FATE AND FRAILTY

You move towards me.
Possibly to wipe my tears.
Then your lips touch mine...


Haiku 6: Stolen

Rei did not know how she did it before. School was hell on earth. And she did not say that because she hated learning... Heck, she loved learning. She felt like she was regaining a sense of normalcy ever since she woke up remembering nothing. Her classmates were another story though... They insist on smothering her with their "love." But what was strange about the other girls was that they were simply fans. They adored the image she portrayed. She was their elegant "princess." None of them was willing enough to be her friend.

In fact... they outright rejected the notion-- always saying that they could not allow their "Rei-sama" to lower herself to their standards, and it made Rei feel like an outcast somehow.

It was PE time, and she was sitting among her cheering classmates in the sidelines inside the school's massive gymnasium. She was quiet, however, as she watched their teacher and the captain of the fencing club square off in the piste. They were demonstrating to the class what a real epee bout was like. Rei was really impressed with the captain.

She was told that Kirisaki Tezuka, a senior student who was also the one who was currently giving their teacher a run for his money, was considered to be her biggest rival. Her classmates had told her that she and the older girl used to butt heads.

She watched as Tezuka practically forced their teacher back and off the strip-- forcing the rotund, panting man to call out a, "Halt!" He took off his mask and turned his jolly, pink-cheeked features to his students. Rei could not help but compare him to a shorter and hairless version of Santa Clause. "THAT is what real epee fencing is like, girls. So when you..."

"Excuse me, sir." Tezuka cut in politely, her voice muffled against the mask. She took off her head gear, letting her silky brown hair fall gracefully, and revealed the breath-taking beauty underneath. Rei's eyes widened. She had been late when she came in earlier, her cast giving her trouble when she tried to change into her fencing suit, and had only stumbled in the middle of the fencing demonstration. When she finally saw what her so-called rival looked like, she was astounded by her attractiveness. She had competed against THAT?

"If you would allow me to be so bold, I don't quite think this one-sided demonstration of skills has been presented to your class properly." Tezuka smiled charmingly at the other man to take away the sting of her words. "If you will allow me... I would like to ask one of your students, who I know is also an experienced fencer, for a suitable performance." She paused, and added slyly, "Perhaps afterwards, the others might be impressed enough to want to take fencing seriously."

"Are trying to recruit some of the girls in the middle of my class, Kirisaki-san?" The teacher laughed, not the least bit offended by the fencing captain's honesty. "You are right, as always, my dear. But I didn't realize that there is an experienced fencer among the girls. Other than Hino-san that is..."

"Oh," Tezuka went on innocently, though when she glanced in the girl in question there was challenge in her hazel eyes, "But I really was referring to Hino-san." Rei's classmates started whispering to each other.

'What the hell is she talking about?' The dark-haired girl thought, annoyed. She was tempted to wave the cast in front of the senior's smirking face and say, 'Hello? Broken arm?' And besides that, wasn't her amnesiac condition already public knowledge? She was not even sure she knew how to fence.

"But I don't think Hino-san is fit to fence, Kirisaki-san." The teacher shook his head in disappointment.

"Oh, not to worry. I'll use my left hand then."

"That seems fair," he thought out loud. His eyes were bright with excitement. It has been a while since he had seen Tezuka and Rei fence together. They took the art of fencing to a whole new level. And being a passionate fencing-enthusiast it had been such a huge shame that the accident had forced such a talented girl like Rei to stop. Forgoing his common sense in his eagerness to see them fence each other again, he nodded and said, "Very well."

"WHAT!" Rei shot to her feet in anger.

"Is something the matter, Hino-san?" Tezuka asked the other girl sweetly. "I'll understand if you're afraid. But fencing should be nothing compared to the accident you went through. I'm terribly sorry that had happened to you, by the way. And it was so courageous of you to come out and continue your normal life despite your amnesia. If you want, I'll give even you a handicap?"

'That bitch!' Rei thrust her mask over her head and grabbed her epee with her left hand before storming over to the piste. The whispers around them got louder. She positioned herself on the on-guard line which, was two meters parallel from each other from the center line-- and Tezuka, her mask also in place, mimicked her.

"Double-touch? Three points to win?" The senior inquired, suddenly serious.

"Whatever." Rei answered back curtly.

"Any handicaps?"

"Why? Do you need it?"

