Dore kurai tatta no darou (How long has it been...)
Deatta ano koro kara (since we met?)
Ikutsu mono yorokobi to (We have many happy things,)
Kanashimi wo kurikaeshite (and many sad things.)
Katakoto bakari no kotoba ni (Faced with many faltering words,)
Kimi wa tomadou keredo (you are bewildered.)
Hontou no kimochi nante (But one's true feelings...)
Kuchi ni dasenai mono sa (are not easy to express.)
Kono omoi tsutawaru kana (Will my feeling get through to you?)
Kono kimochi tsutawaru kara (Will my sentiment get through to you?)
Shizen ni waraeru mamade ikiteyuketanara (I'm happy if I can carry on with a natural smile.)
Konomamade tsuzuku no kana (Will it go on like that?)
Kono mama de yukeru no kana (Can we go on like that?)
Tatoe tooku hanarete mo kokoro tsuyoku kanjitai (Even if we are far apart, I hope to feel your heart close to me.)
- Chapter 10
??'s POV
I ran as fast as I could through the streets. It's dark out. I was on my way home, but then three guys came after me. They're still chasing me now.
I came to a dead end, then looked back at the cat masks they wore to hide their faces. They stood their with practice swords in their hands, then began walking towards me.
"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!*
- The Targeted School!
Heisui's POV
"I heard that Tanaka from our class was attacked this time." Minami said.
"What? Are you serious?" Noda asked.
"H-How many has it been now?" Kuma asked.
Uchi began counting on his fingers.
"Um... One, two, three..."
Kumiko suddenly came up behind Uchi.
"Uchi, I'm proud of you. You're studying math, huh?" she asked.
Minami, Noda, and Kuma freaked out when they finally noticed Kumiko.
"Yankumi! Don't surprise us like that!" Minami yelled.
"What about Tanaka?" Kumiko.
"Uh, no... He said that he's not coming today." Minami answered.
"He isn't? Why not?"
Minami struggled with an excuse, "H-he fell... I think..."
"You guys better not be fighting with the seniors again." Kumiko said.
"No, we're not." Noda said.
Kumiko began walking back to the front of the class.
"Well then, that's fine. But if you're lying, I won't forgive you!"
"What the hell?" Uchi asked.
"We're being serious about not fighting with the seniors!" Minami yelled to Kumiko.
"Right?" Uchi asked.
/Tanaka was attacked, huh...?/
Random Kid's POV
After school, I went to the back of the train station where I promised to meet these guys. They soon found me and walked up to me, then handed me a small brown bag.
"This stuff really works, right?" I asked.
"Are you doubting us? Then the deal is off."
I panicked. I need what's in that bag.
"I-I'll pay," I said and held out 10000 yen.
"It's all good then. Here you go."
One of them took the money while the other put the brown bag in my hand.
"Tell all your friends, okay?"
"See ya."
The two walked away, leaving me with the bag in my hands. I opened it and emptied it out. A cat badge fell into my hand.
"10,000 yen for this...?"
Later, I met up with my two friends and we walked around. I told them about the badge I'm wearing.
"And then you bought that?"
"That's because I was told that if I had this one, I wouldn't get attacked for being a Shirokin student." I said.
"You're stupid. Don't believe that crap."
"It's probably a scam."
The two laughed.
"Meow."
The three of us stopped walking and looked back to see a guy with a cat mask on. He was holding a practice sword in his hands.
"Meow."
Two more appeared in front of us, both of them had cat masks and practice swords. I covered my head with my arms and closed my eyes tight to prepare for a beat down. All I heard were smacks, but none of them hit me. Soon, footsteps could be heard walking away. I slowly relaxed and looked to see my friends beaten up on the ground, but I was perfectly okay.
"Damn it... We were attacked..."
"It hurts..."
- The next day
Kuma's POV
"I heard that a couple of seniors were attacked by cats last night." Uchi said.
"Are you serious? You mean those guys with cat masks?" Minami asked.
"The one kid who had the badge was actually saved." Uchi said.
"Badge?" I asked.
"The good luck maneki neko badge." Uchi said.
"What? Are you serious?" Minami asked.
