A Snake with a Temper (G.I. Joe Fanfiction)

Chapter 10: Japan (part 1)

When the plane landed, Snake Eyes was the first to get off and greet the people outside.

The cockpit opened and Ace spoke, "You guys good?"

"Yes Ace, thank you," Temper replied, stepping off.

She looked at all of the masters in front of her and bowed, to which they did the same.

Everybody but the Blind Master, Soft Master, Snake Eyes, and Temper left.

"It has been a long time since I was in your company, Temperance," Blind Master spoke first.

"I'm happy to see you Blind Master," she greeted.

"I'm sure you understand the implications of coming back?" Soft Master asked.

"Yes, I do," she answered.

"Soft Master," Blind Master warned.

"You will be given a day of rest after your travels, tomorrow we will decide if you will stay or not," Soft Master informed.

"Of course," she responded. The two masters left the courtyard for the shelter of the temple and Temper walked over to Snake Eyes.

You know they'll let you stay, Snake Eyes stated.

"You can never be too certain."

I'll show you to your room. The flight was long and you didn't sleep at all. Can I ask what was in that folder that kept you up?

"I was hoping for answers. Hawk knew my parents and he provided me with some mission reports that they went, some of his personal stories, or stories he heard about. I told you before I had enough siblings to share but most of them are dead. They made their choices but my parents shared the blame and some of the things they did... I wondered if they were always like that. Like how I knew them to be."

Did you find what you were looking for? he asked as they turned another corner.

"In a way, yes. I was hoping for everything to be solved by the information, but my hopes might have been a little too high for a few pieces of paper," she admitted as she slowed to down to match his pace.

Not everything comes easily. Your room, he signed, pointing to the door.

The said their farewell for the night and went their separate ways.

***

Temper woke up in the guest room of the temple and got ready to speak with the masters.

She exited her room in black gi pants and a tshirt.

She was not sure where to go, so she wandered around through the open training rooms; some were full of beginners, and other rooms held experienced martial artists.

As she came to one of the rooms that was occupied by a group with more training, she ran into a little trouble.

Temper stepped inside the room and realized that the door she was wanting to go through was in the middle of the farthest wall. Students were lined, evenly spaced, around the perimeter of the room. The instructor stood in the middle of them turning around to meet each set of eyes and speaking,

"Your final test is in two weeks, we will be spending this time prep- Who are you?" The instructor asked her as he became aware of her presence. Her eyes widened and she looked around to see everybody's attention on her. She looked directly at the teacher and bowed in respect.

"I apologize, I was only trying to find the Masters," she explained, switching easily to Japanese.

"The masters?" he chuckled. "You're looking at one of them, speak," he demanded.