Multiversal Babysitter

Shifu is completely absorbed in what he has just witnessed. It's not just the human's ability to deflect Tigress's attacks or the fluidity of his movements that astonishes him. What truly leaves him speechless is the glow that emanates from him; Shifu knows he can't be mistaken: that is chi. There's no doubt about it.

The most perplexing part is that, while he can only bloom a flower with his utmost control, this human employs it effortlessly in his techniques.

"Tell me, Aiden," Oogway asks, maintaining his usual composure, "who taught you that style of kung fu?"

Aiden smiles upon hearing the question, reaches into his pocket, and pulls out a card, offering it to him. Curious, Shifu snatches it quickly, eager to know who his master is. As he reads the card, he begins to frown: "Certificate for Water Stream Rock Smashing Fist. Approved by N̷a̷n̷n̷y̷r̷a̷ The Fate."

As he finishes reading the card, Shifu struggles to keep the vein in his forehead from bursting with frustration.

"It seems legitimate," comments Oogway, calmly observing the card.

"This is clearly a fake!" exclaims Shifu, visibly upset, raising his voice.

"Shifu, didn't you read the card? It's fate," replies Oogway. "We can't deny fate."

Shifu slaps his forehead with his palm, clearly frustrated. With no other option, seeing that he won't be able to change his master's mind, he concedes, "Fine, you're hired as a trainer…"

He can't finish because Aiden interrupts him.

"Sorry, but I must be specifically hired as a babysitter," says Aiden.

"Grrr," Tigress growls at him, annoyed.

"It's company policy," adds Aiden, raising his hands in a "I don't make the rules" gesture.

Shifu looks at him incredulously. "Fine, you'll be… and I can't believe I'm saying this… Tigress's babysitter. But you only have two weeks." He points at him, clearly furious. "And if you don't make any progress with Tigress's control, you will be labeled a fraud and pay for wasting the Jade Palace and its masters' time. Understood?"

"Understood," replies Aiden with complete calm.

"Tigress, you will follow his training for the next two weeks. You will learn to control your strength and make no malicious attempts to make him fail, understood?"

"But master…" Tigress can't believe what she's hearing.

"Understood!?" Shifu interrupts her, with an authority that leaves no room for discussion.

"Yes, master," replies Tigress, gritting her teeth and looking down.

After exchanging a few more words, both Shifu and Oogway leave, leaving Aiden and Tigress alone.

Tigress gives a forced bow. "I await your instructions… master," she says, spitting the words like venom.

"Excellent attitude," Aiden comments with a calm smile, savoring the tension in the air.

Aiden begins to pace back and forth, his tone condescending. "Well, there's no time to waste. Master Shifu only gave me two weeks to train you and fix your little control issue." Tigress feels her blood boil but forces herself to remain silent. "I saw in our fight that you're quick and strong…"

"That's right…" Tigress replies with a hint of pride, only to be interrupted immediately.

"…but you're incapable of controlling your strength. Also, you're temperamental and unable to manage your emotions." Aiden raises a finger for each flaw he mentions, causing Tigress's fury to grow. Her tail thumps against the ground, a clear indication of her patience wearing thin.

"So, seeing the short time we have and your… flaws, I'm going to teach you the Water Stream Rock Smashing Fist style, or for short, Water Stream. Do you remember? It's the one I used to knock you off the platform."

Tigress tries to ignore him, but irritation is evident on her face.

"To master this style, you need: fluidity and precision in movement, balance between defense and attack, patience and discipline, turning brute strength into refined technique, and controlling your chi," Aiden continues, walking in front of her. "Basically, everything you are not."

That last sentence is the last straw. Unable to contain herself any longer, Tigress throws a punch directly at Aiden's face. But he deflects it with insulting ease and returns a quick punch to her stomach, sending her crashing to the ground.

"You already failed in patience and discipline," comments Aiden, letting out a sigh of disappointment.

"Cough, cough!" Tigress coughs, still trying to catch her breath, one hand on her stomach, clearly frustrated.

She manages to articulate a few words between heavy breaths. "Either way, you'll fail to train me," she says bitterly as she stands up, her hand still on her abdomen.

