"End of the Treasured Ones"
A Love Hina fanfiction by Ben Woo
Disclaimer: See Ch. 1
After lunch, the trio made their way to the balcony. Ben and Keitaro decided to finally train after a day and a half of procrastination. They fell into the same stance that they used the first night. Ben still used his sword and sheath combo, but Keitaro was wielding a giant gwan-do spear instead of the steel wires he had used before. The spear was red on the pole, and had a black blade. Carved into the blade on both sides were two Chinese dragons (I make a point to say Chinese because the American stereotype doesn't fit my thoughts). Each side featured the two dragons intertwining, ending with the two facing each other. One was a white dragon, while the other was a lighter shade of black than the actual blade.
"Shinobu, would you do the honors? It just wouldn't do to have one of us cheat in the starting," asked Ben.
"Hai. Ready...set..FIGHT!" said Shinobu.
As soon as the 'f' in fight left her mouth the two warriors charged. The speed they charged at was very slow compared to what they would use on normal occasions.
*I can't afford to use energy on moving fast. I'll have to rely on skill instead of raw speed and strength.* thought Ben. Keitaro's thoughts were almost a duplicate of Ben's.
Two blades clashed, one belonging to a sword and the other a spear. The wielders were both incredibly powerful, but they didn't show it, for conserving their energy at the moment was more important. Ben saw that Keitaro was distracted with holding the sword, so he went for slamming his sheath at Keitaro's mid section. The attack caught Keitaro off-guard and sent him flying five feet away. Before he fell, Keitaro flipped to regain his balance. When he landed he spun the spear above his head, and threw it at Ben.
*Oh crap, that thing's gonna curve up when it gets here. I'll have to block-* thought Ben as he raised his sword and sheath up to form an 'x'.
The sword collided with the spear and made a resounding 'clang'. The spear didn't break Ben's guard, but knocked him down. The spear flew back at Keitaro, who caught it in a dash towards Ben. Keitaro then began spinning the spear over his head while charging, giving a battle cry as he went. Ben rolled back into a crouch position, weapons at the ready. He saw Keitaro charging, and thought of what he would do next.
*Darn, with him spinning the spear I can't jump, looks like I'll have to side step.* thought Ben.
Ben blurred and dashed to Keitaro's right side. There was a shadow left behind by Ben, and Keitaro attacked it, moving too quickly to be able to stop from doing so. Ben quickly slashed with his sword and sheath twice and then ended with two twin ki blasts. The blasts were actually slashed that had continued from the points. Keitaro took the hits well as he took the brunt of the melee attacks and rolled with the ki attacks. This way, he at least avoided major damage.
*Damn, I didn't think he was this good. Well, I should stop fooling around. Time to bring in the real thing.* thought Keitaro
Keitaro's spear began transforming into the green and yellow sword he wielded before (see ch. 1 for description). Not wanting to let the opportunity to attack escape, Ben sheathed his sword and brought out his right hand. A ball of black ki formed, and was released at Keitaro. There was an explosion, and after the small scale mushroom cloud cleared, Keitaro stood with his sword in a blocking position. Ben was surprised by this, and Keitaro exploited this momentary surprise. He dashed in and slashed Ben's chest, sending him flying into the railing.
"Ben! Sempai, please go easier on him!" cried Shinobu, who was obviously concerned for Ben's condition.
"Shinobu, don't worry about Ben, he's a lot tougher than before so I'm probably not hurting him. I see that you have a crush on Ben now, however. I'm glad that you have decided to start checking guys your age," teased Keitaro.
"I d-d-don't have a c-c-crush on Ben," stuttered Shinobu.
"Keitaro, please stop teasing Shinobu and fight. This isn't gossip time ya know? We only have about two more days, maybe three," said Ben as he got up with his now transformed sword.
"Well, now we have our best out, so let's let the fireworks fly!" exclaimed Keitaro.
