Rebirth [Ukyo Saionji x Reader]

3

** I just caught up on reading Dr. Stone and WHEW WHAT A RIDE. (No spoilers, don't fret.) Speaking of, for those reading who are anime only and Ukyo seems a little off I take a lot of his personality from the manga, we see more of him so it only makes sense. Manga Ukyo really is a balance of sweet and smart ass, but also extremely driven by his pacifist ideals and I'm trying my best to replicate that.  

Also, I may be late updating next week. It's the last week of my semester and not only do I have to finish writing a research paper, I also have to go through the pain staking process of moving out of my dorm and moving into my apartment. I procrastinate everything so next week is going to be very hectic, sorry if the chapter for next week gets a bit delayed!

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Two Weeks Later

A loud thud sounded through the air as your body crashed to the ground, dirt and rocks ripping against your knees and legs. Blood already starting to peak through the torn skin and mixing with dirt and dried blood from before. However, the feeling of determination surged through you - you were in no mood of losing. Harshly pushing yourself off the ground with your hands and grabbing the staff that had clattered beside you, you wheezed from lack of air. Taking a deep breath before following through, you planted your right foot behind you in means of steadying yourself. Your blonde opponent smiled, a wicked grin that meant she knew you had gotten serious.

The woman swung at you, her fist aiming for the upper part of your chest. You took a step to the side quickly, the dirt under you causing your foot to slide. Disregarding your staff, you dropped low to the ground; your feet underneath you with meaningful intent. Swinging your left leg from under you, you caught the other's foot whom she steadied herself on. You swung hard, certainly bruising your leg from the force you put behind it, and in result the woman fell to the ground from lack of balance.

"Finally!" You screamed, your voice cracking slightly from exhaustion. You raised your arms above your head in celebration, "I finally put you on the ground! In your face, Nikki!" Your yelling was the catalyst to the woman laughing, who was now sitting up from her fall. It was the first time in two weeks you had managed to put the woman down, you hadn't pinned her nor made any move to keep her down, yet you called it a win. 

You had met the woman, Nikki, through Ukyo, after advising that someone other than he train you in combat. He was better off in distance than in close quarters being an archer. Two weeks had passed by and you trained diligently, splitting your days into two parts: patrolling and training. Patrolling was spent by yourself or shared with Ukyo, when boredom got the best of both of you. And training was solely with Nikki. Throughout the two weeks, you had become acquainted with the woman and deemed her a close friend. Upon meeting her, she was rough around the edges; however, she was softer than what she appeared - guiding you in the right direction and praising moves you performed correctly. 

"Wow, what does that make it now? 50 - 1?" She snickered, earning a huff in response from you. "Calm down, blades of glory, I was only joking," she teased, the nickname she dawned for you making you roll your eyes. Realizing you were a figure skater, she took the only thing she knew of it and ran: a satirical film. The blonde woman thought it was hilarious, thus earning you the nickname blades of glory in her eyes. You took a seat next to her, the adrenaline that once coursed through you now fading away as moments passed. Her eyes wandered to your bruised and slightly bloody legs and took a small breath, "sorry I roughed you up so much. You seemed really pumped today though, I would've felt bad if I held back." 

Your eyes joined hers in your form, seeing how much damage you had taken from the day. Your legs were dirty and bruised, dirt collected at your knees and mixed with the dried blood of skinning them from repeated falls, your elbows being just as bad. Although some of the dirt was from the usual course of the day, most came from hitting the ground over and over. "Don't say that, if I know that was your best and I still managed to make you fall, my ego might sky rocket," you joked before laying back onto the ground. Adrenaline now lost, the stinging of overexertion plagued you. "Ugh- you really did a number on me I will admit. I haven't been this tired in awhile."