Chapter 4
The Legendary Medafighter! Meet Karin and Kōji
§
[En Route]
It was a slightly cloudy day in Ginjō City as Naruto woke up bright and early as he routinely walked from his house to Ginjō Elementary. So far, his luck was holding out when it comes to getting good grades and Robattling (This Season: 4 Matches (4 Handicap), 11W - 0L - 0D). He was walking along, minding his own business when a girl shouted, "Look out!" And she pushed Naruto hard into a wall of a nearby building, leaving a big dent.
"Ouch," Naruto felt the impact, "Hey, what's that number of the truck that just hit me, y'know?" And he notices a school boy driving an Electric mini-car with a loud radio on the back of its spoiler going a little too fast along the sidewalk, thinking he's a macho driver.
"Thank goodness you didn't get run over," the girl who pushed Naruto said with a kind, sweet voice.
"Well, thanks," he exasperatingly said as he dusted himself. Naruto looked at a girl about the same age as he is (about 10), far different than Kikuhimé or Arika and probably in the same league of meekness as Brass. She wears a cream-colored shirt with boggy green trimmings on her collar and her short sleeves and a logo on the left sleeve, a boggy green skirt, white KH socks and dark brown shoes, a blue school bag, but more importantly, a cute face with emerald-greenish eyes, a slightly pale complexion, and bright blonde hair¹ tied in twin pigtails. ::Still, was all that shoving really necessary?:: Naruto thought as he finished brushing himself off and loosened his joints.
Then the girl saw Naruto's elbow got a noticeable scrape and said, "Oh, I'm sorry, and your elbow…" She pulled out a cute handkerchief to mend Naruto's left elbow and tied it to a knot.
"You don't have to, y'know," he said, "Besides I heal very fast."
"With this, you should be fine," she said with kind words, "Well then, have a nice day." And she left without mentioning her name.
Naruto wonders who that girl really was, but as she leaves past the Flower Shop, he sees the pink logo of a white flower with 3 stamens on the girl's backpack and sleeve saying, 「 Hanazono」. Could it be Hanazono Private Academy², he wondered. Sooner or later, he'll find that girl later and return her handkerchief for her kindness. He suddenly recalls a kind, considerate girl with black hair and pearly eyes who helped him in his past life and remembered about the ability of enhanced sensing.
[Ginjō Elementary, free study day]
No news is good news, right? Not with Arika Amazaké, 5th Grade Student and member of the Newspaper Club, as she says to her classmates and Metabee who sneaked into class by himself, while Naruto overhears the conversation about the rumors from the desk near the window.
Arika narrates, "As swift as the wind..."
(A visualization of an incoming tornado that blows away a car, a woman pitifully hiding her dress-skirt as she was sent flying, and a bull among the other blown objects.)
"As quiet as the forest…"
(A sea of trees shows some ancient buildings, with a monk ringing an Ōgané bell near a temple.)
"Conquering like a raging fire…"
(A red-hot blaze briefly lights up the scene.)
"And solid as a mountain…"
(A picture of Mt. Fuji and its flat top.)
"Legend has it that this particular Medarot never lost a single fight."
The classmates made a loud swallowing gulp from the suspense.
"And the one guy with such a Medarot was an individual who transcended humanity, the Legendary Medafighter. Too bad it's neither Metabee nor Naruto…"
"I heard that," Naruto murmured and Metabee felt disappointed as he thought he was the only one with an undefeated season.
「Legends」. They exist in great numbers, in the form of rumors. However, they often get less and less truthful as they get passed down over time.
One classmate asked, "So, who is this Medafighter?"
Arika answered, "I only know as much as you do, but this incident has been going on for about 2 years and nobody has solved it yet. But I've heard that this Medafighter goes to Hanazono Private Academy."
"Really?" another student wondered, "That Academy for rich people?"
Naruto listened as he turned his head as he remembered the cleaned handkerchief from that particular girl from the said academy as he thought, ::So Hanazono Academy does exist. Maybe I'll drop by there later.::
"If they're really that great, I want to robattle with them one day!" Metabee ambitiously psyched himself up.
"Leave it to me! I'll definitely find out his true identity," Arika replied.
"His true identity?" Naruto objected as he half-shrugged, "Hah! Sounds a bit chauvinistic to me, y'know. For what I could see is that this『Legendary Medafighter』could possibly be a girl."
"Very funny, Tenryo!" another student argued, trying to validate Naruto's guess, "Name one girl who is a great Medafighter!"
Naruto lets out a smirk and says, "Kiku-chan."
While the students snicker at the embarrassingly truthful statement, Arika then said, "Let's go to Hanazono Academy right now."
"Would you count me in, Arika?" Naruto asked, "Besides, I have business over there too."
And the mustered team of 2 people plus their Medarots left the school, not realizing that Kikuhimé and the boys of the Screws gang from their class next door overheard the conversation and started tailing their rivals.
"You flatter me, Tenryo," Kikuhimé quietly said.
-Medarots-
[Hanazono Academy, Elementary School Entrance]
The party of 4 geared themselves up with snacks and water (for people) as they prepared themselves for a long walk through the private academy grounds.
"Soon I'll find out the Legendary Medafighter's identity, for sure," Arika determiningly said.
"I'm sure you'll find out the mystery for the Newspaper Club, Arika-chan," Brass agreed.
"And after that, I'll challenge him to a Robattle!" Metabee said while getting fired up.
"Metabee, I'll decide whether to Robattle or not, so let's not get trigger-happy and jump the gun, y'know," Naruto said, putting Metabee in his place as he remembered the blond pigtailed girl who dressed his scrape.
When they reach the front of the academy grounds, they realize that the gate is covered in 24-karat gold. It's so bright, it's almost blinding like the sun. Even Metabee and Brass can't handle the intense brightness as it stings their optical receptors. Hanazono Private Academy is on a completely different level than Ginjō Elementary.
"This place is radiant, but I wonder if the students are as bright as what this place says," Naruto commented, but then he heard some struggling and then he and Arika saw a male high school student thrown out of the side entrance.
"Come on, let me in!" the student yelled at the watchman guarding the entrance.
"This side of the academy is no place for a high schooler to enter," the large, muscular man gruffly said with his experience like a bouncer, "Be on your way, if you would."
"Dammit!" the student cursed as he hit the ground with his fist, "I still don't know who the legendary Medafighter is and I wanna challenge that person!" And he left, with utter disappointment.
A little distance away, Arika says, "So it's true. This side is the elementary school. Other than the students, the teachers, the faculty, and the alumni, nobody else can enter this side of the gate."
"Arika-chan, what'll we do with that guard? He's as big and strong as Otokoyama," Brass worryingly questioned.
"We have to find a way somehow," Naruto said and gave it some thought. Then he got a wonderful, awful idea, "I know just what to do." And they look at Metabee who doesn't look dressed for the occasion.
-Medarots-
Metabee was dressed in an elementary student's shorts, formal button-up shirt, a torn hat to put over his horned head, a school satchel with the Hanazono logo, and a dust mask.
