The Start, The Progression

The week finally comes to an end and now it's time for the academy to open and become the next step for all youth. Ziku wakes up early and he wakes his mom up, rushing her to get ready and hurrying her to take him to the academy. Kame does the same just as excited, but Jaken is unable to attend with him and Kenshi because she has to take care of business. Aiko walks by herself, but she lives far so she's most likely to arrive late. Omoi is in a deep sleep. Luckily for him Ziku and Natsumi were passing by and Ziku knocked on his window waking him up along with Mina. They get dressed in a hurry and all of them attend together.

When they all arrive, the parents are told to stay behind as they testing for the qualified begins shortly. Ziku looks around and he sees lots of kids he's never seen before or even knew were apart of the village. Him and Kame end up making eye contact and they just stare at each other intensely. It goes on for awhile until Omoi grabs Ziku shoulder and starts talking to him. Ziku starts thinking where Aiko must be, he blocks out everything else to see if he can find her, but she's just not there. Then there's an announcement that says they will be finalizing everyone who joined the academy and will not be accepting any late entries. Which means Aiko would have to join 10 years from now. Which she wouldn't be able to do since the age limit is 16. There's 20 minutes left until everything is finalized and the academy closes to the outside.

Ziku gets worried, so he decides to just go look for her. He heads in the direction of where they first met. When he arrives, she's not there so he decides to just walk further in that direction hoping that maybe he would run into her. Then he hears a melody again, but this ones different, this one has a sadness and sorrow type feel. An anthem of lonely feeling. Ziku follows it totally distracted by it. When he arrives at where it's coming from he sees Aiko sitting and crying. He just stares at her as she turns around exposing her tears. Ziku just stands there not knowing what to do.

Aiko: " How do you always find me?"

She stands up and walks towards Ziku. She's still crying as she puts her hand on Ziku's face. Ziku grabs her hand off his face and places his other hand on top. This makes Aiko blush. Ziku smiles big and then runs while holding Aiko's hand. As they run, Aiko cancels out everything around them as she only sees Ziku and her eyes get big. This is a feeling she has never felt before, since this is the first time someone took a liking to her or even acknowledged her. Time goes by and they arrive at the academy with only 2 minutes left. Aiko lets go of his hand and just stops.

Aiko: " I can't."

Ziku: "It's ok, you belong here just as much as anyone else."

When she hears that, she gasps with a sincere expression and begins to blush. She sticks her hand out wanting Ziku to grab it, which he does as he walks with her into the academy and just in time as the doors close and all students are accounted for and the academy has been finalized. Everyone is welcomed in and told to line up across the entrance. There are 21 students in total.

Of all 21 students. Kotai is the biggest standing at a whopping 180cm being only 12. While the smallest is Poku being 150cm also 12. The oldest was Limbo at 13. While the youngest was Ziku, being the last one to turn 10.

Bokutso- 173cm age 12

Kisaiju- 170cm age 12

Bezune- 170cm age 12

Limbo- 167cm age 13

Kanju- 165cm age 12

Kame - 165cm age 11

Senpu- 165cm age 12

Hiroyuki- 165cm age 12

Shizuko- 165cm age 12

Omoi- 163cm age 11

Ziku- 160cm age 10

Jiro- 160cm age 10

Shiro- 159cm age 11

Isamu- 157cm age 11

Mireko- 157cm age 11

Chiori- 155cm age 12

Aiko- 155cm age 12

Kireina- 154cm age 12

Mikoto- 152cm age 12

With everyone being measured it was time to move on. The whole time Aiko has spoken to no one but Ziku. She follows him everywhere, but Ziku knows how she's feeling so he held her hand through everything. Aiko looks around and sees everyone looking at her and she's feeling judged, but she looks at Ziku and notices that he hasn't stopped smiling.

Just as she begins to smile with him, the worst possible situation for Aiko is about to take place. Separation of gender. Obviously the gender ratio is skewed with there being 7 females to 14 males. Aiko tries to hide behind Ziku, but her hiding was not going to last forever. Just like that the males and females were separated. Before Aiko left she turned and looked at Ziku and saw his mouth form the words " It's ok." With a smile.

The female instructor Mai takes them to the female training facility and shows them around the academy getting them use to everything. As she is showing them all around she notices Aiko is sad and looking down. She goes to her.

Mai: "What's wrong? Aiko right?"

Aiko: "Yes. It's just I only know one person here and I wanted to stay by his side since it was easier."

Mai: "You're talking about Ziku huh? He's really sweet for keeping you by his side and holding your hand making sure you stay calm."

Aiko blushes

Aiko: "It's just that he's my only friend and he's the reason I even joined this academy. And Ziku was the first person who saw who I am on the inside instead of looking at only the outside and not liking me for being different."

