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The Tale of the Sage
The Perfect Dojo and Sensei
The Perfect Dojo and Sensei
Kashiriku appeared at the dojo entrance, dressed in a blank robe he had just bought, with a simple brown rope tied around the waist of the garb. Kashi walked in, prepared to battle with the best of Gankona’s students. Gankona sits near the far wall, his legs crossed and arms folded, smiling. Gankona motions for Kashi to be seated, his face still alight with enjoyment.
“You shall fight until you cannot go anymore. I have a student of mine of each belt that will face you. The amount you defeat is the belt you receive at the beginning. Good luck.”
“Right, thank you sir.”
Gankona nodded as response to Kashiriku’s formality, uttering the first word into Kashi’s battles: “Begin!”
A teen appeared. The boy looked two years younger than Kashiriku, making him at most fourteen. The white belt was situated on the waist of the boy’s pearly white robe, giving him the typical martial arts look. He stood at attention as Kashi rose, bowing to him as Kashi finished his sequence. Kashi repeated the notion, showing his respect. The two took positions twenty feet from each other, ready for the fight to ensue. The rookie ran towards the boy, scanning him for any obvious weaknesses. Throwing a punch with his right fist, Kashi completes his first move. The boy blocked the punch with a quick swat of his right arm, forcing Kashi to fall to the side. The Uzumaki places both hands on the ground to regain balance, sweeping with his legs parallel to the floor, trying to catch the boy unprepared. Kashi succeeds with his attack, knocking the surprised teen to the floor beside him. Kashi jumps on top of him, sitting on his chest. Kashi raises his fist, almost delivering the final attack when Gankona appears next to him, stopping the punch mid-throw. Gankona helps the two off of the ground, sending the boy to the side wall. He must sit, watch, and meditate on his battle to search for errors in his fighting. Gankona resumes his position at the furthest wall, signaling for the next student. Kashiriku smirks, showing his enjoyment in the coming task. Kashiriku sweeps through this battle, although not as quick as his previous. Time speeds up with the amount of fights; Kashiriku defeated one student after another, his energy slowly diminishing. Each student is the previous’ senior, each with a different belt and age. Kashiriku keeps on advancing, defeating each student with near-precise skills. His energy is lacking, and was nearly finished once he reached the fifth kyu or blue belt in skill.
Gankano approached him, “It seems you have little energy left. Do you submit and start at the blue belt?”
Kashiriku, panting, “No, I have one more battle in me, just give me a couple of minutes.”
Gankano smiles at the teen’s persistence, his face calmed by the sight of ambition. Responding, “Sure, just motion when you are ready.”
“Sound’s good.”
Kashiriku plopped himself on the ground in a meditation position. His body starts to tingle, as if an outside force is passing through it. He jumps abruptly, trying to shake the feeling. Gankano takes this as a motion of preparedness, and signals for the blue belt to come forward. The wall has been lined with spectators, the losers of the previous battle. They start to cheer for the new student, but are glared at by Gankano. The teacher reminds his pupils that it is customary to acknowledge the victors skills, even if their fellow classmate is the competitor. Kashiriku is surprised at the sight of his competitor. The black haired student is dressed in a black robe, with a smaller blue belt rapped around the eyes. The black hair falls just below the shoulders and in front of the headband, underneath, his pale face void of emotion. The blue belt walks forward, taking an abnormal fighting position. His left hand rose in front of him with the palm facing Kashiriku, and his right hand behind his staggered body clenched into a fist. The student stood there, waiting for Kashiriku’s attack.
“Am I supposed to fight him? He can’t see,” Kashiriku asked Gankona.
Gankona responded assuringly, “He will do just fine. I would be more worried about you as Enkei is one of my favorite students.”
“Hmph, he doesn’t look that good. He is taking a rather peculiar position, which is offsetting my concentration.”
Gankona laughed heartily, “Are you going to fight or just stand there? Start already!”
Kashiriku smirked at the middle-aged man as he took his first step forward. At an increasing speed, Kashiriku prepared his frontal attack, the blue belt student still as a pole, nothing affecting his facial expressions. Kashiriku launches his clenched fist forward, the air whizzing as he throws the punch. It soars towards the boy, suddenly blocked by a movement of the right forearm. Kashiriku glances at Enkei, who moves his body in a curved motion, thrusting his palm into Kashi’s surprised stomach. His gut wrenched, disliking the strike immensely, and he immediately fell to the ground. Kashi stood from his fall, grabbing his stomach like he had eaten bad food. Kashi moved forward, his arms being raised in a defensive position. Enkei moved his stance in circular motions, ready to face the oncoming Kashiriku. As Kashi was close, his gut wrenched again, incapacitating him immediately. Enkei felt the chance to act, and struck two spots right below the shoulders simultaneously. Kashiriku grimaced in pain, unable to move his arms from the strike. Gankono smiled deviously from the sidelines, noticing his blue belt student’s signature attack.
