Chapter Four
Doctor In The House
So I am outside, looking like a parody of Saban Entertainment's most addictive creation, with a black cat screaming for me to attack, and an angry demon waiting for me to strike. To make matters worse I can't just start charging the beast because I know that if I make a wrong move people are going to get hurt. People I don't know, people who shouldn't matter to me, but people just the same.
"Shingo, cover your eyes," the boy's mother says. From the corner of my eye I can see a tall woman with blue hair and dazzling dark eyes look at me with disapproval. "This isn't a game that young children should be seeing." Her eyes turn even darker and I can sense serious hostility from her. She looks at me and says, "You should be ashamed of yourself, doing this in public.
Huh?
"Don't you have any decency?" she continues, covering her sons eyes. The annoying boy wants to see what all the fuss is about (hey, I would too). "Don't you at least respect your girlfriend? Why force her to dress like that for you?" She glares, looks at the demon's breasts, glares at it, glares at me, and huffs.
She turns her back to us and walks away. I can hear words like disgusting, vile, crazy otakus, fetish hentais, running around half dressed, and kids these days, while she drags her blond headed son away. When she is far enough, she pauses, turns around and gives us one final withering glare filled with so much disgust that I literally feel like frog shit. "To think this used to be a good neighborhood," then disappears into the night.
I am not sure which one of us is more confused, me or the demon.
I look at her, she looks at me, and we both nod. It's an agreement that the two of us will not bring up this awkward topic for the duration of this fight. Though for reasons that I don't want to understand there is a purple blush covering her cheeks, and I am starting to think that there are more human qualities to these creatures than I was initially lead to believe.
"Uzumaki! Attack her now while her guard is down!" Luna screams from her safe haven. For a cat who goes on about truth and justice, she knows how to play dirty. "She's still injured, you can take her!"
Thanks a lot Luna, way to give away what I am about to do next.
I look at the demon who immediately has her guard up and sigh in frustration at my stupid cat. Why does she always state the obvious? Can't she give me some advice that doesn't rely on ducking, getting out of the way, or arresting people who might become potential allies?
"What…what is that!" someone screams. I look up to see Ami standing beside Luna, the poor girl looks shaken and there is blood dripping down her forehead. "Yellow Ranger? Am I in some kind of filming?"
Luna answers her question. "Yes, this is a shooting. That's an actor, I am a puppet, and there are cameras everywhere. Please leave, you are in the way." Ami jumps as the cat says this. The girl looks like she is about to run for the hills and my kitty charges on. Go furball! "Unless you want a lawsuit in your hands I suggest you run."
Not bad Luna, but you forget Ami isn't your regular civilian. "Nice try, kitty, but I am no one's fool. That thing down there is most definitely not a person wearing a costume, and I don't think you are a puppet either." The blue haired girl looks a lot colder when she's angry. I guess she gets offended at people who think she is gullible. "I am not leaving until I find out what the two of you are."
"Yes you are, young lady," the Moon cat replies furiously, drawing her claws. "Unless you enjoy keeping that pretty little face intact I suggest you follow my instructions." The cat's fangs are bared, and her fur is standing on end. "I am serious."
Even from here it looks sort of scary, but Ami's brain isn't working too well.
Must have been the hit to her skull.
"No, I am staying and that's final." Then I see her disappear from the window ledge and I groan.
I have a feeling she is going to take the stairs to get a closer look at my battle. I don't blame her, but it doesn't mean I have to like it. I turn back to my opponent. "Alright, let's do this. I'll take you out before Sherlock Mizuno gets here." I put my fingers in a cross and create a single Chakra-concentrated Shadow Clone. "Any last words?" Seems like a nice thing to say.
"Of course," it replies, extending its hands out like a conductor. "Die!"
It is then I realize what the Devil-bitch's power is. It's a little something like Telekinesis, an ability to fling objects without physically touching it.
Yeah, I am fucked.
Thousands of tiny glass shards are sent hurtling my direction and my Kage Bunshin has the sense to jump unto a nearby street lamp to escape. Me? I throw myself behind a nearby car and curse at my idiocy as the thing is broken apart by hundreds of tiny shards.
"Give up, fool," it says, walking down the street sending more objects towards me. Little things like trash, dirt, and stone. The problem is it's travelling so fast that it literally smashes through walls, windows and, of course, cars.
"Don't you think I would give up if I had a choice?" I say. " What'll happen if I stop fighting? You going to let me go?"
"Of course not, don't be an idiot," it says, smiling. "The Dark Kingdom does not allow its enemies to escape."
"Can you make an exception?" I ask, hoping that the car I am hiding behind will last until her telekinetic blasts phase out. "I don't really have anything against you guys, it's just that my cat says you are evil."
"We aren't evil," the thing says, looking affronted. "Who said that?"
Does this thing work on Short Term Memory? "…I just told you who said it, my cat Luna," I repeat. "Listen, I am a reasonable guy, you're a reasonable…somewhat hot busty demon…can't we talk about this?"
"No," it says. It's now in front of the car. "Because I am going to do this to you."
The thing smiles, and smashes down both its long hands onto the car. With a screech, I feel it pick off the car from the ground and toss it behind her. It travels about ten meters and lands unto another car, and makes it explode. Hope there is insurance on that BMW, since the rich bastards who own the thing aren't going to be using it any time soon. Unless driving with half the front missing is in fashion.
The creature turns to me, opens her maw as she stands over my ready position, and grins. "Oh, how do you say this part?" she pauses drawing power around her. "Ahh, yes, any last words?
Wonderful. So I am fighting a creature that can turn anything into a bullet, has super endurance, and incredible strength.
