Year Three of the Time Skip
Meiji 37 (1904)
Ages during this year:
Kai: 11 → 12 (Early October)
Mitsuri: 11 → 12 (Early June)
Shinobu: 10 → 11 (Late February)
Kanae: 14 → 15 (Late November)
Location: Azabu District — homes, clinic, festivals, wisteria clearing
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Kanae — Late November
Kanae's birthday always arrived quietly.
Late November dulled the world's colors. Leaves thinned. Air sharpened. People spoke more softly without realizing why.
Kanae turned fifteen that year.
There was no celebration at dawn. Just tea, folded sleeves, and the clinic already awake. Patients smiled when they realized what day it was.
"You should rest," one woman told her.
Kanae smiled gently. "Later."
That evening, the others surprised her anyway.
Not with noise—but presence.
A simple meal. Warm soup. A scarf Mitsuri had insisted on choosing. A pressed flower tucked into a book from Shinobu.
Kai bowed deeply. "Thank you for guiding us."
Kanae felt something warm settle in her chest.
At fifteen, she realized she no longer carried responsibility alone.
That, more than age, felt like growth.
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Shinobu — Late February
Shinobu turned eleven under pale winter light.
She pretended it didn't matter.
Until Mitsuri decorated the clinic with paper flowers. Until Kai remembered to bring her favorite tea without being told. Until Kanae rested a hand on her head and said, "You've done well this year."
Shinobu looked away.
"…It's just a birthday."
But she didn't push them away when they sat with her. She didn't complain when they lingered. She didn't hide her smile.
Later, sparring with Kai, she slipped on purpose—just to see.
"Cover," she said.
He did.
Perfectly.
Shinobu laughed under her breath.
Trust, she realized, had become instinct.
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Mitsuri — Early June
Summer greeted Mitsuri like an old friend.
She turned twelve under clear skies and festival lanterns, her laughter louder than the drums in the street.
This year, there was no nervousness.
No checking glances. No fear of being too much.
She danced. She ate too much. She pulled Shinobu into games and dragged Kai through crowds.
"You look different," she told Kai suddenly.
He tilted his head. "How?"
"…Happier," she decided.
She felt the same way.
At twelve, Mitsuri finally understood that strength didn't mean shrinking herself to fit beside others.
It meant standing tall—together.
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Kai — Early October
Kai turned twelve beneath falling leaves.
Early autumn suited him.
His birthday passed with calm celebration—shared food, quiet laughter, lantern light soft against familiar faces.
No heavy thoughts. No shadows from other lives.
Just now.
That night, he trained alone beneath the wisteria, breath steady, movements smooth and unforced.
Sun Breathing no longer demanded attention.
It flowed.
[Sun Breathing: Harmonized.]
Kai understood something important then:
He wasn't growing ahead of the others. He was growing with them.
That made all the difference.
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Closing — The Year Settles
Four birthdays. Four seasons. One year completed.
They were older now. Stronger. More certain.
Families intertwined. Trust unspoken. Laughter easier.
The third year of the time skip did not test them harshly.
Instead, it prepared them.
And as winter approached once more, beneath bare wisteria branches and cooling skies—
They stood ready.
Not as children chasing strength.
But as young warriors learning how to carry it— without losing themselves.
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