"You're too kind for your own good, boy." He shook his head. "That's why I worry about you. The world doesn't reward kindness. It devours it."
He turned, beginning to shuffle toward the tunnel, but paused after a few steps.
"But then again…" he added, not looking back, "maybe that's why you'll outlast them all."
Shun watched the old man disappear into the shadows of the tunnel, the words lingering in the air like an echo.
He stood there for a moment, letting the silence settle around him. Then, with a slow exhale, he turned back toward the pitch.
"Outlast them?" He muttered, a faint smile tugging at his lips. For some reason, he couldn't help but remember Hiro. The mere thought that he could outperform this beast of a man- he couldn't even entertain those thoughts.
How was he even supposed to surpass him?
The training ground stretched before him—empty, quiet, waiting.
He rolled his shoulders, flexed his fingers, and walked towards the field.
**** ****
