Practice (Xun)

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On the weekend, there was really only one place that Nao liked to spend his free time. And by free time, it was when he wasn't hanging out with his few friends or doing homework. The training room where they practiced for the martial arts class just felt comfortable to him. He could work on his waza and kata without any disturbances and see how he could incorporate his speed power into his techniques. At first, he'd been only going alone, but after a short while, he started going with one of the other members.

Xun. A wushu practitioner.

Wushu was very different from aikido, but their shared level of commitment to their practice made it more comfortable for the martial artists to practice with each other.

And of course, every practice started out with stretching....and meditation.

Naozumi sat on the blue practice mat in traditional seiza style, his hands resting under his center, just under his belly button, in a meditative position. His eyes were closed and he kept his breathing slow and controlled. After a few minutes, he let go and bowed, uttering out the starting greeting. "Onegaishimasu." Nao rose again and stepped to his feet, settling his arms out relaxed as his feet slid down into a traditional frontal stance. He waited, keeping his eyes locked forward.

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There were quite a few students that did some form of martial arts at Hammel, Xun had come to find out over time. However, many of them just did it for fun, or self defense, or just as a hobby for something to do in their spare time or show off for friends. It was hard to find someone that shared his dedication to the sport; he didn't know of anyone else that actually practiced wushu, except perhaps that tiny Chinese girl, Yue, but she seemed more dedicated to track and field than anything else.

So when he'd found out more about Nao and what he practiced, along with getting a better sense for the younger boy's nature, Xun had actually been excited for the chance to train with someone that he thought he could get along with and that wouldn't mess around and waste time. And he was quiet, which Xun didn't mind at all.

He wasn't very familiar with aikido, unfortunately; Xun typically did less meditation and more just static and dynamic stretching before practicing, so it was sort of different to try something new. It was probably obvious by the stiffness in his spine and slightly awkward bend in his joints that this wasn't something he typically did; he bowed along with Nao, although his was shallower, and coupled with the typical fist-open palm gesture that he'd been taught by his Sifu so many years ago.

When Nao stood, Xun did also, but instead of going into a stance, he started rolling out his joints - first his neck, shoulders, and elbows, gradually moving down until he reached his knees and ankles. Fortunately, he was naturally flexible, but he still needed to take precautions so he didn't pull or tear anything. "What are you planning on working on today, Naozumi?" Xun asked, carefully easing himself into a front splits position. After a few moments, he switched to the other side. "I, ah, am afraid I still don't know a lot about aikido..." He gave an almost apologetic blink of his dark, contact-clad eyes, smoothly transitioning to middle splits.

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Nao gave a small smile when Xun immediately started in on the joint rotation exercises. Those were essential to loosening oneself and increasing the joint's area of rotation. Many of the other students in the class had to be reminded of their importance. Nao had done these before he started meditation, so after getting to his feet, Nao immediately went into front stance and started practicing his tenkan steps. A good tenkan was done in two quick steps, sweeping one's back following leg back and planting both right back into front stance, leaving the person exactly 180 degrees from their initial position. Naozumi didn't always get them right, especially when he tried to speed them up.

Proper tenkan were essential to a variety of waza

"I think I"m going to be working on my ukemi today," he said softly. Ukemi, or floor techniques, involved rolling, falling, and shiko walking across the floor. These were also essential as most waza involved throwing your practice partner to the floor, so one had to know how to take the falls safely.

Nao sent Xun a gentle smile. "It's ok. I don't know much about wushu either." Japanese and Chinese martial arts were similar in some ways, but for the most part very different. "Maybe we can learn from each other?"

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Xun watched with interest as Nao began his training, following his steps curiously. It was quite unlike the training he was used to, so the Chinese boy was intrigued to learn more. "That looks complex," he told the younger boy as he continued his own warm-ups - some half-squats, side-squats, and other hip-opening stretches; he had trouble with his hip flexors more than anything else, so he always focused on warming up those areas the most. He popped back and forth into alternating drop stances before deeming himself ready to start some light, loose kicking.

