Fifth day of training camp,
Satoshi was greeted with cramps the next day, and he gritted his teeth as he summoned his familiar, Sera, to alleviate the pain. It had been so long since he last had cramps, and it wasn't as painful as he had initially expected. His sore muscles were more uncomfortable, to be fair, but that didn't stop him from doing his morning routine of exercise and training.
Once breakfast was over, the first test for the day was finally upon them. Once again, all the Disciples were gathered by the open area in front of the dorms, expectantly waiting for the Managers to give them their test. It was already the fifth day of the training camp, so some of the Disciples already fully adapted to their circumstance.
While everyone eagerly waited for the announcement of the first test, Karinna made her way beside Satoshi without speaking another word. No one knew why she did it, and at this point, Satoshi couldn't bring himself to ask.
Fortunately, only a couple of Disciples noticed this, and no one pointed it out. Well, Jonathan and Yun Zhe were on the verge of pointing it out, though, but Himuro stopped them short before they could do anything.
"H-here," Karinna muttered, handing Satoshi some sort of charm before she ran away without explaining anything.
"Thank you... ? What is this?" Satoshi asked as he examined the charm which Karinna handed him. To be fair, it greatly resembled a normal japanese charm but there was a faint trace of magic imbued in it.
Satoshi had no idea what it was, nor did he know how to activate it. Nevertheless he decided to keep it to himself, putting it in his pocket and making a mental note to ask Karinna about it later on.
This time, it was Bucky Barnes who walked forward. It wa s his turn as a Manager to give a test, and based on the smug expression on his face, one could tell that he was bound to give them hell. He might even be planning to top what Magnus Carter gave the Disciples three days ago.
"Ehrmm, I see that everyone's gathered here." Bucky Barnes's usual monotonous voice reverberated in the open area while he addressed everyone. "Today would be a simple and straightforward test. You don't have to worry about anything even if I don't explain the test to you."
"And yes, this time, Satoshi would not be joining the test. He would annihilate all of you if you were to join." Bucky Barnes said in a condescending manner. He wasn't showing any favorites, whatsoever, just that Satoshi would really ace the test without question, and it wouldn't be a challenge anymore if he were to do that.
"Instead, I'm assigning Satoshi under Magnus Carter's guidance. You have a scheduled test with your Disciples who didn't join this training camp, right? He should go with you for now, see if he stands a chance against some of the strongest Disciples out there." Bucky Barnes continued.
"Eh?!" Satoshi turned around, hoping that some of the Disciples would disagree with what his Manager just said. He didn't expect Bucky Barnes to separate him from the group, much less put him with stronger Disciples.
However, no one actually sided with him. Even Jonathan and Yun Zhe just flashed a thumbs up at him, wishing him good luck. Every Disciple here knew just how powerful Satoshi was. After witnessing his feat during the three-day survival test, they knew that he was leagues above them.
"I'm coming with him!' A girl suddenly stepped forward without regard to what Bucky Barnes just said.
For a moment back there, Satoshi thought that Lucy would disagree with Bucky Barnes and insist that he joined them. Well, not really.
Rather, Lucy suggested the opposite. She wanted to join Satoshi in his separate training.
"Eh?!" Satoshi exclaimed as he leaned in towards Lucy who stood beside him. "What are you talking about? You should've convinced them to let me stay." He hissed.
"It's all right. It's not like they'd willingly agree to my absurd request." Lucy flashed a smile at Satoshi.
For a moment, Satoshi could've sworn that a couple of glares were directed his way. With his enhanced senses, he didn't have to look back to know that it was Karinna, Mitsuka, and Nanako who were giving him the stares. Jonathan and Yun Zhe were also glaring at him, but at this point, Satoshi was immune to their glares.
"Whoa, we have ourselves a challenger." Bucky Barnes commented before nodding his head. "Very well, if your Manager allows it... and if Magnus Carter allows it as well, then feel free to join my Disciple."
Initially, Lucy just acted out of impulse. Even then, she was confident that the Managers won't allow her to go with Satoshi since she might not be able to keep up. That's why she was confident that Bucky Barnes would just reject her ridiculous request.
To her surprise, Bucky Barnes actually accepted her request, provided that her Manager and Magnus Carter would agree to it.
"..."
"..."
And they did!
"Eh?!" Lucy's jaw dropped to the floor as the sheer shock overcame her. With both parties approving, Lucy had no choice but to go with Satoshi on this test.
"I guess that's that then... didn't you say something about them not agreeing to your request?" Satoshi asked, confused.
Teary-eyed, Lucy sniffled as she stared straight into Satoshi's eyes. She wanted to ask for help, but she couldn't do it since she was the one who brought up the topic of going with him in the first place.
Clearing his throat, Bucky Barnes continued his announcement. He started discussing the contents of the next test, and while all of that was going on, Magnus Carter carefully approached Satoshi and Lucy, signaling for them to follow him while he led them to their separate test.
"My Disciples are eager to meet you as well, Satoshi. I guess this is a good opportunity for them." Magnus Carter commented as they walked through the crowd, then out of the dorms.
The rest of the Disciples watched as the two of them were led into the forest, dreading to think what would happen to them if they were to speak up. From afar, the group saw Magnus Carter opening an interdimensional portal and gesturing for Satoshi and Lucy to go with him.
The ten Disciples belonging to Satoshi's group also wanted to go with them. But right now, they were exhausted to the point where they didn't want an additional challenge. Nonetheless, they gave Lucy a salute for volunteering even though she clearly won't be able to keep up with Satoshi.
Now that Satoshi and Lucy were gone. It was time for Bucky Barnes to garner everyone's attention. It was time for them to initiate the first test for the day. He was especially looking forward to the test he was going to give them.
"Let's start, shall we?" Bucky Barnes grinned as he created a sizeable portal in front of them.
...
Fwoooosh~!
Before Lucy and Satoshi could say anything to each other as they entered the portal. When they come out the other side.
Satoshi could've sworn that he heard angelic voices singing in the background when they set foot in an entirely different place.
The place resembled a scenic Japanese place wherein there were tall pillars of rock with waterfalls coming out of it. Shinto arches could be seen everywhere, marking the paths and stairways which meandered all over the place. It was certainly a paradise, and Lucy and Satoshi gazed in awe as they admired the view.
"Welcome to my dimension where all my Disciples are gathered." Magnus Carter excitedly said while he extended his hands.
Everyone in this place wore the same clothing, just with different designs. When they saw Magnus Carter arrive, they waved their hands and greeted him with a slight bow. Some of them wondered why their Manager brought new faces, but they didn't dare ask any questions.
The first one, they had no idea who she was— just that her face was familiar. As for the second one, everyone unsurprisingly knew who he was. Most of them watched the three-day survival test, after all, and they saw how Satoshi did what all of them weren't capable of doing.
He survived the entire three days, and he even protected his team of ten with him. Just that feat alone puts him as the number one Disciple to ever exist, much stronger than any of them who were supposed to be the most formidable ones in the dimensions.
"It's Satoshi."
"Eh? He's here, why?"
"I don't know, why don't you ask him."
"No, you should approach him."
Satoshi could hear everyone murmuring his name as Magnus Carter led them forward. It didn't take long before most of the Disciples gathered around them, and Magnus Carter addressed them while clasping his hands together.
"Perfect timing, today, Lucy and Satoshi here will be joining us for our training this entire day." He announced, causing everyone to gasp as they stared straight into Satoshi's soul.
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