The two ran at each other, weapons raised high. They slashed and countered each others' blades. Their blades interlocked, they resorted to another method of attacking...head butting. Ben seemed to have a stronger head as he wasn't recoiling as much as Keitaro. That didn't mean he wasn't getting hurt though. Both of them were seeing white spots in their vision after about ten bashes. The two combatants broke apart, and began circling each other. Ben produced four kunai with his left hand and threw them at Keitaro. Forced to dodge, Keitaro lept into the air. Ben had planned for this, and pulled out more, tossing them in his flight path. Keitaro twirled in the air, deflecting the kunai. Seeing Keitaro would be disoriented after the spin, Ben released a blast from his sword. The blast was wide enough so that Keitaro couldn't dodge, but was weak because it was so wide. Keitaro was hit by the center of the blast, taking the most possible damage. He fell to the ground with a thud. As Keitaro got up, he launched thing wires from his sleeves. The wires were seen by Ben, but he couldn't do much but try to slash the incoming wires. He succeeded for the most part, but was caught in a tangle, his left arm ensnared along with his right leg. Keitaro smiled, seeing his prey caught in his attack. Keitaro pulled the strings tight onto Ben's limbs, and struck the strings with his sword. The vibration traveled from the beginning to the end, cutting Ben's flesh. Ben gritted his teeth to keep from screaming, but the expression on his face made up for the lack of sound. The burst of blood also gave away the sign of pain.
"Ben! Sempai please stop!" pleaded Shinobu.
"Hehe, don't worry Shinobu, as I said before, he isn't in danger. This is just sparring." answered Keitaro, though doubt was evident on his face.
"Well, you've certainly had your fun. Let's see what happens next." said Ben chuckling.
Ben broke the strings suddenly. This brought another burst of blood, which surprised Keitaro, who wondered how much discipline it must have taken to reach the point of self mutilation to escape. Ben charged in ducking, with his right arm holding his sword to his back diagonally. He brought his left arm to the hilt of the sword and slashed hard. Keitaro brought his sword up to block, but it was no use. Ben broke Keitaro's guard and pummeled him into the wall, unconscious.
"See Shinobu, I'm not hurt, just scratched. Keitaro though, is going to feel it when he regains his consciousness," said Ben with a smile.
"Hai, but did you have to knock him out?" asked Shinobu.
"Well, it was pay back for cutting me up, so yeah. Anyway, I appreciate you trying to help me, but please don't do it. This is just training and we need to get better or else we have less of a chance of winning. Please do me this, don't interfere if possible," said Ben.
"Hai, I will then. Congratulations on your victory," said Shinobu.
She walked up to Ben and hugged him. While hugging she gave him a peck on the cheek. Both blushed after, but found relief in the fact that no one was present. The two stayed there, hugging for about two minutes, and then picked up Keitaro and left. They dropped him off in his room, laying him on his futon face up and under the blankets It was too early to start dinner, but too late to eat a snack, so the two decided to start their self-defense lesson. They went to the balcony and cleaned up. Then they started.
"Okay Shinobu, this is our first lesson. I want you to first try to hit me. I'll move slowly so that you can see me. I just want to see the extent of your abilities right now," said Ben.
"Hai, Ben-sensei," giggled Shinobu. At this Ben frowned.
With a 'kyah' Shinobu ran to Ben. She was incredibly slow compared to Keitaro, but she was fast, all things considered. Ben sides stepped to the left, dodging the punch Shinobu launched at him. Shinobu tried to kick him to keep him distracted, but only succeeded in tripping herself while bringing her leg up. Ben caught Shinobu, but also tripped. The two fell to the floor in an awkward position. Of course at this precise moment Motoko comes up for her afternoon practice. She sees Ben in a sensual position with Shinobu, and immediately forms ideas. Without bothering to ask what happened, she charges, katana raised. In the kanrinin's room, Keitaro wakes up. He has a ringing in his ears, he can see white spots everywhere, and he is sore all over. He feels for his glasses, and brings them up to his eyes. His first semi-decent vision is of Naru, his not so secret love interest. She has a concerned look on her face as she is soaking a towel in what appeared to be warm water. Naru didn't seem to have noticed Keitaro's return to the conscious.
*How sweet of her to do this. I'll have to thank her.* thought Keitaro.
"Thanks for being here with me, Naru," said Keitaro with a smile.
"Don't worry about it, Keitaro. I bet you would try to do the same thing for me," said Naru with a smile. The 'try' didn't slip by Keitaro.
"I see you have a strong faith in my ability to aid ailments. I guess it can't be helped, being as though you opinion of me before wasn't exactly good," sighed Keitaro.
"Well, if you weren't always acting so perverted, you wouldn't have made such a bad impression on us. Only Shinobu and Mutsumi don't think you're perverted, and that's because they're both too innocent and naïve," said Naru.
"I suppose that's what you would think, after your past experiences with me. I wish to apologize for my past accidents however," said Keitaro.
"Well, I suppose I can forgive you, though I shouldn't because of the numerous times you've done perverted things. You say it's an accident, but you've done it so many times I can't tell anymore. I'm sorry if this sounds like you're the enemy of all women," said Naru. Her expression had softened as she wiped Keitaro's forehead with the warm and moist towel.
