by Nancy Krulik
“I’m not a wizard dog,” I tell him. “I’m a sheepdog. And that’s my bone.”
“It’s mine now,” Kaito growls. “You’re not getting it back until you tell us where you took our queen.”
“How could a little puppy like me take a big dog like Nanami anywhere?” I ask.
“With your magic,” Saya answers.
“I don’t have any magic,” I tell her. “It’s the b—”
I stop talking. I don’t want the Ninja Dogs to know about the magic in my bone. If they do, they might take a bite of it. Then my bone will be gone forever.
“We saw you do your magic in Yoyogi Park,” Takito says. “First you weren’t there, and then you were. You just appeared. Like magic.”
Now I know how the Ninja Dogs found my bone—they watched me bury it. And then they unburied it. There’s only one thing I don’t understand . . .
“I didn’t see you in the park,” I say.
“Ninjas are experts at hiding from the enemy,” Kaito tells me. “It gives us the element of surprise when we attack.”
Element of surprise? Attack? My tail buries itself further between my legs.
“Ninja Dogs are family. Now and forever,” Saya declares. “We’ll do anything to save Nanami.”
“She gave us our jobs,” Takito explains. “We owe her.”
“What’s your job?” I ask him.
“We protect Hachiko,” Saya explains.
“What’s a Hachiko?” I ask.
“Don’t you know anything?” Kaito growls.
I step away from him. My whole body starts to shake. This guy is really scary.
“Hachiko was the most faithful Akita ever,” Takito tells me. “At the end of every day, he greeted his two-leg at the train station so they could walk home together.”
“Even after his two-leg died, Hachiko kept going to the train station at the end of the day looking for him,” Saya continues. “Rain or shine. His loyalty was honored with a bronze statue near the Shibuya train station.”
“It’s our job to make sure no two-legs climb on the statue, and to see that no dogs pee on it,” Kaito adds. “We take turns.”
“Nanami never showed up for her turn to guard the statue,” Takito says.
“She would never miss her turn. Unless a wizard dog was holding her prisoner in his lair,” Kaito growls.
I don’t even know what a lair is. But I know I want to go home.
“I don’t know where Nanami is,” I tell Kaito. “Please give me back my bone.”
Kaito laughs. “What’s so special about the bone, Wizard Dog?”
“The bone could be magic, too,” Saya suggests. “I wonder how you turn it on.”
“Maybe it has a switch,” Takito suggests. “Like a light.” He reaches over to Kaito’s collar and starts pawing at the bone, looking for a switch.
“Hey, stop,” Kaito says. “That tickles.”
“Maybe you have to shake the bone to get it to work,” Saya suggests.
“Let’s try,” Kaito agrees. He shakes his body up and down. But that won’t make my bone work.
“Please give it back,” I plead.
“You’ll get your bone when we get Nanami,” Kaito says.
“I don’t know where she is,” I insist. “Only . . .”
The Ninja Dogs crowd around me.
“Only what?” Takito demands.
“Only I know where I’d go, if I were Nanami,” I say.
The Ninja Dogs glare at me. I gulp, and try not to make another yellow puddle.
“Tell us,” Takito insists.
“I’d go find some more of that squishy fishy,” I say.
“Squishy fishy?” Kaito asks.
“I think he means sashimi,” Saya says. “Maybe he hid her away in the fish market. We should go look.”
I don’t know what a fish market is, but I’m afraid to ask.
“Give me back my bone, and go find her,” I tell Kaito.
“Oh no,” Kaito says. “This bone stays with me until we find our queen. No Nanami, no bone, Wizard Dog. You’re coming with us.”
CHAPTER 6
“Hurry up, Wizard Dog,” Kaito shouts as I trail behind the Ninja Dogs.
The streets of Tokyo are crowded. But I am not going to lose Kaito. No way. I’m keeping my eyes on my bone!
So I keep running. My paws swerve from side to side trying not to bump into two-legs. I keep moving. Fast. Faster. Fastest.
