Chapter One
Shingo Yabuki was busy sitting against a tree and jotting notes in his ever-present notebook. He had just undergone another rigorous training session with his new master - his missing master's father, Saysiu Kusanagi.
Ever since his former master Kyo Kusanagi had left him and had then suddenly disappeared completely, his father Saysiu had taken it upon himself to train the young Yabuki Hobbit to become a more confident and efficient fighter in the annual King of Fighters tournaments.
Occupied with his writings, Shingo was no aware of a faint humming sound of a voice as its owner approached. Believing he recognised the voice, Shingo finished scribbling his notes down and put his pen and notebook away in his pocket before jumping to his feet and going to greet the newcomer, a smile creeping upon his face as he quickened his pace.
At last he stopped running when he saw the person strolling happily along on the pathway into the courtyard at the bottom of the grassy hill where he had been sitting.
"You're late."
Shingo crossed his arms and smirked matter of factly at the woman, who stopped in her tracks, her black hair flowing gently on a slight breeze that blew past.
She turned to Shingo.
"Chizuru Kagura, the Sorceress is never late, Shingo Yabuki," she looked at him. "Nor is she early. She arrives precisely when she means to."
The two fighters continued to stare at each other for a long time, their gazes never faltering as if they were sizing each other up before a match.
Suddenly, Shingo let out a laugh as he hugged Chizuru, who also broke into a grin. "It's great to see you again, Kagura-Sama!"
"Well, you didn't think I would miss your Master's birthday party, did you, Shingo?" Chizuru laughed.
Shingo laughed again. "Not at all! Come! This way! I will take you to see him." he began to walk down the path towards the Kusanagi household.
As they walked, Chizuru could see the various banners and decorations being put up for Saysiu's party and she smiled. "And how is your master these days?"
"He seems. well, occupied recently," the smile left Shingo's face for a moment. "I don't know. Maybe he's still trying to get everything sorted out for the big party. So many paople are invited from all over the place! I get a headache just looking at the list of guests!" he paused. "But I really do think he's up to something."
Chizuru didn't reply but she mentally took note of Shingo's words as he led her to the Kusanagi household.
"Well, must be getting on with my training, Kagura-Sama," Shingo stood outside the main doors for a beat before turning to walk away. "But it's good to see you again!"
Chizuru watched Shingo leave before she turned and knocked politely on Saysiu's door.
Within a few seconds, a flustered-looking Saysiu Kusanagi opened the door with more than enough force. Any heated words that might have been on his lips, however, vanished as soon as he saw Chizuru's face.
"Miss Kagura! Come in, come in!" Saysiu laughed heartily as he put an arm around her shoulder, leading her inside the house. As like the outseide, there were also various banners and assortments decorating the interior of the palace.
"Would you like some tea?" asked Saysiu, who then flashed a smile. "Or perhaps something a bit stronger?"
"Tea would be great, thank you, Saysiu." Chizuru said politely.
"Ah, since my poor wife passed away, I've had to make and plan everything myself, including this party," Saysiu said, heading towards the cooking area. "Shingo tries to help here and there but sometimes it's best for him to stay out of the way since he sometimes ends up causing trouble as oppsed to helping."
Chizuru laughed, looking around the room and at the documents on the table next to her. Taking a closer look, she peered at a few maps on the table, stopping abruptly as Saysiu spoke again.
"Such a long time has passed since I have really done anything exciting, Chizuru," he sighed as he handed her the teacup. "I'd love to see the world again. Find a nice place to stay for a while and finish the book that I have been writing."
"So you mean to go through with your plans then?" Chizuru asked. "Travel the world and all."
"Definetely. Everything's been arranged."
Chizuru took a sip from her tea, seemingly lost in thought for a while, before she announced "Shingo suspects something, you know. I mean, you are going to tell him that you're leaving for a while, aren't you? He is very fond of you, you know. Especially since Kyo."
She trailled off, not wanting to mention Saysiu's missing son's name.
Saysiu stood silently for a few moments, his face unreadable. Then he bypassed the topic of his son totally. "Shingo would probably want to follow me if he knew I was leaving," he began to start pacing and Chizuru noticed his hand reach into his pocket for something. "I'm getting too old for this fighting business, Chizuru. I need to take time away from training Shingo and the King of Fighters tournaments. Possibly a permanent one."
