Before this chapter begins, I just wanted to preface this by saying that I hope all of my readers and followers stay safe and healthy during these times. On my end, my Spring Break was overshadowed by the fact that at the end of the month I was going to have to stay home and do courses online, only to hear within the past few days that the rest of the semester will be held at home, meaning that I will be home until the Autumn. I hope that everyone else can get through this incident and be able to not let this get them down. So once again, I hope that everyone can stay healthy and safe. With that said, I hope you enjoy this next chapter, finally released after over a week of chaos.
The Unfaltering Beastkin Makoto Nanaya and Captain Resentment himself, Yosuke Hanamura, had gone on a few dates ever since they agreed to start going out on Valentine's Day. They had gone on a surprising number of dates in the amount of time since the holiday. Anyone could see that they had certainly begun to resonate with one another and enjoyed spending time together.
That night, another date came to a close as Makoto and Yosuke prepared to say good night to one another. It was a usual routine; an individual dropping off their partner at the door and bidding them good night upon ensuring they got home safe. And in this case, it was certainly necessary after what happened earlier that night during the date.
"Well, after all is said and done, I do appreciate you helping me home."
"It's no problem. After all, it's the least I can do."
"Yeah, I would be lying if I said that this date went exactly how I would have hoped."
"Oh, there's no worries. I had a great time with you, like always."
"Although, you know you didn't have to carry me, right?"
"Well, I couldn't help it! It was only right of me."
"Still, it's a bit embarrassing."
"Again, it was only right of me. I very well couldn't trust you to get home safe. Especially in your condition."
Before you assume, it's not what you might think. Turns out, it wasn't Yosuke dropping off Makoto home, or carrying her, as one would presume. But in actuality, it was the other way around.
The two had the bright idea of going to a buffet that night, with Makoto warning Yosuke ahead of time of how much she could usually eat. The Prince of Junes assumed that it couldn't be that much, and agreed to keep pace with her for how much she got. Big mistake.
Suffice is to say, Yosuke was unable to properly walk home without running the risk of throwing up. So Makoto kindly carried him home, bridal style naturally, and dropped him off at the door. And even then, she wasn't totally full. Just satisfied with her apetite.
"So..." Yosuke said. "To what extent am I gonna be flat broke from buying you food in the near future? Just tell me now so I can brace my bank account."
Makoto laughed in response. "Don't worry," she said. "I'll be nice and only eat as much as I should... Maybe... Hopefully... Say, you don't have to buy me anything!"
"Well I should," Yosuke said. "I mean, I'm the b-..." He cut himself off, as his face reddened upon what he was about to say, about to say it without even thinking. He cleared his throat as he tried to be bold and look her in the eye while he said it. "Boyfriend. I'm the boyfriend in this relationship."
Makoto blushed in turn as she kept up her smile. "You're sweet," she said. "No matter how much the other girls make fun of you, I can already say you're a great guy." She bounced up on her toes, kissing him on the cheek, before backing away, offering a peace sign and a wink, before running off into the night.
Yosuke watched her go with wide eyes, a smile appearing on his face, before he turned and proceeded to enter his house. He stopped midway through the door, clutching his still aching stomach, before silently thanking his lucky stars for having a supply of ginger ale in his room to help calm his stomach.
Meanwhile, Makoto was running back home, a pep in her step and happy for another great date. As she continued, she screeched to a halt as she noticed Asuka walking by. Not one to miss an opportunity for greeting a friend, Makoto spun around and waved to Asuka.
"Hey there, Asuka!" she greeted. "How're you doing?"
"Oh, hey Makoto," Asuka replied, turning to face her. "I was just picking up something from Junes for the others."
"Coolio," Makoto said.
"So," Asuka said, "on another date with Yosuke I take it?"
"Yeah," Makoto nodded. While Yosuke was a little more relaxed about pointing out that he and Makoto were dating, with the exception of how he went to practically beg for advice from Yu, Hyde, and Team RWBY the day after Makoto first popped the offer to him, Makoto on the other hand was bragging about it to everyone. Naturally, the rest of her friends were positively blissful over it, and a sufficient amount of teasing from the others towards Yosuke was commenced in turn.
