Chapter Fifteen: Survival

Iga’s secret base was situated on a desolate island more than a hundred nautical miles from Sakuragi Country. Hidden beneath the cover of mountainous forest, a covert training facility had been constructed.

“Faster, even faster! Only the first place gets to eat dinner.”

On the beach, a dozen or so shirtless men, each carrying a large log of tree root, ran along the edge where the island met the sea. Their bodies were covered with scars. Four figures clad in camouflage, each armed with a machine gun, stood at four points around the island, supervising them.

At the summit of the tallest mountain, Izumi Inoue sat cross-legged, eyes closed in meditation. Beside him stood a katana that gleamed white under the moonlight.

“How is he?”

After a long pause, Inoue spoke without opening his eyes. Alone on the mountaintop, his question seemed like a soliloquy.

Suddenly, as Inoue’s words faded, the air nearby shimmered. A shadow emerged from the darkness—a woman, her silhouette unmistakable.

“He is still alive,” she replied evenly, her voice devoid of any emotion.

“And the orphans?”

“Only seven survived.”

“More than expected. Proceed with the next phase of training.”

“Yes.”

The woman vanished back into the shadows as though she had never appeared. Oddly, the mountain was surrounded by sheer cliffs, with no visible paths.

Inside a cave on the mountain were dozens of cells. Five of these held dozens of children, each about ten years old. At the entrance of each cell, only enough food for one person’s two meals a day was left.

After five days, only one or two children remained alive in each cell.

Sun Siyi was in one of these secret chambers.

His eyes were bloodshot and swollen. His once plump and fair face was now dirty and grimy. His fingernails were caked with mud; his hands bore countless wounds. His clothes had been torn into strips. Beside him lay a young girl of similar age, also covered in bruises and wounds, her condition dire.

“Yangna, don’t sleep. Stay awake,” Sun Siyi shook the girl beside him, urging her not to fall asleep.

“I’m so hungry… so tired,” the girl murmured with half-closed eyes, her parched lips barely moving.

“Just hold on a little longer. The food will come soon. Tonight, you get to eat it all,” Sun’s voice trembled with emotion. For the first time, he felt fear and despair.

He didn’t understand what had happened to him. He didn’t know why he was here. Wasn’t he supposed to be with Mai and Chiyo, waiting for their parents? How had he suddenly woken up trapped inside a metal box with over a dozen children his age? But the looks in their eyes were filled with hostility.

Sakai Yangna was the only child who spoke to Sun. From her, he learned they were all orphans from slums around the world. They had been rescued just before starvation, brought here in search of a morsel of hope—better to fight for a chance at life than to perish quietly.

On the first day, everyone behaved relatively calmly, sharing the meager rations—insufficient to fill even one stomach, let alone many. That night, some children couldn’t bear the hunger.

By the second night, fights broke out over the food, and some weaker children were beaten to death during the struggle.

On the third day, more children succumbed to starvation.

By the fourth day, only five children remained: Sun Siyi, Sakai Yangna, and three other boys slightly stronger in build.

Sun and Yangna hadn’t fought for food during the first three days but were still attacked as enemies, suffering many injuries. Nighttime was the most exhausting time, especially for Sun, who had grown up with a disciplined and privileged life. Yet he dared not sleep, fearing lethal attacks at any moment.

On the second night, if not for Yangna shielding him from an attacker, Sun might not have survived. Yangna was gravely injured defending him. Since then, Sun refused to close his eyes, staying awake constantly.

On the third night, Sun joined the food struggle to protect the injured Yangna. To protect her, they could not starve.

That night, relying on his slightly better physique and the determination to protect Yangna, Sun seized some food. He ate a small portion and fed the rest to her.

On the fourth night, Sun touched Yangna’s forehead—it was burning hot. Fear gripped him; he dreaded losing her in this dark, suffocating metal box like the others.

That night, he fought fiercely, exhausting every ounce of strength left in his body.

He was fortunate to have knocked down a boy a head taller than him. The other two boys, exhausted from fighting each other, collapsed and died.

Sun picked up the food, staggering toward Yangna.

Clang.

Sun collapsed to the floor, completely spent and fainting from hunger.

“Not good, the target is about to fail! Doctor, hurry and provide treatment!”

Behind a rock in the cave, a figure wielding a sniper rifle watched Sun’s cell. Seeing him collapse, the figure immediately grabbed a nearby radio.

Within a minute, two women arrived at Sun’s cell, opened the door, and lifted him up.

“Yangna, Yangna, don’t die,” Sun muttered in his unconscious state, repeating her name.

“Take her out with him,” one woman said.

Exchanging a glance, the two women carried Sun and Yangna away.

“Prepare the nutrient solution.”

“The girl has a fever; prepare—”

…

In a white hospital room, several doctors worked tirelessly to save Sun Siyi and Sakai Yangna.

On the fifth day, a sliver of sunlight pierced into the cave, adding a faint glow to the darkness.

“Yangna!” Sun suddenly opened his eyes and scrambled to his feet, rushing to the corner where Yangna lay.

“Yangna, wake up! Wake up!” Sun shook her shoulders desperately. How could he have fallen asleep? How could he let Yangna sleep? Over these days, he had seen several children sleep and never wake. He refused to let Yangna meet the same fate.

Cough.

Yangna suddenly coughed.

“Yangna!”

Watching her eyes slowly open, hope rekindled on Sun’s face. He hurriedly grabbed the “spoils of war” from last night, using chopsticks to bring a piece of meat to her lips.

Yangna’s eyes widened as she silently looked at Sun, gradually opening her mouth.

The observer hiding behind the rock peered through his scope and sighed in relief upon seeing Sun get up and move. Inwardly, he cursed the difficulty of this task—the boss had ordered him to awaken the boy’s potential without letting him die. It had been five sleepless days, but at last, the mission was successfully completed.