Meanwhile I am still relearning to use my Chakra and my cat is about as useful as diarrhea on test day. Only I can depend on diarrhea to be a consistent pain in the ass, while my cat manages to screw me over in newer and more creative ways. .
"I got your last words right here, bitch!" Help has arrived. "Uzumaki Punch!" Weird. I thought I was passed that stage. Guess some habits die hard. "Gottcha!"
Of course the demon barely bats an eye. It lifts its hands to the direction of my clone, forces reverse-gravity towards it, and sends a stream of glass, rocks, and sharp objects at it. My clone isn't as useless as I think it is and manages to switch itself with a nearby trash bin, letting the bin hurtle, twist, and collapse on top of the Youma, giving the distraction I need to launch my knife into the cut that I made in the creature's chest earlier.
The thing clutches the knife embedded in its body and tries to pull it out. It's then that my clone falls down from the sky holding a long shard of glass and manages to pierce it into the back of the creature's head, causing it to scream and lash out with a powerful psychic force, which makes a huge chunk of the area cave outward. Of course this immediately destroys the clone, and I curse at my remaining reserves. Of course I have another set of reserves, but that one is much harder to control, and much more...mysterious.
"Use the bin, it has caved in to resemble a club," a feminine voice says. I turn around to see Ami hiding behind a car, while pointing at the metal bin that literally looks like a twisted club. "Hurry, before it manages to pull out the glass spike."
Right, because I was going to take my sweet time.
How about you join Luna in the State-The-Obvious Club? Bet the two of you could think of loads of incredible ways of fighting enemies like "Hit it with a bat" or "Stab it with a knife." Kami, everyone thinks the hero business is easy, but it's only easy when you aren't the one being sucker punched by some cosplayer from hell.
"I'll kill you, I swear I'll rip your heart out." Wow, what an original line. The Youma continues. "I'll rip out your throat, pull your intestines from your nose, take your eyes and shove them into your mouth and make you watch yourself eat it." The last part doesn't make any sense, but I don't want to experiment with the first two.
"Not a chance, Youma," I say, holding the caved in trash bin like a bat. I look at it carefully and smile when I see that it's got a lot of twisted metal spikes and bent edges. This thing looks like it can seriously cause pain. Wonder if I should bring this to school? Would be nice to see Taro's reaction to it.
"You talk too much!" a voice says, and I know this one too well. "If you spent more time swinging we wouldn't have as many problems with Youma." How would you know? We've only ever fought one. "Get on with it, do you want someone to get hurt?"
"No," I say. "I don't want anyone to get hurt." She's got a point. I've wasted too much time not finishing it off. I made an assumption that this thing wouldn't be as strong as the last one, but this one is on a whole new level. "Luna, sorry. I screwed up. I shouldn't have just charged in like that. I am trying to change, but I've never been a good Ninja."
Luna's voice calms down a bit. "I..I know. I remember what you said about your time in the Academy. The important part is that you want to change. You can change. I believe in you." No you don't, you believe that I'll live long enough to find your Senshi, but that's okay.
"Is there something wrong with you people?" Ami says, looking aghast. "Do you always talk while you fight? Don't you pay attention to your opponents? Is this is what you do when you engage in war?" Oddly enough, this is exactly what we did when fighting another opponent. Nothing wrong with a bit of conversation. "If you are a Ninja, why don't you attack from the shadows?"
Because the Ninja in my world fight in the open. We are just that retarded. "Because this is a secret Ninja strategy" I lie. I stand up and gesture for the creature to 'come and get some,' while I hold my bat ready to hit a home run. "Watch and learn Four eyes, watch and learn."
Ami scowls, nods and continues to hide behind the car. My cowardly cat joins her, and the demon starts running down the street ready to spear me both physically and telekinetically. Not waiting for it to reach me, I charge at it with my makeshift club and channel Chakra into it. Like the last time it looks like it's going to collapse from the Chakra force, but It'll hold, I just know it.
"Take this," the creature screams. I feel gravity work against me as I am starting to get hurled back. I channel Chakra onto my feet and pierce my feet into the ground like a spike. "Sorry, I am not that easy to get rid of," I say, grinning. "I am a lot more unpredictable than you think."
Swinging the blade at the creature I try not to roar as the pain in my arms from channeling all that Chakra threatens to tear my muscles apart. In an instant a sick crack reaches my ears, and I see the red devil fly through the air and into a van, literally, into a van. The van has caved in from the sheer impact and I can see her legs twitch.
Not giving her the time to recover I rip my feet off the ground and try not to scream as the concrete tears into my flesh. That wasn't a smart move, I just healed my feet a few days ago, and I go out and do this. It's almost like I want to be a cripple.
The creature is still a bit groggy and it barely manages to move its hands, allowing some scattered bits of rock from the ground to come my way. I block it with the bat and jump into the sky. With as much potential energy I can gather in my muscles I pull the club over my head, and then release it with devastation on the thing's skull.
The Youma manages to use its arm to block my hit, but the arm is smashed to pieces by the spiky metal bat, and it screams as the club makes impact on its skull. I huff at all the energy this has taken out of me, and land on top of the car.
"No...mercy," it says. Half of its face is broken, and I cringe at the bone plates I see underneath. It looks so human. "Please, I haven't hurt anyone." Liar! You've been stealing life energy…but that isn't really hurting anyone is it? "I haven't killed anybody." No. Don't say that. Why are you making it so hard for me to kill you?
"Don't listen to it!" Luna shouts. "Destroy it! It's the enemy. Show no mercy!" But she's not really my enemy, and if she surrenders, shouldn't I give it a second chance? "There is no negotiating with a Youma!"
