"Keitaro!"

Su came out of no where and delivered a flying kick straight to his face. Tsukio caught a glimpse of this as his face paled. He thought Keitaro would be out cold after a strike like that. Instead, Keitaro staggered a little and regained his balance, rubbing his head a little with a smile on his face.

"Hey Su" He said happily. "Sorry were late guys, I really am, but some things came up, I'll tell you later. For now, meet Tsukio"

The girls of Hinata-Sou had just managed to file into the common room as Keitaro was speaking. Haruka was also in the room, smoking a cigarette while sitting on the couch. All the girls had their eyes on Keitaro, as they didn't see anyone else near him.

"Keitaro, are you seeing things? Kaolla's greeting didn't make you delusional did it?" Motoko spoke out.

"Yeah... you sure that fall from the roof only broke you arm and not your brain too?" Kitsune said with a sly grin across her face.

Su had now joined the other girls and remained completely oblivious to what was being spoken at the time. She pulled out a banana and began to eat it promptly after peeling it.

"Umm, no, he's here." Keitaro said.

"Who's here?" Motoko questioned.

"The guy I want you all to meet. His name is Tsukio. Sakamoto Tsukio."

"What's a Tsukio? Does it taste good?" Su said with complete sincerity. She was still totally oblivious to what was being spoken.

Kitsune sniggered a little at Su's question.

"Su, I didn't do that bad of a job teaching you Japanese did I?"

"No, he's over there, see?" Mutsumi said with a happy air about her voice.

Standing near the doorway to Hinata-Sou, but visible to the others through the entrance of the common room, stood Tsukio, feeling slightly uneasy with eight pairs of eyes staring in his direction.

"Uh, umm... Hello, I'm Tsukio." He said uneasily.

"Oh, so you're the one that's been rumored about lately." Haruka said as she stood up to get a better look. "Yep, definitely fits the description." She said at last as she sat back down in her couch.

/Huh? Description? What did she mean by that?/

"Tsukio!" Shouted Su, who quickly launched a 'Hello' kick in Tsukio's direction.

Tsukio, a natural fighter, easily saw the attack and simply grabbed Su's foot and caught her in his arms. The rest of the Hina girls looked on in awe. They weren't expecting a newcomer to know what was going to happen to him. Let alone counter it.

"Oh? You must be Su. You're a little feisty aren't you?" Tsukio said with a blank expression on his face.

Su quickly looked pleased and escaped Tsukio's hold and gave him a tight hug.

"Tsukio!" She exclaimed.

/This ones weird. Must be the mad scientist of the Inn...better watch my back or I might be the next experiment./

"Kaolla! Don't do that to guests! It's not nice!" Shinobu, typically quiet, finally spoke out. "What if you really kicked him? He's not Keitaro!"

"Definitely not, this guys a lot better looking than that failure" Kitsune thought out loud, with a broad grin on her face.

"Eh?" Tsukio said quickly, scratching his head in disbelief.

His face slightly turned red

"Ohhh look he's blushing! And his nose isn't bleeding! Guess he's not as perverted as Keitaro is!" Kitsune thought out loud again, opening both of her eyes fully as if to get a better look at this new person standing in the doorway.

"Kitsune! Have a new target already?" Motoko said in a monotone. Glancing over at Tsukio, she raised an eyebrow.

/Hmm, I sense something different about him; he has a strong aura... I'll have to keep an eye on him.../

"Guest?" Spoke Keitaro right after Motoko finished her sentence. "He's not a guest"

"Huh?" Everyone inquired at the same time.

"And what, exactly, do you mean by 'He's not a guest' Urashima?" Motoko said in a cool voice.

"I meant just what I said. He's not a guest. He'll be staying with us here at the Inn."

"What!?" Everyone exclaimed at the same time again.

"Ah! Whew, good thing I made extra food for everyone for breakfast" Shinobu said quietly.

Motoko stood with a cold gaze in her eyes at Keitaro.

"And who, exactly, do you think you are to introduce another male in our dormitory without the consent of the others?" She said, holding back the anger in her voice.

