Outside, birds could be heard chirping, alongside the whispering wind and singing critters. The sun bore its equal rays over the azure sky alongside the gentle hum of passing water.
Inside the home on the other hand.. A scolding was taking place.
"So, let me get this straight, both of you girls started competing on a quiz. To which it came down to the last question. And supposedly you both had different answers for the decider, where in the end, you ended up disagreeing and fighting each other?" Both Yumi and Ito were sitting side by side, with small bruises on their faces.
Looking down at the floor, the pair felt ashamed to raise their heads.
"Ahahaha.. They have quite the competitive spirit do they not?" Trying to laugh away and brighten the awkwardness of the situation, it didn't seem to work but instead the atmosphere just further turned sour.
"Any reason as to why you both had to resort to physical violence akin to cats instead of talking it out?" Stunned that her prediction was completely wrong, Yoko appeared disappointed but also somewhat upset.
"..."
"..."
After what felt like an eternal moment of silence, Hisano Ito mustered up the courage to try and explain herself. Raising her head and locking eyes with the wall rather than one of the women in front of her. She didn't appear all too confident.
"Mom, you see.. We only ended up fighting because of Yukihime-san refusing to admit defeat! And when I tried to confront her about it, she charged at me first!" Looking over to her right, Yumi's right eyebrow couldn't believe what sentence had just been uttered.
Dumbfounded at her lies while appearing utterly speechless at first glance, she nonetheless tried to clear her own name.
"Hmph. Her words hold no value as they are based on lies. Hisano Ito-san was the culprit who charged at me from the beginning. I merely responded to her irrationality by acting in self-defence." Appearing confident and resolute on the surface, Yumi's reason sounded far more believable. In spite of that fact, whether or not it was her sly way of words was up to both moms to figure out.
"That does sound plausible, wouldn't you think so as well Yoko-san?" Scratching her chin, Ayanami's personality had seemed to shift into an old detective trying to decipher and comprehend the case.
"Hmm, you might be onto something Aya-san. Precious daughter of mine.. Could you perhaps be withholding the truth from me?" Glancing over at her own daughter, Ito had seemed to break into a cold sweat during which she went temporarily mute.
"Tch! Don't think you sound more believable just because you speak more formally!" Angry at Yumi's sly attempt to defend herself. She bursted with anger whilst pointing straight at her.
"What's happened, happened! I wouldn't dare to hurt that frail body of hers anyways. She'd probably break into peices if a wooden stick hit her!"
"That continued foul mouth of yours.. How can you walk around in such attire whilst running rings?"
"Haaah!? Are you insulting the way I speak!?" Standing up and rolling her sleeves up again. Ito prepared for a second attempted takedown.
"Who said anything about how you spoke?" Moreover, Yumi replicated her behaviour with ice in her eyes.
"OKAY, THAT'S ENOUGH! BOTH OF YOU!" Choving herself between Yumi and Ito, she tried to block their path to one another. On the other side, Ayanami pulled her daughter to the side.
"Jeez, there's no demand for a physical altercation within the confines of this space dear." Ayanami crossed her arms together.
"But-"
"No ifs and buts dear. Stop it."
"Sorry mom.. My emotions got the better of me." Seeming to have calmed down for the moment, the attention was instead shifted to Hisano Ito.
"Grrr! Grrr!" Although appearing human on the surface, her speech had now transformed into animalistic noises instead of comprehensible sentences.
"Calm yourself! You can't afford to get injured, airhead! You have kendo class tomorrow!" Despite her efforts, Hisano Ito didn't seem to budge at all. In the midst of learning about her Kendo classes. A brilliant idea had suddenly formed in Ayanami's mind.
"How about you both spar with each other?"
"Huh?" The household roared in unison.
In almost an instant, all chaos subsided. The previous screams coupled with animalistic tendencies had completely halted.
Surprised at her suggestion, Yumi's face told. "Are you serious?" On the flipside, Ito's face lit up. Covering her face and breathing a sigh of relief, Yoko's faint attempts at peace weren't needed anymore.
