Hello everyone! Eldest Tempest here, with a story for The World God Only Knows! Or... The World Only God Knows, as FFN describes it. Still unclear on why that is. Anyway, this is my first story for this fandom, ergo I'm new at writing these characters. I therefore humbly request your forgiveness if I should muck up any characterizations or plot details. Although this is merely a oneshot, I intend to write many more stories for this fandom, so feedback of any kind is very much appreciated.
Prompt: One day, when I was off fooling around, more or less doing nothing of import, an idea popped into my head to write a birthday oneshot for almost every TWGOK character who has a birthday listed. Why I felt the need to make my writing life a living hell by granting myself almost no respite, I will never know, but I set to the task with zeal. Upon doing a fair amount of research, I discovered that the closest birthday was July 18th - the birthday of Jun Nagase. This also happened to be less than a week away. Cursing myself once again for my utter ineptitude when it comes to timing these things, as displayed in a story I wrote for the Fate fandom, I deliberated on what to do. Upon discovering that this would be the first actual story in which Jun had a major role, however, I decided "What the heck, why not?". And so this creation came into being.
Placing things back on track, I do hope you enjoy the story. For reference, the cover image is from one of the special Route DVD's for season two of the anime.
As a final addendum to this lengthy introduction to the actual story, it is recommended you have read the manga, or at least have some moderate knowledge of what happens in it, as this story takes place after the Heart of Jupiter arc. Fans who have only seen the anime will likely be greatly confused by certain things being referenced.
And now I retreat to allow you to read the story, before rotten fruit begins to get flung at me for taking up your time. Or you can simply skip this and read the story.
Enjoy! - Eldest Tempest
To Jun Nagase, nothing in the world delighted her more than the art of wrestling.
Such was exemplified, as she held one of her friends, Toshiko, in a headlock.
"Ack! J-Jun! You're crushing… my throat…"
"A-Ah! Sorry!" Jun abruptly let go of her friend, who promptly stumbled away to massage her throat.
"Jeez," she remarked. "You're always so hyped up when someone brings up wrestling."
That was true enough. It was a special passion of hers that brought her to childlike glee, especially when an actual match was taking place. The art of wrestling was a cohesive activity, uniting the combatants, referee, staff, and audience in a common enjoyment of the sport. In fact, her idol was Jumbo Tsuruma, one of the greatest and widely renowned fighters to ever grace the arena. Many newer contenders even emulated some of his fighting style, or used his famous victory cry. Strangely enough, not many people around Jun's age quite understood her obsession with the now-deceased legend.
However, it was her favorite sport that would be the objective of their outing. The date today was July 18th, her birthday. As a present, her friends had pooled together their funds and saved enough money to acquire tickets for a match happening today, in an attempt to make up for their prior disdain of the activity. She could hardly contain her excitement. In fact, not being able to do so was what had caused the headlock incident…
"Hey, it's her birthday," her other friend, Hitomi, pointed out. "Everyone's at least a little excited on these sorts of occasions."
"Huh? But you were so relaxed on yours…" Toshiko said, as the trio began to walk towards their destination.
"Ehehe, I guess that's true…"
Well, I'm glad they were both willing to tag along with me… Jun reflected, stealing a backward glance at her two companions, as they walked along the streets of Narusawa City. But... I wonder if Nikaidō-senpai is also coming.
Jun had been quite surprised to hear that her long-time friend, and fellow teacher, Yuri Nikaidō, had quite simply left her career. There had been no indication whatsoever of any reason for that to transpire. She wondered what might have happened that would have caused that…
"Hey, uh, Jun seems to be daydreaming again…"
"She's been doing that a lot lately," Hitomi explained. "Ever since that brief stint as a student teacher…"
Ah, right. The appointment at Maijima Private High School. After a few years of studying at college, Jun was one of the few selected to act as temporary assistant teachers at the school. Her experience there had been a strange one, and full of blank spots in numerous places, something which bothered her. Why couldn't she remember all of what had happened there? It was as if somebody had given her partial amnesia. It was unexplainable. In spite of the memory blocks, though, she had befriended several of the students there. Some of them still sent the occasional message to her.
"Looks like we're here," Hitomi announced, grinding the end of Jun's train of thought to a halt. She gestured at the imposing structure of the Narusawa Sports Center, stretching far higher than most of the other nearby buildings.
"Oh, wow…" Toshiko gasped, eyes tracing the sheer size of the edifice. "That's… pretty impressive."
"Wait until you see the actual match!" Jun replied, eyes glittering with excitement. She couldn't wait to see it!
"I think the queue's got you both beat," Hitomi put in, pointing to the massive line that was slowly shuffling its way inside the building. Hitomi glanced around the immediate outer space. "Doesn't look like your friend's here just yet."
