Chapter 4: I... Lost?
Cold.
It was friggin' cold.
That was the first thing Tama thought that morning as she trudged sullenly up the hill. Up above, a gusty wind blasted like an AC from God, freezing her to the point where the jacket was already plastered to her goose bumped skin. She could see the temple ahead, but, of course, it offered no comfort. The solid wooden doors were locked, and it probably wouldn't open even if you used a crowbar.
The sky grinned down on Tama like the little shit it was, ready to send a downpour on her.
"Don't you dare," hissed the pissed fourteen-year old.
In response, thunder clasped in the distance. Then, it rained. Really badly. Tama felt her right eye twitch as the drops splattered on her face. Too busy stomping angrily around in the slushy mud, she didn't even notice as someone sneaked up from behind and chuckled softly.
"You know, if you keep doing that everyone's gonna think you're nuts," a scratchy voice said, sounding amused.
Tama spun around, only to find an older woman's back facing her. Unlike the girl, though, she was much more relaxed. Elbows supported by the temple's step's railing, her appearance was lax, like that of a person who really didn't give a shit about anything anymore. Her head faced up to the rain, so that the only parts of her face revealed were the drenched white locks glued to her head.
"You're the only one who can see me, so what's the big deal?" Tama snorted. With a big huff, she leaned against the other side of the railing in a likewise fashion, just in a more sour mood. Leave it to that old hag to call out a meeting when the weather was so crappy. Just because she loved nature didn't mean everyone did.
"So, what'd you call me out for?" Tama muttered, shifting the jacket over her head.
The old hag didn't answer at first. So, for a couple of minutes, all the two could hear was the song of the bitchy rain. It wasn't pleasant for sure. Tama almost felt like yelling for her to stop being so damned mysterious when she finally began to talk.
"Hey, kid. Tell me: wanna still be the best?"
Tama's head turned to face Sensei's gaze. Her eagle eyes glared at her sharply, as if to say "Well, what the hell are you waiting for?" She beckoned with her hands for an answer. The problem was: Tama really didn't know what to say. She knew the words but... why was it that she felt like there needed to be something more?
Not sure what to do, she settled for a firm nod.
At this, a faint ghost of a grin stretched across the woman's face. It was mixed with a foreign expression though, one that Tama couldn't figure out. Sakura petals were torn apart by the rabid wind, like afterthoughts from a cheesy movie as they stared at each other, the one ancient and the other young. Then, Sensei's teeth shone as she laughed, the sound echoing into the booming storm.
"Hehehe...Well, then," she chuckled, sounding amused. "Prove it to me. Brat."
Dream end.
Although, in a certain way it really didn't. Because as Tama's eyes snapped open, that bloody rain was still there. It looked slimy and gross against the grey sky, the sort of thing that made her shudder. Giving a look of disdain, she curled over to the other side and groaned.
"Ugh... I hate rain."
The girl sat up, with the sheets twisted around her legs. They were like think ropes that hindered more than helped. Feeling annoyed, she pulled them up around her torso and rubbed her forehead. It was even light out yet, and she was already up, sulking over a little drizzle.
What a pain.
"I wonder though..." she muttered, her head resting on the pillow. "I wonder what Sensei's doing about now."
Lying down on the bed, thinking, she imagined the old hag's face from back then, all wrinkled, wet, and weird. She always was so unreadable, like a closed book under lock and key. Not to mention crazy. Back when they trained together, Tama used to get 2:30 in the morning spontaneous wake up calls via a bucket of water. With all of Sensei's oddities though, she wished she could see her now. She was starting to get a bit homesick.
Actually, there were actually a lot of things in general she missed from being up in the mountains. For one thing, they were out in the open and not claustrophobic little streets. It was quiet up there too. All she had ever heard from the city was noise, and her head wasn't adjusting to it well. Oh, and the nice thing about being so high up was that you barely saw people, much less the crazy ones like ax happy Hibari Kyoya.
