Merely a day after defeating the Ayakashi who impersonated him, Chiaki was back at the arcade playing his favorite Tekken game. But 6 rounds in and he kept losing, something unheard of, except for the time he and Jii argued about the Kabuto Origami.
The reason for this losing streak is because his eyes were too watery to focus on the game.
Despite saying that he was over Ryuunosuke, Mako and Kotoha's distrust and words over the imposter incident, he was still hurt. He thought they had known him well enough to know that while he has a mischievous streak, he would not play pranks out of spite. Or avoid a battle for that matter.
Apparently, he was wrong. Though the others were probably justified considering his behavior over not being picked for ownership of the Kabuto Origami.
But still, it hurts more than he would admit. He acted like he was unbothered by it because he didn't want the matter to be brought up anymore. If he acted nonchalant, they will drop it by the end of the day.
"It's not like you to be losing so badly like this."
Chiaki jumped in shock at the voice, jarring his controls and accidentally KOing his opponent.
"That's one way to win."
Chiaki turned to the amused speaker with a weak smile. "Urara-neesan, don't scare me like that."
Urara rolled her eyes good naturedly and pulled him into a hug. "I told you before that you need to look around you before you act."
"No, you told Kai that."
Smiling, Urara pulled away and was going to say something but frowned when she saw Chiaki's unshed tears. Realizing this, Chiaki quickly turned away and rubbed his eyes.
"Chiaki." Urara turned him around, her smile gone and her expression completely serious. "What happened? Why were you crying?"
"It's nothing." Chiaki shook his head and mustered a weak smile. But instead of convincing Urara that nothing was wrong, it had the opposite effect.
"Who made you cry?" She growled.
"No one." Chiaki quickly shook his head.
Urara cocked an eyebrow, waiting. Chiaki squirmed for a few seconds then broke down. "Ryuunosuke and the others…"
"Seems like it's going to be a long story." Urara sighed. She smiled again, "Why don't we go to a nearby family restaurant and you can tell me over pancakes."
"Sounds like a good idea." Chiaki chuckled wirily.
"...So they believed that you skipped a battle and played malicious pranks without letting you defend yourself."
"Pretty much."
Urara was unimpressed with the Shinkengers' behavior. At this point, the team should be more knowledgeable with each other's personalities. They should have questioned Chiaki's supposedly out of character behavior. And Chiaki nearly died at the hands of the Ayakashi because they isolated him. If he did not notice the Ayakashi's reflection in the pond, he would have been dead by now.
Really, questioning out of character behavior should be standard in all Super Sentai teams. If she and Tsubasa were not cautious during the whole vampire incident, they, along with Makito and Kai, would have been dead and Houka would still be a vampire. And the number of mind controlled/imposter stories from the other teams should be warning enough.
She has an urge to give them a piece of her mind, especially this 'Ryuunosuke' person. Sure Chiaki can be mischievous, lazy and obsessed with games, but he's a kind person at heart.
Chiaki may not have been raised a proper Samurai, but for Urara, the heart of a person was more important than the teachings. Anyone can be raised a Samurai but not have the heart to help others; anyone not properly taught a Samurai can have the strongest desires to save the world. Meme was the greatest example of the former analogy.
"It's a good thing I decided to come by to visit." Urara finally said.
Chiaki grew alarmed at that. "Urara-neesan, please don't slap Ryuunosuke and the others. They were kind of justified."
"How is it justified when they would not trust you at all?" Urara shot back.
"I did behave like a brat when I threw a tantrum for not being selected to be the Kabuto Origami's pilot." Chiaki admitted with a wince. Normally he would not acknowledge he is a brat. But with Urara, he can be very self-aware of his faults and not be afraid of her judging him.
"But you did not do that out of maliciousness." Urara huffed. She placed several bills on the table and pulled him up, never mind that he was not done with his pancakes. "Come on. We are going to have a talk with them."
"What!? No!" Chiaki tried to pull himself out of her grip. And maybe he was not trying too hard, but Urara did have an iron grip. No one can stop her when she sets her mind about something, especially when it comes to defending her family.
