When I woke up it was cold and I realized I was wet and also in a fountain in the base then I heard laughter from my right so I looked to see Tadao Totoro on the floor bursting in tears. Totoro - " hahaha okay shikumi are you ready for training now go get change into the clothes that is on your bed " , shikumi - " so you put me in the fountain why not just waking me up ? "
Totoro - " because I thought it would be funny and it was but don't worry it won't be like this the entire time with me this was me saying it's time for intense training " shikumi - " why can't you act like a normal military commander Tadao " , Totoro - " mostly because nobody's normal everyone has flaws " , shikumi - " yeah yours is your personality " Totoro - " Now now no need to be hate full im just expressing my gratitude for you asking me to be your instructor in swordsmanship anyways lets get started shall we " , shikumi - " yeah I guess so I'll go put on the training uniform"
,wait this is the uniform its just regular military attire oh well guess I'm wearing this for the rest of my time here . Totoro - " hahaha I knew it would look good on you now first I have to teach you is the basic of swordsmanship the basic principle of a sword fight was to deliver a fight ending blow without taking one yourself or as my teacher put it, "the object is to cut down your enemy". ... Falling into a predictable pattern is anathema to sword fighting now I want you to strike me with everything you have and do not worry about hurting me that's what I want you to do strike like you mean to kill me that's the only way I can measure your ability and see were you stand also to see what you need work on now hit me shikumi "
as I hit him he disappeared and he was now behind me and said you were to slow and the he pushed me we went on like this for three hours after that he said that i lacked resolve and I have no passion in the way I swing the sword he told me I need to become the sword think of it like an extension of myself and then he left and told me to keep on swinging until he comes back he was gone for 2 hours and then came back , Totoro - " oh hahah I forgot i said keep on swinging till i come back luckily I forgot something so your lucky we will have actual technique training tomorrow for now show me how you swing now , as i raised the blade he started to dash at me and then he moved right behind me but I was ready for so I dashed forward and used a stepping method that I saw him used and hit him on the chest Totoro -" HALT " Shikumi - " huh why did you tell me to stop did I do something wrong? Totoro - " No no no you passed the first lesson now get some rest you earned it "
as I was about to go to my room I saw lieutenant lance so I went to talk to him.
lance - " it's nice to see you young prince did you submit the form yet " , shikumi - " of course I did I keep my promises oh and commander Totoro said i passed the first lesson and I'm starting technique training tomorrow " lance - "that's good news no one ever passed the commander first trial on the first day so u got some skill and he probably going to make you do exercise to get you some muscles so it will be a while till you wield as sword so get used to it " shikumi - " okay thank you anyways what's his training like " lance - " well every two years we take in new recruits and there's about ten thousand recruits every year almost 50 percent of them make it some quit some left because of medical problems or got thrown out for failure of an objective so he's pretty hard on people but I think you could manage it " shikumi- " is he really like that" lance- " yeah but to the new recruits he is probably worse than what is happening with you but just because you the prince he not going to go easy on you so expect him to push you till you collapse " shikumi- " ya know you could have left out the last part lieutenant " lance- " huh getting cold feet already but don't worry you'll be fine just don't give up ok now I'm going to head home now if you will excuse me young prince I will be on my way " why does he always call me young prince wait he dose know im ten right oh well time get to sleep now.
suddenly I heard a alarm going off in my room so I immediately got up and got dressed in the training uniform but I didn't see Totoro but I knew he was here and he was above me dose he want me to dodge or say where he's at I'll do both. shikumi - " alright Totoro i know your up there you can come down now I'm ready for training " wait why is it so dark outside my alarm just ringed unless he changed the time when I was asleep , Totoro - " haha you now just realized that well you going to do exercise till night fall so let's go and I'm surprised you figure out I was on the roof not all people can sense my presence good job shikumi " shikumi - " it was only logical that you would be on the roof of my room " Totoro - "well then can you dodge this then" as he jumped off I immediately moved to my right and dashed forward to counter him but he knew I would do that so i moved to the left after the dash to catch him off guard but he changed is position in mid air like it was nothing we ended in a draw but i felt like he let his guard down on purpose in order to give me false hope.