Which reminded her. Since she was being so pompous last night, didn't that mean she'd have to fight Hibari today?
"..."
A pit suddenly formed inside her stomach.
"Oh no."
At that moment, the emotions that should have come yesterday began to hit her. Tama swallowed hard, her feelings becoming a deadly tonic of useless anticipation and regret. There were these stupid questions that kept popping up in her head, like "What if he wins?" or "How are you going to beat a frickin' monster?" They made her want to hide under the covers and just stay there for a bit. In fact, she probably would've done just that if it wasn't for the fact that she'd be branded a coward.
"Wanna still be the best?"
Tama blinked, the sentence from that rainy day resounding within her head. They offered a bit of food for thought in her fears, and she quietly pondered over their meaning.
The way that Sensei had said that almost sounded weird. They sounded empty, hollow. Not exactly concerned, but it was almost as if she was confused. Why would she ask anyways? It wasn't like she really cared about anything.
Could it... could it be that Sensei doubted that she could do it?
...
The thought of that made Tama growl. Her fingernails dug into the pillow next to her, scratching with irritation.
So, that old hag had no faith in her then? Was all that training with her for nothing? All those battles she went through just won by chance? She couldn't accept that. Even if Tama was small and weak looking, she couldn't bear being looked down on. And if she couldn't make her teacher think she was strong, then there was only one thing to do.
"Prove it," she stated.
Tama sat up on the bed, with the darkness of the room shadowing her face. Looking down at her hands, the girl traced the bruises on them, signs of her mark as "undefeated." So far, no one was able to beat her since that day. She'd keep it that way too. Hibari was only human, a mere stepping stone up her climb to victory.
And she'd conquer him.
"Prove it," she repeated, a scowl reappearing on her face. "Fine. You want your damned proof? I'll give it to you! Don't underestimate me, you old hag."
With that, Tama rushed to get ready, the rain pushed to the back of her mind.
Meanwhile.
An hour later, a little assembly of sleepy, PJ wearing males was found staring at her made bed. Gokudera looked completely unconcerned as usual, and Yamamoto just glanced at it, still half-passed out. Tsuna was really worried though. He knew exactly where Tama was, and he didn't need hyper intuition to tell him that this was bad.
The note left behind wasn't exactly calming him either.
Dear Sawada and Co.
Thank you very much for the information on Hibari and, probably more importantly, letting me mooch here for the night. I'll pay you back someday; I swear it. But, anyways. I went ahead to the school to find that prefect and settle this once and for all. If you need me, I'll be around.
Thanks again.
-Tamaki Subaru
"So she really was serious," Gokudera yawned.
"It'll be ok," Yamamoto tried to smile, though you could tell his optimism was getting a bit dim. "I think."
Meanwhile, their fifteen year old boss went into panic mode, nearly clawing his hair out at the seams.
WHAT WAS SHE THINKING?
Honestly, he just couldn't understand a girl like that. Why was she so stubborn? He told her specifically not to do anything (that is, before Reborn whacked him on the side of the head with a hammer), and what does she do? She goes. Most guys against Hibari would get beaten, but Tama... Tama was a girl! A tiny, middle school girl who didn't stand a snowball's chance in hell of surviving. Sure, there was some spunk to her, but to go against him, of all people...
Crap. Looked like matters had to be taken into his hands again.
With a resigned sigh, Tsuna dug his hand into his pockets. The hard plastic box of his Dying Will capsules scraped against his palm, a parting gift from Basil after the Ring Battles. His 27 mittens were in his bag too. It was bad that it came down to this. He hated fighting but...
"Ok," he finally told his two friends. "We'll have to hurry and break them up."
"You mean... we're gonna help that brat?" Gokudera asked in disbelief.
Tsuna nodded firmly. He knew that the smoker and Tama didn't get along too well. More than once, Tsuna had intervene in their fights just so the house wouldn't get destroyed. But, this was serious. It was times like these that his authority actually came in handy.
