Note: I do not own Love Hina, or any other intellectual properties. They are all copyrights of their respectful owners. The rest, however, is MINE, BEE-YOTCHES!
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GYRAX Presents…
Awe of She
Chapter 12: 100 Yen Coin
You're not jealous, are you Naru-sempai?
Naru still could not get it out of her head.
Are you in love with Sempai, or not?
Images of Shinobu just standing there, mocking her, laughing at her.
You're so wishy-washy!
She could not take it anymore. She scratches her head furiously, growing more frustrated with every second. How could she let a girl like her get to her head? "Stop haunting me!" She screams furiously, trying hard to kick those terrible memories out of the confines of her head. "Get the hell out of my head! I made my damn decision already! Just cut it out! Leave me the hell alone!"
For a second, she calms down a bit for some more introspection. Something is still telling her that it is not over, yet. "Maybe I didn't make a decision."
(O)
"Damn! --- You guys run too fast!" Ayumi catches her breath, as she finally is able to meet up with the others at an umbrella stand. One of the most powerful mages out there, and she takes pride in her legs, but she could not even run as fast as Kitsune. She realizes now how dependent on magic she really is.
"Sorry, Ayumi." Kitsune replies, a little confused about how surprisingly slow the good doctor is. "You can just magically make yourself faster if that's your problem."
"I'm trying to conserve my energy, thank you." Ayumi knows quite well that magic is limited and can be wasted as well. In fact, any experienced mage does. "Besides, you guys will need me to track Naru down."
"My Universal Naru-yan detector has detected something!" Exclaims Su enthusiastically, as she grows even more excited within every second. "Ahoy! At a local gift shop!"
"Wow! I'm completely useless!" Although that is far from true, Ayumi sure feels like crap. For a woman her age, she can sure be childish; she does not like being wrong, and in this case, she has no excuse to spend a little magic energy to keep up with the others, since she doesn't have to track Naru down. She does not really like the feeling. She knows she is not useless; she just want to always be right at times, how juvenile.
Su prepares her "Naru-yan Missile Box", which is practically twice her size, all the while getting herself ready for impending combat. She is ready to roll, now! "Fire Anti-Naru cruise missiles!"
Four missiles erupt from the box and shoot off towards the sky. Once they gain enough altitude, they casually cruise in one single direction, heading right to their target.
(O)
"Do I love him or not?" Naru asks herself, diving deeper and deeper into thought. The deeper she goes, the easier it is for frustration to get the best of her. Of course she likes him, but not in that way. Another part of her brain, however, is telling her otherwise. After all the things Keitaro has done over the years, who would not love him? Then again, he has done a lot of lechery, so who would love him?
Well, she likes him, but she would not be caught dead with him. Besides, he already has a legitimate girlfriend. So why not accept it?
She regrets not being able to tell him how she really feels, thus Shinobu beats her to the punch; it hits a few nerves in her.
Now, she does not. Shinobu could just screw him for all she cares.
Stuck in her personal merry-go-round of emotions and personal choices, Naru ends up confusing herself, and scratches her head in fury again, screaming. "AAAAARRRRGH! What the hell should I do?"
Just then, she hears something from the distance. Her ears pick something screaming, the sound coming straight from the sky. Her instincts urge for her to look up. Curious as to what it is, she looks towards the sky, and there she sees "them" heading towards her.
Four missiles are locked on her; this puts the girl into a state of panic. Her adrenaline kicks in, and her brain is set on overdrive as she makes a mad dash for it. For a moment, though, she swears that she has seen the Grim Reaper riding on one of the missiles yelling "WOOOOHOOOOOOOOO!" Naru jumps out of the way to avoid the oncoming trajectories, diving straight at the sidewalks in front of the gift shop.
BOOM!
(O)
"Did we get her?" Su runs up to the gift shop excitedly, hoping that she just caught her target.
"You better hope she's alive!" Keitaro shouts, in a panic state of his own over Naru's safety. Su's blatant disregard for the well being of others is really starting to freak him out. This could lead to some unnecessary early wrinkles in his face.
