I should probably be writing a paper, but I don't really feel like writing about early Rus state and a bunch of princes of Kiev that killed each other or killed off in riots, Russian history is pretty damn bloody and never boring.
Anyways in this chapter Nakano Azusa now becomes a main character of the story. Azusa is a spirited serious-minded person. She's also very short, but Azusa is in the middle stages of puberty and it's possible she'll grow… though with anime characters that's pretty unlikely. Generally speaking manga artists don't change the appearance of their characters like that unless it is important to the story so poor Azusa is doomed by esthetic choices of Kakifly, K-on!'s writer and creator.
Chapter 7: New Members
The girls looked positively ecstatic at seeing the petite first year. Nakano Azusa was pitifully short compared to the Westerners in the room at 150 cm (4' 11"). Saito felt a calm and mature presence from her similar to Mio's, but unlike Mio, Azusa seemed more natural. She was not pretending to be anything she wasn't, but Saito didn't know yet how she will handle the nonsensicalness of the Light Music Club.
While the others rushed forward Shawn took a picture with his phone. It would be run through a data bank for her background so a file could be built on her. Jack started doing background checks and Saito quietly observed Azusa while Shawn and Anya took watch duty over Mugi.
Azusa was pulled to the table by Yui. Azusa looked a little nervous, but eager and excited to be in the club. Mugi, Yui, and Ritsu crowded around her while Mio stood a little behind them trying to appear more composed. Mio recalled giving the first year girl a flyer the other day. She was glad at least one person had come. Mio's one big concern was that Azusa might turn out to be someone who wasn't serious about music. There could be any number of reasons for her concerns like Ritsu and Yui portraying the club as being easy-going or just for playing around. There was also the possibility that this was a member of her fan club or someone interested in Saito or Shawn. Or she could be interested in Jack who was in the same class. There were just too many reasons to not be concerned.
"What's your name?" asked Mugi.
"Nakano-" started Azusa. She looked quite earnest and even excited to be in the here. She also seemed overjoyed that the club members were taking an immediate liking to her.
"What do you play?" interrupted Ritsu.
"What's your favorite food?" asked Yui before Azusa could even answer Ritsu's question.
Mio saw to her horror that her friends were overwhelming the poor girl with questions that were increasingly irrelevant. Fearing the worst Mio tried to come up with a plan to keep Azusa here before they scared the girl off without her actually joining the club. For a moment Mio reflected how ironic it was that she was putting all this effort, often more than Ritsu, when she had never planned to join this club in the first place. Despite her original feelings she had put a lot of effort and love into the Light Music Club and Mio didn't want it to go to waste. Plus she had made two great friends here. She was still iffy on Saito, but was comfortable with his presence now and saw he was dependable.
She looked at Saito. He was busy talking to the other two first years that seemed to be under his command. Mio was starting to become aware that the general presence of Saito and Shawn was keeping a lot of unwanted male attention at a distance, not to mention her fan club. Shawn was generally nice, but seemed distant. Saito was just distant. However, he did look out for them.
"She's not one of my fans?" asked Mio. She was a little afraid of her fan clubs. The idea of people talking about her, male or female, to the point that they organized into club was just creepy.
Saito was about to sit back down to his lunch when Mio asked him the question. "No. We don't know anything about her yet."
"Are you sure? I don't want someone who isn't serious. I can't have another Ritsu or Yui. I love them, but…"
"I hear you," he said sympathetically. "You can't access either of your fan clubs' pages, right? You need an account. They do that to keep the school from finding out about them. The encryption is a joke to someone like Jack who can penetrate military encryptions. We tracked them down by their email addresses and have them all ID'd. Most of them are second years, but they have been recruiting. Nakano Azusa has not come up once."
"I also have programs to pick up on communications," said Jack opening his lunch. "This is what the NSA (National Security Agency) does. If someone enters in a certain set of words, we call them keywords, it triggers an alarm so a handful of people can sift through a lot of spam and crap more efficiently."
"That's… really creepy," said Mio. Jack just shrugged. This was something that any intelligence agency could do, but the CIA or NSA had more problems than to worry about what google searches people were doing… unless it was how to make a bomb.
"More to the point, you might want to help her out," said Shawn pointing to the girls again.
Mio looked over her shoulder and saw that it was time to act.
"Girls, let's have a little order," said Mio. "Nakano-san, could you please introduce yourself and tell us a little about yourself and why you want to join the Light Music Club?"
Azusa sighed in relief and composed herself. She wanted to make a good impression on her seniors not knowing how little it would actually matter. "My name is Nakano Azusa from Class 1-2. I can play the guitar a little."
"Ah, just like Yui," said Ritsu.
"Really?" asked Azusa. She looked to Yui with bright eager eyes. "Please take good care of me, Yui-senpai."
"Yui-senpai?" asked Yui wonderingly. Saito could see Yui was now in her own little world again. His otaku brain imagined her sparkling with flowers or something in the background, but this wasn't an anime. Ritsu and Azusa both sweat-drop at seeing Yui so far gone.
"Please play something," said Yui holding up her Les Paul.
"I'm only a beginner," said Azusa as she adjusted the strap. She was a full 6 cm shorter than Yui and the guitar hung too low.
"No problem, I'll teach you," said Yui confidently. Saito was struck by an urge to smack Yui upside the head like he did with his team. She was getting a little big headed from having an underclassman for once. Yui on the other hand was feeling pretty good. For once she had someone that she was better than. It was always her at others mercy. She looked forward to helping Azusa and finding out what it was like to be better at something than someone else. To be the teacher for once.
"Oh, you already got an air of seniority?" asked Mio with a smile. She'd never seen Yui so confident. It was kind of cute.
"Here I go," said Azusa nervously. Saito's head snapped up at the newest member of the Light Music Club. She was not a beginner. Saito had heard much better than her, but she was more skilled than any of the current members of the club. Her style seemed to be that of the classic legends of the 1960s or 70s with a touch of jazz.
"Not quite Jimi Hendrix, but she's good," commented Shawn.
"Yeah… she is," agreed Saito. But she has a lot more to learn… and Hirasawa I think still has more potential if she ever learns to tap into it.
The girls stared open mouthed. Yui looked totally flabbergasted. This girl was in a league of her own and Yui could only watch. She felt embarrassed that a beginner was so much better than her. Her dreams of guiding this girl died leaving Yui devastated.
When Azusa stopped playing she saw the club members staring at her speechless. She started to panic as doubt flooded her mind. She looked to the foreigners. They seemed to be looking right through her. Azusa was a little creeped out at how cold their eyes looked when they were analyzing something.
"I'm sorry, it must have sounded awful to you," said Azusa bowing. She should have known better than trying to play with these girls. They probably found her a nuisance. They even had their own security ready to eject her from the room.
"Oh, no, that's not it," assured Mio.
"I-it could use a little work," said Yui trying to sound superior. This drew gasps from the other girls and groans from the mercenaries. Saito let out a disapproving snort.
"Yui, how long are you going to act superior?" asked Ritsu elbowing her.
Far from discouraging her, Azusa's eyes seemed to shine with the upmost respect at Yui. She ran forward as quickly as she dared with her senpai's guitar and asked, "Can I see Yui-senpai play?"
"… well, um… I strained my back yesterday," said Yui faking an injury. Saito was mildly interested that Yui did not use the actual injury she got as an excuse. It was as if Yui had already forgotten it… or maybe she actually had. He was trying to figure out what was going on in Yui's mind.
"Just move," said Ritsu pushing Yui off her feet. "So you're joining our club, ne?"
"Hai, I was very moved by your performance yesterday. Please take good care of me," said Azusa bowing deeply. Yui looked tragically at her underclassman as she handed Ritsu her application.
"Akiyama-san, you might just want to give it to Manabe-san yourself," said Saito. He dragged Yui to her feet a little roughly. "Get up and act like you're actually her senpai."
"Shut up," muttered Yui.
"Anou, who are you?" asked Azusa.
"This is Mugi's professional bodyguard, Bo- um, Kamisaka-kun," said Ritsu.
"Bodyguard?" asked Azusa. She thought it was a joke some upperclassmen were playing on the first years.
"Mugi was nearly abducted by these guys and her family is rich so they hired these scary looking mercenaries to protect her," said Ritsu.
"Ritsu! You don't have to be so blunt," said Mio. Honestly, they were scary, but surely they had feelings.
"It's fine," said Anya dully. "We know we're scary."
"Are you actually in the club?" asked Azusa looking up at Saito.
"A few," he said.
"He plays the guitar too," said Yui in a rush. She didn't know why she said it, but she wanted to at least sound knowledgeable about something. "And he's amazing too."
"You've seen him play?" asked Ritsu.
Anya, Jack, and Shawn watched their leader with smirks. They liked seeing Saito squirm since it was a rare moment. When they embarrassed him he usual it them, but he couldn't' subjugate Yui to that kind of treatment. Saito just face-palmed and walked back to his lunch.
After School
They were unloading Jack and Anya's belongings into the back of Shawn's Ford pickup and carrying it up to the apartment. The landlady was avoiding them, but they didn't want to see her anyways. They especially didn't want her to see what they were bringing in to the apartment, even if the guns and munitions were in boxes.
"Anya, what's in here?" asked Shawn.
"A couple of claymores," said Anya.
"Promise you won't arm these in here, even for boody-traps."
"Fine," said Anya rolling her eyes.
Jack was busy setting up his computer in the living room. It was a massive system with several screens. Anya was annoyed that she wasn't allowed to keep her bomb making materials. The tools she could keep, but not the materials. They were going to an underground bunker. Saito apparently thought keeping chlorine triflouride inside a living space was a bad idea. ClF3, as it was known, was known to combust without an ignition source, had been used to make chemical weapons, and was used a rocket propellant… in other words it was not really legal to have. She had managed to at least get Saito to let her keep a couple blocks of C4.
"Can I at least have my white phos?"
"Anya, white phosphorus as an incendiary is banned by the UN," said Saito. A lot of militaries still used WP, but they had governments to protect them.
"TEA?"
"It ignites on contact with the air!" shouted Saito. Triethylaluminum was another incendiary used in rocket fuel and one of the key ingredients in napalm. Anya generally used a cheap version of it that was less volatile. Saito didn't know which she was talking about storing, but he didn't want to find out.
"And all of Jack's setup is legal?" pointed out Anya. Some of Jack's modifications voided the warranty. He too also had access to technology that only certain governments had.
"It's less obvious than bomb making materials and if it doesn't overheat it won't burn down the place," he explained. He patted her on the shoulder and said kindly," Come on Anya. You don't need all those fancy and unstable chemicals. Where's the girl that could make a bomb powerful enough to disable a tank with materials from a janitor's closet?"
Anya grunted, but she smiled a little. Most household cleaners could be used to make a bomb… assuming you didn't mix them into a toxic gas that would burn your lungs from the inside out.
(Never! Ever! Combine household cleaners! You run a risk of creating a toxic cloud in your own home and neighborhood. If you aren't dead then expect a visit from the friendly people from the Department of Homeland Security.)
"I'll let you have the thermite if you promise not to use it inside," said Saito. Thermite was very dangerous and could burn through titanium, but it wasn't likely to ignite on its own. Saito made a mental note of every explosive Anya had in the apartment. C4, C2, claymores, primer cord, American M67 fragmentation grenades, Russian RGD-5 fragmentation grenades, and a few others. Anya had enough firepower to level half the building. Anya loved fire and explosives. Saito thought it made her feel save knowing she had the power to incinerate or blow up anything. She also didn't like trusting others to store her volatile and expensive chemicals… especially because she didn't obtain them all legally.
"You two okay from here on out?" asked Saito.
"I guess," she said.
"Okay, we're nearby. Call if you need anything," said Saito patting her on the head. She watched him leave. She felt lonely without him. Saito was like a father and Shawn was like a big brother.
"Anya, can you give me a hand in here?" asked Jack.
"Do you have to set this up in the living room?" asked Anya.
The apartment was smaller than Saito's. A person entered through the kitchen to a living room. There was one bathroom and two bedrooms. They did not have a balcony.
"Not enough room and it needs airflow. This is closer to the vents," he said. Jack had set up four massive hard drives with three monitors on a table and three more above. There was also a temperature control system he placed in a corner to keep the system from overheating and literally melting down. Behind where Jack would sit was a small couch facing a TV.
