Chapter 32: Hikigaya Hachiman's First Kendo Lesson
After finishing lunch, Chishima Akishin noted that there was still half an hour left. He turned to Hachiman and said, "Go grab your shinai. We're going to do a little sparring."
"Sparring? Right now?"
Hachiman was stunned. He hadn't even started learning sword techniques yet. Why were they jumping straight to sparring?
"Of course," Akishin said. "My style of Kendo is oriented toward practical combat. Instruction is given while fighting. Don't worry, today is just to help you adapt."
Hachiman stared at Akishin for a few seconds before nodding. He stood up and ran toward the Service Club, where his shinai was kept.
Akishin also went to his storage locker to retrieve a newly purchased shinai.
Five minutes later, Hikigaya Hachiman returned with the wooden sword. He wasn't alone; Yukinoshita Yukino and Yuigahama Yui were with him.
"Chishima-sensei."
"Hello, Chishima-sensei!"
The two girls greeted him.
Akishin looked at them and asked with a smile, "What brings you two here?"
Yukino remained silent, so Yui answered.
"Um... haha, when Hikki came by, I was with Yukinon at the Service Club... and, well, we were curious... so we followed him."
Facing Akishin, Yui always felt a little nervous, even though they had only met a few times.
"If you're curious, feel free to watch."
Akishin led the three of them to the side of the school building. It was a semi-enclosed area that people rarely visited.
Yukinoshita Yukino watched Hikigaya Hachiman with a strange look in her eyes.
Hachiman stared back with his half-lidded, dead-fish eyes, looking like a salted fish that had lost its purpose in life. If you want to see me get humiliated, just say it to my face!
"This spot works!"
Akishin walked under a large tree and turned to face Hachiman. He raised his shinai and said, "Now, Hikigaya. Use all your strength. Attack me with everything you've got. Don't hold back and don't hesitate! Don't worry, you won't be able to hurt me."
"Chishima-sensei!"
Yukino called out. "I don't think Kendo is taught this way. Besides, neither of you is wearing protective gear!"
Akishin looked at Yukino's serious expression. "This is my Kendo. It's different from the traditional style. Hikigaya doesn't need bogu yet."
Yui looked frightened. She felt as though Akishin had changed.
Yukino and Hachiman felt it too. That dangerous sensation from the other day had returned. Although the intensity was far weaker, their instincts didn't lie.
Yukino managed to maintain her cold, composed exterior, but Hachiman began to feel the tension.
He stood directly across from Akishin.
"Hikigaya, why aren't you moving?" Akishin asked flatly. His eyes were locked onto Hachiman with dead seriousness.
Don't regret the choices you've made! Hachiman swallowed hard. Both hands gripped the shinai tightly. He charged forward and swung at Akishin.
His target was Akishin's arm.
"Chishima-sensei, watch out—"
Clack!
The sharp sound of impact echoed. Before the three of them could even react, Hachiman's sword had been sent flying, skidding across the ground several meters away.
Hachiman was more confused than anyone. He hadn't seen a thing, yet the sword had been ripped from his hands.
"Hikigaya Hachiman!"
Akishin barked. "Did I not tell you not to hesitate? Why are you aiming for the arm? The target of a vertical strike should be the head. And did you use all your strength? You didn't even use half. If I let you hit me, would you have pulled the strike back right as it connected? Hikigaya, remember: this is a fight, not a game. Pick up your sword!"
Akishin's words were harsh, his expression serious and tinged with anger. Yui and Yukino instinctively flinched.
"I'm sorry, Chishima-sensei."
Hikigaya Hachiman lowered his head in apology, then walked over to retrieve his shinai.
Yuigahama Yui and Yukinoshita Yukino stared at him in wonder. After being scolded so harshly, why was he still so calm?
What they didn't realize was that Hachiman, despite his cynical exterior, secretly craved to be seen and cared for.
