Chapter 10: Salsa

A/N: Warning, this chapter contains passages that are inappropriate to younger audiences. Reader's discretion advised.

Previously, on "Ikimashou! Rowdyruff Boys Z!"...

Watching his face crumble into confused terror was much more satisfying than she had thought. Blossom leaned in close and whispered into his ear. "I know you better than you think, Brick. There are no secrets between us. I too met another boy in this way yesterday. He was gentle and kind and cute and so unlike you. He was also naked like on his birthday. I really liked him."

"H-how… How could you… no way!"

She leaned in until her nose touched his and her breath fell upon his cheeks. "Don't you recognize me Brick?" She cooed, "Or rather Akagi-Kun?"

She watched those ruby red eyes rake over her. She saw the realization dawn in those beautiful eyes. Then, almost timidly, he spoke.

"...Momoko? Is that you?"

Blossom's smile widened. "Of course it's me. Was there any doubts?"

"Heh, this is a small world" Brick said, the corner of his mouth twitching upwards, "Is it okay to reveal yourself like this?"

"If it's with you, then it's fine." She said, shrugging. Then she leaned in close and whispered into his ear. "I'm actually surprised. You really do remember me."

"Like I could ever forget," Brick said, "Not after what we went through."

It happened yesterday afternoon, at the peak of rush hour. Momoko Akatsutsumi had gone to visit the wagashi cafe owned by her good friend and fellow defender of love, Sakurako Kintoki. The little shop was as busy as ever with hungry patrons eager for a late-afternoon snack. Tea and cakes were happily consumed, while the dining area filled with a cacophony of chatter and the clinking of forks, spoons, and chopsticks on ceramic and glass. The owner herself was busy as a bee, attending to everyone's needs. Laden with platters of food, she buzzed about through the afternoon.

When the front door chimed to signal a new customer, Sakurako turned her head back and hollered, "Irashaimase! I'll be right with you."

She stopped in front of a couple and laid the food onto their table "Here you go," She said, "One green tea cake roll with red bean paste and a layered parfait with peach wedges and strawberry ice cream."

"Arigato," said the man with blond spiky hair; besides him sat a young woman with black hair, curled up against him. When Sakurako saw them cuddling together, she cupped her cheek and gushed, "Ah young love! You two look so cute together."

"Well..." The man laughed nervously, rubbing the back of his head. "The truth is... we've only been going out for a few weeks." The woman blushed and snuggled in closer to her boyfriend.

Sakurako beamed, thinking back to her own relationship. "I wish you the best of luck."

She bid the happy couple a fond farewell, and hurried over to greet the new guests. "Irasshaimase," she cried again, "Oh hi Momoko-san, how are you?"

The redhead grinned tiredly. She had dragged herself through the door, after a grueling bus ride. It was her luck to ride during peak rush hour. Shoved between two fat salarymen she had been groped and pinched more than a dozen times, though thankfully, none of it was intentional. By the time she had arrived at her destination, she felt like a grape that had gone through a wine press. Only due to the delicious scent diffusing through its walls, she'd managed to drag herself to the familiar store and squeeze herself inside.

"Konbanwa," She said tiredly. Then she looked around and exclaimed, "Wow! I didn't expect it to be so crowded."

The blonde woman smiled. " We've been expanding. Only last week, I had some people come and renovate the place."

She led Momoko to the front counter, where all the orders were taken. She pulled out a placard, but timidly held it close to her chest. "Say, Momoko I've been thinking of adding a few new items to the menu. Would you like to see?"

"Eh?" Momoko said, "Sure, I guess... let me see."

The young girl flipped through the laminated folds and squinted as she read the items. "Kohii… mi..suto…?" She blinked in confusion. "What is that?"

"W-well, it's basically a variation on a certain French drink. It's sort of like a Latte but with regular coffee instead of with espresso," Sakurako tried to explain, "I recently got a new machine that makes such beverages automatically. This is just one of its many creations." Sakurako fidgeted nervously. "It's really good, though a little bitter."

Momoko stared at the little picture: a brown liquid with a layer of white foam, like snow, all contained in a low stemmed glass. Not that coffee was unheard of, it just didn't seem appropriate to accompany Japanese desserts.

And yet...