"Ukemi..." Xun repeated the unfamiliar word. He'd had some Japanese friends growing up, but had only picked up a little of the language, and it had grown rusty over time. "Wo... I'm afraid I don't know what that is," he admitted, almost sheepishly. "I would like to see." And maybe try, if he could manage.

Xun actually smiled a little in return; the uncommon gesture seemed to light his normally stoic face up just a little. "That's alright. There's a lot to learn... I still have a lot to train on." He nodded in agreement at the suggestion. "I think so. Especially considering our abilities..." Xun stood up straight and started doing his warm-up kicks, swinging his long legs loosely in front of himself to about shoulder-height before switching to the opposite leg. "I wouldn't mind learning how to fall properly," he continued thoughtfully. "Qi bu... It's not something I know much about."

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"The key to a good waza is in the footwork," Nao explained, continuing his repetitions. "Even if you get the arm motions wrong, good footwork can make up for it." While his face was relaxed and focused, Nao was actually rather pleased to be able to explain some of these things to Xun. It was rare to find someone interested in hearing about it who also had enough knowledge to understand without having to explain it repetitively. Technically speaking, one could learn the art simply by practicing in the Uke/Nage style, partners who alternate between receiving and executing the waza, without either party saying a word.

Nao thought that was enough. He stopped and continued his breathing, relaxing for a few moments before addressing Xun's admission. "Ukemi is floor-work. Basically, knowing how to fall." It's the first thing that instructors will teach to a newbie. Nao release a short smile before preparing him again in front stance and then rolling forward over his left shoulder, then again back the other way over his right.

"I still have a lot to learn about Aikido too," Nao agreed. At his age, despite having been practicing for a long time, there were still a lot of things he hadn't been taught and a lot of techniques he still didn't get right. And now with his power that ignited at random moments sometimes, it was even more difficult to maintain such calculated control over his movements.

That was the other reason why he liked Xun. They're abilities were extremely similar. He idly wondered which of them was faster? "Once you know, it's actually really fun." Especially when you started taking the falls during a very fast paced and sudden technique. It really got the heart pumping, both from the exertion and the initial surprise.

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Xun listened attentively as Nao spoke, watching his feet like a hawk. "That makes sense," he agreed, nodding as he stepped into a horse stance and began practicing transitions - from horse, to bow, to drop, repeat, and then back to horse again. It was boring, but necessary. "We focus on a lot of stance work and transitioning smoothly," he explained; he'd done the drill so many times, even with his long, potentially awkward limbs, his transitions were very smooth. "Although, with wushu, the arm movements are very important as well." Everything was calculated at competition; no one ever got a perfect score.

"Ukemi... Floor work..." Xun muttered aloud so he would be more likely to remember the term. He stood up and continued to stretch his legs as he watched Nao roll along the floor, nodding impressively, even though his expression remained passive. "You are very clean," he commented politely. "Do you think... You could teach me?" He was curious to learn.

He could also relate about the issues that came with their abilities - Xun himself dealt with the effects of building up static energy in his body every day; he desperately wished there was something he could do to relieve it without exhausting himself.

"I bet," Xun agreed kindly, a very faint smile touching his lips. "It looks like it." He didn't use the term 'fun' for wushu. It had been when he was younger, and he supposed it still was to some degree, but it had gotten to the point now where he pushed himself so much and expected so much from himself that it was almost an occupation. Maybe he could use a little more... Fun.

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Nao was pleased to watch Xun go through his own warm-ups, practicing basic stances and movements of his art. Those were important too, as those basics typically composed the pieces of other techniques. "Movement is important," Nao agreed with a slight smile. Xun's form was interesting to watch, it was obvious that the other boy was very committed to his art.

