"I smiled on my own?" Felix thought.

"Your father would be happy seeing you smile from heaven," Ryota added.

"If you say so," Felix replied.

Felix didn't know it yet, but in this foreign land, surrounded by danger and intrigue, he had found something unexpected—a bond.

"Well, I am off. I'll let Suzu and Jun know that you're alright." With that, Ryota left.

 

"Okay, so let's get started," Felix said to Kai with enthusiasm.

"Yeah!" replied Kai.

"Now, where did Kimiko go?" Felix looked around.

"She left before you came," Kai said.

"I am here," replied Kimiko from behind Felix.

"Whoa, she is a ninja!" Kai shouted.

"A ninja?" Felix asked.

"Yes, a ninja. Ninjas provide intelligence and protection for the clan leader," Kimiko replied confidently.

"I thought she was a maid," Felix said honestly.

 

"W-what do you mean by 'maid'?" Kimiko shouted, gritting her teeth as if an arrow had struck her.

"Wait!" Kai exclaimed.

"What is it?" Felix asked.

"I-is she your girlfriend?"

"What?!" Kimiko shouted, her cheeks turning red.

"W-what a-are you sayin...?" Kimiko struggled to form her words.

"What's a girlfried?" Felix said, scratching his chin in confusion.

"Sensei, it's 'girlfriend,' not 'girlfried,'" Kai corrected him, looking at Felix with exasperation.

"You really don't know what a girlfriend is?" Kai asked incredulously.

"Even kids my age know!"

"Really? So tell me, what is this 'girlfried'?" Felix replied, still puzzled.

"It's 'girlfriend,' not 'girlfried.'"

"I'll explain it all to you and how to get one later," Kai said, trying to be patient.

"Okay, I'll try to learn about this 'girlfried' thing," Felix said earnestly.

"This is going to take a long time to explain to him," Kai whispered to himself with a deadpan expression. 

"Ouch."

"And you don't need to worry about your Sensei that much," Kimiko smacked Kai on the head.

"Kimiko, would you please show us someplace for training?" Felix asked, still pondering the meaning of 'girlfried.'

"Yes, I surely can," she said while clearing her throat, her cheeks still a bit red.

As they entered the house, Felix and Kai followed Kimiko down the hall. Felix spotted a thick wooden door along the way.

"Where does this door lead?" Felix asked curiously.

"This door leads to a small hill with a big cherry blossom tree," Kimiko replied.

 

"Can we go see it?" Kai questioned eagerly.

"NO! Absolutely not!" Kimiko shouted firmly.

"Why not?" Kai pressed on.

 

 

"If Lady Miku finds out that we opened the door, she won't forgive us—neither in this life nor the next," Kimiko whispered urgently.

"The tree is very precious to Lady Miku; it has been there for over 200 years. It was also important to Lady Miku's father, Lord Tatsuya. Both Lord Tatsuya and his wife's bodies are buried near that tree."

"Yeah, we understand," Felix said solemnly after a few moments.

"Then let's continue to the training room," Kimiko said as they resumed their walk through the corridor.

 

Finally, they arrived at a giant cased opening.

"This is it," Kimiko announced as she stopped in front of the training space.

"Whoa!" Kai shouted, darting inside the room.

"Look, Sensei! There are weapons everywhere!" he exclaimed from the middle of the wooden floor.

"Yeah, I see. Please be careful!" Felix shouted back at him.

"I can't hear you!" Kai shouted over his shoulder.

"I'm leaving you to train now. And please don’t let Lady Miku know that I told you about the gate to the cherry blossom tree!" Kimiko warned them as she turned to leave.

"Alright, you got it!" replied Felix with a grin.

"And don’t even dare tell her about the other thing," she added mysteriously.

"What other thing?" Felix asked, still clueless about what she meant.

"Never mind," she said quickly, her cheeks slightly red as she walked away.

 

"What was that about?" Felix wondered.

"Sensei, you coming or not?" shouted Kai.

Felix walked over to Kai. "You should learn to be more patient."

