Chapter 5
Bells sounded in the distance signaling the end of the school day. Several students ran by the seated Usagi and crowded the front door just by the steps. They stood in various smaller groups of friends and whispered to each other as they stared at another student casually walking past them.
Curious, Usagi looked back to see them parting cautiously from the outsider. His figure was darkened as he walked directly underneath the afternoon sun. When the boy reached the same step on which she sat, he halted. "Usagi," He stated in a tired voice. "I just wanted to say…thank you, for last night."
The girl shielded her eyes from the bright sun as he sat next to her. Being free from the blinding light, she recognized her newest friend. "Good afternoon, Diro!" She chimed. "Are things going better for you today?"
He smiled slightly and kept looking forward. "A little, yes. Thanks to you." A faint blush colored his cheeks. "I didn't want for you to see me like that, though. It makes me feel…weak."
She flushed a little herself. "That's fine Diro. Everyone needs to purge old feelings sometimes!"
He nodded in agreement. "Still, it's not something I'm used to. I've never had someone to cry on before." His blush deepened. "I'd appreciate it if you kept that between us."
"Right." She answered with understanding.
"Thank you." The young ninja's expression relaxed and he stood to leave. "I'm glad that I've made a friend like you, Usagi-Chan."
She grinned to herself as she watched him walk away. Although the girl was still confused about what exactly had transpired the night before, she understood that an old and painful wound had reopened in Diro's heart. She promised herself that she would do all she could to help heal him.
"No way!" One of her schoolmates burst out. "Even Tojimuri Sensei?!"
Usagi turned around to hear what they were talking about. A large group crowded together by the doors, they openly showed expressions of shock and confusion.
"That's right." Another student replied. "That guy tossed Sensei around like a rag doll!"
A short haired girl wearing a white headband broke away from them and ran next to Usagi. She stared at Diro as he walked around a corner, following the streets of Tokyo. "Ooh! Do you know that guy?" She asked. "He's so awesome! I have to meet him!"
Usagi stood to talk to her. "Do you mean Diro?" She looked back at the crowd to find they were all gaping at him. "What's going on? Why is everyone so excited?"
"You mean you don't know?" The girl asked and fixed her starry eyes on Usagi's. "During gym class he was assigned to be in the karate group! They started off with some practice sparring and he beat all the boys without even taking one hit! And then, Sensei wanted to see how strong he is and sparred with him!"
"So, what happened?" Usagi asked, drawn in to the other girl's excitement.
"That guy beat Sensei!" She exclaimed. "It was awesome! I saw it all! Sensei started with some really fast punches, but Kotaishi-san dodged them all at a really close range! And then he grabbed Sensei's arm and threw him over his shoulder!" The hyperactive girl replicated the moves for her as she spoke incoherently fast. She jumped up to perform a flying kick and inadvertently exposed her bright red panties, eliciting various voiced approvals from the remaining boys.
"Will you guys get a life!" Usagi snapped. She turned back to the girl who was still punching and kicking the air. "Diro really did that? I knew he was tough, but I didn't think he could beat Tojimuri Sensei!"
"He's so awesome!" The girl exclaimed. "Please! Please, you have to introduce me to him! You just have to!"
Usagi reeled back from the excitable girl. "Okay! Okay!" She agreed. "I'll introduce you! But I don't even know who you are!"
"I'm Kasugano Sakura!" The hyper girl said with a giggle. "I'm a sophomore from class 2-C, pleased to meet you!"
"Usagi Tsukino." She smiled and shook the girl's hand. "It's nice to meet you too."
"There!" She said, sporting a wide smile. "Now we know each other! C'mon! Let's catch up to him before he gets too far ahead of us!"
She giggled. "Hold on! I'm waiting on my friend Minako. We can go as soon as she gets here."
"Ooh!" Sakura whined. "But we could lose him!"
Usagi giggled again. "It's okay!" She assured the girl. "I know where he lives! We'll just take you there!"
"Are you serious?" She held Usagi's hands in her own gloved ones. "That'd be awesome! Thank you so much!"
Usagi eyed the girl's hands and asked, "Why are you wearing sparring gloves?"
She released her hands and took a stance, grinning as she did so. "I fight in these!"
"Fight? Does that mean you do the martial arts?"
