Location: Advanced Branch Courtyard
Time: 07:00 AM (One Month Later)
Two older clan servants pushed a heavy wooden cart across the dirt.
CREAAK.
They parked it right next to three other carts.
The carts were completely overflowing with new bamboo swords, thick bows, hundreds of iron-tipped arrows, and neat stacks of blank talisman paper.
The Kamo clan spent heavily on training supplies every single week.
For the branch family members who did not inherit Blood Manipulation, survival relied entirely on four traditional pillars.
The advanced curriculum rotated strictly every seven days.
Week one focused on Kenjutsu and ancient Jujutsu close-quarters swordplay and grappling to throw curses into the dirt.
Week two shifted to Kyujutsu traditional archery used to kill targets from a safe distance.
Week three belonged to the laws of Bounded Fields and the Curtain.
Week four demanded the mastery of Onmyodo paper talismans.
Hanzo stood in the second row of the courtyard.
He was almost five years old. He was the only new student in the entire advanced class.
The fifteen older children around him already knew the brutal cycle perfectly. No instructor needed to explain the rules to them.
They simply waited for the signal to begin.
Hanzo looked at the heavy weapons in the wooden carts.
He didn't have a massive cursed energy pool. He didn't have an innate technique to lean on.
He was genuinely weak compared to the older kids standing next to him.
Hanzo rubbed his callused thumbs together.
He just had to catch up.
--<>--
Fifteen children stood in a long row across the dirt.
Each child held a heavy wooden sword.
THWACK. THWACK.
The sound of wood hitting the thick wooden training posts echoed across the yard.
Hanzo gripped his own wooden sword tightly.
His four-year-old hands were completely covered in raw, red blisters.
He stared at the wooden post in front of him.
'The anime made this look so easy.'
He remembered watching characters coat their katanas perfectly and slice through concrete without breaking a sweat.
In reality, channeling raw cursed energy into wood felt like holding a vibrating live wire.
"...Keep your wrists locked!" Juzo barked from the side of the courtyard.
The Grade 1 instructor paced slowly down the line. He held his bamboo cane firmly in his right hand.
A nine-year-old girl named Hana stood two spots away from Hanzo.
She swung her sword hard against her post.
THWACK.
Hana gritted her teeth. Her face scrunched up in intense frustration.
"...I keep dropping it on the backswing," Hana muttered to herself.
She quickly pushed another pulse of blue energy into her wooden sword.
Juzo stopped behind a ten-year-old boy named Taro.
Taro was the tallest and widest boy in the class.
Taro raised his wooden sword high above his head. He swung it down with massive force.
CRACK.
The wood slammed into the post.
WHACK.
Juzo immediately swung his bamboo cane. He hit the back of Taro's left calf hard.
"AGH!" Taro yelled.
He dropped his sword in the dirt and grabbed his sore leg.
"...Your stance is entirely too wide," Juzo stated flatly. "...You are leaking your energy straight through your boots and into the dirt."
Taro rubbed his calf. He looked down at the ground.
"...Yes, sensei," Taro mumbled.
He bent over and slowly picked his wooden sword back up.
Hanzo stood quietly in the second row. He watched Taro adjust his feet.
Hanzo squeezed his own wooden handle. His blisters burned instantly.
He pulled a small amount of static energy from the pit of his stomach.
He looked at the thick blue auras glowing around the older children's swords.
They pushed their cursed energy over every single inch of the wood, covering it from the hilt to the tip.
It was much safer for their hands, but it burned through their energy reserves extremely fast.
Hanzo knew his own internal pool of energy was painfully small.
He simply could not afford to waste it on the handle or the flat sides of the blade.
Hanzo focused his eyes purely on the very edge of his wooden sword.
He pulled a thin, concentrated line of cursed energy up his arms.
He pushed it directly into the striking edge of the wood right before he swung.
The rest of the sword remained completely bare and unprotected.
He stepped forward with his left foot and swung.
SWISH.
CRACK.
The concentrated edge hit the post perfectly dead center. A deep dent formed in the thick wood.
'It works...' Hanzo instantly dropped the energy.
FSSSH.
He let go of the sword.
CLATTER.
The weapon hit the dirt.
