Chapter 3: Quincerre pt.2
With a slight spring in her step, Akane bounced back onto the platform, although she was wearing a black half-cut tank top and baggy trousers in spring weather, the cold didn't bother her much as she preferred to dress lightly and in loose clothing so that it wouldn't hamper her movements.
Coming back from the weapon track, She only decided to equip herself with a short spear, a pair of Leather bracers, a small metal buckler, and some shin guards.
Excited and a little nervous, Akane noticed that her sister still hadn't gotten ready and was still conversing with me.
"Akiko!" She called," Hurry up and get ready! I'll start without you if you don't move quickly!"
Akiko who was still panicking with a deep blush across her face turned and glared at her enthusiastic sister.
"Stupid Akane! Stupid Mommy and Auntie! What did you drag me into? I don't want to get married so young! Although Cousin Kekkai is good and treats me well, he's too lecherous! If he wasn't five years old I bet that he would stay in the capital all day buying beautiful women from the slave market! I have no clue what he would do to me!" She complained furiously and fearfully under her breath.
"What was that? Don't you dare push unrealistic tendencies onto me!" I immediately complained and defended myself.
"Oh? Do you still deny it? Auntie told us that you're a super pervert who learned to squeeze and rub her chest at the age of three years old!" Akiko squinted her eyes and gave me a side glance.
"Pffft!"x2
In this sentence, both I and Grandpa Ryū immediately did a spit take and almost collapsed to the ground at the same time.
Grandpa collapsed in disbelief and astonishment and began giving me a weird look of praise and some other emotion I couldn't describe.
Meanwhile, I collapsed mostly from the emotional damage, because I didn't know that I was exposed by my Aunt so long ago.
/Hold on? Why didn't she call me out then if she realized I was groping her? Is she one of those legendary Shota-cons? I like women, but I want to be in the dominant position for the first time!/ I screamed in my mind.
"What the Heck is Auntie Madoka doing telling you that? You shouldn't listen to her! She'll be a bad influence and teach you all kinds of bad things as you grow up!" I immediately denied the accusation and tried to lecture Akiko.
"Oh? How do you know that it was Auntie Madoka? I didn't specify who said it." She inquired while sneering.
"Ummm? Lucky guess?" I stuttered for a moment before answering.
Now even my workout clothes, which had just dried. Had become soaked once again as sweat poured down my back.
"She is the only one who hugs me so tightly that I can't breathe! How else do I escape her wretched claws! By the way that doesn't make me a pervert!" I hurriedly explained.
"Oh, then what about the perverted training you've been giving us? I didn't realize it, before but auntie gave me some books and warned me not to allow you to get away with it anymore!" Her eyes were getting darker and darker, with her atmosphere growing berserk and evil as it pressed onto me.
/Fucking Spirit pressure? Are you some kind of Hollow or shinigami in disguise? And what type of books are you giving your niece? Auntie Madoka!/ I complained while taking a step back under pressure.
"What do you mean? Our training is wholesome and beneficial! The only things we learn are to improve our strength!" I puffed my chest out and clarified this.
"It is beneficial, Mommy and Auntie say that you were extremely smart to come up with those techniques. But when I told them how you train us, mommy got mad and told me that all those unnecessary touching, spankings, lap sitting, and head pat that you have us go through after training are for married couples! She said that you were already training us to be perverted women since you met us!" She added with an embarrassed cross look, hugging her shoulders and protecting her (Non-existent) chest.
*Pfft*x2
I and Grandpa Ryū collapsed again when she said this.
/Worthy, truly worthy of being my grandson!/ Grandpa Ryū thought.
/What the hell are you explaining to five-year-old children aunties?/ I complained
Although admittedly thanks to how the physiological outlook of girls in this world tends to mature quickly, Akiko herself is also a quick study and bookworm even at this age. Hell, she's already able to understand and complete complicated Algebra questions and is moving on to calculus!
Akiko ignored my fallen image, dispersing her evil aura and turning to her Grandfather, she walked to him and began grabbing his clothes, and looking up at him tearfully with doe-like eyes.
"Grandpa, is there any way to cancel it? Please tell me!" She begged
Sadly her tearful plea fell on dead ears, as Ryū Mēkā could only turn his head and refused to look at her.
