'It certainly didn't take long for night to arrive, huh?'
Even though the academy tour is still going on, night has arrived. The purple-hued sky was their only source of light as the sun began to set. The two academy classes are still being conjoined at one path throughout the Fukuga forest.
"We are arriving at the junction point!" One of the warriors announced, clad in blackboard-grey armor.
Students, instructors, and warriors are seeing an end to their route ahead of them, which is split into two directions. Arriving at the divide means that the travelers have finally arrived at the junction point and that they are now a quarter of the way into the forest.
"Alright! We need everyone to listen up for this!" Mr. Akushon hollered loudly, now facing the group of red and blue aura first-year students. "This is the junction point! This is where class 1AR and class 1AB will be departing into their own predetermined pathway! The warriors that have traveled with us will be divided into two groups, allowing them to follow both classes for the remainder of the trip."
Mr. Akushon then walked to the path on the left. "Class 1AR will be taking the path on the left, while Class 1AB will be taking the path on the right! If the two classes can now take the time to situate themselves with their own paths, we can begin our journey once more!"
As a result, the two classes began to walk away from one another, following their preset paths. Mr. Oshieru, the blue-haired instructor, may be seen standing at the start of the right path with his arms crossed over his blue vest garbed chest. The nearby warriors also followed as instructed, getting split up into two groups of four and walking over to each of the Classes.
"Alright!" Mr. Akushon yelled his usual phrase starter again. "Our journey will resume now that we've been divided into our own groups. The voyage will be a nonstop walk, just like before. The sooner we arrive, the more rest you'll have!" The black and blonde-haired instructor explained as he spun and turned completely around, his back to his students. "Let's get going, class!"
With class 1AR and their gathered warriors leaving, class 1AB was all that was left at the junction point. Mr. Oshieru cleared his throat in preparation. "As Mr. Akushon stated; The faster we get there, the more enjoyable our time at Ryakudatsu will be! And I know you all will be extremely tired once we arrive, so I advise that we get going immediately."
And with that, Class 1AB began their journey.
XXX
"Is that so?"
A man with a big physique stood upright somewhere else in the Fukuga forest, a palm up to his chin in contemplation. His eyes were covered under the loose bangs of this terrifyingly tall man's oily brown hair that fell down his face. On his shoulders, the man wore a white mini-vest, a wide grey tunic that appeared to be too small for the large man underneath, long and loose black tight pants, and leathery black boots to match.
A man with a masculine build, light black hair, and dark black eyes stood tall in front of the enormous man, but his height paled in comparison to the long-brown-haired man, who brandished a two-sided sword. "Jinshu, it's a gamble we shouldn't take." The wielder of the double-bladed sword then spoke up.
"I'm certainly down for killing." A cool voice suddenly spoke, prompting the dual-bladed sword wielder to look over to the left. A man with noticeably less muscle, dark white-blue hair, and jade eyes could be seen sitting on a tree branch. This man was also wearing a grey cloak that split apart at the lower half, making his tight brown pants and wooden sandals visible. "Do you know where they are right now, Takoshiki?" The white-blue-haired male grinned as he let out a question.
The dual-bladed sword wielder, Takoshiki, parted his lips to speak. "I left the blonde brat to watch them."
"How many were there." The giant man's rough and deep voice was then heard, garnering the attention of the two others.
"Maybe fifteen," Takoshiki answered. "I did notice that not all of them were warriors. Some were only wearing light armor and clothing, as well as red and blue bandanas being wrapped around some of their heads."
Suddenly, the sounds of sprinting could be heard at a rapid pace. Looking over at the source, a sleeveless blonde-haired male with tight black trousers could be seen running.
Takoshiki gained a look of irritation. "Kono! You're supposed to be watching those travelers!"
The blonde named Kono looked towards Takoshiki, an anxious expression on his features. "But those people are splitting up! They split into two groups before continuing again."
The whole area got consumed by a pregnant silence, everyone registering the white-eyed blonde's words. The brown-haired giant then hummed. "Then I suppose we hurry up then." A wicked smile then appeared on his face.
The brown-haired giant, or Jinshu, glanced over to the white-blue-haired male who was still sitting down. "Dento," Jinshu called out. "Come on. We're gonna have Kono here show us where these travelers are."
XXX
Kaminari Nozomu is seen walking down the path amid the blue aura students, seemingly squeezing through the warriors guarding Class 1AB. 'It's a good thing I didn't get stuck with the other class. This makes staying close to Tanjo a lot easier.'
Nozomu then tilted his head upwards, looking at the night sky up above. 'I hope that we can get to Ryakudatsu soon. I want to see if 'they' really are residing in the village.'
Nozomu then returned his gaze to the ground, facing forward as he walked through the Fukuga forest at a leisurely pace, much like the warriors and students around him.
With the serene dimly lit night sky, occasional cool breeze, and peaceful silence; it was calming to be out for a walk like this, granted that it's a long walk, but a calm and very much needed one nonetheless. Or at least it was calming until Nozomu suddenly sensed something foreign.
The surrounding warriors must have detected the foreign presence as well, since they came to a complete stop. Every warrior in the area began to pour magic into their blades, causing them to shine in the color that corresponded to their aura.
"Instructor Oshieru, please halt the class at once! There is a potentially dangerous person nearby." The leading warrior Nozomu spoke to earlier, Haishi, who ordered Mr. Oshieru in an urgent tone.
Class 1AB then came to an immediate stop, remaining completely still. The four warriors stood on all sides of the students, glancing in every direction possible.
A tree close by suddenly began to topple over, prompting all of the students and warriors to get divided into two, residing on both sides of the now fallen tree.
Nozomu then heard rapid footsteps nearing him. Turning around, he spotted a red glowing object getting swung directly at his face, forcing him to jump back instantaneously. 'Shit!'
Nozomu regained his balance and returned his gaze to the location where he had been nearly struck, noticing a white-blue-haired guy wielding a red staff made entirely of red aura magic. Nozomu was startled when he heard a loud and powerful thud to his side. Looking over, Nozomu noticed that a man with blonde hair, claws on his hands and feet, and animal-like ears on top of his head, resembling a fox, had smashed the warrior next to him to the ground.
As this was happening, Nozomu came to one conclusion. 'We're being ambushed!'
The leading warrior had to escape an impending blade assault on the other side of the fallen tree that split the class in two. Haishi was able to quickly define the new sword-wielding assailant's characteristics. The terrifying black eyes and glossy black hair.
"You don't really plan to win this, do you?" The assailant spoke maliciously, a small smirk forming on his lips.
Before any of the people on either side of the tree could initiate a fight, loud thuds reverberated throughout the forest. The bushes ruffled as a figure with a huge physique emerged from the leaves.
The emerging figure then smirked, chuckling darkly. "This'll be fun."
XXX
Hey! I hope you enjoyed today's chapter! A fight is about to break out and I can't wait to start typing away for it! Stay tuned for more to come!
Have a Good Day!
Peace - Cr1ticalz_