"Say Makoto," Asuka said, "has Yosuke shown you any... ninja skills?"
"Hm?" Makoto wondered, an adorable flick in her ears coming with her curiosity.
"Well I haven't really seen Yosuke fight much myself," Asuka said, "but from what I hear, he uses partial shinobi style techniques. Also his Persona is Jiraiya, which is symbolized as a frog."
Makoto raked her brains, ears and tail continuing to flick as she considered it, namely recalling how she first saw Yosuke fighting Mercury (a memory that continues to tickle her naughty bits from the way it began her infatuation with the guy in question). "Oh yeah," Makoto said. "Now that you mention it, that sounds about right."
"Yeah," Asuka said, giving a nod. "Well, I was just wondering if he'd ever be down to train with us? I mean, Ikaruga made the offer, and I wouldn't mind showing him some pointers."
"Sure!" Makoto said. "I'll see what I can do!"
"What?" Asuka asked, taken aback. "So soon?"
"Yeah," Makoto said. "I mean, why wouldn't I want to see him in action?" She twirled around mischievously as the thoughts began to come to her mind.
"Seein' my guy in action, fighting tooth and nail, sweat pouring off his skin, face flushed with exertion, muscles taught and weapons in hand~ Ooh~" Her tail had a certain twitch to it that spelled only the most pervasive things were intruding her consciousness, as her face continued to flush!
"Uh... M-Makoto?" Asuka asked nervously. "M-Makoto, what're you-? Oh no..."
Sadly, her thoughts fell on deaf ears, both sets, as Makoto was lost in dream land.
"So... let me get this straight..." Yosuke said, as Makoto lead him by the hand the following day.
"Yup!" Makoto said, ready to answer his queries.
"Your suggestion for a date," Yosuke said, "was to take me, me alone, as in you're not gonna be fighting at all, training with ninjas?"
"Yup!" Makoto echoed.
"You know," Yosuke said, "normally I would be happy to be the one man present in a sea of beautiful women, if it weren't for the fact that five of these women are going to be kicking the shit out of me. And one of them is a raging pervert," he said this last part as he looked down to see Katsu standing right beside him, crouched down low with a hand aimed directly over his crotch. She giggled awkwardly as she took a step away.
"Hey!" Makoto said, pulling out a weapon. "Hands of the merchandise! While I'm down for a bit of playing around, you're stepping on another person's territory there."
"Alright, alright," Ikaruga said, waving a hand, as she and the other Hanzo girls were waiting off to the side. "For starters, you don't have to worry Hanamura-kun. We will keep pace with you. And don't underestimate yourself either. From what our mutual friends have told us, you're not too shabby."
Yosuke smiled as he rubbed the back of his neck, Makoto patting him encouragingly on the back. He looked at her as she gave him a thumbs up with a grin.
"Okay," Ikaruga said, "let's get started, shall we? Asuka, how about you start? You use a similar technique to Hanamura, and your animal symbol is the frog."
"Sure thing!" Asuka said. She pulled up her scarf to create her ninja mask, as she pulled out her pair of katana.
Yosuke took a breath, ready to gt going, as he held his kunai in hand, waiting for the signal to be drawn. "Begin!" Ikaruga shouted, causing the two to start charging towards each other! Weapons clashed at a moments notice!
True to their words, Asuka was keeping pace with Yosuke, only striking as fast as he could block them! Still, it was clear as day that the true shinobi was the one in control of the battle, as Yosuke continued to get progressively pushed backwards by Asuka's strikes, only able to block and incapable of retaliating in the slightest! Yosuke grit his teeth as he did everything in his power to keep up with her!
Okay, he thought, this is about as bad as I was expecting. I can't even get any room to attack! I gotta think this through!