"There's nothing I can do, you can only go to your grandmother for this." Ryū could only say this.
"Really? Is the nothing you can do?" I asked
"You don't get to comment! Sit there and take it like a man! Even If they beat you, I'm sure that they'll be gentle and you'll be fine." Ryū dismissed me and gently guided Akiko away and out of earshot.
/That's easy for you to say! Ever since we started running into the mountains to train, I've drilled into them how to always aim for vital points on instinct alone! Not to mention that I only fight them one at a time and never as a pair, they have too much synergy when they fight together as a team!/ I complained in my mind.
I don't know what they said to each other but seeing him explain something to Akiko and watching her pondering look before nodding and running to the side to her sister, I knew that I wasn't going to get out of this easily because she started whispering into Akanes ear while glaring viscously at me.
After that, Akane and Akiko whispered to each other while Akiko grabbed her equipment from the weapon rack.
"Ready yourselves! Akane, Akiko, do you wish to proceed?" at this time Ryū had sat cross-legged at the edge of the platform, calling to both sides to see if they were proceeding.
Akane nodded immediately with a confident smile, Akiko also nodded after hesitating for a moment.
"Kekkai, do you need anything else to prepare before we begin?" He asked
"No, I'm good as I am," I said, rolling my wrists and smiling wryly.
"Good, now step forward." Ryū smiled before commanding this.
All three of us stepped forward and stopped fifteen feet from one another. When we reached our positions Akane seemed to remember something and called out in surprise.
"Ready? Be-" Just as Ryū was about to begin the fight, Akiko dropped her spear and raised her hand.
"Wait, one moment!" Akane hurriedly stopped him with a raised hand.
Reaching her side, she pulled out a small whistle, seeing this whistle made goosebumps run up my spine.
"Wait! That's Chea-" I hurriedly called out to stop her but I was too late as she had already blown the whistle.
A high-pitched whine rang throughout the mountain and into the forest below. Soon after the sound of snapping branches and quickly approaching feet as they stomped onto the ground.
"That's Cheating! I call Foul! The Quincerre can't have outside help!" I shouted in outrage.
"Summons and Yokai don't count as your strength in a Quincerre, but mom said there's nothing in the rules that says you can't use Mounts and pets!" Akane smiled smugly
"Grandpa!" I turned and plead with him.
"She's right. You can also call Isamu if you want." Ryū Mēkā just shrugged and suggested half-heartedly, for some reason enjoying my stressful situation.
"I wouldn't count on it," Akiko remarked darkly with a smile at the corner of her lips.
/What the hell did you teach her over the winter? My innocent Akiko is starting to turn Black Bellied!/ I screamed in my head before taking out a small wooden whistle of my own.
But before I could blow on it, four large animals poured out of the forest and into the clearing and came to a dirt-spraying halt at the edge of the platform.
Three feet tall and closely approaching four, a strange hybrid between a bird, a squirrel, and a drake.
The Chi-Tori is a strange omnivorous creature whose main population is located in the woodlands of Ida's Rest and scattered across the Kingdom of Stone.
With owl-like heads and faces, these quadruped animals had a long sleek bodies covered in fur and feathers with a prehensile tails and four padded feet with retractable claws. Between their front and hind legs, there was a scaled webbing that provided gliding and possibly flight when they grow older.
This iconic mount was extremely favored by the Mēkā, although they were rare and practically extinct due to their low birthing rate, their long lifespans of nearly sixty years or more, growth of nearly 3 meters tall and 5 meters long in adulthood, and adaptable combat and environmental prowess give them the trophy when it comes to reliable companions.
It usually takes them several years to mature, and when they do they only mate once every four years, and are extremely intelligent from birth. Some can even refine chakra by adulthood which boosts their already terrifying speed and endurance to another level.
"Isamu! Who's a good boy? I was looking for you!" I smiled and cooed to the largest of the four Chi-tori, a droopy-eyed face and dull greyish-red feathers.
Isamu cooed excitedly as well when he saw me and began to step up to greet me, except something terrible happened.
"Sit Isamu!" Commanded Akane
Isamu immediately blinked twice and without another sound immediately sat down and lay on his side.
