Vinnie and Mandy stared at the scary creature.
"This is Master Masamune's private room," snapped Haruki.
"What is that?" Vinnie pointed.
"It's his armor," said Haruki.
The helmet was made of iron, and it had a scary mask.
A big curved moon was on top.
"Do samurai wear that all the time?" asked Vinnie.
"Samurai only wear their armor during battle," explained Haruki.
"But we always carry our swords."
Haruki showed the children his sword.
"Now follow me," he said, walking away quickly.
"Please go slower," Mandy cried.
"I can only take small steps."
Haruki slowed down.
His kimono was not tight around the legs like Mandy's.
"Why is my kimono so tight?" Mandy asked.
"The kimono trains women not to step too fast or too far," explained Haruki.
Haruki slid open a door to a room.
"Stay here until I return,"
he said, closing the door.
Mandy admired a hanging scroll on the wall.
Vinnie played with the sliding door.
"I wish we had doors like this at home,"
he remarked, opening the door wide.
Outside, three men walked by in silence.
They walked to another house and crawled through a small door.
"I'll bet they're samurai too!" said Vinnie, excited.
"Let's see what's going on."
"Bowing to enter is a sign of respect,"
said one samurai, as the children crawled through the door too.
In the room, the samurai were sitting very still on straw mats.
There was a space beside one of the samurai close to the door.
"Let's sit there," whispered Vinnie, pointing.
A man greeted everyone, and the samurai bowed to the floor.
Then the man took a cloth and began slowly wiping a small teacup.
"It looks like he's going to serve tea," said Mandy.
"It sure takes a long time," said Vinnie, yawning.
The man cleaned each teacup and spoon.
Next he opened a small bowl and took some tea from it.
Then he put the tea into a cup.
His movements were graceful and slow.
"My legs hurt," complained Vinnie.
He stretched his leg and accidentally kicked the samurai next to him.
The samurai did not even notice.
The man serving the tea now poured water into the cup.
Then he quickly stirred the tea.
Vinnie began to massage his legs.
Another samurai gave Vinnie a stern look.
"Be still, Vinnie," whispered Mandy.
"Let's get out of here," said Vinnie.
He quietly slid the small door open and Mandy crawled out.
When it was Vinnie's turn, his kimono got stuck in the door.
"Help!" he cried.
Everyone in the room turned and stared.
Smiling nervously, Mandy pulled her brother free and slid the door shut.