Getting Up to Snuff

Higure walked into the first legitimate training area she'd ever set foot. So far her training with the Twins had been either about studying to let her mind be of use to them, or in the case of Toonami. Giving her life lessons and showing her important things such as her tolerance for drugs, how to last longer in bed, or how to channel her inner arsonist towards something slightly more productive than blowing up people that annoyed her or insulted the very, very, very, small groups of individuals she cared about, a list containing all of three individuals. Akeno, Toonami, and Konomi.

For all Higure cared, the rest of the world could burn while she roasted marshmellows in the fire. But that was neither here nor there. Now was time for her to prove herself for two of those on that list who made up her little world. Too prove that their trust they'd placed in her wasn't misplaced, and if she did particularly well, could rub her success in the faces of those who had written her off for something outside of her control.

"So what exactly are we going to be training, so that I don't embarrass everyone when I do this whole exam thing."

[1]

"Your strength[" Konami replied in a neutral tone. The elder Twin had insisted that she train Higure privately in Kirigakure. She knew that if her sister was there then the two would waste precious time flirting. If Higure was to be their eyes and ears in the criminal world then she'd need to be stronger. Right now, she was relatively fragile. Smart but fragile. Konami walked over to Higure and began strapping a pair of training weights to her arms, knees, shoulders, and ankles. The weights wrapped around "Rock Lee style" although they were not nearly as heavy as what he wore. These weights would make it very difficult for Higure to move but not impossible. The strain and pain of their prescence would slowly tear and build up the girl's muscles.

"With these on we can start with a few basic movements. I don't think you're ready for anything advanced regarding martial arts so let's start with something simple and relaxing. Tai-Chi. It will help you learn discipline, proper form, and with the weights on it should strengthen your body as well."

Konami stood next to her disciple and took a deep breath in before settling into the first stance of Tai Chi. She expected Higure to copy her movements and she'd correct as necessary. There were a few things that Konami wanted to speak to Higure about and a less intense training session would provide her the oppurtunity to do so.[/b]

Higure strained slightly under the weight of the training weights strapped to her. Her frail, nerdy body definitely not in the best of shape. Probably worse due to her diet of drugs with her nightly training  with Toon being her only source of exercise. Not that she minded too much, it was usually the highlight of her evening on nights she wasn't cuddling under a blanket with a dense scientific journal.

As they got into position, Higure's face flushed red with shame, there was a secret she had been keeping from Toon and it was killing her, but at the same time, the fear of her perceived failure was crushing her like a ten ton weight on her heart, "Um ... Konomi-Senpai ... if I had a secret, nothing like cheating on Toon or stealing from you all, but a big secret. Could you tell me how much of a failure Toon would find me before I tell her? I ... with the exams happening in just a few days, I'm not going to be able to keep it a secret for much longer. But ... it makes me feel ashamed and as if I let you both down, just by this things very existence."

Higure would never really say it outloud while in any definition of sober, but how Konomi and Toonami perceived her was what she had started building her life around. With the death of Akeno, and the end of her old life. They were the foundation she had slowly been building herself up on. If they were disappointed with her, if they saw what she had unlocked as much a failure as she did herself. I would shatter her, but she could at least trust Konomi to let her know just how much a failure she was before she told Toon.

[2]