Three exhausted disciples gasped for air in front of their sensei. Sweat-soaked clothes, numerous bruises and abrasions that Stas didn't have the strength to heal, armor bent and dented, covered with streaks of dust and dirt.
Nevertheless, despite their sorry state, a huge barrel of alcohol stood beside them, which Mei and Eiji had hauled on their backs. Stas felt no better than the rest, if not worse, due to the overexertion of his prana channels from the stimulant and the numerous depletions of his reserve.
In any case, of the three of them, it was he who sported magnificent dark circles under his eyes.
Leviathan modestly hid behind Ordyntsev. In the presence of the sensei, as if sensing his power, she became timid.
Jun leisurely stood up from the earthen lump he had created himself and thoughtfully approached the barrel. He circled it a couple of times, evaluating its appearance, then made another round in the opposite direction.
The disciples tensed up at these movements. Could it be that they had accidentally damaged the container?
The sensei easily lifted the barrel, weighing more than thirty kilograms, and shook it, listening to the sloshing.
"I knew it! You bastards drank some of my booze!" he accused, pointing a finger at his disciples, shocked to their core. "So you decided to celebrate your victory with my own beer?! For this, I will..."
"Sensei!" Mei cried out. "What are you even on about? We would never do such a thing!"
"Yes," Eiji nodded fearfully. "Look, even the seal is intact!"
Even Stas was taken aback by the accusation and frantically began to look for ways to convince the sensei that he was wrong.
Master Jun took a deep breath, his face turning red, and then couldn't hold back a thunderous laugh.
"If you could see your faces now, ha-ha-ha!" Having looked at the twisted mugs of his disciples, he burst into Homeric laughter again, wiping away tears.
"Alright, we've had our laugh, that's enough," Jun became serious, which made his disgruntled team straighten up. "Report!"
Mei and Eiji stepped forward simultaneously, then shot each other hostile glances.
"Well, how much longer must I wait?" the master chuckled ironically.
"Master, we successfully reached the location you specified," Mei began first. "Thanks to the plan we developed, we managed to trap the leader of the giant wolves inside the cave, after which we had almost no trouble dealing with the pack, but..."
"...But," Eiji continued, interrupting her. "The leader turned out to be too strong. We let it go, allowing it to retreat. Since our task was to deliver the barrel to you, we thought..."
"What idiots you are," the sensei rolled his eyes. "Your only excuse is that you still did what I told you."
The man shook his head.
"I see you don't understand why I'm dissatisfied with you. Imagine that this wolf is actually an experienced warmaster from, say, the Sansa clan. This Sansa has just lost his whole squad and possibly a couple of his sisters, brothers, and girlfriends, with whom he cuddled during cold nights."
Jun shook his head irritably.
"After fighting with you, he has learned very well what you can or cannot do. He knows your weaknesses and strengths. Moreover, he is vitally interested in ensuring this information reaches every Sansa or other enemy of our clan. And the next time you meet, your techniques will no longer surprise anyone. They will be prepared for them, while you will know almost nothing about your enemies."
Silence fell over the clearing where the meeting took place, not even the birds were heard.
"Remember, or if you're so dumb, carve into your belly with a knife a simple rule – never leave enemies alive. Never! Your secrets must be exclusively yours and no one else's."
Jun pulled out a well-made metal tap from somewhere and forcefully drove it into the barrel. From somewhere, a deep wooden mug appeared, into which the alcohol poured.
A stone seat formed under him again.
"The techniques and secrets of warmasters are the sacred right of our entire kind," Jun sipped the foamy drink with pleasure, then wiped his mouth with his forearm. "Even the head of a great clan has no right to demand the secrets of the weakest warmaster. Yes, one can make them give up everything, so to speak, using different means, but one cannot officially demand it. By showing your techniques to enemies and letting them off, you spit on the glorious combat traditions of warmasters!"
Jun finished the mug and set it aside, critically eyeing the disciples standing before him.
"It would be good to have a couple of sparring matches with you, followed by training," the disciples froze in horror, looking at the sensei like mice caught by a cat in the barn. "But you look too crappy. You're as useful now as a skinny pig for lard. So clean up this lovely clearing from your stench. Tomorrow I expect you here at five in the morning. Scram!"
