Hmm, the first chapter had a good first impression, I see… Time to see if I can keep up the quality!
By the way, 'English' dialogue ,as in dialogue spoken by a character in English as opposed to Japanese, will be represented like /this/.
---Kouji Tamino
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Kurogane High
Chapter 2: Teachers and Low Funds
"Tatsu!" Tetsunosuke shouted, bursting through the front door. "Tatsunosuke! I'm back from school!"
Looking up from some mail, the older Ichimura sibling smiled. He was dressed in an open short sleeved red over-shirt, black t-shirt, blue jeans, and white socks. "Hey! Tetsu! How was your first day of school?"
"Terrible, for the most part…" Tetsunosuke muttered, rubbing the back of his head. "But I sort of made a new friend! His name's Suzu!"
"Well that's good…" Tatsunosuke replied, chuckling nervously. "At least you're finally making friends. I could have sworn that you were about to tell me that you got into another fi--"
"Oh yeah…" Tetsu added, crossing his arms and glaring. "There's this bastard in my class with this really cold look in his eyes." Huffing, he growled. "He really pisses me off!"
Sighing, the older brother rubbed his temples, grumbling under his breath. "Never mind, forget I said anything…" Shaking his head, he walked into the kitchen. "You hungry? I can start dinner now if you are."
"Um, kind of…" the red haired 15-year-old replied, rubbing his stomach. "Lunch was pretty skimpy…" He blushed as his stomach growled noisily. "Okay, I guess I am pretty hungry…"
Laughing, Tatsunosuke began to get out some pots and pans. "All right! Dinner should be ready in about an hour."
-----
"Mr. Yoshida!" Suzu shouted in greeting, walking into the apartment. "I'm home!"
"Welcome home, Suzu…" Toshimaro Yoshida replied, waving from the couch. He was wearing a black silk shirt and matching slacks and socks, drinking tea. "Sit down and have some tea with me. You must be thirsty…"
Nodded, Suzu smiled before taking a seat next to his legal guardian. Yoshida was the former employer for his late older brother, who had been mysteriously murdered. No one to this day knows who did it. "Thank you, Mr. Yoshida." He held up his cup as the black haired man filled it. "Thank you." he repeated, taking a sip. "So… How was work today?"
"Messy." Yoshida said simply, taking a sip of his tea.
"Oh, um…" Suzu began, once again confused by his guardian's cryptic answer. He always gave answers like that. 'Messy. Risky. Easy.' To tell the truth, it made him a bit uneasy. But Yoshida had been the only one there for him when his brother died. He trusted him. "I joined the Kendo Club today. There was this one kid who was pretty good…"
"I see." Yoshida replied, standing up as his cell phone rang. "Hello?" his calm demeanor suddenly intensified as he listened to the person on the other side of the line. "Are you sure?" Nodding, he sighed. "Fine." Hanging up, he looked to the boy he was responsible for. "I'm needed at work again. Looks like you'll have to order take-out again. There's money on the dresser in my room." He put on a black coat and a pair of matching boots, opening the door. "I'll probably be out late again. Goodnight, Suzu."
"But Mr. Yoshida!" he shouted, sighing as the door shut. "Never mind…" He leaned to the side in exasperation, lying on his side on the sofa. "I wonder what I should have for dinner tonight?"
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And so, the second day of school arrived. With a bit of pep in his step, Tetsunosuke arrived in class with a smile on his face. Okita had arrived early that morning, giggling as he watched the red haired student started humming after taking a seat. "You seem awfully chipper, Tetsu!"
"Mmm hmm!" Tetsunosuke said with a smile. "That's right! I'm not going to let anyone get me down today!"
"Is that so?" Susumu asked, leaning back in his chair, eyes closed. "Good for you."
"Not even your coldhearted-ness can bring me down now!" Tetsunosuke shouted, his grin widening. 'Damn it!' He thought to himself furiously. 'That guy really pisses me off!'
-----
Later, as Class 1-A's Math class ended, Class 1-B's was beginning. As Okita walked into the class, a girl with straight long brown hair squealed. "IT'S GALLANT SENSEI OKITA! I mean…" she began, calming down and blushing. "Good morning, Sensei…"
Blinking, a bit surprised by that sudden outburst, Okita smiled and waved. "Good morning to you too, Hotaru…"
Groaning, Suzu shook his head. "Not this again…. Will I have to put up with this all year?"
-----
Meanwhile, Class 1-A was in P.E. The class had to do eight laps. As Tetsunosuke was doing his third lap, he happened to notice that the cute girl he had seen the other day was in a Swimming class. Mesmerized by the sight of her going off the diving board, he failed to notice the large crowd of people running towards him. By the time he realized what was happening, he had been trampled by half of his class.
As Tetsunosuke groaned in pain, P.E. teacher Sanosuke Harada walked by. "You okay, kid?" Taking a quick glance over to the pool, he grinned. "Oh, I see… You little perv! Serves you right!" Helping his student up he laughed. "Next time, pay attention to the exercise and not women!"
"Shut up…" Tetsu muttered, face first in the ground. He screamed as he was grabbed in a head lock and given a noogie by the large man. "Ow!" he screamed, wincing at the painful friction. "That hurts, damn it!"
"Not a chance, puppy boy!" Sanosuke shouted, squeezing harder. "I'll teach you to neglect your running!"
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"Today we're going to learn how to make rice balls!" a woman with black hair said cheerfully, in the same accent Susumu had. She wore a light pink dress, matching heels, and a yellow ribbon around her waist.
"Ms. Hamazaki, when will we actually get to cook something?" Tetsunosuke asked, in a somewhat bored tone. He yelled in pain as he was punched in the back of the head. "Hey! What the hell?"
