Chapter 7
Life has a way of changing when you have a goal to aspire towards. Well, more like one's outlook on life changes. In my case, I found each myself looking forward to each new day. A week had passed since Misaki became my Sensei and prior to that, I felt as though I had lived everyday just floating through life. Much like what I had done in my previous world, I let life impose upon and pass me by. However, ever since Sengo's birth I knew I could not repeat that pattern. I needed to get off the rails and tread my own path. After making that decision, after gaining a reason to get out of bed each morning, the world just felt different. More vibrant. I would awaken with determination brimming in my chest, eager to take on the challenges of the new day.
Maybe it was just me being excited over the change, in time my enthusiasm would fade and everything would return to monotony of the everyday. Perhaps, but for the moment I was riding the high. I think my parents noticed the change as well. I'll admit I wasn't the most expressive child at times, I preferred to keep to myself and stay out of people's way. While that hadn't really changed in the past week, I just had so much more energy. I was more talkative, I was helping out around the house more and just enjoying my new life.
My new routine started as soon as I woke up. I'd get out of bed and begin the exercises Misaki had shown me. They were great for getting the blood flowing in the morning. The routine itself was short, taking only about ten minutes to complete. I'd like to think that I was making great progress, that I was far more limber than when I began. Yet I knew from experience that these things take time, the biggest challenge I faced was not getting discouraged and quitting when I don't see immediate results.
Next on the agenda was something I added in myself. Misaki did say that body strengthening was important but didn't assign any strength building exercises. So once I finished stretching I moved into just that. This was where I certainly needed to keep my own advice in mind and not get discouraged. I certainly needed time to build up my muscles as for the moment, I could not even perform a single push up. My thin noodle arms would give out after I barely got off the floor. Other exercises weren't as pathetic, my legs in particular got plenty of work hanging out with Kiyomi so things like squats were simple enough.
Typically I aimed to simply go at each one until failure or when Mom started calling for breakfast, whichever came first. The toughest part about it all was definitely the muscle pain and exhaustion. Day two was the worst of it. Since it was my first time I overexerted myself and I spent the day almost immobile. Thankfully, that cleared up by day three, likely due to my youth. Since then my body had somewhat acclimated to the routine and, while still stiff and sore, I was able to go about my life as normal.
The last few days Kiyomi came to over to play, that was quite the test. I told my parents not to tell her about my training. She kept her secrets so I'll keep mine. I'd be lying if one underlying motivation that kept me going was the petty revenge I could inflict when I become skilled enough to beat her at her own game. Right now however, my performance was sub-par to say the least. Poor kid thought I might have be sick when I was left wheezing after only a few minutes of running around. That got me thinking that I needed to better balance how hard I would need to work out in regards to what the rest of the day had in store.
Today at least, I felt myself to be in top shape. Perhaps the fact that today was planned to be the first real training session was giving my spirit an extra boost.
Push ups were the final exercise for this morning. "Come... on!" I grunted through clenched teeth as I struggled to lift my body off the floor. I could feel my arms shaking as my stomach slowly ascended. Millimetre at a time I raised myself higher and higher. "Just... a bit... more..." My arms were trembling fiercely as they sat half extended, the highest I had ever reached. I could give up now and consider this an improvement but I refused to be satisfied with that. I was going to get one proper push up in today if it killed me. I just needed to give it a bit more strength. It was a battle between my arms and my spirit, and my arms were clearly going to be the first to give out. Any moment now they would run out of strength and I'd be face planting into the hardwood flooring. It was now or never, with one final exertion I called upon all the power in my skinny little arms with a mighty cry.
"WAAAHH!"
Breaking through the barrier my arms forced themselves to fully outstretch, my elbows locking them in place. For a few moments I was shocked into stillness. Panting heavily as sweat ran down my brow to the tip of my nose. "Holy crap... I did it..." A wide grin slowly spread across my face and butterflies filled my stomach. "I did it!" I said again, louder this time. I wanted to jump for joy but before I could do anything of the sort my arms hit their limit and collapsed from under me. With a thud, my face collided with the floor.
