Leaves fell from above my head.
The several leaves, swaying here and there with the wind, displayed unpredictable movements.
It was a sight impossible to grasp fully.
I steadied my breath and concentrated my mind.
Hayate First Form.
Kamaitachi.
My hands moved.
Like whipping a lash, I swung my hands wrapped in sharply honed qi tirelessly.
The key to using Kamaitachi was to remove excessive force from the shoulders.
It demanded swift and precise movements, befitting the reputation of the ninja clan’s secret assassination technique.In the blink of an eye, having sliced all the leaves, I visually checked to see if any were left uncut.
15, 16, 17, 18…
“Twenty.”
Precise.
Finally, I succeeded in cutting down all the leaves falling above my head for the first time.
I shivered with an indescribable sense of achievement.
Because I had poured all three days given to me into achieving this single success.
‘I thought I wouldn’t master it until the day I returned home.’
For me, who had always relied on strength in martial arts, it took a lot of time to grasp the new concept of fluidity.
Clap. Clap.
“Congratulations, Kim Yu-seong.”
Senior Fuma, who had watched my entire training process from the side, approached clapping.
I stopped wiping sweat with a towel and bowed to Senior Fuma, saying,
“Thank you. Without Senior Fuma’s help, I wouldn’t have been able to learn the skills so quickly.”
“What have I done? It’s all thanks to your effort and talent.”
We exchanged warm compliments, as if gilding each other’s faces.
I murmured, turning my shoulder,
“Then, I guess it’s time to start preparing to go back.”
“Are you sure it’s okay since you haven’t returned to your original body yet?”
“There are a few days left of summer vacation. I need to think about it during that time.”
If needed, there were people around who could lend a helping hand.
Though I didn’t know what they might ask in return.
“If that’s what you want, I can’t help it, but if you really have no way out, tell me. I’ll teach you the tribe’s secret qi-nourishing technique.”
“Qi-nourishing… what?”
“Never mind, if you don’t know.”
Senior Fuma said that and blushed, then swept fallen leaves off the ground with a broom in hand.
What’s this? Why was she blushing?
I couldn’t understand her behavior, but I decided not to point it out.
It wasn’t the first time Senior Fuma acted eccentrically.
“By the way, is it okay to take Saya to Tokyo?”
“Ah, there was that talk.”
Senior Fuma, as if remembering belatedly, nodded and answered,
“Last night, after the elders met, they recommended taking her with you, saying if she’s not by your side, being an extreme yang constitution, the excessive yin energy might cause her to go berserk.”
…It felt like they were passing a bomb they couldn’t handle onto me.
Anyway, now that I knew Saya was related to the original story, I couldn’t just leave her be.
“Then, it really is the end of my business in this village.”
“Yes. Now it’s really time to return to Tokyo.”
“Are you sad about it?”
Then Senior Fuma shook her head,
“I have to come back here once I become an adult anyway. This amount of distance feels just right for now.”
“Senior, are you not going to university?”
Then Senior Fuma gave a wry smile.
“I don’t think university is essential in life. If necessary, I could go, but I don’t particularly want to right now.”
“…I see.”
I honestly envied her for not just following others but having her own convictions.
I still haven’t decided what to do.
As I said that, Senior Fuma gazed at me intently and spoke,
“You will definitely make a good choice, Kim Yu-seong.”
“Really? Can I do that?”
“I assure you.”
Hearing this from Senior, it felt like I’d gained courage from nowhere.
Sweeping leaves in the clearing while discussing our future, we returned to the village mansion only when lunchtime arrived.
“I am very grateful for your help during this time.”
As I said this and bowed from a kneeling position, Senior Fuma’s grandfather, with a stern expression, stroked his beard and said,
“It’s natural to treat a precious guest of the village with great honor. So, don’t feel too burdened.”
Even if he said not to feel burdened…
“Here is the book.”
Saying this, I handed over the secret book that I had placed down to my right.
