Chapter Four: The Second Not-really-evil Henchman...Henchboy? Henchkid?
Raiha was tired. He had been walking all afternoon, and it was a bright sunny day. For once, he wished he wasn't so fussy about clothes. His whole ninja outfit wasn't exactly made to keep the wearer cool.
Finding a large, shady tree, he sat down and placed the jar of pickles gently beside him. Taking out another one of Neon's knitted handkerchiefs, (it was a lime green one this time) he mopped his brow. It wasn't very effective.
All of a sudden, a voice came from nowhere. "Raiha of the Uruha! Prepare to meet your maker!"
Raiha smiled. "And who might you be? And where are you? Unless you're Tsukishiro, you can't send me to meet my maker unless I can see you!"
The voice sounded irritated. "I'm here!"
Raiha looked up. Nothing in the foliage. He looked behind the tree. Nobody for a few metres. Finally, he peered behind the jar of pickles.
Standing there, holding his Kougan Anki, was Koganei.
"Kaoru-kun!" Raiha exclaimed happily. "I didn't see you! How have you been?" He shook Kaoru's hand heartily.
Kaoru was not amused. "I'm not THAT short, am I?" he hissed.
"Actually, I think you are," Raiha said, with some scrutiny.
"I'll grow someday!" Kaoru yelled, and attacked with his Kougan Anki's first form. The large, curved blade narrowly missed Raiha.
"Why are you attacking me, Kaoru-kun?" Raiha asked politely, dodging the golden blade once more.
"Because you're carrying weapons of mass destruction!" Kaoru answered. "Drop the façade, Raiha! I'm smarter than you think!" Raiha scratched his head. "STOP scratching your head, Raiha!" Kaoru shouted. "Fight me! I know you underestimate me, but I've grown stronger! I truly have!"
Raiha was still confused. What were weapons of mass destruction? What did they have to do with Kaoru-kun? And why was Kaoru-kun attacking him? He scratched his head.
Kaoru lost his temper. "Will you DO something?" the thirteen-year-old demanded. "I'm trying to FIGHT here, you know. Or is this form of the Kougan Anki not good enough for you? Ryu!" he cried as he transformed the structure of his weapon in less than a minute.
Raiha stopped scratching his head and started clapping. Kaoru fell over.
Raiha helped Kaoru to his feet, but Kaoru leaped away. "I don't know what you're trying to do, but I give up! I'm going to tell Recca!" Stomping his foot, the young puzzlemaster burst into tears and ran away. Raiha scratched his head.
Later, at the Hokage mansion...
Kaoru sat on Kagerou's lap, sucking a lollipop. Strawberry. The moment he'd returned to the Hokage mansion, the guys had jumped on him and began interrogating him. Yanagi had started yelling at them to 'leave poor Kaoru alone, he's only a boy' and Fuuko had pushed all the guys aside and rescued Kaoru. Then the two girls started babying him. He hadn't really minded though.
They had handed him to Kagerou and gone off to the grocery store to get sweets. And now, all the members of Hokage were sitting around the living room, sucking strawberry lollipops. Kaoru decided it was time to stop crying.
"Right, so how was it?" Recca asked.
"He didn't even fight me! I was there, brandishing my weapon and jumping around like an idiot, and he just stood there scratching his head!" Kaoru answered angrily.
"Who?" Domon asked.
"RAIHA!" everyone yelled. It was a tense moment. They were all trying to figure out Raiha's motive for not attacking Kaoru, except Fuuko, who had that dreamy look on her face again.
"Maybe he's a nice guy after all," Yanagi said after a while. (She was right, of course.)
"Hime, you're too innocent," Recca said, patting her hand, ignoring Fuuko's furious nodding in response to Yanagi's statement. "It must be some elaborate ploy! He must be pretending to be innocent!"
Yanagi looked up. "I thought you said I was innocent," she said, looking confused.
"It's too different things, Hime," Recca answered, patting her hand again. (It's HIS elaborate ploy to touch Yanagi more often, I'll bet.) "It's all a ruse, to throw us off Kurei's trail! We must find out what Raiha is up to!" He paused, waiting for applause at his wonderful speech.