"Ow..." I moaned as I rolled onto my back, nose throbbing slightly. Still, I felt fantastic. This was the first sign of progress I had. I broke through that first barrier. A small barrier sure, but I still managed to go further than I had all week. I couldn't help but let out a slight laugh of victory. A knocking then came at my door, Mom calling me for breakfast. I told her I'd be right there but remained laying on the floor for another minute just to catch my breath. Once I was finally able to get to my feet, I wiped the sweat on my shirt and headed out.
It is hilariously difficult to handle chopsticks when your arms feel like wet pool noodles. I really needed to focus on building muscle for them. Turning to Dad I made a very important request, "Dad, you make ninja tools right?" Mouth full of bacon, he replied with a simple nod. "Could you make me some training weights?" Body weight exercises were good and all, but I felt I needed something more substantial if I really wanted to start building muscle. Over the past week I had been reflecting on my memories of the story and the methods of physical training. There wasn't much for me to work with sadly, from what I could recall they really only showed brief snippets here and there. Even then it was something rather extreme like Kakashi climbing a cliff one handed.
"Why is it I can remember random scenes like that but forget important story beats?" I found myself wondering more than once. I guess my brain was just dumb that way.
"Mm, yeah. I can make some for you." Dad finally replied, "That's not a problem. How heavy do you want them?"
"Umm..." I had not thought that far ahead. I took a few moments to think over how much I believed my arms could handle at the moment. "A few kilograms to start with I guess."
Dad smiled, "Easy enough, I can have them done by tomorrow." I was impressed, for some reason I thought it would take a lot longer to get something like that togther.
"Thanks Dad! You're the best!" I replied happily, beaming Dad with the biggest smile I could make. I found it quite entertaining watching his face turn the same shade of red as his beard. Dad always got shy when we complimented him. Although sometimes it did worry me that he may have the same demeanour with his customers. I could easily him getting all buttered up by some silver tongue patron, assuming they could get past his intimidating aura of course.
After breakfast, Dad hurried himself off to the forge while Mom and I got to work cleaning up. Sengo decided to help out as well, by making his own sort of mess for us to clean. The little gremlin giggling away the entire time. "Stinky little bugger." I said with a laugh as I disposed of the soiled undergarments. With that out of the way, we had our morning bath and I was ready to face the day.
As was usually the case in the Village Hidden in the Leaves, the day was a bright and sunny one. I took a moment to bask in theglorious incandescence as I stepped out into my backyard. Impatiently, I bounced on my heels as I tried to settle this tingling feeling in my chest. Misaki should be coming by within the next hour or so to begin our first training session and I just couldn't wait. While I contemplated doing more exercises or going for a run to burn off this energy, I figured it was for the best I conserve my strength for what was to come. Instead there was something more important I could be doing.
Scanning around my backyard I found what I was looking for. In the grass was a freshly fallen leaf which I quickly picke up. "This should do nicely." I mused to myself as I sat myself down at the foot of the tree, nestled comfortably between the roots. The ground was refreshingly cool here in the shade while the sunlight peaking through the branches contrasted it with a subtle warmth. Now ready, I placed the leaf on my forehead, making sure it was properly balanced so it would not fall over. Then, I formed the Ram seal to the best of my abilities and closed my eyes.
One long and slow breath, in through the nose and out through the mouth. A little ritual I used to help clear my head. Whenever I had the chance to for some peace and quiet I tried to get some of this training in. The body you could only push so far before it needed rest. The mind was something typically a bit more difficult to tire out. Of course when you have a newborn in the house, a tired mind was something you become familiar with quite intimately. In a way I was grateful to my little bro, by having to keep a constant ear out for him I was learning to maintain my concentration while still being observant of my surroundings.
At least, that's what I tried to tell myself.