"I'm here," a voice answered from behind, causing Toshiko and Hitomi to nearly jump out of their skins.
"Gaaaaaah!" they both exclaimed.
Jun, on the other hand, whirled about, beaming with happiness. "Nikaidō-senpai!" She came!
A ghost of a smile crossed Nikaidō's features. "Hello, Jun. Sorry for not being here sooner. I had a few things to attend to."
As aloof as ever. Jun thought she could detect an undertone of happiness, though. Perhaps not having to teach anymore had proven to be liberating?
Toshiko and Hitomi, meanwhile, were still recovering from their fright. "Yeesh…" Toshiko said. "Don't sneak up on people like that. You'll give someone a heart attack."
Nikaidō tilted her head slightly to the side. "Oh? Forgive me for frightening you. I didn't think I would cause a stir."
"I-It's okay," Hitomi responded, still slightly shaken. "So, you're Jun's friend from high school?"
"That's right!" Jun beamed, throwing an arm around Nikaidō. Nikaidō started slightly as her arm made contact, as though she wasn't used to such acts of camaraderie. "She was my upperclassman! We were on the basketball team together, and I was the student teacher for her class!" Jun paused, as she suddenly recalled something she wanted to ask Nikaidō. "Oh! How is Katsuragi-kun?"
An odd expression crossed Nikaidō's face. Jun wasn't able to discern what it was, and it quickly vanished, replaced by the mask of indifference her upperclassman usually wore.
"Katsuragi is… doing fine," she managed. "He is still utterly inseparable from his games."
"Awww, and he told me he had quit that!" Jun exclaimed, a bit disappointed in her former student. "He said he had a girlfriend now!"
"Well, that part is true…" Nikaidō made a noise that sounded like a forced cough to change the subject. "Anyway, shall we join the queue for this event? I have my ticket." She held up her admission ticket for the match as she said this.
"Um… sure!" Jun felt a bit perplexed about the sudden topic change, but this feeling was quickly repressed by the desire to get inside the building before the match started. "Let's go!"
"Hey, isn't Katsuragi-kun that troublesome student we met awhile back?" Hitomi asked Toshiko, within earshot of the rest of the party.
"Y-Yeah, I think he was. Didn't he have his girlfriend with him?" Toshiko replied.
"Yeah, he did! She seemed nice enough…"
Nikaidō had her eyes closed, one hand curled into a fist in front of her mouth, as she wore a brooding expression. Jun studied her for a few moments, trying to guess at what she was thinking about. After some time elapsed, she spoke.
"You know, I'm glad that we could hang out again. It's been so long since we've actually done anything!"
That seemed to break her trance. Nikaidō turned to regard Jun with her eyes, staring at her for a few seconds.
"H-Hm? Oh yes, it has been awhile, hasn't it? I've been very busy with teaching up until now. I'm sorry for not having an open schedule to do anything," she said.
"That's okay!" Jun declared. "I'm doing fine now! I've made plenty of friends. But you're still my primary friend, Nikaidō-senpai! Ever since that student teacher job at the school, though, I've been feeling a lot better!" She paused, feeling something nagging at the back of her mind. There it was again! That feeling that something was missing!
"Huh…" she mumbled. "I wonder what happened…?"
Nikaidō peered at Jun for a few more seconds, a look of concern etched on her features.
"Tickets, please!" A voice suddenly boomed, startling the two of them out of their respective thoughts. A ticket attendant loomed near the entrance, evidently placed there to allow admittance inside. Jun wasn't aware they had moved up so quickly to the front of the building.
"A-Ah! Right here!" Jun spluttered, handing her ticket and the other three to the attendant to look at.
The man glanced at the four tickets for a few moments, before grinning and handing the tickets back to Jun. "Very good! Please enjoy the match!" As he finished speaking, he stamped his foot, and raised one of his arms, curling his hand into a fist. He then let loose a mighty "OH!", the noise startling several of the people in the crowd.
Jun recognized that sound instantly, and broke into a wide grin. That was the victory cry of Jumbo Tsuruma! Scrunching her right hand into a fist, Jun imitated the attendant.
"OH!" she shouted at the top of her lungs, eliciting a broad smile from the attendant.
"I think I'm about to die from embarrassment," Hitomi commented from the back of the party, as they made their way inside. "But I might go deaf from this first."
"That's hardly going to be the last time you'll hear it," Nikaidō said sardonically. "It's the catchphrase of Jun's idol, not to mention many of the other people in here as well."
"Great…" Hitomi grumbled to herself, as they took their seats, close to the front row. Not long after they did so, the lights dimmed and a single spotlight flared.