 

 

"You know what? We should do some patience training. I think I need it too."

"Recently, I've been making some quick decisions without thinking," Felix admitted.

"Then what exactly is this patience training?" Kai asked.

"You want to know?" Felix said with a mischievous grin.

"Sensei? Why are you grinning like that?" Kai asked, his voice filled with concern.

Moments later, Kai discovered the reason behind Felix's grin.

"Why this?" Kai shouted, incredulous.

"Come on, it's fun!" Felix replied.

"No, it's not fun at all!"

"Why not? It's just about trying to stay still on one hand while being upside down."

"How is this supposed to increase my patience?"

 

 

"When you focus on the muscles that support you, it helps you learn to control both your body and mind. It’s all about staying calm under pressure, and it also boosts your patience."

"And how long do we have to do this?" Kai asked.

"At least 10 minutes, and then we’ll move on to the next exercise," Felix replied.

"Ten minutes? And there’s more?" Kai exclaimed, his face turning pale.

"You were the one who promised me that you would give your 1000%!" Felix reminded him.

"I-I never... said... that—ahhh!" Kai couldn't finish his sentence as he collapsed to the ground.

"How can you fall after just three minu—woah!" Felix was also cut off as he too fell down.

"Hahaha! You should focus on the muscles, not on talking," Kai said while mimicking Felix.

"What are you two fools up to?" a voice called out as it approached them.

Felix, lying on his back, saw a figure loom above his head.

"We're just training, miss," he said as he got up to see the figure clearly.

"Wait, I think I’ve seen you somewhere," Felix pondered aloud.

"Augh, not this again," Miku replied with an exasperated sigh.

"I can't believe this! Senesi has another girl. She’s very pretty but also quite intimidating. Wait, is she the same one I saw that day?" Kai thought as he stepped back.

"Wait, you have a ponytail but the same face as Miku," Felix whispered, stroking his chin thoughtfully.

Miku was wearing a keikogi, a traditional uniform used in martial arts, with her hair styled in a ponytail.

"Sensei is going to get us killed," Kai trembled at the thought.

"Your stupidity goes beyond my comprehension," Miku said sharply.

Out of nowhere, Miku launched a side kick at Felix, who immediately blocked it.

"So it really is you," he said in surprise.

"Shut your mouth! Every time you speak, my anger rises," she retorted.

Then Miku lowered her left foot and quickly executed a crane kick with her right leg, pushing Felix back.

"So, do you want to train too?" Felix asked.

"I just want to make sure that the next time you address me, it's as 'Lady Miku,'" she said in a threatening tone.

 

"Then make me say it," Felix said. He saw this as a perfect opportunity for revenge and a chance to train.

 

He ran towards Miku and threw a punch. She ducked and tried punching Felix in the abdomen. Felix avoided that by doing a tuck jump, then used Miku's arm as leverage to jump even higher and tried to deliver a kick to her face. Miku caught his leg, spun him, and threw him. Felix landed, sliding on his feet and one hand.

"Wow, I am unable to connect. Why is she so fast? If she used Zor energy to boost her speed, then I don't think I'll be able to follow her moves, and even now she is holding back," Felix thought as a drop of sweat went down his head.

"He is faster than yesterday, but still not much for my speed. But his strength could give me a tough time. He doesn't use Eastern Martial Arts, so his moves are unpredictable," Miku thought with a calm mind.

"Oh man, I can't believe I am enjoying this fight while being so scared. I should try to stop them. I wish I could at least have something to eat." Kai thought, feeling a surge of panic.

"Here, take it," said Granny Satomi, sitting beside Kai, trying to give him some cookies with tea.

"Shh, just tell me how the fight is going and let me enjoy it," she said to Kai with a smile.

"She is the weirdest yet coolest granny," Kai thought.

"Okay," Kai replied.

Meanwhile, Miku dodged punches from Felix. She caught one punch and then landed a powerful elbow strike to Felix's arm.

"Ouch, that kind of hurt," Felix said.

