Clandestine (Erityian Tribes Novella, #6)

21 : Future

"Time's up!" Vivien shouted.

Napahiga na lang si Rainie habang hinahabol ang hininga. I wanted to plop on the ground, too, but as her teacher, I wanted to appear as invincible as possible.

"Ma'am Michiko," tawag niya habang hinihingal. "One more time."

Halos mapangiwi ako nang marinig ko iyon. Damn, this kid's too spirited. I knew I told her that I'd train her so she could keep up with her friends' combat skills and to prepare her for the future, but she was too passionate for her own good. Still, she had improved a lot, especially with her short-range attacks, just after three years. She might be the best fighter next to Nathan in their batch, but Reiji's still the best one when it comes to control.

"No," I returned. "Reflect on your techniques and sequences for today. And Akane," sabay tingin ko sa kanya. Her shoulder tensed. "If you want to be a dual wielder, improve your left side coordination. Reina would be a good model for you as she's one of the better dual wielder in the tribe."

"Yes, Ma'am!" sabay salute niya pa.

Nagpaalam sila sa akin matapos ang ilang minuto. Few moments later, Naomi emerged from the southern part of the forest.

"Hey," she greeted.

She was covered in soot and some scratches. On her left hand was a black duffel back. As expected, her mission was successful.

Sabay kaming pumunta sa campus pero dumaan muna kami sa Intelligence division. She brought the relics and documents she recovered from a fallen village. From what I remember, that was the hometown of the Hansen clan who got annihilated by Shinigamis.

Naabutan namin doon sina Hayate at Hiroshi na mukhang may bago na namang dinedevelop na device. It turned out Hiroshi was asking for advice regarding teleportation devices. I think they were trying to replicate that Custos technology they had seen before to see the possibility of "human teleportation."

"No, no, that's not how it worked," Hiroshi grunted before Hayate noticed us.

Sumandal na lang ako sa pader habang nag-uusap silang tatlo at nagbibigay ng ilang advice si Naomi.

"By the way, nasaan si Reina?" tanong ko. "Hindi n'yo ba siya kasama?"

Hayate sighed. "Weaponry," he muttered. "Akane asked for some advice and she got excited."

Napailing na lang ako nang marinig ko 'yon. Hindi ko naman sinabing agad-agad siyang mag-training pero isa rin itong si Reina na hindi alam ang salitang moderation.

Pagkatapos namin doon ay dumiretso kami sa bahay niya. The house was empty when we arrived and I told him Nathan went to Shima, according to Rainie.

"I can't wait to see his progress," I muttered while making two cups of tea for the two of us. Meanwhile, Naomi went to the bathroom.

'I just hope Sir Kyo's not too harsh on him,' she commented.

I snickered in return. 'Oh, I'm sure he is. I wonder how he would use the different combat techniques he learned from me and from Sir Kyo. He must be much stronger now.'

'Now, I'm not sure if I should be proud or scared.'

Natawa naman ako sa comment niya. 'Ano ka ba, be proud! That's like having my fighting style and Mitsuo's in a single person.'

'That's definitely scary.'

Habang hinihintay ko siyang matapos ay chineck ko rin ang schedule ko para sa ilang missions na nakapila para sa akin. Like Naomi, I had chosen to prioritize doing class S missions than being a permanent professor in the campus. It had been a year since I had this scheme. Besides, Hideo assigned me to observe the new Shinigami base closely. Dumadalaw naman ako rito once a month at pangatlong araw ko na ngayon.