Disclaimer: I don't own Hikaru no Go.
Chapter 27 : Plenty enough
The following night, Hikaru's room
" Yes, he actually did it," Hikaru had been on the phone talking with Nase for more than 2 hours. Heihachi had just given her this latest cell phone as a gift to congratulate her on her achievement, the granddaughter gladly received it and didn't hesitate to use it to call her friend to tell her about what happened to her today, " To think that he's a Go pro too…he is nothing but disgrace to the Go world," Lying on her tummy, the young girl in a very petite shorts muttered while she was reading a teen magazine.
What about Sai? Well, the ghost was sitting in a kneeling pose on the floor like always, watching his little sister having a girly girly chat with her friend on the phone.
" Gokiso," Turning the page, Hikaru informed, " His name is Go-Ki-So," Seeing a cheeky top, she got up. She showed her blue-eyed mentor the magazine and pointed at the very very short green tube top.
Sai leaned forward to take a better look and frowned once he saw the picture. Rising his eyes, he saw the blonde nodding eagerly, grinning from ear to ear to imply that she loved it. With his arms crossed as an " X", the protective brother shook his head dynamically telling her that he strongly disapproved of it. I would rather die…Wait! I've already been dead!...Let's say that I'd rather die again than seeing Hikaru in that indecent clothes!
Seeing that negative response, the naughty blonde giggled quietly. She knew that Sai would never ever let her wear the clothes like that, she had foreseen it coming. She still remembered well the way her conservative ghost reacted when he saw the hip Chibuya girls walking on the street wearing strapless tops, the ghost almost had had a heart attack because of a culture shock. After all, it's Sai, the Heian dead courtier, we're talking about. He would probably say something lame like ' I'd rather die again than letting you wear that top!'
Anyway, it wasn't Sai's fault since he did come from the Heian period which was the era that women weren't allowed to expose their body in public. Back then, noble ladies wear a long beautiful Kimono, it's very long, I can't even see their wrists! Now, Hikaru wants to wear those awful clothes! Just wearing shorts at home is bad enough! My little sister wants to wander in the city showing everyone her bare shoulders, her arms and her….her...NOOO! With both hands on his temples, Sai, the freak-out father, mentally screamed crazily in horror. No! I have to do something! But! What if she doesn't listen to me? The older kids grow up, the more rebellious they are! What am I gonna do? What am I gonna do? God!
" What?" Hikaru's abrupt shout brought him back to the real world.
"……….."
" Really?...Ah-hah…. Ah-hah…and…really?" All of a sudden, the newly pro turned serious, " Ah, I know…Yup…it's here somewhere on my desk…Umm…Okay, bye…See you later, ne?...Bye," she hung up the phone.
" What is it? Hikaru," Sai wondered.
" It's Isumi-san," she replied coolly.
" Oh, How is he doing? It's been a while that we didn't hear from him,"
" Nase-chan just told me that he decided to quit Go,"
" What?"
" Yeah," Getting up, she went to her desk and pulled out the drawer. After searching for a while, she turned around to talk to her teacher, " I think it's time to pay Isumi-san a short visit," With a little piece of paper in her hand, she stated.
The next day, somewhere in Tokyo
" Are you ready?" Hikaru asked. The duet finally reached their destination, the Isumis' residence.
The Isumis's home was just a typical salary man's house, a simple house with a small garden in the front. Still, it was a bit larger than the Shindous's, it made sense though since it was built for 5 people.
" Yes," Sai nodded.
" Okay, here we go," the girl in a ruby red ¾ sleeved slim fitted Tee took a deep breath before pressing the door ring.
" Yes?" A boy's voice came from the entry phone, it wasn't Isumi Shinichiro's voice.
" Excuse me, I'm here to see Isumi-san," Hikaru stated her purpose.
" Hikaru, everybody who lives here is Isumi-san," the wise dead guy reminded her.
" Oh, that's right," " Isumi Shinichiro-san, I mean," She clarified.
" Okay, Come in then," the boy said, then the door was opened.
Hikaru went inside the house at once since it was freezing outside. The boy who let her in was standing at the entrance. With his arms folded and his chin tilted up a little, he studied the strange visitor from head to toe.
