Who are you?

Part 30

Shiori woke up in the middle of the night. Ever since her scary encounter that night, she started to use her medical jutsu to increase her resistance to the sleeping drug.

She couldn't use healing jutsu every day to get the drug out of her system since it would take a larger amount of chakra. If someone was checking on her chakra, they would notice. Still, she could use a subtle amount during her meditations, which would pass as a chakra exercise since they would only feel her chakra movement.

Her efforts have paid off, and now she can wake up most nights. She did her best to keep her chakra low and pretend to be asleep. She only wanted the awareness that came from a normal sleep, not a drugged one.

She sometimes heard noises from the outside—multiple ones, in fact. It sounded like a murmur. She had no idea what the source could be, but she also didn't want to go out to investigate.

Thankfully, the presence has not made another appearance since that night. She wasn't going to let her guard down, but she hoped.

The next morning came soon, and there was something she wanted to do. She waited until they finished their breakfast to finally ask the question. "Akira-sensei. Can I ask for something?" Shiori said in a calm voice.

"Of course, dear. What is bothering you?" Akira asked softly, encouraging her to go on.

"The other day, when I was healing you after our spar, I noticed the scars on your arms. Some of them seemed very old, and I could see how they pulled on the skin when they were healing, which caused the tightness. I'm also a shinobi, and I can tell if someone has such scars on their arms, they should be more on the rest of their body."

"I know that they can cause a lot of pain and limit movement. Can I have the permission to heal them? I can't get rid of the scars as they are so old, but I can get rid of the tightness and make sure they don't cause you pain ever again." Shiori said, her voice was shaking.

She knew that many shinobi had attachments to their scars and had their reasons for not wanting to get rid of them, but healing the pain was different to her. She didn't want people to live in constant pain.

Akira seemed thoughtful. "I appreciate the offer Shiori-chan. It means a lot to me that you care so much about me. However, I have to refuse. I have caused so much pain during my life. It is only fair that I bear some of the pain I inflicted on others." Akira said. He looked so sad as he said those words.

Shiori didn't want to see him like that. The man seemed so vulnerable. He helped her so much during her stay and was always kind to her. She came to appreciate him as a sensei.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make you sad." Shiori said as she stared at the table. She couldn't bear the weight of sadness in Akira's gaze.

Akira suddenly chuckled and reached a hand to ruffle her hair. "It's okay, little one. It's not your fault. You have such a kind heart, so never lose that." He paused as he gently moved his hand to her chin, prompting her to look up. "Now, why don't you go out and warm up for our session? I'm going to join you in a minute," Akira said with a smile.

Shiori also smiled and got up.

Their training session went really well. Shiori was becoming better at keeping her zone up while moving and dodging the birds. Akira was also coming into the mix, occasionally entering her zone with different emotions and having her identify the emotions and dodge him as he threw slow punches and kicks at her.

This was the last stage of their training. Once she had the hang of this, Akira would instruct her on how she could let go of her seals. She wanted to feel excited, but she knew that if she let go of her emotions for even a second, she would lose the fight.

She decided to take things up a notch as she felt confident that she could pull it off. The next time Akira threw a punch at him, she spun around and tried to elbow him in the stomach.

Of course, since she still had to keep her focus, she wasn't nearly as fast as she could be to hit him. Still, it caught him by surprise as he blocked her with his arms.

"Nice Shiori-chan. Keep it up." He praised, and she smiled.

She started on offense, trying to get through his defenses. Once he was confident that she could hold the offense, he also started attacking her. She now needed to use a combination of offense and defense and switch between them.

They continued for another hour but had to stop since Shiori was starting to get a headache. When Akira signaled for them to finally stop, Shiori just let herself fall to the ground.

When she opened her eyes, her head spun. She was breathing heavily, and it was hard to concentrate. Akira was kneeling beside her, checking on her. "Are you alright, Shiori-chan?" he asked as he reached to grab her wrist and check her pulse.

Shiori took a few deep breaths to calm her racing heart before answering. "I'm alright, Akira-sensei. I just feel a bit lightheaded." Shiori answered.

"Let's get you to your room," Akira said, reaching under her and scooping her into his arms as if she weighed nothing. Shiori was snuggled against his chest. The sudden movement made her vision go black for a few seconds, and she needed to blink a couple of times to orient herself.

Once the world stopped spinning, her vision zoomed into Akira's chest. His clothing moved slightly, revealing the pendant that was always hidden beneath it. As the pendant caught the light, its intricate design became clear. It took the form of a strange, winged creature, its body rugged and powerful, like that of a beast.

The creature's wings spread wide, each feather etched with delicate detail, flowing outward in graceful arcs that shimmered with a golden sheen. The wings seemed almost too elegant for the creature they were attached to, whose muscular limbs were rough and jagged, with clawed hands gripping the bottom of the pendant as though holding it in place.

The contrast between the polished, smooth feathers and the coarse, almost primal body made the pendant appear both beautiful and fearsome—a union of grace and brutality. It was as if two opposing forces, one of savage strength and the other of ancient wisdom, had been fused into a single, mesmerizing form.

Shiori noticed that she was staring and quickly looked away. She felt Akira's chest shake as he held back his laughter. "I'm sorry. I did not mean to stare," she said as a blush crept into her cheeks.

"It's alright, little one. It's a quite unique pendant. Maybe one day I will tell you of its story." He said as they reached their destination. He gently laid Shiori down near the wall as he opened her futon.

Shiori tried to get up and help, but Akira dismissed her. When he was done, he moved her to the futon and handed her some water to drink.

"Take a nap little one. it's not so long; it's dinner so I will wake you up when it's time to eat." He gently patted her hair before making sure she is comfortable and leaving the room.