Gale-Dragon: Chapter 2 is up.
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Juuni Taisen: CSI
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Chapter 2: The Ox's Horns Aren't His Only Blade.
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"Talking"
'Thoughts or Text'
(Author commenting)
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Tsugiyoshi dropped off his 6-year-old sister, Niki, at the Sutāraito Education's Daycare Division.
Sutāraito Educational was a schooling district about three blocks away from the Juuni Taisen building, so it was easy for Tsugiyoshi to drop off his sister on the way to Juuni Taisen. The sed schooling district had all levels of schooling education from Daycare to Collage. Sutāraito Education was able to meet the educational needs of each student.
"You be good, alright, Niki," Tsugiyoshi told the little girl as they reached the gates of the Daycare building. "I will, Tsugi-nii," the grey-haired girl said cheerfully as she placed her hands on the straps of her bag that ran over her shoulders. Niki waved to her older brother as she raced into the Daycare building. Once Tsugiyoshi saw his sister enter the building, he made his way towards his new job.
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Tsugiyoshi clocked in and went to Sharyū, to figure out who he's going to shadow in the mornings since Dotsuku wouldn't be in until the afternoon.
Sharyū happily smiled and said, "You're going to be working with Ushii-san in the mornings." Tsugiyoshi had a look on his face that would make people think he'd just witnessed a cutesy woodland critter get hit by an 18-wheeler when he vocalized "Eh?" "I know, I was just as surprised as you when Hitsuji-san told me this. You must've really impressed him during the application exams," the Monkey said cheerfully, not completely aware that the teenager was still in a state of shock. 'I'm... going to be... working with... the leader of the Juuni Taisen!' was all Tsugiyoshi could think before he wondered 'Hold on... Was Hitsuji-san there when I took the application exam? I don't remember seeing him before yesterday... Maybe he was watching from someplace where he could see the applicants but we couldn't see him?'
"Nezumi-kun?" Sharyū vocalized, waving a hand in front of his face, regaining the teen's attention. "Ano... Are you being serious? Am I really working with Ushii-san in the mornings?" Tsugiyoshi asked, still in shock but not completely believing that what he heard was the truth.
Sharyū patted Tsugiyoshi on the shoulder and said "I am, and I'm impressed that Hitsuji-san thinks highly of you already. *Then changes to a stern tone and places both hands on the teen's shoulders* But don't tell Inounoshishi-chan or the Twins about that particular fact, they'll get jealous, and I'm sure they'll do something very mean to you, and possible breaks some rules." "That's a... Pleasant thought," Tsugiyoshi said in a soft sarcastic tone, then thought 'This is most certainly going to be tough... And I don't need my 100 Paths to know that's for sure.'
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Tora volunteered to bring Tsugiyoshi to her older brother. Okay, more along the lines of Sharyū asking Tora to do it, but that's beside the point. The Tiger was currently leading the teen towards the "Battle Field", a virtual reality box that allows the Juuni Taisen members to practice strategies, formations, and to keep up with the mandatory physical health. Ushii practically lived in there before he eats his morning meal.
As the two made their way towards the Battle Field, Tora took a swing of the bottle in her hand and nearly tripped herself off-balanced as she walked.
It's official, Tsugiyoshi does NOT want to know where Tora keeps getting all these bottles of alcohol; because, he's sure there's none in the kitchen of the Juuni Taisen building. "Ano... Isn't it a little too early for a drink?" the grey-haired teen asked cautiously, he didn't want to use the 100 Paths for something like this so he was choosing his words carefully. Tora branded a goofy smile and slurred out "It's neva taa early fur~a *hic* a drink." Tsugiyoshi raised a brow and thought to himself 'Is Dotsuku-san sure that she doesn't get this drunk after a drink?' The teen watched as the Tiger took another swing at the bottle.
Somehow, Tsugiyoshi wasn't sure if he wanted to know.
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When the two got to the Battle Field, Ushii was in it, of course, polishing his swordsmanship skills. And from what Tsugiyoshi could see, the Ox was on a whole different level. Ushii was slashing the threatening-looking holograms that tried to attack him while leaving the civilian looking holograms intact. Each time the teen blinked, he's miss Ushii's blade slice through an attacking hologram, or two. Tsugiyoshi's eyebrow twitched as he thought 'Is this guy for real?! *watches Ushii slice through another 12 holograms with no hesitation* I thought that stuff could only be done in movies.'
Wrapping an arm around the teenager's neck, Tora slurred out "He's~an amazing fighter, ri~ght." "Ano, can you let me go?" Tsugiyoshi asked, not wanting to pass out due to the Tiger's alcoholic breath, again. Tora leaned close to the teen's ear and whispered: "I'ma not sure ifa Hitsu-*hic* Hitsuji-san told ya about helping Ani (1) witha his *hic* li~ttle problem." Tsugiyoshi blinked in confusion and asked "Problem?" The teen wondered what the Tiger meant by that.
A sound of tapping on glass interrupted the conversation.
Ushii was standing on the other side of the glass, giving the two a cold look when he asked: "May ask why the two of you are here?" 'Judging be how he asked... I'm guessing he's the only member of the Juuni Taisen who uses the Battle Field in the morning,' Tsugiyoshi thought to himself as he pulled away from Tora, to avoid her breath. The Tiger gave her brother a goofy grin and slurred "We're here fur a *hic* lagita... lagitane... err... legimin..." Ushii then stated " The word is "Legitament". *Sigh* I believe you agreed about not drinking Sake in the morning." Tora replied by slurring out "I did. *points at the bottle in her hand* This isa beer~." Ushii rolled his eyes at that, pretty much expecting this to happen. Tsugiyoshi had no comment to add to this.
Ushii sheathed his sword and asked "Allow me to ask again, why are you here? For this "Legitament" reason?" Tora smirked, not that goofy drunken grin she's been doing, shoved Tsugiyoshi closer to where the Ox stood behind the transparent wall and said in a surprisingly clear tone "You're in charge of the new kid in tha mornings, Ani. *Waves good-bye, turns to leave, and in a cheerful tone* See ya later~." The next thing the Ox and Rat knew, they were the only ones in the immediate area.
"OI!" Tsugiyoshi shouted at Tora when it finally sank in that just she left him with the leader of the Juuni Taisen. This was something that the teen couldn't have seen coming, even if he had used his 100 Paths.
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Another flash of light went off.
Tsugiyoshi placed a numbered, orange, plastic peg next to another blood drop and snapped a picture of the two.
'It's only my second day and I'm already in the field... never thought that would happen,' Tsugiyoshi thought as he placed another peg next to another blood pool. 'Good thing we're in the digital age, or else we'd have pictures stacked taller than the ceiling of our lab for just this case,' the teen thought as he snapped another picture.
Ushii was called to the scene of a crime; therefore, Tsugiyoshi had to go to the crime scene. On the upside, the teen got to get out of the lab, downside, the crime scene was the very definition of a bloodbath. Tsugiyoshi held up a numbered peg to a bloody dent in the wall, took another picture it with the camera with his other hand, and wondered if all the blood-caked everywhere was just from one person. There seemed to be way too much blood here.
