To say that Hinata Shouyou was excited was an understatement.

No, he was elated, almost bouncing off the walls when he found the Pyro Vision laying on the grass where he had swung his claymore incorrectly. He was just practicing wielding it in his mom's garden, as he had every single day, hoping to be like the Tiny Giant in the future, who wielded a claymore and intimidated enemies and allies alike despite his short stature. On one of his swings, the blade was suddenly infused with fire, which startled the boy and causing him to accidentally strike the ground. The plants around it caught on fire, so Hinata frantically tried to put it out when he noticed the Vision glinting in the sunlight.

His mom, who had come out to check out the ruckus and instead saw her son cheering with joy and a Pyro Vision in his hand, congratulated him but also warned that he should be careful, as the Tenryou Commission are still out for those with Visions. It was eight months since the Vision Hunt Decree was enacted, and with so many Visions rounded up per day, it was a little damaging to their resistance.

They decided to hide the Vision in plain sight, with it being clipped onto Hinata's red belt. More excited than ever, the now Pyro user immediately ran back outside to try his newfound powers out.

Hinata didn't live in Inazuma City; instead he lived in the outskirts, right by Konda Village, a couple of hours away from the main city. The farther away from the urban areas the less concentrated the Bakufu soldiers were. It makes it easier to hide the Visions since there aren't as many militia around to seize them.

Despite the looming watches of the Bakufu, Hinata managed to tell his best friends, Koji and Izumi, about the experience a week later, to which they both congratulated him and told him to keep a lookout. Now that Hinata thought about it, there was a time a Bakufu actually managed to take a Vision from someone around here, an older guy who looked to be in his 50s. Soon after that, it was said he suddenly lost the will to protect the village he had stayed in for the past 30 years.

Reassuring that he'll be extra careful now that he has to protect the trinket, Hinata went about his way to a secluded area where he practiced when his mother or Natsu needed to use the backyard.

Now that he had a Vision, he wanted to try creating new attacks with it. Maybe something cool, like a bird of flame. Or even, a skill that can place status effects on enemies. Or—

Something cold whizzed by his face, grazing his cheek slightly. Hinata jumped at the sudden temperature change towards his left.

He felt numb, the cold temperature of the projectile seeping through his body and slowing him down. He braced himself the best he can, waiting for another attack, which never came.

Hinata knows he should be relieved, but instead he felt disappointed and irritated.

"Oi! You're just going to fling an ice shard at me and leave it at that?! You wanna fight?" He shouted in the direction the attack came from, trying to sound intimidating as possible.

He doesn't get a response. Not even a rustle. Hinata slowly crept closer to a nearby tree, claymore raised in a defensive position.

"Hello? Are you there?" He tried again. This time, he could hear the leaves rustling, too abnormal to be natural.

They're above.

Hinata quickly raised his weapon, just in time to see blue light clash with his blade. The glowing orb had some weight to it and kept persisting, trying to break through Hinata's defenses.

Hinata held his ground, though, and was pushed back when the orb jumped off the claymore, the blue light dissipating to reveal a boy with raven hair wearing clothes that indicated him as an urban resident...or rather, a soldier from some army. He didn't seem to be part of the Bakufu force, however, because he didn't demand his Vision immediately, and has one tied to his left too. He was holding a catalyst orb, the weapon disappearing when he stood up.

Hinata, in his dumbfounded state, blurted out, "Are you looking for a fight or something? Because I will fight you."

The raven haired boy glanced at Hinata, possibly analyzing him thoroughly. The Pyro user started to feel uncomfortable, taking half a step back. When did the air get so cold? That doesn't feel natural for a warm climate like Inazuma's either. Hinata assumed that was the other boy's effect on the environment.

"...You're not worth my time." The boy turned around, walking in the direction he came from, and that was just about the last straw.

"What was that?!"

"I said you're not worth it. It seems you have a lot of work to do, your stance was all wrong and that claymore of yours is too heavy for you to wield." The guy went on, as if he knew the training Hinata went through every day and had a right to comment on it.

Hinata lost all rational thinking at that moment, now completely acting on impulse. Sprinting towards the boy with his greatsword lifted in the air, Hinata swung at him, which brought him back to his senses.

He opened his eyes (when did he close them?) to see his claymore stopped by a wall of ice. That's bizarre. Usually claymores could get through blocks of ice just fine.

"It's rude to randomly attack people, you know." That same voice could be heard from behind the ice wall, seemingly taunting Hinata as he struggled to pull his weapon out of the dent he created. The catalyst wielder waved his hand, and the ice dissipated into a million shards, which all fell down to the grass. Hinata was pushed back from pulling too hard, forcing him into a roll. His claymore knocked back into the grass, landing next to him.

