The sun hung low over the magical city of Liria, casting warm golden light through the training yard behind the inn. Birds chirped from moss-covered rooftops, and mana-nterns hummed faintly along the street, preparing to light up as night approached.

  Kagami sat on a small stone ptform in the garden, cross-legged, eyes shut. The mana crystal Mikay had given him rested in his palms, pulsing softly with light.

  He was trying again.

  Inhale. Let the mana flow.

  Exhale. Let it return.

  Mikay stood nearby, arms folded, watching with a careful eye. Zack, leaning against a tree stump with a rge sword resting on his shoulder, yawned.

  “Are we seriously training a toddler to be a mage?” Zack muttered.

  Mikay elbowed him gently. “He’s trying harder than some apprentices at the Magic Guild. Just watch.”

  Kagami’s face scrunched up in concentration. Then—finally—something shifted.

  The air around him grew still.

  The crystal glowed brighter.

  A soft whirl of mana stirred, coiling around his hands like faint vapor. Then—

  POP!

  The crystal exploded with a spark of blue light, and a stream of water shot into the sky like a geyser.

  Zack jumped. “What the hell?!”

  Mikay gasped. “He actually cast something!”

  Kagami blinked, his mouth slightly open in awe as water droplets rained down on him. He looked at his hands—shaking, steaming with leftover mana.

  “I… I did it,” he whispered.

  Zack blinked and crouched next to him. “Hey, hey! Kid! Did you just shoot water out of nowhere?! What spell was that?!”

  Kagami stood up, soaking wet, and puffed his chest. “Wawa Boom Jutsu!”

  Zack tilted his head. “...Wawa...what?”

  Mikay giggled. “He meant water explosion. Kind of. That was more like… raw mana burst forming into a stream. He’s not shaping it into a real spell yet.”

  Kagami pointed at himself proudly. “Ka… gaa… mee! Shinobi!”

  Zack scratched his head. “Right. Sure. Shinobi. Whatever that means.”

  Mikay crouched beside Kagami and gently rubbed his wet hair with a towel. “You did really well, Kagami. But let’s take it slow, alright? You don’t want to burn out your mana channels.”

  Kagami looked at her with wide eyes. “Mikawa teach good.”

  Zack frowned. “Wait. Did he just call you ‘Mikawa’?”

  Mikay smiled. “Close enough.”

  Kagami turned to Zack and raised his tiny fists. “Zakk! Fight time!”

  Zack blinked. “Fight time?! I’m not sparring with a toddler!”

  Kagami jumped forward, trying to imitate one of Zack’s moves—arms filing, foot stomping. It was more adorable than threatening.

  Zack held out a finger to block his forehead. “Whoa there, ninja baby. Maybe after you learn to throw a punch that doesn’t wobble.”

  Mikay burst out ughing.

  Kagami pouted, cheeks puffed. “Chakra punch better…”

  “Shakra?” Zack repeated. “He keeps saying that. Is that like… toddler gibberish?”

  Mikay rubbed her chin thoughtfully. “He says it a lot. Shak-ra. It’s not from any nguage I know. Maybe it’s his name for magic?”

  Kagami shook his head hard. “Not magic. Chakra. Inner energy. Use with hand sign!”

  He tried to fold his fingers into a seal—but they cramped and fumbled.

  Zack raised an eyebrow. “See, this is what I’m talking about. I need subtitles.”

  Mikay, now more fluent in Kagami’s toddler-bbber, smiled warmly. “I think… he’s talking about a different kind of energy. Not mana. Something from… wherever he came from.”

  Kagami nodded seriously. “Konoha.”

  “Kono...huh?”

  “Konoha! Big vilge! Hokage live there!”

  Zack whispered, “What’s a Hokage? Is that a bird?”

  Mikay chuckled and shook her head. “No idea. But whatever it is, he’s clearly not from around here.”

  ---

  Later That Night…

  As stars bnketed the sky, Kagami y in bed, still thinking about the water burst. His mana had responded, not through discipline like chakra, but through calm focus and feeling. It was frustrating… but intriguing.

  “Magic is freedom. Chakra is control. These two… they don’t mix easily.”

  A knock came at the door.

  Mikay peeked in with a warm smile. “Hey. Just wanted to say… you did great today. Zack still thinks you're a mystery box, but I see how hard you’re trying.”

  She sat beside his bed, brushing a hand through his hair.

  “Tomorrow, I’ll show you how to shape that mana. Into a real spell.”

  Kagami’s eyes lit up. “Real magic?”

  “Real magic.”

  “Like… big boom?”

  She giggled. “Let’s aim for small boom first, alright?”

  Kagami nodded, snuggling into the bnket.

  As Mikay walked out and gently shut the door, Kagami whispered into the dark:

  “I’ll master this world’s power… and maybe, one day, return to my own.”

  But for now… he had a new goal.

  Learn magic. Grow stronger. And survive this strange new world—with Mikay, Zack…

  And whatever mana really was.

  ---