I made it!!!!!!

Yeah, it's been ages SORRY SORRY SORRY. But it's finally revised. I'm sure that there are still errors (pointing them to me helps) but I think that now there are less of them.

Now, finally here it comes…… (Cheering please…)

Chapter 7: Lying, cheating, deceiving.

It was raining, not too heavy; more like a small curtain of small drops, small but cold drops, and the kind that somehow always manages to get through clothes faster than a normal rain. People hurried through the streets not wanting to wait for the rain to stop, the street lamps being the only source of light by then.

"Let's go back…"

Definitely not a time for a kid to be wandering alone trough the streets. And if that kid had a real terror of the night, then it was a very bad idea.

"No.."

Not even if the kid in question had a good motive for doing such a thing.

"Hikaru…please…"

"No!"

Not even if the worry and sadness was stronger that any terror to the shadows of the night, or the creatures that roamed it, real and imagined.

"It's not here Sai….he…the man…he took it…" Finally sobbed the child, hiding his face in the crook of his arm, staining the white shirt with black-greenish hair paint, at least the package had been true on his word, the paint was now in the child's face, and in his clothes, but not in his hair.

"Hikaru…."

"I knew it! I told you something bad was bound to happen!...and now…it's lost!!"

Sai cringed at the broken whisper, he felt useless, he wanted to be able to help his little boy …if only he wasn't like this…

"Let's go home little brother…" Whispered the ghost and surprised eyes stared at him. "What did you say?" Also whispered the child, goban forgotten for the moment, Sai stared back, also surprised at his own words.

"Do…do you mean it?" Said Hikaru with a small voice, his arms where bracing his own body, shoulders hunched and eyes bright and searching, he was scared Sai knew, scared of being pushed away.

Sai kneeled gracefully and stared at the child warmly "I do consider you part of my family, my own hard headed little brother"

"I'm not little…" Said Hikaru with a small frown and Sai laughed "No, of course not, you're just short for your age"

"I'm not!!!" Glared Hikaru but then he hung his head staring at his shoes "I too…you know?, I consider you my friend, my family…"

"I know…"

Hikaru smiled warmly "Let's go home, dad will be mad enough as it is…" He said at last, he looked around once more, but the street remained empty, he rubbed his eyes feeling a little better. At least he had Sai, his brother, his friend, and he would never go away, even if years and years passed…Sai, nobody could take him away, not even death because he was a ghost already, he could keep going, as long as Sai remained at his side, he would be okay.

They would be together forever.

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"Shindo!!" Tsutsui was outside his door, looking very pale and more than a little shaken, Hikaru groaned, he didn't want to talk to the boy.

"Shindo, I was so worried, I thought… well…here this is yours" Said at last the boy extending a piece of paper to him, in large letters announced the first place. Hikaru frowned at it, it wasn't his name… it wasn't him…

"Hikaru!!" Called an angry voice from his right and Shindo Masao came through the door with a very angry expression. "Where were you? Do you know what time it is?" Called the man and then he took a look at his child's appearance and his glare went up a notch, "You're all wet! And what is all that paint? What have you been doing this late?!!"

"Sir, Shindo, he was with me…I'm truly sorry, he accompanied me to a school event and we got separated and Shindo is still not used to travel alone in that part of the city…I'm sorry…" Said hurriedly Tsutsui and bowed deeply, the man huffed and nodded.

"All right, good night Tsutsui-kun, you should better go home"

"Ah!, Shindo, here! A man got your bag, he said that you can get it at this direction" Said the child giving Hikaru a folded piece of paper, Hikaru stared at the paper and then at Tsutsui. He was dragged inside the apartment, and then he found himself in the bathroom. How did he get there?.

"Sai…You don't think that maybe it is a different man than…"

"No"

"Yeah, I also don't think so….

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"So… why should I do it?"

"Because he helped us!!!!"

Tsutsui prized himself for being patient, very, very patient, but when Kaga was

involved he just…

"Please?" He finally whispered, defeated "He, is a good kid, and he is very, very afraid of that man, I don't know why, so don't ask, but he helped me…" Sai Tsutsui and then yelped when Kaga's fan hit him on the head.