"Arigatou gozaimasu, Narusegawa. I'm glad you have forgiven me, now all I need is the forgiveness of the others."
"That will be hard to achieve with some of the tenants like Motoko. The others may do other things. For example Kitsune might try to start an inquisition over this change in behavior Su might decide to do painful tests on your brain, and Shinobu might stop cooking for you personally, which could hinder your regenerative abilities."
"Hai hai, that's true. I do believe that they will avoid rash conduct, however. I guess I should get going then." finished Keitaro.
As Keitaro stood up he accidentally brushed his nose against Naru's, and she jerked back, which led to her tripping and eventually falling onto Keitaro in a compromising position. This, to say the least, wasn't a good start for Keitaro and was probably an omen to not request what he was planning to.
"If you're going to ask for forgiveness, you might want to avoid these kinds of things."
"Yeah, but as you can see, this was totally not my fault."
"True, but although I realize and acknowledge it, the others may not."
"Yeah, well, I best be going now!" said Keitaro after regaining composure and getting out of the previous position.
On the balcony Motoko lies unconscious in some charred clothing. Ben is sitting next to Shinobu, who is sitting next to Motoko and treating her wounds.
"Did you have to go so hard on her, Ben?" asked Shinobu.
"Well, I couldn't help it being as though she was berserk. I don't think I left any future scars on her though. Let's drop her off in her room and go." suggested Ben.
"Hai. Then I'll start dinner."
"I'll help. No if's, and's, or but's." said Ben before Shinobu could react.
The two dragged Motoko to her room. Ben laid her on her futon and left with Shinobu. Along the way, they meet with Keitaro and Naru, who had decided to find the closest tenant to talk to.
"Ah, Shinobu, can we talk?" asked Keitaro.
"Sure, if Ben can come." replied Shinobu.
"Uh, I guess, though I wasn't planning this to happen. Since you're bringing Ben, I'll bring Naru" said Keitaro. With that, the four left to Keitaro's room.
Author's Notes: I forgot to mention this in the last two chapters, but the naming of chapters 1-4 were mostly based on suggestions from a fellow writer named Neogene. Go and check his fics, the screen name I mentioned is his ff.net account. I also have a list of my pre-readers. I have two!
Pre-readers: Koibito Chris Ta
Disclaimer: See Ch. 1
After lunch, the trio made their way to the balcony. Ben and Keitaro decided to finally train after a day and a half of procrastination. They fell into the same stance that they used the first night. Ben still used his sword and sheath combo, but Keitaro was wielding a giant gwan-do spear instead of the steel wires he had used before. The spear was red on the pole, and had a black blade. Carved into the blade on both sides were two Chinese dragons (I make a point to say Chinese because the American stereotype doesn't fit my thoughts). Each side featured the two dragons intertwining, ending with the two facing each other. One was a white dragon, while the other was a lighter shade of black than the actual blade.
"Shinobu, would you do the honors? It just wouldn't do to have one of us cheat in the starting," asked Ben.
"Hai. Ready...set..FIGHT!" said Shinobu.
As soon as the 'f' in fight left her mouth the two warriors charged. The speed they charged at was very slow compared to what they would use on normal occasions.
*I can't afford to use energy on moving fast. I'll have to rely on skill instead of raw speed and strength.* thought Ben. Keitaro's thoughts were almost a duplicate of Ben's.
Two blades clashed, one belonging to a sword and the other a spear. The wielders were both incredibly powerful, but they didn't show it, for conserving their energy at the moment was more important. Ben saw that Keitaro was distracted with holding the sword, so he went for slamming his sheath at Keitaro's mid section. The attack caught Keitaro off-guard and sent him flying five feet away. Before he fell, Keitaro flipped to regain his balance. When he landed he spun the spear above his head, and threw it at Ben.
*Oh crap, that thing's gonna curve up when it gets here. I'll have to block-* thought Ben as he raised his sword and sheath up to form an 'x'.
The sword collided with the spear and made a resounding 'clang'. The spear didn't break Ben's guard, but knocked him down. The spear flew back at Keitaro, who caught it in a dash towards Ben. Keitaro then began spinning the spear over his head while charging, giving a battle cry as he went. Ben rolled back into a crouch position, weapons at the ready. He saw Keitaro charging, and thought of what he would do next.
*Darn, with him spinning the spear I can't jump, looks like I'll have to side step.* thought Ben.