"She is!" Su exclaims merrily. "My Naru-yan detector is still picking up something!"
"Thank God." Keitaro feels relieved for a moment, knowing well that Naru was not hurt, but the feeling does not last, as he quickly remembers that they have not caught her yet; the chase is still ensuing. It is just on pause for the moment. The manager knows full well that Naru can be way too impulsive, and that no one knows what she will do next. Such a drag…
Just then, Naru emerges from the smoke, seemingly unscathed. This puts Keitaro in a state of euphoria --- for a grand total of three seconds. His good mood dissipates after immediately once he picks up the "stare of the devil" coming from the bloodshot eyes of an infuriated Naru. Keitaro knows right there and then that he is screwed over.
This is not good.
"Get the hell away from me, or I'll kick your skeletal ass!" The roar is a ferocious one, coming from deep within Naru's bowels. It shoots chills directly at Keitaro's spine; it is enough to make him tremble in unconditional fear. He wants to run, but his legs are shaking so violently, that he could not even move. It only gets worse when Naru raises her fist. Keitaro covers his eyes and prepares himself for the beating that might end it all. He even sees flashes of his own miserable life before his eyes. Naru, however, punches the ground, creating a massive crack in the ground. It screams towards the rest of the harem. The entire harem prepares for the worst, but the crack stops right in front of Keitaro.
The manager opens his eyes, expecting to see himself in the afterlife, only to see that he is still on this plane of reality. He looks down to see that the crack was right in front of him. He loses the tension from the relief of not having to go through another beating from Naru, especially in the mood she is. Then again, Naru said "or I'll kick your ass"; that means she has given them all an option to stay away from her for their own safety.
Keitaro, however, is still in panic, so he watches her closely; that way he would be able to anticipate her next move hopefully. It never really helped before, but at least he has room to try, doesn't he?
What he does not see coming, however, is Ayumi stepping up with a big grin crossing her face. She seems real happy right now, which is totally not the right mood for this scenario. She even has the audacity to giggle lightly.
"Playtime!" Ayumi exclaims, showing her utmost excitement. She points her right index and middle fingers straight towards Naru. What comes out of those two fingers is one hell of a plasma beam. At light speed, the beam hits its target.
BOOM!
The massive explosion sends a shockwave of dust, which hurriedly rockets towards the harem.
Keitaro freaks, taking his state of horror to a whole new level. "OVERKILL!" And just after that, everyone is engulfed by the rapidly expanding cloud of dust. The group is forced to cover their eyes to avoid having the said ocular organs collect dust. Just outside the dust cloud, you could poor Naru deep-fried and touching the sky.
Shinobu uses her wind magic to clear the dust and smoke, so that everyone can be able to see again. They slowly open their eyes, unsure if it was the right time, and if Shinobu really has already cleared the dust. They see that it is a good time to fully open their eyes, and they take no time in doing so.
Keitaro looks around, still in utter horror, hoping to find at least a sign of Naru. He frantically looks all around him, expecting to see Naru. His eyes become the size of vinyl records as he breaks down into the depths of insanity once he realizes that Naru is not even here. Hell, she might not even exist anymore. He freaks.
"Ayumi!" He screams furiously. "What the hell was that for? Are you trying to kill her?"
"She's alive." That dumb smile still lies across her face. "She just got a little singed."
"Singed?"
"My Naru-yan detector has detected something!" Su exclaims happily, as she looks upon her radar with sheer exhilaration. "She's two kilometers ahead!"
Ayumi's eyes meet the manager's. The older woman seems utterly unphased. "See?"
"Don't scare me like that!" Keitaro snarls fumingly, his fright turning into unadulterated wrath. How dare Ayumi play around with his emotions like that? He gnashes his teeth and gives Ayumi a demonic glare, telling her that it was not funny at all. The "stare of the devil" causes the good doctor to flinch.