"Man, I hope no other Medarots see me like this…" Metabee whined while wearing the ridiculous disguise, "I wanna go crawl in a hole…"
Brass was color-modified by Arika's Medawatch by Naruto's suggestion to match her parts (the shirt, the skirt, and the feet) to that of the academy's female students, because she is a SLR-type Medarot, but she has to carry a satchel of her own as she said, "Aw, come on, Metabee. You look cute as a human schoolkid."
"Not helping...," Metabee grumbled as the party prepared to face the guard near the entrance.
"Since Hanazono only allows certain people to enter the academy, then the number of candidates would drop significantly. And maybe I will find that girl inside to return her hankie…" Naruto nearly spoke his thoughts as he found some Hanazono patches and stuck them.
"(?) You say something?" Arika not fully hearing what her friend was thinking, while Brass keeps her thoughts to herself.
The same guard looked at the group and the disguised Medarots that just entered the door and said, "You three, hold it right there. Did you kids forget something?"
Naruto played along and said, "We… forgot our homework printouts and they're printed over there and our uniforms hadn't arrived yet. So good day to you, sir."
The guard seemed to be lost in thought as if he was caught in a Genjutsu.
"How did you do it, Naruto-kun?" Brass curiously asked.
"I don't know exactly, Brass," he answered with a whisper, "The more memories I can remember, the more things are becoming very possible for me to do. It's actually one of the lower-tiered Illusion Arts plus a little deception that the guard bought, so let's not press our luck, okay?"
Arika wondered how her best friend is getting stranger by the events that occured.
The Screws tried the same tactics with the musclebrained guard, but they were grabbed and were immediately kicked out because they didn't have the logo on their person. (Oh, tough luck...)
-Medarots-
Rich people and sponsors tend to make everything bigger than necessary. Even for those who know the area well, it would take about over 2 hours on foot to get to the Elementary school building and another 2-plus hours vice versa, if they don't get lost. For this reason, the students at the Hanazono Academy go to school at 5:00 in the morning, every morning, for their health.
While trekking through the long forest, the group's search for the school is a long way off.
"When will this forest end?" Arika complained as dragged her tired feet, "How did the students at this school do this every day?"
"Maybe they don't normally walk all the way there, Arika-chan," Brass said while scanning the area.
"Maybe you should try to exercise a bit more, Arika," Naruto said, not feeling worn out, "It has been an hour already and I'm still raring to go."
"That's because you got monster stamina and dexterity, Naruto!" Arika exasperatingly said, "Nobody besides the coach can understand your enthusiasm. Ugh! It's no wonder why Otokoyama wanted you to be his model student in his "Phys Ed from Hell" program like he's preparing for a decathlon…"
"Yeah, I wonder why…," he murmured.
But then, a helicopter started flying overhead, followed by the jingle sounds coming from the intercom, and a woman's childish voice announcing, »To all of the students: it is forbidden to use any big flying crafts like helicopters to get to school without permission and clearance. Please exercise caution with them as the tarmac and landing zones are available for your convenience. That is all.«
Arika then spotted something out of the wooded path. It wasn't the school, but a built-in theme park including roller coasters and a ferris wheel nearby.
"Man, these people must be super rich to let other kids ride them," Metabee said.
"Well, what'ya expect for a school like this? Their parents must have spent a lot of time and money to have a built-in city for an academy for heaven's sake. You know, we oughta ride in one of these Ferris Wheels one of these days, Arika… alone together and… you know…" And he blushed at the imaginations of adult things inside the rides away from almost anybody. Arika was nearly thinking the same thing inside the Ferris Wheel.
"What the hell are those two thinking?" Metabee asked, almost feeling like he was left out.
"It's a human thing," Brass simply explained, although she has dreams about being closer to becoming human herself and maybe be able to kiss a certain beau.
Then quietly, all of the sudden, a person shouted from a distance, "FORE!," as a golf ball was sent flying and hit Metabee on the head, causing him to rattle from the impact. (They left the golf ball where it lies.)
"They even have a flippin' golf course, of all places," Naruto grumbled as he stopped his Medarot's rattling with his hands.
Then Brass notices some steam from another direction, which turned out to be an onsen (hot spring).
"Of course it's going to be huge if they build all these things on this piece of land, y'know. I just wish they hadn't spent it all in one place, as well as not sharing them, y'know," Naruto came to one conclusion about the academy but then he hears a boy calling out, "Get me outta here!"
They nodded in agreement and found a boy about a year older (probably in the 6th Grade), ragged, unkempt, and dressed like a bum living in poverty, with his GLM-type Medarot built like a colored stone statue on treads, all caught in a snaring net.
"It's a golem-type Medarot, Sekizou," Naruto said, "It may have a dumb face, but his missile attacks are nothing to be sneezed at."
-Meda Vital Stats-
Sekizou³
Owner: (undisclosed)
Medal: D - Jellyfish
Specialty: Missiles
"Don't just stand there insulting me and my Medarot, just get me down!"
Naruto grabbed Metabee's left arm, carefully aimed it at the rope tied to the tree, released the safety lock and said, "Metabee, fire Submachinegun." And the Medarot fires his weapon and the bullets make their mark as the rope is cut, letting the poor boy and his Sekizou fall to the ground, free from the snare.
The ratty boy introduced himself as Edamamé³ who enrolled in Hanazono Academy two years prior to face the Legendary Medafighter; so far, no luck.
"T-two years‽" Brass exclaimed in a complete surprise.
"Must from all those traps that were set up," Metabee guessed.
"And that must be why he hasn't showered for so long," Naruto murmured through his teeth after sniffing the extremely ripe scent, "Why hasn't this school fixed this modern mess in the first place, y'know?"
Edamamé looked at Naruto suspiciously and said, "You! Could it be that you are the Legendary Medafighter?"
"Now let's not jump the gun here, buster," Naruto replied, "I'm looking for him or her too, if you must know."
"After all this time, I get to face you!" Edamamé grabbed Naruto's shirt, "Fight me in a Robattle!"
A crow-like sound was heard as Naruto got a full-on blast of Edamamé's bad breath and poor hygiene as quickly substituted with a log as he said, "You got it wrong, buster. I am definitely not Robattling you like this. I swear, you need a good scrubbing, so just go back home where you belong and give up this foolish mission, y'know." And he pulled out a sanitizing spray to get that filthy stench off of himself.
Arika then asked Naruto, "Surely the Legendary Medafighter isn't really you, is it, Naruto?"
"Absolutely uh-uh," Naruto answered, "We both know I just started a few weeks ago and I'm a late entry to Japan's Robattling League, while this idiot right here is a mental-case!"
"No excuses!" Edamamé yelled, "You fight me right here, right now!"
"I stop right here if I were you," a boy with a low, cracked voice called out from an approaching carriage straight out of a fairy tale, it was a boy about 10 with a male Hanazono set with medium-length black hair and bangs covering his ears who stepped out of the carriage as he said with gleam in his charming smile, "Roughhousing is no good. You over there…," he was talking to both Edamamé and Naruto, "Hanazono Academy is a sanctuary where such barbarian acts should never take place on its hallowed ground."
