3 The test of legacy holders

"Yes, children, your first lesson is to express your spirit outwardly. Watch me closely," the master looked at the board standing in front of him and took a deep breath. He clasped his hands behind his back and suddenly swung them forward. "Thud!" it fell to the ground. Both students were observing their master eagerly to learn.

"This was your first step. Now, I'm demonstrating the second step," the master took the board, put it back in its place, and stood opposite it. This time, he clasped his hands together, behind his back, and swung them. The board split sideways and fell to the ground.

"The first step was to release energy outwardly, and the second step is to direct that energy to a specific point." Tadashi was quietly envisioning himself in the master's place, eagerly following his master's movements with excitement in his eyes. Yu also wanted to be in the master's place at least as much as Tadashi, but he remained composed, observing his master attentively.

"Now we're on the third step," the master picked up one of the split board pieces and placed it back. This time, he didn't clasp his hands together. He raised his hand flat and swung it down diagonally. There seemed to be no difference in the board piece. Tadashi's head was puzzled, and Yu was also trying to decipher the situation.

"I think both of you believe there's no change, but everything is not limited to what you see. You must look from a broader and closer perspective."

"So, you want us to approach and examine closely, master?"

"Exactly, come closer," Tadashi immediately jumped up, getting close to the board's base and inspecting it with his eyes. There was a thin diagonal scratch on the board. "Master, master, I see it! There's a scratch here!" he touched the board above the scratch, and the upper part of the board detached and fell. "Master, master, what's the lesson here?"

"I guess controlled power," Yu said from behind. "Yes, you're quite sharp, young Yu. Learning to control power and controlled power mastery will level up your potential. Now, it's your turn, take your positions and wait for me," the students stood opposite each other like two pillars, waiting for their master.

The master placed two new boards on top of the pillars. "Yes, children, I know it might seem strange for you to express your spirit without even knowing how to do it, right? The answer is simple: Your spirits are already awake; you just have to feel it. Take a deep breath, close your eyes, your spirit is inside you, in your heart, flowing through your entire body. Focus on feeling it. Focus on your arms; if you can't feel them, then focus on your legs. You understand what I mean; your spirit is flowing dominantly somewhere; find it and express it outwardly, the rest will come automatically once you explore it."

"I understand, master, don't worry, we'll succeed," Yu closed his eyes without saying anything and began searching for the dominant flow of his spirit in his own body. Tadashi also took a deep breath, looking at Yu, and switched to exploration mode.

Yu was carefully focusing on every part of himself; he first focused on his heart, but felt nothing. He tried to feel his chest thoroughly, but there was no sensation. His arms, still nothing, legs, feet, hands, fingers, back, nothing, nothing, nothing, he couldn't feel it anywhere.

"I FEEL IT, MASTER, I FEEL IT!" Yu opened his eyes and looked astonishedly at Tadashi, maintaining his peaceful posture without disruption. The master approached and placed his hands on Yu's shoulders. "Well done, Tadashi. Now slowly channel that energy into your arms and mimic me."

Tadashi clasped his hands behind his back, took a deep breath. "I feel it, master, I feel the flow." The master silently watched him and bam! The board fell as Tadashi swung his hand forward.

"How- how can this happen?" Yu was filled with a sense of failure. The master came over to Yu. "Stay calm, young man, you will succeed, just remain calm and focused, think of the areas you haven't looked at, a place where you reflect your nature."

An idea struck Yu immediately; how could he have not thought of it? He focused and took a deep breath, slowly focusing on his head. He could feel the spirit, but it was complex because the feeling of regret and failure within him was suppressing his focus. With a calm, firm voice, he said, "I found it, master."

"Well done, my dear student, now do what young Tadashi did, I trust you." Yu focused and concentrated on creating the flow, began to sense the flow, drew his hands back and swung them. "YOU CAN DO IT, YU!" But the result was a failure; before the flow reached his hands, it vanished with Tadashi's shout. Yu fell to his knees; he had taken a heavy blow.

"How- how, why?" "Don't be upset, young man, you will succeed, I believe in you," the master smiled at him. Yu nodded back at him with a determined look.

He found the dominant flow within him again, recreated the flow, drew back his arms, and opened his eyes, quickly swinging his arms. The board flew meters away, almost four to five times the distance Tadashi's went, and the pillar sustained slight damage. Yu collapsed to the ground, breathless. "I- I did it," a faint smile appeared on his face, with a slight tear in his eye. The master felt sorry for his condition; he had expressed his power in this manner and had consumed himself without control, but he couldn't dampen his enthusiasm now. "Well done, young Yu, reach out your hand, you've earned a short break."