"Yeah, okay no need to get all dramatic, I, the great, marvelous Lord Kaga shall help you, just give me some time to think, this should not be harder than the prank we played with Asuma-Sensei…."

"T-that was you?!!" Asked Tsutsui gaping at the other kid, the prank had passed as a historic moment in the school, more a myth for the younger students. Kaga smiled and nodded proudly.

"Oh yes, that was me….so yes, just let me think…" He answered absentmindedly fanning himself, then a very frightening glint started to grow in his eyes, a glint that made Tsutsui shiver.

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"HELP GRANDPA!!! HE NEEDS HIS MEDICINE!!!!"

"Shut up you brat, you're going to wake up all the neighbors!" The other man backhanded Heiachi and Hikaru fell silent. His grandpa was now sprawled on the floor, his face red, he seemed to be in pain.

"Please..."

The man got closer to him, he dragged him to his grandpa side and then he leaned closer.

"Let's try again, NOT A SOUND!. Do you hear me?, If you move, scream or even try to get up I will know it!" His breath was foul and the child nodded, sweat on his brow and back, cold sweat that was making him shiver.

The man kicked his grandpa and then stepped on the pill, leaving a white smear on the wooden floor.

They were laughing again, that man was still whispering in his hear, he could feel the foul breath it was warm and tick like he had imagined a monsters' would be, he was a monster…

"…remember brat….. Not a sound…I will know."

He nodded and the pressure in his wrists banished, they were still laughing, he felt so cold. They were leaving… the heavy steps were leaving; he must move…..his grandpa….

He opened his eyes and felt colder. He opened his mouth to scream but not a sound came out.

"…I will know…."

"HIKARU! WAKE UP!!" Sai? Yes it was Sai?, Why was he worried?, so cold, it hurt, his throat, it hurt... Sai looked really sad, It was his fault?.

"Shh... It was a dream, go back to sleep" Dream?, Oh, He was dreaming?, he didn't...

"Sleep" Sai, he was such a good friend… so tired... Maybe he could remember in the morning…

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Ramen had always been Hikaru's favorite food, forever, even in China. But now, seated in front of the largest bowl of ramen he had ever seen he was anything but hungry.

"Didn't you say that it was his favorite?"

"Uh, uh"

"Then why is he not eating?"

-Not hungry- read Hikaru's notepad. And the other boys stared at him. They were currently in a Ramen shop that Kaga said was the best. After the incident of the tournament Kaga had been behaving like an overprotective mother hen, of course while insulting and molesting the child at the same time.

Now, Hikaru, Tsutsui and Kaga were still plotting (or so claimed the older boy) about how to get back the bag from the evil man in the white suit.

Tsutsui sighed and then took out a large notebook, he then started scribing furiously, once in a while grunting and growling.

"If you're done with that cheap imitation of a pup, then please tell us, what are you doing?"

Tsutsui glared at the boy and left his notebook. "I... well I have been thinking, and it is Wednesday already and we don't really have a plan." He said "And no, Kaga, storming there dressed as robber is not going to work." He added when the other boy opened his mouth.

"Well, neither walking there and asking nicely is going to work" Said Kaga in a bored voice.

"So that leaves us in the same place..."

Hikaru kept his head down playing with the noodles on his bowl. They had been making up excuses, tales, and even planning to just knick the bag from the man, but all the ideas had been discarded.

Kaga eyed the small boy and growled, while he liked to bother the brat, he didn't like the idea of a grown man doing it, it was just... upsetting. He looked at the street and the opposite building and then he remembered something "Hey! I know a cheap go saloon near here!"

Hikaru perked up at this, his eyes curios, he didn't know any go salon in Tokyo, and he missed going to them.

Tsutsui caught the change in humor of his friend and quickly got up. "Yeah! It should be fun!"

While Kaga led them to the salon, Hikaru felt a twinge of nostalgia, the place was small and underground, it smell like cigar and tea, he had never felt more at home. Three tables were occupied; one by two very old men who kept glaring at each other more that looking at the board, in the table next to them was two middle aged men deeply engrossed in their match, the third board was slightly different there was a middle aged man and a boy that seemed to be about his same age, if a slightly older, he had orange hair and was wearing a colorful scarf and a pair of black glasses.

