Disclaimer: I don't own Pokémon! Don't make me be evil about it!


Satoshi's weary eyes fluttered open, woken from his slumber. When he glanced at the clock, he frowned. 'Great…half past midnight…'

He got up and got himself dressed. It didn't look like he was going to fall back asleep anytime soon. Quietly, he left the dorm and walked to the courtyard. He looked up at the stars and smiled. It was simply stunning. The breeze was terrific, and the temperature was perfect for a midnight stroll. Finding nothing better to do, he walked around the courtyard.

After a few minutes, he came across a park. The school may have been centered on fighting, but it was also one of the most beautiful places on Gaetia, especially at night. Flowers bloomed everywhere and lights were posted at many romantic hot spots. Satoshi strolled along a paved path, taking in the sights.

When he came across a pair of swings, he noticed someone sitting on a swing alone. There were many couples who took romantic walks around this time, but what would someone be doing on a swing by himself? He approached cautiously, trying not to alert the person to his presence. Upon closer inspection, he made a startling discovery.

'What's Kasumi-san doing here?' Driven by curiosity, Satoshi got closer at her. She looked so sad, sitting on a swing by herself. His heart went out to her. No one should have to be so alone. He came close enough so that he was behind her. She didn't seem to have noticed him yet. He heard her sniff a little. 'Had she been…crying?' It blew him away. The girl seemed so strong that he didn't think anything could make her cry. What could be wrong with her?

"Kasumi-san?" He spoke softly. She jumped and whipped around, wiping the evidence from her eyes.

"What are you doing here?" She asked. Her eyes narrowed into slits. "You're not stalking me are you?"

'Jeez, what kind of guy does she think I am?' He thought incredulously. "No, I just couldn't sleep. What are you doing here?"

"Not that it's any of your business, but I always come here." She huffed stubbornly.

'Man, cut me some slack would ya?' He walked to the swing next to her and sat there. She eyed him oddly.

"Why are you sitting there?"

"Not everyone needs a motive for sitting down you know." He told her smartly, making her smile slightly.

"Okay, okay. You don't have to be smart about it."

They both sat in a comfortable silence, gazing at the crescent moon.

"Say…" Satoshi started, breaking the silence. "Why are you so angry at me? I know it couldn't be just because I ran into you."

"For your information, I am mean to everyone, not just you."

"Well, why weren't you mean to that girl, Furuura-san?" He mentally slapped himself for such a dumb question. She was her friend for Balicula's sake!

"Furuura-chan is a good friend of mine from way back. What's it to you?"

"I'm just curious!" He defended. 'Just what is her problem? I asked a simple question and she attacked it. There's got to be a reason, and I am going to find out!'

"Curiosity killed the cat." She told him warningly.

He shuddered at her implication. 'Why do I get the feeling she isn't really talking about a cat?' He yawned tiredly, sleep beginning to overtake him. He was about to leave when he noticed that she'd fallen asleep. 'That has got to be the record for the world's fastest sleeper. The poor thing must've come here half asleep.' A sense of duty overtook him, feeling as if it was his responsibility to help her out. Shrugging helplessly, he picked her up, cradling her so that she was comfortable. 'Wow, she's amazingly light.' He thought.

He took a minute to take a glimpse of her, being his first –and probably last- time he would ever be that close to her face. The moonlight struck her sleeping form. His eyes widened in surprise.

'She's…gorgeous…' He thought, amazed. For over a minute, he continued to gaze at her, his mind going completely blank. It wasn't anything like love he felt for her, but more like appreciation for someone's beauty. Breaking his frozen gaze, he took it upon himself to take her home.

Carefully, he searched for her keys and opened the door to her apartment. As he stepped in, he noticed four rooms, each with a name plate on them. He continued until he found Kasumi's room. Entering the room, he found it different than how he had envisioned it. There was battling equipment everywhere. Plush toys and books laid on the floor and dresser. Her feathered bed was neatly made for her. The baby blue bed spread had ocean waves on it.

'Interesting mix of girl…and tomboy…' he mused. He was about to lay her on the bed when she wrapped her arms around him tightly, making him redden. It looked like she was afraid of being let go of. 'Besides being light, she's also warm…' After a couple of tries, he successfully got her to bed. When Satoshi pulled the covers over her, he was about to exit when something caught his eye.

'…a diary?' His hand hesitantly reached for it. Did he really want to violate the privacy of a girl who he barely knew? What if she were to wake up right then? There would be hell to pay. He decided against it at the last minute. He left the book where it was and exited her room. Closing the door carefully, he sighed aloud.

"…Maybe I can find out later…"

"Find out what?" A female voice asked.

"EEP!" He squeaked in surprise. This woman must've been her sister, the resemblance evident. The lady twirled her long blonde hair as her cerulean eyes leered at him suspiciously. He assumed her name was Sakura, considering that her door was the only one open.

