Hey! I'm finally uploading this after arguing with myself for a long long time. My beta is on long-term hiatus because of national exams, so if there are any mistakes, I'm sorry. We're both very busy people, and Toa is really stressed out now (so am I but I have it more slack than Toa does...) Kondo mo yoroshiku, ne!

Disclaimer: I don't own Shinkenger, zannen nagara...

Chapter 1: 集

Takeru

It's been a few years since that year. The year which everything happened in- good, bad, surprising, memorable.

Occasionally, Gedoushuu still find their way out of the cracks, but those I could handle alone. As long as Chimatsuri Doukoku stayed sealed up, there was really no need to get those guys involved.

Genta's been sending me postcards from Paris, updating me every month about his progress. It won't be long before his skills get to that level he's always wanted to achieve.

As for the rest, I don't have any idea how they're doing- as far as I know, Mako is in Hawaii, probably already married. Chiaki should be finishing university soon.

And me? I've been forced to do all sorts of things when I'm not occupied by Gedoushuu. It makes me wish the Gedoushuu kept me more busy.

So now I know how to play the guitar - the bass too - and how to make girls shun me just so they would leave me alone when Jii set me up for another match-making session.

Ok, fine, I miss them. I miss Mako, Kotoha and Genta. Even Chiaki and Ryuunosuke. Especially Ryuunosuke.

Everything just seemed so bleak without them here. If I ever get to meet them again, I promise, I will treasure our time together more.

Then, one day, the Sukima sensor rang, louder than it has been since that year.

"Tokyo?"

Setting out again, thankful for the distraction (Jii was planning on having me take piano lessons too- I overheard him one day), I hurried to Tokyo.

What I saw surprised me more than anything in these past few years, which have been rather empty, to be totally honest.

"Ayakashi..."

That got its attention. "Who are you?" It demanded.

"SHODOPHONE! IPPITSU SOUJOU!"

My opponent didn't have any indication of recognition, even after my suit came on.

"ShinkenRed: Shiba Takeru. Going forth."

No Nanashi Renjyuu appeared, just the Ayakashi. I begin to have my suspicions.

When I attacked, nothing seemed to harm it. After a few attempts, the Ayakashi retaliated, and I was thrown half a street away, crashing into glass.

"My opponent is not in you. But if you insist, I will not hesitate to destroy you the next time we meet." And it retreated into a crack.

"Damn..."

Ryuunosuke

The audience applauded as we bowed. We- my team and I- had officially achieved our dream of being recognized as professionals in the world of Kabuki.

"Thanks for the hard work." as everyone around me left, I thanked them sincerely, and they said the same back to me.

When I was the only one left, Ryuu Origami poked its way out of my bag and onto my hand. It seemed restless. Suddenly it dove back into my bag, and I heard a voice I haven't heard for over ten years.

"Ryuu," she said.

My intuition was right, it was her I saw, when I turned around, leaning on the door of the dressing room.

"Hinoko..."

She smiled, tears spilling out of her eyes as she ran up to me and hugged me.

Of course, I hugged her back.

She had once lived with my family for a few years when we were both kids, having come to us on a snowy night. A few years later she suddenly disappeared, until now.

We let go of each other, and she wiped her tears away. "How did you know it was me? We were kids when we last saw each other."

"I'll never forget that voice." Hinoko was almost as tall as me, and she didn't have to reach up to cup my face.

"You've really changed. How have you been?"

An uncomfortable feeling settled in my stomach, replacing the pure joy of seeing my best friend again. "Why did you leave without saying anything?"

"I was… called away." As cliché as it sounded, my current self actually believed her, recalling the one year I was forced to put Kabuki on hold to serve Takeru.

Therefore it sounded like a reasonable reason. "As long as you don't suddenly disappear again." I hugged her again.

She didn't say anything, but wrapped her arms around me.

Mako

Moving to Hawaii reunited me with my mother. We spent a lot of time together, the burden of being ShinkenPink having been taken off my shoulder.

I still wake up at 4 to train, sometimes with my mother being my coach. She is stricter than Takeru, simply because she was my mother, and she didn't have to contend with people like Chiaki holding my progress back.

As to why I still train, because that, to me, is the only way I can not forget my home country of Japan. Here in Hawaii, all conversation is held in English, and my English has gotten good.

I'm currently teaching in a Kindergarten, still in search of my dream. I wonder if the others had achieved theirs. Not that Takeru had much of a dream, I laughed to myself.

Will I ever see them again?

My answer arrived in the form of a mail-man.