Aiden raises an eyebrow, catching her attention. "Are you saying you won't cooperate with the training?"

"No," replies Tigress, gritting her teeth. "I'm saying you're a fool if you think you can teach me to control chi in two weeks."

Aiden rolls his eyes wearily. "Don't worry about that; that's my problem," he replies calmly. "Now enough talk, pay attention."

He begins to demonstrate the Water Stream movements, his strikes quick and fluid like a current of water. "Continuous strikes, no stiffness. Like water," he says as he continues moving. "Now, repeat it."

"What a hassle..." Tigress mutters to herself as she tries to imitate him.

"Wrong, wrong, very wrong," Aiden says, waving his hands for her to stop.

"I'm doing it just like you!" Tigress protests, her tone filled with exasperation.

"Sure," Aiden replies sarcastically, "if I were a block of stone." He steps behind Tigress and gently takes her arms to correct her posture.

"Don't touch me!" Tigress exclaims, turning her head with a threatening look.

"It's part of the training. Don't get worked up," Aiden tells her, ignoring her annoyance. Tigress frowns but allows him to guide her movements. Patiently, he adjusts her hands, making them flow more smoothly.

"Better," Aiden comments, "but still terrible," he adds with a teasing smile.

Tigress growls, enduring both the contact and his irritating attitude. The training continues for several hours, with Aiden correcting each of her movements until he finally decides to change the exercise.

"Enough of this for now," he says as he lets go of her. "Now let's put it into practice."

"You have to use what I taught you and deflect attacks with the least amount of force possible, just enough to make them lose effectiveness."

"Now... attack me!"

Tigress looks at him intently, clenching her fists. "Gladly," she replies before launching at him with all her strength.

"Ahhh!" she screams as she unleashes a fierce strike. Without moving from his position, Aiden redirects her attack with a fluid motion, sending her flying towards the wall. However, Tigress manages to regain her balance before crashing, landing on her feet with a defiant look.

"Did you understand? Redirect with minimal force," Aiden repeats, demonstrating the movements more slowly. "Now, your turn."

Tigress gets into position as Aiden throws a soft punch. She blocks it.

"Wrong!" Aiden says. "Don't block, redirect. Again."

"Wrong! Again."

"Wrong! Again."

"Wrong! Again."

Tigress begins to feel trapped in an endless cycle. From the entrance, Shifu and Oogway watch the scene. Oogway smiles.

"It seems they have more in common than I thought," Oogway comments, turning to look at Shifu.

Shifu, visibly exasperated, doesn't say a word. He simply turns around and walks toward the Library of a Thousand Scrolls.

Hours pass, and darkness falls over the training room. Tigress, exhausted and frustrated, finds herself on her knees, unable to deflect a single strike all day. Her arms are bruised, and her body, covered in sweat, barely has the strength to move.

"That's enough," Aiden says, stopping as he notices her condition.

Tigress breathes heavily, trying to get up with difficulty, thinking that she is finally done. As she prepares to leave, Aiden watches her with curiosity.

"Where do you think you're going?" he asks, noticing her intention to leave.

"I thought we were done for today," she says, irritated, still swaying unsteadily.

"Yes, the physical training," Aiden replies, his tone obvious. "But don't worry, this part is easy. Let's go to the medical room," he adds, gesturing for her to follow.

Tigress, bewildered, reluctantly follows him. Upon arriving, the first thing she notices is a massage table in the center of the room. She looks at the table and then at Aiden, squinting and letting out a growl. "Grrr..."

"No way," she says, crossing her arms.

"That's not an option. It's vital for your training," Aiden replies calmly.

"How is a massage vital for my training?" Tigress shouts, clearly annoyed.

Aiden sighs patiently, raising a hand as he counts on his fingers. "First, it releases tension and blockages, improving your performance. Second," he raises another finger, "it increases blood circulation, speeding up recovery and reducing fatigue. Third, this is not an ordinary massage. It helps your chi flow through the meridians, which in your case will help unblock them. And fourth," he concludes with a slight smile, "it helps create a spiritual connection and reduces stress. Is that enough or do you want more reasons?"

