"Ah, so like a Spirit Gun!" I exclaim.
"Please stop with these references, I'm too old for this…" Nick sighs as he pinches the bridge of his nose.
"The anime I referenced is more from your time than mine," I grumble.
Either way, I channel my Cursed Power into my hands before thrusting them outwards without shaping my Cursed Power. But this time, rather than cutting my Cursed Power off from my hands, I keep it connected, forming a beam of Cursed Power, which is only able to fly a couple of feet away from my hands before flickering out. "I did it!" I cheer.
"Good job!" Nick congratulates. "Now, let's practice some more."
And so, I continue practicing Cursed Power Emission for a while, while also practicing how to shape my emissions into various forms, such as beams, spheres, and waves. Meanwhile, the storm overhead continues to intensify, and rages on.
***
"Now then, it's time to begin the final part of your training for this week, turning your Cursed Power into wind," Nick says, after I've practiced Cursed Power Emission for a while. I've gotten pretty good at Emission, and I'm able to replicate all of my favorite anime attacks. The storm overhead has gotten pretty intense. "But beware. This will be the hardest part of your training so far."
"What's so hard about this compared to everything else I've had to do this week?" I ask.
"Because Cursed Power Techniques are something that everyone with Cursed Power can innately use, so they're easy to learn," Nick explains. "But changing Cursed Power into some sort of element is not something that everyone can do, because that involves cultivating your Cursed Power into a Cursed Ability. Much less turning your Cursed Power into wind, which is unique to you."
"Yeah, what's the odds of meeting another wind user?" I chuckle.
"Not likely, but with how many Cursed Ability users, there's certainly at least another wind user out there," Nick answers. "Luckily, you have an elemental master teaching you."
"Yeah, but you tased yourself in order to develop your Cursed Ability, I can't really do that with wind?" I reply, causing Nick to smirk.
"No, but I know a way," he replies. "I subjected my body to wind until I was able to reflect that exposure in even my Cursed Power. We'll have to do the same for you."
"But how will we expose me to wind?" I ask, causing Nick to splay his arms out in response.
"Look around you! The wind's all around you, in this raging storm!" Nick booms.
I nod. I understand now.
Without saying another word, I turn around, grab onto the rocky ledges beside me, which are slippery from the rain, and begin to climb up.
"Wh…what are you doing?" Nick shouts to me over the wind, as he lowers his arms.
"I'm moving to higher ground!" I shout back to Nick as I turn and peer over my shoulder at him, as the slipperiness of the rocks causes me to lose my footing for a split second, before recovering right after. I then turn back around and continue my ascent. "Where the wind is higher."
After a little more climbing, I find myself at the top of the rocky peak, drenched in rain and sweat, my hands stinging from the intense climb. I collapse to the ground on my hands and knees. Now that I'm no longer training in an area rich in Cursed Power, my fatigue is catching up to me, and I feel drained of Cursed Power. Still panting, I splay my arms out to my sides, experiencing the wind. The wind blows through my air, rustling my clothes.
But it doesn't bother me at all.
I've manipulated the wind so many times now, that becoming it feels only natural. I pour Cursed Power into my right hand then hold it into the air. Rather than emitting my Cursed Power into the atmosphere and swirling it around in order to manipulate the wind, I turn my Cursed Power into wind itself, and a tornado forms around my fist. "Wind Control, Stage Two!" I then wince as my tornado dissipates seconds after. I was able to turn my Cursed Power into wind, but I'm not good at it yet.
"As I've said, true mastery of Cursed Power Techniques comes during the heat of battle," Nick says, and I turn to face where I hear Nick, and see him climbing up the rocky ledges beside me. "So now…we'll fight."
"We're going to fight?!" I cry. "I can't fight the strongest Pro Slayer! I'll die!"
Nick laughs. "Well I'm not going to try to kill you! "I'll be holding back," he smirks. Nick then gets into a running stance, electricity crackling around his entire body. "Get ready, Luis! Because here I come!"
I can't believe I have to fight the strongest Pro Slayer.
Nick then zips towards me, faster than I can even react. That is, until now. By pouring Cursed Power into my eyes and activating my Cursed Power Sensing, I can read Nick's movements, at least, a little easier. My Cursed Power Sensing, combined with Nick moving slower than usual, allows me to sidestep Nick's attack just in the nick of time, resulting in me only getting a deep cut in my gut from Nick's electrified spear hand.
After dodging his attack, Nick pauses, before zipping towards the rocky wall of this mountainous region. Nick lands against the wall, forming a giant crater in the stone due to his speed, before launching off and zipping back over to me.
"I move so fast that I can only move in straight lines!" Nick shouts to me over the loud crackle of his electricity and the howling winds.
"Thanks for the tip!" I shout back as I bring my arms to block, reinforcing them with Cursed Power. But when Nick's electrified fist slams into my arms, I'm still sent flying backwards, even with my defense up. "I thought…you said that you will hold back?" I grunt as I struggle to push myself up to my feet.
"I am," Nick answers, before zipping off again. "It's just that now that you know the basics of Cursed Power Techniques, I don't need to hold back as much."
Nick continues zipping around. He'd dash towards me, strike me with an electrified punch, or kick, or spear hand, or whatever, before zipping away again before I could counter or defend. I must have gotten hit hundreds of times in the span of seconds. Each time one of Nick's electrified attacks strike me, I can feel my body growing even more and more numb. Slowly, he's paralyzing me. This must be how Nick fights, small, speedy attacks that render his opponents incapacitated. I know that Nick said he won't hold back as much as when we were turning earlier, but this is insane! I didn't practice enough Cursed Power Sensing or Barrier to keep up with this!"
As Nick zips around, all I can see of him are flashes of yellow lighting and the black of his suit, as the buzz of electricity crackles throughout the air. He truly is the Bumblebee.
Nick then zips towards me again, and knowing that I can barely even block his attacks, I go on the offensive. I draw my katana and clutch it tightly between both hands. "Wind Control…" I begin to say as I bring my katana high into the air above my head, pouring Cursed Power into its blade, which I then transmute into wind, forming a tornado around my katana. "Wind Blade!" I shout as I slice my katana downwards. Nick counters by pausing in front of me, his body still crackling with electricity, as Nick brings a hand up, bubbling with his pale yellow Cursed Power, that he uses to grab the blade of my katana.
"What?!" You blocked my attack by grabbing my blade?!" I cry.
"Mh-hm!" Nick replies. "You still have a lot to learn, kid!" Nick says as he roundhouse kicks me away, sending me flying backwards. "If you use more Cursed Power than your opponent, or if your Cursed Power is stronger than theirs-" Nick continues as he dashes alongside me as I continue flying backwards. "Then you can block Cursed Ability attacks or even blades with your raw Cursed Power!" Nick finishes as he grabs me by the shirt collar and slams me to the ground, sparks of lightning flying everywhere from the impact.
"I don't think kicking my ass is gonna help me train!" I grunt as I grab Nick's wrist tightly, who's hand is still clutching onto my shirt collar as the winds around me begin to kick up. No, not just the winds but my Cursed Power wind as well. "You're using both your wind and the winds around us to attack?" Nick sneers.
"My Cursed Power wind is strong, but by combining it with the already existing wind, I can be even stronger!" I roar. "Wind Control: Hurricane!" Before Nick can zip away, I manipulate the wind, both mine and the air's, to create a hurricane barrier around the two of us. Nick smirks as he looks around my hurricane barrier approvingly.