K: Well, I was going to wait until I got more reviews for the last chapter, but I figured, since the Tyka won't come for quite some time, you deserve the right to read chapter 3. ^_~ My book can wait, for now… Besides, after writing an outline of every chapter, I find it's a lot easier to write the chapters, so I dun mind updating. ^_^

Oh- and in case you were a bit confused about the last chapter where Takao received the Masamune, it says that because they both still think it's Masamune and not Murasame. Sorry if it seemed erroneous! ^^;

Well, on with the fic! ^_~

Disclaimer: Just replace the names and it's mine. Unfortunately, I didn't, so there goes that idea…

Dedications:

- Darkspider (*huggles Tala plushie* ^_^ ARIGATO!! Now all I need is a Takao and a Kai and I'll have a yaoi triangle set! ^_~)

- Kiina (Gyaa~! Fine, fine! You're weird- I'm not! Take it!! *shoves all rights of weirdness in your face* Ha! I thought of a NEW title for myself! I'm STRANGE!! XDDDDDD BWA HA HA HA HA!!! [In all actuality, it's the Starbucks ice cream and techno music that made me do that and the above. ALL HAIL ZION FROM THE MATRIX RELOADED SOUNDTRACK!! XDDDD] And btw- no, you didn't find me. I used my awesome precog skills to find out your plan and planted a fake address for you to find. XPPPP FEAR THE PRECOGNATIVENESS!!!)

- PinkDevil (You're welcome! ^_^ Yeah, Takao is really hot-looking in his gi…. [Dun tell Kai I said that!] He looks even better when it's 2002 vers. Takao… *droolz*)

- Anime the Fallen Angel (*scowls at Chibi Kai* You do because I say so. Deal. XP You'll find out why later…. *turns to Anime* I'm glad you like it! ^_^ Kai won't appear for some time, though… Not until chapter 6 or something… *checks outline* Yeah- chapter 6. Hang in there! ^^;)

- Weeping Angel (^_^ I'm glad you like it! I was afraid everyone would overlook this fic just because it isn't centered around actual beyblades… ^^; Like I said- the swords were accidentally switched, but my reasons will reveal themselves later on. ^_~ You're welcome for the dedication, as well as this one, and here's that continuation you ordered! ^_^)

- Ran (Well, it's actually pretty obvious in his actions during this chapter… At least, that's what I think… *nod nod* It doesn't really do anything to him, but he's a bit more aggressive than normal. He also mentions something about the affect he has after touching it, which you'll read in the text below. That's the Murasame's energy tainting his purity…. For everything else about it, you'll just have to see, ne? ^_~ Especially his attitude when he's fighting this chapter…)

- Jyun (Yep! A test of their worthiness! ^0^ LOL!)

- Bloody Mary (I agree- it is the most sensible, isn't it? Though I bet others would disagree… ^^;)

- ChibiKai (Yeah- the storyline's 100% original! ^_^ I wouldn't dream of plagiarizing like that… It's not right to just use someone else's plotline, or even that of a well-known book! [Well, a book's okei, I guess… So long as the author's words and at least a few occurrences are original…])

Mujaki na Youkai Rune III: Fan-Kurabu

Fanclub

            //Ichi… Ni…. San… Shi… Go… Roku… Shichi…. Hatchi… Ku… Jy- KUSO!//

            Takao pouted- he'd been so close that time! But nooooo, he just had to screw up the final move…. Dammit…

            //Saa~ at least I didn't cut myself… This sword is ancient! Who knows what kind of diseases it has on it!//

            As much as he cherished the blade, he always, always washed his hands after touching it. It was as if coming into contact with it contaminated his hands or something- after practice, his hands would always feel dirty somehow- even though he often wore fingerless gloves to keep his hands from getting calloused. It was strange, but he never really thought anything of it. He simply made washing his hands afterwards a ritual, and left it at that.

            Wiping the sweat from his brow, he sheathed the Masamune at his hip and grabbed the water bottle from its place at the base of a nearby tree. His grandpa had insisted he train outdoors under the pretense that practicing under the hot sun would toughen him up and help build his endurance, and so- here he was. Open spaces were fairly hard to come by nowadays, since more and more buildings cropped up everywhere, and thus, he'd opted to train in the park halfway between his house and the grocery store. The bluenette had managed to find a rather secluded area near the small man-made lake, and there he placed his bag near the single Willow tree as he practiced alone in the lush grass.

            Basically, he'd get there around 8 or 9 in the morning, when no one was there yet, so he could be guaranteed the spot. He'd train for a few hours, break for lunch at 1 P.M., then resume his training until 4 P.M., when he'd pack up and leave for home. Afterward, he was free to do whatever he wanted, since it was a Sunday and he had no school.

On schooldays, he'd wake up, go to school, then come home in the afternoon and train for an hour or 2 either here or back in the dojo, depending if he was able to use this training spot or not. Afterwards, he'd do his homework, have dinner, shower, then go to sleep in preparation to face the same thing the next day. It got boring after a while, but that was life. He forced himself to live with it and made things interesting by coming up with different moves during his training sessions. He had to admit- having his own signature moves was kind of cool…

            Taking a swig of the clear liquid, he allowed his heart rate to return to normal. Training was healthy and all, but being stuck in the sweltering heat was murder! Not only was he fairly certain he'd sweat off at least 5 pounds in the last hour, but it made him thirsty as hell, too! Still, it was best not to piss off his grandpa- who knows what the old man would do!

