Chapter 8

Sakura sighed as she watched Chaeyeon instruct Yujin from the opening of the tent they had set up. She felt bored sitting and resting underneath a pile of blankets while everyone else was out working hard on their special training trip. She couldn’t really fault the rest of the girls for being strict with her however. It was her fault for using her Sakura Sake technique for an extended period of time even though her body couldn’t handle it.

Normally, Sakura considered herself to be a fairly intelligent person. What she did to help Hyewon, however, could not be considered smart at all. When she looked at Hyewon and saw the girl despairing over holding the group back, Sakura saw herself being reflected back. There were many times in her life that she worried over holding everyone else back due to something that she lacked. To see Hyewon struggling over the same thing, pushed Sakura to act even though she did not know if she could do it. Fortunately, her brave unnie and dongsaengs were able to help her out of the mess that she had caused.

So, Sakura did not complain too much as she continued to sit and rest while watching the others practice. Even if she could not actively take part in the training, it didn’t mean that she couldn’t participate in some other way. She had taken mental notes on the physical martial arts that Chaeyeon taught Yujin and was now paying attention to something Yujin was showing Chaeyeon. It was then that she saw Yujin’s movements resemble that of her own. “Yujin, when did you learn that technique?”

“Ah, I’ve seen you practicing it alone a few times. I can only do a little bit of it,” Yujin said shyly as she stopped her demonstration and went back to the tent with Chaeyeon. She stopped short of adding that she knew about the martial arts technique from her research on Sakura before the exams.

“The Maiden’s Kiss,” Sakura said fondly. “It was a set of strikes which incorporated qi arts and was designed for one person to go up against many people. As much as I like it though, I think it kind of goes against the theme of this training trip, which is to get closer to each other so that we can practice formations later.”

“Actually, I was interested in it, so I asked Yujin to show me,” Chaeyeon spoke up, slightly embarrassed by her request. “There are many ways people can get closer together. We don’t really know much about each other’s lives before we became schoolmates. I think if I can learn what you learned before, I can get a better understanding of who you are.”

“The two of you are such powerful physical martial arts, I’m not sure you’d even want to learn it. The power is mostly supposed to come from within, so the moves are quick and soft, meant only to guide the qi force.” Although, Sakura was quite proud of the technique, when she compared the physical aspects of the technique with the martial arts that Yujin and Chaeyeon could perform, she found it lacking something.

“I heard the move set is meant to be performed by only women. Unnie, do you think I’m not feminine enough to do it?” Yujin pouted, knowing full well her strongest weapon against her unnie.

“No, of course not,” Sakura immediately replied, frantically holding up her hands. “Even though you and Chaeyeon are so tall and strong, I’m always so impressed by how well both you and Chaeyeon can pull off even the most delicate of martial arts off. I’m just worried you’ll pick up bad habits if you study it.”

Chaeyeon turned to Yujin and could see that girl blushing at Sakura’s complements just like she was. Even though she knew that the taller girl was fishing for it, it still gave Chaeyeon a pleasant feeling to hear Sakura say it. “Maybe, we can work together and modify it so that it doesn’t have to be done alone.”

“Hmm, the moves are meant to be performed alone. Its greatest strength is that the practitioner doesn’t need to worry about their surroundings and can just go all out,” Sakura replied, shaking her head, after thinking about Chaeyeon’s comment. “Legend has it that there was a young martial artist who was not yet ready for love. In an effort to remain pure until that moment, she created the art to keep unwanted suitors at bay.”

“Did she ever find that love?” Yujin asked, hearts in her eyes at the unexpected story to the martial arts technique. In her mind, it seemed fitting that Sakura practiced the Maiden’s Kiss.

“I like to think she accomplished all that she wanted and was able to let it go. Otherwise, it would be too lonely of a story,” Sakura said wistfully.

“If we can’t change it, then we’ll create another martial art to go with it. The new art, by itself, may not be all that powerful, but when paired with the Maiden’s Kiss, it’ll be awesome. We’ll make a new legend. One where she didn’t walk her path alone.” Chaeyeon said, somehow managing to look at Sakura directly and not look away embarrassed.

Say what you really mean, Chaeyeon Unnie, Yujin thought as heat rose to her cheeks. “One is an art that’s meant for a single user. And one is an art that is meant to support that person. That sounds pretty romantic. Yeah, let’s do it.”

Sakura rolled her eyes at how easy Chaeyeon and Yujin made it sound. Just create a brand-new never before seen martial arts technique and pair it up with another technique they barely even knew? Monster geniuses, the both of them. “Okay, okay. How do you want to start?”