In all honestly, the Leaf Concentration practice wasn't going so well in my opinion. Sure I could get my mind to focus on the leaf, but it was what came next that still eluded me. Misaki said that once I started learning to focus, then feeling my chakra should come naturally and yet I still felt nothing after this entire week.
"No, that's not right." I thought to myself as I let out another long breath, trying to centre my mind on the small piece of vegetation on my brow. "Its because I keep letting my mind wander like this. I can't keep my focus so I can't feel the chakra." Misaki knew what she was talking about, she came from one of the most prestigious lines of shinobi in history. The fact I couldn't sense my own chakra was entirely on me. I had to work harder. Simple as that.
Slowly did the minutes tick by as I remained still under the shade of the tree. A gentle breeze occasionally blew by, threatening to dislodge my precious training equipment. In the distance I could hear the chatter of daily business as the village was engaging the new day. A tingling on my leg as a curious ant probed for sustenance.
"You're getting distracted again."
Focus on the leaf, only on the leaf. Feel its weight against your skin. Picture it in your mind. Right now it is a part of you, the tip of the branch and you are the trunk. These things I thought to myself as I slipped deeper into the darkness. The sounds of the world fading away as I concentrated my being onto that one tiny piece of greenery.
Silence. Stillness. A strange sensation. Perhaps this was the state one needed to be in to sense chakra? How did Misaki say it worked again? Chakra was formed in the stomach, churned then directed to the other parts of the body. Try to feel the energy of the body, mix and churn it in the stomach. Don't lose focus on the leaf.
"Hey, you awake?"
"WAAHH!?" I cried out as I snapped back to reality. Before me, Misaki was breaking down from laughter as I tried to compose myself. I needed a few moments to make sure my heart was no longer trying to escape my chest before I could even speak. "That was mean Misaki-sensei!" My cheeks felt hot as I got to my feet, my teacher still in the midst of a laughing fit.
"Sorry, sorry," She finally was able to say, wiping a tear from her eye as she caught her breath. "For a second there I thought you were sleeping. There's such a thing as too much concentration you know?" I could tell she was still fighting some after laughs by the way her mouth was twitching.
"What do you mean too much concentration?" I asked, trying to get things on track before Misaki decided to begin teasing me.
"Well, what's the point of concentrating so hard on one thing you ignore everything around you?" Misaki replied rather bluntly. The truth of her words felt like a rock bonking me over the head. The answer was so obvious in hindsight, shinobi should be masters of multitasking. Being able to concentrate on moulding chakra while doing literally anything else is so fundamental it should be second nature. And yet I still can't even sense my own.
"Something wrong?" Misaki asked, concerned from my silence, "Its our first day of training, I thought youd' be more excited."
I shook my head, "No, I am, really." There was a slight hint of hesitation in my voice, "I'm just frustrated at myself. I was doing the practice wrong and I still can't feel my chakra."
"Wait," Misaki interjected, that touch of concern now quite apparent. "You still can't feel anything?" I nodded, disappointed in myself for failing to meet her expectations. "Give me a second." Misaki said as she leaned forward, eyeing me up and down. I felt a little self conscious from this, stepping back instinctively, trying to cover up... something. "Meiko," I snapped to attention at my name. "I have an idea." Misaki crouched down as she spoke, looking directly into my eyes. "I have the ability to see chakra in people. So what I'm thinking is you'll start the practice again, I'll walk you through the process to start moulding your chakra and we can go from there."
Nodding, I found the leaf I had been using earlier and returned it to it's perch. Forming the Ram sign, I took another long, slow breath and once more turned my mind to the point of contact. Several minutes passed as I tried to keep my mind clear of erroneous thoughts. "Okay," Misaki finally cut in, "That's good, keep that level of focus." I did wonder for a moment how she could tell just by watching how deep my focus was but had to shake that thought. I just had to keep focused on the leaf, that was the important part. Misaki then closed her eyes for a brief moment before snapping them open again. Now her formerly solid black pupils were a deep red, the iris orbited by three tomoe each.