Mai: "Look. Ziku sounds like the sweetest and you're very lucky to have met him. But I'm here to tell you that you don't have to worry about any of that. You are beautiful and you will grow into a beautiful and strong woman. Don't let the outside stop you from becoming great. Me and the females of this group will always be by you. Even though you don't even know each other yet, my job is to help all of you create a special bond with each other and show the world that us women can be just as strong as the men of this world!"

Aiko smiles as she hugs Mai and all the other girls join the hug. This being a feeling Aiko has never felt before.

All the guys are standing in a line shoulder to shoulder. The grandmaster walks forward and looks at all of them.

Aizu:" This next test will show me who really has the heart to become a warrior. A great one at that.You guys are strong, your mind is afraid, but is your heart? What is your heart telling you? Will you listen? Let's see who deserves to be called a warrior.

Aizu releases tons of energy, surrounding his body with aura.

Aizu: " Part of being a warrior is never giving up, even when you know you're outclassed. Just because someone is stronger than you does not mean they can't be defeated. I want you guys to remember that. Now I want you guys to overcome the fear that is overpowering you, whoever that is able to attack me will move on."

Hiroyuki: " All we have to do is attack?"

Hiroyuki tried to attack, but his body doesn't move at all. As he looks confused he looks around and notices everyone else can't move either.

Aizu :" Like I said. Your bodies and mind know you are outclassed. Are you going to let that determine who you are and what type of warrior you will become?

Kame: " I will not let fear stand in the way of me becoming a strong warrior!"

Kame's aura surrounds his body as he begins to move forward slowly. Seeing that makes all the other boys gain confidence as all their aura rises and they begin to move forward.

Aizu notices that Ziku hasn't moved yet or even attempted anything.

Aizu :" What's wrong Ziku? Are you completely overtaken by fear? How do you expect to become the strongest warrior if you can't even override your own fear? This world is full of war, you can't possibly fight as you are now!"

Ziku looks at him and begins to walk forward without any trouble. Ziku just casually walks towards Aizu.

Ziku: " I never said I was scared of you, I never said I wanted to be the strongest warrior. I don't want to fight in wars I plan to end them entirely. It's war that creates this cycle, the cycle that prevents us from obtaining peace."

Aizu smiles.

Aizu: "You have the qualities of a great warrior and even greater emperor."

Ziku: " I would rather be a good man than a great emperor."

Ziku continues to walk and then he reaches Aizu. When he reaches him Ziku looks up to him and smiles making Aizu smile.

Aizu thinks to himself that judging by aura he can tell that Hiroyuki far exceeds anyone else's. That Hiroyuki is a natural talent. Hiroyuki and his strength are great, but the strength of Ziku's heart and mind are far above anyone's. It even exceeds that of the emperor and his own.

The next person to reach Aizu is Shizuko, But was it the strength of his heart that got him here, or was it jealousy? Then Kame reaches Aizu, after is Hiroyuki and Omoi at the same time. From that point on its awhile before anyone else reaches Aizu, but the rest were able to reach Aizu together. From that point, Aizu knew that every single one of the students each had something great about them. He didn't expect all of them to pass.

Aizu dismisses everyone to go inside the lounge and wait for further instruction. He ends up stopping Ziku so he can talk to him.

Aizu: " What is the real reason you joined this academy. You made it clear that you wouldn't fight in any war."

Ziku " In a way I think I only joined because it was the thing to do. When I first I saw the poster I was excited to be apart of something with my friend. Recently though I've been losing the interest to fight all together, I've grown more passive. But I know there's a way I could make a difference without fighting and that's what I'll do!"

Aizu: " I see. It's a noble idea. But I want to tell you that in this world it's nearly impossible to try and make a change, without confronting conflict of any sort. You may not want to fight, but there will come times where fighting is inevitable and you may have to in order to protect and gain."

Ziku: " All I can do is try."

Aizu: " You're right, our lives are so simplistic, yet you never get what you want. You can't avoid what drives us!"

Ziku: " Not alone I can't."

Aizu just looks at Ziku and watches him as he turns around and walks towards the lounge. Aizu thinks to himself how much suffering it must have took for Ziku to think like this at such a young age.

Ziku walks in the lounge and everyone is staring at him. He grabs food and notices Aiko waving her hand for him to come sit with her and Omoi. Ziku sits with them and looks around only to notice everyone is still staring at him.

Ziku: " Is it just me, or is everyone staring at me?"

Omoi: " Phew, I thought they were looking at me."

Ziku: " I don't get it, what did I do?"

Omoi: " Just don't worry about it."

Ziku: " Yeah. Hmmm. So how was your day Aiko?"

Aiko: " It was way better than I expected, I feel at home here. Thank you Ziku!"

Ziku: " See I told you that you would be fine!"

Ziku smiles at her with his eyes closed making her smile and blush.

Aizu: " Alright everyone. You're done for today!"

