SAMSARA

SAMSARA [8]

It took a while for us to reach the classroom for Battle Strategies. Well, not only because it's in the direct opposite hall of our Ulv'djevel Combat class, but also because we were dismissed at the open field at the very back of the school. I guess I can't complain though. That's how our school is.

"I'm sure this class is more tolerable for you Akaza." I said, almost as if I was challenging him. I don't even know why. Ever since this morning I've been feeling a lot better.

"You bet!" He grinned, practically not catching onto my teasing. Maybe next time I'll get him, he can be a dunce sometimes.

We walked through the door of the classroom and there we saw Aurora.. again, but in the front row. Though that's expected, since she shares pretty much most of the classes Akaza and I have.

Akaza and I walked towards our seats, though this time it's in the very back row. Decent change of pace. It's less attention, considering the situation with the news yesterday. We both sat down next to each other as per the usual. Nice. Anyway, with that out of the way, and all of the students having arrived by now, I heard the familiar sound of someone clearing their throat. Feminine, though. I looked directly in front and I saw our Battle Strategies Professor, known as Professor Byrne. "Good to see everyone present today as per usual, welcome to another day of Battle Strategies!" I hear Professor Byrne's energetic voice. You know, I'd never actually say such a thing but.. between Professor Rory and Professor Byrne, I'd say Professor Byrne's a breath of fresh air. "Now, does anyone remember our last topic?" She asks my classmates and I.

It seems there's a moment of silence. No one seems to remember. Unfortunate, I think.

Hesitantly, to save my classmates from the embarrassment of being unable to recall things, I raise my hand. "The topic we discussed last week was Stances." I'm honestly not even sure myself if fighting stances count as a topic categorized under Battle Strategies. But hey, this is the school's curriculum. Students can't decide what to learn and what not to learn. I'm rambling in my own head again.. sick. I mentally slapped myself and stopped.

"Excellent, Shirou," Professor Byrne then finally started the lesson, "To survive a battle, you need to adapt. And to adapt, you need to know when to switch from offense to defense, and vice versa. You also need to be observant and alert."

"Does this even count as battle strategies..?" I pondered out loud, though thankfully only nearby classmates heard it. Akaza was the only one to reply, "You're the expert in battle here, not me, man."

I groaned and slammed my head on the desk, though not too hard since that'd alert pretty much everyone. I opted to not take any notes as the Professor spoke, since this was already discussed and I had prior notes. "Say your opponent is another human. They could be using too many feints and you're falling for each one, causing them to land several hits on you," Professor Byrne is now making a scenario, that's sick, "At this point you'd need to stop being dumb. Start actually observing if they are feints or real strikes. Self preservation can take you real far in combat, you know."

I raised my eyebrow at that. Is Professor Byrne just saying the exact same words she said last time? I wouldn't blame her for that, I sighed though it was quiet.

"Whether you win or lose in the fight will depend. Not every battle goes according to the textbook," Professor Byrne chirped. Not literally, though, I smacked myself mentally for that. "You need to be alert, and aware of your current situation as well as the conditions of the fight. Not just your own conditions, but your opponent's, as well. Though I would not blame you if it gets too difficult. That's just how it is sometimes," Professor Byrne said as she both wrote and drew on the board. It wasn't really distinguishable, but I guessed it was about the stances. Your Professor's just naturally bad at writing and drawing. It isn't your eyesight, Shirou, I tried convincing myself.

I looked over to my side and saw Akaza was pretty much asleep. With his head flat on the desk. Are you kidding me man? Whatever. I thought he'd stay awake for this class, but it is what it is, I suppose.

Professor Byrne then started speaking of a different situation. "Now say you've been focusing too much on defense. You've been blocking and dodging every hit, but never taking the opportunity to counter," to which she then tsk'ed as if she is disapproving of what she just said, "Which is important in a real fight. You can focus on using a defensive stance in a battle, there's no issues with that, but if possible you'd need to strike back when given the opportunity."

I figured waking up Akaza would be good, since he really needs to change his reckless fighting style. I lightly smacked him on the head and he jolted awake. And I thought he was a heavy sleeper before, I thought in my head.

"Stay awake next time, man," I chided quietly. He groaned and tried to focus on the Professor's current discussion.

"If you're constantly blocking and dodging successfully, there are some cases where you can anger an opponent. That normally causes them to strike more wildly, which leaves several spots open for attack," the Professor said. That strategy actually works in a real fight.. if your opponent has anger issues, that is. Reminds me of a certain brown-haired man in this school, Bronze Pierre. He gets mad real quick if battles, either genuine or merely sparring, don't go his way. It often causes him to act like a barbarian mid-fight, leaving him with several weak spots. I noted. He's a perfect example of what Professor Byrne just said, funnily enough. I snorted and nudged Akaza just to whisper exactly that to him, "Doesn't that remind you of Bronze? From our Sparring Exercises and Pyrokinesis Training classes?"

He seemed to chuckle from that and then he replied to me with similar thinking. "Definitely."

Then suddenly Professor Byrne's deep blue eyes snapped over to Aurora, who reacted by staring back at her, "And you, young lady, what happens if you focus too much on being on the offensive?"

Without missing a beat, Aurora is quick to answer correctly. Smart one she is, I noted. "It leaves you open to many counterattacks and such. So if you take too many hits from that, you need to switch to the defensive." Our Professor's reaction is a swift nod of approval, "Correct!"

Professor Byrne's deep blue eyes stop focusing intensely on Aurora, and the said student lets out a sigh of relief.

I watch as the Professor merely focuses on brushing back her long, black hair. Which is weird, but okay then.

"Ah, but you can also be a wildcard," she starts quickly as she realizes the current time, which is 11:36, "and by that, I mean not being too heavy on either offense or defense, but being able to switch between both at basically every moment."

She only receives several confused sounds from my classmates. Except me, Akaza, and Aurora, of course. To that, she sighs and attempts to re-explain. "I mean being a quick adapter, using both offense and defense in an unpredictable manner, but not just to adapt. To confuse the opponent as well."

"Confusing the opponent can distract them and, again, leave them open to attacks," our Professor notes, suddenly drawing a confused figure with a sword out being suddenly struck at by a hammer from their left. A good visual representation, I suppose. "Oh, and to those who can't figure out the fighting style of their opponents easily, it makes you look hard to figure out and pred-"

Then suddenly the school bell rings once more. 11:50. Time for lunch until 13:00, I suppose.

"Well, see you students next Wednesday and Thursday." Professor Byrne sighed. With that, everyone leaves the classroom.