With a desperate gambit, Yosuke positively leapt over Asuka's head, landing behind her with his kunai at the ready! He shot forward in a smoke bomb, striking as fast as he could! Sacrificing strength for speed, he did his part to jab at Asuka, not going for actually injuring her, but doing so much as to prove that he would have hit her!
The shinobi in question on the other hand was not allowing herself to be caught blindly. She was able to keep up with him, though showed she was quite on the ropes. Now the tables had turned as Yosuke was taking advantage of arguably his greatest attribute to push the shinobi girl back!
Still, Asuka was not totally out of the running. She focused hard, one half of her mind centered on combating Yosuke whilst the other half centered on her own abilities. With a massive slash that cut Yosuke back, Asuka's shinobi energy flowed through her body, coating it in great green!
"Shinobi Art: Dual Slash!" she declared. Two great blasts of energy shot from her swords in an "X" shape, hurtling right towards Yosuke! The Persona user desperately tried to avoid the strike, leaping over it in another massive jump, before altering his trajectory in midair and shot towards Asuka!
Asuka met his attacks, the two getting caught in another lock! Yosuke was already starting to exhaust himself as Asuka looked like she didn't even break a sweat yet! He had to think of a new plan!
Summoning Jiraiya at his back, Yosuke jumped into the air and stretched his kunai out, rotating in a wild circle! "Garudyne!" he declared, as a tornado formed around his body!
Asuka backed away, before she launched herself forward! "Hanzo-Style: Full Bloom!" With two massive slashes, Asuka was able to cut through Yosuke's technique, before slashing him and cutting him down!
"Ow..." Yosuke said pathetically.
"You did great!" Asuka said. "With a bit more refinement you'd make a real shinobi!"
"T-thanks," Yosuke said. "I'll admit, I didn't think I'd do that well."
"Aw, come on boy!" Makoto said. "You gotta have more confidence in yourself!"
"Agreed," Ikaruga said. "Upon seeing yourself in combat, you have a true amount of potential. Given time and more refinement, you can definitely become a trained shinobi."
"Really?" Yosuke asked. "W-wow. Thanks!"
Makoto giggled as she walked forward and threw an arm around Yosuke's shoulder. "You are way too much fun Yokee!" she said, before pecking him on the cheek.
Yosuke could only chuckle as the girls treated him to something to eat later, promising that there would be more than enough training to come.
"I don't believe it," Weiss said bluntly.
"Come on Ice Queen!" Yosuke said. "Why would I lie about that?"
"To make yourself seem like some wannabe harem king?" Weiss asked.
"I'm impressed that you even know what that is," Yosuke said.
"You are familiar with Yu Narukami, right?" Weiss replied.
"Point granted," Yosuke replied.
He had intended to meet up with Yu, finding him with the Huntress-in-training he was currently talking to, who he was naturally left alone with as Yu went to grab them something to eat at the counter of the bakery they were currently in. Yu did so with the intent that these two begin getting along together, in spite of the comical degree in which they couldn't stand being around each other. But, being two of his closest friends, Yu insisted that they begin getting along.
"Well just ask Makoto or Asuka," Yosuke replied. "They can vouch for me."
"Okay," Weiss said. "Whatever. I really do not care."
Yosuke scowled at Weiss, as Yu returned, setting their food on the table. "How are you two doing?" he asked.
"How do you think?" both Weiss and Yosuke replied.
"Not well, I take it," Yu replied.
"Observant as always," Weiss said, standing up and taking her food in hand. "Sorry I have to cut things short," she told Yu, "but I have to meet up with Orie."
"We still on for Friday?" Yu asked.
"Sure thing," Weiss said, grabbing his hand before taking her leave.
Yosuke watched their interactions with wide eyes, looking back and forth between the two. "So..." he said. "Are you two...?"
"I'm waiting it out," Yu replied. "Just choosing to see how far this can go."
"Ah," Yosuke said, the two sitting in silence for a moment. His mind naturally returned to the fight he had with Asuka, thinking over where he could stand to improve. He compared the fighting styles of all of his friends, thinking about the different abilities that they had.