"But it gave up…it looks disabled…" Ami steps out of her place behind the car and walks toward the two of us. "Shouldn't you at least give it a chance to turn itself over?" Turn itself over to what? The police? -Hey officer, you'll never guess what we got! "You are the good guys aren't you?"
Not really. Heck, I grew up in a Ninja village. "Of course we are," I say, my eyes not leaving the broken creature trapped in the metal confines of the van. "But it's evil…I made a promise, sort of, to defend the city."
"That's right," Luna says. "You made a contract to fight the Dark Kingdom until we find the Sailor Senshi." Okay, now you are just exaggerating. "Finish it now!"
I nod my head, look at the creature, lift my twisted club over my head, and sigh. "If it helps I probably would have let you go if it weren't for the cat," I say. "Do demons have some kind of afterlife when the die?"
The thing isn't in the mood for jokes. Slowly it transforms into its human form and I can see that the damage I did to it in its Youma form has been transferred to its human equivalent. The woman is tall, built like pornstar, has short brown hair with matching brown eyes and is completely naked.
"Please, I'll do anything. I don't want to die. I don't want to return to the Void. I've been alive for so little time and..I've not done good things, but I can change," it says, it's actually crying. I am not sure if it's due to pain, or if this is just a realistc bluff. "If you spare me, I'll follow you forever." Oh, no. Not this bullshit. "I'll even help you fight the Dark Kingdom, just please, spare me."
"No!" Luna screams. "Don't listen to it!"
"Please, I give you my word," it continues, drowning out Luna's voice. "It's just too cold. I don't want to return to the coldness. You don't know what it's like. We demons, we will do anything to survive. Anything. Good or evil means little to us when our Masters threaten us with banishing us back to the Void of our old world."
"Luna…is it telling the truth?" I ask. My voice probably sounds cracked. "Do these things even have their own will?"
Luna looks uncomfortable, looks me in the eye, and says, "Does it matter? They want to destroy humanity." It does to me. If they don't have a choice then maybe there is another way. "Can you honestly say you can change them? Do you honestly think the creature is going to change just because you spare it?"
How can I answer that without helping you justify this..murder. "This is war boy," she continues. Crimson eyes narrow. " You've chosen your side, now do your duty."
"Luna…I am not comfortable with this." My eyes harden at the cat, and it looks back at me with the same amount of steel. "You didn't tell me that the Youma were enslaved summoned creatures." I drop my twisted garbage-club onto the ground. I am not in the mood anymore. This victory is starting to taste like ash.
"What happened to being a hero?" Luna asks, her red eyes angry. "What happened to being respected by everyone? Doesn't that still mean anything to you?"
I look around and see the damage I have done. Then look back at her. "Whose respect am I getting? So far all I've managed to do is destroy public property and get myself on the wanted list." I sigh and try not to collapse onto my back. "What am I really getting from all of this?"
"A chance to save the Planet!" Luna says, looking even more mad. "A chance many would die for!"
More like they'll die period. "I am just not in the mood to kill a girl," I say. I roll off the car and land on my feet. Ami walks up and checks me for wounds. "At least we can get some information on the Dark Kingdom from her."
Luna looks angry but concedes my point. "Very well, but afterwards you will kill her." No, I won't. There is a lot you aren't telling me and I want to know the whole story. "Are we clear?"
Like hell we are. "Crystal," I answer.
I take off my dress jacket, and cover the brunette's sinful body. I want to ask her if she wants my shorts as well, since it's kind of cold out, but the demon seems to have passed out. There is a part of me that says that I am being an idiot, that showing compassion is going to kill me, that Luna is right, but then I wouldn't be who I am if I listened to the parts of me that were that selfish.
I've spent my life being hated by short sighted people who couldn't see the person underneath, the person who wanted to save them, the person who wanted their respect, their love, their admiration, and their hopes.
I just wished those people had given me the chance. Because given the chance I am sure I could have been something. Become someone, become everything they wanted me to be.
But I wasn't given a chance. I was given their hatred, followed swiftly by death.
"Is something wrong," Ami asks, looking at my eyes through the yellow plastic mask, as I pick up the Youma like some bride. "Are you crying…"
"No, I've just got something in my eye." And a stabbing pain in my chest.
.
.
I leave the demon in Dr. Mizuno's clinic, but not before leaving a Shadow Clone to watch her. I don't trust it, and for good reason. Though my intuition tells me it's not going to go around attacking anyone soon, it can still be dangerous, and take the people in the clinic hostage. I am just not willing to take that chance, at least not yet.
Ami seems to be under the impression that I am some kind of superhero, and maybe she is right. Though my total count of saving people isn't exactly impressive, so I am not so certain about my role as a Guardian of Tokyo. I mean, would a Guardian actually save a Youma? Probably not.
Luna's still trying to convince me to take care of the creature, and slips in things like "You know what would make this dinner perfect? If that Youma were dead"-yeah, real subtle.
The only upside to this incident is that Ami seems to have found some kind of spine. Not sure why, it's not like she fought a demon or anything, but she seems to be on the resolve that the Youma should be given a chance. It didn't hurt anyone after all, aside from the life zapping, but criminals have gotten off jail for worse.
So I don't feel that guilty for my actions, and hopefully Luna will come around.
"Are you ever going to return to school?"Luna asks as we walk down the street. We are more or less heading towards he Hirakawa Shrine, where people seem to be disappearing. "You've missed a lot of classes already, and you will lose your scholarship if you keep this up."
