Ha, this chapter came quicker than the last few! I hope that you all enjoy.
Chibi Botan: Don't worry, I'm sure Hiei will be popping up unexpectedly at some point. :) Botan and Kurama...I guess we'll see if what happens. I hope you enjoy this chapter!
Fire in the hole: Yes, I'm sorry I've been absent for the past few...months I think? Thanks for keeping up with my story all the same! I believe you'll find his time with Genkai very interesting. Hmm, even I'm not sure what Kurama and Botan are!
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters of YYH, nor do I own the manga/anime itself. Kawasaki Kenta is mine though.
Chapter 6 – A Pretty Young Teacher
Though I was able to find the directions to Genkai-sama's temple through the internet, I couldn't find an actual picture of her. Weird, right? Well, if I imagine her based on reputation and who she teaches, I can see this huge, buff woman with tons of scars and a terrifyingly deep voice. What am I saying?! Please, for the love of Kami, please please please be an old granny with milk and cookies!
After rechecking my information and spending the next three hours on homework I was supposed to do during the weekend, I finally managed to get a whopping four hours of sleep. Yay. Kenta speak with three syllables tops. No more or Kenta confused.
Unfortunately, that is exactly how the rest of my day at school went. I dutifully tried to take note of what happened during class, but my brain was definitely brain-dead. Urgh.
Somehow I made it to the end of the day without embarrassing myself overly with the inability to form proper sentences. Making it to Genkai-sama's temple was surprisingly uneventful and easy. Hmm, maybe this day won't be so bad after all. I've gotten a bit tired of all the strange events that have occurred over the last few days. Pumpkin ladies, strange jungle people, and making a girl cry? I think I've had enough.
Watching the bus roll away, I glanced at the map I printed out last night. Hmm, four blocks to the left and I should be right at Genkai-sama's temple. The neighborhood around this part was pretty nice too. A bunch of rich folks I guess.
As I headed towards what should be the entrance to her place, I found myself face to face with the beginning of a stairway.
And as I stared up, and up, and up, I began to understand where Urameshi must be getting his strength from. Sure, climbing up a million stairs was fine training for him, but for me...I'd rather take the elevator. Genkai-sama must be rich to live here right? So therefore, there must be a hidden elevator!
Ten minutes later, after a fruitless search for a nonexistent elevator, I sat down at the beginning of the steps in preparation for the trial I was about to endure for my place on the paper. Just remember Kenta, it's for the paper. I took a deep breath, and began the trek to Genkai-sama's temple. I hope I got the right address, and wasn't at the wrong residence.
Going up these stairs was hell! When I finally reached a pause in the stairs, I almost collapsed in relief, legs shaking underneath in exhaustion, nerves frayed to the bone. Originally, I was joking when I said that this was his training, but now I think I'm right. No wonder Urameshi is so strong if he has walk up these stairs all the time!
After taking a ten-minute break to get my legs back to the state where they can walk without shaking noticeably, I pushed myself off the ground to stand once more. Taking a good look at my new surroundings, I let out a long whistle at the building in front of me. Or should I say HUGE-ASS temple? Enormous trees towered over me, and there were two strange red symbols on a line that I was going to stand under the moment I took a step forward. Weird...I didn't feel anything strange, but those malicious curves that reminded me of flames seemed to be warding something off. And all I could wonder was what did it really mean?
Suppressing a superstitious shudder from the strange settings, I continued forward up the path with only a small flight of stairs left till I reached the top.
Coming to the entrance way, I knocked hesitantly at the door, a little bit intimidated by the quiet, expansive surroundings. Even the weak pounding echoed uncomfortably, shattering the peaceful silence. After a few minutes had passed, I knocked again, this time louder.
I was about to knock again, when the door suddenly slid open and I automatically bowed low as I addressed Urameshi's teacher. "Sorry to trouble you Genkai-sama, but I was hoping to ask you a few questions about your student! My name is Kawasaki Kenta and I am a reporter at Sarayashiki Junior High School!"
A soft, kind, young voice responded. "Oh my."
Incredulously, I slowly began to right myself from my bow, and as I got a good look of her dainty feet in aqua green slippers, her light blue kimono with a dark blue obi, and then her face, I realized that Genkai-sama was very small. Straightening completely, I had to look down to meet her curious gaze.
