This is a passion work. So, I would really appreciate it if you leave behind a review when you're done reading.
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CH31: ROUND 1
The old man placed down his tea and looked at the new arrivals. Miyako moved ahead of the group.
"I'm back, Grandfather." Miyako Hanzo greeted.
Hattori Hanzo nodded, "Welcome back. Are these the guest you told me about?" Without waiting for an answer, he looked at Kola Balogun and as if sensing something he said, "Commendable strength young man."
"Thank you for the compliment, sir. I am Kola Balogun" Kola responded humbly.
The old man nodded and turned to face Korede, "So the brat must be the one who wants to learn from me."
Although Korede was annoyed at being called a brat, he didn't show the expression on his face. After all, at the old man's age, he really was a brat. He also replied humbly
"Yes sir, I am. I am Korede Balogun"
Miyako signalled to Kola for both of them to sit on the sitting pillow to the side of the room. Korede was now the only one left standing at the center of the room in front of the old man. He felt a little uncomfortable as the old man sized him up while sipping his tea. He suddenly heard the Symbiote's voice.
[Finally, someone on this planet with decent control of his Will. Listen, Host. The old man is the real deal. You have to get him to become your master.]
Korede didn't respond but determination filled his face as he awaited the end of the old man's scrutiny.
Hattori Hanzo placed down his tea and said, "Before we start, answer me this. Six people want to cross a river on a boat that can only carry two persons at a time. Three are academicians while the other three are killers. So, the leader of the killers tells the academicians that if they don't want to be killed, they are to cross the river in such a way that they don't let there be more killers on either side of the river. How should the academicians decide for everyone to cross the river?"
Korede was taken aback by the sudden riddle. Luckily, a test of logical reasoning was one of his fortes so he answered almost immediately.
"The first trip, two killers go. One killer returns with the boat.
On the second trip, two killers go again. One killer returns.
On the third trip, two academicians go. One academician and a killer return.
On the fourth trip, two academicians go. One Killer returns.
On the fifth trip, two killers go. One killer returns.
On the sixth trip, two killers go and they would have successfully crossed the boat."
Hattori Hanzo looks surprised. While he expected Korede to be able to answer the riddle, he didn't expect him to do so almost immediately he heard the question.
'Seems this brat isn't all muscle'
Miyako also raised an eyebrow. Although Kola had told her how smart his brother was, she also didn't expect him to answer so fast. Kola was the only one without a change in expression.
"Correct answer. Come now brat. Have a seat." Hattori said, gesturing to the sitting pillow in front of him. Korede quickly took the seat. He sat with his legs crossed under him(1)
The old man stared at Korede for a while before asking, "You travelled from another continent here to ask me to teach you swordsmanship. However, why should I teach you, a foreigner, my swordsmanship when I have turned down my countrymen on numerous occasions?"
Korede was once again taken aback by the old man's questioning. This time though, he didn't answer immediately. He stared at the old man while trying to figure out if there's something hidden in his words but the old man just stared back at him awaiting his answer. Eventually, Korede answered,
"Swordsmanship is an art. Like every art, one does not have to be a native to appreciate it. Even more so, the fact that I'm a foreigner might allow me to appreciate more what a native takes for granted."
Hattori Hanzo silently mulled through the youth's response. After some time, he asked again
"Then tell me. What is a 'sword' to you?"
Hearing the question, Korede instinctively smiled and looked at his brother. He turned back to face the old man and answered.
"That is an interesting question, sir. I remember when I was eleven, I asked my brother that very question. He said to me, 'A sword, like a gun, is a weapon used to protect those we care about'."
The old man nodded, "That's a good answer. However, that answer is your brother's. What I want to know, is yours."
Korede's gaze grew unfocused for a moment. He sighed before saying, "Until recently, I shared the same opinion. Now to me, however, a sword is a weapon. As simple as that. Whether it protects, harms, maims or kills, depends on the wielder. That is the truth I have come to realise."
