Chapter 5: Awakened Kappei!
After school…
This might be the most exciting thing to look forward to because when the bell rang for the end of school day, students dashed their way to the football field at the back of the school.
Now behind the school is where many club activities in which mostly sports take place. There's the track for running and the football field which was seen before, a soccer field, badminton courts, tennis courts, a swimming pool for water sports and a gym for students to work out and practice pro wrestling and boxing. There is also a back gate which leads to a beach where more club activities take place like beach volleyball and handball. Students can also relax under the sun and enjoy the sand and the sea.
Now the whole school is gathered around the field with some sitting on the bleachers for a better view as Kinner, Lunky, Bogs and Frenk went to the centre of the field. "Where's that little runt?" Kinner thought as he looked around. And then, Kappei showed up as he smiled sinisterly. "Finally, I can wreck you ugly."
In the crowd, "Kappei…" Emma was most worried as Archie, Cruz and Jeong looked concerned. Activating his power, "According to my data analysis, Kinner and his thugs have the same awakened power, 'Energy Fist'. A common ranking of the awakened powers." Jeong explained while surfing through the holographic pages and seconds later, he closed them off.
"Man…how will Kap deal with them when he either has no awakened power or it's still yet to manifest?" Cruz asked.
"I believe he has it…I believe in him…" Emma thought to herself as on the field, "Say goodnight weakling." Kinner told Kappei as he and thugs channelled out some energy on their fists.
"Seems like I'm at a disadvantage. But I gotta survive!" Kappei thought with seriousness as the fight begins. Frenk charged first and threw a energized punch but Kappei dodged it as Bogs went next and successfully jabbed him on the left. "KSH!"
Kappei was struck down as Frenk tried to stomp his body but he rolled one side and got up on his feet. "Even if he has the power of the shinobi, it won't save him from our attacks!" Kinner thought as he watched him dodge Lunky's energized punch. So, "Take this! ENERGIZED JAB!"
"KSH!" Kappei felt that on his face and was sent tumbling onto the ground.
"Kappei!" Emma called out to him as he got up. "My turn! ENERGIZED UPPERCUT!" Lunky threw a powerful move sending him flying up and preventing him from making any move.
"That can't be good...ow..." He thought and, "ENERGIZED HOOK!" Bogs struck him on the side of his face when he's about to land. "Oh come on!" He thought and, "I'll finish this weakling! ENERGIZED CROSS!" Frenk struck him and his face slammed onto the ground as the 4 thugs laughed. "Is that all you got? Why haven't your powers awakened? Or what if you don't have one?! You're not a true ninja! HA! HA! HA!" Kinner mocked in amusement as his cronies laughed with him.
"Oh no...Kappei..." Emma didn't want to look. Already, a majority of the students witnessing this murmured among themselves. With her extreme hearing active, Emma can hear them all.
"This freshman is a joke right?"
"He may be a ninja but with no awakened power?"
"Damn what a pathetic thing to see."
"Such a useless piece of trash if you ask me."
"Why is he here in the first place?"
"Ah he's done for. Best to drop out."
Emma can't bear it as Kappei struggled to stand on his 2 feet. "Ha? Still standing? Heh, you got endurance I can give you that but you won't last long." Kinner charged up his fist again. "Round 2 boys! And make sure he eats more pain!"
"On it boss!" The other 3 charged up and attacked straight away without hesitation. Kappei however managed to regain himself and dodge all their energized attacks. "Stand still you weakling!" Frenk shouted as he tried to kick him but Kappei grabbed him on the heel and threw him off. "I don't need to fight them. I just need to exhaust them." He thought as he dodged more energized fist attacks. "Don't just fool around! Smash him apart!" Kinner ordered and yet his lackeys can't lay a hand on him for the next 3 minutes. The crowd's also starting to get bored so, "Ah you know what? I'll handle this."
"Uh-oh. They're getting real serious now." said Cruz. "And why are there no teachers around?" Archie asked. "Because they're all having a staff meeting now. Kinner picked the right time to humiliate our friend." said Jeong. "What about the security?" Cruz asked another question. "They're all on guard duty at the same staff meeting taking place now." Jeong answered him.
Back there, "Gotcha!" Kinner pounced on Kappei using his lower body to pin him on the ground. Restricting his escape, he threw energized punches on his face as his cronies gathered around cheering for their leader. Punch after punch, Kinner mercilessly pummeled him and now, both his fists have blood as Kappei coughed once and, "Alright Lunky, Bogs. Grab his legs." Kinner ordered as he stood up and used his left foot to stomp on his body once.
"KSH!"
"Ugh...those brutes hit really hard..." Kappei thought and as for the 2 mentioned thugs, they grabbed his legs and, "NOW!" Kinner ordered.
