For once, he had not worn his signature white coat that day, opting instead for a dark gray tactical trench coat.
The coat was made from an unusual material. Its surface seemed to have been coated with some kind of light-absorbing matte substance, making it indistinct in the thick fog.
He stopped about five meters in front of the three of them.
"Your heart rates are all below eighty beats per minute, your breathing is steady, and there are no signs of sympathetic nervous system overactivity." A fine film of moisture misted Chisen's lenses, but he did not wipe them. "It seems yesterday's dopamine therapy worked well. Your cerebral cortices have rebuilt their defenses of reason."
"Teacher Chisen, you said you would completely shatter our combat logic today." Lu looked straight at him. "So what does the test involve?"
Chisen said nothing. He rested his walking stick against his leg, then pulled a large handful of objects from his coat pocket.
Jingle!
A clear, piercing metallic clatter rang out, jarringly out of place in the silent morning.
They were bells.
Not two, and not three.
Chisen held a full fifteen little silver bells in his hand.
The bells were strung on a specially made metal wire. Even the slightest vibration would produce a high-pitched sound that could fray anyone's nerves.
Chisen wrapped the string of bells around his waist, then tied a few more to each wrist and the handle of his walking stick.
Now he was practically a walking alarm.
"The rules are simple." Chisen spread his hands, displaying the bells on his body. "From now until noon.
"If the three of you can take even one bell from me, you pass.
"If you can't, you'll go straight back to the Ninja Academy and relearn how to stab wooden