Early morning.
The forest of Genzō was wrapped in a silence that conveyed tranquility.
The only sound that could be heard was the water of the nearby waterfall, crashing against the rocks.
"Come on, Kaito, put more strength into it!" Genzō urged, sitting while watching the boy.
Kaito stood at the base of the waterfall, balancing on one of the rocks.
"Damn it!"
He tried to push through the wall of water using only the index and middle fingers of both hands.
—There's too much pressure… he thought, clenching his teeth, but continuing to try.
"If you want to learn my technique, you must strengthen your hands!" the old man shouted, raising his hands to his mouth.
—I know that well… he focused.
Kaito's thoughts drifted back to an hour earlier.
The boy had just woken up.
He sat at the circular table, where Genzō was already waiting for him.
"Good morning, Kaito," he greeted him, taking a piece of bread.
"What kind of training will I do?" he asked, getting straight to the point.
"You're quite impatient," he chuckled softly.
"But considering your situation, I can't blame you," the old man replied, beginning to spread butter on the slice of bread.
"You do not possess a spirit. Teaching you techniques based on spiritual energy would be useless," he explained calmly.
Kaito remained silent, listening.
"For that reason, I will teach you the Spiritual Block Technique of the Cadet Branch."
He smiled slightly, then took a bite of bread.
"Do you remember yesterday? As soon as we met, I knocked you down with a single blow," he continued.
"Do you think I did that using brute force alone?" he asked, not expecting an answer.
—I had already noticed… The blow to my shoulder wasn't incredibly strong, yet it still hurt— Kaito reasoned.
"I had used the Spiritual Block technique," the old man confessed.
"Perhaps you don't know this, but the spiritual energy released by spirits follows very precise flows," he began to explain, casually playing with the utensils.
Kaito frowned.
"What do you mean by precise flows?" he asked, beginning to eat as well.
"The spirits sealed inside human bodies are located more or less around the heart. Do you know why?"
He set the plate aside.
Kaito shook his head.
"Because the heart is connected to the rest of the human body," he explained.
"It happens in just a few moments, but when a possessor uses spiritual abilities, the energy travels through the entire body before being released."
"These flows, however, are always the same for everyone: they begin from the heart, descend toward the abdomen, and then split."
He pointed two fingers at the boy's torso.
"One part goes down toward the knees and then to the feet," he revealed.
"The other rises toward the shoulder, passes through the elbow joint, and reaches the forearms."
"These points, because of the large amount of spiritual energy that passes through them, are extremely delicate."
His gaze sharpened.
"The Spiritual Block consists of striking those flows, temporarily interrupting the circulation of energy," he concluded.
"Wait a second… then why did it hurt me so much as well?" Kaito asked doubtfully, setting his plate aside.
"Because this technique strikes areas that are naturally sensitive in the human body, even without spiritual energy," he replied.
"If you haven't realized it yet, this is the technique that allows non-possessors to stand against… and even defeat a possessor."
At that statement, Kaito's face showed clear astonishment.
"Tell me the truth…" he said, staring into the old man's eyes.
"Those are certainly nice words, but…" he hesitated for a moment.
"How many people who weren't possessors have actually learned this technique?"
Genzō snorted at the question.
"I won't give you false hope," he replied.
"I have only met two non-possessors capable of using it."
"Which is exactly why you will have to train extremely hard."
He stood up from the chair.
"The flows are tiny. You can't strike them with a fist."
"If you remember, yesterday I struck you using only two fingers."
He raised his index and middle finger.
"I harden them using my spirit's energy."
Then he opened the door.
"You, however, will have to strengthen them without spiritual energy."
He looked at the boy for a moment.
"I see you're already recovering. Come with me."
He stepped outside.
"Your training begins today."
Kaito's mind stopped replaying that conversation and returned to the present, focusing again on the waterfall.
"One more time!"
The roar of the water swallowed his voice.
Kaito kept striking the surface with his fingers, again and again.
The pressure crushed them without mercy.
—Tsk… if I keep this up, I'll break them—
Despite the pain, he didn't stop.
Meanwhile, Genzō watched from the riverbank.
"Perhaps he will consider today's training a defeat, but…"
He carefully examined the boy's body.
"His wounds haven't reopened, and despite the fatigue in his muscles and bones, he can still move well…" he noted.
The boy's training continued for three consecutive hours.
When he finally stopped, the afternoon was already well advanced.
"Hey, that's enough for now!" Genzō called out.
Kaito raised his thumb in response.
His breathing was short.
He slowly stepped down from the rock and approached his master.
"Good. Before we eat, there's one last test for today."
Genzō took a few steps back.
"Last… test?" Kaito was breathing heavily.
The old man raised his arms, assuming a solid guard.
"A fight," he declared.
Kaito said nothing. He clenched his teeth and did the same.
"I thought you would complain, considering your condition," Genzō provoked.
"I can't afford to."
Kaito's gaze hardened.
"Too many days have already passed."
He dashed forward.
A kick aimed straight at the old man's face.
Genzō blocked it by grabbing his ankle and, with seemingly no effort, threw him away.
Kaito's body slammed into a tree and fell to the ground.
"Tsk…"
Pain shot through his side.
"Did you think I wouldn't use spiritual power?"
An invisible yet oppressive aura rose around Genzō.
"You will have to face possessors. Get used to it."
Kaito stood up again, staggering.
"Then fine…"
He took a deep breath.
"Use it."
He charged again.
He slid to the side, avoiding the frontal impact, and struck the old man's leg with precision.
Genzō lost his balance for a moment.
—Now.
Kaito drove his fist toward the abdomen.
Just centimeters before the blow landed, Genzō vanished.
"What—"
Two hands rested on his shoulders.
"Good choice."
The old man's voice was calm.
"But wrong timing."
He grabbed his shirt and hurled him toward the waterfall.
The impact with the water was violent.
"That's enough for today."
Genzō turned away.
"When you can stand again, come back to the house."
"Wait."
A figure emerged from the wall of water.
Kaito was still standing.
"I'm not finished."
Genzō stopped.
For a moment, he smiled.
And so, Kaito's training with a Fuyumi truly began.