"Nezumi-kun," Ushii called the teen. 'Oh, right, that's me,' Tsugiyoshi thought before turning to the Ox and asked "Yes?" "Have you documented everything?" Ushii asked the teen in a serious tone. The teen nodded and said, "I just took the last picture of the scene." Ushii didn't respond to the teen as he glanced around the scene, before finally asking "What does the blood tell you what has happened here?" "Excuse me?" Tsugiyoshi asked in plain confusion, relatively surprised by the question.
It was pretty obvious what happened here.
"Ano, are you really asking me that?" Tsugiyoshi asked, thinking more along the lines of the Ox testing him, or something. Ushii simply repeated the question, as if he didn't hear the teen's question, "What does the blood tell you what has happened here?" Still not 100% sure what the leader was asking, Tsugiyoshi looked over the scene once again.
There was barely anything that wasn't covered in blood.
Tsugiyoshi then speculated as he continued to re-surveyed the scene, "Certainly one heck of a bloody fight, for one... Ano... Blood is approximately 7% of the weight of an adult human... But there seems to be too much blood here, more than one person can hold in their body... So, there might've been more than one victim here." "Good call, Nezumi-kun, there might be two victims," Ushii stated as he held up a notepad. Tsugiyoshi was surprised by the fact that the Juuni Taisen leader WAS testing him and wondered how he'd missed a second body. Reading off the pad, Ushii stated "Neighbors heard a woman shouting at 3-in-the-morning, but brushed it off as the usual banter of the tenants of this apartment number." Tsugiyoshi blinked and noted "But the body that was found by the other tenants' *points to the dead body being placed in a body bag by Usagi* is male? Are the neighbours sure it was a woman?"
Ushii nodded and said, "They are sure since they've heard her shouting on several past occasions." Tsugiyoshi raised a brow and asked "Domestic?" Ushii flipped a page and said, "Lots of tenants have heard but never actually seen anything." The teen mumbled out a "Typical." The Ox did say that the woman who lived here with the deceased was currently missing, but with all the blood here, there was a good chance that she was either dead or killed two people and took the second body for some reason. Usagi then pipped in a "Don't worry Nezumi-Tomodachi (2), this guy'll tell me everything he knows," and then left with the corpse.
Tsugiyoshi gave Ushii a look, that pretty much begged him to tell him 'What the heck did he mean by that?' "Usagi is talking about performing an autopsy. You were told he's the Coroner, right?" the Ox stated as he motioned for the teen to follow him. Tsugiyoshi carefully walked around the blood and said: "I was, but no one told me about his, ano, I guess his codewords, ano, or how he uses certain words." Ushii then replied in a tone of realization, "Ah, makes sense, Usagi does have a particular speaking pattern that might confuse people who are not familiar with him *he lifted the yellow police tape so he and Tsugiyoshi could pass without breaking the tape*. Sharyū-san or Dotsuku-san might be a better choice to ask about it, they interact with him more then I do." "Ano, who else interacts with Rabbit-san? I'm sure you, Sharyū-san, and Dotsuku-san aren't the only ones who do," Tsugiyoshi asked, trying to keep up with the Ox's long strides.
Ushii explained as he and Tsugiyoshi continued on their way back to the Juuni Taisen building, "Uuma-san only interacts with Usagi in the field, where Usagi retrieve the bodies. Unless they need to pick up the credit cards or account information on a body in the morgue, the twins don't interact with Usagi. Hitsuji-san is busy with running the Juuni Taisen and doesn't interact with Usagi a much as he would like. *Tsugiyoshi interrupts by asking "But aren't you the one leading the Juuni Taisen?"*. I 'Lead' the Juuni Taisen, it takes another set of skills to actually 'Run' it, but I do help Hitsuji-san when he needs me to *Tsugiyoshi nods at this*. Niwatori-san seems to be afraid of Usagi and tends to avoid him out of fear, but she seems more willing to interact with Usagi when Dotsuku-san is there. Inounoshishi-san avoids him because she finds him, in her words "Completely Unappealing and No One a Lady Would Ever Be Around", I don't quite understand what that means though." "She's an annoying Diva," Tsugiyoshi suggested and then thought to himself 'The others had at least a legitimate reason for not interacting with Rabbit-san often.' Ushii chuckles a bit, agreeing with the teen's statement, and said: "Only she will deny that."
"What about your sister? I mean, what about Tora-san?" Tsugiyoshi asked, realizing that Ushii didn't mention her. "She has a minor allergy to rabbits," the Ox stated simply. "Eh?" was all the teen got out as he stopped walking. Ushii stopped, turned to the teen, and said "She has a minor allergy to rabbits. She gets runny noses, teary-eyed, and sometimes sneezes when she's near Sangatsu and Shiro, even if they're in their Playpen." Tsugiyoshi responded by saying "Ah, so she can't be in the morgue because she'll compromise the evidence that Rabbit-san collects if she sneezes, and Rabbit-san probably has their fur on his person." "Correct," Ushii said with a nod as he started walking again. Tsugiyoshi sighed before trying to keep pace with the Ox.
'Is he just walking?' Tsugiyoshi thought to himself as he started running as he fell behind Ushii. The Ox didn't seem to be running; it was more like he had longer walking strides than the teen. Tsugiyoshi couldn't help but think 'This is certainly going to take a long time to get used to,' as he did his best not to fall too far behind Ushii.
Well, this is one way to stay in shape.
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"Nezimu-kun! Are you all right? Was the crime scene that bad?" Sharyū asked the teen in a tone that resembled the worried tone that Tsugiyoshi's Nana used when he overused his 100 Paths.
Tsugiyoshi was laying on Sharyū's therapy couch, close to passing out, as he panted out "No... Ushii-san *pant* walks to fast... I had to run to *pant* keep up with him..." Sharyū blinked and said, "Oh... *thinks for a bit* I know Ushii-san has a long stride since he's on the tall side, but I don't think he walks that fast." "I knew it..." Tsugiyoshi said with a sigh, then added: "He WAS testing me at the crime scene..."
The Monkey sat at the edge of her couch and said in a soft tone "Maybe he just wanted to make sure you can handle this kind of thing." Tsugiyoshi grumbled out "I am NOT a child, and I can handle a bloody scene," knowing full well that that's what the orangette meant. 'Something tells me that it's going to take a while to get her to understand that,' the teen thought, eyeing the Monkey from the lower corner of his sightline. "Maybe he didn't think that the scene was going to be that bloody than," Sharyū said in a soft tone. 'Honestly,' Tsugiyoshi though before saying "There was enough blood for two people there. We got one body in the morgue and the other body is missing. Yes, I was surprised by the amount of blood there, but I handled it well. Took pictures of the whole scene."
Sharyū smiled softly and said, "Alright, but don't push yourself too much, ok." Tsugiyoshi gave an audible sigh.
"Sharyū-chan, you're going to be a really interesting mother one day. You have a Mother Hen mentality but you can be a bit oblivious to the fact that a child eventually grows up," a familiar voice stated, coming from the doorway of Sharyū's office.
