[i]Oww.....it's been years since I've trained this hard....that it has indeed.....I don't know how I even lived through this.... Natsume-sensei's regiment sure hasn't changed over these past few years.....indeed it hasn't.....[/i]

Every inch of her was aching, throbbing with such infernal, unrelenting agony that she could barely stand, let alone sit up as she laid motionless, and damn near breathless, upon the white sands near the crystal clear waters of the grotto....the only sound buzzing about her ears being the last resounding clangs of steel upon steel in those fierce and powerful strikes of her sakabato against the katana of her hardened sword-master, Natsume Hibana, and the tranquil white noise of the waterfall rushing into the grotto below, and endless supply of sparkling mineral water depositing possibly from another spring nearby. How Asuka yearned she could have but a drop of that sweet, chilling water upon her tongue right now, or perhaps a torrent of it upon her entire face, burning hot as her head felt heavy from the overwhelming heat of what seemed nearly all of her muscles, from her arms, her legs, even the tips of her very fingers, burning at the same time, a wildfire of kinetic energy just flowing from her body and towards the very tip of her sword. But alas, that energy was spent in yet another brutal sparring session with Natsume, and with it...the ronin's will...to keep going. [i]O-oww....it hurts even just to wiggle my toes....How can I even do this?[/i] But she couldn't give up....not now....

[b]"Hey! Kushiami-san![/b] Again she caught air of the rancorous barking of the woman, only able to crane her neck a little to see her sensei. Natsume yet again was at her perch, the fallen log near the waters of the grotto, a dish of sake pressed to her lips as she downed the fermented rice wine. [b]"How long do you plan on lazying around, idiot apprentice? Get up already! We got more work to do, dammit, and I'm not getting any younger!"[/b] Slowly, ever so gradually did Asuka try in vain to raise her head, tousled hair and all, gritting her teeth and battling against the sharp pains jolting through her abs and down the back of her spine, pulsating through every nerve in her body, but alas...it was for naught, as she again found herself falling back and staring upwards to the sky, her lungs undulating with every rapid and ragged breath she managed to take in and exhale. [b]"Hmph! Well then...."[/b] Hibana grumbled bitterly, although...a bit of a smirk crossed her lips ever fiendishly as she poured another round of sake into her dish. [b]"I suppose if you're not gonna get up, Kushiami-san, I'll have to sit here and reminisce of the past some more. Now let's see....where did I leave off?"[/b] Swallowing sake down her gullet, she paused for a moment, her smarmy sneer ever widening with ill delight, [b]"Ahh yes. I seem to recall the last time you wet your bed, Kushiami-san. It was a peaceful morning in spring and you were only ten. Oh and the look on your face when I shoved your nose into it and tanned your backside...my was it priceless! Heh! I bet that miko friend of yours would love to hear this story too, or how 'bout the time you were hungry because I didn't feed you for a day and you tried to trap that rabbit?"[/b]

If there was anything more mortifying, more insulting than ever towards Asuka....it was this... What she heard was indeed the most damning of traits of her embittered sword-master, how Hibana could recollect and remember the most embarrassing and character damaging of incidents about Asuka than of the person herself, so crude, so vindictive, and indeed....so enraging to the ronin that she immediately shot from the ground with a burst of newfound energy, screaming with all her anger, all her rage towards the older woman, bringing her sword crashing down with such fury, but as if in a flash of lightning, her sensei dodged Asuka's embittered and vengeful strike, following up with not her sword....but a fist, a tightly clenched fist ramming into the face of Asuka with every ounce of the woman's strength pushing it deeper into her cheek, before sending the samurai flying backwards and crashing into the sand thrice before stopping against the bank of the water. "Orooo........." She groaned, her jaw damn near dislodged by Hibana's sucker punch, a cruel blow it was too, her face practically on fire after absorbing the blow to her cheek.

[b]"Well well...that got you up."[/b] Natsume snorted, standing to unsheathe her sword, that smirk still ever present upon her hardened face, before reverting to her more accustomed scowl of disapproval, just as she, always, began to rip into Asuka with the insults. [b]"But again you failed miserably and attacked with your heart instead of your mind! Didn't I tell you to not let anger wield your blade instead of you, Kushiami-san? Hmph! I'm surprised people still consider you a threat, because from what I see, I could take you on with just a knife...blindfolded! Now get your lazy ass up, idiot apprentice! You still have alot more to learn!"[/b]

[i]Oro?! This....this woman is going to kill me!! How....just how did I even live through this?! Oroooo.....[/i]