The place of the show was the prepared arena inside the Transcendent Academy. There were enchanted platforms that could withstand the attack of the Core Formation Realm and also create a barrier to prevent the attack from hitting the spectators.
Many of the new first years went to watch since there was a saying that the people who sparred were someone important to the academy. Not only that but the figures known in the Cerulean Defense Force were also going to watch.
On the edge of the platform, Tatsumi was already in his uniform with the wooden weapon. The sparring was actually intended to show his potential and prowess.
‘This is going to be hard to pull. But if the related people have eyes, they will see my potential.’ Tatsumi thought while trying a few casual swings and felt that it was good in form and force.
Beside him was the sparring partner that the headmaster had agreed to participate with. She was concentrating her energy so that it became more in her control as well as flowing along with her will.
“Good. This is the moment where you need to show those people.” Kushina was behind them as she pointed to the highest spectator seat where both of them could see influential figures sitting.
“Is this really the only way?” Tatsumi asked for certainty.
“Unfortunately, they wouldn’t let the transcendent under them be sent to become a reinforcement if you are not showing enough potential.” Kushina explained.
Tatsumi clenched and unclenched his hand in repetition. He was strong and growing much faster since he had reached the third heavenstage of the Nothingness Realm in just two months.
“Show them your best as always, Tatsumi.” Ame said from the side with her twin wooden daggers ready at hand.
“There is showing off your capability and there is also recklessly fighting. Just let me go quickly so that I can end this as soon as possible.”
With the last word before the sparring, Tatsumi resigned himself to what he was about to do.
The platform was quite large, enough for several people to fight but this time it was reserved for two. It was because this sparring was between transcendents.
“Do your best in the arena.” Kushina said her last piece before she went to the highest spectator seat to watch it with those people.
Tatsumi could hear the excitement of the students, the gazes of the teachers as well as the attention given by the important figures who attended this sparring session.
Then he gripped the wooden sword’s hilt tightly. He had to do this for the reinforcement that could change the tide of battle.
‘I think I understand the concern of those people. Transcendents in the Thebes Kingdom are part of the Transcendent Army and now only some remain for the defense of the Kingdom. Looks like I need to do my best here.’ Tatsumi looked at things from their perspective and understood it.
Then there was also someone who announced the sparring session on the microphone. It was connected to the loudspeaker in the arena so that everyone could hear what the announcer said.
“Ladies and gentlemen, here we are on the special sparring session which will determine something important. Sadly, the matter has been kept secret, so even I don’t know what that is, but since it involved the figures from the Cerulean Defense Force, it must be extremely important.
“Now, one of the people who is going to do this special sparring session is someone who even the students in the academy often talked about. Not only the students in the first year but also in the fourth year have heard about him. Let’s welcome him to the arena!”
The cheerings became louder as Tatsumi stepped up to the platform arena.
‘They are really loud. Isn’t this supposed to be just a sparring session?’ Tatsumi thought while also thinking about the loud announcer who added the flavor of the sparring.
He then moved to one side of the arena while Ame went to the other side, opposite him. After gaining some distance, the two of them faced each other.
“Now that the two are ready in place, let us begin the sparring. Remember that this is the sparring for low rank transcendent so don’t expect a big move that causes a special effect!”
Tatsumi held his wooden sword while also doing Self-Introspection before moving. He felt that the circulation of his transcendent energy was smooth and it flowed according to his will. Ame also did a similar thing since she learned it from Tatsumi while holding her twin dagger.
A breath passed by and then the two decided to move since they knew each other’s capabilities.
Tatsumi went into the attacking position right at the point of meeting. Ame also moved toward him, her eyes glinting.
He swung his sword diagonally while Ame also swung the twin daggers at him. The two weapons made a noise when in contact with each other. Both of the weapons were infused with Ether in it to increase its durability and the sharpness.
Tatsumi matched Ame in skill and energy release since he wanted to show his technique rather than just brute forcing with his advantage in heavenstage and energy reserve.
Then the two separated before utilizing the movement skill. There were two of each in the arena.
“After the first clash, the two decided to use their movement skill. It looks like that creates some sort of afterimage. They wanted to show us how transcendent usually fight!”
The movement served as a distraction and an attack method. Both Tatsumi and Ame then exchanged moves fiercely. Tatsumi remembered the teachings from Long Wu’s note while Ame trying to incorporate what Tatsumi told her with her current situation.
Clashes of sword and dagger continued for a while and the eyes of the transcendents who were attending this sparring due to Kushina’s recommendation became sharp, analyzing the two who were locked in the exchange of moves.