The couch and glass coffee table were both Anya's. The couch was nicer than Saito's and had more patterns on it. Anya was a woman in a man's profession, one wouldn't call demolition a feminine lifestyle, surrounded by men, but she still was a women. Anya was the physically the strongest in the team and could easily hurl Jack across the room if she so desired. She was more masculine than most women, but she did like to maintain some semblance of femininity.
"Hook this up to the TV," he said.
"What's this?" she asked. Before she got an answer she started to do as he asked. They had all worked together long enough to know to trust the other's expertise. Whatever Jack had in mind he knew what he was doing like all the times she asked him to do things for her. She started running the cord along the wall so no one would trip over it. They would staple it to the wall later.
"I should be able to get us cable TV through my computer," said Jack as she set up the fiber optic cable to her TV. Because they didn't always have access to cable or satellite television, or a TV for that matter, Jack subscribed so he could watch TV on his computer via the internet. He could also use his internet subscription to hook it up to a TV so they could get American TV channels wherever they were.
"Does this place have the bandwith to support all this?" asked Anya. She was not an expert, but as a nerd and gamer she knew a few things about computers. She knew to run all the things Jack was going to do would require bandwith and speed that corporations required.
"Not yet. I'll have to do something exotic. With a little mazel (luck) we'll have to set up."
"Need help?" asked Anya. Getting the TV working sounded like a worthy cause and she wanted to be able to use internet without overloading the system.
"Why don't you nosh (snack) on somethin' for a little bit. I want to figure out this before we start tearing down walls like pair of yutzes," he said. Anya nodded and got out a meat bun from the refrigerator. She put it in the microwave.
"Smells good," said Jack.
"It's pork."
"Oh," said Jack.
"Guess we'll have to figure out the food situation," said Anya. Jack wasn't all the religious, but he went to temple as often as he could and avoided non-kosher foods. Despite their arguments they always drew the line at religion. It was too personal a subject and mean-spirited. They did not argue to hurt or offend the other.
"We owe it to Bobby," said Jack sadly. As the team's official medic he could see Saito wasn't looking so good. He looked physically and mentally exhausted. Jack wasn't a psychologist, but he could see Saito was approaching his breaking point and they couldn't risk pushing him over the edge.
Anya nodded. She decided to break the ice and start with a simple subject. "So, how was your day?"
"You were there." Jack said it almost as a reflex. He didn't mean to say something so sardonic.
"I just trying to, what is it? Shetzo?"
"Schvitz," he corrected. "I don't know. So many yentas and schmucks around that school… you seemed happy to have other girls to talk with."
"It was refreshing. They're a lot better than the suka at the old school," she said. "You must be happy too to have all those girls to talk to."
Jack shrugged. They were struggling to keep things civil, but they were starting to head into territory that would provoke fights. They didn't really seriously fight. It was just something to fill in the god awful silence they feared so much. Shawn and Saito could deal with quiet while Jack and Anya craved some sound. Despite their goading, Jack and Anya had a strong mutual respect for each other and understood the other's need for noise and human interaction whether it was good or bad.
Anya turned on her laptop and played a list of her favorite Jefferson Airplane songs. She could hear a few whispered words coming from Jack that told her he was singing along under his breath.
"Okay, these wires can physically support all our needs," he concluded. "We just need to get into the box."
Anya picked the lock to a room in the basement while Jack kept lookout. He had disabled the security cameras so they could sneak in.
"Got it," she said putting away her automatic lock pick. She put in into a hollowed out book that she slipped into a backpack. It was extremely illegal to own such a device. Jack searched the numerous lines and cables looking for the prefix code for their apartment. He found it and directed Anya to open it for him. Jack could pick open locks too, but Anya was the best in this field. This was what Saito had taught them: the best teamwork uses the skills of individuals to maximize the efficiency of the unit. He started to get out tools and equipment to do what he did best.
"What are you doing?" she asked watching him. This was where they respected the others work the most. Jack was a master electronic technician that required all the same precision and delicacy that building and wiring bombs required. It was as close as their respective fields met in terms of skill and craftsmanship.
"The wiring has the bandwidth to support more than what we need," said Jack. "It was probably made this way so it could be easily upgraded if a tenant wanted to pay extra for it or hire someone. I'm just making a few adjustments."
It looked like more than a few to Anya. She understood electronics enough for wiring bombs or disarming them. She knew how much electricity was needed to trigger a chemical reaction. In turn, Jack only understood chemistry in terms of drugs and medicine with only the basic knowledge of the explosive sides.
Anya admired the way he had turned a simple internet setup into a system that could support a descent size business. Jack too admired Anya's skills for inorganic chemistry and mechanics.
"Done. Let's leave."
Back in there apartment Anya tried the TV and was pleased to see it worked. She watched an episode of How I Met Your Mother. Jack was scanning chatter while scanning videos. They were practically back-to-back. In a way it nearly symbolized their relationship. They were close and had each others' backs, but preferred a little distance. That was their comfort zone. Shawn's was in the company of Saito, or Nodoka since they started dating. Saito's was generally being alone in his armchair, but they didn't know if that was the only one or not.
"You want anything for dinner?"
"You're cooking?"
"Take out," she said.
"Sounds good. Want me to find a place?"
"Sure."
Jack did a quick search and in seconds had a list of nearby restaurants. He printed them out for Anya who pulled out her phone and ordered from a Chinese restaurant.
"ETA 25," said Anya. It was short for estimated time of arrival 25 minutes.
"Okay… what? Bobby's gonna' kill someone," said Jack looking shocked.
"What?" asked Anya turning around and leaning on couch's back. Jack turned a screen for her to see better.
"Good news is it won't be us," said Jack.
"He has a fan site?" asked Anya fighting back a snort of laughter.
Jack was quickly looking around the site to see its components and structure.
"No, it's not a fan site. It's more of a discussion board that became overgrown. It looks like it was founded by people who are interested in Kotobuki and Akiyama. A lot of it is boys who are trying to figure out if they can get in close to either girl without one of us killing them."
"Shit, Jack, Bob will need to see this," groaned Anya. Saito would kill the boys on the site and that would be the end of Jack's and Anya's fun.
"I think I can filter it without him knowing where it came from."
"He likes to know the source."
"I'll bury it under a lot of other chatter. Like that time we snuck in that budget proposal."
Anya laughed. They managed to get iPhones for each of them. Saito had been too swamped with paperwork and didn't see the clerical error. Anya's was a clever writer and managed to make it look like a legitimate work related request to the supply office. Berman didn't pick up on it for months and Saito was led to believe it was a gift for a while. It was one of the few times they had ever pulled one over Saito. They laughed later because Saito himself had told them:
If you two actually worked together you could do anything… stop rolling your eyes I'm being serious you assholes!
"Some of it is pretty funny," said Jack.
"Like what?" asked Anya now leaning forward.
"MioxSaito?" read Jack seeing a discussion board mostly of girls in the Original Akiyama Mio Fan Club.
"Oh. My. God. He'll crucify them," said Anya. She was covering her mouth as if horrified, but she was struggling not to laugh.
"It seems to have a following," said Jack opening up the discussion board. "And it looks like it's a controversial issue amongst the girls. It says that they think Bobby is 'cool' enough for Akiyama and the only guy they regularly see her with other than Shawny. Her female fans are pretty split-even, but they don't seem to be too entrenched yet."
"So Bob has become like vampire guy?" asked Anya. There was dead silence and then they exploded into laughter.
"OH MY GOD! Could you imagine Team Bob?" asked Anya wiping her eyes. Jack had fallen out of his leather swivel chair rolling on the ground. He was laughing too hard to speak, but Anya heard odd words in Yiddish she didn't understand.
"Then who's the werewolf?" asked Jack getting back into his chair.
"Look," said Anya directing him back to the computer excitedly.
"I'm looking," he said grinning. "It looks like it might be Shawny."
"But he's dating that girl, Manabe, right?"
"Yeah, but that seems a recent development and it is just becoming common knowledge. There are a few names. Damn, this girl Akiyama is like one of those idols."
"But the Japanese don't like seeing their idols set up with someone," pointed out Anya. "They like them pure."
Americans liked drama and preferred their celebrities to have relationships as long as they could watch it on reality TV or read about it magazines.
"That looks like the issue," said Jack. His ability to read internet pages was astounding and Anya couldn't keep up. She would tap him on the shoulder and point when she wanted to see something again or up close. "See. These girls want her to stay 'Our Mio-chan', but these girls say that will accept a relationship if the guy meets criteria and then they go into the whole 'girl thing' with them gushing and the what not."
"Right," said Anya. She had been guilty of those moments a few times.
"Others seem to not want Bobby hooked up with Akiyama," said Jack.
"But not because he's an idol," observed Anya. "Bob doesn't fit the image of purity. He uses language that's too crude sometimes, he uses violence, and has too many physical impurities like his scars. He projects the image of someone stained and broken. Psychologically they would reject the idol image."
"True," agreed Jack.
"Am I right?" she asked with a grin. It was really a rhetorical question.
"You're the philosopher," said Jack. Anya was anti-social, but she understood people. "Some want Bobby. Others now are rethinking their image of him and are considering being friends. The whole saving Hirasawa has turn their perception of him on their heads. Did you get that email I sent you?"
"About Bob being the 'dark brooding white knight in shining armor'?" asked Anya with a grin. All three of them had laughed long and loud until Saito threatened them with secrets he knew about them. Saito had been basically trained to gather and analyze intelligence. That meant he collected secrets. Blackmail was one of the many deadly weapons in the arsenal of Saito Robert Kamisaka.
Anya snorted. She knew that Saito was not going to like this one bit.
"And these are just the girls. The guys are pretty predictable. They are basically cooperating insofar getting around us, but that's where it looks like it turns into a free for all and the alliance is shaky at best."
"But Akiyama isn't our concern," pointed out Anya.
"True, but it's the same with Kotobuki's fan group and they'll guys as far as I know," he said. He grinned slyly and Anya flicked him on the head for any dirty thoughts.
"Have they found a way to penetrate?" asked Anya. She was more alert now.
"Bobby's plan is to let her live her life as normally as we can allow. That leaves an opening, but it would also force them to expose themselves."
"I don't like the looks of these guys," said Anya.
"Wha- oh. Yeah," he said. He saw what she was pointing to and understood immediately.
"They just want to bang her," she said with a scowl. The laughter was gone now. They were now entering the area where their scars showed. Normally they would start a fight to keep it from going further lest they find out if those old wounds still hurt.
"What ya' expect?" asked Jack.
"But what strikes me as the saddest thing is that these people have so little going on in their lives that they organize like this and discuss this like it's actually important," said Anya. She saw Jack was trying not to provoke a fight. She kept talking to make noise, but careful to say something to trigger an argument.
"Yutzes," agreed Jack. It was getting to somber and he tried to find something to lighten the situation. It was that or argue. "There are a bunch of them who are worried that Kotobuki will fall for Bobby."
They laughed at that. Mugi wasn't really even his type and Saito was too uptight to ever consider a client.
"There's a faction that hopes he'll pair off with Tainaka or Hirasawa, mostly boys or girl who want Akiyama to stay as their idol."
"What's with us nerds and our obsession with pairings?" asked Anya thoughtfully.
"You're the philosopher, you tell me," said Jack.
"Could be a million things, but I think that's more of a question of psychology."
"So what team are you with?" asked Jack with a grin.
"Now that's a good question," said Anya with a chuckle. "Mmm, Kotobuki's out. Bob's too anal to consider dating the person he's supposed to protect."
"Akiyama seems anal."
"But Tainaka is pretty free spirited and Bob seems to like them petite," pointed out Anya. All of Saito's previous girlfriends had be petite. As a rule they never shared that info outside of the unit and never discussed it with Saito. They also noticed Saito seemed to prefer brunettes, long hair, and some feminine traits.
"Touché," said Jack. "The younger Hirasawa seems to have taken a strong liking to him, but it doesn't seem romantic interest. Nakano doesn't seem to have taken any notice of him."
They were quiet for a while before Jack said what both were thinking. "But Hirasawa makes him happy."
Saito's Apartment
Saito was typing up his daily report. Each of them were tasked with writing up a statement with anything they thought worth mentioning, Saito knew they were smart enough to figure out what was important, but since he was the primary bodyguard and in charge the official report had to come from him.
"Mmm, I don't understand what source Jack is using here," said Saito looking over an email he just got. It was some kind of discuss of how to get Mugi alone. Saito passed that on to the intel staff, but Saito knew that something was missing and he'd have to ask Jack about it later.
