Coming out of the shower, Mishizu fumbled to take a pure white towel
off of the hook of her bathroom, softly drying off her dripping wet
hair. She liked taking showers. Most women she knew preferred baths
but Mishizu didn’t. She liked to be on her feet to think about things.
And she had a lot to think about.
It was currently Saturday morning, no classes or lectures to attend,
no work that needed doing. Mishizu had taken the last of her exams on
Thursday, the night Rinako and Ayane met up.
Although Rinako had never said anything to indicate as such, Mishizu
was fairly sure that something had been going on between them. Not
while they were at Tomeishuu, those bed sentiments were fairly real
(well, at least from Rinako). Something had happened before. Mishizu
never dared ask Rinako about it, she would often get angry or upset if
anything regarding Ayane was raised. Now it was all in the open.
And Ayane had Rinako back.
Mishizu knew how pathetic it was to chase after someone who had no
feelings for you, but this love for Rinako still did not waver.
Why?
{Why can’t I put this behind me?} Mishizu thought. {Do I love her that
much? Will I ever find someone else? And even if I do, can I give my
heart to them in the same way?}
A knock came at the door.
Mishizu stopped drying her hair and walked out of the bathroom, into
the dorm. Somebody was at the door. But right now, she really didn’t
feel like talking to anyone. Least of all...
“Mishizu?” It was Rinako. “Look, can I come in? I know that you
probably don’t wanna speak to me, and I can understand that. But... I
wanna apologize.”
Mishizu fought an internal battle. After the way Rinako yelled at her,
after all those things she said, could Mishizu just get over it? The
aquamarine haired girl was having a hard enough time excepting
Rinako’s ‘reborn’ relationship with Ayane.
Mishizu thought hard about it. {I... I should let her in. She sounds
so much happier than before. If I start ignoring her, she will not
leave me alone.}
Without uttering a word, Mishizu walked over to the door and cracked
into open by a tad. It was Rinako for, sure. As the door swung open
the whole way, Rinako beamed an apologetic smile. That goofy yet
charming expression of Rinako’s did make Mishizu feel a little better.
“Can I come in, Mishi?” Rinako asked quietly.
Mishizu just nodded for a yes. Rinako strode in and took a seat on
Mishizu’s bed. It was purple, made from Egyptian cotton. The kind of
luxury you’d expect girl like Mishizu to have.
The diamond-eyed CBL took a seat next to Rinako on the bed, and the
two just sat there for a few seconds, gathering their thoughts. It
wasn’t an awkward silence, there never was between these two. But the
did have some things that needed addressing.
Rinako was the first to speak. “...Listen, Mishi...”
“Yes.”
“I am so sorry I yelled at you before.” Rinako turned round slightly
to face Mishizu. “I was angry and messed up. Well, I wasn’t in a good
place. You were only trying to watch out for Minato and me, and I blew
up the way I did.”
Mishizu said nothing.
“Look, I understand if you’re angry with me, and I don’t deserve your
forgiveness or anything. But you are my best friend, and I missed
talking to you these past two days. And there really is so much to
talk about. Can we please just go back to the way things were?”
Mishizu looked over at Rinako. She was serious in what she was saying,
Mishizu could tell. Rinako was genuinely sorry.
“I am not mad, Rinako.” The Yakagi-girl said timorously. “I’ve had a
lot of time to think about what happened and I know you just said that
stuff from the heat of the moment. You hurt me though.”
Rinako regretted that. Keiji too. But from now on, she wasn’t going to
act in a way that would hurt people. Not any more. She needed friends
like Mishizu back on her side. Strong woman as she was, Rinako didn’t
feel like much without Mishizu’s friendship.
“I’m sorry I hurt you, Mishi.”
The young genius shook her head. “I told you, I’ve forgiven it. We
will always be friends, no matter what stupid things you say.”
Rinako smiled generously and pulled Mishizu into a hug. It would have
seemed slightly odd to anyone else, Mishizu was only wearing a thin
towel wrapped around her damp body, but Rinako was so casual about it.
There was a layer of innocence within that blustery shell of Rinako’s.
But Mishizu just ignored her qualms and hugged Rinako back.
It was heartbreaking to know that this was as close as she would get
to Rinako on a physical level. Ayane was in her heart now. But Mishizu
would let herself enjoy this. Being held by the one woman she felt
most comfortable with.