"Uh-huh!" Sakura answered. "I'm in training to go up against a guy named Ryu! But now, I wanna meet this Diro of yours and fight him first!"
"Are you serious?!" Usagi demanded. "That's no way to make friends!"
"What d'ya mean?"
"A fight is not friendly!"
"But it's just a little match." Sakura insisted. "It's not like we're out for blood or anything."
"Still, I can't just take you to him because you two wanna beat each other up!"
"But it's different for a martial artist." She whined. "I'm sure he won't mind! We'll call it training! Please!"
Usagi groaned. "Okay, fine. We'll go as soon as Mina-chan gets here."
Upon hearing her name, Minako snuck up behind her friend and said, "Been waiting long?"
The pig-tailed girl jumped and clung to Sakura. "Minako!" She screamed. "Don't scare me like that!"
She giggled. "Sorry, sorry!" Her eyes fell to the other girl. "Hi, I'm Minako! Are you a friend of Usagi's?"
"Actually we just met!" She said cheerfully. "The name's Kasugano Sakura, pleased to meet you!"
"Well, now that you're here, Mina-chan, we can get this over with." Usagi said tiredly. "Sakura wants to go have a match with Diro."
"A match?" Minako asked.
"That's right!" Sakura confirmed. "I wanna fight him! Come on! Let's go! Let's go!"
The hyperactive girl grabbed onto the senshis' wrists and dragged them behind her. Usagi simply sighed and allowed herself to be pulled by her new acquaintance. In the few moments that she had known the girl, she realized that she had much more energy than either Minako or herself.
"Hey wait!" Usagi blurted. "I just got an idea! We should stop by Mamo-chan's apartment and bring him along! He still hasn't met Diro, at least, not when he's conscious, that is."
"What about last night?" Minako asked. "You were supposed to go there last night weren't you? Or was that just an excuse to get out of your studies?"
"No!" She lied. "We, uh, we were going to go there, but, um, something came up and we didn't."
"So what came up? Rei called me before school and said that he never came home. You two weren't spending the night together, were you?" She teased.
"Of course not!" Usagi screamed. "We were just talking and then he walked me home! What makes you think that I would do such a thing, Mina-chan?!"
She giggled. "Jeez, Usagi, Calm down! I know you wouldn't! You've got Mamoru, and besides, Diro-kun is mine!"
The pig-tailed girl shot her friend a sly look. "So, Minako, you've been hounding Diro haven't you! Have you kissed him yet?" She teased and puckered her lips, making kissing sounds.
She giggled. "No, there's a problem. I think Rei has a thing for him too."
Usagi winced. "Ooh, that's a big problem! Watcha gonna do, Mina-chan?"
A devilish grin crossed the girl's face. "I have my plans." She said and turned to face her friend. "And you are essential to them!"
"Uh, I am?"
"That's right." She confirmed. "Nobody else knows you're involved! You're the perfect recruit to my little scheme! After all, all's fair in loving more, right?"
Usagi's face contorted into a twisted smile at her friend's failed attempt at a proverb. "I suppose. Just as long as no one gets hurt."
"Don't worry 'bout it, Usagi-Chan! Rei'll be just fine, and Diro'll be all mine!" The blonde girl laughed almost maniacally at her rhyme and her secret plans.
Sakura looked back at the two, who had by now struck identical poses and burst with loud laughter. "What a bunch of weirdoes!" She sighed.
Rei Hino sighed as she wiped the sweat off her brow. Relieved that she had finished sweeping the front of the temple, the raven-haired girl turned to go back inside. She stopped at the door to look at the young boy that had not too long ago become her roommate. She had barely gotten any sleep last night as she was worried over his well being. She knew that he could care for himself, but she still felt a loyalty to him as strong as she did for Usagi and the rest of the senshi. The girl hoped that he didn't leave her like that again.
"Diro! Would you like me to bring you something to drink?"
The boy was unfazed in his training. He continued to lift his entire body off the ground with his left hand without looking at her. "No…I'm cool." He answered in a strained voice between gasping for breath.
"Well, okay then. Don't overdo it, okay?" She walked inside after receiving a loud grunt as his answer. He didn't tell her where he went the night before, but she didn't mind. As far as she was concerned, the only thing that mattered was that he came home.