"Done packing," said Shawn stepping back in the room.
"Okay. Wanna' order takeout?"
"Sure."
Shawn didn't even bother asking what Saito wanted. He knew what to order. Shawn sat down on the couch and propped his feet up on the coffee table.
"Start looking over that file," said Saito without looking up.
Shawn picked up a file on Nakano Azusa.
Name: Nakano Azusa
DOB: November 11, 1996 (15)
POB: Fukuoka, Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan
Known Associations with Terrorism/Crime: None
Shawn spent the next half hour until the food arrived getting acquainted with a largely un-extraordinary girl. She appeared to be smart and hard working. She was the daughter of former jazz musicians who also had no known connections with anyone of interest. She was no more a threat than any of the other girls.
"We'll move you out tomorrow, I guess," said Saito.
"Yup, bet you're happy to have me out of your hair," said Shawn.
"Yeah," said Saito. Shawn didn't notice that his tone did not match his eyes. After Shawn went to bed Saito went out to smoke. He was not too pleased how many cigarettes he was going through lately. He wasn't worried about getting addicted though. Saito had learned to live without food, water, or sleep for days. Learning not to smoke was not nearly as painful, but it was a crutch he hung onto once in a while.
"I really need to lower my stress level," he muttered. He stamped out the cigarette. He'd barely lit it, but he needed to find something else to do. Saito decided to turn to his oldest crutch: TV.
Next Day, Class 1-2
Azusa was eagerly anticipating going to the club room. She just couldn't sit still. Some of the aspects of the club made her more than a little considered, but she figured it was just the first time meeting them. She couldn't wait to see her cool new senpais. The teacher was droning on about something, but Azusa wasn't paying attention for once. Her whole life Azusa just seemed to go through the motions. It wasn't that she didn't have fun, but there weren't many things she got very excited about. That last time she remembered ever feeling this level of exhilaration was when she first saw her parents play. It had also been the last because their band broke up shortly after and they had taken up normal jobs. Azusa's parents felt they couldn't justify pursuing their dream at their age with a daughter in elementary school. But her parents felt they accomplished something when they saw their daughter so moved by them that she too wanted to play the guitar. She remembered them buying her the Fender Mustang that she still played to this day.
The bell rang and the class representative (1) called for the students to rise and bow to their teacher as he left the room.
It was lunch now. Azusa put her English textbook away. She just didn't understand the stupid language. English was just too difficult to understand. It annoyed her that Jack didn't even bother looking at the book. He even took issue with it and said that it was wrong in many areas. She also noticed that it wasn't the only language he understood because he occasionally used odd words that no one recognized… except Anya.
"Anou, Edelstein-kun, can I see your English notes?" she asked.
"I don't write any," he said. "I'm from an English speaking country."
"Well, what if it's not the same English," she pointed out. She knew that some languages like Spanish or French weren't spoken the same way everywhere. Like the French spoken language in Canada was so different from the dialect in France that it seemed different languages.
"It's supposed to be American English," he said. "Besides, I don't write my notes in Japanese so they won't do you any good."
He showed her his notebook. It was in a language she's never even seen in an alphabet she had never seen.
"Wha- what is this?" she stammered.
"Yiddish," said Anya who had walked over. She ate lunch with Jack. "Jack's a Jew."
"I thought he was an American," said Azusa as she pulled out her own lunch. She saw Ui pushing a desk together with hers. Azusa still didn't know Ui that well, but they were friendly with each other and ate together on some days.
"Judaism is a religion," said Jack.
"Is that like Christianity?" asked Ui joining in the conversation. She had no idea how similar the religions are.
"Christians were originally a cult in my people's religion," said Jack. "We came first. Before the Christians or Muslims. It's about as old as Buddhism."
"You almost sound bitter," observed Azusa. There was a heavy silence. "… what?"
"You probably wouldn't know this our here in the East," said Anya delicately. "The Jews are very heavily persecuted around the world… it's hard to explain because it's such a long story. A lot of it is because they crucified the prophet of the Christian religion, Jesus. History is full of terrible things being done to the Jewish people."
Ui and Azusa were shocked by this news. Out of the 128 million people in Japan (2) and out of all of them there was an estimated 2,000 people who identified themselves as Jewish in Japan. Azusa hadn't even heard of such a religion. The Jews in Japan were small in number and were relatively obscure so they were mostly left alone until the 20th century when Nazi ideology was introduced in the 1930s. After World War II under the United States' occupation Japan discarded antisemitic doctrine. With most of the country becoming steadily agnostic in the postwar era the Japanese saw little point in religious persecution. Today a large portion of Japan's Jewish population is the Israeli embassy staff and their families.
"So you have your own language?" asked Azusa.
"There's two commonly spoken now. Yiddish is pretty common, especially in Central Europe. Hebrew is the official language though. All Jewish people are supposed to be able to speak and read Hebrew so they can read our holy documents. It's like how all Muslims are supposed to be able to read Arabic so they can read the Quran in its original text."
"Quran?"
"Never mind," said Jack. The Japanese had different concepts about religion. It was hard to convey Western views on the subjects. While the Japanese seemed odd when it came to religion there was virtually no religious extremism in Japan. It was probably best to leave them that way.
"Can you read this, Kamarov-chan?" asked Ui.
Anya didn't like 'chan' being tacked onto her name, but Ui was too earnest a girl for her to tell her that.
"Not really," said Anya. "I'm not Jewish. People outside of Judaism don't really learn Yiddish or Hebrew. I understand it some when it's spoken because Jack grumbles in it all the time."
Some Yiddish words were in common usage in English. Bagel, klutz, schmuck, tush, schmo, and golem were all words used commonly used by Americans that came from Yiddish first, some less than others.
"Eh, really?" giggled Ui.
"Yenta," muttered Jack.
"See?"
"Then can you at least tell me why English is so hard to understand?" asked Azusa.
"Because it's not your language," said Jack simply. Azusa pouted at the unhelpful statement. Jack grinned a little and explained. "You speak… what was it that Bobby called it? Japanese is an Altaic language. It's a mix of Korean, Mongol, and Turkic. English is a Germanic language. It's old German mixed with Latin and later influenced by French. It picked up a bunch of other odds and ends, but we speak a German-Latin language. German would be the closest language to English. English is also full of words from other languages. We use words from Italian, Russian, Arabic, Yiddish, Spanish, even Japanese words are used too. You understand?"
"Hai, I think," said Azusa. It made sense to think that their languages were unrelated and would be mutually hard to understand.
"Also it's easier to learn a language at a younger age," pointed out Anya.
"I was getting to that," scowled Jack. Anya was going to reply, but she saw out of the corner of her eye that Ui was reaching into her skirt pocket for her cell phone. She let it go. Jack noticed the shift in Anya's face and guessed what happened. He decided it was unwise to pursue the topic lest Ui called Saito.
"Also, you're language has over 2,000 characters in it. Most countries speak languages with less than 50," said Anya. Out of any existing alphabet few nations had to learn more characters than the Japanese and Chinese. "The West thinks Japanese and Chinese are harder."
"I see…" said Azusa. She could understand how someone could find learning Kanji, Hiragana, and Katakana, Japan's written languages, a little daunting. Even in high school the Japanese were still being taught Kanji characters.
"So, you two are in the Light Music Club or do you just hang out there?" asked Azusa. It was a fair question. They hadn't seemed like they did anything ever than guard duty. Azusa wondered if they just acted like they were doing nothing until something happened.
"Well… um." Jack looked to Anya who shrugged. "I guess we are, but we haven't been told of any club activities or to bring any instruments."
"What is that you two do for Kamisaka-senpai?" asked Ui.
"My training is as a scout sniper," said Jack.
"What?"
"I watch and kill people from far away," said Jack. "I also do a lot of computer stuff for Bobby."
"Oh," said Ui. She found it a little unnerving how casually he discussed his role in killing people and how he added his computer skills as an afterthought. She turned to look at Anya.
"I'm a combat engineer," she said. At the blank expression she said, "I make bombs and blow things up."
"Is that all you do?" asked Azusa.
"I disarm bombs too. I can fix cars or trucks. I can hotwire a tank. Pick locks. I can do a lot of things that involve chemistry or mechanics."
"And you do things with computers?" asked Ui. She was searching for normal skills, but she realized now that she was dealing with Saito's friends after all.
"It's my hobby, but unlike Shawny's drawings or Anya's poetry, Bobby turned my hobby to use."
"You write poetry?" asked Azusa looking at Anya. Anya smiled a little. She was shy about her poetry, but she was also very proud of it.
"Bobby's the smart one, Shawny's the artistic one, I'm the tech savvy one, and Anya's the creative one," said Jack. Anya blushed a little. She never showed her writings to anyone outside of her team. It made her happy when her friends complimented her poems and short stories.
"You guys sound really close," said Ui. Jack and Anya nodded with fond smiles. Jack pulled out his phone and showed Ui a picture.
"It was taken around my birthday," said Jack. Ui and Azusa saw four very dirty looking teens with guns at their sides. They were clustered in a hole around a small propane stove that was boiling some kind of stew. Their clothes were a mess and torn in some places. Shawn was trying to sow a sleeve back together… or at least Ui thought it was him since the person in the photo appeared to be the tallest. It was hard to tell who was who because of all the dirt on them. Saito had a map open in his lap and had been making markings. Anya seemed to be reading a book. Jack appeared to have been looking at the map with Saito. Despite their wretched appearance they all looked up at the camera with wide confident grins. They looked so happy together.
"What does the caption say?" asked Azusa seeing something in English at the bottom.
"Family Dinner – 30 June, 2009."
"Are you related?" asked Ui. She was wondering because of the familiar way they talked to each other and the way they treated each other.
"We're a family in bond, not blood," said Anya.
After lunched they waited for their teacher to come start math class (3).
After School
Azusa was moving as fast as she could without getting in trouble with the teachers. Somewhere behind her were Jack and Anya who were walking at a much more leisurely pace. She reached the old building and dashed up the stairs past the old bronze statues that dotted the school. She didn't really understand their purpose or if they held any meaning to the school, but she also didn't care.
"Konnichiwa (good afternoon)!" she said happily as she opened the door.
"Wow, you're full of energy," said Ritsu who was sitting at the desks with Yui. Mugi seemed to be doing something off to one side of the room that Azusa couldn't see. Saito and Shawn were at their usual desk by the window separate from the others.
"I couldn't wait for club," confessed Azusa excitedly. She had barely slept last night. Her parents were ecstatic when she told them she had joined a band at school. They had come home early from work and took her out to eat as Azusa told them all about the live performance she had seen.
Anya and Jack arrived at this point. Jack pulled out a laptop and sat with the other mercs. Azusa felt a little uneasy when Jack took off his blazer which revealed the weapons hidden underneath. She realized that the other three were probably armed the same way. It was also the first time the other girls had seen all the things that the bodyguards carried.
"So let's begin-" Ritsu started to say.
"To practice?" asked Azusa breathlessly.
"To have tea," said Ritsu as Mugi brought over the tea pot.
"Huh?" Azusa was so shocked she didn't understand what was happening let alone what had been said. She saw the blissful expressions on their faces. Azusa recovered though. She decided this was just something they were doing because it was her first day and wanted to welcome her into the club. She awkwardly sat down at the desk across from Ritsu. Mugi placed an expensive looking tea cup in front of her.
"Is this okay?" she asked. She hated to think that they would get into trouble for all this. Azusa still thought this was all for her and didn't know it was their usual routine.
"It's perfectly fine," assured Ritsu. Azusa wasn't so sure. Ritsu struck her as an easy going person and she doubted she spoke with any authority. Azusa didn't even realize that Ritsu was actually the president of the club.
A door opened and Azusa saw to her horror a woman enter. Azusa had only seen Sawako at a distance, but it was obvious that this was a teacher. Wordlessly Sawako strode across the room and took a seat. Sweat formed on Azusa's brow. They were going to be in trouble for something nice they did for her. She had to do something.
"Anou, this is… you see," she stuttered. She was a bad liar.
"I'll have a milk tea," said Sawako without missing a step. Mugi's eyes shone and she eagerly ran off to get Sawako's order. The girls didn't seem to act as if a thing was wrong and neither did the mercenaries who were doing their own thing. Azusa felt that all logic had left the world.
Was she invited to this too? She wondered.
"I'm Yamanaka Sawako. I'm the advisor to this club," said Sawako.