"What's that‽" Edamamé yelled, focusing his attention on the "pretty boy", "That's none of your business! You're a Medafighter, aren't you? Then I'll start with you first! Fight me!"
"Uh-huh, this guy is a nutcase… no, a basket case!" Arika murmured upon seeing that Edamamé has a poor attention span from roughing in the wild for too long.
"Oh, brother," the pretty boy declared as he brushed his hair aside, "I see that you are not the patient type. Well, whatever." He transports his Medarot through his Medawatch and a STG-Type Medarot (modeled after a Saber-toothed Tiger) appears in front of the witnesses. "Nobody has survived even a minute fighting against me, just so you know."
-Meda Vital Stats-
Sumilodonad⁴
Owner: (undisclosed)
Medal: A - Stag Beetle (Class 2 - Juvenile)
Specialties: Hand-to-Hand Combat and Anti-Shooting
"Do you still want to fight?" the pretty boy asked.
"Shut the hell up!" Edamamé replied angrily, "Get him, Sekizou!"
Sekizou charges at Sumilodonad and starts firing a volley of missiles and his opponent - - - Sumilodonad weaves around the missiles with swift agility and hammers Sekizou with a left and claws with a right as they connect.
"Now that's something," Naruto commented the battle, "Sumilodonad's power and technique are first class! His handler must be experienced for this."
"Could this guy be the Legendary Medafighter?" Arika questioned.
Sumilodonad kept on attacking until Sekizou is out of commission as his medal was ejected.
"I lost! Dammit!" Edamamé cursed as he lost, "Go ahead, and take whatever Medapart you want."
"That wouldn't be possible," Naruto disagreed, "Because the referee didn't show up, the match is nothing more than an exhibition battle."
"That blonde, spiky-haired kid is right," the pretty boy agreed, "And besides, I don't need it anyway, because I have pretty much every spare Medaparts I need. Satisfied?" And he returns to his carriage with a smile.
Naruto and his friends are completely flummoxed while Arika is enamored as her rosy cheeks are showing, "That boy is so cool…"
"More like pretty conceited,💧" Naruto disagreed with a sweatdrop, "But I gotta admit it, he sure knows how to put his money where his mouth is."
But then they snap back into reality and find that Edamamé and his Medarot have already left, probably demanding a rematch and getting lost in the woods again.
So they followed where the pretty boy drove off, until…
"WATCH OUT!" a particular blonde-haired pigtailed girl yelled as she pushed Naruto, Arika, and their Medarots into a big pit hole. Naruto is on the bottom with Metabee beside him and Arika and Brass on top of Naruto, the latter almost within kissing distance. "Oh, thank goodness you're okay."
"You call this okay?" Arika complained as she was on Naruto's stomach, with her overall-covered butt sticking out, "We all fell down because you pushed us here!"
"Arika, I think there's a reason why she pushed out of the way," Naruto grunted as he explained and then she looked up and noticed some bear traps, spears (plus a loose santoku dagger), and big spiked iron ball traps falling on the ground.
"This area has been filled with traps made to catch those who try to sneak inside. We wanted an electric one, but the principal said that these traps are more humane," the angelic blonde girl said.
"「Humane」, my butt," Naruto murmured, "Hey, Arika, Brass, can you get yourselves off of us? Your legs are on my legs, y'know."
The blonde-haired girl helped the group out of the pit, one by one. Naruto then thanked her for saving his life as he recalled the face of a pretty girl with a strong impact.
"You're that nice boy from this morning," she remembered.
"Hold on, you know her, Naruto-kun," Arika gives Naruto a jealous look.
"She's that girl I met on the way to school, Arika," he tries to calm his friend down, "She's just a recent acquaintance."
"Oh, silly me. I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Karin. Karin Junmai," the girl politely said.
"I'm Naruto Tenryo and these are my friends, Arika, Brass, and Metabee," he introduced, "There's been something I want to ask of you."
-Medarots-
[En route to Hanazono Elementary]
Karin is escorting her guests to a large lake where she, Arika, and Naruto borrowed a nearby boat with oars while Metabee and Brass take the swan paddleboat (Metabee taking the wheel) and they shove off.
On the boat, Naruto takes the oars and paddle with an easy pace while Arika and Karin sit next to each other on the stern side, facing him.
"Oh? So you and Arika-chan are looking for this Legendary Medafighter?" Karin asked.
"That's right," Naruto answered, "Arika is doing a report about him, or her, and I'm sorta tagging along so that she wouldn't get herself too deep into trouble."
"What are you getting at?" Arika growled, thinking that her boy-friend is charming another girl in front of her.
"Anyway," he tries not to push Arika's angry buttons, "Do you know about this particular Medafighter?"
"Afraid not," Karin answered.
"*sigh* Well, at least we eliminated our suspect list… so far. It could likely be that guy with the Sumilodonad or somebody else. I mean, that dude rides on a fancy carriage with a chauffeur, is rather charming to the girls, and that he has almost every current Medapart available, he says."
"The students here are all like that, Naruto-san," Karin says as if she knows that boy.
Meanwhile in the paddleboat, Brass asked Metabee while they're pedalling, "I wonder what they are doing over there?"
"I think they're looking for some spare change," Metabee says as he sees Karin looking down in the water, "What I don't get is why Naruto and Arika are on a boat while we have to drive this crazy thing."
"It's a human thing. You'll understand."
Karin notices something in the water and she nearly tipped the boat over. Thankfully, before everyone would fall into the water, Naruto reflexively grabbed both girls by the wrists back into the boat and nearly lost their balance.
"Karin-san, be more careful," Naruto said, "We almost capsized because of that."
"I'm terribly sorry, but I saw a 1 yen coin at the bottom of the lake," Karin explained as she sat back on the seat.
Naruto sighed as he loosened his hand on Karin, he forgot that Arika and her busty chest was getting a little too close to him in the rocking while she was holding her hand to him. Naruto and Arika blushed from the closeness while Karin softly chuckles at the "strawberry" moment.
"Again, why are Naruto and Arika blushing like that?" Metabee asked Brass, but he saw his Medarot companion blushing and fidgeting her fingers. Could it be something that Naruto mentioned about how a full Medarot set can affect one's personality?
Then Karin points out to the gigantic, super-fancy castle (🏰) with towers and says, "Here we are, Hanazono Schools. The Academy has 5 different levels for our education so that we don't have to fuss about boundary issues."
"This is a school?" Naruto exclaimed at the academy that is tall as a skyscraper, if not the Tokyo Tower, "It's more like a mansion and a condominium rolled into one, y'know! That old guy's Manor in America has got nothing on this academia!"
"Glad that you liked it, Naruto-san," Karin said as the boats came ashore at the docks and were anchored and moored.
