~?????~
As Nagisa was walking towards the dojo, he noticed something off. The air was more tense than usual. Truth be told, he felt as if his very life was in danger before he even reached the door. The moment he reached his hand towards the door, suddenly Nagisa was sent flying backwards as a fist broke through the door and hit him in the face. The moment he landed on his feet, Nagisa saw Bang standing in front of him.

"Tomioka Nagisa. The world we live in is different from others. We don't have the luxury of letting our guards down completely. Every day of work is basically us risking our lives. If our lives end, so do the lives of the people we protect."

Soon Bang motioned for Nagisa to follow him into the dojo. Nagisa gulped as he walked inside, the feeling of danger never escaping. As soon as he walked inside, he couldn't believe what he saw. Standing next to Bang was Goo, but something was different. There was no sense of joking or any sarcasm. Right now, with a blade in hand, Kim Joon Goo was serious.

"This sword is something special. Especially sharp and only made with the finest steel. This is your blade, Tomioka Nagisa. That is.......if you can take it."

Before he realized it, Nagisa saw Goo behind him as he flicked blood off of the blade. A large slash mark appeared on Nagisa's back as the boy screamed in pain. Suddenly Bang appeared in front of him as he rapidly slams his fists into the boy's body which caused Nagisa to crash into the wall.

"This is bad. You might actually die, Nagisa."

"What is this, Nagisa? Did you happen to forget your roots as you got stronger? Awakening Breath."

[Awakening Breath:A breathing technique that exerts one's body to the utmost limits. When used, the user's physical capabilities are temporarily increased]

Suddenly Goo dashed towards Nagisa with great speed as he held the hilt of the katana tightly. Just as Goo performed a horizontal slash, he realized two things occured as he slashed Nagisa's chest. The first being that Nagisa now had the sheath to the katana in his left hand. The second being that he now has a large claw mark upon his own chest.

"During Mahoraga's rampage....I saw it. A man who could fight shuuki with his bare hands. I may not be able to measure up to him, but surely I can do this match."

"Oi, Nagisa.......are you trying to piss me off. Just who the hell do you think you're imitating?"

Suddenly both Goo and Bang lunged at Nagisa at the same time. Seeing this, Nagisa ran through the hole made from him being punched through it. While Goo and Bang chased after him, Bang suddenly turned around as he saw Nagisa heading towards him from the side.

"That footwork. It must be the Water Breathing's Ninth form:Splashing Water Flow, Turbulent. All it does is just change footwork in a way that minimizes the landing time and surface needed when landing. Is he preparing to get hit?"

"Water Breathing, Ninth Form......"

"........Splashing Water Flow."

Nagisa rushed around Bang, discombobulating him in multiple circles similar to a vortex-like flow of water. He subsequently leapt over Bang and delivered an overhead slash upon Bang's arm with the sword sheath in his hand. The moment the attack landed, Goo slammed his right foot into Nagisa's skull as the boy was sent flying.

Just as Nagisa landed on his feet, he quickly held up the sheath of Goo's sword to block a sword strike from the man. However, this gave Bang time to slam his right fist into the boy's stomach before sending him crashing through three trees. By the time they saw Nagisa, he was passed out with blood on his head.

"It looks like he didn't forget his roots at all, old man."

"Of course, I know that. We just needed to rile him up. He uses the Hand-Blade technique for two reasons. One is due to the lack of an actual blade at the moment. The second is because of foundation."

"Foundation?"

"The Hand-Blade technique is still using Nagisa's body. Nagisa is able to use the moves he did previously with his sword on his bare body. And we just witnessed the result of him cultivating and building upon that foundation the moment he picked up a weapon. He turned a non-damaging move into one of high power."

"In other words, Nagisa's software (his skill set) isn't the issue. What he wants is to train the hardware more (his mind and body). That way when he gets his sword, he can have both perfectly in tune and be able to draw more power out of his weapon."

As Goo said this, he walked up to Nagisa and took the sword sheath from him. The moment Goo sheathed the sword, he suddenly caught a three-section staff connected by three rings between the joints in his right hand. While Bang walked over to Nagisa, he simply picked up the boy's unconscious body.

"Now then, the next location."

~????~
When Nagisa opened his eyes, he noticed how he was no longer at the dojo. Right now he was near a waterfall as Bang and Goo were nowhere to be seen. Suddenly the boy ripped off a nearby branch and began to sharpen the end of it. A few seconds passed as Nagisa heard nothing but the sound of the rushing waterfall.

The moment Nagisa heard a sound different from the crashing waterfall, he chucked the sharpened tree branch like javelin with all his might. Suddenly Bang lunged forward as he used his fists to destroy the makeshift weapon as Nagisa got close to him, their hands clashing at amazing speed. However, this clash was broken as Bang quickly knocked Nagisa's fists away and landed a kick on the left side of the boy's face.

"Who said we were done, Nagisa?"

Just as Nagisa crashed through more trees and his body hit the ground, he suddenly rolled away and narrowly avoided his head being smashed by a three-sectioned staff as a crater was formed in his previous location. When he looked upwards, he saw Goo looking down at him with a serious expression. A master martial artist and a weapon genius were both fighting to kill him. Yet Nagisa could do nothing but be on the defensive. Right now, for the first moment of his life, Nagisa didn't see anyway of winning.

"Is this really the gap between us? If so, can I even close it."

"This is your training, Nagisa. Everyday, everytime you are knocked out, we will change locations and Goo will use a different weapon each time. Your objective is to take this sword that Goo has at his side. Using your experiences, your environment, your very existince. Use everything in your arsenal to survive, Tomioka Nagisa."

"Let this be a lesson, brat. A weapon genius isn't someone who's a prodigy with any weapon. It's someone who can turn anything on his hand into a weapon."

The bloodlust coming from Goo and the wave of strength emerging from Bang was suffocating. When Nagisa stood up, he noticed something off. Right now, in this very moment, his hands were starting to shake. Seeing this, Goo brandished his weapon as he was prepared to attack.

"There's nothing to be ashamed of. If you don't know, learn from now on. The tremble you are having now, is in fact...fear."