Nao liked working on his rolls. Because he was small, he could make them tighter easier. At his dojo back home it was always a game to see how many rolls one could get moving across the room. Then you'd do it again to see how far you could get with one. Then there was maneuvering within a roll, dodging obstacles around you. Those he wasn't so good at. "I can teach the basics, but I'm also not a black-belt yet." Which meant he wasn't cleared for teaching technique.

"In exchange," Nao started, looking up at the taller boy, "Maybe you can teach me about wushu?" Nao liked his art, but his Shihan also said that there was always more to learn out there and you should always keep your cup empty.

"Wushu looks fun," Nao complimented more out of politeness than anything else, even if it was true. "I like watching you practice."

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Unlike Nao, Xun was tall and thin, so he likely would have a much more difficult time doing the rolls that the younger boy was so quick and deft with. He was alright with wushu falls, but those were from a horse stance or a jump, not a roll, so he didn’t have to worry about unwinding beforehand. “We don’t have belts in wushu,” he replied, musing a bit. “We just determine by the years and intensity and group athletes into beginning, intermediate, and advanced levels at competition.” He was considered advanced since he’d been practicing for about nine years, but he was still far below some of his elders in their twenties.

He nodded in agreement, smiling faintly. “That sounds fair,” he replied, rolling out a tight spot in his shoulder. The basic rule with wushu was, once you had competed with a form in a tournament, you could teach the form to someone else. Although with Nao he would likely just teach him some basic movements like hammerfist and wheeling arms. “It is fun,” he agreed, though after a moment he added,”But… It is also very time-consuming and painful.” During competition season, which he’d just finished, he drove his body nearly to the breaking point on a regular basis. And with his ability, well… It didn’t help. But if he wanted to be good enough to join the national team someday, it was necessary.

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"Aikido goes by kyu-rankings, but my dojo only used white and black belts." Some other schools, he'd heard, use colors to define the kyu-ranks, but for the most part it was just divided between the two. Nao had been practicing for about 7 years himself and was the equivalent of brown belt…but just like Xun, he was still several ranks lower than the black belts he used to practice with back at home.

"Wushu does a lot of forms, right? How many do you know?" That was something that his art didn't have much of, complete kata. It was mostly just practicing the execution of techniques on a partner. There'd been many a time when Nao had been thrown across a room while being demonstrated on. That was where ukemi came in handy.

Unlike Xun, however, Nao didn't participate in competitions. His dojo never had. There were more demonstrations than he could count, though. Nao didn't understand competition. But he could understand always wanting to do your best; competing against yourself yielded that, and that was what Nao practiced. "Painful?" He didn't understand how it could be painful. Were there techniques that required you to push your body so beyond it's limits that it caused severe physical pain? Again, Nao didn't understand how that could be constructive and because he didn't understand all the details of Xun's meta-ability, he didn't consider that fact as a contributor.

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Xun was intrigued how different forms of martial arts determined their rankings differently. Since he had never trained to any belt-ranking system, he really wasn't even sure how it worked, other than black belts were impressive. "So, which belt ranking are you?" he asked curiously. He didn't understand how experience levels could only be grouped into two levels, but it must work if that was what they did.

"Yes, competition is all about formwork," Xun replied with a smile. "Well... There is some sparring, but for the most part it's individual." When asked how many he knew, Xun let out a small laugh and looked up at the ceiling, trying to recall. "Ah... I know several beginning forms that I don't actually compete with anymore, and intermediate forms that I've competed with in the past, along with the ones I am competing with now," he rambled. "I... I cannot say for certain. I know many." And since he didn't just stick to one style, he knew forms in open hand, staff, and straight sword, along with bits and pieces he had learned from other various styles, like nanquan (which he was much too thin and tall to do successfully).