-Medarots-
[Near Hanazono Academy, Elementary Sector]
Karin notices that it's already close to lunchtime, so she lets her friends enter the entrance from the dock, only to get caught by the school's sanitary security system and the security's apparatuses that dragged the guests to a several adjacent cleaning rooms for the complicated tasks of decontamination, as they were forced to strip off and remove their belongings (that were to be sent to the UV and oxygenated containers to remove the germs, dead skin cells, and viruses) as people in hazmat suits prepare to decontaminate the young students and their Medarots.
"Naruto, don't look!" Arika yelled as she hid her breasts and privates.
"Don't look at me, either!" Naruto yelled back as he hid his privates before they were flashed with long wave irradiation as they were forced by the health directors to reveal their naked selves right next to each other, side by side. (Disparaging, isn't it?) Then they had to get showered in the hot water together, soaked in the purple electrolyte dissociation sterilizing fluid, showered in cold water, soaked in the sterilizing fluid again, blow dried, soaked in the sterilizing fluid a third time, while their clothes were cleaned, repaired, and sanitized and had their underwear replaced with a fresh pair, similar to the ones they previously wore (Naruto's boxers and Arika's brief panties and simple bra).
(Ding! All done. All of these were done in a total time of about 10 minutes.)⁵
Naruto and Arika were relatively squeaky clean inside and out, redressed, and had their equipment returned and sanitized. They were also given guest tags attached to their shirts. However, they felt relatively embarrassed at the way they had to live through this.
"Now I'll never get married," Arika groaned as she covered her face in shame.
"This is nothing like the times at the kiddy pool, Arika-chan," Naruto agreed as he grumbled. Both students' faces were blushing blood-red, almost to the point of fainting, as they looked away. (They just had to look at their naked, developing bodies. Oh, the shame of it.)
"Oh my, now that wasn't so bad, was it?" Karin cheerfully chirped, "We occasionally had to do a whole classroom of boys and girls in separate rooms as we learned a lesson about skinship along the way."
"『Skinship』, she says…" Naruto and Arika would never live it down after this.
But then, they noticed Metabee and Brass finished with their decontamination time as they walked out polished, sanitized, and had their weapons maintained.
"It was terrible, Arika-chan," Brass miserably said, "We had our Medaparts removed down to our Tinpets with our medals still attached as they cleaned and oiled us! I even had to see Metabee's Tinpet that was far different from the usual Male Tinpets."
Naruto explains that his dad gave him a different type of Tinpet that is much thinner than the usual variety. "...he said something about a test body for the newer inner skeleton Tinpets that can work and retrofit with Medaparts. They're planning to come up with a female version of the newer Tinpets much like the male types that Metabee has. Who my sponsor is, I don't really know."
"So that's why you were so anxious to start Robattling," Arika understands, "Hikaru must have a good reason for not having any Tinpets available to go with Metabee's parts. They could be illegal if the referee finds out."
"I hope not," Naruto said as he and his companions resumed the search, after getting a hearty meal shared by extra bento boxes provided by Karin.
-Medarots-
With their stomachs full, Naruto and Arika looked around the gigantic school for any clues to the whereabouts of the Legendary Medafighter, starting with the residing students as they climbed the long stairs. The interior in the foyer looked like mansion that only the richest of the rich can afford - lighted chandeliers, art deco designs on the walls, suits of armor holding swords by the sides of the hilts (with the blades pointing downward to the floor, plants in Grecian-style vases on pedestals, and red carpet with goldish lining laid out on the floor and the stairs.
"What is this? Stair climbing 101?"Metabee exclaimed as he saw a lot of rooms and a lot of staircases inside the school.
"Must have paid a hefty fortune to build all of this inside this school,💧" Naruto said, "It's almost like walking into the Louvre, only it's very much local. I feel so out of place, y'know..."
"You're a weird one, Naruto-san," Karin said with complementarity, "Most people wouldn't even admit about coming here the first time."
While Naruto and Karin were conversing, Arika's jealousy started to show, with an evil, fiery look in her eyes, wishing that the other girls, especially Karin and Kikuhimé, to beware of getting too close with her childhood best friend, as her yandéré side is surely awakening. ("WRYYYYY~!")
"I'm so lost. What with that girl?" Metabee questioned.
Brass would rather not answer as she thought, ::Boys can be so dense sometimes… *sigh* Oh, Naruto-kun, what am I going to do with you?::
Arika spotted some students as she brought her microphone, recording device, and some notes and pencils as she commanded, "Brass, we're going to interview the students about the Legendary Medafighter and collect as much information as possible so we can put this case to rest…"
"Okay, Arika-chan," Brass obeyed, worrying that her handler could lose control over her emotions.
"Hey, wait for me!" Metabee said as he followed, leaving Karin and a bushwhacked Naruto behind.
"Was it something I said?💧" Naruto was bamboozled.
"Your friend seems to be beside herself," Karin answered, "Anyway, would you like me to show you the school?"
Naruto consented as he followed Karin through the corridors.
-Medarots-
Karin is escorting Naruto through the halls, when he notices other boys and a few girls from the classrooms with jealous and irritating looks in their eyes, mostly because he is hanging with Karin as if they think that she is the prettiest girl in the Elementary Sector.
::I get the feeling that they don't like me::Naruto thought, ::It's almost as if I've seen those looks before, as if I was a... demon, hanging around with a local princess.::
Naruto looked at the lake outside the window and felt a sense of contentment by its clear waters. Then he sees Karin with a flat spraying mop in hand as she asks, "Say, Naruto-san, can you assist me? It's just this floor that needs a good scrubbing. Pretty please?"
Why not, Naruto thought, he has nothing else to do for the time being, so he complied as he and Karin mopped and scrubbed the tiled floors.
A few minutes later, 3 different Hanazono girls came by the hall, with bad attitudes, as they said, "Well, if it isn't Karin-sama. Still doing the cleaning with a guest, I see."
"What a hard-working girl."
"Uh-huh," Karin replied while kindly taking some flak.
"Give it your best, Karin-sama."
"Have a nice day."
"Have a nice day," Karin said as the 3 girls left.
::Now this is strange,:: Naruto wondered before asking, "So, Karin…-san, you're on cleaning duty?"
"No, this week isn't really for me," she answered while using a rag and a water-filled bucket to clean the pedestal.
"Then, why are you cleaning?"
"No reason. I always do this whenever class is over."
This odd behavior is making Naruto ask more questions to himself: Karin is treated as royalty while she cleans mostly by herself. She sees a single yen in the lake. Could she be really poor? Maybe she was afforded to come here but did not have enough to pay the extra tuition fees and her debt? Then why is she here, cleaning the school? And why am I getting the feeling that Karin is more than just a Cinderella kind of girl?
Naruto's thoughts snapped when a group of ugly boys came by (with also bad intentions) as they said, "Yo, Karin-chan! Tomorrow's lunch, can we have some?"
"Yeah, and the dessert too?"
"Help yourself," Karin sweetly replied.
"Thanks for the meals, Karin-chan."
