Rin met his gaze. The rain outside began to fall harder, drumming on the dojo’s tiled roof. In the silence between them, Manji heard what she wasn’t saying: How many more? How many until I feel clean? How many until my parents’ ghosts stop screaming?
“You move like a man who’s forgotten how to die.” Blade of the Immortal -Dub-
“Rin,” he said. Her name tasted like dust and obligation. Rin met his gaze
“Let’s go,” she said finally. “The next one’s in the pleasure district. He likes to watch women drown.” How many until I feel clean
“Seven.” Manji rolled his shoulder, feeling the sacred bloodworms shift under his skin. “Lucky number.”
“That’s the last of the senior students,” she said, standing. Her voice didn’t shake. He’d taught her that. “Anotsu’s inner circle is down to seven.”