The next morning, after a hasty breakfast and a quick circulation of chi through my body—a poor substitute for a full workout—I set out to check on the prisoners. They were fine, though the ice had sustained some damage. They'd only managed to penetrate halfway through the wall. Taking control of one waterbender and one soldier, I headed to inspect the portals. Manipulating water within human bodies is getting easier.
I can only take through the portal those I touch, and two people is my current limit. Now, I want to see what happens if I send them to the North Pole without the protection of my chi. The waterbender looked exhausted by the end of the journey, but nothing serious happened to him. The same couldn't be said for the ordinary soldier, whose life was already hanging by a thread. Too much chi had been expended. There are only two waterbenders in the settlement—Katara and Kaya—and they're still very weak. So, it's time to test the portal again, this time using my chi. Directing the soldiers toward the barrier, I watched as they both disintegrated in the air upon contact. That barrier is truly terrifying—it consumed two lives in mere seconds.
The next two ordinary people passed through under my protection, and everything was fine with them. The journey took more of a toll on me, though. All three of my chi sources, except the neutral one, were nearly depleted, but I could still manage. I'll be able to relocate the villagers within two days. I'm not sure when the Fire Nation soldiers were supposed to report back, but it's best to hurry.
It'll be interesting to see Master Pakku's face when he sees Kanna. The people accepted the relocation calmly. Some had relatives at the North Pole, while others simply didn't want to lose their lives. Everyone found a reason to leave the South Pole. Of course, it was sad for them to leave the lands where they were born and raised, but there was no choice. Continuing to live means there's a chance to return home someday. I think I know how to deal with overpopulation if the Fire Nation calms down by then—or if I calm them down. We could consider resettling some of our people back to the South.
On the first day, I managed to transport half of the tribe's population, which sent the entire city into an uproar. No one expected there were still people living there. Some reunited with their relatives, while others were shocked by the small number of people in our sister tribe. No one remained indifferent.
Pakku's reaction to seeing Kanna deserves special mention. I've never seen such a fiery gaze, not even from young men with passionate hearts. His attachment to her must have smoldered all these years, never fading, and the moment he saw her, it reignited. It even made me feel awkward to notice it.
There was enough space to accommodate everyone. I asked my father to house Katara, Sokka, and Kaya in the palace. I had to endure Katara and Yui's glares as they alternated between shooting icy stares at each other and glaring at me with resentment. Even though they're strangers, they already see each other as rivals. Such female intuition at such a young age is intimidating.
At first, the Southern Tribe's residents marveled at how far our tribe had come. We may still be far behind the Fire Nation, but we're making progress—and that's what matters.
I had to dispose of the remaining soldiers. I had neither the desire nor the time to keep them, and they were no longer of any use. To advance in waterbending—which I've decided to call the fusion of bloodbending and chi—I would need to consciously harm these people to practice. I'm not ready for that, and I hope I never will be. There are other ways to solve problems. The city is full of people missing limbs, and twenty-five percent of the population are elderly. There's plenty of room to work.
My plan is to sneak up on sleeping people with ailments, heal them unnoticed, and leave. It benefits both the people and me—I'll gather statistics, after all, I want to give my loved ones only the best. For some elderly people, I can try to remove their most troubling ailments, which should theoretically extend their lives. It's a bit selfish, of course, but the same waterbending masters could contribute much more to society if they're alive. The healing process isn't always quick, but by manipulating chi, I can induce a deeper sleep in patients, from which they'll only awaken after some time. I've tested this on Fire Nation soldiers, who woke up without injuries and had no idea what had happened to them.
There are two methods of healing: a fast but costly one, and a slow but economical one. For the fast method, I have to give up my own chi, like when I regrew the soldier's limb. For the slow method, I need to provide more specific and time-extended programs. The person must consume more food with various nutrients to address the problem.
*
Today is the first joint waterbending lesson for Kaya, Katara, and Yui. I started by demonstrating the basics of waterbending. It'll be useful for Yui too—repeating what she's already learned is always beneficial. Otherwise, she's too focused on large-scale, flashy techniques, neglecting precise and subtle manipulations. Ah, youth… said the eight-year-old boy.
It was amusing to watch Yui proudly showcase her waterbending skills, looking down on Katara, which prompted Katara to seek my help, thus drawing my attention to herself. Even Kaya quietly giggled on the side. Competition is good, as long as it stays within reason.
That day, I subjected myself to intense training as well. After all, opening my chakra isn't far off. Usually, after such training, my clothes are soaked with sweat, so I trained with them half-naked. The girls didn't pay it any mind, but Kaya had an interesting reaction. Sometimes, I felt her gaze on me, as if it were tracing my entire body. I think they call girls like that "shotacon"? I don't mind, just wait a little longer, heh-heh.
