Prologue

To mold the mind and body.

To cultivate a vigorous spirit,

And through correct and rigid training,

To strive for improvement in the art of Kendo.

To hold in esteem human courtesy and honor.

To associate with others with sincerity .

And to forever pursue the cultivation of oneself.

Thus will one be:

To love ones country and society;

To contribute to the development of culture;

And to promote peace and prosperity among all peoples.

That was the way of the Kendoka and it was what drove the red-haired Toshie Kamio to push herself to be the best she could be. Kendo was the only way she could ever prove herself to seemingly anyone. Not only did she feel the need to prove her worth, but she also want to simply improve herself. She knew that she didn't always have the best attitude and that she could be pushy and obnoxious, but that was why she decided to start practicing Kendo when she was only ten and getting in trouble at school for talking back.

Even her Sensei was a bit apprehensive about her joining the dojo at first, but when she admitted that she wanted to learn the discipline and she would try as hard as she physically could and even harder, he knew that he couldn't turn her away. Though there were days that he wished he had, a majority of the days were good and Toshie was a good addition to their dojo. Her and her Sensei had developed a bond and he became like a father to her. At least more of a father than her actual father was.

And that's what made her having to tell him that she was moving hard. She didn't want to leave her dojo behind and as she left, she swore that though she was going to look for a new one in her new city, she'd always consider that one home. What had surprised her about that day though, was that she saw her Sensei actually cry as he promised that he would give the dojo closest to her new house a call and tell them she was on her way. "They'll need the extra time to prepare for your large personality," he had said.

In her new house, in her new town, in her new school, and especially in her new dojo; she felt like an outsider that was attempting to creep her way into the crowd made up of everyone else. People were already familiar with each other and everything around them while she still had to figure it all out.

But no matter where she was, whenever she would put on her bogu* over her kendogi** and hakama***, Toshie felt as if she could do anything.

*Bogu- protective armor

**Kendogi- like a jacket

***Hakama- a garment seperated in the middle to form two wide pant legs

On a side note, a Kendoka is a person who practices Kendo :D

Well this is a new idea that has been floating around in my head for a little while and I just had to write it down~

Thanks for reading~

Megan :)