Disclaimer: The characters in this story belong to Rumiko Takahashi, not I. Some characters are from my imagination, but not many. Do not use this story without my permission.
The Demands Go Out! Just Who Needs Rescuing Here?
It was another sleepless night for Ataru. Being the manager of a highly profitable housing service for the illustrious Tobimaro was beginning to take its tole.
"I'm so sick of this" he mumbled at the breakfast table his guest was absent from. "Even Lum is absent this morning."
"I thought you'd be happy about that" his mother said.
"That just tells me" Ataru explained "that this is a really bad idea. Lum never gets up if she knows she's just going to end up crying herself to sleep for some reason. Either that or she isn't getting any sleep at all, like me, but she would still want to try and sit with me or something. Tobimaro is stretching my last nerve..."
"I think the phrase" his father said "is 'he's getting on my last nerve'."
"That's another thing!" Ataru demanded. "Why are you two so damn cheery every morning!? Are you actually getting sleep?"
"Well" his mother said, not making eye contact with her dubious son.
"I need to get up in the morning, so...." his father said, looking away.
"I knew it!" Ataru exclaimed. "You're hoarding ear plugs, aren't you!?" Ataru sank into a pout, then fell over due to exhaustion. He sighed away his frustration and embraced his comfortable floor. He heard a pounding on the floor and shot back up, acting as energetic as he could for Tobimaro, his guest, so he could not see the effects his stay was having.
"Good morning, Tobimaro" Mrs. Moroboshi greeted.
"Good morning" Tobimaro politely said. He sat next to Ataru, who was eating and smiling, and rested his club against his shoulder like a sheathed sword. "I must say, Moroboshi, this training is really paying off for me. Perhaps after my morning stretching you could join me. I could use a pitcher so I can properly hit a moving ball as a professional would."
"Oh, sure pal" Ataru agreed happily. "I just need to see if Lum's going to get up and I'll be right out." Tobimaro smiled graciously and began eating. Ataru finished eating whatever he was eating, as he was too tired to see or care, and made a break for the upstairs. He made it inside his own room and fell flat to the floor. He remained there for a moment before pushing himself back up hesitantly and made his way to the closet.
If he knows how bad we're all doing Ataru reminded himself he'll get all humble and want to leave on our behalf. So far I've gotten enough out of him to rebuild this whole house, which is great, but to pay off all the girls necessary and get a building permit, it'll take a few more weeks until I can build a harem. I can't wait or survive that long! He opened his closet door and saw the curled body of Lum sleeping angelically. Her beauty in slumber didn't stop him from nudging her until he got a satisfactory grunt of acknowledgment.
"Uggh...Darling?" Lum mumbled.
"Can you give me a wake-up shock?" Ataru politely asked. "Tobimaro needs me as a training partner." Lum looked over, shading her eyes with her arm, and reached out to oblige him. In her tired state she could only muster up a weak shock that seemed not to phase Ataru at all. "No, that didn't do it." Lum grabbed him again, this time at the throat, and shocked him emotionally as she tried to grip his trachea out. "Hey!" Lum finally gave him a fierce blast of electricity before grabbing his shirt and pulling him towards her.
"Darling" she lowed, "I can't take this anymore. I can't sleep. I can't wake up. I'm extremely crabby and emotional right now. If I can't get a good night's rest here I'll go up to my UFO and stay there!"
"Let's not jump the gun here" Ataru said, his own personal way of pleading her to stay under the threat of her telling her powerful father. "I mean, we're making great money off of this!" Lum grabbed him with her other hand and pulled him in far too close for comfort.
"If you don't get him to leave soon" she growled "I'll flash-fry you both! Then I'll get Asuka to break you into tiny little pieces and gather them up so I can shoot you into SPACE!"
"Wait," Ataru said in a stroke of sudden brilliance, "that's it!"
"What?" Lum asked. Ataru broke himself loose and gently pushed Lum back into her closet. He even leaned in out of joy and gave her a quick peck on the cheek.
"Thanks, Lum!" Ataru said. He cheerfully went on his way, leaving Lum in utter confusion. The feelings of tired frustration got the better of her dreamy love and forced her hand to angrily slam her door close to shut out the light. Ataru hurried downstairs, made sure Tobimaro was unable to interrupt him, and made a quick phone call...
At the grand Mizunokoji estate, a girl in blue shades ran with a phone to one of the main rooms. Inside the greater controlling forces of the Mizunokoji empire sat across from each other at the breakfast table, hired hands waiting in a dutiful line at the wall.
"Sir! Madam!" the girl shouted. "A phone call for you!"
"Can't it wait?" Mrs. Mizunokoji said in her maidenly, calm way.