Demonstrations were fun; Xun got a thrill from them that he didn't get with anything else. And, if he was honest, most of his pride came from feeling himself getting better than he used to be, rather than trying to be better than those around him. As long as he made progress, he was happy. "Yes... Conditioning can be very taxing," he replied, slowly stepping through one of his open hand forms. "And... I have to release energy from the tension I build up after practicing," he added, glancing at Nao. "You... Have normal enhanced speed, yes? Mine... Comes from friction. If I do not release it, it gets harder and harder to move and my muscles get painfully tight."

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"White. But only because I'm too young to take the test for black." Then he would ascent from the Kyu rankings into the Dan rankings. Lowest blackbelt rank was shodan. Nao looked forward to the day when he could wear that along with a hakama, though he supposed there was nothing keeping him from wearing the latter. It was more commonly practiced, though, for hakama to only be worn by higher ranks.

If competitions were all about forms, then it was unlikely that there was a division for aikido. That must be why Shihan never had them enter. Then again, Shihan also didn't like demonstrations. He said they gave a false representation of the art, making it seem like these techniques were only effective if executed against someone who knew they were coming. That was untrue, so Nao felt like he agreed with him. Nao himself had used his art in real fights before…but only because his opponents left him no other option.

"Oh…that's impressive! I don't think I'd be able to learn so many. Do you still practice the beginning forms?" If he didn't compete with them anymore, then Nao wondered if Xun went occasionally to practice the simpler stuff while he learned the more advanced ones.

Naozumi nodded as he decided to move on from his rolls to doing some simple tenshi-nage routines. It was hard to visualize some of these movements without a partner though. "Yes, just the normal kind. I don't use it much, but I think it would be nice to be able to use it somewhat in practice." Though it sounded like Xun's power was more troublesome than Nao's. "I'm sorry. That sounds difficult. How do you usually release it? How often do you need to?"

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"Oh," Xun replied, intrigued. He didn't realize some martial arts were limited by age. "How old are you? Or, I guess, how old do you have to be?" Some of the best wushu practioners he had met were probably half his age. Some people started their children training when they could barely walk - they had flexibility and resilience on their side that he, even still only being seventeen, didn't have as much of. He often wished he had started younger.

Sport wushu was actually quite impractical when it came to fighting and defending oneself. The traditional style was more like the kind that had been practiced and performed in wars in China thousands of years ago, but Xun practiced almost entirely contemporary. True, there was sanda, which was the fighting side of wushu, but he didn't like to hit people, so he had never enjoyed it all that much.

His cheeks flushed a little and he looked down at the compliment, but Xun allowed himself a small feeling of pride. "I've been practicing for many years, so I have learned a lot," he replied. "It's easy to forget bits and pieces of forms, though, so I try to practice most of them at least occasionally. The beginning forms are good for practicing basics too - it's easy to overlook them when trying more advanced forms, but they're very important." He'd seen competitors that relied on fancy moves more than practicing good basics - they never scored all that well.

Mm... Xun wasn't a jealous person, but he had to admit he was a little envious that Nao's ability didn't come with the same side effects. Granted, he was sure it didn't make it easy, but at least it sounded like it wasn't as painful, perhaps. "See this?" he asked, motioning to a thin, faded scar on his cheek. "That happened when I manifested," he said with a chuckle. "I was practicing a straight sword form and cut myself." Xun didn't usually admit that easily, but he figured Nao would understand. "And... It depends. The more I move throughout the day, the more build-up that I get. Usually at least twice in a day, though. And usually by just... Running very fast for a while, or going through forms more quickly, too."

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“Sixteen,” he answered. It wasn’t all aikido dojos, he’d heard, but his own followed that particular rule. He didn’t think it had anything to do with skill, but more with practicality and maturity. While a 12 year old might have the skills of a black belt, black belts were usually those given the role of assistant instructors in the classes under the primary shihan. Nao didn’t know if he’d have been able to undertake that kind of responsibility at that age. He might now, but he wasn’t in any hurry. His own skills spoke for themselves, not the color of his belt. “I’m fifteen now. Next year, I hope to go home and take the test.” Even though he didn’t live in San Jose anymore, Nao still considered the one at home to be his and where he wanted his dan advances to be tested.

