THE LEGENDARY TALE

THE NEXT DAY...

"There is no explanation for it, but he is back," Hibiki thought to himself sitting on tge mat in his room. "What do you plan to do now, Kisaki, after all this time?" Hibiki's mind was racing as he tried to make sense of the situation.

While Hibiki was in the emergency room with the other students, he thought he recognized a familiar aura that reminded him of Kisaki. He hurried to investigate, but to his disappointment, he couldn't find anyone there. The only person he could see was Kai, and that left him feeling even more confused. He wondered if he was just imagining things or if there was something more to this. He couldn't shake the feeling that something strange was going on.

"I wonder how I'll explain this to the others. They don't even know who Kisaki is," Hibiki thought to himself. "I'll worry about that later. For now, I'll meditate and take a nap," he decided. As he got ready to lie down, he checked the clock and realized it was already morning. "Wow, I must have been lost in thought all night. I can't believe it." Hibiki found it strange that he could spend so much time deep in thought without realizing how much time had passed.

As part of the student training program, Miss Mei decided to make the groups that were formed for the previous mission permanent. Hibiki and Kaede, the two new students, agreed to join the program and become part-time Si-Fu's, which meant they would be able to train the students assigned to them on a regular basis. This would help to ensure that the students would continue to develop their skills and knowledge, and opportunity to gain experience as they pair up with the Si-Fu's in their missions.

Ughhhhhh

"What could he be doing?? He's so late. And I was so hyped for training today" said Meili feeling frustrated.

"Meili sighed, frustration written all over her face. 'He's two hours late now - should we just go home?' she asked Fuse. She shrugged, clearly not wanting to leave, but also equally annoyed by their trainer's absence. Meili then turned her head to look at the tree where Kai was perched, high above them. 'Kai,' she yelled up at him, 'Hibiki doesn't seem to be coming today, should we just head home?' But Kai, silent as ever, but thoughts rolling through his mind looking as though he tried to ignore her. The air hung heavy with disappointment, Meili unsure of what to do.

Meili's voice rang out from below, surprising Kai, who had been lost in thought. He looked down and saw her standing at the base of the tree, looking up at him expectantly. "Hey, Kai," she yelled, and he could hear the determination in her voice. "What do you want?" he snapped, annoyed at being disturbed. "I came to ask you to train me, like you promised," she replied, her voice firm. "I don't have time for this," he retorted, but Meili wasn't about to give up. "Please, I'm begging you," she pleaded."

"Seriously, why so persistent?! I'm I really worth all that pleading?" He thought to himself. A tense silence hung in the air as Kai tried to reconsider her request, with Meili's face set in a pleading expression, like a puppy begging for a treat. He also didn't remember promising to train her, as he wasn't one to give out any favours. He was all down at the fact he wasn't making any progress on achieving his goals with Hibiki delaying training, and he wasn't sure he was ready to take on such a responsibility to train his fellow teammate or he was too proud. But he looked down at Meili, her eyes full of hope, and something inside him softened. "Fine," he said, "I'll train you. And stop with the silly look, creeps me out." Meili's face broke into a wide smile, and she nodded, "Really he didn't like me puppy dog eyes," she thought, her soul flushed down in embarrassment.

Hey!

"Well, if it's alright with you, I'd like to join too!" Fuse interjected with a grin. Meili turned to Kai with a hopeful look, "Please, can Fuse join us?" "Whatever," Kai replied with a shrug, trying to appear nonchalant. And so, the three of them set to work, practicing the basics of the martial art.

""So, tell me, what fighting style characteristics do you guys possess?" Kai asked, curious to know. "I'm not sure," Meili admitted, "but what about you, Fuse? Do you know yours?" "Yeah, actually, Miss Mei told me I possess the crane fighting style characteristics," Fuse replied. "Oh, that's awesome! But I don't know mine. How do you find out?" Meili asked.

"Are u kidding, you haven't figured it out yet. It's all based on your movements, when I saw you use those blade on our mission. You showed resemblance to the Snake fighting style characteristics, so let's go with that!"

"A snake fighter? Really?" Meili asked, taken aback by the comparison, is it an awesome fighting style though?"

"Depends on how you wanna see it! You were quick and agile, and you strike with precision," Kai explained. "I'm not sure I like being compared to a snake," Meili said, her brow furrowed. "But it's not that bad! Snakes are actually very intelligent creatures and..

"Please stop talking so much - these are fighting styles, not life lessons!" Kai snapped, irritated by Meili's rambling. "Sorry, sorry!" She blurted out in a panic. "let's just get this over with," Kai said, trying to get things back on track. Meili was quiet, trying not to make any more mistakes, while Fuse kept his head down, determined to stay on task.

