~Notes~
Graphical Spoilers: link

Episode 46 C.C.C.

“The fundamental three C’s I will teach you are as follows: control, concentrate, and compress.” Azuma is standing once again atop the stone platform towering high above the rest of the plain.

Kunai stands from the middle of the field, gazing in awe at the figure hovering high above him. “They are,” Azuma continues, “the last you will learn today. However, what you learn today will form the complete basis for tomorrow’s lesson. Therefore, it is absolutely important that you learn and master these skills before day’s end.”

“And why will I need this tomorrow?” Kunai asks inquisitively.

“These skills are essential,” Azuma explains, “to learning how to release Myou. Remember: control, concentrate, and compress. Control, in order to hold together Myou once it is released; concentrate, in order to compact it together; and compress, in order to forge it into the form of a sword.”

Azuma half-turns, waving his arm idly as he speaks. “My assistants,” he continues, waving his arm, “will instruct you in this part of the lesson.”

“W-Wait, what?” Kunai stutters, as Arai and Yttrius appear out of nowhere. “Aren’t you gonna stay and help me out here? I mean, you are my teacher after all.”

“I cannot,” Azuma hisses softly, “there are pressing matters I must attend to for the moment. My assistants’ instruction shall suffice for the time being. Follow their orders, and do as they say.”

Without another word or glance at Kunai, Azuma turns and walks away, with a dramatic flutter of his cape. Very soon, he disappears completely, engulfed by the darkness behind him.

Kunai turns to Arai and Yttrius, who are both standing and staring at him strangely. “So, what’s the lesson plan, guys?” Kunai blinks, as grins stretch across the faces of both of Azuma’s assistants. “Guys?”

“Okay, time to start today’s lesson, Kunai!” Arai shouts cheerfully. “First up, concentration!” Suddenly, without warning, Arai and Yttrius swarm over Kunai, grabbing at him fiercely.

Kunai’s eyes widen as their groping hands attack him. “Whoa! H-H-H-Hey! Just what do you guys think you’re doing?! Wait…stop! Hey! You! Get your hand away from there! I mean it, stop touching that! Whoa! Hey! That is not for you to touch! Come on! Let go of that! That’s not for you to touch!”

Footsteps echo within the confines of a dark corridor, so empty of sound and light that the very air seems to hum in defiance of the piercing silence. Tiny torches light up along the room as a solitary figure enters the hallway, producing spidery shadows in a dim, eerily lit light.

The face of the intruder appears to swim amidst the glowing light of the candlesticks at the sides of the room. The figure pauses, and glares wordlessly into the demanding silence.

All of a sudden, as if materializing out of thin air, a second figure, wispy and shadowy, enters the room, walking steadily, but not producing a sound of footfall. This second figure suddenly croaks out loud, breaking the heavy, sullen air.

“Is it time, Azuma?”

“Not yet,” Azuma replies with a hoarse whisper, “but the time is drawing near. Have you agreed to abide by my terms?”

“I suppose,” the second shadow answers, “I mean, it’s all for the sake of little Kunai, eh? Make sure he is trained well. As his benefactor I’d prefer not to be let down.”

“You understand the conditions then, and you will agree to follow through?” Azuma asks, rather aggressively.

The silence drags on for a moment longer than expected, until finally the second shadow replies, “Teach him well, Old Man.”

“H-Hey! Let me go!” Kunai cries fruitlessly, as Arai pins him against the wall of a stalagmite at the wrists and ankles with iron chains.

“No can do, Kunai,” Arai replies. “This is part of your training.”

“Keeping me prisoner in a torture chamber?!” Kunai spits, wriggling his head, hands, and feet desperately. He eyes his own set of Steelys, held tightly in the possession of Arai. “Tell me why you’ve got my Steelys then!”

“Ah! Good thing you asked, Kunai!” Arai answers cheerfully. “I will use these Steelys in order to teach you how to concentrate.”

Kunai blinks in confusion as Yttrius strides over and places an empty plate on top of Kunai’s head. Yttrius walks away, while Arai hums loudly to himself.

