7. Waterbending Kata

…

86 AG / 4 months after reincarnation

“Three…” Lee muttered with an exhale, his hands struggling to lift his weight.

He lowered his body again by bending his arm with a deep inhale, making sure that his chest touches the ground, not his stomach or hips.

“Four…” he whispered, arms trembling as he pushed himself back up. Sweat gathered at his temples, dripping down to the animal pelt beneath him. His breathing grew louder, with each inhale having to fight its way in.

He held himself at the top for a brief period, elbows locked, core tight, refusing to let his hips sag. His muscles burned, a sharp, demanding heat that begged him to stop. But he didn’t.

Instead, he dipped down again, slower this time, almost stubbornly so. His chest hovered just above the ground before pressing upward once more, a strained exhale escaping him.

“Five…” he muttered to himself.

At this point, he knew his body had reached its current limit. He couldn’t continue any further… not without help at least.

“It’s time then,” he told himself. He began circulating the dense energy permeating throughout his body.

A strange comfort spread throughout him as he focused and guided the energy into a circular motion. The exhaustion in his limbs did not vanish, but something else rose to meet it. The trembling in his arms steadied, not through rest, but through the release of a new strength.

A force flowed without shape or name, threading through muscle and bone alike. His chest lifted slightly, as if guided by instinct rather than strength. The burn in his shoulders dulled, replaced by a dense, coiled pressure that demanded release.

Lee smirked. A few days ago, he had discovered that he could physically empower himself by circulating this unnamed energy. He had been quite surprised by the discovery and absolutely delighted.

He could not wait to discover what other uses this unnamed energy had.

Lee took a deep breath, feeling the newfound strength surge through his body. He felt tougher. Stronger… almost invincible. It made his pulse quicken.

“Let’s see,” he murmured.

He bent his arms again, lowering himself with a control that hadn’t been there moments ago. The strain was still present, but it no longer ruled him. At the bottom, he paused, his chest barely above the ground, then pushed. The act barely required any effort.

“Six.”

The word came easier.

Joy and thrill ran through him like a shiver.

“Seven.”

“Eight.”

.

.

.

“And… thirty. Phew.”

A grin spread across his face. Thirty was his current limit after circulating the energy. After that, it became harder to continue guiding it, and he had to stop.

Lee rolled over, lying down on the animal pelt on his back. “No matter,” he muttered, “Limit will increase with time.”

His chest rose and fell as he stared up at the smooth, icy ceiling above him, the faint scent of fur and sweat clinging to the air. He rested for a few minutes before rising into a sitting position.

He was exhausted, and his body demanded rest, both to recover from the strain and to rebuild into something stronger after his exercise.

He happily obliged, walking to his futon once his sweat had dried, and soon fell asleep for the night.

…

The next morning, Lee followed Pakku to an open space ten minutes from their home. The place was still within the boundaries of the noble district.

Inside, four figures stood waiting, all of them waterbenders of various ages. Even then, Lee noticed that he was the youngest by far.

They were Pakku’s other students. The youngest among them appeared to be a ten-year-old boy, while the oldest was a seventeen-year-old young man. The other two were twelve and fifteen, respectively.

“This is Lee,” Pakku said, pointing at him once they were near. “He is my newest student. As his seniors, I expect all of you to guide him when he is struggling with something. Don’t consider it a chore. Teaching others is just as beneficial, if not more so, than learning itself.”

“Yes, Master Pakku,” all of them said in unison as they bowed to their teacher, making a fist with one hand and pressing it into the open palm of the other before their chest.

Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

Pakku nodded, appearing satisfied as he tried to stroke his almost non-existent beard with a hand resting behind his back.

The four students relaxed their stances and studied Lee with varying degrees of curiosity. The youngest boy shifted on his feet, eyes bright with interest, while the oldest crossed his arms, measuring Lee in silence.

“And these four are,” Pakku said, pointing to the leftmost figure and sweeping his finger to the right, “Bato, Hakoda, Uluk, and Atka, respectively. From now on, if you have any doubts or questions related to waterbending, I want you to ask them first before approaching me. And, brat, be respectful. I know you’ve got a cheeky side.”

Lee resisted the urge to react to the last comment and instead bowed slightly, mirroring the others. “Understood, Master Pakku.”

“Good,” Pakku said. “Now that introductions are over, and since this is Lee’s first day practising the waterbending kata, we shall review the basics today.”