Sakura's narrowed her eyes at him threateningly. "Are you stalking my little sister or something? Because if you are…"

"Nononono, I am not a stalker!" He defended, still spooked. 'Hello! Do I look like a stalker?' He then thought about his situation. '…Okay…maybe it does look a little suspicious.'

"I bet your lying!" The blonde accused.

"No, really! I'm Tajiri Satoshi! I'm in Kasumi-san's team!" He whispered so he didn't wake everyone up. Sakura relaxed her guard.

"Oh, so you're the guy she's been talking about…" She pondered out loud. That caught his interest.

"She's been talking about me?"

"Oh, it's nothing much…" She waved off. "She mostly goes on about how careless and goody-goody you are."

Satoshi sighed hopelessly. 'I'm never gonna catch a break with her…'

"What are you doing in my sister's room?"

"I saw her in the park. We talked for a little bit, but then she conked out on me." He explained. Sakura nodded and smiled.

"Well that was pretty sweet of you. Thanks for looking out for her."

"Nah, it's no biggie." He waved off modestly.

"Actually, yes it is." She spoke seriously, catching his attention.

"It is?"

"You see…Kasumi-chan never really had any guy friends. She's had the worst luck with men you could imagine."

"You mean old boyfriends and stuff like that?"

"If only it was just that…" Satoshi stared at her, urging her to continue. "I'm sorry, but I cannot tell you more. It's really personal."

'Sakura looks really sad.' Satoshi noted. 'Whatever happened to her must've been serious. Better not press her on the subject.'

"Its okay, I understand." He reassured her. "Could I ask you one question?"

"I bet I know what it is." She guessed. "You're wondering why she's been so mean to you right?" Satoshi nodded. "You should count yourself lucky. Most other guys she would've pounded into oblivion by now. For her, the nicer a guy is to her, the meaner she gets. But don't worry about it too much. It will take some time, and possibly a few bruises, but she will learn to befriend you. You're a really nice guy aren't you? Worrying over her like that."

"Well…I…err…" He stuttered, being embarrassed.

She giggled lightly. "And you're cute too!" Satoshi reddened noticeably, making her giggle more. "Well anyway, I don't wanna keep you, so go ahead. I will look after her." Satoshi nodded and left to his apartment. When she closed the door, she smiled warmly. "He's a keeper. Don't lose him little sister…" Yawning tiredly, the eldest sister retreated to her room to get some sleep.

Later in the morning, Kasumi woke up to the blare of her alarm clock. Turning it off, she gave herself an extra minute to reclaim her senses.

'Wait a minute…wasn't I at the park earlier this morning?' She remembered meeting Satoshi and gasped. Slightly panicked, she checked her clothes and belongings. Sure enough, everything was in place. 'I must've been dreaming then…' She concluded.

After getting dressed, Kasumi went to the dinning room to eat breakfast. During breakfast, she noticed that her three sisters were smirking and sniggering. Two irritable minutes later, Kasumi had it.

"Alright! What's going on here?" She interrogated. Her sisters started to chuckle conspicuously, making her more irritated.

"Kasumi-chan, like when were you going to tell us?" Her blue haired sister, Ayame, asked.

Kasumi was baffled. "Tell you what?"

"Like you don't know?" Her pink haired her sister known as Botan inquired slyly. "You should've told us that you had a boyfriend!"

Kasumi fell out of her chair in astonishment.

"WHAT?" Her voice boomed. "HAVE YOU ALL FINALLY LOST YOUR MINDS?"

They couldn't hold it in any longer. Loud laughter filled the room.

"Does Satoshi-kun ring a bell?" The blonde questioned. That took her by surprise.

"How do you know him?" Kasumi stared at her in bewilderment.

"According to what I heard, you two were getting all chummy with each other and you fell asleep on him. That's when he carried you all the way back to your own room. He was even nice enough to tuck you in!" Sakura recalled. Kasumi's sister cooed at the cuteness, making Kasumi even more embarrassed, and breathless.

"Did he really do that…for me?" Kasumi breathed, stunned by this revelation.

"Yep! I saw him myself! It was so cute how he was all worried about you." Sakura giggled before continuing. "You know, he really is different from all the other guys. I think you should give him a chance. And from the looks of it, I think he's single…" She said the last part impishly, making Lilly and Violent coo in response.

"It will be a cold day in hell before I go out with him!" Kasumi stated, finishing her breakfast and making haste for the door.

"Then she better wear a jacket…" Ayame joked, causing them all to laugh.

When Kasumi left the apartment, she leaned against the door, still in disbelief. No guy was ever that nice to her…ever. She was mean and brutal to him, and he carried her home? And what's more, he was fretted over her?

That didn't add up.

And that's what touched her the most: Unparalleled benevolence.