No one moves everyone just stares at each other.

Aizu: " That means Go HOME!"

All the students begin to leave, their first day being the easiest to come. What's in store for them next?

Ziku, Omoi, and Aiko walk outside. Once they leave the academy grounds Ziku is confronted. Kame, Shizuko, Kisaiju, and Jiro all walk up to him. Not knowing what to expect Omoi steps to Ziku's side.

Kanju: "What you said back there, it's kinda stupid. You can't expect to end all the fighting and stop war from waging. Hatred is what drives this world. Everyone has a form of hatred, no matter what you think you still will be overwhelmed by hatred. You won't like the outcome."

Kanju leaves.

Ziku just stares at Kanju watching him leave.

Shizuko: " Don't think you're better than anyone here. Nakamura trash."

After he says this it causes Ziku's face to change.

Aiko: "Don't worry about them they're just trying to anger you and make you do something you'll regret."

It's doesn't seem to work as she can plainly see that Ziku is still angered. So she puts both her hands on his chest in hopes of calming him down. When she does it makes Ziku relax and become less tense.

Ziku: "So what do you two want?"

Jiro: "I came over to meet you. Me and my brother Shizuko are completely opposite. Sorry about him, I better go I wish you guys the best of luck in this academy."

Kame: " I do not know why, but I feel me and you are the same. That being said I want to fight you!"

Ziku: "Why do I feel like everyone Is gonna want a piece of me?"

Kame: " I will see you tomorrow."

Ziku nods, then Kame leaves and walks home.

Omoi: " Well you know what they say?"

Ziku and Aiko look at Omoi.

Omoi: "What?"

Ziku laughs ....

Ziku: " Come with me to walk Aiko home."

Aiko: "Oh you guys don't have to."

Ziku: "It's okay I want to."

Omoi: " So why do I have to come?"

Ziku: " Because you're my friend!"

Omoi: " I'm going home."

Ziku: " Awwwww. Well alright. Be careful Omoi."

Omoi nods and him and Ziku do their handshake as Ziku watches Omoi walk away until he isn't visible. Ziku then gestures to Aiko telling her this way as they begin walking to Aiko's house.

Aiko: " So can I ask why you decided to walk me home?"

Ziku: " Well it kinda sounds like you don't want me to."

Aiko: " No, I do it's just that .... "

Ziku: " I don't know. I guess cause you live so far from the academy and I don't want you to walk alone."

Aiko: " I don't mind the company, but it seems out of your way."

Ziku: " It's fine, I don't mind. Besides for you, nothing would be out of my way."

Aiko blushes

She stays silent for awhile as they just walk. For 10 minutes straight, Aiko's has been quiet, but the whole time she was blushing.

Aiko: " So how come you got mad when he said "Nakamura trash" ?"

Ziku: " Because according to my mom. We are the last Nakamuras and for anyone to degrade my clan, I don't know I guess it triggered something in me."

Aiko: " I see. Well we're here. Thank you so much for walking with me, see you tomorrow Bye."

Ziku waves bye then turns around to start walking home. When he turns to leave, Aiko watches him through her window. After he's out of sight, she sighs then goes through her house. Aiko lives alone in a house that's far from the academy and far from anyone in the village. It would be a total loss, but Aiko has the animals in the forest to keep her company and now she has Ziku who walks her home, which she tries to enjoy.

Ziku gets home, greets his mother and goes straight to his room just to lay down on his bed staring at the ceiling. Ziku ends up staring at his ceiling for almost 3 hours just thinking about whether or not he has made the right decision. It breaks when his mom tells him it's time to eat dinner.

Natsumi: " How was your first day?"

Ziku doesn't respond as he just keeps moving his food back and forth.

Natsumi: " Ziku!?"

Ziku: "Oh, sorry, it's just that I've been deciding whether or not I want to continue the academy."

Natsumi: "Did something happen?"

Ziku: "No. it's just the grandmaster told me that it's impossible to live a life without fighting and in some shape or form, everyone deals with hatred. My main reason for joining was to learn and find a way to create peace, if I can't do that then what's the point? Only reason I don't want to quit is because of Omoi and Aiko, I can't just leave them."

Natsumi: "Ziku, you take so much after your father. All I can tell you is, do what you think is right. You're not selfish, so I don't need to tell you that you don't do what's right for just you, make sure your decision affects those around for the better."

Ziku looks down, takes his plate over to the sink and cleans it off. He tells Natsumi that he will clean up everything and that she should go to bed. It's late at night and Ziku stays up cleaning the whole house. When he finishes he decides to make his decision on whether or not he will go tomorrow in the morning.