            //He woke me up by attacking me with a fricking sword on my birthday for God's sake!!// he thought to himself, frowning at the terrifying memory. //I nearly pissed my fricking pants!! Crazy-ass Ji-chan….//

            Banishing the thought, he took another sip and sighed, getting up from where he sat at the base of the tree. He drew his katana, raising it in a slow arc and marveling at how light it felt in his hand. Grinning, he used the momentum of the arc to bring the blade down in a swift diagonal slash, reveling in the sound it made as it cut through the air. All of a sudden, there was a light rustling sound in front of him, and he blinked as a section of vine-like branches fell to the ground.

            "Whoops. I guess I should watch where I swing… Hope the park caretakers don't notice…" Takao muttered, reddening in embarrassment.

            Too bad his sword had left a sizeable and quite obvious gap in the curtain of Willow branches.

            //Shit.//

            He quickly decided to resume his training out of safe range of the branches, and if anyone asked about the severed limbs, he'd lie like hell. Dashing out and immediately beginning the complex kata he'd been doing earlier, he found he was too nervous to completely concentrate, and his moves were stiff and rigid, like a machine. Stopping, he tried to calm himself so the kata would flow perfectly, only to freeze up as a voice called out behind him.

            "Ano… Sumimasen…?" (um, excuse me…?)

            The bluenette leapt 5 feet in the air. "GYAA!! I DIDN'T DO IIIIIIIIIIT!!!!"

            The person blinked, as did his blonde companion. "Ano sa… Didn't do what?"

            Takao whirled around, inwardly sighing in relief that they weren't park rangers. "Um… N- nandemonai yo…" (N-nothing..) he sweatdropped, eyeing the gap in the branches, then changed the subject. "Ano.. Can I….help you?"

            The rather short brunette nodded, adjusting his glasses. "Actually, we were just admiring your form. You're very talented…"

            The swordsman grinned, his gigantic ego surfacing. "Aa~ I guess so… I mean, I have been practicing for a while now…"

            The blonde piped up, excitement sparkling in his brilliant blue eyes, "Honto na no?! Sugoi! Totemo kakkoii desu! Ne, ne- how old are you, anyway?" (Really?! Amazing! Really cool!)

            The bluenette allowed a small smirk. "I'm 14. Just turned a few months ago…"

            He was rewarded with another enthusiastic gasp. "Sugoi! Only 14?! Demo, you're so good!!"

            Takao gave a light chuckle. "Yeah, well…"

            That's when the brunette was struck with an idea. "Hey- would you mind showing us a few moves? I'd really like to record it with my laptop…"

            The blue-haired teen just grinned, the praise going straight to his head. "Sure! I guess I could give it a try…"

            "Great! Chotto, kudasai…" (Hang on a sec, please) he stated, flipping open the portable computer and typing wildly, bringing up the webcam program.

            He handed the small device to his companion, plugging it in as the blonde framed it up so that Takao's image showed up on the screen in all his glory. Smiling, the bespectacled boy gave him the thumbs-up, signaling for him to begin. Quickly running through his known katas, he decided to go with one he could easily do half-asleep.

            //Ichi… Ni… San… Ni…Roku… San… Shi… crescent… Roku… Shichi… Ichi…// he echoed in his mind, flowing along with the count.

            From the view of his spectators, it seemed as if he were dancing. Every step was precise and graceful, to the point where it looked as if he flowed like water from one move to the next. Once finished, he came to a halt before them, sheathing his sword in the traditional way- raking the back across the top of the sheath before sliding it in place. He bowed elegantly, his gloved hands flat against each other as if praying. Stopping the recording, the 2 boys burst into applause, though the blonde was careful not to smash the webcam.

            "Simply amazing! Did you come up with that yourself, or did someone teach it to you?" the brunette questioned, and Takao managed a modest blush.

            "Domo… Ano... That was called 'Shichi no Tsurugi'. My Ji-chan taught it to me…" (Thanks. Um... That was called 'Seven Swords'.) Grinning, he added, "If you want, I could show you some moves I came up with myself…"

            The other boys were star-struck. "HONTO NA NO?! KAKKOII!!" (REALLY?! COOL!!)

            Takao sweatdropped a bit at their enthusiasm, but smiled confidently nonetheless. It wasn't every day he gained an admirer, let alone 2. Settling in a loose stance, he decided to give them a big show- something that would blow them away. He'd never shown anyone his special techniques, and now, he'd piece them together in one spectacular kata. Focusing on the list of moves he'd come up with, he ducked his head when they gave the signal to start.

            San. Ni. Ichi. GO!

            In one swift motion, he drew his sword while lifting his head. Imagining there was an invisible opponent to the left, he tensed and leapt from his position, swinging in a diagonal upward arc reaching from his right leg to his left shoulder. In midair, he whirled around to his right, disabling the invisible attacker coming from behind. Continuing the rest of the spin, he landed with a sharp downward slash right down the middle.