She has a point, but I have mine as well. "I have to sort out this whole Dark Kingdom business first. "Luna, That thing I faced yesterday was powerful, way stronger than the first one I fought." I stop by a nearby bus stop and look at the markers there. This was where the missing people disappeared. "Tux wasn't there last night, and I am not sure what would happen if I had to fight more than just one of those Youma."
"I am sure you could have taken them," Luna mutters. "If you actually had the intention to kill from the start." Shit, she's starting to figure me out. "Have you ever killed before now? There is so much hesitation in your attacks. You hardly ever use killing blows, and when you do they are sloppy at best."
"No, I've never killed anything till a few days ago," I answer her, gritting my teeth. "Just because I am a Ninja doesn't mean I am a killer." I know, this part doesn't make any sense. But that's Konoha for you. "There are a few Ninja in my old world that have never killed a person in their lives, or at least that's what the history books say. "
"History is written by the victors," Luna says. The lousy cat is smirking. One of these days I am going to step on her face. "Use your common sense, boy." Great, she's still pissed over the Youma incident. Women, do they ever forgive? Probably not.
"Whatever, Luna," I reply, smartly. "I also can't return because of Ami…she's heard my voice." I pause. "If I saw her the next day she would know immediately who she was talking to."
"How? You were wearing such an incredible costume," my cat says sarcastically. Oh, and I am sure you had a better idea? Would you have made me duck in the hallway to stay out of her sight? "Furthermore, you really need to train. Your moves are sloppy."
"I would train, if I had more time," I say through gritted teeth. This thing makes me so mad sometimes. Why does she have to bring up my one weakness? Probably just to piss me off. "But you seem to just take me from one enemy to the next, with no break in between."
"That's because you are, regrettably, the only one I can rely on to fight the Dark kingdom," Luna says, hotly. "Can't you see that?"
Of course I can, furball, why do you think I risk my life for no reward? You think I seriously enjoy being bashed around by psychotic demons? Think I like dressing up as a Ranger? Think I like having to explain why a Shadow Clone has to be left behind in Dr. Mizuno's clinic?
If I manage to get out of this with my cover intact, it'll be a miracle and be reward enough for this god forsaken job.
Suddenly we see a bus, and Luna nips at my feet to hide in the bushes. I do as instructed and discover our next target. It's a demon that drives a bus, which carries its victims into a wormhole in the middle of the street (I am also pretty confused why no one sees this, it's broad daylight).
"I am guessing the Hirakawa Shrine Demon is the next on our list, eh?" I tell my kitten, who is still in a bad mood even as we hide in our bush.
"Seems so," Luna says, then looks at me suspiciously from the corner of her eyes. "I just hope you have the resolve to take care of this one." She's never going to let me live it down, right? "Otherwise the fate of the world is more or less decided."
Yeah, like some teenage girl with magic powers can do better. "Whatever you say, kitty cat," I answer cheerfully with false enthusiasm. "If it lets you sleep at night, who am I to question your delusions?"
I should have expected the cat to take a bite at my ankle with those words. One of these days the blasted thing is going to give me rabies.
.
.
"What happened to her desk?" I whisper to Umino during our break. Ami seems to have taken a break to go to the washroom, or maybe just to leave the rest of her classmates. "There is a lot of graffiti on it. Did she get a new one?"
Umino shakes his head, but it's Usagi who answers for her. "No, it's not that. She's just been having a hard time talking to the other people in the class." She looks somewhat sad. The blond really has a soft heart. "I've tried to get her to join us, but she's kind of cold." No kidding, she looked about ready to step on Luna when the feline tried to call her stupid.
Umino nods his head to confirm what Usagi said, and Naru shakes her head. "You know, I don't think she has any friends in this class, and the ones who try to make friends with her just end up getting rejected." Probably because they just want to be friends with her due to homework. "Can't say I really blame them for being pissed, but graffiti on desk seems a bit extreme."
"You think?" Umino answers. "Reading Ice bitch on your desk the first thing in the morning doesn't exactly make me want to come to school, or talk to people for that matter." He rubs his chin. "Still, maybe I should try talking to her. You know, a fellow rival in the academics."
That might not be a bad idea. She seems to be more receptive to people who are already smart. Still, if Ami joins my little part-time study group, she'll have more time to find out who I am. If that happens I can say goodbye to a life that doesn't revolve around trying to guard my asshole from my cellmate. I really hope those Police capture Tux boy before going after me. They might even be satisfied they got him and stop searching for me all together.
"Guys, shut up, she's coming back in," Fat bitch says. "No, we are not inviting her in, Umino." You know fat bitch, you would look a lot more convincing if you weren't eating a bag of chips. You aren't Chouji, you just can't pull off that look.
I sigh and lean against my chair and look at Ami carefully weave her way around the students. She was shy the first time I met her, and somewhat cold. Now she seemed to have gotten a better feel for her classmates, and is even colder than she was before. Like frost or ice. Not saying that she is full out ice queen, but she doesn't have the same meekness as before.
But that doesn't matter to me. Why should I care if she's getting colder with every week she's here? Why should I care if she has no friends? What does it matter if she's happy? I am not exactly friend material, I am not exactly a hero, and I sure as hell don't care if she has a happy school life. If she wants pretty pink school days, she's going to have to work it just like everyone else.
Because I sure as hell am no knight in shining armor.
"Do you normally talk about your classmates?" Ami asks me, as I take a seat down on the desk in front of her. Her somewhat sad eyes are looking at the book she is holding. "Is that what all your topics revolve around?"
