"Ready, Morina?" Kagome asks as she plucks a pair of tantos from the wall, slipping off their sheathes and turning to her guard, who stands behind her with her own sai in each hand.

"Of course. The question is, are you?" And without warning, the kitsune lunges, and their match begins. If I had thought my jaw would have dropped before, it was nothing compared to how shocked I am as I watch Kagome spar with Morina.

She is still moving with her new youkai speed, both moving too quickly for non enhanced eyes to track. They dart and lunge at each other, neither gaining the upper hand, and once again, I realise that her guard is not defending entirely with the intent to teach, but rather because she has to or Kagome would have drawn blood.

My mind reels at the progress she has made over the last few months, stunned at how quickly she has taken to the weapons. While she is no master, it is easy to see she has the makings for such. Already, she is as good as many of my soldiers, even some of my captains.

I wonder if she has any interest in such a position, perhaps even general one day. I ponder the thought as I continue to watch in awe. If she has any interest, she will have the position without hesitation.

"I think that's good for the day." Morina calls, before letting herself fall into a seated position in the middle of the dojo. Kagome follows, letting herself sprawl out on her back, panting lightly.

"Archery today, or nah?" Kagome inquires, tilting her head back to look at her guard.

"As I said last time, you've surpassed everyone in the West with the bow. There is nothing left to teach you there. If you wish to shoot, you are welcome to. It will keep you from losing muscle memory, but I am not going to schedule it every other day as we were." The kitsune levels her with a look before a teasing grin splits her lips as she leans back on her hands. "Was her training acceptable, my lord?"

Kagome sits up and spins around so fast, I am sure she has given herself whiplash. "You stayed?!"

I nod as I step closer, "Indeed. I wished to see for myself how you had progressed. I must say, I am surprised."

Her brow furrows a bit as she looks up at me. "Why?"

"I was not aware that you could move at youkai speeds. Nor was I aware just how proficient you have become with the blades." I reply, settling down next to her, propping a knee up to drape an arm over, reclining back on my other.

"I... move... speed... what?" she splutters, face contorting with confusion.

"You are unaware?" I look at her incredulously, before turning to look at her still grinning guard. "You have not told her?"

"Eh. Not in so many words. She knows she's faster than she used to be, how she interpreted that is on her." Morina chuckles, dodging a swat from the miko.

"You mean to tell me that I'm as fast as you guys and you didn't tell me?! How long has this been happening?" Kagome scolds the kitsune, making sure to keep her voice from rising too high, due to sensitive ears.

The kitsune shrugs nonchalantly, cocking her head to the side as she answers. "You've been getting faster since the beginning. You finally hit our speeds a month and a half ago. Makes it a lot easier to train you, not having to remember to keep our speed regulated to human levels."

"Hn. Indeed it would.