Once the initial corrupted spirits were taken care of, I scouted the path ahead, doing so quickly before returning and leading everyone away from where most of the corrupted spirits were. Unlucky for us, every path ahead had at least a decent amount of spirits, so we'd need to fight no matter what.
"Ewe, what's that centipede with the face?" Fighting alongside Korra, cut a spirit in half before glancing at a large, centipede-spirit in the back of the ground with a face on it, causing me to click my tongue. "Its name is Koh. It steals people's faces; if you ever encounter him in your world, don't show any emotion… Though if it ever came down to it, you could always just beat it up; that fits your style more."
As I looked at Koh, who was, unfortunately, lunging at us, Korra hit her chest with a confident grin. "Heh, damn right I can. Handle these spirits, Aang, I've got some business with Koh!" Carving a path towards Koh, Korra engaged in a battle with it, leaving me to deal with the aftermath while also ensuring no other spirit interrupted her fight.
While finishing off the remaining spirits, I would glance at Korra, watching as she relentlessly struck a single spot with her water, hitting it over and over, creating spider-web cracks across Koh's carapace, mainly just above his head. Koh was somewhat sporadic, which would force Korra to evade and dodge frequently, but having been taught by me, her agility wasn't a weak point for her anymore.
When I dealt with the final spirit, Korra finished her fight with Koh; with powerful, fluid, and graceful movements, Korra brought both arms down, causing the blob of water she was floating in the air to strike Koh's head like a needle, puncturing his cracked carapace and filling his insides with water, which I'm sure was ravaging about. A few moments later, Koh's figure began to dissolve into glittering lights, floating off into the atmosphere.
Controlling the water blob, she floated it back into her backpack-sized water-skin before turning around, giving me a thumbs up while confidently grinning with a glistening trace of sweat. "Yes, yes, good job, Korra. Do you want a prize? A cookie, perhaps?" Lightly shaking my head while a smile crept onto my face from her childish antics, I waved my hand, hitting her with a gentle gust of wind. "Depends, you got a cookie?"
Rolling my eyes, I lowered Fan, whom I would always lift into the air using a vortex; it was safer than needing to constantly protect him, not to mention flying spirits were pretty uncommon. And if there were flying spirits, they would still attack us, as we're the closest. "Ah, ground." Fan's muttering reached our ears, though we paid it no heed; it was no secret Fan hated being in the air.
"Heh, don't think we didn't see that little show you put on, Korra." Roku, stroking his beard, eyed Korra, who proudly grinned. "Filled with awe, old man? You don't have to lie; no one will think less of you if you do." Flicking her hair behind her shoulder, Korra placed her hands on her hips and puffed her chest out; Roku, seeing this, put his hands behind his back. "Hmm, I do admit, it was an impressive feat… For a child." "What!?"
It was obvious what happened next: Korra and Roku ended up bantering like usual, constantly throwing jabs at each other, neither wishing to back down, and occasionally, we'd be indirectly mentioned. "Maybe you should start following Kyoshi's practice and wear makeup and hide that face of yours, it'll be more pleasing to the eye." As Roku ruthlessly lied to Korra's face, I glanced at Kyoshi, whose expression was one of mild annoyance.
"You don't wear your makeup because you're ugly, do you?" It was an honest question built upon my curiosity; I knew a lot about Kyoshi, but I didn't understand why she wore paint. Maybe she did think she was ugly. However, my honesty was met with a glare from Kyoshi, one cold enough that even I, with all my calmness, felt unnerved at. "I-I'll have you know, Kyoshi, I do find you beautiful. Your freckles add a level of cuteness to you." Thankfully for me, Kyoshi's glare lessened as she lightly nodded, appreciating my compliment.
'Haa, that felt dangerous.' Placing a hand upon my heart, I softly sighed in relief, only for my face to violently twitch at Korra's words. "Tch, well, tell me how someone with a full head of hair and beard looks even uglier than Aang? Someone bald!" Shooting a glare at Korra, who was too deep in her argument with Roku to notice, I internally promised I'd get my revenge later with a prank.
