Shadows: Diary of a Ninja

By B. Voncannon

John Hopper is a typical high school student with very little care about what he wants to be. Soon, that will change as he is befriended by a mysterious oriental gentleman that moves in next door. Taking young John as a student, he trains him to be a ninja master that ends up battling one of his former students who has turned evil.

From school days to finding the love of his life, Shadows will take you on an unexpected journey into the world of the silent assassins. Originally written by the author almost sixteen years ago, this book will keep you on the edge of your seat!

• Language: English
• Publisher: iUniverse
• Release date: Feb 16, 2001
• ISBN: 9781469765389

B. Voncannon

B. Voncannon, author of Living Behind the Shield and Cherokee Blue Eyes, resides in North Carolina. After publishing several books, his interest has turned to screenwriting.

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All Rights Reserved © 2001 by Brian E. Voncannon

No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping, or by any information storage retrieval system, without the permission in writing from the publisher.

Writers Club Press an imprint of iUniverse.com, Inc.

For information address: iUniverse.com, Inc. 5220 S 16th, Ste. 200 Lincoln, NE 68512 www.iuniverse.com

This book depicts some scenes of violence and is not intended for children. Any similarity between the fictional characters in this book and any individual living or dead is purely a coincidence and not intentional.

ISBN: 0-595-17233-4

ISBN: 978-1-4697-6538-9 (ebook)

Printed in the United States of America

Contents

PREFACE

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

INTRODUCTION

THE BEGINNING

SEEKING ANSWERS

AN OPPORTUNITY AWAITS

THE OFFER

CONFUSED

THE TRUTH

A NEW PATH

MORE LESSONS LEARNED

BACK TO SCHOOL

TIME PASSES BY

GENA

FALLING

SUSPICION

TRAGEDY

LOST

THE ASSASSIN

THE MESSENGER

THE FINAL BATTLE

STARTING OVER

EPILOGUE

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

To all martial artists in the world and of course, the ninja.

The greatest enemy that we battle is ourselves… The Author

PREFACE

I want to welcome you to another book by yours truly. As of this writing, I have three books in print. The book that you hold in your hands is a unique piece of work. You may even call it an antique, since it is actually sixteen years old! I wrote the original manuscript for this book as a young man who was aspiring to one day become an author. As you can see, I accomplished that goal!

In any rate, the original manuscript was written back in 1985 and was placed inside of a shoe box. That shoe box became lost and was only recently discovered amongst all the clutter that I have accumulated. When I opened it, the first thing that I saw was an old composition book. That old book contained what you are about to read with several revisions.

Those of you who are familiar with my past works may be asking why I wrote this manuscript so many years ago, or why I am interested in such a story in general. The fact is that as a young man, martial arts were my life. When you are a fifteen year old boy, there are normally few things that you hold dear. You are so caught up with school, girls, hanging out, and all typical teenage characteristics, that you find little time to do anything cultural such as writing a book. I guess that I was a bit different in that respect, as I had a dream of becoming both an author and an expert in martial arts. Well, one out of two isn’t bad!

Along with the interest in martial arts, came a passion for the art of the ninja. I read every book that I could find on this silent sect of assassins. Coupling this with my interest in one day becoming an author, I found no better subject to write on than the ninja as my first manuscript. Maybe it was the romantic warrior-mystic aura that permeates the world of the ninja that drew me to writing a story about them? In any rate, the manuscript was hand written in a composition book. Originally, it was titled The Night Assassin, but it has since been changed to what you see now.

At first, I wasn’t sure that it was worthy to be published. After some thought, I figured that it would make a nice addition to my collection which are already in print. Being the diverse person that I am, this book is most assuredly within that category in regards to my other books.

I did make changes to the original manuscript, and filled in some holes in the story. I added some new dialogue and corrected errors; however, the original story is in tact. I wanted to have a book in print that I had written many years ago to allow both myself and my readers to see how my interests have changed. Also, it is actually the first short novel that I have ever written and is a landmark in my career as an author. Of course, had I written the original manuscript today, there would have probably been additional changes in the story.

I will forewarn you that this book is written in the first person. In other words, the story is told as if it is a diary, and the main character is telling you his story. I felt that this would make the book seem more realistic and help you to identify with the people involved. Since it contains a type of fish-out-of-water genre, the style of writing that I chose will bring it to life even that much more.