Motoko then drew her bokken and took an aggressive stance facing Keitaro. Tsukio, noticing the stance as one he's learned in Kendo a while back, realized that that girl had to be Motoko.

/Man, she's hot tempered, and tall too. Looks a little younger, but still looks pretty/

Tsukio then took a few steps forward and stood directly in front of Keitaro.

"You must be Motoko Aoyama, I've heard a lot about you. Pleasure to meet you, successor of the Shinmeiryu school of Kendo." Tsukio said with a low bow.

Motoko's stance relaxed a little bit and her bokken dropped for an instant. She quickly righted her stance and gritted her teeth.

"Who are you to say such things as if you know me?" Motoko said, slightly enraged. "I don't care who you are, I won't allow you staying here! I've enough trouble keeping that pervert in line already!"

The others looked on in interest wondering how this newcomer will respond to the aggressiveness of Motoko.

"I won't allow it! You hear me! I won't!" Motoko blurted out. "I'll offer you the same challenge I extended to Keitaro!"

"And, that is?" Tsukio said, knowing what Motoko wanted.

"I challenge you to a duel! If you lose, you're never to show face in this Inn again! It's that simple. Maybe me beating you will knock some sense into that muscle bound head of yours. I don't want another male here!"

"And if I win, you won't detest my residence in this house ever again, right?"

"You speak as if you're sure you will be triumphant. Don't misjudge me!" Motoko said full of malice.

"I don't back down from a challenge. I have one request however"

"Humph. And that is?"

"I can't fight you now; I need a moment to myself, take in my new surroundings. Besides, I'm hungry. Do you mind if we eat first? I'm sure if we wait any longer the food will get cold" Tsukio said will a smooth grin.

Then tension in the room evaporated as Motoko agreed to his terms. The girls then filed to the dining table and took their usual seats. A space was made on the table set next to Keitaro for Tsukio. All the girls were sitting at the table with their eyes on Tsukio. It was Shinobu who finally broke the silence.

"Sempai, how come you were late back from the Hospital? You said something came up? What happened?" Shinobu asked with the sound of innocence filling her voice.

"Huh? Oh Shinobu-chan. Well, we kinda got into a fight." explained Keitaro. "Hey, Shinobu-chan, why did you cook such a provocative breakfast? What are you trying to do? These are all very rich foods!" He quickly added, not really wanting to explain things to the girls at breakfast.

"Well, um, I was trying to make up for yesterday. I felt we all deserved a meal like this to get us in good spirits" Shinobu said weakly.

The table fell silent for a moment until Kitsune spoke up, seeing past Keitaro's comment on Shinobu's cooking.

"You? Keitaro? Got into a fight?" Kitsune said in a tone of laughter. "And you're still alive? You make me laugh your so horrid at lying."

Motoko looked in Keitaro's direction and perked up an eyebrow as if waiting for Keitaro to tell the story. Shinobu turned her gaze to Keitaro with a look of concern across her face. Su continued to eat and paid no attention to the others talking. Tsukio suddenly felt a bit tense, not sure if he should get involved in this or not. He wasn't 100 sure if the girls would hate him for almost getting their friends beat up, or if they would praise him for protecting them.

"Humph, yeah Keitaro, tell us all about it. You look fine, besides your arm. What? Did Naru have to protect you and fend of the 'bad guys' with her patented Naru Punch?" Motoko said with a glint or sarcasm in her voice.

Tsukio looked over at Motoko who paid no attention to his gaze at all.

"Um actually no, I was kinda scared..." Naru said uneasily. "Those three guys looked pretty tough... they looked like they could be murderers…"

"Three? Murderers?" Motoko said in disbelief.

"Yeah, there were three of them" Tsukio said calmly. "…Sorry about that, I…I really am"

"Sorry? What should you be sorry for?" Motoko spat out. "You had something to do with this didn't you?"

"Um, yeah. Those three men were after me, for… beating their gang leader up in a street fight..." Tsukio said uneasily. "I'm really sorry; I didn't know my presence would endanger your friends"

"WHAT!?" Motoko said furiously.

