Chapter 88: Please Don't Ask a Girl for Date Spot Recommendations
"She's taking forever! How long does it take to change clothes?!"
Takumi leaned irritably against a tree in the courtyard. He'd just pissed off Miu again earlier, but the moment she learned he was officially taking her out on a date, her mood flipped like a switch—sunny skies after a storm. She'd told him to wait outside while she got ready… and that wait had now stretched to a full thirty minutes. So here he was, cooling off under the tree.
"Huh? Is it raining?"
Something wet suddenly dripped onto his face. He looked up—and froze.
Pure white cotton panties. Slim, trembling thighs supporting the sobbing face of their owner.
"Hey, Keni-chan, what are you doing hiding up there? Your panties are totally visible, you know."
The girl perched secretly on a branch burst into startled panic. She hurriedly clamped her legs together, lost her balance in the scramble—and naturally fell.
Takumi caught her easily. Light as a feather, she ended up cradled princess-style in his arms.
"Wow, you're seriously light. Are you really the same age as Miu? She's like fifty—cough, never mind. What were you doing up there anyway? And why are you covering one side of your face?"
"Waaah… don't look! I'm disfigured… I'll never get married now…"
"Seriously? You're that desperate to get hitched? Anyway, even though Ma-Sensei is a total pervert, his training is actually pretty measured. Let me see."
Takumi gently pried her hand away. There was a tiny scratch—barely noticeable, the kind that would vanish in a couple days. Humans heal ridiculously fast when you don't baby them. What actually looked bad were her palms: blistered raw from being forced to run upside-down. Even with Kensei Ma taking precautions and putting gloves on her, the friction had still torn up her skin.
"Girls these days are way too delicate."
He set her down gently. Keni just kept covering her face and crying. Right now she regretted ever stepping foot in Ryōzanpaku more than anything. The amount of tears she'd shed in the last two days outnumbered her entire previous life. Running away wasn't even an option—Shigure-sensei was a phantom; she'd drag Keni back before she even reached the gate. So the girl could only sneak away during short breaks to cry alone in a tree.
"Okay, okay, stop crying already. A girl's tears are the ultimate weapon against men, you know? You enjoy whipping me that much? Are you a sadist or something?"
Takumi teased with a grin.
Keni burst into fresh sobs. "You're bullying me… waaah!"
"Ugh, you always say that when you talk to me. Fine, stop crying and give me your hand."
He took her palm. Focusing his ki into his dantian, a calm blue wave of energy rippled outward.
The girl—who barely had any martial foundation—actually saw it.
"What… is that?"
"Huh? You can see it? That's weird. Guess you do have some talent for martial arts after all. Don't talk—just let me heal you."
The soft blue ki enveloped her hands. Almost immediately she felt them submerged in cool lake water. Then tiny fish seemed to nibble gently at the dead skin, tickling her. Thirty seconds later Takumi withdrew the energy.
Keni stared in disbelief. Her blistered, ruined palms were once again smooth and white as spring onions. Every trace of pain had vanished.
"This… is this magic?"
"It's ki. Not magic."
Over the past couple days Takumi had studied his own energy. Besides the powerful defensive properties typical of stillness-type ki users, his also carried decent offensive power—and a faint but unmistakable healing effect. After cross-referencing with his previous conversations with the demon inscription, he finally understood why.
When his ki first awakened, he had absorbed Miu's movement-type ki. At the same time, while he lay dying from his injuries, invincible superman Fuurinji Hayato had burned through his own ki to apply his core secret technique—Instant Recovery ki technique—directly on him. That had imprinted two distinct ki signatures into Takumi's "mana."
By channeling a bit of that mana into his ki, he could give his stillness-type waves the fiery offensive traits of Miu's movement ki, plus the regenerative properties of the invincible superman's secret art.
"In other words, reinforcing ki with mana lets me borrow some properties of the 'ki' that enters my body—whether for attack or healing. So if I keep fighting strong opponents and get hit by their ki, I might absorb more attributes. But using multiple attributes at once consumes way too much ki—I can barely sustain it. Right now, combining Miu's scorching void-slash waves, Elder's healing secret art, and my own stillness-type defensive ki gives me a perfect three-in-one fusion. That's already on par with the invincible superman's movement-stillness blend. No need to chase after more."
That was Takumi's conclusion.
He hadn't told anyone at Ryōzanpaku about this yet. This was the first time he'd used it in front of an outsider. Maybe it was precisely because he'd infused mana that even a girl who'd only been training for two days could perceive the ki waves.
"Ki…? Martial artists' ki is really this amazing? Will I be able to have it someday too?"
"Of course. But awakening ki requires a body of steel and an unbreakable spirit. If you keep bawling like this, you'll never get there in your lifetime."
Takumi grinned.
He knew plenty of people practiced martial arts, but very few ever truly awakened ki. Thanks to his mana-enhanced skill, his foundational fighting potential had reached third tier—black belt 21-dan level. Without the life-or-death awakenings and the severe injuries he'd suffered, he never would have gotten this far. Most people topped out around black-belt ninth dan at best. Still, Takumi believed that even in this gamma world-line, Keni had a bit of protagonist potential. If she kept at it, manifesting ki waves was only a matter of time.
"I… I don't know if I can keep going. I have no confidence."
"Don't be stupid. Whenever you get hurt or reach your absolute limit, come find me. I'll use ki to heal and restore you—no lingering damage, and you can keep pushing your potential. Plus it lets me train my own ki control. Come on, lift your head. Show some confidence."
A warmth bloomed in Keni's chest. She slowly raised her face to look at him.
Takumi released another soft blue wave, this time enveloping her face. Facial nerves were the most sensitive; the cool energy felt like a gentle spring washing over her entire body. Staring at his face, her gaze drifted unconsciously to his lips. Memories of that kiss three days ago—the one that had made even her gums tingle—flooded back. Days had passed, yet the contrast of searing pain followed by soothing warmth surged up again, leaving her cheeks faintly flushed.
"There. No more worrying about being 'disfigured.' Even if I didn't heal you, Ma-Sensei would've made you a special medicinal bath to wipe away fatigue and scars. Look at Miu—she's been training for years and doesn't have a single mark. It's the medicine plus her own ki. The only reason Sakaki-sensei still has scars is because he refuses to get rid of them."
"Miu's figure is so amazing… is that because of training too?"
Keni couldn't help asking.
Takumi thought for a second, then nodded with exaggerated seriousness.
"Yup. Girls just need to exercise a lot and eat well to build muscle. And if you awaken true ki? Your body might inflate like a balloon—boooom! Haha!"
He immediately doubled over, slapping the tree trunk and laughing at his own terrible joke. Ki wasn't air; human bodies weren't balloons. Keni knew he was teasing, but a tiny part of her still felt a spark of anticipation.
Takumi checked the time.
"Alright, I'm heading out."
"Mm… thank you, Kouichi."
"No problem. Actually, if you want to repay me, I've got something I want to ask."
"What is it?"
"Well… I'm about to go on a date with Miu. Problem is, I've never been on a proper date before. I have no idea where girls like to go. And big fancy entertainment spots are out—Ryōzanpaku's wallet is basically on life support, and Miu would feel bad if I spent too much. Any suggestions? Something simple but still feels like a girl's dream spot?"
Takumi rambled on, completely oblivious to the way Keni's expression slowly darkened… until her face went completely blank.
"I've never been on a date. I don't know. …But I guess a girl's ultimate dream only has two answers."
"I'm all ears!"
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