We stopped walking when we noticed a guy walk by with a maneki neko badge on the left side of his chest.
Kumiko's POV
As I was walking towards the teacher's lounge, I noticed a kid walk pass me with a cat badge on his shirt. I keep seeing more and more of those things everyday.
/Is that badge some sort of charm? A strange thing is becoming popular.../
Once I got to the lounge, I opened the door.
"Did you call for me?" I asked. Fujiyama-sensei, Eguchi-sensei, and Iwamoto-sensei were sitting on the couches with serious faces.
"Huh? You all seem like you're in a serious mood." I commented as I walked in and closed the door behind me.
"You came at a good time." Iwamoto-sensei said.
"Huh? At a good time?"
Iwamoto-sensei held up one of those badges.
"Frankly... this badge. I've already seen quite a few around school," he said.
"What? This? Everyone is wearing this, right? So many are wearing it." I said.
Iwamoto-sensei set the badge on the table.
"So, what about it?" I asked.
"How much do you think one of those costs?" Eguchi-sensei asked.
"Hm, this? About 200 yen?" I guessed.
"It costs 10,000 yen." Fujiyama-sensei said.
"Wha- What?! 10,000 yen?! This?!"
Fujiyama-sensei looked at me, "We're getting complaints that the students are stealing from their parents and sisters in order to buy these badges."
"This thing is that popular?" I asked.
"Listen... Iwamoto-sensei thinks that this is the doing of gangsters or something." Fujiyama-sensei said.
"G-gangsters?" I asked.
"Well, think about it." Iwamoto-sensei said. "How much money do you think they're making? Besides, they say that if a kid doesn't have this badge, he'll be attacked. This is clearly blackmail."
"W-what? Attacked by cats?"
I thought about that for a couple seconds, then smiled nervously.
"What are you talking about? The Yakuza wouldn't do that."
"T-That's true." Fujiyama-sensei said.
Iwamoto-sensei nodded, then we all looked at him as he spoke up again.
"At first, that's who I thought it was, but if it isn't them, then who...?"
I cleared my throat. "Don't worry. This probably isn't as complicated as it seems, having gangsters involved and all..."
"You think so?" Iwamoto-sensei asked.
I turned and walked back to the door, "Well, I have to prepare for class, so I'll be going."
After closing the door, I went back into my thoughts.
/Using a bluff to force those with no grounds to pay a lot of money.../
I began walking towards class.
/There's no doubt about it. I get the impression that this has something to do with a Group./
Instead of going towards class, I began towards the stairs that led to the roof.
Heisui's POV
"You come up here all the time?" I asked Shin.
"Mmhm," he nodded.
The two of us were skipping class and sitting on the roof. We were alone, so I was able to talk normally and I even had my hat off. I looked up at the sky.
"I like it up here. It's pretty peaceful." I said.
An arm slithered along my lower back and a hand wrapped around my side. I looked at Shin, he was already looking at me.
"It's even better now."
Shin moved my hair out of my face, then held his hand to my cheek before he began leaning towards me. I began leaning towards him myself. No one had any idea we were up here. There's no way this moment could be ruined.
"Sawada--"
The second we heard the voice, the two of us immediately leaned away from each other and Shin took his arm and hand away. We looked at the door to see who it was, then relaxed when we saw it was only Kumiko.
"Oh, Heisui. You're up here, too?" Kumiko asked, then grinned a bit. "Skipping class to make-out, I see."
Shin turned his head and put a hand to his forehead, obviously mad that Kumiko interrupted again.
"Shut up, Kumiko..." I mumbled.
Kumiko laughed a little, then closed the door behind her before she walked over to the guardrail.
"Sawada, do you know anything about a cat badge?"
"A cat badge?" Shin asked.
"Yeah. Have you heard anything?"
"Don't ask me. Not me..."
I looked at Shin. He looked at me, then looked at Kumiko.
"There's someone selling them behind the train station. That's what I heard."
"Behind the train station?" Kumiko asked.
"That's the Tenkai Group's territory. Kumiko, are you going now?" I asked.
Kumiko nodded, then turned and began walking back to the door.
"Thank you. Heisui, I'll need you." she said.
I frowned and sighed a bit, but sucked it up.