That night, the whole area around the Kusanagi residence was filled with a joyful atmosphere as the party went into the night. There were fireworks and music, food and drink. Everybody was happy.
And then came the time when everyone was calling for Saysiu to give a birthday speech.
Saysiu Kusanagi stepped upon the stage and cleared his throat, glancing around at everyone in the huge courtyard before he started to speak.
"My dear friends from all over the world, today is a special day for me. But looking back, it is such a short time to have spent with such excellent and admirable fighters and friends. To be honest, I don't even know half of you as well as I should like, and it could be said that I actually like less than half of you half as well as you deserve."
Some of the smiles trailed off amongst the crowd.
"Well. I have things which I still think I need to do whilst I'm still in this world," Saysiu's hand reached into his pocket and take something out, placing it in his hands behind his back, and from the crowd, Chizuru noticed this. "Therefore, I regret to announce that this is the end. I'll be leaving now, and I bid all of you a very fond farewell," he looked at Shingo and whipsered "Goodbye."
And then he was gone.
Saysiu had vanished into thin air, leaving the crowd to gasp in surprise and shock.
Whilst the crowd of people were searching for the missing Saysiu, somewhere in the Kusanagi residence, doors began to slide open by themselves, leading towards Saysiu's room.
As the door into his room closed and locked, Saysiu Kusanagi reappeared again, laughing to himself as he removed what appeared to be a gold ring from his finger.
He put the ring back into his pocket and went to get his belongings to leave.
"I suppose you think that was terribly clever, old friend."
Saysiu jumped in surprise, turning to see Chizuru Kagura standing in the corner of his room, her arms folded.
The look of surprise soon fadeded as Saysiu smiled and continued to gather his things. "Come now, Chizuru. Did you see the look on their faces?"
"There are few magic rings in this world," Chizuru continued regardless. "And not one of them should be used lightly."
"It was just a bit of fun. Some drama for the guests to take home with them. And I'm sure it was a surprise that none of them will soon forget," Saysiu then sighed and admitted "You're probably right, Kagura, as usual," he grabbed a travel bag. "You will keep an eye on Shingo, won't you?"
"Two eyes," Chizuru nodded with a lop-sided grin. "Whenever I have the chance."
"I'm leaving everything to him whilst I'm gone."
"And the ring? Will that be staying too?"
"Of course. It's in an envelope on my desk." Saysiu gestured behind him before pausing and saying "No, wait. I have it. Right here in my pocket."
He took the gold ring out of his pocket, staring at it as he constantly turned it over in his hands. "Isn't that funny?" he seemed lost in thought. "I mean, after all, why shouldn't I keep it with me?"
Chizuru stood beside him, concern on her face. "I think you should leave the ring behind. Is that so hard to do?"
Saysiu looked at her and shrugged. "Not really." he turned back to the ring. "Now it comes to it, I don't feel like parting with it. It's mine.I found it..It came to me!"
Chizuru frowned at this sudden change of attutide. There was something about that ring.
"It's mine.My own.My Precious."
"Precious?" Chizuru's head snapped up and out of her thoughts. That name. "It's been called that name before, Saysiu. But not just by you."
Saysiu threw his hands up in the air in anger and frustration. "What business of yours is it about what I choose to do with my own things?"
"I think you've had that ring quite long enough, Saysiu." Chizuru tried to coax him into giving it to her but he backed away.
"You want it for yourself!"
"Saysiu Kusanagi!" Chizuru was suddenly surrounded with a powerful aura that seemed to fill the entire room with an ominous energy. "Do not underestimate me! I am not trying to rob you," and then as quickly as it had appeared, the strange aura was suddenly gone again and her voice toned down as she added "I'm trying to help you. All these years, we've been friends. Please, just trust me as you once did. Let the ring go."
Saysiu's face seemed to drawn now as he looked at Chizuru with an tired look upon his face. "You're right, Chizuru. Give the ring to Shingo Yabuki."
With that, he grabbed his belongings and headed for the door.
"Saysiu."
He stopped upon hearing her voice.
"The ring is still in your pocket."