“Huh? And what’s this all about?” Kunai questions, his eyes roaming up towards the ceiling of his head.

“Your goal is to prevent that plate from falling from your head for two hours while I throw these Steelys at you. The idea is to get you to focus enough so that the Steelys won’t affect your concentration,” Arai explains. “Any questions?”

“Yeah,” Kunai replies with a low growl, “IS KILLING ME PART OF THE LESSON PLAN?!”

Arai shrugs, twirling a Steely around his index finger. Kunai turns to Yttrius. “Do something!”

“Can’t,” Yttrius shrugs as well, “it’s all part of Azuma’s lesson plan.”

“Now remember, Kunai,” Arai says, taking aim with a Steely clutched in his fingers, “if you let the plate fall, you will have to start all over. You have to reach two hours consecutively. Okay?”

“You’re crazy…” Kunai sighs, lowering his head dejectedly.

“Head up, Kunai!” Arai shouts. “Don’t wanna let the plate fall now!”

“WAH!” Kunai screams, rapidly raising his head again as the plate hurtles frightfully close to the rim of his forehead.

A breath of wind darts past Kunai, nailing the wall just inches from Kunai’s left ear with an echoing thud. Kunai’s eyes widen, as he jerks his head away from instinct.

The plate falls to the ground with a bang, and shatters completely. Kunai stares gravely at the broken pieces lying on the floor. “I told you, didn’t I, Kunai?” Arai’s accusing voice draws Kunai’s head back up. “You’ve gotta keep your concentration, or we’re going to run out of time trying to teach you this lesson.”

“I’m sorry,” Kunai whispers hoarsely. “Please put another plate on me.”

“Will do,” Yttrius mutters, placing another plate on Kunai’s head.

“Okay, now try to concentrate this time,” Arai says out loud. “And go!” Arai hurls another Steely straight towards Kunai; however, he fails to see it, as he has closed his eyes.

Kunai keeps his eyes shut tightly, feeling his stomach churn as he feels the Steely bury itself into the wall next to him. He opens his eyes, feeling the plate atop his head, and sees the Steely sticking out from the wall less than one inch from his neck.

“Good job, Kunai!” Arai cries. “You’ve passed the first one. But only thirty seconds have elapsed. Let’s go for another one!”

Kunai inhales deeply, biting his lip and clenching his eyes shut, as the Steely whams into the wall, bouncing off and scraping his right shoulder slightly on its way down.

“Concentrate…” Kunai murmurs to himself. “If I just keep my mind completely and totally focused on the plate on top of me, I should be able to pull this off…”

One quick thud signals another Steely hitting the wall. Very soon, a second Steely follows, ramming into the wall with utmost haste.

‘Arai’s throwing speed is picking up!’ Kunai thinks to himself, as another four quick, successive thuds sound at various locations around Kunai’s body.

“You know, you can’t make an ‘X’ without some of the Steelys going through him,” Yttrius’s voice sounds nearby.

Kunai opens his eyes in surprise, taken aback. He stares around with widened eyes panicking slightly.

“We’re just kidding, Kunai,” Arai tells Kunai presently. “Or maybe not!”

Kunai gasps as he watches Arai take two Steelys at once and hurl them straight towards him. Kunai lurches, attempting to pull his body out of the way. As a result, the plate collapses to the ground, shattering into pieces.

Arai stares stoically at the broken plate. “Too bad, Kunai. You have to keep absolute concentration at all times. You can’t let your guard down!”

Yttrius hurries over and places another plate on Kunai’s head. “It’s a shame too,” Arai continues. “You only lasted for three minutes.”

Kunai clenches his teeth, as he feels the plate slip and fall yet again. He opens his eyes once more, wincing slightly to even the dim light of the cavern.

“Six and a half minutes,” Arai says out loud. “That’s a new record for you, Kunai, but nowhere near enough to make the two hours.”

“Dammit,” Kunai curses, “put another plate on me!”

With another crash, the ninth plate falls to the ground. “Nineteen minutes,” Arai’s voice rings.

Kunai pants slightly, forcing himself to refrain from biting his bleeding lips anymore. His shoulders begin to sag, as he fights to keep his head pointed straight upwards.

