The Story Of The Banished Side After Banishing The Party [Chapter 52]

Chapter 52: Meimei (Part 2)

TL: Akabane

***

It has already been almost a year since the Kikagei-ryu became me alone.

The town has changed in the past year.

Until now, adventurers who misbehaved were punished by martial artists who happened to be present, but now the martial artists of the Hatten-ryu have come to take on that role.

Simply put, we are like a vigilante group.

At first, the people of the town came to rely on us, even though they had the worst impression of us.

But there was a trick to it. Even though they were an unprincipled adventurer, not everyone is like that. There are adventurers like Aniki who are kind and generous.

So there shouldn't be problems all the time, but the "Haten-ryu" guys are deliberately provoking them to cause problems.

They solve the problems themselves and say that they are protecting the peace of the town. It's a dirty way, isn't it?

The impression was good only at the beginning, and recently, the disciples of the "Haten-ryu" have become arrogant. They do whatever they want, and the townspeople are in trouble.

But in fact, they are protecting them from adventurers, and they are martial artists. They can't resist them, so they can't say anything and have to put up with them.

Whenever I see such a situation, I warn them, but I can't solve the fundamental problem. I'm a fool, so I don't know what to do.

Even if I talk to my master about it, he just tells me to leave it alone.

Master is still in good health. Lately, though, he's been complaining that his back is hurting.

I have grown up a lot in the past year.

I have developed several techniques by myself and is improving my skills. I sometimes does kumite with other styles, and I think it's going pretty well.

So, I was quietly living with my master while striving for my own training.

When I came back from shopping, I saw many people in the dojo other than the master. I was curious to know who they were and was surprised to see them.

"Aniki......"

It was Aniki, whom I met five years ago, who was in the dojo.

His appearance had changed a lot, but I recognized him immediately.

I couldn't stand still and jumped up to him, and he patted me on the head gently.

I was so happy to see him again!

Apparently, he was in the middle of his journey to the capital.

But the people who are with him are different from those in the past.

Aishia is not with him.

When I asked him about that, he told me that he is no longer with Aishia and the others. Just as me, his party went through a lot too.

I miss Aishia, but I am very happy to see him again.

His new friends are Athena, Frey, and Miriallia.

Athena is a human, but she is very beautiful. I was just gazing at her.

Her shiny blonde hair shines like the sun, and she has a large chest and a feminine body, just like a young lady.

Frey is a dragon tribe with small wings on her back and a tail on her buttocks.

I have seen many subhumans in my life, but this is the first time for me to meet a dragon tribe. Frey is also quite good-looking. Her hair is bright red like flames, her muscles are well-developed, and she is tall, which I envy.

However, her face is a little scary. Her eyes are hung up, but she has a bad attitude. She looks like a thug.

Miriallia is an elves. This is the second time I have met elves.

I don't remember her face or name, but I think there was an elves woman who used to be one of Aniki's friends. She had long ears, too.

Unlike Miriallia, who was short like me, she was tall, voluptuous, and had a "bewitching" look to her. But she also had a very beautiful face.

Also, she seems to be very lazy. She looks sleepy all the time.

All three of them are adventurers, and I can sense that they must be strong.

Especially, Miriallia is not just an ordinary person.

Her small appearance and unenthusiastic attitude may fool other, but there is a ferocious beast lurking in her chest. My instincts as a beast tells me that I shouldn't fight with her.

As the story goes, I decided to fight with Frey.

I was very grateful because I had never had a chance to fight with anyone other than a martial artist, much less an adventurer.

I was thrilled to begin our kumite match.

As I had imagined, Frey was very strong.

Both her speed and power are top class among the martial artists I have faced so far.

If she were to be taken seriously, I would easily be blown away. And her defense is so strong that a blow from me wouldn't have much of an effect on her.

However, her attack was simple, so it was not so difficult to handle. At the end of the game, I won by throwing Frey away.

"You ...... are so strong!"

"Yes!　Frey was strong too!　My hand is tingling from the heavy fist strike!"

If I couldn't handle even one of Frey's blows, I would have lost. Frey's power was that astonishing.

But it was a lot of fun. I would love to fight again.

After the match, I had a lot of conversations with Aniki in the guest room.

The topic of the lack of other disciples came up in the conversation, but since the master didn't say anything about it, I couldn't resist and said something.

Then it seemed that they already knew about the Hatten-ryu and that there had been some trouble before they came here.

They even bothered ...... Aniki, I can't forgive them!