"Then, let's go!" Yamamoto cheerfully declared, slinging his bat over his shoulder. "Count me in."
He grinned, as if they were just going to play a round of baseball instead of facing against a monster. Gokudera was still pretty unenthusiastic but pitched in anyways. With a 'tch,' he took out two sticks of dynamite from his belt and grinned. He probably was more happy about the opportunity to smash Hibari's face in more than anything else.
Whatever the case may be though, the two were on board. He just hoped they'd make it in time.
Tama's heart was pounding.
It throbbed through her chest, beating erratically like a bomb that was about to set off at any moment. Her courage seemed to have dwindled down since leaving the house too, and now she was nervous as ever. Pellets of rain hit her umbrella in the meantime, with sour clouds looming overhead. They made her even uneasier, as if signaling a dark premonition.
Great. Like was what she needed right now. More bad luck.
Oh, and to top it all off when she actually got to the school... do you know those scenes in horror movies where a place that's supposed to look innocent actually is where the main character gets slashed/hacked/raped/ripped apart etc? Well, that was the sort of vibe that she was getting from here. And let me tell you, the feeling was not pleasant.
It only got worse when she saw Hibari standing at the entrance of the school.
"Oh...?"
The prefect spied her a good distance away. However, the connection was instant. She gulped when that sinister smirk graced his face once more, and ever so subtlety his hands slipped into his jacket to get his tonfas. It was very scary how he looked at that moment, like a jaguar when it spies a mouse. Swallowing her fear, she came closer and resisted the urge to go chicken.
"Hm..." Hibari murmured curiously. "You're not running, herbivore?"
The grip tightened on her umbrella. At once, that uneasy feeling in the pit of her stomach grew. Seeing the guy in flesh again made her really nervous now. The way his eyes glinted, the difference the height, the way he just sort of gave off that evil aura... they all reminded her who she was facing: Satan incarnate in the flesh.
"Wanna be the best?"
However, those words reminded her of her purpose. There was no other way. She stood, straight and firm for the sake of her pride. Just to be a ham, she also tilted her head up and made a sneer, trying to look fierce.
Probably didn't do anything, but oh well.
"Why should I?" she scoffed. "I was scared before 'cause you caught me off guard. Simple as that. But this time..."
...
A beat of silence passed, with the sound of pattering rain filling the space between them. Her glare hardened, and she threw the umbrella behind her, letting it fall into the bushes. A deep breath was taken, the final moment coming closer.
"Wanna be the best?"
"This time... I'll crush you!"
In a quick flash, Tama darted out in the soggy rain to punch him. The attack got blocked by his tonfas though. Hibari looked surprised, but his eyebrows fluttered down at once in a calm, calculating manner.
The beast had awakened.
"A little cocky, aren't you?" he coldly growled. "The prey shouldn't get her role mixed up with the hunter's. I'll bite you to death."
A split second later, the tonfa came swinging down to amputate her arm. Unexpectedly, though, instead of blocking it, she squat down and tackled his legs. They went down, with Tama effortlessly securing her position. Water splashed everywhere as she arm locked his head tightly.
WHAM.
Then just like that, their positions suddenly changed. Hibari landed a hit on her face, and he got on top of her, grinning evilly as she squirmed. Both of his tonfas now were pushed up against her neck, suffocating like a leather cord biting into her skin.
"Wao... Ju-jitsu?" he guessed, looking very smug.
Tama didn't answer. Instead, she voted in favor of kicking her leg up into his thigh. Distracted, Hibari accidentally let her loose to block it. Now back on her feet, the adrenaline started pumping faster than ever. She got into a rythmn, a deadly dance between two fighters.
BAM!
CLANG!
Their two images grew fuzzy as they started hand to hand combat fighting. The tide wasn't in her favor, however. Hibari kept swinging the weapons around, barely giving her enough time to dodge them. Even worse, the rain wasn't helping. It took all her balance to make sure she didn't land head-first into a puddle.
She had to think of something and fast.