I blinked, confused and completely lost.
"Good boy! Here's a treat!" Cooed Akane as she took out a scrap of meat that I had no clue where she pulled out from.
Isamu cried joyously and rolled onto his back and exposing his unprotected belly, his long tail stirring up dust and dirt as it whipped back and forth.
"Good boy, now go to the side and don't move until I say so." Grinned Akane as she rubbed his belly and gave him the meat scraps.
Isamu did exactly as she said and paid no attention to his partner, leaving to the side of the stage and plopping his greedy ass down like a good boy.
I stood there with wide eyes and a gaping mouth. It's possible that I had mistakenly absorbed Nature's energy and turned myself into a life-like statue.
"Y-you, you fucking Traitor!" My finger trembled as I pointed at this traitorous bird.
Betrayal! Betrayal from all sides! First Akane, then Grandpa, then Akiko, and finally this bastard bird!
/How many fucking hours of training, How many tons of perfectly seasoned and cooked meat, How much heartache did I go through to raise this white-eyed wolf!
"Don't blame him, it's not like you paid any attention to him over the winter. You just left the poor thing to your mother and didn't visit him at all. Mommy and I fed and trained him all winter, you should thank me!" Akane said smugly while picking back up her spear.
"Isamu get your ass over here!" I commanded through gritted teeth.
The lazy bird blinked and looked at me again and began to hesitatingly stand up.
"Isamu doesn't move a muscle!" Akane grinned and reminded my order.
The bastard immediately sat don't and laid his head on the ground. I tried to command him to my side again but he just ignored me.
Akiko and Grandpa Ryū to the side snickered, trying and failing to hold their laughter at the scene before them.
/Bastard! I'll deal with you after I clean these girls up! How dare you betray me!/ I snarled in my mind.
It seemed that I had already lost my place as the head honcho in this bastard's eyes. Well, I'll have to fix that after I put these two in their place!
"Are you ready now?" Grandpa Ryū asked, trying to hold a serious face but his twitching lips betrayed him.
"Ready," I said sullenly before taking a deep breath and organizing my psyche, letting go of my anger as well as my breathe when I released it, I sank into an open orthodox stance with my fists clenched with one hand slightly forward and the other held to close to my cheek and slightly bouncing my weight from one foot to another.
"Ready." Akiko no long laughed, her face turned dull, and began to examine me with determined eyes, one hand beginning to swing the Sickle and chain she had taken up.
"Ready!" Akane's gaze also cooled down, reaching practically frigid as she took a stance with her spear raised and buckled held to her vitals. Even though there was still a little fire in her eyes, she waited there cool as a cucumber for our grandfather's marks.
/I taught them too well!/ I grimaced and prepared myself.
/This should be fun!/ Ryū Mēkā grinned while sitting forward.
"Begin!" He Bellowed.
.
.
.
.
.
.
The action began immediately as soon as the words left his mouth.
*Phwwwwwhht*
With a sharp whistle, Akane commanded Kirie, Akachan, and Bigaku; Akane and Akiko's mounts, to spring into action.
The three made a chirping cry and immediately darted forward, but instead of attacking me directly they instead began to surround me and encase me into a kill circle.
Seeing them surround me, I immediately opened my stance and lowered my center of gravity. My fists changed into open palm and claw as I pivoted back and forth. Trying to keep tabs on them through my peripheral vision.
Slowly closing in, these juvenile predators snapped and hissed at me one after another. Aiming to startle my nerves and catch my back.
Akane and Akiko who was watching from outside the Kill circle looked at each other for a moment before nodding and slowly stalking forward.
*Phwwhht*
Once again whistling, this time in a different pitch, Akane began to give commands on after to her Chi-Tori. Making them agitated and chirp as well in sync with her.
/So you're taking that approach? Classic surrounding tactics, although this wouldn't work on a shinobi or anyone who has mastered a movement and substitution technique. It works perfectly for someone who doesn't have either! Two hands are indeed hard to beat four! But, that doesn't mean it's impossible!/ I grinned as my eyes darted back and forth between the Chi-Tori.