In the same time, Hikaru herself was observing the boy too. He was like a combination between Waya and the Isumi that she knew. Although he had the same black hair and the same dark eyes as Isumi, he reminded her a lot of Waya since both of them shared the same muddled hair and dressed like a punk. Is he Isumi-san's little brother? He doesn't look much older than me.
" Hikaru, he looks so scary," Hiding behind the girl's back, Fujiwara no Sai ,who had swore to protect his precious sister with his own life, said with a shaking voice, " Look! There is a skull on his shirt!"
" You are Shinichiro's girlfriend?" Walking toward, the strange boy in a black baggy Tee-shirt questioned.
The duet automatically stepped backward to put some distance between them. " Oh, no, I'm his friend from the insei class," the green-eyed girl in dark jeans with whiskering on thighs quickly corrected.
" Good to hear that, so…are you seeing anyone?" Approaching the girl, the boy leered.
" What? Excuse me?" Still walking backward, Hikaru felt the coldness on her back. Apparently that she eventually reached the door so… it meant that she was cornered now.
Hands on the door to support himself, the spine-chilling boy asked, " What about me? Wanna be my girlfriend?"
" What?" the duet blushed into red and exclaimed loudly in unison.
" I…I…," Flushing with great embarrassment, the frightened girl stammered, she was too embarrassed to speak.
" Back off! You are standing too close to her!" Shouting angrily, Sai ordered. He too was going red in the face but it was because of anger, not embarrassment.
" Shinichi, Who is it?" A young man's voice asked, Hikaru recognized that voice.
" Isumi-san!" Frankly, it wasn't just a call, it was more like a call for help.
" Shindou!" Isumi Shinichiro cried as he saw the known pretty face. His eyes widened in shock when he realized what was wrong with this picture, " Shinichi!" he yelled at full volume.
" Easy, bro," With both hands up into the air like a cornered thief, Shinichi sniggered, " I don't dare to touch Ni-san's girl,"
" Shinichi!" the big brother hollered, however, " Angry" wasn't a right word to describe him , " Despairing" was more suitable, " Wait! Where are you going?" he called out when he saw his younger boy opening the door, leaving the house.
" Out! Geez! You sound like mom," Shinichi snapped sharply before banging the door and left. The duo simply stood still, feeling awkward as they knew they had just witnessed a brother clash.
Quickly turning his attention to the unexpected visitor, Isumi questioned the girl with worry, " Shindou, are you alright? He didn't… scare you, right?"
" No! She's not alright!" Sai immediately retorted with fury, " That boy is very rude!"
Slightly shaking her head, Hikaru smiled warmly to assure her nervous friend, " We're just talking, Isumi-san, you are thinking too much," she lied, it was a white-lie though.
" What?" the overprotective brother protested wildly, " But, Hikaru!"
" Stop it, Sai," his considerate sister instructed, " Can't you see how worried he is? I don't want him to feel guilty about this,"
" Oh," Isumi was surely naïve, he easily believed in her words without any doubt, " Good," he sighed with relief, " Still, I'm very sorry for his rudeness, you know…he can be…intimidating sometimes,"
" Ha! He's a real flirt!" Sai mocked crossly, " Don't you teach him manners or something?"
" Sai! That's enough!"
" But…!"
" Enough is enough!"
" Today?"
" Eh?" Hikaru uttered, she only heard the end of the sentence only," Pardon?"
" I asked you what you were doing here today?" the black-haired boy repeated the question.
" Ah! Err..I just want to..talk to you," she answered uncomfortably.
It's very cold today…I can't just tell her to go back home and kick her out… " Come in," the older boy halfheartedly invited her in.
Isumi Shinichiro's room,
After Hikaru had taken off her black Above-the-Ankle boots and her Faux Fur trimmed coat, she followed Isumi to his bedroom. The boy left her waiting alone in the room while he went downstairs to prepare a cup of hot tea for his guest.