Ben blurred and dashed to Keitaro's right side. There was a shadow left behind by Ben, and Keitaro attacked it, moving too quickly to be able to stop from doing so. Ben quickly slashed with his sword and sheath twice and then ended with two twin ki blasts. The blasts were actually slashed that had continued from the points. Keitaro took the hits well as he took the brunt of the melee attacks and rolled with the ki attacks. This way, he at least avoided major damage.
*Damn, I didn't think he was this good. Well, I should stop fooling around. Time to bring in the real thing.* thought Keitaro
Keitaro's spear began transforming into the green and yellow sword he wielded before (see ch. 1 for description). Not wanting to let the opportunity to attack escape, Ben sheathed his sword and brought out his right hand. A ball of black ki formed, and was released at Keitaro. There was an explosion, and after the small scale mushroom cloud cleared, Keitaro stood with his sword in a blocking position. Ben was surprised by this, and Keitaro exploited this momentary surprise. He dashed in and slashed Ben's chest, sending him flying into the railing.
"Ben! Sempai, please go easier on him!" cried Shinobu, who was obviously concerned for Ben's condition.
"Shinobu, don't worry about Ben, he's a lot tougher than before so I'm probably not hurting him. I see that you have a crush on Ben now, however. I'm glad that you have decided to start checking guys your age," teased Keitaro.
"I d-d-don't have a c-c-crush on Ben," stuttered Shinobu.
"Keitaro, please stop teasing Shinobu and fight. This isn't gossip time ya know? We only have about two more days, maybe three," said Ben as he got up with his now transformed sword.
"Well, now we have our best out, so let's let the fireworks fly!" exclaimed Keitaro.
The two ran at each other, weapons raised high. They slashed and countered each others' blades. Their blades interlocked, they resorted to another method of attacking...head butting. Ben seemed to have a stronger head as he wasn't recoiling as much as Keitaro. That didn't mean he wasn't getting hurt though. Both of them were seeing white spots in their vision after about ten bashes. The two combatants broke apart, and began circling each other. Ben produced four kunai with his left hand and threw them at Keitaro. Forced to dodge, Keitaro lept into the air. Ben had planned for this, and pulled out more, tossing them in his flight path. Keitaro twirled in the air, deflecting the kunai. Seeing Keitaro would be disoriented after the spin, Ben released a blast from his sword. The blast was wide enough so that Keitaro couldn't dodge, but was weak because it was so wide. Keitaro was hit by the center of the blast, taking the most possible damage. He fell to the ground with a thud. As Keitaro got up, he launched thing wires from his sleeves. The wires were seen by Ben, but he couldn't do much but try to slash the incoming wires. He succeeded for the most part, but was caught in a tangle, his left arm ensnared along with his right leg. Keitaro smiled, seeing his prey caught in his attack. Keitaro pulled the strings tight onto Ben's limbs, and struck the strings with his sword. The vibration traveled from the beginning to the end, cutting Ben's flesh. Ben gritted his teeth to keep from screaming, but the expression on his face made up for the lack of sound. The burst of blood also gave away the sign of pain.
"Ben! Sempai please stop!" pleaded Shinobu.
"Hehe, don't worry Shinobu, as I said before, he isn't in danger. This is just sparring." answered Keitaro, though doubt was evident on his face.
"Well, you've certainly had your fun. Let's see what happens next." said Ben chuckling.
Ben broke the strings suddenly. This brought another burst of blood, which surprised Keitaro, who wondered how much discipline it must have taken to reach the point of self mutilation to escape. Ben charged in ducking, with his right arm holding his sword to his back diagonally. He brought his left arm to the hilt of the sword and slashed hard. Keitaro brought his sword up to block, but it was no use. Ben broke Keitaro's guard and pummeled him into the wall, unconscious.
"See Shinobu, I'm not hurt, just scratched. Keitaro though, is going to feel it when he regains his consciousness," said Ben with a smile.
"Hai, but did you have to knock him out?" asked Shinobu.
"Well, it was pay back for cutting me up, so yeah. Anyway, I appreciate you trying to help me, but please don't do it. This is just training and we need to get better or else we have less of a chance of winning. Please do me this, don't interfere if possible," said Ben.
"Hai, I will then. Congratulations on your victory," said Shinobu.
She walked up to Ben and hugged him. While hugging she gave him a peck on the cheek. Both blushed after, but found relief in the fact that no one was present. The two stayed there, hugging for about two minutes, and then picked up Keitaro and left. They dropped him off in his room, laying him on his futon face up and under the blankets It was too early to start dinner, but too late to eat a snack, so the two decided to start their self-defense lesson. They went to the balcony and cleaned up. Then they started.