Yu saw his uncomfortable expression, wondering what his best friend must have been thinking. "Yosuke," he said, "are you okay?"
"Yeah," Yosuke replied. "I was just thinking of you think we should try to change our strategy a bit?"
"How do you mean?" Yu asked.
"I mean," Yosuke said, "our Personas are great, but don't you think we should change it up a bit? I mean, all of our friends have these great weapons and powers, but we're kinda behind them. Objectively speaking, we're not that strong. Shouldn't we try and think of something to keep up with them?"
"Is this about something between you and Makoto-san?" Yu asked.
"No," Yosuke replied. "Well, kinda. I just... you remember awhile ago, when we first talked about the kinda people we were into? I mentioned how I would like being with somebody I can protect. And it's obvious that Makoto isn't that kind of girl."
"Don't get me wrong, I love being with Makoto! She's an amazing woman. But... well, if push comes to shove and we end up fighting a powerful villain, I want to be able to help her. And not be some... baggage."
Yu gave a nod in understanding. "I get how you feel," he said. "Weiss has told me she's impressed by my strength, yet it is clear whenever I have seen her train with Mitsuru-san and Orie-chan that I am clearly weaker than she is. I want to be there for her and the others like Ruby-chan or Hyde."
"So," Yosuke said, "where do you think we can go?"
"There are ways," Yu replied. "With everything these worlds have to offer, we'll find the way so long as we look hard enough."
Yosuke grinned at his partner. "So we'll get stronger together, partner?" he asked.
"Yeah," Yu replied. "Let's get stronger. So we can protect those close to us."
With a confident nod and a handshake, the partners continued to discuss just how they would improve. But that's another story.
A/N: And after braving the planet busting plague overtaking civilization as we know it, like the phoenix, I have risen from the ashes to offer you a new chapter of Cross Tag Character Collision!
Okay, in all seriousness, school has certainly not been kind to me in the past week or two, as I mentioned before I am now home until the next school year starts basically. Not... the best thing ever, because I have no face to face human interactions to help me function as a basic human being when it comes to my new schedule or counseling but hey... it happens?
Choosing to return to the chapter, this just randomly came to my head one day and decided to execute it. This was our first real look at the budding relationship between Yosuke and Makoto - [ship name still pending]. Honestly, while I was still skeptical about it at first, I have really grown to like this relationship and think that Makoto as a person could be a really good emotional crutch for Yosuke, and when it comes to it he could be the same for her. So, that was really cute.
This also combines suggestions that I had gotten for Yosuke to train with the shinobi girls and also start the process of the Investigation Team unlocking new abilities to move forward. Not really a whole lot to say outside of that, as this was a relatively straight-forward chapter that sort of acted as a way for me to get back in the flow after a period of stagnation. I hope that you guys did enjoy it, though!
Review Time!
SomeUnnamedIdiot: I definitely have needed to get some more page time to Yuzu. And the problem I've had with Es is that I think she'd be a hard character to write for, though I'm certainly not opposed to having her show up more often. But I do concur that they should show up again!
FightingFlash64: Don't you worry now, the dance off will happen soon. That is one of my main priorities coming up!
MystechMaster: SWEET MERCIFUL CRAP! Seriously, you always have such massive requests! I love it! I sincerely have wanted to showcase chapters related to those early days of this particular month that shook Ragna's life. So I can assure you that it will be one of the next things that I am going to do. Predominantly because time is relative as far as this story is concerned, so there's nothing stopping me from going back! Ha!
To AzuriteInsanity: Great suggestion regarding Wagner! I'll definitely pocket that one! Also, Kajun has struck me as one of those comically obsessed scientists without a shred of a clue as to how to interact with normal society, in the event that helps you out.
And for everyone asking questions, keep your eyes peeled as I will be posting a new page dedicated purely to any further Q&A Chapters!
So with that all said, I want to thank you all for your patience and once again wish you all luck. Stay healthy and look out for one another. Have a wonderful evening, and until next time, take care!
