Two years ago — before Timothy's and his companions' journey resumed; Survista Island.
Yumiko had her back leaning against the wall. She stood before Todd, getting introduced more about blade dancing. However, Todd's filthy mind left her uncomfortable.
"When dancing with your blades, a young, fine lady should focus on the rhythmic movement by trying to discern the underground pulses through their soles," Todd continued grinning, oozing from his nose, unfit to look away from Yumiko's attractive body, "It's consequential to get accustomed to the terrain before the battle, whether it's on land or water." He explained, trying to earn Yumiko's attention.
"Blade dancing revolves around multifarious motions of your body and is often used as a temporary upsurge of your inner spirituality. It uses your aura and energy to shape your blades into energy-like vessels that become physical when in control yet transcendental when within your body."
Yumiko attended carefully, trying to bypass her discomfort and memorize every given detail, "So, what you're saying is... I need to sense the waves coming from the ground and find their *perfect* rhythm to balance on and contribute as much as possible to inspire those vibrations into my own body and employ them in the shiftings of my feet." She responded, growing somewhat solemn in her face.
"And I need to 'regulate' those same pulses, integrated with my aura into energy, inserting it into my blades to maintain a 'spiritual-like' form at all times? And that will let me summon my swords from my aura while also having the power to 'produce' miscellaneous shapes and material incursions?" Todd's eyes twitched, swallowing his saliva, "Y-You got all of that from one phrase?"
Yumiko looked at her fingers, counting, and then faced Todd, "Yeah," she placed her hand on her hip, "I'm pretty perceptive and a good listener." Todd coughed into his fist and rubbed his nose, "But you misinterpreted a crucial detail. Your source of power is the moon, not the sun. Most swordmasters depend on the sun's heat and warm atmosphere. But your body has some essences of the moon inside. You'll get more habituated to the terrain when the night falls." He told her, "As for your body. It usually functions on intuition. I could see the look of an assassin in your eyes earlier once you threatened to lacerate my throat."
Yumiko peeked at him, bewildered. She blinked multiple times in a row, "To be honest, I usually always act on instinct. Sometimes it feels like I have no control over myself. My mood flips like a light switch in a flash. But I don't see how would this dissuade me from learning blade dancing."
Yumiko folded her arms as Todd brushed his own jaw, "As I mentioned prematurely, blade dancing requires a consistent rhythm and incredible senses. The rhythm needs to proceed in a flawless flow and cannot be upset in any other way. Once you lose the rhythm, so will you lose the flow." He answered and raised his view into Yumiko's eyes, "Your body should not act on instinct like usual, but you should still have a clear mind and focus on the obstacle before you *and* the terrain you're in."
Yumiko's eyes squiggled, and the face of confusion was easily visible to Todd, "I understand that having an excellent intuition is a glamorous talent, but that talent can lose its spark in an instant. If you rely on instinct, there *will* be a time your body won't act on time. You need to enhance your focus in battle and rely on your skill more than pure luck."
Yumiko sighed a warm breath in boredom and surrendered, "Okay, I get it. I gotta extract those urges from my body to catch the accurate flow and motion." She opened one of her eyes, darting at Todd, "Anything else I should know before we begin my training?"
Todd remained nonchalant, "Nothing concerning blade dancing, but I should inform you that a woman's body is less resilient to brute force. No matter how hard you train or how many muscles you gain, a male's body will always be more 'durable' in battle unless the man doesn't steady their body." Todd mentioned, keeping Yumiko's awareness to himself, "So, I would like you to work on your speed, accuracy, and perception. An accurate strike to a person's weak point will hurt them more, no matter how hard they readied their body. As for the more 'defensive' method, you should *only* build *some* resilience in your body to protect against direct attacks and their force."
Yumiko rolled her eyes, "I get it. Now... will you continue checking me out, or can we move on to the primary reason I came here. I want to learn blade dancing." Todd nodded and grinned, "Very well, Yumiko."
-
Standing outside the canyons, Yumiko observed Todd's face while Bow monitored them from the rocky hill. He sat with an elevated leg and ensured to see Yumiko's progress.
"Now, Yumiko. We'll begin with your first lesson." He reached behind his rear and pulled out a scroll, "This is the blade dancing scroll that teaches you how to move in one, flowing momentum. I want you to remember these movements." He responded, "And once you do, we'll proceed to the next step." Yumiko grabbed the scroll and looked at the pictures.
"What the hell's this supposed to be? I didn't come here to dance." Yumiko argued, glimpsing over the scroll straight into Todd's eyes. "Don't worry, Yumiko. These 'dance moves' are only to help you get used to the flow. Once you understand them, you won't need to do them again."
Yumiko hauled her sight across and in the next couple of minutes remembered them.
"Okay, I think I got it now." Yumiko exchanged eyes with Todd and readied herself for their next lesson. "Now, let's start to improve your sense and focus. Close your eyes and try to discern the pulses from my movement." Yumiko did as requested, shut her eyes, and relaxed.
She tried to discern his movement but failed. Before she could realize it, something groped her butt. "Hey?! What the hell?!" she screamed in frustration and turned around, seeing Todd's palms massaging her buttcheeks. "Let go of me!" she swung her arm, but Todd ducked beneath it and vanished from her viewpoint.
She felt something tap her shoulder, compelling her to turn around, but she didn't witness anything. Her attention quickly latched onto her breast, seeing Todd's hand squeezing her breasts from the rear. She got embarrassed, trying to catch Todd in her clasp, "You're out of focus," he leaped over her head and landed behind her. "You're probing me! How do you expect me to concentrate when I'm getting caressed?!"
Todd smirked, "Let's make a deal. If you can't focus on the terrain's vibrations, then you'll never manage to catch me, and if you don't catch me in the next 30 seconds, I get to grope you anywhere I desire. Sounds good?" Yumiko became frustrated, "Screw that! I'm not gonna let a pervert like you touch me!" But as she prepared to leave, Bow called out to her, "Aw, come on, Blue. Can't you handle a bit of fondling? I guess you're not up to the challenge!"
Yumiko observed Bow, teasing her and laughing in her face, "Y-You little- Fine!" she spun around, glancing into Todd's face, her fluffy ponytail wobbling behind her, "You have a deal, but don't you even think about anything more than touching! I'm not doing this for pleasure but to make an impression! Now come at me, you old fart!"
To be continued...