"Don't worry, were safe right? All of us are, thanks to Tsukio" Mustumi said revealing a slight smile towards Tsukio.

"What do you mean 'thanks to Tsukio'" blurted Motoko, who had now noticed he was looking right at her.

/Man, I knew they would get all upset. How am I going to talk my way out of this one?/

"Hai, Tsukio took care of them. It got a little scary I'll admit, but Tsukio managed to take the three of them down." Naru spoke out, sticking up for Tsukio.

Tsukio looked over at Naru on the other side of Keitaro. Naru passed him a look of reassurance. Tsukio then leaned back to his spot, feeling a little better.

"Tsukio did eh?" Motoko said as she analyzed Tsukio, who went back to eating his breakfast.

"Yeah, he thought they were after us though, targeting Keitaro as a weak point since his arm is broken to get at us girls, and told us to turn into and alley so he could take care of them." said Mutsumi, joining the conversation again.

"Is that so?" said Motoko, as the tension in her voice relaxed.

/He protected Naru, Mutsumi and Keitaro did he? Even though they were after him, he assumed they were after them. But they just met didn't they? And he already threw himself on the line for them? Honorable I admit... I'll definitely have to keep an eye on him.../

/If I ask now, maybe Motoko will agree, and Tsukio can learn some new skills/

"Motoko, I think you should allow Tsukio to train with you." Keitaro said out of the blue, as if trying to change the topic.

"Nani!? Why would you think that? He might have taken down three street punks but that by no means merits him to train with me!" The tension had returned in Motoko's voice as she said this.

"Um lets not jump the gun here, I'm sure Motoko doesn't want me to be in her way while she trains" said Tsukio.

/Hmm, if I've judged her character right, she won't refuse if I play my cards right.../

"Besides, I might hurt her if I do, with my level of martial training-"

"-Nani!? You think so tough guy? In that case, Well add to the stakes. If I win, and feel you were a decent challenge, then maybe I'll let you train with me."

/What? He thinks he's all tough now? I'll show this guy. But he did throw himself on the line for them, so maybe he has some virtues...albeit a little egotistical/

"Besides, if you did infact take down three guys by yourself, you might be an interesting opponent. Tsukio, you'll be fighting with me this afternoon. After breakfast I suggest you get ready."

/Yes! I knew it! She's not one to let herself be easily swayed. I'll see what she's all about later today I suppose. I played my cards proper this time/ Tsukio thought to himself, eyes steadily fixated on Motoko, who was also staring back.

/Why is he staring at me? I've got that weak feeling again, similar to when I first met Keitaro... But then I was sick, and I'm certain I'm not sick...what is this? No, no I can't let myself believe that. For that, I will not go easy on this newcomer! I wont let him have this effect on me!/ Motoko silently thought to herself, her face slightly burning up. /Ah! I'm feeling flush, I feel like I'm burning, I can't let them see this!/

"I have to go; I have a lot of training to do today. Shinobu, if you will excuse me, I will clean my dishes." Motoko then sat up from the table and took her leave.

"Ha...Hai! Motoko-sempai" Shinobu squeaked.

As Motoko left the table, and turned her back to leave to the kitchen, she said with a coolness that seemed to be blocking something else out of her voice.

"Tsukio, I suggest you get ready for this afternoon directly after breakfast, I'll be waiting outside in the woods behind the Inn. Be ready! You won't know where I might attack you, or when."

With that, Motoko left the dinning room table and into the kitchen to wash her dishes. Shortly after that, Motoko left to her room upstairs to dress in her proper gear and to retrieve her Bokken. Breakfast at the table continued.

"Um, what was that all about?" Shinobu asked, in a low tone.

"I wouldn't worry about it, I knew if I made myself look like an ego maniac and said what I said Motoko couldn't refuse." Tsukio stated, in a calm manner.

"How did you know that was Motoko's nature?" Kitsune spoke out, demanding an answer from Tsukio. "Have you two met before or something?"

"Ah, no we haven't. I guess I just judged her character properly is all. She has a fighter's spirit, I could feel it. I saw that look in her eyes, it was similar to me. She's not one to back out of a challenge, is she?"

