DISCLAIMER: I don't own Negima. Seriously, I'd rather not face a law suit.
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A young woman walked past the boisterous noise of her classmates and decided to take her seat. She sighed. Hopefully it would be another normal day in her school. Unfortunately for her, the news she had received this morning informed her that today would be anything but normal. She prided her name, Sakurazaki Setsuna, and role as the protector of the Konoe house heiress, Konoka Konoe. She placed her beloved sword Yuunagi beside her but always keeping it within arm's reach. A ways off from her seat were her charge and her friends. They were up to the usual hi-jinx again. If Setsuna had not heard such pressing news, she would have felt like joining the small group. Be it as it may the girl was in no mood.
"Everyone, please settle down.", piped up the excited voice of her much younger teacher. He was a boy with brown auburn hair that was long enough to make a small ponytail. He came by the name Negi Springfield and was the son of the legendary Thousand Master, a legendary mage. It was needless to say that the 10-year-old professor had magic abilities flowing through his veins as well.
"Stand" "Greet" "Sit"
"Okay class.", Negi began as he climbed the footstool that let him reach just a respectable height over his desk. He opened the class roster as per the norm to take attendance. A few minutes later, everyone was present and accounted for. He smiled brightly, "It's a good thing that everyone is present. I would like to introduce to you all a new student."
Whispers broke out throughout the room. Setsuna only sighed at the display. She already knew who it would be. She just wasn't sure whether this person would be to her liking. From this morning's news, it appeared that this newcomer was no ordinary girl. She was said to be exceptional in raw strength and refined skill, a talent that came every hundred generations she had heard. Setsuna could only feel her heart squeeze itself ever so slightly. She had heard after all that this person was to take her place as the official guardian of Konoka.
Her thoughts were interrupted when she heard the voice of her prepubescent teacher speak. "Please come in.", he invited the new guardian/student.
She wasn't at all what Setsuna envisioned her to be. She was expecting a naturally piercing gaze, someone a bit taller with a stronger looking physique. What's more she expected someone who carried herself like a warrior. The person who stepped in broke all those expectations. Her eyes were covered by a curtain of raven locks, She was barely the hanyo's height, maybe even shorter. She looked quite fragile and her steps were unlike that of a warrior, they were more geared towards a civilian who was only a little less than clumsy. The only thing that marked her as a warrior was the object she held in both hands. It was wrapped in cloth like Yuunagi but much longer. Setsuna idly wondered what weapon she wielded but assumed that it was a spear from the straightness.
The new girl spoke to introduce herself. "My name is Fuuga Shizuka but many people call me Shisca. Pleased to meet you all and I hope we can all get along.", she bowed with a smile.
The class was silent for the most part that it was almost creepy. Maybe it had something to do with Shisca's voice. It was unusually quiet, barely a breath above a whisper, but it reached over like any other tone.
Setsuna thought that this girl seemed to be more suited as the guarded rather than the guardian. Directly after her thought ended, the class resurrected its energy with a huge barrage of questions and praises.
"What's in the cloth?"
"You just have the cutest voice!"
"D-d-do you read a-any b-b-books?"
"You train in martial arts-aru?"
"Wai! Wai! A new onee-chan!"
"Another weirdo."
"Wow, she's nice."
The samurai girl never left her seat as she watched Shisca cater to each comment as best as could be. Setsuna noticed that the girl never lost composure no matter how much the crowd around her began to grow and press her. It almost reminded the samurai of a princess speaking to her subjects, with an honest heart and a warm smile. She blushed a bit as she imagined Konoka in fine robes in such a situation. She would be beside her ojou-sama every step of the way.
"What're you blushing about Setsu?", came a familiarly, nosy voice.
Setsuna felt the air knocked out of her sails as she heard the voice. She knew that voice and could only pray to kami that she could escape from the possible misunderstandings that would come out of it. " I-I have no idea what you're talking about Haruna-san.", the samurai girl responded with a strained smile.
The brunette had a sly smirk on her face. "Oh really?", she purred. Setsuna, the ever hardened warrior she was, was still no match against the mistress of blackmail herself. She could not help but shiver. Haruna smiled at the reaction. "Don't tell me you were having dirty thoughts about Shisca-chan? What would Kono-chan say?". Haruna mentally cackled at the horrified expression on Setsuna's face.
