4
Six years later (Onari: age 11)
Onari laughed freely as he sprinted through the forest surrounding his home. The giggles of a young nine-tailed fox echoed from behind him in reply.
"C'mon, Kunou! You'll have to be faster than that to catch this young master!" Onari called.
Wind rustled through the trees' leaves, making Onari duck. A golden bullet shot over his head. It slammed into a nearby tree, revealing a small Kitsune girl. Kunou was still giggling while she rubbed her head from the impact.
"Onii-chan~ Stop going so easy on me," Kunou pouted. "I'm a big girl now. I'm already six!"
Onari hummed. Technically, she was right. He was going easy on her. He had already broken through into the Initiate's Second Stage. The Second Stage was a realm known for its ability to unlock, and allow cultivators to use, True Qi.
The final breakthrough into the Initiate's Second Stage had been a life changing experience for Onari. Learning to harness and utilize his internal Qi never got old for the Kitsune young master. Every small bit of progress his cultivation saw pushed Onari further down the path of surpassing the heavens.
As he progressed through the First Stage, Onari unlocked and opened each of his six Acupoints. The opening of the Heart Acupoint had been the beginning of Onari's journey through the First Stage. He had focused his internal Qi on the intangible point that overlapped his physical heart. Slowly, more and more Qi flowed through his Heart Acupoint until it finally burst open.
Ever since Onari had reincarnated without his cultivation handicap, every breath felt like he could finally truly breathe. The opening of the Heart Acupoint elevated that feeling further. It was like he had been living with a clogged nose, breathing only through his mouth, and opening the Heart Acupoint had dislodged whatever was blocking his metaphysical airway.
The Acupoints, other than the sixth, corresponded with one of the five basic senses. The Heart Acupoint could be said to be 'feeling'. The Eye Acupoint was obviously 'vision'. Following a cultivation method that felt like it had been imprinted in his mind at birth, Onari unlocked this Acupoint next.
Opening the Eye Acupoint was much easier than opening the Heart. It was a relatively simple matter of cycling Qi through his eyes and brain. Each cycle reinforced the nerves related to Onari's vision. When his Eye Acupoint finally popped open, Onari was struck with a sense of profound understanding.
It was not unusual for cultivators to develop unique abilities as they made their way through the First Stage. Onari gained the ability of minor precognition. It wasn't much, but by focusing his vision on the flow of the world's Qi, he could see a couple seconds into a possible future.
The opening of the Nose, Ears, and Mouth Acupoints soon followed. The Nose Acupoint granted Onari the ability to 'smell' the nature of Qi. The Ears and Mouth Acupoints granted similarly appropriate abilities.
Finally, Onari reached the Sixth Acupoint. Unlike the other minor realms of the First Stage, the Sixth Acupoint did not correspond with anything on the physical body. This minor realm was known as 'The Fish Leaping Through the Dragon Gate'. It was the most basic bottleneck that a cultivator would face and the guardian of the Initiate's Second Stage.
The method of opening this Acupoint was to be like a salmon swimming against the current. And so, Onari swam, defying the natural order of the world in his pursuit of surpassing the heavens.
Surprisingly, he found this Acupoint to be the easiest one to open. It was as if something was behind him, aiding him in his quest. The Sixth Acupoint's tribulation was nothing in the face of the combined experiences of Onari's lives.
When Onari passed through the Dragon Gate, his internal Qi materialized within his body. No longer was his Qi a virtual, incorporeal energy. It was now real, a feeling of liquid potential inside of him that Onari could call upon. It was True Qi.
And so, Onari successfully broke through to the Second Stage. Outwardly, Onari became more handsome and refined. His body was toned and purified by his True Qi. He advanced one step closer to perfection. Yet still, he didn't gain a tail.
"Fine," Onari said, replying to Kunou. "Let's make this a bit more serious. How about hide and seek?"
Kunou frowned, "How is that any different than normal, Onii-chan?"
Onari smirked, "Because this time, I will be the seeker!"
Kunou actually jumped for joy. Her Onii-chan never switched up their usual roles! He always insisted that she be the seeker since it would help make her stronger or something. Kunou didn't really get it, but her Onii-chan was smart so she always went along with it!
"Okay! Okay!" she squealed. "Cover your eyes! I'll go hide!"
Onari smiled at the enthusiasm his adorable younger sister was showing. He nodded, turning around and covering his eyes. He heard the rustle of leaves as Kunou quickly sprinted away. He counted to ten out loud, projecting his voice so she could hear him.
The count ended, and Onari began seeking his little sister. They were both familiar with this forest, and knew it had a plethora of spots to hide away in. Onari knew he could just use his supernatural senses to easily find Kunou, but that would just take away the fun for both of them. He spoke loudly as he searched.
"Oh, I wonder where my sister could have gotten off to. What a shame. I guess I'll just have to eat all these tasty dango by myself then," Onari declared in a faux dramatic fashion.
The trees giggled in response, "I'm not gonna fall for a trick that simple, silly Onii-chan~"
Hide and seek was a surprisingly fun game when both players were genetically predisposed to illusions.
"Oh yeah?" Onari called back, his face breaking into a fond smile. "What about this?"
The illusionary scent of Kunou's favorite sweet -- Sata andagi -- filled the forest. Onari hid a smirk and pretended not to notice the bush behind him that suddenly shook and changed colors. The bush continued to follow him as he walked through the forest, making a show of searching for Kunou.
He subtly wove his own illusion over his body. The illusionary Onari kept searching like nothing had happened as the real Onari snuck around behind the disguised Kunou.
"Boo!" Onari laughed as he jumped Kunou, breaking through her illusion to hug his adorable little sister.
"Ahh!" Kunou squealed and giggled as she playfully squirmed and kicked within Onari's arms.
"I seem to have won. This must be my prize: a precious little sister for me to take home to mother!"
Onari swung Kunou onto his back. Her arms wrapped around his neck in a piggyback position. She nuzzled him in an affectionate fashion.
"Time to go home?" Onari asked.
Kunou made an affirmative noise into the skin of his neck, "Mmm, un."
Onari started the short trek home. He hummed a familiar tune as he walked. Kunou joined him in humming the song that their mother liked to sing to them.