Yo Guys! KayTheToon hitting you with another story once again! Now I know you're probably confused right now by this, considering that I'm already writing a fanfic about another rare TR ship, but don't worry! The EmmaMichific will still continue. This was just an idea that popped into my head after I reread the manga for the 50th time and it wouldn't leave. Plus, my friend who suggested the EmmaMichific idea suggested that I write this so I won't be too distracted to write the EmmaMichificlol.(I think I should make him my assistant or something ) But anyways, I hope you all enjoy this fic about Takemichi and Yuzuha! With that being said, let's hop into the fic shall we?
I'm sorry Takemichi... I hope we can still be friends..."
That sentence replayed in Takemichi Hanagaki's mind as he recalled those events...
It had been 4 days since that day...
4 days since he and Hinata had broken up...
Nobody saw it coming, it was totally unexpected.
Even after 4 days, it still felt unreal to him.
He tried not to think about it too much during these 4 days, desperately trying to distract himself, but no matter how hard he tried, he just couldn't forget it.
He thought back to the incident once again...
Y-You want us to... s-stay broken up? " Takemichi repeated after Hina with shock.
Hina just looked down at the floor and uttered out, "Y-Yeah..."
The utter bewilderment in Takemichi was evident by his facial expression.
It wasn't just him though, Mikey and Draken were also looking at the scenario with shocked faces.
The only person who didn't seem surprised was Emma, probably because she talked to Hina earlier...
"B-But... W-Why?" Takemichi questioned, hoping that maybe this was some kind of joke.
Hina turned away from him, not having the courage to face him.
"I'm sorry Takemichi... but I've thought about this for awhile now and... I don't think I like you in that way anymore..." She said with guilt in her voice.
He stood there, not knowing how to feel about what was happening.
The girl he loved, the girl he time-leaped continuously for, the girl he was trying his hardest to save from a tragic future, had just told him she didn't share his feelings anymore...
He wanted to cry, but for some reason he just couldn't shed any tears right now, as he currently looked like his entire world had been flipped upside down.
Hina started sniffling, and she looked at Takemichi with tears welling up in her eyes.
She then hugged him tightly, "I'm sorry... I'm so sorry..." She shakily apologized, letting out tears.
He didn't even hug back, as he was still frozen in place.
"Damn..." Draken breathed out as he watched the scene with pity.
"Takemitchy..." Mikey said his friend's name with a sad look on his face.
"I'm sorry Takemichi... I hope we can still be friends..." Hina said as she continued hugging her ex-boyfriend.
The blonde teen continued to stand still, taking in everything that was happening...
He was sat on a park bench, the uneaten ice cream he had bought earlier melting in his hand. He paid no mind to it as he continued to think to himself.
He was ultimately crushed and conflicted what happened. After all he had gone through in order to save his girlfriend's life, this was how he got paid back?
He wasn't bitter about it to the extent that he'd just outright abandon his mission and let Hina die, he did promise Naoto he'd save her and all, but that didn't change him questioning if it was even worth going on.
He hadn't even seen Hina in person ever since that day.
She had called him multiple times after that incident, apologizing profusely. He tried to assure her that he was fine and that they were still friends, but even he knew he wasn't completely fine.
He had even left his hair in its natural state and didn't even bother styling it in his usual faux hawk style.
All he could ask himself was, 'What's next for me...?'
He continued to sit in silence before-
"Hanagaki?" He heard a voice call his name.
He turned to look at who had said his name, and his eyes widened a bit in surprise.
"Yuzuha?" He said.
The person near him was indeed Yuzuha Shiba, the older sister of Hakkai and the younger sister of Taiju, holding an ice cream cone.
She was wearing her typical black sailor uniform.
"What're you doing here?" He asked her curiously. This was the first time he had seen her since the Christmas conflict.
"Well... I was buying some ice cream at the ice cream parlor when I noticed you leaving, and I guess my curiosity brought me here." She admitted truthfully.
"What about you though? Why are you here?" She asked him, "You haven't even eaten your ice cream." She added.