"No, Motoko's not." Kitsune added.

"Hmm… That means, in a way, she accepted my challenge to her." Tsukio explained.

"Nani?"

All eyes turned to Tsukio

"Well, she didn't want me to train with her, but through my words, I implied that she wouldn't be able to, and challenged her to do so. Seems like she picked that up fast"

"Ah, you preyed on her emotions. Ya know, that's not nice of a man to take advantage of other girls' emotions to get his way" Kitsune said, with a flicker in her eyes "But, to be intuitive like that, I find attractive in a man"

"Huh?" Tsukio said, startled a bit.

Kitsune continued to gaze at Tsukio until he finally reached his limit on uncomfortability.

"Umm, hey Keitaro. I just realized. Um, I have no clothes." Tsukio finaly managed to let out.

"Hmm, I could let you wear mine, but you're bigger than I am, I don't know if they would fit you."

"Sempai, you should take him shopping!" Shinobu spoke out.

"What's shopping? Is it tasty?" Su said with a bit of drool forming at her mouth.

"Sounds like a good idea, but I don't have much on me." Tsukio replied.

"How much do you have exactly?" Naru asked.

"Um" Tsukio pulls out a large wallet from one of his many side pockets "I've got about...250,000 yen."

"NANI!?" shouted the entire table

"How on earth did you get a hold of that much money!" The girls at the table exclaimed, as Keitaro remained speechless at the table.

"Oh, well, um, I fight a lot?" He said sheepishly.

"I would assume so! That's a lot of cash! And you're sure that all from fighting? I mean, you're not raiding old ladies' purses are you?"

"No way Keitaro! I would never lower myself do such a shameful thing! All of the money have earned has been fought for!" Tsukio said in such a tone he startled the remaining girls at the table. Even Su refrained from stuffing her face and looked up.

"And you say that's 'not much' as if it isn't!" Kitsune said aloud, trying to ease the tension. "Why, I could buy me all the Sake I would need for the year and pay the rent all at the same time! And you… would do that for me right? We could be such a nice pair…"

Kitsune looked as if she was in her own little world with tears of joy forming in her eyes. She was slowly inching her way closer to Tsukio, who was slowly inching his way away from Kitsune.

"Well, it's not a lot compared to how much I've owed the hospital before" He said in a relaxed tone, still trying to keep a safe distance from the fox eyed yen predator.

"Well Tsukio, we've got a lot of things to do for you today! No time to waste either, let's get going!" said Keitaro as he finished off the rest of his food. "Hey, Shinobu-chan, you don't mind cleaning our dishes do you? We really have to get moving."

"No sempai, it's ok."

"Hai Shinobu-chan, arigato"

Shinobu cleared the table soon after the others left. Kitsune went straight to her room at the teahouse to begin drinking and bidding on the horse races again, as usual. Su went upstairs to her room, most likely to begin development on the next Mecha-Tama series.

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"Ok, here's the deal. Tsukio, you and I will go and open you a bank account, youll need it otherwise you might lose all that money. The girls will go and look at a few shops for clothes and whatnot" Keitaro said, while pointing with his thumb behind him.

"Alright, sure whatever. So, well meet up with you two girls in say, 30 minutes? Well be out here I guess, right Keitaro?"

"Yeah, well be here. See you two ladies later"

As they all said their goodbyes, Keitaro and Tsukio headed towards the bank. Mutsumi and Naru headed out with high spirits to the nearest clothing vendor.

"So, what do you think he likes?" Naru inquired.

"No idea, lets just look around for now, well do the actual shopping when those two are done"

"Yeah, let's just walk around to kill some time"

"Hey, Naru, what do you think of Tsukio-san, now that we've gotten to know him a little more?"

"Huh? Why are you asking me this?"

"Well, you're the only other person who's been around with him as much as I have, besides Keitaro. I think he's handsome, and friendly too" Mutsumi said with a smile.