The air practically crackled with tension. The teacher, acting as the director, positioned himself at a safe distance beside the center-line. "Ready?" He asked, and the contenders resumed an en garde position-- well, Rei tried to... but she could not lift her right hand to find her center of gravity. Instead, she pointed her epee awkwardly at Tezuka while she kept her broken right arm tucked against her chest instead. "Fence!"

Both girls were still at first, until Tezuka tried to feel her out by tapping Rei's epee sharply. The dark-haired girl tapped back. That was all it took. They both burst into a flurry of thrusts, slashes and parries. Rei was clumsy, and was unsure with what it took to win this round. And Tezuka was better than she had thought, especially now that the other girl was fencing mercilessly. She was finally chased off the side strip. The "director" stopped them and repositioned them on the on-guard line once again.

"Ready?" He called out.

"Are you okay to continue, Hino-san." Tezuka spoke, dripping with false concern, as she put herself in en garde once again.

"I'm just warming up." Rei growled through her mask.

"Fence!"

The dark-haired girl took the initiative of tapping Tezuka's epee first, before lunging herself at her. She was going to have to go on the offensive, Rei strategized, until she hit a point. Tezuka was forced to parry and defend herself, but held her ground nonetheless. Finally, in a move called "Thrust with Opposition"-- she deflected Rei's furious thrust by circling the blade of the epee away from its center of aim and thrust her own into Rei's chest.

The first point was Tezuka's.

"My, my, Hino-san... In spite of your disadvantage, I would've thought that your instincts would have at least retained your skills in fencing." The senior gloated.

Instead of angering Rei, she took the other girl's words into consideration. When the next round began, it was Tezuka's turn to act offensively. The dark-haired girl did not stop to think and let herself be carried away by her intuition.

It only took two moves. A counter-parry and a quick thrust-- and Rei finally had her first point. The girls in the bleachers cheered loudly.

"You can do it, Rei-sama!"

"Kirisaki-sama is the best!"

"Ready? Fence!"

Rei was more comfortable with herself now. In the next round, both fencers were evenly-matched. She nearly chased Tezuka off the piste. But with the senior's quick thinking, she allowed herself to settle for a double-touch instead. Both points were awarded to both girls.

It was Tezuka's turn to get angry and for Rei to gloat. The teacher was beside himself. Thiswas exciting! It was turning out to be more of a saber match than epee with the furious pace the girls were setting. But he did not dare stop them and tell them that. Tezuka was superior in experience while the other, while a little green, was more skillful. He was not sure who was going to win and the unknown was thrilling. The other students obviously felt the same as the gymnasium practically thundered with encouraging cheers. The others in separate classes even stopped whatever they were doing and had gathered around the piste.

Both fencers were dead silent as they waited for the final, conclusive round to begin.

"Ready?" Rei tensed.

"Fence!"

The following match was a sight to behold. Everyone was watching masters at work. The girls chased each other all over the strip while being careful not to step over the lines. Each of them moved with grace and rhythmic momentum. The finally...

CLANG!

Both girls countered each other's epee, the metal clanging loudly, then thrust at the other simultaneously. It was another double-touch. Everyone went wild. It was to be expected that their idols would tie, but they applauded the fencers for their excellent showmanship nonetheless. When Rei took her mask off, she was grinning. Tezuka wasn't and was glaring at the younger girl.

"That was wonderful!" The teacher gushed as he rushed to congratulate them. He looked at Rei and smiled at her. "You really are a genius!"

The dark-haired girl looked down at him with fire in her lavender eyes "I am SO glad I have such a considerate teacher like you, sensei. Thank you for saying so." The smile on the chastised man's face fell at the sarcastic edge in her voice.

Rei shifted her attention to Tezuka when the captain approached her. "I agree with him, Hino-san. It only takes a genius like you to fence the way you did when you can't even remember how to." The older girl's tone was dripping with malice despite the polite words.

Rei was ready to bop her one on the head with her cast, but settled with offering her an insincere smile instead. "Thank you, sempai. I guess skill DOES win over age." Both girls stared at each other for a long, tense time before Tezuka broke eye contact first. She turned to speak to the suddenly somber teacher beside them.

"If you'll excuse me, sensei... I have another class to attend to." She smiled at him, did not offer one to Rei, and simply walked away.

"Well err..." The awkward man turned to the other girl.