Great, she heard us. Way to go Usagi. Could the girl have been any louder? "Mostly, it's that or the strange arsons that keep appearing in Juuban," she puts her book down and looks into my blue eyes. Her slightly sad ones don't give away any slip ups. "You wouldn't happen to know anything about them would you?"
Ami's cheeks color, and she shakes her head with huge emphasis. It's actually funny. "No," she says. "Don't know a thing. I've never seen the Arson from Crystal Cram School."
I try not to slam my head against my desk. "..the newspapers haven't mentioned an Arson near that cram school," I tell her, causing the blunnette to look startled. For a smart girl, she really, really needs to get a feel for the gossip network. "I was talking about the one from two or so weeks ago before you arrived."
"Oh, right," she says looking flustered. "That's what I was talking about." Sure you were. "You just caught me off guard with that question."
No I didn't, why don't we drop the act? Eh. "Ami, what did the Arson look like?" I ask her. Her blush, her nervousness, her expression, her body language. I should have known. I should have seen it the first time she walked through the door.
I mean, how many other tanned, blond haired guys live in Juuban? "…I couldn't get a good look at his face," she says evasively. She turns back to me, and looks hopeful. "But if I had to say who he looks like…"
Her face turns so red that even I am starting to feel hot. She looks at her desk, her cold manner gone, her cheeks flushed, her head sweating, and her body language screaming "Nervous!" "…I think he looked like you."
"Yeah, I kind of figure," I say, sighing. So avoiding her for a week just made her connect the dots even faster. Smooth move Uzumaki. Why don't I just come to school wearing a target sign on my chest. "We are going to talk about this aren't we?"
She nods, tries not to blush (she fails by the way) and the class resumes.
Hopefully I won't need to make my first human kill before the day is over. Ami may be anti-social, but she's not a bad person. How many other people would let a Youma that could have killed her live in her clinic? Nurse it back to health? Keep its secret? Not many. Which makes her one of a kind.
Almost like me.
.
.
I am starting to think one of the reason pre-genin are not allowed sensitive information is because we haven't been taught to withhold it. I think this because in the time it takes for me to walk between school and the Hirakawa Shrine, Mizuno Ami manages to get me to spill pretty much all that I know about the Dark Kingdom.
It also helps that she knows how to use the internet, and has been using chatrooms and forums like crazy. Seriously, why didn't I think of that. Stupid cat! Always going off to Central(wherever that is) to get top secret information. Can't recall a time when the information came in handy.
"So in short. You are helping Luna fight some evil Queen who has an army of Youma at her disposal. These Youma drain energy, and you need to kill them while Luna searches for the Sailor Senshi who will…do more or less the same task you are doing right now?" she pauses. "Except these Sailor Senshi are supposed to be teenage girls…who have no idea that they are Saior Senshi until Luna activates their powers."
"I know. I think that cat has been hit in the head one too many times," i answer. I did find her almost beaten to death when we first met. "And that's not even the most messed up part," I finish.
"No kidding," she says, smiling slightly. Huh, what do you know? She's got a pretty charming smile. She should do that more. Would make people less wary of her. "You, an acting Knight of the Moon Court? That's rather far fetched."
"Considering how I an a Ninja, not a Knight, I don't blame you," I reply.
"Ninja? What clan?" she asks curiously. "I thought Shinobi Clans kept a tight leash around its members."
"Clan? Not sure. Maybe Uzumaki. As for Japanese Ninjas, I honestly have no idea how the system works," I say, shrugging. "Frankly, I don't care. Those guys have nothing to do with me, I have nothing to do with them."
"I see," she says. She looks like she is about to pull out a pad and take notes. I wonder if she sees me as a person, not some subject. "Can you turn invisible?"
"No."
"Do you have super speed?" she asks next. "Can you travel faster than sound?
"Not exactly."
This is beginning to sound like Luna's favorite anime Ronin Kenshin, or something. I am starting to come to the conclusion that these two are getting the impression that I am supposed to be some bloodthirsty assassin.
"Can you set up traps in seconds?" she asks. "While evading sight?"
How the hell do you pull that off? " Er, I can set up traps. Might take a second or two, I was pretty good at pranking in my old village." I was the best. "But setting up traps while being invisible, and traps that kill might be another story."
"…so basically you are more or less the average fighter," she finishes, looking somewhat confused. "With some minor Ninja skills."
I hate smart girls. They are always dead on. "Course not, I have a ton of Ninja skills!" Like body switching, Shadow Clones, Transformations, and…I'll think of something later. "I was just tired yesterday, I recently woke up from a coma." Which is true, I was pretty tired.
Maybe…that makes sense," Ami says, nodding in understanding. "But you did fairly well while injured."
I almost died. "I know, didn't I?" I say. "It's cause I am such a great Ninja." Who is not even close to Learning 1000 Jutsus. In reality, my Hokage dreams are getting farther and farther away.
In either case, Ami doesn't look so sure.
From what she saw yesterday I probably look like the most clumsy Ninja on the planet, but, again, I don't care. If she thought I was trash, big deal? Most of the Japanese here don't outright hate me, but a Gaijin isn't exactly dinner guest material.
"Is it really okay to travel with you to the Hirikawa Shrine?" she asks. "I wouldn't want to get in the way if a Youma were to attack."
"It's okay, I am just doing some investigating. Luna says it's an inside job," I say, We stop in front of the shrine and proceed to go up the stairs. "You might even be able to help me."
Ami's gloomy mood seems to lift slightly. "Help you?" she asks, though her eyes look worried. "Do you mean that?" This girl has serious insecurity issues. I should be the one begging her for help. I should be going on my knees crying for her to help me fix this Dark Kingdom mess, and to help me come up with a plan.
