dis-claim'er, noun: a denial or disavowal of legal claim: relinquishment of or formal refusal to accept an interest or estate; b: a writing that embodies a legal disclaimer; c: a statement made to save one's own ass.

Informal, Unplanned Meetings

The following week went by slowly for Ryo Sanada. It was as if he was stuck in a routine of work, classes two days a week, training, and going home exhausted, and then wash, rinse, repeat process. It was another Friday already. He couldn't help but be excited to be able to spend time with his future wife, but she had been acting weird all week. He knew Mia normally worked late, but it just seemed like her time at work was getting later and later. His intuition was also telling him that she was keeping secrets, but he opted to ignore it. The brunette was the best thing that happened to him. It all started years ago in the streets of Shinjuku fighting Dynasty scum.

Ryo got out of the shower just as his phone went off. It was an invite from all the guys to meet at a local sushi shop downtown. He accepted the invite, sent his lover a text to let him know where he would be, and quickly dressed.

What Ryo didn't know was that Mia was getting up early, going to work, and leaving only to go and train with the Lady Guardians. The process was beginning to wear her body out, but she had to prevail. Ever since those creatures – the Zendlar – attacked, Mia knew that she couldn't give up. The enemy had made themselves present. This was the time to be vigilant with no slacking.

Her phone chimed loudly. She picked it up from her desk, exited the Guardian group chat, and opened the message from Ryo. He was going to meet with the guys downtown for some food and just wanted to let her know where he would be. She glanced at the time then at the stack of papers she had to grade. It wouldn't take her long to finish, she thought. It felt like it had been forever since she had seen her fiance and the guys.

"No, man!" Josephine yelled in response. "You gotta jump on my weapon. On my weapon! Then I will propel you forward."

"Do I look like Gimili from 'Lord of the Rings'? You will not be propelling, throwing, or performing any relatives of that verb to me," Rekino said definitely. "I'm a ninja; we don't fly!"

The two Guardians were in the backyard sparring and trying out different techniques. While they all worked well together, these two in particular were the martial art experts and the power houses of the group.

"Not only would it look bad ass, but you could cover massive distance with my power behind you."

"I can body arch. I don't need your power."

Josephine slammed the staff on the ground, "But think of how it would look."

"No! Do I have to say it in multiple languages for you to understand? Just became I am fun-sized doesn't mean I can be flung around like a doll."

"You suck, fearless leader. Or should I call you 'Scaredy-Leader'?"

Rekino rolled her eyes, "First of all, that sounds stupid. Second, I never said I was fearless. Third, I am uncomfortable with heights."

"You flew over six thousand miles to get here!"

"It was in a plane, and I was having heart palpitations the entire time! It's not like someone put me on a bo-staff and hurled me to Japan."

"Homie," Jo picked up the training bo-staff rested it behind her head, her elbows hanging over it. "I'm not putting you in the air. I'm throwing you at the enemy."

"Again, do I look like a dwarf?"

"You gotta at least try," Jo put on a pouty face. It honestly didn't suit her, but it was compelling.

Rekino ran her hands up and down her face a few times before giving in. "Fuck...me. Fine. Let's just get it over with."

As the two set up to perform the attack, the loud music of "Master of Puppets" by Metallica started to play. Rekino slumped over letting out a deep sigh of relief. Saved by the bell, literally. Josephine bound across the backyard to get her phone. It had to of been Kento by the way she was acting.

"Hey, cuz-o!"

Suspicion confirmed. Rekino hopped up on the porch, sitting down in one of the cushioned chairs. They had been training for hours. Her legs and arms were tired.

"I was just working out with Re-I mean, Candace. Yeah, she's pretty fierce, man. Kicks with a thousand pounds of pressure." A two minute pause. She laughed. "Shit, don't let her hear you. She takes that as offensive."

Rekino lifted her arms up as to ask what. Josephine just shook her head while she continued her conversation.

"No, I got nothing but free time today. Amaya is at the bakery and said she didn't need any help today. Hana is at work. So it's just me and Candace. OH! I got that package from mom yesterday. I wanted to show it to you."

