Please enjoy reading and please review. All thoughts, comments, suggestions, questions, criticism are welcome.
Hayate stirred himself from his 3 hour long sleep. Groaning, he stretched his arms out wide and yawned. There was no more time to be lazy. He had wasted enough time already with the morning stretch. For a Sanzenin butler, every waking moment should be put to good use.
It was only 5 AM straight on a Monday, the first day of the working week and typically the least favourite day of the common working man. The room designated as Hayate's was smaller than the other bedroom and it only had a small window to peer outside with. The town and any other surroundings in sight remained shrouded in darkness and twilight as the Sun still had many hours to go until it peaks above the horizon. A few rooms and a few neighbours had their lights on. They were the those unfortunate enough to start their day at such an early time.
An internal battle raged on as Hayate folded his sheets and tucked them neatly into a cabinet that was built into a wall. For any normal human 3 hours of sleep would be nowhere near enough. For Hayate, it had to be enough. That was what Hayate constantly told himself. He was refreshed; three hours was enough. As always, Hayate won his struggle against any sign of laziness and he felt refreshed, alert, and awake.
After a brisk shower he dressed up in his typical butler uniform. Those were the only clothes he had currently anyway. On his way to the main part of the apartment, Hayate met who he exactly expected at the time he exactly expected.
"Good morning Maria-san" He greeted her with politeness and morning enthusiasm.
"Good morning," Maria yawned between words. "Hayate..."
Typically Maria would have an aura of grace that any proper maid should have. The morning Maria lacked that. She had typical morning bed hair and was no where near wide awake.
Seeing the state Maria was in Hayate suggested, "Maybe I should cook breakfast today, would you like some coffee?"
Maria nodded in agreement, "That would be great, thanks."
A refreshing shower later Maria appeared at the dining table, complete with the maid uniform. Perhaps there was something magical with the maid outfit after all, she was already half way to feeling awake and ready to serve.
A sip of coffee later and she was ready to be the Maria everyone knew.
Hayate served her a bowl and remarked, "I noticed that we had some surplus rice, so I made some rice porridge."
Maria was eager to taste it. After a spoonful she commented, "Your cooking is really improving Hayate. I think the ratio of water is a little too high and you've overdone the soy sauce a little. Otherwise it's delicious."
"Dutifully noted, thanks for the advice," Hayate said as he tried to store the tips Maria gave him.
"Is Nagi going to school today?" Maria asked, "I think I overheard something like that yesterday."
"Yes," Hayate responded. "Technically speaking she had paid her tuition for this term, so she still could go."
"And after December when the school term ends?"
"I'll think about it when the time comes. Let's tackle the problem of getting Lady Nagi to school first."
"Will you be dropping her off there then?"
"I wish I could, but my shift for one job starts the same time as Hakou does."
"Maybe I can escort her there?"
"That won't be necessary. I already spoke with Hinagiku yesterday briefly. She agreed to come here every morning and pick her up."
"Well that's nice of her, but she's putting another duty into the already packed schedule of a school council president. Sometimes I wonder how I managed to survive the burden at an age of 13."
"If she didn't have the time, she wouldn't agree to it. I won't force it on her either. I think it's about time we woke Lady Nagi up."
"I think I saw something," Maria said as she stared straight at a corner of the kitchen.
"What did you see?" Hayate asked, bemused at Maria's cold long stare.
"I saw them!" Maria pointed straight at the corner and at a gap between the kitchen counters.
"You mean you saw a cockroa..."
"Don't say it!" Maria interrupted, "Yes, I saw them!"
She stood up and headed straight for a cabinet below the sink. The cabinet revealed dozens of bottles of insecticide. A bottle was hastily uncapped and shaken.
Maria aimed straight at a dark area between the kitchen counters. She had almost a sadistic glee as she sprayed a wide area. "I'm not letting you get away," she grinned as she quickly emptied the bottle.
"I'll... go wake Nagi up," Hayate said as she left Maria to her own business.
"Leave me. I feel sick," Nagi said while she quickly covered her head with a pillow.
"You can't possibly be sick again milady," Hayate said as he turned on the lights. "Your health is not that poor."
"Maybe it is, I don't feel well anyway."
"If you make that little extra effort to get out of bed, you'll feel better once you are."
Nagi did not respond and remained on the sheets.
Hayate added, "You did agree to go to school from now on."