"Oh. Yes." Saysiu took out the ring, staring at it for a long time before he finally dropped it onto the floor and strolled out of the door. "Goodbye, Chizuru."
"Take care, Saysiu Kusanagi," Chizuru called softly after him as he left. "Until we meet again."
Later that night, after all the guests had left, Shingo Yabuki was still looking for his master. He had searched throughout the courtyard and was now looking through the household. His first though was to try Saysiu's room.
"Kusanagi-sensei?"
Shingo cautiously opened the door into the room, only to find Chizuru Kagura sitting there at the desk and peering out of the window muttering thoughts to herself.
As he went to approach her, his foot kicked something lying on the floor and he bent down to see what it was.
A gold ring.
He looked towards Chizuru a frown upon his young face. "Kusanagi-san has left, hasn't he?" He walked towards her. "He used to say that he was going to travel around the world one day. I didn't think he'd leave so soon."
Chizuru didn't answer.
Shingo was now standing beside her. She didn't seem to notice him - her mind far away. Shingo's frown deepened. "Chizuru-sama?"
This time, Chizuru stopped her musings and turned to look at Shingo, the gold ring in the open palm of his hand. "Saysiu has gone travelling for a while. I think he's going to visit some friends," she smiled comfortingly up at him. "He's left you the palace whilst he is gone. All of it." She held out an open envelope, gesturing for Shingo to put the ring into it. He obeyed and she sealed the envelope shut with an old wax seal before giving it back to him. "This ring is yours now. Put it somewhere out of sight."
Chizuru got up from the chair at the desk.
"Where are you going?" asked Shingo, a look of confusion on his face. There was something strange going on.
"There are some things which I must see to." Chizuru headed for the door.
"What things?"
"I need to find the answers to some questions I have." Chizuru grabbed her coat.
"But you've only just gotten here," Shingo called after her as he ran to catch up. "I don't understand. What's going on?"
Chizuru stopped in her tracks and turned around to look appologetically at Shingo. "I don't quite get it wither, Shingo. That's why I have to go. I need to research into something. But for now, just keep the ring secret, okay? Keep it safe."
With that, she was gone.
Shingo Yabuki was busy sitting against a tree and jotting notes in his ever-present notebook. He had just undergone another rigorous training session with his new master - his missing master's father, Saysiu Kusanagi.
Ever since his former master Kyo Kusanagi had left him and had then suddenly disappeared completely, his father Saysiu had taken it upon himself to train the young Yabuki Hobbit to become a more confident and efficient fighter in the annual King of Fighters tournaments.
Occupied with his writings, Shingo was no aware of a faint humming sound of a voice as its owner approached. Believing he recognised the voice, Shingo finished scribbling his notes down and put his pen and notebook away in his pocket before jumping to his feet and going to greet the newcomer, a smile creeping upon his face as he quickened his pace.
At last he stopped running when he saw the person strolling happily along on the pathway into the courtyard at the bottom of the grassy hill where he had been sitting.
"You're late."
Shingo crossed his arms and smirked matter of factly at the woman, who stopped in her tracks, her black hair flowing gently on a slight breeze that blew past.
She turned to Shingo.
"Chizuru Kagura, the Sorceress is never late, Shingo Yabuki," she looked at him. "Nor is she early. She arrives precisely when she means to."
The two fighters continued to stare at each other for a long time, their gazes never faltering as if they were sizing each other up before a match.
Suddenly, Shingo let out a laugh as he hugged Chizuru, who also broke into a grin. "It's great to see you again, Kagura-Sama!"
"Well, you didn't think I would miss your Master's birthday party, did you, Shingo?" Chizuru laughed.
Shingo laughed again. "Not at all! Come! This way! I will take you to see him." he began to walk down the path towards the Kusanagi household.
As they walked, Chizuru could see the various banners and decorations being put up for Saysiu's party and she smiled. "And how is your master these days?"
"He seems. well, occupied recently," the smile left Shingo's face for a moment. "I don't know. Maybe he's still trying to get everything sorted out for the big party. So many paople are invited from all over the place! I get a headache just looking at the list of guests!" he paused. "But I really do think he's up to something."
Chizuru didn't reply but she mentally took note of Shingo's words as he led her to the Kusanagi household.
