Kitsune no Ken: Fist of the Fox

by Neon Majestic

He sought to retire his blood-soaked past. He came to a quiet little town intending to do that. But even as he makes friends and learns to laugh and smile again, fate has its own way of telling him that, sometimes, the past won't let you go so easily. High School AU; no ninja jutsu or tailed beasts included. NEW! Chapter 222, "15 Years Later," uploaded! STORY COMPLETED!

11. Armor-Piercing Question

Kitsune no Ken: Fist of the Fox

Written by Neon Majestic

(DISCLAIMER: The Naruto franchise and the characters therein belong to and were originally created by Masashi Kishimoto.)

OoOoO

CHAPTER 11 – Armor-Piercing Question

"Challenging me…?" Naruto blinked. "Why exactly?"

As the other nearby students began whispering, Kiba strode forward till he was two feet away from Naruto. "Stand aside, girly," he spoke to Ino. "This is between me and him. You don't have to get involved."

Ino frowned and lifted an eyebrow. "I'm sorry, but he's my friend, so I'm already involved by default."

But Naruto placed a hand on Ino's shoulder and gently pushed her to one side. "It's okay, Ino. It's me he wants, so let him have me," he said.

"But, Naruto—! Do you really need to listen to this fellow ranting and raving?" Ino demanded.

"He's obviously got something on his mind, so it's only fair to let him vent." Naruto turned his attention back to Kiba. "Now, then. What's your beef with me, pal?"

"That's more like it." Kiba smirked. "I'll get to the point, Uzumaki. I know about what you've done to Hinata-chan, and I won't allow you to have your way with her. Therefore, I'm challenging you for her honor."

Naruto scratched his head. "What—did Hinata reject your confession and so you decided to take it out on me?"

Those words resulted in Kiba stooping on the pavement, drawing lines on the ground as a cloud of depression came over him. "That's a low blow…" he lamented.

Sweat-drops appeared on everyone's heads as they bore witness to this. "Damn, dude, you're pathetic…" Naruto shook his head incredulously.

"However…! This is bigger than just me!" Kiba jumped back up, fire in his eyes. "You've defiled Hinata-chan by what you've done, and I won't allow you to defile her further! A no-account transfer student like you, who nobody knows much of anything about, doesn't deserve to touch her the way you have done! She's a goddess in mortal form, and you're just a lowly peasant! You don't deserve to kiss the ground she walks on, yet you were brazen enough to steal her first kiss from her—and who knows what else!"

The whispers among the students increased and spread furiously. "Hyuga Hinata? THE Hyuga Hinata? She lost her first kiss to that guy?" the whispers ran back and forth.

Ino scowled. "Damn it…now everyone's gonna make Hinata the subject of gossip…"

Naruto shook his head. "Oi, I don't know who you think you are, to be making such declarations out of that loud mouth of yours, but you should get the facts straight before you go blowing smoke out of your blowhole," he said tartly.

"This coming from a guy whose past school record is being kept under wraps for whatever reason," Kiba said with scorn in his tone. "At least everyone can look up my background and know who I am and where I'm from—but what about you, eh? All anybody really knows about you is that you transferred from Uzushio High School—but that's all there is that anybody knows. For all we know, you might've gotten sent away from there because of some heinous crime, and your parents got it covered up to save face! Hinata-chan, and this school by extension, shouldn't have to be exposed to the wiles of people like you!"

"Why I got transferred from Uzushio High has nothing to do with you," Naruto said in a gravelly voice.

"The hell it doesn't!" Kiba shot back. "I'm fine with Hinata-chan rejecting my confession…but for her to be taken advantage of by a guy like you…that I will not tolerate! Therefore…I'm challenging you, Uzumaki Naruto! What will your answer be, eh?"

Naruto leveled his gaze at Kiba. "So you want to fight, is that it?"

"Naruto…don't let him bait you…" Ino looked anxiously at him. "Besides, fighting is against the school rules. You'll both get into trouble for that!"

"Oh, I've already taken that into account, girly," Kiba addressed her. "Don't think I'd be so stupid as to throw down right here in the schoolyard. I've already got the time and place all ready for this punk…unless he's so chicken that he'll run away after such a public declaration?" His gaze shifted back to Naruto. "Well, Uzumaki? Do you accept, or don't you have the balls to face me?"