‘I’m so close…I think this is the twentieth or twenty-first plate…I can’t tell anymore, I’ve lost count. Time seems to pass so slowly here. It’s hard to imagine that one day hasn’t even ended yet, when it feels like it’s been a hundred.

‘This plate’s lasted the longest so far…it’s been over an hour and a half now, according to Arai…’

Eight Steelys penetrate the rocky wall around Kunai, as Arai and Yttrius both begin throwing the knives at once, two from each hand.

‘I’ve discovered that as long as I keep my thoughts busy, I will have less chance to notice what the others are up to. It’s worked for the most part so far, but sometimes I can feel my concentration slipping due to fatigue…but the longer I’m up here, the more fatigued I’ll get.

‘I’ve gotta keep my mind blank though…’

‘Kunai.’

“WHA—!” Kunai screams, the exact moment a Steely slams into the rocky wall under his ear.

Both Arai and Yttrius start in surprise, after having failed to see any reaction from Kunai for the last hour. “Is the plate gonna fall?” Yttrius murmurs quietly.

“Wait, let’s watch and see…” Arai mutters in reply.

However, Kunai fails to react, and his body falls back into a mode of motionless life. ‘I’m surprised the plate didn’t fall that time. If the Steely hadn’t hit the wall to shock me back into concentration, it almost certainly would’ve fallen.

‘But what was that voice just now? It was not I who said my name just now, yet it was inside my head…!’

Suddenly, Kunai feels a weightlessness about him, while the plate slides forward and falls completely towards the ground, shattering. Kunai himself slumps forward, free at last from his bonds.

His body crashes to the ground, limp and fatigued. “Congrats, Kunai!” Arai shouts cheerfully from above. “You’ve passed the Concentration Test!”

Kunai stares blankly at a pool of clear, unmoving water. He squats down next to the water, blinking furiously. “So, Arai…what are we doing here?”

“Glad you asked, Kunai!” Arai chirps happily. “This is the Control and Compress part of your training!”

Kunai sighs exasperatedly. “You know, it’s nice that you’re enthusiastic, but you really don’t have to act over-the-top with this excitement…”

“Well said!” Arai replies, ignoring Kunai’s comment altogether. “Now, can you tell me what this is we’re standing around?”

Kunai turns left, and then right, staring irritably at Arai and Yttrius. “It’s a…pool of water.”

“Not just any pool!” Arai shouts.

“Yeah,” Kunai interrupts, “I think there’s something dead floating around in there. It’s definitely not any ordinary pool.”

“You mean this?” Arai asks snidely, grabbing at the object inside. He pulls what appears to be a black ribbon out, and suddenly with a crash, the pool expands into a gigantic lake of crystal clear water.

“Whoa!” Kunai shouts, scrambling backwards as the water surges forward. “How the hell—?!”

“Pretty cool, huh, Kunai?” Arai says with a smile. “We are going to use this pool to teach you how to control Myou once it is released. In that way, you will be able to compress it together into the shape of a sword. Got it?”

“And how are you guys gonna do that?” Kunai asks suspiciously. “Wait—you guys aren’t gonna drown me and tell me I gotta pull myself outta there, are you?!”

“Of course not!” Arai replies. “That’s inhumane!”

“So is chucking pointy knives at a helpless victim…” Kunai mutters under his breath.

“You will learn control and compression with these,” Yttrius says, dumping a large burlap sack on the ground at Kunai’s feet. He reaches into the bag and returns with a couple brown, round balls in his gloved hand.

“And what are those?” Kunai asks, pointing at the strange objects.

“These are balls made of special compositions that will, in water, melt completely at a surprisingly rapid rate. If you hold one like this, it seems quite solid, but in the water you will have limited time to reach one in time,” Yttrius explains, handing some of the balls to Kunai for him to feel.

“Your goal is to jump in the pool and grab as many of these balls as possible, and keep them compressed by using your mana. The pool is made completely of mana particles, so you needn’t worry about running out.”