He looked back down at the floor. "Don't worry about it..." He told her, "It's not important..."
She normally would have let it be, but she could tell by the tone of his voice that something wasn't right, and for some reason, she felt compelled to get it out of him.
"What's wrong?" She asked with concern, "You don't sound too happy." She stated.
"I said you don't have to worry about me..." He reaffirmed.
She couldn't help but be concerned by this.
From what she's heard, and seen, Takemichi Hanagaki seemed like a strong-willed guy who always radiated positive energy and affected those around him with it. She could even see what people meant whenever she interacted with him.
So she was a bit worried to see him in such a blank and dejected state. Especially after he and Toman had won the battle against the 10th Gen Black Dragons.
Takemichi turned and noticed Yuzuha was pointing towards the empty space next to him.
"You mind if I sit here?" She asked him.
He didn't see any reason to stop her, so he sighed and agreed. "Go ahead." He complied.
She sat next to him and then offered him her own ice cream cone. "Here."
He looked at her with a raised eyebrow.
"Your ice cream's melted, so you can have mine." She offered him.
He accepted it out of gratitude and bit into the tasty treat. "Thanks." He said, to which she assured him it was no problem.
"So, what's up? You doing okay?" She asked him.
He wanted to deny that everything was wrong and tell her to leave him alone, but he knew it'd probably be a waste of time, and honestly, he was tired of keeping everything inside him.
"To tell you the truth, no. I'm probably far from being okay right now." He admitted tiredly.
"Hm... I kinda had a feeling." She said, "Your demeanor pretty much told me that."
"Why are you here alone though?" She asked him curiously, "I mean, I'd expect you to be out with one of your friends. Maybe you'd even be on a date with Hina right now." She said with a smile.
Her smile dropped however when she noticed that the frown on his face had deepened at the mention of Hina.
He scoffed, "I'm pretty sure seeing my ex is the last thing I should do right now..." He said lowly.
Yuzuha's face turned into shock. "What!? You and Hina broke up!?" She asked in surprise.
"Yeah... We did..." He confessed.
"B-But... How?" She asked in disbelief, "You guys seemed like you were totally in love! There's no way you'd break up!"
"I know right? Nobody would believe it if they heard it. But that's the truth..." He added.
"I-I still don't understand... Why did you guys even break up?" She asked him, trying to recover from her shock.
Takemichi let out a sigh, "Well, if I mentioned it to you, I might as well tell you what happened..." He figured.
And he did exactly that. He recalled the events of his and Hina's breakup to Yuzuha, telling her everything from when he initiated the breakup first, up to when Hina had rejected his proposal to get back together and revealed that she didn't have romantic feelings for him anymore.
Yuzuha sat in silence, taking in the surprising information she had just heard.
"Damn... that's tough to hear..." Yuzuha commented. "I'm sorry you had to go through that Hanagaki..." She said with sympathy.
"It's fine... you don't need to apologize. You had nothing to do with this." He assured her.
"I still can't wrap my head around the idea of you two not being together..." She uttered silently.
Takemichi let out a dry chuckle. "Maybe if I didn't bring up the idea of us breaking up we'd still be together." He said with a sarcastic smile.
"I wish I could just move on from this but... but..." He paused for a bit.
"I JUST CAN'T!" He shouted in frustration, startling Yuzuha.
He put his hands on his face and leaned back.
"*Groan* No matter how hard I try, I can't get it out of my FUCKING head!" He cursed, "I try so hard to forget about it, but it's like it constantly plays on loop just to spite me! Why the hell did this have to happen!?" He questioned angrily.
Yuzuha just watched him silently.
"I don't know how to feel right now Yuzuha..." He admitted, "After all I've done... after all the hell I've been through... after I've time-leaped so many times to save her... this is the thanks I get in return..." He said with a hint of biterness.
Time leaped?
"Wait. Did you say time-leaped?" Yuzuha asked in confusion.
