Aspiring Recluse

Chapter 4 : The Beginning Of Our Eternal Bonds

And so, it was the next day now. My day went on as usual, with my training and occasional spars with Sato. The weather outside was amazing. During my run, I saw 2 weird people standing at the dojo door. I decide to not question them and go on for my walk. I return an hour later and can't find the two people outside. I assumed they were gone. Standing in front of the door, I hear people chattering. Curious, I go inside to find the two people standing outside talking with old man Sato. He introduces me to them "Akio, this is Haru and Mayumi", I shake their hands and put on a smile. But inside, I think "What do these guys want to do from here?" Sato realizes that I zoomed out and taps my head. I come back to my senses. The two of them giggle while looking at me. Old man Sato proceeds to tell me that they would now be my training partners, starting tomorrow. I was in shock, and also happy. It gets boring here sometimes. I continue my training for today. It felt quite weird knowing the two of them were watching me. I say "Hey, what are you guys looking at? Go test something and find what fits your taste." Haru picks up a "Three-Sectional Staff" otherwise known as a "Sansetsukon.", I was very shocked by seeing the way he swung it. it was fast yet elegant. On the other hand, Mayumi tells me that she's quite skilled at ranged weapons like bows. I show her to the bow section, the look on her face as she looked at the bows was priceless.

I challenged Haru to a spar, to which he replies "Oh.. you want to spar with.. me?" I quietly nod.

We set foot on the sparring arena. He preps up and starts to rotate his staff. "3..2..1.. GO!" We both lunge at each other, the duel broke out and we started exchanging hits. His way of swinging was fast yet powerful. Old man Sato walks in and stops the fight. I thank Haru for showing me his potential. And he says "Likewise." By the time I packed up all of my gear. The sun was starting to set. Due to me being the only person in the Dojo often, I cooked the meals. But, Haru decided to volunteer this time. Not knowing his talent in cooking, he made the best-tasting rice and curry I had in ages. I ate so much, Haha, I thank Haru for the good food. And so I went to my room to sleep again. Early in the morning, I hear arrows striking wooden surfaces. I go out of my room to see Mayumi practicing her bow skills. I was in utter shock. Her bow skills were exceptional, she never missed a bulls-eye. I quickly shout "Wow, your aim is amazing." Mayumi giggles, "Heh, ya like what you see?"

I nod. After that, I go around the dojo to clean. But found Haru still sleeping at noon. I move him over with my hand and told him to wake up, he said "Five more minutes please.."

hearing him reminds me of my past, strikes a smile on my face aswell.

Old man Sato went out to make some errands, so we had to wait for him for proper training.

I went out to do my normal routine, but invited both of them too! After making it quite far from the Dojo we challenged each other to a race to the Dojo, whoever wins gets more rice and curry for the night. All three of us were energized. We started the race, and to my surprise Haru was quite quick on his feet, not to mention Mayumi too. But, eventually, I did win. This bummed both of them out. I laughed while they pouted. Master finally came home and sat us down for teaching. Telling me my weak and strong points. He said "Akio, you are quick and powerful. Your kicks are strong and your agility is agile. However, you sometimes lack the resolve." I Acknowledge his words. He moves on to the other two and says "And you two.. demonstrate me your strength" Haru starts off with his main weapon, the sansetsukon, swinging it with speed and power. Master is quite amazed by his talent.

And so, it was Mayumi's turn to demonstrate. She set up 5 targets and shot them with excellent speed. Hitting all bulls-eyes. The master is left in complete shock. "Wow, you must be talented to have that kind of skill at this age." Mayumi laughs it off. He announces that there'd be hard training starting from tomorrow. And told us to get along well. Which im pretty sure we already were. We were getting closer and closer to challenging a tower for the first time.