Chương 23: Body and Mind

Sitting in a guest chair that squeaked with his every shift in weight, Kurisu faced Principal Hayes and a man introduced as Detective Quincy across the desk.

"So," Detective Quincy said, clicking a pen.

"Let's go over this one more time. You saw the intruder exit the window?" Kurisu spoke into his phone.

"Indeed. The beast shattered the window and fled outside. It sought to inflict harm upon the students, so I intervened."

"And you engaged it?" Narrowing his eyes, Kurisu wondered if this redundant interrogation of his actions was intentional or if this man was simply an imbecile, as he swallowed the reprimand he truly wanted to give.

"Did I not just state my intervention?" Unfazed, Quincy flipped a page in his notebook.

"Right. But how did you take it down? Where exactly does a kid learn to fight like that?"

"That is not your concern." With a sigh, Quincy closed his notebook.

"Well, that settles it then. We have the statement, Hayes. It's a clear-cut Good Samaritan intervention, and Animal Control should be here any minute to haul that thing away." Principal Hayes rubbed his face, looking agitated.

"We still need to call your parents, Kurisu. The school has an obligation to let the Millers know you weren't injured." Rattling shut on its tracks, the garage door sealed out the afternoon sun just as Steven killed the ignition, leaving silence in the cabin as he slumped against the headrest, pulling out his phone.

"You're all over TikTok," he said quietly. Kurisu looked at him.

"Tik... Tok?" Tapping the screen, Steven held the device up to reveal a video filmed from across the courtyard. The footage showed Kurisu blurring into motion, a speed thankfully not supernatural but still enough to blur the frame, followed by the tackle and the pin. The caption in bright yellow text read: "NEW KID GOES WWE ON GOBLIN!!! #Hero #CherryCreek #MonsterMash."

"Three hundred thousand views in two hours," Steven said, shaking his head.

"The news stations are calling the school; they want to interview the 'Kung Fu Kid,' and I've gotten three calls from my mother asking if we're okay." Frowning, Kurisu retraced his steps. He had been careful, pulling zero Ki from his Tanden and restricting his movements exclusively to unpowered taijutsu. Looking at Steven, he said, "I utilized only physical force."

"I know… I know." Steven turned to the boy, his face drawn with exhaustion.

"But I asked you not to play hero, Kurisu." Giving Steven a half-lidded stare, Kurisu asked, "Should I have allowed the ko-oni to tear that girl to shreds?"

"No," Steven conceded, shivering visibly under the boy's gaze.

"Of course not. But now you're a hero, and heroes get watched. People are going to be looking at you. They're going to be looking for the next cool thing you do, and if you slip up, if you use even a drop of magic while all those eyes are on you…" Breaking off, Steven stared through the windshield.

"God I don't even want to imagine..." Looking at his hands, Kurisu digested the lecture.

"Is paper shield."

"What?" Steven asked. Struggling with the English words, Kurisu pieced them together from the thoughts in his head.

"Hiding is... Paper Shield. Rain... melts?" Unsure of the last word, he let the sentence hang. Steven chuckled dryly.

"Yeah. I guess that's a good way to put it. Can't say I know what you're getting at, though." He opened his door, dropping a leg out of the vehicle.

"Come on. Charlotte made lasagna. Let's go eat before the paparazzi show up on the lawn."

"Steven."

"What is it?" Stopping, Steven glanced back. Kurisu spoke to the translator in pieces, pausing between segments to allow the device time to process his words.

"I am not of this world. Concealing my arts is like seeking refuge behind a paper shield in a storm." As he held Steven's gaze, he finished.

"I have no intention of exposing myself, but the truth will inevitably surface. Especially now, with so many eyes upon me." Looking down at the floorboards, Steven sighed.

"I guess you're right, just… I don't know." He ran a hand down his face.

"I guess just keep it hidden as long as you can, and we'll cross that bridge when we get there." Cool and recycled, the basement air settled over Kurisu as he sat in the center of the room on his square of carpet, his katana laying across his knees in its sheath. He heard footsteps on the stairs before the door creaked open, revealing Kenji silhouetted by the kitchen light.

"You're insane, by the way," Kenji remarked as he made his way down the stairs.

"You too? Should I have left it?" Kurisu asked, popping an eye open. Kenji sat on the bottom step.