Because he left the handle bare, the entire physical recoil traveled straight into his tiny hands.
His wrists popped loudly. The blister on his right palm tore completely open.
"Ah... damn it," Hanzo gasped.
He fell to his knees in the dirt. He grabbed his right wrist and squeezed it tight.
Taro turned his head. He looked at the deep dent in Hanzo's wooden post.
"...You actually cut the wood," Taro grunted in surprise.
Hanzo looked up from the dirt. He gave Taro a tired, painful smile.
"It's luck...My arms are completely dead," Hanzo admitted.
He held up his trembling, bleeding hands.
"...The sword is way too heavy for me, Taro-senpai," Hanzo said. "...How do you swing it so hard without dropping it?"
Taro puffed out his chest slightly.
He walked over to Hanzo.
Taro grabbed Hanzo by the shoulders and forcefully pulled the four-year-old back onto his feet.
"...You are just using your arms," Taro instructed loudly.
Taro forcefully twisted Hanzo's small hips sideways.
"...The power comes from your waist," Taro explained. "...You have to shift on your heel right before you hit the post."
Hanzo bowed his head respectfully.
"... Shift on the heel," Hanzo repeated. "...Thank you."
Hana turned around from the front row. She glared at them.
"...Stop talking so loud, Taro," Hana snapped. "...I am losing my grip on the energy."
Kenta stepped out from the back row. He pointed his wooden sword at Taro.
"...Get back to your post before sensei hits your other leg," Kenta warned bluntly.
Taro quickly let go of Hanzo's shoulders.
"...Alright, alright," Taro muttered. He walked back to his own post.
Hanzo smiled through the pain in his wrists.
He bent down and picked up his heavy wooden sword again.
He gripped the handle.
He prepared to swing again.
--<>--
Location: Archery Range
Time: 02:00 PM (One Week Later)
THWIP.
Chiyo lowered her bamboo longbow. The ten-year-old girl stood perfectly still in the dirt.
Her arrow hit the dead center of the straw target fifty yards away.
A dense, quiet layer of dark blue cursed energy coated the wood the entire time it flew.
Juzo stood in the shade of a wooden awning. He gave Chiyo a slow nod of approval.
Kenta stepped up next.
He pulled his bowstring back to his cheek.
A thick, roaring flame of blue energy erupted over his arrow.
THWIP.
Kenta fired.
His arrow slammed into his target with extreme force.
Hanzo watched them from the end of the line.
These older kids were seasoned veterans. They had been practicing emission techniques for years.
Hanzo looked down at his own hands.
His fingers were wrapped in dirty white bandages.
The blisters from last month's training drills were already tearing back open.
Small spots of red blood stained the white cloth.
"...I can't hold it," a small voice whined to his left.
Saki lowered her heavy bow. The seven-year-old girl was shaking.
She pushed a spark of energy into her arrow.
FSSSH.
The blue light flickered and died instantly.
Juzo walked out of the shade. He glared at Saki.
"...Focus your mind, Saki," Juzo barked. "...If you shoot a bare arrow at a curse, the wood will shatter uselessly against its skin."
Saki sniffled. She wiped a tear from her eye and tried to draw the string again.
Hanzo gripped his own bow.
His four-year-old shoulders screamed in pain just from holding the heavy bamboo upright.
He looked to his right side.
Jin stood there casually. The messy-haired seven-year-old was chewing on a piece of dried grass.
"...Jin-senpai," Hanzo whispered quietly.
Jin turned his head. He spat the piece of grass onto the gravel.
"...What is it?" Jin asked.
Hanzo rubbed his aching wrist.
"...How do you keep the energy from leaking away in the air?" Hanzo asked. "...Mine just disappears the second I let go."
Jin scratched the back of his neck.
"...You just squeeze it," Jin explained easily. "...Like you are packing a rice ball for lunch."
Hanzo stared at the older boy.
"...A rice ball?" Hanzo repeated.
Jin grinned and nodded.
"...Yeah," Jin said. "...You pack the energy really tight with your brain."
Jin lifted his own bow. He barely looked at his target.
He carelessly pulled the string back and coated his arrow.
THWIP.
Jin fired.
The blue energy stayed perfectly wrapped around the wood until it hit the straw target.