"Wow Meili, you got some moves! This snake technique is so cool," Fuse said admiringly. "Don't you think Sensei Kai?" Fuse added, glancing at him. "Don't call me that," Kai responded, sounding slightly annoyed. "And don't you think you should have mastered your own characteristics by now?" he asked Fuse, his gaze stern. "I'm working on it, Sensei Kai," Fuse said, feeling a little deflated.

"Tch, whatever," Kai said, a note of irritation in his voice. "This is all a waste of time," he muttered.

"Uh, you know what," Kai said, a hint of impatience in his voice, "I think its time i get going ." "But we've only just begun!" Meili exclaimed, a little taken aback by his abruptness. "No we've been at it for 28 to 35 mins at least, I've taught you everything I know, and you know alot yourself." Kai said, his tone unapologetic. "But, but..." Meili stammered, unable to find the words to express her disappointment. "Later!" Kai said, a touch of annoyance creeping into his voice.

"Um, okay then. Thanks for taking the time to teach us, I guess," Meili said, trying to keep the disappointment out of her voice with a smile. Kai just nodded, a hint of impatience still lingering in his expression. As he turned to leave, Meili couldn't help but feel a little crestfallen. "Don't even bother trying to get along with a guy like that," Fuse said, noticing her disappointment. "I know, but deep down I'm very glad he could at least spend some time with us," Meili admitted.

"Yeah, yeah," Fuse said dismissively. "I bet the other squads are doing much better than us." "Shouldn't we get going, Meili? I think it's safe to say our Si-Fu was a no-show today." Fuse's tone was resigned, and Meili could tell she was feeling disappointed too. She couldn't help but feel the same way.

Just then, a voice broke the silence. "Who was that?" Fuse asked, scanning the area. Meili looked around, trying to locate the source of the voice. "You've forgotten my voice so quickly, Fuse?" the voice asked, a hint of amusement in its tone. "Wait, is that you, Si-Fu Hibiki?" Meili asked, still not sure where the voice was coming from. "Of course it is," the voice responded, revealing its source to be none other than their Si-Fu. He emerged from behind a tree, a sly grin on his face. "Geez, you had us worried there, Si-Fu," Meili said, relief flooding through her. "I couldn't resist pulling your leg," Hibiki said with a chuckle.

"It's great that you still came, Si-Fu, but Kai already left," Meili said. "Oh, Kai is here," Hibiki said, surprising Meili and Fuse. "Where?" Fuse asked. "Just tied up at the back of that tree! He did agree to it though" Hibiki said, a mischievous grin on his face. "WHAT?" Meili and Fuse exclaimed in unison. They turned to the tree, only to see a figure stumbling out from behind it. "I DIDN'T," Kai said as he spat out a cloth, revealing that he had been gagged.

"How did this happen?" Meili asked, her curiosity piqued. "He got the best of me, that's all," Kai admitted, looking a little sheepish. "He's a Si-Fu, but once I acquire all the knowledge I need, I swear I'll become a warrior you could never imagine and I'll get my revenge for this!" he said, his voice stern and determined. "Uh, okay," Meili said, not quite sure how to respond. "So, Kai challenged me to bring him back here while he tried to prevent me from doing that, but he failed and now we're here," Si-Fu Hibiki said, chuckling. "Geez, that's quite gutsy from Kai," Fuse said, shaking his head. "It was an interesting for me too, caused it lasted up to 6 secs," Hibiki said. "Seriously," Kai said in disgust.

"I'm just glad you're both here now," Meili said, relieved that the whole situation was resolved. "So, are we going to get started or what?" Fuse asked, eager to resume their training. "That's the spirit!" Hibiki exclaimed, clapping his hands together. "Alright, but I'm gonna tell you all a tale first!"

"Oh! I love stories," Meili and Fuse exclaimed in unison, their eyes lighting up. "You gonna untie me first?" Kai asked, an impatient edge to his voice. "Not until after the story," Hibiki said, ignoring Kai's protests. "Ugh," Kai groaned, rolling his eyes. "Come on, you guys," Meili said, trying to defuse the tension. "Let's just hear Hibiki's tale."

"She's sees am tied up right?", Kai muttered

"All right, everyone settle in," Hibiki said, clearing his throat. "There's a legend," Si-Fu Hibiki began, his voice low and hushed. "It was said that, some lucky warriors encounter a kind of entity that could grant them divine power, one only a few could ever hope to possess. But this gift came at a terrible price, one that could change a person forever."

He paused for a moment, letting his words sink in. Then, he continued, "This is so rare that this circumstance has only happened with two warriors and I'm one of em.!", he said dramatically.