"W-would you mind answering some questions G-Genkai-sama?" I stammered in confusion. She was really pretty! Sure, red eyes were a bit strange, and her bluish-green hair was definitely unexpected, but then again, Botan-chan had pink eyes and blue hair. I wonder if they're related?
What really threw me off was how young she looked. She could easily be my age, or even younger! Maybe this was the secret! The secret of martial arts! Because it certainly seemed that everyone Urameshi knew was a beautiful babe (sorry Shuuichi, but that includes you). Even that Hiei-san guy wasn't bad looking for a jungle boy. Weird sense of hair style, but he had a good bone structure.
Hey, that doesn't make me weird for noticing. I'm a reporter for Kami's sake!
But wait. Kuwabara isn't beautiful. In fact, he's really ugly! Everyone makes fun of the way he looks, and he definitely isn't going to win any beauty pageants with that face of his. Taking a moment to reflect on the one black sheep of the lookers, I decided that I must have overreacted to all these pretty people Urameshi knows.
"Excuse me."
I snapped back into reality, realizing that Genkai-sama was trying to get my attention. Straightening, I tried to look more attentive. "Yes Genkai-sama?"
After a moment of looking at me, she smiled and shook her head. She bowed slightly at me, and I was stunned that a famous martial artist would do that. "D-don't bow! I-I don't deserve it!" I stuttered.
"My apologies, but Genkai-sama is not home at the moment."
I ceased my panicked flailing at those words. A flush began to burn at my ears as I realized that this wasn't Genkai-sama. Unable to speak, I simply stared at her as she continued to speak.
"She went out to do some errands and won't be back until much later tonight. I'm very sorry, Kenta-san." She smiled sweetly and apologetically at me. Somehow her immediate use of my first name seemed appropriate.
"Oh. I see." I was unable to completely hide my disappointment. "Um...may I ask your name?"
"My name is Yukina." Even though her eyes were a deep red, there was something so gentle about them that I felt compelled to keep speaking to her.
"Ah, Yukina-san," I began, "I'm sorry for bothering you."
She shook her head again. "It was no bother." She regarded me with open curiosity. "You wanted to learn about Yusuke-kun?"
A thought struck me. She lives here with Genkai-sama apparently. She just called Urameshi, "Yusuke-kun". Therefore, there is a good chance that she may be able to help me with my article.
"Yes. I'm writing up a story about him, and I was hoping to get some quotes from the people who really know him. I've spoken to Keiko-san, Shuuichi, Botan-chan, and Hiei-san." I was babbling. "I was hoping to get some insight from his teacher but I guess she's not here...Is there any chance you have had some acquaintance with him?"
A smile slowly spread on her face and she nodded. "Yes, I know Yusuke-kun."
Yes! Resisting my intense urge to do a fist pump, I smiled back at the small girl. "Is it all right if I interview you then, Yukina-san?"
"Certainly. Would you like some tea, Kenta-san?"
After I agreed, we walked inside after I took off my shoes, and I found myself staring at the interior of the temple. Genkai-sama really did have some nice taste in decorating. But enough about that, I have to keep focused on the story.
She brought me to a small table near a window, and went to fetch the tea. I sat down, looking around. Out the window, I could see a really healthy, vibrant garden, and I couldn't help but wonder if Shuuichi had ever seen it. It was something I don't think I could ever grow personally. The plants just looked so well cared for that I couldn't stop staring at them in awe at the love put into them. As Yukina-san placed the tray down in front of me and began pouring the tea into two delicate-looking white cups with a gold inline and design, she glanced over to where I was staring.
"Do you like plants, Kenta-san?"
Turning back to look at her, I nodded energetically. "Yeah, well it's a bit embarrassing, but I've always wanted to have a garden of my own. And these plants...they are just so big and healthy-looking! I would love to grow some like them one day."
"Shuuichi-kun helps with the gardening some times, and gives me advice on how to take care of them." She looked down into her cup, eyelashes lowered as she inhaled the warm aroma before looking back up to me with another one of her innocent smiles. "If you would like, I could show you them later while I garden."
