Black and White

IV - The Kirin Dance

"Damn it. We walk outside for one second, and Lu is already gone somehow," said Memento as he scanned his surroundings, searching for Lu.

"Memento, I'm literally right here," said Lu, but as Memento turned to Lu's voice, he saw nothing.

"Lu! I thought you were kidnapped or something, but I still can't see you. Are you invisible or something?" asked Memento.

"No, I'm standing right next to you,  holding my katana. You can't see me?" responded Lu.

"Wait a minute. Lu, drop your katana," said Memento, trying to find a solution to Lu's disappearance. Lu did as he said, and as the katana hit the floor, Lu was visible once again.

"Can you see me now?" asked Lu.

"Yes, it's just as I thought. Lu, you might be in real danger now," said Memento with a worried look.

"What do you mean? What did I do?" asked Lu, confused by the whole situation.

"That katana. It's no ordinary katana. Lu, this katana...it's the Twilight Blade," said Memento as he looked at the katana on the ground.

"Wait, you mean one of the legendary Light Blades? More importantly, one of the strongest Light Blades? This katana was supposed to be the reward for the next tournament, but it's here," said Lu as he stared at the Twilight Blade.

"That's where you're wrong, Lu. This katana would never be given out in a Knights of Light tournament. This katana is for samurai, not knights. Jericho must have hidden this blade, but somehow it ended up here," said Memento.

"But if this blade really was stolen or went missing, wouldn't that mean that Jericho would be looking for it?" asked Lu.

"That's precisely why I said you could be in real danger. Jericho might have already sent out a search party, most likely his best soldiers, and if they find you, they will kill you for that blade," said Memento, walking in circles, thinking of what to do.

"This just got way more exciting. I have the Twilight Blade, a katana wielding the powers of both the Daylight and Moonlight Blade. If I master this katana now, no search party will stand a chance!" exclaimed Lu in excitement as he picked up the katana, and became invisible again.

"Your lack of worry surprises me, but very well. I'll help you master this blade. However, let's get back inside my house, where you won't be invisible," said Memento as he walked back towards his house. Once they were both inside the house, Memento turned to Lu and said, "I asked you if you knew what the Kirin Dance was when we first met. Now, it's time I teach you. I've already demonstrated that skill to you multiple times. I used it to kill that man that beat you up, I used it to bring you to my house faster, and I used it to bounce off the walls rapidly during our game of tag."

"Finally! I've always wanted to learn how to teleport," said Lu with excitement.

"The Kirin Dance isn't teleportation, you just enter a state in which you become one with the wind and move so fast and gracefully that it may appear as if you do teleport. With that being said, set your katana against the wall, this training won't require any weapons," said Memento as he pointed towards the wall. Lu walked and placed his katana against the wall and returned to the center of the room. As he did this, Memento placed two raw eggs on the floor and said, "Your task is the following: simply stand on the eggs without breaking them and you'll finish the first lesson."

"Wait a minute. That's not even physically possible!" complained Lu. After he said this, Memento jumped into the air and placed one foot on each egg, without cracking a single one.

"Not possible you say?" asked Memento as he jumped off the eggs and sat down. "Just focus on keeping the energy in your feet to a calm and peaceful level.

Lu was surprised by how easy Memento made it seem. "Alright, I'll give it a shot then," said Lu as he closed his eyes and focused his energy. Once Lu had focused his energy, he jumped and landed on the eggs, crushing them both. "Aww man, I really thought it was going to work," said Lu as he stepped away from the broken eggs.

"Try to not break too many eggs. I still need breakfast for tomorrow," said Memento as he placed two more eggs on the floor. Lu, once again, focused his energy, trying harder to keep the energy on his feet more calm. After a few moments, Lu jumped and landed on the eggs, cracking them both slightly, but not enough to break them. "That was a much better attempt, but your energy is still not completely calm. Try again," said Memento as he placed two more eggs on the floor. Lu, although a bit frustrated, cleared his mind and focused completely on his legs and on the fragileness of the eggs. Once he felt the energy in his legs was completely calm and peaceful, Lu jumped onto the eggs, not cracking a single one.

"I did it! I didn't break the eggs!" yelled Lu, but his excitement caused him to lose focus and accidentally broke both eggs. "Oh what the f-"

"This is actually amazing progress, Lu. Now you know the fundamentals of the Kirin Dance, but as you just saw, keeping the focus on your feet for extended periods of time is what will prove a bit more challenging. Once you're able to concentrate for a longer period of time, all you need to do is dash towards your desired location and you will 'dance' to it, hence the name, Kirin Dance," explained Memento.

Lu stepped off the eggs and said, "So basically, I need to pretend every surface is an egg and have complete concentration when 'dancing'?"

"Yes, and once you have that mastered, you will be able to swiftly travel anywhere you'd like much faster and without leaving a scratch on any surface you touch," said Memento as he stood up, "that's enough training for today, however. Now, we should get some rest for tomorrow's training. There's a bed in the room to the left, where the wooden katana was at. I will wake you up when it is time to train again," said Memento as he pointed to the room to the left.

"Alright, I'll be ready for whatever training you have to offer tomorrow. Sleep well!" said Lu as he walked inside his room and closed door. Lu placed the Twilight Blade next to his bed and sat down, thinking of ways to master the Kirin Dance as fast as possible. As he was about to get ready to sleep, Lu heard something move in his room.

"Is anybody there?" Lu asked, as he grabbed his katana, ready to attack.

"It's funny how we are facing off against each other once again so soon, but don't think I'm going to let history repeat itself. I will return home with the Twilight Blade, brother," said the man in the room as he removed his cloak, revealing himself. Standing before Lu, was his brother, Gabriel.