"CRACK! CRACK!"
"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"
"Crap. They broke his legs!" Archie exclaimed as many laughed at him. "No...No..." Emma was too shocked and frightened to see this and already, Frenk lifted Kappei up locking up his arms and since he's too weak to move on, Kinner threw free energized punches all over him. "Not so tough now huh?" Kinner asked with mockery as he threw more energized punches. "And you call yourself are a ninja? Get a life you loser! Because you look like you have no power, you're nothing! Hear me? YOU'RE NOTHING! HA! HA! HA! You're just a weak and useless fool that can't do anything at all!"
Enough is enough because when Kinner prepared to throw another attack, a furious Emma suddenly appeared and stood before him with her arms open wide. "Take another step and I'll make sure you regret all your actions!"
"Hey who are you? Get out of our sight now!" Bogs ordered while approaching her but suddenly, Emma swiftly kicked him on the nuts. "OWIE! Not the hotspot!"
Some students laughed at this but at the same time, "You never should have done that." Kinner told her and, "PAK!"
Emma felt that on her right cheek as she fell down. He then picked her up by the neck as, "You got the nerve to interfere my fun. For that, we're gonna make you suffer."
The other cronies including Bogs who just recovered from getting his nuts kicked gathered before their leader as Frenk threw a severely injured Kappei aside to join them. "No...leave Emma out of this!...This has nothing...to do with...her! Please...don't do this..." His words never reached them and all these brutal attacks made Kappei feel unconscious now as he can only watch the gang prepare to 'punish' Emma as the crowd murmurred about this.
"Ugh...why? Why does this...have to happen..." Kappei felt helpless and hopeless as he started to cry. "They're right...I am weak...useless...nothing...I'm not even...a true ninja...I'm just a failure...and a fool...I can't even...protect the one...that I'm...so close...to..." There are hot tears flowing down from his eyes and dropping onto the grass as he became unconscious...
"I'm sorry everyone...I'm sorry grampa...I'm sorry Gumchi...and I'm so sorry Emma...I have failed you all..."
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"No…you are not what you say about who you are. You are who you are. Be true to yourself and persevere."
"One who masters the ways of the shinobi. One who values virtue, honour, gratitude, wisdom, loyalty, trust, devotion and respect. The time has come."
"Refresh your mind. Restore your fighting spirit. Remove all doubt and worry and focus on what you believe in."
"This moment is yours. Channel it, awaken it and unleash it! Forge your path to your destiny and your future."
"Wh-What?" Kappei was confused as he slowly opened his eyes and regained his consciousness. "Who's speaking to me…who are they…no, I don't know what's going on but...whatever I just heard…they're right…I have to…fight on…I can't just...throw in the towel...yet."
Slowly and weakly, he tried to stand up despite getting his legs broken. "Hey boss. Look." Frenk pointed at him as, "Man you still think you can act tough huh? You must be tired of living!" Kinner exclaimed as he threw Emma aside and they marched towards Kappei who was barely able to stand up.
"Make sure he's crippled for life." He ordered his thugs and then, Kappei spoke up.
"No…go ahead and…throw every insult… that you have at me…break me apart...if you wish to...but no matter...what happens to me...in the end…I...I...I..."
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"I am who I am! I will persevere and survive! No matter how many times I go down or get pushed down, I'll stand up and move on to the end! A true ninja never gives up despite the numerous hurdles and setbacks! And I'll forge my own path to my destiny! To my future!"
It was at that moment when Kappei spoke those words, he started to glow bright which he never noticed and, "IOOOOOOOOOOM!"
All the students screamed and ran for their lives from a massive explosion that went up high and the 4 bullies braced themselves. "What the heck is going on?!" Lunky asked. "Dudes, it's huge!" said Bogs. "I think I pissed on my pants!" said Frenk and he received perplexed stares from his peers. Emma braced herself also and then, she saw it. "No way…"
As the smoke cleared with a portion of the football field destroyed, it revealed Kappei now standing on his feet with all his injuries no more and for some reason, "What the…what is this? What's the meaning of this?! What is going on?!" Kinner was too shocked and confused as back to Kappei, it appears that he looks different and furthermore, there are waves of fire burning around his left arm, waves of water flowing around his right arm, bolts of lightning zapping around his left leg and a column of wind swirling around his right leg. Plus, his eyes are glowing white.
"Is this…" Archie asked for he, Cruz and Jeong took cover instead of fleeing. And back there, Kappei made his moves.
"FIRE!" He charged and threw a fire jab on Frenk sending him flying and with his shirt on fire.
"WATER!" He struck Bogs with an aqua uppercut drenching him entirely as he landed on the ground.