The room sank into silence. Though the statement was a simple one, the emotion behind it was not. Kola showed a vexed expression on his face. He knew the recent events that made his brother come to such a realisation. He wished he could have prevented it. However, he also knew such an event was inevitable.
"Hmmm… that's a thoughtfully realistic answer. I wonder what you experienced?" The old man asked
"I became a soldier." Korede answered curtly.
Hattori was caught off guard by the answer. Then he laughed. "Alright, kid. You have earned the chance to become my disciple."
Even though the old man said 'a chance', Korede smiled. He noticed that the old man was now calling him 'kid' rather than 'brat'. While the meaning of the two words is similar, the change between the two showed the old man's acknowledgement.
Hattori stood up and walked to a side of the dojo and picked up two shinais (2). He threw one to Korede before saying, "Come kid. Let me see your martial skill and talent. I will make a decision based on what I see."
Korede's face changed a little. He was about to say he wouldn't fight an old man when the Symbiote said
[Host, are you stupid? 'Not fight an old man?'. Is the man in front of you a 'normal' old man?]
The Symbiote's reminder quickly wakes up Korede.
'Yes. This man is a martial master. Though he is old, I'll probably not stand a chance even if he holds back.'
Korede looked at the shinai in his hands and gripped it tightly. He decided that even if he couldn't win, he would perform the best he could. He looked up at the old man with a serious, focused expression. Hattori Hanzo was surprised.
'What a focused expression. It's like he has met a great foe. Usually, the brats that come here mouth of nonsense about not fighting an old man thinking that they are chivalrous. Looks like this kid knows his place. Should I perhaps go a little easier on him?' He contemplated, unknown to him that Korede was almost the same as those 'brats'.
"Is this necessary?" Kola asked Miyako in a low voice.
"I told you to expect anything. Grandfather is eccentric that way. He believes the best way to know a person, sometimes, is to fight them." She responded while shrugging her shoulder.
Unlike Korede who could only vaguely feel the difference in their strengths, Kola and Miyako could vividly tell the difference between the two. It was like a newborn lion cub challenging the leader of the pride. The chance of victory was nil.
"Don't worry. He will hold back." Miyako reassured.
"I know." Kola said. He folded his arms and prepared to watch the spar.
Hattori Hanzo took a stance. It was a basic sword stance with his right leg pointing forward and his left a little behind. His hands, on the grip of the sword, were lowered to around his stomach and waist hence the sword is pointing upwards at an angle in Korede's direction. From Korede's perspective, Hattori Hanzo was a short thin old man with an athletic muscular build. From his knowledge of human physiology, he could tell this old man was packing a lot of power in his body.
Having no experience in swordsmanship, except what he has seen on TV, Korede copied him and adopted the same stance. The air became tense as both men… well a youth and an old man… watched their opponent. They were waiting for any weaknesses in the opponent. Though Korede was not a swordsman, he was a fighter/martial artist at the end of the day. He knew to look for flaws in the opponent to exploit. The old man had noticed multiple flaws in the youth's stance but he didn't make a move. The flaws were too small and not something Korede could have prevented at his skill level. He didn't want to bully the youth after all.
After a brief stare-down, Korede's inexperience showed. Hattori feinted by moving his right leg forward as if to commit to a charge but stopped immediately(3). Korede, on the other hand, fell for it and charged at the old man. When he noticed it was a feint, there's nothing he could do but commit fully. So, as he got close to his opponent, he swung his sword from his side. Hattori responded with an overhead downward slash. The swords met and Korede was forced back a little. He was surprised that the old man had enough power to push him back.
Hattori Hanzo stood at about 169cm and weighed at most 65kg. With stats like that, Korede was surprised he had enough power to push a 95kg man like him away. Though Korede was not packing muscles like a bodybuilder, he was in no way light. The surprise caused a lapse in concentration that the experienced old man took full advantage of. Sword strike after sword strike. The two exchanged attacks. Korede was mostly on the defensive as he barely managed to defend with his sword. His attacks were met with a stronger response. He was continually pushed back. Eventually, the old man stopped and retreated, giving the youth the chance to catch his breath.