"Mako, you have a delivery!" My father shouted from downstairs in Japanese. We converse in Japanese at home so that it would not get worse with time.

"Hai!" I abandoned my Shodo practice and went to receive the parcel.

"Ms Shiraishi, this is for you." The Caucasian man dumped the wrapped package in my arms and asked me to sign.

After that, I opened the long, thin package to reveal a solitary arrow with a note on it.

"I guess Hikoma-san's arrows can't fly halfway across the globe, after all."

My parents approached as I removed the arrow to show them the word 'GATHER' 集 on the note.

My mother frowned, "Isn't Doukoku defeated? Why are you summoned again?"

I smiled at her, secretly glad to have a reason to reunite with my comrades, "I guess I don't have a choice but to go."

The flight was agonizingly long and tiring.

And it did not help that on the way back to the Shiba mansion I had to encounter an Ayakashi.

Except something was off about this one. It merely stood there, as though waiting for something.

However tired I was, I drew my Shodophone.

"IPPITSU SOUJOU!"

"ShinkenPink: Shiraishi Mako. Going forth!"

My fatigue resulted in none of my attacks working.

"Mako!" I heard Takeru's voice, which distracted me long enough for me to get flung into a pillar.

"This one's a tough one." Takeru approached me, not yet transformed.

"Why are the Ayakashi reappearing?" I tried to get up.

"You are not my opponent either."

"Mako!"

"Nee-san!"

"Tono-sama!"

"Take-chan!"

I looked to see Ryuunosuke, Chiaki, Kotoha and Genta running up to us.

"Let's go." Takeru nodded to the others, and we assumed our positions.

"SHODOPHONE! IPPITSU SOUJOU!"

"SUSHICHANGER! IKKAN KENJOU!"

Seeing the whole team, the Ayakashi suddenly seemed interested.

"ShinkenRed: Shiba Takeru."

"The same, Blue: Ikenami Ryuunosuke."

"The same, Pink: Shiraishi Mako."

"The same, Green: Tani Chiaki."

"The same, Yellow: Hanaori Kotoha."

"The same, Gold: Umemori Genta."

We knelt and bowed.

"The Samurai Sentai approved by the Providence: Shinkenger- GOING FORTH!"

The Ayakashi said nothing, and headed straight for Blue.

"Ryuu-san, watch out!"

Kotoha received the attack in place of Ryuunosuke, collapsing immediately.

"Kotoha! Minna, don't bother about me, protect Tono! I can hold my case."

We ignored him, stationing in front of him instead, when Takeru motioned for us to stop.

"The Ayakashi mentioned something about his opponent. Perhaps it's Ryuunosuke it's talking about."

Watching the Ayakashi and Ryuunosuke clash was like watching fireworks. Ryuunosuke's watery power dispelt the Ayakashi's energy-based attacks. That was, until Ryuunosuke got hit by lightning. "I'll be borrowing this one."

Takeru jumped forward, shielding Ryuunosuke's fallen body. "You'll have to go through us first."

Opening his buckle, he removed the lightning disc and slot it on his ShinkenMaru.

"SHINKENMARU: RAIDEN NO MAI!" He sent bolts of lightning at the Ayakashi, who countered it, sending it back to us.

We fell by our own power.

"I am taking him." And it disappeared with Ryuunosuke into a crack.

Takeru

Back at the mansion, we tended to our burns. The Kuroko helped where we could not.

"Shit. First fight and we lost." Chiaki cursed.

Kotoha was more worried about Ryuunosuke, though.

"What if the Ayakashi kills Ryuu-san?"

"The bottom-line is, we need to save him as fast as possible. Even though and precisely because, we don't know what the Ayakashi wants with him." Takeru concluded.

Mako interjected, "I believe we all need to rest first."

Except for Genta, we all blinked at her.

"Nee-san, Japanese, please."

Genta nodded, "I believe we should rest too. It's still…7 am in Paris. And I flew at 1 in the morning after a Daigoyou woke me up."

I sigh, knowing that a tired team would not get us anywhere. "Fine, we'll rest for the day." And I retreated into my own room.

To be totally honest, I'm disappointed that I didn't even get a chance to talk to Ryuunosuke since our reunion. I'm not saying the others are not nice to see, or talk to, but it just feels wrong not to have my most loyal comrade be missing.

We were all supposed to reunite happily, yet the Ayakashi had to take him from us immediately.

Tomorrow, I promised, tomorrow we'll think of something to get you back, Ryuunosuke.

Maybe then, I can tell you how I really feel.

Dou? How was the first chapter of the story? Onegai dakara, please review! I'm looking forward to minna's comments!