Ishawari straightened his posture as he heard the [i]klack[/i]! from Jin’s wooden swords, beating against oak with swift purpose, in patterns too difficult to time. He thought about their pairing, her short blades complementing his spear. When the two worked together, they fought as one, filling the gaps in defensive holes and setting up offensive traps for the other to take advantage of. While the concern for the prince was always on the back of his mind, was it wrong that he was secretly excited? He hoped no conflict would arise, hoped that the rest of their journey was as uneventful as their time here in Hanowa village, but a small piece of him desired otherwise. His warrior spirit was awakened that night against the masked assassins, further imbued by the honorable cause of protecting the Yomiyawa family’s last heir. Was this what his parents meant by following the Warrior Path? [i]No, I can’t let my own desires cloud the bigger picture here.[/i]

 He closed his eyes and focused his attention to the sound of Jin’s sticks, stirring him into a battle trance as he untangled his thoughts with slow, precise breaths. A calm aura overwhelmed him. He started to envision Jin’s moves, allowing a stream of ideas flow through his mind as he observed where to strike after her move, which direction to parry the enemy blade, and where to thrust his spear to allow for her critical strikes. He then observed himself as the main attacker and Jin in the support role, twirling his spear overhead as she deflects from below. [b]A whirlwind of blades[/b], he grinned at the description he remembered one soldier gave them, but chided himself for gloating. [i]Unseen threats will stay invisible so long as you look through the eyes of your own ego.[/i] Ishawari frowned at his father’s pearl of wisdom. But instead of chucking it to the void, he held it close, humbling his own heart, and engaged in meditative stillness. 

The sound of clacking sticks fell silent to the coming of dawn, ushering in another day.