Author's Notes
Yuugi decides...
Jonouchi stays...
Katsuya decides...
Chapter 20 - The decision of Jonouchi
"I want a true friend. Someone who won't let me down and who I won't let down. A true friend." Yuugi repeated mentally, remembering the golden fur of Sennen Pazuru as he was beaten.
When he fell to the ground, Ushio landed another kick in Mutou's stomach, causing him to curl up into a fetal position because of the stinging pain in his body and abdomen.
"I'll leave it at that for now. Bring twenty thousand yen by tomorrow" He takes his knife and licks the blade, speaking with a face that was insane at the level of cruelty. "If you don't bring it, you'll find that there are worse pains... Like my friend here. Understand?"
Then he puts the knife away and walks away with his hands in his pockets, chortling evilly as the young man with the amethyst orbs crept to the other side.
Damn Ushio! You who are the real bad guy! Mutou exclaims in thought after leaning back against the wall.
Then he sighs, then continues to speak in thought as he manages the intense pain that grips him.
"But I can't do anything. He's big and strong. I don't stand a chance and I don't want to risk Yukiko-chan getting hurt because I don't know if she could face him and even if she could, I couldn't bear to see "Her committing murder. After all, if I consider her anger at the actions of Jounouchi-kun and Honda-kun, she would probably beat Ushio-san to death. Besides, I don't want anyone to die because of me. I don't want to more this violence. Besides, if Yukiko-chan isn't strong enough, she could end up getting killed at his hands."
When imagining his childhood friend being killed in front of him, he trembles intensely, only to return to being immersed in thought.
"No! I can't involve her, let alone Kisara-chan and Nuru-chan, even if they practice Kung Fu, being substitute masters of Dragon style and Kenjutsu school, Hiten no Mitsurugi Ryuu. I don't want to see none of them hurt because of me. Therefore, I have to give the money without resisting while I can't tell them what happened to them."
After a few minutes, there are sounds of footsteps approaching the place, with the young man recognizing the voice of his childhood friends.
"Yuugi-kun! Yuugi-kun!"
"Yuugi-kun, where are you?"
"Yuugi-kun, answer!"
Jounouchi, who was partially awake, heard the voices of Yukiko, Nuru and Kisara as he was looking at the smaller teenager who had assumed a defensive posture to protect them from the Student Monitor and as he watched, he realized that Mutou was badly hurt and that he was fighting to get up.
As she looked at him, Katsuya remembered his words and the fact that she considered them her friends.
Friend was a word he didn't give enough depth to until that day.
Of course, Honda was his friend. But hearing that word from Yuugi, just from the one they lived bullying in the absence of Yukiko, Nuru and Kisara, with Mutou always stopping them so they wouldn't hit them, left him disoriented.
However, disoriented was not the right word for what Jonouchi was feeling at that moment. Maybe it was guilt or a feeling he couldn't describe and that left a bitter taste in his mouth like gall when he remembered the treatment he gave Yuugi and that even after being humiliated, suffering some light aggressions, he reacted to a much older teenager and stronger just to protect them along with the fact that Mutou never reacted no matter how much they provoked him.
However, when they were in danger and injured, he stood up and reacted, using his body as a shield to spare them from further hits, eventually getting beaten up in the process, even more so by offering himself as a punching bag to Ushio, in order that he would not attack them anymore.
Jonouchi tried to understand Yuugi and his illogical gesture.
Initially, they thought that Ushio beat them at Mutou's request, only to discover that the young man would never ask for something like that when he saw how much he wanted to protect them, even if it made him suffer and feel pain.
His mind wanted to register what the feeling was, but his heart did not want it at that moment because he would feel more miserable than he already felt and he was in no hurry to aggravate this situation, especially since he had stolen one of his pieces without the smaller teenager noticed, just as a rematch.
Then, he comes out of his thoughts with the voices of Mutou's trio of friends who exclaim in desperation as they run to their friend after seeing him.
"Yuugi-kun, what happened?"