But when the boys see Naruto minding his own business as he finished scrubbing, they spat on the floor without much care.
"Oi, boys," Naruto calmly and angrily said as puts the mop away as he cracked his knuckles, "Karin-san and I just mopped the floor and you are disrespecting your own school by doing that. Have you no shame?"
The weaselly boys started to feel fear as their knees started shaking and icy chills ran down their backs when they looked at an angry boy who doesn't go to this school. Yet, the instincts were getting too much as they said, "On second thought, you can forget about giving us your lunch and desserts, Karin-chan!"
"Yeah, we'll bring our own!"
"Mama!"
And the small group of boys escaped, running like craven little cowards.
"Why, Naruto-san," Karin wondered, "How did you do that?"
::The instincts of a killer!:: he muttered as another memory started showing, ::The power of intimidation with a good or bad cause. I better be more careful using it.::
"Naruto-san?" Karin got his attention.
"Oh, sorry. It's nothing serious," he said, "It's just that I can't stand those who wouldn't show respect to the schools like this. I'm sorry that it has come to this, y'know."
"Don't be," she shook her head, "I do it all the time, giving my lunches, that is." And she left to resume cleaning more dirtied areas.
Naruto's logic resumes in his head, I suppose that Karin-san is a nice girl, so kind and docile. She's not the kind to follow her emotions like that, so there must be a reason for her behavior. Although I do admit that she is kind of cute, I am getting a funny feeling that she is probably somebody else's close friend, but who?
Naruto tells Karin that he'll go ahead and find Arika and see how far is the progress of her report.
-Medarots-
Surprisingly, Arika was already exhausted as she ran, looking for Naruto in the hallway as he finished cleaning up the mess on the floor. (Metabee and Brass didn't feel fatigued from running since they're Medarots.)
She has a notepad in her hands as she slumped over, absolutely worn out.
Naruto gave Arika a small bottle of electrolyte water as he asked, "So, how did it go?"
She couldn't speak from all that exploring the gigantic school as she passed down the notes and Naruto checked each detail, to find some interviews are just outrageous and crazy!
"Let's see… As big as Hasshaku, have Goofy's kind of feet (both left feet), has two right hands, related to Gojiro (Godzilla), has 16 pairs of shoes (I can live with that), a brother that is Sasquatch….. Arika-chan, those students' guesses are just a bunch of garbage! This isn't going to pan out."
"I know," she said defeatingly as she regained her voice, "It seems that everyone in this school had their own opinions about the Legendary Medafighter. So I eliminated the tabloid trash and here's what I really turned up." She shows Naruto and (surprisingly) Karin the real details, "A girl is associated with the Legendary Medafighter. She is supposed to be cute, elegant, and has her hair in twintails."
"Twintails?" Naruto noticed the detail and looked at Karin as a possibility, "I wonder…"
"But there are plenty of other girls in this school with twintails," Brass commented.
"Yeah, and there are a lot of different kinds of twintails too," Metabee agreed.
Little do they know, a pigsty for a Medafighter named Edamamé and his Sekizou are not too far behind as he sets his sights on Karin as a possible means to find what he's looking for.
-Medarots-
[Hanazono Garden Path]
While Arika was planning to give up and leave the academy, she notices Naruto talking to Karin, though she can tell that he isn't really trying to get too friendly with Karin as she overheard the conversation.
"I wonder if the Legendary Medafighter really exists after all…," Karin said.
"There are so many rumors, I don't know which are true or not, y'know," Naruto replied, "I guess we'll never know if we're going to face that particular person or not. And Karin-san…"
"Yes?"
"I noticed that you were going through a lot right now, doing a lot of cleaning around the school, giving the bullies your meals, and the mean girls making you do their dirty work in the toilets… but please… don't give up on yourself, okay?"
Karin didn't quite fully understand what Naruto was saying, but she thanked him anyway.
Arika is now learning that Naruto isn't really flirting with Karin just because she's prettier than she is, but he must have seen how Karin must have been a hard worker as much as he does. It also felt like a rosy moment, wishing it was her instead.
Speaking of a rosy moment, Karin found a rose on the ground and tried to pick it up, but she jerked back her hand the moment she touched it.
"Ah! The thorns…," she nearly teared up from getting pricked on her palm. That was when Naruto remembered the handkerchief that still has from earlier and dressed Karin's boo-boo and carefully wrapped it on her hand.
"This is… from this morning?" Karin wondered.
"Well, you did lend it to me after that scrape I've had, so it's only right if I give it back to you," Naruto said, "And don't worry, it's already cleaned from before."
It was becoming a real rosy moment and Arika is left wondering if jealousy isn't the right action for this, even though he helped give Karin first-aid.
Suddenly, a familiar boy's voice called out, "What are you doing, you plebeian?" It was the same pretty boy with his Sumilodonad from above the stairs from an upper entryway, "Don't you dare touch Karin with those filthy hands of yours!"
"Kōji-san," Karin said, revealing her friend's name.
"You know that so-called Prince Charming?" Naruto asked.
"Yes," Karin answered, "We grew up together in the same academy since Kindergarten."
Kōji is very persistent as he said, "Karin is my sun, shining like a star full of hope. If you want to lay your hands on her, then you'll have to defeat me, Kōji Karakuchi, first."
Naruto sweatdropped because felt like the whole thing was rehearsed, so he explains, "Look, Guji, or whoever you are, Karin-san just had a little accident with a rose and I just bandaged her from the little thorn prickle. Anyway, you shouldn't just treat girls like her as a prize to be won that way, she is not just an ordinary girl much like Arika-chan, Kiku-chan, and every other girl, dattébayo!"
(Brass was enamored as her fangirl feelings are starting to show for Naruto, much to Metabee's dismay, while Arika felt a twinge in her emotions, thinking that Naruto cares for her too. Elsewhere, Kikuhimé accidentally triggered one of the traps from a sudden sneeze.)
"And you dare touch my Karin with your unmanicured hands?" Koji countered with a stride, "You are nothing more than just worthless trash from across the street."
"Naruto, are you going to call yourself a man after being made such a fool?" Metabee determiningly asked his handler, "Aren't you frustrated?"
"Oh, I'm angry alright, Metabee," Naruto is charging up with a rising surge of power, "I'm beyond just plain furious!" He is now in a Super Psyched-Up state with his eyes turning red, with his pupils turning fox-like!
"Please, you two! Stop it, please!" Karin begged that her words came unheeded as Naruto says, "If you don't give that kind of respect to other people, then this is where I draw the line! Just who the hell do you think I really am? Let's throwdown with a Robattle! Let's get him, Metabee!"
"R-r-right!" Metabee came to a mutual agreement as his safety locks were removed.
Kōji is sweating a little from the sudden power surge, but he isn't the one to back down easily, so he removed the safety locks on his Medarot and said, "It's on, peasant!"
"Then it's agreed!" Mr. Uruchi appeared with impeccable timing as he showed up from one of the underpasses of the building, dressed in a Knight's heavy armor, "I officially declare the start of an official submission Robattle! The Medarots will fight until one side is defeated and the loser will submit one part from their current person to the winner, for keeps. Any last minute changes before we begin?"
