Ark 16 Episode 43: As Usless As A Dull Sword

Participants

 * Connor Ryoji
 * Master Toushin

Keep It Up!
(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QIbxNTTDDP4&list=PLYNBny7IRlVkbiSVlrNHnbXbgZBIdU3Pl&index=41 ) It’s been about 3 weeks since Connor started training with Toushin and a day after the wolf out incident with Kin Tasanagi…the results were showing. Connor’s physique ha gradually increased. His back was a tad bit broader, his shoulder muscles were more cut and he was well on his way to a full on eight pack Even with that though, what’s really changed is the strength of Connor’s physical body. His vest no longer took much strain on his movements and the exorcises were a tidbit easier. Toushin noticed this and decided to DOUBLE all of Connor’s routines. Today for example. “GOOOOOOOOAH! M-MY FUKING BA=OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOCK!!!!!”” Connor would be standing on his hands while Toushin bent his lower back and hips (legs included) in a painful and forced back bend,   Toushin’s legs holding down Connor’s and keeping him in that same position. Toushin laughed   heart fully. “It ooooooooooooooooonly hurts because your as limber as a steel construction beam. You can’t be effective if your that stiff.” Connor shook his head back and forth, grunting and screaming. “this wouldn’t be gr! As bad if there wasn’t a fucking spike at my throat!!!: While Connor was holding his handstand there was a long metal spike directly under his throat. If Connor’s arms gave out for even a second, he’d end up chin first with a spike running straight through his skull. “Soooo let’s see’ Toushin pulled out a book titled “Training Regime for the Loser.” Connor had a “-_-“ look on his face. “30 more minutes and you’ll be ready to head out to a Chinese rice farm.” Connor grunted feeling his back muscles contort and stretch beyond belief! “S-so I’m picking the rice?” Toushin shook his head no. “you’re plowing the fields with me. Think of it as good community service.” Connor smiled weakly though the pain actually happy. “Finaly! Something remotely easy!” (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rRuU9Gg2aWk&list=PLYNBny7IRlVkbiSVlrNHnbXbgZBIdU3Pl&index=116 ) “F--UCK! MMMMMMMMEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEGURGLSEGUIABIUGGAPUSAH!” Toushin would be have connor’s ankles tied together and be holding his body at an angleWhile connor was forced to move his hands in a circular swimming like motion using his figners to plot the dirt and separate it. Connor’s arms would slip from beneath him and his face would be pushed and musched through the dirty for about a mile! Toushin pouted still pushing. “Awww Connor! Now we’re gonna have to go back over it. oh poo, I was hoping to get these next 90 acres soon!” “NINETY!?!?!?!?!” Connor’s arms shot back into position as he continued to plow! “WHY DID MY FATHER DO THIS TO ME-E-E-E!!!1 WHYYYYYYYEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!” 3 hours passed and connor with Toushin and they’d have plowed the field down 15 times. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0x8mla2AuuM&index=165&list=PLYNBny7IRlVkbiSVlrNHnbXbgZBIdU3Pl ) “I bet you can feel it in your muscles can’t ya kid? Yep, this is an exorcise tow ork the entire torso, legs included.” Connor lay in the dirt with alimp in hjis body, without een a shred of movement. Toushin folded his arms inside of his sleeves and smiled. “Annnnnnd your minute break has ended.” Toushin drug Connor by his ankle back to the dojo. A few moments and water hose sprays later, connor would be doing push ups on wooden logs. With one hand every push up he did, Toushin would swing a piece of bamboo at his hand, forcing connor to push himself up into the air a bit before landing on the ground again on his opposite hand. “Master Toushin, I have a question.” Connor would push himself into air avoiding another bamboo strike and landing on his right hand. “Ask away.” Toushin continued to swing the   babmboo left and right forcing connor to push up, the weight of his now 300 pound vest weight him down. “how much longer is this training going to take?” “in general? I don’t know.” Connor grunted, continuing his routine. “I feel like I’ve gotten a good bit stronger. Maybe I’d be done soon? I’ve got things I could be doing! Toushin nodded. “Like getting into the same street fights and only winning through brute force or luck?” Connor looked at Toushin continuing his exorcise. “Hey! I can fight! You’ve never even seen me in action! I can fight with the best of them!” toushin stroked his mustache, intrigued. “I’ll give you your credit, your sense of combat is amazing, but even when you focus it’s still the same as a dull edged blade.” Connor got upset, and