But the smile on Rinako’s face fell. “Mishizu... I have something to
tell you. But I’m afraid you’ll react badly to what I have to say.”
Mishizu pulled back. “It is about Ayane, isn’t it?”
Rinako nodded. “Uh huh. I dunno how to tell you this, but...”
Diamond eyes rolled away from auburn ones. “You and Ayane are in
love.”
Rinako could not have been more surprised. “You knew? Who told you?”
“Ayane came to the dorms in the middle of Thursday night. She wanted
to see you, and at first I was reluctant, but she said that she would
try to make you happy again.”
“Was it that easy to figure out?” Rinako asked.
“Yes. I could tell from day one that there was more to your dislike
for Ayane than you made out. Which is one of the reasons I thought it
was selfish of you to date Keiji the way you did.”
“Keiji...” Rinako breathed. “I have to apologize to him too... I think
he really loves me.”
Mishizu nodded, still not looking directly at Rinako. “I think that it
is best.”
“So...” Rinako began. “...What’s your judgement on me and Ayane?”
Mishizu’s head jerked. That was the main reason she didn’t want to
talk about this. What could she say? That she resented Ayane because
of her own feelings or just lie outright? It wasn’t fair.
“Rinako.” Mishizu decided to take the easy road. “As long as you are
happy with what you have then, I will not say or obstruct your
relationship with Ayane.”
That was a relief. Rinako breathed a pleased sigh. Mishizu wasn’t
angry about her feelings for Ayane. But yet, Rinako failed to realize
the truth behind Mishizu’s actions.
**********
“No way! You and Rinako!? Hot damn, I had no idea the two of you were
interested in each other! Geez, it all makes sense now. The anger
between you two was way too fierce to be simple distaste! All this
time it was a lover’s spat...!”
Ayane heaved a sigh as Natsumi continued her tirade of babble. It was
important to the Spring Breeze Assassin leader that Natsumi and Minato
knew the situation between she and Rinako. Rinako took care of telling
Minato, now it was Ayane’s turn to inform Natsumi. She was reluctant
to tell anyone else about this though. Especially Izumi. Izumi was a
loyal member of the SBA, and she did not have much of a liking for
Rinako. Hopefully, Ayane would not have to choose between the two of
them.
“So how long?” Natsumi asked. “I mean how long have you two been
dating?”
Ayane sighed once more. “We used to date, we broke up, and now we are
back together again. We just got back on Thursday. But I’d appreciate
it if you did not go telling everyone about it just yet. Especially
not Izumi. I want the chance to tell her myself.”
Natsumi stuck her tongue at Ayane. “I know how to keep a secret,
Ayane! I did the same thing with Minato remember? ...Hey! If Rinako is
in love with you, how come she keeps getting in between me and
Mina-chan?”
“I think...” The gold-eyed girl began. “That you need to speak to
Rinako about that one. But she will not be standing in the way of your
relationship with Minato anymore.”
The moment she heard that, Natsumi’s eyes glazed over. Nothing was in
there way now. She and Minato could be together and they wouldn’t have
to hide it from anyone.
Natsumi giggled happily. “Ooooh... I’m going to take Mina-chan out
tonight! Somewhere really special, where we can get away from it all.
I can’t believe it. I thought for sure that she and I were going to
have real problems thanks to Rinako, but... she’s okay about it now?”
“Yes, Rinako will let you see her. But that doesn’t mean she’s any
less protective of her sister though. You just make sure that you take
care of that girl, Natsumi.”
Natsumi scowled at such a notion. “I would never upset Mina-chan.
Don’t be crazy, Ayane.” Then Natsumi’s thoughts drifted away from
that. “I should go see her, shouldn’t I? It’s only been a couple of
days and I really miss her.”
Ayane slapped a hand on her forehead. “My word, Natsumi! Are you that
fixated on the Ikatsuji girl?”
“Well of course I am!” Natsumi yelled playfully. “I mean come on, you
gotta admit that Minato’s cuter than Rinako, right?”
With a strong blush on her pale cheeks, Ayane looked away. “We are
*not* having this conversation!”
“Ah, you see!” Natsumi winked. “My Mina-chan is the sexiest woman in
Japan. I can’t wait to see her...”