"Did I?" Nagi said, "Fine, if you say so. I have to keep my word."
"Let's hurry though. We've wasted enough time already. Hinagiku should be here any moment."
A doorbell rang. Speak of being precise and on time.
"I'll answer it!" Hayate exclaimed as he quickly pushed Nagi towards the general direction of the bathroom. He then ran to interrupt Maria who was in the middle of her roach killing spree and talked a little sense into her. If Maria helped Nagi with her shower, things would get greatly sped up.
Panting slightly, Hayate hurried to the door and opened it. At the door was your ever dependable pink-haired school council president.
"Good morning Hayate," Hinagiku greeted him, "You look like you're in the middle of a race."
"Good morning. Everything's fine," Hayate said. "I just want to set everything straight. Last thing I want is for Nagi to be late."
"Don't worry, it's still early in the morning," Hinagiku said dismissively. She peered inside, "We got plenty of time. Where's Nagi?"
"She's not ready yet," Hayate asked, "Can you wait a short while? There's coffee available."
"Sure," Hinagiku agreed. "If you have already made some."
"Come inside then," Hayate opened the door to its fullest for his female friend and invited her in, "Make yourself at home."
There was only waiting to be done left. A square table and four chairs were one of the few pieces of furniture in the entire apartment. Any other seating had to be on the floor. Hayate poured the council president a cup of black coffee he had brewed earlier.
Hinagiku thought as she drank slowly from the simple glass cup. She tried to find a topic to sparkle conversation. Finding one she said, "Do you have work today?"
"Of course I do," Hayate answered, "I said that yesterday."
"All day and every weekday?"
"Yes and Saturdays too."
"Are you sure that's not too much?"
"I would like to say that I can handle it, but I would like to admit that the workload seems gargantuan at times. It would be nice if I could reduce it."
"Maybe you can. How's your financial situation looking?"
"It's al right. We can afford a few comforts like coffee."
"Doesn't sound too bad," Hinagiku pondered. "You know, now that I think of it. Aren't most of Nagi's friends rich?"
"You're right. Putting a few aside including you, all of Nagi's friends are daughters and heirs to a significant fortune. So what does that mean for us?"
"Think about it! I don't want the imagine the exact numbers, but they must have a pretty significant allowance. If Nagi asks for it, they might share a small portion of it with her. A small percentage of a large figure is still a lot."
"All of a sudden I feel naïve," Hayate felt dumbfounded. "And all I've been doing is working very hard when we have could've asked for a little help."
"Don't fret about it. Working hard is a nice virtue anyway," Hinagiku said. "There's no guarantee that we can just ask for money easily."
"It's a good idea, thanks. I'll go ask Nagi later about it."
Nagi exited the bathroom, with a towel draped over her shoulders and her long hair wet and untied. However, she was still in the nearest pair of casual clothing she could find. It turned out that no matter how hard they looked, they weren't going to find a Hakou uniform anyway. After all they only had a very limited amount of clothing.
Nagi admitted, "I think there's a small matter regarding the uniform..."
"I've thought of that in advance," Hinagiku unzipped her bag to reveal a uniform a size that can fit a primary school child. "Hakou has a lot of child prodigies. It wasn't hard to find one for her size."
"That's not a surprise," Hayate commented. "We actually have one in the room right now."
"If you put it that way I guess I am," said Nagi. "I am in high school despite my age. There's a little problem with school supplies though."
"What problem?" Hinagiku inquired.
"I have none."
"Seriously," Hinagiku sighed. "Do I have to pull more stuff from my magical pocket?"
Hinagiku pulled a notebook and gave Nagi a pen as well. She said, "Here, good thing I bought a spare notebook and I have plenty of pens. Are you ready to go?"
"I guess I am." Nagi looked at herself and saw what she had. Her uniform had the smell of new, unwashed clothing and she had only a minimal amount of stationary. Surely how a model student should look like.
Before Nagi was about to leave Hayate stopped her. He kneeled down to her height to have a close, intimate talk.
Hayate said, "Study hard okay? Not everyone is fortunate enough to have an education. Look at me, I want to go to school with you as well. I might join you there soon, but I have to work."
"Sure..." Nagi agreed, unsure of how else to respond.
"Take care Hayate," Hinagiku waved goodbye as she escorted Nagi out the door.
