The Emerald Soulmate

06. True friendship

It had been five years since the first practice of the day. The five young children who were often together had grown into great youths, thanks to Father Ten of course.

Now, they are no longer accompanied by Ken when training because Ken feels he has taught them everything he knows. Instead, they just practice honing their skills by trying new tactics, namely fighting each other. No longer use wooden statues that are shapeless because of their brutal sword attacks.

Speaking of woodmen, for the past five years there have been no rumors about the myth. Maybe because it was rare to talk about it, so the rumors of the wood man seemed to disappear just like that.

"Hiro, prepare to dodge my attack, yes," said Kai confidently while holding the wooden sword gallantly. Although it had been five years, but the inherent nature of the five of them had not changed much. The significant changes that could be seen were only their bodies that had grown into dashing youths and their physiques that became much stronger.

"Heh, I won't dodge your attack, I guess you'll take my attack. So be careful," replied Hiro no less confident. Both Kai and Hiro looked down at each other.

"Don't say much more, accept my attack!" kai exclaimed as he ran and drew his sword towards Hiro. Hiro quickly stopped him. "Your only attack like this can make me dodge?"

Hiro immediately turned the situation around, his wooden sword that deflected Kai's attack was used to attack Kai from the side.

Tak

The sound of the wooden sword clashing was heard again. "Where can you outwit me from the side, Hiro? Is this your only ability?" ask Kai cynically.

"I don't think you're agile, too, Kai. But I'm sorry, because you're really fooled," Hiro smiled back cynically. While their swords are still clashing, Hiro uses the opportunity to scuttle Kai's legs. After Kai lost his focus on the sword, Hiro quickly ended the attack by attacking to Kai's weak spot, his neck.

"Ouch!" kai's screams were accompanied by a loud thud as his body collapsed to the ground. In this way, the winner of the fight between them was Hiro.

Ten, Kyo and Zou who had been watching earlier clapped, signaling the fight was over. "Congratulations, Hiro is the winner" Zou said as the referee.

Kai exclaimed in disbelief, "Hey, how could that be! Hiro cheated on having used physicality to let me off guard."

"Who are you so weak, blaming me instead," sneered Hiro complacently.

Ten immediately reprimanded Kai, "Hiro is not cheating, Kai. When we fight the enemy, there is no mercy for us. Because the enemy must have used every means to bring us down, even in a sneaky way."

Unlike Hiro who was getting proud, Kai looked at Ten with a look of disbelief. "Why are you defending Hiro, Ten?" kai asked feeling betrayed.

"I'm not defending anyone here, Kai. It's just that I'm telling the facts on the actual battlefield," Ten replied as he shook his head slowly.

"What Ten said is right, Kai. Don't blame him just because you lost," Kyo chimed in. Makes Kai feel like all of his best friends no longer support him.

"You too, Kyo?" kai asked to dramatize the situation. All this time who never hostile him is Ten and Kyo. But today he heard with his own ears if they both blamed him.

"Kai, don't be like a child," said Zou panted. She understood very well that Kai in front of her was pretending to sulk. "Actually you're quite strong, if your physique and Hiro's physique are compared, I'm sure you can defeat him" Zou explained. He took a short breath before then continued, "However, just using physical strength alone cannot make you win. The most important thing is the tricks and strategies that are accurate, that is what is actually needed, as Hiro has done."

Kai quickly rose from the fall and immediately cupped Zou's face using both hands. "Well, I just had a dream or how, it's the first time I've been praised by Zou," Kai said as he turned Zou's face right and left as if he was researching it.

Zou parried Kai's hand from his face, "Hey, how dare you touch me, I feel sorry for praising you."

"Zouu, why do you have the heart of me, just Hiro who is hostile to me, why do Ten and Kyo follow along blaming me, now you also cancel your praise to me?" Kai said in a sulky tone that made Zou tickle with his manner. Because Kai said it quickly, making it seem as if he was scraping with the suffix 'U' only.

Ten and Kyo's laughter broke instantly hearing Kai's rap just now. In unison the two of them approached Kai and grabbed his shoulders. Ten on the right side while Kyo on the left side Kai.

"We tell the truth, it's all just to make you aware of reality. In order to make you aware and motivated to be better in the future, why are you even mad at us?" ten asked while pinching Kai's cheek.

"Yes, that's right. Rather than us blaming you, it looks more like you're blaming us?" timpal Kyo continued.

"Aah!" Kai seemed to realize, he then immediately rebelled to break away from the embrace of Ten and Kyo.

"There's no need to be a saintly pretender by letting go like that, Kai. You yourself also held my face earlier, disgusting me, euh," Zou put on his look of disgust.

Hiro laughed loudly because of Zou's words. After escaping from Ten and Kyo's embrace, Kai immediately let out his regretful expression. "The two of you haven't changed at all, it's always worked out to upset me" Kai exasperatedly said to Hiro and Zou.

"Maybe that's what they love you about, Kai," Kyo closed his mouth while holding back a laugh.

"Aren't we all basically loving each other, otherwise, what kind of friendship can we still have today?" Ten with his smile, really could not make his four friends refute his words.

"Ouch, ouch, uri maknae¹," Kyo uttered it with anxiety. He who was standing near Ten immediately embraced Ten's shoulder, probably because he was still not satisfied with Kai earlier.

Zou draws himself closer and embraces Ten. Kai who saw it immediately pointed at Zou furiously, "Zou, you said that I was pretentious by removing their embrace, why are you reneging on your words now?"

"Who said I disavowed my words. I'm just saying you're a saintly pretender, doesn't mean I don't want to embrace you" Zou said in a sneer. Don't forget he stuck his tongue out at Kai.

"Say you're envious, why deceive me" Kai murmured.

"Zou, you're like a child" Hiro said. But even so, his steps approached Zou and even embraced Zou's shoulders. "But you're great for cheating Kai. Well, Kai is indeed gullible," continued Hiro considering the results of their fight earlier.

"Both of you!" Kai gritted his teeth, completely annoyed now. He sees his four friends who embrace each other with Hiro's position on the edge embracing Zou, followed by Zou who embraces Ten, then Ten, and next to him Kyo also embraces him.

"Come, Kai. I know you want to embrace us, too" Ten's remarks led Kai to join their embrace. They form a circle where Kai's position is to embrace Hiro and Kyo.

"Kyo, change positions with me. I don't want to embrace Hiro, I want to be in the middle of you and Ten so I can embrace Ten" Kai asked before his hand touched Hiro's shoulder.

"No, you yourself let go of our embrace earlier. You've wasted Ten's embrace, so don't blame me for not wanting to change positions" Kyo said.

"Why would you embrace me? Isn't embracing everything the same, too," Ten said Kai.

"Yeah, Ten. You don't know how much I love you more than the person next to me" Kai pointed to Hiro.

"It's okay to just embrace why, complicate things, if not for the words of Ten, where would I embrace you," said Hiro.

Finally inevitably Kai embraces Hiro as well. Seen from Kai's face if he had to do it.

The circle of embrace is perfectly formed after they put their hands on each other on the person on their side.

And then they looked at each other. Like telepathy, a second later, they laughed together. Laughing at how much they were like little children who were still embracing each other.

Whatever their nature, and little quarrels in them. It was just a spice to strengthen their friendship. As Ten said, they still care for each other, understand each other and love each other.

"May our friendship always be close forever!"

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¹uri maknae \= our youngest member