"May I be excused from class, sensei?" Rei requested brusquely. "My arm is aching."

"Oh, of course, Hino-san." He acquiesced softly, feeling guilty at the fact that he did nothing to stop her from overexerting herself earlier. Without another word, Rei turned in her heels and briskly left for the locker rooms.


The school bell chimed melodiously-- the sound echoed across the walls and even across the field. And still, Makoto did not stir. Ami's shoulder was beginning to grow numb.

'Such a heavy sleeper...' The blue-haired girl thought, and found the newly-discovered part of Makoto to be absolutely adorable. She really wished they could stay like this forever. But Ami took her schooling very seriously, and was compelled to have to wake her friend up to attend it.

"Makoto-san?" She whispered it at first. Makoto did not respond. She cleared her throat and decided to try calling out a little louder. "Makoto-san?" Still, nothing...

'You know,' Ami's ID began mischievously, 'you can always kiss your sleeping beauty awake.'

'Yeah sure... And be branded a pervert forever? Don't do it, Ami!' Her ever so logical SUPEREGO countered.

Great... She was having her very own Freudian battle... She was going to be late for class if she did not come to a decision soon. She had to wonder though why the idea of kissing Makoto, who happened to be another girl, did not entirely horrify her. In fact, she found the idea downright appealing. She looked down at the brunette and felt her heart respond at the sight of her.

Mizuno Ami realized, for the first time in her young life, that she was falling helplessly in love. The desire to kiss Makoto was so strong, it obliterated everything that was left of her moral fiber. She leaned down, slowly, her eyes fluttering close and her lips trembling in anticipation... when Makoto's head suddenly snapped up to collide sharply against Ami's temple.

"OW!" They both cried out and clutched their injured areas respectively.

"Jeez, Ami-san! What was that all about?" Makoto eyed the other girl and was startled to see how red Ami's face was turning. "Hey, you okay? Did you get hurt?"

"N-no, no!" Ami stuttered nervously, her voice unusually high and squeaky. "I-I'm fine! Uh... I'm j-just embarrassed."

"Huh? It was an accident, Ami-san. Nothing to be embarrassed about." Makoto shook her head. Her little friend was so weird. She glanced at her wrist watch and groaned. "Damn... I can't believe I fell asleep. Why didn't you wake me up?"

"I tried to," the blue-haired girl replied. She could not look at Makoto-- afraid that her feelings might be written all over her face. She would die on the spot if the taller girl saw them.

Makoto shrugged, "Fine, fine... Let's go back?"

"Yeah..." Ami concurred timidly and bent over to gather her stuff, and her friend did the same. After cleaning up, both girls rose and started towards the main building. "Ne, Makoto-san..." She began shyly. "Where do you live? I live near Shiba, and if your place is along the way... maybe we could walk home together?"

The brunette caught the hopefulness in the other girl's tone and hated herself for having to let her down. But it was too inconvenient for her to walk with Ami since her apartment was too far off. "I'm sorry Ami-san. I live in the opposite side."

"Oh... Well, that's okay." The smaller girl sighed. She was disappointed but not too worried about it. Besides, she could always ask Makoto to hang out over the weekends... or maybe go on dates? The latter thought threatened to send Ami in a giddy and blushing fit. Goodness, she needed to control herself. Her inner thoughts were getting embarrassing!

They finally entered the building and paused in front of the stairs. Ami and Makoto looked at each other for a while. It was the taller girl who blushed first, and shifted her gaze away from Ami's disconcertingly frank appraisal.

"I'll um..." Makoto cleared her throat loudly, "see ya later?"

"Of course." Ami smiled, then moved to climb the stairs. She was oblivious to the pensive eyes that followed her ascent.


The dark hall was empty save for six people. When the queen returned to her chambers, no one, except the Maestros and a handful of their personal slaves, was allowed to stay inside. The twins were watching a very naked Pillar standing in front of three of her youma "handmaidens" who were holding three similar-looking kimonos that were in three separate colors. Other than the fact that the kimonos were made out of rich silk, it was plain and lacking in design. There was, however, a black seal of a three-leaf clover (also known as a club among the other suits of playing cards) etched on the back of each robe.

"Why?" Deedee demanded obstinately, breaking the deafening silence in the hall.