"Did that hurt?" The words spilled out before I could stop myself. I mean, her eyes split open three extra irises, that must have felt weird at least. Misaki's face going blank for a moment before snorting.
"No, it doesn't hurt at all. Anyway, keep focused. We'll be starting now." I returned my mind to the task at hand. After another minute passed, Misaki began, "Okay. Your chakra appears to be normal. Now, keep the leaf in place but shift your focus to your stomach."
This was difficult, the leaf at least gave me a specific point to focus on. The stomach was a much larger area and not to mention did she mean skin or my organs? "No, stop. You're probably overthinking things." I thought as I took one more deep breath to steady myself. A few minutes passed and I started to feel a strange tingling in my stomach.
"You're doing great," Misaki's voice was reassuring as she finally broke the silence, "Lesson time. Chakra is formed from the combination of two fundamental energies. Physical energy and spiritual energy." I wasn't expecting a lecture during this exercise but I listened in closely. This was essential to my growth if I wanted to have any hope of becoming a shinobi.
"Physical energy is, as it sounds, the physical energy the body requires to keep living." Misaki raised her right hand. In her palm was a small red ball. "Think of it like your stamina. When you go running it quickly depletes, leaving you exhausted. You replenish it through food, drink and rest." She then raised her left hand, a small blue ball held within. "Spiritual energy meanwhile, is the energy generated by your mind. Its a bit harder to describe but it works in a similar way. As you work your brain, you get tired and drain your spiritual energy.
"When you're low on spiritual energy it becomes harder to focus on your own thoughts, your head becomes fuzzy and even thinking can be difficult. Spiritual energy however, does not require things like food to replenish itself. Simple rest is often good enough." Bringing both her hands forward, her palms touched at their sides. The two balls rolling into the centre of the bowl her palms now formed. "When these two energies are combined together the result is a new form of energy, chakra."
Misaki's hands folded together as she began kneading the two balls between them. A moment later, she opened them to reveal a single ball with streaks of red and blue. Apparently the balls were in fact some kind of clay. I was impressed with how much she had prepared for this. This lecture was definitely not a spur of the moment kind of thing.
"So, try to imagine those two energies in your body. Then in your stomach, start pressing them together and mixing. Like you're kneading bread or clay." Misaki's instruction continued and I closed my eyes. Using the colours of the clay balls she demonstrated, I tried to visualize the process of drawing the dual energies from my body and mind. Placing them in my stomach and kneading them together. Scarlet and violet flames spinning together and combining into a single blob I pulled, folded, pressed and twisted. Yet even after several minutes, I still felt nothing.
"Strange..." Misaki finally said after several minutes. "Still nothing?" My arms were getting tired at this point so I released the hand seal and let them fall to my side limp. Nodding sadly as I did so. "I see. I don't see any disruptions with your chakra flow. Although that's also kind of the problem." Misaki slowly rubbed her chin as her now scarlet eyes remained locked on my stomach.
"Wait, how do I have a chakra flow if I'm not making chakra?" I asked, confused.
"Your body naturally produces chakra on it's own." She replied, "We mould chakra to change it into a form that can be utilized. In its natural shape, it simply helps sustain the body. I was hoping that trying to create more chakra, something typically done when your natural amount is running low might have helped." Sighing as she stood back up, Misaki seemed to be stumped. "Even if you have trouble moulding it, there should be some disturbance from trying right?" At this point my teacher was simply thinking aloud. Maybe I was just a hopeless case. Just like Rock Lee, someone who just couldn't use jutsu.
"Wait..." A thought suddenly came in my mind, or rather a memory. Rock Lee had no talent in ninjutsu or genjutsu to the point he could not perform them in the slightest but it wasn't like he couldn't use chakra. I was certain he could still perform feats such as running on water, something that requires the ability to at least focus chakra into his feet. Misaki said my chakra wasn't moving at all. Why would it? I still couldn't comprehend what it was. How can you control something you've never even felt?
My eyes went wide.