"'Kay."
I stood and began walking towards Kumiko.
"Heisui."
I stopped and looked back as Shin stood, he looked concerned.
"Don't worry, I'll be fine. I'll call you afterwards."
Shin sighed a little and leaned against the wall, "All right."
"Well, from here on out, you have nothing to do with this." Kumiko said. I rolled up my hair and put my hat on before I followed her back inside the school.
Once school ended, we began toward the Tenkai Group's territory. After a while of walking, we soon reached the Tenkai Group building. It was...a very big and shiny building, but what would you expect from Uncle Tenkai? Just wait 'til you see what's inside.
"Okay, let's go." Kumiko said.
I nodded, then the two of us walked through the door. A random man sitting in a chair was just laughing. No one was with him, so maybe he was laughing at a joke he thought of? I don't know. He noticed us walk in.
"Hey, hey. You two can't just walk in without any notice," he said.
"I called out a few times, but you were laughing, so you couldn't hear me. I'd like to meet with the Tenkai's Kumicho." Kumiko said.
"What?! What did you say?!"
The door opened and another laughing guy walked through. He stopped laughing when he noticed us. Well, noticed Kumiko.
"You're the Ooedo Group's Ojou-san!"
The first guy stood. "W-what?"
The second guy walked up to Kumiko.
"I'll call for him immediately, so please go to the back."
The guy led us through the door and began leading us down a hall. Laughter could be heard in every corner of every place we passed. It was like a laughing gas bomb was dropped on this building. Kumiko noticed and finally decided to ask about it.
"Um..."
"Ma'am?" the guy asked and looked back at her.
"Did Uncle Tenkai get hooked on something strange again?" she asked.
"Yes, that's right. It's something that says if you laugh from deep within your stomach, you'll have good luck. Some of us are getting tired of it."
"That must be hard..."
Tenkai's POV
Sensei placed a hand on his stomach, "You put power here in the abdomen, then..."
Sensei took in a breath, then tilted his head back and laughed.
"Nothing less from you, Sensei." I said.
"If you can laugh out loud like this, good luck will come naturally." Sensei said.
"I see."
The door opened a bit. One of my people were knelt down.
"Excuse me, sir."
"What is it?! I told you not to bother me while Sensei is here!"
"Yes, but the Ooedo's Ojou-san is here to see you."
Heisui's POV
"Yes, but the Ooedo's Ojou-san is here to see you," the guy said and opened the door all the way to show Kumiko and I knelt down next to him.
"I'm sorry for stopping by so suddenly." Kumiko said.
"It's Kumi-chan and Hei-kun!" Uncle Tenkai said.
The other guy that was sitting with Uncle Tenkai stood.
"If you have guests, then I'll take my leave now."
"But Sensei..."
"It's okay," the guy said and waved as he walked out the door. He stopped for a brief moment to throw his head back and laugh out loud - heh heh - before he continued on his way. Kumiko suddenly began laughing annoyingly just like everyone else in this place.
"That's pretty good." the guy said, looking back at Kumiko and giving a thumbs up, then he left.
Kumiko and I were led inside and sat on our knees in front of Uncle Tenkai. She explained to him about the whole maneki neko badges.
"What did you say?! Some amateur punks are doing such dirty business on our territory?!"
"Kids are also getting hurt." Kumiko said.
Uncle Tenkai thought about this.
"Just as I thought, you weren't aware of it," she said.
"How dare they do this on my territory!"
"Uncle," Uncle Tenkai looked at Kumiko, "is it okay if I check up on something? It seems as though my students are being targeted."
"Even if I say not to interfere because I'll take care of it, you'll do it anyway, won't you?" Uncle Tenkai asked.
"Thank you very much." Kumiko said.
"But see here, Kumi-chan. Don't do anything dangerous, okay?"
"Yes."
Uncle Tenkai smiled, then eventually we took our leave.
"Now then... Let's go, Heisui." Kumiko said.
I nodded, then the two of us began walking places.
Yellow Bug's POV
I walking places, but then I noticed two familiar people walk out of a building in front of me. I then realized that it was Yamaguchi-sensei and her younger brother Heisui.