"Ladies and gentlemen!" The announcer's voice boomed throughout the interior of the structure. "The moment you've all been waiting for! The NONA special pro wrestling event begins now!"
The crowd erupted into a state of wild cheering. Jun joined in, adding her voice to the tidal wave of sound already present. Toshiko and Hitomi covered their ears from the sheer volume of noise, while Nikaidō simply stared at the wrestling ring, seemingly unaffected.
"Introducing your contestants!" More spotlights blazed to life, following two figures striding from opposite directions towards the ring.
"In the blue corner… Jun Akikawa! In the red corner… Mitsuharu Nizawa!"
The sound the crowd was generating only amplified as the names were announced. Both were highly respected in the ring for their skill at wrestling. In fact, they had been a team at the previous match Jun had attended – a match which Katsuragi had also apparently gone to, she recalled.
"Ahhhh!" Jun exclaimed, casting aside her thoughts on Katsuragi for the time being and clasping her hands together, as she watched the ring intently. "I don't know who to support! Akikawa's a rising star, but Nizawa uses the same moves that Jumbo did! It's going to be so hard to decide!"
"Just… watch the match," Hitomi flatly stated, as if that was the simplest solution to the mini crisis Jun was facing.
The bell that signaled the match's start sounded, and the two mighty titans of the ring began to clash.
Jun watched the fight, paying close attention to the proceedings. Occasionally, she would steal a glance at one of her companions. Nikaidō wore that same indifferent expression, Toshiko had her hands over her ears, trying to block out the tumult, occasionally peeking at the brawl, and Hitomi seemed to be observing the whole thing with some mild interest. Jun grinned, and diverted her attention back to the match. At last, someone was showing some appreciation for her favorite sport!
A great clamor rose from the crowd, as Nizawa tightly gripped Akikawa, then proceeded to lift him up, bridging himself, and slam his opponent onto the ring's floor.
A suplex! Jun marveled.
Akikawa groaned, and didn't appear to be in any hurry to get up. A referee soon hurried over, and began a countdown, the crowd chanting with him. When he had finished, the audience erupted once more into a frenzied state of noise.
Nizawa planted one foot on a side of the ring, propping himself up, before raising his arm in a characteristic motion.
"OH!" he declared to the crowd, the victory cry of Jumbo Tsuruma resonating from his throat.
"OH!" the audience responded en masse, most of them standing up to imitate the victor. Jun was amongst those who did.
"Is it… Is it over?" Toshiko queried, perking her head up from her cradled position.
"Yup!" Jun answered, as people began to file out of the building. "What did you think of it?"
"I… don't think it was my sort of thing, Jun," Toshiko stated rather meekly, as they too began to exit.
"I thought it was alright," Hitomi offhandedly commented. "I can sort of see the appeal now."
Nikaidō merely stayed silent, as they left the building.
"Well, it takes some getting used to. But once you get a bit more into it, it becomes way more…" Jun trailed off, as she noticed somebody leaning against one of the walls.
A teenager with brown hair and a pair of glasses, dressed in the red uniform of Maijima Private High School. The adolescent was currently pressing furiously on several buttons on his PFP handheld device, no doubt working on his latest 'conquest'. He seemed utterly absorbed in what he was doing, allowing nothing to interfere with his task.
That man was Keima Katsuragi.
"K… Katsuragi-kun?!" Jun exclaimed, surprised that he was here, of all places.
"Hmph. I've cleared at least five games and they still haven't come out yet. The Real sure likes to take its time," Katsuragi muttered, as he continued playing his game. It seemed that he was unaware they were now outside.
"Wh… What are you doing here?!" Jun asked, still perplexed and wondering if he was even listening.
"Sensei."
Jun started, a slight blush crossing her features. Katsuragi had stopped playing his game, and was now looking intently at her.
"Ah… y-yes?" she stammered. Why was she so flustered? She recalled that back during her time as a student teacher, Katsuragi's eyes had held no emotion in them. This time, however, they were filled with a fire, as though this conversation was of critical importance.
Katsuragi held up an envelope, trapped between his fingers. Jun wasn't aware he had even had it. It must've been disguised by the handheld console.
"Here. A present." He held out the envelope for Jun to accept.
Jun reached over to take it, wondering what might be inside.
Katsuragi glanced off to the side as she removed the envelope from him. "I want to get this obligation to the Real over with quickly. A god of the 2D should not have to concern himself with such trifles."
Jun viewed the envelope, turning it over in her hands. Katsuragi had gotten something for her? That was unexpected.
