Salt Water [Ira]

Everything was in order. She had a strict process for her training, and any student she took on would abide by it as the young one should be accustomed to at this stage. Tea to invigorate the soul followed by exercising the soul before a soak in the hot springs to wash the soul. Miki did not explain it as such though, she tried to speak plainly on things rather than confusing others with her views.

She waited with a faint grin on her face like she had all the time to wait in the world. Miki didn't enforce any strict times so she was more than happy to wait on Ira. If she got desperate she had a had a couple of books to read and pass the time with.

It was nice having someone to train with though since it had been difficult to find a student who showed any kind of potential for her elemental style. It was also a bit of her bad habit that perpetuated that though. She was a reactive person that went with the flow rather than every initiating anything, and so the student of that woman's request was a welcome change of pace.

As peculiar as she thought it was for him to do so.

Ira was an exceedingly punctual man, despite his usually lax demeanor, and that was all the more apparent in these days he was spending at the Koizumi estate. Being a man of the sea didn't leave you with too much time to laze around, and certainly didn't allow for any delay. Suisha was an odd one, Ira'd be the first to concede that, but he didn't mind. Not like he really hung around many normal people anyway, yeah?

"Hey, morning!"

It was casual, certainly, but a casual demeanor didn't lessen the weight of the actual respect Ira felt toward the woman. Being a captain at sea bred a certain lack of care toward formality, even in serious circumstances, and that bled into his life even now. He gave her a bow, of course, and was already fully prepared to sit and enjoy tea with her before they started. Her methods were peculiar, but not unwelcome.

"Morning, Ira. I hope ya well rested."

She was cheerful that the young man was here now, bubbly even, as she lifted the pot to pour him a cup. It wasn't hot but she almost was inconsistent with the strength that she'd brew her tea at. Sometimes it could be as weak as water or it might bring tears to the eyes. She believed it refined the senses so that they were more consistent in different situations rather than being overwhelmed.

"How do you feel about your progress so far?"

Miki enjoyed the small talk that this session provided. Now more than ever since she had someone to actually talk to rather than sit quietly but she would be sure to mirror Ira's movements so that they sipped the tea at the same time. She had the tea brewed without knowing the strength herself and if they drank at different times then it would defeat the whole purpose.

"Mm... Tough question."

Ira took a careful sip of the tea, knowing full well that it could be something ain to a punch in the face. Of course, careful didn't mean hesitant, and so even as the bitter tast almost overwhelmed him, Ira simply winced a bit, his thoughts still on the matter of his training.

"Better'n when I was just teaching myself, for sure. Can't say I really had much idea about all the more intricate parts of fightin' or anything. Feel like I've still got a long way to go though."

As it was, Ira knew his fundamentals were still pretty mediocre. There was a lot he needed to pick up from Suisha, even without getting into all the really fancy stuff.

She matched his sip without anything to suggest that her senses had been overwhelmed by the bitter tea. It was quite potent what her attendants had brewed.

"You do. I'm not teaching you the Suichō Seiketsu Ken but I am teaching you the fundamentals. It would take many years for me to feel confident that you could learn it quickly."

Miki explained without intending to hurt his feelings with her thoughts but they were pragmatic. Preferable even as she would rather Ira develop their own approach than adopt the Koizumi traditions.

"I wasn't really expectin' you to teach me any of that. I appreciate the fundamentals just plenty. All I really knew before all this was fishin' and the like, but I feel like what you've been teachin' me's used that pretty well. The footwork n' balance n' all that. Maybe I'm wrong though."

He didn't feel like he was, but Ira was a respectful enough man that he was willing to avoid making any outright statements regarding the effectiveness of lessons. After all, he didn't really know what he was doing. That was why he was here.

"Long as I'm actually makin' progress, I'm alright with whatever you decide to teach me."

Well, ya progress is a bit like the tides. It fluctuates; some things come quicker than others, and some things reach further."

She articulated her sagacity to him in a way that might've gone over his head since she felt so inclined to use analogies. Regardless though she took another sip while collecting her thoughts. The movements of his body would be something that he would need to master himself but for matters of the spirit she felt a lot more comfortable putting his focus on. She did not imagine that humans had very developed spiritual control when so many only had enough power to see spirits rather than achieve any kind of feats beyond that.

"Have you been doing your visualisation training that I taught you? Your reiryoku flowing through your body like a network of rivers and streams? If you are having trouble I can arrange a chart which shows the venous system; it's a marvellous tool by using the tangible aspects of the body as a guideline for the spiritual arts."

"Yeah, that's what I've mostly been doin', though that chart sounds like it might still help out. Ain't one to turn down a useful tool like that."

Setting down his thankfully-emptied teacup, Ira thought a bit more about the prior spiritual training he'd done. Or, rather, the lack thereof. He'd always focused on his physical training, by and large, and the one time he'd really put any effort into his spiritual side, he'd ended up having that growth spurt that put his training on hold.

"I know that stuff's variable between people. You think it's possible that me being in the wrong body'd mess with the flow?"

"I'm sure it's complicating the process for ya."

She grinned to herself at how quickly he had drank the tea, whereas she was patient and willing to drawn out the unpleasant experience. Slow was smooth and smooth was fast. In the midst of battle it if you rushed something it could leave exploitable weaknesses for your foe.

"But at the end of the day, you're still a sprout. It may prove to become a powerful boon or it might hinder ya indefinitely. It's hard to tell."

Miki didn't try to sugar coat the situation to Ira but it was something she considered in his development nonetheless. She couldn't empathise though. It was a truly unique situation after all, a snowflake amongst an ocean of drops. Now that did sound pretty neat, didn't it?

"Well, that ain't exactly reassuring, but it's not like I came here just hopin' to be placated. I came to ya for a reason after all, I already knew gettin' better would take some work."

Ira would have typically already stood up, started stretching and warming up, but he knew going against Miki's pace was setting himself up for trouble. Not because he necessarily expected a scolding or anything, no. He just knew that she was going to do things at the speed she thought was best, and any effort he made to shake things up would be like trying to change the tides. Besides, he was the infinitely less experienced between the two of them, anyway.

"Besides, I've got time. Body's plenty young, but I already got all that headstrong overconfidence out years ago."