“How long have you been practicing?” Now Nao was curious to know. He would have to have been practicing for a number of years in order to have learned to many. “I’ve been doing this since I was eight.” Which amounted to about 7 years. It was the only thing that he’d been allowed to keep up regardless of his family’s financial struggles.

Nao was thankful that he didn’t have the same problems that Xun had with his power, but that didn’t mean he didn’t have his own problems as well. For one, he was perpetually hungry, but Nao had always been a glutton so there might not have been much of a difference there. It also, rather inconveniently, slowed down his normal movements. But those weren’t exactly the same kind of difficulties as Xun’s. “So you have no choice but to use it every day? I try to avoid using mine. It makes me hungry.” So much by that point that he felt like passing out but…that still wasn’t the same. “Can you…see at that speed as well? Or maybe I should say think? It’s hard to describe what I mean….” Like mental reflexes? Or like the world slows down like how it does in movies? “I can’t. It makes me trip a lot when I try to use my power.”

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Sixteen? Interesting... Xun didn't know the particulars about aikido training, so it still seemed strange to him, but he respected their traditions nonetheless. "That's exciting," he replied with a smile. He had honestly thought Nao was younger, considering his height and appearance. "I wish you luck." Xun would certainly be sending positive chi his way.

"Ah, let's see..." Xun thought for a moment. "I think about ten years now," he finally answered. It hadn't seemed like that long. "I started when I was seven. It was just by chance," he added, a faint smile appearing on his face. "I was bullied quite often when I was younger, and I wanted to find something to be good at. It helped with my confidence," he said matter-of-factly. Xun still didn't radiate self-confidence and vanity, but he'd learned how to be less of a target, at least. And he'd gotten contacts, which had lessened the teasing about his eye color.

Xun ate a good deal too - he didn't know if that was his ability or not, but it made sense. It didn't gnaw at him though, thankfully. "Yes," he sighed, mouth quirking to the side unhappily. "I can't move otherwise, and it hurts the longer I wait." He glanced up. "I would like not to be able to use it. I was told that my life expectancy is shorter than most because of it." It was something he didn't like to think about. He moved through a couple of transitions as Nao spoke again, tilting his head thoughtfully. "I think I've gotten more used to it, but I still get ahead of myself sometimes," he replied. "Perhaps yours will get easier the more you practice too?"

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Nao nodded. Yes, it was pretty exciting. He was sure his mom would be there at the ceremony. Possibly some of his younger siblings. Yuri probably wouldn’t go, just from mere stubbornness. “Thank you,” he said with a smile. It was nice having someone who understood the achievement offer their support.

Ten years? That was impressive! Nao wished he had that many under his belt, but he was still a few years shy of it. Nao offered a small smile. “We’re really alike,” he pointed out. “That’s why I started martial arts too.” Naozumi had snapped more than a few times, though, with his skill, of which he was often scolded over by his Shihan. Nao felt bad about that, even more for the injury that he may have caused his tormentors and challengers, but…there was nothing else to do at the time. Nao didn’t like being compared to a girl and he didn’t like being cornered and put in unmanageable situations. He hadn’t come across that here at Hammel so far though. He was glad for it.

“I’m sorry,” he offered his sympathies. It must be hard to have to go through those kind of side effects. Nao couldn’t even imagine it, but he was glad that his own power was so straightforward, not like some others he’d heard of. “I hope so,” he agreed. Nao’s brain function was naturally slow and idle to begin with, so he didn’t know what to do other than to learn the muscle memory at those speeds. But even then, he had to have the mindfullness to keep up with the practice from the very beginning. “Was it hard for you at first?” he asked. Because Xun was clearly older, so he had been training his power for a lot longer as well.