Training II

"Alright, the basic stance for Kenjutsu, first off make sure your feet are shoulder width apart and then with the alternate leg to your dominant hand position it behind the other so you're standing at a slight angle.. Grip your sword tightly with your dominant hand and make sure your sword is always in front of you facing up at close an angle as you can get to about 45°. This allows for your sword to be in front of your torso and some of your head, ready to deflect any incoming attacks", Hayate demonstrated and waited for Kiryu to copy him, fixing any errors he made.

"Do bear in mind, the basic stance changes depending on both the sword you're using and also the style". Kiryu nodded as he made sure to remember that in the future.

"Now, at the core of Kenjutsu, there's really just two basic attacks that are possible with the sword. Stabbing, and slashing. Let's start with stabbing since it's the simpler one. There is only one variation to this attack, and that's literally bringing the pointy end of the sword forward to pierce through someone or something. The thing is though, if you miss you leave yourself wide open as it takes a bit longer to retract your sword. However if you land the hit...", Hayate stopped talking and suddenly stabbed with his training sword, piercing a clean hole straight through the wooden dummy. Kiryu looked on in awe at the display of power wondering if he would reach that level. "It's almost always a guaranteed kill".

Hayate then turned towards Kiryu, "You give it a try now". Kiryu nodded as he turned to face his own wooden dummy. trying to emulate his sensei's movements he thrust his arm forwards and stabbed the wooden dummy, only for his sword to bounce right off, hurting his wrist slightly. Kiryu looked over to Hayate for help and it was given, "What you're doing wrong is that you're only using you arm when you use a sword. Kenjutsu is no different from Taijutsu in the regard that when you attack you use your whole body to support the movement and make it more powerful. Instead of just extending your arm, this time try to move your body forward with it".

"Thank you sensei", Kiryu said, turning back to face the wooden dummy, his focus showing through his expression. He took a breath and just as his sensei had told him, he used his body to stab instead of just his arm. He stepped and leaned into the stab and the sword pierced through the dummy, before stopping about 2 inches deep. 'It's still not as good as sensei's' Kiryu thought to himself, while pulling out his now embedded sword.

"Good, well done, that's impressive", Hayate said as he clapped at his students performance. "Keep practicing and you'll be able to pierce right through in no time. I'm sure of it. For now though you should still be proud, I just gave you one simple tip and you improved by miles", he added one last piece of consolation.

Hayate then turned back towards his dummy and got into a stance once again, "Let's move on now though. Next up is slashing. Slashing makes up almost the entirety of Kenjutsu. It's what is mainly used in combat and essentially what makes up different Kenjutsu styles, it's all on the different variations of slashing", Hayate stopped as he suddenly swung his sword sideways creating a gash in the wooden dummy. "You can come from any angle and direction", he continued before pausing once again. He unleashed a flurry of attacks, each leaving deep gashes on the wooden dummy. "You can be quick and explosive, with an unmatched lethality. Or...", Hayate stopped one final time as he took a deep breath and brought his wooden sword up to the sky, and then slashed downwards with an insane force, splitting the dummy cleanly in half. "You can be powerful and descend upon your enemies like thunder from heaven", he finished.

Kiryu was speechless, what Hayate showed him was nothing but the basics, and yet his skill with the sword made even simple attacks like that seem like great powerful jutsu. The image of Hayate demonstrating the basic attacks engrained themselves into Kiryu's head, entrancing him as he turned to face his dummy, and began to strike the dummy, just as his sensei demonstrated. Compared to the deep gashes that his sensei's attacks created though, Kiryu's only left tiny scratches with the occasional dent in the wooden dummy.

Hayate looked at his student, impressed with his eagerness and vigor. All he did was merely demonstrate it, and yet Kiryu immediately began practicing what he saw and to an impressive extent as well. 'He's a natural', Hayate remarked as the sounds of wood hitting wood filled the training ground. It seemed like Kiryu absorbed his teachings similar to how a sponge would do with water.

Only once Kiryu stopped himself did Hayate move on with the lesson, "Well, you've got the basic attacks down so we can move on from that. The technique and style I'll be teaching you, is one I personally created. I call it the Secret Sword. It uses speed as its base, the abstract and unique movement of it creates after images, making it annoying and disorientating to fight against". Hayate then demonstrated what he was talking about as he swung his sword and illusions of several other arms swinging a sword appeared before fading away as the attack was finished. Hayate then turned to Kiryu, "Go on give it a try".

"Yes sensei", Kiryu said quickly, before doing as he was told. He swung sword in just as Hayate did, however instead of a mirage of illusory sword arms, it just appeared as a normal swing.

"Harder than it looks eh? You'll learn with a bit of practice though. Keep going", Hayate smiled at his student. Kiryu nodded and returned to swinging his sword diligently, remembering his sensei's demonstration and trying to replicate it as best as he could.

The time passed quickly and before he knew it, Kiryu was ending the day with another body strengthening workout just like he had done in the morning.