"Oh, I said that out loud didn't I?" He replied, not even sounding concerned, "Well... it's true. I can time leap 12 years into the future and the past..." He revealed, not even knowing why he was telling her this.
"You... You can time leap?" She questioned with raised eyebrows.
"Yup... I may look like a teen, but in reality, I have the mind of a 26 year old." He then let out another dry chuckle. "You probably think I sound like a crazy person, or that maybe having a breakup's made me delusional.
"But to be honest with you, I just can't find it in me to care at this moment." He said tiredly.
Yuzuha stared at him in silence for awhile before she spoke up.
"If what you're saying is really true... then how does Hina fall into this?" She asked, "I heard you mention something about 'saving her'." She said in quotes.
Takemichi sighed tiredly and decided to explain his time-leaping shenanigans to Yuzuha, telling her about how Hina died in the future, him and Naoto deciding to use his power to prevent her death, him meeting Mikey and so on and so forth.
Yuzuha held a bewildered expression as she took in this information.
Hina would be killed in 12 years? Kisaki corrupted Toman? This sure was a lot of unbelievable shit.
"H-Holy shit dude... A-Are you being for real?" She couldn't help but ask.
"Mhm." He nodded, "I know what I've said is probably hard to swallow, but it's all true." He told her with no hint of deception in his voice.
Yuzuha still found it hard to believe.
Was Takemichi really putting himself through all this?
"I've done so much throughout all the times I've time-leaped... and all of it was for... her..." He said, "The only reason I've been doing all of this crap was so I could save her... I loved her. But now..." He couldn't even finish as he felt tears well up in his eyes, which he quickly wiped away.
Yuzuha now had a look of pity on her face as she watched Takemichi.
She could now properly understand why his breakup with Hina was affecting him so much.
He really did love Hina, and for her to break his heart after he had went through so much to save her was probably crushing him on the inside.
"Honestly... is it even worth continuing our plan?" He questioned aloud and put a hand to his head.
"I don't wanna just abandon everything and let Hina die... but at the same time, I don't know if I'm strong enough to move on and continue..." He said in a broken voice.
"I'm... I'm sorry that you have to go through this Hanagaki..." She said sincerely.
"Don't worry, you have nothing to do with it anyway..." He replied.
He and Yuzuha sat in a loud silence, keeping quiet for a few minutes until Yuzuha broke it.
"Y'know... I'm actually going through my own self-conflict right now as well..." She revealed.
Takemichi turned to her. "Hm?"
"After the whole Christmas thing, my relationship with Taiju became... Different..." She said.
"Whaddya mean?" He asked.
"Well, he actually left home today." Takemichi's ears perked up at that, "And before he left, he talked to me for a bit." She added.
"What did he say?" Takemichi questioned, not knowing why he suddenly sounded so interested, "Did he do anything to you?"
"No. He was surprisingly pretty chill." Yuzuha answered, "But he did say something right before leaving."
She looked up to the sky before continuing.
"He told me that the reason he practically abused me and Hakkai... Is because he wanted Hakkai to be strong... His weakness 'pissed him off' and he was always frustrated whenever I had to protect him..." She revealed.
Takemichi stayed silent, listening.
"He also said that there's no need for him to stay here, since Hakkai's changed now, and he promised me that although he wouldn't reform or anything, he'd accept that violence doesn't solve everything... That's when he bid me goodbye, and left..." She finished.
"Wow. Talk about a goodbye speech." Takemichi said with no humor.
"After all he's done to us these years, you'd think that I'd be relieved for him to finally leave us... And I thought so too..." She started.
She then looked down, "But even so... I can't..." She stated, "Despite all that's happened, I still consider him as my brother..." She added.
Takemichi had now put all his interest in what Yuzuha was saying and listened to her attentively. I mean, it was only fair since she listened to him vent right?
"After our mom died, it felt like he and I were alone despite living under the same roof. I thought after everything was over, I'd still hate him but..." Her voice started to break down a bit, "I-I just can't... I really want to hate him... But I just can't"
"I-I still love my family..." She said shakily, willing herself not to cry.
