Watchers

Kagura watched them from the shadows.

Cymaria was talking to Riku about fertilizer and mulching. Spiritual herbs had a way of really draining the land of nutrients at a rapid pace. Riku was nodding along, half in a daze. Kagura wondered if he was actually listening.

Silently, she watched, then twitched as if she wanted to go out and join them, but ultimately, she withdrew, and left them in peace.

A tremor in the ground called for her attention. She ignored it for a moment, but it repeated again, and then a third time, insistently.

With a sigh, she crouched and touched the ground with her hand. Life Force pulsed outward from her palm.

There arrived a flow of voice and thought on the other side of the tremor. [Kagura, report.]

Kagura hesitated. [The Ji Clan declared war upon the survivor of the Xi Clan for the land. The war appears to be… harmless. Almost friendly.]

[Harmless??]

[So severely limited as to prevent deaths or large scale damage. Also limited to the younger generation only. On top of that, at least one of the Ji clan appears to be attempting some sort of conciliation.]

[Noted. What of the Zhong and Wu clans?]

[On those fronts, I have no new information to report.]

[Very well, then. Next scheduled contact…]

[Captain, wait. There is one more thing.]

[Speak.]

[I have the opportunity to directly contact and collaborate with Xi Riku.]

There was a short pause. [Do as you see fit, but, as always, maintain cover.]

[Understood.]

The vague tremors faded. Kagura stood up and eyed Riku and Cymaria for another brief moment, but she did not approach them at this time. Instead, she went to find something to eat.

***

Ruyi watched them from the balcony outside her room on the east wing.

She had a scowl on her face and both fists were clenched. Her eyes were narrowed, and there was a dark look in them.

"Hmpfh!" with a snort, Ruyi left the balcony.

She went directly to Tu's grave site. Riku and Cymaria paused when she arrived, their chatter trailing off awkwardly. Ignoring them, Ruyi laid flowers upon the grave and said, "We'll avenge you, Huang Tu! We'll get those spiders, and anyone who sides with them!"

"Spiders?" Cymaria frowned. "Are you referring to the Zhizhu family?"

Ruyi didn't answer her. She just saluted Tu's grave and turned around to leave. As she passed by Cymaria, she deliberately slowed and said as if talking to herself. "Them, and ANYONE who helps them."

Having said so, she stalked away proudly, the princess of her own territory, leaving Riku scratching his head next to the girl whose family very much happened to be friends with the Zhizhu siblings.

***

Jin watched them from the dojo. He looked jealous.

As if gaining sudden motivation, he began to work out in earnest.

More weight! More speed! More sweat! More effort!

Even Riku could rank 8th! He only just joined the 5 Elements! What about Jin? It had already been years, and still… still…

Harder! Tougher! Stronger! As unyielding as metal! As sharp as a blade! As…

"OW!" Jin felt something give way in his arm. He stopped, gritting his teeth. With sweat streaming down his face, he tried to grasp the dumb bell and raise it once more. "Aargh!"

This time, the dumb bell dropped almost upon his foot. Jin stumbled back, holding on to his arm and trying not to scream in pain.

Iron skin could not protect him against torn muscles.

With a groan, Jin went to find Shui. "I need help."

Shui perked up. "If it's about girls, you've come to the right place!"

"That's not it!" Jin spluttered. "It's my arm! I need medicine!"

Shui inspected the arm, pressed it a little. Jin yelped. Shui shook his head. "I'll prepare you one of my special medicinal baths. Soak that arm and keep it warm. But don't keep overdoing it. I'm already running low on ingredients this season."

"I thought we grew our own herbs." Jin protested.

"We do. That's why I'm running short." Shui shook his head. "Maybe we should start buying them. I'll talk to Madam Huang about it."

"Should I pay you back?" Jin asked. "How much does it cost?"

"For one bath like the kind I'm going to prep for you? 120 Lir, at least." Shui guessed.

Jin gaped. "That's expensive!"

"It is." Shui agreed. "So don't keep injuring yourself. Got that?"

"Got it." He said.

But Shui didn't look very assured. He looked out the window to where Riku and Cymaria were once again tending to herbs and shook his head, muttering to himself.

***

To be honest, Shui wasn't entirely concerned about Jin and girls. He wasn't even concerned about Riku and girls. Not even if the girl in question was Ji Cymaria.

No, Shui was concerned about himself and just one girl in particular. She had nothing to do with Riku, nothing to do with the Ji Clan or the spiders or anything of that sort. She was blessedly separate and uninvolved with any of Riku's, or Jin's or any of the other Huangs' issues.

In other words, he had her and her problems all to himself. It was a pretty straightforward dilemma. Either he went all-in to help her out, and very likely committed himself for life, or he backed away before he got in too deep. Whatever he decided, the choice was entirely his.

Was it really a good idea to commit to her? Would it clash with his role and responsibilities as one of the 5 Elements, one of the Closer Disciples of Magistrate Huang? Shui didn't think so, but he still felt uneasy about it. There shouldn't be a problem, right? Right?

Maybe he better talk to Master Huang about it. But bothering the Magistrate about his girl problems really did not seem appropriate. Maybe he should talk to Madam Huang instead?

Yes. That seemed more suitable. Surely she would know Master Huang's mind about such matters. Of course she would.

***

Lastly, Master Huang himself monitored their Life Force from all the way over at the drill yard. He made no move to stop them, or to interfere in any way, but he stroked his beard thoughtfully and frowned so fiercely that the Regular Disciples practicing in front of him started to get nervous.

"What's wrong?" Madam Huang asked concernedly.

"I need to take that boy away from here." Master Huang said shortly. "Show him the world outside. Have him meet new people, and see that there are so many possibilities out there, so many fish in the sea…"

"You mean, you want to get him away from the Ji girls." Madam Huang raised an eyebrow. "And Ruyi."

"That, too." Master Huang admitted. "It wasn't like this with Huo or Shui. Even Jin goes off on his own to explore town once in a while. But Riku hasn't left Summer Pavilion even when he has permission."

"Maybe he just wants to focus on cultivation." Madam Huang suggested.

"He seems more intent on cultivating plants and cultivating a relationship with that girl than one cultivating Life Force." Master Huang grumbled. "He definitely has talent in earth element; his Stone Skin technique proves that. But his progress in the Five Elements technique is slow."

"He's faster than his predecessor. Tu needed years to reach Third Stage. He's only had weeks. Give him some time."

"We don't have that much time!"

Madam Huang let out a very slow sigh. "Are you still hung up on the Summit?"

Master Huang did not answer that. Not one word.