(O)
"THOSE ASSHOLES!" Naru snarls, apparently hopping mad. She feels like taking a random small object and just slamming it on the floor merely to take this rage of hers out on something or someone. "WHAT THE HELL IS THEIR PROBLEM!" She leans on the wall of another conveniently located building. She so wants to just slam her fists on the wall she is leaning on, anything to let it all out. However, she decides to restrain herself from doing so, but she has to keep that fury of hers insider her as an end result.
"Damn!" She cries out. "Why is the whole world against me? What the hell did I do to deserve this?" Then, various images of her beating the snot out of our favorite manager flash before her eyes. They hit her in the face like a speeding tennis ball. "Aaaargh! Get that out of my head! That wasn't my fault!" She conjures up all her inner strength to wipe that out of her mind. She succeeds, but in the end, she still feels angry. True, she has done a few things wrong, but not anything to deserve this. This is too out of hand; it is outright madness.
"Is this happening to me because I won't make up my mind?" That is the only answer she comes up with, especially because she is not in the mood for any more thinking; this is not a good time to do so. "Is the world turning on me just because I won't make a stupid decision? Isn't that a bit too trivial?" Right now, even God has turned frivolous, as he too has joined the conspiracy; at least that is what she assumes. She sticks to that answer, remembering all of the bad karma that befell her for the last few weeks. One would lose his mind from the madness and seek asylum.
For the time being, though, she has no choice but to play along with this sick game, as she is fed up with it all. She screams at herself. "If it will satisfy you, I'll make up my damn mind! JUST LEAVE ME THE HELL ALONE!" She runs from her hiding spot and hurries into the street, throwing her regrets away, no matter how tightly they cling to her.
(O)
"My Universal Naru-yan detector has detected something!" Exclaims Su enthusiastically, as she grows even more excited within every second. "Ahoy! She's - " Su pauses for a moment, a little skeptical about what the device is telling her, until she looks straight ahead of her. " – right in front of us."
And indeed, Naru stands firm in front of them. Her eyes show a very different expression than before; it is a look of determination and clear-mindedness.
At first, Keitaro questions himself, asking whether or not it is safe to approach her, now. A few more seconds and he realizes that she has made a solid decision of some kind. It is not an expression he sees often, which puzzles him for a few more seconds. Just what is this girl up to? Did she finally make up her mind? If so, does she love him or not? Just thinking about it sends chills down his spine, causing him to tremble in expectation.
Naru, however, is not looking at him, but rather she is staring at Shinobu behind him. What exactly does she want from the bluenette? Whatever the reason is, she looks belligerent, and Shinobu is definitely picking up her stare; the girl feels a bit intimidated.
Naru finally opens her mouth and unleashes her voice in order to make her intent clear. "Shinobu! I challenge you to a duel!" It sounded crisp and very determined. This does not sound like the Naru they know.
Did they hear that right? Naru wants to fight --- for real?
(O)
They decide that the arched bridge from earlier would be a suitable place for a one-on-one. The two participants stand at the center; they are still in costumes. The clamoring tourists and local populous gather around one-by-one to witness the "play" staged before them. People cover both ends of the bridge, seemingly trapping the two girls in.
As Keitaro looks on with the rest of the group, he could only wonder what exactly the two are going to be fighting over. Hell, he could hardly believe that his girl is actually Naru. Not that the others were not befuddled, too.
"Ready?" Naru cries out, not over thinking anymore. Right now, she has had enough of that.
"Ready!" Shinobu responds without missing a beat. Though she has no idea of what the fight is for, something tells her she has to win.
Keitaro wants to cross his fingers, but he cannot, as he does not want to divert his attention away from the scene, either. Though his eyes are stuck facing forward, he experiences a strong tension within himself; two of his best friends are about to go at it, so of course he has his reasons to be concerned.
It starts.
Naru grabs her bokken and darts towards Shinobu at Mach-1 speed. Unfortunately for her, Shinobu's reflexes prove far superior, as she effortlessly smacks the bokken out of her hand, opens her own right palm, and sends a blow to Naru's right eye. And just like that, the fight is over, much to the astonishment of the ongoing crowd.