The conversation went on for about five more minutes before Lady Hardrock hung up. Rekino sat straight up from her lounging position.

"What did he say about me?"

Josephine laid the bo-staff on the porch and gathered her things, "That he didn't think someone so tiny could have that much force behind a kick."

"I'll put my heel in his forehead next time I see him," she stood up. "Where ya goin'?"

"Kento said he wanted to meet me in about an hour after he gets done eating with the others, so hitting the shower. I was gonna go by the bakery and see if 'Mya wanted to go with him since she has some teenagers working that can handle the business."

The Hardrock warrior disappear inside the communal home. Rekino couldn't say she wasn't disappointed, but now she was going to be alone and bored. She didn't know if that was better than being thrown across the yard. She sighed loudly. Everyone was going to be busy except her. Maybe she should just take this as some downtime.

Or maybe she could put her skills to use and go see everyone. This past Sunday had been Ryo's birthday. She wallowed in self pity for a day, but now she wanted to be close to him. She hadn't been near him in over ten years. Kayura would probably kill her – or maybe not since no one could contact her – but what she didn't know wouldn't hurt her.

Rekino grabbed her Samsung phone and opened her messages. Josephine said Kento was "eating" with the others so she assumed they were going to be out somewhere. Her fingers moved quickly across the touch screen as she messaged her future in-law.

Where are Ryo and the others eating out today?

"I'm not joking!" Kento sat down at the table in-between Cye and Ryo. He put the straw up to his lips and took a rather large drink. "I haven't seen Jo in a year and she suddenly pops up here with three new friends—cute ones, too!"

Rowen nodded his head at his comrades, "And I'm here to state that was true. Depending on your taste in women I would level the attractiveness of them but there were four females in a group that Kento was talking to."

Cye cut up a part of his steak, "So, what's the issue? Aren't you happy that your cousin is living so close?"

"I mean, yeah, but mom or pop didn't call to let me know. I just feel like something is going on that I don't know about."

Sage leaned back in his seat, folding his hands and resting them in his lap. "It's almost weird in a freaky way that your cousin is friend's with the girl I almost hit with my car."

Cye sipped his drink, "She didn't seem too upset. Quite amused, actually."

The blond nodded his head, "We have been communicating on Facebook. She is quite sassy."

Ryo stared blankly at his food as he slowly stirred the spoon in the bowl. He watched the way the liquid moved and pondered how just one small movement had such a dynamic effect on the rest of the contents of the bowl. He was suddenly brought back to reality by the sound of Rowen's voice.

"Huh?"

"You're all spaced out, Ryo. You alright, bud?"

"Yeah—I mean, no. Man, I don't know," the leader of the group ran a hand through his saggy hair sighing loudly as he did so. "Mia keeps bugging me to teach her how to fight."

"We've been teaching her how to use a naginata for years," Kento took a bite and swallowed quickly. "What's so bad about her wanting to learn to fight?"

Ryo rested his chin on top of his folded hands, "She wants to learn Ba Gua."

"What?" Sage looked shocked and confused.

"Yeah. She's been acting weird, too. She's always working late. It's like she's being…secretive."

Before anyone could say anything, a small, petite girl walked up to their table. She had her blonde hair up in a ponytail and wore a big smile on her face. She refilled their drinks quickly and cleaned up some dirty dishes.

"Maybe she just wants to be more helpful," Cye said to Ryo reassuringly.

Ryo sighed loudly, "Mia helps by being who she is. She's always helped. I agreed to teach her, though. She made a good argument."

The young waitress smiled, "Can I get you guys anything else?"

Rowen looked up at the girl. There was something familiar about her, but he couldn't place it. He gave her a smile, holding up his hand. "No. Thank you, though."

The girl nodded her head and disappeared with the dirty dishes. The Warrior of Strata watched her walk away with a curious expression on his face. He didn't know why, but that petite young woman struck something in him. He swore to himself that he had seen that girl somewhere. The way she spoke seemed so familiar.

A well-known female voice derailed him from his thoughts. He looked up and smiled, "Hey, Mia." He gave a disgruntled sound when she ruffled his hair.

