©Sunrisepainter: Golden Skies


A/N: I'm sorry if the chapters may take longer than before, because at the moment I have a lot of work to do and there are still some other stories that want to be updated. But the one of you that write fanfictions themselves might understand what I'm talking about. But I won't abandon this story completely, so don't worry ;). I'm still thankful for all your nice reviews that always motivate me. So thanks to:

Mina Luriya, silvermist1116, , .3D, Ayiana & 123rdGambleStreet

Thanks for reading this chapter.

Sunrisepainter


The Brand New Nao

The silence was overwhelming. Unexpected and somehow awkward. Every teacher, who passed by the room of class 3 – D this morning, would stop in his tracks and listen to the silence. He would scratch his chin and shook his head in disbelief. Then he would think that all the students of the class were gone. Yes, that had to be the explanation of this phenomenon. He would silently open the door a little and peek into the room and he would be shocked. Because he would see that all students of this class would sit calmly at their tables and stare at the blackboard. He would not believe his eyes and twinkle several times if he was dreaming. But it was no dream, but reality. And he would close the door and run as fast as he could to the faculty room to ask the other teachers for an explanation. Well, that is what the Physics teacher Tsuruoka did. But he did not get an answer. The other teachers did not believe him nor did they have the slightest idea what was going on.

The cause of this unusual behavior of the boys was no one else but their female classmate, because this morning there was something wrong. Nao did not act like herself nor did she look like herself.

"What's that...that thing she's wearing?", Kengo asked in a whisper when the first shock was gone.

"I think it's some kind of leggings", Ichi answered and stared at Nao like the rest of the class did.

"But why did she change her style?", another boy wondered, "she even put her wonderful long hair in braids."

"Well, I don't mind. Even if she wears something else or did her hair in another way, she's still cute", Kura said. Nao blushed, because he spoke loud enough for her to hear him.

"Is that something someone with a steady girlfriend should say?", Shunsuke shook his head and gave Nao a disappointed gaze, "oi, Nao – chan why do you wear this weird thing? Why hiding your nice legs?"

She was really embarrassed that he did not even get red when telling her this. She tried to say something back, but could not find the right words. Instead she just sat down at her desk and tried to focus on her homework.

"Don't you get it, guys?", Yamato grinned, "she couldn't stand how you all were always drooling over her. That's why she wants to look a little more nondescript."

"Humph", Shunsuke grunted and seemed to be a little huffed. The others could not quite say if it was because of Naos change or of what Yamato said about drooling.

"Good morning, everyone", cheerfully Yankumi stepped into the classroom. Immediately she was aware of the long faces some of the boys made.

"What's going on guys? Did something happen?"

Nobody said a word and Nao shrunk in her chair. Yamato just smirked. These guys were just too childish.

"Ah, you'll must be nervous because of the mock exams next week. But don't worry, if you just learn and believe in yourself you can do it."

They did not motivate them in the slightest. They started moaning, but the one who looked most terrified was Ren. Not only Yamato noticed his tension, Nao also wondered why Ren paled, so she tried to approach him after the lesson was over.

"Ano, Kazama – kun", she said in a low voice, so that only he could hear her. Surprised he looked at her:

"Nao-chan, what's wrong? Since when do you talk to us on your own accord?"

She bit her bottom lip and shuffled her feed. No, she could not draw back now. She was much to concerned as to leave him alone, so she worked up her courage and tried to keep looking in his face.

"I – I...I mean...I wondered if something is bothering you", she finally said and stared at him with open concern and worry.

Ren did not answer her. Instead he just stared at his desk with thoughtful eyes.
"If it is about the mock exams, I could...", she started, but soon stopped, when she saw how Ren tensed. He looked a little angry and troubled. As fast as she could she bowed her head:

"Gomen, I didn't want to meddle. I just...", she looked to the ground. She heard how he raised from his seat and shrieked when she felt his hand on her head:
"Don't worry. I'm fine."

When she looked up, she could see him smile, but there was still something more in his eyes. Something she could not quite explain. But he just took his bag.

"Hey Ren, where do you thing your going? We still have class."

But Ren did not even bother to answer Kura and just left without saying anything.

"Did you feel it, too?", Yamato asked Nao and still stared after Ren.
"Um", Nao nodded her head. So he also saw that something was wrong.

"What are you talking about?", Shunsuke asked confused and looked between Nao and Yamato back and forth. They did not answer him and so he was once more annoyed. Why did Nao seem to get along with everyone but not him? He watched Nao as she went back to her desk and seemed to be deep in thoughts. Shunsuke could not help but stare at her a little longer as he should.