"It's only our second day, you dunce." Susumu replied, annoyance evident in his voice. "I doubt she'd let a bunch of amateurs anywhere near an oven, much less someone like you."
"Susumu!" Ayumu shouted, glaring at the boy. "What have I told you about copping an attitude while at school? No little brother of mine will be a bully!"
"WHAT?" Tetsunosuke asked, screaming at the top of his lungs in surprise. "You two are brother and sister!"
"You're just now figuring that out?" Susumu asked, smacking his forehead. "Useless and stupid…"
"You take that back, you freak!" Tetsunosuke screamed, getting up in the dark haired boy's face.
An anger mark suddenly sprouted on Ayumu's head. "Both of you… stop right now!"
The two boys, having started a growling contest against each other, suddenly stopped. Sighing, they bowed in shame. "We're sorry…"
"This is all your fault…" Tetsunosuke whispered, glaring while still in a bow.
"Don't start with me, you little midget…" Susumu whispered back, in the same position.
"Hey!" Ayumu screamed, waving her knife in a very threatening manner. "WHAT DID I JUST SAY?"
"Yes ma'am!" The two boys shouted, snapping up at attention. They both made a mental note to at try to get along in Ayumu's presence. That woman was scary when she was angry…
-----
Next up was English class. The man teaching the class was quite a sight… Dressed in a button up Hawaiian shirt, khaki shorts, shades, and sandals, the dreadlocked man placed a cowboy hat on his desk. "Hello there/boys and girls/" The odd man greeted the classroom in half Japanese, half English. "I'd have you open you English books, but it looks like they haven't arrived yet. /Oh, well/ We'll have to use the old ones for now! If I can just find them…" As he searched for the outdated books, he began to sing to himself… Butchering a familiar song as he did so. "O say can yu shiii? Bai za don ery rai!"
"What a weirdo…" Susumu muttered, hands in his head.
"He… reminds me of my dad…" Tetsunosuke said wistfully, eyes widened in shock.
"Huh?" Susumu raised an eyebrow, giving the shorter boy a peculiar look. "What do you mean by that?"
Staring down at his desk, Tetsunosuke's expression became grave. "My dad, he… used to talk that way…"
Susumu nodded in understanding, gaining a little respect for the redhead. It looked like for once, they had something in common…
-----
Tetsunosuke sighed as he looked around at all the outdated non-fiction books. His English teacher, named Ryouma Sakamoto, had taken the class down to the library to check out books on the United States of America. He groaned as he looked through the horribly inaccurate books. Even he knew that Jimmy Carter was not the current President of the US. "Oh man, this is so sad it's funny."
Susumu snorted, surprising Tetsunosuke, while flipping through one book as he shook his head. "I know… I mean, the most recent book here doesn't even cover the 9/11 attack and that was almost five years ago! Does the librarian here even live in this decade?"
"It would help if you didn't make such comments while I'm standing right behind you." Tatsunosuke replied, frowning.
"GYYYAAAH!" Tetsunosuke screamed, jumping up in the air. Susumu snapped up and shuddered in surprise. "TATSU, WHAT THE HELL ARE -- MMPH!" the boy's screaming was quickly muffled by his older brother.
"Tetsu! Will you be quiet?" Tatsunosuke whispered harshly, covering up his younger brother's mouth with his hand. "Don't forget, you're in a library right now!" Voice returning to a normal volume, he sighed. "Anyway, I work here now. The old librarian had actually retired, but was here yesterday to finish up the transition."
"So!" Ryouma shouted, putting a hand on the younger Ichimura's head. "/Iron-boy, I guess that you and the new librarian are--" He gasped as he looked at the older young man, lowering his shades as he squinted. Was he seeing things? He couldn't be seeing who he thought he saw. "/Peacemaker/…"
Tilting his head, Tatsunosuke gave Ryouma a confused look. Just what the heck was that weird guy talking about? He didn't want to dwell on the matter, so he dropped it. Shaking his head to clear his mind, he turned back to his younger brother. "Um, anyway, I have to get back to my desk… Take care, Tetsunosuke…" He gave Ryouma a suspicious look before departing.
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"WHAT THE HELL?" History teacher Shinpachi screamed, dressed in a brown suit, smacking his forehead. "Why do these books say that Kobe has just begun recovery from the 1995 earthquake?" Tossing the book to the ground, he gritted his teeth angrily. "Damn!" Sighing, he rubbed his temples. "Okay, okay… I guess we have to wait until we get better books…"
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"Well today was particularly…" Susumu began, walking to the Wood Shop class. "useless…"
Tetsunosuke nodded, pouting. "Yeah, we didn't learn jack!"
"Your grammar is atrocious." The black haired youth replied.
"Who asked you?" The fiery haired boy asked, rolling his eyes.
"Oh, whatever…" Susumu was not in the mood to deal with him right now.
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"Wow!" Tetsu shouted excitedly, running over to the buzz saw. I've always wanted to see one of these!" Examining it, he looked around at the machine, looking for a way to turn it on. "I wonder where the switch is…"
"H-hey!" Heisuke Todou, the teacher of this class shouted. He was dressed in a light blue t-shirt, old jeans, and white tennis shoes. "Don't touch that thing! It's--" His haw dropped as the saw fell off, turned in the air, and chopped off the tip of Tetsunosuke's shoe.
Tetsu winced as he felt a sudden stinging sensation in his foot. Looking down, he froze as a small trickle of blood leaked out. Suddenly feeling light headed and sick, Tetsunosuke passed out from shock. The whole class gasped, a few girl screaming and one other guy passing out as well.
To Be Continued…