Instead she volunteers to assist, even if part of it is due to her Academic curiosity. She might even get a Nobel Prize on the data she collects from the Youma sleeping in her Clinic. I am not a science geek, but even I would show up for that Conference, if only to see the look of abject terror on the other scientists' faces.
"Why are you laughing?" Ami asks, looking puzzled. "Did I say something funny?"
"No just my over active imagination," I answer. Glad I still have that. Otherwise I would probably be pissed that that I don't have a girlfriend. Nothing like spending your time dreaming of your female classmates for some after school lessons.
Ami looks suspicious. The girl's got her pervert alert on. "I don't think I want to know what kind of things you imagine." She actually covers her chest with her hands. Dumb girl, that just draws my attention to them. "Keep your eyes on the stairs please."
How can I when you've just opened up my mischievous streak? "Sorry, I was looking at something behind you," I lie. "There is a crow there."
Ami turns and, behold, there is a crow there. Two crows actually. She turns back to face me, sighs, unfolds the small hands she had been holding on her chest and proceeds to walk past me. She looks embarrassed, like she did something wrong. She didn't of course, but correcting her would probably make her leave.
We make small talk while we walk up the steps, and I always stand a couple steps behind her so that I can get a quick peek at her underpants. It's light blue by the way, and there is a panda on the centre of the left but cheek area. I am not really a hardcore pervert, or anything like that, but I haven't been able to vent my sexual frustrations through my Naruko-chan or Sakura.
I am not looking for a girlfriend or anything, not really sure if I ever was, but it doesn't hurt to look. Especially when the view is nice. "We should probably hurry," Ami says, turning around. I glance away from her rear and meet her blue eyes. "The sun is about to go down."
What else is new? Fighting Youma in the Moonlight seems to be the trend around here. "No problem, I don't really have a curfew," I explain. "If you need to leave, I'll even walk you home."
She seems to consider this and nods. "Alright, that's fair," she says, then turns around. "Why don't your parents care if you don't show up before curfew? Why don't they give you a curfew?"
Because I have no parents. Because I have no guardian. Because If I were to die no one would look for a body. Because the police would just chalk up my death to some gang fight. "Because they trust me, my parents are good people," I say, giving her a smile. "Don't worry, this city isn't dangerous." If you're armed. "So no one needs to worry about me."
"Oh…okay…" she says, looking slightly dejected. "I didn't know that."
You know nothing about me. Nothing important. Nothing that can tell you what I really am. "It's okay, my parents are loving folks, so don't sweat it," I finish for her, giving her a tight smile that makes her cringe.
More and more my smiles are breaking. I just don't put in the same amount of effort as I used to.
We walk for another few minutes until she says, "My mother doesn't let me go anywhere." Then pauses. "Not without someone to chaperon."
Sounds like a smart mom. You wouldn't survive thirty seconds in any given alley. "Wow, your mom sounds unreasonable," I tell her, sounding serious. "Maybe you should talk to her? Let her know how you really feel." What a cheesy line, am I really turning into a Power Ranger? Guh, this is enough to make me suicide.
"I am not sure how," Ami says, stopping. I stop as well, since I won't be able to face her buttocks of I walk past her. It helps that the wind keeps rising up her skirt every few minutes, giving me a full blown view every few moments. "She's a bit intimidating."
Dr. Mizuno a bit intimidating? The woman is a tiger with its jaws wrapped around your head. Try talking your way around that. "I had no idea, she seemed kind and gentle." About as gentle as prison rape. "Just talk to her, maybe she might let you come home a bit later?"
She looks reluctant, but nods. "I suppose it couldn't hurt." She turns back to the shrine and looks afraid. "This place is a bit creepy."
There are crows in the sky, dead Sakura trees in the front, a dwarf chasing girls in the background, and, worst of all, a MIko who is given off an "I'll crush your penis (along with your balls) if you even look at my face" aura.
Wonder what she'll do if I look lower."This place doesn't look so bad," I shrug. "Course it could be worse."
"Could be better," Ami mumbles. "For a Shinto Shrine, it's pretty gloomy." Right, because all Shinto Shrines are like the picture perfect ones you see in textbooks.
Then, to my horror, the dark haired, purple eyed Miko, in front of us, turns and glares at me. "I am so sorry that this Shrine does not meet your eloquent expectations." Bitch, why are you looking at me like that? I wasn't even the one who insulted it. "If you have a problem with this place, you are welcome to leave."
Before Ami can say sorry, I cut her off. "Sorry, Obasan,"I say, trying to give her a charming grin. "We just got the wrong impression of what a shrine is supposed to look like."
"Liar," the Miko says, dropping the broom she is holding and walking towards us with fire in her eyes. "You're just here because of those stupid rumors."
I look at Ami, she looks back at me. "Mind explaining what you're talking about?"I ask her, acting like I have no idea. "We just came here for some charms."
The dark haired Miko glowers. "Right, I am supposed to believe that. No one comes here, not even the other Shinto Priests in this city."She points towards the temple. "But when a bunch of people happen to go missing after buying our charms, suddenly this place is swamped by the police every few days."
I gulp. I try not to look nervous at the mention of Police. My blurry wanted face is still hanging around the city and if any of the cops recognize me, I can kiss my normal middle school life good bye.
Not that I had one to start with.
Ami takes this time to interrupt. "Maybe it's an inside job," she says, reasonably. "It just seems to line up extremely well from the reports I researched." The hell is she talking about? How does a high school girl get access to classified reports? "Have there been any recent employees in the Hirakawa Shrine?"