She was really cute. He felt his heart skip a beat whenever she bit her bottom lip or had a dreamy look in her eyes as if she were miles away. He wished she would be as concerned about him just as she was about Ren.

He was still hurt, because she rejected his invitation the last time. If he should give it another try?

He resolved to asked Kura about this case for he was the only one in there class who already had a girlfriend.

Nao knew that Rens problems had something to do with the exams. It was her female intuition which told her. And while listening to class an idea came to her mind. It would kill two birds with one stone.

He did not come back to class, so she had not the opportunity to talk to him, but there was still Yamato, one of Rens best friends. She still could not tell what kind of guy Ogata Yamato was, but she was sure that he was good at observing people. So she decided to trust him and told him about her plans.

At first he was a little skeptical, but as he saw the seriousness in her eyes he accepted.

"But are you that you can handle us all?"

"I have to. It's not only for my own sake, but also for Kazama – kun. I not only have to change my appearance, but also my inner self. Don't get me wrong. I'll never be a completely different person, but I want to work hard to do my best."

He nodded and smiled at her.

"Okay, we'll do it. I hope the guys will accept. Well, when I tell them it's for you, I think it'll be okay."

Nao was touched and relieved.

"Thanks, Ogata – kun."


The "plan" was simple. They just wanted all to meet up at Yamatos house together to learn for the mock exams. It went well. All except Kengo, who had to help his dad in his shop, promised to come.

They wanted to meet up on Friday afternoon and Nao was more than nervous. It was her first time going to a guys house. She prepared herself very well, so that she would be able to answer all their questions if they might need her help.

The house of the Ogatas looked very nice. It seemed like his family was quiet wealthy. Nao realized that she did not know anything of the guys yet. Of course, she knew that Yamato was the leader of her class and that he was short – tempered, observant and his grades were average, but she did not know about his family background. Neither of the others. She hesitated a little when she stood in front of the door. What would his parents say if she suddenly showed up like this?

"What's wrong, Nao-chan?", she heard someone asking, "why don't you go in?"

"Oh hello, Ichi – kun", she smiled at him, "I'm just a little nervous. It's been a long time since I've been at someone else house."

"Don't worry. Yamatos parents live separately. His father is a little strict, but I don't think that he's at home. He works a lot, you know", Ichi told her. She nodded her head and finally dared to rang the door bell. She felt a little calmer now that she was not alone. The door opened and Yamato greeted them:
"What's up?"

"Hello, Ogata – kun", Nao bowed her head a little and shuffled her feet.

"Oi, how often do we have to tell you not to be so formal. You're one of us now, Katsuragi."

"Sorry."

"Come in, the others are not here yet. Do you want something to drink or to eat?"

"Yes, I would like to have some tea please", Nao answered and carefully walked into the living room.

"Me too", after putting his coat on a hug, Ichi went straightly to the huge white sofa in the middle of the room. It seemed like he had been at Yamatos house before. Nao looked around. The room was very big and well furnished. There were some precious paintings and Chinese vases, but no family pictures or other things, that showed the private life of the occupants. Yamato carried a tray with a tea pot, five cups and some cookies.

"Katsuragi, don't stand there. Sit down."

"H-hai", finally she removed her coat and her scarf and sat down in the comfortable armchair across the sofa.

There was a short silence between the three of them until the door bell rang and Kura walked in as cheerful as ever. Until the other two boys came he was the only one talking and entertaining them by imitating all sort of comedians he recently saw on TV. Nao could not help but laugh along with the others. Soon all her nervousness was gone and she felt a lot calmer. Nonetheless she did not forget the reason for all of this, so she secretly watched Ren. His expression was not different as the ones of the other guys and she wondered if maybe she was mistaken this morning. But as soon as the subject changed to exams and school, his mood seemed to change and his face to drop.

At first they decided to just practice some math problems, everyone on there own. Nao had no problems at all and so she was the first one to finish. She looked around as they all seemed to work hardly.

Kura laid on the floor and scratched his head with his pen while his paper was still blank. Yamato was reading the same text again and again and could not quite understand what he had to do. Ichi however was done with half of the tasks. He might have been the smartest of all the boys, but at math he was not better than average. Same went for Shunsuke. He did not seem very interested in the problems in front of him, but instead he ate most of the cookies and did not even waste one thought about math. Nao did not realize it, but while she was still studying, he had been staring at her. Now he pretended to be working as hard as the others to impress her, but she was more interested in the person occupying the armchair beside her. Ren looked the most stressed of them all. He was nervously chewing on the tip of his pencil and shaking his head once in a while after scratching his answers.

Nao was about to say something, when Shunsuke suddenly tried to get her attention:

"Nao – sensei, I don't get this part. Can you explain it to me?"