Natsumi was about to say something else, until her phone rang. Each
dorm in Tomeishuu had their own private phone line, however they would
only receive calls. They couldn’t call out. With a brief sigh, Natsumi
strode over to the table and picked up the phone.
Then her residual smile left her. “...Father...”
Ayane was curious about that look on Natsumi’s face. The young miko
just held her hand over the mouthpiece and looked over in Ayane’s
direction.
“Um...I might need some time for this. Could you...?”
No other words needed to be said. Ayane stood up from the chair she
was sitting on and walked off towards the door. “I will see you later,
Natsumi.”
Natsumi nodded and faked a smile as Ayane left. She was alone.
“Dad?” Natsumi said questioningly. “Is everything okay back home? How
are Tomomi and Yuri? Are they okay?”
“They are fine.” Tetsuya Yakume said deeply. “How have your efforts in
tracking down the Seal Child proceeded?”
Natsumi gulped. She’d been spending more time with Minato than she had
been spending on finding the Seal Child. It wasn’t that she was
neglecting her duties; Natsumi knew what she had to do. But the
meeting with the blonde-haired bombshell that was Minato Ikatsuji
threw everything out of whack.
“Well...” Natsumi trailed. “I haven’t exactly been going to too much
effort to find the Seal Child, but...”
“What?! Natsumi, don’t you understand the situation?! I sent you to
Tokyo to save us all not to enjoy yourself!”
Natsumi shut an eye and pulled the receiver away from her ear as her
father went on a wordy rampage. God that man knew just how to blow
something out of proportion.
“Look father, just calm down a sec will you? I haven’t been doing much
of a search, but I do have a lead.”
“You do? Was it Ayane Yosukube? As we suspected?”
Natsumi shook her head, remembering the Shunshibaru crystal’s reaction
to Rinako that day. “No... I think it’s someone else...”
**********
Ayane meandered through the halls of Tomeishuu’s west dorm area. She
wondered what was being said between Natsumi and her father. He never
called her much so it had to be something important.
But those questions faded as Ayane’s gold eyes caught sight of
someone. Just a few metres from Ayane, standing proudly was a young
woman, about a year younger than her. She was about Rinako’s height,
her head was swathed in long forest green hair, and her eyes were a
faint shade of gingery brown.
But what stole Ayane’s curiosity was that smirk on the girl’s face.
Something about that girl did not seem trustworthy...
The woman walked up to Ayane with a leisurely pace, and her smile
broadened as she inspected the SBA leader.
“Hmmm...” She mused. “Are you Ayane Yosukube? The leader of the Spring
Breeze Assassin gang?”
Ayane’s eyes narrowed out. She was sure that she had never seen this
woman before. “That is right. And who might you be?”
The woman took a short bow. “My name is Shizuku Makuryu. Or ‘Shen’ to
some others. Pleased to make your acquaintance.”
Shizuku held out her hand for a shake. Ayane took caution, but shook
hands with Shizuku all the same. Then Ayane’s grip tightened when she
felt Shizuku’s aura. This woman was a fighter. And a half-decent one
at that. Before she read too much, the SBA leader let go of this new
woman’s hand.
“I am interested to meet the rest of your Spring Breeze Assassin
followers... and to meet the leader of your rival gang... the Cross
Blade Lancers. I hear she is a very capable fighter.”
Ayane was alert. “She is. Those who challenge her are likely to get
themselves into some trouble.”
Shizuku was not oblivious to the subtext of Ayane’s comment.
Everything she did screamed, ‘stay out of our business’. But Ayane
still had no idea of whom she was dealing with. Shizuku wasn’t one to
be afraid of others...
“I’m glad to hear it. Well, I should be off. I am new to this school
as you can imagine, and I need some time to adjust before classes
start on Monday. But it was nice talking to you.”
Ayane nodded in response, and Shizuku walked away, with that same
devious smile on her face. Somehow, Ayane got the feeling that this
woman was going to bring trouble.
**********
“Arrgh!!”
With a brutal force, the young 15-year-old rebel of the Spring Breeze
Assassins, Konoko, was smashed against the thick stonewall of a
Shinjuku alleyway. With a small yelp, she slumped down onto the ground
and coughed deeply. This was not the best of her ideas.