The empty expression on Takemichi's face had converted into a more concerned one after hearing her rant.
She had been struggling with her family issues for years, and now that it's finally ended, she couldn't decide whether to embrace her hatred towards her brother or her love for her family.
Takemichi leaned back on the bench.
"I guess you and I are both going through some tough times right now..." He mused.
"Heh. Yeah, I guess we are... Who would've thought?" Yuzuha agreed with a smirk, "Thanks for hearing me out though. I think I needed that." She thanked him.
"It's alright. You did the same for me earlier, so I returned the favor." He said with a smile. Although the smile was faint, it had been the first time he genuinely smiled in the past 4 days.
"I definitely needed someone to vent to about how I'm feeling. And it's kinda comforting to know I'm not the only one who hasn't been in the best state of mind 'cuz of some heavy stuff, despite how different they are..." He stated.
Yuzuha cracked an actual smile, "Well you're not wrong there. This actually was a pretty nice conversation, even though it was just us revealing our issues to each other." She giggled.
Takemichi actually chuckled with her. Yuzuha noticed how his face had slightly lightened up from when she saw him at first.
"I believe you by the way..." Yuzuha uttered.
"Huh?" Takemichi turned to her.
"I believe you about that time-leaping stuff." She admitted, "Even though any normal person probably wouldn't, the way it affected you when you talked about it just seemed... Real to me." She told him.
Takemichi blinked at her and responded, "Thanks... I guess..."
The two were silent for a moment before Takemichi asked Yuzuha a question.
"Hey Yuzuha..." Takemichi called out.
"Yes Hanagaki?" She turned to him.
"Do you think... You'll ever be able to move on from what happened amongst you and your family...?" He asked her lowly.
She looked forward in thought before replying.
"To be honest with you... No. I don't think I could do it so easily..." She told him truthfully.
"Yeah... I thought so..." He said, "My situation is probably something that I'll never move on from..." He added.
"That's where you're wrong Hanagaki."
Takemichi looked up at Yuzuha in confusion. "What?"
"I never said that I'd 'never move on'. I said that I couldn't do it 'easily'." She said with a bit of a smirk.
She then put her hand on his shoulder.
"Listen. When something bad or negative happens to you, moving on from it isn't the problem." She started before looking at him, "The time it takes you to move on is what matters."
Takemichi's eyes widened a bit from her words.
"I remember something my mom told me..." She said, "She told me... That whenever you're going through a tough time, moving on from it won't be so easy. However..." She paused.
"When you have someone who you can share your problems with and you support each other, it makes it a whole lot easier..." She said with a smile.
Takemichi continued to look her in the eyes. 'Is she trying to tell me something...?'
"Hanagaki... Why don't we help each other move forward from now on?" She offered him.
He rose his eyebrows at her offer.
"Do you mean... A-As in we... Comfort each other or something?" He asked her curiously.
"Yeah." She confirmed, "Whenever one of us needs a shoulder to lean on, the other will be there to support them. Doesn't it sound like a good deal?" She questioned him.
Takemichi pondered over her words.
Ranting about how he felt to her did make him feel a bit better, since he got to release all of that frustration out of his system.
If Yuzuha was willing to offer him comfort during his inner turmoil, maybe this could actually help him move on from... Her. Plus, if he did accept this, maybe he could return the favor and help her out with her struggle.
Yuzuha continued to watch him, awaiting his answer until he eventually let out a sigh.
"Okay... I-I think... I'll take you up on that offer Yuzuha..." He complied, "If you're willing to do this for the both of us then I don't think there's any reason not too..."
Her eyes lit up at his answer. "That's great Hanagaki." She smiled at him.
She then held his hand, an action that surprised him a bit and added a bit of pink on his cheeks.
"I know you and I have gone through a lot... but I think everything will be fine..." She closed her eyes and put a hand to her chest, "Because something's telling me... that having each other will soothe our pain..." She finished quietly.