The other aspect that makes this book special is the fact that I am also writing a screenplay based on this book. I add some things to the screenplay that is not in the book, so it is not exactly the same, but the concept is similar. It is my hopes for you to one day see a movie based on this book on the silver screen. If so, then you can say that you read the book before you saw the movie!

For those of you who do not know what a ninja is, I will give you a brief explanation. During the feudal age of Japan, there were clans of ninja that lived in various regions. Ninja were trained from birth up to be assassins and spies. Their traditional outfit that was often worn on a mission consisted of black cloth. I have heard it called the cloak of darkness. They normally wore a hood that only allowed the eyes to show. Of course, the mission dictated what was to be worn. The essence of ninjitsu, or the art of the ninja, was silence. Their identities were not to be known. A ninja would have rather died than fail on a mission. I have read stories that spoke of ninja who had failed their mission and were about to be caught. They would take a knife and scar their own faces beyond recognition before taking their own lives. Now that is dedication!

The ninja were cross trained in a variety of skills including disguise, poisons, fighting arts, weaponry, and pyrotechnics. A full fledged ninja was usually about the age of 17. They lived their lives in seclusion and were the most adept spies that has ever walked the face of this Earth in my opinion. They could penetrate an area unseen, and leave without a trace. Many said that they could become invisible at will.

Today, many people still practice the art, but have adapted it for use in today’s modern world. At one time, it was practically illegal to mention the word ninja in Japan, as I have been told. You can see that these were very special individuals and obviously well trained. You can also see why they would make an excellent subject of a fiction novel full of adventure and secrecy. As a young man, I definitely had that dream and as you can see, I wrote a book about it. Without any further introduction, I beckon you to enter the lost book of B. Voncannon that has slept under boxes since 1985.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

As always, I want to thank the Lord and my family for putting up with me while I wrote another book!

INTRODUCTION

John Hopper is a typical high school student that lives near the city of Charlotte, North Carolina. He is sixteen years old and is attending summer school at Central High for failing to meet some academic requirements during the past school year.

He is a caring individual with a great deal of common sense. John’s biggest problem is that fact that is very worrisome. Things that he cannot figure out immediately plague him until he understands it. John’s greatest strengths are his inquisitive mind and his care for others. When you couple these two traits together, you have a young man that is always seeking the truth and will not rest until he has finds it.

John’s social life is another story. His best friend Jim is also a Central High student. His personality is so different from that of John’s, you wonder how they could be best friends! Although Jim is his side kick who makes occasional appearances, John is on a quest to find the love of his life. Having never considered himself a ladies man, his desire to be loved has opened up his heart to a variety of emotions and feelings for others.

John’s interests are very simple, and he never reveals much detail about them except for one thing…martial arts. He has always had an interest in them, but has never had any formal training since he sees himself as clumsy. His self confidence is lacking, and the story will show how he needs to find a mentor to help him overcome those feelings.

Enter Mr. Hee Lin, a quiet oriental man that conveniently moves in next door to John and his parents. Mr. Lin is a mysterious fellow that is slow to speak about himself to others. Little does John know, but he is actually a ninja master from Japan. Lin has moved to the United States to escape an evil former student of his, who’s name is Sokata. This evil ninja has sworn to kill Lin no matter where he goes to escape. Lin has come to America not only to survive, but to find an humble young man to pass on his inherited skills as a ninja.

Captivated by this secretive man, John discovers his secrets and will soon be on his way to becoming Lin’s master student. A journey into the ancient art of silent death, undying love, and a fierce battle with evil awaits him. You are forewarned to pay close attention to the story, as in the silent world of the ninja, things may not always be as they seem. This is Shadows, the diary of a ninja…

CHAPTER ONE

THE BEGINNING

My name is John Hopper, and I usually don’t tell stories unless something really big happens. Well, something really big did happen to me, and this is my story. It involves many years of my life. Yes, this is the story of how it happened. I can remember it as if it were yesterday…

June 1, 1977-I was attending summer school this year and it was a hot day. I had two more classes before I could go home, so I was hurrying to get to my next one. As I was running across campus, my friend Jim called me over to talk.

Why don’t you come over this evening and we’ll go cruising around the mall? Jim said.

No, I’ve got to go home and work on my car. It’s a piece of junk. My car had been broken for two weeks and I was starting to get tired of walking every