The pair climbed down the stairs to the street. Contrary to how she was used to, Nagi did not see a car. Only a bike was waiting for her at the entrance. While she was familiar with Hayate being the chauffeur, it was not the case this time.
"Hayate..." Nagi muttered who was already missing her butler.
"Don't worry too much. He's working hard for you," Hinagiku tossed Nagi a helmet. "Get on."
With the absence of two people, the apartment suddenly felt more silent and lonely. The clock was about to strike seven as several people can be seen leaving their homes for school or work. The lights in the room can finally be turned off as the sun started to rise above the horizon, shining small radiances of light to illuminate.
Hayate noticed Maria who was sitting silently. He commented, "You didn't say much after bathing Nagi."
The maid replied, "I guess it's part of a maid's job to be silent and await her mistress' orders. It is a little difficult to be a be maid who serves a mistress who has no money though."
"It's not the pay check that defines a maid," Hayate said, "It's what she does to serve her mistress best."
"No, no. I'm not worried about the pay check at all, or about the complete absence of one," said Maria. "I need to confess a little. Do you mind Hayate?"
He blushed slightly, perhaps misunderstanding the situation a little. "Sure," he said. "What is it about?"
"To be honest, being a maid is difficult when the house you have to take care off is composed of only three rooms. I finish everything in less than an hour and what else is left to do?"
"I haven't done much housework since I was busy working over the past week or so. Looking at what I've done and at the apartment there isn't much I guess."
"Hayate, help me think," Maria pleaded. "I don't want to feel like a NEET or a lonely housewife who watches afternoon TV all day."
"I've been stubborn regarding this before," Hayate admitted. "I thought I should be the only one responsible for our income, but that's slightly absurd thinking."
"Providing for three people including yourself is a lot Hayate," Maria said. "There's no need to put it solely on your own shoulders.
"Perhaps you can help me with that. What can you do Maria?" Hayate asked. "Try to think in the context of a part-time job."
"Cleaning...housework...being a maid," Maria thought and listed.
"Those are nice skills, but I'm not sure how that applies to employment outside of serving other people directly. Typically a maid has good income, but that would mean leaving Lady Nagi's service and serving someone else."
"The financial situation is certainly sounds difficult doesn't it."
"It's not that bad, but I'll keep thinking about how to improve it," Hayate said. "If you're worried about running out of things to do and becoming bored, I guess you can buy some groceries. Here's some money, there is a supermarket nearby."
"You're leaving Hayate?"
"It is time already. My shift starts in an hour. I better get going."
"I see," Maria said goodbye, "Take care Hayate."
Hayate nodded confidently to assure Maria as he left through the door. The maid sighed as she tried to think of what remained that had to be done. There wasn't much left.
"Is there something you need boss? Why did you call me?" Hayate knocked and opened the door slightly, poking his head through the door.
The room Hayate saw was a cramped office, filled with various paper filing cabinets, instant noodle cups, and other junk and this was the room of the manager. The state of the other cubicles in the general office area would be much worse.
The manager was dressed in a very casual business attire as he stamped another document. He noticed Hayate at the door, "Ah, Hayate. Looks like you haven't taken a shower yet. I shouldn't have called you so quickly but since you're here please have a seat."
Hayate was wearing an orange jumpsuit complete with a yellow hard hat. Like the manager stated, Hayate was generally covered in mud, dirt, and other undesirables. Most of it had been brushed off, but brown smears remained on his clothing and face. He took a seat in a simple office chair opposite to the manager's seat at the desk.
"You're our star employee Hayate," the manager complimented. "You've only been working with us for a week. Yet I had to give you a raise last Friday and you should be employee of the month by the end of this week."
"Well that sounds great," Hayate thanked the manager. "Is that what you called me for?"
"Unfortunately no," the manager frowned. "I hate to be a bearer of bad news but these are tough times financially."
"I'm not liking the sound of this," Hayate thought.
"Please don't take it personally," the manager continued. "It was a tough decision to make for me. Currently you're our highest paid employee even though you're part-time. That is the reason why I have to let you and a few others go."
"I'm fired?" Hayate sighed when the truth was realized.
"You're not fired Hayate. Fired means you were released on a bad note. This is very different." The manager handed Hayate a small brown paper envelope, "This should be your pay for this month, plus a little extra. Please consider that an apology."
