After the meal Zukki had trodden just ahead of Karada. After her little tender moment Jetto decided to go run off her steam. Not an irregular event, it was always how the brash women relieved her stress.
The energetic Little girl looked like the leader, even as her short limbs took the smallest strides. It was a calm return to the training hall where Ringu was practicing his control.
Zukki's eyes widened as she witnessed an arching torrent of flames orbit his body in a spiral. They rose up and around his body with a never before seen flourish. It ended with the fire connection into one long hoop of fire above his head.
As Ringu found that he was in the presence of others, he released the fire in a pulse above everyone's heads. The fire sputtered out and died before they could travel dangerously.
"Sh*t, that's new" Jetto is the first reaction.
"Wow! That's cool..Ringu!" Zukki says with a distinct lack of a title, like how she calls Jetto antie and Karada unchie. (Cute ways of saying aunt and uncle)
Ringu raised an eyebrow at the growing lack of difference. Karada didn't even react to his display of flame manipulation.
He walks towards the group entering the training room before speaking in his normal drawl.
"Hooooows your training, little ooooone?" His drawl lasted extra long for some reason. Couldn't be the lack of respect; admiration just flew past his head.
"Yes I am! Look look Ringu i can do this now" despite the brash tendencies, her admiration acts more like a way of showing respect.
Zukki holds her palm out and produces the fire she started practicing with. A palm sized ball of flames flutters back and forth. She was already trying to mold it to shroud her hand, but was clearly failing to do more than pretend a mild breeze wafted in.
"Hmmmm" Ringu audibly muses, watching intently how Zukki produces and moves her flame.
"As you can see, she has some work to do." Karada says, not discouraged at all, although he couldn't really give the girl any advice.
Jetto observed with not much to add. Molding fire came so naturally to her after a certain point. It's impossible for her to explain.
"What do you feeeeel?" Ringu finally asks.
"Hmm hot..no..no" Zukki answers and quickly retracts it. "It warm"
"Yeeeees, but i was refeeeerring to anything aside from that"
"We'll I'm hungry"
"What!? You just ate" Karada says with mild surprise.
"Yeah your meal.. with the gross grain soup on the side" Jetto says, eager to convince Zukki to pull away from the specific food and join her hunk of meat faction.
"Hey I'm still full and when you were her age you didn't eat half as much" Karada counters.
While the two of them argue about trivial things Zukki focuses on the flickering fire in her palm. It moved more when she tensed all the muscles in her body; a scrunched up expression and taut tail.
Eventually the little girl's face turned blue from holding her breath. Releasing all the tension in her body all at once, the little flame was stoked in that small instance leading it to jut out before disappearing.
"Hmmm" Zukki looks at her empty hand with a puzzled expression.
"Cleeearly you are getting somewhere. Just keep practicing and you will find it's eeeeeasier than you think." Ringu acknowledges Zukki's potential before turning on his heel. "But we'll continue working on that, when it's my tuuuurn to mentor you"
The rest of the training session ran simply. What could be seen as a wasted effort by outsiders, becomes the proper foundation to Zukki's future. She worked diligently, each flicker of movement her reward for failing more often than not.
Karada and Jetto tried to interject, but it always turned into "look like this" or "watch my flames" without proper context for the issue.
Hours later Zukki was drenched in sweat. Palms to the floor like that day she was initiated.
"Gah..ha..gah..ha." she gasps for air.
Zukki felt like all the energy to move had been burned out of her body. The sweat dripped down her nose and onto the floor before someone spoke again.
"One more time" said both Karada and Jetto.
"Wha..yes!" She says with a start. Pushing off the ground despite her exhaustion. Her limbs were trembling, but not weak, Zukki was able to rise again.
Her palm reached out with effort. Fingers tensing to foster the heat, though it's much easier now, not that she notices this fact. The flames jut out like backfire out an exhaust pipe. Not once but several times.
Her arm tires out and she lifts the other one. The same flame sputtering result resulted in the girl falling to her butt.
"Ha! That's it.." she falls back laughing slightly as she slowly catches her breath staring up at the ceiling. The two figures of her mentor stand at each of her sides looking down.
"Great job" Karada's expression is turning bright as he says so.
"You are a great kid, always push one more time at the peak of your work!" Jetto adds her wisdom and it fits surprisingly.
Kappa finally returned from his duties to see his daughter exhausted on the ground. Normally father would be worried, however the saiyan race even those like the flame Squadron can't help but feel some modicum of pride. Unlike the rest, his actions weren't fleeting or brief.
The proud father kneels above his daughter's head. Her hair slightly wet, the mane of hair sprawling out messily. Tail limb across the ground to her right side.
"Looks like you worked quite hard. I bet you've worked up a huge appetite" he says, unable to hold back a grin. This base was somewhat safe enough for him to do that.
Still his two respected subordinates were moved by the sight. Stepping back slightly before standing at attention. They didn't even notice him until he had knelt down.
"Boss!" they say in sync.
"Father.." Zukki says After opening her eyes. They widened lazily with joy. "I'm huumgry" she mumbled to everyone's laughter.
"Alright..you two are dismissed for the day." He waves off the two of them. Jetto and Karada walk away with the former stretching her arms above her head.
Kappa lifts Zukki into his arms. Cradling her gently in his arms as they walked out of the room the crisp cool air hit them. The night had come upon them and the darkness lay at the edge of the lit cavern. Normally you would see the ravine and the mountain side across, but it was pitch black now.
"So let me know all about your training, did you drink enough water? And did Jetto deviate too much?" He says as they approached the staircase heading up to their home.
Where Mizu waits for them.
***
Mizu's life had become that of a sickly woman laying in bed. Once or twice a day she had the energy to stand and today she used up all of it for a special reason.
The woman with blue shoulder length choppy hair sagged in a wooden chair near the threshold between the kitchen and the living room. Her matching blue tail drooped out from the blanket draped across her.
As she exhales ragged breaths in her sleep the sound of her family returning makes her eyes slowly flutter open weakly. They found a pair of eyes that looked back with awe and worry.
Her daughter who was ever eager to arrive at her destination and her husband who acknowledges the truth. Zukki's nose crinkled at the smell filling the room.
"Zukki.." she mutters and reaches out, the blanket falling off her arm.
"Mother.. you made so much food!" exclaimed the girl who looked tireder than she sounded. Her mother's hand reaches her head and runs through her spikey locks of hair.
Kappa placed his hand on her shoulder and worked the courage to pretend as if all is right.
"Let's eat, it has been too long since we sat together as a family" his voice trembled as he felt the wavering temperature of his mate's body. He couldn't believe she had been one of the warmest people he had ever met.
Mizu could read his thoughts just from the way he acted alone.
"Alright!" Mizu chirps loudly, assuaging any worries that may creep in now that her daughter is becoming perceptive. "Let's all the delicious food i prepared for my two loves"
Then to the surprise of herself she rose to her feet for the sixth time. She ends up nearly collapsing, thankfully Kappa caught her before it could lead to anything. She swore she saw the man frown briefly, until he too was masking his worries for their daughter.
"Hehehe, Mother's food" Zukki giggled blissfully unaware of her mothers frailty.
_-_-_-_-_-_-_-
(A/N) For those who have come this far, honestly I feel like you deserve a hint of what's to come. The rate of uploads might make it tough to gauge your own interest so let me say that this volume is one long character developing arc. Time skips are coming but the main characters need to have their mindsets a bit more soild before I can do that. When they develop a little more combat will become more prevalent.