"Three?"

"Yeah..."

Hikaru went to see the match of the boy, and so did Kaga, while Tsutsui read the new edition of go-weekly.

"Oh, another brat, good, good" Said Kaga and Hikaru glared at him. The game was almost even and it seemed that both were decent players, specially the boy, he was nowhere at the same level as Toya but he was definitely good.

The man grunted and made his next move. The boy tensed after that, he bit his lip and frowned at the board, the man grinned. Hikaru could feel the tension of the match; it was now the man who led the game.

"Oh, oh... he is finished, finished I tell you!" Said Kaga without bothering with keeping his voice down. The boy glanced at him and glared at him. Kaga grinned at him.

The game continued to yose. The counting of territory began and then Hikaru saw for the second time of his life how somebody cheated.

"Sai... he, did he?"

"Yes, he moved that stone just now... he added to his territory..." Said the ghost in a whisper and stared at the child in sadness.

When the counting ended the boy won by 0.5 moku and the man laughed. "Ah! So close, you got better again Mitani-kun!! Soon and I won't be able to win you anymore!" The man gave the boy a bill and ruffled his hair. Mitani smiled at him. "It was just luck..."

"Luck?, no, no. You're a good player. Oh! I'm late. Well goodbye Mitani-kun." The man smiled again to the boy and left.

"Oh! You're a very good player!. Tell me, would you play with me?" Kaga seated himself on the other chair and smiled innocently, or as innocently as he could, at the other boy. Mitani stared at him and then at Hikaru and finally grinned.

"Sure, however I don't play for free. Wanna bet?" Said the boy putting on the table the same bill that the man had just given him. Kaga smiled and put another bill beside the board. "Deal!, So, Nigiri?"

Hikaru bit his lip, the two boys started playing at once, Kaga's playing was a little bit off, and the other kid was once in a while peering at the older boy, as if measuring him.

Mitani captured two stones and retrieved them from the board, but as he went to put them with the captured stones, Kaga grabbed his hand and twisted it, the boy opened his hand and three stones fell on the side of the board. Kaga grinned at him "So, cheating are we?"

The other boy scowled at him and made to leave but Kaga grabbed him harder and the boy winced and went limp, still scowling. "What do you want?! Take the money and leave me alone!!"

"Oh, no, no" Said Kaga still grinning "It won't be so easy, but yes, I will make you pay. Let's say a favor for me?"

"And If I don't?" Glared at him Mitani, his arm was really hurting and this boy was starting to make him nervous.

"Well, then I will be obliged to denounce you to all the go salons, you must understand that as a responsible player it's my duty to do so?" Said the boy and Mitani paled and his glare went up a notch. He then peered at the counter where and old man was chatting with Tsutsui and finally sighed.

"Fine!, Now let me go!"

"Oh, no, no" Said Kaga still grinning " You have two options: one, you come with me and do me a favor; nothing horrible mind you, or I can tell this good man and all the other go saloons what you have been doing" Mitani paled and glanced at the old man and then glared at Kaga. He stood up and nodded awkwardly.

Kaga got up and grabbed the boy by the shoulder, and gesturing to the other to follow him, they went out, the boy with the glasses was glaring openly at the fourth boy.

"Kaga what… ?"

"Not here" He said and Tsutsui frowned but complied with him. Kaga had that glint that usually led to the kind of things like the tournament idea.

Once in the street Kaga opened his fan and with a pompous air announced "Gentlemen, our plan is ready!"

Mitani looked in confusion at the trio and the trio looked back, two in confusion and one in glee.

"Whatever is it I won't do anything illegal!!"

"Oh, no" Said Kaga in mock surprise "We would never ask you to do something more morally incorrect that you are accustomed"

The other boy blushed and leaned against the wall "You know what I mean… I… I may be a cheater but I won't…"

"Yes, yes, do we look like assassins?" Kaga poked the other boy in the chest and grinned "What I will ask of you is just within your abilities"

"Tsutsui glared at Kaga " You are not thinking on involving that boy?"

"Yes" Grinned Kaga

"No! How can we trust him?! Maybe he won't even show up!"