"Okay Shinobu, this is our first lesson. I want you to first try to hit me. I'll move slowly so that you can see me. I just want to see the extent of your abilities right now," said Ben.
"Hai, Ben-sensei," giggled Shinobu. At this Ben frowned.
With a 'kyah' Shinobu ran to Ben. She was incredibly slow compared to Keitaro, but she was fast, all things considered. Ben sides stepped to the left, dodging the punch Shinobu launched at him. Shinobu tried to kick him to keep him distracted, but only succeeded in tripping herself while bringing her leg up. Ben caught Shinobu, but also tripped. The two fell to the floor in an awkward position. Of course at this precise moment Motoko comes up for her afternoon practice. She sees Ben in a sensual position with Shinobu, and immediately forms ideas. Without bothering to ask what happened, she charges, katana raised. In the kanrinin's room, Keitaro wakes up. He has a ringing in his ears, he can see white spots everywhere, and he is sore all over. He feels for his glasses, and brings them up to his eyes. His first semi-decent vision is of Naru, his not so secret love interest. She has a concerned look on her face as she is soaking a towel in what appeared to be warm water. Naru didn't seem to have noticed Keitaro's return to the conscious.
*How sweet of her to do this. I'll have to thank her.* thought Keitaro.
"Thanks for being here with me, Naru," said Keitaro with a smile.
"Don't worry about it, Keitaro. I bet you would try to do the same thing for me," said Naru with a smile. The 'try' didn't slip by Keitaro.
"I see you have a strong faith in my ability to aid ailments. I guess it can't be helped, being as though you opinion of me before wasn't exactly good," sighed Keitaro.
"Well, if you weren't always acting so perverted, you wouldn't have made such a bad impression on us. Only Shinobu and Mutsumi don't think you're perverted, and that's because they're both too innocent and naïve," said Naru.
"I suppose that's what you would think, after your past experiences with me. I wish to apologize for my past accidents however," said Keitaro.
"Well, I suppose I can forgive you, though I shouldn't because of the numerous times you've done perverted things. You say it's an accident, but you've done it so many times I can't tell anymore. I'm sorry if this sounds like you're the enemy of all women," said Naru. Her expression had softened as she wiped Keitaro's forehead with the warm and moist towel.
"Arigatou gozaimasu, Narusegawa. I'm glad you have forgiven me, now all I need is the forgiveness of the others."
"That will be hard to achieve with some of the tenants like Motoko. The others may do other things. For example Kitsune might try to start an inquisition over this change in behavior Su might decide to do painful tests on your brain, and Shinobu might stop cooking for you personally, which could hinder your regenerative abilities."
"Hai hai, that's true. I do believe that they will avoid rash conduct, however. I guess I should get going then." finished Keitaro.
As Keitaro stood up he accidentally brushed his nose against Naru's, and she jerked back, which led to her tripping and eventually falling onto Keitaro in a compromising position. This, to say the least, wasn't a good start for Keitaro and was probably an omen to not request what he was planning to.
"If you're going to ask for forgiveness, you might want to avoid these kinds of things."
"Yeah, but as you can see, this was totally not my fault."
"True, but although I realize and acknowledge it, the others may not."
"Yeah, well, I best be going now!" said Keitaro after regaining composure and getting out of the previous position.
On the balcony Motoko lies unconscious in some charred clothing. Ben is sitting next to Shinobu, who is sitting next to Motoko and treating her wounds.
"Did you have to go so hard on her, Ben?" asked Shinobu.
"Well, I couldn't help it being as though she was berserk. I don't think I left any future scars on her though. Let's drop her off in her room and go." suggested Ben.
"Hai. Then I'll start dinner."
"I'll help. No if's, and's, or but's." said Ben before Shinobu could react.
The two dragged Motoko to her room. Ben laid her on her futon and left with Shinobu. Along the way, they meet with Keitaro and Naru, who had decided to find the closest tenant to talk to.
"Ah, Shinobu, can we talk?" asked Keitaro.
"Sure, if Ben can come." replied Shinobu.
"Uh, I guess, though I wasn't planning this to happen. Since you're bringing Ben, I'll bring Naru" said Keitaro. With that, the four left to Keitaro's room.
Author's Notes: I forgot to mention this in the last two chapters, but the naming of chapters 1-4 were mostly based on suggestions from a fellow writer named Neogene. Go and check his fics, the screen name I mentioned is his ff.net account. I also have a list of my pre-readers. I have two!
Pre-readers: Koibito Chris Ta