"I see..." Hayate said. He stood up and bowed politely, "It was short, but thanks for employing me."
"I'm regretting this already," the manager sighed. "Feel free to use the facilities one more time to wash yourself. I'm not letting you go home so dirty."
Hayate counted the number of banknotes that were in the envelope as he exited the office.
"The amount he gave for extra is actually quite significant. It should ease things for a short while," Hayate thought.
He was back in his butler uniform after he had returned the hard hat and the jumpsuit. He was squeaky clean, but it did nothing when a chilling breeze blown past him. He shivered slightly, but the warmth of the suit he was wearing was enough to prevent it from getting worse.
"Where to?" Hayate pondered, "The job I was released from should have occupied today's afternoon and evening. I don't have a night shift with any job today as well. Should I go home? Or should I search for another job right now?"
Hayate continued to think as he wandered aimlessly straight down the pavement he was on. He was quite familiar around this part of town. He had spent a significant portion of his life around these parts. As he looked around, there were some changes but he stated to recognize more and more buildings. His former home was quite far away, but this district should contain... his former school!
The timing of his arrival could not be more precise in his timing, or coincidental. The school bell started to chime; one, two, three, four rings of the bell in total. That meant the end of the school day. Students who were eager to go home poured out of the main school building. Those affiliated with various clubs headed to the gymnasium or other buildings that had clubhouses in them.
A thought crossed Hayate's mind, "Maybe I can send Lady Nagi here. The tuition free isn't that much. I had paid for the entire tuition myself. The same would apply for paying for someone else's tuition. It's not that far from the apartment and she already has a friend here."
He stood on the sidelines as the first few group of students walked past him. None of them noticed Hayate, or did not gave a thought for the stranger they saw. Doubt plagued Hayate's mind. He was undecided between loitering around for a chance to see his old friends, or move on because there were more pressing matters at hand.
The number of students that were exiting steadily increased. After a few minutes, it became difficult to discern one certain person amongst the flood of people that were leaving.
A strong gust of wind blew strongly on the crowd. The crowd quickly held on to any loose belonging they had that was light enough to be carried by the wind.
Hayate heard a girl's voice cry out, "No! My cotton candy!"
The blue lump of cotton candy flew in Hayate's direction, taking the stick with it as well. Instinctively, Hayate leapt up and caught it with ease.
The girl ran after the flying cotton candy and it led her straight to Hayate.
Hayate immediately recognized her, "Nishisawa-san?"
Ayumu was equally perplexed to see Hayate. Her face filled with surprise, "Hayate? What are you doing here?"
Hayate replied, "I'd like to ask myself the same question as well. I just happened to wander around here."
"From what I heard, I'm sure Hayate would like to be at school at this time but because you have no other choice you are supposed to be working at this time?"
"Let's say I'm slightly less employed at this time. I think I should go before I attract any unwanted attention." Hayate noticed the cotton candy he caught earlier, "I assume this is yours?"
"Yes, I was enjoying that until the wind picked it up."
"Here you go then," Hayate handed it to her, "I guess I'll be on my way then."
Hayate turned around and started to walk away until he felt a sudden tug on his sleeve which stopped him in his tracks.
A sweat drop dripped down Hayate's brow as he thought for a moment about what to do, "This feels familiar. Is this deja vu?"
Hayate let out a sigh and faced Ayumu again. He asked, "Is something wrong?"
"Nothing's wrong..." Ayumu blushed slightly as she summoned the courage to say what she was about to say next, "Hayate, do you have time this evening?"
"I guess I don't," said Hayate. "Why are you asking?"
"I was wondering if we could spend the evening together. You know... a friendly walk or something..."
Hayate thought, "No, I can't accept. I have more important matters like finding another job. Lady Nagi might need me too. I have to say no. No."
His mouth rebelled against his mind as he muttered, "Sure."
"What did I say?" Hayate mentally screamed.
Ayumu scrambled for words as soon as he heard Hayate's answer, "I actually didn't think Hayate would say yes. But I didn't think of what to do next since I didn't expect him to accept. Think Ayumu think."
She mustered herself and finally said, "I guess I have a few DVDs to return to Wataru's rental store. Can you accompany me?"
"Al right," said Hayate. "It's not far from here is it?" Hayate had to go with it and accompany her. He wasn't the type to go back on his word, even though what he said was accidental.