Totoro - " hahaha you really are good but don't go into the battle right when it starts dodge and see how your opponent's work and make a plan that would get him and
then you can take action but that was really good if I hadn't changed position i would have gotten hit but let's start running and after that were going to do some pushups to get your body in tune " we ran until we got to the top of the hill and ran down the hill then we went back up the hill and started to do pushups , situps and other exercises we did at least 60 pushups and the rest we only went to 30 we did this for two months each day it was getting easier and then we started to get in some sword training I was already faster and stronger but I knew i had to change the way I fought I just didn't know how ,
Totoro -" hey shikumi use this it's a katana it should match your fighting style rather than swinging a double edged sword around like a maniac now take up your stance " , a katana I seen one in my father's throne room but never held one before it's really light but heavy at the same time and it's blade is a really dark black hmmm I should give it a few swings before I fight with it. oh it feels natural like its my own arm moving but it's not so it weird , we ended up sparing and I won the first one and he was smiling at me.
Totoro - okay starting tomorrow you will learn sword techniques " i ended up learning alot of sword style which I kept on practicing over and over there was no stop to them but I managed to learn them all
Futatsumizuchi (the user slashes twice to create a cross shaped slice) .
Shikibachi (the user moves around their target at a fast speed, then thrusts forward multiple times while their arm is stretched out and wrist is twisted) .
Fugaku (the user curls their body and adds their weight onto a downward slash) . Sajinrou (the user swings their sword at the ground, creating a dust screen to blind their opponent) .
Medium Level
Tobiazami (the user holds their sword in their right hand, twists their body, then swings in a wide arc. The user then repeats in the other direction by switching the sword to their other hand).
Kugatachi (the user generates five thrusts and four different kinds of slashes) .
Yatagarasu (the user takes a deep breath and focuses their concentration. The user imagines a small circle with themselves at the center which they cover with their concentration, making the area perfectly defended) .
Kurikara (the user cuts their opponent in passing, then twists their wrist, stabbing the opponent to the ground as if to sew them to the ground.)
Soekibachi (the user thrusts forward to entice the opponent to attack, then withdraws their sword, using the blade to knock the opponent's weapon up. The user attacks again while the opponent is caught off guard ) .
Rikutobachi (the user holds their sword level next to their mouth and thrusts at their opponent six times ) .
Yamonjin (the user grasps their weapon with both hands, then runs while twisting their whole body, cutting down their opponent in one strike) .
Chibashiri (the user swings their weapon at full strength as they draw it, using the momentum to twist their body and connect to their next strike ) .
Shurazuki ( the user moves in on their opponent and slashes at them in a half moon arc) .
Higabachi (the user thrusts their weapon forward, at the same time stepping forward while twisting their body, making it an advanced version of Shikibachi) .
Extreme Level
Tsugomori (the user closes their eyes, loosens their body, and shifts their center of balance to the base of their toes. By doing so, it helps their shiki in sensing their opponent, such as their breathing, heartbeat, and muscle movement, bringing their every movement to the world of stillness. Then, keeping their eyes closed, the user rushes at their opponent and strikes where they need to strike. This move is said to not require speed and is likened to drifting in a dark river. It is also described as an extremely accurate counter to the origin of the opponent's movements) .
Totsukami (the user moves in on their opponent, slashes right diagonally, then turns their weapon around to land a hit to their opponent's stomach with the pommel) .
Totsukami: ( the user holds their sword in reverse, then slams the pommel into the sides of their opponent's body) .
Shiki (the user expands their perception to the limit and gathers information on their opponents and surroundings using various sources such as movements, prana flow, sounds, and air flow. By using this, the user is able to sense invisible things and predict where attacks will land) .