"Yuugi-kun, talk to me!"
"Which bastard did this, Yuugi-kun?"
He watches them helping Yuugi to stand up, showing concern on their faces as they look at his state and starts to reflect on her actions towards him. Everything he did. All the humiliation and physical aggression he applied to him when he was very angry with everything and everyone, wanting to take it out on someone while considering courtesy and Mutou's kindness as something revolting and equally disgusting to the point of irritating him too much.
As he carefully analyzed his feelings, he had discovered that the anger he felt wasn't that Yuugi had these feelings that Jonouchi judged to be less than rubbish and something shameful for anyone. That is, it wasn't because of the feelings themselves, but because he was incapable of having such feelings along with the fact that he was disgusted by the blows he took in life like the loss of the father he idolized and his mother's preference for Shizuka.
Therefore, he decided to take out his anger, pain and frustration on the world and on Yuugi because of his crystalline, gentle and loving heart that overflowed with goodness, making him the embodiment of the opposite he experienced in his life, making him feel more angry at the world, ending up choosing Yuugi as his favorite target.
He believed it was the same with Honda.
After all, just like him, Hiroto hated the world and was always hitting something or someone to take out his bitterness, whether in a closet, pole or in a gang, just like Jounouchi did. In that respect, they were both equals and probably, because of that, they became friends after he left Hirutani's gang when he entered high school.
Katsuya snaps out of his thoughts and memories as he watches Yuugi get to his feet when aided by Kisara, Yukiko and Nuru who were horrified to see his bruises, touching him with trembling hands while displaying tearful eyes.
So, Mutou surprises everyone when he walks towards Jounouchi and Honda. Even without knowing what happened, Nuru and Kisara noted that they were not involved in beating their friend because they found themselves more injured than their friend.
"Is it really hurting? Do you want help?" Mutou asked with obvious concern on his face while showing the pain he was feeling in his body.
Katsuya is shocked to see the look of genuine concern and kindness towards him and Honda, precisely the two students who humiliated him and assaulted him, not at the level that Ushio did while remembering the fact that even when assaulting him, Yuugi always looks for to stop Yukiko, Nuru and Kisara from beating them, even though they did them behind his back when they found him in the street.
Even so, it didn't change the fact that he kept them from attacking them despite everything they'd done and as he thought about it along with his act of stealing Mutou's golden piece just out of malice, plus the fact that Yuugi was worried about they despite the pain he was feeling, made Jounouchi feel an intense shame for his cruel acts towards the tricolor haired youth.
"No. We're accustom to it. After all, we're always in a fight. You're not used to it. Go home." Katsuya speaks without having the courage to look up to face the gentle face immersed in worry while feeling like the worst garbage in the world.
"You heard him, Yuugi-kun. Let's take him to your house." Yukiko speaks, helping him to walk.
"Yes. Your jii-chan will be horrified to see you like this. What happened? What do Hiroto-kun and Katsuya-kun have to do with it?"
"It's already been resolved. Don't worry." Jonouchi hears Yuugi answer as they walk away.
"Of course we're worried. Please tell me who did this to you. From their condition, it's evident that they weren't the ones who assaulted you." The desperate silver question.
"Kisara-chan is right. Please give us a name or describe it. We will hunt him down." The tanned woman speaks with a sad face when she sees his injuries.
"I promise not to kill him, Yuugi-kun. I'll just break some bones. Maybe, paralyze him, for example." Yukiko starts to list what she would do.
"I know he'll keep what he promised. But he won't bother anymore. Can we forget about him? I just want to rest and take some pain medicine." He desperately tries to convince Yukiko to drop the subject.
"Should we take Yuugi-kun to the college infirmary?" The silver worried question.
"I think we should take him to the infirmary."
"I also think."
"I don't want to go to the infirmary. They're going to demand a name and I don't want to give it. I'm going home."
"Want to see the doctor, Yuugi-kun? There's a clinic nearby. You're hurt." the albino asks after the trio of girls look at each other.