"Both of you are regular customers here," Wataru commented. "But you never come together. And now out of the blue, you arrive together. What is happening?"
"Honestly I don't know either," Hayate said. "I'm just spending the evening together with her."
"Is it a date then?" Wataru rebutted,
"It is not a date!" Ayumu denied. "It is not a date no matter how you look at it. It's just a friendly walk together."
"Looks like a date to me," Wataru observed. "You are together in a 'friendly' walk and the next thing I'll realize is you two are having dinner together at some romantic spot."
"It's not like that," Hayate shook his head, "I just happened to run into her."
"Man, you are so lucky," Wataru lamented to Hayate. "I wish I had more time like you. Then I could date all the girls I wanted."
"Master Wataru," Saki cried out. "What do you mean 'date' girls?"
"Saki!" Wataru said, "I can explain."
"Of course you can explain sir," Saki said with the tone of annoyance becoming more and more obvious. "You did say 'girls' did you sir?"
"Well... I didn't," Wataru denied, "Did I say that?"
"You did sir," Saki confirmed. "And who did you have in mind when you mentioned 'girls'?"
"Why are you asking this?" Wataru said, "This is asking too much!"
Saki gave a deathly glare, "Who?"
"I was first thinking of Isumi," Wataru muttered under his breath. "Then someone else came to mind..."
"And who that might be?" Saki did not hesitate to press further.
"I was thinking of you but," Wataru admitted. "It doesn't feel right due to the age difference."
Saki's face gained a few deep shades of red, "Dating me? How can you even think of that! You're far from the age to be dating someone! Let alone someone far older than you!"
She continued to shout at Wataru. Ayumu watched for a moment before she finally stated bluntly, "I'll just leave these here." She placed a plastic bag filled with DVD cases on the counter.
Wataru ignored Saki for a moment to take a look at the contents for the bag, "Everything looks fine. Nothing should be overdue. Please come again."
Ayumu took a good, hard look at Hayate's clothes. She commented, "Say Hayate, why are you wearing a butler uniform all the time?
"I'm a full time butler," Hayate answered. "Nothing wrong with that."
"So a full time butler also does various part-time jobs?" Ayumu asked.
"Not really, I guess a full time butler can also do other things due to extra special circumstances."
"Don't you have any other clothes?"
"I would still like to wear the butler uniform when serving Lady Nagi," Hayate said. "Some other clothes would be nice though."
The pair's wandering took them to the centre of town again and at the commercial district. The number of people was much less than yesterday though. Of course, there will be less people on a Monday evening compared to Sunday. They walked past a familiar neon sign and past the arcade they were at yesterday.
Ayumu took another survey of their surroundings, "Remember the clothing store that was close to the arcade we went to yesterday?" She pointed to the store to direct Hayate's attention to the spot.
"I do," said Hayate. "Why would you be interested in shopping for male clothing?"
"I'm not interested myself," Ayumu said. "I think you could use some new clothing Hayate."
Hayate did not get a chance to respond positively or negatively before Ayumu started to lead Hayate towards the store.
Being dragged, Hayate said, "I'm really fine regarding clothing. If I needed some in the future, I can buy some myself."
"But your clothing is in tatters," Ayumu countered, "If you really want to look like a butler you should look more decent."
"Are my sewing skills that bad?" Hayate said, "It's true that these were damaged, but they shouldn't look like a mess."
"Just come Hayate!"
With a bag filled with new clothes in tow, the pair exited the clothing store. Before either could say anything, a growl was heard. Upon examining the noise for a moment, it was obvious that it was a stomach growl.
"You're hungry Ayumu?" Hayate inquired about her appetite.
"I guess I am, but if you're not hungry yet I can wait," Ayumu tried to deny with a sheepish smile.
Hayate took a brief look at his mobile phone. He assured her, "It's getting close to dinner time. Might as well eat early since we have nothing else to do. Is there anything on your mind you would like to suggest?"
Ayumu pondered for a few moments as she thought. She recalled what she saw near the arcade yesterday. There was once place she wanted to visit for a try. She remembered the shabu restaurant that she saw next to the arcade.
She suggested, "I remember the shabu restaurant we saw yesterday while we were surveying around. Peering inside the food looked very delicious. Mind if we give it a try?"
"Sure," Hayate agreed. "If the price isn't too high, I'm not sure if shabu and all the pork and various meats that would be served is very cheap though."