"Wow, you really are crazy. I mean, you could have vaporized it," he said softly.

"I saw your hand, the air twisted, like heat off the road. Something was gathering there."

"Yes."

"So why didn't you?" Sighing, Kurisu tapped the saya of his sword.

"It was requested of me." Looking at Kenji, he added, "Village... watches." Kenji snorted.

"Yeah, no kidding. Brad thinks you're some kind of secret agent now and was actually asking me if I knew what dojo you go to. You know, today, when I saw that thing come through the window, I froze. I have all this power inside me, this energy, and I just froze." He looked at Kurisu.

"You didn't freeze, though. You just… switched gears. How do you do that?" Kurisu closed his eyes. The Nodaichi estate burned behind his eyelids. His people screamed. A city vanished in a red wave beneath him before iron shackles bit into his wrists. He had frozen once, and it had cost him everything. This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

"Experience," he breathed.

"What do you mean?" Shaking his head to dispel the memories, Kurisu locked eyes with the boy.

"Deliberation wastes time. Act." Standing up, he moved the sword aside and gestured for Kenji to stand.

"I will demonstrate." Kenji blinked.

"Show me what?"

"Assume your stance." As Kenji shifted his feet and dropped into a backstance, Kurisu lunged, invading his space and forcing the boy to flinch and stumble back.

"Too slow."

"I wasn't ready!" Kurisu bobbed his head.

"We never are. That is precisely when our enemies will strike. Every time. Without fail."

"So what do I do?"

"You act without hesitation." Stepping forward, Kurisu forced Kenji to stumble another step.

"They will not wait. Your foes will strike." He lunged again, making the boy flinch a second time.

"Forgoing thought, I move." Catching his balance, Kenji frowned.

"So I just... stop thinking?"

"Deliberation is a hindrance; discard it. Execute the form ten thousand times, and the flesh will remember."

"Ten thousand times?!" Kenji balked.

"You expect me to do this crap ten thousand times?"

"Strength is not granted at birth. It is forged through conflict." Adopting the Senryu no Kamae, Kurisu locked his eyes onto Kenji's.

"Again." Taking a breath, Kenji tightened his jaw and settled into his stance, sinking lower this time.

"Okay," he whispered.

"I guess I'll get there eventually." Kurisu lunged. As he flinched this time, Kenji reversed his feet, creating space. Kurisu stopped, giving a faint nod.

"Again." Exhaling, Kenji dropped his arms as he straightened up, wiping sweat from his forehead while the afternoon heat pressed into the basement.

"Ugh, why does my chest hurt?" Walking over to his carpet square, Kurisu sat down.

"Likely your Tanden," Kurisu said.

"As I mentioned previously." Kenji bobbed his head.

"Yeah, the core. You planning on just repeating yourself?"

"Next time, do not abandon the lesson." Kurisu stared at Kenji until the boy turned his gaze.

"In time, you may learn to cease your interruptions as well. Your Tanden holds your Ki. Ki is energy. It is the force that drives us, from opening our eyes in the morning to moving mountains. Whether sprinting, striking, or manipulating the world." Holding out a hand, Kurisu lifted a tiny clod of dirt from the sole of his shoe into the air, hardening it into a dense pebble before crumbling it to dust.

"Every movement draws upon this reserve. Deplete it entirely, and your body collapses." Moving his finger up, he tapped his temple.

"Shinki."

"Mind… energy?," Kenji questioned." Shin no Ki. The cognitive energy of the mind. Shin governs clarity. It dictates our ability to stay alert, predict an opponent, and maintain focus. It is the mental endurance required to perform In, the hand seals. When this reserve runs low, brain fog and migraines set in. If exhausted, you will lose consciousness." Lowering his hand, Kurisu pressed his thumb against his heart.

"Chi. Once again, Chi is life and vitality. You can metabolize Chi into Ki or Shin, or weaponize it directly. However, it is the bedrock of your life. Draining this resource results in death." Bobbing his head again, Kenji sighed.

"So it's basically like a video game. Ki is stamina, Shin is magic, Chi is the health bar. Don't burn the health bar to fuel the attacks. Got it." Kurisu stared at him. Mahō? No, nothing was trickery, nor demonic for that matter. And what's a health bar? He shook his head, deciding the exact wording was irrelevant as long as the boy grasped the consequences.