Naruto swapped out Metabee's Revolver with the Sweat Cape while Kōji decided to leave his Medarot as is.
"Now then, Robattle, FIGHT!"
(Ding!)
Sumilodonad is rushing Metabee with swift agility as Metabee fires his Submachinegun - - - missing them.
::What speed!:: Naruto notices as Sumilodonad got behind Metabee and lashed out with his Straw Hammer - - - Metabee swung back with his left, but was struck by Sumilodonad's Flexor Sword to the Right Arm, taking damage. The Sweat Cape's effect kicked in and Sumilodonad took the counter-attack damage to his Right Arm.
Naruto assesses the situation, :: Sumilodonad is a heavyweight, but he is still faster than Metabee, even though both Medarots had an advantage on the grassy terrain. That bastard Kōji may have his money where his mouth is, but I've got something better!::
"Let's stop fooling around! Get him, Sumilodonad!" Kōji ordered.
Naruto senses the incoming and his opponent's weakness as he orders through his Medawatch, "Metabee, he's coming at you at 4 o'clock! Grab both his arms and charge for a Missile Strike!"
Metabee trusted Naruto as he positioned himself right where he said Sumilodonad is coming - - - Sumilodonad was caught off-guard and his Hunter Head Part is useless in this position and his arms are in a wrestling bind.
Kōji saw it, but couldn't believe his eyes. An outdated KBT Medarot managed to put Sumilodonad into a corner. Not to mention, the match lasted longer than a minute. Just who exactly this kid is from the streets, he wondered.
But before Metabee prepares to his Missiles to fire, Karin lets out a terrible scream as somebody kidnapped her and Arika from behind and ran off to a different location. Naruto caught a glimpse of the kidnappers and declared, "It's Edamamé and Sekizou! Mr. Referee, I don't want to complain, but this match must be called off due to urgent interruptions."
"I agree," Koji said, "We'll have to settle this later!" And he left the scene to pursue the kidnappers.
Mr. Uruchi consented and called the match as No Contest as he followed where the action was, even though the armor was slowing him down.
Naruto then commanded, "Metabee, let go of Sumilodonad! You and Brass follow me!" And Metabee did, and he and Brass followed, while Sumilodonad followed Kōji. Then Naruto instinctively notices a way to climb through the higher floors by means of footholds and he climbs and wall-jumps across.
"Okay, what's going on with Naruto? He's climbing like a jumping spider!" Metabee questioned.
"I don't know, Metabee. But he's scaling the wall in a matter of seconds! Let's hurry or we'll miss the action!"Brass replied as she used her [Variable Hair] Part to scan and pull up a detailed map of the expansive Hanazono Elementary School and followed Arika's Medawatch.
-Medarots-
Koji was following the trail of Sekizou's treads as he said, "Wait for me, Karin! I will come save you now!" Unfortunately, he and his fellow students were pursuing Edamamé after he and his Medarot kidnapped both Karin and Arika into a nearby tower. Not to mention, they didn't count on Naruto reaching the location first by running perpendicularly up the wall with his feet as they spotted the girls tied to the tower's pillars, unable to escape and prevented from falling a few paces from several feet into the stony floor below. The entrance to the tower is bolted from the inside.
"This is Edamamé from Kikujima Academy⁶!" he yelled through a stolen bullhorn, "I came all the way here to face the Legendary Medafighter! If you want this girl back, get him to come here so he can fight me and my Sekizou!"
"Not so fast, Edamamé!" Naruto yelled from beneath the tower, "What you're doing is a serious crime, y'know! You better release my friends nice and easy so that nobody gets hurt!"
"Aha! So you're the Legendary Medafighter!" Edamamé fixatingly yelled.
"Absolutely not! I told you, I'm just a late entry, that's all, and I don't think that Kōji is the one, either."
"Dammit! How did that plebeian get here before me?" Kōji demandingly questioned, with Sumilodonad, Metabee, and Brass following them.
Edamamé is furious as he loudly questions Arika, "And what about you? You're just an extra for bringing up that Medafighter!"
"I'm just an interviewer from Ginjō Elementary, that's all," Arika answered while grunting, "Your rope is too tight. It's crushing my boobs! It hurts!"
"Then who is the Legendary Medafighter‽"
Poor Edamamé, wasted two years of his education just to find the so-called invincible Legendary Medafighter, and it started to make him go absolutely berserk.
Just when things couldn't get any worse, a flock of male and female students ran all the way through the stairs to the tower area, completely infatuated while rescuing their school idol.
"Let Karin-chan/Karin-sama go! Transport Medarot!" they declared at the same time and brought forth their Medarots to the fray.
Naruto notices that the overwhelming number of Medarots could likely hurt Karin and Arika in the crossfire, so he gives Edamamé one more chance to reconsider, "Listen to me! I don't care about this Medafighter, if you don't back off right now, there's going to be murder and the blame on those girls' lives will be certainly be on your head as you'll die a dog's death!"
But the infatuated students have their safety locks removed for their shooting Medarots as they prepare to open fire. Naruto cursed, knowing that those lovestruck idiots would hurt both the girls while aiming to attack Sekizou who is between them, so he ordered Metabee to fire his missiles at the bolted door - - - the missile blast destroyed the door and Naruto ran like hell while Metabee and Brass followed through the crowd.
[Meanwhile]
While the other students were busy transporting more of their Medarots, Arika is still struggling, but the rope is getting tighter from her sweat, so she says to Karin, "I just wanted to say that I'm sorry for the way I treated you because Naruto, my other friend, Kikuhimé, and I grew up since nursery school together and we've had our fun, our fights, and our awkward moments growing up."
"That's odd," Karin said, "Kōji and I have been together in this Academy and he always has trouble trying to be cool, smart, and suave, but he keeps cracking up whenever he visits me. Your friend, Naruto-san, he's charming in his own way and he doesn't have to flaunt his riches just to prove his worth. He's a real, good friend and I like that attitude in him. I'm very certain that you like him too." Arika blushed at the complement.
"What am I, chopped liver?" Edamamé cried rivers of tears, knowing that he was going to get blasted along with his Sekizou.
Then a female Medarot voice called out from inside of the tower, "Arika-chan!" It was Brass followed by Metabee. Naruto went ahead and swiftly cut the ropes from the girls free with the Santoku Dagger he swiped earlier and moved them to safety. Metabee and Brass dragged away Sekizou just when the infatuated students' Medarots attacked Edamamé and the tower itself.
Kōji is really worried after his classmates make the rescue turn into an overkill as the smoke clears. Fortunately, everybody in the tower managed to escape the destruction, but were covered in dust from the rubble.
The students' Medarots then take a bead, aiming at Naruto who they thought was on Edamamé's side, and Naruto is really in a spot as he can't use Medaforce to take down all his opponents at once and the only weapon that he has in a reverse grip is the Santoku Dagger. He was hoping for a miracle for him and his friends to get out of this trap alive, but then Karin stepped in and said, "Stop it! Stop it, please!"