"Master Tobimaro has been found!" the girl reported. Mrs. Mizunokoji was so excited about the news she accidentally spit a high-pressure stream of tea at her husband, knocking him over.
"Who is it on the phone!?" she demanded with great hostility, although she kept her tight smile. "Trace the call, send in an assault team, throw down some bombs! I want my son's captor killed within an inch of his life!"
"It's Ataru Moroboshi, madam" the girl said in fright. "He's allowed Master Tobimaro to stay with him at his own will for the past few days, but now says he wishes to return home."
"Oh" Mrs. Mizunokoji said with relief. "What a relief! That Moroboshi, he can be quite dependable sometimes."
"Although" the girl continued, "he has made somewhat of a demand. He said Tobimaro won't budge on his own. He suggested...rather inclined subtly, that his sister is sent to retrieve him."
"What!?" Mrs. Mizunokoji said in shock. "Does he not know the dangers? The damage?"
"It may be the only way" the girl said in desperation. "He is still on the line, if you want to try and convince him otherwise."
"Give me the phone" the noble lady demanded. Once the phone was in hand she brought it up slowly to her face. Her husband was being helped back up to his proper position by the waiting women, the stream having knocked the sense from him. "Hello?" she asked. "Is this Ataru?" Ataru was heard going off an a rather lengthy tangent on the other line. All the girls leaned in to listen. Even Mr. Mizunokoji got curious and wanted to hear what was happening. At length the conversation ended with Mrs. Mizunokoji in a sweat as she silently hung up the phone.
"Get Asuka from her quarters" she ordered "and give her a map to the Moroboshi residence. She'll need it."
"Uh...yes madam" the girl agreed. Her brow was twitching above her stylish blue shades. What kind of linguistic skills does that Ataru have!? Eventually the orders were made clear. Nothing beyond the absolutely essential would be divulged to Asuka and that essentialness was this: her Big Brother Tobimaro had been captured and needed immediate rescuing. The girls would tell her this and acquire a map to guide her from her greatly sheltered estate through the man-riddled streets of greater Tomobiki and finally bring her to the destination where her dear brother waited rescue.
"It seems pretty concrete" a girl in blue shades said to another on the jeep they rode on.
"That's what worries me" the driver said. "You know how easily Lady Asuka can break concrete." Although metaphorical, the statement was dreadful for the girls. They were stirring a deadly hive with this act, even if it would result in a greater cause for someone. The girls finally arrived at Asuka's huge, private training facility, located mainly underground, and departed for the ground level entrance. There was a piece of paper in Asuka's handwriting that read 'No Men Allowed!' with men written with a shaky hand.
"Let's hope this goes well" the girl said. The other one gulped in fear. They entered and made their way through a short hall until they saw their Lady Asuka with one of her private tutors detailing the relationships between men and women. Asuka was cowering behind an upturned table.
"It's quite alright, miss Asuka" the lady said.
"No!" Asuka shouted. "No more! I don't want to know anything about what men do to girls! They're scary!" The tutor sighed and pinched her eyes.
"Lady Asuka" the girls in blue shades said dutifully. Asuka turned to them and walked over. "We have dire news. Your brother has been taken...um, captive." Asuka looked at them sternly. Obviously, the next part wouldn't go over too well. "He is being held, it seems...by Ataru Moroboshi." Asuka froze. Several seconds later she started shaking, and then she started drawing in a long breath through her nose.
"KYAAAAAAAAAA!!!!" She screamed.
"Lady Asuka!" one girl shouted to cut off her screaming. "What is more important!? The safety of your big brother or your fear of men?" Asuka gave it a long and hard consideration from behind her table, but then resorted back to her shrill crying.
"KYAAAA!!!" she screamed. The girls put hands to forehead and decided to let her make her own decision.
Eventually, around lunchtime, Asuka emerged from her quarters with her elegant, lady-like armor equipped. She had decided, at last, that her brother's safety trumped her totally rational fear of Ataru Moroboshi.
"For the sake of my brother" Asuka said dutifully from beneath her helmet "I would gladly risk life and limb!"
"My lady" a girl said, coming to her. "Here." The girl handed her a piece of paper.
"Eh?" Asuka grunted, taking the paper handed to her.
"It's a map" the girl explained "detailing how to get to Moroboshi's house. Your brother is there, no doubt, and we are all counting on you to bring him back safely before nightfall."
"Right!" Asuka cheered. "I'll do my best!"
"We've also made a path" the girl added "where we have determined men are least likely to be."
"Men?" Asuka said dreadfully. "Oh no. You mean...there will be more of them out there? Even before I reach my brother?"