"I'm fine. Thanks for caring." He speaks shyly. "Jii-chan can help me. I'm not that hurt."
"Are you sure?"
"I'm sure, Kisara-chan. Also, I think I can go home alone. It's not fair for you to lose the classroom." He speaks trying to give his usual radiant and adorable smile
"We won't leave you alone in the state you are in." The tanned woman speaks while shaking her head vehemently.
"But..."
"You won't be walking without having one of us with you." Kisara speaks without giving in.
He looks at the trio who wore determination in their eyes and sighs in assent.
"I'm going to take him to his house. Break is about to end and the next teacher can't know we were in high school." Yukiko spoke as she looked at the time on her wristwatch.
"I just hope none of the other students comment on it." The silvery comments, massaging her temples.
"True. If they comment, we're in trouble." The tan spoke as she massaged the back of her neck after sighing.
"I'm going to attend classes! I don't want to get in trouble"
"Don't worry, Yuugi-kun. We won't have a problem. If you want to go to your jii-chan, we'll go. Then he can talk to the headmaster." The albino spoke gently while she smiled maternally.
"He is sure?"
"Yes. Go home, Yuugi-kun. Let's take your stuff and Yukiko-chan's." Nuru speaks smiling comfortingly as she rests her hand on one of his shoulders.
"And we will be at your house with the lessons and the content of the lessons." Kisara speaks smiling gently, resting her hand on his other shoulder.
"Thanks." He thanks him with emotion.
Then, he notices the look between them after looking at the pair fallen in the distance, immediately understanding the intentions of their friends, making the teenager despair.
"Please forget about it. I implore." The young man starts to cry as he looks at them in anguish.
"But, Yuugi-kun..." The tanned woman mumbled sadly as she felt bad for making her friend cry.
In fact, the trio had silently decided that they would rip from Jounouchi and Honda the name of whoever did this to him, since Yuugi didn't want to tell.
"Please promise me. Please." He pleads with tears in his eyes as he wore an anguished face.
Sighing, the trio nods to each other because they didn't want to make their friend even more distressed.
"We promise." The silver one spoke while the others nodded.
"Thank you so much! He exclaims displaying his typical radiant and adorable smile
"Come on, Yuugi-kun." The half dragon speaks smiling, helping him to walk.
Before she walked away completely, the albino casts a spell on their classroom, making the students forget to comment on their absence.
Even when someone tried to comment on it, the magic would make them forget in the same second.
In the original timeline, Yuugi had gone to the classroom after cleaning the wounds on his face while hiding the pain he felt in his face and body, trying to keep his head down to prevent anyone from noticing that there was something wrong with him.
Yukiko confessed that it was being too difficult for her not to go to Ushio to avenge what he did to her friend. It took all her willpower to leave that prey to Atemu, only being able to claim him as her prey, after Yami no Game.
After all, the albino was fully aware that there were events that she could not alter while in others she could partially intervene and in some situations, the half dragon could alter them at her own pleasure.
In Ushio's case, she had to let events flow as they should in the original timeline, agreeing that it was an authentic exercise in self-control and could only hope that her willpower was enough not to change the events surrounding that event.
In fact, this would be a great ordeal for her and the princess of dragons hoped to pass this very difficult test.
Yuugi walked away with Yukiko's help while Nuru and Kisara returned to the courtyard to go to the classroom, leaving Jounouchi and Honda slumped in place at the blonde's wishes.
Jonouchi had overheard their conversation and was appalled by what he heard along with Yuugi's despair for Yukiko not to attack Ushio, doing everything to save him from the albino's fury by not denouncing who had hurt him.
After all, the occasional punches and kicks they gave the tricolor-haired young man had never been strong. If they wanted to, they could have seriously injured Mutou if they punched him like they did against other gangs.
