Daigo was a burly, broad-shouldered guy with a booming voice. At the same time, Kafu was gangly, spoke low, and addressed everyone with reverence and honorifics. Daigo’s apprenticeship in the smithery and Kafu’s exposure to the pedagogy of Shibai Sharin temple both had molded their personalities accordingly.

Chiyo was a pretty, voluptuous girl who had recently come of age. She was feminine and athletic, with straight, silky hair and amaranthine-blue eyes. Even though the Mikashita boys were trained to endure, it was challenging not to pause for a moment and admire her beauty.

Chiyo: “I am very sure that it was kitsu.”

Most of the guys nodded and agreed with her. But it had little to do with her reasoning. It was challenging to disagree with someone as attractive as Chiyo.

Kafu: “Perhaps he is blessed by the Goddess.”

Most of the guys shook their heads. It was pretty easy to disagree with a gangly, fasting priest. He drank saffron-lilac water and had spent most of his early years inside an ancient, cryptic temple.

From the other canoe, Shigeo tch-tch-ed in dismissal.

All the clueless eyes turned to him. Realizing he had become the center of attention, Shigeo grinned ominously and prick his spectacles up his nose bridge.

Kento: “Enough grand-standing, Shigeo. Out with it!”

Shigeo was very dedicated to Kento and had never refused him anything. It had nothing to do with Kento being the de facto leader of the underage warriors. Kento had always protected him from bullying by the older Mikashita cousins through his family clout, intellect, and occasionally fighting ability.

Shigeo: “Very well. However, I will scrutinize Keiji sensei’s feat later. First, let me unravel Yuuki-sensei’s ability. Is that okay?”

Everybody else nodded. Yuuki’s attack was not something you saw in everyday life.

Shigeo: “Hmm. It was a high-level kitsu-manipulation called synthesis. An advanced book in the citadel library titled ‘Material-synthesis-kitsu’ covers this topic.”

Nadeko: ”What is synthesis? I’ve seen such raiki manipulations, but don’t understand how they work.”

Shigeo: “Synthesis differs greatly from usual manipulation. Like… when Kafu hatches fire-shrews through kitsu… umm… Kafu, could you make shrew for my demonstration?”

Kafu: “I will be pleased to.”

He put out his right hand and muttered a few inaudible words.

Blimp!

A single fire-shrew sprung from his palm. He carefully dropped it inside a clay bowl. Shigeo took it from him.

Awww! The girls fawned over the cute little flaming creature.

Crackle! The shrew’s heat started baking the insides of the bowl.

Shigeo: “You can see it weighs almost nothing. The fire-shrews possess one-fifth of the weight and strength of a live shrew. Because in this case, Kafu used only the fire attribute. Is everyone with me?”

The youngsters nodded.

Shigeo: “Yuuki-sensei’s kitsu lance was generated through synthesis, a very advanced form of kitsu manipulation. He fabricated physical matter by mixing all elemental attributes. The lance was as strong as wood or metal. And as heavy.”

The audience was holding their breath. They exhaled together, thrilled by the new revelation.

Akako: “Are you suggesting that he wielded a thirty-foot wooden lance? That would weigh thirty stones at least! Over four times my weight!”

Hajime: “And two times Megumin’s weight.”

Megumin: “Hey! I don’t weigh that much!”

Both Hajime and Yuuta sniggered at each other. Daigo and Kafu frowned at them.

Kento: “I get it. My father or any other kin-lord for that matter could lift that heavy a burden with ease, and then some more.”

Shigeo: “Yes, of course. And Material-synthesis-kitsu is child’s play for all kin-lords. Therefore, my point was, do not let Yuuki-sensei’s feat blow your minds.”

Akako punched Shigeo in the arm.

Akako: “Hey, nerd! You spend most of your time in the library. You can barely make a taekkyon stance without falling on your ass. And let us not forget that you hid under the stern seat when the lamia attacked our boat. Isn’t it embarrassing to ask us not to appreciate Yuuki sensei’s extraordinary skills?”

Shigeo was acquainted with Akako’s disdain. But in this case, she had clearly misunderstood his inflection. Something was up with her.

Shigeo: “Damn, that hurt! Anyway, don’t get me wrong. Even the best among us are uncooked potatoes compared to Yuuki-sensei. Our group has people who can’t even use kitsu, like Kento. People who haven’t trained in kitsu properly, like me.”

Nadeko, Illumi, and Masaki nodded in agreement, less out of shame and more because they wanted Shigeo to come to the point.

Shigeo: “The reason I asked you to overlook Yuuki-sensei’s ability is different. What I am going to tell you about Keiji-sensei will actually blow your mind.”