The senshi of fire shook her head to clear her thoughts. She didn't know how it was possible to become so attached to a boy in such a short period of time, but it had obviously happened. She was always thinking about him. The only thing that she desired was his comfort and well-being. As was the same for her friends, Rei had a history of crushes and falling in love. She had even wanted to go out with Mamoru at one point, but she felt different around Diro. It was like she was in love with him, but it was different from her other experiences. She felt warm and comfortable when she was with him.
"I am so confused." She whispered. "Maybe if I ask him out I'll know how I truly feel."
She walked into the kitchen and prepared a pot of tea, the entire time thinking and trying to build up the nerves to talk to him. Her hands trembled as she poured some into a small cup and slowly drank it down. Despite the tea's warmth, the girl shivered with every mouthful. Her body shook due to her nervousness. It made her want to forget the whole prospect, but she knew she had to lay it to rest. Maybe, if things were to work in her favor, she would have a new boyfriend by the time it was over.
"Alright!" She said with enthusiasm and slammed her cup on the table. "I'm not going to let him scare me! I'm going to ask him out!"
"Ask who out?" The small man standing beside her asked.
Rei jumped in surprise and her face turned bright red. "Grandpa! Don't sneak up on me like that!"
"Diro! Hey Diro!" The young ninja looked over his shoulder at the upside-down vision of three girls and a tall man ascending the temple steps. He lost his balance and landed hard on his backside.
"Ouch!" He groaned and rubbed his bruised body. "Minako?" He asked and looked at the girl, followed by her friends, running up to him. "What are you doing here?"
"We came to see you, Diro-kun!" The blonde smiled. "And we've brought someone for you to meet!"
"Huh? Who?"
"My boyfriend, Mamo-chan, for one." Usagi said as she squeezed the taller man's hand.
He smiled down at her and looked back up at long-haired boy. "I'm Mamoru Chiba. Usa-ko has told me a lot about you." He bowed. "It's a pleasure to finally meet you."
"The pleasure's all yours." He responded. "Um, Usagi, you know I love meeting new people, but I really don't have a lot of time right now. You know about the tournament and I've got a lot of training to do in just three weeks, so…"
"Don't worry 'bout it!" A short-haired girl said. "I can help you out with that!"
The boy sighed and resigned himself to the socializing habits of his new friends. "And your name is?" He asked, half-interested.
"My name's Kasugano Sakura!" The hyper-active girl put one hand on her hip and ran a finger under her nose. "I'm the rising new star of the street fighting world, trained by the Shotokan master Ryu, himself!"
"Ryu?" Diro asked. "The legendary fighter that defeated Sagat? You were trained by him?!" He demanded.
"Well, he didn't exactly train me," The girl admitted. "But I've watched him fight and I've learned a lot from him!"
"Like what?" The young ninja prodded, his interest peaked.
Sakura chuckled and a devilish grin crossed her face. "Wanna see?" She sprinted to him and jumped, spinning in the air. The wind generated by her propulsion knocked Momoru and the other girls aside as she yelled, "Shunpukyaku!"
Startled by the girl's sudden attack, Diro parried a few of her kicks before ducking behind her. "What on earth do you think you're doing?!" He demanded.
"I'm trying to fight you!" She replied incredulously and ran toward him again, attempting a flying kick which he easily dodged. "C'mon! Fight back!"
"Why should I?" The boy asked. "I don't want to fight with a girl!"
"If you were thinking about entering the tournament in Nagano, then you're gonna have to! Why not start now?" She said and delivered a volley of punches for him to block. "Besides, you said you needed to train, right? Well now's your chance!"
As the girl threw a wild right hook at his head, Diro ducked and kicked at her legs, sweeping her off of her feet. He laughed at the sight of her rubbing her sore posterior. "You make a good point, Kasugano. You've got your match, but only if you can keep up!" He took his stance and gave her a wry grin.
The hyper girl's face lit up. She sprang to her feet, tightened her headband and took her own stance. "I'm not going to hold back."
"Good." The boy replied and leapt at her. He dazzled her by doing several midair somersaults in rapid concession before driving his elbow into the top of her head.
Dazed by the attack, Sakura shook her head and clasped her hands together to form one big fist. "Shouoken!" She yelled and drove her fist into his gut, lifting him from the ground and tossing him across the temple's yard.
