Summary: As Kenichi walked home from school that day, he never thought that something as simple as a sign could make him wonder what the difference between teaching self-defense and teaching combat lessons was. Looking back, he wondered how so much could change just from that little sign outside a rundown temple.

Hey, Everybody! It's Ash of Eden (or Change's in the Snow, or whatever you view me as), and this is going to be my first fanfic. So please, at least hold off on the worst of the flames until I get a couple of chapters into the story! The setting is a couple of years before the start of the anime, 6 years after Kenichi (6) and Ryuto (6) fought and went their separate ways, Kenichi (12) has forgotten about it now.

Narrative/regular speech = "Listen up, here's a story, about a little boy in a blue world."

Master's speaking in their 'super' voice = "Find your seikuken!"

Thought bubbles' = 'What is up with this guy, it's like he can see everything!'

Distorted voices = "He's here, hurry, get the stuff!"

Chapter 1: A Simple Sign and an Odd, Old Man

Kenichi chose a different way home today, he hadn't even realized until he was far enough away from the gangsters to calm down. The part of town he was in, was a section of the city that everyone thought would be torn down for years, but never had. As he walked, he saw small signs hanging on each door, showing that every building was a store.

"Wait, didn't I pass that store a little bit ago?" Kenichi asked himself. He started walking back the way he came, but saw a sign the stopped him in his tracks. "Self-defense lessons? Combat lessons? What's the difference?"

As if by some supernatural force, Kenichi felt compelled to go inside, even if it looked like there was no one there.

"Hello," he called, "I saw the sign out front and wanted to know if the lessons were still available?" 'Why did I ask that, I should be getting out of here, not wanting to see more!'

"Yes, the lesson can continue whenever they are needed," an old voice spoke from what sounded like everywhere, "please, come into the main hall and chat with an old man about why you want these lessons."

Following the voice was easier said the done, but somehow, Kenichi found the main hall. It was a long, wide room that seemed almost too big to fit inside the building, like the TARDIS, the room was in a basic Japanese format, tatami mat flooring paper walls, although the outside walls showed that behind the paper was a solid backing, it had hanging lamps and three signs hanging from the wall one with the kanji for leaf, 葉, another with fire, 火, and the final one in the middle had a symbol on it, a fire flame symbol on a yellow background.

In front of the three banners, sat an old looking man who, quite honestly, didn't look like a person that could teach someone physical lessons. He had an odd color hair, at first glance it looked white, but if you looked closely, you could see glimmers of a sun-kissed blonde shining sporadically in his hair. His beard went ended right in the middle of his chest, the same strange color, his skin was slightly tan and wrinkled, but not so much that it detracted from his attractiveness (Kenichi could honestly say, when no one else was anywhere near, that the elderly man was one of the most handsome men he had seen, and he was as straight as they come). One thing that truly stood out was the fact that he had an eyepatch over his right eye, the veins on the side of his face bulging as if by some disease, but ending when they got to his ear.

"Ah, welcome to my humble dojo, The Sealed Eye, may I offer some tea, or another beverage?" The old man sounded as serene as he looked, which is saying something, because Kenichi had never seen anyone look so content with life.

Kenichi P.O.V.

"Tea is fine I guess, thanks, but what is this place, is it really just for teaching fighting?" I was asking because I hadn't seen anyone else in the entire neighborhood. What happened next surprised me though.

"NO, I DO NOT TEACH 'FIGHTING' HERE," his voice wasn't loud, but you could practically FEEL the anger and disappointment in his voice, "I teach self-defense and combat!"

Once I was properly chastised, I knew that if there was anywhere I would want to be taught, this would definitely be the place to learn. 'I wonder if this is why I felt like I needed to come on here, this man is amazing!' Then he started talking again.

"So, I believe you were wanting to know if the lessons were still taking place, yes?"

"Yes"

"Very well, I will try to answer all of your questions, but first I must ask my own, is that fine with you?"

"Yeah, that's okay with me, but I need to get home soon, sorry."

"That is fine with me, if you want though, I can take you to your house for you."

"Sure!"