"Indeed, Asuka" a motherly voice said. Mrs. Mizunokoji came in on horseback, as elegant an entrance as ever, to give her daughter her parting words of wisdom. "There are many men in the outside world. You know this. However, in order to succeed and bring you brother back safely, you must face your fear and bravely march through the throngs of men that will impede your path."
"I believe I will be alright, mother" Asuka said. She lifted off her helmet and revealed her glasses, given to her by the gracious teachers at her private school for girls. "With these on no man can approach me. I shall be fine, and I will remove them when I find my brother so he may come home with me."
"I am proud of you Asuka" Mrs. Mizunokoji said. "Now go! Rescue your brother from the grasp of fate!" Asuka put her helmet back on and made a dash for the exit. She passed by every and any moving vehicle in her way and leaped clear over the gilded front gates.
"Madam" the guard girl asked, "if you don't think I'm prying, why not just call Tobimaro and ask him to come home? Why send Asuka? She will only berserk and destroy things!" Mrs. Mizunokoji had to take a tissue to her tearing eyes and sniffle before she made a response. Of course, her face stayed the same with its perpetual, reserved smile.
"That young man" she began with tears of joy, "he is truly a good young man. That Ataru Moroboshi. He knows that Asuka will have to overcome her fear of men to save her brother, and that's what he wants. He is aiding us in so many ways for very little compensation. He is truly a good, blessed man to help us so!"
"Ma'am" the girl said, "I don't believe that for a second."
"I know" the noble lady said. "I didn't either..."
"Come now!" Tobimaro demanded. "Pitch like a man! Right down the center." After much pleading and several soda drinks, Ataru was finally helping Tobimaro by pitching. Unfortunately, Tobimaro's control was so inhibited that all the balls he hit would only go a few meters, barely making it back to Ataru, and he was able to blame it all on the groggy, half-minded Ataru. Regardless, Ataru winded up and pitched with all he had. It was a great pitch, and Tobimaro's swing was powerful, but the instant efforts of his training kicked in and the ball barely traveled.
"How is that helping me?" Tobimaro asked. He waited for the ball to roll right back to its pitcher and they both tried again. "Are you even trying?"
"You know pal" Ataru said, scooping the ball back up, "not all of us are monsters."
"What does that mean?" Tobimaro asked, almost ignorantly. Ataru pitched again and the ball just rolled back to him again.
"I mean" Ataru continued "that not all of us are totally meant for baseball. We have other obligations...like sleep." Another pitch, another bunt.
"You can't blame this on fatigue" Tobimaro said. "I've only been sleeping four or so hours nightly and I am always at the peak of energy the next day."
"Personal differences" Ataru said. He felt the energy in his previous food quickly wearing off as his knees began to give out. "Say, why don't you use some power?"
"That's not the point" Tobimaro said. "It's all in the control. If I can swing as hard as possible without actually moving the ball, it will throw the entire enemy team off long enough for someone to steal a base!"
"You've got that mastered" Ataru complimented. "Try belting this one with minimal movement, then."
"Alright" Tobimaro agreed. Ataru pitched, and Tobimaro made a slow and lackluster swing. The ball vanished. There was a jet roar and a gust of sonic-boom that followed after the ball that apparently went high overhead. The sudden burst of unexpected power woke Ataru right up and he looked at Tobimaro with complete shock and a building sense of excitement.
"That" Ataru slowly began "is what will win a game!"
"Thanks" Tobimaro said. Now that Ataru was awake and willing, he reached for another ball in their extra pit and prepared to pitch it. The ball Tobimaro had obliterated finally landed without a bounce into the concrete of a building. It made a deep, gray crater and stopped spinning long enough to smoke. A hand reached calmly out and grabbed it from the wall. That hand brought the ball up to a green and blue armored face with a silver face plate that slid up to reveal a girl's sparkling, starry eyes.
"This is my Big Brother's baseball!" Asuka said. "It must have come from him! It's a distress signal!" Asuka crushed the ball in her hand, small pieces of leather and string oozing out from her grip. "I need to hurry! No telling what horrible things that...man is doing to my Big Brother!" Asuka dashed off across the rooftops in what she assumed was the direction the ball flew from. She was only a few minutes of uninterrupted roof-jumping away. But of course, in Tomobiki, Murphy's Law takes precedence over everything else and her progress was inevitably impeded by men. She stopped jumping from the roofs and ducked into an alley, watching all the horrible, random men walking by.
Oh no! She exclaimed. What do I do now!? Seeing no way out from where she was, Asuka sank to her knees in the dark alley and just quivered in fear. She would make it, somehow, just not anytime soon.
