…
As the kids bowed, Dai bowed back so deeply that I thought he'd faceplant into the floor..
I chuckled lightly. "You'll get used to that one," I said to the kids, then continued. "Before we start instilling you all with knowledge in the most character-building way possible, you should know who's going to be responsible."
I gestured to Dai, who straightened up with a wide grin.
"This is Might Dai, a taijutsu specialist. He'll be responsible for the physical drills for those of you who choose to learn combat skills."
The kids once again turned their attention to Dai and I could feel the suspicion in their eyes at my words. And funny enough, I couldn't blame them.
Who'd look at Dai in this get up and take him seriously?
I observed the young man who despite the visible doubt in the eyes of the kids, kept his grin wide and saluted them enthusiastically with a thumbs up.
I didn't know what to make of that and moved on.
"This is Makabe Daisuke. Former shinobi and kenjutsu specialist. You'll be learning close quarters combat and Bukijutsu if necessary."
Daisuke crossed his arms and gave a grunt that was basically a nod.
He was dressed and fitted with a standard ronin swordsman attire and looked the part so it was difficult for the kids not to look at him reverently although some of the younger ones looked at him fearfully.
I didn't pay attention to that since learning to fight wasn't compulsory. I moved to the next.
"Umehara Ren."
She stood quietly with an observant look in her eyes. I could tell she was already assessing the kids.
"She's a movement specialist."
I looked toward the middle aged ex shinobi, a marvel in this time and age, but not uncommon if you looked at the situation subjectively.
Not all Genin rises to prominence after all.
"Ren's fought more styles than you probably know exist, and she's one of the few people I've seen create her own movement technique without ever being formally taught."
My eyes settled on Ren, and I couldn't help but raise my estimation of her.
She had managed to maintain a consistent speed with me despite my use of the footwork I'd developed for Phantom Step, albeit without chakra.
"She'll teach movement, footwork, and the art of positioning."
I paused.
"And she'll also teach general knowledge alongside the other instructors. Reading, writing, history, geography, practical reasoning. The things each of you needs regardless of what path you choose."
Ren gave me a brief look then offered a polite nod.
I kept moving.
"Kasumi Tenma."
And she stepped forward, a nineteen year old girl with lean arms like a swimmer and sharp eyes.
She was from a small fishing village that got displaced during the war but she was well read and a martial artist.
I glanced toward the younger children.
She'll be working primarily with the youngest ones, the children below five. At that age, they don't need advanced lessons. They need a strong foundation.
I looked back at Kasumi and smiled. "Kasumi-sensei will teach the younger ones the basics early; reading, writing, and numbers, so that by the time they're old enough to enter the main classes, they aren't struggling to catch up."
A faint smile touched my lips. And she'll keep them active with simple exercises. Nothing too strenuous, just enough to help them develop healthy bodies.
The older ones who choose the combat path can also meet her if they require a sparring partner.
Kasumi gave a small bow, with a calm expression.
I shifted to the last instructor. "Sagara Toru."
He was a middle aged man with a calm presence around him. He stepped forward with a smile.
Like me, he also walked the path of chakra control and was quite the specialist.
"He'll be taking special classes for the theoretical and practical chakra control exercises."
I stepped forward. "And then there's me."
"Your elder brother and going forward, Headmaster, Haruki Murakami."
"I won't be training or teaching you all daily, but I promise you, I'll be watching."
"Based on what I see, I'll adjust the curriculum to test new ideas."
"Some of you will be selected later for special training depending on your level of expertise going forward."
I'll use those who show promise physically to test the Heavenly Restriction and Heavenly Demon style. But that's a matter for the future.
I pointed to the side. "Behind you, we've got two more you already know."
"Your Aiko-nee-san will be the medical expert. She'll patch you up, but try not to waste her time."
"And your Daichi-nii is here for your food and nutrition. Listen to them for your own good."
Daichi gave a tired wave while just Aiko adjusted the glasses she was wearing for whatever reasons. I wonder where she got those glasses from.
…And why?
I scanned the rows of children again. Forty three children orphaned and being accommodated by the Lotus Orphanage. This was but a pin drop in the actual number of displaced and orphaned children.
For all my sentiment, I was no philanthropist. The state of the world may be bad but the future would only get worse. I couldn't afford to take care of every misplaced child.
We had taken the ones we could accommodate, they'd been cared for, fed, clothed and sheltered.
On that note, I wouldn't just let them grow into the world unable to carve a better life for themselves.
I exhaled through my nose and made a decision.
"Now," I began, "most of you don't even know what you'll be working towards,"
I paused and allowed the words to sink in.
"Your instructors will also give those of you interested in the combat path a demonstration. It won't be a lesson. Just a glimpse of what you can expect if you choose to walk that path."
I turned toward the instructors behind me.
"You all don't mind, right?"
Daisuke cracked his neck and gave a short grunt. "Hmph. I don't mind a stretch."
Ren shrugged one shoulder, her eyes already sweeping the training area.
Dai pumped a fist into the air. "A youthful demonstration of spirit and strength! Yes!"
Kasumi nodded firmly while Toru adjusted the bandage wrapped around his forearm.
I looked toward the children, then back at the instructors.
"Good."
I smiled. "Then, as your head instructor, I'll let you see what I'm capable of."
I turned toward Dai. "You're with me."
"Huh?" His excited smile froze for a moment.
He gave me a look that said, Are you sure?
I raised an eyebrow. "What's with that expression? Did you think I'm some porcelain doll or something?"
I chuckled as I gestured for Aiko.
She was already walking toward me when I continued. "I chose you specifically because of your specialty."
I began removing my kimono and handed it to Aiko.
"Taijutsu."