"What the hell is going on out here?!" Rei demanded as she stormed out the door.
"I'd kind of like to know, myself!" Momoru agreed. "Usa-ko, why are they fighting?"
"Sakura said that she wanted to spar with Diro-kun," The pig-tailed girl answered with blatant concern in her voice. "But I had no idea they would go at it like this!" She buried her face into her boyfriend's arm. "This is just too violent! Is this what the tournament's going to be like?"
The fighters crossed each other in midair, exchanging blows as they passed. Sakura glided to the ground, kicking up dust as she landed, while Diro fell headfirst toward the pavement. He grabbed the stones beneath him and dragged his fingers along them to correct his descent. He landed on all fours and looked back up at the girl. "Your moves are a little different from other Shotokan-ka I've fought."
"I've modified the style a little bit." She replied. "It fits me a lot better, I think."
"Agreed." Diro said. "But you leave yourself open too much; you're still an amateur!" He sprinted at the girl and leapt over her defensive punch. Gently placing his forefinger on the top of her head, he twisted as he glided over her and delivered a swift kick to the back of her neck.
He watched her slowly get up from ground, groaning as she did so. "Y'know, not to nit-pick or anything, but you plan on competing against the legendary Ryu at the tournament, then you're gonna have to beef up a lot!"
Sakura laughed, the sound of which resembled more a choking cough. "I've still got one little trick up my sleeve." She jumped back and quickly got into stance. The Shotokan girl brought her hands to her side, the palms in close proximity with each other. A gust of wind surrounded her as a pale blue light began to glow. Her face contorted into a malicious grin as she yelled, "Hadouken!"
Diro's eyes widened in shock as the fabled blue fireball of the Shotokan sped toward him. He brought his arms up in front of his face just in time to block the attack from striking him between the eyes. The boy struggled against the ki blast until it began to burn its way through the bandages covering his wrists and arms.
"Diro!" Rei and Minako yelled simultaneously and ran toward him.
The young ninja screamed out of pain and frustration as he forced the fireball aside. Through sheer will, he managed to deflect the blast away from him, but gaped in horror as it sped along its new course toward the girls approaching him. "Get back!"
Rei and Minako stopped dead in their tracks as they stared down the ki blast advancing upon them. They cringed and held onto each other when they felt the heat from the blue light drawing nearer. They were near panic until a shadow sprung from the ground and took solid form, blocking the fireball's course.
"A promising attack, but still very weak." A man with a stoic expression and short black hair said. He stood with one hand outstretched in the direction the ki blast had originated. His loose black shorts and tanktop of the same color flapped in the disrupted wind. "You both have a lot of training to do."
"Our Melchior kind of has a thing for dramatic entrances." A friendly voice announced from behind Usagi and Mamoru. They turned around to see a man in white jeans and a plain white t-shirt accompanied by another in blue jeans and a tanktop of the same color. "It's nice to see you again, Miss Moon." He said in a hushed voice.
"You are much too weak to survive your death feud, young Diro." Melchior stated in a loud, commanding voice. "You have only one chance to win against your opponent, and that is by training with me. From here on out, I will be your partner. Now fight me!"
Balthazar, the man in white, smirked at his comrade's disposition. He looked around the area and said to Usagi, "I see there are two of your teammates missing. Please hail them, there is much we must discuss." He focused his attention back on Diro. The man's heart swelled with joy to know that he finally beheld the prince of his homeland.
Author's Notes
Okay, I was wrong. I got a little ahead of myself. Ranma makes his appearance in like chapter 7. Sorry 'bout that. Well, I finally finished transcribing all my missing chapters last night so I can now get to work on chapter 11. Yay! I should probably mention that it's gonna end with something of a cliffhanger. So you're all gonna hate me until 12 comes out. Meh. What're ya gonna do huh?
Dude! Brainstorm! I'd kinda like to write other stories (I need some effin' clones man!) so I'll probably have to hurry up with this one. I think I wanna write a Captain N fanfic! That would be so friggin' awesome! Yes, I am a child of the '80s. Captain N loses his powers because his equipment is now antiqued, so he must become Captain N cubed! And fight against other captains. Like Captain Xbox and the, uh, The Play Station Commander! Rock! My god I am such a geek. Now I'm depressed. I gotta go.
The Rockstar Prince of Crossovers