'I guess…I can start with him…' Kasumi thought, a little hopeful. She only took a step forward when she cursed aloud. "I forgot my books!" Her hand landed on the door knob when she froze, remembering a certain group of teasing sisters.

Curse them and their torturous ways.

"Well…I guess I can go one day without books…" She sighed, defeated. Kasumi made her way to her first class.

Prepared and ready for school, Satoshi used his house phone to call his teammates. Kasumi had already left when he called, and Haruka agreed to walk with him to class, meaning Yuuki was left. He dialed the number and waited for the rings. On the third ring, a tired voice answered. He recognized it as Yuuki.

"Hello?" He yawned over the mouth piece.

"Hey, it's me, Satoshi!"

"Hey man! What can I do for ya?"

"Well, I called Haruka-san earlier was wondering if we could swing by your house for pick up."

"Err, no, that's alright. I'll just see you in class."

"It's just around the corner man, come on…"

"Look, it's alright, really! I'll just see you in class."

"Are you sure? Because we can easily just—"

"I SAID NO!" Yuuki screamed, extreme aggravation in his voice.

Satoshi flinched from the yell. "Yuuki-kun…? Are you alright?"

Yuuki immediately caught his mistake. "My bad, I didn't mean to yell. Hey, look at the time! Gotta get to class, later!" Satoshi could hear the click, signaling the end of the conversation.

Satoshi blinked, surprise by that momentary change on tone. 'Why was he so against me coming over? Is it really that bad over there?' He was about to pick up his backpack when he froze in place, his eyes widened. 'Wait a minute…it couldn't be…' The sound of the door bell jarred him out of his thoughts. He shook his head. "Nah, it couldn't be."

"Sato-kun! You have a guest!" Shigeru called out.

"Coming!" Making sure not to leave anything behind, he made his way to the front door. When he arrived, he saw Haruka waiting for him, bouncing happily while Shigeru gave him a sly look.

"Sato-kun, you dog!" Shigeru teased, patting him on the back. "Cute girls coming to your door? I knew you would grow up some day. Kids these days grow up so fast…" He wiped a fake tear from his eyes, making Satoshi redden from embarrassment.

"Niichan!" Satoshi yelled. "It's not like that!"

Shigeru leaned in to whisper. "…She's a bit odd, and hyper, but she'll do…go get her tiger!" He winked at him. Satoshi reddened further, realizing exactly what he meant.

"Knock it off already!" Satoshi demanded, making Shigeru laugh.

"Ah relax, I'm just teasing you! See ya tomorrow morning!" He gave him another wink.

Satoshi quickly ran out the door, grabbing Haruka by her hand. Outside, he let go of a flushed Haruka, aggravated by his brother's suggestive jokes.

'He held my hand…I can't believe he held it!' Haruka thought excitedly, getting giddy.

"Stupid niichan and his jokes…" Satoshi pouted.

"Oh come on, I thought it was pretty funny."

"Yeah, if you're the one watching…" He muttered under his breath. "So, what classroom am I dropping you off at?"

"Yours silly." She giggled.

"No way, so you have both of my classes?" Haruka nodded. "That's so cool."

"Yeah, I think so too!" Feeling bold, Haruka decided to ask him a question. She twiddled her fingers nervous and blushed. "Um…S-Satoshi-kun?"

"Yes?"

She swallowed, trying to get the words out. "I-I was wondering, are you busy today?"

"No, not at all. Why?"

"Because…I was wondering if…well…if you not busy…then…maybe…we can hang out…together?"

Satoshi smiled at her. "Sure, I was thinking the same thing."

Haruka's eyes lit up with joy. "Really?" Satoshi nodded.

"Yeah, all four of us can hang out together like last time." A loud slam followed the statement. Satoshi stared at her inquisitively. "Why did you fall like that?"

Haruka got off the ground and sighed. 'I should've known he wouldn't get it…' Feeling extremely embarrassed, she got up quickly and laughed it off. "Whoops! I am such a klutz! Dumb rocks. Anyway, let's get to class." She ran off ahead, leaving him perplexed.

'Funny…I don't see any rocks…' He shrugged and continued to his class.

When Satoshi arrived, he saw that most of the students were already there, including Kasumi. 'You know, I should try being nice to her. It won't be all that bad, especially if I can help out somehow.' With a new mission in mind, Satoshi confidently walked toward their table. On his way, he noticed Haruka, but she seemed really frustrated about something. What caught his attention was the chatter of some nearby students.

"Hey, did you hear?" One of the students said. "An arsonist has been messing up the school. I heard that the samurai dojo was totally trashed."

"Yeah, I also heard that these attacks have been pretty frequent ever since recently. They say that it was the work of some rebellious ninja."

Satoshi stopped for a moment, listening to their conversation.

"It's known that these attacks have been happening during the early mornings. I think they said that the criminal had white hair, and was extremely fast."