"That's Yamaguchi-sensei and Heisui."
I looked up at the building, it was the Tenkai Group's building.
"Why did they come out of here?"
I watched the two walk away, then became suspicious.
"It seems as though I need to look into this."
Heisui's POV
"Suspicious person... suspicious person..." Kumiko said to herself as she looked around.
We were at the Shirokin Station and were looking around to find anyone suspicious, but there was no one. I highly doubt we'll find some suspicious person around here during broad daytime.
"He said behind the train station, right?" Kumiko asked me.
I nodded, "Yeah."
We walked to behind the train station and looked around, but there were no suspicious people around. We wouldn't be able to find anyone; this place is huge.
"But if he just said 'behind the train station,' there's not much we can do." Kumiko said.
"There's probably not much we can do now anyway, Kumiko." I said.
We sat on some random railing by the stairs and waited for some kind of sign, but there was nothing.
"Nothing will happen if you just sit there without doing anything."
We looked up to see Shin walk up to us.
"Shin..."
Shin sat on the railing next to me, "We keep meeting coincidentally."
"You say coincidentally, I say stalking me." I said and leaned against Shin. He smirked a bit, but that smirk went away when Kumiko spoke up.
"You're sticking your nose in someone else's business again!" she said.
"That's because you two keep doing interesting things. Basically, some punks are secretly selling stuff to high school students while on another Group's territory, right?" Shin asked.
"Basically," I answered.
"You won't find out anything if you go asking around, since they only show themselves to customers." Shin said.
/That's what I thought./
"Right now, all the customers for the badge are Shirokin students. They aren't dealing with any other school. That's all I know." Shin explained.
"Only Shirokin students?" I asked.
Shin nodded, then stood straight.
"Heisui, you're still technically new and they won't recognize you as a Shirokin students, so I'll be the bait." Shin said, then started walking.
"Hold it, Shin! Hey! Hey, hey. Don't say stupid things!" Kumiko yelled, but Shin kept walking.
"Hey!"
Kumiko got off the railing and went after Shin, I followed immediately. She grabbed Shin's shoulder.
"There's no way that I can let my student do this!"
"Stop getting so excited. The culprits will find out." Shin said.
Kumiko hesitated, but she eventually let his shoulder go.
"It's okay, so just wait." Shin reassured, then kept walking.
I finally spoke up. "Shin!"
He stopped and looked back at me.
"Be careful," I said.
Shin smiled at me, then walked off.
- At Game Center
Kumiko and I waited outside of Game Center for Shin. Eventually he walked out with two other guys.
"Listen. In one hour, okay? Don't be late," one of them said.
"I got it." Shin said.
"If you don't bring the money, the cats will come. You understand?"
"Yeah," Shin answered, then the two walked away. Shin walked over to the soda machine next to us.
"Those are the two guys who're selling them. In one hour, I promised that I'd meet them under the rails to exchange the badge for the money." Shin explained as he bent down to grab his soda.
"You... You knew to come here from the start, didn't you?" Kumiko asked.
"Well, rumors spread." Shin answered.
"Anyway, this is where you stop."
"This is where you stop too, Kumiko."
Both Shin and Kumiko looked at me with surprised expressions.
"I can't let you risk your job. It's best if I go...alone" I explained, then turn and ran before either of them could argue or stop me.
/They better not follow me./
I sighed to myself.
/I hope they understand.../
Along the way, I noticed a suspicious looking guy with lavender colored hair and a cancer stick between his fingers. He was just...there, like he was waiting for something, or rather someone. I noticed two guys walking towards Lavender's way and saw that they were the two that were with Shin earlier. I quickly hid myself away from their sights, but watched them.
Lavender noticed the two and stood.
"Okay then."
Lavender walked over to some metal doors of a warehouse - I think - and opened one of the doors. He called inside, "Miyata-san, Ueno and Haraguchi are here."
He closed the door, then either Ueno and Haraguchi reopened it.
"Excuse us."
They stepped inside and closed the door behind them, leaving Lavender out here on his own.
/Guess he's their watch out person. He doesn't look like a sashi goro... Even so, I should be able to take him out without worry./
I moved out of my hiding place and walked towards Lavender He noticed me coming and turned to face me.
