After a relatively uneventful evening, Nobu decided to get a jump start on the day by running a few laps around his house. The interior had four interconnected hallways forming a perfect square so it was relatively easy to set goals and keep track of his progress. The only downside was that the halls were lined with wood so he created quite a bit of noise as he was running around.

*sound of a single contiguous breath*

Thanks to his unique cultivation method, Nobu could continue basically running for as long as his body held out. He never got winded, and, so long as he controlled his oxygen intake, he was able to maintain a runner's high from start to finish.

"Fuuuuuuuuuuuuuu..."

Though it was unnecessary, Nobu found himself exhaling a long sigh after running for precisely one hour. He had timed himself using the stone tablet's clock, and, in that time, he had managed to run a total of twenty-three laps.

According to Kumiko, each of the interior halls was approximately 150m in length. Crunching the numbers, this meant he had run around 14km. This wasn't particularly great, but, considering he currently looked like a twig, it wasn't bad. He wasn't sure what the average was, but Nobu felt like he had maintained a pretty solid pace from start to finish.

Sprawling out on the ground, Nobu didn't complain when Nariko, at the behest of Kazue, placed a cold compress on his head.

"You shouldn't push yourself so hard. Your body is still recovering from extreme malnourishment. It's a miracle you're even able to move around like this..."

Looking over, Nobu found Kazue looking at him with a concerned expression on her face. He also noticed she had allowed her hair to hang freely rather than tying it up in double-buns. This made her appear less cute, but, at the same time, it looked a hell of a lot more natural on her.

"I'm fine...I won't say some cheesy shit about knowing my own limits, but I'm not an idiot. I know better than trying to push through the pain for the sake of small gains..."

With that said, Nobu removed the compress from his head before rolling to his feet and adding, "Besides, I'm nineteen years behind my peers. I can't afford to sit on my ass if I still have the energy to keep going."

Though it was a bit awkward with an audience, Nobu alternated between ten-count body-builders and suicides from one side of the room to the other. Cardio was the foundation for all other forms of strength training. Since he seemed to recover after only a few hours of rest, he intended to take full advantage of the convenient properties of Aura in order to strengthen his physique as quickly as possible.

Exhaling a sigh, Kazue pulled out a piece of paper before handing it to Nariko and saying, "Tell Cho to add these herbs to our Lord's meal. If he wants to push himself, we have the duty of making sure he doesn't break down."

Nodding her head in understanding, Nariko gripped the paper before taking one last look at her Lord's half-naked body. He had removed his shirt prior to exercising, and, though he wasn't much to look at, he was the only man she had ever seen from this close.

Shaking her head, Kazue gave Nariko a light push, saying, "Go." in an uncharacteristically firm tone. This contributed to Nariko scampering off, her feet creating a drumming pitter-patter as she bolted off towards the kitchen.

Though he noticed Nariko departure, Nobu didn't ask what she was up to or where she was going. Instead, he completed his current set before taking a seat next to Kazue, the only person 'officially' keeping tabs on him right now.

"So? What's your deal. Are you going to restart your training now that you've learned I'm alive and well?"

Hanging her head, a tired sigh escaped Kazue's throat as she answered, "Truth be told, I'd rather just entrust Nariko to the clan's experts and go back to shoveling shit. I know you don't really care about this stuff, but I'm even less suited for this formal crap. If you didn't give me permission to act casually, I would probably spend every day feeling suffocated."

Understanding where she was coming from, Nobu nodded his head empathically, saying, "Yeah, I feel you on that one. That's actually why I want to keep you around. You're a lot more chill than the other girls. I thought Yuriko would be cool to hang around with but she turned into an overzealous pervert pretty quickly. I haven't really said anything about it, but I can smell her musk whenever she gets close. I'm pretty sure she went to town on herself when I was having sex with Yui..."

"Mmm...I can kind of empathize with her..."

"Pardon...?"

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Raising her head, Kazue stared directly at Nobu as she said, "We were devasted by the news that your illness had taken your life. From that moment on, our training was the only real purpose we had, but, unlike other trainees, it didn't really matter how skilled we became. We had been trained solely to serve you so the Matriarch forbade us from accepting any missions. Until you came back, we were basically just waiting to die. To that end, I can't really blame Yuriko for losing her shit after you had sex. I can't say for certain, but I'm pretty sure most of us would have."

"..."

Though he had already heard similar accounts before, Nobu was still left feeling at a loss for words after hearing what Kazue had to say. He felt like there was a tiny seedling of guilt in his heart, and, with each passing day, it grew larger. He wasn't quite sure what would happen when the seedling blossomed into something else, but he was pretty sure he wasn't prepared to deal with it.