"O-Oh shit!"
Fortunately, or unfortunately if you look at it, her inspiration came in the lamest way possible. Right when Hibari swung his arm down, her foot slid and she did a split. That was when she went straight into a puddle.
SPLASH!
Now drenched worse than ever before, the girl sat on the soggy ground. Better yet, Hibari didn't give breaks. She was barely able to tumble out of the way when he attacked again. Right at that moment, though, the jacket on his shoulders flew up to the side, with its sleeves flailing in mid-air.
That was when it hit her.
A plan finally coming to mind, Tama rolled to her feet and focused. Everything was ready. She positioned her foot next to the puddle from two seconds ago, waiting for her chance. Hibari charged straight for her, flying through the rain. He came closer... closer... until it was just right. Then, she foot sweeped.
SPLASH!
Sure enough, a tidal wave of water hit his face, blurring his vision temporarily. Perfect. Tama immediately took his blind spot. She snatched the jacket from behind his shoulders by the arm sleeves. Looped the cloth loosely around his neck, she took them by the reins.
Then, she yanked them cross wise.
"!"
Hibari never saw it coming. The sleeves squeezed around his neck as a makeshift noose, and in no time at all, Tama had the upper hand. The prefect squirmed, gaping as she pulled even harder. All the traces of what he looked like before now vanished. There was no more badass attitude. No more Mr. Wiseguy. No more "I'm the right hand of justice and I'll stomp you flat" type of talk.
No, because now she finally was in power. Tama grinned with satisfaction, almost tasting victory on her tongue. It seemed so sweet. For a moment she was lulled into a smug sense of security, as if nothing could stop her now.
However, stuff like this never stayed for long. In all honesty, she really should have figured that something like this would happen from the get go, considering how crazy her life had been so far. But, seeing as how it was her we were talking about, lessons like that weren't exactly easily learned.
So what crushed her dream? Simple:
She got pwned by one inch high, fluffy little bird.
...
Well, ok. Maybe putting it like that isn't exactly right. That made her sound like a pansy. How about... aerial artillery came down out of nowhere, jabbed at her forehead, and managed to distract her long enough to let Hibari get away.
...
You know what? Never mind. That sounded even stupider than before.
"Midori tanabiku namimori no... Dai naku shou naku nami ga ii. Itsumo kawaranu... Sukoyaka kenage aah, tomo ni utaou Namimori chuu~"
Anyways, the point was that in the middle of her strangling fest, something suddenly started to sing Namimori Jr. High's school anthem. It was then that she made her first mistake: she looked up. To her utter and complete confusion, there was a tiny yellow bird flying over her head in the middle of the storm. It fought against the rain and kept singing, its high voice chirping all the way.
The little guy would have looked cute if it didn't suddenly take a nose dive at her.
"!"
Accidentally, Tama made her second mistake, which was by far worse than the first one. She let go of Hibari to shield herself. It was only for a second, just enough to block the onslaught of pecks aimed at her. However, a second was the only thing needed.
So, that, my dear friends, was all she wrote.
Shhhhhrrrkkkkk!
Tama heard the sickening crack of broken bone as an angry tonfa slammed into her shoulder. The shock of it hit instantly and sent her tumbling away. She was surprised, almost breathless from the sheer pain. She tumbled down, the advantage now lost.
Meanwhile, Hibari was back on his feet. Loosening his neck, he grimaced and reached for the jacket that laid on the pavement. The bird that had attacked her earlier also rested on his shoulder, chirping loyally "Hibari! Hibari!"
...
Well, that was dirty. Since when were pets allowed to fight?
"You cheated!" she accused.
WHAM!
TINNGG!
Unfortunately, Hibari didn't seem to be in a talking mood. Another tonfa flew and lodged itself into the school's wall behind her. It stuck out of the wall as she stared. She had to act fast. Tama went to move, using the wall for support.
But it didn't work.
"!"