'White hair…' Satoshi pondered. At that moment, a certain white haired ninja walked through the doors, yawning tiredly. Most of the students glanced at him. The room suddenly got eerily quiet.

"Morning guys…" Yuuki rubbed his eyes, trying to get himself awake. Satoshi noted that his clothes seemed ruffled and dirty. Some of the students glared at him. Sensing danger, Yuuki spotted the leering students and blinked. "Err…is something wrong?" A girl shot up from her chair, pointing at him.

"I bet you're the arsonist that's been running around aren't you?" The girl accused.

"Yeah, come to think of it, everyone said there was a ninja with white hair. You fit the description better than anyone else!"

"Wait…I'm an arso-what?" Yuuki became alert. This wasn't looking good for him.

"Now you wait just a minute!" Haruka defended, standing in front of Yuuki. "You guys are just pointing fingers. One description fits him and you all are ready to torch him! Do you even have proof?" One student boldly stood against them.

"Yes. First of all, look how tired he is! And his clothes are all dirty! It's bloody obvious!"

"Yeah, let's get him expelled!" Another student called.

"I bet she's been helping him, that's why she's defending him! They've known each other for years. Everyone knows that!"

"Haruka-chan, it's okay." Yuuki told her sadly. "I don't want you to get involved in this." Haruka shook her head.

"No way!" She denied. "I've known you for too long, so I know for a fact that you would never do such a thing!"

"Haruka-chan…" Yuuki gazed at her, grateful.

"Alright, that's enough of all of you!" A voice boomed from behind. Mathisu walked in, clasping Haruka and Yuuki's shoulders. "If you are going to convict someone, make sure you have solid proof. You can point fingers and yap all day long, but if your proof isn't concrete, than you will wind up locking up the wrong guy. I've known Yuuki-kun ever since he started this school. Yes, he can be a trouble maker, but he's not an arsonist. I'll tell you what; I will handle this situation myself!" He declared, shocking everyone. He turned to Yuuki. "Yuuki-kun, I know this is unfair, but until I can prove you innocent, I am going to have to place you under my supervision."

"Wait Mathisu-sensei!" Satoshi called. "Yuuki-kun is in my team, so I will assume responsibility and watch over him myself!"

Haruka stood by his side. "I'm with Yuuki-kun as well, so I will help with the investigation!

The instructor held his chin in thought. "I don't know…"

Some of the students still weren't convinced. That is until Kasumi stood beside Satoshi, making everyone gasp.

"You guys are a bunch of morons. Otherwise, you would know that Yuuki-kun is too stupid to even know what an arsonist is!"

Yuuki fell over animatedly.

"Are you defending me or insulting me?" He exasperated.

Kasumi crossed her arms. "All three of us will watch over Yuuki-kun and make a thorough investigation. Any objections?" No one answered, not even the teacher. "Good!"

Yuuki became teary eyed. "You guys…"

"Alright, now that that's settled, its time to begin class!"

During the session, Satoshi noticed that Kasumi didn't have any books and grinned.

"What were you saying about me being scatter brained yesterday?"

Kasumi, catching on to him, was about to retort harshly when she stopped herself. 'Remember…give him a chance. He's obviously joking with you so just…smile…' She forced herself to smile, which turned out to be scarier than intended.

'Uh oh, looks like she's ready to kill me!' Satoshi laughed uneasily. He decided to stay quiet, shifting his notebook so that they could share.

Break time soon rolled around, giving them ample time to come up with a capture plan."So what's our plan of action?" Kasumi asked.

"First, we need to prove that Yuuki-kun isn't the arsonist." Satoshi suggested. "Yuuki-kun, we have to investigate your house to make sure you have nothing."

Yuuki was about to object when he remembered his situation. It was required that they searched his house, and he would rather have his friends check his house than some investigator.

There would be way too many questions.

"Alright…" He answered reluctantly. After they ate, the gang walked over to Yuuki's house. Before he opened the door, he stopped and turned around. "Um, Haruka-chan? I know this will sound bad, but is it okay if you can stay outside?"

"What? Why can't I come in?"

"I…I just can't. I'm sorry."

"It's alright Haruka-san." Satoshi assured. "Kasumi-san and I will check out the house for you, alright?"

Haruka was disheartened, but nodded. "Okay…" The three went inside the apartment. Curious, Haruka leaned her ear against the door.

She recalled many times before that she tried to enter his home, but he wouldn't let her inside. He would always come over her house, sometimes he even stayed over night, but she had never even seen the inside of his. One time, he got extremely upset when she touched the door knob. What could be so bad that he wouldn't want her to see?

"Oh. My. God." Kasumi gasped.

"What on Gaetia? This just isn't right!" Satoshi grimaced. Haruka was dying to see what was going on inside. She heard them search the apartment and Yuuki leading them. Several minutes later, they came out the door. Kasumi looked like she had seen a ghost, while Satoshi shook his head sadly.

