Due to a lie Kai made, it got everyone, except Nate and Vic, to immediately return to the school. They were all gathered in the outdoor field. All eight of them gathered and not one clue as to why. They lined up two rows and four columns. Kai stood in front of them, pouting.
"Why's he pouting?" Dan asked Laura
"No clue."
Then appeared from behind Kai was the man Hiro and them saw. He was a bit shorter than Kai. White hair. His right eye was yellow and orange, his left eye was bright teal. His clothes were simple, a purple long-sleeved thick shirt. Black long pants. And a white short cloak with a letter H embroidered to it. The cloak had a twin tail following from the back of the neck.
"I'm Hinora Shino."
"My little brother."
"How old is he?"
"Twenty-years-old."
"Wow, he's old."
"I'm not that old! Anyways, back to what I was about to say. I'm Hinora Shino, I'm a Supreme-Rank sorcerer. My elements are heat and cold. I'm a natural born hybrid, a one in ten-thousand chance."
"A hybrid? So sorcerers like you actually exist?"
"I don't think I've ever heard of a hybrid sorcerer before."
"Yeah, usually they become an Anomaly class. But his cores are completely separated."
"Enough exposition, now I've come to help with the war you'll all be facing. Unwillingly, of course. If you don't want to be participating in the war, go to your room and stay there. If you are going to war, I'll train you."
"Can I help, Otouto-san?"
"No. Go away."
"Aww..." Kai sighed as he scooted away
Once Kai got far enough, Shino lifted his right hand quickly and erected a wall of giant and thick ice around them. Sealing their paths.
"Land a hit on me once, and I'll train you. I'll just block and counter, I won't actively strike any you."
Volta charged up to her max immediately, after a few days after realizing her own powers and past, she can now always slowly build up her speed. "Infinite." Within four seconds, she can reach Mach 4. She dashed and broke the sound barrier, bursting a gush of wind around her. She reached him within one second, her hand already mid-way to punch him right in his face. Shino caught her fist then twisted it clockwise and struck her abdomen with an open palm. She gets thrown back and rolled over the ground.
"Do you know what the requirement to be a Supreme-rank?"
Laura drew her sword and ran forwards. Half way closer, she pulled her sword back behind her then swung upwards and sends a strong, electrifying, wave of white-pinkish mana, "Ascending Lunar Tide". Heath attacked as well. He casts his "Infernal Card Deck" and drew "Four of a Kind." Four projectiles of cards, random number and suit. He got four kings of the four suits. Heath's spell and Laura' spell collided and created a reaction that blew up to a single pillar. Shino was no longer there.
"It's different than being ranked from Low to High, those're just technicality. Not really about sheer strength. Just ranks." Shino appeared behind the eight.
He stood behind Hiro. Hiro turned to lightning using "Lightning Combat" and re-materialize with a blade. He slashes the air, Shino merely ducked. Kris tried to follow-up with a "Frozen Axe Kick" which is essentially a normal axe kick except her foot is frozen. If it hit, it would've been a nasty scene. He catches her leg and twists it by going back up and standing up straight. Hiro swings at Shino again. Shino catches his blade and shatters it.
Jay tries to slash Shino with his chakram. His attack landed, but it didn't hit Shino. He layered his back with thick ice to block it. Sam clashed his blades and forced a repel force onto them. Shino turned around with his hand out, he cast "Wind Spread" which is similar with Sam's repel, except it's just wind. The repel clashed and canceled each other out.
Shino dashed forward to the middle. He spun around slowly once. Dan ran up at Shino with "Black Envelope: Arm Gauntlets" and throws a jab, Shino took a step back. A cross, Shino deflected it with his bare hands. Dan went full throttle at Shino. A triple kick high-low-high, then a roundhouse, a high kick to the chin, a leg sweep, jab, cross, uppercut, hook, jab. A front kick switched to a roundhouse, all that but to no avail. Shino blocked and dodged every single one of them. Volta took her time and dashed behind him.
She started a barrage of attacks, thirteen punches thrown within a second but not one hit. Shino was already out of sight by the time she landed her first.
"It's being able to take down a hundred High-Rank sorcerers alone without magic. Just by sheer physical ability we are already beyond the scope of strong."
