, interested.

"The two most important aspects of a ninja: silence and secrets."

Everything was quiet. Neither of us spoke for a moment. Then, he started snickering. Snickering turned into chuckling, which slowly turned into all-out laughter. His sunglasses fell forward low onto his nose. I finally let emotion show and that was annoyance.

Still chuckling, he looked up and pushed his sunglasses back into his hair. He opened his eyes and wiped away a tear. Then, to my surprise, he spoke.

"Ha ha, what's your name, honey?"

"Lucy Theay." I said cautiously.

"Oh my, it's a pleasure, Lucy Theay, to meet you! Please, I am Seki Matsuu." He held out his hand. I reached out mine as well and he grabbed it, but instead of shaking, he pulled it up and kissed it. I knew I was blushing and hated myself for it. But, I guess he wasn't really a very bad guy, so I dismissed it from my mind. Seki smiled sweetly. "I do hope we meet again."

There was true sincerity in his voice, and I was touched by it, but I really wanted to continue. So I glanced at his smiling face once more and then left the stall.

I had gotten out safely. Passed. Finished. I felt intelligent and victorious and like I could jump into the air with a whoop! But I settled for just a smile, not wanting to draw attention to myself. I waited patiently for Cammy and Luce. Actually, I was worried that they would not make it out. Worried... what a strange feeling. I don't often worry about people. Who am I kidding? I thought, and began to walk away.

"Lucy!" I heard. I turned and, to my surprise, saw Cammy running toward me with her usual big grin on. "I'm so glad you passed!" Luce walked up behind her. I looked around Cammy so I could see Luce clearly.

"Oh, you passed? I thought you would get the first one wrong." He furrowed his brow and looked away. Knowing him, he almost failed because of his temper. And I was almost glad he didn't. Almost.

"Well," Cammy said enthusiastically. "one more test and we're outa here, yeah?"

"Yeah." I said, and smiled gratefully for her happy attitude.