"SENSEI!" I suddenly screamed, my teacher jumping back like a startled cat, "What does chakra feel like!?" It was so clear to me now, I couldn't control my chakra because I had no basis to understand it. Yes my body was of this world but my mind, my soul, were alien. Sure I knew of the chakra in this world, but for me it was still something fictional. That was the theory at least.
Misaki needed a bit of time to collect herself after my outburst. Once ready, she gave me a quizzical look, "I think you asked me that before, right?" She replied, somewhat confused. "I'm not really sure how to explain it, chakra is your life's energy. I guess its warm, umm..." Misaki was clearly struggling with the subject matter. I couldn't blame her, being an Uchiha, chakra control was probably something that came to her instinctively. Just as I couldn't explain something I had never experienced, she couldn't explain something that came so naturally. It was like explaining how you breathe. Sure you can go into detail the mechanics of the body, how the lungs draw in air through the trachea from the nose or mouth, but explaining HOW exactly you do that is extremely difficult.
I shook my head, realizing I needed to rephrase my question. "I mean, I can't feel my chakra because I don't know what it feels like. I think I need to feel it first." The look on Misaki's face made me feel like some kind of strange creature, but I wasn't just spewing nonsense.
"But... How are you going to feel chakra? You can't exactly touch it." Misaki said, still very confused.
There was another memory that rose to the surface which could prove to be my salvation. A memory of when Naruto was learning how to fight against genjutsu. Specifically, if you are afflicted by a genjutsu too powerful to break yourself, the only chance you have at breaking it is an ally injecting their chakra into your body to dispel it. If Misaki did the same for me, I might be able to awaken my senses to my own chakra.
I smiled, maybe a bit too confident in this idea but it just made sense to me. "What if you transferred your chakra into me?"
It appeared that Misaki was able to comprehend my plan instantly. A smile began to spread across her face as she gave a nod, "That might just work!" Her hands then snapped together faster than my eyes could comprehend, forming a hand seal quite similar to the Ram I had been using but with some slight variation. "Meiko, lift your shirt. I'm going to transfer the chakra directly into your stomach. That should allow it to spread throughout your network most efficiently."
Nodding I complied, raising my shirt to reveal my belly. "Okay, I'm ready."
Misaki nodded back with a grin, "Okay, this might sting or something. I don't know but make sure you're paying close attention!" Breaking the hand seal, her right hand formed the impression of a claw as she thrust her fingers forth into my skin. Instantly, I felt a heat both intense yet smooth shoot into me. At first it began to pool into a ball before spreading. Tiny tendrils trickling all through my body sending shivers up and down my spine. The tendrils continued to spread both around and throughout my body, coiling around my organs, through my muscles, under my skin. From the tips of my toes to the top of my head and everywhere in-between.
Once it had finished spreading, the heat slowly began to fade away but there was still a sensation remaining. A tingling all throughout my body, almost like a second pulse. I felt more aware of... myself. Like suddenly everything that made me, me was amplified. If I could produce a battle aura like in anime, I'd like to think I was emanating one right now.
"Now! Focus!" Misaki called to me, "Mound the chakra in your stomach and bring it to your forehead!"
Panicking, I began looking for the leaf somewhere on the ground but was told to ignore it and just get it done. Once more I formed the Ram seal and focused my mind to the source of this tingling in my body, the great mass in my stomach. I imagined taking that mass in my hands, squishing, twisting, folding it before raising it upwards. Slowly, ever so slowly I felt a small lump begin to ascend along the thin paths snaking through my body. This was proving to be quite difficult, the energy was fickle and wanted to dissipate if my mind so much as quivered. Not only that, I had to keep guiding it towards my head when it wished to disperse along any branch it came across. I was a single sheep dog trying to guide an unruly herd.
It was taking every ounce of my willpower to keep this small ball together, bit by bit I lost fragments during the ascent. My breathing was growing harsh as the strain was getting to me. What started as around the size of a baseball was now merely a golf ball by the time it reached the back of my throat. I was almost there. The further it got, the harder it became to maintain the ball. And yet, by some miracle, I felt the energy reach my brow. A warmth different from what I felt from Misaki's chakra radiated from a small dot on my forehead, barely the size of a pea.