One of the infatuated students asked, "But why, Karin-sama?"
Another student yelled, "That plebeian and his outdated Medarot hurt you and are taking that other outsider's side!"
The group were yelling, clamoring, and overlapping in arguments, until Karin swiped the loose bullhorn and made a loud feedback noise before speaking out, "Shame on you, attacking that one boy who just saved our lives! If you're gonna hurt Naruto-san, then why don't you take me on instead?" She has a pink Medawatch on her left wrist and presses the activation action, "Transport Medarot!"
Karin brings forth a female Medarot dressed like a nurse in a pink and white gown and a nurse's cap. It's the NAS-Type Medarot: SaintNurse⁷.
-Meda Vital Stats-
SaintNurse
Owner: Karin
Medal: W - Angel
Specialty: Healing
SaintNurse uses her pill-shaped arm parts (above her hands) to pulsate a healing wave that covers the area and it cured Edamamé and Sekizou's injuries, amplifying Naruto's healing of his wounds, and pacifying the angry student crowd.
"Bright… It's so soothing and bright..."
"I… I can't…"
"How could I ever fight against Karin-chan…"
"Karin-chan is so cool…," they all swooned at once as they cried rivers of tears on their faces.
"*sigh*, the Hanazono students are such mushheads,💧" Naruto sweatdropped at the idiotic sight, but now knows that Karin is a Medafighter with a supportive/defensive Medarot.
"Arika-chan, it appears that the student crowd has calmed down," Brass said as she notices her minor scrapes have been repaired and smoothed out.
"To think that you two (Karin and Naruto) will cover a guy like me," Edamamé cried as his heart was emotionally moved and has a runny nose, "I admit defeat… There's no way I could win against either of you."
"In fact, there is no one who can win against you, Karin," Kōji admitted, ::But that Naruto kid is more than meets the eye. I'll face him sooner or later.::
"Yeah! Yeah!" another student agreed.
"Nobody can beat Karin-chan's kindness."
"Oh, you guys...💕" Karin cups her cheeks with her hands.
Naruto quietly talked to Arika as he noticed that 1 and 1 became more than just a simple answer and they came into an agreement as he asked Karin, "So you never lost a battle before?"
"Never lost a fight?" Karin gave it some thought as she put her finger on her chin and said, "Now that I think about it, I don't recall ever losing a match before…"
Everybody gasped at what they had just heard; everybody except Naruto as he surmised, "Uh-huh, and I don't think that Karin-san officially won her battles either. Her bubbly and kind personality, SaintNurse's healing abilities, and her opponents losing their will to fight, it all makes sense, y'know."
And Karin lets out a cute smile.
It is like they said, legends often fall very far from the truth.
"I told you that this person could be a girl," Naruto commented.
-Medarots-
Edamamé was being sent home back to his family, but before he and his Sekizou were being wrung into the decontamination unit to get the 2 years of dirt and grime off his body while Sekizou was taken apart and was sanitized and tuned up before being put back together. Edamamé had learned his lesson before he had to get back on the old electronic brain and the grindstone for his absenteeism on his education.
The student crowd involved in the incident got scolded by their teachers and had to follow Karin's example of cleaning and learn not to take what isn't theirs, not that she would mind, but Karin could need a friend to talk to.
Kōji is wondering how an outsider named Naruto Tenryo was able to catch up with him when he learned from the Robattle Videos that his opponent already faced several handicap matches and strategically won and even won one battle (a handicap match) in under 5 seconds, even though they were flukes. Kōji has a lot of polishing to do before the upcoming regional tournament with his Sumilodonad.
It was getting close to sunset at the Hanazono Academy as Naruto, Arika and their respective Medarots were walking on the way back to the main entrance after they found a shorter route to the main school. Along the way, Arika said to Naruto, "Well, I got my exposé, just not in the way I wanted it."
"That's just how it is with rumors, Arika," he said as he was given the sheathed hamon-edged Santoku Knife for keeps, "They all start from a grain of truth until things start to get way out of hand." (He plans to give the knife to his mother to help with her cooking.)
Brass agreed from learning the lesson while Metabee is curious about something, "There's something that's been bugging me. A little while ago, you were able to scale the walls with your hands and feet and you managed to complete the feat in a matter of seconds. How did you do that?"
"And the times you were showing some raw power with your previous fights, able to manifest the Medaforce abilities before anybody else," Brass mentioned.
"Must be from an adrenaline rush, I suppose," Naruto could only come up with an answer.
Arika blushes from the previous experience as she says, "Naruto-kun, I thought I lost you after you saved Karin, Edamamé, and me. I… I just wanted to say… that I'm sorry for not considering your feelings… and to thank you for saving me." And she was about to kiss Naruto when they heard the sound of a car horn approaching them from behind. It was a pink limousine with Karin and SaintNurse as its passengers who blushed as the former said, "Oh my, I'm so sorry that I interrupted this magic moment. I'm surprised that Arika-chan was making her move on Naruto already. I could give you a lift, if you want."
Both Naruto and Arika blushed blood-red again as they obliged because they are worn out from the harrowing experience. While they were seated on the soft seats, inadvertently touching hands before ending up holding each other's, Naruto almost forgot to ask Karin a few questions, "So all this cleaning and giving your lunches to those pun- -, er, classmates…?"
"Karin-chan just likes to clean to keep herself occupied," SaintNurse explained, "And her parents gave her a little too much extra food every day, so she generously shared some food with the other students so it wouldn't go to waste."
"Oh, SaintNurse, you're making me blush," Karin cups her cheek, acting modestly cute.
"Your parents must be über rich to pay the tuition and other commodities to support you, Karin," Arika said.
Suddenly, Kōji called the limo's number from his carriage (as if he heard the conversation) and Karin put it on videospeak,〝Karin is the daughter of an industrial group owner. In fact, she has a grandfather who works at a Medarot company.〟
"You don't say," Arika uttered as she and Naruto moved closer, arm to arm.
〝Anyway, Naruto Tenryo, is it? We'll sell the score to our role battle someday. It's a promise.〟
"Next time, it'll be for real, Kōji-san," Naruto replied.
〝You know, there is something that has been bothering me, Tenryo. How did you get to the top faster?〟
"Um… I just scaled the wall somehow," Naruto nearly stammered with his answer.
"I have video of what just happened," Brass said as she borrowed Arika's dropped video recorder, showing Naruto doing the feat that no average 5th Grade student would have done.
"I somehow did it without even trying," he admitted.
"Yeah, and the time you got mad at Hibachi and Kōji earlier," Arika mentioned, "Those red eyes with fox-like pupils…"
〝Anyway, I have to get back home before I miss my family's dinner. Ciao.〟 And Kōji hangs up the line.
A few minutes later, Karin's pink passed by 3 figures in the bright sunset.
"Where are you... Legendary Medafighter?" Kikuhimé's voice called out.