Her speech was polite and well mannered. She gave off the fresh appearance of a wonderful teacher. Azusa was mildly impressed by her aura and beautiful appearance. She didn't know that Sawako was wondering how Azusa would look with cat ears.
The girls were engaged in mixed discussions ranging from the quality of the tea to what was on TV last night. Azusa was growing more and more worried about what was going on. She noticed that only Mio was uninvolved. She appeared to be busy reading a textbook. Azusa saw the mercs were having their own discussion. Jack was doing something on his computer, Anya was writing in a note book, Shawn was drawing on a sketchpad, and Saito was reading a book. They were talking to each other while killing time.
Am I being tested? Am I supposed to show initiative? Azusa wondered. She unzipped her guitar case and went to an amp. The mercs looked up at her noticing the unusual activity. None of the club members or Sawako seemed to be aware of what Azusa was doing.
Da' hell she's doin'? Saito wondered. He realized she was about to start practicing. Saito frowned wondering how the others would react. Azusa played one cord before Sawako screamed at her and struck the girl. The action was so sudden that Jack and Anya were both on their feet with their hands ready to draw weapons. Shawn had released the safety of his SIG, but stopped himself before drawing the weapon. Saito had taken no action seeing there was no real danger… though he did have to question Sawako's qualifications as a teacher.
Azusa was totally confused now. She couldn't understand why see what hit and felt tears forming from pain and confusion.
Ritsu stuttered for a second before screaming, "Sawa-chan, what the hell are you doing?"
"I'm sorry, but I wanted to enjoy peace and quiet," she said dramatically. Yui looked at Azusa looking so lost and felt sorry for her. But Yui didn't know what to do. She had received a lot of care from her friends. She knew how to cheer up Ui and sort of knew how to cheer up Mio. Mugi and Ritsu generally bounced back on their own. She just didn't know Azusa well enough.
"Sorry, our sensei is a little strange," said Mio who crouched down next to Azusa and stroked her head in a motherly fashion. Yui felt she should say something too. She knew that Azusa was probably a better guitarist than her. Yui had complicated feelings regarding her kohai. On the one she found the girl adorable. On the other she was threatened by Azusa. She had agonized over this last night. Yui wanted to in some way help teach something to Azusa, but it was increasingly looked like it would be the other way around.
"Please don't let it bother you," said Mugi.
"Come have some cake," offered Yui. She could see the girl was upset and Yui sincerely believed that cake and some fun conversation would make Azusa feel better. Like Saito kept telling her, enjoy the small things and value your friends. Yui didn't realize that it was the wrong thing to say. Azusa felt a nerve twitch. Saito noticed the switch and saw that her sniffles were starting to go from confused misery to frustrated anger.
"Tea time is our specialty after all so please enjoy," said Ritsu. This only fueled Azusa's ire.
"Azusa-chan?"
Mio withdrew her hand seeing that something was wrong with the girl in the fetal position. Mio started to back away towards her friends sensing some danger. The girls were all looking down at Azusa.
"She's gonna' blow," said Shawn.
"This is no good!" screamed Azusa flailing her arms in anger. "I can't tell if you guys are actually serious about this!"
"Well you see we just ended first year reception-" said Ritsu trying to make some half-ass excuse.
"That has nothing to do with this!" said Azusa angrily. "I don't think you should try the music room like it's your home!"
Azusa saw this behavior as nearly sacrilegious. Music was something that should be taken seriously and treated as such. That was what Azusa had always believed. She was incensed by people who didn't take it seriously at all.
"The teas sets should be thrown away immediately!" shouted Azusa. Mugi looked horrified.
"Anything but that!" pleaded Sawako. She actually was the floor latched onto the hem of Azusa's blazer with tears in her eyes. It was an extremely undignified position and highly unsuitable behavior for a teacher.
"Act like a teacher!" snarled Azusa.
"Nice," said Shawn.
"She's really tearin' them a new one, the little meshuggeneh," commented Jack.
"And you four!"
"Hai?" said Saito putting down his book and staring her down. Saito when sitting was nearly the same height as Azusa.
"Why are you even here?" demanded Azusa.
"Our jobs," said Saito simply. He stood up towering over Azusa. Azusa saw the coldness in his eyes and the fact her was more than 30 cm (more than a foot) taller. She could yell all she wanted, but Saito was asserting that he couldn't be beaten by Azusa. She faltered a little and redirected her rage back at the Light Music Club members. Besides, they seemed have a legitimate job they were doing.
"Azusa, calm down," said Ritsu.
"How can I?" shouted Azusa. That caused her to be angrier.
Yui felt helpless. She could see that her comment about cake had probably started to provoke this explosion of rage, but didn't know what to do. She wondered what Saito would do. He appeared to be mildly amused by the situation until Azusa had started in on him. Yui then had an epiphany when Ritsu had tried to calm her down with words. She saw all the rage, displaced anger, hurt, and confusion she had felt when she had exploded for the first time on Saito. Yui walked up behind Azusa and pulled her into a hug.
"Good girl, good girl," whispered Yui. She stroked Azusa on the head similar to the way Saito had treated her while they were on that bench waiting for her to calm down.
"That can't possibly calm her down," said Mio. She couldn't imagine what Yui was thinking. Yui on the other hand confidently knew that such actions did work. Azusa was confused and need to be calmed down. The girls were shocked by the blissful expression on Azusa's face.
"Better?" asked Yui gently. Her expression was surprisingly mature.
"Hai," said Azusa quietly. She wasn't so sure why it helped.
"Okay then," said Yui guiding her back to a chair. "Just take a deep breath."
"I'm really sorry for getting distracted," apologized Azusa bowing deeply.
"It's fine," said Yui. Azusa saw that they really weren't bothered by it.
"Actually, you are right," said Mio kindly. She turned and in a more commanding tone said, "We should be more serious about this. Got it?"
There were unenthusiastic replies. Azusa's eyes shone seeing Mio take charge. This was the kind of senpai she had expected to be in the club. She felt a slight distaste for Ritsu. Yui seemed nice enough, but too unfocused and Mugi struck her as an enabler. Saito was just a little scary, but seemed to be totally focused on his task at hand. She saw how they had been ready to leap into action when Sawako had struck her. She could at least respect him.
"I think we'll call it a day," said Ritsu.
"Shouldn't the president decide that?" asked Azusa looking at Mio.
"Ricchan is the club president," said Yui.
It suddenly became too much for Azusa. She packed up her things and said, "I'll see you guys tomorrow."
"That didn't go well," said Yui.
"She might not come back," said Saito.
"Eh?"
"Not much you can do," said Saito. He patted her on the head. "You did a good job calming her down."
Yui giggled. Saito frowned though. He saw how Azusa had looked at Mio taking command of the situation afterwards. Azusa really should have shown more gratitude to Yui and almost seemed to have forgotten who calmed her down. He made a note to add that to the profile. Azusa was serious-minded and responded to Mio because of her seriousness, her focus, and her maturity. Yui was the opposite and Azusa didn't respond to her as well. Saito thought that Azusa wasn't looking deeply enough into either girl.
"Shawn you go ahead and start the truck. Jack you go with him. We'll start helping when we can," said Saito.
"Is something going on?" asked Yui.
"Shawn's got his own place," said Saito. Yui noticed something.
"You feel lonely?"
"No," said Saito. Yui was impressed by how good a liar he was. She wasn't sure why she knew it was a lie, but maybe it was because she could sense he was lonely.
Shawn's Apartment
Shawn's place was smaller than all of the others since it was a single apartment. It had the same set up as all the others just it had one bedroom and a smaller kitchen/living room since only one person would live here.
"That everything?" asked Saito.
"Yeah, thanks guys."
"No prob," said Anya.
"Got all the electronics hooked up," said Jack.
"Okay then," said Shawn.
"Got plans?" asked Anya.
"Well… er."
"He's got a date," said Saito flatly. "Clear out and leave him to get ready."
"Right, see ya'," said Anya.
"Mazel tov," said Jack as he closed the door.
Saito turned to Shawn. He held out his hand. "I'm proud of you."
Shawn smiled crookedly and shook it. "What are you my dah'?"
"Take care," said Saito.
Shawn watched him leave and stared at the door. The words meant a lot to him. He wished he had said something more meaningful than jokingly asking if Sato was trying to act like a father. Saito rarely said he was proud of any of them. They knew he respected each of them, but it was rare for him to say he was proud.
1 Hour Later
"Are you okay?"
"Huh?"
"You seem distracted," said Nodoka.
"Bob just said he was proud of me today," said Shawn deciding it was better to just say it. Besides, it who else was better to talk things out with than Nodoka?
"Does he not say that often?"
"No he doesn't. He tells us we do good work all the time, but he doesn't say he's proud unless we've done something really big," said Shawn.
"Well that's good then," said Nodoka. She wished that Shawn's life didn't have to revolve so much around his friend, but she also knew that not too long ago her entire life pretty much revolved around Yui.
They were walking down the street. Nodoka was showing him the finer points of Fukuoka.
"It sure is a cool night," said Nodoka.
"Really?" asked Shawn surprised. It seemed quite warm compared to Afghanistan at night. His hometown Boston was also much colder than the subtropics of Japan that they were in.
"I guess you're used to colder weather," said Nodoka.
"Yeah," said Shawn. "And snow."
"I haven't seen snow in a while. Last time I saw any was when my family went to Aomori to visit relatives for New Years," said Nodoka.
"Where's that?"
"Aomori? It's up near Hokkaido. It's about as far north as you can get on Honshu," explained Nodoka. "Oh and I got an application that the Light Music Club got a new member."
"I take it you don't count Jack and Anya."
"They're in the club?" asked Nodoka. Her eyes narrowed and she spoke one word, "Ritsu."
"She forgot another form?"
"So tell me about Nakano-san," said Nodoka changing the subject.
"W~ell," said Shawn drawing out the word.
"Oh great," sighed Nodoka. "Am I going to receive a withdrawal form?"
"Maybe," said Shawn biting his lip. "She seems serious about music… maybe a little too much. She's eager to play, but the club is too unfocused for her liking. She went off today until Hirasawa-san calmed her down."
"Yui did?" Nodoka was surprised.
"You'd be proud of her," said Shawn with a grin. "She walked up to her and hugged the girl. Calm down Nakano-kun and everything."
Nodoka smiled. She was happy to hear that Yui was making progress.
"I think there is an Irish place near the river," said Nodoka.
"I wouldn't go there," said Shawn. "The Irish aren't known for cooking. Actually they're very well known for their drinking."
"Really?" laughed Nodoka.
"I can almost guarantee that the place will be a bar or, as we called them, a pub. Let's just find some place around here."
"Sounds good."
Saito's Apartment
Saito was sitting alone on his chair. He was deciding he should really get up and make something to eat or order out when his phone rang.
"Mushi mushi?"
"Hi, Saito-nii," said a young male voice speaking in English.
"Ikuto?" said Saito snapping to attention.
"Yeah, how are things out west?" asked Ikuto Ryan Kamisaka.
"Good I guess."
"It doesn't sound like."
"Guess I can't fool you."
"No you can't, Saito-nii."
"I guess I'm a little lonely. Maybe bored too. They've all moved out. I'm just trying to decide what to do for dinner. How are things there?"
"I'm going to eat with Suzu-san in a little bit," said Ikuto.
"Sounds like she likes taking care of you," laughed Saito.
"She's worried that I can't do anything. For some reason she thinks that a foreigner is incapable taking care of himself in Japan."
"Ikuto, you burn toast," reminded Saito.
"Saito-nii!"
"What? Most of Kamisaka men can't cook. We burn."
"You can," pointed out Ikuto. Saito had had to learn to cook by necessity.
"Moving on, how are classes?"
"Good as ever. Just drama from the others."
"Tell me about it," said Saito. He propped up his feet and got comfortable. Saito loved to hear about his brother's life. Ikuto too loved to hear about Saito's life, but Saito didn't like to tell Ikuto about his adventures around the world. He was worried Ikuto might get inspired to join the military or worse, become a mercenary.
"Well I was trying to study during free period when Machi-senpai came by," began Ikuto.
"Senpai? Ikuto, you're a third year. She'd have to be in high school. Why would she be on a middle school campus during school hours?"
"… I'm not sure really. So she has tries to seduce me. It was just really awkward. Then her sister Ayane-san comes in. They start fighting and it makes a big scene. I used that as an opportunity to sneak out."