'Man…I didn't know it was that bad. Now I know I why he didn't want her inside. It would've been too much for them to bear…'

"Was there anything?" Haruka asked, frightened by the tension.

"No, we didn't see anything." Satoshi told her. They heard the bell ring.

"Come on guys, let's go!" Yuuki said, perky as usual. Haruka noticed Satoshi and Kasumi's expressions. It was as if Yuuki's smile was merely a farce.

He was hiding something, and she was determined to find out.

Haruka pulled Satoshi back, letting everyone else go ahead to class. "Satoshi-kun, just exactly what was it you saw?" She demanded more than asked.

"Trust me, its nothing you would want to see." He told her just before going to class. She narrowed her eyes. There was no way it was just nothing, and she was going to find out what it was.

The second class took place out on the training field. There were nine teams, each curious about what Hayabusa's special gift was. All the teams stood in a line up formation. In front of them were nine tables, each with a cloth over it. Hayabusa stood in the middle and faced his students.

"Welcome to training day." He greeted. "Today, we officially start training, but not without something special. Because of all the great things I've heard about you guys, I personally got these for you." He stripped off the cloth, revealing several red and white devices with a white button in the middle. There were eight marble-sized balls on each table. "These were just imported from our neighboring region, Hoenn. These are called Pokéballs. They're special containment devices that houses creatures called Pokémon."

"Pokémon? What's that?" Satoshi asked.

"Pokémon, short for pocket monsters, are creatures that are much more advanced than your average everyday animal. They're named as such since these devices makes them pocket sized. Pokémon possess special strengths and attributes that makes them supernatural. Though other countries battle with them, they are healed in facilities known as Pokémon centers. These will become your new partners according to your record. Each person will get two Pokémon each. Be warned that these creatures do have feelings, and if you treat them roughly, they will be confiscated, not to mention bite you in the butt. But…if you raise them correctly, they will become very invaluable, not to mention your best friends. Once again, I will hand them out. This region recently made these available to us, so make good use of it. Don't open them until I say otherwise."

One by one, Hayabusa gave each person two Pokéballs. When he was done, he cleared the field and stood back. "In order to release them, press the white button on the ball like so." The teacher took out his own Pokéball pressed the button, making it enlarge to the size of a baseball. "Pokéball go!" He called out, tossing the ball in the air. A flash of white escaped the ball. The light instantly took the form of a large blue dragon. All of the students stared in wonder.

"Sala!" It cried. Most of the students were afraid to go near it.

"This is a Pokémon known as Salamence. Don't worry; it won't harm you unless you are a complete moron and you give it a reason. Go ahead and release your Pokémon." All of the students tossed the ball in the air, release a wide variety of different Pokémon. Satoshi released his two first. The first Pokémon to come out was a light brown Pokémon with a skull for a helmet, carrying a bone as a weapon. The second one was a yellow mouse with a zigzag shaped tail.

"Marowak!" The first one called happily, greeting its new partner.

"How cool!" Satoshi exclaimed. The mouse however, didn't seem as pleased with his partner.

"Just so you know, Pokémon can only say their names so get used to it." Hayabusa stated.

Kasumi released hers, revealing an orange, yellow chick and a blue crocodile. Haruka's was a small humanoid Pokémon with green hair with a red horn, and a red fox with six curly tails. Yuuki's Pokémon consisted of a four foot mantis Pokémon with twin scythes, and a small grey insect Pokémon.

"Hey, they're pretty cute!" Kasumi and Haruka cooed, playing with their Pokémon.

"Mine are cool looking!" Yuuki boasted.

"This one's weird…" Satoshi commented, pointing to the yellow mouse.

Twitch.

"What's this strange thing's name?" He poked at the Pokémon's head with his finger.

Twitch, twitch.

"Why is he so quiet? Is something wrong with him?" He continued poking at it.

CRUNCH!

A large bead of sweat rolled down his teammates and Hayabusa's heads. Satoshi paled, his finger bitten by the peeved off creature. A few seconds later…

"Owowowowowow!" Satoshi danced around in excruciating pain, the mouse still hanging on. "Somebody get it off!" He tried to shake it off but to avail. The teacher laughed at his agony.

"That should teach you not to insult at a Pokémon." Hayabusa laughed.

"Pi…ka…" Satoshi glanced at it, wondering what it was trying to do. "CHU!" It cried. Suddenly, a large jolt of electricity shocked Satoshi.

"WAH!" The now extra crispy Satoshi fell over, twitching from the shock. "I…guess his name is Pikachu…" He coughed up smoke.

"Great deduction genius." Kasumi joked, earning a glare from the fallen samurai.

"Kasumi-chan…" The teacher called, getting on with the lesson. "You Pokémon's names are Torchic and Totodile. Haruka-chan, yours are Ralts and Vulpix. And Yuuki-kun, yours are Scyther and Nincada. Understood?" All three nodded. "Okay, now that introductions have been made, let's get some training done."