"Who the hell are you?"
"Me? I'm just a random generic person."
After I gave my answer, I moved fast and knocked Lavender out before he got a chance to do anything or even breathe. I caught him before he fell to the ground, then moved him to sit against one of the doors. I leaned back against the others and closed my eyes, sacrificing my sense of sight for a moment to heighten my sense of hearing.
"So, how are things? Is business going well?" This guy sounded like the boss.
"Yes, it's going very well."
"It's way too easy."
Both of those voices were either Ueno or Haraguchi, but I don't know who's who yet.
"Oh? The Boss will be happy." Okay, that wasn't the boss then. Maybe he's the second in command. For now I'll call him Sic.
"We bought a lot of these cheap Nekomata goods that we couldn't sell, but you thought of a great idea to sell this stockpile of good luck fortune stuff." Sic said to someone that wasn't Ueno or Haraguchi. The next voice I heard laughed.
"Those stupid Shirokin bastards... I didn't think everything would go this well. They're beyond dumb. They're complete fools."
The voice laughed again, "Idiots!"
"Hey, Kudou."
/Kudou? That bastard is doing this crap?/
"You're so particular about that school." Sic said. Kudou stopped his annoying-as-hell laughter. "Did something happen?"
/Nekomata... Shin said something about-- Now it all makes sense. He has no idea I'm a yakuza, he just has a grudge against the school. Well, time to make an appearance./
I grabbed Lavender and opened one of the doors, then threw Lavender inside. This stopped whatever chatter was going on inside.
"What the hell?!"
I stepped inside and glanced around. There were boxes of Maneki Neko badges everywhere. In front of me where five guys. The blond and brunette were Ueno and Haraguchi, the guy in a red shirt with sunglasses and his hair slicked back was most likely Sic, the guy behind him was some guy that didn't speak up, and last the bastard directly across from me between the ground was Kudou.
"Who the hell are you?!"
I ignored Sic's question and took a couple steps forward. Kudou stared at me and took a couple steps back.
"You're that guy from the other day!"
"And you... Who are you?" I asked, deciding to mess with Kudou a bit. Kudou's one of those guys with big egos that get pissed when you forget about them.
"It's Kudou. Don't tell me you forgot!"
"Oh yeah, I remember. You were doing bad things at school even after you got expelled, and then you lost against me. That Kudou, eh?" I reminded him purposely to embarrass him in front of the other four.
Kudou balled his hands into fists, "Damn it..."
"So, that's what happened. Damn, you're fucking pathetic." Sic said.
I smirked a bit to myself, "So then, since you're all here, that means the punks behind all this are the Nekomata Group."
Sic stood off the couch and took a step towards me, "What did you say, bastard?!"
Blondie took a step forward and held up his fist, "Stop talking shit, damn it!"
Blondie ran towards me.
"H-hey, be careful! That bastard is fucking strong!"
Blondie ignored Kudou's warning and continued at me like a fool. I grabbed his arm, then lifted him off the ground and threw him at a stack of boxes. The brunette stared.
"U-Ueno!"
All right, now I know who's who between those two.
"W-Who the hell are you?! Sic asked again.
"I'll tell you what I told Lavender over here,"
I motioned my head back to Lavender lying knocked out on the ground behind me, then I continued.
"I'm just a random generic person. But you know, I'm a little pissed that you're selling this shit to my classmates. I'm a student from Shirokin Gakuen myself, so I won't forgive you."
Sic smirked, "I see. All right, kill this bitch."
Haraguchi - the brunette - pulled out a switchblade and ran at me. I waited for the right moment, then jumped up and kicked his face in. I kicked off Haraguchi's face and did a quick flip in the air before landing on my feet again. Haraguchi fell back and held his nose. Sic panicked as I walked up to him and grabbed his shirt.
"Nekomata is behind this, right?" I asked.
"Sh-Shit..."
"You'd better stop right there..."
I looked back at the voice, then my tough-guy appearance immediately dropped and my eyes widened. A guy with silked-back reddish hair and sunglasses was standing in the entrance way and holding Shin captive. Slick-Back Red had Shin's wrists tied behind him. He held the tired wrists with one hand and held a bat or a nightstick or something to Shin's neck. A thin trail of blood could be seen at the left of Shin's face just past his closed eyes – Slick-Back Red must have hit Shin before he could do anything.