It wasn't. A quick look at the posters and the prices quickly confirmed otherwise. Even a 'promotion' may seem cheap to some, the price was quite hefty for teenagers without a regular income.
"Ayumu," Hayate said bluntly. "Would you mind reconsidering?"
"It looks so delicious," Ayumu's mouth watered. "The people inside look like they're really enjoying themselves. Seems we have to pass on it though. Perhaps another day when we are celebrating some occasion."
"There's a small café nearby," Hayate noticed another restaurant. "Do you want to go there?"
"Sure," Ayumu reluctantly nodded. "If it's where Hayate wants to eat."
The café itself was very small, with less than a dozen seats available.
An elderly man dressed in semi-casual clothing approached the two as they seated themselves at a counter seat next to the window.
He apologized before saying anything else, "If you're expecting a waitress or a waiter then I really must apologize, my waitress and the receptionist are both on sick leave today. What a sad coincidence. It's just me and the cook today so I apologize if things are slow today."
"That's fine," assured Hayate. "We're not in a hurry anyway. Are you the owner?"
"Yes," nodded the old man. "I'm the owner of the restaurant. I did not want to close today so I had to do a few things myself. Is there anything you would like to order?"
"Just some water would be nice," said Hayate.
"Coffee for me," Ayumu added.
"Anything else?" asked the owner.
A loud knock. The banging on the door sounded heavy and wooden. The door at the front was made of glass and no one could be seen there. The sound must have come from elsewhere.
"Looks like they're here," the old man muttered. He turned and apologized to the two again, "Please excuse me. I hope it won't take long."
The man headed for the kitchen through another wooden door, which he shut tightly.
"Doesn't sound good," Hayate grew concerned.
"But what can we do?" Ayumu said.
"We can only wait. I hope he's fine."
A minute of dead silence passed. There was only quiet save the noise coming from outside. However, sounds started seeping through the kitchen door. They were greatly muted and muffled by physical barrier composing of the wall and the door though, to the point that words were not discernible from one another.
"Stay here," Hayate signed to Ayumu. He left his seat and walked close to the door. He proceeded to press his ear against the wood to hear what might be happening in the room across it.
"Only this much?" A man took a long drag from his cigarette and promptly discarded a speck of ash on the floor. He was dressed in formal clothing and had visible scars and tattoos, the mark of a member of a certain unruly organization.
The old restaurant owner was on his knees. He pleaded, "Honest, this is all that I have!"
"Explain yourself," the man let out a puff of smoke.
"Seriously... business over the last month was not going very well," the owner cried. "I also have a family to feed! This is all that I can spare!"
"Let's see," the man started counting the banknotes he was holding in his hand. "One thousand, two thousand, three..."
He gave a glance to his underlings who were around him, "Search the man."
They did not hesitate to grab the man, turned him upside down and violate his pockets. A prompt search revealed a few more banknotes and a cheque.
The cook who was watching from the sidelines could not resist any more. He shouted, "That's enough! That was supposed to be my salary!"
"Your salary?" The leader of the group taunted, "Tough, I'm sure you'll miss it."
The cook gritted his teeth with a clenched fist, "You can't be serious... Give it back!" He lunged towards the smoking man.
The hook was about to connect until the leader simply leaned a few inches to the side causing the punch to miss completely. Before the cook could regain balance a swift blow to the head from one of the thugs knocked him out cold.
Hayate heard faint sounds of a struggle as the owner tried to break free. Hayate could not eavesdrop any longer. If he wanted to act it had to be now.
The butler burst through the wooden door just as the owner was being dropped from being held. He landed with a solid thud on the ground with a cry of pain.
The leader stopped smoking for a moment to take a good, hard look at Hayate. He muttered, "A butler huh? Maybe it's the same one our colleagues ran into a short while ago."
He warned Hayate, "Look boy, you got a lot of your life ahead of you. If you don't want it to be cut short, I suggest you head back through the door you came from and forget you saw anything."
"Sure," Hayate disagreed with a degree of sarcasm. "That's if I can ignore you people preying on the defenceless. Unfortunately I cannot ignore that."
"Can't say I didn't warn you then," the leader smirked and gave a gesture to the rest of his underlings. "This time we came a little more prepared than our previous friends. Kill him."