"I would be honored if you would allow me to assist you, Yukina-san." Aha, so Shuuichi did have a hand in growing these beauties.
We spent the next few minutes exchanging pleasantries, and I found Yukina-san to be a nice, if somewhat ignorant, conversationalist. She had no knowledge of the current events taking place, very little thought on fashion, and it became quickly clear to me that she must be being home-schooled, or not in school at all. Even without a lot of knowledge though, she was engaging, sweet, and had a knack for overcoming any awkward moments within the conversation, disarming me with a complete, open smile. She wasn't my type of girl, but definitely a sweetheart.
I decided to get down to business. "So, how long have you known Urameshi?"
One finger came up to her lips in thought, and she responded with some uncertainty. "Quite some time I guess. Ever since..."
She hesitated. I pounced, knowing the signs of a person with information she wasn't sure if she should tell me or not.
"Ever since what?" I sent my most dazzling and encouraging smile her way.
For some reason, she didn't seem to even notice. "I'd rather not talk about it, if you do not mind." Her eyes were pleading and her tone was exceedingly cool and polite, and the reporter part of me that would have tried to get the story anyway faded away to regular Kenta. I couldn't ignore that look.
"All right. Um..." I changed the subject to a safer one. "What do you think about Urameshi?"
Her expression immediately became more relaxed and less closed. "Yusuke-kun is very nice. He and Kazuma-kun always make me laugh."
Kazuma? Who's that?
"Uh...Kazuma?"
She blinked at me. "I'm sorry, I thought you knew of him. You mentioned so many of his friends earlier."
I still have no idea who she's talking about.
"Kazuma-kun is very kind to me. He always comes to visit and see how I am doing." She smiled. "Sometimes he even brings me gifts, and tells me about what has happened recently."
Sounds like someone has a huge crush on Yukina-san and from the way she talks about it, she has no idea. "Can you describe what he looks like?" Maybe I can interview this guy also. He sounds friendly enough.
"Okay." She brought up one hand to indicate his height. "He's very tall, and has small eyes." She used her hands to make her eyes appear smaller, and I bit back a laugh at her earnest effort to describe him to me. "He has orange hair which kind of comes out in a puff." Showing me the hairstyle with her hands over her head, Yukina-san looked very serious.
I kept myself from even letting my mouth twitch into a smile. And suddenly it hit me and I didn't need to worry about laughing by accident. Kazuma. Kuwabara Kazuma! The only guy with orange hair like that who I know Urameshi knows! Of course—how could I be so stupid! I was so used to hearing his name as Kuwabara from everyone that I had forgotten that his first name was Kazuma. I've never heard anyone use his first name before, outside of roll call.
"A-actually Yukina-san, I realize now that I do know him," I stammered.
She seemed pleased that her description of him was so effective.
"So he comes here a lot?"
"Usually three or four times a week. Sometimes Genkai-sama plays a joke on him." She spoke as if she found no humor in it, just stating a fact. I began to wonder what sort of sense of humor Yukina-san had. "She leaves the door open for Kazuma-kun and asks me to hide."
I waited for the punch line for a minute before getting impatient for her to continue. "And then what happens?"
Looking at me with big doe-turned-vampire eyes, she replied seriously, "I don't know. I was hiding."
I didn't know how to respond to that.
She continued without seeming to note my reaction. "I always did wonder what she did though."
Out of curiosity, I spent the next ten minutes or so quizzing Yukina-san on what she knew about "Kazuma-kun". It was amazing how open Kuwabara was with the soft-spoken girl. I heard about his dreams, his inspirations, his fears.
At first, I felt almost annoyed at the way that she spoke about him. He didn't deserve such praise and matter-of-fact friendship! And then, it struck me. I realized what was blocking me from being receptive to Yukina-san's description of him—Keiko-san's, Shuuichi's, Botan-chan's faces all swirled through my mind before fading, replaced by Yukina-san's happy face. It was that bias, that prejudice, which I had clung to so fiercely for so much of my life. The closed, already decided belief that Kuwabara was a bully, a moron, and an ugly beast. Seeing him from her point of view was like seeing the man for the first time without the blinders on. It was kind of shocking. And I found myself empathizing with Kuwabara in a way that I could almost not believe that I was. The way that she described him—I couldn't help but believe every word.