Suddenly, I spot something really scary. Even scarier than Kaito. Giant two-legs! They’re jumping on top of each other and throwing each other to the ground. I stop and stare at them through the window.
The Ninja Dogs stop, too. But they stare at me.
“Why is the Wizard Dog stopping at a sumo-wrestling ring?” Takito demands.
Those giants must be called sumos, I think.
“Maybe Nanami isn’t at the fish market. Maybe she’s being held prisoner inside,” Saya suggests.
“We’ll have to go rescue her,” Kaito says.
The Ninja Dogs charge toward the door.
I don’t move.
“Let’s go, Wizard Dog,” Kaito barks to me. “We’re going in to see the sumo wrestlers.
“I-I-I’ll stay out here,” I tell him.
“No, you won’t,” Kaito says. “You’re the one who captured Nanami. And you’re the one who’s going to set her free.”
“But I didn’t . . . ,” I start to say. Then I stop. Kaito won’t believe me, anyway.
I have no choice. If I want my bone, I’m going to have to face the giant sumo wrestlers.
“GRRRRR!”
I hear the sumo-wrestler giants growling the minute I get inside. They’re loud. And scary. Just like the Ninja Dogs.
“GRRRR!”
The sumo wrestlers grab each other. They pounce on each other. They throw each other to the ground.
My tail hides between my legs. It’s scared. I don’t blame my tail. Those shouting, pouncing, throwing, grunting giants are plenty scary.
I don’t know why they’re so angry. No one has stolen their bones.
Wiggle, waggle, wait a minute! The wrestlers just gave me a great idea. I let out a loud, “GRRRR!” and leap on top of Kaito.
Kaito is bigger than I am, but I surprise him. He falls to the ground with me on top of him.
“Get off, Wizard Dog!” he shouts.
“Not until you give me back my bone!” I bark.
“Not until you give us back Nanami!” Kaito growls.
FLIP.
Whoa. Now I’m on my back and Kaito is on top of me. He’s heavy.
“I can’t give her back to you,” I tell him. My paws are trying to stand up. But Kaito won’t let them.
“Then I can’t give your bone back,” Kaito says.
“Yeah! Kaito’s on top!” Takito says. “Beat the Wizard Dog, Kaito!”
“Give me a K. Give me an A. Give me an ITO!” Saya cheers. “Fight, Kaito! Fight!”
“Get off me!” I shout.
Kaito opens his mouth to say something. But before he can, one of the giant sumo wrestlers picks him up and throws him out the door.
“Hey! You can’t throw out a Ninja Dog!” Kaito shouts.
I guess the sumo wrestlers don’t speak dog, because they are throwing out the Ninja Dogs. A second one has already lifted Takito off the ground and dropped him outside onto the sidewalk.
A minute later, the wrestlers are coming back for Saya. And then me. Uh-oh.
There’s no way I’m letting those giants near me. I’m getting out of here.
“Go, paws! Go!” I shout. My paws run for the door. I race out onto the sidewalk near Takito and Kaito.
One of the wrestlers carries Saya outside and dumps her onto
the ground next to me.
“Hey!” Saya shouts as the sumo wrestlers go back inside. “That hurt!”
“Now what are we supposed to do?” Takito asks Kaito.
Funny. I was thinking the same thing. Wrestling didn’t get my bone back from Kaito. Now what am I supposed to do? Before I can thinkety, think, think of a new plan, my nose sniffety, sniff, sniffs something sweet. It’s coming from a pretty little house, just across the street.
Grumble. Rumble. My tummy sure would like something yummy. That squishy fishy didn’t fill it for very long.
The sweet smell is all around me. I just gotta have some!
“FOOD!” I yelp as I race across the street.
“You can’t go in there,” Saya calls after me. “They’re having a tea ceremony!”
I don’t know what a tea ceremony is. All I know is that nothing is going to keep me from those sweet treats!
CHAPTER 7
“You’re not losing us that easily, Wizard Dog,” Kaito shouts as the Ninja Dogs race into the little house behind me.
“Where you go, we go,” Saya adds. “We will find Nanami.”