The men started to reach into their coats to pull out something. Perhaps a weapon of some sort. Hayate did not time to wait and see what they were.
A large right hook landed on the jaw of the thug closest to him. He quickly fell to the floor unconscious. The rest of the men quickly abandoned trying to draw what weapon they were carrying. It had to be hand-to-hand fighting, no time for weapons.
Hayate counted the number of hostiles that were around him. Other than their leader, there were 4 others. One was already down, so he was not counted. All of them were dressed similarly, a business attire in blue, black, or brown.
The rest of the thugs took caution. They saw how quickly one of them was taken down. Each of them took a step back and hunched over slightly with both arms ready to guard. The leader remained at the back and continued to take long drags from his cigarette.
Hayate was not intimidated in anyway by their numbers. If we looked at Hayate's past, he had no kind of training that would prepare him for conflicts with odds stacked greatly against him. However, whether it be groups of yakuza or gangsters, giant robots, or other supernatural things Hayate has vanquished them all.
A right roundhouse ploughed through the guard of the man who was the second closest. The heavy blow was not stopped by the arm blocking and impacted the man's head, sending him into a kitchen counter.
"Don't get careless!" The leader ordered and shouted.
The warnings fell upon deaf ears as two of the men charged forward to avenge the earlier violence. A sweep promptly knocked one off balance. He did not even have time to fall to the floor though. His clothing met Hayate's arms and hands as Hayate picked him up mid-drop. His charging friend was not ready to catch another man when Hayate threw the other man into him. Both of them ended on the floor shortly after.
Before Hayate could turn on the remaining thug and the leader, he soon found himself staring down the barrel of a pistol. The remaining thug had drawn a pistol from his coat soon after witnessing Hayate take down the rest of them excluding him. Currently the notion of trying to fight unarmed with someone who seemed so proficient at it was insane.
The butler paused as he thought of how to possibly dodge or defeat a person with a firearm aiming directly at him. He quickly heard the sound of another pistol cocked behind him. One of the thugs had recovered, although two were still out cold. Two guns aimed at him, the odds were certainly stacked even more.
The leader seemed slightly unsettled, but attempted to retain his smug attitude. "Give it up," he said. "If you don't surrender we'll kill you, the old man and the cook."
Faced with the situation at hand, Hayate slowly raised his arms up in surrender. If only he could do something to remedy this. Did he have the agility to dodge out of the path of not one but two bullets?
Hayate's arms were not fully up yet before he spoke, "Maybe we can talk a little about this?"
No one replied. The only response he got was a gunshot towards the ceiling.
"Don't do that!" The leader scolded, "Someone from outside the restaurant might hear."
The thug nodded in apology and pointed the pistol towards the butler again.
The sound of a gunshot rattled Ayumu to her core. She momentarily pulled her ear away from the kitchen door that she was using to listen to what was happening in the kitchen.
"That doesn't sound good," Ayumu thought. "Hayate's in trouble."
She started to slowly pry the door open, but stopped when she heard the door creak.
"What am I thinking?" She berated herself, "What can I do by myself?"
Ayumu ignored her own warnings as she crawled gently through the door, prying it gently and tried to making as little noise as possible. The scene she saw was not pretty.
Hayate was in the middle of the kitchen. There were three other men in the room. All of them looked like yakuza. One of them was leisurely smoking and the other two had pistols pointed at Hayate. Fortunately, they were too occupied with keeping the butler at bay and taunting him to notice her creeping into the room.
She noticed a frying pan on the ground. It was likely to have been dislodged from it's rack from the general ruckus the fight was causing. Almost instinctively she equipped herself with it and remained low to the ground as she approached the yakuza closest to her and the door.
Ayumu swung with all her might at the man. The frying pan struck cleanly at the back of the man's head. A dull metal thud echoed throughout the room as the man slumped down onto his knees and collapsed to the floor.
Everyone else in the room stared at what happened for a moment as they tried to take in their surroundings after being fazed by the sudden, loud noise.
Hayate did not hesitate to take advantage of the distraction. He swiftly kicked at the gun just when the hammer was retracting when the trigger was pulled. Another gunshot rang out as another bullet hole was added to the ceiling.
The man watched as the force of the kick caused the pistol to fly out of his hand and gain some air-time. The momentary distraction would prove to be his ultimate downfall. He did not notice the trajectory of the flying gun as it flew right into his forehead. It was quickly followed up when Hayate lunged forward at the man in a tackle.