Just as she sat down, her cell phone went off. She quickly took the device out of her purse and checked to see what caused it to go off. She looked confused for a second then looked over her shoulder.

"What is it?" Ryo reached over to put a hand in her lap protectively.

She smiled, "I'll be right back."

The armor bearers watched as Mia walked across the restaurant. She stopped in front of the same blonde haired girl that had been at the table earlier. The two seemed to exchange a few words before they hugged. Mia then made her way back to the group.

"Sorry. She's just a friend."

"Friend?" Cye sipped on his drink. "She looks like a teenager."

Mia cleared her throat, "And what does age have to do with anything?" She reached over and kissed Ryo's lips.

"You mind?" Kento said loudly. "Some of us are trying to eat here."

An average sized brunette wearing an apron while carrying a pitcher of water walked up to the table. She looked around quizzically for a moment before smiling, "Oh! Your table is already cleaned up. I need to find whoever did that for me."

"She was blonde," Cye said after taking a drink. "She never told us her name."

The waitress looked confused, "Huh. We don't have a blonde waitress here. Maybe she's new. I'll find out I suppose."

Rowen took note of the split second of panic on Mia's face before it returned to normal. Something was definitely weird. He decided not to say or ask any questions, but he couldn't help but feel that Ryo's assumptions of her were right.

Walking out of the restaurant from the backdoor, the young blonde waitress made her way briskly to her red Tesla that was parked across the street. As soon as she got into the vehicle, she quickly took off the blonde wig only to toss it into the passenger's seat and looked at herself in the rear view window. She didn't recognize the brown eyes that stared back at her, but that had been the whole point of hensōjutsu, the art of disguise, infiltration, and impersonation.

Her car made a sound that she had received a new text message. She pulled out the phone and swiped to open it to find a message from Mia.

I didn't even recognize you.

She smirked.

I'm a ninja. It's what I do.

You always say that.

The girl looked at herself again before returning her attention to the text message.

It was so nice to be close to him if only for a few minutes. She waited for a second before sending another message. Ryo looked so happy to see you. Thank you for taking care of him.

A few seconds went by and the phone chimed.

No problem, Rekino.

With her heart weighing heavy with sorrow and guilt, but also joy that she was able to share the same space with her brother, Rekino looked in her mirror and to the left before she merged into traffic to go home. Frowning, she realized she should have taken the irritating contacts out before leaving the parking lot.

Amaya parked her sea blue Toyota Prius outside of the Verdana Apartment Complex. It was located in a decent part of town. The outside of the building looked well kept. She knew this place had to be costly. It was definitely above the average wage in Japan. She winced when Josephine slammed her passenger side door shut. She opened her door, exiting her very nice vehicle.

"Please don't slam my car doors," she demonstrated for her friend that all it took was a small, gentle push.

Josephine rolled her eyes, "You act like I'm gonna go She-Hulk and rip it off or something."

The French girl shrugged her shoulders, "You do possess an immense amount of strength with or without your armor."

"Ha!" Josephine flexed her arms. "You got that right."

A small breeze caused Amaya's chestnut colored tresses to cover her face. She pushed her hair back behind her ear. "Why am I here?"

"Because," Josephine nodded towards the building. "I wanted to see Kento, but I didn't want to come alone. Besides, you have been asking me a lot of questions about him."

Amaya felt her cheeks heat up at her friend's comment, "It is only to gather information, Josephine. I have sworn off the love of a man. I may not have taken my vows of chastity, but I still believe I am to do God's work here before serving myself."

The Chinese warrior made a face, moving her head from side-to-side as if contemplating what was said, "This is true, but I've studied your God. I'm sure he would want you to live your life and be happy."

"And I am happy to serve Him and Jesus Christ by devoting my life to other's."

"If that's what you want to believe," Jo bounded up the steps with ease while balancing a small box in her hands. It was only three sets of stairs, "but I believe that there is someone out there for everyone even if they weren't able to unite in this lifetime. Love finds a way. Call me a romantic."