"Wow, you almost sent yours four to five times further away; you're incredible, Yu," his brother looked at Yu, impressed. Yu held the hand of his master and got up. "You were amazing too, my brother, you discovered and expressed your spirit before me."

"Hehehee," Tadashi blushed slightly and grinned. "Yes, children, let's return to the temple now, you've earned a short break," the two students followed their master, reached the temple's door, on one side of the huge door stood the Death's envoy Shi, reminiscent of a crow's face, intricately detailed body, feathers, sharp claws in its hands. On the other side was Katsu, more human-like with magnificent butterfly wings, four glorious arms in front of the wings. Every time Tadashi entered through this door, he couldn't help but be impressed by the grandeur of these two statues. When Yu looked at the statues, he reached forward, clasping his hand between the two statues; when the time came, he would gain access to their power and might.

"When the master saw the determination in their eyes, he smiled and they entered the temple. As they reached the 2nd phase of training, Tadashi leaped out of the temple, followed by Yu, who was slowly catching up, voices within him saying, 'This time I'll succeed,' he burned with determination. Everyone took their positions, 'Yes, children, channel your power between your two hands, direct that compressed power towards the board. In the first step, you only released it outward, this time you'll compress it within your hand and then hurl it,'" said the master. The two students closed their eyes and spread the flow into their arms. Tadashi, trying to control the energy accumulated between his hands, couldn't resist and fell to the ground, hands apart.

"The master hurriedly ran over, extending his hand. Tadashi scratched his head while grinning, 'Sorry, master, I couldn't do it.' 'Don't worry, Tadashi, we're at the beginning of the journey, there's plenty of time ahead,' said the master. Yu, seeing Tadashi's condition, gained more confidence, compressed his power thoroughly, bringing his hands closer. When the master looked at him and said, 'Yu, stop, don't push yourself too hard,' it was already too late. Yu compressed the massive energy in his hand intensively; his hands couldn't handle it. The ultimate result occurred: highly compressed energy exploded on himself just like Tadashi's, and he staggered backward and crashed to the ground.

The master rushed over immediately, followed by Tadashi, who quickly recovered. Tears streamed down Yu's face; once again, he had failed. 'I'm sorry, master, I couldn't do it, I'm so sorry,' he said, his emotions bursting out. The master lifted him up, hugged him, and patted his back. 'Don't be upset, young man, we're still at the beginning, don't be upset,' he said. Tadashi, with teary eyes, jumped behind Yu, tightly hugging him: 'YU YUUU!' The master let go of Yu and watched the emotional embrace of the two brothers.

"Yes, children, don't give up, we're just getting started," he said. The two tearful students pulled themselves together and stood side by side, saying, 'Yes, master, as you command.' The master smiled and continued the training. When Tadashi felt his power was about to burst, he stopped and tried again. Meanwhile, Yu, in a calm manner, kept thinking, 'This time I will succeed,' compressing the energy without overloading it. If strained, he quickly attempted again, repeatedly, eyes closed, completely isolated. He heard nothing, felt nothing, only the consistent flow within him was absolute peace, until it was disrupted: 'Yu Yuuu look, look, I did it, yes, yes, I did it, I did it, I split the board into 3.'

Yu was astonished: '3? But master, you split it into two, how is this possible?' 'Yu, do you remember? You couldn't balance it because you compressed the power in your hands too much. This means you're not yet capable of compressing the power to that extent. Tadashi struck a bigger blow than mine but was weaker. The board took a hit from the middle; the part that took the hit moved away, leaving two pieces behind. Let's say it wasn't wood, but iron; Tadashi would have just slightly bent the iron.'

"I understand the logic," said Yu. "Brother, could you step aside?" Tadashi moved away. Yu was angry with himself, how could he not have considered this, that he wasn't at the level of his master, how could he not account for it? His spiritual flow became erratic again; Yu gritted his teeth, took a deep breath, and released the compressed, erratic power. The force went vertically, splitting the board and the pillar into two. Yu fell to his knees, collapsing along with his consciousness.

Yu's mind was in disarray. The silhouettes of his master and Tadashi were before him, but he couldn't comprehend what they were saying. He didn't feel Tadashi collapsing into him, shedding tears. Suddenly, the seen silhouettes vanished; he had shut his eyes. Suddenly, he felt a flow inside, along with emotions and sounds coming to life. His master's hands on his face and his hugging brother...

"Yuuuu, my brother!" The master withdrew his hands from his face, faced with the sight of his brother's tear-filled face. "Yu, you've awakened, you're awake!" His brother embraced him. Yu felt lifeless, his lips started to move slightly. "I failed again." His brother's yelling drowned out his voice. The master pulled Tadashi aside.