Eunbi was at a loss as she looked at Minju and Yuri. The two girls stood with their heads down, looking contrite. While she hadn’t explicitly told the younger girls that they couldn’t help Sakura, the two of them still came forward to apologize and ask for disciplining. It actually warmed her heart to see them step forward to take the blame so that the others wouldn’t share the punishment.

In truth, she was quite proud of how Minju and Yuri managed to develop new skills in the moment of crisis. Minju already had problems with confidence and Eunbi didn’t want to do anything that would hurt the girl’s growth in that area. Yuri tended to panic in the worst way by standing still so her being so proactive in that moment was also something that Eunbi wanted to nurture.

“Minju, we were deeply connected with Sakura’s thoughts. It was dangerous for you to try and tap into our minds at that time. But, I’m also grateful that you were able to let Yuri know to come and save me. I could have been trapped within Sakura’s thoughts for a long time if it weren’t for you,” Eunbi said to Minju before going over to hold the girl’s trembling hands.

“No, Unnie. You and the others did all the real work. If I hadn’t been a mess at the start, I could have helped earlier,” Minju said as she looked up. “But I’ll do better next time.”

“I’m sure you will, Minju,” Eunbi agreed, pleasantly surprised by the girl’s confidence. She let go of Minju’s hands and went over to Yuri to grab her hands this time, making the girl look up at her. “Yuri, Sakura’s emotional state was very unstable. Your music could have made it worse. But, it didn’t and for that I’m grateful. You played beautifully, and your power saved me.”

“I think you would have gotten out of it yourself. Minju couldn’t tell what was wrong only that you were panicking a bit. Once you calmed down, you would have been fine.” Yuri did want to ask what Eunbi had been panicking about but knew that the thoughts shared between her and Sakura were private.

Eunbi blushed as she remembered the image that Sakura had had of her. She needed to correct some misconceptions that woman had. “Anyway, you’ve come a long way from that girl who I was demoted with during the exams.”

“So, have you Eunbi Unnie,” Yuri said, giving Eunbi a beautiful smile. “You were demoted because you could barely do any qi arts and now look at you. You were able to help with Sakura’s qi deviation.”

“Well, I had a lot of help from everyone,” Eunbi said humbly.

“Does this mean we don’t get punished?” Yuri asked hopefully.

“Well, I wouldn’t say that. Now, if I have to give you two some kind of punishment, I think I want you two to show me in detail the new moves you have come up with until I understand it. We are on a training trip after all.”

“But Unnie, it might take you a long time to understand it,” Minju whined as her smile turned into a frown.

“Your understanding of qi arts has improved, but not that much” Yuri moaned, joining in Minju’s misery. “We could be here forever.”

Chaewon smiled fiercely at Hitomi’s equally fierce expression as she dodged the girl’s punch and countered with one of her own. She didn’t have time to enjoy Hii-chan’s expressions too much however as she saw Nako at the corner of her eye. Chaewon sidestepped Nako’s charge and retreated backwards so that she could have both Japanese girls within her sights. The three of them looked at each other warily as they moved in a circle.

This is good, Chaewon thought to herself as she stared the other two down as if daring them to attack first. The purpose of the training trip was to improve their teamwork, but it didn’t really apply to the three of them. Each of them had partnered together either during the exams or after they became a part of the same school, so their chemistry together was good. Nako proposed that instead, they have a three-way match against each other and see if there were any faults they could find.

Without needing to change their style to match with another person, Chaewon could see their distinct traits and tendencies start to show through. Her own style was fairly traditional, and some would say text book perfect. Hitomi’s was much more creative and flashier than hers. She could tell how much Hitomi had toned herself down in order to fit with Chaewon’s own style whenever they teamed up. Nako’s natural style was the hardest to place as she was so good at learning and mimicking other member’s moves. If Chaewon had to describe it, she would say that the girl’s style was much like her physical traits. Compact, quick and graceful.

“Okay, I think I’ve seen enough,” Chaewon said as she got out of her fighting stance and motioned the other two to do the same. “I think that went well. The two of you fight very differently individually than when you are partnering with someone like me. Nako, you’re usually too nice and defer to your teammates. Hitomi, I think you hold yourself back a bit. What do the two of you think?”

“I’m sor-,” Nako started to apologise before cutting herself off. She then smiled as she remembered Chaewon leading her and the other Forty-Eight Schools members during one of the exam challenges. The girl’s leadership style remained the same; she preferred to work together as a team to find solutions. “No, you’re right. I think I generally prefer an easy-going atmosphere where everyone gets along. That might mean that we can team up well with each other, but that won’t necessarily be good when we learn new formations. I’m learning that sometimes conflict is good.”

“We’re too used to the Forty-Eight Schools way. Our former school’s formations were very synchronized and didn’t really allow for much individuality. Whereas, over here, formations do depend on each person in the link to do their distinct parts well,” Hitomi critiqued as she thought over the fight and how she changed her style to match her partners in the past.