"That's Cheshire's favorite question. You should ask her that." Pillar replied distractedly as she pulled a red robe out of her youma's metallic hands. All three abominations were mirror-like beasts-- their torsos were flat, long and retractable, and their skin was shiny and reflective like a vanity mirror-- but other than that, their limbs and heads were perfectly human.

The drowsy Maestro held the kimono in front of her body and frowned at her reflection in her "mirror." She looked like a whore in this color. She threw the kimono away and took out the blue one.

"Why can't we kill the stupid senshis already?" Deedee went on, unabashed. She stomped her foot impatiently with each word she uttered. "Why? Why? Why!" Dumdum giggled at her sister's antics beside her.

"Wasn't the plan obvious to you by now, from the last couple of dimensions we took over?" Pillar sighed as she threw the blue kimono away. The color simply clashed with her pink hair. 'Note to self... Red and blue robes should be burned...' She mentally told herself, then out loud she went on, "Let fate run its natural course, and wait for it to betray one of them. It always happens, remember? If we change it too soon, we're screwed."

"Well, isn't that the reason why we joined the queen in the first place?" Dumdum spoke up guilessly.

"I hate children..." Pillar muttered, growing irritated by all these lines of questioning. It was making her sober. "Look, just do as you're told, comprende? Like, stop trying to question it. Now leave me alone and do your jobs. You're ruining my mojo here."

Deedee flipped her middle finger in her direction before stomping away. Dumdum remained where she was for a moment and lifted her own middle finger in puzzlement. Then with a beaming smile, she innocently gestured the 'fuck you' at Pillar before she ran after her sister.


By the end of the day, the desperation for Rei's attention had toned down some, and the rest of the girls were content to worship her from afar. Rei was relieved. She had been telling the truth when she told the teacher that her arm was aching. She could not handle another mob attack similar to the one this morning.

She was standing in front of the gate, waiting for Haruka to come and pick her up, when she saw "her" again.

The apparition was wearing a school uniform this time, and she was more tangible than the last time. She was standing across the street, moving her head side to side to judge the momentum of the oncoming vehicles. Rei thought that she was finally seeing the actual person in the flesh. Then she watched the blonde, pig-tailed girl burst into a run. A car, moving towards her, picked up speed. Rei realized with horror that it was going to hit the other girl.

She started forward and opened her mouth to yell a warning-- but it was too late. She watched, dumbstruck, as the car zoomed through the girl's body like she was nothing but air. The oblivious ghostly vision continued across the street and ran past a gaping Rei.

"I'm gonna be late! I'm SO gonna be late!" The blonde phantom whined as she went.

Rei's hands were shaking as she rubbed her eyes. This was really getting scary. She was sure the other girl had been real. Was she seeing ghosts? Or was this a figment of her deranged and damaged mind. She shook her head to clear it and checked to see if the apparition was still there.

The blonde was still there, her slender figure was moving farther and farther away with each step though... Like in the hospital, Rei felt something pull at her. She knew she had to follow the "rabbit." She just HAD to. In spite of her reservations, she tightened her hold on her book bag and hastened after the strange vision

The apparition led her through a series of twists and turns, street after street. Rei knew she would never find her way back to TA Gakuen, and knew that Haruka might probably freak out when she realized she was gone. But she didn't turn back. Her fear had melted away to be replaced by a nagging curiosity. Where was this rabbit taking her?

Then she found herself running through a short and narrow alley. The apparition took a sharp turn to the right and disappeared from view. Rei pumped her legs faster and followed right after her. When she ran around the corner, the sight that greeted her caused her to come into a clumsy stop. She felt the blood drain away from her face, and her suddenly weakened hands lost their grip on the book bag-- dropping it to the ground with a clatter.

She screamed.


Makoto was walking home, lost in her thoughts. She could not help but feel like she was forgetting something important, and it bothered her. She was not the type to forget about important things. She tried to remember when she thought she had lost her memories and her mind instantly brought her back to a memory of lunch time with Ami. She and the other girl were eating lunch one minute then poof-- nothing. According to her friend, the both of them had fallen asleep in the middle of things-- and what troubled Makoto the most was that she could not remember how that happened.

She walked inside a familiar alley, it was a short cut that would bring her directly across the block. She jumped when she heard a scream.