Jin lowered his bow and shrugged. He relied entirely on childhood instinct and natural feeling.
Hanzo gave him a tired, polite smile.
"...I will try that," Hanzo said. "...Thank you."
Hanzo grabbed a wooden arrow from the barrel beside him.
He knocked the arrow against the thick string.
'I have absolutely zero natural instinct.'
His adult brain could not rely on feeling. He needed a logical explanation.
He looked at the physical grain of the bamboo arrow.
He pulled a small line of static energy from his gut.
He didn't try to just coat the outside of the wood.
He visualized his cursed energy sinking deep into the porous grain. He imagined thick roots anchoring into solid soil.
Hanzo grabbed the bowstring.
He pulled it back with all his remaining physical strength.
His tiny cursed energy pool struggled to grip the inside of the arrow.
"...Release!" Juzo shouted down the line.
THWIP.
Hanzo let go of the string.
He fell back a half-step from the heavy recoil.
Swish.
His arrow flew across the dirt range.
It did not look smooth like Chiyo's arrow. It did not roar like Kenta's arrow.
The blue energy flickered violently in the wind. It looked like a dying candle.
But the roots held on just enough.
THUD.
The weak, glowing arrow hit the extreme outer edge of Hanzo's straw target.
The blue energy finally dissipated on impact.
Hanzo let out a massive, shaky breath. He dropped his bow to his side.
It was a completely pathetic shot compared to the other kids.
But it was a massive achievement for his first month of training.
Jin stepped over and nudged Hanzo in the ribs.
"...See?" Jin laughed loudly. "...The rice ball trick works every single time."
Hanzo laughed tiredly. He wiped sweat from his chin.
"...You were completely right, Jin-senpai," Hanzo agreed easily.
He looked down the line.
Chiyo was staring at him. She saw the blood on his bowstring.
She gave Hanzo a very small, silent nod of acknowledgment.
Hanzo nodded back.
He reached into the wooden barrel. He pulled out another heavy arrow.
And preparing for the next agonizing shot.
--<>--
Location: Branch Courtyard
Time: 10:00 AM (Another Week Later)
Shigeru paced slowly between the rows.
He dragged his bamboo stick across the ground.
SCRAPE.
"...Casting a curtain is just the beginning," Shigeru stated loudly.
He stopped walking and glared at the class.
"...The standard rule allows physical bodies to walk straight through the boundary," Shigeru added. "...And when a foreign body crosses your cursed energy, you feel the interference."
Shigeru raised his bamboo stick.
"...Cast them," Shigeru ordered.
The children took a deep breath.
"...Emerge from darkness, blacker than black, purify that which is impure," the class chanted together.
FWOOSH.
Multiple dark domes popped up across the courtyard.
An eight-year-old boy named Ryota stood in the front row.
His Curtain formed a perfectly solid, pitch-black dome over his body.
Shigeru walked directly toward him.
Shigeru didn't slow down. He stepped right through the black boundary of Ryota's barrier.
"Blargh!" Ryota gagged violently.
Ryota lost his footing and stumbled backward.
His crossed fingers snapped open.
SNAP.
The black dome shattered into thin air.
Ryota fell onto his hands and knees in the dirt. He grabbed his stomach and heaved. The source of this chapter is g.com.
Shigeru looked down at the boy.
"...If a civilian walks into your barrier on a mission and you drop it, you expose us all," Shigeru barked.
Ryota spat saliva into the dirt.
"...I am sorry, sensei," Ryota groaned.
Hanzo stood perfectly still inside his own Curtain.
He looked at the edges of his barrier.
It was no longer a tiny, one-foot puddle. It covered a full five-foot circle.
It was still a dark gray color instead of pitch black, but it was much thicker than last month.
Shigeru turned away from Ryota.
The scarred teacher walked straight toward Hanzo.
Hanzo gritted his teeth.
He visualized his cursed energy turning into thick concrete foundation pillars.
He mentally drove those pillars deep into the dirt under his feet to anchor the dome.
Shigeru stepped through the gray boundary.
A sickening wave of nausea slammed directly into Hanzo's stomach.
It felt like someone physically grabbed his intestines and twisted them.