They didn't need to be told twice.
Jun cheerfully watched the four pillars of dust left behind by his fleeing disciples and one snake.
"Come here, my dear," the supreme warmaster lovingly pulled the barrel closer to himself, patting its thick side. "Today, no one will bother us. Just you and me."
The squeak of the tap, the melodious gurgling of fragrant liquid into the mug, and the forest was hit by a thunderous cry: "Kampai!"
*****
Early the next morning.
"Excellent," Jun looked over his grim and yawning disciples with a light merriment. "Today, you even remotely resemble warmasters. Maybe our enemies, seeing you from afar, will also think so, get scared and run away. Otherwise, you don't stand much of a chance."
A quiet sound of yawning, and the spray of shattered glass showered Ordyntsev's shoulder. Eiji, who dared to yawn, immediately received punishment from Jun.
Though, this time, he managed to react in time and reinforce his forehead with prana.
The sensei himself didn't even twitch an eyebrow, continuing to walk along their thin line.
"There is a belief that strong warmasters are those who have a great size of prana core. And it's true, there are no strong warmasters without a sea of prana. There is a belief that strong warmasters are strong because they possess and can use supreme rank techniques. Again, this is true. The minimum bar for entering the elite of warmasters is the ability to use such techniques."
Jun stopped, and the disciples listened attentively to his speech.
"But in my years, I have outlived many so-called supreme warmasters. I'll tell you more, they died where I survived, being lower in rank than they were. These arrogant snobs were so proud of their kinship with the stone that they forgot that their own bodies were by no means equal in strength to stone."
Jun raised his hand, and before the team's eyes, it was covered by a light mist, which smoothly began to condense, becoming something like a thin barrier of glass.
"No matter how strong your techniques are, no matter how sturdy your stone is, there is always something that can penetrate inside you. And the only thing that will stand between your guts and death is prana. Ordinary prana that you feed your muscles and skin day after day."
The sensei picked up a small pebble and began to grind it to pieces in his fingers, then to sand.
"The power of your strike, the durability of your skin, and the speed of your body – that's what won't fail you even in the darkest moment. They are the ones who will carry your ass to safety, and they are the ones who will give you a chance to survive what seems to be a deadly blow."
Jun opened his palm and sharply blew the dust at his disciples.
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"Ouch! Ah! Uh!" the youngsters cried out in surprise, as the dust pelted their skin fiercely, leaving behind minute wounds.
"That's why we're now going to improve these skills of yours," Jun grinned, pleased with the effect produced. "An experienced warmaster must always be ready for an attack," he explained his actions.
"Weapon Creation," Jun habitually uttered the words, and stone spear and yatagan grew from the ground. "Bitch, Serpentface, take them."
Leaving their weapons, Stas and Mei quickly complied with the order.
The stone weapons were surprisingly close to the same weight as their original equipment. Moreover, they were blunted.
"The best way to train," the sensei's face nearly radiated satisfaction. "I believe is good old pain. Drooler, you're lucky to be the first to feel the full power of my training methods."
Judging by the pale Eiji, who looked at the weapons in his friends' hands and especially at the grinning Mei, he felt quite unwell.
"The rules of the game are as follows. Bitch and Serpentface will try to turn you, Drooler, into minced meat. They cannot use prana or any other tricks. Only their own bodies and the tools I've provided. You, Drooler, are free to use prana as you like, but exclusively for your defense and evasion. Weapons are not allowed. Running or jumping away more than a meter is forbidden. Attack, and I'll take care of you myself."
In response to Eiji's astonished gaze, the sensei merely shrugged his shoulders.
"If you can't defend yourself from ordinary people armed with blunt weapons, what are you counting on? Is everyone clear?"
"Yes!" the disciples shouted in unison.
Jun uncorked another bottle of alcohol and, having grown a backrest on his seat and turned it into a comfortable chair, prepared to watch one of his favorite things – someone's systematic beating.
Mei struck first; the yatagan's swift shadow darted at the lad's head, and he had to deflect it with his hand.
The prana-charged limb managed to withstand the blow, but judging by the lad's contorted face, some damage still got through.
A low spear thrust Eiji redirected downwards, stepping on the blade. The prana strengthening simultaneously increased his speed and reaction to astonishing levels.
