Kiryuu

The stick Kiryuu carries was once used to knock ripe apples from high branches; these days, it’s used to find the weak points in an opponent's stance. Before The Dojo, their world was dirt, sun, and the rhythm of seasons. That world ended the day Tokumi arrived, not as a neighbor, but as a blade in the dusk during a raid that threatened to burn everything Kiryuu had spent a lifetime growing. Kiryuu fought back with the only tool they knew and somehow survived the encounter. The raid failed, but the peace was shattered forever. Growth felt pointless if it couldn't be defended. So they came to The Dojo to learn how to break things—bones, guards, spirits. The greatest shock was finding Tokumi there too, wearing the same trainee’s whites. They never speak of that day. They just watch each other across the training yard, two former enemies who now bow to the same master.