06. Well begun is half done.

"Already charming the airhead, that's MY Kazuki."

Kazuki felt something strange hearing Kyoko who had stayed silent during the entire encounter say that. He thought that she would be jealous but her tone seemed proud of him. 

Seeing his confused face Kyoko broke into a smile before saying. 

"How can I not be proud when the woman that has the most impenetrable guard in this school seemed quite interested in my Kazu?" She asked before continuing, "Her airheadedness is famous through school, nobody who has tried to flirt with her got their meaning across or fazed her in any way. But you did."

"I don't think I did anything great, I just treated her with respect instead of like a juicy piece of meat." Kazuki said, confused.

"And that's exactly the thing about you that makes you so charming my dear, and why I won't get jealous of you. I know that many girls will fall for you, and I can have you all to myself at home, so if you want to you can go after the nurse." Kyoko said with clear eyes and a smile on her face, but a second later Kazuki felt a chill in his spine as her eyes lost all their warmth and seemed like two dark pools that wanted to swallow him whole, while she maintained her smile and said, "Just remember that you can't leave your nee-chan alone, okay?"

He hurriedly nodded his head as he noticed the danger. Thinking that this should be stopped before it develops to a point of no return. He took a look around and making sure that they were alone, he approached her and kissed her lips with a slow kiss. 

He then went back to his position and said with a smile, "You don't need to worry about that as I'm not letting you go. Now let's continue."

Kazuki went ahead leaving a shocked and trembling Kyoko who was breathing heavily behind. 

After a few seconds to get her bearings, she noticed Kazuki had already gone ahead and while pouting she followed him.

'I will have him inside me this week!'

… 

A few minutes of walking in comfortable silence later, they got close to the kendo club. The sounds of the shinai hitting each other echoed around and the shouts made it obvious they were practicing. 

Entering the building they saw two students facing each other, their gender hard to know due to their getup. Kazuki looked around in wonder, it's something to see this in anime but there was an itch in his weeb heart that made this experience quite magical. 

The two students then started to fight, their moves were quite precise and he could see how they moved and a bit of their footwork. 

'Yep, this is cool. My teenager heart rejoices.'

Taking his eyes away from the ongoing training he looked around and counted 12 students,

'If this school has around 1 thousand students, then this club might be quite popular. After all, there's an astronomy club and even a ping-pong club so the students might be quite spread out between them all.' He thought. 

Taking him out of his reverie was the arrival of some girls who were looking at him with curious eyes, they looked at his exposed muscular arms and then at his face. The one ahead of the group was the calmest of them and with a serene voice and behavior that screamed "Yamato Nadeshiko" spoke to Kyoko. 

"Good morning Hayashi-sensei. May I ask how I could be of help?" The girl was Saeko Busujima, another main character and one of Kazuki's most loved ones.

Saeko possesses straight and lustrous thigh-length purple hair with a triangular fringe at the front that lightly grazes the bridge of her nose. Her striking blue eyes complement her overall appearance. Taller than the average Japanese girl, Saeko's relatively long limbs add leverage to her formidable sword swings. Her lips, often highlighted in the manga, boast a glossy pink appearance.

'She's amazing!' Kazuki almost broke his calm exterior, but couldn't hide the shine of admiration and interest in his eyes as soon as he made eye contact with her.

Kyoko then went ahead to speak and do the honors.

"Good morning Busujima-san, I see you all are hard at practice again good job. I'm not really the one who wants help but there is something you could do for me, this is the new transfer student. He will be 3-A together with you, he lived in Brazil until last week, he doesn't look like it but he is half Japanese so there is no need to be nervous. Now I need to go to my club, Kazuki-kun, after you're done just wait for me close to the car, ok? Bye." Kyoko then went away leaving Kazuki to figure out his next moves with the kendo club.

"Ok, will do. Thank you for the help. Well, first things first, right? Good morning it's a pleasure to meet you, I'm Kazuki Mendes Kurosawa but as I'm too used to the Brazilian way, you can just call me Kazuki, or Kazu-kun whichever is fine. I'm not one to care about superficial politeness so don't be afraid to speak with me okay? May I know your names, please?"

A bit overwhelmed by Kazuki's energy and how approachable he was the three girls nodded a bit relieved and even more curious about this new student.

Saeko went ahead as their leader and answered him.

"Good day to you too, Kazuki-san, my name is Saeko Busujima, the one on my right is Shura Kirigakure, and the one on the left is called Kasumi Miwa, they're both third years as well but from classes B and C." Saeko introduced the two girls that were with her to Kazuki, he paused when he heard their names and then started to pay attention to their appearance.

Shura exudes a distinct Gal aesthetic, characterized by her long, faded red hair, resembling flames with blonde ends, styled in a high ponytail. Complementing her appearance are her green eyes and full lips. With a curvaceous figure boasting what seems to be an E-cup, Shura confidently dons a school uniform, deliberately unbuttoned to reveal a hint of cleavage, paired with a skirt that sits above her knees. This ensemble seems like a deliberate choice, showcasing Shura's style with flair.

Kasumi though is the opposite, she seems like a straight-A student, she has long, light blue hair that extends past her shoulders and frames her forehead. She also has dark, triangular eyebrows and asymmetric bangs. She has a slim body that seems agile and dons her school uniform in a prim and proper way contrasting Shura's.

