Progress

Kazuki and Tian-Han are on the training ground. Bokken in hands, they repeat movements together on the dummies. Kazuki never loved training so much. He swings the bokken with enthusiasm. Tian-Han really appreciates his energy. The both of them trained the whole day. The contact between the wooden bokken and the wooden dummy produces a distinct wooden-on-wood sound. It's a solid and resonant noise, echoing the connection between the two hard surfaces. As Tian-Han strikes the dummy repeatedly, a rhythmic pattern of impacts emerges. However Kazuki takes time before getting on the same rhymes, not having the same strength and stamina as his master.

"- You're really good at it. Some more training and you'll fight against me !

- I'll win and become better than you !

- I hope so ! And I'll also show you how to use some more weapons too !"

Both of them are tired from this day. Tian-Han prepares a quick meal and they head to their bedroom after rapidly restoring, getting their body and mind ready for another day.

The next day was a gathering day. Together, they went into the forest to cut some trees. Once again, the sharp sound of the iron resonates in the silent forest. The blade of the axe meets the curved and hard surface of the tree trunks. Trees fell on the ground with a high-pitched creaking. The day was spent cutting the trunks into smaller wooden pieces. As the old man charges them on some kind of backpack, he tells Kazuki to take the two buckets and get some water from the river because they don't have enough right now.

He takes the bucket and gets to the river. There, he fills them up to the bring. The buckets are heavy. He has difficulties holding them, which forces him to take some breaks once in a while. After some time, he finally gets the water to the temple where Tian-Han helps him right after finishing putting the wood in its place. 

After a nice meal of meat and soup prepared by Tian-Han, which warmed them up against the cold of the night, both of them went to sleep for another resting night.

And as the sun is setting up on a new day, both of their bedrooms are empty. The Master and the Student are already outside, near the pond. Kazuki sits in the water while his master looks at him from a rock.

"Focus yourself on the water. Feels it."

In Kazuki's head, there was only him. Him and the sensation of the water below him. Everything around him turned from the usual darkness to the clear infinite ocean. He knows that he is able to keep this world open by himself. And he also knows what Tian-Han is about to do.

"Lower your defenses. Expand yourself until you reach me. Until you feel me."

As Kazuki tries, he does reach Tian-Han but he doesn't stop there. He keeps expanding himself to a point where he can't keep track of where he is. Slowly, he starts to fade into the world. People start appearing in his world. A young boy, with red hair, looks at him from afar. The others look like shadows. Someone grabs Kazuki's hand in his inner world. He turns around to face Tian-Han.

"Do not expand yourself too much. It's dangerous. Focus on me and only on me. Retract your boundaries."

As he listens to his master, he tries to focus on the task. But it's hard for him. He manages to retract his inner world, to a range still too wide but enough to contain only him and Tian-Han. Their spirits connect to each other. Holes appear in the sky and pillars of stone emerge from the water. The shadows and the young boy with red hair slowly fade away. 

"- Alright. That's good enough. Why didn't you stop when you reached me ?

- I didn't know I reached you.

- How so ? You didn't feel nor heard me ?

- No I didn't."

Tian-Han seems to look around in this empty place. Kazuki follows him with his eyes but yet doesn't understand what he is doing.

"- Did you notice it ?

- Notice what ?

- The scar.

- The scar ? which scar ? There is nothing but water and rocks here…"

The old man points under his feet. He points at the water. He points at the depth, the bottomless dark under the surface of the water.

"It's where the scar is. Here, you're only at the surface of yourself it seems. Only what extern people can see. And only the base of your art. I think it was the night of the incident. The pressure of their powers must have left a mark, a scar which disturbs your usage of the Art. It's not something you could get rid of easily. But it doesn't mean you can't learn the ways of using Art. However, it would be like fighting with one arm amputated. You'll be incomplete. I don't know how far you'll be able to go with this. But there is only one way to find out.. and it's by teaching you your first lesson about the 4 basics of Art manipulation."