Naruto glanced at the surrounding students out of the corner of his eye. Then he turned his look back to Kiba. "When and where?"

"Naruto…!" Ino hissed.

But now Kiba was grinning. "Ah, so you're not such a chicken-wuss after all. All right…" His eyes narrowed. "5:00 this evening, at the youth center downtown, in the boxing gym. See, I'm even giving you enough time to go home and change your clothes. Don't be late, punk." And he turned and walked out the school gate.

"Ugh…" Ino rubbed one hand over her face, and then grabbed Naruto by his wrist and dragged him out the gate, amid stares from the other students. "Oi, oi, ease up!" Naruto exclaimed—but Ino didn't.

OoOoO

Among the students who'd just witnessed Kiba's confrontation with Naruto, Suigetsu rubbed his hands together gleefully. "Heh, heh, heh…so that blond bastard's gonna get his ass kicked, huh? Should be fun to see, after what he did to me!" he gloated.

Standing with Suigetsu, Jugo shook his head. "You brought that on yourself."

"Hey, I didn't tell him to hit a ball into my balls!" Suigetsu growled.

"But he did after you sent the ball at his head. A clear case of self-defense," Jugo said coolly. "Still…it might be fascinating to see what this Uzumaki Naruto is capable of. After all, Kiba-kun is the son of the police chief, and he'll doubtless have gotten some combat training as a result."

"Now you're talking my language!" Suigetsu grinned. "C'mon, let's hurry up and get down to that youth center! I intend to get myself a front-row seat for this!"

OoOoO

Also among the crowd was Uchiha Sasuke, having been drawn to the proceedings and watched the interaction between Naruto and Kiba with a curious eye. "Hm. This should prove interesting."

OoOoO

Neji emerged from his classroom to find Hinata waiting in the hallway for him. "Sorry to have kept you waiting, Hinata," he said. "Our driver should be coming shortly. Shall we go?"

"Yes, let's, Neji," Hinata nodded.

The cousins headed along the corridor and out into the schoolyard together…but as they arrived, Hinata couldn't help but notice that some of the students were throwing curious glances their way. "Neji…"

"Hmm?" Neji looked at her.

"I feel…uneasy…" Hinata looked around. "Everyone's staring…"

"Don't mind them. It's just because we're of the Hyuga family, that's all," Neji said dismissively. "Ah, look, our driver is here."

OoOoO

Ino pulled Naruto along for several blocks before letting him go, and then she whirled to face him. "Honestly, Naruto, what's the point of acting all macho like that? Now you're bound to get into trouble for sure—and I'm sure some of those busybodies back at school are going to go down to that gym to watch you two slug it out," she scolded him.

"Hey, if I hadn't accepted the guy's challenge, he'd probably never let me leave until I said yes. What was I to do?" Naruto protested.

"Do you even know who you were facing just now?" Ino demanded. "That was Inuzuka Kiba—the son of Konoha Town's chief of police. And she's not known for being very kind to people who threaten to harm her children. Plus, as a cop, she's authorized to carry a gun. Do the math."

"Then I'll just stand still and let him hit me, and afterward get HIM arrested for assault. Problem solved," said Naruto. "Surely his mom's not going to be so biased as to let him off when he does something against the law, right?"

"But that won't solve the real issue here, will it?" Ino eyed him. "It's clear he's crazy about Hinata, and he sees you as competition. He'll probably think it's worth it if he can get you bruised up as a way to bandage his own ego."

"Hmm." Naruto looked skyward thoughtfully. "Actually…that gives me an idea."

"Eh?" Ino was puzzled.

"Let's get home and change. You'll soon see what I mean," and Naruto smiled a little.

OoOoO

The Hyuga limousine cruised along the roadway for several minutes, while in the back seat Neji and Hinata sat quietly beside the young Hanabi, who was chatting in animated fashion with a tuxedoed, bespectacled young man with bluish-gray hair. "…and then we got to try our hand at basket-weaving, when the art and craft teacher brought the basket-maker to school to show us his work," Hanabi was saying. "I tried to make my basket, but it fell apart before I was halfway done," she added with a disappointed expression.

Yakushi Kabuto, the family's personal bodyguard, smiled and adjusted his glasses with one finger. "Is that so?" he asked. "Well, that's all right. What matters is that you tried your very best."