Chishima Akishin was scolding him, yes, but it was a form of teaching. This kind of instruction had to be built on a foundation of rapport. Like a father figure...
Hachiman enjoyed this dynamic where someone actually bothered with him, even if the method was unusual. it made him feel more real.
"This time, don't hold back. Give it everything. No hesitation," Akishin repeated.
Hachiman nodded. The wind blew through the large tree, shaking loose a few leaves. He raised the shinai, ran toward Akishin with no refined technique, and unleashed a strike.
Akishin didn't dodge. He watched Hachiman calmly.
The strike never landed. When it was ten centimeters above Akishin's head, Hachiman's resolve flickered, and he pulled it away.
The sunlight filtered through the swaying shadows of the trees. In the distance, cherry blossom petals began to fall.
Akishin looked at Hachiman. Hachiman was panting, unable to meet his gaze.
Akishin raised his shinai and jabbed it into Hachiman's stomach. Hachiman groaned in pain, stumbling back several steps while clutching his gut.
"Hikigaya. What did I just tell you?"
"I'm sorry."
"Then keep going."
"...Right!"
Hikigaya Hachiman raised his shinai again and swung!
Still no refined movement, no proper stance. Instead of holding a sword, he looked like he was swinging a club.
Akishin tilted his head. The shinai whistled past, missing his hair by mere millimeters.
"Again!"
The strike missed, and Hachiman gritted his teeth, swinging the shinai horizontally with all his might.
Clack!
Akishin parried the blow and shouted, "Again!"
Hachiman continued to swing blindly, relying on raw effort.
Clack! Clack! Clack!
The sound of wooden swords clashing was constant. Yukinoshita Yukino and Yuigahama Yui watched with bated breath. It looked like Hachiman was relentlessly attacking, yet not a single strike touched Akishin.
Whether he dodged with a slight movement or parried with his own blade, Akishin maintained a flat, relaxed expression, as if he were merely playing with a child.
Clack!
Finally, after one last impact, the shinai in Hachiman's hands was sent flying again.
"Hikigaya, your mind is a mess. You're swinging that sword like a stick, and you're still not using your full strength!"
Hikigaya Hachiman collapsed onto the ground, breathing heavily as sweat poured off him. He had just performed a series of strikes that had explosively drained his energy.
"I'm sorry, Chishima-sensei."
"The person you should be apologizing to isn't me, it's yourself. Your stamina is pathetic. From now on, set aside time every day to exercise. That's enough for today."
Akishin looked at Hachiman, walked over to pick up the fallen shinai, and then looked at Yukino and Yui, who were still frozen in place.
He called out, "Yukinoshita-kun, Yuigahama-kun. Please help Hikigaya sit on the edge of that planter."
"Ah! Yes! Okay!"
The two girls snapped out of it and hurried over to support Hachiman.
Hachiman didn't resist. His arms were shaking. After only those few movements, he felt completely drained.
He finally understood why Kendo competitors on TV looked like they'd been doused in water after only a short match.
Yui pulled some tissues from her pocket to wipe the sweat from Hachiman's brow.
"Close your eyes. Use the Breathing Method to recover. Clear your mind. I'll call you when class is about to start," Akishin said, standing in front of Hachiman.
Hachiman looked up at Akishin for a moment, then closed his eyes and began to breathe according to the method he'd been taught.
Initially, he failed to enter the state because his breath was too shallow, but once he focused, his breathing gradually stabilized.
"Um, Yukinon... what's a 'Breathing Method'?" Yui whispered.
"It's a special breathing technique Chishima-sensei taught him," Yukino replied, her eyes scanning the surroundings. Why isn't she here yet?
Akishin seemed to sense something and looked up toward the school building. At the edge of a third-floor window, a familiar head immediately ducked back inside.
Shizuka leaned against the wall, a cigarette between her lips, clutching a set of protective armor she had borrowed from the Kendo club.
Seriously, what a pain, she thought.
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