Muggings were common occurrences in this secretive alley, and Makoto realized that one was taking place right now. She ran in the direction of the sound. She did not pause to think about what she was getting into and only knew she had to help immediately. She saw a dark-haired girl ahead of her, who was sitting carelessly on the ground and was staring forward with wide fearful eyes.

"Hey! What's wrong?" Makoto yelled as she neared her. When she was directly in the center of the intersecting alley, she finally saw the reason why the other girl was stupefied. It was the most horrible thing the brunette had ever seen.

The monster was a ruined gelatinous mess. It was like its creator had hastily molded a human-shaped blob of flesh and baked it too hastily. Its sagging fat and muscles looked raw and pink, and its limbs and head were unproportioned. It had nothing on its disfigured "face" but a vertical mouth-- which was currently latched onto the arm of some woman and was happily sucking away.

The woman in question seemed to be awake throughout the whole process, and looked like she was lost in some orgasmic stupor.

'What the hell is that!' Makoto thought, morbidly fascinated at the sight of the monster.

Then, the youma stepped away, releasing its victim with an audible pop. It had apparently finished feeding on the poor woman, and was now turning its bulbous head at the two girls' direction.

'Shit!' Both Makoto and Rei thought as it lumbered towards them. The dark-haired girl could not move, however, no matter how much she tried to will her body. She was paralyzed with fear.

For Makoto, adrenaline kicked in. She scooped Rei up in her arms and turned around to escape. But the youma was smart. It lifted its oversized arms and threw two pieces of itself across the girls in the opposite direction. The fleshy blobs twitched and re-molded itself-- forming into small, hairless dog-like shapes. These too, had nothing else but a vertical mouth. The youmas released a victorious, dull roar.

"What are we going to do?" Rei whispered to her supposed rescuer in a frightened voice.

"I-I don't know!" Makoto stammered back, and felt herself start to panic. There was no escape, and they were going to be eaten by these things!

"Tsk, tsk... This is just awful!" The girls look up at the sound, and saw a strange woman in a cat-mask and tight, black cat suit sitting on the ledge of a building. She tilted her head at them in greeting. "Destiny is getting insistent, isn't it? Two reunions in one day! How awful!"

"What the fuck are you sitting around for!" Rei screamed at her. She could not believe that some weirdo had just appeared and did nothing but yak away. "Help us!"

Cheshire tittered noiselessly. "Wrong question! You should be asking, WHY am I helping you?"

She did not wait for response. In one blurry movement, she somersaulted into the air. When she landed, crouching, on the ground-- the girls saw that her once empty hands were now clutching a pair of twin, black kodachis.

Before anyone could react, Cheshire rushed at the biggest youma and stabbed it on the stomach. The monster screamed a blood-curling scream and moved to violently bat its attacker away. But she was too quick for it, and jumped over its arm as it lashed out at her. She brought her knuckles down on top of it for leverage and pushed herself over the youma's head. When she landed behind it, she proceeded to hack away at its defenseless back.

Makoto's jaw dropped. Cheshire was an incredible and agile fighter! The monster was obviously no match for her. Just when she felt her hopes rising, she heard a pair of guttural growls. She and Rei looked down at the doggy youmas that were slowly inching towards them.

"I have to put you down..." The taller girl whispered in Rei's ear. When she saw the other nod, she slowly released her to stand on her own, then straightened. "Stay behind me." She told Rei, who looked back at her in annoyance. The dark-haired girl was not a damsel in distress and she was quite capable of defending herself. But she had no time to tell the other girl that however, because one of the youma leapt forward, its distorted jaws snapping. Makoto caught its forelegs. But the beast's lunge had been powerful, and it forced her to fall onto her back.

Rei saw an opening and quickly rushed past the other monster to escape. But the youma followed her, snapping at her heels. Makoto saw all of this and cursed. 'Great... I try to help and this is all I got?' The youma she was trying to hold back barked viciously into her face. For a small fry, it was surprisingly strong. Her arms were shaking with the effort to keep it back. And just when her hands were about to give out, the youma flew off her.

She looked up to see a smirking Rei swing a metal pipe over her shoulder. She arched a questioning eyebrow at the prone girl.

"Thanks..." Makoto grumbled and struggled to her feet.

Their heads jerked in the direction of the sound when they heard the giant youma emit its loud and final scream. They watched it crumple to the ground before its executioner. Seconds later, a strange black smoke flew out of its mouth.