"Do you? Yeah he does look cute, but I don't think we know him that well enough yet. I mean, it's only been maybe a few hours total that we've known him? Don't you think your moving a little fast?"

"Not really, I mean if he's going to be staying with us, knowing Kitsune, I've got to get a head start, don't I?"

"Well if you put it that way I guess, but I don't think you should worry about Kitsune. Tsukio doesn't seem the type to go after drunkards, they way he kept fending off Kitsune at the table this morning."

"What about Motoko?"

"What about her?"

"Well, at the table this morning, when he looked at her, she was blushing I think. I don't think he noticed, but I think Motoko might be interested in him too"

"Nani? Motoko? OUR Aoyama Motoko? I highly doubt that. The only person she's admitted to liking was Keitaro...But she's given up on that"

"Exactly. Maybe she's trying to move on? She's a lot more womanly lately, and a lot more open to guys."

"Hah, more open? She wanted to kill Tsukio at breakfast this morning. If anything she's more closed"

"I think she was just trying to keep her image. You know what I mean?"

Naru gave Mutsumi's words some thought, and began to see where Mutsumi was coming from.

"Yeah, I guess I do. Mutsumi, you're not typically like this. You must really like Tsukio huh?

"I guess so." said Mutsumi with a slight smile.

"You know, Mutsumi, I remember when you liked Keitaro for a while. You weren't like this back then"

"Like this?"

"Well, you were more open then... you seem a little shy now. I've never seen this side of you before."

Mutsumi giggled a little.

"Well that's a little different Naru-san" Mutsumi passed Naru a light smile. "Because I've known Keitaro since I was a young girl, remember? You have too. Besides, people change right?"

"Ah, yeah I suppose. It's still a different side of you though"

"It's not bad is it?"

"No no, not at all" Naru said with a small grin.

/Hmm, maybe I never saw her like this before because we never went out like this together back then...not only that but there's never been another guy around besides Keitaro. Shirai and Haitani don't count, those two are idiots./

As the two of them continued to walk around, they had realized that their time was almost up. After idle chit chat and a few more laps around the mall, they decided it was about time to head back to where Keitaro and Tsukio would be waiting for them.

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Meanwhile, Keitaro and Tsukio remained sitting on a bench just outside the bank. It had only taken them 10 minutes to get everything they needed to get done accomplished.

"Thanks Keitaro, I appreciate it man"

"Yeah no problem Tsukio. It had to get done sooner or later."

"What's the rent at Hinata-Sou anyways? You never answered me back at the hospital."

"Oh the rent? Heh, compared to what you have, it's nothing. You could pay for a whole years rent easily."

"Oh? So what is it?"

"10,000 yen a month"

"What? That's it? Wow things are a lot cheaper when you don't have to do them on your own."

"I guess, we do have a lot of tenants, and we have a beach teahouse that brings in additional funds, so were pretty set money wise to keep Hinata- Sou running."

"You've got a beach tea house?"

"Yeah, we also have beachside hot springs down there too. Together they make most of our money here"

"Wow, sounds nice."

"I guess, haha" Keitaro said with a laugh.

"Hey, how long have you been together with Naru?"

"Huh? That's out of the blue"

"Eh? You don't mind me asking do you?"

"Nah it's ok. We've been together for about five years now, going on six."

"Wow, that's a while."

"Well it's not that easy to say. We've been through a lot of ups and downs and she never wanted to admit it until just recently." Keitaro said as his mind went through a flashback. "Yeah, it's been a hard few years, but we managed" he said as he passed Tsukio a small smile.

"Seems like it."

A few moments had passed since those last words were spoken. Both Tsukio and Keitaro remained sitting on the bench watching people pass them by as they sat in wait for Naru and Mutsumi.

/I need to remember to get myself a few Gi's and Hakama's. I'll need them if I'm going to be training this summer./ Tsukio thought quietly to himself.

Just then, Naru and Mutsumi had shown up.

"Keitaro!" "Tsukio!" Both Naru and Mutsumi shouted out synchronously.

The two men at the bench looked up, to see two beautiful girls calling them over to them.

"Keitaro, is that Naru and Mutsumi?"