The day went from exciting to strenuous. Yuuki, Haruka, and Kasumi managed to get along with their Pokémon. Satoshi on the other hand had the hardest time trying to be friendly with Pikachu. It wouldn't even go in a Pokéball, so he gave up trying. After class, the team regrouped at the cafeteria, their Pokémon, still out of their balls, played with each other.

"Pokémon are really cool!" Haruka stated. "You would've never guessed that something like that existed." Everyone nodded, except Satoshi.

"I don't know. I mean mine wouldn't even give me a chance." He whined.

"Neither did I…" Kasumi muttered under her breath.

"Okay, I think we should get down to business. What are we going to do about the arsonist?"

"I wonder…" Yuuki pondered. He snapped his fingers when he got an idea. "How about we check out the samurai dojo? Perhaps there might be clues as to the identities of the real arsonist."

Satoshi nodded. "Alright, let's do that. Let's recall our Pokémon just in case." The four press the button on the balls, bringing the Pokémon back inside the ball and hooking it onto the Pokébelts that they acquired from class. Pikachu was the only one that remained outside its ball. The group proceeded to the samurai department of the sword arts.

When they arrived, it was just as bad as people said it was. Banners were destroyed, equipment damaged, the walls and tables were slashed, and paint was everywhere. The place was a wreck.

"Man, this is just terrible." Yuuki shook his head shamefully. "We have got to find these guys!"

"Alright, let's split up and see what we can find." And they did just that. As Satoshi began examining his part of the room, he saw the scratches on the tables. 'Wait a second…these aren't cuts from a ninja sword…they're from a samurai sword!'

"Hey guys! I think I found something!" Yuuki called, getting everyone's attention. They all came to his area. "You guys see this here?" He crouched, showing them imprints on the ground. "They're foot prints here, but I can't see anything but samurai foot prints."

"There are samurai cut marks on the tables also. No mistaking it. Haruka, you're a magician, can you sense anything?"

"I'll try." Haruka closed her eyes and extended her wand. She spun in a complete circle twice and stood stock still. "…I can see something…traces of…an aero spell…someone was using wind magic here!"

"So…a samurai, ninja, and a mage were here? I wonder…" Kasumi held her chin in thought. "So only samurai marks could be found, but there are still traces of magic in the air…and people say that a ninja was sighted fleeing the scene…? That doesn't make much sense."

"Don't forget, it was also said that this was done during the morning." Satoshi reminded.

"Pika!" Pikachu exclaimed, sniffing the grounds.

"So you can still identify the scent Pikachu?" Satoshi asked.

"Pi!"

"Alright! So we got the culprits scent. All we need now is a plan to catch them!" Yuuki said.

"I think I have a plan." Satoshi stated. "Yuuki-kun, you're going to be look out for the arsonist. Haruka-san, you're the only one here who can keep up with him so you are going to keep an eye on him. Kasumi-san, you and I are going to be on the look out from another source. We'll all keep in contact by mini communicators. Our Pokémon will be able to help out too. Here's what we're gonna do…"

Later that night…

Satoshi woke up to the sound of his alarm clock.

'Midnight…perfect.' He quickly got dressed and got his Pokéball and Pikachu.

"Sato-kun!" Shigeru called before he went out the door. Satoshi noticed that he was completely dressed, and carried two swords, a wooden and real one. "I'm coming too!"

"Thanks." Satoshi nodded, giving him a communicator and going out with him.

Haruka and Yuuki hid in a tree, scouting out for the criminals. The space was small so she had no choice but to be practically on him, holding onto his waist. Yuuki used his night vision goggles to look for the arsonist while Haruka had Vulpix and Ralts hide in the lower levels. Yuuki switched on his communicator that hung on his ear, speaking into the mouth piece.

"Hey Sato-kun, its Yuuki. How's it looking from where you are?"

"Don't see anything yet. Where exactly are you?"

"I'm in the middle of the courtyard. What about you?"

"I'm inside the ninja arts department. Kasumi-san's in the martial arts department and my brother Shigeru-niichan is in the magic arts."

"You're brother's here too? Awesome! Isn't he a Class S graduate?"

"Yeah."

"Cut the chatter and keep focused!" Kasumi reprimanded. After an hour of waiting, she saw a small group of people run out of the dorms on her side. "Targets spotted on my side. Commencing chase." Kasumi followed them, making sure to keep out of sight.

"Don't lose em'!" Yuuki told her.

"Hmph, don't take me lightly."

"I see them! They are currently heading towards…the universal department!"

"Alright, remember the plan. I'm going to contact Kasumi-san and Shigeru-niichan. You two follow them and make sure they don't leave before we get there. Be careful and watch your back. I'm counting on you!" Satoshi turned off his communicator.

"Alright Haruka-chan, it's just you and me so let's do this!"