After listening to me, he suddenly said something like this.

--- "Hey, old man, will you take Frey as your disciples for a little while?"

This surprised me. Not only me, but also Frey herself was surprised.

But he seemed to have an idea, and Frey, sensing it, finally agreed. The master also agreed, and of course, I was all for it.

I am very happy to be able to train with someone again. Besides, he also said that for the time being, Aniki and the others will be staying with us at the dojo.

I am very happy to see the dojo becoming lively for the first time in a long time.

***

Immediately, the next day, life began with Frey as my fellow disciple.

I tried to make her wear a dojo uniform as an disciple, but it didn't suit her at all. It just didn't feel right.

First of all, she had to do chores such as cleaning the dojo and cooking, and as expected, Frey complained a lot.

The chores are part of the disciple's job, so there is no reason not to do them. When there were many disciples, we all had to share the work, but now I'm doing it all alone.

Frey is doing her chores with reluctance.

She is not very good with her hands and it is messy, but she is surprisingly clean and quick because of her strength.

And the cooking was better than I expected. I thought she was not good at that kind of thing, but it seems that she was trained by Aniki. He is an excellent chef, isn't he?

I was even more surprised at the training.

She has mastered Hagane, which is a constant activation of body strengthening, and her body is also very tough.

Not many of disciples could have made it up the long flight of stairs to the dojo by jumping the rabbit, but Frey made it on her first attempt.

It took a long time, but Frey has more stamina and perseverance than anyone else. This made even me to respect her.

But her kata training was not as good as before.

I may not be good at teaching kata with my mouth, but Frey was a very bumptious person. I tried to make her imitate my movements, but this was somewhat better.

But after a while, she seemed to get the hang of it and was getting better at it. Frey, like me, is the type who learns with her body.

"Ora, how about this!"

"Hehe, it's sweet!"

It's a lot of fun to practice kumite with Frey.

Our strengths are very similar, so we can give each other our all. Besides, Frey is getting better and better the more I play with her.

She is gradually getting better at Ukenagashi, which kills the momentum of an attack, and she sometimes imitates me and uses Kikagei-ryu techniques. I still has a better winning record than Frey, but Frey is getting stronger at an astonishing speed, and it may not be long before she overtakes me.

Not wanting to lose to Frey, I feel that I need training harder and growing as well.

I can't lose to Frey.

"I'm having a lot of fun right now."

"Ah, did you say something?"

"No, nothing."

Since the arrival of Aniki and Frey's apprenticeship, my days have been very fulfilling and I feel happy.

It is more fun to train with someone else than to train alone. I have no complaints about living with my master, but it's nice to have a group of people around a meal.

I wish these days could go on forever, but I know that in a little while, they will be leaving this place.......

But that can't be helped. I and Aniki are on their own different paths.

But I hope you will let me chew on this happiness for just a little while longer.

-- That's what I was hoping for.

When people want something so badly, they are always caught flat-footed.

"Frey, please go home first. I have other things to do."

"Really?　I'll go ahead."

"I'll see you later."

After shopping, Frey leaves the luggage to go home first, and I heads to a stall in town by myself.

I'm thinking of giving Frey a gift. I thought I would buy something for Frey before she and her friends leave town.

You see, I'm Frey's sister and fellow disciple. We worked together for a short time.

"Oh, I like this one."

I was looking around the store and found something very nice. It was a red wristband that matched Frey's hair.

Frey doesn't seem to be interested in decorations, so I thought this would be just the thing.

"Please give me this one."

"Yes, please."

I go home, tucking the wristband I bought into my pocket so I don't lose it.

"Hehe, I hope Frey will be pleased."

I don't think she'll be happy because she's Frey, but that's okay. Just accepting it is enough for me.

"Hey, are you Meimei from Kikagei-ryu?"

"Who are you guys? What do you want from me?"

I was about to climb the stairs to the dojo, imagining the scene.

There were about ten young martial artists wearing street clothes hanging around, blocking the stairs.

I was alerted to the fact that this was something out of the ordinary by the atmosphere, and the one at the front of the group opened his mouth with a sly smile on his face.

"I'm sorry, but you're going to have to play with us for a while."

"You guys must be from the Hatten-ryu, right?"

"Heh, you're very perceptive, aren't you? That's what I meant."

"It's not like martial artist because you rely on numbers, not one-on-one. But it's okay, bring it on."

"How long do you think you can keep that composure?　Let's go, guys!"