It was nice though to have someone sticking up for him. Takeru may not have stated outright if he did trust him or not, but he didn't do anything either when the others accused him. And the others had hurt him badly even though he tried not to show it.
A delighted sigh escaped Ryuunosuke's lips as he walked past the fountain. It was a nice day to spend time in the garden. The manor was quiet as Mako and Kotoha were reading, Takeru was busy with some paperwork, Jii was in the training yard and Chiaki went out earlier that day.
The Kuroko were silent as they did their chores and none of them bothered Ryuunosuke. Except for one who went up to him and whispered something in his ear.
He frowned and went to the gates as the Kuroko directed and found the lady who wished to speak to him. There she was with a polite smile and Chiaki's wrist in a firm grip. "Hello? How can I help you?" He asked politely.
"Are you Ikenami Ryuunosuke?" The lady asked promptly.
"Yes." Ryuunosuke nodded. He frowned at the teen and wondered if he had done something wrong again. "If my friend here did something to bother you, I sincerely apologize on his behalf." He bowed. Because of that, he missed Chiaki's hurt look and the flash of irritation that passed through Urara's face. When he straightened though, it was gone.
"I'm not here because of what Chiaki did. It's because of what you did."
Ryuunosuke's confused frown deepened, not comprehending what she was saying. Before he could pounder or ask, she suddenly drew back her fist and punched him so hard that he fell down.
"Urara-neesan!" Chiaki yelped as he pulled her away. The lady was not perturbed though and shook her hand with a satisfied smile.
Stars flooded Ryuunosuke's vision as he blinked at the sky to clear them. The Kurorko in the area were panicking and trying to help him up while someone went inside to get the others.
"That was for making Chiaki cry."
When Takeru was informed by a frantic Kuroko that someone punched Ryuunosuke at the gates, he was not expecting this.
Chiaki and his guest were in the sitting room with Mako, Kotoha and Ryuunosuke. The latter sported an impressive bruise on his jaw and was being fussed over by Kotoha. Mako was keeping an eye on their suspicious guest who was doing nothing other than politely sipping on the proffered tea. Chiaki was sitting beside her and looked like he wished the ground would swallow him up. Jii was watching both sides with trepidation and looked relieved when he came in.
"What's going on?" He asked as he sat down on his seat though he dreaded the answer.
"Are you the leader of the team?"
Takeru frowned at her wording and question. "Yes. And you are…?"
"Pardon for the intrusion. I am Ozu Urara, Chiaki's cousin." Urara stated calmly. Ryuunosuke made a small noise of surprise and Kotoha and Mako looked at her in surprise.
"Why did you punch Ryuunosuke?" Takeru's frown deepened.
"He should know exactly what he did. All of you should." Urara put down her cup a little too forcefully. "Frankly speaking, I am appalled by the way he treated Chiaki."
"Urara-neesan, this is not necessary." Chiaki pleaded to her. But she held up a hand and he immediately kept quiet. Jii and Takeru were amazed that Chiaki would obey someone considering his attitude.
"It is necessary. What if something like this happens again? You won't get lucky by spotting the Ayakashi's reflection in the pond again. If you didn't, it would have killed you." She shot back.
"Wait, what?!" Kotoha gasped. "When did this happen?"
"Chiaki." Urara nodded at him to answer.
Chiaki lowered his head, lips twisted in discomfort. "...It was after you guys accused me of the pranks and the Ayakashi came to me disguised as Kotoha."
"What?!" Mako straightened in shock. "Why didn't you tell us?"
"Why should he?" Urara countered back. "You guys basically accused him of playing malicious pranks and won't let him explain himself. Can you imagine just how hurtful that can be?"
"But he said he was over it." Jii frowned.
She straightened and narrowed her eyes at each of them, "Then why was he crying at the arcade?"
Everyone snapped their mouths shut and looked at Chiaki who shrunk on himself.
"Despite how Chiaki acts sometimes, he doesn't like to make a fuss over matters he does not want to think about. He said that he was fine so that all of you would not bring up the matter again." Urara's glare grew stern and everyone felt like they were being scolded by a teacher. "If this matter happened during the early days of the team, maybe you can be excused for not believing Chiaki. But it has been nearly four months. Four months of getting to know each other and you think that Chiaki is capable of acting maliciously? The first thing you should have done when he started acting out of character is to confirm if he is mind controlled or impersonated. If things had been different, Chiaki could be dead and so could all of you."