"Huh?" Keitaro said as he looked in the direction Keitaro was pointing "Um, yeah. Lets go I guess."

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The rest of the afternoon, Tsukio spent nearly half of his earnings on an entirely new wardrobe, shoes, various things he would need through the year, and some martial arts equipment. Since he was to be training with Motoko, he figured he might as well pick up a bokken, amongst other things.

Towards late afternoon, early evening, they were finally finished with their shopping spree for Tsukio and began the long walk back to Hinata- Sou. Keitaro held a few bags in his good hand; both Naru and Mutsumi also had a few bags. Tsukio, on the other hand, had bags strewn all over himself. Some hanging from his arms, hanging over his back, and some were worn like a purse.

The trek back to Hinata-Sou was a long and undesirable trudge through the streets of Japan filled with happy faces. Under the additional weight of all the baggage Tsukio now carried, he began to regret ever agreeing to go shopping. Maybe if he went alone things wouldn't have been so bad. But going with two girls, not one, but two, Tsukio mentally noted was an incredibly bad idea. Although, he did get to spend some time with Mutsumi, so all in all the day wasn't entirely appalling. Tsukio looked over at Keitaro, who was shaking his wallet upside down. He had spent everything he had on him. Luckily he had quite a bit left in his bank, but the fact that his wallet was now empty was a bit startling to Keitaro. Tsukio himself had then just come to the realization that he too spent a great deal of money. Nearly half his earnings, gone. In one simple few hour excursion to the mall. Gone. He was left with 130,000 yen. He had blown 120,000. But then again, as he looked back on it, he really needed to spend it. After all, he had no clothes.

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As the four of them arrived back at Hinata-Sou, Tsukio had remembered his appointment with Motoko for training. On top of that, he still needed a moment to collect his thoughts and meditate for a bit.

"Hey guys, thanks for today, but I have to go and get ready for my session with Motoko."

With that, Tsukio then realized he had no idea where his room was in the Inn.

"Umm, Keitaro, uh. Where's my room going to be at?" asked Tsukio in a rather sheepish tone.

"Haha, I was wondering when you would ask that. Follow me, there's a spare room in Haruka's teahouse outside. Or you can take board in the room that's open near me, since Kitsune moved out"

The door to Hinata-Sou opened and a fox eyed woman came roving through the commotion, heading straight to Haruka's stash of Sake.

"If you take the room in the teahouse you can help Kitsune and I out! We manage the teahouse there during the summer! It helps provide us with some additional income and at night it becomes a bar!" Mutsumi blurted out.

"Oh, so I could work for you guys there?"

"Mhm, mhm. The pays not the greatest but at least you'll have something to do for the summer!"

"Hm, I kind of like that idea. I could get some work experience over the summer so maybe I can find a better job. Then I won't have to go to the fights so often to live week to week. I like that idea!" said Tsukio with a slight grin on his face, followed by a laugh. "Will I be the only one living there?"

"Oh no. Mutsumi also lives there. Kitsune does too. You can keep them both company. They tend to throw a lot of parties down there, so you should be busy often enough." Keitaro explained.

"Ara Ara, it will be weird being the only guy down there, but don't worry, we wont bite" Mutsumi said in laughter.

"Hard" Kitsune added with a grin, as she left to go back to the teahouse.

Tsukio's eyebrows twitched as he looked at Mutsumi and Kitsune, who had both just given him a suggestive wink.

/Kawaii! That was interesting...them winking at me after a comment like that/

"Mutsumi! Kitsune!" exclaimed a protestant Naru.

"Ara Ara, hehehe. Don't worry Naru, we'll be fine" Mutsumi said with laughter in her voice.

"C'mon Tsukio, lets get you situated"

Mutsumi then swung her bags over her shoulder, which almost hit both Tsukio and Keitaro in the head. Slightly taken back, Tsukio almost lost his balance under all the weight of the bags when he leaned back to avoid being hit, until someone reached out and grabbed his hand.

/Eh? What's she doing this all the sudden for?/ He mused.