The martial artists of the Hatten-ryu set up all at once.

Even though I'm outnumbered, but I'm not going to be beaten by you guys.

I will calmly assess the fist and leg blows flying in from all directions and throw them away one after another while parrying them.

"Gwah?"

"She is strong!"

I'm not strong. You guys are just weak.

But they're a martial artist, so it's tough to handle them. Their martial arts skills are low, but they have surprisingly good physical stamina, and even if I throw them down, they gets right back up.

Even so, I cannot lose to these cowards in the name of Kikagei-ryu.

"Ha!"

""Aaaaaaah!!!""

"Hah ...... hah ...... I guess that's it."

After a long time, I finally defeated the last of the Hatten-ryu gank.

I got a few blows. I guess that proves that I am not trained enough yet.

"Hey, hey, why are you losing to this guy? So pathetic."

"Eh ..... Ryu?"

It was a moment of relief that I could finally go home now. I heard a familiar voice behind me, and when I turned around, Ryu was there.

His body had become much stronger than when we last parted, and his face had changed considerably. The atmosphere he exudes is also more rugged than before.

"Don't tell me that Ryu is also planning to destroy ...... Kikagei-ryu?"

"Yes, that's right. I gave it to them because they wanted to take credit for it, but as you can see, it's a mess. Then I'll have no choice but to personally handle it."

"How far do you have to go to get off the deep end ...... Ryu!"

"If you seek strength, you will become anything. I don't want to hear it from you, Meimei, who's always playing make-believe without being ready for it."

"Ryu!"

"Enough chitchat. Let's get this over with."

Saying this, Ryu sits low.

I could sense his sturdy appearance just by facing him. Ryu is so much stronger than the guys I've seen up until now.

His body is overflowing with the pressure aura of a strong man.

If Ryu intends to do that, it can't be helped. I'm going to cool this fool's head with my hands!

"Let's go, Meimei!"

"Come on, Ryu!"

Ryu kicks the ground hard and approaches as if to leap.

His fist and leg blows are fast, sharp, and heavy. It's a different thing from a year ago. If I hadn't been fighting with Frey, the match might have been decided at the first blow. I am grateful to Frey.

"What's wrong!　You're going to do it, but it's not going to be a fight if you just handle it!"

"Ggh!"

Ryu's attacks were as wild as a storm, and it was all I could do to handle them.

If I continue to defend myself, I will be pushed to the brink when I fail to catch him. Before that happens, I need to take the game to my own pace.

Me, staying low to the ground, grabbed hold of Ryu's chest, hooked his legs, and pulled with all my might, lifting his body with all his weight on top.

"Kikagei-ryu, yanagi kuzushi!"

"--That's sweet!"

"What the...?"

I tried to throw him backwards, but Ryu landed on the ground on both feet and held on.

Did you say that you were able to catch such ...... my yanagi kuzushi on your first attempt?

The move was a dud, and just as I was about to regain my stance, I was hit in the leg and blown away.

"Ugh!"

"What is this Kikagei-ryu? Don't lie to me!"

"Hah ...... hah ...... this technique was thought up and developed by me. But this is a genuine Kikagei-ryu technique approved by the master."

"It doesn't matter if you approve or not. If I can defeat you, then that's all there is to it. I'm getting more and more pissed off. I'm done playing, I'm done with you."

Ryu comes in closer, and again he launches a series of furious strikes.

I tried to pass it off, but I couldn't handle it well and was hit. The reason why I couldn't pass it off is probably due to the "rotation" mechanism.

By adding rotation to the timing of impact, the momentum couldn't be killed.

"Ghaa?"

By the time I figured out the trick, it was too late.

I received a heavy blow, and I became just a sandbag. Ukeganashi is a double-edged sword. If you fail once and lose your rhythm, the damage you will receive is huge.

(Oh no, I'm losing consciousness.......)

Ryu deals a finishing blow to me, who is just standing there with her strength, in a dazed state. I tried to parry the attack, but...

"Hatten-ryu, Spiral kante".

"Gahatsu!"

Ryu released a kante and I was unable to catch it, so I was pierced through the stomach.

As soon as I coughed up blood from my mouth, I couldn't stand and fell on my back.

"Haa ...... haa ...... gah......"

"I guess I win. Meimei, Kikagei-ryu is over."

"You ...... wait ......"

I reached for Ryu, who turned on his heel, but that's when I completely lost consciousness.

PREV | NEXT