The conversation finally lapsed when I had nothing more to ask her. For the first time during my search to understand these strange people, I honestly had nothing to say.
She regarded me with serious, but gentle eyes, and I felt a calmness come over me. This was exactly the type of conversation I needed. One open and honest. Yukina-san wasn't trying to teach me, wasn't trying to prove something to me in the way that everyone else had. She spoke because I had asked to hear. And so I heard.
"Well Kenta-san. It's about time I start weeding. Would you like to join me?" she asked pleasantly.
I nodded.
She rose and led me to the garden outside; all the while keeping my attention by pointing out interesting furniture or pictures that Genkai-sama had placed within her temple. Stopping at the door, she paused to change to a different pair of slippers, and motioned for me to do the same. With one hand she slid the door open, and my attention was captured by the outside flora.
We walked outside into the sunlight, and I am pretty sure my mouth was wide open with awe. Damn, I should become a martial artist! Get big bucks, get physically fit, and get an enormous temple like this—I'd be set for life!
Yukina-san handed me a pair of gloves, clippers, and a weeding implement—I think it's called a digger. We started off by weeding, hunched over side-by-side in an easy camaraderie. The motions were easy, and in a matter of minutes, we had a pile of weeds on the side steadily growing.
"So Yukina-san, do you do this often?"
"Yes. It's rather relaxing, working in the garden without having to worry about anything." She absentmindedly brushed sweat from her brow with one glove as she spoke.
"Even in a kimono?" My voice must have sounded slightly incredulous and amused because she paused to look at me.
"Is that strange Kenta-san?"
"Uh..." I didn't want to insult her. "I...guess not."
She smiled. "Maybe it is, a little. But I haven't really watched other people garden before, so I don't know what a normal gardener would wear. Besides," she nodded to herself, "I like wearing a kimono." Perhaps because of my comments though, she proceeded to pull back the sleeves of her kimono, tying them into place, revealing slender, pale arms.
"Do you go everywhere in a kimono?"
"Hmm...I suppose I do. Genkai-sama was kind enough to buy me several other kimonos and other types of clothing, but I prefer this one."
Oh yeah, I never did ask. "Are you and Genkai-sama related? Is she your mother perhaps?"
"No. Genkai-sama is my friend. It was very kind of her to allow me to stay here for a while."
My mind started going through several possible scenarios that led Yukina-san to live with a friend rather than with her family. She could be an orphan, or maybe she had a falling out with her family. That could be the thing that she didn't want to talk about. Was Urameshi somehow involved in this? I needed more information.
"Do you leave the temple a lot?"
She blinked at me. "Why would I?"
"You know, for shopping, hanging out with friends, getting ice cream and all that."
"Ice cream?"
I was aghast. "Yeah, ice cream. You know, that delicious, cold stuff that melts when you eat it?" Oh my Kami. When she shook her head at me, I couldn't believe it. This poor girl had no idea what ice cream was. She really was isolated, had very little knowledge about the world around her. She seriously needed to get out more.
"Usually my friends come here to visit me. I..." She began clipping away branches on a tree. "I prefer to stay here."
"Oh."
"Actually..." A small frown marred her normally relaxed expression. "Hiei-kun was supposed to come by today. But he hasn't shown up."
"Hiei-kun?" My voice almost cracked. She was addressing that crazy jungle boy like that? Taking another good look at Yukina-san, I felt growing respect for her and her lack of fear. I would never dare to address Hiei-san so informally! He'd probably eat me!
She didn't seem to notice my shock. "Kenta-san, do you need a refreshment?"
"N-no. I'm fine, thank you. What should I do about this tree?"
The serious-eyed girl began to explain what she wanted me to do when I heard it. The almost inaudible sound of footsteps reached my ears. Before I could even turn around, what I heard Yukina-san say was enough to freeze me in my position.
"Hiei-kun!"
"Yukina."
I slowly stood up from my crouched position and took a quick look from the corner of my eye. Yep, that was Hiei-san all right. In the same clothes too! Brushing off dust and dirt from my pants, I finally swiveled around to face him. "G-good afternoon Hiei-san."