"LIGHTNING!" He jump kicked Lunky and lightning bolts flowed out shocking him as he crashed onto a tree and is too paralyzed to move his body.
"WIND!" He spin kicked Kinner and after that, a blast of wind blew out from his leg and pushed him onto the bleachers as he crashed there. "Im…Impossible…" All the thugs are instantly defeated and with that, Kappei returned to normal again as they dispersed from body and his eyes no longer glow white. He then approached Emma and gave her his hand. She took it and helped her up. "You okay?"
"I'm fine. Thanks for asking." Emma thanked him. "But what happened to you?"
"What?" He looked confused when, "Kap!" Archie called for him as he, Cruz and Jeong went to him.
"Dude. That was OP!" Cruz described.
"Yeah! Defeating 4 opponents is a rare thing to see!" said Jeong.
"Especially when you awakened your power!" Archie added.
"I did what?" Kappei was confused from what they spoke about when, "FWOOSH!"
"Whoa…did I just…" Kappei looked at the fire on his 2 hands. He then created fireballs and juggled them. After that, he extinguished them and created water as he manipulated the flow. He then switched to creating lightning bolts as they sparked around his entire body and finally, they zapped out and wind energy is generated on his hands as he created a whirlwind with one hand and the other, an orb made out of air.
During this, Emma's eyes lit up in amazement and likewise, the 3 boys as, "Cool…I finally have it! I have awakened it in me!" Kappei cheered when, "KAPPEI!" Outside, Sensei Tatsu showed up as, "In the office. Now."
And so…
In the staff room, "What happened out there?"
"Um…how do I explain it…"
"Just tell me everything."
So Kappei told him the whole story. "And at that moment when I wanted to protect Emma despite being broken badly, I heard 4 voices encouraging me and after that, I felt something powering me up which resulted in that massive explosion. In an instant, I beat the crap out of those bullies and after that, I was told by my friends that I can harness the powers of fire, water, lightning and wind. And that's how I was awakened. Elemental style."
He was speechless when he heard the story. "First, you could have reported this bullying activity to any teaching staff and second, this is really something regarding your awakened power."
"Why is that sensei?"
"How should I put it…ah, during the assessment of the awakened powers in class, there are rankings based on it. Common, Rare, Unique, Legendary and lastly, Ancient. And it has come to the attention of the entire teaching staff that the massive explosion disrupted out meeting and seeing you in action, I imminently assessed your awakened power." He then handed Kappei the tablet which has the list of students and their awakened powers which are all ranked.
1. Kappei-Elemental-Ancient
2. Emma-Extreme Hearing-Unique
3. Archie-Smoke Cloud-Unique
4. Cruz-X-Ray Vision-Rare
5. Jeong-Data Archive-Legendary
6. Vega-Rodent-Rare
7. Maeve-Mirror Image-Unique
8. Davis-Photon Blade-Unique
9. Chantelle-Ice Crystal-Unique
10. Harry-Energy Wave-Common
11. Bull-Hammer Arm-Common
12. Miyumi-Phasing-Rare
13. Midori-Hyper Voice-Rare
14. Kurt-Magnetokinesis-Legendary
15. Hank-Rupture-Unique
16. Nichelle-Lioness-Rare
17. Anais-Chain Lightning-Unique
18. Joey-Shieldbearer-Legendary
19. Declan-Voltage Field-Unique
20. Kolton-Cluster Bomb-Unique
21. Ting Ting-Life Recovery-Unique
22. Colette-Fashion Style-Unique
23. Dedrick-Portal-Unique
24. Yamikage-Shadow Merge-Legendary
25. Lucia-Metal Coat-Unique
26. Avitus-Blue Flame-Unique
27. Shane-Crocodile-Rare
28. Mikelus-Plasma Bolt-Unique
29. Marcel-Bullet Fingers-Unique
30. Slick-Heat Seeker-Common
"No way…my awakened power is ranked Ancient?!" Kappei asked with more amazement on his face.
"Not just that, you are the first student in the history of Ninjala to have this ranking in your awakened power. It's so ancient according to the readings…" Sensei Tatsu revealed.
"Awesome…so what does this ancient awakened power have to do with me?" Kappei asked with excitement in his eyes.
"All will be revealed in time. You may go and please, when it comes to bullying, report to any of the school authorities instead of trying to go head on and confront those that made you suffer." Sensei Tatsu then let him go and also remembered something. "Elemental...yes, he mentioned it and...yes, the perfect name for his awakened power...that's why I got it noted down when he told me his side of the story...but also, could this be..." Sensei Tatsu then made an important phone call.
Outside the staff room...