"What do you think I should do...?"

Scratching the back of her head, Kazue's expression became complicated as she said, "You should really ask Kumiko about things like this. She has spent her entire life learning all kinds of things so that she could give you proper advice. All I really know is shit and some basic medical techniques. Other than that-"

"Stop."

Falling silent the moment she heard Nobu's command, Kazue's expression became progressively more awkward as she waited for him to continue.

Adopting a conflicted look of his own, Nobu averted his eyes from Kazue's as he said, "Just...stop saying shit like that. Stop demeaning yourself all the time. I don't care how useful others think you are. Hell, I don't care how useful YOU think you are. Even if you were just a normal girl, that would be enough for me. Seriously, you want to talk about suffocating? I might as well be an alien in this world. Your situation was pretty shitty. I know that. In fact, I'm really fucking sorry you girls had to go through that shit. However, you at least had the chance to grow up in this world. The only real memories I have of this place are being pushed around in a wheelchair, lying in bed, and having mush shoved down my throat..."

Feeling the seedling in his chest grow even larger, Nobu's expression morphed into anger as he balled his hands into fists and muttered, "Fuck..."

Confused by her Lord's reaction, Kazue was contemplating asking what was wrong when he beat her to the punch, sighing as he muttered, "I really am sorry...I know this shit is my fault...just...just stop making things worse...please..."

Though he wasn't on the verge of tears, Nobu rested his face in his palms as feelings he didn't know how to deal with washed over him. This place wasn't like Earth. He couldn't just ignore his problems and keep running away. The lives of multiple people now revolved around him and if he couldn't get his act together, they were all going to suffer because of his stupid mistakes.

"Fuck..."

Feeling more than a little awkward, Kazue looked towards the ceiling in the hopes that whoever was watching over them from above might come down and lend a hand. She honestly didn't know how to deal with whatever he was going through. If she did, she might be able to solve some of her own problems.

With the only response to her silent plea being even more silence, Kazue scratched the back of her head before asking, "I'm guessing a quick fellatio won't really help, will it...?"

Raising his face from his hands, Nobu stared directly at Kazue, an incredulous look on his face as he asked, "Is that the only thing you girls can think of at times like this...?"

Shrugging her shoulders, Kazue answered, "You're a man. I'm a woman. According to what we're taught, most guys in Nian refuse to confide in females. Even the Nobles only keep male confidants so I'm not really sure what else I can do. Don't get me wrong. I want to help. I just don't know how."

Though Kazue's words came off as brash and insensitive, Nobu understood she was simply being honest. He couldn't really fault her for that, so, after sitting in silent contemplation for the better part of a minute, he asked, "Do you 'want' to give me a blowjob...?"

While the phrase 'blowjob' was new to her, Kazue could intuit the meaning based on the context of their conversation. Thus, without the need for consideration, she answered, "I mean, kind of? Even if I didn't qualify to become a kunoichi, I still received the same training as everyone else. Unless you send me off to be a prostitute or something, you're really the only guy I can experience this kind of thing with. If you're asking about personal preferences, I'd rather fellate you a thousand times than put my face anywhere near another man's penis."

"..."

As much as he appreciated how straightforward Kazue was, Nobu was still left feeling at a loss in the wake of her 'heartfelt' statement. If he didn't know Cho would be arriving with his breakfast in the next couple of minutes, he might have even taken her up on her offer. Instead, he fell silent for several seconds before gesturing for her to come closer, saying, "Come here..."

Obeying Nobu's orders without even a moment's hesitation, Kazue was left feeling confused when the latter guided her head to rest on his lap. His aroma caused a stuffy feeling in her chest but the thing that left her feeling speechless was the fact he had started to caress her head. He didn't offer any explanation or anything. He just laid her head on his lap and began to run his fingers through her hair without a word to express his intentions.

"..."

"..."

If Kazue was confused by his behavior, Nobu had no idea how to describe his own emotions. He just felt that the woman before him was pathetic. Not in a bad way but the kind of way that made her deserving of pity. He was equally as clueless as she was when it came to comforting others, so, remembering how his mother used to comfort him as a child, Nobu just went with the flow. He also noticed she scratched her head a lot, so, while he doubted she had anything like ticks or lice, he did his best to check her scalp as he ran his fingers through her surprisingly soft and puffy hair...

"..."

"..."

...

..

.

(A/N: Nobu and Kazue both have a lot of issues they need to work out. Fortunately, just like in real life, they can make a lot of progress by working together. I know most people read novels with the intent of escaping real-world problems. However, at times like this, I can't help but want to remind everyone that there are always people willing to help. If you have problems you're working through, find someone to talk to. You'd be surprised to discover just how many people are going through similar shit...)