Here's Chapter 11. Once again, thanks to Frayner and Devlin Dracul for their reviews! Enjoy!
Disclaimer: Beelzebub belongs to Ryuuhei Tamura, not me.
Chapter 11- Pressure Points and Aerobics
"Good morning," Grandpa greets us. "Tonight there's going to be a thunderstorm, but it's nothing to worry about, since we are training indoors."
"So, what are working on today?" Furuichi asks.
"I'll help you with summoning the demons you're contracted to, Takayuki," he says. "I'll also be helping you with knife fighting, and we'll be moving on to varma kalai. And Ayaka, I'll have Rajesh, another disciple, teach you how to use your sudarshana chakra technique through varma kalai."
I nod. "Okay." Right then, a man who looks to be in his late-twenties comes up to me and tells me to come with him.
"I'm Rajesh," the man introduces. "I've been told to teach you how to master your sudarshana chakra technique through varma kalai. You must be Ayaka."
"Yeah," I say.
Rajesh takes me to a separate training room with many weapons. "Okay, Ayaka," he begins. "To start off, varma kalai is the technique of hitting the vital points in a person. Before we start, let me show you the vital points in the human body." He takes an old diagram of the human body. "The human body has approximately 108 pressure points. The points are from head to neck, from neck to navel, from navel to arm, the arms, and the legs."
He starts to point out specific points that are the pressure points. "Hitting either of these pressure points will disable the body, organ movements, and function. This is a normal effect. Using your sudarshana chakra technique along with varma kalai will paralyze your opponent completely, but it won't kill them."
I nod. "So, how can I do that?"
"You need to block all distractions from your mind, and concentrate only on chanting the sudarshana mantra. You will have to chant the mantra for a total of nine times in order to feel the energy coursing through you. Before we get to that, let's practice varma kalai now."
I nod, feeling the excitement in me. "Yes, let's do this."
(Hilda)
Today we are focusing on aerobics training, at the St. Ishiyama fitness room. Even though the school is closed for the holidays, the three Six Holy Knight members managed to let us use the fitness room for a few days. We are all dressed in exercise clothing as we set up the equipment. There are several treadmills, indoor rowers, stationary bicycles, and elliptical trainers, but we're not using any of those today.
"Alright everyone!" I say. "We'll be doing a circuit training. One group will be at each area in the room for a total of ten minutes. One group will be doing the upper-body exercises, the next group will be doing core exercises, the third will be doing lower-body exercises, and the last group will be doing the total-body exercises."
I hear a few grumbles but they're quickly silenced when I glare at them. "Let's get to it!" I instruct.
I put Kanzaki, Himekawa, Natsume, and Shiroyama in one group, Kunieda and the Red Tails in another group, while Tatsumi and I are in a group with Izuma, Miki, Shizuka, and Tojo. We're currently doing the upper-body exercises, and I find my focus being taken away when I take a look at Tatsumi. His black muscle shirt is already sticking to his body from sweat, emphasizing the muscles he has.
Ever since Tatsumi had saved me in the pool, it seems like I'm noticing a lot more about him. He's actually very handsome and sincere in protecting the Young Master, and he seems to be maturing pretty well from when he was first chosen as the Young Master's parent. Strangely, I find myself smiling at him.
"What are you smiling about, Hilda?" Tatsumi asks me, bringing me out of my thoughts.
"Oh, nothing," I reply.
"You know what?" Tojo suddenly says. "Today, we should all sit in a circle and talk about one thing we like about Furuichi."
"That's actually a good idea!" Miki replies.
After training, we all sit in a circle and talk about Furuichi, and one thing that we like about him.
"He may be a perv, but I still remember when he defended us at the public pool from some old classmates of his from middle school at the risk of being beaten up," Nene says.
"That was pretty manly," Chiaki agrees.
"What I admire about him is how clever he is," Himekawa comments. "When we were searching for that one guy from Akumano Academy, he was the one who convinced us all to play video games to search for him."
"Even though I don't know him too well, I like how he always comes up with a plan for everything," Shizuka says.