"You attacked me first!" Hinata snapped back, grabbing the hilt of the greatsword and standing up. The catalyst user stared at him as he struggled to lift the claymore again.

"I told you. Claymores require great strength to wield. Someone like you might not be able to use it properly. You're better off using a polearm or a bow—"

"I might not be able to wield it right, but I promise you I've practiced for three years! I'll prove you wrong!" Hinata interrupted him, his pride talking for him more than his own rational thoughts. The boy blinked at him, before sighing and walking to a spot directly opposite of Hinata.

"I'll humor you, then. Show me what you've done for those three years."

An opportunity to prove him, huh? Hinata breathed in and out, analyzing his opponent, who he now knows uses Cryo, before pushing the balls of his foot off the ground. He sped towards the raven boy, who disappeared when Hinata swung his blade more precisely. He appeared behind Hinata and shot some icicles at him, two hitting his arm, slowing him down. Icicle residue seemed to appear behind the Cryo user's back, rotating constantly.

Direct attacks won't work on him...then let's try...!

This whole clearing was familiar; Hinata knows every nook and cranny of the area like the back of his hand.

Hinata disappeared in a flurry of flames; this doesn't faze the raven boy, who stays perfectly still, listening closely to his surroundings. He pinpoints elemental traces from above him, and he releases the icicle residue on his back, the ice breaking orbit and hitting the Pyro user, stunning him into freefall.

Hinata tumbled to the ground, whatever ice that had formed on his body shattering upon impact.

The ginger boy groaned, having felt himself hit his ribs when he fell. He stayed down for a good three seconds, leading the Cryo user to cautiously step forward, ice projectiles in hand and ready to fire.

Hinata, at the sight of the boy inching forward, about to freeze him for who knows how long, felt all the more determined to defeat him. As he crawled back to avoid getting frozen again, he didn't notice elemental energy get attracted to the Vision sitting on his belt.

Gripping the hilt of the claymore, Hinata transferred some elemental energy to the blade, infusing it with Pyro.

And he was gonna swing it too, when he noticed the boy release the icicles from his palm on impulse. However, he swung it too hard, forcing himself into a spin, knocking away the icicles and causing more elemental energy to be infused in the weapon. The catalyst user jumped back, creating a wall of ice again.

The Pyro energy soon leaked out of the claymore, causing the grass around them to catch on fire. Hinata had a sudden burst of strength, speed doubling. Suddenly he was jumping high and lifting the weapon over his head. The other boy was surprised, having never seen someone that fast or jump that high before, not even with a run boost.

This kid has to be taking steroids or something—

He was shaken out of his stupor when he realized he was suddenly within hitting range and constructed another ice wall, but the flaming claymore melted through it quickly.

The weapon made contact, but with grass. The catalyst user narrowed his eyes.

"You say you've practiced every day for three years. If this is the result, what the hell have you been doing all that time?"

Hinata's head snapped up, staring down at blue eyes in disbelief. Did he really just say that? He felt himself about to bite back, but the words couldn't come out.

Unaware that he judged Hinata's skills based on his own, and his words had changed Hinata's behavior completely, the boy took a step back, a larger amount of Cryo energy manifesting in his palm. The magic left his palm, swirling around Hinata, healing whatever wounds he obtained during the fight. The Pyro user looked at his opponent in confusion now, the ice now clamping together in certain parts of his body, holding him down.

"Fight's over," The boy said the moment all the energy left his hand, waving other hand to make the catalyst disappear. "I healed your wounds and froze a part of you so you can cool down. I win." He started to walk back in the direction he came from.

By Archons, Hinata really can't believe the nerve of this guy. Struggling against the restraints, he cranes his neck to the retreating figure. "Oi!" Was all he could get out when the boy stopped and looked back.

"Wh-when we meet again, I'll be stronger! And I'll beat you!" Hinata yelled, pride and determination fueling most of his statement right now. The catalyst user blinked at him, then turned and walked away.

That day, it took Hinata two hours to thaw the ice (the Cryo energy was stronger than he thought) and another half hour to walk back home. Nobody suspected anything.

And well, if anyone noticed Hinata was researching a certain Cryo catalyst user from Inazuma City, nobody said a thing.

That was four months ago, anyway. Hinata Shouyou has never seen Kageyama Tobio, the Tenryou King, since then.

--

Name: Hinata Shouyou
Height: 165.8 cm
Age: 20
Vision: Pyro
Weapon: Claymore/Polearm
Nation of Origin: Inazuma