Then she quickly tried to throw him off balance. Felix immediately stopped her by using both of his legs to pull her to his side, but he didn't have a good grip with his feet on the wooden floor, so he slipped, and they both fell.

"Oh no! M'lady!" shouted Kimiko, running towards them.

"Sensei!" Kai shouted as he also ran.

"Are you alright, m'lady?"

"Yes, I am fine," Miku said as she slowly lifted her head from Felix's chest.

"Could you please get off me? You weight too much," Felix requested, lying on the floor.

"What did you say?" Miku questioned with a very angry expression.

[Pow]

Miku landed a powerful punch on Felix's cheek before stepping away from him. She exited the training space without saying a word.

"M'lady!" Kimiko called out, following behind Miku.

"Sensei?" Kai attempted to get a response from Felix.

"Yeah, I am alright," Felix replied, looking at the cieling, his right cheek red and puffy, his mind still a bit jumbled.

"I guess it was fun?" Granny Satomi said as she walked toward Felix.

 

 

"Yes, I guess you could say that," Felix responded as he sat up.

"Although you shouldn't tell a lady that she is very heavy," Granny Satomi said.

"Yes, sensei, even I know that," Kai replied.

"Is she even a lady?" Felix asked.

"I think you should learn some etiquette from Kai before leaving for the shogun's castle," she said.

"Hehe, it means I am sensei now," Kai said with a smirk.

"I think you are right. Also, about what you told me, I can see now that it's true, Granny," Felix said.

"What thing?" Kai wondered.

"I knew you could spot it too. You see now that you're the only one capable of reaching it," she continued.

"Reach what?" Kai's thoughts raced.

"Yeah, I will try my best," Felix said.

"Try his best? At what?" Kai continued to ponder. 

 

 

"Then I will leave it to you to train," she said before walking away.

"I can't believe it ended in a draw," Felix whispered.

"Kai, let's train," Felix said, turning his head toward Kai.

"What are you doing?" Felix questioned as Kai stood there, holding both of his index fingers to his head and puffing his cheeks in frustration.

 

"What were they talking about?" Kai thought constantly in his head.

"Hey! Snap out of it!" Felix shouted to Kai as he shook him.

On the other hand, Kimiko attended to Miku.

"M'lady, if you want, I could punish that man for saying those words," Kimiko said to Miku.

"No need. I have already given him a warning punch. He was lucky I didn't have my katanas; if not, he would have lost his tongue," Miku replied.

"Yes, I understand, M'lady. He is a very weird man; he is like a little child in an adult's body who knows how to fight very well—almost like a weapon," Kimiko said.

"Almost like a weapon? She is right; even his fighting style isn't Eastern; it's definitely from another country, and his clothes aren't from here," Miku thought.

"Kimiko."

"Yes, M'lady?"

"Do you happen to know what style of clothes that fool wears?"

"He wears Western-styled clothes, M'lady. From what I heard from Lady Satomi, he was here for traveling purposes and became stuck here, unable to leave Higashihara."

"And you believe her? His clothes looked nothing like those of a traveler. His shirt and pants spoke of fights, and no traveler fights like he does," Miku said.

"I want you to go to Pandora and gather information on him," she ordered kimiko.

"As you wish, M'lady. I will leave tomorrow at the first rays of the sun for the Western country." She bowed and left.

 

Miku, who was standing outside the bathroom, entered the steamy room.

"He is definitely hiding something big," Miku thought as she walked to the bath.

 

 

She entered the bath and after sitting for a few moments, she submerged into the water. Bubbles popped above her head.

“Father,” she murmured softly to herself as if he were there beside her.

 

“The clan meeting is going to happen in two weeks… they might banish the Yotsuba clan from the seven noble clans.”

"I was a fool for trusting those men to become my samurai."

"The little faith I had left in humanity is also gone."

"If the Yotsuba clan's name gets banished..."

"Then I won't know what to do with my life."

"Should I do it before the meeting?"

"Or do it after?"

"Die?"

"Live?"