Senior Fuma’s grandfather stroked the book’s cover once and then asked me,
“So, have you made any progress in mastering the Hayate technique?”
“Yes. I just mastered the Kamaitachi today.”
As I said that and created blades of qi in my hands, Senior Fuma’s grandfather nodded his head in admiration.
“Indeed, it seems you didn’t defeat Ivan the Destroyer by mere luck. Continue to advance and contribute further progress in Hayate.”
“Yes.”
I replied with a very serious expression and bowed my head.
“Then, I shall take my leave now.”
It was a polite dismissal.
After hearing those words, Senior Fuma and I quietly stood up from our seats.
Before leaving the room, Senior Fuma glanced once more at her grandfather and said in a small voice,
“I’ll be back, Grandfather.”
“……”
It was probably a considerate gesture for her taciturn grandfather from his granddaughter.
‘I should be observant in such moments.’
After watching the interaction between the two, I left the room first without saying a word.
Senior Fuma came out of her grandfather’s room about five minutes later.
Waiting outside the door, I asked Senior, who looked calmer than expected,
“What did your grandfather say?”
Senior Fuma glanced at me and said softly,
“Just the usual, nothing special. He said to take care of myself in Tokyo and to visit home now and then.”
“I see.”
“…You must have waited a while because of me; let’s go now.”
Senior Fuma, brushing over the topic, began walking ahead.
I watched Senior with an amused look and then quickly ran to catch up with the distance that had opened up.
“Let’s go together, Senior!”
It took us almost 10 hours to return to Tokyo.
It took much longer than when we came, due to the considerably increased luggage and my reduced size from the medicine’s side effects.
Senior Fuma’s hometown, Kazama, was truly hidden deep in the mountains, so the lack of proper mountain trails made descending quite time-consuming.
If Saya hadn’t been able to use her poltergeist powers, it would have been much harder.
“It’s late, are you sure you’ll be okay alone?”
“It’s just a stone’s throw away, no worries.”
Reassuring Senior Fuma, who wanted to accompany me home, I then picked up my share of the vegetable box and hugged it.
“See you at school, Senior.”
“…Alright. Take care, Kim Yu-seong.”
We bid each other farewell at the subway station and then headed to our respective homes.
About 15 minutes after I began walking with the vegetable box,
“Phew, I’ve arrived.”
I returned home after about four days.
The thought of explaining my shrunken body to my parents gave me a headache, but I decided to face it head-on and climbed the stairs to the second floor.
Saya, who had followed me to Tokyo, looked around the village scenery with wonder and said,
“It’s still the same here.”
“Saya, did you live in this village?”
“Yes, for about 2-3 years.”
Although she said most of her memories were gone when we first met, she surprisingly remembered a lot.
Thud!
I carefully opened the door and entered.
It was past 11 PM, and there was no sign of anyone in the living room, perhaps my parents were already asleep.
I carefully placed the vegetable box I had brought from the station near the entrance and went into my room to turn on the light.
Although the house had been empty for four days, there wasn’t a speck of dust on the exercise equipment, probably thanks to my mother’s thorough cleaning.
Feeling strangely relieved by this fact, I put down my bag and took off my outer clothing.
“Kyah!”
“Ah.”
Without realizing it…
…when I awkwardly stood half-undressed and looked apologetically, Saya grumbled about giving a warning before undressing and left the room on her own.
After hurriedly changing into clothes from my middle school days, I called Saya, who was waiting outside, back into the room.
Then, Saya came back into the room, passing through the door.
“What are you going to do now?”
“Go to sleep.”
I understood the urgency, but look at the time.
Pointing to the clock as I said this, Saya went silent.
“You must be tired from traveling for nearly 10 hours too. Sleep while you have time. Don’t grumble about being tired during the day.”
Laying out the bedding I took from the closet, Saya nodded in resignation.
“Okay. We can go tomorrow. Tomorrow.”
It was good that she understood quickly.
Yawning with exhaustion, I lay down on my bedding.
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