"Good," said Saito approvingly. He'd taught Ikuto some things about avoiding situations that got out of hand. Saito didn't like teaching Ikuto to fight, but he did teach him some skills like how to create or use diversions to escape. He did however teach Ikuto a few moves to end a fight if he couldn't avoid one.
"Then Rin-san comes in. She starts to strike up a conversion with me that seemed harmless enough, but Mikoto attacks me from behind… I don't really remember what happened next."
"I can have that girl taken care-"
"Saito-nii! I don't need a hit taken out on someone!"
"I'm kidding," said Saito. He laughed hard. Well… he was partly serious.
"I might be visiting over Golden Week," said Ikuto. Golden Week was a period between April 29 and May 5. Not all were days exempt from school.
"Can you take that time off?"
"I thought I take a train down after school on the 29th. That's a Thursday. I'll just skip classes on Friday."
"I really don't like you skipping," said Saito sharply. "Your education is more important."
"Please, I haven't seen you since you left for Afghanistan," pleaded Ikuto.
Saito had a smile a little. Ikuto was the only person he was related to that actually wanted to see him. Saito doubted that he and Ikuto would ever have a relationship like Yui and Ui. He checked his calendar and saw that he had April 28, a Wednesday, off and the following days. He did not have the following Monday off. "Okay. But you have to get higher than 90 on your next test. I want you to study hard and prove you can keep up if you miss a day."
"It's a promise, Saito-nii."
"You take care."
"I will," he promised. Saito hung up. He would have to take a few personal days off, but if it made Ikuto happy then it was fine.
His phone rang again.
"Hello?" he answered half expecting it to be Ikuto again.
"Mushi mushi? Kamisaka-kun?"
"Hirasawa-san?"
"Ui and I were wondering if you'd like to join us for dinner again… is that too much for you to handle?" asked Yui sounding concerned.
"Not really," he replied. He checked his watch. "It's a little late. Why not call earlier?"
"Eh? … well, I was… I wasn't sure if you'd want me calling you," admitted Yui. She had debated with herself for hours.
"Hirasawa-san, I gave you my personal line if you needed something. You can call me when you like," he said.
"Really? Well that's relief. So?" she asked sounding nervous. Yui had a strong suspicion that Saito wouldn't want to eat with them so soon.
"Give me an hour."
Hirasawa Home
Saito was plainly dressed in jeans and a brown buttoned short sleeve shirt. Ui opened the door for him.
"Good evening, Kamisaka-senpai," she greeted.
"Evening, Hirasawa-kun," he said kicking off his shoes.
"Evening," said Yui when he entered the living room. Yui was watching a variety show. Saito wasn't a fan of American variety shows let alone Japanese ones. He remembered vaguely liking a Russian one, but that was because the guests were sometimes drunk on vodka and acted like lunatics.
"How are you doing?" he asked.
"No crises," she said with a smile. "You?"
"Fine."
"Liar."
Saito smiled. "Ikuto said the same thing."
"You're brother?" asked Yui propping her elbows on the table and resting her chin in her hands.
Saito debated whether to talk about it or not. He decided he had opened the door and might as well talk. It was that or sit in awkward silence. Besides, Yui hadn't betrayed him yet. "He said he might visit me at the end of the month. He said he'll skip a day of school to do it and I said he could only if he got 90s on all his tests this month. I don't want him screwing up his education."
"Eeeeh. You're such a good big brother," said Yui with a smile. He saw it faltered a little.
"You're not a bad sister, Hirasawa-san. She wouldn't love you so much if you weren't," pointed out Saito.
"I guess." Yui was used to the fact that Saito seemed to read minds. Saito just knew how to read people's emotions and draw logical conclusions with a little background information. Fake psychics used theses tricks all the time.
"You aren't helping her cook?"
"Ui insisted I should entertain you," said Yui.
"Well, you are entertaining."
"Shut up you bastard," she laughed.
"You never talk to other people like that."
"You're just special," she laughed and stuck out her tongue.
"Oh, so you just abuse me?" he asked with a grin. Ui peeked in on them and smiled. She hoped they could always be this happy together. She could see that Saito was adapting and even looked like he was assimilating into their home.
"Nodoka-chan is on a date tonight," said Yui.
"I know," said Saito.
"What's it like?"
"A date?"
"I guess, or dating."
Saito leaned back and thought it over. He didn't know how to explain it to her. "You'd have to experience it really. It's nice to think that someone gives a shit about you and then you just feel like shit when you find out they don't."
"I was told that was your fault," said Yui.
"Two were. One was insane. The other just didn't give a shit."
"There was a fourth?"
"Don't assume you know everything or that those three know everything about me," said Saito.
"I never have. And I'm guessing you don't want to talk about it." She knew he wouldn't. She had more questions though.
"See? You're learning."
That gave Yui an idea. "You think you can help me with Gitah?"
"You didn't break it, did you?"
"No!" moaned Yui. "I just wanted your help. I want to be a better senpai to Azusa-chan."
"Alright," he consented. Yui was a good student once you figured out how to keep her attention and get her to retain the information. Yui gleefully went up to her room and came back with her beloved Les Paul, Gitah. For the next hour Saito started to show Yui how to play more advanced techniques.
"This is more of blues style, but it can be useful," said Saito. "Nakano-kun seems to be jazz influenced by her style."
"So I'm learning a different style of playing?"asked Yui as she played the notes.
"Rock has influence from both. And you should really play it more like this," said Saito reaching for Gitah. He figured out very quickly into given her a lesson that Yui learned mostly from doing rather listening. Yui also had perfect pitch and could learn the notes just from hearing. Saito could do this too, but that had taken years to learn. Yui had inadvertently acquired this skill.
"Do you understand?"
"I'm not sure, let me try first," said Yui taking back Gitah and trying to copy the sounds. Saito wondered how the girl could do it without the technical knowledge music. He wasn't playing whole songs for her, but pieces so she could get the techniques down.
"You hand is positioned wrong."
"But it sounded right."
"It will be easier to hold it this way," he said. He gently poked her fingers into the right position. "Better?"
"Yeah, it is."
"Onee-chan, Senpai, dinner," said Ui coming into the living room with a tray. Saito stood and took it from her. Ui protested but Saito wasn't going to let her persuade him and took the tray loaded with dinner. He set in the middle and Ui started to set out the contents while Yui their places.
Dinner was better this time. The food quality wasn't all that different, but Saito had started to settle into the atmosphere. He smiled more and talked more.
"You have the air conditioner on," he commented.
"Oh, right. We called our parents and they were pretty shocked. They hired someone to professionally clean out the vents," said Yui. Their parents were horrified at the description they had gotten of the vents and filters. Even more so that it was affecting the health of their daughters. They had called a service to vacuum and basically sterilize the vents and ducts.
"We can turn it on now," said Ui. "Which will be great for the summer."
They talked for a while. Saito didn't share much about his life. Only pieces of times with his friends that seemed relevant to Yui's or Ui's stories. He didn't talk about his actual family or his days before the company.
"And so I tore open a pillow and spread around the cotton so it looked like snow," said Yui.
"Onee-chan got into so much trouble that Christmas, but it was really sweet of her," reminisced Ui. It was one of Ui's most treasured memories. It was as if her sister had tried to change the world to make her smile. Ui never forgot that.
"That reminds me of this time…" Saito broke off. He nearly admitted to something again.
"Nani?" asked Yui cocking her head to the side.
"It's nothing," he said.
"We'd love to hear it," said Ui. Yui nodded encouragingly.
"Well… I have a little brother," said Saito slowly. Yui blanched. She hadn't expected him to share about that. He had been specific to not share it with anyone. She looked to see Ui's expression. She seemed mildly surprised, but not very. She didn't know that it was a big deal to have Saito talk about his family.
"So you're an older sibling too?"
"Hai. There was this one time he got sick," said Saito slowly. He was looking uncomfortable again. "I was on his emergency contact list for some reason. I was in Afghanistan at the time when I got a phone call at night. Ituko, my brother, had collapsed and everyone panicked. They practically told me he was dying."
"Oh my, you must have been so worried," said Ui.
"I was on 7 different flights and traveled nearly 50 hours without sleep to get to Virginia. Turns out he had appendicitis and so secretary at the school had called me without a clue… I was hallucinating a little from lack of sleep at that point, but I managed to ask if he was okay and got a response. Then I passed out and he to be hospitalized myself for three days."
Yui stared in amazement. Saito had literally traveled half-way around the world at his expense to see his little brother. Saito had been pretty absent in Ikuto's life up to that point. Ikuto knew his brother was busy elsewhere and visited once in a while. Ikuto had called his brother when he was 9 and Saito was 12. Ikuto wanted his brother to come home, but Saito had refused since he started training with ASI. Ikuto and Saito talked once in a while and he visited. Saito had also sent money for living expenses and education. Ikuto also got presents on his birthday, Christmas, and New Years Day, the main holiday for Shintos. But Ikuto was angry that he was never around until two years later in mid-2007. He always remembered his brother looking so clean and well dressed on the few occasions he visited. But that day his brother was a total mess and had literally left a battlefield to come see him. Ikuto saw the extent Saito was prepared to go for him. Despite often being separated by thousands of miles and several time zones Ikuto knew Saito was out there thinking about him. He would come no matter the distance.
After dinner Yui and Ui were doing dishes. Saito was taking a look at a loose chair leg in another room on Yui's request.
"Ui," said Yui quietly.
"Mm?"
"Don't ever repeat what Kamisaka-kun talked about," said Yui without looking at her sister.
"Do shite (why)?" asked Ui looking at her sister.
"He won't talk about them unless he wants to. He's putting a lot of trust in us," said Yui.
Ui was quiet for a while. "Okay."
Saito was still a mystery to Ui. Yui on the other hand had learned things about him that people who had known him for years didn't know. There was a lot she still didn't know and probably never would, but Yui could see enough patches to form a picture of who this boy was.
Yui sat back down with Saito.
"Can you play the cords I showed you?" he asked.
Yui picked up Gitah and played them. She was so far able to retain the lessons. Saito continued to drill her through everything they had gone over before dinner. It was also at this point that Yui realized this was the first time she had seen Saito play an instrument. She hadn't seen him play a whole song yet.
"Okay, I should be going," he said.
"I'll see you off," said Yui. Ui was studying in her room, but came down to say her good-byes.
Saito thought the sweater Yui had put on was a little unnecessary, but she had probably not experienced cold like he had. Kyushu was rather warm most of the year due to ocean currents regulating the weather patterns.
"Say what you want, but I still think you're lonely," said Yui sternly with her arms crossed and her nose turned up. Her body postured suggested she was digging in for a fight and was not going to allow Saito to change her mind
"Maybe a little," he conceded. Yui was caught off balance. She had expected him to deny it. He ruffled her hair a little.
"Night," he said getting into his car and driving away.
"You could at least say thank you," muttered Yui glaring at his tail lights. Her mouth twitched into a tiny smile. She hadn't thanked him either for the lessons, but she hadn't felt she really needed to.
The Next Day
Azusa left class. She was flanked by Anya and Jack, but she didn't seem to notice them… not that either of them really cared. She kept letting out deep sighs as she thought about her actions yesterday. They had seemed like nice people, but how could they not take music more seriously? She wondered if her senpais would kick her out after her behavior. She had an image of herself practically spewing flames from her mouth like one of those monster movies. She tried to recall the name of the movie… Gojira (4)?
"Cheer up," said Anya. "They've probably forgotten."
Azusa groaned. She wasn't really friends with the mercs. They were just usually there and it was someone to eat with if Ui wasn't around. They were at least helping her with her with the up coming English test.
"Konnichiwa," said Azusa quietly entering the room. She saw to her horror that Yui, Ritsu, and Mugi were having tea. The moment they saw her, Yui quickly picked up her guitar and claimed they were going to start practicing. Azusa didn't really believe her and felt worse that they seemed a little scared of her. Yui barely played three notes before she was on her knees looking exhausted.
Saito thought Yui was being lazy. On the other hand he wondered if this was what she used to be like. Saito took a hard look at Azusa. Yui seemed to act most like this around her. What was it about Azusa that brought this out of Yui? He ran under the assumption that maybe Yui was responding to the younger girl in a way similar to how she treated Ui. Or maybe Yui just loved cute things that much.
"I have no energy if I don't eat cake," moaned Yui. The truth was she hadn't slept well last night and had missed breakfast from oversleeping. She had had some nightmares again. She was tired and hungry.