He immediately looked annoyed, and I had a distinct feeling that he wasn't very pleased to see me again or at all. "Hn." His tone was scathingly indifferent to my presence. I would have been much more scared of him if it weren't for the two ice creams in his hands, innocently beginning to melt.
Oblivious to the sudden tension in the air, Yukina-san looked down at the ice cream that he held. "Hiei-kun, what is that?"
"Nothing. Try it." He proffered one to her so aggressively that, for a moment, I thought for sure that the ice cream was about to fall out and land on her clothes.
She took off her gloves, letting them drop to the ground, and gingerly held the cone. Her nostrils flaring cutely, she sniffed the cold treat, almost getting some in her nose. Finally, she bit into the top curiously, and I was amused to see her eyes widen in surprise.
"It's soft!" This time she took a lick of it, rather than trying to bite it.
"It's sweet snow," he said matter-of-factly.
Hmm. Better not tell him that it's ice cream. My eyes narrowed slightly in speculation. What a coincidence that I was just telling her about it...
His gaze seemed to sear into my mind as he looked over at me, though this time I did not feel the same terror of being trapped by some terrible predator. It was as if something here was keeping him from pinning his full-strength death glare at me.
Cheekily (fricken'-out-of-my-mind-cheekily), I waved a hand at him. "Nice day for ice cream, huh Hiei-san?" Immediately I received a harsher glare, but yesterday had prepared me for him and I wasn't about to back down after that humiliation.
Besides, seeing him now—offering ice cream to Yukina-san like a little kid who didn't want to admit he cared—made him seem so much more human. And I knew that those terrified, wet-my-pants feelings from yesterday were never going to come back. He was actually just a really scary dude who wasn't all that bad...I think.
Judging from his turned back, he had decided to ignore me in favor of listening to Yukina-san talk to him energetically, all the while eating his ice cream, er, "sweet snow".
Suddenly Yukina-san's eyes widened with consternation, and she paused from her words. "I'm sorry Hiei-kun! Would you like some tea?"
He reluctantly agreed, faced with her eager expression and desire to serve him tea. As she bustled away, he stared at where she had been standing, dark red eyes gazing at nothing before sharpening as he glanced suspiciously at me. "Why are you here?" His voice was low, much lower than someone his size should have. Actually, everything about Hiei-san screamed that he was not a boy. He may have the look of one, but his eyes and his voice told me otherwise. He was a man.
"To see Genkai-sama."
"... She's not here." I could tell from his flat tone and icy, burning red eyes that he did not want me here.
"Yukina-san is helping me with my article." Since you wouldn't.
He took a step closer, and I swear that the air got warmer. We were almost nose to nose (if it weren't for the height difference!) and his expression was one of cold displeasure. "I'd advise you to leave."
"You seem pretty protective of her." My words bothered him; he was suddenly a few steps back when I blinked. Why did that affect him so much? I continued on my thought, trying to figure out the strange relationship between Hiei-san and Yukina-san. "It's not like you're dating her or anything, right?"
Before he could kill me (trust me, he was going to), a curious and familiar voice spoke up.
"Dating?"
Oh shit! It's Yukina-san, this time coming out from an entrance behind where I was standing. She had come back carrying a new tray and three cups of steaming tea, though her sleeves were still pulled back from gardening. The ice cream was carried precipitously on the cone, but she was doing a good job of balancing the remains of the melting treat. We both looked at her.
"What is dating?" questioned the sweet girl again so innocently that I felt myself becoming flustered to find a way to answer that with Mr. Jungle Boy glaring daggers at me from behind Yukina-san. I never knew there were people who didn't think about dating. How do I always get myself into these situations?
"Um...dating...you see...uh," I stuttered out first before a flashbulb brightened in my mind. "It's when you constantly keep company with someone and become really, really good friends with them. You spend a lot of time with that person and try to really get to know each other."
"Oh I see!" She smiled with sudden comprehension, and bobbed slightly in place with some inner delight, still balancing the tray with ease. "I am dating Genkai-sama, Kazuma-kun, and Hiei-kun!"