"...if you don't want this kid to get hurt. We was wandering around outside, so he's with you, right?"
/Shin... You idiot, why did you come after me...?/
I gripped Sic's shirt collar a bit tighter while keeping my eyes on Shin.
"S-Sorry... He hit me from behind suddenly. I had to come after you," he said.
Of course Shin would come after me, he didn't want me to get hurt.
"I-It looks like things have turned around." Sic said and knocked my arm away so I would let go of him. Kudou looked at Shin.
"You're..." Kudou walked towards Shin, "Sawada. This is great."
Kudou laughed. "Sawada, I heard that you've been acting pretty tough at school."
Shin glared a bit, "Kudou..."
"So that's how it is." Sic said and fixed his collar. "If you care about your classmate, you'd better be quiet now."
"Fine, don't lay a hand on him."
Ueno finally stood up and wiping his lips on the back of his hand, "D-Damn it... You bastard! How dare you attack me!"
So Shin wouldn't get hurt, I only stood there and let Ueno punch my cheek. I stumbled back a bit, but stayed standing.
"Heisui!! What are you doing?! Forget about me! Hurry and beat these guys up!"
"Shut up, damn it!"
Slick-Back Red grabbed Shin's hair and held the stick thing tighter to Shin's neck.
"Let go of him!" I yelled, trying to keep my guy voice intact. Shin wasn't let go of course.
"Let me throw one too." Kudou said and readied a fist.
"No!"
Shin was ignored as Kudou came up to me and punched my cheek like Ueno did. I stumbled back a bit more and came in contact with the wall. Kudou laughed and walked towards me with a raised fist.
"Stop! Kudou, I won't forgive you!!"
Shin broke from Slick-Back Red's hold and slammed his shoulder against him, pinning Slick-Back Red to the door.
"Shin!"
"Ow! Damn it!"
Slick-Back Red raised a fist and punched Shin down to the ground.
"Shin!!"
Kudou punched my cheek again. It hurt more this time because I was immediately slammed into the wall, then slid down it. Everyone stared at me. I felt some kind of softness behind me and a breeze on my head, then I noticed my hat on the floor next to me. Kudou knelt down in front of me and ripped my school jacket open to look at my body.
"You're a chick!"
A perverted grin formed on Kudou's lips.
"I see..."
Kudou pinned me hard against the wall and began trying to rip my shirt open.
"Don't touch her!!!"
"Shut up!"
While trying to stop Kudou's hands, I noticed Slick-Back Red pressing his foot down on Shin's back.
"I'm gonna beat the shit out of you first, then the rest of us can deal with her!"
Slick-Back Red raised his stick thing, but then the door suddenly opened and a hand grabbed the stick.
"What the...?"
Everyone looked at the new guest. A big guy stepped inside; it was Tetsu.
"That's as far as you go. Let him go."
I stared. "Tetsu..."
Slick-Back Red slowly took his foot off Shin, then Tetsu knocked him to the ground.
"I said let him go, damn it!"
I felt relief once that bitch wasn't harming Shin anymore. Minoru ran in from behind Tetsu and punched Kudou away from me.
"Don't you dare lay your hands on Heisui!!" Minoru yelled.
Kudou fell back, then sat up with a hand to his head. He was about to get up, but a snarling Kodi stood between them.
"Guys... What are you doing here...?" I asked.
"Tenkai called us, then Ojou said you took her place." Tetsu explained.
"Kodi led us straight to you." Minoru added.
I looked at Kodi, "Good work, Kodi..."
Kodi relaxed and went to my side. "Are you okay?"
"I'm fine." I answered and pet Kodi's head, then wiped a bot of blood away from the corner of my lips. Minoru noticed this and freaked the hell out.
"Blood?!"
Minoru suddenly looked murderous and looked at the guys.
"Who did this..."
The guys waved there hands, then pointed.
"He did," Sic said.
"W-Why are you guys so scared?" Kudou panicked when he realized the guys were pointing at him. "Miyata-san, there's more of us!"