The next morning he decides to go. Before he leaves he goes in his mothers room and sees her asleep. Instead of waking her up he pulls the blanket to cover her and heads out. Ziku has 30 minutes to get to the academy so he starts to walk. While he's walking, a lemur jumps on his shoulder and immediately takes a liking to Ziku. Ziku just lets the lemur chill on his shoulder and treats him as a friend. In order for Ziku to get to the academy he has to go through main part of the village where most people are either shopping or just hanging out. Ziku stops at a store to buy food for the lemur and feeds it while it's on his shoulder. Then Ziku sees an old lady struggling to carry her bags, so without any hesitation he helps her carry her bags all the way to her home. She thanks Ziku and gives him a hug sending him off his way to the academy. Then there is a little boy who tries to go for his ball, but it stops on the tracks where a train that brings people to and from main points in the village is about to stop. The boy runs and tries to get the ball, he grabs it, but stops like a deer in headlights about to get hit. He almost gets hit, but then Ziku grabs him just in time out of the way and places him on the ground safely. The boy looks at Ziku with tears in his eyes and just runs home. Ziku watches him for a bit only to hear cheering and people applauding. When he turns around he sees everyone in the area clapping and cheering. Ziku smiles, waving at everyone. Then girls come up to him wanting him to go with them, but Ziku denies It without any hesitation. He looks up at the clock tower and sees that he is 7 minutes late for class. He gets paranoid and dashes to class, creating a streak of dust. Ziku finally gets to class, he opens the door and everyone is looking at him, Ziku smiles with his eyes closed putting his hand on his head and rubbing it nervously. He just stands there until he is told to sit down.

Of course Ziku sits next to Omoi. With Aiko behind him.

Omoi: "Why were you late?

Ziku: " It just happened, I guess I just lost track of time."

Aizu: " I will be your instructor. I will be teaching you guys basic principles and basic aspects of becoming a warrior."

Aizu looks at everyone, but as he is skimming through the room he stops and locks on Ziku. Then he glances over to Kame and locks on him.

Aizu think so himself: " These two have exceptional Chi, just them merely being here creates a strong presence in the class. As it stands now Kame's Chi is on par with Hozu's. But Ziku... His Chi passes both mine and Asuna's. I guess that'll be the first lesson."

Bezune: " When are we going to get started?"

Aizu: " Oh, sorry, your first lesson will be on Chi! Can anyone tell me what Chi is?"

Kanju: " Is it life force energy that makes up all beings in the universe?"

Aizu: " Yes, very good! As Kisaiju said, Chi is life force energy that is coursing through all beings within the universe. Chi is the main source of our energy flow. Chi is what give us the abilities we use. The more Chi someone has the harder it is to control. It also goes without saying that the more chi a person has, the stronger their attacks are. With Chi, our natural abilities and skills are enhanced greatly. Ah it seems my time is up we will go over everything else tomorrow. It's now time for you to meet your other teachers let's go."

Aizu takes them to a large room and explains to them that this is where they learn how to perfect their abilities and figure out how to use them properly with each other. For that Hozu is the teacher. Then he takes them outside as they see a teacher just sitting and meditating, Ziku recognizes him and goes up to him.

Aizu: " This is the battleground where you guys will learn to fight, this is where you master martial arts and prepare yourself for battle. This battleground is yours to use outside of class and teaching so whenever you want to train you are welcome to do so here."

Ziku steps in front of Asuna.

Ziku: "Hey Asuna."

Asuna opens his eyes slowly and slowly begins to descend back to the ground.

Asuna: " Hmph. Honestly didn't think I would see you here kid."

Ziku: "I guess I found a reason to be here."

Aizu: "It seems Ziku and Asuna already know each other, but Asuna will be your teacher."

Asuna: "What you learn from is yours to do as you please, with that being said, what you choose to do with said knowledge is up to you and ultimately determines the outcome of your future."

Aizu: "With that being said, you may all go home."

Shizuko: "We don't even get to train today?"

Aizu: " Nope. Go home!"

Everyone gets scared and they all rush out of the academy not wanting to upset Aizu.

Everyone leaves. Ziku walks out and sees Aiko waiting for him as they both smile. When they start walking Kanju jumps in front of them wanting to fight Ziku.

Kisaiju: "Come on Nakamura, lets go a round?"

Ziku: "Don't call me that."

Kanju: "I refer to everyone by their clan name or last name in general, it's just how I am."

Ziku: "Hmm, I see, but my name is Ziku,use that."

Kisaiju: "How about this; if you beat me I'll call you Ziku. Deal?"

Ziku: "That's a dumb reason to fight someone."

Kisaiju: "Ahhh! Stop being so ignorant and fight me already. I don't care. And I don't want to hear none of your ideology shit on why you don't want to fight. So let's go, Now!"

Before Ziku can respond Kisaiju's sister comes to pick him up.

Kisaiju: "We will fight Nakamura and When we do I'm gonna kick your ass!"

Ziku and Aiko look at each other. Then Ziku shrugs and they begin walking home.