Both of them ended up on the floor with Hayate in the advantageous position. Before the man could struggle any longer a solid punch knocked him out senseless.
The leader needed a moment to take in the exact gravity of the situation. It was certainly now against him. He was alone against a butler who seemed at times unstoppable when he almost effortlessly took down all of his men. His mind raced as he thought of ways to win or survive. Any advantage was necessary. Any advantage.
"Hold it right there!" The leader threatened.
Hayate dismounted the man who was now unconscious on the floor and turned around. He gritted his teeth at what he saw.
Ayumu tried to scream and call out something, but her words were muffled since a large hand covered her mouth.
The leader pulled out his own pistol and pointed it directly at his hostage's head. It quickly prompted more muffled screams from the poor girl.
The man sighed, "This is so cliché but..." The barrel of the gun brushed and stroked against the girl's blue hair. He threatened, "Do anything and the girl dies."
Again, the butler held his arms up in surrender.
"This time get on your knees! No, just lie on the floor!" The man shouted as he pressed the pistol tighter against Ayumu's head.
More quiet, distorted words followed.
The butler had to comply. He slowly lowered himself onto his knees as he prepared to lie on the floor. Everything went slowly. Any sudden movement could cause an undesired reaction and serious consequences.
He lowered one arm. His hand brushed against something... metallic? If it was a pistol the thugs were holding then maybe he could use it to turn things around. His eyes still had to remained fixed on his enemy though. His hand moved around to feel the shape of the object, relying on the sense of touch.
It was long, slender and something was pointy.
A fork? The butler deduced the object. A fork didn't seem very useful in the given situation however.
"Actually," the man demanded. "Keep both of your hands where I can see them! Raise them now!"
There was no time to think. He had to act now before he had to actually surrender or risk something unthinkable happening to Ayumu.
His hand grasped the fork firmly. If there was something that could be done with a simple piece of cutlery, it was this.
Hayate threw the fork with all of his might. His random aim was true as the fork quickly embedded itself in the man's right hand.
A cry of agony followed from the man. Nerves started misfiring as the man was forced to release his grip on the pistol due to the pain. His pain was soon silenced as his face met a large punch from the butler. When unconsciousness followed, the man's grip on Ayumu was also released. She fell to the ground when the fear caused her legs to no longer support her weight.
Hayate walked over to check if the man was truly down and out. He heard a weak cry.
"Save me Hayate," Ayumu started to sob. "I don't want to die."
"Ayumu!" Hayate tried to speak words of comfort, "It's fine now."
"Save me," she continued to whimper. "I don't want to die."
Hayate shook her a little in an effort to bring her back to the present and her senses. "It's fine Ayumu," he said soothingly. "It's over now."
"Hayate?" Her tone started to return to normal.
The old man groaned as he tried to lift himself from the floor. He asked, "Is it over?"
Hayate nodded in assurance. All of the yakuza seemed unconscious.
"That was close," the old man gave a sigh of relief. "I'll call the police. I'm seriously starting to wonder what would happen if you two didn't come."
"It's not the first time this has happened to me," Hayate replied. "I only survived because I'm lucky the second time around."
"It's not the first?" The old man gave a look of disbelief. "Why would you happen to come at the same time as them? Would they happen to be targeting you?"
"It's unlikely," Hayate said. "I don't have any previous problems or debts with them. A unlucky coincidence I think. Good thing I was around though. If I wasn't around things might have been worse, like they could take away your son."
"Let's not think about that," the old man stopped the conversation mid-topic.
He walked to a chiller where various bottles and drinks are stored. He retrieved a can of soft drink from it and gave it to Ayumu. He smiled, "Drink this, you'll feel better."
Ayumu said nothing and nodded in thanks as she accepted the can.
The old man walked to the cook and tried to rouse him awake. He said to the pair, "If I can get the cook awake, everything you order is on the house today. Maybe for the next few months as well. Actually make that a few weeks."
"Are you al right Ayumu?" Hayate asked her.
"I'm fine," Ayumu smiled weakly. "Thanks to you. Looks like I've been saved by you again."
"I guess saving women in need has become part of my job."
"So, what would you like to eat for dinner Hayate?"
"You're thinking about food already? I wonder if they serve shabu here."