"Eeeh? I suppose it can't be helped..! I'll have to show her the difference in our strengths!" Turning around for the hallway, she began skipping towards the changing room, excited to prove herself.
"I'll go get the equipment while you change. When my daughter's done, you can get changed in the same room. We'll meet outside in the central court. See you both there." Heading off for the storage room, the only ones left in the living room were now Yumi and her mom.
"Are you sure about this mom?" With a flustered face, she was wondering why her mom suggested that idea.
"It'll be a good opportunity to gauge your current level." Patting her head to reaffirm the decision, Ayanami was confident in her daughter's victory.
"If you say so.." As they were having a moment to themselves, a loud announcement could be heard in the distance followed by running into the courtyard.
"I'm finished! Now bring it! Failed heir of the fallen cornerstone!" To nobody's surprise, her loud mouth knew no bounds. On the contrary of getting mad at her thoughtless words, Yumi instead found herself motivated this time.
"Go out there and win, dear!" Before departing to change clothes, they gave a gentle high five to each other.
"I will try my utmost!"
After roughly five minutes had passed, Yumi finished changing into similar attire. Walking out to the central area, she was met by the intense rays of the sun alongside scorching heat and mild wind.
They stood opposite to one another. On one end, both wore similarly coloured Keikogi, and on the other, Yumi's Hakama was grey compared to Ito's dark blue. Although you could barely see either face through the helmet, their competitive aura emanating from within told more than enough.
Situated on the sidelines were Ayanami and Yoko. For this match, it would seem that Yoko would be the Referee.
"Let's have a fair match. And remember, no blows under the waist! First to score 3 points wins." Announcing the rules fair and square, the tension rose to a boiling point. Taking their respective stances to prepare, Yumi held her bamboo sword straight in front of her body. Her foot placement would also suggest orthodox.
Compared to Shinano Yukihime. Hisano Ito's style wasn't as traditional. Instead she held a southpaw stance alongside holding the sword long and angled over her right shoulder. They both stood silent waiting for the match to begin.
"Wow, your daughter has quite a unique stance. Did you teach her that Yoko-san?" Curious, she couldn't help but to wonder if Yoko's playful nature was behind it.
"Haha, actually not! She developed that style on her own. I only managed to give pointers. In the beginning I tried to teach her a more traditional style, similar to your daughter. But she found it uncomfortable. So she kept losing and eventually found her own way of winning."
"She hasn't lost any competition since." Raising her hand, she proceeded to give the signal.
"A prodigy huh.." As their eyes looked upon the two individuals, Ayanami could only ponder how the first round would play out.
"Begin!" Without wasting a breath, Hisano Ito was the first one to charge head first. Yukihime, who had decided on a more passive approach, instead got caught completely stationary. Her thunderous first step immediately closed any distance between them. Swinging her sword down from the right rapidly on Yukihime's head, her only option was to try and parry it.
"This is bad! She charged instead of gauging my style first!" Raising her sword to eye level just before the sword hit, she barely managed to parry it in time. Despite that accomplishment, Ito had leveraged all the momentum and bodyweight into one strike, resulting in an immensely powerful force that forced Yukihime off balance. Quickly trying to regather her steps, Ito was faster. Pulling her sword backwards and lowering her own centre of gravity, she lunged forward and hit Yukihime's side plating.
"Guh!" Causing her to fall down, she could only look up at the display of power.
"Phew.." In contrast to her earlier behaviour, Hisano Ito's face was now unchanging and her eyes were fully focused on the opponent at hand.
"Point number one goes to Hisano Ito-chan!" Stunned at the development of the first point, Ayanami looked somewhat impressed. Sensing her perceived shock, Yoko couldn't help but open her mouth.
"Hehe, surprised?"
"I'm impressed. I never imagined that my daughter would be bested this early." Glancing over at Yumi, she was most likely processing the shock as well. It took a moment before she got back up again.
"She has the fastest first step in the country. That's how she sets the tone." By instilling doubt and a sense of inferiority.
"But my daughter isn't one to give up so easily. Just watch." Holding her sword firmly again, Yumi steeled herself for the second round. Likewise, Ito held her sword in the same stance as before.