"Shin is not sorcery. It is the absolute harmonization of a disciplined mind imposing unyielding authority over a physical vessel. I do not understand your terminology for the rest, but your deduction is accurate. Do not burn away your life to fuel a strike."

"Harmonization of a disciplined... yeah whatever, this is great and all, but what about my chest?" Kenji asked, rubbing his sternum.

"It feels like I swallowed a microwave burrito without letting it cool." As Kurisu pinched his chin in thought, Kenji's face contorted.

"Wait, learn not to interrupt!? Did you... Did you make me sit through that explanation for interrupting you?"" Mikomi naki ni arazu."

"You're a dick." Focusing his Zanshin, Kurisu peered into the boy's Keiraku, observing the gathered Ki pooling in the chest.

"Your Ki has stagnated, pooling rather than flowing because we practiced for hours and you gathered the energy but failed to expel it."

"Why didn't this happen with Chi?"

"Chi possesses a different nature; it moves freely," Kurisu explained.

"Ki requires physical effort. It must be forced from your Tanden, pushed through the extremities, and released. It is a muscular process. Squeeze your Tanden. Push your Ki down to the pinky. Squeeze. That is how you move it."

"So how do I move it?" Dropping his arms, Kurisu leveled a flat stare at Kenji before slowly saying, "Squeeze. Your. Tanden!"

"Okay, I deserved that one." Tightening his abdomen, Kenji forced the energy. Through his Zanshin, Kurisu watched the boy push it down his left arm, then back to the center, followed by the right, observing the pooled energy dissipate as the Ki finally found its path.

"Good." Standing up, Kurisu gestured toward the stairs.

"Outside." Kurisu walked into the center of the backyard lawn, holding his hand out to siphon a tiny ribbon of blue flame from a butane grill lighter he'd grabbed off the patio table.

"Now, squeeze your Tanden, force your Ki to your fingertips, and use your will to pull the flame." From his position opposite Kurisu, Kenji nodded.

"Squeeze my Tanden. Push my Ki. Pull the fire." As Kenji extended his hand to focus on the blue wisp, Kurisu watched the boy attempt to push the tiny threads of Ki through his arms, noting the thin connection that required a level of fine control the novice still lacked. The boy's physical tension broke abruptly, and seizing upon the Chi in the root systems beneath his boots, Kenji yanked the energy upward.

The tiny blue wisp exploded into a roaring bonfire, gorging on the stolen energy from the ground to turn the flame into a spiraling pillar of heat that roared toward Kenji.

"Whoa!" Kenji yelled, stumbling back. As Kurisu surged forward, he snapped his fist shut, instantly starving the fire of oxygen and extinguishing the flame. Kenji stood there panting, whipping his head toward the Miller house.

"Mrs. Miller... Charlotte... did she see?"

"Curtains closed," Kurisu said.

"Safe."

"You sure? That was like a bomb, Kurisu."

"Look." Kurisu pointed to the ground, directing the boy's attention downward. In a perfect five-foot diameter around where Kenji had been standing, the grass was gone. The blades turned gray and dissolved into dust as the breeze caught them.

"You pulled the Chi of the grass, and you pulled too much." Kurisu knelt and touched a remaining patch of gray lawn, watching the grass disintegrate into powder at the touch.

"The vegetation harbors Chi. Lacking the discipline to move your Ki, you devoured the life beneath your feet." Standing back up, he looked Kenji in the eye.

"Heed this warning well. If you exhaust your own Chi, you will join the grass." While staring at the circle of dust, Kenji frowned.

"Well, can't you just fix it, like you did the explosions?"

"No. While the explosions were devastating to the grass, manipulation allowed me to regrow it from the surviving roots. Once completely gone, Chi cannot be restored. Repairing this requires culling the dead grass and dirt, and then regrowing it from scratch."

"Practice," Kurisu said, turning back toward the house. Kenji glared.

"Why exactly is it, by the way, that the very first thing you teach me to actually use is highly capable of killing me?"

"The initial instruction was intended to encompass the gathering of Chi, alongside the art of Saiki, the act of using Chi to heal and forestall your death. Alas, you departed."