My body hasn't entered the phase where it rises with the sun, but due to my training, chi manipulation, and my strange dual nature, my body is growing at an accelerated rate, three to four years ahead of my actual age. At eight, I look like a well-built twelve-year-old.
Her glances were like a red flag to a bull. My body might not be ready, but I can always enjoy positive emotions. But simply looking isn't enough—I want to tease her a bit.
"Kaya, you're not quite doing this stance right. Let me show you," I offered, though there were genuinely some flaws in her stance. But that's not why I'm here.
"Watch how it's done," I said, pressing closely behind her. I felt Kaya flinch slightly as I wrapped one arm around her waist, sensing her body tense. With my other hand, I ran it along her body and took her hand in mine. As I continued my bold actions, Kaya began to relax. She's in such an advanced stage—there wasn't even any resistance. "Do you understand now?" I whispered at the end, my lips close to Kaya's ear. All she could do was nod timidly. "Good. If you have any problems, call me right away. It's always harder to relearn, so it's best to lay a good foundation from the start," I finished, slowly pulling away. At first, it didn't go so well—Kaya held onto me for a few seconds before realizing what she was doing. She abruptly released my hands and stopped leaning against me with her back and hips. What followed was even more embarrassing.
"It looks like Katara needs help over there. Go quickly," Kaya said, her face red as she avoided my gaze, fussing with nonexistent wrinkles in her clothes. It's adorable—I should do this more often.
"Yeah, yeah, I'm going," I replied, hoping she didn't notice my mischievous smirk.
Teaching the girls quickly became my favorite activity. Yui and Katara could lift anyone's mood with their antics. A flustered Kaya is like a work of art. She already has two children and was married, but my actions seem to be new to her. After all, here, having children often equals marriage, and they don't have the 21st-century inventions yet. Though… aristocrats in any world can be a bit inventive, especially with bending. Ugh, my imagination is too wild—banish such thoughts.
Life in the city was bustling with new residents and widespread healing training. Someone at the assembly let slip about future changes in the status of female waterbenders. Now, even the elders feel uncomfortable walking around the city, as they're being watched by women eager for change. I wonder who started that rumor? Well, pretending to be clueless has never been my strong suit—they caught on the next day.
"Son, I know you're really pushing for this reform, but spreading that rumor was low. You're a man, after all!" my father finally blurted out, unable to hold back his emotions. When you have two female waterbenders in the house—one your wife and the other your daughter—and they find out you can influence the speed of this change, let's just say my father has been under pressure from both sides for the past two days. I don't know what Jun came up with, but Yui can now pester my father at any moment to expedite the new law. "Now you deal with these 'old fogies' yourself," he finished sarcastically. Dad, you're really pushing it. Isn't Mom giving you any sweets?
My father abruptly opened the door, behind which a commotion of familiar voices—ones I often hear at assemblies—had been going on. Damn, this isn't good.
"By Yuki's leg, because of you, my daughter won't talk to me until we officially adopt these changes!" Master Waterbender Ikatsu stormed into the office first, his lovely daughter having caught my eye practicing waterbending in a secluded spot.
"I can't even breathe fresh air anymore. Even in the outhouse, I feel those glares," said some twitchy assembly member who handles training regular warriors.
"Get your writing supplies, we're drafting the law now!" declared one of my father's advisors, as if chopping wood.
All it took was spreading a rumor, and voilà—these lazy bums came running to me. Now, I just need to act modest and clueless, like I didn't know such secrecy was needed. Of course, my father won't fall for it, but I hope he won't rat me out.
"I always carry them with me," I said, pulling out paper, a quill, and ink from my pockets. That was a mistake—I should have gone to fetch them for show.
"You carry them with you, huh? Crafty little manipulator," one of them said, almost admiringly. Well, playing dumb won't work now.
"Whatever, let's get started so we can finish faster," Master Ikatsu waved his hand, already calming down.
Despite my clumsy trick, the old schemers began to respect me even more. A good leader must know how to intrigue. The council is made up of such diverse people, and you need to be able to steer them all in the right direction. For your troubles, you've earned the top spots on my healing list.
No sooner had the previous uproar died down than a new one arose. Villagers' illnesses began to disappear, some even regrew lost limbs, and others started feeling a decade younger. Some elders looked at me suspiciously when this started, but believing an eight-year-old boy could do this would shatter the worldview they've carefully built their entire lives.
It was hard to heal more than two people per night—my chi isn't infinite. But after each small depletion, I feel it becoming denser and faster, which is exactly what I need to rejuvenate my parents' bodies. I just need to gain as much experience and energy as possible.