Hanzo forced his remaining energy straight down.
His gray dome flickered violently in the wind. It warped and stretched, but it did not break.
Shigeru stepped out through the other side of the boundary.
The nausea faded slightly.
Shigeru looked back at the flickering gray dome.
He gave a short, quiet grunt of approval.
"...Drop the barriers," Shigeru commanded the class. "...Rest for one minute."
Hanzo immediately uncrossed his fingers.
FSSSH.
The gray dome vanished.
Hanzo bent forward and rested his hands on his knees.
Jin stood to Hanzo's right side.
Jin dropped his own solid black curtain. He had finally fixed the holes in his barrier.
Jin groaned loudly and rubbed his stomach.
"...Sensei's cursed energy feels like swallowing a heavy rock," Jin complained.
Hanzo wiped his mouth with the back of his hand.
"...I almost threw up my entire breakfast," Hanzo agreed tiredly.
Saki stood on Hanzo's left side.
She swayed slightly on her feet and rubbed her temples.
"...My head is spinning so fast," Saki whined.
Hanzo gave her a sympathetic smile.
"...Just breathe out slowly, Saki-senpai," Hanzo said. "...It helps stop the nausea... That's what I did..."
Saki let out a long breath and nodded.
Shigeru tapped his bamboo stick against the ground again.
TAP. TAP.
"...Get your hands back up," Shigeru ordered. "...We go again."
Hanzo raised his right hand.
--<>--
Location: Hanzo's Bedroom
Time: 12:00 AM
The Kamo estate was completely quiet.
Noboru was out in the eastern woods on border patrol.
Hanzo sat in the center of his dark bedroom.
His thin white shirt was completely soaked in sweat.
HUFF.
PUFF.
Hanzo gasped for air in the cold room.
He held a jagged rock from the courtyard tightly in his right hand.
He pushed his static energy up his spine and into the stone.
The rock glowed dark blue in the dark.
He held it for five seconds, then let the energy drop.
FSSSH.
He had done this exact routine every single night.
It was day thirty of his unbroken streak.
He hadn't skipped a single night since he first sparked his cursed energy.
A sickening, hollow feeling hit the bottom of his stomach.
He had completely emptied his cursed energy pool.
Hanzo leaned forward and rested his forehead against the tatami mat.
'This feels exactly the same.'
He remembered his past life.
He remembered staying up until two in the morning to study for his civil engineering board exams.
He used to stare at advanced structural formulas until his brain felt completely dead.
He would sleep for three hours, wake up, and go straight to his university classes.
Getting stronger in this world wasn't a quick anime montage.
It was just endless, painful repetition.
His cursed energy was the textbook, and surviving invisible monsters was the final exam.
Hanzo rubbed his aching, blistered hands together.
The sword drills from this morning had torn his skin open.
But he noticed a physical change in his arms.
Despite the intense daily pain, his four-year-old body wasn't breaking down.
He wasn't stunting his physical growth.
The constant, forced flow of raw cursed energy was actually thickening his muscle fibers.
His bones felt slightly denser than a normal child's bones.
'The energy acts like resistance training.'
It created micro-tears in his body that simply healed tougher.
His vessel was naturally adapting to handle the extreme daily stress.
His only real bottleneck right now was his actual age and cursed energy capacity.
Hanzo lay quietly on the mat in the dark.
He waited a few minutes for a tiny fraction of his energy to regenerate in his gut.
He sat back up and raised his left hand.
He crossed his sore index and middle fingers.
"...Emerge from darkness," Hanzo whispered tiredly.
He forced the tiny bit of new energy up into his hand.
"...Blacker than black, purify that which is impure," he finished.
FWOOSH.
A tiny, pale gray dome formed directly over the rock.
It flickered weakly, but he held the precise shape for ten seconds.
He snapped his fingers.
SNAP.
The tiny curtain dissolved into the air.
Hanzo dropped the jagged rock onto the mat.
THUD.
He collapsed sideways onto the floor.
He was completely hollowed out.
Hanzo pulled a thin blanket over his small shoulders.
He would sleep for a few hours.
Then he would wake up, walk to the courtyard, and meditate. Just like every morning before going to class.
The daily grind continues.
--<>--