Sharyū and Tsugiyoshi turned towards the doorway, tiredly in the Rat's case, to see Dotsuku (wearing his grey-furred cloak) leaning against the doorway. Relatively surprised to see him there, Sharyū asked "Dotsuku-san? Is it the afternoon already? *Looks at a nearby clock that read 13:45 (1:45 PM)* Oh.. I guess it is..." Tsugiyoshi was also looking at the clock when he thought 'I guess we were at the scene longer than I thought... Then again, it WAS a mess.'
"How does grabbing some lunch before checking in with Usagi for some trace sound to you, Nez?" Dotsuku asked the teen with a crooked smile that exposed his sharp fangs, knowing full well what the answer would be. Tsugiyoshi practically jumped off of the couch, despite being in a tired state, and stated: "After what happened, I'm hungry." Dotsuku raised an amused brow and said "Oh? You mind telling me about it?" The teen gagged and said, "Not while we eat." As the Dog and Rat left the Monkey's office, Dotsuku asked in a confused tone "Did something happened?" Tsugiyoshi sighed and said "Ushii-san got called to one bloody crime scene, which meant I had to go there too... I took pictures of it though." Dotsuku whistled at that.
Sharyū smiled at this.
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After the Dog and Rat ate their lunch (and waited until there was no chance of seeing their food again), they went to the morgue to see if Usagi found anything during the autopsy.
"Dotsuku-Tomodachi! Nezumi-Tomodachi!" Usagi cheered when he saw the two walked in. The teen spotted a rabbit terrarium in the corner of the morgue (near the entrance to sed morgue). The rabbit terrarium had a nice little shelter that looked liked a miniature house in the farthest corner from the morgue entrance, real grass (since the two rabbits were nibbling on a few strands without much worry), toys designed for rabbits, chew toys for the ever-growing bunny teeth, food bowls, water bowls, and surrounded by what looked like a biodome. There was a picket fence design around the bottom outside of the biodome, to make it a bit more homey looking. Sangatsu (the cocoa brown bunny) and Shiro (the white bunny) seemed to be happily hopping around their little home. The teen couldn't help but think 'Okay, despite it being completely out of place in a morgue, that's a pretty cosy home for them.'
"Did you confirm identity?" Dotsuku asked Usagi, snaping Tsugiyoshi's attention to the Dog and Rabbit.
Usagi nodded and said "Fingerprints match. Buddy here is Maclroy Koto. *pulls the covers off the chest of the dead body from the crime scene* Cause of death is multiple stab wounds to the chest with a knife. *points at a clear-cut* I'm pretty sure it was a kitchen knife, but Ushii-Tomodachi can confirm. Also, someone was really mad at him, those cuts are deep." Tsugiyoshi raised a brow and asked "How deep?" "The attacker wanted Maclroy dead dead," was all Usagi said. Dotsuku translated what the Rabbit meant to the teen, "Whoever attacked Maclroy-san used a lot of force, which usually indicates rage. *looks at the cuts* judging by the angle, our attacker was either taller than him or stood over him as they stabbed him." "Would a woman be able to do this kind of damage?" Tsugiyoshi asked, before adding "I learned from Ushii-san that Maclroy-san was living with a woman, and they have been heard fighting by the other tenants. She's also missing."
Dotsuku tapped his chin and said "I suppose she could be considered a suspect, but don't jump to conclusions. You said the crime scene was caked with blood, right? *Tsugiyoshi and Usagi nods* Then she might be another victim. Keyword, "Might". *Turns to Usagi* Do you have any evidence for me to analyze?" Usagi nodded, handed the Dog a tray of sealed containers and small paper bags, and said "Lots of stuff under his nails, and he also had weird stuff in his pockets. Twins took the money cards earlier." Dotsuku muttered a "Coarse they did," under his breath before taking the tray of evidence with one hand, patted Usagi on the head with the other, and said "Thanks, Usagi." The white-haired man grinned happily.
'He does have a child mentality,' Tsugiyoshi thought as he watched Dotsuku tell Usagi that he was a good boy for collecting all the trace evidence for him.
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"Yo~, Doggu," two voices called from the doorway.
Tsugiyoshi saw Dotsuku rolled his cyan-on-black eyes at that. The Dog turned towards the doorway, folded his arms, and asked: "What do the two of you want?" The teen turned to see Dragon and Snake standing in there. Tsugiyoshi raised a brow and wondered why those two were here, there wasn't any financial stuff to give to them.
"We figured it out," the twin with the grey top, Snake, if Tsugiyoshi remembered correctly. 'Dragon wears blue, so he *looks at the twin with the grey top* must be Snake,' the teen thought. Dotsuku sighed, turned his attention back to the computer monitor, and said in an I'm-Tired-of-This tone "Alright, what is it?" Tsugiyoshi couldn't help but ask "Ano, what are you talking about?" "Dotsuku's morning job, of course," the twins said at the same time. Tsugiyoshi now had a deadpin look on his face, he had no response to that. Dotsuku glanced at the teen and explained: "It's sort of a game that some of the Juuni Taisen members like to play." All Tsugiyoshi could do was nod, not completely sure of the whole thing.
Dragon and Snake then said in unison "In the morning you work as-"
"A Stripper!"
Everyone completely stopped whatever they were doing (or saying in the case of the twins) and turned to the new voice. Standing in full view of the four was Inounoshishi, holding her two beloved guns in her hands and a wide smile on her face.
In a befuddled tone and a look of utter disbelief on his face, Dotsuku asked the Boar, "E-excuse me?" Inounoshishi raised her arms in the air, along with her guns (the twins narrowly avoided getting hit by one of them), and said cheerfully "You're a Stripper in the morning! *Not noticing the freaked-out looks she was getting from the Twins, Dog, and Rat* You've obviously got the body for it, and you're in perfect shape to pole dancing. I know I would definitely pay to see that."
After a few seconds of VERY awkward silence, Snake finally asked Dragon, "Oi, Nii-san, don't the Strip Joints usually close around 4:00 (am)?" "Yes, Ore-sama is sure they close at 4:00 (am)." Tsugiyoshi watched Dotsuku pinched the bridge of his nose and said in an annoyed tone "As you heard, your job theory is obviously incorrect, Pig-for-Brain. Also, *in an aggravated tone* like hell you're going to catch me in one of those places! The smell in those places is enough to make me puke!" Dragon then looked up at Inounoshishi and said with a sneer, "Looks like you're putting money in the jar." Snake then said, also with a sneer "And since that was also laced with a sexual harassment, you're putting in double."
Tsugiyoshi had No idea what was going on, and frankly, he didn't want to know.
Inounoshishi then huffed and stated as she eyed the twins, "Then what's you're job theory then?" Dragon and Snake then said to Dotsuku in unison, "In the mornings, You're a Mailman!"
