Fifteenth rushed to the adjacent room and peered through the small window with the sturdiest glass, reinforced with formations, capable of withstanding several full-power strikes from an average Chunin.
Kenshin calmly headed to the ring, using telekinesis to shed all his clothes along the way and pull various exo-suit kits to him. In literally two seconds, he was in full combat readiness and assumed the Nara Clan's defensive stance.
Ichiro saw the signal to attack and immediately charged at his father, striking full force with a kick to the head. Fifteenth didn't even notice the attack moment but clearly saw his father block with both hands, stopping the powerful kick.
Dust under Kenshin's feet scattered in all directions, and at the point of contact between hands and leg, hundreds of tiny lines glowed for a split second. The strike was stopped without issue.
Kenshin smiled smugly and tried to sweep Ichiro's supporting leg but failed. An incredible battle ensued, beyond Fifteenth's eyes. The two silhouettes exchanged several strikes per second, repeatedly taking flight.
Though Kenshin's physical capabilities didn't allow him to react and move as fast as a full Chunin, his enhanced perception let him notice the slightest muscle twitches in a split second and predict the opponent's actions in advance.
After several minutes, no winner emerged. The sparring reached a deadlock. Kenshin lacked Ichiro's strength and speed, so he couldn't trap and defeat him. Ichiro, in turn, lacked such incredible perception, and his father always minimized damage.
The exo-suit had undergone incredible changes, but it was still insufficient for Kenshin to beat Chunin. Kenshin's movement speed was barely peak Genin level, and his strike power even lower. All the dozens of strikes Kenshin barely landed on his opponent were no more painful to Ichiro than a ten-year-old child's punch to an adult man.
"Enough," Kenshin declared, realizing the sparring was at a deadlock. Ichiro could easily beat him if he used ninjutsu or Sharingan, so Kenshin wasn't deluded about his strength.
"Oh, father, your suit is something else..." Ichiro groaned, rubbing his jaw where Kenshin's foot had landed so perfectly.
"Nonsense. Another fifteen minutes, and the energy would run out. The suit needs refinement..." Kenshin sighed, not entirely satisfied with the result.
The entire next week, Kenshin focused solely on perfecting his exo-suit and finally completed the planned work by evening of day 226. He squeezed the maximum from his available formation creation knowledge and got a suit that granted him peak Genin strength and speed while allowing him to withstand full-power Chunin strikes. Kasumi still sent him on a short flight with her strongest blows, but even so, he could resist a bit.
"Ichiro, Third, and Fourth. Tomorrow you come with me. Sleep well; we've got a combat mission ahead," he announced at dinner, shocking all the sons.
Without explaining, he turned and left the dining room, heading to his wives. The hardest part was ahead.
"WHAT?! No, you're not going anywhere!" Kasumi declared, shocked by his plan.
"I have to seal the deal. No one but me can do it, or have you forgotten I'm an excellent empath?" Kenshin parried.
"Don't talk us to death, Nakayama Kenshin. You're not going anywhere; I won't let you!" Natsumi supported her friend, angry at her husband.
"Kenshin, dear, maybe you'll reconsider?.." Aya said tenderly, hugging him from behind, resting her head on his shoulders, and gently kissing his neck.
"Girls, understand, we need to develop. Without combat experience, the kids will be nothing more than punching bags. We need to register as mercenaries and complete a test mission. Kasumi, you said yourself they don't accept everyone, and without a good negotiator, it could fail," he said, stroking the tender legs of the wives sitting nearby.
"Then I'll go with you. I'm the strongest fighter in our family, and only I can protect you," Kasumi declared, refusing to let her beloved go.
"No, that won't happen. Though your belly isn't showing yet, you're pregnant and going nowhere. Besides, Eighteenth needs his mother. God forbid anything happens to you," Kenshin said with a sigh, stroking his third wife's tender thighs again.
"And if something happens to you, that's fine?!" she snapped.
"Nothing will happen to me. You should've realized that from all those numerous sparring sessions. I can always escape from a peak Chunin, and you know the rules of the latest plan."
"But..." Kasumi began, but was stopped by Kenshin's authoritative command.
"Enough! I'm not discussing this further. The boys and I are heading out on the mission tomorrow, and the most you can do is wish us luck," he declared, rising from his armchair and heading to his office, now on the second floor.
"I need to finish preparations. Don't disturb me unless absolutely necessary."
On the morning of day 227, the atmosphere in the Nakayama family home shifted from cheerful and calm to tense and sad. The girls were offended at Kenshin and tried several times to dissuade him from this risky venture, but he was unrelenting.
That morning, everyone breakfasted at one table, but it didn't add joy to their faces. Kenshin's wives dreaded the grim prospects of the trip, while his sons were mostly upset at staying home while their father and older brothers faced danger.
"In my absence, Kasumi is in charge of family defense. If an enemy appears, everyone must obey her," Kenshin declared and took a sip of apple juice. He felt unusually relaxed and behaved completely calmly.
"How confident are you in this mission's success?" Kasumi asked, pushing her plate aside. She had no appetite at all.
"Ninety percent it'll go according to plan, and ninety-five percent that half will return alive," Kenshin replied calmly, unafraid to say such things aloud.
Hearing such an optimistic forecast, Kasumi relaxed a bit, while the other family members tensed up, especially Aya. She couldn't even imagine there was a chance someone might not return again. Thinking of losing a second son brought tears to her eyes. She silently approached Kenshin, sat on his lap, and buried her face in his broad shoulder.
Kenshin silently stroked her back. He didn't know what to say in such a situation, so he stayed quiet. Everyone else stopped eating too, each lost in their own thoughts.
After breakfast, everyone quietly dispersed, and Kenshin with Ichiro, Third, and Fourth began packing. Everything had been ready since yesterday, but Kenshin double-checked everything thoroughly.
Each wore an exo-suit analog with numerous formations. The sons' suits weren't as complex as Kenshin's, since creating one such suit took several days of precision work. Their suits could withstand dozens of peak Chunin strikes and were tuned for specific damage types. All elemental technique attacks, as well as strikes to the back and head, were met by formations. Forearm strikes stronger than an average Chunin's were only partially absorbed to conserve energy. The impulse from strikes wasn't dissipated for the same conservation reason.
With the new knowledge, Kenshin only slightly increased the capacity of his energy accumulators and hit a dead end. He needed revolutionary knowledge that would overturn everything previous and somehow allow him to store dozens of times more energy, so that in the future he could withstand Jonin strikes. But for now, all this was just dreams.
After everyone had finally gathered, Kenshin let the older sons say goodbye to their mothers, and then, when they stepped out the door, he stayed alone with the girls.
Aiya had tear-streaked eyes, while Natsumi and Kasumi had very sad faces. He hugged all three and said, "I will definitely come back. You don't need to worry so much. Aiya, little girl, when I return, we'll eat your favorite ice cream all day and swim in the swimming pool, okay?" he whispered with a smile to the crying girl.
"Promise?" she sniffled. Her mind was trying to grasp at any straw to find a bit of calm.
"I promise," he said, and hugged each of the girls again, then left without looking back.