"But Father wants us to be perfect…" Hanabi sighed.

"Perhaps, but nobody achieves perfection in any area of life right away, Hanabi-sama," Kabuto said soothingly. "Even Hiashi-sama, as rich and powerful as he is, did not master his business techniques overnight. He had to work and train to become as smart as he is now, and so will you when you become old enough to earn your own money."

"But I'm old enough now! I could start a lemonade stand if I wanted, like some of the other children do!" Hanabi said defensively. "One day I'll show you!"

"Ha, ha!" Kabuto laughed. "Well, that should be interesting to see, Hanabi-sama. Let me know as soon as you set up that business and start making money from it, okay?"

"You'll see!" said Hanabi.

Chuckling at Hanabi's childish declaration, Kabuto turned to the two older Hyugas. "And you, Hinata-sama, Neji-sama? How was your day today?" he asked.

Neji, his arms folded over his chest, allowed himself a smirk. "I learned something very interesting today," he said. "Apparently, someone has a crush on someone else."

"Eh?" Hinata turned to look at him, a sweat-drop appearing on her head.

"Ah, I see." Kabuto glanced at Hinata, and then back at Neji. "Your schoolmate Tenten has a crush on you, Neji-sama, is that what you're saying?"

"Wh-wh-wh-what?" Neji recoiled with wide eyes, as it was now his turn to have a sweat-drop. "N-n-no, nothing of the sort! Tenten is absolutely not my girlfriend! We just talk and get along well, that's all!"

"Of course, Neji-sama," said Kabuto, chuckling as he rested his chin in his palm. "Then perhaps I should ask Lee-san not to regale me with any more tales of Tenten's adoration of you, yes?"

"…when does he…" Neji asked weakly.

"Oh, every time he calls the house and asks to speak with you, Neji-sama," Kabuto said casually. "And while you're being sought, he and I have the most…amusing conversations."

Neji's ears and face burned with embarrassment. Note to self: slip arsenic into Lee's energy drinks.

"And how about you, Hinata-sama? How did your day turn out?" Kabuto turned directly to her.

"Um…" Hinata twiddled the tips of her index fingers together. "I was able to make a friend today."

"Ah, wonderful!" Kabuto nodded his approval. "So Hinata-sama is learning to come out of her shell a little more each day…isn't that a major development?" he asked.

"Yeah…swell…" Neji still hadn't gotten over his embarrassment.

Hanabi looked at her older sister. "It's a boy, isn't it?"

An even bigger sweat-drop appeared on Hinata's face. "H-H-H-How do you know that, Hanabi?" she stuttered.

"Just now you had the same look on your face that our school's cook gets on her face whenever the principal stops by to collect his lunch," said Hanabi.

"Now, now, Hanabi, it's not nice to pry," Kabuto chided mildly.

"But you did it with Neji just now," Hanabi pointed out.

"Only based on things that are already established as truth, ha-ha-ha," Kabuto laughed.

Neji flung all pretense to calm out the figurative window. "That does it—YOU'RE FIRED!" he yelled at Kabuto.

"Ah-ah-ah, nice try, Neji-sama, but only Hiashi-sama can do that," said Kabuto, smirking and wagging a reproving finger.

"Ugh…" Neji groaned, giving up. Hanabi merely shook her head in response, while Hinata glanced out the car window and gave silent thanks for the spotlight having been taken off her.

OoOoO

The afternoon passed fairly quickly into evening. The town square's clock read two minutes to five. And in one section of the borough, a few blocks away from the square, persons were milling about the youth center, a large building that had been there over the last fifteen years and had been built with the objective of providing numerous extracurricular choices for Konoha Town's young people. Inside the center's building, there was a basketball court, a swimming pool, and a gym with a boxing ring and numerous weight-lifting and aerobics equipment, and on the outside, next to the center's parking lot, there was an outdoor basketball court to facilitate anyone who wanted to shoot hoops after the facility's closing time of 9:00 in the night.

And outside the entrance, Suigetsu was running an enterprising business. "Tickets here! Get your tickets to see the upcoming fight between Inuzuka Kiba and Uzumaki Naruto! Only ten dollars per ticket!" he shouted to the varying youngsters, including Konoha High students out of uniform, who were flocking to the center in anticipation of said fight. "Snacks and drinks are only five dollars extra!" he added enthusiastically.