"Yui-chan, here," said Mugi handing her some cake. Out of the corner of her eye Yui saw the expression on Saito's face. It was one of disapproval. Azusa also looked unimpressed. Yui decided to make a joke of it. She took one bite and forced herself to play as well as she could.
Woah, she's actually good, thought Azusa. Yui was playing hard and fast, but she knew she couldn't sustain it for long. She also saw that Saito wasn't laughing. He was analyzing her odd behavior again. At least she had succeeded in impressing her kohai some. Yui struggled to regain herself. She was tired and wanted to sleep. She didn't want to play her guitar when she could barely concentrate. Out of desperation Yui turned to Azusa and said, "Now you try some cake."
"Eh?"
"Open up," ordered Yui holding a fork with some cake on it. Not really thinking about it Azusa did as she was told. Azusa took a bite and felt the heavenly sweetness roll over her tongue.
"Oishii (Delicious)," she moaned.
"Nani?" asked Ritsu looking at her with a knowing grin.
"Oshiku (It wasn't delicious) (7)," said Azusa trying to cover up her previous statement.
"I see, I guess it wasn't your taste," said Yui looking sadly at the plate. She saw that Azusa was staring at the slice of cake and Yui held it out to her. Azusa seemed to radiate beams of lights of pure happiness until Yui withdrew the plate. Yui did this a couple of times before her tired mind started to process what was happening. She also found it fun to tease her kohai.
They took seats at the table. Yui asked for coffee instead of tea. She didn't like coffee because it was bitter, but she needed to stay awake.
"Just a sec' and I'll get you some," said Mugi. Azusa was blissfully enjoying her cake and seemed totally oblivious to her surroundings. The mercs noticed that Azusa was getting sucked into the atmosphere of the club. Mugi placed a cup of the dark liquid in front of her. Yui grimaced and poured a lot of milk and sugar into the cup to make it more tolerable. Her stomach churned, but she drank it anyways. After a few minutes she could feel it was working and started to engage the others in conversation. None of this escaped Saito's attention. He naturally noticed things out of the ordinary.
The door opened and Sawako entered dejectedly. She then looked in shock seeing the club. "You're eating after all?"
Mugi gleefully served her teacher tea and cake. She ate one bite and then walked to the window that the mercs were sitting at. She started up at the sky through the window and with a face full of content with the world she said, "I could die here."
"Please don't," said Ritsu. Saito and his team stared at her with looks of total disbelief. Anya's mouth was hanging open slightly.
Sawako went back to her seat after her dramatic moment. She looked around and asked, "Why weren't the tea sets thrown out?"
"T-that's because… it would be a shame to stop completely," said Azusa making up an excuse. Saito had heard Ritsu make up better excuses. Mio worriedly thought that Azusa was getting sucked into the disorganized, completely unfocused abyss of the Light Music Club.
"Azusa-chan, when did you start playing the guitar?" asked Yui curiously. She wanted to get to know her kohai.
"Since around my fourth year of elementary school. My parents played in a jazz band and they influenced me a lot," said Azusa.
"Eee~h? You're not a beginner at all," said Ritsu a little surprised. Azusa nearly had more experienced than anyone else in the room.
"How long have you played the guitar, Yui-senpai?" asked Azusa hopefully. For the life of her she was trying to figure out what made this club play so well. What was it about them? Yui had been great on stage and the audience loved her. She had displayed she was a skilled guitarist earlier today too.
Yui laughed nervously and turned away whistling. She didn't want to admit she had only played for a year. Yui liked being someone's senpai and didn't want to lose the girl's respect. She wanted to be the one that Azusa looked up to. For some reason that was very important for her to be the older one and not be taken care of. Yui said the first thing that came to mind, "Anyway, I'm sure glad we have a new member."
"Eh?" Azusa was a little confused.
"Moving on," said Sawako. "I'm bought Azusa a present."
Azusa's face lit up for a second. Then it darkened when she saw it. She chided herself for not being a little suspicious based off everything that had happened so far in this club.
"What's that?"
"Huh? There cat ears," said Sawako like it was perfectly normal.
Thanks for perpetuating Japanese stereotypes, Yamanaka-sensei, thought Saito. Shawn, Anya, and Jack were staring opened mouthed at the cat ears. What kind of person actually wore those outside of an anime convention or some kind of cosplay cafe?
"I'll never understand the Japanese," said Jack.
"Join the club," said Saito with palpable irony.
"No… I understand that, but… what am I supposed to do with them?" asked Azusa. Azusa trembled in fear when she realized that Sawako was behind her and laughing maliciously.
"Don't worry about it. Think of it as a club ritual," said Ritsu.
"More like hazing," said Anya disdainfully.
"Get off," screamed Azusa breaking free.
"Mou, you really are a shy one," said Sawako.
"Of course! Senpai, you think this is embarrassing too, right?" asked Azusa. She was dumbfounded to see Mugi wearing them and the others laughing with delight at how cute they thought she looked with them. Am I the odd one out?
"Here, now it's your turn," said Yui. Azusa looked doubtfully at them. She slowly put them on. Azusa could only think how embarrassing this was… and how much she didn't like cats. The girls gasped in wonderment. Even the mercs had to admit she looked cute with them. Yui smiled delightedly. A strong urge to hug Azusa came over her and she acted on it. Yui adored cute things and Azusa was just adorable. It was also how she expressed her love for others… except Saito, she felt that they had a very different and special way of expressing feelings.
"Now try meowing," said Ritsu holding her hands like a cat's paws.
"Nyah (meow)," uttered Azusa. Saito coughed to conceal a brief lose of composure and the other three tried to conceal small blushes. It had been way too cute, but that didn't stop Anya from getting a picture.
"I wonder if I can sell this."
"Anya, we're not supposed to be encouraging these student online factions or pedophilia," said Saito.
"From now on your nickname will be Azu-nyan!" declared Yui. She hadn't had this much fun in a long time. She was the full blown image of her old self and it felt good to be back. When she was conscious of that she felt her troubles return, but she was stronger now. The past wasn't going to bring her down as easily as before. She was still alive and happy. Now if she could only be free of the past… then she remembered that Saito hadn't even succeeded there.
Azusa on the other hand looked totally lost. Her expression was… priceless. Anya snapped another picture and neither Saito nor Shawn could hold back his laughter anymore. Jack was sniggering quietly and pounding the table.
Once again Azusa found it was all too much. Desperate for some sanity she turned towards the usually unsmiling foreigners. She was displeased to see they were unable to contain their laughter at her expense.
"Can we *sneaker* help you… Azu-nyan? Bwuahaha!" laughed Shawn.
"I was hoping for something that made sense," she said dully.
"Life doesn't always make sense, kid," said Saito.
After Club
Saito was down in the Kotobuki Security Staff's shooting range. He was practicing with his M16. Saito mainly used either the M16A3 or the M4A1 as his primary weapon. He had once owned an H&K G36C, but that was now somewhere at the bottom of a Volga River. Guns were expensive and they bought most of them secondhand. The problem was that secondhand guns were often worn out and they didn't last long, especially the machine guns.
His Colt M16A3 assault rifle had been customized. Unlike the M16A2 or A4 the A3 featured semi-auto, burst, and full-auto. Saito had attached a flashlight and laser pointer in addition to a foregrip for improved maneuverability and control on full-auto. He had also attached an ACOG scope. These accessories were now pretty common in Western militaries like the US Army and Marine Corps. He was shooting targets at 100 m and doing a damn good job of it. There was a satisfaction he got from the smooth mechanical cycling of the rifle. He took in the scent of gunpowder and gun oil. There was rush as he precisely put rounds down range into the head of the cardboard target.
Saito got out his MP-5A3. He pressed a button and a target was mechanically was placed at 50 m. The 9 mm sub-machine gun wasn't one of his choice guns in a battlefield setting like Afghanistan, but it was one of the best sub-machine guns and good for urban combat. It would also be a weapon he would likely use in defense of Mugi.
Saito set up a target for 10 m and started to fire away with his SIG Sauer P-229. He loved the smooth feel of a semi-auto handgun's slide being pulled back and the metallic sound. Saito loved guns. Although he loved having them around he took gun safety very seriously.
Guns make people stupid.
He'd heard that in the first episode of Burn Notice. But he had heard it first years before from his uncle. Untrained people with guns got a false sense of security or worse a false sense of invincibility. He'd seen gang members, criminals, child soldiers, and even conscripted soldiers like that. They used a threat of a gun to bully people, but the moment they came up against someone with training they were often torn to pieces.
He could remember how many people he had killed that didn't understand that important lesson…
Uganda – July 2009
"Of course we're in this shitty country at the height of motherfucking summer," groaned Shawn.
"Shut up and help me," growled Anya. She was trying to change a tire on a beat up Land Rover, it was almost the same model the British SAS used.
"I'm on watchover," said Shawn.
"No, Jack's on watchover, you're just annoying," said Saito who was checking a map. "Ah, shit. This isn't the right place."
"Then where the hell are we?" asked Jack. Jack was standing a little apart from the all-terrain car. He was scanning the tall dry looking grass for local militia or rebels that might want to attack them… though the military and police weren't barrels of fun either.
"Looks like we're near Nilotic turf," said Saito. They were west of Lake Kyoga where two of Uganda's ethnic groups met. The Nilotic people weren't all that bad, but some of Uganda's more violent separatists lived in the north part of the country where the Nilotics were the majority.
"Wrathborn, come in wrathborn," said a voice over the radio.
"Wrathborn, go ahead Eden," said Saito picking up a mic in the jeep.
"Wrathborn what's your position, over?" asked 2nd Lieutenant Gerhardt Weist, the leader of Task Force Garm.
"We're at crossroad 10-64-90," said Saito. ASI had their own codes. If anyone was listening the crossroad would be meaningless to them unless they had access to their maps and the cipher book that would give the user coordinates.
"What the- … the fuck you guys are doing there? … over," he added.
"Following Murphy protocol," said Saito. That was code for meaning something went wrong.
"Got the tire," said Anya.
"We're Oscar Mike. ETA 20. Wrathborn out."
"Roger. Out."
They drove down the dirt road passing tall grass and trees. The trees and bushes became thicker which indicated they were getting close to one of Uganda's many lakes or rivers that dotted the middle and far west of the country.
"Shit. Who the fuck are they?" asked Anya. There were a group of men with guns. Some of them were blocking the road. They seemed to be harassing a group of men in a bus that had been stopped.
"This looks bad," said Anya.
"Keep guns out of sight," said Saito. "Don't provoke them if we can avoid it."
"Bobby, they're LRA," said Jack worriedly. He buttoned his short sleeve shirt to hide his Star of David. The Lord's Resistance Army was a radical Christian extremist rebel army that terrorized northern Uganda and Uganda's northern neighbors.
"Afternoon," said Saito politely.
"Who the hell are you?" demanded a man. He was dressed in green pants and had an unbuttoned matching tunic with the sleeves crudely cut off. It looked like the World War II uniform worn by Americans. The others were dressed similarly in a pseudo-soldier like appearance that only seemed to heighten Team Hitokiri's distain for them. They were a bunch of thugs playing soldier. Half of the group were kids below the age of 15. The LRA was believed to have kidnapped over 20,000 children and used them as soldiers or sold them as slaves.
"No one," he said handing the man a 100 US Dollar bill.
"Fine, move along," said the man taking it.
"Hey, how about you leave us the girl," said another walking up to the jeep. He couldn't have been more than 17 and he was already a bully who murdered and raped with an AK-47.
"Yeah, give us the girl," insisted a 13 year old. Uganda's official language was English so there was no language barrier. Everyone knew exactly what was happening without Saito having to translate.
"You have the money. What you're doing here is not our concern."
"Oh, you think you bigshot because you have money and are from American?"
"You think you're a big shot because you terrorize unarmed people?" asked Jack. Saito groaned. This was not the time to piss people off, but Saito did want to teach them a lesson. However that wasn't the smart play and Saito didn't want to start an unnecessary shootout.
"Get out of the car," demanded the leader of the group. There were three of them around the jeep and eight more by the bus about 25 meters away. Two were on Anya's side and one pointing an old Soviet PMM at his head. Saito knew that it was now impossible to avoid violence and he had to strike first.