Oh yeah, Sic's name is Miyata. I like "Sic" better.
"Let's get them!" Kudou yelled.
Minoru and Tetsu got ready to fight.
"Heh... Good luck. Face the wrath of Ooedo Group's fighting." I said and grinned.
After cracking a couple bones in their bodies, Minoru and Tetsu ran at everyone. All of them except for Kudou showed their fear, but Kudou showed it soon enough.
Kodi's POV
While Minoru and Tetsu were fighting, I noticed that kid that attacked Heisui fall out through the double doors. He stood with a panic and said a revenge threat before running off.
"I'm not gonna let you get away."
I took off after Kudou.
Heisui's POV
Everyone was pretty much dead on the floor - not literally - except for Sic, I mean Miyata. Ah, screw it, I like Sic better. Minoru and Tetsu had Sic backed up into the wall of boxes.
I grabbed my jacket and stood before walking over to the three. I walked past Minoru and Tetsu and stepped up to Sic.
"If you guys ever lay a hand on Shirokin's students again, I won't let you live." I threatened. "Got it?"
"We won't go near Shirokin's students ever again! We won't invade Tenkai's territory!"
Kodi's POV
This kid was fast, but I was faster. He ran across the street and I followed, but the I saw headlights next to see. I looked and stared with wide eyes as a car came my way, but then something big tackled me out of the way and the car passed by without even noticing.
"Ow..."
"Are you all right?"
I looked up to see Zaku on top of me. If I was human I would be red and embarrassed... Er, I am red and embarrassed, but you know...
"Y-Yeah... Sorry, that was reckless of me..."
Zaku got off me, then I rolled on my side before I got up.
"Be more careful. That car could have taken you out."
I sat down and hung my head, we were safe on the sidewalk.
"I know..."
Zaku sat down in front of me and placed a paw on my head. I looked at him.
"It's all right. As long as you're safe."
Zaku removed his paw.
"Let's go home."
Heisui's POV
After taking care of Sic, Minoru and Tetsu continued asking if I was okay and if I was hurt anywhere else.
"Guys, I'm fine, really."
I made my way through the both of them, then ran to Shin and knelt down in front of him.
"Shin, are you okay?" I asked and cupped his face to help him look at me after dropping my jacket next to me.
"Are you?" Shin asked and wrapped an arm around me.
I nodded, "I'm fine."
"Then I am too." Shin's other arm wrapped around me and he held me tight. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have showed up."
My arms wrapped around Shin's neck, "It's okay, you were worried. I would have gone after you too."
Tetsu walked up to us, followed by a reluctant Minoru.
"Let's go," Tetsu said.
I looked back at him and nodded, then looked at Shin. "Do you need help standing?"
"No, I'm fine."
I let go of Shin and put my jacket on, then helped him stand anyway. The four of us walked outside, then saw Kumiko run toward us.
"Heisui, Shin, are you all right?!" she asked us.
"We're fine, don't worry." I answered.
"Where's your hat?" Kumiko asked.
"Crap, I forgot it back in there. Kumiko, could you get it for me?"
Kumiko nodded and went inside to grab my hat, then joined us in the car before we drove off.
It was dark out. It has been for quite a while now, ever since before the fight ended. Before driving home, we stopped by Shin's place to drop him off.
"Goodnight, Shin. Stay safe," I said.
"You, too. Goodnight." Shin said and kissed my cheek before he got out of the car.
"Shin."
Shin looked at Kumiko.
"I got you involved, and you got hurt... We were in a hurry. But you... You'd better not...stick your nose in our private business just for fun ever again!"
Kumiko then closed the door. I looked at her, then looked at Shin through the window before the car began moving. I looked at Kumiko again.
"Why did you say that?" I asked.
"It's for his own good. If he gets in our private business again, he'll get hurt again, just like today." Kumiko answered.
I frowned and sighed, then leaned back against the seat with my hat in my hands.
/I guess.../
Once we got home, I walked straight to our room. Kodi was already waiting inside. When he saw me, he stood and walks towards me.
"Are you okay?" he asked.
"Yeah..."
I walked to my bed and sat down, then looked at Kodi.