"Well!" he suddenly announced, jolting her out of her thoughts. "I should be going now! I need to get back to my games!" Katsuragi turned around, and began to walk away, PFP held high, as his fingers resumed their sacred ritual of button mashing.
"Katsuragi."
Katsuragi froze mid-walk. Jun turned her head to see Nikaidō, the source of the voice, slowly striding over to him. Katsuragi's face wore a mask of confusion and surprise, apparently just as perplexed as Jun was.
Then suddenly, without warning, Nikaidō seized one of Katsuragi's arms, kicked one of his legs out from under him, and flipped him onto the ground.
"Grhk!" Katsuragi blurted, as he fell flat on his back, surprised by the sudden assault.
"Holy crap!" Hitomi shouted, taken aback.
"N-Nikaidō-senpai! What was that for?!" Jun demanded.
"Damn you, Real…" Katsuragi muttered from his position on the asphalt. "So, this is my reward for saving you…"
Nikaidō merely gave a cold stare at the fallen gamer. "Aren't you forgetting something?" she asked.
Uh oh. Jun had heard that tone before. It was typically the precursor to a world of hurt for whatever foolish being had ticked her off.
Katsuragi grimaced, apparently well aware of it too. "Ha…" He paused, still winded from the impact. "Happy birthday, sensei," he told Jun.
Nikaidō nodded, seemingly satisfied with the response. "Good boy. You're free to go now. Just remember…" She flashed a decisively terrifying smile at him. "Behave."
Jun didn't know what form of secret understanding passed between the two of them, but Katsuragi quickly got up and dusted himself off. He then proceeded to immediately check his PFP for damage, and began to amble away.
"Katsuragi-kun!"
Katsuragi glanced back.
"Th… thank you very much for the present!" Jun said.
Katsuragi merely nodded in silence and continued on his way, all the while murmuring "Save, save, save" to himself. Some things never changed.
"Was that… one of the wrestling moves from the match we just saw?" Hitomi inquired.
Nikaidō turned her head to look at the rest of the party. "That felt good. So, where to next?" she asked, acting as if nothing had happened.
Jun inwardly sighed at that. Her senpai was still fond of beating up the occasional student. Poor Katsuragi…
"Uh… um… how about downtown?" Toshiko suggested.
Nikaidō smiled at them, which, considering what they had just witnessed, caused them to blanch in fear. "Alright, let's go, then," she stated.
As the four meandered through the downtown streets of Narusawa City, Jun tore open the envelope with a fingernail and extracted the contents.
The present itself was simple, albeit quite costly. Nestled inside, was a significant amount of currency, enough to cover the costs of several different expensive items – one of which, Jun noted, was a PFP.
That, however, was not what drew her attention. Scrawled inside the envelope were three simple words, written in flowing, elegant handwriting. Jun could only guess that it was Katsuragi who had crafted the message.
Come back soon.
Jun smiled at the heartwarming missive. Perhaps the career of a teacher was a good fit for her, after all…
And that's that. I'd like to tack on some points, if some folks actually read these lengthy A/N's I come up with.
Regarding Jun's two friends, Toshiko and Hitomi, I do not believe that Wakaki-sensei actually gave names to the two companions that briefly appeared in Flag 120. As such, I have chosen to give them names of my own making. I can't very well refer to them as 'friend' and 'other friend', humorous as that would be, can I?
My knowledge on wrestling is very finite. I know very little about sports in general, having never been one of my interests. It's possible that even with the small parts of it mentioned, that I have made a mistake.
Regarding certain word choices: I have opted for my writing style to utilize certain writing tools that one finds common in a Japanese setting, while choosing to use English ones for other situations. I have kept the usage of honorifics, as they give a slightly more in-depth view of a character and how they feel about other characters. Polite usage of surnames was also retained, and for most of the characters, apart from Toshiko and Hitomi, they are referred to by their surname, as this is from Jun's point of view. On the flip side, I have rarely substituted English words for Japanese ones. Sensei and senpai were two exceptions, only because they have more connotations than their English counterparts. Phrases like "ano", "hai", "arigatou", and other things were not included, as they mean exactly the same thing as the equivalent English word. It is to be assumed that the characters are speaking in their native language, so such words are unnecessary, and honestly jolt me out of the story. However, this is merely my personal opinion. Feel free to do what you like for your own stories.
That massive paragraph aside, I hope the story was to your liking. Feel free to leave a review, telling me your thoughts on it! Additionally, go ahead and comment on my strange A/N's, if you feel the need. Should they prove to be a bother, I'll cease to include these voyages into my lack of sanity in future stories.
Up next, a birthday oneshot for the head of the Astronomy Club and host of the goddess Vulcan, Tsukiyo Kujyō! See you in four days!