"Weapons free," Saito said quietly. He seized the man's arm, twisted the gun up, broke his trigger finger, and drew out his KA-BAR. He kicked the Rover's door opened and sliced the man's throat open. Blood burst from the carotid artery and his eyes turned blank as he exsanuinated. When Saito was breaking the man's arm, Jack raised his sound-suppressed SIG Sauer P-228, the same gun the Navy SEALs use, he had lain in his lap and put one round into each kids face through the nose. The 9 mm was not as powerful as the .45, but it made nearly no noise and its flash was barely visible with the silencer. The near pointblank shots tore through the kids faces, through the nasal cavity, and severed the brainstem in a terrific explosive of red, pink, and grey.
No gunshots were heard by the other LRA soldiers and that was how Saito wanted it. Outnumbered, he knew their only chance of survival was surprise and their superior training… and the fact that they had been trained to do more than just how to point and fire a gun. This gave Shawn his chance to stand and rest his SAW (Squad Automatic Weapon) on the rollover bar of the Land Rover for a stable gun platform. He fired a barrage of 5.56x45 mm rounds from the belt-fed light machine gun. He went for the gunmen who were in clusters first letting Jack to pick off the individuals with his M21 semi-auto sniper rifle.
Saito picked up his M4A1 and approached the bus on one side of the road. Anya did the same with her M4A1. Anya's carbine also had the M203 underslung grenade launcher attached.
Shawn stayed with the Rover while Jack disappeared from sight. He was training his rifle down towards his teammates. If they encountered resistance Anya and Saito both knew to spread out and clear the way for Jack and Shawn to cover them. So far it was all silent.
Saito kicked a Type 56, the Chinese clone of the AK-47, away from one dead child. He could see a single shot put through the kid's neck. Saito could tell by the brief glance that Jack had gotten him. The damage was too precise for Shawn's machine gun and the M21 fired a larger round. The steel jacketed match grade 7.62x51 mm round (6) nearly decapitated the child who couldn't have been a day past 12.
He found a small cluster of three. Shawn had gotten them. He heard the sharp snap of a 5.56 mm round being fired. Anya had found one surviving LRA gunman who had tried to escape them. She put shot through the back of his head tearing a hole through the man's cerebellum. A cloud of pink mist seemed to appear on the other side of the man's head as he crumpled on the ground. Pools of blood were crimson, but when it misted from a gunshot it looked a dark pink in the air.
Saito went to the cluster of soldiers. One 'soldier' who looked about 14 was still breathing. He was covered in blood and brain matter from the other two next two him. The SAW wasn't as powerful as the M60, but it was lighter, smaller, and more maneuverable. It also still did a lot of damage. Saito could see the damage it had done. The one still alive was wheezing. Shawn had aimed too low and tore apart the kid's stomach and part of the liver. He was spared a quick death only to die a more painful one.
"Fuck you," he rasped.
Saito kicked him. He looked down totally indifferent to the child's life. He was just some teenage bully given a gun and did worse than dunk kids in toilets like in the West. Saito had learned not to bother pitying them since they were just as bad as the adults.
"You… think you so tough, Yankee?"
"You're dying and I'm not. You had us outnumbered and I'd say more firepower. Those are the facts," said Saito with no emotion. He saw one of them had an RPG-7. If that man had managed to use that they would have taken out all of the mercs. Saito pulled out a cigarette pack and lit one.
"You are godless pig!"
"The man who shot you is Catholic like you," said Saito. Most of Uganda was Roman Catholic. "But I find that God's favor is pretty meaningless."
"We will get you all, my death will bring millions more," he said. He was grasping at straws now. He knew he was dying, but didn't want to give the foreigner satisfaction of making him show weakness. He didn't know that Saito didn't care one way or another.
"You're some punk that no one gives a shit about. You're led by a group of extremists who view you as expendable. You're government thinks you are a threat until you are dead and then they don't give a fuck. The rest of the world doesn't care about this country until it interviews with the corporations doing business here," he said.
"And you think you are a bigshot?"
Saito crouched down and stared coldly into the kid's eyes. For the first time the kid looked scared. Saito puffed out a trail of smoke and said harshly, "We are all expendable. We have no one. If a single one of us had a family that loved us we wouldn't be here. The differences are that you think you are invincible and I know better. I have been trained, educated, paid well, and know that my existence only matters as long as I survive."
The kid spat in Saito's face.
"Yeah, that will help," said Saito sarcastically. It only showed more weakness from the kid. Saito had nothing to prove because the facts had been laid out. He did think it was cruelly ironic that Saito was in the same position as the Serbian had been. However Saito hadn't done anything before that day, this kid was not innocent.
"I matter… I-I… import… ant… I…"
The kid's eyes went blank. Saito reached down and closed the kid's eye.
"Our father, thou art in Heaven," said Saito reciting the Lord's Prayer. Saito was an Episcopalian and wasn't sure if there was a difference between the Anglican version and the Catholic one. He wasn't religious enough to be bothered to find out.
"Hallowed be thy name;
Thy kingdom come
Thy will be done
On earth as it is in Heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread;
And forgive us our trespasses
As we forgive those who trespass against us;
And lead us not into temptation.
But deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom
And the power
And the glory
For ever and ever.
Amen."
"That was nice of you," said Anya from behind when he finished.
"Might as well do something," said Saito. The words seemed so meaningless and almost like lies. Saito had thought the legacy was organized religious was to teach people values, even if people like him didn't necessarily believe or disbelieve in God. But in countries like Uganda it seemed like a sick joke. Radical Christianity had turned these kids into bullies and killers like radical Islam in the Middle East. As Saito had been taught: God's favor is generally meaningless because he doesn't tell of who he favors.
"These kids weren't delivered from evil," said Saito with disgust. "They were committing it in the name of God."
"Bobby," said Jack who had joined them with Shawn in tow, "I don't argue with you, but one could argue that this was divine punishment for doing evil in the name of God."
"Excuse me, but is it safe to come out?" asked someone from inside the bus. Four guns were raised at the speaker. "Please! Don' shoot!"
"Who are you? And why were they attacking you?" asked Saito.
"We are a gay rights group," explained the man. Saito could see others starting to sit up in the bus seats. Homosexuality was illegal in Uganda. It was making sense now as to why the LRA were here and why they had stopped the bus.
"You have some balls," said Saito lowering his carbine.
"I'm afraid I don't understand the expression," said the man who lowered his hand.
"You are very brave," said Saito. "I suggest you move along before more come."
"Yes, we will go. And thank you very much friend."
Saito watched them leave. Kids being used to kill for some psychotic warlord, militia raping women all over the country, a corrupt government, an AID epidemic ravishing the nation, starvation, and a massive list of things wrong with this country. But that wasn't his concern. He was here to protect foreign interest in African resources. It didn't matter anyways. For all their talk what could activist groups who whined about how the West did nothing to help Africa from the comfort of their own homes do? And the ones who came with all their ideals do? The thought was nice, but the amount of money, resources, time, and manpower needed just to fix one country would never happen. It would bankrupt the United States and European Union first.
Saito heard a movement and raised his carbine. It was another 'soldier'. This one looked about 13. He was scared and wide eyed. He was unarmed too. The 13 year old had the armband of the LRA, but had abandoned his AK-47.
"Please don't kill me," he said. He looked totally terrified.
"Take off the armband," Saito ordered.
The boy did as he was told and held it out for Saito.
"Just drop it on the ground."
"Okay, don't shoot," he said with fear in his voice. He held up his hands after tossing the armband aside.
"What's your name?"
"Kizza," he said.
"So what are you going to do now?" asked Saito.
"I just want to go home… but I don't have one."
Saito reached into a pocket his pack and pulled out two things.
"Take this. Don't ever let me see you again," he said handing him $20 and a bottle of water. "There's a UN compound that way."
The boy took them, but didn't seem to understand what was happening.
"Well? What are you waiting for? Run!"
The boy jumped and ran in the direction Saito had pointed.
"They'll kill him if they find him," said Shawn.
"It would have been kinder to kill him here," said Anya.
"No," said Saito. "He still has a chance."
The others had been killers and bullies. They had all had eyes that seemed empty of humanity. They all had lust for blood, women, power, and money. But Kizza had life in his eyes. He didn't have the hardness of someone who had killed. Kizza was just a scared kid who just wanted to go home. Killing him wouldn't be actions in a war, it would be murder.
Fukuoka, Japan – April 2010
The gay rights group on that bus were all killed later in the week by the Ugandan Army. The LRA still plagued Uganda. People still tried to help. But there was no end in sight. Kids were still being used to fight their wars. Nothing had changed other than Uganda being less popular with the UN and the International Court. But it was the same sad story across Africa, Southeast Europe, Central Asia, Southeast Asia, and many other places.
Last year Saito had been surprised to find a letter addressed from Holland. Kizza had somehow managed to track him down and mail him a letter. He was living in a refugee community and was attending school. Saito still had the letter and it was placed in a small Shinto shrine in his room with some other personal things. Kizza was the only person Saito had saved in Africa that was still alive today. As far as he was concerned that made it the only good deed he had successfully done. If they had died, like the gay rights activists, then it didn't count as helping. It was just delaying the inevitable.
He packed up his guns and went home. He started to make dinner. There was no point in dwelling on it. He didn't start those fights. Those events didn't keep him awake. What did haunt him about Uganda was the genocide. Whole villages were massacred by the LRA and the Uganda People's Defense Forces, Uganda's military. The people he killed were people that tried to kill him, or were going to try, didn't bother him. Seeing whole villages of innocent people left to decay in the scorching sun and eaten by stray dogs was unacceptable and he was powerless to stop it.
Saito ate his dinner alone. Alone with time to think about it and the luxury of not being in the battlefield Saito did feel guilty for killing children. But like it or not they were armed and capable of killing him. That was life and death. He accepted it and moved on.
His phone rang.
"Hello?"
"Mushi mushi?"
"What is it Hirasawa-san?"
"Is this a bad time?"
"Just thinking about bad times," he said truthfully.
"Oh," said Yui. "You want to talk about it?"
"I doubt you'd want to hear it," he said.
"Try me."
"Well… don't say I didn't warn you," said Saito. Yui was lying on her bed. She was exhausted from lack of sleep. She tried to take a nap, but was still being bothered by nightmares. She had called in the hopes that maybe Saito could somehow help, but she jumped at the chance to be of help to him for once. She listened to Saito's story about Africa.
"That sounds terrible," said Yui sympathetically. As usual Saito was vivid in his descriptions. "Does it bother you?"
"I know it may sound bad, but it doesn't a whole lot. It's everyone's worst nightmare to fight child soldiers. There is just no right answer. The only thing that can be done is to prevent them from being recruited at all."
"Why not just shoot to disarm?" asked Yui like it was obvious.
"It's not that easy. Sometimes you will get a kill shot no matter what you do and it's made more likely by the ammo we use and the fact that they don't wear body armor. Also it's hard to aim accurately when you're running and being shot at," said Saito.
"But couldn't you just shoot them in the arm or something so they can't hold a gun?"
"Hirasawa-san, in these countries a shot like that could still kill. Hospitals outside of the cities would probably not be able to treat them that well. I've seen people die of simple injuries and illnesses just because they lacked the facilities or medicine to save them."
"So you're stuck then?" asked Yui sadly.
"… yes," said Saito more sadly. "The first time I kill one… fuck, he was 12 at most… it turned my stomach. There was just so many things wrong. So much injustice. So much death. It was just so unfair."
Yui listened quietly hearing his breathing become harder and more ragged.
"It really does bother you," said Yui. It wasn't a question.
"I've done a lot of bad things, Hirasawa-san," said Saito.
"Because you didn't have a choice," she pointed out. "You were taken away from home too and raised to kill like them."
"I was trained better and taught differently," he said. He didn't like being compared to child soldiers. It offended him. He was a professionally trained mercenary who had volunteered for the job… even if he hadn't had a lot of options at the time.
"I know. You told me before," said Yui patiently. This was why she didn't fully understand Saito; his life was so full of contradictions. He was a good person who did bad things for the right reasons that sometimes led to good people getting hurt. But she understood enough to trust him. "I've done bad things too. I'm a parasite who lives off her little sister and friends. But we keep going, ne? That's what you said to do."
That last line sounded like an accusation to Saito. Yui was trapping him with his words. Either he admitted she was right or said he lied and bring them both down. Saito wondered what made Yui so sure he wouldn't choose the latter… but he wouldn't. Did she know him that well?
"Yeah, I did," he admitted.