But the problem was that Eiji was being attacked by two people at once, and without fear of retaliation, they unleashed a torrent of blows on him.
And no matter how good his reaction was, he began to let attacks through. And the longer the fight went on, the more of these successful blows became, as maintaining concentration for so long was far from easy.
Ordyntsev expected it all to end with them having to carry Eiji to the citadel, but Jun stopped the beating earlier, when he noticed that the prana cover was starting to falter.
As it turned out, there was no mercy involved.
It's just that too beaten up Drooler wouldn't be able to torture those who had thrashed him just a few minutes ago.
So, catching his breath and spitting blood, Eiji spread into a smile, seizing a newly created stone naginata.
Incidentally, another manifestation of the mystical side of this world. Ordyntsev was utterly unable to understand how it was possible to make a stone weapon that, replicating the wooden one down to the smallest detail, managed to be even lighter!
Even though it was plainly made of common grey stone, the weight was surprisingly light. And there's no need to even mention its durability.
The sparring was interrupted only by brief lectures and meals, during which, lounging in his chair, Jun told his disciples tales from the life of warmasters.
But these stories should not be underestimated. Among the sea of booze, women, gambling establishments, and corpses, one could learn information that could not be found anywhere else.
For example, the sensei knew about the colors and properties of the most commonly used Sansa poisons. And when the master spoke about the hot springs of some Wano country, one could learn about a forest inhabited by a giant magical bull.
This creature was so strong that the locals swore off sending teams of warmasters there.
And a lecture on what breast size is most suitable for a girl ended with a comparison of several famous warmaster women from different clans.
Poor Mei blushed with embarrassment during such lectures, but kept silent.
By the end of their sparring, Stas began to attend to his direct duties – healing numerous abrasions, bruises, and muscle tears.
And although the work was monotonous, Stas felt with his entire body how he was getting stronger. Jun's brutal methodology indeed bore fruit, improving both the prana reserve and the skills of future fighters.
At the same time, little by little, the attitude towards Stas was changing. It's hard to despise or underestimate someone who heals your wounds and relieves pain day after day. Watching as bruised skin on your hands heals, and the glowing greenish warmth seems to wash over tired muscles.
The change in attitude was not particularly strong, but it manifested in very important little things.
For example, the day when Mei first greeted him could be considered the day when she admitted that he could be equal to a clan warmaster.
Of course, she still considered herself superior, being an heiress, but even that was a big step forward.
A little later, Jun allowed one-on-one sparring without the use of prana. In them, Stas was predictably the worst, constantly lying down "to rest." However, no one expected miracles from him on this front.
Only in fairy tales can you become a great hand-to-hand fighter or swordsman in a couple of months or even years. In reality, those who have spent years on martial arts, starting from childhood, win.
Constant sparring between Mei and Eiji always ended in blood. They fought each other to the death, knowing no mercy or pity. Their fights always had a note of frenzy.
That kind of cruelty greatly amused Jun, who enjoyed such scenes.
It was clearly abnormal, but it wasn't for Stas to judge him for it.
Nevertheless, as surprising as it may be, the relationship between Mei and Eiji improved. Each was forced to admit that their opponent was by no means a weakling, as much as they would like the opposite.
Therefore, they pushed even harder in training. Stas had to follow their suit hurriedly to avoid falling too far behind.
However, while everything was sad in close combat, the earthling's prana control was growing by leaps and bounds. Ordyntsev suspected that it wouldn't be long before he finally reached the level of his comrades.
Yes, he would still lack prana, but he would be able to manage it much better.
They all lived right in the forest. Jun allowed them to visit the city only occasionally.
"You freeloaders should be able to live in the forests for months! I had a mission where I lived in a certain forest for a whole year, plucking one trading company. And nothing, didn't go mad!"
The disciples might have argued with him, but wisely chose not to.
Halfway through the month, Jun Sumada came up with another training exercise. And, of course, it was entirely in his style.
"I've called this method: 'Run, bastard, run!'" the sensei proclaimed before his tense disciples. "It's designed to kill the fear of techniques in you, which, in turn, will allow you to keep a cool head even in the hottest battles."