"Well, must be getting on with my training, Kagura-Sama," Shingo stood outside the main doors for a beat before turning to walk away. "But it's good to see you again!"
Chizuru watched Shingo leave before she turned and knocked politely on Saysiu's door.
Within a few seconds, a flustered-looking Saysiu Kusanagi opened the door with more than enough force. Any heated words that might have been on his lips, however, vanished as soon as he saw Chizuru's face.
"Miss Kagura! Come in, come in!" Saysiu laughed heartily as he put an arm around her shoulder, leading her inside the house. As like the outseide, there were also various banners and assortments decorating the interior of the palace.
"Would you like some tea?" asked Saysiu, who then flashed a smile. "Or perhaps something a bit stronger?"
"Tea would be great, thank you, Saysiu." Chizuru said politely.
"Ah, since my poor wife passed away, I've had to make and plan everything myself, including this party," Saysiu said, heading towards the cooking area. "Shingo tries to help here and there but sometimes it's best for him to stay out of the way since he sometimes ends up causing trouble as oppsed to helping."
Chizuru laughed, looking around the room and at the documents on the table next to her. Taking a closer look, she peered at a few maps on the table, stopping abruptly as Saysiu spoke again.
"Such a long time has passed since I have really done anything exciting, Chizuru," he sighed as he handed her the teacup. "I'd love to see the world again. Find a nice place to stay for a while and finish the book that I have been writing."
"So you mean to go through with your plans then?" Chizuru asked. "Travel the world and all."
"Definetely. Everything's been arranged."
Chizuru took a sip from her tea, seemingly lost in thought for a while, before she announced "Shingo suspects something, you know. I mean, you are going to tell him that you're leaving for a while, aren't you? He is very fond of you, you know. Especially since Kyo."
She trailled off, not wanting to mention Saysiu's missing son's name.
Saysiu stood silently for a few moments, his face unreadable. Then he bypassed the topic of his son totally. "Shingo would probably want to follow me if he knew I was leaving," he began to start pacing and Chizuru noticed his hand reach into his pocket for something. "I'm getting too old for this fighting business, Chizuru. I need to take time away from training Shingo and the King of Fighters tournaments. Possibly a permanent one."
That night, the whole area around the Kusanagi residence was filled with a joyful atmosphere as the party went into the night. There were fireworks and music, food and drink. Everybody was happy.
And then came the time when everyone was calling for Saysiu to give a birthday speech.
Saysiu Kusanagi stepped upon the stage and cleared his throat, glancing around at everyone in the huge courtyard before he started to speak.
"My dear friends from all over the world, today is a special day for me. But looking back, it is such a short time to have spent with such excellent and admirable fighters and friends. To be honest, I don't even know half of you as well as I should like, and it could be said that I actually like less than half of you half as well as you deserve."
Some of the smiles trailed off amongst the crowd.
"Well. I have things which I still think I need to do whilst I'm still in this world," Saysiu's hand reached into his pocket and take something out, placing it in his hands behind his back, and from the crowd, Chizuru noticed this. "Therefore, I regret to announce that this is the end. I'll be leaving now, and I bid all of you a very fond farewell," he looked at Shingo and whipsered "Goodbye."
And then he was gone.
Saysiu had vanished into thin air, leaving the crowd to gasp in surprise and shock.
Whilst the crowd of people were searching for the missing Saysiu, somewhere in the Kusanagi residence, doors began to slide open by themselves, leading towards Saysiu's room.
As the door into his room closed and locked, Saysiu Kusanagi reappeared again, laughing to himself as he removed what appeared to be a gold ring from his finger.
He put the ring back into his pocket and went to get his belongings to leave.
"I suppose you think that was terribly clever, old friend."
Saysiu jumped in surprise, turning to see Chizuru Kagura standing in the corner of his room, her arms folded.
The look of surprise soon fadeded as Saysiu smiled and continued to gather his things. "Come now, Chizuru. Did you see the look on their faces?"
"There are few magic rings in this world," Chizuru continued regardless. "And not one of them should be used lightly."
"It was just a bit of fun. Some drama for the guests to take home with them. And I'm sure it was a surprise that none of them will soon forget," Saysiu then sighed and admitted "You're probably right, Kagura, as usual," he grabbed a travel bag. "You will keep an eye on Shingo, won't you?"