Mutsumi then led Tsukio outside and over to the small teahouse near Hinata-Sou.

"Kitsune! Tsukio will be staying with us!" She shouted out.

Kitsune, who was drinking Sake at the bar table while watching the horse races, spun around in her chair.

"Nani? He is? So he's decided?"

"Hai! He's also going to help us run this place!"

"Ah, an extra hand, that's always good." Kitsune said slurring her words.

"Is she always this drunk?" Tsukio whispered to Mutsumi.

"Not always, but pretty much." Mutsumi whispered back with a giggle.

Tsukio then followed Mutsumi to his new room, and began to fix up the place to his liking. After all of his clothes were folded, hung, and neatly put away, Tsukio then changed into one of the Hakama's he bought earlier that day.The top portion was a deep blue, while the bottom a silver speckled black. He then picked up the Bokken which lay in the corner of his room and slipped it between his sash and waist. Adjusting himself in the mirror against the wall, and giving another look about his room, he walked back down to the teahouse portion of the small house after feeling content with the way things looked. Mutsumi passed him a look as he appeared around the corner.

"Ara Ara, where are you going Tsukio-san? You look sharp in that outfit of yours"

Hearing this, Kitsune decided to turn around and see what the commotion was about.

"Nani?" She said bluntly. "Where are you going like that?"

"Ah, excuse me. But I'll be out until dinner. Motoko wanted me to find her in the woods behind the Inn for some 'training'."

"Training? That's right, Motoko said that during breakfast. Oww..." Kitsune said with agony trailing through her voice.

"What's wrong Kitsune?" Mutsumi asked.

"I'm tired, I think I'm going to take a nap, besides, I'm kinda hung-over. Ungh..."

"Um, right. Well, I'll see you at dinner then, thanks for the room." Tsukio said while leaving the Teahouse.

"Heh, I think he's after the kendo girl. What do you think Mutsumi?" said Kitsune as she rose up off her seat and began to walk crookedly to the stairs.

"Huh?"

/Could he be really? Maybe he did notice her blushing at the table, and he's making his move? But, he's been so nice to me today...Oh well, I wont judge anything just yet, maybe I am moving to fast like Naru said. I should wait a few weeks or so.../

Tsukio walked around Hinata-Sou taking in all the scenery around him. As he came to the back of the Inn, he saw a broken down building that looked like it had exploded. The bridge, leading to it, had a small stream bellow. The air was warm and very humid around the bridge. Taking note of this, he figured this was the water that provided Hinata-Sou with its hot springs. Tsukio then decided to follow the small river up stream in an attempt to find its source.

While moving up stream, Tsukio began to notice it was leading him deeper and deeper into the woods. After nearly 10 minutes of walking, he found the source of the water. There was a small waterfall coming from the mountain behind Hinata-Sou pouring out into a large pool of water. Steam seemed to part a way for Tsukio as he walked into the pool. The water itself was warm and bubbling through cracks in the rocks. He stood knee deep in the natural springs before realizing there was a large rock in the middle of the pool. Tsukio then waded his way over to the rock he saw. Upon reaching it, he sat atop it.

Positioning himself in a meditative state, Tsukio closed his eyes and listened to the gushing water around him. Upon reaching an inner tranquility within himself, he began focusing on the early morning's events and his last fight with the gang leader. He began to recap the events in slow motion, seeing things he could have done in the situation, and began playing out the outcomes in his mind if he had done them. Amongst thinking about the fights, thoughts of the Hinata girls and Mutsumi filled his mind. He let out a small smile to himself as their faces and names began to cycle though his minds inner eye.

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After some time had passed, he picked up a noise. Remaining motionless, he tried to focus his hearing in its general direction. The soft pitter patter of feet across moist grass came to his mind. The sound picked up it's pace, and began to sound harsher. Suddenly, the noise stopped. All that remained was a whistling in the air as if something had been thrown with great force.

"Motoko!" Tsukio suddenly spat out as he quickly recovered from his state and jumped off of the rock.

