The Battle for the Golden Egg (5 page)

CRASH!

The samurai smashed down the door and barged inside.

No-one noticed Little Pig sneaking out of the window. She was as silent as a ghost.

Little Pig slid down the castle walls, raced down the rocks and disappeared into the darkness of the Dragon's Tooth.

Now came the dangerous part. The wild, empty places where scary monsters roamed. Man-munching oni, ghostly tengu, frightful baku …

But Little Pig was not scared. She raced through the Tunnel of Terror, leapt over the Hedgerow of Horror.

Until at last she came to the place all ninjas feared the most – the Cavern of Certain Death.

Little Pig sneaked closer. She could hear the breathing of the beast within. Hear the gnashing of its fangs. But this was the only place she could find what she needed.

She took the paintbrush out of her pocket. The moment of truth had come.

Only two kinds of ninja would enter this place. The very brave or the very foolish.

Luckily, Little Pig was both.

‘I will ask you once more – WHERE IS THE GOLDEN EGG?' Kingyo-Sama prowled around the room, his eyeballs bulging like grapes.

The ninja were dangling over pots of hot custard. The samurai were holding them by their toes.

Buta-Sama looked confused. ‘What Golden Egg?' he replied.

‘What do you mean “What Golden Egg?”,' snapped Kingyo-Sama. ‘
The
Golden Egg. The shiny one! The big one! The one you won by cheating!'

Buta-Sama shrugged.

The ninjas looked at each other.

‘Enough!' screeched Kingyo-Sama. ‘Give me the egg or we will tickle you again!'

The samurai readied their feathers. The ninja squealed and wiggled their toes. No-one tickles like a samurai.

‘WAIT!' cried a voice from above.

Everyone looked up.

There, standing on the topmost window, was Little Pig. She was holding the Golden Egg.

‘Bring it to me,' ordered Kingyo-Sama.

Little Pig somersaulted to the ground. She handed the egg to Kingyo-Sama.

Kingyo-Sama peered at it. ‘It looks smaller than I remember,' he muttered.

‘It shrunk in the wash,' answered Little Pig.

A ninja at the back giggled. Buta-Sama flicked custard at him.

Kingyo-Sama inspected the egg. The samurai leaned closer. The ninja held their breath. Even the wind kept quiet.

Finally Kingyo-Sama nodded. He was satisfied.

he barked.

The samurai dropped the ninja beside their pots.
CLONK
went their heads on the ground.

Kingyo-Sama sheathed his silver tickling feather. He stood up tall. ‘Let this be a lesson to you, silly ninja,' he crowed triumphantly. ‘We samurai are better than you … and we ALWAYS will be.'

And with that, he turned on his heel and marched his men back down the mountain.

‘PHEW!' said the ninja, brushing dust from their shinobi shōzoku. They grinned at each other and dished up the custard. One bowl each. Plus an extra one for luck.

Buta-Sama removed the real Golden Egg from his underpants. The samurai never thought to check down there. It was a very smelly place.

He wandered to the castle walls, Little Pig by his side. They watched the samurai march back down the Dragon's Tooth. They watched them march back up the Tiger's Claw. They watched them carry the egg into Castle Kemushi.

‘You found the cavern then?' asked Buta-Sama.

‘Yes,' replied Little Pig.

‘And you picked the largest one?'

‘Yes,' she replied. ‘It was already starting to wriggle. I only just had time to paint it gold.'

Buta-Sama smiled, tucking into his custard. ‘Then we won't have long to wait.'

He was right.

A loud
CRACK
could be heard coming from Castle Kemushi, followed by an even louder
ROAR!
Flames burst out of the castle gates. Shrieking samurai leapt from the windows.

Dragons are always grumpy when they hatch.

‘Samurai,' muttered Little Pig, shaking her head, ‘are they always so silly?'

‘Always,' answered Buta-Sama, chuckling to himself. ‘It's the only thing I like about them.'