Ryuunosuke, Kotoha and Mako were properly chaste but Takeru was frowning at her thoughtfully.
"You sound as though you have experience with this kind of thing."
Urara smirked and held up her Magiphone. "I am MagiBlue, sorceress of the sea. And this isn't the first nor will it be the last time the bad guys try to get the upper hand by impersonating or mind controlling someone on the team."
Urara took a breath and placed her hand on Chiaki's shoulder. "I know that Chiaki can be mischievous and not the Samurai you hope for him to be…" Chiaki shot her an indignant glare but she merely gave him an unimpressed stare and he backed down. Again, Jii was amazed by the power she holds over Chiaki.
"...But he is a good person at heart. And he hasn't caused any serious trouble in a very long time. Besides spending time at the arcade, he used to volunteer at the hospital and perform with his band there to cheer the patients up. If you give him the chance to improve, he will improve in leaps and bounds. So please think twice the next time something like this happens. Chiaki is incapable of acting out of malicious intent."
Her eyes hardened. "If something like this happens again, I will do more than punch you." She looked at Ryuunosuke, Mako and Kotoha as she said that. She then turned to Takeru with a hard look. "And as the team leader, I will hold you responsible if anything happens to Chiaki that can be avoided in the first place!"
"Urara-neesan!" Chiaki grabbed her shoulder. "That won't be necessary! I can handle it myself!"
"You should not have to." Urara shot back. "I told you before. No one messes with my family. Just because you act like a brat sometimes doesn't mean that anyone can treat you badly, especially when it is not warranted."
"…You're my favorite cousin, Urara-neesan."
"I know." Urara pecked his forehead. She stood up and brushed her skirt. "I have to go back now. But if you ever need me, I'll come."
"You know that you will find out if I'm in trouble before I do." Chiaki gave her a secretive smile as he hugged her. "Say hi to the others for me."
"I will." She leaned in closer and whispered to him, "I'm always available to talk if you need it. Don't waste your time in the arcade losing at Tekken."
Chiaki pulled away abashed. The moment the Kuroko escorted her out, the room exploded with questions for Chiaki.
"You were in a band?"
"You volunteered at the hospital!?"
"Why did you cousin only punch me?!"
Chiaki gave Ryuunosuke a deadpanned look. "Be thankful she didn't kick you in the you-know-where. She's done it a few times with their version of the Nanashi." Ryuunosuke gasped dramatically and cowered behind Mako, which annoyed her and threatening to do what Urara didn't do which led to Kotoha to try to break them apart. Deciding that he didn't want to answer the other questions or deal with the incoming chaos, he slipped out of the room to head back to the arcade, confident he can beat the Tekken game now.
Jii saw him leaving and tried to call him back but ended up getting swept into the chaos caused by the retainers.
All from the safety of his seat, Takeru sighed and slipped back to his room to resume his paperwork. But today was an eyeopener of the team's inexperience.
Yesterday, he didn't say anything to defend Chiaki or change his team's beliefs that Chiaki was acting out of spite. He trusted that everything will work out and Chiaki would come through. But Urara was right that this could have been avoided in the first place. Chiaki was hurt by their distrust despite brushing it off. And Urara implied that if Chiaki was not observant enough, the Ayakashi from the day before would have killed him. That should not have happened. If Ryuunosuke and the others had trusted him and did not leave him alone with the Ayakashi…
Takeru sighed, putting down his brush. He prided himself as a capably leader and proved it well placed many times. But today showed that even he has much to learn when it came to his retainers, Chiaki especially.
Despite his appearances the wood Samurai was a sensitive person and valued the people around him and their opinion of him. Yet, he was never boastful of his kindness or his connections. No one knew that Chiaki volunteered at the hospital or that he was family with the Magirangers. Then again, he didn't seemed to be the type of person who would volunteer information about himself unless asked.
Takeru's lips twitched upwards. When Chiaki comes back, he will have to go through an extra two hours of training for the chaos he unintentionally caused.