"Mifune, how did the attendant recruitment go today?"
At night, in a quiet room, a white-haired old man sat kneeling on a cushion, holding a cup of hot tea. He was the current master of the Kenpu Dojo, Goshin.
"Reporting to the Dojo Master." Mifune bowed his head and spoke respectfully. "The four attendants recruited this time each have their merits. Among them, there's one named Kaito... he's quite interesting."
"Oh?" Goshin looked up, his interest piqued.
"In the middle of a tense test, he had the leisure to build a snowman. And this snowman was taller than the dojo buildings—something no ordinary person could do. I looked into him and found out he's a foreigner who got lost and ended up here."
"Are you saying he's a problem?"
"No, quite the opposite," Mifune said in a low voice. "When I looked him in the eye, his gaze was as clear as a mirror. He doesn't seem like a spy. More like... a very curious cat."
"Hahaha, a cat, you say? Your description makes this old man want to meet him." Goshin laughed heartily. "If he truly has talent, the Kenpu Dojo wouldn't mind satisfying his curiosity. That girl, Tetsuren, has been causing a ruckus, hasn't she? Let her test her skills against a new opponent."
"Yes, sir!"
Having passed the test, Kaito became a junior attendant at the Kenpu Dojo, sharing a dormitory with the other three recruits from his group. Of course, they were all boys, and all around Kaito's age.
As a "seasoned member of society" with plenty of social experience, Kaito used a combination of carrot and stick to win them over in a single night, becoming the de facto leader of their dorm.
The next day, under the guidance of a senior attendant, they got the hang of their duties. Besides the menial chores like cleaning from dawn till dusk, they were allowed to observe the disciples' training sessions in their free time.
Attendance wasn't mandatory—it was entirely voluntary. But anyone who wanted to enter the Kenpu Dojo was bound to have ambitions of their own.
After finishing their morning tasks, Kaito and the other nervous newcomers made their way to the training grounds to watch the disciples practice.
In the spacious training yard, more than twenty disciples in white training uniforms wielded wooden swords, practicing their fundamentals: vertical slashes, horizontal cuts, upward diagonals, and other basic sword techniques.
Five much older assistant instructors stood at the front of the ranks, their sharp eyes scanning the hard-training disciples. Mifune was one of them, standing before Goshin with a stern, focused expression.
Kaito glanced at the old dojo master sipping tea from his seat of honor before turning his attention to the disciples, but he quickly lost interest.
Just like Captain Okihira taught me.
He had already practiced these basics more than enough. He might as well use the time to refine his chakra.
He closed his eyes, drifting off into his own world for a while, until someone suddenly shook his shoulder several times. Kaito tilted his head. "What is it?"
"Boss, they're starting their sparring matches! You can't miss this!"
"Oh?" Kaito narrowed his eyes and looked out onto the field. Sure enough, the disciples had broken off into pairs and were beginning to spar.
After a synchronized bow, the sharp clack-clack of wooden swords colliding echoed across the yard in a dazzling display.
Just then, an out-of-place cry of pain cut through the noise, drawing Kaito's and the others' attention. A girl with a high ponytail held her chin up slightly, the tip of her wooden sword aimed at the opponent who had already fallen to the ground.
In just a few seconds, she had already won the match.
"Huh? A girl?" The boys beside him gasped in surprise. Kaito was a little surprised, too.
In his memory, he didn't think he'd ever seen a female samurai.
The gasps were so loud that they caused many heads to turn, including the girl's. She shot a death glare toward Kaito's group.
Her gaze lingered on Kaito the longest.
Sigh. The curse of being too handsome. Good thing I'm used to it, Kaito sighed to himself. She's actually quite pretty, though. Her eyebrows are a little thick, and that glare is terrifying.
The girl snorted, retracting her gaze. Amidst the mixed stares of awe and defiance from the surrounding disciples, she strode purposefully up to Mifune and declared loudly, "Master Mifune, the other disciples are too weak! I want to challenge you!"
Her words sent an uproar through the training ground. Everyone stopped what they were doing.
A bald instructor nearby scowled. "Tetsuren! As a samurai, you must not be disrespectful to your elders! While your skills are outstanding among the disciples, it's far too soon for you to compare yourself to us!"
"That's right!" many chimed in. "The instructors are all high-ranking samurai, and you aren't even an official samurai yet. How could you possibly win? It's like throwing an egg against a rock."
Tetsuren frowned, retorting irritably, "How will we know the outcome if we don't fight? Besides, it's not a life-or-death battle. It doesn't matter who wins or loses. I just don't want to waste my time sparring with these weaklings."
Her response was like pouring oil on a fire, and the disciples below erupted into even more heated arguments.
"Who are you calling a weakling? Care to fight me?!"
"I admit I can't beat you, but Chosuke is widely considered the strongest in our class. Why don't you fight him?"
"Yeah, exactly!"
"Chosuke?" Tetsuren glanced at a stoic-looking boy in the crowd and shook her head. "He has no fighting spirit. Sparring with him is boring."
"Hmph, I think you're just scared! You're nothing but a she-devil who preys on the weak!"
"Chosuke, go on! Show her who's really the strongest!"
The boy called Chosuke simply shook his head without a word.
"Enough!" Mifune shouted, silencing the discussion. "Tetsuren has a point. A wide gap in skill doesn't make for good practice. However, the gap between you and me is also vast. How about we find you a different opponent?"
As he spoke, he turned his head toward the corner where Kaito was quietly enjoying the show.
"Kaito, come here!"
"Me?" Kaito stood up, completely bewildered. He clearly hadn't expected the drama to land on him.
He's not going to make me fight her, is he? There's no reason to. He hadn't shown off any of his swordsmanship skills these past few days.
"Yes, you. You will come and have a match with Tetsuren," Mifune's confirmation shattered Kaito's last sliver of hope.
"Shihandai Mifune, is that wise? The boy is just a newly hired attendant," one of the instructors objected.
Tetsuren was also displeased. How could a pretty boy like that possibly be her opponent?
Mifune glanced at them and warned, "Before a formal battle, you must never underestimate any opponent, nor should you ever judge someone by their appearance. Do you understand?"
Everyone caught in his stern gaze flinched and nodded. "Yes, sir!"
Reluctantly bidding farewell to his lovely companions, Kaito composed himself and walked past the crowd—most of whom wore expressions of schadenfreude—to stand beside Tetsuren, in front of Mifune.
"Master."
"Mm. The two of you will fight a match right here. It will serve as a demonstration for the others." Mifune gestured to Kaito and Tetsuren with his eyes. "There will be a reward for the winner, and a punishment for the loser."
"It doesn't matter. I'm not going to lose anyway," Tetsuren said confidently.
"Um, I have a question," Kaito said, raising his hand. "What happens if it's a draw?"
"Then you'll both be punished!"
"..."