"I-i-i-i-i-it's not what you think!", the samurai girl protested.
"Oh? How so?", Haruna urged. "I've seen enough expressions to say that the one you had would be from having wild thoughts. Right Nodoka?", she suddenly grabbed the quiet librarian girl.
"Eh?", the shy purple-haired girl barely managed to blurt out.
"Right!?", Haruna tightened the grip slightly. Nodoka looked like she was being strangulated by the mangaka's hold on her collar. Haruna looked just a little bit miffed before tipping her head right beside Nodoka's ear. Moments later Nodoka turned a red so bright that it was surprising she had yet to spontaneously combust. Haruna smiled sweetly as she repeated her earlier question, "You agree with me right Nodoka?".
Nodoka's eyes were spinning by now. "H-ha-hai", she uttered out before fainting.
Haruna took one quick glance at the girl in her hands and dropped her. She had a cheery smile on her face as she said, "See? Nodoka agrees with me."
'She's the worst.', Setsuna thought. She answered back with a face as straight as could be, "I am not having fantasies about the new student."
"Oh? You don't sound that convincing.", Haruna teased.
"I said I'm not fantasizing over the new student.", Setsuna repeated with a little more stress.
"I'm not feeling it.", Haruna said with a disbelieving tone.
"I SAID I'M NOT FANTASIZING ABOUT THE NEW GIRL!", Setsuna screamed at the top of her lungs. By the end of it, she was breathing heavily.
Haruna looked a bit taken aback herself. She quickly got over it and began to pet Setsuna, "There there it's alright. We understand."
"Oh my", Chizuru Naba AKA the biggest gossip monger in Mahora said with a mischievous glint in her eyes.
Setsuna could do nothing but sit in her chair and cry in embarrassment while letting Haruna stroke her hair. This was far too much to bear, and it was just into the first hour of the day.
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Setsuna was surprised. The newcomer was easily welcomed by Ala Alba and immediately invited amongst their ranks in Eva's villa. That wasn't so surprising since her class was one of the most welcoming and easygoing bunch on the planet. The surprising part was when the girl refused the offer. The group had already reached Eva's cabin after school, standing before the miniature model of where the villa was kept.
"I'm sorry.", Shisca apologized again. I'm not very good with pocket dimensions.
"Aww… Don't worry about that Shisca-chan. It's pretty comfy in there.", Konoka encouraged her fellow soft speaker.
Shisca hesitated a bit before replying, "Umm… I think it's better if I don't.". She looked at everyone guiltily.
Negi stepped up to calm the girl, "I assure you everything will be alright Fuuga-san. You have my guarantee as a teacher."
"Besides", added in Asuna. "I wouldn't have approved it if it was dangerous. What kind of club president would I be if that were the case?"
"Come on-aru!", latched on the ball of sunshine that was Ku Fei. "It gonna be fun-aru!"
"Thank you but I really have to decline.", she protested with a tone of apology.
Evangeline, the ever prideful vampires stepped forward. "Do you have any problems with my villa?", she gave a blood chilling smile, right behind was Chachamaru.
"N-no", Shisca blushed with embarrassment. "I didn't mean to offend you, it's just that I'm really no good with pocket dimensions.", she explained in earnest.
Eva scratched the back of her head as she lightly glared at the new girl. "Just go in. We want to test your strength, but if we do it outside we might end up reforming the landscape.", she gave the girl a sharp poke towards the miniature model. She looked about to crash into it before disappearing into nothing. " Everyone, let's go.". Everyone followed with no complaints. After all, who would want to lose entrance rights to a year round south pacific villa when winter hit?
Inside the fabled villa, Setsuna and crew found a crying Shisca. The girl looked like she had arrived in a heap. She was sitting on the ground bawling her eyes out. Her loose sweater was all wrinkled as her skirt was a bit out of order. This prompted Asuna to slap her hand over the eyes of a certain 10-year-old male amongst them.
"Ah! Shisca-chan!", Konoka leapt forward to help the girl up. "Are you okay?", she made sure the girl could stand on her own before patting away any dirt that clung.