"Sure thing, but there's only one problem…how am I suppose to move?" She complained, failing to escape without falling down the 20 foot tree.

"Well…I guess we jump!" Without missing a beat, Yuuki grabbed Haruka by the waist and jumped off the tree. In mid-air, he saw that she was about to scream and cursed inwardly. 'Damn, if she screams, they will hear us for sure! I can't cover her mouth with my hands! What do I do now?' Her mouth opened, about to let out a blood curdling scream. Reacting on impulse, he did the only thing he could think of to silence her.

He kissed her.

When they landed, they shot away from each other, blushing madly.

"Um, sorry about that, but you were about to scream and my hands weren't free so…"

"No, it's alright, I understand." They both felt awkward until she punched him in the head. "But don't you EVER make me jump like that again! You almost gave me a heart attack!"

"My bad!" He apologized. "Come on, we're wasting time!" They both darted to the universal area.

Inside, five people snuck inside. Once they got to the gymnasium, they were about to trash the place when all of the doors closed, locking them in.

"Who's there?" One of them jumped. All the light flashed on, momentarily blinding them. They were surrounded by five people. "Who are you guys?" The leader demanded.

"We're the blades of justice that shall pass judgment!" Satoshi and Shigeru pulled out their swords, standing back to back.

"We're the holy fist of honor that shall crush you!" Kasumi performed a graceful jump kick and landed on one leg, standing in a battle stance.

"The forces of good shall overpower thy evil heart!" Haruka twirled her wand professionally, charging up her magical power.

"In the name of the moon, we shall punish you!" Yuuki whipped out his blade and pointed at them coolly. A baton flew out of the blue and smacked him in the head.

"Wrong line!" Haruka chastised, catching her recoiled baton. They grouped together, making a pose.

"Together, we're the power rangers!" There was a very long pause. Noticing the silence, they huddled together.

"…I don't know about that one. Isn't that taken?" Satoshi asked.

"Yeah, how about we try something else?" Shigeru suggested.

"Alright." They got back into formation again.

"Together, we're the—"

"Sailor scouts!" Yuuki shouted, causing his team to fall over in surprise.

"Yuuki-kun! Quit it!" Kasumi yelled. The team huddled together again. The criminals gawked at them oddly, a large bead of sweat rolling down there heads.

"Okay…why don't we give this one more shot?" Satoshi asked.

"Alright, for real this time!" Kasumi agreed. They got into another formation, Satoshi in front.

"Together, we're Team Tatsujin!"

The leader of the criminals, dumbfounded for a moment, shook his head. "So, you pipsqueaks are gonna try and stop us huh? Alright, let's get them!" The criminals split apart, going after the warriors.

The first one was the leader and an enemy samurai, taking on Shigeru and Satoshi respectively. Side by side, Shigeru and Satoshi gave alternate horizontal and vertical slashes at the enemy. The boss of the arsonist deflected Shigeru's attack and rammed him with his shoulder. Satoshi was about to assist his brother when the enemy samurai kept him at bay.

CLACK! SLASH! MISS! CLACK! MISS! SLASH! CLACK!

Their swords connected repeatedly. Satoshi and the swordsman were able to parry each other's attacks and counters.

CLASH!

Satoshi and the warrior were in a dead lock, glaring each other down. All in one swift move, Satoshi jumped up and knocked him in the head with the butt of his weapon. Stunned, the enemy was temporarily dazed. He was about to knock him out when he saw his brother battling and went to help him instead.

Using real swords, Shigeru pressured the boss with relentless slice attacks. The boss, nearing a wall, managed to deflect most of his attacks without fail. Shigeru made a powerful downward slash, but it missed. Using this to his advantage, the enemy leader attempted to strike him down, but fell for his trap. Slickly, Shigeru parried the attack with his sword. In mid spin, he took out his wooden sword and performed a low horizontal slash, successfully tripping him. Satoshi used the time gap to leap over Shigeru and injure the leader with a vertical slash. Though he managed to block it, the arsonist boss was slammed to the ground. The enemy samurai regained focus and charged wildly at the brothers. The Tajiris saw this attack coming, and knew exactly what to do. They leaned against each other, both of their wooden swords barely touching the wooden gym floor.

"X STRIKE!" They called out. Dragging their weapons along the ground, they blade rushed through the opponent. They zipped past the frozen stiff samurai; the only thing moving was the sudden rush of wind due to their speed. Professionally, they twirled their swords and sheathed it. As soon as the sound of their swords clicked, an X mark was ripped through the samurai's padded armor and along the ground. The wind followed the attack, adding extra damage. The samurai was defeated.