"You did it..." Misaki said almost inaudibly. I was too focused on sustaining that small bit of warmth on my head to notice. "You did it!" She repeated, much louder this time. The shock breaking my concentration and causing me to lose the little bit of chakra I had moulded. Not only that, the feeling throughout my body was fading, only the slightest tickling in my stomach remained.
I looked up to Misaki, her eyes having returned to normal. "Did I really do it?" I asked, hopeful yet dreading the worst. Sensei placed her hands firmly on my shoulders, squatting down to face me at eye level.
"You sure did. Congratulations." Her words resonated in my heart as I felt my body beginning to tremble. I really did it. My chest was welling up with unbridled joy to the point it felt like it was about to burst. Unable to contain it any further, I threw myself into Misaki with a gleeful scream.
"I DID IT! I DID IT! I DID IT!" I cried out victoriously, I wasn't a hopeless case after all! I could do something, I really could become a shinobi! My teacher reflected my joy as the two of us practically danced around the backyard cheering away.
The celebrations were not to last however, as I suddenly felt disoriented. The world around me felt like it was spinning for a moment as I lost my balance and fell to the ground. Misaki was quick to my side, helping back into a sitting position.
"Wh... what happened?" I asked grogily, I was suddenly quite tired. Not physically but my mind felt foggy and it was hard to focus my eyes.
"You'll be alright," Three Misaki's said softly to me, "I think you just strained your spiritual energy. Don't worry, you'll feel better in a minute." Spiritual energy, Sensei said that was the energy generated from my mind. If this was all it took to send me to the ground, my reserves must be pathetic. I must have been showing my despair as the triplets giggled, "Its not as bad as you think. What we did was a shock to your system, you'll get used to it in time." The three Misaki's formed back into one teacher smiling proudly back at me.
"Yeah." I replied simply as I was helped back to my feet.
"So," Misaka-sensei asked, "You ready to do that again?"
"YEAH!"
Once more I made the Ram seal and began to focus. Starting within my gut I tried to begin forming my chakra again. This proved to be quite the difficult task as the feeling of Misaki's chakra stimulating my own had all but completely faded. Only the slightest spark, a dying candle in the dark, remained. So small and fragile, I felt it could fade away the moment my attention diverted for even a second. "Take it easy," Misaki-sensei chimed in, "No need to force it. Just remember how it felt the first time. Recall that sensation and hone in on it. That's all you need right now."
Sensei was right, I was trying to do too much at once. For now I just needed to learn to sense my chakra instinctively. Just search for the feeling, learn it and memorize it. Working with chakra would come later. Focus on that spark, do not let it fade.
The rest of the morning passed uneventfully as I continued to work on my concentration and sensing my chakra. From my perspective however, hours passed by in mere minutes as the sun hung at it's apex in the sky when Misaki-sensei clapped her hands. "Okay, that's enough for now." She said cheerfully as my concentration was broken. "You're doing great, but its time we took a break." While my instinct was to clap back saying I could keep going, the lightheadedness I felt prevented any resistance out of me. Who would have thought trying to focus on something could leave you so tired.
"Let's get some lunch, my treat." Sensei offered as we made our way back to my house. As we were about to open the back door however, it swung open, Misaki-sensei barely pulling me out of the way as Dad stood in the threshold.
"Oh there you are. Hello Misaki-san." He said slightly surprised yet unaware he nearly smacked us with the door. "Meiko, mind if I borrow you from your training for a minute? I need to take some measurements." I wondered what kind of measurements he needed for making weights but Misaki spoke up before I could.
"Hello Kenji-san. No worries, we were about to break for lunch. I was just about to ask Ginko-chan if I could take Meiko out for lunch since she made terrific progress already." I felt my cheeks blush at Misaki-sensei's praise. Sensei then stepped passed Dad and disappeared into the house. Dad then turned to me, a smile peeking through that wild mane of his.
