ENISHI'S Aftermath: SOMETHING TO LIVE FOR

CHAPTER #7

The next two days they worked on fixing up the hut, making a lean-to for the horses and gathering wood. Each night, they slept back to back and it seemed to help keep her nightmares away. By the end of the second day, her leg was healed enough that they could begin training.

"Come at me with everything you've got." Enishi instructed. He blocked kicks and punches, then tossed Sumi on to her ass. "Again!"

The harder she tried and was blocked, the more her anger spiked and Sumi took bigger risks. With a cat like twist in the air, she finally broke through his defences and landed a kick to the ribs.

"Good, but that was reckless. If I had a knife, you'd be dead." Enishi slowed down his attack, to walk her through how to defend against him. "Your advantages are speed and agility, use it here and then follow through with a fast kick or knee."

When he showed her what he wanted, Sumi picked up the moves quickly. They traded back and forth, stopping only to hydrate. She was learning faster than he had expected. Since light limited practice time, he was pleased with the results.

"That's enough for today."

Sumi panted and was slightly disgusted that he wasn't even breathing hard. Her body was sore, because when he blocked her shots, it was like hitting a rock wall. She was exhausted, but followed him down to the river with her horse, as he took the pack horse and the gelding to get water. On returning to the hut, after securing her horse, she went in to feed the fire and make them a hot meal. It was rice and dried fish, but to her it was delicious.

After she had her fill, Sumi said, "you finish it." Then began to do stretches, before beginning Tai Chi.

He recognized her movements. "How did you learn Tai Chi, if you've never left Japan?"

"My mother learned from my father and taught me."

"That makes sense." Enishi tried not to watch, but there was something beautiful about how she moved and was almost disappointed when Sumi stopped.

She lay down on their shared blanket, wrapping the cloak around her body. He put wood on the fire and joined her, however he lay on his back. Enishi knew she'd be asleep before him, because of the hard workout he'd put her through. He waited to see if she'd have a nightmare, but nothing happened and finally he rolled onto his side. The little oven moved until it touched his back.

That became their routine and since she got more sleep, her body performed better and faster. Still Enishi's training was gruelling and relentless. He wasn't just molding her into a better fighter, he was passing on his knowledge of fighting, both offence and defence. To Sumi it seemed like he was never satisfied. She didn't realize that her caliber was better than most fighters, because he was so elite himself.

Another thing that had changed them both, was sleeping side by side. Sumi had noticed how better sleep meant more energy. And she appreciated him for helping her achieve that. What neither realized was that they were getting use to each other and almost dependant on the other to sleep. Enishi was changing slowly too. He was less unstable emotionally and didn't need to be ruthless. His frenzied nerves hadn't been used for a while. It also meant his body could recover and begin to seek other fulfilment.  Enishi became physically aware of her as a woman, which surprised him completely. 

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They were returning from the river when she twisted her ankle. Sumi's profanity in Chinese and Japanese made him smirk and remember how they'd first met.

"Get on my back, I'll carry you to the hut."

"It's okay, I'll manage."

"Don't be an idiot."