"Two eyes," Chizuru nodded with a lop-sided grin. "Whenever I have the chance."
"I'm leaving everything to him whilst I'm gone."
"And the ring? Will that be staying too?"
"Of course. It's in an envelope on my desk." Saysiu gestured behind him before pausing and saying "No, wait. I have it. Right here in my pocket."
He took the gold ring out of his pocket, staring at it as he constantly turned it over in his hands. "Isn't that funny?" he seemed lost in thought. "I mean, after all, why shouldn't I keep it with me?"
Chizuru stood beside him, concern on her face. "I think you should leave the ring behind. Is that so hard to do?"
Saysiu looked at her and shrugged. "Not really." he turned back to the ring. "Now it comes to it, I don't feel like parting with it. It's mine.I found it..It came to me!"
Chizuru frowned at this sudden change of attutide. There was something about that ring.
"It's mine.My own.My Precious."
"Precious?" Chizuru's head snapped up and out of her thoughts. That name. "It's been called that name before, Saysiu. But not just by you."
Saysiu threw his hands up in the air in anger and frustration. "What business of yours is it about what I choose to do with my own things?"
"I think you've had that ring quite long enough, Saysiu." Chizuru tried to coax him into giving it to her but he backed away.
"You want it for yourself!"
"Saysiu Kusanagi!" Chizuru was suddenly surrounded with a powerful aura that seemed to fill the entire room with an ominous energy. "Do not underestimate me! I am not trying to rob you," and then as quickly as it had appeared, the strange aura was suddenly gone again and her voice toned down as she added "I'm trying to help you. All these years, we've been friends. Please, just trust me as you once did. Let the ring go."
Saysiu's face seemed to drawn now as he looked at Chizuru with an tired look upon his face. "You're right, Chizuru. Give the ring to Shingo Yabuki."
With that, he grabbed his belongings and headed for the door.
"Saysiu."
He stopped upon hearing her voice.
"The ring is still in your pocket."
"Oh. Yes." Saysiu took out the ring, staring at it for a long time before he finally dropped it onto the floor and strolled out of the door. "Goodbye, Chizuru."
"Take care, Saysiu Kusanagi," Chizuru called softly after him as he left. "Until we meet again."
Later that night, after all the guests had left, Shingo Yabuki was still looking for his master. He had searched throughout the courtyard and was now looking through the household. His first though was to try Saysiu's room.
"Kusanagi-sensei?"
Shingo cautiously opened the door into the room, only to find Chizuru Kagura sitting there at the desk and peering out of the window muttering thoughts to herself.
As he went to approach her, his foot kicked something lying on the floor and he bent down to see what it was.
A gold ring.
He looked towards Chizuru a frown upon his young face. "Kusanagi-san has left, hasn't he?" He walked towards her. "He used to say that he was going to travel around the world one day. I didn't think he'd leave so soon."
Chizuru didn't answer.
Shingo was now standing beside her. She didn't seem to notice him - her mind far away. Shingo's frown deepened. "Chizuru-sama?"
This time, Chizuru stopped her musings and turned to look at Shingo, the gold ring in the open palm of his hand. "Saysiu has gone travelling for a while. I think he's going to visit some friends," she smiled comfortingly up at him. "He's left you the palace whilst he is gone. All of it." She held out an open envelope, gesturing for Shingo to put the ring into it. He obeyed and she sealed the envelope shut with an old wax seal before giving it back to him. "This ring is yours now. Put it somewhere out of sight."
Chizuru got up from the chair at the desk.
"Where are you going?" asked Shingo, a look of confusion on his face. There was something strange going on.
"There are some things which I must see to." Chizuru headed for the door.
"What things?"
"I need to find the answers to some questions I have." Chizuru grabbed her coat.
"But you've only just gotten here," Shingo called after her as he ran to catch up. "I don't understand. What's going on?"
Chizuru stopped in her tracks and turned around to look appologetically at Shingo. "I don't quite get it wither, Shingo. That's why I have to go. I need to research into something. But for now, just keep the ring secret, okay? Keep it safe."
With that, she was gone.