Keitaro's heart quickly pounds his chest; Shinobu's blow has him scared out of his wits. His eyes grow to the size of frying pans as the shock overtakes his nervous system, forcing him to freeze in his tracks. How could Shinobu do such a thing to her? Has she completely lost her mind? Apparently, the others have their eyes just as wide.
Naru now lies on the floor; she fell back a foot from the force of the blow. She only lies still for a second. She slowly pushes herself up and looks at Shinobu. She has to face it now; she is completely outclassed. However, as she keeps her eyes locked on Shinobu, she smiles. What for?
Shinobu could not help but to wonder what is going on in her head at this very moment.
Keitaro is also scratching his head. Naru is not usually a good sport, so this wierds out the manager even more. Is this even Naru at all?
"He's all yours." Naru says. "You can have him."
Shinobu could not stop herself. "Excuse me?"
"Keep him. You are his promise girl after all."
"Naru-sempai?"
"Don't you want him?"
"You mean Sempai?"
"Who doi you think I mean? Of course I mean Keitaro! Go out and fulfill your promise. I'm not holding you back."
"Seriously?"
"I'm serious. I'm over it, now."
"You mean you loved him?"
"Not that way. You do, though, don't you?"
"Are you ok, Naru-sempai?"
"I'm fine. Go out with him. Marry him! Don't bother me with it."
"You sure."
"Yes, I'm sure! Just do it!"
Shinobu stands silent, still bewildered as to what is running in Naru's mind. Is Naru really okay with just letting it go like that, or is this a trick of some kind? She asks herself over and over as she watches Naru walk away from her and exit the arched bridge. The crowd parts way so she can get through.
Keitaro's brain is near meltdown now. First Naru was practically a demon, then she challenged Shinobu to a duel, only to get hit in the freaking eye, and then she turns happy-go-lucky and just leaves. Keitaro is not really able to make sense of what happened this afternoon, so to save himself any more frustration, he simply drops the case and runs towards Shinobu. "Shinobu?"
"Sempai?"
"Why did you hit her in the eye?"
"Oh, that." Shinobu pauses for a second. "I forgot to tell her; I healed her right eye. It's back to normal, now."
"I forgot she even had a green eye." Kitsune added abruptly.
"Well, aren't you going to get her?"
"Eh?"
"You should tell her."
"If you insist." Shinobu runs off, hoping she will be able to catch up with her.
The manager is glad that she took her time to get that green eye problem off of her. At the same time, the poor man is dumbfounded because apparently he forgot about the green eye, too. He stands there, watching his newfound girlfriend run off towards Naru.
(O)
"Naru-sempai!" Shinobu shouts out, hoping that maybe she will hear her out. To her delight, she turns around so their eyes could meet one another. However, Naru starts to give off a hint on irritation. Shinobu takes a step back, thinking that maybe she is bothering her in some way.
"What?" Naru responds, her voice also giving off a hint of irritation.
Shinobu assumes that it is her fault for setting her off that way. "I just wanted to tell you that I fixed your eye." She hopes that this will change her mood for the better. However, Naru just ends up confused, to Shinobu's disappointment.
"Eh?"
"Your eye. It's just fine now."
"My eye?"
"I hit it because I wanted to heal it, to make up for all of the things I have done to you."
"You lifted my curse?" Naru turns ecstatic, thinking that maybe her bad luck is finally gone. Maybe she made the right decision back there. Alas, it is not to be.
"Actually, I don't know how to lift curses."
As a response, Naru's eyes are reduced to little black dots, showing her disappointment.
"I did heal your eye though. Aren't you happy about that?"
Naru regains her composure. "Yeah it is. Thanks." She smiles, although disappointed by the slip of bad news. That smile is contagious, and Shinobu catches that said contagion; she smiles with her.
Naru's smile dissolves into a curious face. "I forgot I had a green eye."
Shinobu almost face faults.
Please review and tell me what you think.
Coming up next chapter…
Cram Session
With the summer behind them, Shinobu, Keitaro, and Naru prepare themselves for the upcoming Tokyo U exams. Meanwhile, Ayumi swears that she senses someone nearby.
Until next chapter, Ciao!
-GYRAX of the Dark Icon Writers