Jugo was manning a makeshift concession stand close by, with sandwiches, biscuits and soft drinks, and he did all this with a bored expression on his face. "I'm just still surprised you managed to get all this food and drink ready in such short time," he said in a flat voice.

"Hey, if I can make a buck on the side while watching Uzumaki get his ass handed to him, why not?" said Suigetsu. "Ah, three tickets? That'll be thirty bucks," he addressed a group of boys. "Want food while you watch the fight? Check my main man Jugo, each snack package is only five dollars more!"

"How'd you even get this stuff ready so soon? School let out at 3:00, and now it's almost 5:00," said Jugo, checking his watch.

"Eh, I managed to call in some favors from a couple of buddies who work at the different snack shops in the area," Suigetsu shrugged. "As long as I pay them back for all this stuff, they said…but seeing Uzumaki get his face stomped will be worth the repayment cost, I say."

"And if he wins?" Jugo asked.

"Then I'll buy your lunch tomorrow!" Suigetsu said boastfully.

For the first time, a small smile crept onto Jugo's face. "You're on."

Then both boys' attention was drawn to something else, as was the attention of the other persons in the area a moment after. "Well, well, well…" Suigetsu chuckled.

Approaching the youth center's entrance was Naruto, clad in blue jeans and a white T-shirt with red sleeves. "Oh, hey," he greeted Suigetsu. "How's the crotch?"

"Better, no thanks to you," Suigetsu scowled.

Jugo jabbed his thumb toward the entrance. "They're waiting for you inside."

OoOoO

A little distance away, Officers Iruka and Ibiki sat in their car, watching the proceedings at the youth center's entrance. "Seems something big is happening," Iruka commented. "So, do we follow Naruto-kun inside?"

"Let's wait a bit," said Ibiki. "Then we can go chat to those two guys at the front, selling tickets and snacks. I don't recall there being any announcement of a major event to be held here, after all, unless it was something that was hurriedly set up; those two will likely be able to tell us what's what."

OoOoO

At the Hyuga home, while the servants were busy preparing dinner, Hinata was sitting at a grand piano in the living room, practicing the piece she was to play in the upcoming school recital two months down the line. Her fingers danced from one ivory key to the next, sliding back and forth in quick rhythm, with the resulting music echoing through the halls immediately adjoining the living room area. Her eyes were closed as she played, the music sinking into her ears and reverberating in her fingertips. Close by, at the drawing table, Hanabi was busy reading a book while listening to her sister playing the instrument.

Presently Neji passed by, clad in a navy-blue jogging outfit with matching sneakers. "I'll be back in a bit," he announced. "I'm going out riding before dinner."

Hinata paused in her playing. "How long will you be out?" she asked.

"About an hour," said Neji. "That should give the cooks enough time to have dinner ready, and by then Uncle should be home from work."

"Don't let the trucks run you over on the road," Hanabi said without looking up from her book.

"Please. I'm a better bicyclist than that." Neji shook his head. "Later." He walked out.

"And don't let your girlfriend Tenten keep you too late," Hanabi called after him, again without looking up from her book.

"Silence, child!" Neji shouted from down the hall, before the front door slammed shut. Shaking her head at this, Hinata simply resumed her piano playing.

OoOoO

Inside the youth center's gym, nearly all available seats were taken as the fight patrons chattered excitedly, some checking their watches as if to verify that they were on time. In the very center of the gym, in the boxing ring, Kiba did a few warm-up exercises while glancing around expectantly. "What time is it now? Somebody tell me the time!" he hollered to the crowd.

"5:00 now, dude," a random person yelled back.

"Eh, well, he's probably on the way by now. I'll be nice and give him an extra five minutes to get here—and if he doesn't show up, then we all know Uzumaki Naruto's nothing but a chicken-wuss!" Kiba shouted, and several members of the crowd shouted their agreement.

Amid the crowd, Nara Shikamaru, Akimichi Choji, Aburame Shino and Yamanaka Ino sat together, Shikamaru looking indifferent, Choji munching on a sandwich, Shino looking as stoic as usual, and Ino scowling. "Man, where is Naruto? It's the deadline time now," Ino muttered in frustration, looking around for any sign of the blond boy.

"What a bother…why'd you even drag us out here anyway, Ino?" Shikamaru complained. "I don't like crowds like this; you know that."