Actually he was not really interested in solving the problem, but he somehow felt irritated that she had just eyes for Ren. Was he jealous? No, of course not. Well, he would have never admitted it.

Nao, being the good – natured girl she was, could not help but try her best to explain this simple problem.
"If 4 times x plus 2 is the value of 10, then you just have to subtract 2 and divide it by 4. If you've done this you'll see that x equals 2."

"Wow, now I get it", Shunsuke slapped his forehead and gave the girl his biggest smile, "Nao – chan, you're really awesome!"

Nao blushed. The other guys, who were listening to their conversation, soon wanted her to teach them too. She was a little taken aback, but also happy that she actually could help them after they had done so much for her. Was that what Yankumi meant?

"Yo, Ren", Yamato addressed the only one who did not join them, "why don't you ask Katsuragi for help as well?"

"What the hell?! Just leave me alone! This whole thing was a bad idea from the beginning! Why do we have to waste our time with studying? You as well as me that we won't get any better in school. We're failures! This sweet "let's meet for studying, ne?" is a whole bunch of crap!"

The others watched in horror as their friend threw his math book away like an angry little brat. With a loud noise it hit the floor and a deep silence followed. Everyone was shocked by Rens sudden outburst. Yamato was the first one to speak:

"Oi, don't be so childish! Thanks to Katsuragi we were finally able to understand something. Why don't you give it a try?"
"Don't make me laugh!", Ren spat out, "just because you got one question right means you'll get good grades? She's just some nerdy chick, who thinks that tutoring some hopeless cases like us makes her look good in front of the teachers."

Nao flinched as his angry eyes met her frightened ones:

"Don't play innocent, crybaby. You're not better than all the others who think that idiots like us will never keep up with smart people like you, don't cha?"

"I- I...", Nao was about to burst out in tears.
"Oi, Ren!", Ichi intervened.

"Whatever. I'm outta here", and he left the house with a furious and disappointed look in his eyes.

"Are you okay, Nao-chan?", Ichi asked worried, but she was too much in a shock to answer.
"Man, this idiot! What's his damn problem?", Kura clenched his fist. The others were pissed as well. Of course, Ren was their friend, but why did he had to get so worked up.

"Well, what do we do now?", Shunsuke asked, "should we go after him?"

"No", Yamato shook his head, "he has to cool down first. Or do you want to risk a fight?"

"You know Ren as well as me. When he's in range, he doesn't think clearly anymore, so what if he gets himself into trouble?", Kura was worried as well.

While the boys were still discussing, Nao was left with her own thoughts. She was so confused that she could not even shed a tear. So much thoughts were running through her head.

Was she really just a nerd? Was she really so arrogant?

No. She shook her head. No. He was wrong. Absolutely. At the beginning she might have thought that these guys were just violent and rude, but it was different now.

She really wanted to be part of them. They had been nice to her, so she wanted to return the favor.

"...what if he gets himself into trouble?"

Kuras last sentence snapped her out of her motionlessness. In trouble? Ren?

Protect the things dearest to you.

Before even thinking about her own actions, Nao rushed out of the house. She ran as if someone was chasing after her. She could hear the boys yelling her name, but she ignored them. She had to become stronger. She had to do this now.


The sun was already setting and the street lamps went on. She searched all the allies, play grounds and shops. Sweat run down her cold face, but she did not care. She forgot to take her coat. But she did not care. She was soon out of breath, but she did not care. All she was thinking about was finding her classmate. No, finding her friend.

Sleepiness was overwhelming her. Her steps became slower. In the end she tripped over a can and fell on the pavement. Pain was rushing through her right knee and the smell of blood crawled into her nose. Tears of desperation welled up in her eyes. Angrily she washed them away. No, she could not give up.

And her determination paid off when she heard some guys talking.

"Man, this guy must be crazy. He goes against five people on his own. He doesn't stand a chance!"

"No kidding! But he looked as if didn't care 'bout a thing. Did ya see the look ins his eyes? Even when he was nearly pushed in front of a train he didn't give a damn..."

"Holy shit! These guys from Akadou are madness!"

That was enough for Nao to hasten her steps. These guys were talking about a train, so her next destination was the station. To her surprise there were no sounds of a fight going, so that she hoped that the guys were mistaken. She once again stopped in her tracks, when she saw the person she was looking for.

He said on the stairs leading to the tracks with his back against the banister. His breath was unsteady and heavy. Bruises and cuts bedecked his face and blood was dripping from his nose. All in all he was in a pretty bad shape.

He caught her stare and stumbled onto his feed while holding his side. Naos feet once again moved on their own.


End of Chapter Seven.