Amaya pursed her lips, "I'm a realist. Only through God can we know true love."

The two stopped in front of apartment 3B. Josephine took in a deep breath, letting her knuckles hit the door hard enough to be heard. Footsteps were heard from the other side. It wasn't a second later that the door flung open. They were greeted by Cye.

"Good afternoon," he said sweetly.

Josephine found herself unable to speak at the sound of his voice. What was this feeling? She'd never been attracted to boys. Not to say that she homosexual, but males always tended to either laugh at her because of her broad shoulders and muscles or they tried to demonstrate that they were always the stronger species. Instead of worrying about about dating she concentrated on perfecting her skills. She and Rekino were alike in that way.

"Uh, hi!" She said nervously.

Amaya smiled, bowing as she did so, "Hello, Cye. How are you?"

"I'm great," he stepped aside, holding his arm out to let them know they could enter. "Kento and I just got home not too long ago."

The aforementioned male entered into the living room at that moment, "Cuz! Oh? You brought a friend?"

The French woman bowed, "It is good to see you again, Kento." A light shade of pink formed on her face. Josephine laughed inwardly and made note to bug her friend about that later.

"Here is the stuff mama and auntie sent."

Kento waved the three into the kitchen, "I can't wait to see it. Wanna join us Cye?"

"Sure. I have nothing better to do."

As they walked into the kitchen, Cye pulled out a chair for Josephine. She thought it was for himself, but when he motioned for her to sit she was suddenly at a loss for words. All she could do was point to herself with a questioned look on her face.

"A gentleman always pulls out the chair for a lady."

Still in shock, Josephine sat down in the wooden chair slowly. As Amaya went to sit, Kento mimicked what Cye did. The Torrent Guardian gave him a big smile. She ran her hands along her thighs to adjust her dress before sitting.

"So!" Kento said down between Cye and Amaya looking at his cousin. "What did we get?"

The hour long drive from Shinjuku and to their home in Odawara was pretty much in silence between the two lovers. They didn't speak except to comment what was said on the radio about the weather and current news in Japan. When they arrived, Mia quickly made her way to the kitchen. Ryo heard the clanking of glass as he shut the door. He could tell that something was amiss. Mia never just ran into their home like that.

He went into the kitchen to find his bride-to-be drinking a glass of wine. It wasn't odd for her to have a glass occasionally, but when she had finished the glass in a matter of seconds only to pour another one wasn't natural.

"Is everything okay?"

She took a drink of the second glass, "Yeah. Everything is great."

His lips curved in disbelief, "Why do I feel like you're lying to me?

"Whatever do you mean?" She turned to face him.

"You're constantly staying late at work. You've missed our date night twice. You're always tense and anxious. What's going on, Mia? You can talk to me."

He walked towards he, grabbing her wrist gently and spinning her to look at him. He couldn't decipher what was reflecting in her eyes.

"Ryo…" she trailed off. He could almost sense she wanted to tell him something. The way her muscles tensed in her arm told him that she was holding something back. As quickly as it was there the look was gone. She grabbed his upper arms.

"It's just that I love you so much. I'm afraid of what you found on top of Mt. Fuji could mean another war. Imagining you going to war again scares me to death."

He kissed her forehead tenderly, "I swear I will protect you at all costs."

"I know. That's what I'm afraid of."

They stood in uncommunicativeness for several minutes before Mia pulled away.

"I'm going to shower," she kissed his cheek before walking briskly out the eating area.

Ryo watched her disappear into the living room then up the stairs. He still couldn't dismiss the feeling she was lying to him.

Hana stood outside of the apartment labeled 2C contemplating if she had made the right choice or not. Her palms were sweaty, mind was heavy with the possible outcomes that could result in this. Still, something was telling her to do it. She steeled her nerves as she knocked on the door. She ran a hand down her body smoothing out any of the wrinkles in her scrubs.

The door opened slowly as the owner of the apartment looked shocked.

She gave him a big, toothy smile, "Hello, Sage."

The Halo warrior smiled back, "Well, Hana Utano. This is certainly unplanned."

Next chapter: Interruptions