"Could you get my diary, Kodi?"
Kodi nodded, then walked to that certain floorboard. Once he had the diary dug out, he walked back to me and held it out to me. He didn't seem as excited as he usually was.
"What's wrong?" I asked and took the book from his teeth.
"There's something wrong with you and I don't know what it is." Kodi answered and sat down.
I sighed a little, "I don't even know what's wrong, Kodi."
Kodi reached up and rested his head on my leg as I began writing.
Today was a pretty friggin' epic day. Looks like Nekomata was behind the maneki neko badge thing after all and Kudou was with them. He along with the rest of Nekomata got to see that I was actually a girl 'cause my hat fell off after he got a few punches in. Then a bunch of unimportant stuff happened.
"It wasn't unimportant."
"Shush, I'm not done yet."
Everything was going okay, but then Shin got involved after I told him and Kumiko I would take care of things. They hurt him and I had to stop fighting so he wouldn't get hurt again. It wasn't his fault for what happened today, he was just worried about me. I would go after him if the tables were turned, too. Kumiko told Shin not to get in our private business again. That's not fair to him, but it is safer... but...
A thought suddenly came to mind and I frowned as I slowly wrote the last several words.
Maybe I should leave the Group and quit being a yakuza...
After writing this, I suddenly couldn't find the strength to write anymore or even put a signature. I closed the book and put the pen away before letting Kodi put it away for me.
"Heisui..."
Kodi walked back over to me.
"You don't wanna be a yakuza anymore?"
I looked down at the ground.
"No..." I looked at Kodi, "Not really..."
"Are you gonna tell Ojou? Or Kyo-san?"
I shook my head, "I have to think about this more. The idea just suddenly came to mind and the more I think about it, I feel like quitting even more. Without the Group, it would be easier for me without the burden and secrets and I would be able to live a normal life with Shin..."
I sighed lightly, "But I can't just leave my Family behind...and I have a job to do to protect Kumiko..."
Kodi rested his head on my leg again, "This is a lot of pressure for you, isn't it?"
"Yeah..."
I looked at Kodi and pet his head.
"Let's just get some sleep..."
- The next day~
"Good morning," Kumiko greeted as the both of us walked in the classroom.
I walked to my normal seat and sat down, then noticed someone missing. I looked next to me and saw that Shin wasn't there.
/He's not here?/
"Huh? Hey, Heisui, what happened by your mouth?" Noda asked.
"I accidentally cut myself." I answered.
"Did you get in a fight?" Uchi asked.
"You could say that."
"Okay, I'm taking attendance." Kumiko said and looked around, then her eyes landed on the empty seat next to me. She gave me a questionable look, and I replied with a shrug.
"Can I use the bathroom real quick?" I asked.
Kumiko nodded, then I left the class and headed for the roof. I opened the door and looked around, but no one was here.
"Shin?"
I started walking forward and looked around. There was no response of any kind, not even the wind was blowing. Everything was silent except for whatever was going on in the outside world.
/Maybe I missed a call or a text./
I took out my cell and flipped it open, but there were no missed calls or messages.
/There's nothing.../
I tried calling him, but it went straight to the answering machine.
/It didn't go through... Shin.../
I lowered my cell, then looked ahead at the outside world.
/Where are you...?/
Nakigoe agete (Everybody cries...)
Hito wa mina umareru no (when being born)
Kono yo de seou (It's because life in this world is burdened with…)
Ikue no kanashimi ya (repeated sadness...)
Kokoro no itami (and distress,)
Tsurai kara (bringing bitterness to everybody.)
Hitori de furueru hibi wa (The days I trembled alone...)
Watashi no ryoute ga hakikirenai wa (cannot be swept away by my hands.)
Kewashii yama wa onoremichi (Even if my fate looks like leading to a steep mountain,)
Furikaerazu ni susume (I will keep going forward, never looking back.)
~ PREVIEW
Kodi: Ooedo's people would rather get into fights than have three meals a day. You scumbags had better lay off! By the way, Heisui. It's something to worry about... About Shin... Did he catch a cold or something? Huh? That's not it? Next time: Shin is Going to Quit School!? Each individual has their own reasons...