Sitting on the floor, Hikaru looked around scanning the room. This room does suit him. Isumi's bedroom was clean and organized like the boy himself. Books and CDs were placed neatly on the shelf. His desk was well-arranged, his bed was made in order too. It's so Isumi-san.
" Sorry to keep you waiting," the owner of the room finally came back with 2 cups of tea, one for the blonde, one for himself, " Sorry about Shinichi again," Sitting down, he smiled weakly and placed a cup in front of Hikaru.
" Is he one of your little brother?" He's like a combination between Isumi-san, Waya and Ogata 9-Dans…Not a good combination, if you ask me.
" Aaa, his name is Shinichi, he's 17," he replied, " And Shinchi, our youngest brother, is 10,"
" It's nice to have brothers or sisters," Sipping her tea, Hikaru spoke up cheerfully, " It's kinda boring when you are the only child. Thank god, I have Akari, if not, I would be bored to death by now," she chatted casually.
" So, why are you here again?" Suddenly changed the subject, Isumi got down to business, " What do you want to talk to me?"
"…………" Gently laying down the cup, the new pro said calmly, " I heard that you left the nine star club,"
" Yes, that's right,"
" And the insei class too,"
" Yes,"
" …And I also heard that you stopped playing Go,"
"……………"
"……………."
" Yes," Looking steadily into his friend's vivid green eyes, Isumi confirmed that the news was true.
" Isumi-san! You can't!" Hikaru abruptly cried.
" Of course, I can," the tranquil boy said stilly, " Listen, I know that you're worried about me but…,"
" Everyone is worried about you!" Interrupting, the blonde exploded emotionally, " Waya-kun, Nase-chan, Iijima-kun, Honda-san, Komiya-kun, Fuku-kun, even Ochi!"
" Shindou,"
" Why? Isumi-san, why?" she questioned with a pleading tone, " How could you ever think of quitting Go? Don't you love it?"
" Because just love isn't enough!" Isumi burst out piercingly with a broken heart.
" Isumi-san,"
" You don't get it, do you?" the disappointed boy laughed bitterly at himself, mocking at his own stupidity and his incompetence, " You're a 1st year insei who passed the exam with the highest score but I…I failed,"
" So did Nase-chan, Handa-san and the rest too!" Hikaru countered back right away, " But none of them give up!"
" This is the 3rd time that I fail!"
" So what? Waya-kun has to take the exam for 5 times before he passed it!" she pointed out, " He was thirteen, five years younger than you are, when he didn't pass his 3rd exam but he didn't give in. And his dream comes true 2 years later!"
" Shindou…I…,"
" Hikaru, calm down," Sai whispered, " You come here to encourage him, not to scold him and scare him to death,"
" Err…well…err…I guess, I lose control, haha," Hikaru laughed uneasily in her thought, " What should I do? What should I say to him then?"
" First of all, I suggest that you should soften your tone," the smart teacher proposed, " Be sweet,"
" Ah-hah, and?"
Judging the depressed boy,the wise ghost commented, " I think his problem is…he has no self-confidence…why don't you say something to build his self-esteem?"
" Self-esteem?"
" Yes, Tell him he's strong, something like that. Be sweet, use your feminine charm," he advised.
" A-re? Feminine charm? What the hell is that?"
" You know, your womanly attraction!"he said irritably, " It's in every women, you have it too! And please, mind your language,"
………….
………….
"…..Okay, I'm not gonna guarantee anything but I'll try my best to bring out my feminine charm,"
" Everybody misses you, Isumi-san," Following Sai's instruction, Hikaru spoke with a mild encouraging voice, " I miss you too," With a considerate look, she smiled tenderly.
…Wow…that's good. With his face hid behind his fan, Sai silently praised with amazement. This is the one who claims that she doesn't know what womanly magic is…Women are a surely tricky creature.
" Shindou," Looking away, Isumi looked down at the floor to avoid meeting her eyes, " I'm just not good enough," Clenching his fists, it was really hurt to actually say it out loud. Unlike you, I'm not talented! With his eyes shut, he was trembling with agonizing anger.
" That's not true," the younger girl disagreed with the idea, " If you are not good why that Mashiba dislikes you?"