"He isn't used to fighting a stronger opponent, is he?" Miyako asked
"Opponent vastly stronger than him, No. The family didn't want to crush his confidence too early. His sparring partners were always at the same level or just a bit stronger. That was enough since he was being trained to be a soldier and not a fighter." Kola explained
"That makes sense." Miyako nodded.
Kola stared at his brother who looked in thought.
"So what will you do, little bro?" He mumbled
Korede thought through the previous exchanges and made an observation.
'It's not that the old man is overpowering me. Rather, it's a matter of technique. His technique allows him to make use of all his strength, perhaps even my own. On the other hand, my technique is utter rubbish. I end up losing most of the strength in my attacks at the point of impact and get it redirected back at me, causing me to fall back.'
[Can you see Host? And you thought you could beat him because he's old.]
'There's no need to rub it in. I already accepted my error.' Korede retorts the Symbiote.
[So what are you going to do? If you can't even break his ordinary techniques, I don't think he'll take you as his student.]
'There's only one thing to do, no?' Korede responded. Since the two are bonded, the Symbiote could tell what Korede's thinking.
[That's crazy but it might just work. A note of caution though. He hasn't used his Will yet. If he does, even passively, this fight will be on a whole different level.]
'Noted'
Hattori Hanzo was currently evaluating the youth in front of him.
'He has good instincts. Even though he was disadvantaged, he was able to at least protect himself. He even tried to get some attacks in. It seems he has the talent. However, is it enough to reach the threshold I want? What about his mental strength? All those brats that came earlier showed disappointing expressions when put in a similar position. Anger? Embarrassment? Despair? What will you show me, kid?'
"Oh?!" He involuntarily muttered.
Korede did something he didn't expect.
Korede dropped his sword.
Hattori was about to shake his head in disappointment when he heard Korede say,
"Even though I know I don't have any sword skill or experience, I didn't expect to perform so badly and disappointingly. Don't get me wrong sir, I'm under no illusion that I would be able to defeat you even if you are holding back. My intuition is telling me to give up actually. Meaning I have no chance of defeating you. However, it's not an excuse for doing so badly. So…" As he is speaking, Korede removes his unbuttoned shirt, leaving only the white T-shirt on his torso.
His bandaged right arm was now attention-grabbing. He folded the shirt neatly and placed it on the floor beside the shinai. He looked at his brother and gave him a signal with his eyes. Kola nodded back in understanding. Korede raised his fist and took a boxing stance. He continued, "So since my swordsmanship is useless, I'll discard it. Since I can't beat you, at least I'll fight to the fullest of my capabilities. Even if I lose, I can still enjoy the fight."
'Good decision. Since you can't, why should you insist on fighting with the opponents forte.' Kola thought with a smile. 'Go wild, Kid. There's no need to hold anything back against this level of opponent.'
Suddenly, Korede charged at the old man who was at the other side of the room. He roared, "Let's have some fun, old man!!" (4)
Hattori Hanzo was not expecting such a response. He laughed out loud and said, "Come!! Kid!!"
Round Two Begins.
[A.N: Please, don't forget to leave a review of the work to encourage me. Your opinion really matters to me.]
AUTHOR'S NOTE/RAMBLINGS
1 Same posture taken by monks when they want to meditate I.e lotus posture. On a side note, the Japanese sit on their legs in the kneeling position.
2 Bamboo swords used to practice Japanese swordsmanship/ Kendo.
3 For those that don't know, to Feint is to pretend to make a particular move.
4 The reason Korede charged at the old man is to close the distance between them. The power of a sword comes from sharpness, swing distance, angle, and acceleration. Since the Shinai is blunt, the only things that can power the sword are swing distance, angle, and acceleration. All of which he can reduce by closing in on his opponent. Not to mention, fists only work at close range.
[A.N: Please, don't forget to leave a review of the work to encourage me. Your opinion really matters to me.]