They were experienced transcendent who were given a station both in the Thebes Independent Kingdom as well as the Cerulean Defense Force. They realized that the youngsters in front of them both had potential and were also a bit experienced in combat.
It could be seen in Tatsumi’s move as he slashed at the point where the two daggers met to be able to match Ame’s attack. It also served to exploit the way she attacked him.
After that, the two separated temporarily. Eyes on the whole body, seeing the change of posture could bring to the move and attack…
“After dozens of moves, the two are suddenly caught in the prediction of each other. What kind of move will they make?” The announcer kept things simple while raising his voice to make things interesting.
Tatsumi let out a breath that he had held before he tightened the grip on his sword. He remembered the concept of the Body, Mind and Technique and focused on the harmony of the three. If his power was restricted to the first heavenstage then all he had was the Mind and Technique to gain an edge.
‘Despite the stalemate, I am confident in winning this. But I need to show a technique with potential while I barely walk that…’ Tatsumi went into the offensive posture. He wanted to attack with Technique in mind.
He made the first move as he closed the distance. Mind moved the Body and the Body made the Technique possible. It was one of his interpretations of the concept and he wanted to test it. His waist moved slightly while his arm moved and by extension, the sword was swung.
But the force was only strong enough to push someone hard. It was filled with the sharpness of the swing as Tatsumi realized that it could be done that way.
Ame knew that the speed of the sword’s swing was faster than she anticipated. She barely dodged before retaliating with her left hand, moving her arm and letting the blade of the dagger hit Tatsumi’s hand.
But the movement of his arm managed to elude her reaction as she had to defend from the incoming attack aimed at her. She blocked it but realized that she felt a slight numbness in her right hand.
She then realized that Tatsumi had entered a special state, judging by the way he moved and breathed.
‘You can do it, for sure, but I am not going to get down so easily.’ She thought while gaining some distance.
Ame then saw Tatsumi used the movement skill that created an afterimage and went to her left side, sword at the ready to be swung, while his free hand was forming a palm attack. Ame blocked the sword with her left hand, wielding the dagger, letting it clash while her right hand tried to stab his open palm.
Tatsumi simply changed the free hand posture and it turned into a claw, holding the blade of the dagger with the two fingers.
Ame moved her body to avoid being caught off guard, and her arm also moved, managing to free the deadlock.
This time, she attacked without giving Tatsumi any chance to attack. She was surprised to see that Tatsumi had improved so much and realized that it might be connected to the concept he had tried to learn.
She even used the movement skill to confuse him but he deflected with his sword and also his free hand assisted.
Ame kept attacking but Tatsumi tightly defended his body from being hit and even deflected some of her attacks.
“This is it! The heat of the exchange between the two is skillfully done! The attack and the defense are impressive!”
The spectators could only stare at the two fighting in the arena, absorbing their moves to become a reference while the transcendent present could appreciate the technique involved.
“That young man, who is he?” one of the officers transcendent asked because he saw something that formed the essence of technique in the young man.
“He is the one requesting reinforcement. Remember him?” Kushina replied.
“What, it is him!” another officer cried out in shock. He did not expect that the young man himself was a transcendent, a good one at that. He had heard about someone who wanted to take some manpower from their sector but to think that this whole thing was actually a show off became apparent.
“He is good, you’ve got to admit that.” Kushina added.
“His opponent is also not bad. She can counter him in a short time.”
The loud voices of the spectators could be heard each time the two on the arena platform clashed and showed their technique. Their movement felt like a dance that captivated all who saw it.
“Another move that changed the situation, everyone! Another!” the announcer cum commentator said with a pitched voice.
This time Ame finally hit a solid one on Tatsumi’s shoulders as he could not evade the move and his reflexes were a bit late. But Tatsumi also landed a hit on her arm so the sparring became more intense.
But this was also a sparring to show the people their capabilities, so they also got their serious clash in it, other than occasional choreography.
After all that show off, it was finally time to end the sparring. Tatsumi went into his stance with his wooden sword held horizontally while Ame also went into the stance of holding the twin daggers in front of her in a reverse grip.
“This is it. The last move of the sparring. You can see that both sides have launched their various attack and want to do a decisive attack for the last time!”
All eyes were on the arena, watching what kind of move the two would make. Even the transcendent officers were staring at the arena with focus, wanting to see what kind of spectacle they were going to see.
Tatsumi smiled slightly after realizing that this was going to be the climax of the sparring. Ame also did a similar thing as she tensed up her body, tightening her grip on her daggers.
After both of them nodded to each other, they moved toward each other. A strike to decide the result of the sparring.