Only Yanagi was clapping enthusiastically. Fuuko still looked dreamy, Domon looked dazed, Mikagami rolled his eyes, and Kaoru was fast asleep, curled up in Kagerou's lap, sucking his thumb. He'd finished the lollipop already.
"Right, so now I think..." Recca stopped mid-speech when Mikagami poked him in the ribs.
"I'm going next. Couldn't trust a chimpanzee like you to handle a skilled member of the Uruha like Raiha," He said simply. Fuuko swooned, Recca turned bright red, and everyone else sweatdropped.
Mikagami left, Ensui in his suit pocket, ready to seek Raiha out and defeat him. Or at least try. Recca, meanwhile, turned to the rest of the Hokage members.
"Do I really look like a chimpanzee?" he asked in a small voice.
-end of chapter four-
Mikagami: You know me well. I definitely WOULD have said that in such a situation.
Recca: (restrained by other Hokage members) Lemme at 'im! Lemme at 'im!
Fuuko: Mi-chaaaaaaaaan... You're not REALLY going to kill Raiha, are ya?
Mikagami: (shrugs) Who knows?
Fuuko: (lunges at Mikagami) Lemme at 'im!
Ikazuchi-chan: At this rate, Tokiya, you're going to have half the world trying to murder you.
Kaoru: Who cares about Tokiya? I'm fourteen by SODOM, you know. Why am I portrayed as a bratty kid?
Mikagami: I agree.
Kaoru: See?
Mikagami: No. I agree that you're a bratty kid.
Kaoru: (bursts into tears) Reccaaaaaaa...
Raiha: (appears out of nowhere) Hello everyone!
Recca: You're the cause of all this!
Raiha: All what?
Recca: Read the chapter!
Raiha: (looks up) Oh. But that would be the author's fault, ne?
Hokage members: (turn to face Ikazuchi-chan) Mua ha ha ha ha...
Ikazuchi-chan: (swallows) Uh-oh...
Raiha: (sweatdrops)
Raiha was tired. He had been walking all afternoon, and it was a bright sunny day. For once, he wished he wasn't so fussy about clothes. His whole ninja outfit wasn't exactly made to keep the wearer cool.
Finding a large, shady tree, he sat down and placed the jar of pickles gently beside him. Taking out another one of Neon's knitted handkerchiefs, (it was a lime green one this time) he mopped his brow. It wasn't very effective.
All of a sudden, a voice came from nowhere. "Raiha of the Uruha! Prepare to meet your maker!"
Raiha smiled. "And who might you be? And where are you? Unless you're Tsukishiro, you can't send me to meet my maker unless I can see you!"
The voice sounded irritated. "I'm here!"
Raiha looked up. Nothing in the foliage. He looked behind the tree. Nobody for a few metres. Finally, he peered behind the jar of pickles.
Standing there, holding his Kougan Anki, was Koganei.
"Kaoru-kun!" Raiha exclaimed happily. "I didn't see you! How have you been?" He shook Kaoru's hand heartily.
Kaoru was not amused. "I'm not THAT short, am I?" he hissed.
"Actually, I think you are," Raiha said, with some scrutiny.
"I'll grow someday!" Kaoru yelled, and attacked with his Kougan Anki's first form. The large, curved blade narrowly missed Raiha.
"Why are you attacking me, Kaoru-kun?" Raiha asked politely, dodging the golden blade once more.
"Because you're carrying weapons of mass destruction!" Kaoru answered. "Drop the façade, Raiha! I'm smarter than you think!" Raiha scratched his head. "STOP scratching your head, Raiha!" Kaoru shouted. "Fight me! I know you underestimate me, but I've grown stronger! I truly have!"
Raiha was still confused. What were weapons of mass destruction? What did they have to do with Kaoru-kun? And why was Kaoru-kun attacking him? He scratched his head.
Kaoru lost his temper. "Will you DO something?" the thirteen-year-old demanded. "I'm trying to FIGHT here, you know. Or is this form of the Kougan Anki not good enough for you? Ryu!" he cried as he transformed the structure of his weapon in less than a minute.