"Hold my hand, son, you have a task to complete, you can't give up." He stood up and took a deep breath. His anger had subsided; his emotions had vanished. He isolated himself again; the result: the board, like Tadashi's, split into 3 pieces. He was angry at himself but didn't have the energy to be angry. He started to walk towards the temple, exhausted. The master knew he needed to talk to him. He instructed Tadashi to stay and continue the practice, then followed Yu. Tadashi wiped his tears and resumed his training.

"Hey, son, we need to talk," he said.

Yu didn't pay much attention to the voice coming from behind. "I know you want to succeed, I see your determination. Please don't give up, I can see you want to be the best, you want to honor your father."

Yu froze and turned around. "W- why are you involving him in this?"

"To get your attention," the master approached Yu and placed his hands on his shoulders. "Seems to have worked."

"I, I can't do it, I'm sorry, master."

"But you did it, you passed two stages, I don't see failure here," the master said.

"B- but," Yu didn't know what to say, couldn't describe the emotions inside him. He kneeled in front of Master Yu and locked eyes with him. "Please, son, we're at the beginning of the journey, don't give up, you'll succeed, you're already succeeding, just continue, show the power of the chosen one."

Yu nodded calmly. "I'll try, master, I'll try to succeed."

"Look into my eyes, son... you'll succeed because you are chosen." Yu felt a complex emotion. "Now go and develop yourself, become the owner of Shi."

Yu's eyes opened. "Me... am I going to be the envoy of death?"

"Exactly, little one, now go and show your power." Yu's feelings became even more complex, but instead of returning to the training ground, he returned to control and compress his spiritual flow. The two brothers repeated this for hours until dusk.

The master looked at his two exhausted students. "You showed great achievement, my children, now it's time for sleep, sleep heals our spirits." The two students stood up and nodded. The master came over and tousled their hair. "Off to bed." The two brothers leaned on each other's shoulders and headed towards their beds. Tadashi placed his pillow under his head. "We were amazing, brother, incredible." "Yes, we were, brother." Yu turned to the side, lost in thought. He would become the envoy of death; Shi would be his. He needed to be powerful to dispel the growing darkness. "I need to be strong, I need to be strong." Yu couldn't sleep; the word "power" was consuming him. Once he was sure his brother was asleep, he left the room.

He walked to the training area; it was quiet, not even insects buzzed. "I need to be strong." Yu sat down, focused on the flow of his spirit, released it, compressed it, and released it again. Again, again, again, and again, until he collapsed from exhaustion.

A darkness appeared behind him, getting closer, about to touch him, but suddenly the master appeared. "What are you doing here, Yu?" The darkness vanished abruptly. The master, with a worried face, lifted Yu into his arms.

"I need to develop, master, I must develop for my task." He raised his hand, capturing the moon in his palm.

"You will develop, son, but you must not exhaust yourself. You will indeed grow, just be patient," the master carried him to bed and put him to sleep. The darkness was still outside, waiting for the right moment. Yu and Tadashi continued their training every day for weeks and months. Yu's self-imposed pressure gradually decreased. Finally, the big day arrived. For the third stage, the two students confidently stood facing the pillars, focused, and controlled the flow passing through their arms.

Tadashi swung his arm, the board split in two, but the cut part fell to the ground. This was a significant moment for Yu; this time he could succeed. "I will do it," he told himself. The energy released from the swinging arm successfully cut through the board. Yu's eyes widened; it was exactly like what the master had done. "I DID IT," he exclaimed, feeling more joyous than ever. "I did it, Tadashi, I did it."

"Yes, you did it, brother," his brother also began to laugh. "Well done, Yu, it was perfect. I knew you would succeed, son." Yu ran back to the temple, and Tadashi followed suit. "Hey, son, we're not done yet."

"Hehehee," Tadashi grinned, turning back. "Until you succeed."

"Your wish is my command, master," he was placed on a new wooden pillar, and Tadashi continued his training. Time passed, and it was time for the next test. "Tadashi and Yu, you've grown now, my children. Your test today is the hunt, your prey is the seimei deer. You must go to the forest; I trust you, children," the master bid his students farewell with a smile.

The two brothers quietly began searching for their prey in the forest. Suddenly, Tadashi began to whisper quietly, "There, there!" Yu looked where Tadashi pointed; the sight of a deer grazing among the trees continued to watch their prey and started to approach. Tadashi was impatient, while Yu was focused on the hunt.