Landing in the water several feet from theboulder, he looked up. He saw Motoko flying through the air, her Bokken swinging toward the very rock he just occupied. If Tsukio didn't move, he would have been cut in half, even if it was just a wooden sword.

There was a brief moment time seemed as if it had stopped. Motoko's bokken had landed against the large boulder. An instant later, a great force seemed to have split the boulder in two. Shrapnel from the rock flung about, as the water around it rippled into a pathway following the trajectory of Motoko's attack. Tsukio stand there in awe, realizing that he would have been far worse than cut in half by the kendo girls attack.

As the splashing water subsided, and the flying shrapnel came to an end, Tsukio lowered his guard, only to see Motoko standing over the remains of the boulder.

"Impressive, Sakamoto. I didn't expect you to dodge that."

"What are you trying to do? That would have killed me!"

"Alas, that was my intent. I won't miss next time." She said in tone lacking all emotion.

"Nani!? Mate Motoko-chan!" Tsukio shouted out.

Motoko's eyes were cold as she came running towards Tsukio again, who had no option but to draw his own Bokken from his waist. The distance between Him and Motoko was quickly closing. Recalling his own training in Kendo from his master, he took a Battoujutsu stance and waited for Motoko to come within distance to release an incredibly high speed slashing maneuver.

Motoko, quickly noticing his stance, quickly jumped above Tsukio and landed several feet behind him. Tsukio, almost ready to release his attack, pivoted on his foot and spun himself around as fast as Motoko had jumped over him. The result was Tsukio's Bokken flying toward Motoko at incredible speed. Tsukio stopped an instant before impact. The wind from Tsukio's attack rushed across Motoko's face, which was pale with shock.

"It seems I've completely underestimated you Sakamoto. Perhaps your worthy of your life, you could have potential." Motoko said in a flat voice.

"I wouldn't try to butter me up after you try to kill me!" Tsukio said menacingly. "Just because you're a girl doesn't mean I wont come at you full keel!"

Taken back by his words, yet empowered at the same time by his bravery and challenging voice, her face became hot again.

/What's this? It feels almost the same as this morning at breakfast. Only this time it's more of a smothering sensation...What's going on with me!?/

Tsukio, noticing Motoko's face turning red, took note of the event.

/Is she blushing? No, it's the heat, it's getting to her. She must have been here waiting for a long time. Similar to this morning at breakfast. I thought she was blushing then too. It must have been the food; it was very rich, meant to entice people. She probably ate too much of it too fast./ Tsukio thought to himself. /This must also be where she trains. Upon noticing me, she attacked. Is this her idea of training?/

"Hey, Motoko, is the heat getting to you? You look hot."

/Nani? He notices? The heat? That's it! The heat! I'm not blushing, It's the heat! Then what about this morning? It must have been the food, I ate it too fast. It affected me I suppose. Nani? That means...Whew. I was letting all of this get to me. As a warrior, I can't be so susceptible and suspicious of my own feelings! Put yourself together Motoko!/

"Hai...Lets get out of this steam. Follow me, we'll continue there." Motoko said with renewed vigor.

"Eh? Ok..."

Tsukio followed her from afar, watching her every move as if expecting her to suddenly strike again at any time.

After a few minutes of walking deeper into the woods, they came across a clearing. The sun was beginning to set; its light cascaded across the treetops leaving a ray of light to half of the clearing. Motoko stood at the opposite end of the clearing, gesturing Tsukio to stay where he was.

"We duel here. Without interference. I'm not going to hold anything back Sakamoto!"

"Don't think I will either, Aoyama." Tsukio let a smile show through his steely gaze.

/This will be fun, I love a good challenge/

/Nani? He's smiling? Gah! He's such an egomaniac!/

"Fine. Iza! Hajime!"

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Authors Note : I believe Iza means Come (now), and Hajime means Begin. If I'm wrong just assume its right XD The effect would be like this : "Fine. Im comming! Begin!"
Also, feel free to post comments and ideas. The more ideas I have swirling through this head of mine the more elaborate my writing will be, and I won't suffer such a bad writers block as I did halfway through this chapter. It will also increase the longevity of this story, which is always a good thing :-)