"H-hai", Shisca nodded tearfully.
"Geez, I thought you were a warrior.", Eva commented as she walked past the sight.
"B-b-but th-that scared me.", Shisca bawled out again.
"Shhh… everything is gonna be alright.", Konoka cooed.
For some reason, Setsuna felt like she should be the one crying. Anyway, after everyone was all warmed up, Eva gathered the crew into the central tower of the villa.
"Okay everyone. Today, we are here to see whether or not the new girl is White Wings material or not.", Eva announced.
"But master, didn't we decide that she would be a member already?", Negi questioned.
"I never agreed to that boya.", Eva gave him one of her stern glares that usually meant that he was being naïve. Once Negi was properly put in his place, the dark mistress took one step forward. "To see whether this girl is appropriate for our club, the most important is combat capability. She will participate in a mock battle against an opponent of my choosing, the club officers will have an official vote whether she is worthy of becoming a part of the Ala Alba or not. Does anyone disagree?". She looked around for anyone fool-hardy enough to defy her, especially the new girl. The dark evangel smirked in satisfaction when no one stepped up. "Now!", she began. Eva turned her head to Shisca, "Fuuga Shizuka!". The girl stepped forward. "Your opponent", Evangeline paused dramatically. "Asuna Kagurazaka!".
The girl with twin-tailed hair couldn't believe her ears. "Me?", she said incredulously.
Eva popped a vein on her head as she tried to calmly say, "What other monkey out there would be named Asuna Kagurazaka huh?"
"Monkey!?", Asuna raged.
Negi immediately began to calm the girl, "There there Asuna-san. Just go, think of it as a spar."
Setsuna fell into step beside Negi as she said, "It's a chance for you to show her what you're worth."
The girl shook her head when she heard the words from her two friends. "No, it's not that.", her angry features turned worried. "I just don't like the thought that I might hurt her. You know with all the things we've been through?".
Setsuna being Asuna's master in swordsmanship smiled, "Don't worry Asuna-san. This girl has Eishun-sama's approval. I assure you that she's more than able to keep up with us."
Asuna stared at them in disbelief. She then smiled goofily, "Okay, I'll see what I can do.". Asuna stepped forward with her pactio card in her hand. She held it close before whispering, "Adeat". In a flash of light, a seal immersed the middle-schooler and she emerged with a large sword the size of a regular person as well as a gothic Lolita battle dress. "I'm ready", she declared as she reached Eva.
"O-oh!", Shisca straightened out her sweater and knee-length skirt. Her dress shoes noisily bounded off against the hard stone tower.
"Wait! Shisca-chan! You really fight in loose socks-aru? You not trip?", Ku Fei voiced her concern to the new found friend, they were seatmates after all.
Shisca looked back to Ku Fei before smiling, "It's alright, they won't be a trouble at all.". The new girl guaranteed as she met the club president at center. She pulled at the chord which kept the whole package wrapped. The pine green cloth fell to expose a beautifully polished black spear. It was pretty long at an estimated 225 cm. It was wrapped with ribbons of pink and violet, respectively.
It caught the eye of everyone. Eva in particular voiced her thoughts, "You aren't going to remove the scabbard?". The dark evangel noted how the ribbons tied around the weapon in order to disaalow any form of unsheathing.
Shisca merely shook her head with an apologetic smile. "I was hoping we could keep it safe, ne?", the girl sounded very nervous.
Eva looked away, muttering, "okay, but it's your funeral.". "For today's match!", she called once more in a booming shout. "We'll hold it in the Himalayan mountains. First one to pass out loses. Begin!". She teleported the two before anyone could begin to protest.
In the blink of an eye, the two girls were gone and in mid-air appeared a spherical viewing device. It showed the Himalayan mountain area of the resort. The two combatants were standing in the snow. Asuna lost very little time in her start to activate her kanka. Her skill with it had increased to the point she could easily activate it without anyone noticing unless she cranked it up. Shisca on the other hand just took a low spear stance.