Karin told the chauffeur to stop the car to pick up the 3 students who are Naruto's friends after they had just missed the big event. Much to the boys' chagrin, their boss and Arika were tired as they lay next to Naruto as they sat and talked about school life and their families and the mystery of the Legendary Medafighter.
Karin then dropped her new friends on the way out of the school and said, "Have a nice day," and she left for her house.
The friends decided to walk back home after they had a busy day to turn in for the night. It wasn't a total loss after all.
Winning Medaparts
No Side
Omaké 1
[At Medarot Incorporated]
A certain, eccentric scientist was monitoring Naruto and his Metabee's progress. The newer male Tinpet prototype is coming along first-rate as it held its parts and its medal nicely as his female Tinpet prototype is almost finished. It is also thinner and sturdier than the usual tinpets, (much like the male counterpart,) and uses less material. It's a matter of time before they plan to put them into production.
The Horned Beetle that he previously sent to Naruto is not like the usual A.I. Medals, but have a better sense of soul and have the potential to awaken the Medarots' emotions and the powers of the Medaforce without draining their stamina energy in the process.
The irony about this project is that Metabee and Naruto have roughly the same voice frequency.
"Maybe I should explain to the Medarots' Referee Committee about our little pet project." And he has the paperwork already prepared to amend the rules about the Medarots' updated parts, including Tinpets.
Omaké 2
(Warning: Detailed Nudity and Nightmare scenes)
[Tenryo Residence]
Naruto and Metabee had just returned after a long trip to Hanazono Academy, when something surprised Naruto. His mother Chidori was wearing nothing but an apron and it threw her son for a loop as she gave him some tea in a cup.
"Mom! Why are you wearing this, y'know?"
Chidori smiled as she said, "Don't you know, Naruto? Your father decided that we are going to the beach tomorrow." She reveals her purple thong bikini set from behind her apron, "Your mother hasn't been busting loose for a while, so I just want to wear this just to show off to you, Metabee-chan, and your father. You can bring your friends over, if you want."
Yes, Mrs. Chidori Tenryo is a real tease to her son, back to the days of her youth, turning boys' heads just to annoy them. She likes to keep Naruto on his toes a little, just like a half-spoiled child.
Metabee wondered what the beach was like. Maybe he can meet some Medarots so he can Robattle like crazy, only for Naruto to put him in Sleep Mode from his Medawatch and drag his Medarot to his bedroom.
Naruto then called Kikuhimé and the Screws' numbers to see if they're free to come. Unfortunately, Iwanoi and Kagamiyama had to stay home for supplemental lessons from school because of their failing grades. Kikuhimé was allowed by her mother to come to the beach, but only had to ride with her because of her C-average grades. Dancing Class is on a break, thankfully, just so that their students can have fun. She can't wait to show off her new swimsuit, and she flirts before she finishes answering the line.
Naruto then calls Arika's house to see if she's willing to come. Arika answered the line (in audio only) and said that her parents are going to be away for a while, but she has permission to stay at Naruto's house for a few days (via his parents permission). He then asked what she was doing over there and Arika answered while taking a bath, "Just trying on a swimsuit other than the school's set."
Arika is looking naked in front of the full-body mirror and notices that her breasts are getting bigger again and are becoming very sensitive and that she started shaving her armpits. She just wishes that her waist, hips, and maybe her butt would at least catch up to Kikuhimé's shape just to show her stuff to Naruto (who appears to have some promise on his young manhood after the little incident), but for now, she has more competition, namely Karin Junmai who hasn't quite started puberty yet.
〝Well, stop by when you can, but be there as early as 08:00 before we leave to stay at the beachside hotel for a couple of days.〟
"Okay, I'll see you when I can," Arika hung up the line as she stepped out of the bathroom wearing absolutely nothing but a towel wrapped around her head. She was wondering what swimsuit to wear as she had a glass of cold milk in her hand.
Naruto was having strange thoughts about his mother wearing a skimpy swimsuit that she hasn't worn in like, ever, and imagines Arika, Kikuhimé, and (oddly enough) Karin in a sexy swimsuit, maybe a few years older, but then his pride is showing in his pants from all the thoughts racing in his head. However, more of his other memories are starting to show about the same pearly-eyed girl that cared with him but then he recalled the time as being a young man trying to become a soldier who just lost his best friend and his only love to the village's madness and how her own family beheaded her on the spot, removed her eyes and stuck her head on a pike as a monument of shame, and that began the keys to the final countdown into destruction. Naruto also has visions of people in Ginjō City and other cities being massacred by people in rubber suits, the Select Corps., and their Medarots. Arika was shot between the eyes, Kikuhimé fried by electricity until she became a burning corpse, Karin was betrayed by her best friend as his Sumilodonad stabbed through the heart by a claw-based weapon and her head completely bashed in by a hammer fist, and his parents were turned into mechanized zombies and a baby untimely ripped from his mother kidnapped by the group's leader: a madman and his twisted quest to conquer the world, while Naruto is without a right arm (down to the elbow).
The phantom pains awoke Naruto into a cold sweat as he decided to take a cold shower before going to bed. ::I do get the darndest dreams sometimes, even though it feels like a nightmare:: he thought while Metabee is in Sleep Mode, ::Are these premonitions that I'm about to face? Why do those people in black rubber-suits look so familiar?:: There were many questions and not many answers inside Naruto's mind. But the most important question on his mind is, "Why is it that certain girls seem to like me for more than just… well, me? Honestly..."
§
A/N: ¹ - Karin (in this story) is modeled after the same character from Medarot R, without much of the crybaby personality. She doesn't have those curvatures yet, but she is as tall as Kikuhimé and Arika.
² - Hanazono Private Academy actually has 5 sections - the Preschool and Kindergarten sector, the Elementary School, the Junior High, Senior High, and College, much like Mahora Academy from Negima!. The place as just an Elementary School, to me, is a bit over the top, spending funds so lavishly and frugally. Unfair for the local education, I say, so a little realism is added.
³ - Sekizou is Gloomeg's original name and Edamamé (named after boiled soybeans) is Eddie's original name.
⁴ - Sumilodonad is Sumilidon's original name.
⁵ - Evangelion 2.0 "Aquarium" scene reference
⁶ - Eddie from Southridge Elementary in the English DUB.
⁷ - SaintNurse is Neutranurse's original name
Just to make it clear, I am making my own version; using the game elements, the original Japanese anime, and ideas from NeoNazo356's discontinued story (changed the name to NewMystery356), so some of the credit goes to him for the inspiration. The rest of the story is basically some game ideas remixed and incorporated into the animé series, so yes, it's basically my version overall.
Another thing, to amend some things, Karin's grandfather (name undisclosed) is on the original Japanese while in the English DUB, he is an uncle to Karin. (I'll settle for the former.) And SaintNurse's medal is a Mermaid Medal in the original story, but I choose an Angel Medal because it also has healing properties like the Mermaid Medal, but in a slightly different manner.
And the heat will be on!
-blukmage19