“Because Ninja Dogs are family, now and forever!” Takito shouts.
I barely hear what they are saying. I’m too busy sniffety, sniff, sniffing. Where is that sweet smell coming from?
I spot the treats. Right there. On the floor. There’s a whole plate of them!
My tails starts wagging excitedly. It knows the rule. If food is on the table, it’s for two-legs. But any food on the floor is for dogs. And all the sweet treats are on the floor!
The two-legs are sitting on the floor, too. But that doesn’t change the rule. Wiggle, waggle, yum! Treats, here I come! I take a flying leap toward the treats.
“No, Wizard Dog!” Saya shouts. “The mochi is for two-legs!”
“Not if it’s on the floor!” I shout back to her. I grab one of the treats in my mouth and swallow it down.
The two-legs leap to their feet. They start shouting.
I hate shouting.
The Ninja Dogs race for the door. They’re leaving. Good idea. I gotta get out of here, too.
“Come on, paws!” I bark. “Let’s go!”
My paws start running. Fast. Faster. Fastest!
My fur flies in my eyes! I can’t see anything. I don’t know where the door is. But I keep running. Fast. Faster. Fastest. Run, run, run.
Crash! I run right through the wall! Wiggle, waggle, WOW. I’m outside now. There’s a huge Sparky-shaped hole in the wall where I crashed through. All that wrestling has made me as strong as a sumo wrestler! I can break down walls. I’m a champion sumo puppy!
I shake the fur from my eyes. “Give me back my bone!” I say bravely to the Ninja Dogs, who are all standing beside me on the sidewalk.
“Make me,” Kaito replies.
“You should be afraid of me,” I tell him. “Didn’t you see what I just did? I’m strong. I can crash through walls.” I growl and bare my teeth, just to scare them.
The Ninja Dogs look at one another. And then . . . they start laughing.
“Is he kidding?” Takito asks.
Kaito laughs so hard he snorts.
“Why are you laughing?” I growl.
Saya shakes her head. “He’s not kidding,” she says. “I’m wondering if he really is a wizard dog. Wizards should be all-knowing. But this pup doesn’t know anything.”
Hey! That’s not fair. I know lots of stuff. Like I’m not supposed to make yellow puddles in the house. And I’m not supposed to bury my toys in between the couch cushions. And I know that the bone has magic, not me.
But I don’t say any of that, because I also know better than to argue with the Ninja Dogs.
“She’s right,” Takito tells Kaito. “Even a puppy wizard would know that the walls of that tearoom are made of rice paper.”
Paper? The walls are paper?
I glance over at Kaito. He’s glaring at me.
The two-legs who were inside the paper room are outside now. They’re still yelling. Loudly.
Suddenly I’m not feeling very strong or brave anymore. I’m just sad. No one in Tokyo likes me. Not the two-legs. Not the Ninja Dogs.
“We’d better get out of here,” Takito says.
“Yes,” Saya agrees. “Those two-legs might call a dogcatcher.”
Saya, Takito, and Kaito take off down the street.
Dogcatcher? No way this dog’s getting caught and stuck in a pound in Tokyo. I’m leaving as soon as I can. Which is as soon as I can get my bone back from Kaito.
“Hey!” I shout to the Ninja Dogs. “Wait for me!”
“You’re not a wizard, are you?” Saya asks me a little while later when we stop to catch our breath.
I shake my head. “I told you that,” I say. “But you didn’t believe me.”
“There’s still something weird about you, Wizard Dog,” Takito says.
“My name is Sparky,” I tell him.
“Well, there’s something weird about you, Sparky,” Takito corrects himself. “I mean, you did just appear out of nowhere. We all saw you.”
“Yeah,” Kaito agrees. “And you’re a little crazy about this bone.”
“That’s because it’s mine,” I tell him. “And I want it back.”
“I told you,” Kaito says. “When we get Nanami, you get the bone.”
I don’t want to fight with the Ninja Dogs. I just want my bone back.