Raiha stopped scratching his head and started clapping. Kaoru fell over.
Raiha helped Kaoru to his feet, but Kaoru leaped away. "I don't know what you're trying to do, but I give up! I'm going to tell Recca!" Stomping his foot, the young puzzlemaster burst into tears and ran away. Raiha scratched his head.
Later, at the Hokage mansion...
Kaoru sat on Kagerou's lap, sucking a lollipop. Strawberry. The moment he'd returned to the Hokage mansion, the guys had jumped on him and began interrogating him. Yanagi had started yelling at them to 'leave poor Kaoru alone, he's only a boy' and Fuuko had pushed all the guys aside and rescued Kaoru. Then the two girls started babying him. He hadn't really minded though.
They had handed him to Kagerou and gone off to the grocery store to get sweets. And now, all the members of Hokage were sitting around the living room, sucking strawberry lollipops. Kaoru decided it was time to stop crying.
"Right, so how was it?" Recca asked.
"He didn't even fight me! I was there, brandishing my weapon and jumping around like an idiot, and he just stood there scratching his head!" Kaoru answered angrily.
"Who?" Domon asked.
"RAIHA!" everyone yelled. It was a tense moment. They were all trying to figure out Raiha's motive for not attacking Kaoru, except Fuuko, who had that dreamy look on her face again.
"Maybe he's a nice guy after all," Yanagi said after a while. (She was right, of course.)
"Hime, you're too innocent," Recca said, patting her hand, ignoring Fuuko's furious nodding in response to Yanagi's statement. "It must be some elaborate ploy! He must be pretending to be innocent!"
Yanagi looked up. "I thought you said I was innocent," she said, looking confused.
"It's too different things, Hime," Recca answered, patting her hand again. (It's HIS elaborate ploy to touch Yanagi more often, I'll bet.) "It's all a ruse, to throw us off Kurei's trail! We must find out what Raiha is up to!" He paused, waiting for applause at his wonderful speech.
Only Yanagi was clapping enthusiastically. Fuuko still looked dreamy, Domon looked dazed, Mikagami rolled his eyes, and Kaoru was fast asleep, curled up in Kagerou's lap, sucking his thumb. He'd finished the lollipop already.
"Right, so now I think..." Recca stopped mid-speech when Mikagami poked him in the ribs.
"I'm going next. Couldn't trust a chimpanzee like you to handle a skilled member of the Uruha like Raiha," He said simply. Fuuko swooned, Recca turned bright red, and everyone else sweatdropped.
Mikagami left, Ensui in his suit pocket, ready to seek Raiha out and defeat him. Or at least try. Recca, meanwhile, turned to the rest of the Hokage members.
"Do I really look like a chimpanzee?" he asked in a small voice.
-end of chapter four-
Mikagami: You know me well. I definitely WOULD have said that in such a situation.
Recca: (restrained by other Hokage members) Lemme at 'im! Lemme at 'im!
Fuuko: Mi-chaaaaaaaaan... You're not REALLY going to kill Raiha, are ya?
Mikagami: (shrugs) Who knows?
Fuuko: (lunges at Mikagami) Lemme at 'im!
Ikazuchi-chan: At this rate, Tokiya, you're going to have half the world trying to murder you.
Kaoru: Who cares about Tokiya? I'm fourteen by SODOM, you know. Why am I portrayed as a bratty kid?
Mikagami: I agree.
Kaoru: See?
Mikagami: No. I agree that you're a bratty kid.
Kaoru: (bursts into tears) Reccaaaaaaa...
Raiha: (appears out of nowhere) Hello everyone!
Recca: You're the cause of all this!
Raiha: All what?
Recca: Read the chapter!
Raiha: (looks up) Oh. But that would be the author's fault, ne?
Hokage members: (turn to face Ikazuchi-chan) Mua ha ha ha ha...
Ikazuchi-chan: (swallows) Uh-oh...
Raiha: (sweatdrops)