"I see?" With the same impeccable poker face, the warrior's master gave the young woman another measured look. "Then it's a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Princess." He offered a slight bow—the absolute minimum courtesy etiquette required. "Tea?"
"Why not?" Someone could definitely use a chance to cool off a little, and tea was as good a way as any.
Piandao nodded to Fath, and ten minutes later we were seated around a low table, leisurely sipping excellent jasmine tea.
"I must admit, I'm impressed by your progress. Even if only half of what people are saying about you is true, I can still be proud of my apprentice."
"Thank you..."
"Of course, now I have to fend off crowds of people every week who want to repeat your success. It gets rather tiresome." I simply spread my hands in response. "So then, did you come merely to visit your old Master, or do you have some business with me?" the swordsman asked, getting to the point.
"I decided to combine business with pleasure." I pulled a wrapped bundle from my bag and handed it to Piandao.
"Hm." He unwrapped it and almost seemed ready to sniff it. "This is definitely a sword of my making, but there's something... strange about it. I can't quite put my finger on what."
"It was caught in a dragon's breath. And the spirits only know what that did to it."
"Really? Fascinating." The Master turned the blade over in his hands. "And you want me to reforge it."
"Yes."
"Very well. I'll take care of it. But in the meantime..." His eyes became altogether too friendly. "Care for a warm-up?"
"Why not?" Finishing our tea, we headed out to the training grounds.
"Would you care to join us, Princess?" Piandao asked her.
"Hm. But you're not a firebender," the girl frowned. "I'm not used to holding back."
"That won't be necessary. Feel free to use anything at your disposal against me."
Without another word, Azula rose and stepped into the open space within the training circle. Meanwhile, I went to arm myself with a practice sword.
"This feels strangely familiar..." Three individuals, each eyeing the other two with undisguised suspicion, took their places in a circle.
"Begin!" Fath barked, then promptly dove behind the railing of the "spectator's box" with remarkable speed. After that, I had no attention to spare for anything else.
Piandao lunged straight at me, while Azula, wasting no time whatsoever, blasted both of us with a stream of fire. Naturally, neither of us had any desire to be roasted, so the Master and I both threw ourselves into a roll to avoid it...
In exactly the same direction.
At exactly the same time.
Hm. I'd never imagined it was possible to kick your opponent in the middle of a forward roll—or for that opponent to dodge the kick while rolling as well. Yet somehow, Piandao managed to kick me, and I managed to evade it.
I honestly hadn't expected that of myself.
Coming out of the roll, I immediately swept at the Master's legs while simultaneously striking with my practice blade and sending a jet of fire his way. He slipped out of the way with an effortless pirouette, somehow finding the time to flick a handful of sand into my face, having apparently scooped it up with the toe of his boot.
Nor was he retreating at random. He was moving toward the princess, and just before reaching her, he threw another handful of sand straight into her face, this one apparently gathered with his hand during the roll.
"Damn you!" The princess clearly didn't appreciate the little "gift." She immediately shifted to defense, whipping a fiery vortex around herself.
By then I'd managed to blink the grit out of my eyes and throw myself back into the fight, pressing the attack against my Master. If memory served, I'd already been a little faster than him in the past. By now, that gap should have widened even further.
"Not bad, Chan," Piandao admitted as he deflected another strike, "but—"
He shifted sharply to the side, and the spot where he'd been standing a heartbeat earlier vanished beneath a torrent of blue flames. The heat forced me to recoil instinctively.
"—That won't be enough!"
The bastard had anticipated that Azula would attack the first sound she heard and deliberately used her as long-range artillery by calling out at just the right moment.
All right then. Time to borrow something from the Kyoshi Warriors' arsenal.
Step into the strike. Grab—
Tch. He twisted free.
Trip!
Dodged again.
A brilliant flash of fire in his face, and I slammed into him shoulder-first with my full weight behind it...
Mm. He went a little low. Looks like it's about to rai—
I never got to finish the thought.
At the very start of his fall, the Master somehow managed to drive a kick into me, knocking me off balance while simultaneously giving himself a point of support. And naturally, because Murphy's Law never takes a day off, that was the exact moment the princess chose to take careful aim and unleash one truly magnificent arc of fire.
"Damn..." I had no choice but to hit the ground and roll, then roll again, and then keep rolling. One of them was trying to roast me alive, while the other alternated between trying to skewer me with a sword and kick my head off. How those two sadists managed not to get in each other's way, I had neither the time nor the spare brainpower to figure out.
"Bad day." I muttered, spinning into a low windmill kick while using streams of fire to drive the motion—and to force the swordsman back from the wave of heat.
"A very bad day."
The moment I got back to my feet, another stream of fire came straight at my face.
"Oh, come on!"
This time, I was the one who spun up a vortex of fire, while the martial artist immediately pressed the distracted lady.
(End of Chapter)
P@treon: /SadRaven
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