"..." Yukihime stood quiet. Meanwhile Ito planted her left foot firmly in the pavement whilst breathing in a heavy amount of air. It would appear that she was preparing for yet another frontal assault.
"Whoo.." As the wind seemed to be loosening up and cherry blossoms stopped falling endlessly for a brief moment, everything stopped in anticipation for the second round.
"Begin!"
"Rah!" Charging forward yet again with a first step made of lightning, she was instead met in the middle by Yukihime. Unable to utilise her leverage and momentum this time, the pair clashed with equal force. The sound of two bamboo swords slamming together produced a noise loud enough to rattle both moms and scare local birds.
"You..You charged in as well?" Taken by surprise, Ito finally opened her mouth. In response, Yukihime pulled her sword down alongside Ito's to their stomach level resulting in a stalemate.
"Tch. She's applying pressure to my guard.. But I'm stronger!" Unable to break out of the deadlock, Ito instead tried to force her way through with sheer strength.
Appearing to be working at first. Yumi's stance was slowly sliding backwards. During which Ito could feel Yukihime's guard slightly loosening. Figuring that she wouldn't be able to hold for much longer, Ito bent her knees slightly before bursting forward.
"Ah?" Just then, she felt herself falling forward. Before realising what had just occurred, a stiff end of a bamboo sword hit her head square on.
"Ow!" At that moment, she realised Yukihime had pulled the chair on her.
"One point for Yumi-chan. Score, 1-1." Looking over to Yoko, Ayanami smiled and winked.
"Instead of getting discouraged and panicking, she quickly regathered herself and managed to adapt to her style perfectly.."
How long has she been practising? Were to only thoughts that Yoko could think of.
Crawling up from the pavement herself this time, Ito fixed her headgear before opting to change into a more traditional stance for the third round. Answering, Yukihime alternatively switched to one previously experienced first hand.
"Wait, That's my daughter's stance!?" Appearing to have mimicked Ito's previous stance, Yoko was flabbergasted compared to Ayanami who was calm and smiling. In addition, Ito raised an eyebrow in confusion before realising that Yukihime was trying to replicate her style.
"I see how it is.. We've switched stances. As if I'd let you beat me at my own game!" Whether or not Yukihime was intentionally trying to provoke Ito, it upset her enough to switch back to her original stance.
"Begin!" Without speaking a single word, they both leaped off the pavement and charged for one another. By having the faster step, Ito naturally reached her desired point quicker. Swinging her sword down sideways from a 45 degree angle onto the middle, her plan was to catch Yukihime's head first. Arriving at a similar point opposite to her a step later, the third round appeared to be all, but over.
"Ah damn, it seems like Yuki-chan can't truly replicate my daughter's style due to the physical differences. I guess it'll be 2-1." Scratching her head, Yoko wanted to witness a matchup of the same style. During her small rant, Yumi had also begun her swinging motion.
"Don't act disappointed yet, just watch closely now." Unfamiliar with what Ayanami was trying to imply, she opted to find the meaning to her words by watching the fight closely.
Contrary to Ito's swing, she wasn't aiming for Ito's head. Instead she swung the bamboo sword towards Ito's. Hitting the tip of her sword first, Yukihime managed to misdirect and slow the assault down. Following the parry by further flicking her arms in accordance to her sword, alongside footwork to get outside Ito's pivot foot, Yukihime worked her way down to the midsection of ito's sword.
"She completely rooted my daughter in place..?" Unable to move her guard, Yukihime took advantage of the newly created opening through charging forwards adjacent to Ito's starboard.
"Although she dislikes watchful eyes and bright lights.. During adversity and likewise struggle, she adapts, evolves under the pressure and eventually becomes an unstoppable tidal wave." Finally, using the sword as a rapier, Yukihime leveraged her forward momentum to strike Ito by her left shoulder.
"Gah!" Amidst Hisano Ito falling to one knee, Yukihime finally grasped for air.
"Two to one, in favour of Shinano Yukihime." Lost for words and unable to properly analyse the display, she was only able to look over her shoulder. To which, the mother of a genius stood. Smiling.
"After all, she's my little genius."