Everyone takes turns talking about the little things about Furuichi that they like, and it soon comes to me. When I am asked, I recall that one day when we were taken hostage by Himekawa.
"When Furuichi and I were taken hostage by Himekawa, he had reassured me that Tatsumi would come and get us back," I say. "He was surprisingly calm that day."
"We shouldn't be talking about him as if he's dead," Tatsumi suddenly says. "We should continue our training so when him and Mizushima come back, we'll all be ready to fight alongside them."
(Furuichi)
"Good job, Takayuki," Guruji praises me. "You're getting a lot better with this technique. Remember this, though. The more demons you summon, the more energy you will use up, so only summon them all when the time is right."
I nod in understanding. "Yes Guruji," I say.
"Good. Now, we're moving on to varma kalai," he tells me. He then starts to explain about the pressure points in the human body, and about how using the right amount of pressure can either disable or kill the opponent. Right then, an idea comes to me.
"Guruji, is it possible for me to summon the strength of Behemoth's 34 Pillar Division through varma kalai?" I ask.
He thinks for a moment. "Yes, it is possible," he replies. "To do that, you will have to use the same technique as before. Again, you must block out any distracting thoughts from your mind, and focus only on the demons. However, before we do that, we'll have to practice varma kalai first." He pats my shoulder. "You're a smart fellow."
As we start practicing varma kalai, I suddenly feel someone's eyes on me. Taking a quick glance, I see that Ayaka has come to watch. All of a sudden, it seems like I'm doing my best to learn this, as if I'm trying to impress her. She's been so good to me, treating me like I'm not a creep, and has always shown confidence in me. I make a mental note to find a way to thank her by the end of the day.
"Grandpa!" she calls. "The clouds are moving in pretty fast, and it's gonna rain soon!"
Guruji turns to me. "Looks like our training is cut short for today," he tells me. "There's going to be a thunderstorm, so wash up as quickly as you can."
(Ayaka)
I sit in my quarters, watching the rain pour down heavily from the sky. Well, not really watching, since it's already night time. However, I sit near the open window, listening to the sound of rain and watching the lightning flash across the sky, while several candles provide a comforting glow in the room.
"Hey." I turn and see Furuichi in the doorway. I smile.
"Hey yourself," I say. "Wanna watch the thunderstorm with me?"
"S-Sure," he replies.
Furuichi comes and sits next to me, watching in amazement as a bolt of lightning flashes across the sky. "That's quite the storm out there, huh?" he comments.
"Yeah, it's pretty amazing," I say serenely. "I love thunderstorms so much."
"How come?"
"I've just always liked them, I guess," I say. "When there's a thunderstorm, I sit in my house near a large window, with just a desk light on, a heater fan near me and a warm blanket around me, and I'll have some tea and I'll just sit and watch the thunderstorm."
He nods. "Interesting," he says. "When I was a kid, I loved to play in thunderstorms. Oga and I would run out in our rain jackets, and we'd just jump around in puddles."
I giggle. "Aw, how cute," I say.
He chuckles. "You're cute, you know?"
I stop and stare at him in surprise. Did he just call me… cute? "Uh… th-thanks…" I thank, stammering slightly. That's when I notice how much he's changed. His figure, which was lanky with only a slight hint of muscle in it, is now much more well-toned and defined, and his eyes have a much more mature look in them, like he knows what he has gone through.
"Ayaka, you okay?" he asks.
"Huh? Oh, I'm fine," I reply. "I think we should get ready for bed now, hm?"
He nods. "Yeah." Suddenly, to my surprise, I find myself being pulled into a warm hug. My eyes widen and my face heats up as the fragrant aroma of sage-scented incense smoke fills my nose. However, I find myself hugging him back.
"F-Furuichi?" I ask, still surprised from the kind and warm gesture.
"Thank you, Ayaka," he thanks me. "For everything." He pulls away, his silver hair covering his eyes, a faint blush on his cheeks. "Good night, Ayaka."
As he leaves, I feel my heart pounding harder against my chest, and an unusual warm feeling in me, which lingers on when I go to sleep.