"Hey, I had to get support for Naruto, didn't I?" Ino said hotly.

"Perhaps he decided to follow your initial suggestion and stay away, after all," said Shino.

"No…Naruto's not that kind of guy at all. And he said himself, he wasn't going to run away after such a public challenge," Ino sighed. "Choji, gimme a sandwich, would you?"

"Sorry, Ino, but I'm already on the last one," said Choji.

"ALREADY?" Ino gawked.

"Hey! Here he is!" somebody shouted.

At once all heads turned to the gym's exit. "So…he's come…" said Shino.

In the meantime, Naruto walked through the only available space leading to the ring. On seeing the blond boy, Kiba grinned. "About time you showed up, Uzumaki," he called out. "I was beginning to think you'd run off with your tail between your legs."

"Let's just get this over with," said Naruto, easing himself through the ropes and entering the arena. "But I'm going to tell you this right now: you're not going to lay a single finger on me."

"Oooh, them's fightin' words for sure!" said Kiba, putting up both fists and doing a bit of shadowboxing. "Let see you back them up!"

Naruto lifted one hand and made a come-here gesture. "You challenged me. Go ahead and make the first move…if you think you can."

"Don't act so arrogant, you son-of-a-bitch, or else—YOU'RE GONNA DIE!" Kiba roared, charging forward with one arm drawn back to punch, as the spectators cheered loudly.

"Kick his ass, Kiba!" several persons could be heard screaming.

Letting out a yell, Kiba flung his fist at Naruto's head—but the other boy dodged aside, causing him to run right into the ring-ropes. The ropes stretched out slightly, then snapped back in place, with the effect of throwing Kiba to the canvas hard. Snarling, Kiba jumped back up and, spotting Naruto a few feet away, rushed at him with a swinging punch to his opponent's jaw…and Naruto ducked and dodged underneath the punch, resulting in Kiba hitting empty air and stumbling.

Gritting his teeth, Kiba spun around and lunged at Naruto, throwing punch after punch at him. Each and every one was dodged and shifted, with Naruto staying just one step ahead of him. Getting exasperated, Kiba screamed out and charged headlong at Naruto—who stepped aside just in time for the brown-haired boy to run face-first into the corner-post, resulting in him knocking himself to the canvas again.

"Oooh…that had to hurt," Ino remarked as she saw Kiba cringing on the ground and holding his face from having just run into the corner-post.

"But does Naruto expect to win this by just dodging?" Choji wondered aloud. "I mean, he could at least throw a punch or something…"

Shikamaru shook his head. "I don't think he has to…he's letting Kiba beat himself up, pretty much."

OoOoO

Chief Inuzuka shifted through a number of reports on her desk, frowning as she briefly perused each one. Then suddenly her desk phone rang, and she let out a sigh as she answered it. "Hello, Konoha Town Police, Chief Inuzuka Tsume speaking," she greeted the caller.

"Chief Inuzuka, your son Kiba is in a fight at the youth center in town. Just thought you should know." Then the line went dead.

"What? What's that about Kiba? Who is this—hello? Hello? Damn it!" Chief Inuzuka slammed the phone back into its cradle, her face a picture of sudden rage.

OoOoO

Elsewhere in the youth center's parking lot, Neji parked his bicycle near the fence and secured it with a bicycle chain and padlock. "They should have already started by now," he mused to himself. "I wonder who's winning…" He hurried inside.

OoOoO

Ibiki's phone rang in his pocket, and he promptly answered it. "Yeah, Detective Morino," he spoke up. "…what? All right, understood. Yeah, we're there already. We're on it. Right."

"What is it, Morino-san?" Iruka queried as his partner hung up on the call.

"That was the chief," said Ibiki, his face grim. "An unidentified caller just phoned her back at the office, saying her son Kiba's in a fight inside the center."

"What?" Iruka was immediately attentive. "Then we've gotta get in there now!"

"Let's verify a few things first," Ibiki declared, exiting the car and striding briskly toward the concession-stand boys, with Iruka a half-step behind him. "Hey, you! Police!" he shouted, holding up his badge.

The white-haired boy who'd been selling tickets paled at the announcement. He turned to flee—but Ibiki was far faster than him and collared him seconds later. "Hey, lemme go, dude! I didn't do anything!" the boy protested as the cop twisted his arm behind his back.