Yukina-san looked so pleased at understanding the idea, I didn't have the heart to say anything. Who knows, Kuwabara might even thank me for it. It was hilarious though to see Hiei-san's expression alter from annoyance to anger to finally a resigned look mixed with irritation. The traitorous thought of 'Take that jungle boy!' ran through my head before I quickly suppressed it. Who knows, maybe that guy can read minds too.
As if in response, his gaze whipped towards me even as Yukina-san offered him a cup of tea, and I innocently continued to talk with her, accepting my own new cup. "So yeah...once you're done with your ice cream and we finish our tea, shall we continue gardening?"
"Of course, Kenta-san." She placed the tray on a flat slab of stone, grabbing the ice cream, and turned back to address Hiei-san. I scrutinized them both, ignoring the words that they spoke and focusing on the actions. I had to figure this out.
Watching the way that Hiei-san treated Yukina-san—a mixture of gentle kindness hidden by gruff movements and silence—gave me an epiphany. I had never seen this strange boy who was a man act so kindly to anyone. Sure, this is only my second time seeing him, but I could tell.
Hiei-san loved her.
A second thought struck me. If Kuwabara loved Yukina-san...and Hiei-san loved Yukina-san...then it was a full-blown triangle! My mind felt blown away by the concept, so much so that Yukina-san paused from her conversation with Hiei-san to ask me if something was wrong because my face was so white.
I hurriedly reassured her that nothing was wrong, and started clipping away leaves from a bush. My mind was working furiously.
It all made sense now. Hiei-san had reacted especially negatively towards the mentioning of Kuwabara's name the first time I met him. And I bet that if I had spoken to Kuwabara, he would react just as badly to Hiei-san being mentioned. I'd never really seen a real love triangle before. I didn't know they really existed outside of dramas and mangas.
Glancing quickly at Hiei-san, then over to Yukina-san's happy face, I could tell that she had no clue. In fact, it seemed that she was oblivious to any man's interest in her. It was strange...but I was beginning to suspect that Yukina-san was a complete innocent when it came to love or dating or anything like that. She was a child who did not yet feel the pangs of a crush or of heartbreak. Yet...
When I had first watched the way that she tended the plants, I could see another side of Yukina-san. A lot of people might just look her over once and dismiss her as a complete innocent without a cruel bone in her body. Just a few days ago, I might have also. Now I can see more—Yukina-san is a survivor who has no qualms about doing what she has to. If she was on a camping trip with friends, and there was a bear coming at them to gobble them all up for dinner, she would definitely be the one who brings out the big-ass rifle and shoots him till he's dead.
I'm not crazy. It's written all over the way that she gardens. Her actions scream someone who is able to tough it out in most situations without ever breaking down into tears over her misfortune. The way she matter-of-factly snips off beautiful buds or ruthlessly rips out weeds is evidence enough. The way she doesn't even flinch when she gets scratched up while gardening.
Something happened to her long ago. Maybe her lifestyle, maybe her parents—I have no idea. But something made her stronger than most people could ever imagine being. And I found myself admiring and slightly fearing her for it. I wouldn't want to be the person that pissed off Yukina-san.
"Kenta-san? Um, Kenta-san?"
I shook my head slightly, realizing that I had once again been lost in thought. It seems to happen a lot to me lately. "Sorry Yukina-san. I was just thinking." I looked over to her and realized Hiei-san had left. "When did Hiei-san...?"
She smiled at me, using one arm to brush away sweat from her forehead. "Hiei-kun left a few minutes ago. He said he had somewhere else to be."
Glancing at her hands, I noticed the ice cream was gone. "Done with it?"
"Yes." Her smile grew, and I was astonished by the budding beauty in her face. "I really enjoyed that sweet snow. I'm glad Hiei-kun happened to have some."
Wow. Yukina-san was going to be quite the looker when she got older. Heck, she was already good-looking. Surveying the gardens to see if Hiei-san really had left while I had been in my thoughts, I had a very strange, prophetic feeling that I would never see him again. That I had been lucky to even see him twice—even once.
"Yeah," I agreed cheerfully to her words, "What a great coincidence!" Coincidence, my foot. Very clever Hiei-san. My sneaking suspicion that he had been listening in on us earlier grew. "Are you ready to continue gardening?"
"Ah, yes!"