“We all want to find Nanami,” I tell them. “But we’re wasting time arguing with one another. We should work together instead.”
The Ninja Dogs stare at me for a minute. My heart starts thumpety, thump, thumping.
“He’s got a point,” Takito says.
“Four brains are better than three,” Saya adds.
“Even if one of those brains belongs to a puppy who doesn’t know the difference between paper walls and brick walls?” Kaito grumbles.
I don’t like Kaito. I don’t like giant sumo wrestlers. I don’t like shouting two-legs who eat in paper houses.
I want my Josh. I was hoping to be home with him by now. But Kaito has my bone, so I guess I’m going to be later than I thought.
That gives me an idea! “What if Nanami was just late getting to the statue?” I ask the Ninja Dogs. “Maybe she’s there now.”
“Nanami is never late,” Kaito barks.
“Maybe something got in her way that made her late,” I say.
“It’s possible,” Takito agrees.
“There’s a first time for everything,” Saya says.
“Let’s go check the Hachiko statue,” I say excitedly.
“We gotta get there fast,” Kaito tells us. “You know what that means.”
“Sure do,” Saya answers.
“Yep,” Takito adds.
“Nope,” I say nervously.
Kaito gives me a mischievous grin. “Relax. This will be fun.”
Relax? With the Ninja Dogs? Is he kidding?
CHAPTER 8
“I can’t move!” I try to scream. But the words barely squeak out of me. It’s hard to scream when you’re squished.
I have followed the Ninja Dogs right into a tiny metal room. There are so many two-legs in this room that the doors could barely close.
But they did, and now there are two-legs to the right of me. Two-legs to the left of me. And Ninja Dogs behind me.
It seems like everything is squishy in Tokyo. First the fish. Now me.
Suddenly, the floor beneath me starts to move. We’re zoom, zoom, zooming.
“Aaahhh!” I try to yell. But I’m so smushed that my cries come out softly. “Aaahhh!”
Zoom! Zoom! Zoomee!
“Aaahhh!”
Zoom! Zoom! Zoomee!
Sudden
ly, the zooming stops. The doors open, and the two-legs pour out.
YIKES! I’m being swept away by a sea of trampling two-legs. Owie! One of them just stepped on my tail.
“Come on,” Takito calls to me as he and the other Ninja Dogs head for the stairs. “We don’t have any time to waste.”
“Why did we go on that thing?” I ask the Ninja Dogs. “It was horrible.”
“The Metro train is the fastest way to get around Tokyo,” Kaito explains. “We had to get here fast.”
Takito runs toward a statue of an Akita. That must be Hachiko.
“Can you see her? Is Nanami standing guard?” Saya asks Takito.
Takito looks in front. He looks in back. Then he sniffs around.
“Nope,” he answers Saya. “And from the smell of it, she hasn’t been here all day. Some dog peed here. That wouldn’t have happened if Nanami was standing guard.”
“Where’s Yoshi?” Kaito asks. “He was supposed to be here.”
“Is Yoshi another Ninja Dog?” I ask.
“Not even close,” Kaito growls angrily.
“Yoshi’s a friend of ours,” Saya explains. “We asked him to watch the statue while we went looking for Nanami. He must have wandered off.”
“Something a true Ninja Dog would never do,” Kaito grumbles.
Just then, a large mixed-breed dog comes walking over from behind a nearby tree. “Oh, you’re back,” he says to the Ninja Dogs.
“Where have you been, Yoshi?” Kaito demands. “You were supposed to be guarding the statue while we looked for Nanami.”
“I had to go let out some water,” Yoshi replies. “If you know what I mean.”
We all know what he means.
“Well, while you were letting out water over by that tree, some other dog let out water on Hachiko,” Kaito tells him.
“I’m sorry,” Yoshi apologizes. “It won’t happen again.”
“That doesn’t matter now,” Saya says. “What matters is Nanami. Have you seen her?”
Yoshi shakes his head.
“I told you she wasn’t here, Wizard Dog,” Kaito says.
“Sparky,” Saya, Takito, and I all correct him.