Emma was waiting for him as he emerged. "How did it go?"
"I was let off with a warning." He replied as they made their way out. "By the way...why did you do it?"
"Do what?"
"Why did you stand up for me?"
"W-Well...you see...a true ninja will always stand up for others and will never abandon them." Emma replied shyly.
"Okay...I don't understand but thanks Emma. I wish I could do more to-"
That's when she cut him off by embracing him tightly. "Oh Kappei...I was so worried about you...I thought..." She suddenly halted herself as she let go. "S-Sorry! Uh, see you again and bye!" She dashed off embarrassed and while covering her blushing face.
"What's gotten into her?" Kappei wondered as he headed back to his dorm.
That night...
"Gumchi. Check this out!" Kappei showed him his awakened power as the yellow gum creature's eyes lit in amazement. "Supee! Supee! Powee!"
"I know right? This is the best! I can't wait to tell grampa about it!" Kappei cheered as he switched on his PC to play some online games but before he could, a video call took effect. "I know...he's calling me..." Kappei answered it and, "What happened out there?"
"Uh...are you okay grampa?"
"I ask again. What. Happened. Out. There." Gen'unsai sure is at his strictest.
"Best to show you." Kappei ignited a fire orb and a water orb on both of his hands. He then switched to generating sparks of lightning on his left arm and whirling up some wind energy on his right arm.
Gen'unsai's mouth dropped wide upon seeing this. "H-How...How? How is this possible?!"
"Long story." He replied and suddenly, "I know...WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL ME FOR THE PAST FEW DAYS THAT YOU WERE BULLIED IN HIGH SCHOOL!?"
That was enough for Kappei and Gumchi to cringe. "Scaree! Scaree!"
"I know right?" Kappei agreed with him as, "Regardless. It is no surprise that this led to your awakening. I expect no trouble from you because when I heard about what happened from your homeroom teacher, I was already planning to transfer you to another ninja high school." Gen'unsai revealed.
Kappei and Gumchi's mouths opened wide with horror. "But still, I chose not to. For I will once again remind you that you must focus on your studies and training, stay out of trouble and do your very best. You're now 16 and soon to turn 17. Being here by yourself also teaches you a level of independence in a way that you know how to live on your own without the need of relying on me."
"I understand grampa." A relived Kappei replied with Gumchi now feeling relaxed.
Gen'unsai nodded from the screen and, "One more thing, I'm proud of you for your awakened power. Keep it up my grandson and never forget what I've taught you all these years."
"Yes grampa." Kappei replied and the video call ended. With that, "Say Gumchi, wanna have some chicken-flavoured cup noodles as midnight snack tonight since tomorrow is the weekend and there's no school?"
"Yay-ee! Yay-ee! Nood-ee! Nood-ee!" Gumchi cheered as Kappei went to his wardrobe, opened it and pulled out a duffel bag. He then took out 2 cup noodles and put the duffel bag back inside.
"Before I left for this school life, I had my dorm room prepped with a boiler to boil hot water for hot drinks and cup noodles and a microwave oven to heat up some food bought from outside or from the cafeteria in school." Kappei thought as he filled up the boiler with water and heated it. A few minutes later, the hot water is ready and he prepared the cup noodles and once ready, he passed one to Gumchi and had the other for himself.
"This is my way to celebrate the day that I have awakened the power in me!" Kappei declared and they started slurping the noodles. Totally worth it.
At last, Kappei has awakened the power in him and wow, can you believe that it's ranked Ancient? And him being the first to have it! It's so bruce and awesome! No wonder there are 4 one-hit attacks resulting in 4 KOs!
However, this is just the beginning for him. One day, he'll realize there's more to this than being the first to have an ancient-ranked Awakened Power...
Character of the chapter
Name: Kappei
Profile
Having been trained by his grandfather, Gen'unsai, Kappei is committed to his shinobi training and looking after his yellow gum partner Gumchi. Once ready, he was sent to the WNA Academy to further his shinobi training and there, he made many friends especially Van whom he hang around the most and sometimes, can be at loggerheads with him. Sure he can be an idiot sometimes, tends to sleep in class and is a big eater but he still has a heart for others in way that he wants to help them and protect them from harm. Especially Emma when he ran into her on the first day. Who knows what's in store between these 2...
As of now, Kappei joined the Kendo Club and became friends with Archie, Cruz and Jeong. He also appears to have a decent level in cooking.
Awakened Power: Elemental
Recently awakened, this power enabled Kappei to generate and harness the natural elements of fire, water, lightning and wind. He can manipulate the 4 elements for offensive, defensive and support usages though there's room for enhancement in unlocking more potential in it. This is the main reason for his power to be ranked, Ancient.