They slowly activated the flow within them. Yu raised his arm to strike, but it stopped halfway because the deer had fixed its gaze on them. Yu was surprised; how did it notice them? They hadn't made any mistakes; another question arose: why did it stop? Because of the feeling of failure? And why did his brother stop? Finally, he felt his brother nudge him.

"Yu, Yu, Yu, look behind you!" Yu nodded, collected his consciousness; he was too focused on the task, didn't see anything else. The feeling of failure returned; when he turned around, he saw a huge bear, a surprise he hadn't accounted for in his plan. Now everything fell into place: he noticed the deer, but there was a bigger problem than the deer—how to escape from the bear.

"Get behind me, Tadashi!"

"No, brother, we'll fight together."

"Then let's show it who's boss," they both formed a flow within them; the bear was approaching. Could they escape? They hadn't learned any arts yet; the only solution was to fight.

Yu released the energy he had gathered in his hand towards the bear; it stumbled, and its wound began to bleed. "Its skin is really tough, Tadashi, fighting might not be logical."

"But we can't run, brother, we're not as fast as it is." Tadashi also sent a wave, but it only slowed down the bear. Yu needed to think quickly; the bear's slow and confident approach was an advantage for them.

He observed the bear, "Tadashi, keep slowing it down, I'll try something."

Tadashi, with a voice full of trust, said, "Okay, brother," continuing his attacks. Yu stepped aside and used an energy burst on the ground, grabbing pieces of earth. "This should work." He began compressing the power between his two hands, holding the soil.

"We'll do it, Tadashi."

"Yes, brother." Yu released the power he had compressed toward the bear's face. The resulting image confirmed his thoughts; the blow sent to the bear's face along with the earth had blinded it. The two brothers had succeeded. "We did it, brother."

"Yes, we did it, Tadashi." Yu was laughing, forgetting about their prey, reveling in the joy of their success against the bear. Both brothers were laughing. Their carelessness would now be their punishment. The bear had gone berserk, thrashing wildly towards them. When Yu opened his eyes, it was already too late; the claw aimed at his brother, along with his brother's despairing gaze, signified their defeat this time in the intoxication of triumph.

"No, TADASHI!" The strike flung Tadashi against a tree; his motionless body lay on the tree. Yu's mind was in disarray. "No, no, no, NO!" Without thinking, he jumped onto the bear. Struggling to maintain balance on the bear, he began repeatedly discharging his energy onto the bear's neck. "Stop, stop, stop, stop, stop, STOOOOP!" Each strike caused the bear immense pain; its wounds deepened further. When Yu looked ahead, he realized they were very close to his brother. There was no fault in the innocent body lying on the tree.

"STOP, PLEASE, STOP!" The wound widened further, echoing through the forest; the bear began hitting trees. Yu's balance was disrupted, but he had to protect, for his brother's sake. The bear was advancing by banging into the trees. Yu, in a frenzy, attacked the bear's neck. Eventually, the bear began to slow down due to blood loss. Yu, exhausted, couldn't maintain his balance anymore; the bear collapsed, dragging Yu down with it. He ended up on the ground, facing the wounded face.

"My brother Tadashi," he crawled towards him, completely exhausted, reached him. Leaning against a tree, he laid his brother on his knees. "I'm sorry, so sorry, because of me." Tears streamed down; when he looked at his brother's body, it was entirely covered in blood. He needed to save him, but he had no energy left.

He was finished, drained, in a pitiful state. He couldn't even notice the movement of the shadow before him. The shadow rose. "Hello, Yu, failed Yu, pitiful Yu, you couldn't even protect your brother, hahaha," the shadow mocked him.

"Wh- Who are you? What, what do you want?"

"I'm here to make a deal. I'll give you the power you desire in exchange for saving your brother."

"What nonsense?" He had no strength to form long sentences. "I'm not kidding, son, I'll give you what you want; I'll rescue you from this pitiful state."

"H- How?"

"You don't need to know that, son, or briefly, I'll nourish your soul, let's say."

Yu couldn't think, but he had to save his brother; there seemed to be no other way. "Okay, what do you-"

He couldn't catch his breath to form a sentence. "Just a friendship."

Yu remained silent, he had no strength to think; he had no time with his brother lying on top of him. "Do you agree, son?"

He couldn't think of any other way. "Y- Yes."

The shadow quickly inserted his hand into Yu's chest, taking hold of his heart. "We'll be good friends."

Yu felt a surge of pain; this sensation radiating from his heart enveloped his entire body. After a few seconds of deadly impulses, everything vanished; his energy returned, his wounds closed. He immediately looked at his brother and lifted him to head towards the temple, ensuring his life didn't come to an end.