flipped off of the logs, landing on the ground in a squat on his right knee befor trning to face Toushin. “Look here you old crow@ I’ve been fighting all my life! I know wing chun an taich, ick ass in the streets@ and I win money! BIG MONEY! Hell I WIN in general. It’s what I DO! So don’t tell me I have no talent for the only thing I’m good at!” Toushin tilted his hat downwards. “yack,yack,yack. I’m sure by now you’ve noticed rsults stemming pasted what you’ve been capable of before right?” toushin smirked. “Be honest. Couple fights getting easier for you hm? When you take that vest off let me guess. Increased speed.” Connor thought back to his match with the two doofuses and how he’d cleared the distance bewtween them quickly. “Maybe a lil more punching power thanks to the vest eh? Or maybe your chi control has become a wee bit more…adept. So to speak.” Connor realized that entire fight he’d had with those guys was a demonstration and result of what his training had gotten him so far, and realized just how far he’d come. He also wondered if he could’ve taken those guys on if he was still the same old connor before, who couldn’t even use chi properly. “The build of your muscles, bones, resistence to physical damage? I know all about your fight at the brothel. You think you could’ve honestly got through that with just guts alone?” connor remained silent and lowered his head for a moment.”Gut. Vigor. Determination. All these things can make the difference in a fight but not without the skillset to do so. Like I’ve said before, a dull blade can be as resilant and tough as it wants to, but that doesn’t change the fact that it cannot cut and is as useful as steel pipe.” Toushin folded his arms infront of him again. “you’re father is paying me heavily, to build you up and I know what I’m doing. As hard as it is, you just have to trust me.” Connor flicked his nose and spoke. “Tell me, who else have you honestly trained like this.” Toushin sighed thinking. “Well before you there was another boy named Shun. I’ certain he attends the high school you do. The one you fought with.” Connor’s eyes winded in shock. Remembering his beating the took from heim and the embarasemnt he felt from it for weeks. “he was your first? That…explains so much.” Toushin nodded. “Payed me 50,000 Tanz too. Man did I eat good for months.” Connor tilted his head. “how much is my dad paying you?” “Quadruple that.” Connor’s mouth dropped and his eyes almost popped out of his head. “that guy really is loaded!!!!!” Toushin grinned. “by the way. Washi. I see you’ve been interfearing with the no chi program eh?” Connor raised a brow. “What do you mean?” Washi’s ghostly image appeared behind connor, as a shadow of sorts, his long red trench flowing. His yellow shades glaring at Toushin, washi’s humanoid form. “You know that his body can’t handle t his kind of thing. I know you seek to protect him. you’re different than most oni’s I can tell by your stench. However keep in mind that if   Connor’s body isn’t ready for your chi, you could do more bad than good.” Washi nodded. “I’m aware. In the prescence of another oni it’s not unatrual for us to revert to our primal instincts. This…fellow we met, who can transform into a werewolf was of oni origin, and it brought out the worst in me. Something I couldn’t help.” “Just give it time. A couple of months and he should be where he needs to be. I promise. If he participates.” Washi closed his eyes and receeded back into connor’s body. “Well you’ve wasted enough time. It’s time to get back to training, only for the delay you owe me triple the amount before you go home.” “Aye aye!!” Connor yelled out. “Oh? You’re morales certain shifted.” Connor would beat his chest. “If that Shun guy could do it, I know I can. There is…one thing. I’d like to ask old man. Do you know what a pufffu bukufu is?” Toushin raised a brow. “What son?” “Pushu Bakufu connor.” Washi spouted. “A pushu bakufu! That thing. Can you teach me that?” Toushin looked at connor for a moment. “You mean to tell me, you can’t do the most basic chi based attack known to all practioners in the world…..” Connor rubbed the back of his neck. “Well fuck it then…” Toushin waved his hand back and forth. “No no no, I’ll teach you. But instead of what I had planed, we’re doing your chi exorcise for the rest of the day. You’ll learnt his technique, but you’ll learn it MY way. Understood?” Connor lifted his head and smiled. “AYE AYE!!!” connor didgilantly took on his positioning and with failures and repeats, eventually heled his position in that exorcise for 1 hour and 30 minutes, sharpening his chi control as best as he could to do the pusshu bakufu. However all good things come with patience and time, which connor had more than enough of.