'No fucking way, I hope it's just their appearance.' Thought Kazuki without much hope. 'If this world mixes a few things, shit is going to hit the industrial fan'.

"Hello Saeko-san, Shura-san, and Kasumi-san, I hope that this meeting makes for a great start to our friendship. Now, if you have any questions you can ask me, I promise to answer anything." Kazuki said with a relaxed smile while looking into their eyes.

"First-name basis already? You work fast," said Shura with a teasing smile, "I like it. If you're at our club on a Saturday, I think we will meet again soon so I'm going to my practice. Nice to meet you handsome." Shura then walked away just with a greeting.

"Oh, I'm sorry." Said Kazuki while looking at the two who stayed, "I'm so used to that that I default to calling people by their name, would that bother you two?" Again he looked in their eyes with an easygoing smile.

Kasumi Miwa blushed a bit after looking at him but still answered.

"I don't have a problem with it either Kazuki-san, it feels like we're friends already when you talk like that, so you can continue. I need to go to the teacher's lounge for a bit, it's a pleasure to meet you." She said with an even tone, but inside she was screaming while blushing, 'Ohmygod, why do I have to go away now? I want to get to know this hunk! He's calling me by my first name! This is the first time a guy does that, and it doesn't bother me at all!'

Being the only one left and the only one who hasn't spoken yet, Saeko then responded.

"Ara, Kazuki-san, while some people would feel that it's a form of discourtesy, I think that excessive politeness makes for shallow relationships. But, can I ask why you've come to our club?" Saeko said with a little smile and a look of interest about Kazuki's intentions.

Kazuki began, offering a respectful bow. "Thank you, for your kindness."

After saying that he noticed her eyes tremble a little. 'Yep, she gets triggered by people calling her kind, she might even be thinking that I only say that because I don't know her, but fear not my dear Saeko, I will take care of you.' He thought before continuing his speech according to his plan.

"I was wondering if I could join the Kendo club. I've always been fascinated by martial arts, and I believe it would be a great opportunity for self-improvement."

Saeko studied Kazuki for a moment, assessing his sincerity. "Self-improvement, you say?" she echoed, a hint of a smile playing on her lips. "It's not every day we get someone interested in joining. What exactly are you looking to achieve, Kazuki-kun?"

Kazuki met her gaze, his expression was earnest. "I want to push my limits, both physically and mentally. I believe that by challenging myself in the Kendo club, I can learn to overcome obstacles and become a better version of myself. I want to understand the true potential and limits of my body."

Saeko raised an eyebrow, intrigued by his response 'He is a prideful but humble man. It's my duty to allow him to shine.' she thought. "It seems you're not here just for show. Very well, Kazuki-kun. If you're serious about joining, I suggest you start with a spar. It will give you a taste of what our club entails."

"Thank you, Busujima-san. I'd be honored," Kazuki replied with a determined nod.

The other members of the club stopped their spars while the two prepared for their spar, Kazuki counted 9 girls and just a few boys, donning their bogu and taking their positions in the training area. Saeko observed Kazuki's stance, noting his focus and determination.

As the spar began, Kazuki quickly realized the precision and skill required in Kendo. Saeko moved gracefully, her strikes precise and controlled. Kazuki did his best to keep up, parrying and countering as best he could even though she was taking it easy on him as he was a total newbie. The clash of shinai echoed in the gym as the two engaged in a spirited bout.

Saeko, while pushing Kazuki to his limits, could sense his genuine commitment to improvement. She admired his resilience and dedication to understanding not the art of Kendo, but the art of Battle. His eyes were focused on her and her alone, and he looked hungry, as if he would eat her up to further himself as if he wouldn't let anything get in his path.

Saeko shivered inside, her eyes gleamed with newfound vigor and interest, her mask cracked a little and a smile full of lust emerged on her face. She started to pick the pace, give him harder blows but he was slowly keeping up with her rhythm.

She looked at his arms, she felt a bit disappointed that the bogu covered his sculpted arms, she wanted to see his muscles move during their intense altercation. She then looked at his mask, and for a split second, she thought she saw a mirror, like the mirrored window that she looked at on the day that she became aware of her sinner self. She saw him smile, not the relaxed well-meaning smile that he had before, a battle-lust-crazed smile just like she probably has on her face right now.

He was having as much fun as she was in this spar. Even if he was just a beginner and any club member could beat him, this spar wasn't about that. It may have begun as a way to show him a bit of kendo. But now it was about looking at their inner selves, at their drive to fight and seek strength, their eyes locked during a clash of swords, as they got close they could see the other's reflection in each other's eyes. And both were faces full of desire for each other as if someone who didn't know that they were thirsty finally drank water for the first time.

It was intoxicating, a moment that was finally broken by the applause of the other students who watched their spar that began harmless but before long each hit had their full strength and intent to harm the other.

After a well-fought match, they paused, catching their breath while sweating a lot. Saeko's initial skepticism had evolved into a genuine interest in Kazuki's potential.

This encounter sparked a seed in her heart about something that she hadn't dared to think about before.

"Your determination is commendable, Kazuki-kun. I welcome you to the Kendo Club. I believe you have the spirit needed to be with us". Saeko said, a genuine smile gracing her features.

Kazuki, catching his breath, bowed deeply. "Thank you, Saeko-san. I look forward to learning from you and the rest of the club members."

And so, Kazuki's brief journey in the Kendo club began, marked by self-discovery, and the guidance of Saeko Busujima.