" !" Mashiba! Out of the blue, the pictured of the said pro sniggering at him, mocking him, laughing at him just suddenly popped into his head.
" He doesn't like you," Hikaru went on, " Because he perfectly knows well that you're better than him, he envies you, don't you see that?"
" !"
" You are his rival," she said softly but overwhelmingly.
Rival?
" His threat,"
Threat?
Somehow seeing his baby sister trying to convince the older boy reminded Sai of a wicked sly queen who tried to manipulate a naïve king. Scary! Women are so scary! He had just realized what he had done. Inside every girls and women, there was a trickery lying down like a sleeping fox waiting for the right time to wake up…to deceive a man's heart. I had just woken up her dark side!
" Nothing is the same without you, who else can stop Waya-kun when he turns into a Godzilla?" Hikaru joked, it worked, at least it could bring a slight smile to Isumi's serious face.
"…………"
"…………."
" Hikaru,"
" I think, I should go now," Rising up, she said serenely. Isumi still sat there where he was without any sign of moving, " Sorry for the inconvenient," She opened the door and turned around, " And you're right about one thing, Isumi-san,"
"……….."
" Just loving Go is not enough,"
" Hikaru! What are you saying!" Sai cried noisily to complain, " You're going to ruin it all!"
Swiftly looking up, Isumi gave her a surprised look, " Shindou,"
The clever girl simply smiled amiably before saying, " It's plenty enough," Then she exited the room, shut the door and left the Isumis's residence.
In front of the house,
Hikaru glanced at her mentor, " Well? Am I sweet enough?"
" Just like you said, Hikaru," Sai replied with a cunning smirk, " It's not enough, it's plenty enough,"
Isumi Shinichiro's room,
Isumi sat at his desk before bringing out a picture from his drawer. It was a picture of a girl around his age with brown shoulder-length hair. He put his hands together and lowered his head the way he paid respect for Buddha's statue, " Sorry, Sakuno, I think I've cheated on you for a minute," he said to the picture.
A/N: Finally I finish typing this chapter at last! Thank god! It's so long! Here I have some interesting tips for you guys.
A person with A blood-type like Isumi is an honest and serious person, a very serious one. If something doesn't go as his plan, he'll be totally lost and very very disappointed. He'll keep thinking about his mistake over and over, again and again. If you want to comfort or encourage him, you have to say something sweet to him.
Unlike a person with AB blood-type, though he's a serious person too, he doesn't need any sweet words. A person with AB blood-type is well known for being quiet, he doesn't talk much and doesn't show any emotion. If he's angry, he remains silent. If he's sad, he still remains silent. Also, he's a very confident guy, he doesn't want any advice from you, he wants to solve his own problem by himself. So, the best way to show your support to him is saying nothing, just sitting next to him showing him that you're always by his side, that's enough. You must be a very talented person to make this kind of person burst out angrily. Well guess, who has AB blood-type in this anime? Yes, it's Akira.
Honestly, I don't think that Hikaru have to visit Isumi like this, just giving some time like the way it happens in Anime would be enough, but this is another differance between boys and girls. Girls liked to talk about their problems, while boys remains silent, don't you think it's true? That's why she went to visit him.
Kage.exe : Really? I wanna see it!
C.M Aeris Queen of Insanity: "Guys aren't supposed to ask a girl that time of the month?" Especiallywhen we're angry with no reason. Look at, Kathy's, Mira-hime's and Karin's review :)
OokamiFuu: Welcome back then :)
Lilac-Blossom-Neko: Akira is so thick when it comes to..anything that has nothing to do with Go.
Eadha Ohn: Haha, easy, that's okay.
Chibura and HarbringerLady :Yeah, that's why it called " Not fair ( Akira's pov)" !
Kireshai-chan837: "i wish you would update faster" What?
Kinlin : God is...notquite cooperativesometimes.
Kathy: "He should thank that he is death right now" Totally agree!
Karin : I think, he's rather thick than insensitive.
Mira-hime: Fic about Ogata and HIkaru? Umm, not now.
Zeynel : Don't worry the mother will come.
By the way, do any of you guys know the Anime " Harukanaru toki nakade"?