"You preach survival. You did what you had to in order to stay alive. Maybe you don't hold human life in such high regards. Besides, I think you're worth saving," said Yui warmly. Saito didn't know what to say. Yui's words were honest and true, but was he worth saving? No one had said that to him. It was usually the other way around. Still it made him feel warm.
Someone cared.
"And you did some good there. Kizza-kun will be okay. Have some faith and hope. We'll get better someday soon."
He smiled hearing how earnest she sounded. Faith and hope sounded too religious for him, but Yui was asking him to believe in himself. "When did you get so smart?"
Yui giggled. "Well, I made a friend. He's really smart and helps me a lot, but he needs help too. I want him to be happy."
"Hirasawa-san, I'm not unhappy all the time."
"But you could be happier."
"I guess so. So how are you? Why did you call?" asked Saito. He wanted to change the subject and decided a friend should show some concern about the other. "You looked like you didn't sleep."
"… I had a nightmare and couldn't sleep," said Yui. "It isn't a big deal. I still have them, but I wish they would go away. I just wanted to hear your voice I guess."
Saito checked his watch. It was only 9 pm. He often ate late, but this seemed awfully early for bed.
"You that tired?" he asked concerned.
"Yeah," Yui admitted.
"If it helps, I get nightmares too. I can't really say how to make them go away. Just remember that you are safe," he said.
"If I was in trouble… would you come?" she asked quietly.
Saito thought about it for a while. Yui thought he wasn't going to answer.
"I would," he said. Saito nearly kicked himself for saying that. It was an irresponsible thing to say. He would come if he could, but that didn't mean he could go gallivanting off every time she was in trouble. Saito had helped people at his expense in the past, but that was for a mix of doing a good deed and because having people indebted to him was useful in the long run. But he really wanted to mean his words for Yui.
"Thank you," she whispered. Saito could hear she was getting sleepy now. Her breathing was becoming a regular pattern and she was less responsive. She was relaxing.
"You should sleep," he said. He didn't feel like he deserved the place he knew he was holding in her heart. He knew how easily he could pack up and disappear from her life. Maybe he was too close to her. She shouldn't trust him for the long run. They had become too close too fast.
"I know you *yawn* can't always be there," said Yui sleepily. "But know you would come…"
"Hirasawa-san?" probed Saito when her voice trailed off.
"… eh? Oh… sorry," she said.
"Go to bed, I'll see you tomorrow," he said.
"… It means a lot," she said finishing her sentence. Saito didn't respond. Yui drew out the best and worst of him. She exposed his weaknesses and saw the complexity, darkness, and contradiction of his mind. She reminded him that people cared and looked up to him. She saw how dangerous, sick, and angry he was. So why didn't she run? Normally Saito thought people who didn't run at this point were deranged. But not Yui.
He was starting to find comfort in her presence and her acceptance of him. He wanted Yui to be a constant in his life. A friend he could depend on since he had so few. He wasn't sure if he could take the risk of accepting Yui into his circle of friends. It was more of risk for her, but it also meant Saito was thinking more of Yui's interest than himself. That was something he had to seriously take into consideration. Only put the priorities and interests of his brother, his team, and his trusted friends and allies. If he thought of Yui first when she was in no danger…
"Oyasami," said mumbled. Yui was only awake long enough to end the call.
"Good night… Yui," he said to himself knowing Yui was already sleeping peacefully. He washed his dish and went to bed. He felt drained as he usually did after talking to Yui. Saito paused and then opened the shrine. There were pictures of his parents at the top with group pictures of friends he'd fought alongside. He was a Christian, but also a Shinto. It was a concept hard to Westerners to understand having multiple religions, but to the Japanese and the Chinese it was relatively normal. He clapped his hands twice and prayed for the souls of the fallen, the good health of Kizza, and for his parents, even if he still had doubts about god and religion in general.
In her room, Hirasawa Yui had passed out in bed. Ui checked on her sister. Yui had told her she wasn't feeling well and wanted to go to bed early. Ui pulled the covers over Yui and took the cell phone out of her hands and placed it on the bedside table. She tried to pull a plushy toy out of Yui's hand, but Yui only pulled it against her. Ui gave up and went back to her own room.
Yui opened her eyes. She was sitting beneath a cherry blossom tree on a park bench. Before her were open meadows of lush green grass and wild flowers. She could see the ocean lie just beyond the meadow. It was blue and sparkled behind the sun. A light breeze blow across her face. It was so beautiful and peaceful.
Yui was suddenly aware she was dressed not in her pajamas, but a kimono. It was sky blue and covered in an elegantly designed flowers and birds with a scarlet obi tied around her waist. She felt something was stuck in her hair and felt a gold ornament with a crafted flower have been attached to her hair which was pulled into a stylish ponytail.
She heard a ruffle of paper and looked to her left. She her eyes widened in shock. It was Saito. He was reading a newspaper with one leg crossed over the other and looking totally at peace. He was in a handsome black three-piece suit and a narrow red tie with stripes.
Yui smiled in understanding. "This is the dream, isn't it?"
"It's a place where there is no darkness," he answered looking at her. His smile was not like anything she had ever seen from him. She smiled back.
Yui noticed a book on a flat rock in front of her. She didn't read much, but she felt like doing so now for reasons she didn't fully understand. Yui stood and walked with more grace and poise than she had ever done in real life. Daintily she picked it up and returned to the bench, the only thing that was man-made in this field. Yui sat down next to Saito and gently her head leaned his arm. He smelled nice like she remembered, like soap and something earthy. She opened the book and started to read. They were perfectly happy and at peace.
Saito's eyes snapped open when his alarm went off. He rolled out of bed and started his day. While in the shower he saw flashes of the dream he'd just had. He was a little disconcerted by it, not displeased, but just confused.
Sakura High School
Saito trailed behind Mugi as she walked into the shoe locker room. He leaned against a locker. There was another note for her. Saito already knew who it was, but not the contents until Mugi decided to share it with him. Sometimes she didn't, but Saito allowed her that privacy. Most people did not like having bodyguards following them around, but Mugi seemed take it in stride.
"Kamisaka!" roared a voice behind him.
"Ah, Sumoto-kun my dear friend, how have you been?" asked Saito mockingly sincerity. Out of context it would have sounded like Saito was happy to see Sumoto. Sumoto had tried to get his revenge again when Saito was in the bathroom. That had been a mistake. Bathrooms had a lot of hard surfaces. He use terrain to your advantage and improvise anything that could be used as a weapon whether it was broken glass or a rolled up magazine. Saito used Sumoto's weight against him and sent him face first into a sink.
"I will have my revenge! I swear it on my manhood!" he declared.
"In my country men who say those things are regarded as idiots," commented Saito wryly.
"I will show you my manhood!"
"Men who say that to other men in my country are considered gay."
"Uurgg!"
Hulk angry, thought Saito humorously. It was almost fun for him. "Don't you ever get bored of this?"
"I will be the strongest and prove to Kotobuki-chan that I am her best mate!"
"This isn't a nature show," said Saito. Students were dumbstruck by Saito's total lack of fear for Sumoto. Saito decided to try to interject some logic in the conversation so it didn't end with any violence for once. "Kotobuki-san, maybe you should talk to him."
"Sumoto-kun… I think we can be friends," she said politely. Honestly, Mugi didn't want to be friends with Sumoto. He was loud, dumb, and annoying. Mugi didn't like the way he looked at her. She knew the look of a person who just wanted to use her.
"Okay, Sumoto, time to move along," he said.
"Bobby, who this boychick (young man)?" asked Jack. Sumoto looked down at Jack and Anya.
"Oi! Doloeb (fuck-head), eyes up here!" barked Anya.
"Apparently this yutz is a breast man," observed Jack. "Tough luck Anya."
"Anya-chan, eh?" asked Sumoto. Then next thing he knew Anya kicked his shin, forced his weight on her back, and hurled him out the door.
"Don't call her that, she hates it," called Jack.
Ui walked past an unconscious Sumoto with mild curiosity, but she wasn't concerned enough to stop. She smiled and waved at Mugi and her bodyguards. Yui was not far behind. She prodded Sumoto with her food to see if he was awake. When she got no response she moved on. She skipped up the steps to her locker.
"You're in a good mood," observed Saito.
"I had a good dream," she said. She couldn't really remember it that well despite her best efforts. It had been such a good dream. It had felt so warm and peaceful. The best night's sleep she had ever gotten.
"Oh yeah?" he asked with a lazy grin. Yui's eyes widened as a flash of memory came to her. She blushed and looked away from Saito. "You okay?"
"H-hai, how about you?"
Saito shrugged. "I had a dream… but I don't really know what the make of it."
Yui just shrugged and she went over to Mugi.
Okay, so I don't know what you guys will make of this chapter. We start light hearted in the beginning with Azusa and go to some darker places in Saito's memories. We'll probably be doing that some more in the future. I am not a religious person and I do not intend Saito to be one either. I will not preach religion to you guys (you don't have to agree with my views), but expect to read about it because I am fascinated by it to some extent. If you think I'm repeating a lot of things in this fic let me tell you that in real life things do bear repeating.
I also had to work hard with the flashback scene. I actually made Saito a little too cruel and had to edit it a little. Notice that Saito treated the soldiers differently. He has a low tolerance for bullies, murders, and rapists, but spares people who he believes still have a chance. Notice also that I only named the one that was spared and survived. Maybe my views are too cynical, but I do have a lot of doubts about helping Africa. I think it's a good idea you, but can't save people when they aren't ready for help let alone a country. If you really want to make a different you must mentally prepare the country as a whole to want to be better, give them the hope it can happen, and then you can try to make it happen.
Also the relationship between Yui and Saito starts to really evolve now. I use dream sequences with great care because they can backfire on you, but I thought it would work well.
Well this is the last chapter that I have completed so y'all are going to have to wait for me to actually finish writing chapter 8… so it might be a little bit.
Respectfully
J. H. Kamiya
Appendix
1. Japanese schools have an elective body like in Americans schools. In Japan each homeroom will select a representative and an assistant representative at the beginning of the academic year. Then there is the student council which will have a treasure, secretary, vice president, and president. These students are elected each year.
2. This is from a 2010 census. Remember this chapter is in April 2010. Japan's population has grown some since.
3. This is probably the most critical difference from American schools. In Japanese schools the student is assigned to a homeroom for the year. Unlike American schools they will not have classes with students from any other homeroom (normally). All classes are taught from a single room for that homeroom (except PE, home economics, chemistry, and other classes that require a specialized setting). Instead the teachers will rotate between rooms rather than having the students go from room to room. So this is why in many animes and manga characters care so much about who is in their homeroom because they will have limited contact with people outside of their homeroom class. Clubs, free periods, lunch, and after school are usually the only times they will interact with other students. In elementary school the students will only have a single teacher assigned to them for the year.
4. Gojira is a fictional giant reptilian monster that lives in the depths of the Pacific Ocean. In 1954 Toho Company, still one of Japan's biggest film companies, released the original movie. Gojira, or Godzilla as he is known in the West, was feeding off fish in the Pacific when his food source was destroyed by US military H-bomb tests forcing the anger monster, now radioactive from the bomb tests, to the surface in search of food. The movie was made as an anti-nuclear weapon film. In 1956 the movie was released in the United States after being heavily edited. The United States government did not appreciate film that was against nuclear weapons in the 1950s. Gojira is probably the most famous giant monster ever created and is often parodied.
5. English is the second language in Japan. Most schools in Japan teach English like Spanish is commonly taught in the United States or French in British schools. Japanese do a lot of business with the United States making it more useful to learn English than Korean or Chinese, which are probably available too. But that doesn't mean that Japanese students are actually paying attention like Americans in Spanish class.
6. Snipers are unusual soldiers and use more specialized equipment than normal riflemen. A normal soldier needs a gun and ammunition that can be used in a wide variety of situations. Snipers need cartridges that have long range, high velocity, high penetration, low drop-off rates, and if possible make as little noise and small a flash as possible. USMC scout snipers prefer .308 (7.62 mm) Lappua or Winchester type ammo. Match grade ammo is also standard for snipers which are made for competition, hence matches, so they are made for accuracy. Steel full metal jackets are not very popular for most infantry because they wear out the gun's barrel, but they can penetrate body armor and, if they have sufficient kinetic energy, can go through walls.
7. Most adjectives in the Japanese language end with an 'I'. To turn it into a negative statement they replaced the 'I' with 'ku'. So it's really easy to make it sound like you said an negative statement instead of an affirmative.