Dotsuku pointed at the twins and said "Not a bad guess Tweedle Twins, good logic, but incorrect. I'm not a Mailman in the morning." Dragon snapped his fingers in annoyance as Snake said: "Damn it, I thought we got it this time." "Ore-sama thought so too... Damn it, that means we're putting money in the jar now," the older twins stated in annoyance. Dotsuku gave an amused shrug and said: "Oi, you made a good guess this time around Tweedle Twins."
With that, the Twins and the Boar grudgingly left the Rat and Dog to the trace evidence.
Tsugiyoahi decided to ask "Oi, what's with the "Jar" thing?" Dotsuku looked at the teen with a gentle smile and explained "Since the majority of Juuni Taisen have been trying to guess my morning job for a good while, they kind of started putting money in a jar with each wrong answer. Winner get's the whole thing if they guess my job correctly." "You agreed to that?" Tsugiyoshi asked with a raised brow. Dotsuku gave a soft snort and said "No, it was something the others sort of settled on. Besides, I was outvoted."
The teen then muttered, "I wonder what kind of jar is being filled?" Tsugiyoshi knew that different jars held different volumes of mass. "It's one of those countertop jam jars," Dotsuku said with a smile, then added, "From what Sharyū-chan has told me, we're on jar number 4, and that one's nearly full." The Rat raised a brow and asked "Really?" Dotsuku did state that a lot of the guesses are repeat answers, hence why there were four jars of pocket change (and some paper money). "And since Sharyū-chan is trying to get that Pighead and the Birdbrain to stop with the sexual harassment, one of the Guessing Rules is that you have to put double the required amount if you make any sort of sexual lingo in the guess," the lab tech explained. Tsugiyoshi then said "Ah, so That's what Dragon-san meant about putting double in the jar... I'm guessing that's not the first time Inounoshishi-san has, ano, "suggested" that job." Dotsuku sighed and said, "Let's just say that probably the majority of the money in the jars are from Pighead and Birdbrain. Frankly, I didn't think either of them carried That much pocket change."
Tsugiyoshi had no response to that comment.
"I guess the next question I should ask is who don't play this "Guess the Job" game?" Tsugiyoshi asked as he handed Dotsuku a test tube. The Dog replied "Hitsuji-san because he already knows what my morning job is and he doesn't care much for this guessing game *Tsugiyoshi then stated, "I figured since he had to approve it." Dotsuku then nods at that*. Ushii-san doesn't mind my morning job and also doesn't care for the guessing game. Sharyū guesses time-to-time, but you can kind of tell she's not trying. Uuma does play but not often, he has made some pretty good guesses in the past. Usagi doesn't play because he's still learning about jobs that have nothing to do with the Juuni Taisen." Tsugiyoshi gave Dotsuku a very confused look. The lab tech then stated in a sad tone, "Yeah, Usagi had one messed up upbringing... Listen, Nez, Usagi can know what a person did for a living, but he may not know the name of the career. Just... Keep that in mind, alright?" "I'll just... make sure I explain what the career is about in a simple matter to Rabbit-san," was all Tsugiyoshi said, knowing full well that that was all he could say at the moment.
After that, they just did lab work.
After a few minutes, Dotsuku asked Tsugiyoshi "Why do you call Usagi Rabbit-san?" The teen answered "He introduced himself as "Usagi Rabbit" to me. I guess I thought that his name was Rabbit... But I have noticed that everyone seems to be very casual with him." Dotsuku chuckled and said "Yeah, I guess we are, but it's more along the lines of him not having the real ingrain habit of using the proper honorifics. I'm sure you've noticed that he uses the word "Tomodachi" as an honorific. Because of that, we're pretty lax with him about honorifics with us." "What about the family of the corpse in the morgue? I'm pretty sure they would find it inappropriate if he isn't using the honorific," Tsugiyoshi noted.
Dotsuku looked at the teen, raised an amused brow, and said "You catch on real quick. No wonder you got the position of the Rat on passing the Juuni Taisen Application Exams." "Thanks," Tsugiyoshi said in an unsure tone. "We told Usagi to use basic honorifics with the family of the victims. You know, -San with adults, and -Kun with kids," Dotsuku explained before the computer beeped and added, "We also told Usagi not to go into any details about how the person died in front of those family members." "I guess that can work," Tsugiyoshi stated as he thought 'I guess it's behaviours like those that make Rab-, ano, Usagi seems so child-like.'
"Nice! We got DNA of the killer," Dotsuku suddenly said. Tsugiyoshi looked over the Dog's shoulder to see the data on the screen. "Hm? DNA's male... So the girlfriend isn't the killer," the teen stated out loud when he saw some of the peaks on the DNA graph. Dotsuku chuckled and said "I'm starting to see how you got a perfect score on the Juuni Taisen Application Exam. You read that right away." Tsugiyoshi looked at the taller male and asked, "Was it really that unusual to get a perfect score on that?" "Eh? You didn't realize how hard those Exams are? The average on those Exams is usually between 67%-75%. You can only get into Juuni Taisen if you get anything over an 85%." Dotsuku asked the teen in a bit of a shocked tone. "EH?! Really?!" was all the teen got out.
Dotsuku then placed a hand on his chin and said "But, then again... Despite your age, you already graduated from college. My guess is you still had all the forensic knowledge still fresh in your brain when you took the Application Exams." "Ano, yeah, I think you're right. I did take a lot of science classes when I was in college. And despite how I look, I have a pretty amazing mind when it comes to logic," Tsugiyoshi said but thought to himself 'Well... That's a half-truth... I do have that kind of mind, but I did use my 100 Paths during those Application Exams so I could get a better chance at a higher score...'
Dotsuku patted the teen on the shoulder and said: "I guess you were just meant for the Juuni Taisen." "Ano... Thanks," Tsugiyoshi said with a silent sigh of relief as he thought 'That was close.'
~}i{~ The Next Morning ~}i{~
Tsugiyoshi clocked into the Juuni Taisen and made his way to the Battle Field since he knew Ushii was going to be there. His phone dinged. The teen stopped walking, pulled out his phone, and checked to see who it was. It was a message from Nana.
'Tsugi, I'm going to be working a double shift tomorrow. Will you pick up Niki from Daycare for me? I know the Juuni Taisen has a child-friendly room that Niki can stay at. Nana.' Tsugiyoshi typed the reply 'Yes. I'll pick Niki up tomorrow.' and sent the message. Tsugiyoshi then continued walking towards the Battle Field.
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Tsugiyoshi sat in one of the chairs near the Battle Field, just watching Ushii slash the holograms. 'I know I've seen him do this before, but he's still on a whole different level...' the teen thought.
Ushii finally turned towards the area where Tsugiyoshi sat. The teen gave him a simple wave before the Ox slashed the hologram that tried to sneak up on him. 'Yup, he's definitely on one hell of a very different level,' was all Tsugiyoshi thought as he watched this.
Ushii quickly finished up and walked out of the Battle Field. "My apologies, I forgot that I'm in charge of you in the morning," the Ox said, making sure his sword was sheathed. Tsugiyoshi rolled his eyes and said in a sarcastic tone "Ah-uh, I'm sure you did." "No, I did," Ushii said, not noticing the sarcasm, and added, "I haven't looked after a new member since I was a Kendo Instructor for the Dojo." "You were a Kendo Instructor?" the teen asked the Ox, who in turn, nodded and said, "That was before I was scouted by the Juuni Taisen, Tora worked at the Dojo as well." Tsugiyoshi then asked, "So both you and Tora-san worked at a Dojo?"