Shino now was back standing where he initially was. "Done boasting your ego?" Dan yelled.
"I'm merely saying why you need to be stronger."
Dan then clapped his hands and grabbed a hold of Shino's shadow, "Shadow Hold". Heath draws "Spade Ace" and throws it at Shino. Volta charged in at full speed. Laura unleashed "Lunar Descending Strike" by slashing downward from her highest point of her blade. Three different attacks from three different directions.
Shino doesn't know what happened and why he couldn't move. He assessed his situation quickly. None of the three were the one disabling his movements. Since he's unfamiliar with Dan, he figured he has something to do with it.
"He's in a weird stance, he's a dark sorcerer, I know he's not paralyzing me, he's controlling something from me that immobilizes me. Dark sorcerer? I suppose it's my shadow. If that's the case..."
"True Manifestation: Abyss Flames." Dark green flames burst forth and envelops his body and he expelled his flames all around him. The flames burned everyone's currently cast spell. Then he lifted his right foot off the ground slightly and stomped the ground. "Heatwave Elapse" a spell that creates a repelling wave of heat that burns at water's boiling temperature.
"That was a good attempt. Too bad, though."
Dan walks to Heath who was on the ground. He helps him stand back up. "Give me a flame card."
"Infernal Card."
"Whatever, just give me one."
Heath drew "Diamond Ace" and handed it to Dan. Dan casts "...Arm Gauntlets" and grabs the card. The bright orange flames of the card turned purple and black. "Dark x Heat: Black Inferno", this was a spell they learned while training with Cathy at Yui's house. A technique called Joint Spell, two or more elements combine and elevate its power by three-hundred percent. This technique was invented by Cathy's ancestors about four hundred years ago. It's was a secret, now Cathy just teaches people how to do it.
"Why do you get the diamond? I don't have a melee attack now."
"Use your damn legs."
The two then charged at Shino together. Shino cast "Cold x Heat: D-Dagger" a double ended dagger that was made of flames and ice. The blade curved slightly on the end making it like an integral symbol.
Dan increased the card's size equal to the length of his arm, he swings at Shino. Shino parries with his dagger, then he ducked and slashed Dan's right knee. Heath went for a left roundhouse kick that was powered up by his "Feet Thruster." His roundhouse would've hit Shino's head easily. Shino raised his empty hand and triangulate it and block Heath's kick. He deflected Heath's kick and dropped to the floor and ran his legs in between Dan's, then he sweeps Dan's legs and he drops to the ground. Then Shino rolled backward and got on his knee.
Volta flashed brightly, dashed in quick to land her knee on the left side of Shino's head. Shino rolled forward, back to the two. Then he engage close-quarter-combat with Volta. He kicked upward and went for her chin. She blocked it with her hands amped with "Bolt Amplification", it still hurt, however. Then he follows up with a low kick to her butt with the same leg. She gets pushed forward lightly, then he uses the same leg to force Volta to shift her body to face his. He released his knees and dropped to the ground, he lands a manji kick, from Taido, directly at the side of her head. She got flung far.
Sam clashed his blades behind him to repel himself forward. He was coming in from high up with his blades about strike like fangs. He screamed as he does it. Shino was ready to land a hit that could kill Sam if he went full throttle. Just at the second of Shino was about to land his counter, Sam flipped his blades and clashed his blades. Shino got thrown, he kept his footing by sliding on the ground.
Kris skates in fast, Laura runs with her blade drawn out, Hiro charges with his "Lightning Trident". The three surround Shino. Shino lifted himself by erecting a pillar of blue ice from under his feet. Then he sends "True Manifestation: Abyss Flames" down the pillar. It melts his pillar and burns everyone's spells, again.
Shino flips forward and landed on his feet. He starts clapping his hands. "You guys are good. Joint spells, good fighting skills especially you two," he said pointing at Heath and Dan.
"You've got good team effort too. You're quick to setup and follow-up each other's attack. I mean you still didn't hit me, bu-" Sam then pushes Shino forward by kicking his ass, literally.
"No, we've hit you alright."
"Caught me off guard, good job. I guess I'll train you now.