“Enkei, I never thought you would go to such highs to beat a new kid! Were you scared of him, or just wanted to move this battle forward?”
Enkei responded, his face showing a miniscule amount of enjoyment, “I am never afraid of anyone Gankona-sensei. This battle was boring. Not to mention, his attacks are weak, and his skills are below average. How he beat the others, I will never know.”
Kashiriku, enraged, asked, “How are you so good? You can’t even see me! How did you directly pinpoint my pressure points?”
Enkei, smirking, “I use the vibrations in the ground and air to feel what is happening, and act accordingly. My skills were worked on, not simply acquired. As soon as you threw the first punch, I noticed your height and shoulder level, giving me the exact location of your immediate pressure points. The blow to the stomach was to slow you down, giving me enough time to strike appropriately. What do you say, you pathetic excuse for a fighter?”
Kashiriku stared in amazement, acknowledging Enkei’s skill level. He thought for a couple minutes, contemplating his response.
“I will beat you, one day. I will train harder and harder until I can, and use any means necessary. He motions to
Gankona I wish to train under you Gankona Sensei! This is the perfect dojo and you are the perfect sensei. If you have students like this, there is no telling of what I can accomplish here!
Gankona glances down, smiling, “Okay Kashiriku, I accept you as my student. However, you will train however I tell you and work as hard as you can, get it!”
Kashiriku smirked back, “Got it!”
Gankona reaches behind his back, displaying a forest green belt in front of him. Kashiriku looks at it momentarily, and asks a simple question, “Do you have a smaller one?”
“Why, are you smaller than this?”
“No, I want one to rap around my head as well.”
“Alright, but you will have to pay for it.”
“That’s fine; just give me the smaller one.”
Gankona pulls out another one, much smaller in width and length than the previous belt. He tosses them both at Kashiriku, who catches them after recovering from the pressure point attack. He firmly ties the two in their respective places, one around his waist and forehead. His face stern as Gankona approaches him. Gankona places his hand on Kashi’s shoulder, “There is one more thing: there might be a small chance that you are the one I’m looking for. If you make it to black belt, I will give you special training, one that you haven’t heard of. Until then, you will train like the others, following my every instruction.”
“Yes Sensei!”
“Good, I hope you make it to black belt, as you seem very promising. You may leave. It is about thirty minutes after closing hour. Aren’t your parents worried about you?”
Kashiriku realized his predicament, and quickly hurried off. His old car disappeared in the dust, with Kashi worried about what his mother would think.
This is not the first time Kashi was late home after a day of training. It seemed like he spent an increasing amount of time at the dojo until the end of his high school career. Kashiriku continued to fight Enkei, losing every time. He has not passed the green belt since he started two years prior, his only obstacle was the blind man. The Great War has begun with North Korea invading South Korea, and China invading their surrounding countries. The United States hasn’t officially declared war, as nothing has motivated them until the invasion of South Korea. Some of Kashiriku’s school friends have decided to enlist, helping the United States’ movement toward a free world. His younger brother, Sumāto has taken an unhealthy enjoyment in the subject, already thinking up numerous strategies for the upcoming battles. Kashiriku has taken note at the young thirteen year olds interests, and has told him to not get into it, even though the drive in Sumāto’s eyes is clearly apparent. Kashiriku is now eighteen, facing Enkei once again. The look on his face is different, as some of his features have changed. Kashi is taller, his hair has naturally become spiked, and he is more built than the previous time. Not only that, but his facial expressions seem calmer than before, and is prominently due to his overall maturity. He no longer is a bit on the dull side, a built intelligence over much studying and experience. His might even be in comparison to his genius younger brother. Enkei has grown slightly as well, his hair longer. His height has increased, and belt color moving to a brown color. The blind child is now twenty, two years older than Kashiriku. His facial expression has changed from emotionless to that of a caring person. The two sprint at each other, arms raised as a new fight begins.
Next Chapter: A New Beginning!