"Are you bald because you can't grow hair?" Staring blankly at Kyoshi, I could feel my mouth curl into an annoyed smile. "I can grow hair." Humming with a nod, Kyoshi looked away, causing me to grab the bridge of my nose and deeply sigh. This wasn't a surprising occurrence; Kyoshi and I would be brought up every now and then in their argument. The only one who got away scot-free was Fan; he happily enjoyed the entertainment, not to mention he was smart enough to know when to stay silent.
"Alright, alright, enough you two." Waving my hand, I enveloped the two in a spherical vortex while they rolled across the ground for several meters before falling onto the ground as I dispelled the vortexes.
"Roku started it first; the old man can't handle it when a young, talented, and beautiful woman matches him." Leaping onto her feet, Korra dusted herself off while dropping into pace beside me, glaring at Roku. "You are young, I will give you that, Korra." Standing up, Roku eyed Korra, a subtle smirk on his face as he walked ahead of us, prompting Kyoshi to join him.
Before Korra could further the conversation, I placed a hand on her head while she cracked her knuckles, eager to finish her argument with Roku, though it was clear it wouldn't be a verbal one. "Relax, Korra, you'll struggle to airbend with such aggressive thoughts." Although reluctant, Korra softly sighed and lowered her arms. "Roku was merely lying anyway. You're both young and talented."
I could tell Korra was halfway through the process of thanking me, but she stopped just as she opened her mouth and glared at me. "Alright, you punk, you want to play games? I can play games!" Korra, having had enough mocking, lunges at me, which I swiftly evade by taking a sudden step backward.
"You've got to do better than that, Korra. I won't be caught so easily." Flashing Korra a faint smile, she smirked and responded, lunging at me once more, starting a cat and mouse game as she continuously chased after me, unable to even touch me.
Stepping forward, dodging her, I extended my foot behind me, causing her to trip and fall onto the ground, though she quickly recovered and dashed at me, only for me to backflip over her just when she was about to reach me, and this time, she tripped over a rock. "You're cute when you don't give up, Korra." Squatting beside her, I gently poked her cheek, causing her to release a sharp breath, pushing her hair out of the way as she glared at me in annoyance.
Lashing her hand out at my ankle, I swiftly stepped back, though her initial attack was just a feint, her will attack was the sweep of her leg from behind; now I would've dodged it, but this little game needed to come to an end eventually, and I knew Korra wouldn't give up easily.
Letting Korra get the upper hand, I tripped over her leg and fell onto my back, prompting her to lunge onto me as she wrapped her legs around my waist and put me into a chokehold. Her chokehold wasn't meant to deprive me of air, merely to keep my head in place as she drove her knuckles into my head, causing me to wince. "Ha! Take this! Let's see how your bald head likes this!" "T-That last bit was unnecessary."
Trying to fight Korra off me was only met with failed attempts; her body was like a vice, though, after several seconds of enjoying my misfortune, she finally let me go, causing me to roll off her while rubbing my head. "That hurts." "Oh, don't be a crybaby, it wasn't that bad." With a refreshed smile, Korra brushed her hair behind her ear and gently hit my chest before catching up with the others, causing me to sigh as I found it hard to remain upset with that beauty of hers.
'It's a little unfair.' Catching up to Korra, I walked in pace beside her, enjoying the little silence, though it didn't last long as she began playing around me, touching the other side of my shoulder, pinching me, or even pulling my ear; it was a bit annoying, but there was also a hint of affection within them, prompting me to reciprocate the gestures.
"Ouch, that hurt." "Don't be a crybaby, it wasn't that bad." Smirking at Korra, who was grabbing her ear, her face twitched while she playfully pushed me. "Oh, so you're playing like that?" Regaining balance, I glanced at Korra, who was pretending to act ignorant, causing me to lightly push her, which descended into us playfully fighting.
I could already see it: the worst expedition would be followed by the best one yet. It may have just started, but I already knew it was going to be amazing.