Asuna stared down her adversary. She had lowered her center of gravity, most likely for a lunge. Or in defense's case, it meant that pushing her back would be difficult. Her balance would be solid still. Asuna didn't really want to attack this person first. She was still having doubts whether this girl would be hurt by her if she swung too hard. Unlike in her match with Negi, she had no idea what capability this girl had. She felt it better if she waited for a proper counter.
On the sidelines, Eva smirked, "My my, the little princess is learning. Though I don't approve of her reasons as to why.". A frown suddenly etched onto the vampiress' young features as she saw the flash of hesitation in her apprentice's eyes.
Shisca decided that the wait had been long enough. She had already caught it anyway, the rhythm of the battle. She dashed forward at impressive speeds. Her opponent was definitely caught off guard from the sudden burst but it wasn't fast enough to catch her off guard. The thrust Shisca aimed for Asuna's head missed by an inch, as the twin-tailed girl merely side-stepped the blow. Asuna quickly countered with a forward horizontal slash. Quick as her reflexes could go, Shisca's supporting hand slammed the bottom of her fist onto her spear and it came crashing down on top of Asuna's weapon, effectively stopping the attack.
"Whoa!", Asakura, the resident spy of the Ala Alba exclaimed. "I never thought I'd see the day that a girl could have the same natural gorilla-like strength that Asuna does.", she smiled.
"Her moves are erratic de gozaru", chuunin Kaede Nagase added.
"But very interesting-aru!", Ku's eyes sparkled.
The snow cloud that had kicked up cleared as a large swipe sent everything but Asuna flying. It was evident that the swipe was Shisca's doing when they saw Asuna bounding upwards to dodge. Shisca didn't miss a beat as she launched her lance from behind her back at an almost impossible position right towards Asuna. The twin-tailed girl parried with her sword and somersaulted backwards.
Asuna skid into the snow until she finally stopped. She looked up to be face to face with another incoming thrust. She dodged but they came one after the other. To the head, to the abdomen, to the chest, the attacks never seemed to end. What was most disconcerting was that Asuna realized that the girl was reading her moves. If she had moved any slower to match Shisca's speed then those attack would have struck her by now. Asuna couldn't see an opening but her instincts screamed out to her to swing at that one exact moment. She brought forth her blade in one destructive arc.
In one moment, the whole fight reversed. Shisca who had been on the offensive was now the one on the defensive. Asuna who could only manage to dodge was now hitting every spot she could find. At first her attacks were being blocked roughly by the defending girl. Slowly though, it felt as if Asuna was the one being cornered with every stroke of her sword. The blocks were starting to feel more solid, slowly turning into smooth parries. It felt like being a puppet on a string. She idly noticed in her peripheral vision that Shisca was at the edge of the cliff. The paranoia in her mind grew as she sped up her attacks with full intent of forcing the girl off the edge.
Back outside, Setsuna was watching the match between the new girl and her kendo student. Beside her, Negi was cheering Asuna on as the match looked about to close with Shisca falling off the cliff. The samurai girl saw the situation more clearly than the others though. "You're being too rash Kagurazaka", she breathed.
Kaede and Eva noticed as well while the fight wore on. Ku Fei and Kotaro had serious looks on their faces as well. Only those with little fighting experience couldn't tell the rhythm of battle.
Shisca's face never changed from start till end. Her smile never faded though it changed with every emotion that came as the fight wore on. It was only for a moment but a sorrowful smile was the last one Asuna saw before Shisca parried the final slash. The staff and blade clashed then, Shisca drove forward with their weapons sparking against each other. Asuna could not move from surprise at the move. Shisca quickly twisted her weapon. The movement knocked Asuna's sword away.
"Not good.", Kotarou commented from the spectator's seat.
Asuna watched as Shisca's lips moved. Her eyes widened in understanding before she took a fist to the face.
Ku Fei winced as she watched Asuna's head dig deep into the snow after that shot. "Must hurt-aru.", she commented.
Asuna pulled herself up only to take a blow to the opposite cheek, courtesy of the staff. She went flying from where she was. The girl felt her eyes tear up from the last hit but blinked them away when she saw the familiar glint of her sword. She extended her hand and used her momentum to pull it out while the sword slowed her flight. Her body instinctively coiled to launch herself at the opponent before an epiphany struck her. She was barely able to stop herself from blasting forward. Everything was going too smoothly. She had just noticed it when she was about to propel herself at Shisca. Asuna stole a glance at her enemy and found her smiling genuinely. What was she smiling about? Asuna had absolutely no idea. However, something in her gut said that the fight was even now.