"Akane don't you think you're underestimating me too much? Using hound tactics is Cliché." I mocked
*Phwwhht* *Phwwhht*
Akane ignored my words and still whistled to the Chi-Tori surrounding me. Pacing in an ever-enclosing circle.
*Phwwwwwwwt*
At this whistle, one of the smallest Chi-Tori, Kirie, burst into action from my side, claws out and beak opened with razor-sharp teeth snapping at my leg.
But when she burst forward, she claimed nothing but air in her claws as I immediately pivoted to the side and struck the back of her head with a savage reverse elbow as she passed by me.
Humans and animals are two completely different sets of fighting styles, power, and resilience. If I didn't want to be prey for the claws of these dangerous predators and exhaust myself in dealing with them, then I'll need to take every one of them in a single blow!
With that vicious strike to the back of her sensitive skull, she hit the ground face-first and was instantly incapacitated.
But she was just the beginning as her sisters Akachan and Bigaku followed her charge one after another.
Placing my hand on the ground and using it as an anchor to pivot myself. I rotated and lashed outwards to the open jaw of Bigaku with a low twister kick. Making her mouth snap shut and whimper as she was sent careening off to the side.
Keeping the momentum of my kick, I came back into a closed stance, side-stepping Akachan who came in snarling, I tried to throw a couple of jabs at her exposed back and leg joint.
Sadly when I tried to do so, the sound of rattling chains sounded behind me and I immediately gave up and ducked as Akiko's chain with the blunt hammer end went flying through where my head was a moment ago.
Steadying my breath, I backed off completely and tried to reorient myself with my surroundings.
"Haahhh!" A battle cry sounded from my back along with the sound of the whistling wind.
/It seems that Akane wasn't going to give me any chances, / I smile as I thought this.
At this time Akane had seen an opening and decided to take it. Lunging forward, she instantly crossed several feet in distance and stabbed her spear at my exposed back.
Sadly, although it was a good attack, I give it a 7 in form and 6 in speed, but sadly she scores 0 in connection! Because I was ready for her!
Rolling onto my back, I slipped under her thrust and sent an axe kick screaming at her shoulder.
*Crarack*
Sadly, even though the kick made contact with her shoulder, I felt a small burst of pain as I felt like I had kicked a solid rock.
Well, not like but did kick a solid rock, Akanes [Earth Release: Bedrock Skin Technique] to be exact, before she lunged forward she had covered a small outer layer of her body with earth-release Chakra in preparation.
She was used to using this Jutsu during our spars because she bruised easily and wanted to avoid taking too much damage. So just in case her attack failed and to endure the vicious counterattack from me in return, which I close to always fulfilled.
This time is no different.
/Let's see if your turtle shell has improved over the winter!/ My eyes squinted as I saw a faint layer of condensed rocklike material covering Akanes skin.
The last blow made Akane grunt and fall back from the impact, I took advantage of her retreat to place a forward kick to her stomach.
The shove destroyed her balance and left her wide open, following closely, I tucked down low before swinging a massive uppercut practically shattering the armor sank it deep into her gut.
This didn't do too much damage to her thanks to the Earthen armor, but it left her winded, her armor cracked and I wasn't even close to finished.
I pursued her and sank three quick jabs and a solid hook into her solar plexus and liver my fists easily tearing through what was left of her armor like it was mesh paper. These three blows to her vitals made her drop to the ground immediately and she could only gasp in pain and discomfort.
The sound of rattling chains and a growl sounded from behind me once again, Akiko, Akachan, and Bigaku had arrived to provide support.
Frowning, I didn't chase victory and instead quickly backed away from the prone Akane.
Seeing that I had backed off, Akiko ran to her sister's side and carefully helped her up while the two Chi-Tori protected the two sisters and growled at me.
I only watched from afar, keeping my stance up and testing my leg.
/It's a little numb, I'll just have to stay off of it for a while./ I observed before switching to South-paw.
Placing raw flesh against jutsu is a tall order for anybody, especially if one doesn't condition themselves enough.
Thankfully, I do take it upon myself to condition my body every day, although it hurt my leg, I can easily pierce through Earth's release with my punches!
/Now how am I going to fight them now?/ I thought while watching the two carefully.