The two started walking towards the labs as Ushii said "Our father runs a Family Dojo. We worked there when we turned 13." Tsugiyoshi then thought 'That explains Ushii-san's... Abilities... somewhat... But not Tora-san...'
Tsugiyohshi's cell dinged. He stopped walking to check the text. It read 'I'll call the Sutāraito Education's Daycare Division when I get my break, to let them know that you're going to pick up Niki tomorrow. Make sure you bring your ID card, they won't let you pick up Niki without it. Nana.' Tsugiyoshi texted back 'I never leave the house without my ID, so there shouldn't be any problems when I pick her up.'
"I hope that's important," Ushii stated sternly. Tsugiyoshi head snapped to the leader, who was now giving him a stern look. 'Eep! Right! I'm at work! I'm not supposed to be on my phone!' the teen thought, before thinking 'Dotsuku-san said to explain in a calm, logic matter.' Tsugiyoshi took a deep breath and said "My Nana was just letting me know that she's not going to be able to pick my younger sister Niki up from Daycare tomorrow, so I have to pick her up. I'll pick her up during my lunch break." "Where is the Daycare located?" Ushii asked in a stern tone. The Rat answered "It's the Sutāraito Education's Daycare Division. It's not far from here." "I'm aware of that, my nephew also goes to the Sutāraito Education's Daycare Division," The Ox stated as he motioned the teen to follow him. "Nephew? Tora-san has a son?" Tsugiyoshi asked with both confusion and shock. Ushii then stated "No, she doesn't have any children. Our older brother has a son."
Tsugiyoshi did not know how to respond to that, but he did ask "Ano, about me using my phone..." "Your "Nana" is your grandmother, correct?" Ushii asked in a stern tone. "She is," The teen replied before adding "She's surprisingly good with technology, but she's better with simple ones than the more complicated ones." Ushii was quiet for a bit before finally saying "Then do tell her that you are not supposed to be on your phone during your time here unless you are on your breaks. You can do that during your lunch today. Since you just started here, I shall let you off with a warning, but if you're caught on your phone during work again, you will be reprimanded, understand?" "I understand, Ushii-san," Tsugiyoshi said with a soft breath of relief. "As for your sister," Ushii stated as they continued on their way, then added, "We have a nice area for young children here, so you can feel better about leaving her here while you are working." Tsugiyoshi smiled and said "Arigato (3), Ushii-san!"
That was one thing out of the way, and Tsugiyoshi didn't need to use his 100 Paths.
~}i{~ Later ~}i{~
The dead body of their missing female was found later that day in the apartment of the person who killed her and Maclroy. Apparently, she was having an affair with her and Maclroy's killer. The only reason her body was found was because of the smell of decay that was coming from the killer's apartment.
The killer tried to escape. Uuma, Tsugiyoshi, and Ushii had to give chase. The teen was pleasantly surprised by the fact that the giant strongman could run pretty fast. But the killer got enough of a headstart to steal a car that people just got out of. After the killer stomped on the gas, the car bolted off. "Shit!" Tsugiyoshi cursed under his breath before Uuma grabbed to teen and yanked him out of the street (and avoiding an oncoming car). The Rat and the Horse watched as the Ox took off after the stolen car at a lightning pace. "Eh?" was all the teen got out as Ushii caught up to the stolen car, stabbed his sabre into the front of the car, pulled it out, and kept pace with the car until the car started to slow down. This allowed Uuma and Tsugiyoshi to catch up to the car and Ushii. The killer still had his knife on him and stabbed Uuma in the arm as he was apprehended, but the knife broke upon contact with the giant's skin.
Tsugiyoshi took the opportunity to figure out how Ushii managed to stop the car with just one strike. The teen opened the car's engine compartment where the Ox stabbed to see that the main sparking plug of the engine was broken, it was stabbed right through. Looking at the hole the sabre made as it was jabbed through the metal of the car and the broken sparking plug, Tsugiyoshi thought 'He made a precise strike to the car that would stop it while causing minimal damage to it... *Then looks at Ushii, who was currently talking to the police* He made such a precise strike while running alongside the car... And considering different brands of car engines have their sparking plugs in different locations... He knew the brand of car on sight and knew where the sparking plug was located in the engine...'
On their way back, Tsugiyoshi asked Ushii "How did you know where the strike that car?" Without looking at the teen as he continued walking, the Ox stated: "I have memorized the layout of all brands of cars that are in the area so that I can disable a car that has been stolen by a suspect without much damage, as you saw earlier." "It's so the car owners do not have to worry about their car too much, and the damage Ushii-san usually inflicts on the cars are easily fixed and aren't that expensive," Uuma told the teen. 'So he also knows the cost of the types of repairs,' Tsugiyoshi thought then asked the Ox "Are a car buff?" Ushii paused his steps, looked at the teen, and asked: "Excuse me?" "A car buff... Ano, a car fanatic... Someone very interested in cars," Tsugiyoshi said with a sweatdrop, a bit surprised that the leader didn't understand what he meant. "Ah, I see how you came to that conclusion, but I did not do car research because of that. I did my research so situations, like the one earlier, ends with minimal damage to the car, civilians, and the environment. I have also researched the buildings in the area and their structures, so I can archive the minimal damage to those as well."
Ushii then went back to walking ahead of the Horse and Rat. Uuma patted the teen on the head and followed the Ox. Tsugiyoshi trailed behind as he thought 'All that research just to prevent more tragedies... Ushii-san really is in a class of his own.'
~}i{~
Usagi confirmed the cause of death of the woman was stabbed, while Dotsuku confirmed the person who killed the two with a DNA match.
It wasn't the biggest case closed in Juuni Taisen's history, but it was Nezumi the Rat's first closed case (even if he didn't play that big of a part in the case, it was still his first case), so the Juuni Taisen celebrated this milestone. (Much to poor Tsugiyoshi's dismay).
Tora brought alcohol to the event, but Ushii and Hitsuji locked all of it into a cupboard. "I'm not sure if you realize this, but our new Rat is a minor, so no alcoholic anything," the Ram scolded the Tiger. Ushii let out a sigh that seems to indicate this incident was nothing new. Tora puffed her cheeks and huffed out "Killjoy," to the elderly man. Niwatori pipped in a "But, Tora-chan, minors aren't allowed to drink alcohol, it's the law." Amour gave a squawk of agreement. The only thing the Tiger did was huff.
'That is going to be a repetitive thing now,' Tsugiyoshi thought as he watched the two bunnies munch on their dinner of rabbit food and carrots in a corner of the canteen. 'The fact that those two rabbits aren't reacting to the noise is proof that this happens way too often,' the teen thought as he watched the white rabbit look up from its food to see what the Rat was doing before going back to eating.