“Yeah, we need to fit together but make sure that our strengths are not hidden. Let’s practice some two on one and keep that in mind,” Chaewon suggested.

“Uh… why don’t we… um,” Hitomi hummed and hawed. Was there anyway she could suggest Chaewon partnering with her without her sounding totally desperate?

“Why don’t you and Hitomi pair up first. Since you’ve both learned the Formless style recently. What better way to team up while maintaining your own individuality,” Nako said, while secretly winking at Hitomi.

Hitomi thought that she must look like an actual peach with how hard she was blushing. Did she really learn it too? Why did she learn it? Was it for me? Hitomi’s thoughts raced as she tried to calm her beating heart. “I guess we can do that.”

“Isn’t she just ridiculous?” Yena asked as she and Hyewon watched Wonyoung practice. They were taking turns demonstrating each other’s moves and techniques to show how well they understood each other’s abilities. Somehow the girl was able to demonstrate most of the Eighteen Yena Punch skills after seeing them just a few times.

“She was ranked first by the teachers for a reason,” Hyewon replied. “But, Yena, you’re avoiding the question again.”

Yena sighed as looked at Hyewon. The girl’s usually expressionless face was nowhere to be seen. In its place as a face full of compassion and concern. “Yeah, I got it. That image you saw of me… that was me as a little girl. You see me now and you see a healthy, strong and beautiful girl, probably.”

“Well, healthy and strong at least,” Hyewon said, her face reverting back to her usual lackluster expression for a second.

Yena ignored the jab and continued, “I was actually born with a weak body. The qi within my body did not circulate correctly, but my family didn’t really know that at first. When I was a child, I seemed to spend every moment in pain. It was as if my insides were on fire. Growing up, I could only watch as my parents spent every bit of money they had trying to find someone to heal me, but we never did. Every day, I would be stuck in bed watching them work themselves to the bone. I’m sure there were some nights where they didn’t eat dinner. My brother left home early so that he wouldn’t be a burden on them.”

“Yena, you’ve had it rough,” Hyewon said. She couldn’t even imagine what it was like being so poor since her family was fairly well-to-do. She had never gone hungry in her life.

“My brother came back with some money when he got older. He had become a martial artist while he was out in the world and he was skilled enough to recognize my body’s natural qi deviation by then. My parents were overjoyed that they finally knew what was wrong with me. With my brother’s recommendation, they looked for martial arts schools and begged them to save me. And one school did save me on the promise that I would join them when I got older. Even now, I’m indebted to my old school. Eventually, I’ll have to leave you guys to pay them back somehow.”

“Leave?” Hyewon was shocked as she had never even considered it after she managed to get in to the school.

“This school was never meant to be a permanent thing. The teachers never said that any student had to stay once they were accepted. Many of the examinees joined for the sake of their schools and not for themselves. You know Sakura Unnie, Nako, and Hitomi will probably eventually go back to Japan for example.” Yena said all of this with a straight face, but inside, she probably felt the most pain out of everyone knowing that this would all end eventually.

“I don’t like it,” Hyewon grimaced. “So, that’s why you knew how to help Sakura? The healing technique was done on you too?”

“Yeah, I don’t remember all of it, since it was done when I was young. But I remembered enough to know what to do to help. I’d like it if you don’t tell the other girls about what you saw though. I don’t like it when people treat me differently because of it.”

“I won’t,” Hyewon promised.

“Thanks… uh, what’s Wonyong doing now,” Yena asked as their maknae just stood there gathering her qi.

“Oh, shi…” Hyewon trailed off as she sprinted towards Wonyoung and grabbed the girl into a hug forcing the girl to stop.

“What’s going on Unnie? I was about to demonstrate your move.” Wonyoung asked, perplexed as her arms were pinned by Hyewon’s hug.

“She’s just copying your stance. She doesn’t actually know how to do your move,” Yena said as joined the other two girls. She’d never seen Hyewon react so fast before.

Hyewon breathed a sigh of relief as she let Wonyoung go. A wave of shame came over her as she now truly understood how Sakura had felt when the older girl had seen her perform the move. After hearing Yena’s story and worrying over their eventual separate paths, Hyewon didn’t even think as she rushed in to stop Wonyoung. Just the thought of their maknae harming herself for the group made her want to retch. “I’m sorry. I thought you were doing something you shouldn’t be doing.”

“Oh?” Wonyoung asked, sensing something scandalous. “I knew there was some secret to the move. Is it related to what happened with Sakura Unnie? Nobody ever tells me anything!”

Author’s note:

Suffering some withdrawal on Iz*One content and only have fanfics to tide myself over until there’s more.

Let me know what you thought!