The Miko, to my astonishment, pales. Her eyes widen, her hands shake, and her head lowers after that. "Get out," she says, not looking at us. "Please, leave."
Of course we'll leave. Not looking us in the eye when Ami asks you a simple question isn't suspicious at all. "We aren't here to cause trouble, Obasan," I say.
The Miko looks up from the ground and glowers. "Sure you aren't, and don't call me Obasan," she says, gritting her teeth. "I am still in middle school." Okay, that I didn't expect.
Ami looks nervous and I can tell I've made a mistake. "We'll be on our way," she says, making a pull at my sleeves. She hands the Miko a card. It's Dr. Mizuno's card. Smart girl. "If you need any help, any at all. Please give us a call."
"Yes, do that," I say, trying to sound sincere. "We aren't here to close down the Shrine, we aren't the police, and we don't suspect you, either. But people have gone missing, and if the trail from this place can help us find the culprit, then help us. Help us fight the forces of evil."
I really need to stop watching that show.
The lines only work if you have a homosexual robot and the Wizard of Oz to back you up.
The Miko looks thoughtful, her angry expression softens, and I notice that she is conflicted. "There is one thing that is strange." She looks reluctant to say, but she takes one look at my eye, and sees my desperation. She continues, "We have a new guy working here. He's a tall idiot with blond hair. You might have seen him when you passed by."
Sounds kinda like me. "Err, anything more descriptive?" I say, trying not to let my eyebrow twitch. I swear this better not be a joke. "Does he give off some purple aura or something like that?" She is a Miko, she might be sensitive to things like that.
The girl looks surprised. "Yes…he does." She pauses and her eyes narrow. "Who are you?"
I am tempted to pull out my mask and see her expression. "Just a defender of Justice." Great, I am starting to sound like Tux. "I help those who can't help themselves."
"You some kind of social worker?" she asks, looking at my Juuban Middle School uniform. "You look more like a delinquent to me."
"I'll have you know that Uzumaki-san is not a bad person, and is somewhat intelligent," Ami speaks up. Somewhat? Thanks a lot smarty pants. Way to boost my self esteem. "He has captured criminals many police would be hard pressed to find." Probably because the police don't really try half the time.
The Miko grits her teeth at the girl. "Did I ask you for your opinion?" She stomps over to the smaller blunette and glares. "If I wanted your opinion I would have asked."
Ami isn't back down. For some reason she isn't as shy around this Miko as she is with other people. Bizarre, truly bizarre. "I just wanted to get the record straight. You are fighting the wrong enemy." She pauses, and looks down. "We just want to help." Maybe you do, I just want to get this mission over with and sleep.
The Miko's expression freezes, softens and then hardens when she looks at me. "She can stay, but you have to leave," she sneers. I am not kidding, she actually feels proud that she gets to kick me out of the shrine. "This girl looks a lot more useful than you." Right, Ami is going to out think a Youma to death.
The blunette catches my eye and signals for me to follow her instructions. "Well we can't win'em all, I say. "Just remember, if you find anything...scream as loud as you can."
It's at that moment that we hear a whole lot of screaming and curse myself for jinxing my peaceful day.
In an instant I turn around, run down the Hirakawa Shrine stairs, and jump onto the middle of the road where two giant buses are smashing against each other. Well, it's more like one of the buses is trying to get away. The bus on the right is your standard transportation bus, it seems to have screaming passengers with a diabolic driver on the steering wheel.
The bus trying to smash it across the road is a regular bus as well. It doesn't contain any passengers inside of it. Not one person. It looks perfectly harmless, nothing special about it. No ammunition, and no giant tires or anything like that. But it does contain one thing that sets it apart from every other bus in the country.
It contains Tuxedo Mask.
"Son of a bitch!" I roar, running down the street. "Can't you make a normal entrance like everyone else?"
I look at the first bus that contains the screaming passengers, whom look moments away from getting a heart attack, and see the driver grinning. I look behind me, noticing a portal opening up and I make a quick decision that may or may not be one of the most suicidal things a guy can possibly do.
I charge towards the speeding bus like a bull.
Chakra is blasting out of my legs like a canon and I grit my teeth as I feel pieces of my toe bones shatter as they impact the road. Despite this I continue to run, despite the tears that are flowing out of my eyes I continue to look ahead, despite the horrible pain I am going to be in, I don't turn away. Because people need me, because I can save these people, and I am the only one who can do it.
I put as much power through my body as possible and reach out for every inch of Chakra I have in my reserves. I go further than I've ever gone in my life and reach down for energy that no longer feels pure, no longer feels blue, and no longer feels like its my own. I reach for a Chakra much darker, much more sinister, and much more powerful.
And with it I blast down the street like a rocket, screaming my head off as my energy pours through my body like a hydraulic pump, making me feel stronger, making me feel faster, and possibly shortening my life in the process.
Behind me dust and broken road scatter, and in front of me is a Bus traveling faster and faster. You think I don't have a shot? You think this is crazy? You think I am about to become road kill?
Think again.
Because when I get to the bus, I don't try and stop it with brute force. No, I smash my feet into the pavement. Use as much Chakra as I can to try and literally stick to the ground beneath the concrete, and hold out my hands in front of me like a sumo wrestler.
Before you tell me I am about to try and stop the bus this way, I'd like to point out that you are dead wrong.
"Die!" I hear the driver scream. "Say hi to the road for me!"
Never! With my entire body glowing red with power I bend my knee, tighten all the muscles in my body, look at the front of the bus, wait for it to come an inch In front of me.
And pick the front bumper off the ground.