Takemichi couldn't help but look at Yuzuha in slight awe.
"Y-Yuzuha..." He whispered out, and he felt a small smile come across his face, "Thank you for your concern... I promise I'll help you the same way you've helped me..."
She smiled at him and replied, "I'm definitely looking forward to it."
They continued to sit there for a few minutes before Takemichi spoke up.
"Uhhh... Yuzuha..." He called out.
She turned to him. "What is it?" She noticed how his head was down, and it looked like he was kind of shaking.
"I... I-I couldn't help but think about... 4 days ago..." He admitted. "Do... Do you mind..."
He then looked back at her, with tears welling up in his eyes.
"Do you mind if you can hold me for a bit?" He shakily asked.
He received his answer in the form of her swiftly bringing him in, close to her.
"It's okay Takemichi..." She soothed, using his real name, "Just let it all out... I'm here for you..."
They stayed in that position for a moment before Yuzuha started to hear the sounds of sobbing, and she felt tears dampening her shirt.
Takemichi was now full on crying, finally shedding the tears that he had kept inside him for about 4 days now. He cried into Yuzuha's shirt, letting out miserable sobs.
She continued to hold him close as he cried.
However, hearing Takemichi cry had somehow made her think back to her family, and all that she's been through with them. Taiju's abuse, her always protecting Hakkai, and Taiju's departure had all came to mind.
Thinking back to all of those had made her lip quiver, and eventually, she too started to let out tears of her own and cry silently.
The two cried into each other's arms, releasing all of the sadness they carried inside of them.
And they stayed like that for as long they had to, settling in the comfort of one another's embrace...
"Wow. This is where you and Hakkai live?" Takemichi asked as he entered.
"Yup. Pretty neat, don't you think?" Yuzuha replied.
After their, emotional embracing, Yuzuha had invited Takemichi over to her place, suggesting that they could talk more there.
He was a bit hesitant at first, but she insisted.
And that's what lead to them currently being in the living room of the Shiba house.
He glanced around the area as he took a seat on the couch.
It wasn't too big, but it seemed like a pretty nice place nonetheless.
Yuzuha went into the kitchen, but he didn't notice as he was busy admiring the interior.
He noticed the separate shelves that contained various books. He also noticed that one of them contained some movies.
'I wonder what kinda movies they'd have.' He wondered to himself.
"You hungry?" He heard Yuzuha's voice.
He saw her enter the living room holding two cup noodles, chopsticks inside them.
"I hope you don't mind having ramen." She said as she offered him a cup.
"Oh, not at all." He said as he graciously accepted it, "I'm actually pretty hungry right now, so thank you." He thanked her.
She smiled at him, and sat beside him as the two dug into their respective cups.
"I have to admit, you guys have a pretty nice home." Takemichi complimented as he slurped his noodles, "Not too big, but definitely not shabby either." He added.
"Thanks. Buying this place was a good idea on my parents' part." She replied as she slurped her noodles as well, "Despite all the stuff I've gone through in this place... It's still a part of me I wouldn't let go of..." She commented lowly.
"Because whenever I'm here... it's like a part of my mom is still with me too..." She finished her sentimental statement.
Takemichi stared thoughtfully at her after he listened to her statement.
"I bet your mom was an amazing person..." He said sincerely.
"She really was." She agreed with a smile, "There isn't a day that goes by where I don't miss her." She looked down at her noodles as she thought of her mother.
She was surprised when she felt a hand rest upon hers, and she looked at Takemichi to see that it was his.
"Y-You don't have to worry about loneliness Yuzuha... You're not alone anymore..." He said in a sort of comforting manner, "You still have Hakkai, Mitsuya will always stick around... And I'll... B-Be here for you as well..." He sheepishly assured, almost fumbling over his words at the end there.
She looked at Takemichi in awe, and she had a bit of pink on her cheeks...
Ya see... She hasn't really told anybody about this, but after the whole Christmas Conflict, she had actually kinda developed a crush on Takemichi...
