Okita Sōji rolled up her sleeves, revealing her fair wrists.
Okita Sōji did not display her extreme speed, nor did Hebe summon a Heroic Spirit Swordmaster. The two merely exchanged ordinary techniques.
First came Tennen Rishin-ryū, then Hokushin Ittō-ryū, followed by Shingyōtō-ryū, Kyoshin Meichi-ryū, Jigen-ryū, Shintō Munen-ryū... Wooden sword struck wooden sword in midair, sliding down along the curves of their blades, like fish brushing past each other in water before once again tracing elegant, simple lines.
Their steps crossed, and their positions shifted.
A faint fragrance rose with their fluttering sleeves as Hebe and Okita Sōji locked gazes.
Hebe saw excitement, joy, and purity in Okita Sōji's eyes.
Okita Sōji, meanwhile, saw interest, anticipation, and approval in Hebe's eyes.
The wooden swords met once more. At some point, they had switched places again, and the swordsmanship in their hands had returned to Tennen Rishin-ryū.
"...Does it feel good?" The young swordfighter, her cheeks lightly flushed, stared at Hebe and asked openly, "Miss Tamamo, does it feel good?"
"It is very interesting." Hebe had never expected that a simple exchange of swordsmanship could give her such a feeling of "exhilaration."
It was an entirely unprecedented experience.
"That is wonderful." Okita Sōji spoke softly. "I had always felt that Miss Tamamo did not think much of swordsmanship or the way of the sword... That is because Miss Tamamo is simply far, far too strong."
All along, Hebe had indeed walked the path of the strong.
That strength was not merely power, but wisdom as well.
She had defeated the Demon King head-on and single-handedly nurtured the general who swept through the Eastern Lands.
Even when the general pierced her through with Ama-no-Sakahoko in the mountains of Takachiho, it had been within her calculations.
Further back, in the Egyptian lands and The