We worked side by side for a few minutes in silence. The quite atmosphere was a nice change from the frantic pace of everyday life, and I let my mind drift into space as I worked. I kind of wish every day was like this, without school or chores. Still wondering what it was that Yukina-san hadn't wanted to talk about, I decided to take a risk.
"Yukina-san? Could I ask you something?"
"What is it Kenta-san?"
"That thing you didn't want to tell me about," I hesitated. "Is there any chance that you would be willing to talk about it? If it has to do with Urameshi, then I really would like to hear about it."
Deep red eyes drilled into mine, and she didn't speak, her mouth set in a line.
I began to wonder if maybe I had pushed too hard. Maybe it was just that traumatizing to her.
"I was kidnapped by a very cruel man."
What?
"He kept me locked away and used me to make money." Her voice was monotone. "I was there for a very long time...until..." There was a hitch in her voice, and the words started to pour out with relief. "Yusuke-kun, Kazuma-kun, Shuuichi-kun, and Hiei-kun came to save me. They stopped that man and brought me here, to safety." Her hands clutched compulsively at the material of her kimono. "That's when I first met them."
"They saved you?"
"Yes. If I wasn't for them, I might still be there. They fought against all of the bad men and managed to save me."
It was not immediately obvious, but I could see that what had happened to her had really affected her. It hadn't changed her hardiness, but the memory still shook her slightly. A wave of compassion rolled over me, and my respect for her and her rescuers grew. To think that Yusuke, Kuwabara, and Hiei-san had risked their lives to save her. She wasn't even related to any of them, yet they had somehow done it. Sure, I could see Shuuichi doing something like that (maybe he knocked out bad guys with math equations!), but Yusuke?
And Kuwabara. He was, more than any of them, not at all what I had thought he was. Seeing him helping those kids, hearing about him from Yukina-san—I really knew nothing about him. I resolved then and there to try to change the way I looked at people. From now on Kawasaki Kenta was going to give everyone a chance. Or at least, I would try to be better about it. I wasn't going to just listen to what everyone else thought—a true reporter makes his own opinion after detailed research.
I left the temple after another hour of gardening with Yukina-san. She seemed sad to see me leave, and I reassured her that all she needed to do was call me and I would be happy to help her weed again. I wondered if she was much lonelier than she let on. I gave her my phone number, and bid her a good night, knowing that the sun was setting soon completely.
On the bus, my head began to hurt a bit as I tried to picture Yusuke and Kuwabara's faces. The images that came up with were blurry and confusing. I began to wonder...did I ever really look at either of them in the face before? The time passed quickly.
The first thing I did when I got home was open up some of my yearbooks. Flipping through the pages, I searched for a picture of Yusuke. He wasn't in the first two yearbooks I looked through. Finally, I found a picture of him in last year's yearbook. He didn't looked pleased to be there, and I bet that Keiko-san had forced him to come.
Staring hard at his picture, I was astonished to realize that he was actually good looking. He didn't look very old or tough—he just looked like a kid in junior high who was forced to take a picture. He was just another kid. And I wondered how an entire school had managed to warp his image into the state that it was now. It was a miracle that Yusuke hadn't killed someone, the way that he was treated.
Then I started looking for pictures of Kuwabara. They were actually easier to find; he hadn't avoided the yearbook photo sessions. He was smiling in the first picture I had found, and what struck me as odd was how kind his eyes were. His face wasn't as ugly as I had envisioned it to be. It was plain—not handsome in the way that Yusuke's was, but there was character in his face. He did look older than someone in junior high, but he still had that ability that only kids have to smile without a care, without all the awkwardness of faking a smile or being afraid that someone will judge you for the way that you smile.
My eyes glanced over hundreds of other pictures in several of the yearbooks, and it became obvious to me that Yusuke and Kuwabara looked no different than so many of the other students. And I felt ashamed. Damn it. These were the kids that I had made fun of, feared, and demeaned into monsters? I felt like my whole world had dropped beneath my feet and I was drowning in my shame.
That night, I went straight to bed after dinner, and forced myself to try fall asleep with an empty mind. But that didn't keep the thoughts of Yusuke and Kuwabara away.
Well this is the end of the sixth chapter. Phew. Just a few more days (chapters?!) till the end. Thanks for reading!