Samurai Summer Read Online Free PDF

He said my name again with a special intonation that he obviously thought was funny.
    “Hey, Ken-ny!”
    I didn’t answer. He called me Kenny and not Tommy. But it wasn’t to be nice.
    “Get yourself all clean now, Ken-ny?”
    I didn’t answer that either.
    “Ever hear the one about the Japanese who mistook his toothbrush for a sword?”
    “Ever hear about the idiot who got his face scrubbed with sand?”
    “No. Is it about you, Ken-ny?”
    I took a step toward him with my toothbrush in my hand.
    “No weapons, we said!” He laughed after he said it. Then he gave a moronic salute, did an about-face, and marched off straight-legged in military style across the playground. I heard him laugh again. It sounded like a cackling seagull circling above the merry-go-round.
    When Micke and Mats came up I was done brushing my teeth.
    The toothpaste tasted awful and I tried to rinse away the taste with water from the lake, which didn’t taste too good either.
    I snorted and spit the water out.
    “How’s the soup?” asked Mats.
    He was a little walleyed, and it looked like he was asking Micke as much as me.
    “Better than cook’s,” I answered.
    “And there’s more of it,” said Mats, looking out at the lake.
    He could look left and right at the same time.
    “Ever heard the story about the plane that crashed in the desert?” I asked.
    They both shook their heads.
    “The captain sent everyone out in search of food,” I said. “When they came back, one of the flight attendants remarked they had good news and bad news. ‘Let’s hear the bad news first,’ said the captain. ‘All we found to eat is camel shit,’ the flight attendant said. ‘So what’s the good news then?’ ‘There’s plenty of it.’”
    Mats laughed, but Micke didn’t.
    “What did he want?” he asked.
    “You mean Weine? You saw him?”
    Micke nodded.
    “Nothing; he didn’t want anything. Let’s not talk about him. He’s not worth it.”
    “So what did
she
want then?”
    “What do you mean?” I wrapped the towel around my sword and started to walk back toward the main building. “What are you talking about?”
    “That girl, whatever her name is. I saw you talking to her just now. What did she want?”
    “Are you spying on me, Micke?”
    “Cut it out, Kenny. You know you can’t hide around here; you said so yourself. I just saw her—whatever her name is—speaking to you, that’s all.”
    “Kerstin,” I said. “Her name’s Kerstin.”
    “She’s from town,” said Mats. “I’ve seen her there.”
    “Are you neighbors?” I asked.
    “I’ve just seen her. She has a little sister, I think. But she’s not here.”
    “What did she want?” Micke repeated.
    “Have you become a parrot now, or what?” I asked.
    “So you don’t want to answer?”
    “What’s with up you, Micke?”
    “Nothing’s up with me. It’s just…”
    He didn’t say any more.
    “It’s just what?” I asked.
    “Just forget about it,” said Mats and pulled Micke’s arm.
    “What are you doing?” shouted Micke. “Let go!”
    “Take it easy,” I said.
    Micke grabbed at his sword.
    “TAKE IT EASY!”
    “He touched me,” Micke muttered. “I’ve gotta defend my honor.”
    “You’re in the same troop,” I said. “He can touch you without you having to kill him.”
    “You’re lucky I didn’t have time to draw my sword,” saidMicke, and he glared at Mats. Once a sword had been drawn from its scabbard, it had to be used; everyone knew that.
    “Lucky for
you
,” said Mats.
    I had gathered the troop together and we were on our way into the woods when two of the counselors came up.
    “Where are you going?” one of them asked but without directing her question at anyone in particular.
    I kept on walking.
    “We asked you where you’re going, Tommy!”
    I stopped but didn’t answer.
    “His name is Kenny,” said Micke.
    One of the counselors laughed.
    “All right,
Kenny
then. Where are you heading?”
    “Just out into the forest