After a while, akari finally mastered the ice projectiles technique and managed to hit a lot of targets
"Your a fast learner" Sota said as both of them sat down and he handed her some water while she catched her breath
"Thanks" akari said as she took the water gratefully while catching her breath from her training
"Its getting late, you should probably go back" Sota said as he got up and glance at the darkening skies
"Yeah i should probably head back" akari said as she got up and brush the snow from her clothes
"Thanks for everything today Sota" akari said as she began heading back to her camp while waving goodbye to Sota
"Goodbye" Sota said quitely as he stared at Akari's fading figure in the distance before he turned turned around and headed back
Soon akari arrived at their camp where Amaya and kaito were making a fire "oh your back" kaito said as he got up
"Where'd you go?" Kaito asked as he approached her "i met a new friend and he taught me a few techniques" akari replied
"What did they teach you?" Kaito asked as he stopped right in front of her "ice manipulation" akari replied while smiling widely
"Ice manipulation?!" Amaya exclaimed as she stood up suddenly, looking shocked as she stared
"Yeah why?" Akari asked as she looked at amaya who was still shocked "you don't know?!" Amaya asked again
"Know what?" Akari asked confused by Amaya's surprise "ice manipulation is a top tier technique in water manipulation" amaya replied
"Wait it is?" Akari asked, now surprised "yes, only a few water manipulators from Lunaris can do it" Amaya replied
"Most who could master it live here in the mountains in the ice solstice" amaya added as she sat down again
"Wait really?" Akari asked again "yes. Anyways how long did it take you to learn the basics?" Amaya asked as she signaled for them to sat down
"Basics? I'm just a few bits away from mastering it" akari replied as she sat down beside amaya
"Almost mastering it?!" Amaya asked shocked as she nearly chokes on air "you mean that it took you an hour to master it?!" She adds
"Yeah why are you shocked?" Akari asked "its literally one of the hardest water manipulation techniques there is!" Amaya replied, practically shouting
"What?!" Akari replied shocked "yeah its very difficult to master" amaya replied. Suddenly a hand held their shoulder
"Ahhhhh! What was that?!" Amaya shrieked as she jumped and turned to face the person who put his hand on her shoulder
"Calm down kids, its just me" Kenji said as he came back with some food "oh its just Kenji" akari said as she relaxed
"So did you find the cave?" Kaito asked as he started serving their food in the bowls and handing them out to the others
"Yes i found the cave, though it took me quite a while to find it" Kenji replied as he sat down beside them and brushed some snow off his clothes
"Yeah we could see that" akari said as she glanced at kenji who was almost covered with snow from his hair to his pants
"It was hard navigating my way there, especially with all the guards watching there" kenji said as he began eating the food
"More guards? Just great" kaito said sarcastically as he took a bite from his food before getting some of their water from the frozen river and pouring himself a glass
"Yeah, its a bit tricky to cross there but we'll make it if were stealthy and quick enough" kenji replied
"We better get our gear ready for tomorrow then" kaito said as he finished his food first and got up to pack
"I'll be preparing some food for the road" amaya replied as she finished and left, leaving kenji and akari there eating
"So where'd you get the water" kenji asked as he poured himself a glass as he finished eating
"We found a frozen river not far from here" akari replied as she finished eating and pointed to the direction of the river
"Well that's convenient" kenji replied as he glanced at the direction where akari pointed and saw a glimpse of the frozen river
"Well i better get to sleep for our journey tomorrow" akari said as she got up and went into her tent while kaito and amaya followed a few moments later
Meanwhile kenji stayed outside for a while, looking up at the stars that shined brightly in the night sky
"Your daughter's growing up, a prodigy and a hardworker just like you" kenji said as he smiled sadly at the stars