For whatever reason, she couldn't move through the pain. Her right shoulder was now searing, and it took all of her willpower to just not scream. She fell to her knees and found that her vision got super blurry too. Everything now was colored in grey, blue, and black. The only thing she could see was Hibari, who stood above her.
"Hn... well, it was fun while it lasted," his smooth voice shrugged. "Oh well."
The silvery outline of the tonfa was raised, ready to finish her off. Her eyes widened.
No... she thought. No no no no no... I can't lose. I can't! I can't!
It swung down, coming closer and closer. She quickly shut her eyes, her insides squeezing tightening before it could hit.
Then...
nothing.
No pain.
"H-huh?" she murmured.
At that moment, something blocked the weapon, with it only inches from her face. It was metal and wrapped around a small hand. That was when the second incredible thing of that day happened. Tama got saved... and by the most unlikely of people.
Sawada Tsunayoshi.
"Stop it, Hibari."
Tsuna's voice rang within Tama's ears. She snapped her eyes wide open, and sure enough, he was there in front of her, with his arms crossed. Wearing his middle school uniform, the kid that was previously labeled as "No Good Tsuna" now was speaking on par with Hibari. The prefect looked just as surprised as her, staring at the tonfas blocked by what appeared to be... metal gloves.
...
Huh?
Wait a minute... What was Tsuna... GLOVES?
"OI! Stupid woman! GET DOWN!" someone yelled with impatience.
BOOM!
The ground rattled as a fury of explosives went off, probably sizable to the impact of an earthquake. Hibari's figure was sent flying backwards, and Tama was sure she would end up charcoaled along with him. However, before the flames could reach, someone grabbed her. His firm arms locked around her body, his back took the brute of the damage.
"Hahaha... that was a close one huh?" the voice laughed. "Sorry about that, Tama-chan! Gokudera sometimes goes a little overboard."
Tama blinked. She recognized that voice. Sure enough, Yamamoto's fuzzy image stared back at her. He looked a little bit worse for the wear, but that goofy grin of his was still plastered on like no tomorrow. She could see Gokudera in the distance too. That white sprout of hair was recognizable anywhere. But... there was one thing slightly different about him than before:
SINCE WHEN DID THAT JACKASS CARRY DYNAMITE?
"Take this, you tonfa bastard!" the pissed off kid roared.
SHHHH!
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
In a matter of minutes, the whole blacktop turned into a war zone. There were bombs and tonfas and iron gantlets duking it out, and you really had to be there to actually believe it any of it was happening. Within in all of that madness, though, the most unbelievable thing was that they were actually, well... winning. With Tsuna at the center of it all, they beat back Hibari like it was nothing.
Tama would have pondered even more, but then something flew out of no where and nailed her right in the forehead. That was about the time she fell unconscious, with the world exploding from grey into white.
Chapter 4 end!
No omake this time ^^' Sorry. See you next chapter.
A/N:
Ok, so.
I'm deeply sorry for the long delay. This is also unbetaed; please forgive the crude outline. I never thought it would take this long to just to finish four chapters though... As for the future ones, I'll be releasing them slowly. They'll resemble the previous ones a lot but make more sense.
Anyways, the reason why I decided to change the story like this was because:
a) Funnier ideas were found.
b) The logic really didn't make too much sense. It stilll doesn't, but hopefully it's better.
c) I can pull it into an actual KHR themed direction instead of just crack.
The chapter from 7 onward were a lot better, so I'm altering their format only slightly. I can tell you this for sure though:
I AM NEVER REWRITING THIS THING EVER AGAIN.
Even if people hate this story's guts to the core, I am NEVER revising a chapter again unless it's for fixing grammar. Because it SUCKS. Also, it's really unfair to you readers to make you constantly reread this, over and over again. But, the plotline is basically the same... maybe. Meh. I tried to add more humor.
Tell me what you guys think. Hope you liked it. If anybody wants to voice an opinion, I'm up for it. That includes criticism. No flames.
See you later.
-XxPenAndRosesxX