"Not much of a party person?" Dotsuku asked as he sat next to the teen as he held a cup of tea in his left hand. "Pretty much... Why are they doing this when I asked for them not to?" Tsugiyoshi asked the Lab Tech with a sigh. Dotsuku chuckled and said "Well, you were outvoted, for one. The other is pretty much the fact that Sharyū-chan's making a cake for you for completing your first case and no one here is going to pass up an opportunity to eat a baked good from her." The teen raised a brow, looked directly at the Dog, and asked: "What do you mean by that?" Dotsuku pointed his left index finger at the Monkey decorating a cake in the kitchen as he took a sip of his tea and then said "Sharyū-chan's pastries are pretty much heavenly and she's one hell of a cook. Heck, when it's her turn to cook, there isn't a single crumb of a leftover. Although, she does restrict how many pieces of her desserts someone can have. In all honesty, she should've become a Pâtissière (4) instead of the Juuni Taisen's Negotiations Specialist and the Psychologist/Behavior Expert."
Tsugiyoshi wasn't sure what that meant, but when Sharyū brought out the completed cake, gave him the first piece, and he tried it. 'Holy Hell! Dotsuku-san was right! This is beyond delicious!' The teen thought blissfully as the flavour of the cake filled his mouth. He needs to make sure to save some for his grandma and younger sister and he was willing to use his 100 Paths to achieve this.
~}i{~ The Next Morning ~}i{~
Unlike yesterday, today was pretty slow.
Tsugiyoshi yawned as he and Ushii clocked out for their break. "Nezumi-kun, you're picking up your sister today, correct?" the Ox asked the teen, who in turn replied "Ano, yes... I'm going to head out now so I can be back to eat something... Ano, you don't mind if she eats lunch here with me?" Ushii shook his head and said, "Not at all, just make sure she keeps her Visiter's Pass on while she's here." Tsugiyoshi stated that he will.
But what caught the teen off-guard was the fact that the Ox stated in a very direct tone that he was going to pick up his nephew alongside the Rat. When Tsugiyoshi asked why Ushii replied that his older brother wasn't going to be able to pick up his son today and asked him to pick him up. "Ano, does Tora-san want to come too?" the teen asked, not expecting the other to really respond and half expected the Tiger to just pop out of nowhere to just join them. "Actually, our brother and Tora aren't on the best terms at the moment, so he's not going to ask her for any favours," Ushii told Tsugiyoshi as they left the building. The teen wasn't sure he wanted to know what happened, so he didn't ask.
}{
Ushii decided to use his speed to get both himself and Tsugiyoshi to the Sutāraito Education's Daycare Division so they could have more time to eat lunch at the Juuni Taisen Labs when they got back. While they did get there in less than a minute and a half, the teen did have a bit of a stability problem after the Ox stopped running.
Ushii did ask if Tsugiyoshi was all right. "I'm good, just... Give me another few seconds, okay," the teen said as he shook his head to clear some dizziness.
Once the teen felt better, the two walked into the Daycare building.
One of the Daycare workers looked at the two and asked: "Hello, may I help you?" Ushii stated clearly "I am here to pick up Aira Kenta, I'm his uncle." Tsugiyoshi told the worker "I'm here to pick up Sumino Midorimiki (5), I'm her older brother." Ushii turned his attention to the teen and asked: "I thought your sister's name was Niki?" Tsugiyoshi explained, "Niki is her nickname, and the only part of her name she can sort of say." Ushii only nodded at that.
With that, a little grey-haired girl jumped on her older brother and cheered "Tsugi-nii!"
"Oh, so you're this Tsugi-nii that she's been talking about," the daycare worker said with her hands on her hips and a friendly smile. "I hope she's been saying good things," Tsugiyoshi said in a bit of a joking tone as he patted his sister on the head. A black-haired six-year-old boy poked his head around the corner, to see what was going on, before laying his eyes on Ushii. "Oji-sama (6)!" the boy cried out happily as he raced towards the Ox. Tsugiyoshi had to bite his lip to prevent him from making any noise as he thought 'That's something I never thought Ushii-san would be called.'
The daycare worker knelt and said "Niki-chan, Kenta-kun. *Getting the children's attention* I know you two are happy to see them, but Sensei need to confirm that they are actually here to pick you up." The boy and girl awwed at that. Tsugiyoshi and Ushii pulled out their picture IDs as the daycare worker went to get the Sensei that was mentioned.
"Ne ne, Tsugi-nii, you gonna wove Sensei, he'sa Weawy nice sensei," Niki said happily. Kenta then added "Yeah! He'sa betta den tha senseis at da Dojo!" "Is he now?" Ushii said with an amused raised brow then added: "I hope you haven't told any of them that." Tsugiyoshi smiled softly and thought 'Seem like he's been hearing the same things about this Sensei that I've heard from Niki.'
"Okay, you two mind coming with me? Sensei has his hands full at the moment," The daycare worker said with an apologetic smile. Both Ushii and Tsugiyoshi, along with the two children, followed the worker without much of a second thought. After all the Sensei was working with young children.
"Okay, now that everyone has all the colours of the rainbow, we're good," Tsugiyoshi heard someone say in a cheery voice, that sounded oddly familiar. "Tsukui-Sensei, Kenta-kun's uncle and Niki-chan's brother are here to pick them up," the daycare worker told the Sensei, who wore a light blue shirt white slacks and a green apron. The Sensei had some familiar short black hair with pointed dog ears.
Ushii and Tsugiyoshi froze with a completely shocked look on their faces when the Sensei turned to them, and then froze himself.
"Ano... IDs, please... So I can... Ano... Confirm that you are who you are...And are... Suppose to be here..." The Sensei said as his cyan-on-blue eyes kept on the two Juuni Taisen members. Ushii simply stared while Tsugiyoshi finally asked "Dotsuku-san?"
One of Dotsuku's dog ears twitched.
}{ A Few Minutes Later }{
After confirming the IDs and that they were indeed here to pick up their family members, Dotsuku sat with Ushii and Tsugiyoshi in the corner of the Daycare.
"I'm going to be completely honest, I never expected anyone from the Juuni Taisen to come here in the morning," Dotsuku stated as he handed the IDs back to his co-workers at the Labs. Tsugiyoshi managed to catch a glance at Ushii's ID, he saw the name Kashii Eiji on it. Then Dotsuku said "Or that anyone there actually had family members under my care." "I suppose the codenames had a part in that," the teen stated as he placed his ID in his wallet. Dotsuku shrugged and basically agreed. The Dog then glanced at the Ox and asked "You're quieter than usual Ushii-san. Are you okay? You're not too shocked about this job? Are you?" Ushii placed an index finger to his chin and said, "I am alright. I'm just thinking that the daycare uniform seems to suit you better than a lab coat."
Neither Dotsuku nor Tsugiyoshi knew how to respond to that.
Niki climb onto her brother's lab and asked: "You already know Sensei, Tsugi-nii?" Tsugiyoshi looked at his younger sister and said "Ano, yes... Ano, he works at Nii-chan's job after he's done here..." "Yes, that's pretty much it," Dotsuku said with a wry crooked smile. "Perhaps we can find a way to modify the labcoats so they can have the visible appeal while still maintaining the required sanitary specifications," Ushii said, still with his hand to his chin.