"Yes he will if he wants to keep playing here. And he is exactly what we need!"

The boy with the bright orange hair glared at Tsutsui and came closer to him "Look. I said I would do it! I Mitani Yuki give my word!!"

"That's what I'm talking about!! How can we trust your word!!" Said the boy with glasses and Mitani glared at him harder.

"Just tell me where AND I WILL BE THERE"

"Excellent! That's the spirit we need!" Grinned Kaga he scribbled an address in a piece of paper and gave it to the boy "Meet me here on Saturday and I will give you instructions."

Mitani grabbed the paper and with a last glare at Tsutsui he left.

"Kaga…" Said Tsutsui trying to make the other boy see sense.

"Hush you! I'm plotting… yes…" He pointed at Hikaru with his fan "You! Go home. You!" He said pointing Tsutsui "Come with me, we must do some research of the enemy's territory"

"Kaga!!! Wait!!!"

Hikaru watched as Kaga dragged the other boy and he waved at Tsutsui, but the other kid was too busy trying to escape Kaga's grip to see him. Hikaru glanced back at the closed door of the salon. The first time he had seen someone cheating had been on Sai's memories.

"It's another way to kill a game isn't? For both players…"

Sai stared at the child and nodded sadly "Go is a game based on trust, you trust your opponent. To do his best, to fight you with all his ability, to teach you and to receive knowledge from you."

"If, if he continues like this… will he become like that man, the one who cheated you?"

"I think so… yes." Said Sai in a small voice. "However, like this…Like I am now, I can't do anything."

Hikaru frowned and bit his lip. "I can… I don't know how, but… I promise that I will try!"

Sai stared once more at his little brother and smiled at him.

"Thank you"

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The go salon looked normal enough, no like the haunting place he had imagined. Hikaru stared at Tsutsui, now dressed with colorful baggy clothes (Kaga's old ones) and then he glanced at a fuming Mitani who was wearing the same kind of uniform he had used on the tournament. It had turned out that Mitani was also a Kaze student, but the uniform he was wearing belonged to Kaga so it was still big on him. He looked like a completely different person; however, it was more the small detail of his now black hair and cap that really made the difference.

"It's not going to work…" Whined Hikaru and Sai nodded behind his fan.

A rumbling noise announced the arrival of Kaga, he was driving his bike and wearing the same uniform as Mitani, his ever present fan on his pocket. He grinned when he saw Mitani. "Oh so you really came! I was worried."

Mitani made a noise between a snort and a growl and advanced to Kaga "This is a lousy plan, you know? It's not going to work!" Tsutsui and Hikaru nodded as well but Kaga just smiled.

"Hush now, I know that this level of planning is beyond your young minds, but, this is so going to work!" Kaga watched his clock and nodded "The man said 10:30, and now is 9:30, Tsutsui and the little mongrel will go first and play someone, you know get mixed. Then when the man in the suit enters Tsutsui will call me to my cell, then we will proceed as planned. Okay men, let's go!"

Hikaru stared at Kaga and suddenly had a very bad feeling about the plan, the kind you usually feel when someone tells you to jump from a cliff and assures you that no, it isn't too high….

Hikaru nodded hesitantly and entered the place, a young woman was at the counter and they paid the fee, Tsutsui asked for a game to a man who was seated near the door and Hikaru went to a table behind some plants, he could still see the door and the room but he was not visible unless close inspection.

He fingered some stones, his heart was hammering in his chest. He was not feeling too well, and his eyes felt heavy, lately he was very tired in the mornings.

"Excuse me. Are you waiting for somebody?" Hikaru lifted his face and saw a very old man looking amiably at him, he shook his head and the man seated himself in the other chair. "Well I am, waiting I mean. What about a game with this old man?"

Hikaru nodded and smiled at him, yes, what damage a game could do?

"Excellent!"

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Ogata stared at the pair of boys on the entrance of the salon and smirked.

"Good afternoon"

TBC

First, I must thank to all the people who helped me pointing mistakes, THANKS and hugs.

Second, to all who kept reminding me that this fic is still WIP, I WILL finish it I promise.

Third, NEXT CHAPTER… I'm already working on it. It should be ready soon (don't you love summer break?)