"Sounds like training is going well. Are you having fun?" Dad asked and I nodded gleefully. While the current training itself wasn't exactly what one would call fun, I was still running on the high of success which was certainly contributing a lot to it. That and the fact that my head was half-empty at the moment due to fatigue. I could only imagine how dumb the smile on my face was at the moment.
Dad produced a roll of measuring tape before reaching out his hand. "Well, I don't want to keep you too long. Could you show me your arm?" He requested and I acquiesced. After taking my arm measurements he did the same for my leg.
Misaki-sensei returned just as he was finishing up. The two of us said our farewells and were soon on the road. Our destination was one of Misaki-sensei's favourite restaurants. A small hole in the wall specializing in fried foods. As we entered, a small older woman called out to Sensei with fervour. "Ah! Misaki! Welcome back! The usual I take it?" The woman's voice was filled with vigour despite her age. "Oh, and you brought a little friend!"
"Yup, one Karaage Tower and a beer." Misaki-sensei replied cheerfully. I guess it wasn't too early in the day for a drink. The two of us took a seat at the first table in the shop. Currently the restaurant was empty despite it being lunch hour. The shop itself was quite small, one of those restaurants where it was just open out to the street. There was enough space for three tables and a line of stools along the counter where the chef worked. I was curious about this Karaage Tower Misaki-sensei had mentioned, just the name alone was enough to get one's mouth watering.
The elderly woman soon came by, placing a menu on front of me and a large pitcher overflowing with foam before Sensei. "Welcome dear, what's your name?" She asked kindly, her large glasses sliding down her nose. The shopkeeper appeared to be getting up there in years, her hair was a similar shade of silver to my Mom's but without the almost supernatural metallic sheen.
"My name's Meiko." I replied, returning the woman a gentle smile of my own.
"What a nice name, just let me know what you would like when you're ready." With that, she returned back behind the counter. A few moments later the sound of boiling oil loudly echoed throughout the small space. My stomach grumbling as I picked up the menu. "You're gonna love this place," Sensei said as she finished taking a deep swig, "The karaage is to die for." Checking over the menu, this place certainly specialized in deep fried foods. I'd estimate at least ninety percent of the menu consisted of something being battered and dumped in boiling oil.
"Sensei," I asked, peaking over the large laminated paper, "Are we going to do more focus training after lunch?"
"Oi," Sensei shot me a familiar glare, "No being formal outside of training time, got it?" Sensei, err, Misaki really wasn't a fan of formalities. "As for training, you've done enough of the Leaf Concentration practice for now. Don't want to burn you out. Instead we'll be doing some body training to start building up your muscles." She said after talking a big gulp of her spirits.
The owner came by with what I assumed was Misaki's Karaage Tower and it lived up to it's name. A tower of small bites of fried chicken stacked in a pyramid at least half a meter tall. It was perhaps the most beautiful thing I had ever seen. Around the base was a wide variety of sauces, each in their own small serving bowl. Misaki immediately began chomping away at it, barely chewing as she shovelled one piece after the next into her gullet. "Aren't you going to order something?" She attempted to say through her stuffed cheeks. Turns out the tower wasn't for sharing. So I placed my own order of karaage off the children's menu with a cold glass of juice.
Somehow, Misaki managed to tuck away that entire tower of chicken without even breaking a sweat. I'll admit I spent most of the time just watching in awe as the event unfolded before me. My own meal on the other hand was so sensible it bordered on boring in comparison. Still, the food was absolutely delicious, it felt like a crime that no one else was enjoying it.
After Misaki paid our bill, I made sure to thank the woman for her exceptional service. Misaki patting her belly as we left. Back out on the street, Misaki returned to being Sensei as her demeanour took a slightly more serious nature. "Ah, that was the best, but its back to work now." Sensei said as she pointed down the road. "First part of the afternoon training is building stamina! We're going for a run!"
"Yes! Sensei!"