Chapter 14:

Ren Aihara stared stoically at the two burly men taller and larger than him with a menacing ki he could only begin to fathom. The rest of the people at the door were equally scary, with three really hot girls who looked as though they could kick ass too. He sweat dropped.

"DAD!" he bellowed, "you have visitors!" Ren widened the door for them to enter. He warily watched the tallest, a seemingly elderly man bend over to get his entire body through. He caught a glimpse of Honoka Shirahama on the blond guy's back, she looked out cold.

My dad is involved in a lot of weird shit, Ren shook his head and closed the door.

The group of masters and disciples filed into the closed space containing a counter surrounded by bags and bags of rice in the opened back door. The tiles were immaculately white checked with black and the walls were a chipped red paint with golden tapestry on each wall of a dusty, thatched dragon. There was a loud bang from the back room and an old man-who looked even older than Elder-walked in slowly with a walking stick. He wiped his free hand on his green apron and adjusted his glasses.

"Who's there?" he demanded weakly.

"It's us, Aihara," Ma said politely. "You can stop acting now."

Aihara licked his lips thoughtfully. "Hmm," his voice changed from the previous one implying frailty and looming senility to one that commanded respect and attention in it's deepness and assertion. "I figured as much. I thought I felt your ki after all."

"Who is this guy?" Natsu asked incredulously.

"This," Ma Kensei stood beside the old man,"is one of my oldest friends, Jin Aihara. He is also a master."

"Ah, I've heard of you!" Miu blustered. "You are the master who faked his own death!"

"Yes," Jin bowed down. "I know I have dishonoured myself and can no longer return to the martial arts world, but I am more concerned now with raising my son, Ren."

"You see," Ma sighed, "Jin and I...we both left the Golden Mashibikis together."

...

"The Golden Mashibikis is an organization established mainly by masters from all over the world with diverse martial arts skills," Jin explained. Meanwhile, Ma Kensei was in the backroom tending to Honoka's wounds with Akisame. The rest of the group were scattered all over the room but still listening intently to the man's story. "The whole idea of the Mashibiki was from its origins of being a spike that protects a samurai from attack and protects him. That was the same with a master's pride. He needed a disciple to protect his name and use them as a one-man army. To get into the Golden Mashibikis, you needed to either be a master, or a child of one. They believed that the only person suitable to inherit a master's teaching was the next of kin.

"I was young back when I entered the Golden Mashibikis with Ma. We were promised a new start and a bright future. After all the things we had been through, like Ma's confrontations with his brother, as I'm sure you know by now, this was like a deal too good to be true. We also wanted to teach both our children our art, so that they could become the best that they could be."

Renka and Ren looked aside.

"As the years went by and Ren got older, I realized he was greatly dissatisfied with his life. He barely spoke with anyone except Renka, who understood him as she was basically around the same age and also wanted to leave the Golden Mashibikis herself. I noticed that the only thing the Mashibikis were concerned with was trying to find out who was stronger than whom and children were thrown into death matches until the victor came out. At one point Ma and I considered leaving, but...they threatened our children. They put Renka and Ren in a death match scheduled for the next week as punishment. We had to escape by then. So...Ma hatched a plan. He promised that he would get both of us out and our children also. We pretended to have a death match ourselves, and Ma killed me. In those brief confusing seconds of my death, he was able distract the others as I pulled Ren and Renka into my arms and disappeared forever. The rumour that I faked my own death in a match is true. But I only did it to protect my child. I didn't know if Ma was as lucky as I was but the last I had heard from him, he had left China for good and was staying at a place called Ryouzanpaku."

"So...that's why he really left China?" Miu stared at Renka in horror. "Renka, that must have been horrible to go through."

Renka shrugged. "I barely remember much. I was just a child."

"Hmm," Hayato grunted. "I remember on my many travels they offered Miu and I a place in Golden Mashibikis."

"Even Miu?" Kenichi swung his head round at her. She was just as surprised.

"Why yes...they enlisted many people back in the day all at once. Most of the disciples are now Honoka's age."

"So, you mean to say that as we speak, there are members of the Golden Mashibikis like Honey or Kanou Shou, who grew up around masters all after Honoka?" Takeda gaped. "That's insane!"

"Right now, Honoka is unconscious after fighting a newbie," Kenichi sweat dropped. "Masters," he pleaded, "let me take Honoka's place as your disciple. She's much too young."

"I think," Akisame walked in, "that would be the smartest idea."

...

Renka stuck her head into the back room curiously. The room was dimly lit and barely fit more than two people in between the sacks of rice and broken furniture and stock listings.

"Aren't you going out to listen?" Renka asked Natsu Tanimoto, who was leaning against a wall nearest the makeshift bed Honoka was sleeping on. He rested his palms on the bags of rice at his hips.

"It doesn't concern me," he replied coldly. "So get out."

Renka made a face. "Touchy," she did the exact opposite. "Dad said she's going to be asleep for the rest of the night. She won't wake up anytime soon."

"Your point being?"

"It's creepy to just watch someone sleep, Tanimoto."

Honoka was bandaged up across her torso under a borrowed white tank top. Her black curls stuck out perkily underneath her bandaged up head. Her face was pale from the loss of blood. Natsu realized now in disgust that he would have to throw away his hood and shirt because when he had wrapped both around her, she had bled on everything when he had put her on his back for the journey to China Town. He still recalled the not altogether unpleasant feeling of wet blood, Honoka's breath on his cheek mixed with his own smell and her body pressed to his. Argh! he inwardly slapped himself, What is UP with those thoughts?

Renka widened her eyes,"Oh..." she trailed off before grinning. "I see."

Before he could stop her though, Renka had walked out of the room. Over her shoulder she laughed, "Bye, Nacchi."

Miu: I hope that'll be okay.

13DaL: Don't stop! I'll do whatever, just don't STOP!

Miu: ...but it's your fanfic...I can't keep...

13DaL: I'll pay you.

Miu Bu...how much we talking here?