His iron-will against her elder brother, the way he never gave up, him getting Hakkai out of his funk and fighting alongside him...
She didn't think he was all that when she first met him, but after the battle, she could see why he was respected in Toman.
All of that made her not only respect him, but also crush on him pretty hard...
She started giggling, which confused the blonde teen.
"Ehhh... W-Why are you giggling?" He asked with curiosity.
"For someone trying to sound comforting you sure sounded pretty lame at the end there." She playfully teased with smugness.
"W-Wuh?" He let out in a sort of panic, "W-What do you mean l-lame? I-I was ju-" He stuttered nervously, thinking she was being serious.
He was broken out of his stupor by the sound of laughing and was met with Yuzuha trying, and failing, to stifle her laughter.
He quickly realized she was messing with him and crossed his arms, pouting at her.
"Well that wasn't nice." He said in child-like annoyance.
She found his childish behaviour pretty cute and pulled on his cheek.
"Awww~ cheer up grumpo, being mad only makes you look cuter." She cooed.
The fact that she said 'cuter' didn't go unnoticed by him though, the tint of pink on his cheeks being evidence.
"But for real though, thanks for that Takemichi." She thanked sincerely, "It's nice to know that at least I have you by my side."
"Well, we agreed that we'd try to comfort each other right?" He referred back to their deal from earlier, "I can't go back on my word now can I?" He grinned.
She smiled at his words, and something inside of her told her to give him a hug, so she did just that.
Takemichi was surprised by this action, but he decided to hug her back. He had to admit, this felt nice.
Yuzuha pulled back and asked him, "Say, you wanna watch some DVDs with me?"
"Sure, I guess." He complied happily, "Do you have any TV Series?" He asked her.
"Yeah, I'll go check the one's we have." She got up and went over to the shelves.
She looked through the DVD collection before she found one she liked and showed it to him.
"Do you like The Kevin and Klendon Show?" She asked Takemichi expectantly.
He perked up at hearing that title.
"Woah, you actually have that show?" He asked in shock, "That was like one of my favorite foreign cartoons when I was 8!" He exclaimed.
"Yeah. According to my mom, my dad actually really liked it. I don't even know how he got his hands on this." She revealed.
"Well I definitely have to watch it now since it's been awhile. Let's watch it!" He said eagerly.
She agreed and inserted the DVD into the DVD player, waiting for it to load.
She sat back next to Takemichi and grabbed the remote.
"I love these guys. Though, Klendon was always my favorite." She commented.
"Ehh I was always more of a Kevin guy." He replied, "His sarcastic remarks were always hilarious." He chuckled.
"Well... Even if he was pretty obnoxious in the first few episodes, I always found Klendon pretty funny. Plus his solo arc in Season 3 just solidified him as my fave." Yuzuha stated back.
"Yeah, I will admit that was pretty cool." He agreed, "His fight with the R34 King was oddly epic."
"I know right?!" Yuzuha ecstatically agreed.
The DVD finished loading, and Yuzuha selected an episode, starting it.
It was then that Yuzuha noticed the close proximity between her and Takemichi, which made her blush a bit.
Not even thinking about it, she boldy decided to rest her head on his shoulder, silently hoping he wouldn't mind.
Takemichi silently gasped and blushed at her action.
He thought he should probably pry her off, however, something inside him was telling him to let it happen.
So he did, and he even put an arm around her to feel more comfortable.
She smiled at his action.
His arm felt oddly warm, but she thought it was okay, and very comfortable.
This crush was going to be the death of her...
The episode started and the two laughed with each other as they watched it.
Making that deal with Takemichi was probably the best idea Yuzuha's had in awhile.
And she'd make sure that she spent a lot more time with him...
Dayum that shit took long! Ngl you guys, I was planning on asking this a oneshot, but it definitely took longer than expected So it will be a two or maybe three-parter instead. But anyway, this is the first part of the TakeYuzufic. If you liked it then that's great, and lemme know if you did! In the next part there will be more romance stuff initiated so stay tuned
KayTheToon, out!
