Alpha Instinct-Chapter 67: "The Three Pillars"

Some time later, the silence was broken by Saito.

"Come on, kid. It doesn’t matter if you’re a Weise, weak, or suck with a sword. A person with no battle style is nothing. Are you ready to learn?" He called, waving him over, his voice carrying a subtle challenge, but with a hint of genuine expectation.

Mikaela, who had been sitting quietly until then, spoke up. "I want to see this," she said, getting up with a curious smile. "I’m coming along."

Kaleb, who seemed bored until then, grumbled from the corner: "Since nobody cares about my illustrious company, I guess I’ll tag along too. I’m not staying here alone."

In truth, with all the news of the last few days, they were just curious to see Leonard.

The four of them then left the cabin and headed towards the clearing that Saito used for training—the same place where, days before, Leonard had had a brief introduction to Saito’s overwhelming power.

Saito moved with a grace that defied his age. He positioned himself in front of a large, smooth, rounded rock. "Watch," he said.

Without drawing his sword, Saito circled the rock, his body flowing like water. His steps were light, almost silent, and his movement was continuous with no breaks, no hesitation. He seemed to glide around the obstacle, adapting to every curve and dip. His feet moved in symmetrical, firm steps, his hands staying behind his back.

"A Blade Dancer is like water," Saito explained, returning to his starting position. "They don’t smash into obstacles; they flow around them. They don’t use brute force; they use fluidity. They find the path of least resistance and follow it."

He looked at Leonard. "Your turn."

Leonard said, "Roland used to tell me that swordsmanship was like water, wind, and trees." Leonard’s voice was heavy with emotion, remembering Roland.

Saito then cheered him up, "I knew that kid, Roland. Who do you think taught him swordsmanship? Oh, hoo!" A graceful smile on Saito’s face.

Leonard stood up, feeling determined and confident with this new information.

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"You’ll have to tell me more about that later, Master!"

He tried to imitate Saito’s movement, but his body, still stiff and hesitant, resisted. His steps were heavy, his movements abrupt and awkward. He was locked up and almost fell; his swordsmanship wasn’t compatible with the blade dance.

"Relax," Saito instructed him patiently. "Breathe deep. Feel the energy flowing through you. Don’t fight the hesitation, use it. Let it guide you."

Leonard closed his eyes, taking a deep breath. He tried to focus, to clear his mind, but the images of the fight, Saito’s lesson, and the emptiness came back with a vengeance.

"Why did you try to kill me, Master?" The question slipped out before he could stop it.

Saito paused, looking at him intently. "I needed to see what you were made of. I needed to test your limits. And I needed you to understand an important lesson." He paused. "Life isn’t a game, Leonard. Death is real. And taking pleasure in it... is a sickness."

Leonard nodded silently.

"Now, focus," Saito ordered. "Feel the water. Be the water."

Leonard tried again. This time, he moved with a bit more fluidity, but still nowhere near Saito’s grace.

"Okay, okay, for a first try." Saito stroked his beard. "Let’s move on."

Saito moved on to the next principle: precision. He positioned himself in front of a target—a small, dry leaf attached to a thin branch. "The wind," he said, "doesn’t blow with indiscriminate force. It finds the cracks, the weak points. A Blade Dancer does the same."

With a quick and precise movement, Saito cut the leaf in half without even touching the branch. Without even drawing his sword.

"Your turn," he said, gesturing for Leonard to use his own swords. "It’s still too early for you to be using just your fingers like I did."

Leonard aimed at the leaf, focusing. He activated his ELEV and attacked, but the blow was disjointed and too forceful. The blades missed the leaf and hit the branch, breaking it.

"Even using my temporal cognition, I messed up..." said Leonard, frustrated.

"You think your ability makes you a good swordsman?" Saito shook his head, disappointed. "It may give you the answer to how to get there, but it doesn’t show you how to do the damn math."

"I get it… You picked up on that while fighting me, Master?" Leonard asked.

"Of course. You think I’ve spent 300 years fishing? Oh, hoo!" Saito laughed.

"Alright, cut the chatter. Control, Leonard," Saito reprimanded him. "It’s not strength that matters, or even some ability, but precision. Use your whole body, not just your arms or your ELEV. Feel the blades as extensions of your own energy. Both blades."

He demonstrated again, this time with an almost exaggerated slowness, showing how each part of the body—feet, legs, hips, torso, shoulders, arms—contributed to the movement.

"Got it, Master."

"Now, the final principle: control," Saito said, after Leonard had practiced for a while with mixed results. "A Blade Dancer masters their energy, like a master controls fire."

He positioned himself in front of a thick log that had been felled by the storm days before. Focusing, Saito channeled his aura into his sword. The blade glowed with a whitish light. With a single blow, he sliced through the log as if it were butter.

"Your turn," he said, with a challenging smile.

Leonard tried to copy him, but his aura went haywire, bursting out in explosions and sparks. He managed, at best, to scratch the surface of the log and get his swords stuck in the bark.

"Take it easy, Leonard," Saito instructed. "Visualize the energy flowing from your core to the blades. Feel it, control it. Forget your ELEV."

Leonard tried for a few hours, but his progress was slow.

He guided Leonard through a series of breathing and meditation exercises, teaching him to focus and channel his energy.

The sun climbed higher, the morning wearing on. Leonard, despite being tired and sore, persisted. He stumbled, he missed, he got frustrated, but he kept trying. With each small improvement, a flicker of determination lit up his eyes. With each correction from Saito, a new understanding dawned.

"Fluidity, Precision, Control," Saito repeated, like a mantra. "Those are the pillars of the Blade Dancer. Practice them. Master them. And, above all, remember yesterday’s lesson."

Saito then made his announcement. "Now, Leonard, to become a true Blade Dancer, you’ll need to prove yourself. I have three missions for you. Dangerous missions that will test your limits. If you fail any of them, the consequences will be… dire."

He paused dramatically, staring intently at Leonard. "If you survive and complete all three missions, I’ll recognize you as a Blade Dancer. If you fail..." Saito left the sentence unfinished, a grim smile replacing his serious expression. "Well, let’s just say there won’t be a second chance," he concluded.

Leonard swallowed hard, a chill running down his spine. He looked at Mikaela and Kaleb, searching for support, but their faces were tense and worried.

"What... what are the missions, Master?" Leonard asked, his voice steady, despite the fear eating him up.

Saito smiled, a predatory glint in his eyes. "Hunting Elite Leirions, obviously." His eyes were on fire.