“You also aren’t permitted to leave the pool until we think you have done it enough times,” Arai adds, smiling blandly. “So make sure you learn it well!”

“Great, I’ll probably have to do another two hundred of these,” Kunai mutters, slowly wading into the pool. He drops Myou on the ground at Arai’s feet. “Take care of my claw, all right?”

“Sure thing, Kunai!” Arai replies cheerfully, as Kunai slides his whole body into the pool. Yttrius proceeds to step to the bank of the pool, throwing in the strange balls.

Arai picks up Myou as Yttrius does this, examining it carefully. “To think that after all that trouble we went through to get this claw made, that it really would turn out to be the weapon that could end it all.”

As Yttrius finishes throwing in the balls, he returns to join Arai, sighing satisfactorily and clapping his gloved hands clean. Arai looks up as he arrives. “So, Yttrius, finished throwing in the Cargo poop balls?”

Yttrius flinches at the sound of those words. “Gah! Don’t say that so loud, Arai! I thought we agreed not to tell Kunai what they were made of!”

“Oops!” Arai chuckles, clapping his hand over his mouth.

“Anyway,” Arai continues, his voice considerably lower and more serious this time, “this task really should keep Kunai busy. If he learns this, then by the end of tomorrow we might be seeing what this claw right here looks like in the form of a sword.”

Arai holds up Myou for Yttrius to examine. “Azuma says this might be the key to beating Lord Kimura…”

“It very well might be,” Arai murmurs.

‘Damn, these balls are breaking apart insanely fast,’ Kunai wonders to himself underwater. He jolts forward with a skillful stroke; yet even still, his first target collapses completely before he reaches it.

Kunai turns around underwater, and spots another one within reach. He grabs it, and clumps his hand around it; unfortunately, the ball only disperses even more quickly under the added pressure.

‘Dammit!’ Kunai curses, swimming to the surface in order to catch his breath. He breathes in the clean air, and stares at the dozens of brown balls bobbing about on the water’s surface.

“Gotcha!” Kunai shouts, diving for the nearest one. He wraps his fingers around it, forcing his mana into the ball. Unfortunately, he injects too much, and the ball explodes, splattering across Kunai’s face.

‘Man, it stinks down here…’ Kunai wonders to himself.

He grabs another one, holding it firmly this time, and slowly lets his own mana flow over it, watching the ball glow blue for a moment, and then solidify.

“Whup!” a voice above him cries. Kunai is suddenly jerked out of the water, and thrown onto the floor beside the pool.

Kunai spins on the ground to look up at his attacker. “Arai, what are you doing?”

Arai picks Kunai up with surprising strength, standing him in his dripping wet clothes. He then takes the ball away from Kunai’s hands, and a grin breaks across his face. “Congrats, Kunai! You’ve passed the last test.”

“But—wait, I only did one!” Kunai argues.

“That’s right,” Arai replies, “and that’s what we said! Keep doing it until we think you’ve done enough. And one is enough for us.”

“Just one?!” Kunai gasps.

“Of course,” Arai answers, “the point of this lesson was to see whether or not you could do it in preparation for tomorrow. Otherwise, the whole stunt was pointless.”

Kunai grumbles loudly under his breath, cursing Arai.

“Well, Kunai,” Arai says brightly, “Lesson Two is now officially—”

“—over.”

Kunai, Arai, and Yttrius turn as one, to see Azuma striding grimly back towards them.

Next Time: Episode 47 The Howl of a Monster

Arai: At last, next time, Kunai endures the most difficult of his lessons! Soul fusion, and the transformation of Myou into a sword! Isn’t it amazing? Azuma is going to teach Kunai all he knows, as Yttrius and I are forbidden to enter their sacred learning chamber. But we will still be there to support Kunai as he makes his transformation into a person of great power! And, next time—Ivy makes an appearance, and a Paradox too! What on earth is going on inside of that dark chamber where Yttrius and I are not allowed to go? I really wonder what they are doing! Watch next time as Kunai makes the ultimate transformation! The most difficult and exciting part of Kunai’s training is about to begin! Don’t miss Lesson Three next time!

Episode 47 The Howl of a Monster coming soon!