Tigress, frowning, reluctantly agrees and lies down on the massage table. "You don't need to keep going," she murmurs, still not convinced but too drained to argue.

"Good, because I didn't know what else to say," Aiden replies, letting out a light laugh as he prepares to begin the massage.

Aiden positions himself beside Tigress, rubbing a special lotion between his hands, a gift from his goddess. The formula is potent, designed to relax even the tightest muscles with just a light touch. Tigress, rigid as always, watches him sideways, distrustful, her muscles as hard as stone. But that doesn't last long. As soon as Aiden's hands start working on her back, something changes.

His fingers glide over her skin with an almost supernatural precision, as if he knows every inch of her body. The movements are slow, calculated, and each pressure seems to target the deepest knots. Tigress's muscles begin to loosen under his expert touch. First her back, then her shoulders, and even her arms start to give way. Even her tail, usually stiff, begins to move, a slight wag that escapes her control. She can't help it.

"Breathe deeply," Aiden whispers, his voice soft, soothing, almost hypnotic. Tigress, though still filled with disdain for him, decides to obey. She takes a deep breath, letting her lungs fill completely, and then exhales slowly. With each exhalation, the tension seems to fade a little more, and Aiden's warm, firm hands send a wave of heat throughout her body, as if wrapping her in an invisible blanket of relief.

"Ahh..." A small moan escapes Tigress's lips, without her realizing. The tingling caused by Aiden's hands as they slide down the contours of her legs is too intense to ignore. Her muscles respond, relaxing even more. Soft gasps begin to involuntarily escape her mouth as his hands move fluidly over her body. Each touch is like a spark igniting something inside her. There is no pain, only a slow, deep release.

"Ah..." she gasps again, unable to stop. Tigress is surprised by how her body reacts in ways she didn't expect. Those fingers seem made to touch her this way. Then, just as she begins to feel completely enveloped in that warmth, Aiden stops.

He presses harder on a particularly tense spot, and Tigress emits a moan that breaks the air. "AH!" The sound comes out loud, almost violent, leaving her vulnerable and exposed. It's not the pain that shakes her; it's the tingling, which has now intensified, climbing up her back and down her legs, delving into more... sensitive areas. She knows what that sensation is, even if she doesn't want to admit it.

Confused and somewhat embarrassed, Tigress feels the urge to pull away immediately. She wants to leap off the table, distance herself from him before that tingling turns into something more. But Aiden, with surprising calm, seems to read her instantly. He stops, pulling his hands away just before she can move.

"That's all for today," he comments, his voice as serene as at the beginning. As if nothing had happened. "Congratulations on your first day of training."

Tigress lies there, her vision blurry as she tries to process what just happened. Aiden gives her one last calm glance. "See you tomorrow. Rest," he says before leaving the room, leaving her alone with her thoughts.

With considerable effort, Tigress tries to get up from the table, but her legs don't respond as she expects, giving way under her own weight. "Grrr..." she growls, feeling the weakness coursing through her body. "This is the human's fault," she mutters under her breath, furious at how her body has betrayed her in so many ways today.

Finally, she returns to her room and, exhausted, collapses onto the bed. A tingling sensation envelops her; the massage she received, intended to relieve tension, has left a trace of sensitivity on her skin.

As she mentally reviews what happened, memories of Aiden's strikes intertwine with the sensation of his hands, a touch that now seems imprinted on her skin. Tigress tries to ignore the discomfort, but without realizing it, her hand begins to slowly slide toward her most intimate area, a purely instinctive movement.

Upon realizing what she's doing, she quickly pulls her hand away. Her face burns with embarrassment. "AHHH!" she screams, burying her face in the pillow, as if that could erase the thoughts and sensations that torment her. She promises herself that she will find a way to make Aiden pay for all this embarrassment.

Author's Note: We've reached the top 6 collections! I didn't expect that, so as promised, here's another chapter. I also noticed someone didn't like the attitude change of the MC. Well, you know what… I'm going to change it many more times. Someone understanding, someone exasperating, a very serious magic teacher, and someone downright unpleasant—this last one would fit well for Darkness from Konosuba. Anyway, I look forward to reading some of your comments!