Chapter 5

"It's pain training day."

Everyone sat a little straighter at Zane Sensei's declaration. Rei flexed her toes inside her boots. The last such day had included running barefoot over hot coals, only to have their feet healed immediately after. The rapid healing hadn't dulled the pain of the moment, which Hina Sensei said was the point.

"Everyone out into the courtyard."

Rei's stomach churned. She hadn't eaten as much recently, which she supposed was a good thing. Tanoka came up by her side and shot her a cautious side-eye. They didn't speak, but they walked in tandem. It was as comforting as anything could be at the moment.

The B-barracks girls lined up on one side of the courtyard and A-barracks girls on the other side. They segregated themselves habitually, and any passersby who happened to glance at the courtyard through the chain-link fence would immediately be able to tell which group was prioritized.

"It's been a few weeks since our last session," Zane Sensei said, taking his spot between the two groups of girls. "So let's review. Pain training is not about skill, and it is not a sparring session. Your task is not to beat your opponent and not to defend yourself. What is the purpose of this training? Anyone?"

An A-barracks girl raised her hand and answered immediately. "To build pain tolerance and dull automatic reactions to pain in battle."

Zane Sensei nodded with a small dip of his chin. "This morning, the B-girls will participate. This afternoon, the A-girls will be tested with the A-boys. Prepare yourself. We will begin in three minutes."

Rei wished fruitlessly that there was enough time to run to the bathroom.

The A-girls chattered, completely unbothered. Not a single word passed between the B-girls. Rei doubted that she'd even have a word for Risa, had she still been there. The conclusion of this day was foregone; they were all about to hurt very badly.

Zane Sensei was watching them all with eagle eyes. He met Rei's eyes for a split second before she looked down at the ground. "Alright, let's get this over with. Kitagawa and Yokota, report."

All the girls backed away from the center of the courtyard, leaving the glamorously blonde and healthy A-girl plenty of room to decimate Mihoko Yokota. Mihoko was like most of the B-girls: thin, pale, and terrified.

"Weapon of choice today," Zane Sensei announced like a game show host, "is bladed weapons. Specifically, kunai." He grabbed two from his weapons pouch on his waist and tossed them to the A-girl, Nanami, who caught them in the air and made a show of twirling them around her fingers. "Proceed."

Nanami didn't hesitate. She crossed the handful of steps to Mihoko and swung her arm out like a dancer, catching the smaller girl in the left shoulder. The first spray of blood peppered the concrete. Rei had to admire her peer; Mihoko didn't make a sound. The gash in Mihoko's arm wept, dripping past her fingers within the space of a breath.

Rei flinched, her gorge rising in her throat, every time the blade met the other girl's skin. Mihoko was beginning to look like a carved ham, and the blood pool around her grew steadily. She was in danger from the start, but Zane Sensei didn't bother to step in until the little timer in his hand began to beep. "Time has expired," he stated, no inflection. "Kitagawa, back to your side."

Mihoko wavered on her feet for a split second. She hadn't raised a hand to defend herself, and she hadn't opened her mouth. But tears had been coursing down her screwed up face, and before the medics could reach her, she collapsed in a boneless lump, striking her head hard on the pavement.

Tanoka shrieked, covering her mouth, and three medics took a moment to feel for Mihoko's vitals before shoving thick streams of luminescent chakra into her body. After a few moments, she drew in a thick, gurling breath, and Rei felt herself exhale hard enough to tweak her spine. When Mihoko was removed from the courtyard for more complete healing, Zane Sensei caught them all in his gaze. "In future matches, refrain from catching your target's major arteries and vital spots. We don't want anyone to die, after all. That would defeat the purpose of pain training. Toki and Taira, front and center."

Rei closed her eyes, her heartbeat deafening in her ears. Shima Toki was already standing in the center of the courtyard when Rei looked back up, hand on her hip, blade tucked securely between her fingers. Zane Sensei scowled. "Taira. Don't make me say it again."

Her feet led her to where Shima waited.

Push back. Further.

She didn't hear what Shima's lips were saying.

Further. Don't feel. Don't think.

Obviously frustrated, Shima reached out and grabbed Rei's wrist, turning it upwards to expose the underside of her wrist.

Think of…who? Who's going to be there when this ends?

Shima turned her blade to lay horizontally against the crook of Rei's elbow, then pushed down to part the skin slowly. Pain bloomed behind Rei's eyes, more intense and sharp than walking across coals. A whimper pushed itself past her lips.

Who will be there?

Shima worked the blade down Rei's arm, peeling back her skin to the wrist. Rei's knees gave out before Shima was half-done, and she pinched her eyes shut, praying to fall into darkness where she didn't feel.

The face that appeared in her mind's eye was pale, framed by unruly dark hair. A thin scar arced over the left eyebrow. A half-quirked smile on the lips.

Niko Sensei. Where did you go? Why?

Shima's foot flew out and caught the side of Rei's jaw, knocking her limply to the concrete. Rei's wounded arm flopped down next to her face, and she watched as her blood pulsed steady onto the ground, reaching out to caress her face. A knee came down on her spine, and she heard rather than felt the back of her shirt being sliced open.

She tensed, preparing for whatever was coming next, and bit down hard on her tongue when the blade sank deeply enough into her back to strike the bone of her left shoulder blade.

Rei didn't open her eyes until she felt two unfamiliar pairs of hands lifting her back to a standing position. Time had expired. It wasn't until she'd been taken back to the infirmary and the medics were cleaning her wounds that she mercifully sank into a deep, dark unconsciousness.

Are you coming back?