As the sunlight poured through the window of the dojo, the rhythmic clash of wooden swords reverberated throughout the room. Miquella and Malenia engaged in a spar, their movements flowing with practiced precision. Miquella's swift strikes were met with Malenia's lightning-fast reactions, creating an intense exchange of blows that tested their limits. Each time Malenia launched an attack, Miquella found himself instinctively evading rather than blocking, fully aware of the power and speed behind her strikes.
Malenia's Shinai moved in a blur of motion, delivering precise and powerful attacks. Miquella found himself on the defensive, his movements focused on evading rather than launching his own offensive. Realizing that he couldn't overpower Malenia with sheer strength or technique alone, Miquella decided to employ a more tactical approach. He feigned a lunge to the left, diverting Malenia's attention, and swiftly swept his Shinai towards her legs, causing her to lose balance and fall. Before she could react, Miquella had his wooden sword pointed at her throat.
"That's another point for me," Miquella said, a hint of triumph in his voice. Momentarily surprised, Malenia blinked in surprise before a grin spread across her face as miquella helped her up. "Alright, so that makes it Miquella 5, Malenia 50. I'm still winning, brother." "Yeah, yeah, whatever," he replied, his tone lighthearted. "If you want to be so smug, let's talk about our range competitions. What was it again? Thirty victories for me, and you? Mmm, zero."
Ten years had passed since they began their training, and now they were both fourteen years old, and both Miquella and Malenia had grown taller than their peers. Miquella stood at 6'3 while Malenia reached a staggering 7'0, making them tower over most of their classmates, and add on Their long hair and golden eyes, made them stand out among their peers. Over the past years, they had not only grown physically but also in skill, achieving black belts in judo and karate. They also focused on honing their quirk abilities primarily on stamina depletion, and further developing the existing skills they already had.
While they both focused on honing their existing skills, it didn't mean they stopped developing new techniques. Miquella had recreated the Carrion Great Sword, which manifested as pure golden light instead of the normal blue. He preferred to wield it with a handle or alongside his Shinai, as holding the pure energy in his hands proved uncomfortable. Despite being a large greatsword, it was light as a feather, and even without infusing additional energy, it could be summoned for five minutes.
On the other hand, Malenia had mastered a move called Scarlet Slash. She coated her blade in scarlet rot, launching slashing attacks infused with the power of decay. However, she decided to focus solely on her close to mid-range combat, as it became evident that this technique was sufficient for her needs.
"Good work, you two," their Yamamoto couldn't help but compliment the siblings. In the span of almost ten years both Miquella and Malenia had already reached and exceeded any of his expectations and due to how it was only a few months before their entrance exam to UA he decided it was time.
"It seems both of you are ready for our dojo's own sword style, a style I made myself based on all the sword styles I came across on my journey, but be warned - I'm not just going to gift it to you. You both have to fight me for it," Sensei Yamamoto said, as he brought up his bamboo sword, assuming a fighting stance. His expression was stern, showing that he was ready to either stand down or fight, depending on how the twins decided to proceed.
Miquella and Malenia shared a determined glance, fully understanding the challenge ahead. They had undergone rigorous training under Sensei Yamamoto's guidance and while he didn't use the style often they knew how powerful it was.
Without hesitation, the twins mirrored their Sensei's stance, their eyes reflecting determination. They knew this test was the culmination of their years of training, and they were prepared to confront it head-on. Both immediately rushed in, with Miquella aiming for an overhead strike and Malenia targeting their Sensei's sword hand. Yamamoto's movements were lightning-fast as he evaded and blocked both attacks with precision. In a retaliatory move, he struck both of their hands, causing Miquella to drop his blade.
Undeterred, Malenia pressed on, replicating Yamamoto's strike, aiming for his arm. The Sensei was momentarily surprised but soon realized that his student had not only anticipated his move but also perfectly replicated the technique.
Impressed, Yamamoto stepped back, acknowledging Malenia's skill and adaptability. "Impressive," he said with a slight smile. "You're learning faster than I expected."
Despite being struck, Yamamoto chuckled and advised Malenia, "Not bad, but remember, defense is just as important." With that, he parried Malenia's strike and countered with a swift strike of his own, forcing her to stumble back.
Seeing his sister struggle, Miquella quickly recovered his dropped blade and joined the fight. He launched a flurry of strikes, each aimed at disrupting Yamamoto's defense. However, the Sensei easily deflected each attack and used Miquella's aggression to land a powerful strike, sending him reeling. Realizing that brute force alone wouldn't work, the twins knew they had to work together, anticipate each other's moves, and exploit any openings. They exchanged a glance, silently acknowledging the plan. Malenia focused on defense, using her agility to avoid Yamamoto's attacks, while Miquella anticipated his Sensei's next move, positioning himself to counter it.
The fight continued, a dance of blades and footwork, with both sides testing each other's limits. Despite his age, Yamamoto was a formidable opponent, but the twins slowly gained the upper hand. Using her speed and agility, Malenia managed to land a series of quick strikes on Yamamoto's arms, forcing him to raise his guard. Taking advantage of the opportunity, Miquella launched a powerful overhead strike aimed at Yamamoto's head.
Caught off guard, Yamamoto barely managed to deflect the strike, but the force sent him stumbling onto his back. He looked at the twins with a flicker of respect in his eyes. "Enough," he said. "It's clear that both of you are ready to inherit the dojo's sword style."
"The sword style you both are about to learn is called the Iron Stream Style, and it focuses on hard, forceful strikes to shatter defenses as well as flowing movements to leave your opponents disoriented," Sensei Yamamoto explained. "By no means will this be easy, but I believe you two will be able to learn enough about the style before your exam." Miquella and Malenia listened intently and both nodded, excited to get started learning this new style.
____________________________________________________________________________________________
Hey everyone! I know this chapter was a bit shorter, but I wanted to pace the reveal of Miquella's new techniques leading up to the UA entrance exam. I didn't want to give away everything at once.