Chapter 90 - Chapter 92

Gyatso and Dragon entered the temple through the gate under the gaze of many children. Council elders at the top balcony of the temple were observing the two old men enter the temple in a casual manner.

The council elders held a watchful eye on Dragon the moment he passed the gates. Everyone in this temple lived in tranquillity and their aura reflected that, but Dragon's did not. His aura was all over the place and very chaotic, and they didn't like that.

Gyatso glanced back and noticed Dragon watching his fellow elders with caution. He could see that Dragon was extremely well trained and disciplined. The moment he walked in, he had already located every potential threat.

"Do no mind, my colleagues. They are fine people, but a little short on patience."

"Isn't that something you Munks are supposed to be good at?" Dragon said and gave a quick look at the elders staring at him.

"Stereotype. Most of us get a lot more impatient the older we get. Do not let yourself be fooled by rumours."

"Fair enough. Anything else I need to know before going further in?"

"We love cake. And that's about it." Gyatso laughed and now after a long climb up some stairs, the two had arrived at the balcony with the other elders.

"Gyatso, who is this man that you brought inside our temple?" An elder man with a black moustache asked. He had a very neutral expression on his face.

"My name is Portgas D Dragon. And I am a simple traveller." Dragon bowed in respect.

"Nice to meet you, Dragon. I am the High Monk, Pasang." He cupped his hand and returned the bow to Dragon.

"Dragon, you are no simple traveller. Your entire being screams of a lifetime of war. Where do you come from?" Another elder that looked a lot older then Pasang and Gyatso.

"As I have told elder Gyatso, I am from a place so far that you would have never heard of it. It took me a lifetime to travel here. So the distance is quite far." The cryptic speech was something that Dragon enjoyed and that was exactly what he used on the elders.

"Interesting. I would enjoy hearing some stories about this place someday." Pasang smiled cheekily and then bowed to Dragon and the other elders.

"I am afraid I need to excuse myself. It was nice to meet you Dragon." He calmly turned around and slowly walked away.

"I have duties to take care off as well. Have a nice day, and nice to meet you." Said the elder that still hadn't introduced himself.

"Do not mind his manners. His name is Tashi, and he is just a little careful around strangers." Gyatso laughed while watching the two elders depart.

"Now, shall we proceed, I believe we have things to talk about." Gyatso got a nod from Dragon.

---

Dragon and Gyatso were sitting inside of his home, which was just a simple hud like building. Very simple in design, like almost everything around this temple was.

"Elder Gyatso, please tell me what it is called when you control the wind as you all do."

"It's not about control. It's about balance. And that is clearly something you are struggling with."

"hm, I have been seeking something like that for a long time. But every time I came close to figuring it out, suddenly it was nowhere to be found." Dragon had some actual frustration in his voice.

"Go figure. Dragon, it is not about figuring something out. We can never figure out what we are or the purpose we carry. So you have gotten this wrong from the start,"

"Then would you please enlighten me on this. I am so lost that I don't know if I will ever make it out."

"It is about acceptance. Ones you accept yourself and what you are, you will find balance in your life."

"It's that simple? I doubt that." Dragon tried and keep calm even though he felt the frustration in himself build up.

"Simple? No! Definitely not, not for you, not for any one of us. You have a lot to accept about yourself, all the blood on your hands. Was it spilt for the right reasons? Or is there even a right reason. I feel these are the questions that are most pressing for you to answer."

Dragon's eyes went wide in shock when he heard what Gyatso said. This old Monk had completely seen through him in ways he didn't understand.

"How can you see so much of me? No one has ever been able to see through me like that before."

"When you spend a lifetime dedicated to all of this. You pick up a few things." Gyatso looked around his simply designed home.

"How cryptic. Guess I earned that one." Dragon sighed after not getting the straight answer he sought.

"Dragon, I will teach you the meditation technique that we practice here. You can stay in this temple for as long as you wish. I can't do much when it comes to guiding you. As a human, you can only learn to accept yourself by facing yourself alone."

Gyatso and Dragon looked at each other and Dragon kindly accepted the offer to stay here. This place was a good location to start his journey.

"Then we will start now. Listen up as I will now teach you our meditation practice." Gyatso and Dragon went to work right away. And Dragon was feeling that the slight excitement from before he arrived here had come back to fill him up.

----------------------------

End