            //Raging Pheonix!//

            Pretending to be surrounded by enemies, he swirled around as he rose, slicing the opponents at an angle until he returned to his full height. He then circled around the other way, cutting any who remained. The loose cotton sleeves of his gi billowed in the wind, emitting a startling whoosh as if the air was rising in a miniature tornado.

            //Whirling Dragon!//

            His eyes darted to the right, as if an attacker were rushing at him. Ducking low and exposing the sharp edge of his blade like a razor edge along his back, protecting his exposed spine and causing the attacker to leap over him instead of attempting to hit him from above.

            //Crouching Tortoise!//

            Rising from his defensive position, he drew the katana in an upward arc just as before, then proceeded to rain blows upon the opponent's back. His movements were incredibly fast, and with the sun glinting off the metal, all you could see was a brilliant silver blur as he unleashed a flurry of cuts in a matter of seconds.

            //Slashing Tiger!//

            Glancing around as if checking for any other threat, he settled back in a loose stance and drew the back of his sword along the rim once more and sheathed it. He bowed again, in respect for his now-dead 'opponents', then looked up at the amazed faces of his 2-man audience. There was a moment of silence, but when Takao cleared his throat, the brunette was startled out of his reverie and shut off the recording system.

            As soon as he clicked the button, the blonde darted forward, clasping the sword-wielding teen's hands in his own. "WAI! That was SOOOO COOOOOL!!! Teach me, onegai!!" (Teach me, PLEASE!!)

            This time, the blue-haired boy couldn't help but sweatdrop. "T- teach you?! D- date…." (B-but…)

            The bespectacled chibi came to his rescue by exclaiming, "Max!! Don't burden him like that!!" He grinned, adjusting his glasses. "Besides, if you're learning, I want to, too!"

            Takao just sweatdropped further and sighed, muttering, "Yare, yare…." (sheesh/really/jeez…/goodness gracious)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

(Later)

            "Naa~ watch my stuff for me, okei? I'm gonna go get something to drink…"

            Takao received 2 incoherent mumbles in reply, as his self-proclaimed fanclub was currently entranced by today's footage for what had to be the fifteenth time in the past hour. Shrugging to himself, he tossed his white top into his bag, carefully propping the Masamune up against the bench the 2 sat on. Grabbing his wallet, he headed toward the park's snack shack, tugging at his sweat-soaked cotton undershirt.

            Too engrossed in the short demonstrative video, Max and Kyojyu failed to notice a pair of sharp eyes trained on the ancient blade beside them. Icy blue eyes stole a quick glance at the guardians of his prey, and after finding them to be occupied, a lithe hand reached out to grasp the hilt of the sword. As soon as he touched it, he winced, hissing in pain. His hand felt like it was on fire, filling his body with a burning sensation starting from his fingertips. Unable to endure the excruciating pain, the thief released his prize, retracting his hand back through the bush he was hiding in.

            Gazing down at his hand, the red-headed boy frowned as he found his hand was red and bloody, scorch marks racing across his palm. Nodding to himself, he clenched his injured hand, ignoring the sharp stinging sensation it caused. Yes, this was the sword his superior seeks… Slipping from his hiding place, he raced off toward a large, looming building in the distance- Biovolt.

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K: Yep- a random appearance from Tala… Pretty much his only planned scene in the entire fic… ^^; Ignore Voltaire's red-haired bishonen lackey… yeah…. Actually, I could've had it be a number of different people, but I decided on Tala, cuz' he's my favorite Bakuten Shoot Badboy. ^_~

Anyhoo, did you guys see what I was chatting to Ran about earlier? How the Murasame is affecting pure little Takao? If not, here are the 3 points in there. 1 was incredibly obvious, since he actually mentioned it in the text, but the other 2 are a bit hard to spot. ^_~

1) The sword has made Takao more aggressive, since he actually acts like a 'typical' cussing teen, and also, in all his original moves, only one was defensive- the other 3 were all offensive.

2) He said that every time he touches the sword, it makes his hands feel 'dirty'. This is because the sword's natural bloodlust is trying to taint his purity, so he feels like he needs to cleanse himself.

3) During his second kata, instead of simply rendering his invisible opponents unconscious, he killed them outright. This is the sword trying to compensate for the lack of man-slaying like it wants to. Since it can't actually kill anyone on its own, it's subconsciously prepping Takao to slaughter his opponents when in such a situation- training him so that he will eventually satisfy its bloodlust.

Heh heh… That last one was pretty sneaky, wasn't it? XP I think I'm getting better at this 'underlying themes' thing… Probably because I actually planned ahead and have a plot for this one…. ^^;

Well, time to post this! I hope you guys enjoyed it! ^_^ Who knew this chapter would turn out so long? I only wrote 2 fricking notes down about what I wanted to happen! ^^; Aa~ I guess I got carried away… Not that that's a bad thing… ^_~

Don't forget to R&R! I can't wait to hear what you guys think of this! ^_^ Ja ne!