Setsuna smiled at the new development. It was turning out to be a better fight than she had thought. Shisca seemed to have the upper hand in experience but Asuna's physical abilities and combat instincts were more than making up for it.
The atmosphere was choking Asuna. Something was in the air, she could feel it all the way to her bones. The wind, the ground, everything felt like they were resonating. Her head began to ache in trying to comprehend this development. What was happening to her? She tried to trace the epicenter of the disturbances and they led back to her opponent. The smile was so annoying, it grew warmer and she felt her heart's beat changing ever so slightly. 'You're learning.', she felt Shisca's thoughts. Asuna didn't know why but that was how she perceived it. Shisca's smile dampened a little and Asuna could no longer feel anything from the girl., except a heavy pressure.
Kotarou whistled from the sidelines. "Hot dang! She's winding up ain't she Kaede-nee?", the dog hanyou grinned wolfishly.
The squinty-eyed chuunin nodded in agreement, "She definitely is. The next move will decide it."
Setsuna watched from outside while she made an analysis of the situation. Shisca sprang forward with all the speed she could muster. The new comer could still feel Asuna's beat, the gosururi dressed warrior was beginning to learn how to read battle rhythm but she still hadn't mastered concealing her own beat. That advantage, Shisca had. The only problem now was the difference in physical capacity. What would win? Experience or capability?
Asuna met it head on. The piercing capacity of that thrust from the blunt weapon was nothing to scoff at. The gosururi warrior brought her blade for a block, never thinking of backing down in a contest of strengths. She felt the shockwave from the staff blow right through her blade and travel right into her. The follow-up was strong too. She was not the type to lose heart though. Asuna grit her teeth and pushed forward with all her natural and enhanced strength combined. "Hyaah!", She parried the blow. "Got you!", she announced. She swung the blade as a large thwack resounded against the howling blizzards.
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"So how do we grade her?"
"I think we should let her on. She's pretty good with that staff of hers."
"I think we should let her join too."
"Her moves are interesting-aru. I think she'll be a good addition."
"Personally, I'd want her with us but with her current ability. I think we should let her train up a bit more before we let her join us. I don't want to put my students in jeopardy."
"I agree with Negi-sensei. She still needs training if she can only reach so far. As her opponent, what is your opinion?"
"I-I'm not too sure. She definitely has fighting skills that would put many of us to shame but her body isn't as strong as most of us though so I would kind of discourage her joining."
"What's your take master?"
"Honestly, I don't like that girl. We should reject her application permanently."
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After the small meeting Eva confronted Asuna over the events of the match. "What happened Kagurazaka?", the vampires questioned her student.
"What do you mean?", the girl answered with a question of her own.
"That fight.", Eva specified. "you were about to lose it."
Asuna knew what her combat instructor meant. If she had been a second later, Shisca would have knocked her out. Even with an enhanced body, she couldn't take a shot with as much force as the one she had blocked. "I know.", Asuna held herself. She shivered as she remembered the feeling from the match. "it was wonderful.", she said plainly.
Evangeline looked a bit taken aback before a sly smile took over her features. "I guess it was a pretty good spar for someone like you."
"Not that.", Asuna gazed at her mentor with a joyful smile. "The feeling that I got when we fought, it was like we were dancing. I could feel her pulse, her breath, everything. At first I couldn't get it but the more we fought, the more I began to understand. How she drew me into her pace, how I found the beat that could break hers. It was just too fun.", the middle-school warrior shook her head, "I'm not too sure on what I just said but. I think that she was trying to teach it to me, this joy that I'm feeling."
"Why would you say that?", Eva questioned.
Asuna merely smiled, "She said something after I was drawn into her pace for the second time. She said— "I'm disappointed."".
Eva dismissed her student before retiring to her own room. She lay down on her toy laden bed before letting a frown mar her beautiful face. "I don't like that girl. She's too dangerous."
Like a sword that had yet to be drawn.