Then I looked back at Dai with a wide smile.
"I hope you don't hold back too much."
"But…"
Dai hesitated.
The hesitation was understandable. He knew his own strength, and unlike most people here, he also knew exactly what his techniques could do to someone who wasn't prepared for them.
Before he could finish, Aiko, already returning to her position, interrupted him.
"You better take this seriously."
She didn't even look back.
Her voice was calm, but sharp enough to make her meaning unmistakable. "If you insult Murakami by holding back, I'll make sure you feel it during your check-up."
Dai composure flattered at that, then he gave a slow, sheepish laugh and rubbed the back of his head. "Understood, ma'am."
…
The kids were murmuring amongst themselves as their attention remained entirely fixed on the open space between the instructors and their formation.
I stepped into the center barefoot, rolling my shoulders as I started lightly bouncing on the balls of my feet.
Dai approached from the opposite end, no longer smiling, but focused now. He took up a wide stance, low and stable, fists loose but ready.
His breathing settled and I could immediately feel the difference.
I narrowed my eyes as I discarded the perception of Dai as the enthusiastic man who had practically bounced into the Institute.
This was the man who had spent more years than I have training his body for one forbidden technique.
He's a taijutsu specialist who had pushed his body far beyond what most people his age could endure.
I couldn't fully measure his strength conventionally with that in mind. My own method of body refinement was still developing, and Dai's path had been completely different from mine.
Still, I raised a brow. "Are you sure that stance is enough?"
"I don't want to scare the kids." he said with a serious expression.
I smirked. "You should worry about yourself."
And with that, I moved.
I didn't use chakra, just my body.
I drove my foot into the ground and exploded forward. To most of the children, it probably looked like I had vanished as I covered the distance, my next step carrying me behind Dai.
His reaction was immediate.
He twisted around just as my elbow came toward his temple, raising his forearm to intercept it.
The collision cracked through the training ground, and the force of the exchange sent a sharp gust of displaced air across the front row, startling several of the children.
A few, the younger ones, stumbled back while the rest just gasped.
Dai's feet skidded backwards as his eyes sparkled.
"You are fast," he said excitedly, teeth flashing.
"So are you," I replied, and ducked under his counter-kick before sweeping for his ankles which he jumped over cleanly, before flipping mid-air and landing with a solid thud.
Then his stance shifted.
His shoulders relaxed, his center of gravity dropped, and one foot angled slightly outward.
I recognized the change immediately.
He was ready, and in the next moment, Dai moved.
There was no warning as he shot forward with a short burst of speed, his first step barely making a sound against the floor as his fist came straight toward my face.
I slipped to the side causing his fist to pass my cheek by inches but he didn't stop his assault.
His hips turned with the missed punch, and his other hand came around in a short hook aimed at my ribs.
I brought my forearm down to intercept it.
The impact jolted through my arm.
Strong.
Before I could counter, Dai stepped inside my guard.
A knee came toward my abdomen.
I twisted away, letting it skim past, then caught his wrist and tried to use his momentum to throw him off balance, but he reacted immediately.
Rather than resisting, he followed the movement, turning with it and using my grip to pull himself closer.
His forehead came toward mine.
I released his wrist and leaned back just enough for the strike to miss.
There was no way I was colliding with that head. I took a step and flashed back.
Dai smiled.
Not the enthusiastic grin he'd worn earlier, but one of focus as he drove forward again, but this time, I met him halfway as our arms collided first.
The wooden floor shuddered beneath our feet as we exchanged blows at close range, neither of us giving the other enough room to build momentum.
Dai suddenly broke away. Then two quick jabs came toward my face.
I deflected the first and slipped past the second, but he was already moving, spinning as his heel cut toward my head.
It was a clean and powerful execution, and if I had been a second slower, it would've inflicted a rather serious injury.
But I wasn't.
I ducked beneath the kick and stepped into his guard, driving my shoulder into his chest.
The impact forced him backward, his boots scraped hard against the wooden floor before he regained his balance.
Then he smiled.
"You're strong," he said, breathing only slightly heavier.
"I know," I said, rushing him with a feint jab and a real palm thrust aimed just below his sternum.
He absorbed it with a cross block, then spun around to use my own momentum against me. I jumped, twisted mid-air, planted my feet against his chest, and pushed off, landing crouched.
It all happened in seconds.
Neither of us spoke now.
We moved.
He punched.
I slipped past.
I kicked.
He ducked.
We clashed again and again, flesh meeting flesh, blocks meeting strikes, legs sweeping low, knees striking high.
Our feet were in constant motion, barely landing before the next strike followed.
After a final exchange, we broke apart still breathing steadily. Sweat only now starting to gather at our brows.
"Enough," I said at last, stepping out of stance and straightening.
Dai grinned, and broke his stance as well, bowing low in acknowledgment. "You weren't bluffing about not being a porcelain doll."
"And you weren't bluffing about being strong," I nodded and replied, wiping my hands against my trousers before turning to the wide-eyed group of children.
They looked like they'd just witnessed something mythical. One of the younger boys whispered, "That was… real?"
I met his gaze and gave the faintest nod. "That's what taijutsu is," I said to the boy, then, to all of them: "If you train well and put in the effort, then one day, you'll move like that too."
Not everyone would. I knew that. But it was about giving them a goal.
"Strength isn't about being better than someone else. It's about being better than the version of you from yesterday. That's what we'll be teaching here."
Then I gestured to the instructors behind me. "They've all got something to offer. So give it your all. Learn from them. Question them. Grow."
A murmur of excitement rippled through the group.
I turned on my heel and began walking off. "Welcome," I said over my shoulder, "to the Lotus Learning Institute."
....
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