Again, neither Dotsuku nor Tsugiyoshi knew how to respond to that.
"Oji-sama, no tinking of work now," Kenta told his uncle, seemingly use to this kind of thing despite his young age. That snapped Ushii out of his thoughts, then he said "Ah, my apologies. *Then looks at Dotsuku* Since we are not currently employed as Juuni Taisen members, how should we address you?" Tsugiyoshi did have to admit, the Ox had a point, they weren't at the Juuni Taisen and thus didn't need their codenames.
Dotsuku rubbed the back of his head and said "Well, considering that there's a good possibility that I'm going to see the two of you here in the future... *Sighs* I guess we might as well introduce ourselves by our given names so we don't get this weird awkwardness again. I'm Tsukui Michio." "Kashii Eiji," Ushii responded immediately. The teen sighed softly before saying "Sumino Tsugiyoshi. *Looks at Ushii and asks* How come your last name differs from your nephew?" "I prefer to use my mother's family name rather than my father's," the Ox stated in a matter-of-fact tone. Dotsuku then asked Ushii "Just out of curiosity, is your sister going to be coming by to pick up Kenta-kun?" The Ox shook his head and stated: "I don't expect her to be." That was when Kenta said, "Obasan (7) and Papa no get along." "I've... heard from your papa, Kenta-kun, I just never expected her to be someone I know," Dotsuku said with a soft sigh. Tsugiyoshi took note of this and thought 'It sounds like he Knows why Tora and her oldest brother don't get along.'
Dotsuku then said, "Well, to end this conversation on a happier note, *stands up* Kashii-san, Sumino-kun, I will be seeing you later." The Dog then holds out his hands to the two. They replied to the gesture. Dotsuku knelt to the two kids' level and said in a cheerful but serious tone, "Now, Niki-chan, Kenta-kun, the two of you need to be good when you're at the Juuni Taisen. The people there do their best to catch the bad guys through very strict and complicated methods, and they need to be very, very careful when doing these methods. You can't touch anything unless they tell you it's okay to do so. Understand?" The two kids then replied in a happy tone "We understand, Sensei." Dotsuku closed his cyan-on-black eyes and happily smiled his crooked smile, before remembering that two of his co-workers from that very lab were standing right there and turned a rather obvious shade of pink (the pink was easy to see due to his snow-white skin).
All Ushii and Tsugiyoshi could really do was just be surprised by this new side of the Dog.
When he got his voice, Tsugiyoshi asked "Ano... Do you want us not to tell the others? I mean, if you want us to..." That was when Ushii stated clearly "How about we just not say anything. *Eyes the teen* Besides, it's ultimately Tsukui-san's decision to tell them or not." Tsugiyoshi got the hint and said, "It's fine with me." The two kids didn't understand what was going on, but they did understand that the other people at the Juuni Taisen Lab didn't know that their precious sensei worked at a Daycare.
"Thanks," Ushii and Tsugiyoshi heard Dotsuku say.
~}i{~
"Can you repeat that?" Hitsuji asked Tora, who in turn, replied "Ya losin' yar hearing old man? Ani had'ta pick up our nephew at that Sutāraito Daycare place and tha new kid's pickin' up his kid sis at the same place. *Giggles* Small world, huh." All Hitsuji could do was nod as Tora boils some pasta.
'The world seems a lot smaller now than in my days,' Histuji thought to himself, before wondering 'Ushii-kun I know won't say anything about Dotsuku's job, but I'm not sure about Nezumi-kun...'
"OI! NO! DON'T ADD ALCOHOL TO ANYTHING! THERE'S GOING TO BE CHILDREN HERE TODAY!" Hitsuji shouted when he saw Tora about to pour in a bottle of liquor into the boiling water. "Don't be silly, I'ma not going to give my nephew this," the Tiger stated as she just dumped the bottle's content into the pasta, and scaring the poor Sheep out of his skin. "I know some good liquor-free recipes for tha kids, ya'know," Tora stated with a cattish grin.
Poor Hitsuji was so not very sure about.
~}i{~
"Make sure you keep this on while you're here, okay Niki," Tsugiyoshi told his younger sister as he clipped on the Visitor's Tag onto her shirt. Ushii did the same with his nephew and stated: "That goes for you too, Kenta unless you do wish to wait outside." Tsugiyoshi did mention that that comment did go a little too far. The children agreed to keep their tags on.
}{
"Yo, Ani," Tora waved happily at Ushii. The Ox only responded by saying "Please tell me you've made something that the children can eat." Kenta peaked out from behind his uncle too see his aunt and say "Hi hi, Obasan!" "Yo, Chibi (8)," Tora said with a wave. The boy puffed his cheeks and stated: "I'm no chibi!" "Don't start this argument here," Ushii said with a sigh. The Tiger and the boy reluctantly agreed to that. Tsugiyoshi couldn't help but think 'I take it this is a common dispute between those two. And it seems like the two of them respect Ushii-san a lot to stop their usual banter on his command.'
Tsugiyoshi picked up his sister, so she could see the food better. Tora told the teen that the Drunken Shrimp Scanty was for the adults only. Tsugiyoshi had a pretty good guess why.
After a few minutes, the other Juuni Taisen members (minus Hitsuji, Usagi, and Dotsuku) came in for lunch. They, of course, clamoured over the two kids. Too bad they didn't want the attention from the weird strangers, especially the tall lady with the big scary guns.
Ushii then told the team "You all are acting as though you have never seen children before." 'Agreed,' Tsugiyoshi thought as he rolled his eyes before taking a bit of his food. The teen had to admit, the adults were acting a bit immature, but he figured that it was because Tora made a lot of alcohol dishes.
Usagi popped in with the two bunnies. He, of course, asked about the two children. "The boy is the nephew of Tora and me, while the girl is Nezumi-kun's younger sister," Ushii answered before sipping his tea. Usagi's red-on-black eyes sparkled and asked "Whoa! Really? *Places a finger to his chin and asks in a curious tone* Come to think of it, where did you get little siblings?" Tsugiyoshi nearly choked on the food in his mouth, then thought 'Seriously?! He doesn't know how children are- Oh wait! Messed up past... I need to start remembering that with Usagi.'
Uuma immediately covered Inounoshishi's mouth when she started going into detail about "How Babies are Made" while Tsugiyoshi and Ushii covered the ears of their respective young family member. Usagi just blinked in confusion. "You are sick in the head for saying That in front of children," the twins told Inounoshishi in a blunt tone.
Tsugiyoshi rolled his eyes and hoped that this sort of thing isn't going to happen again next time he has to pick up Niki.
~}i{~
Dotsuku clocked in after everyone finished with lunch and after Ushii and Tsugiyoshi brought the children to the Kid's Room.