For the first-year student, all they could see was a blur as the two neared, clashed and moved past each other before stopping. But for the trained eyes, they were shocked to see that both moved with precision and exquisite technique even in their last strike.
Tatsumi’s right arm, which was used to wield the sword, trembled slightly. Receiving the attack from Ame with an improved technique was costly to him but he also realized the three concepts quickly and managed to land a hit. He felt the searing pain in his arm but he held in.
Ame felt that she was hit quite hard in the torso and it was so painful that her body trembled.
In the end, it was Ame who lost by a landslide as she kneeled down. Tatsumi’s breathing became roughed as he relaxed his body because the decisive moment had passed and he turned around to see it for himself.
‘As expected, victory by a slight margin.’ Tatsumi thought as he finally saw Ame kneeling. He felt that they were intoxicated in the sparring, that both landed a heavy hit on each other.
“The result is out! The victor is Tatsumi, the one with the perfect compatibility with the new transcendent energy source!” The commentator finally let out a thunderous scream as he announced the result.
Cheers and loud screams filled the arena as they could see for themselves the spectacular sparring that they should emulate. It also served to increase their mastery of their movement and technique. As for the transcendent officers, they were impressed with the potential the two had shown.
Tatsumi sighed as he felt that everything was done and he had to wait. But first, he needed to tend the wound from the sparring. The moment Tatsumi wanted to move his right arm, he felt excruciating pain coursing through it.
Then he slowly used the characteristic of Ether to flow to the right arm, slowly healing the injuries, both apparent and hidden. While he did this, he approached Ame who looked like she had fared worse. His energy reserve was more than enough to give first aid.
“Here. Let me help you.” Tatsumi touched her shoulder and despite being obstructed by her clothes, he still managed to transfer some Ether to her injured body part and helped her healing. It needed a great effort and control to be able to do that, so he focused.
“Thank you.” Ame saw what he was doing and said softly. She also tried to heal herself but the reserve was so small that she did not dare to use it and had to endure the pain. She still remembered the caution Tatsumi told her about depleted Ether and the physical body and did not want the same happen to her.
Time passed and before the two realized, there were quite a few people right outside the arena platform. After feeling that he had healed enough for the pain to ease so much, he stopped treating his right arm.
“Do you still feel the pain? I am sorry for being hard on you.” Tatsumi asked to confirm while apologizing.
“I like this result better because you give it your all. Don’t worry about it.” Ame replied. She was only stating what her mind had thought. Besides, she felt a warmth in her heart for this sparring.
She continued while smiling, “But I am fine now. You should save some energy reserve for yourself and not worry about me.”
“I have healed myself while helping you at the same time.” Tatsumi replied.
Ame felt that Tatsumi had shocked her so much that she started to feel insensitive to such matters. But after that, the two stood up and went to the people who had gathered outside the arena.
There, they saw the transcendent officers with a domineering pressure looking at them. Tatsumi was steady because he was starting to be used to such pressure, while Ame was not worried in the slightest about Tatsumi and herself.
“You look promising.” One officer said with a smile.
“Thank you for the praise,” Tatsumi replied politely.
“About your request…we saw that you wanted to make an impression on us. For me at least, I will grant your request.” Another officer said.
“That’s not fair! I want to get a share too!”
Tatsumi saw the officers who agreed and those who stayed silent. Tatsumi knew that to implement his plan, he needed quite a lot of transcendents so he could not hold himself back this time.
He cupped his hand which shocked the officers and those who saw him.
Tatsumi opened his mouth, “Since I have shown you my potential as a transcendent, please grant me my request. If not for the necessary matter, I wouldn’t even utter my request in the first place.”
He then bowed ninety degrees, showing them how serious he was on this matter. Ame wanted to stop him but was unable to do so since this was his matter and he did not want to be indebted to her too much.
“This is…” The silent officers could not take this lightly since the one who requested things was this particular young man. They also knew that this was a respectful gesture from the Heavensend Continent so they felt like being unreasonable.
“The request has the approval from Headmaster Kushina so I think we should at least try to respond to the trust she has given this young man.”
“Agree.”
“Fine by me.”
Dozens of officers who attended the sparring session then agreed to the request that Tatsumi made. They felt that the request was unreasonable but with the sparring session showing the potential of the young man as well as the headmaster’s trust in him, they decided to give it a shot.
Tatsumi finally looked up and could not help but feel warmth. Ame patted him on the shoulder as if knowing his feelings. He was sure that the matter of the infiltrators and the traitors would become something that the three races could manage.