A powerful and keen figure stood above her. 18 years of age, he was
shirtless, wearing only a pair of expensive white jeans and strong
brown shoes. He was also wearing a pair of black gloves, each one
marked with a golden dragon. His hair was a spiky golden-brown, and
his eyes were a fierce blood red. Though his body was muscular, it was
also lithe, the mark of a serious fighter.
With a deep frown, her cracked his knuckles. “Geh. So this weakling is
a sentinel for the Spring Breeze Assassins, eh? Pathetic!”
With a vacuum-like kick, this great warriors’ foot rammed into
Konoko’s already abused stomach. She wheezed for air while the breath
was knocked from her. She had challenged this man but she had no idea
how strong he would be.
Yet what she failed to understand was that he was *still* toying with
her. The combination of raw strength and an ancient fighting art made
this man a very dangerous fighter.
Another man of 17 years, sitting casually on a set of discarded
crates, watched this with an amused smirk. Not from this Konoko’s
pain, but from his partner’s flustered attitude. He had short dark
black hair, a set of light blue eyes and a pair of mild glasses.
Unlike the brown-haired fighter, this young man was wearing his school
uniform. It was a Saturday, but he did enjoy wearing it.
“That’s enough, Zanga.” The dark-haired boy said. “To deliver our
message, she should at least be able to breath.”
With a lion-like growl, Zanga backed away. “Heh. These Spring Breeze
Assassins are useless. We will be able to sweep them away with little
to no effort. Then we can focus our attentions on the *real* problem.
The Cross Blade Lancers. Isn’t that right, Ranji?”
Ranji nodded. “Correct.” He then adjusted his glasses. “Your brutality
is needed, Zanga. But for now, we should use moderation to establish
ourselves in Tokyo. They seem to hold firm to a set of codes here. As
long as we follow them, we are untouchable.”
The tall Zanga looked over to Ranji. “Tomeishuu High is our next
target? Hmm. It does make sense to pick them off by their own rules.
This better work, Ranji. Your plan to enlist Shizuku in the school
seems narrow-minded.”
“Patience, my friend.” Said Ranji. “In time, we will control all of
this city. Tengoku-Aijin school is already ours. With Shizuku inside
of Tomeishuu, we will have a pin-point view of the only two people who
can stop us.”
Zanga’s blood red eyes glowed with intent. “Ayane Yosukube and Rinako
Ikatsuji...”
“Right!” Ranji stood off of the crates he was sitting on, and walked
over to a half-conscious Konoko. He squatted down and looked over her
injuries. Black eye, bruised lip and a few cuts.
{Nothing too serious.} He thought. {Still, Zanga could have taken it a
little easier...}
Ranji sighed. Although Zanga was his leader, that penchant for
violence over thought was a little bit worrying. Nevertheless, Ranji
wiped some of the dust from Konoko’s face gently and smiled.
“Listen, young girl.” He said charmingly. “We won’t hurt you anymore
than we have. Just make sure you pass on this message to the one you
know as Ayane Yosukube. Tell her that a new gang is in town; call us
the Kyoto New Force Strikers. We have an interest in your group and we
would like to hammer it out in person. In the form of a duel. Tell the
Yosukube woman that we challenge her to a one on one match. Her
against our leader, Zanga. It will be in one week’s time, in the
secret ground behind Mizube Ai Park. If she does not show herself,
then we will bring ourselves over to Tomeishuu High and discover why
she turned down our offer. Do you understand?”
Konoko nodded weakly. “I-I’ll tell her...”
Ranji’s smile deepened. “Good. And see to it that your wounds are
tended to. You might have more promise as a fighter if you learn from
you defeats.”
Zanga coughed into his fist. “Excuse me, but we do have other things
to attend to? Save your post-fight pep-talk for another day, eh?”
Ranji removed his hand from Konoko’s cheek. “Don’t be so soulless. The
heart of a woman is a fragile and beautiful thing. Just because we
need to crush one woman does not mean we need to destroy them all.
Your philosophy gets the better of you, my friend.”
Zanga scowled. “...I will never be able to understand that brain of
yours.” Zanga then turned to Konoko. “Make sure Yosukube gets the
message. I deeply look forward to meeting a practitioner of Rai shou
en ken...”
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