As for Ushio, he was on a different level because he hit Mutou hard several times and in a brutal way. Even so, the tricolor-haired young man was doing his best to save the Student Monitor from the wrath of his three friends and considering Yukiko's fame outside the school walls and the fact that they had been given a free sample of her strength, according to what she explained to them after returning the punches and occasional kicks they gave Yuugi, he proceeded to compare the strength of Ushio's fists with those of the albino, with Katsuya coming to the conclusion of the result of a fight between them. The result was that the Student Monitor would have a lot of broken bones and this was the mildest thing that would ever happen to him.
After all, even though the albino had a sweet and delicate appearance, it was surprising how strong she was and that it surprised both of them when they were first hit. It was just scary because as they fought so much, they both had the experience to analyze an opponent's punching ability and their posture.
Therefore, they knew that Yukiko would break Ushio like a stick and this was too scary a thought considering her sweet and delicate appearance.
Jonouchi helps Honda up when he regains consciousness because Honda was on the brink of unconsciousness when Mutou arrived, with him being knocked unconscious after the arrival of the tricolor-haired youth.
While helping his friend up, Katsuya looks towards the school pool and after reflecting on everything that happened and Yuugi's actions, he makes a decision to try to reduce the feeling he felt of being the worst garbage in the world.
After the end of classes that day, with the teachers not bothering with the state of the two, since this was almost usual, just asking if they wanted to go to the school's infirmary, Jounouchi said goodbye to Honda at the school's door. , with Hiroto commenting that he would take some medicine when he got home and when asking his friend if he really didn't want to accompany him, Katsuya gives an excuse and after his friend waved away, the blonde goes to the school pool.
As he made his way to the pool, he remembered that Honda didn't want to hear what happened after he became unconscious and only accepted the part that Yuugi hadn't ordered Ushio to hit them.
However, even not wanting to listen, the blonde forced him to listen, causing a frown to appear on Hiroto's face after the story ended.
Jonouchi knew that his friend considered what Mutou did and said, but he also knew that Hiroto was much more proud than he was, as well as stubborn.
Therefore, he knew that even though he had considered something, it was still not enough to have any consideration for the young man with the amethyst orbs.
Katsuya brushes these thoughts away as he approaches the pool area and taking advantage of the fact that there is no one at the site because it has just gotten dark, he dives into the water and after several minutes, feeling the ground as he dives, limiting himself to the spot he he had seen the golden piece fall, Jounouchi is surprised to have the sight of something shining close to him and taken by curiosity, approaches the glow, realizing that it came from the golden piece as he caught it with one of his hands.
When swimming to the surface, Katsuya realizes that the object was not glowing and starts to believe that he was seeing things because there was no reason for something to glow by itself and as he thought about it, he believed that it was the moon's glow that hit the object.
After all, this was a more plausible explanation than the object glowing by itself, without him knowing that the object emitted a glow by itself.
Jounouchi comes out of the pool and even though he feels cold, he ignores this feeling as he jumps over the wall when using a tree to climb it, deciding he wouldn't go home to dry off because he needed to deliver that piece to its owner as soon as possible, with Jounouchi planning to find Yuugi's grandfather to deliver the object to the tricolor-haired young man because he didn't have the courage, yet, to look into his amethyst eyes after everything he did to him, besides not wanting to explain how he found the object.
After all, Jounouchi felt very ashamed of his actions against the tricolor-haired teenager and confessed that he didn't have the courage to face him after everything he did against him.
Therefore, by using Yuugi's grandfather to deliver the object, Jounouchi would ensure that the young man didn't know who gave the piece to Sugoroku, as well as asking him not to reveal who gave him the object. He would also explain why his grandson was hurt because he believed Mutou didn't tell his grandfather about who hurt him and why, considering his act of hiding Ushio from his friends.
From what the blonde understood, he always protected others by being altruistic and the act of not revealing the culprit would prevent his grandfather from complaining about the Student Monitor because Yuugi feared there would be some retaliation, ending up hurting those he loved, with Katsuya having confirmation of his hypothesis as soon as he talked to Sugoroku.