Stas heard Mei gulp beside him. And even the earthling himself felt a little uneasy.
And, in general, they were right to be worried.
"Run, bastards, run!" the earth on the path of the three disciples swelled up as if a kilogram of TNT had exploded deep beneath them.
Since the "explosion" occurred too deep, the clods flew up not too high, but the surface itself was disfigured beyond recognition.
However, the escapees, not losing their composure, jumped right onto the tilted pieces of earth and continued their desperate run, jumping between them. And they did it for a good reason, because where they were a second ago, a deep rift with sharp shards formed below.
"I saw him on the right," Stas gasped, trying to save the remaining bits of oxygen. The only thing that comforted the earthling now was that Leviathan did not participate in the ensuing madness.
His comrades silently nodded, not daring to waste their strength.
The team instantly turned around and threw themselves towards the trees, but, as it turned out, someone was waiting for exactly these actions from them.
"Careful!" Mei's shout made them stop all at once. The line of trees they were racing towards billowed with a wall of white-hot fire. The warmasters could feel the roaring flames with their whole bodies, the temperature of which began to curl the hair even at a distance.
Jun did not possess the element of fire, but he did not skimp on spending a couple of explosion seals on his disciples. For ordinary warmasters, such expenses were excessive, but a supreme could afford much more.
"Run!" the youngsters had long understood that movement was life in the most literal sense.
"Ha-ha-ha!" the joyful laughter of the sensei that came from all sides heralded another technique, which raised the earth around them by five meters, leaving them in a narrow trench.
From somewhere in the distance came a roar, and a second later, a wall of water appeared, rushing at a frightening speed.
"Stone pillars!" Mei roared. It was a more complex variation of the familiar technique. Now, not one pillar was created, but several at once.
From the walls towering over them, pillars emerged, up which the disciples climbed like a ladder.
The last to run, Eiji, was barely pulled up by Mei and Stas as a wall of water swept through his place.
The element of water turned out to be the second one available to Master Jun. He wielded it worse than earth, but it was enough to bury young warmasters for sure.
"Threat from the side!" the sensei's shout made Mei's face lose all color.
"Earth technique. Stone walls!" Unfortunately, the girl failed to fully protect them with four planes from all sides.
Two of the four walls had defects, so the stone shrapnel that showered their position found its target.
"It hurts so much," Mei groaned, holding the unlucky leg into which one of the pellets had entered. Ordyntsev said nothing, pulling another pellet out of his shoulder with his palm imbued with healing prana.
"Eiji," Stas growled, jumping up from the ground where he had survived the shelling.
"Got it." The half-blood, as they had previously agreed, picked up the girl on his back, allowing Stas, who was running behind, to place his hands glowing with green fire on her leg.
"Mei, calm your prana and stop interfering with me!" Ordyntsev cursed. The problem with medical techniques was that they could be very easily canceled.
That's why they were useless in battle. Any warmaster, feeling the influence of a stranger, could simply direct their own prana to dispel almost any healing energy.
Mei obediently tried to compose herself, ceasing to interfere with her teammate healing her.
Of course, their speed left much to be desired, and the earthling's energy loss was above any reasonable maximum, but at least they were moving, not standing still.
Had they tried to entrench themselves, the sensei would have mercilessly wrecked their position with earth techniques.
Had anyone told Stas that in just a month he would be able to use Healing Palm on the run, he might have scoffed. Yet there he was running on the trembling earth, torn apart by bursting techniques, his palms not ceasing to shine for a second.
"I'm ready." Hearing Mei, Eiji dropped her from his back without question, and the girl limped along with them.
Suddenly, a massive slab of earth in front of the exhausted students shuddered and then began to rise.
Stas looked with a sense of doom into the eyes of the gigantic stone colossus emerging from the ground right before them.
Yes, it wasn't as large as the one in the Sansa versus Sumada battle, but even so, it was impressive in size.
With just one step, the ground shook noticeably, and with the second, it was covered with a network of cracks.
It became clear why the sensei had decided to conduct this training far from the city.
Jun hadn't lied when he said that after being hit with supreme techniques with frightening regularity, you stop fearing techniques of a lower rank too much.
But why were the thoughts of Master Jun's apprentices so far from being polite?