"Oh, yeah? Then why'd you run, dipstick?" Ibiki demanded, marching his quarry back to where they'd been.

The orange-haired boy, still standing coolly at the snack-stand, shook his head. "I should apologize for Suigetsu; he's an idiot to the Nth degree," he said to Iruka.

"Suigetsu? Oh, yeah, now I remember you," said Ibiki. "Didn't I bust you a while back for shoplifting?"

"Nice way to out me, Jugo," Suigetsu snapped at the other boy. "Anyway, you've got nothing on me, cop. I've been out of juvie almost three months now, and I'm not going back there."

"Well, guess what, genius—offering goods for sale without the requisite license, like your tickets and foodstuffs here, constitutes a criminal offense," Iruka shook his head as he confiscated the tickets from Suigetsu. "But we might cut you guys some slack if you tell us what's going on inside that you have to be selling tickets and snacks for."

"One of our schoolmates challenged another to a fight here at the center this evening, and Suigetsu got the idea to make a buck off of it," Jugo said simply.

"Damn it, Jugo!" Suigetsu snapped.

"Shut up, white-head," Ibiki shook him roughly. "Hey, you know a guy named Inuzuka Kiba?" he asked Jugo directly.

"He was the one who made the challenge, to one Uzumaki Naruto," Jugo explained. "They should've already started in there about now."

Iruka and Ibiki shared a look. "That Kiba kid's gonna get himself slaughtered…" Iruka whispered.

Ibiki shoved Suigetsu to one side. "You two, beat it, now," he ordered. Then, as the boys promptly ran off, he turned to Iruka. "I'm going in there. If Uzumaki Naruto's lain one hand on Kiba, the boss-lady's going to hang him AND us."

"Got it. I'll watch over this food-stand so nobody gets any bright ideas," said Iruka.

OoOoO

Back in the ring, Kiba slowly rose to his feet, glaring daggers at the still-composed Naruto. His nose was leaking blood from the force of his crashing into the corner-post, and one of his lips was bruised from said impact. "You…are you trying to make a fool out of me?" he seethed. "As if stealing Hinata-chan's first kiss wasn't bad enough!"

Naruto rolled his eyes. "Are you going to calm down now, or are we going to continue playing bullfight all evening?" he asked.

"SCREW YOU!" Kiba exploded, running forward and jumping into a flying kick—but Naruto ducked and rolled out of the way, resulting in Kiba landing hard on the canvas. Not giving up, Kiba pulled himself back to his feet and lunged headfirst at Naruto again—and Naruto jumped out of the way yet again, causing Kiba to sail right into the ropes, this time getting tangled in them. "Ungh—ow! Lemme go, stupid ropes!" Kiba exploded.

Naruto walked up behind him. Kiba froze, suddenly realizing the vulnerable position he was in, as tangled up as he was. The audience members looked on with wide eyes, immediately seeing this as Naruto's perfect opportunity.

"Like a matador wears out a bull before killing it…Naruto has done likewise to Kiba," Shino said softly.

Just at that moment, Neji was squeezing his way through the crowd, just in time to see Kiba's predicament. "What…?"

At almost the same moment, Ibiki entered the gym and was at once swamped by the crowd standing or sitting right there. However, he could see just well enough to see the ring—and Kiba struggling afresh to free himself from the ring-ropes even as Naruto stood behind him. "Uzumaki!" he shouted, but his yell got caught up amidst the din the crowd was making. "Dammit, let me through! I'm a cop! Move it!" he shouted, roughly shoving past the spectators to reach the ring.

Then Naruto took a quick, deep breath, and— "WHAT WAS HINATA'S OPINION?"

Kiba stopped fighting the ropes. The crowd sat in gradually-spreading, stunned silence. Even Ibiki stopped pushing through the crowd for a moment as Naruto's shouted question sank in across the entire space of the gym floor. "…what?" Kiba managed.

Naruto exhaled loudly. "It's a simple question. Can you answer it?" His eyes bore into Kiba.

OoOoO

END CHAPTER 11

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NEON MAJESTIC: A bit of Law and Order influenced Iruka and Ibiki's actions here, I will acknowledge. Makes for more diverse writing, when you mix and mash, IMHO. Anyway…Chapter 12 is up next, folks!