(written in Tengu)

To: The Honorable Ninja Known as The Raven Prince

Honored Sir,

I hope this letter finds you in good health.

I write to you today out of professional courtesy. I and my companions—I will not insult your intelligence by assuming you do not know who we are—understand that you have allied yourself with the interim caretaker of Minkai, the man Soto Takahiro, who calls himself the Jade Regent, and with his advisor and ancestor Anamurumon, the wind yai oni that was once a human warlord, and who was defeated on the battlefield centuries ago in his first failed attempt to take that which he cannot have. I will also assume that you are not surprised to hear from us. You, no doubt, have a network of informants that is every bit as competent as ours.

Our first professional courtesy is to inform you personally of Kainbuninsho’s death. You should know that we found him a worthy opponent, one who was as professional in his work as he was skilled at it. I was fortunate enough to be able to speak with him privately on several occasions, even as he was hunting us, and was most impressed by his discipline, commitment and ingenuity. So great was his talent that one would never assume that the slim, unassuming Tien man with the short, fuzzy hair, was the legendary ninja and assassin that all of Minkai came to fear. Assuming they ever got to see his true appearance, as I did.

If you were the one who hired Kaibuninsho to assassinate us, then you deserve to hear this from us personally: his death, though regrettable, was necessary. Not because of who we are or what he had been tasked to do, but because he had allowed himself to come under the influence of dark magic that was beyond the reach of mortals; an artifact that turned him in on himself and away from the world, slowly isolating him from humanity, and occasionally eschewing the code which he was taught to uphold. It is a tragedy that this happened to one so talented, but there is good news: we have ensured this artifact which was claiming him can never again taint another soul.

If you were not the one who hired Kainbuninsho, then…you should be made aware that your employers went behind your back in doing so. I know that I would certainly wish to know if my trust were betrayed in such a manner, so I am extending that courtesy to you.

I can only assume that you know Anamurumon’s history. You are no doubt aware that his centuries of imprisonment in the House of Withered Blossoms refined his lust for a country that is not his to take. Since you are known to be a man of honor I must assume you still have respect for your country and to the ninja clans in which you trained. That suggests that your relationship to the Soto Takahiro and Anamurumon is purely professional, as they do not value either of those things and lust only for power and control. In short, they are your employer, and beyond your assignments you have no special obligations to one another.

We have, as you are no doubt aware, secured the support of one of the honorable ninja clans of Minkai, and secured the noninterference of the other two. These were offers that were never on the table for your patrons. And as I said at the beginning, I write to you out of professional courtesy.

I advise you to find yourself a new employer. We intend to obliterate each and every oni and oni loyalist in Minkai. We will reduce them all to something less than dust.

If you doubt that we have either the conviction or the ability to make good on that promise, then I point you to the last year of history, and the string of oni corpses we have left in our wake, from the ridiculous Kikonu who, as a yamabashi tengu, was an insult to your race (several pages of the play he was writing are enclosed; I apologize in advance for what you are about to read) to the three oni who recently met their end at Seinaru Heikiko, and whose names we did not even bother to learn because we no longer care to waste any time pretending they matter. Or if you prefer a more recent example, to the nameless, faceless Typhoon Guards that were found reduced to ash in this very city. Destroying them wasn’t even one of our objectives that night; they merely got in our way.

We have gotten so good at killing oni that it has become boring. But a gardner eradicates an ants nest not for the challenge or the thrill of the battle, but because it is a nuisance. One which is taking up space that is needed for something important.

When Anamurumon and his tiefling offspring are ground up beneath us, and their “organization” with the ridiculous name is shattered and broken, who is it that you will work for?

If I may be so bold, may I suggest the legitimate heir to the throne, Amatatsu Ameiko? She will be interested in your services once she has taken her place atop it. There will be numerous challenges for the new emperor to overcome. Minkai is infested with oni today, and they hide in plain sight in the form of real people, human and tengu, alike. When they go to ground, it will take tremendous skill to root them out and send them back to the spirit world. Some of them may even have inserted themselves into high places of society, where their unmasking and death will have significant social and political ramifications. Or, perhaps nations in Tian Xia will view the regime change in Minkai as an opportunity, and make the mistake of thinking it weakened and ripe for invasion. These seem like the sort of opportunities that are aligned to your skills. This would, of course, require you to re-examine your current arrangement. If I may be so bold.

But make no mistake: regardless of where you choose to stand, the oni in this city will burn. We will cut a path through them that leads to the throne, a path that is paved with their remains, and then we will finish what we have started. As a man of honor, you deserve to stand on the correct side of this conflict.

If you feel that there is something to discuss, I am confident your reply will be received.