Causing me to get pushed back, while my spiked feet break the very road as I travel back for the next fifty or so meters. I keep screaming as blood flies into the air, my blood, and my fingers feel like they are broken. They probably are, but I don't relent because slowly, eventually, and with great pain the bus eventually stops to a halt. During this time I don't let the front wheels touch the ground, not once, not even when they spin and spin like a cyclone.
"What? Impossible!" the demon screams. "Why have we stopped?"
Simple. "The bus is front wheel drive, bitch!" I roar, as my body starts to lose control of the immense power I've pulled out from my very core. "This is it, this is the end for you, Youma! Say good by-,"
It is exactly that moment that the bus driven by Tuxedo Moron smashes onto the back of the bus, forcing me to drop the front of the bus, duck under it as the front large tires make impact on the ground, scream in pain as my back is scraped by the bottom of the bus as it blasts past me (luckily none of the wheels touch me), and cry murder at the incompetant Idiot Mask
"No!" he screams from his drivers' seat. "You weren't supposed to try that!"
The bastard sees what he's done, stops his bus with a screech, backs up the bus to where my body lay scraped and broken on the road, takes a leap, smashes through the bus window (He's got a serious drama problem), lands on where I am crying (I almost got run over by a bus, fuck off!), slings me over his shoulders, and leaps back into the school bus.
But not before Ami and the Miko manage to run through the school bus door, jump into the passenger seat, and scream at Tuxedo Mask to "Follow that Demonic bus!"
And he does, instead of healing me the bastard takes the wheel, takes a look at the two chicks next to him, looks at my bleeding body losing blood as I lay on the bus floor, nods his head, and chases after an enemy I almost captured.
My vision is turning black . I used too much energy. I was afraid of this and my worst suspicions were confirmed just a moment ago. I have gotten sloppy, I am so far out of shape that it isn't a joke. I normally do not have to use the red chakra in my body that I have a hard time controlling, I usually stick to the one that I normally have access to.
The Red chakra, or at least I like to call it red chakra, is violent, chaotic, powerful, and uncontrollable. I've only ever used it a handful of times in my life, and that is only after I've used up the Blue Chakra in my body that I normally use.
It also comes out in times of extreme stress and pain, and I can only recall one time it has ever came out in full bloom like this.
"He doesn't look good," the Miko says. "I don't think he's going to make it." You would love that wouldn't you?"
"We need to get him to a hospital!" Ami shouts. Glad someone cares if I live or die. "Is that where you are headed?"
"Yes, hold on," Tuxedo Mask shouts. He makes the bus go even faster and the bus is shaking uncontrollably as it hits speed bumps after speed bumps. What kind of route is Tux taking? The suicide highway? "I am going to smash through a pole booth. Duck!"
The girls fall to the floor as the glass bus window shatters as it makes impact on the Toll both bar. Fortunately the bar breaks off its hinges as well. Makes sense, you just can't stop a speeding bus with a highway Toll stop.
"Girls, how is he?" Tux asks. I can see him drive like a maniac, as he breaks through stop signs, intersection blocks, walls, rails, and lanes. "Does he have a pulse?"
"Yes," Ami says. "But it's weak. How far is the hospital from here?"
"Far, too far!" he shouts. He ducks as a few pylons smash through the remains of the window. "But I am cutting through some constructing bridges, so we might make it."
Constructing bridges? Why do I not like the sound of that?
"Damn it! I don't know what's going on! Can someone explain why I just saw a Youma drive a bus full of screaming passengers?" the Miko shouts. "And how the hell did this Yankee pick up the front of a bus off the ground with his bare hands?"
My vision continues to darken and I want to tell her that it's because of Chakra, but I am losing consciousness too fast. This isn't right. I shouldn't be out of the fight, they need me, without me those people in the other bus are doomed.
I can't let them die. "No, don't take me to the hospital," I croak. I try to stand but Ami pushes me back. She looks worried. "Are they still in your sight?"
The bastard turns back to the road, "Yeah, I can still see them, but you're not going to survive much longer if you don't get those wounds looked at." He speeds up, and the Miko holds onto the bus bars. "But your conscious..that's good."
"I can stay…conscious for…a bit longer," I say, my voice cracking. "I..need to get this cut…fixed…I'll be alright if someone does..that." I can hardly talk. I am losing so much blood.
"Then there is only one thing to do," the Tuxedo bastard says, sighing. He looks at the Miko and points to her. "Hold the wheel."
"What!" she yells. "Are you crazy?" She pauses, looks at who she is talking to, cringes, frowns, and sighs. "Never mind."
As soon as the man-hater has got her shaking hands on the wheel, things start to look worse, since the bus is breaking through fences upon fences, while the Miko screams her lungs off.
Of course my attention isn't on the banshee.
No, it's on the Phantom of the Opera, who stands in front of me, looking like he is not in some banged up school bus that's about to crash into a building.
"Don't worry, kid," he says, holding his large white gloved hands in front of him like he's about to do surgery. "You'll make it out of here alive."
His head tilts down, his eyes harden and ,with the most serious expression I have ever seen on a person, he tells me, "You'll be fine, I won't let you die." And this is the part that makes me want to cry, this is when I realize how truly screwed up this world is, this is the part when Tuxedo Mask admits what he does in real life, because the next moment he smiles and says, "I'm a Doctor."
.
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Please Review: Thanks for all your reviews so far. Keep sending, and I'll keep writing in this wicked fast pace. Exam time is here, so I can't answer reviews now! I'll get to them when I have time. Aren't updates better? Wouldn't you rather read the next chapter?
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or Sailor Moon.