"Wow, nothing to analyze today?" Dotsuku asked the teen when he saw that there were no evidence bags on his station. Tsugiyoshi only said, "It's been a slow day here." "I suppose that can be a good thing," Dotsuku said as he folded his arms. The teen could tell that the Dog had something he wanted to say. "I'm not going to tell anyone here about it and I'm pretty sure Ushii-san won't either," Tsugiyoshi stated softly, so no passerby wouldn't overhear. Dotsuku waved a hand and said, "I know you won't, but that's not what I wanted to ask." The teen waved a brow as the Dog sat in his chair.
"Then... what did you want to ask?" Tsugiyoshi asked as he sat in another chair. Dotsuku sighed and stated, "I'm not sure if I should tell you this, but Aira-san, *whispers* Kenta-kun's father, *normal tone* has mentioned multiple times that his sister, that I now know is Tora-san, has been pestering his brother, who I now know is Ushii-san, about confessing to his long-time crush." "He has? I'm kind of surprised he told you about that... Does he know you work with them?" Tsugiyoshi asked Dotsuku, who shook his head and replied "No, he doesn't. *Sigh* I had to ask if there was any trouble in his household when Kenta-kun was exhibiting aggressive behaviours towards some of the other kids, so he had to tell me about his "family issues". I'm going, to be honest, I never actually expect him to be so open about it."
Tsugiyoshi thought for a bit before saying "Well, kids mimic everything adults do... Wait a minute! Ushii-san has a crush on someone?" "Seems like it," Dotsuku said with a sigh. Tsugiyoshi suddenly remembered what the Tiger told him when he first learned that he was shadowing the Ox in the mornings, then said "Come to think of it, Tora-san did mention Ushii-san had a "Problem" and was hoping I would help him with it." Dotsuku raised a brow and asked "You think the "Problem" is this crush thing?" "It has to be," the teen stated before realizing "But... She also mentioned that Hitsuji-san thought I could help with it."
In a surprised tone, Dotsuku said: "Wait, if Hitsuji-san knows and is actively involved, then that means... *whispers so that only Tsugiyoshi could hear* Ushii-san's crush WORKS at Juuni Taisen!" The teen placed a knuckle to his chin and said: "Well, we know for a fact that it can't be Tora-san, Hitsuji-san, or me." Dotsuku nodded and stated "Yeah, Tora-san's his sister. I know they love and care for each other, but only as siblings. Hitsuji-san I know is still married to the love of his life, Ushii-san is aware of that, and Tora-san wouldn't be pushing him to confess to someone already married. And you just started, and from what Aira-san told me, it's a longtime crush."
Tsugiyoshi folded his arms and said "Ano, should we be talking about this? I mean he is our boss and all..." Dotsuku scratched his cheek and said "You're probably right, but still, for his sake, I hope this crush isn't that pigheaded Inounoshishi. She already has 12 boyfriends and Ushii-san seems to be the monogamous type." "Eh? I knew she had more than one, but I didn't think it was that many," Tsugiyoshi said in a slightly shocked tone, then asked out of realization "Wait, how'd you know she had that many?" Dotsuku grimaced and stated "She asked me to be boyfriend #13 one time. *Shutters* And she asked me after she shot a getaway car full of holes like it wasn't THAT big of a deal." The teen then muttered, "That's something I never thought I'd hear..." "Tell me about it," Dotsuku stated, before adding "Back on topic... I know that we shouldn't talk about it, but after learning recent things... I guess I can't help but worry about Ushii-san and Tora-san..."
"You care about them, huh," The teen stated in a soft tone. Dotsuku took a deep breath and said "I guess I do, and... It's just... I don't want their family to break apart because of something minor..." "Did your family?" Tsugiyoshi couldn't help but ask. Realizing what he was talking about and the tone of it, Dotsuku turned pink, then waved a hand, and said "No! My family's completely stable and still together! *In a sad, softer tone* But, I have seen other families broken apart because of a bad argument... And I don't want that happening to a pair of good siblings..."
An image of a funeral flashed into Tsugiyoshi's mind when he said: "I can understand..."
The next thing the teen realized, Dotsuku had a hand on his shoulder. "Sorry about bringing up some bad memories," the Dog stated in a soft apologetic tone. "It's alright..." Tsugiyoshi said softly. That was when Dotsuku said, "Listen, Nez, if you need anyone to talk to, I'll be willing to listen." The teen quietly thanked the Lab Tech.
}i{
Ushii was looking at a picture in a locket he had (that was usually hidden under his shirt) in his office sitting at his desk. His eyes seemed to soften the longer he looked at the picture. The picture showed an image of him when he was 5-years-old standing next to another person of the same age (the image was conveniently obstructed by a glare of light so the viewer couldn't see the other child).
A knock on the door snapped the Juuni Taisen leader out of his self-induced trance. Ushii quickly closed the locket, hid it back under his shirt, and asked: "Who is it?"
"It's Sharyū, and I have the paperwork from the case from yesterday," the voice said through the door. "Ah, I was expecting those, come on in, the door isn't locked," Ushii said in his normal tone. The Monkey walked in with a small stack of papers in her hand and said: "There isn't much, so you should finish it in a few minutes." "That's fine, Sharyū-san," Ushii stated as he picked up a pen. The Monkey nodded and gave him the paperwork.
~}i{~ That Night ~}i{~
Tsugiyoshi tucked his sleeping sister under her bedcovers before quietly leaving her room.
The teen then headed towards his room with a yawn and thought 'Man, this sucks. I get tired when I overuse my 100 Paths, but I also get tired when I don't use it... Maybe I just need to use it at least once a day. Although, I need to be careful about who I use it around.'
Tsugiyoshi changed into his nightclothes, then crawled into bed, and finally fell asleep.
~}i{~
To be Continued...
~}i{~
1) Ani is the Japanese respectable term older brother.
2) Tomodachi is Japanese for Friend. Usagi uses this word a lot with the Juuni Taisen members.
3) Arigato is Japanese for Thank you. Arigato Gozimasu is Japanese for Thank You Very Much.
4) A pastry chef or pâtissier (pronounced [pɑ. ]; the French female version of the word is pâtissière [pɑ. ɛʁ]), is a station chef in a professional kitchen, skilled in the making of pastries, desserts, breads and other baked goods.
5) Midori is Japanese for "Green" and Miki is Japanese for (and depending on the Kanji) "Beautiful Chronicle", Beautiful and Noble", Beautiful Tree", or "Beautiful Hope".
6) Ojisan means Uncle in Japanese. -Sama is honorific that basically states that they are highly regarded (but some jobs in Japan require their staff to refer to their customers in this regard). Therefore, Kenta respects his uncle by calling him Oji-sama.
7) Obasan is Japanese for Aunt.
8) Chibi is basically Japanese for Small, Shrimp, or Short. While I'm sure everyone has seen chibi variations of their favourite character, usually when someone is called a Chibi it's usually either an insult or a childish nickname (depending on who's saying it and the tone behind it).
~}i{~
Gale-Dragon: Yup, I'm not giving away who Ushii has a crush on, but I will leave hints in the following chapters. Just letting you all know, as stated in the story, Ushii's crush IS NOT Tora, Hitsuji, or Nezumi. Have fun guessing.