Next was a team battle, Yuuki and Haruka versus the mage and ninja. Yuuki zipped right and left towards the mage, fading off and on like a flickering shadow. The opposing magician couldn't target him with his magic attacks effectively, making him a dead target. Yuuki was about to strike him down when the enemy female ninja drop kicked him, sending him sliding across the waxed floor. Haruka conjured several fireballs and sent them their way. The other mage quickly set up a repulsion barrier, reflecting the attacks back at Haruka. She was about to get hit when Yuuki lunged and pushed her out of the way. Mumbling thanks, Haruka got up and ran towards the mage. The evil mage was about to strike her down with magic when Haruka tossed her wand at him. The enemy ninja caught the wand right before it hit the magician. At that instant, Yuuki appeared and tossed several flashbang capsules in their faces. The resulting explosion caused the two to be temporarily blinded and deaf from the sharp sound and immensely bright flash. Using this to their advantage, Haruka and Yuuki charged at their respective counter parts and started to beat them down mercilessly. The ninja escaped, but the mage was overpowered. Haruka went to regroup with Satoshi and Shigeru, knowing who would win that battle.

Yuuki used his sword to cut the white haired ninja, but she faded off right before the attack could hit her. She came down on him with her own sword, but he vanished similarly like she did.

High slash! Low slash! Left punch! High kick! Right slash! Low kick! Thrust! Jump kick! Slash!

This continued, each ninja evading the other's attack by vanishing, until one of them changed their tactics. The enemy tossed kunais at Yuuki. Caught off guard, he was injured by the attack. Countering, Yuuki charged blindly at her. Sensing victory in her grasp, the woman made a lighting fast vertical slice at him, only to have him split into two! Her eyes widened in surprise. He tricked her into attacking! The two Yuukis performed a low kick, knocking her into the air. She was about to recover when the Yuuki copies made another set of copies. The second set leapt into the air and punched her hard in the stomach. Going in for the kill, the two Yuukis on the ground dashed to her sides and punched her like the second set did, propelling her into the ground, incapacitating her.

Last was Kasumi versus the black belt fighter. The two fighters rushed at each other. When their fist clashed, it resulted in a stalemate. The enemy fighter was the first to break the lock and go on the offensive.

Kick! High kick! Punch! Low kick! Uppercut! Thrust punch! Rolling kick!

Kasumi blocked the first, ducked the second, parried the third, jumped the fourth, swerved past the fifth, side stepped the sixth, and interrupted the seventh attack, countering it by grabbing the man's leg and slamming him on the ground. The fighter stopped most of the damaged by pushing himself up as he landed on the floor. He kicked Kasumi away, causing her to slam into a wall. The enemy back flipped on the balls of his feet and rushed her. Kasumi narrowly dodged his fist by ducking. Here was her chance!

Punch! Punch! Punch! Punch! Kick! Elbow! Punch! Uppercut! Leaping uppercut! Midair triple kick!

The fighter, sustaining heavy wounds, heaving after that rapid succession of attacks. Using one of her recently learned techniques, she speedily caught up to him before he could recover attacked his stomach with her palm. Concentrating on her chi, she unleashed her chi wave attack, an invisible force that sent the man flying into a heap of equipment. K.O.!

"Ah!" The leader cried, clutching his arm in pain. He looked to see his teammates unconscious. "Heh…you guys are not that bad, but how about we kick it up a notch?" He bounced his Pokéball taunting in his hand.

"Give it up!" Satoshi demanded, his teammates regrouping. "You're all by yourself! What can you do?"

"This! Pokéball go!" The desperate crime boss called, tossing his balls in the air. When the light took form, Team Tatsujin gaped in fear. The first creature was a long, huge blue serpent, and the second was an enormous creature with a horn and skin as tough as steel. "Say hello and goodbye to Gyarados and Aggron! MWUAHAHAHAHAHA!" The gigantic Pokémon roared terrifyingly, frightening the five heroes.

"How the heck are we suppose to beat something like that?" Yuuki exclaimed.

Satoshi was afraid, very afraid. But no matter what, he couldn't let his friends down. He took out his Pokéball and enlarged it. "That's easy, we fight it as a team."

"Using what?"

"Our Pokémon! Remember your training today! If we give it our all, I know we can do it!"

Yuuki gave him a shocked stare. "…That has got to be the craziest thing I've ever heard!" His lips curled into a grin, taking out his to Pokéballs and enlarging it. "But then again, I like crazy! Let's do it!"

"I'm in!" Haruka joined.

"You guys are all nuts!" Kasumi shouted, only to sigh in defeat afterwards. "…I guess I'm nuts as well."

"Alright, I'll help out too!" Shigeru said, enlarging his Pokéballs. Satoshi was surprised.

"I didn't know you had Pokémon also!"

Shigeru glanced at him and smirked smugly. "Just wait until you see what I can do!" Everyone prepared their Pokéballs as the giant serpent and dinosaur like creature charged at them, preparing to attack them head on.


And that's the end of chapter two. Evil aren't I? Hope to see ya at Chapter 3. Don't you forget to review now! Laterz!