Cheshire swiped her kodachis in the air in a swift arc-like motion-- flinging the monster's dark blood off the blades. When she saw the black smoke, she crossed her weapon over the other in front of her chest. The smoke seemed to pause for a moment, before it moved again-- this time towards the pure black weapons, like it was being sucked in.

Rei observed as the more smoke was vacuumed out of the youma, the more its body seemed to shrink. The smaller youmas, with the main body dead, began to melt. When the smoke was gone, and the deed was done, there was nothing left but a muddy puddle.

There was an awkward pause for a few moments until Rei spoke out. "Why did you help us?"

Cheshire seemed happy to be asked such a question and answered, "Because it is meant to be." She looked towards the youma's unfortunate victim and seemed to sigh. "Unfortunately, you are not meant to see this yet. Maestro Pillar has been slacking off again, I see..."

There was something strangely familiar about this infuriating woman and her riddle-speak, and Makoto knew it was related to the lost memories she had been pondering about earlier.

She tried to connect the dots. But it was getting increasingly difficult to concentrate because she was getting sleepy. The last conscious thing she saw was Rei, falling to the ground, through the sparkly violet haze.

When she woke up, it was dark and cold. She was confused. How did she get here? She looked around and saw nothing peculiar. She was in some sort of alley.

'People get mugged here a lot...' She thought with a puzzled frown. Was she carried here by the muggers? If that had been the case, they might probably still be around here somewhere, hiding in the shadows.

This time, Makoto let her eyes linger in the darker corners, and gasped when she caught sight of a motionless girl lying on the ground-- partially hidden by the shadows. She crawled over to her quickly and reached out to touch her face. The other girl was deathly cold.

Makoto feared the worst, but she had to make sure. She placed her hands on each side of the other's head and leaned over her. Her face hovered over the other's by mere centimeters. She was about to turn her head to listen if Rei was still breathing when she felt something furry brush against her hand.

She screamed and lifted it off the ground. It had been an instinctive reaction. Unfortunately without half of the hand supporting her up, Makoto lost her balance and toppled over. She quickly tried to return her hand back on the ground-- but it was too late.

Rei felt like she could not breath. Something was blocking her air ways, and there was an uncomfortable squeezed feeling on her chest. When she regained consciousness, she was painfully aware of two things.

One, someone's mouth was pressed against her own.

Two, that same someone had a hand on her breast.

She screamed into her assailant's mouth, who immediate jerked away.

"Shit! I'm so sorry! I--!" Makoto tried to apologize, but the next thing she knew, she was seeing stars.

The other girl stood over the dazed brunette. She saw the blood start to trickle down the side of the other's face from the wound Rei had inflicted with a metal pipe that she found nearby. Her face was red with embarrassment and rage. She had never felt so violated!

She looked down at the taller girl and realized that her first kiss (at least in her amnesiac perspective) was taken away by this stranger. "Y-You stupid PERVERT!" She shouted furiously, her eyes filling up with devastated tears, before she ran away and out of sight.

"Ow..." Makoto whimpered pathetically.


+Author's Note+

Hehe... Fencing. I have no idea how to play it. So pardon me if some fencing parts in the story are a little inaccurate. -.-;;; I had to make do with what I learned by watching my uncle. Piste is the fencing strip, where the actual sport occurs. It is narrow and separated by a center line. An epee is like the foil but heavier and with a bigger guard. Unlike the foil and the saber, you can hit a point "anywhere" on the body. It is much more difficult than saber and foil fencing since it is all about careful strategy and patience.

By double-touch, it means if both fencers can hit each other at the same time they both earn a point. Normally, it only takes one touch before the fencers are called to a halt and are repositioned again.

I have no idea where Shiba is exactly... But it's near Minato-ku soooo...

A kodachi is a Japanese short sword.

My gawd... I finished the chapter in one day? That explains why my hands and brain feel mooshy... O.o;;;

(EDIT)

(sheepish smile) I'd like to thank Alsike for pointing out a few things to me regarding the fencing scene.

Yes, the epee bout looks more like a saber bout than anything-- but I am already aware of that. As I've mentioned to him before, with Rei and Tezuka being hot-headed, you can understand why it ended up the way it did-- fast and furious.

And while epee is difficult in and of itself, the other two (foil and saber) are also difficult in their own rights.

Domo arigato gozaimasu, Alsike-san!