[𝙇𝙚𝙤𝙧𝙞𝙤 𝙭 𝙍𝙚𝙖𝙙𝙚𝙧]

🥊ˢᵖᵃʳʳⁱⁿᵍ 🥊

"It's about balance, Leorio." The girl spoke calmly as she took the punching mitts off of her hands and set them down in the courtyard. The lazy, early morning sunlight dropped onto each inch of the land and covered the two hunters.

Her friend sighed and plopped down on the soft grass beneath them, "What's the point of all this training?" He asked after laying his head down on the still dewy greenery. 

"Because Nen can't help you if you can't even fight properly in the first place." [Y/n] responded matter of factly, crouching down to Leorio's level. In response, he just rolled his eyes and adjusted his tiny sunglasses with his index finger.

Ignoring the pouty expression poised across his face and his crossed arms, [y/n] got up and held out her hand for the boy to grab onto. They had been training for only 5 minutes but Leorio already swayed slightly as he walked and a sheen covered his forehead. 

Feeling a heavy weight on his shoulders, Leorio grabbed onto her hand and was pulled up from the spot in which he rested on.

But before he could stand back up, his feet left the ground as [y/n] swept her leg under his calves. He tumbled over onto the ground again.

Then, his mentor used the grip on his hand to twist the limb and hold it behind his back, careful to not hurt him.

Once he silently admitted defeat, she decided to give him another tip. "It's about balance AND awareness." She smirked and let go of him. He fell back slightly and flashed the girl an upset look in his brown eyes.

Without much more of resilience, he dusted himself off and he got up, "Fine. Balance and awareness. Let's do this." 

Once he was ready to spar again and [y/n] had put the punching mitts back on, Leorio got into the pose he was taught. His legs shoulder width apart, with one foot jutting out infront of the other and his fists drawn upwards.

He threw a punch towards the mitt, the smack resonating through the courtyard they were training in. Seeing that his opponent barely moved, he knew that wasn't nearly as powerful as it should have been. It was evident that they weren't going anywhere with their training as of now.

Out of options, [y/n] decided to take a different approach. "Let's trade places. You hold the mitts and I'll throw the punches." The girl took the mitts off again and handed them to Leorio, who gladly put them on. He was tired of having to try and knock his mentor over. It was far too difficult with his current skill set.

"Okay, okay. So try not to punch too hard. I don't wanna break my wrist or anything-" He pleaded nervously with his mitted hands  in the air.

"That's what the mitts are for." She interjected with a left jab and a right hook. The sound if her fists charging through the air quickly alarmed the boy.

Before Leorio could even begin to respond, she did another set and forced him back into a bed of flowers nearby. His left loafer made an indent in the bed if daffodils behind him, and his right shoe creeped up towards the lilies nearby.

"Don't give away your space. You've got to stand your ground!"  She demanded. He took a few more steps towards his opponent, getting awfully close to her. The girl would be lying if she said she wasn't even a little intimidated by the lack of personal space left.

Until she could throw another punch, Leorio immediately put his arms in a blocking position he was taught, too. 

[Y/n] took a step back and planted her feet firmly in the grassy terrain, and she had no intent to move.

With his newly found confidence in fighting, the student ripped off the punching mitts and put his hands into fists. 

Once the girl threw her signature punch, he grabbed her fist without hesitation and stopped it mid-punch.

After the futile attempt to land another hit, she watched as Leorio got down on one knee and took her balled up hand out if it's fist until it was relaxed and flat. 

Watching this with utter confusion as he held her flatten palm, she opened her mouth, "What are you-" [y/n] tried to question him but he gently kissed her hand. For a few moments she stood shell shocked, her face bright red.

Just as he had planned, the boy took advantage of this and jabbed her side. [Y/n] bent over towards the hit and stumbled onto the ground.

"Awareness, [y/n]." He mocked her sarcastically.

Feeling a bit embarrassed, she dusted herself off and got ready to win the fight. "Okay, hotshot let's go." 

Suddenly, [y/n] kicked her friend's kneecap and he crumbled over. But before he hit the ground he grabbed onto the girl's arms to pull her down with him. 

The pair tumbled onto the grass, the soft, green blades cushioning their falls.

Looking up at Leorio with her [e/c] eyes, the girl's mouth softly turned into a smile. She held back a giggle as he stared back at her. "Take a picture, it'll last longer." She chuckled.

"What? To have proof of my victory?"

"What victory? You came down with me."

Leorio scratched the back of his neck and smiled sheepishly, "I did it out of pity. I promise." He joked.

With a roll of her eyes, [y/n] cupped his face and kissed him on the cheek.

"That was out of pity too. I promise."