"It's good to try new things," Momoko thought aloud to herself, having never even tasted coffee before. She looked up and smiled. "It looks delicious, I'll try it!"

Sakurako squealed with delight. "You're the best! Thank you so much," she picked Momoko up and kissed her on the cheek. She took down the rest of Momoko's order (a list of ten pastries), and then led her to a private booth, away from the main dining area.

"There you go," she said, "I will be right back with your food."

Without another word, Sakurako hurried through the kitchen flaps, leaving Momoko on her own.

Sakurako rushed back into the kitchen to prepare the new was just pouring milk into the steamer when her phone started to vibrate.

"Moshi moshi? Oh Souichirou-kun!" She cried in delight. "How are you?"

"I'm alright, I guess," Said her boyfriend, over the phone, "I'm gonna be extra late coming home tonight, please don't wait for me."

"Hai! Wakatta," she replied, "Please take care of yourself."

She measured out some coffee grounds to put into the filter and then pushed a big green button to start the machine running.

"How's my little brother?" asked Souichirou, "I hope he hasn't been in any sort of trouble."

"He's helping me out with the customers," Sakurako said as she walked away, "He's so good, dealing with all the people. I just couldn't run the shop without him!"

"That's great news."

"Oh, something else happened today!" she went on, "I got this really cute dress this morning, it's so pretty that I just had to buy it!"

Giggling as she spoke, Sakurako stepped out through the back door for a bit of fresh air, Ah the day is so perfect, she thought, What could possibly go wrong?

"Close your mouth. You don't want birds to nest in there do you?"

He held her chin gently between his fingers, keeping her gaze to his own.

He had come up behind her unawares. Momoko, who had been sitting in her booth, daydreaming about her latest fancy, nearly jumped out of her seat when a plate of food landed in front of her with a loud clatter. When she lifted her eyes to look, she found blood red orbs boring into her. She felt her mind go blank as she saw a young man with flaming red hair staring back at her. He wore a red baseball cap with the brim turned around so that it protruded from the side. Under his white apron, he wore a red polo and a pair of jeans, and on his feet were black converse sneakers with thick red lacing.

The most striking feature of all, however, was his eyes. They latched onto her's relentlessly and probed into her vulnerable depths. She could drown in them for all she cared.

"What's your name girl?" he said, still keeping her gaze to his own.

"Momoko Akatsutsumi," was her reply, almost in whisper,

"Momoko-chan..." He repeated to himself slowly, "That's a pretty name for a pretty girl. I'm Akagi Kurusu." He smiled a roguish smile. "It's nice to meet you."

And just like that, a fierce desire kindled within her to take him then and there in front of the whole restaurant. She rose from her seat, ready to pounce and force him down onto the ground and have her way with him, but as she moved, his hand left her chin and gripped tightly on her shoulder. With a quick thrust, he forced her back into her seat, denying her the opportunity.

"What do you think you're doing?" he said, cocking his head to the side as though he was unsure about her intentions, yet the twinkle in his eyes belied his innocence, as if to say, "I know what you want, and you won't get it so easily!"

The denial only fanned the flames of her desire, She wanted her prize-damn it-and she wanted it now!

You think you can stop me? she thought as she rose stiffly against his pressure. Taught as a bowstring, she pushed him towards a corner. Her eyes stayed fixed to his, diving into those ruby depths.

At the last moment, when she thought she had him trapped, he twisted sharply, flipping their position around, so it was he who pinned her to the wall, his breath falling upon her.

He grasped her long ponytail and pulled so that her lips came close to his.

He whispered he spoke, "Well, if you insist." and leaned in close…

There was a shriek, and then a horrendous BANG! An explosion ripped through the restaurant, sending everyone into a panicked frenzy. Then the fire alarm went off, and all illusions of normalcy completely evaporated.

"ATTENTION! ATTENTION! PLEASE EVACUATE IMMEDIATELY! PLEASE EVACUATE IMMEDIATELY!"

"Fuck!" Akagi swore, obviously peeved by the ruined moment, "This will have to wait,"

Before Momoko could register what had happened, The boy had dashed off through the kitchen flaps, shouting, "Nee-chan! What did you do!?"

Pandemonium soon engulfed the entire restaurant, as the customers panicked and rushed towards the main entrance, They pushed and shoved in their their efforts to get through. Men, women, and children all screamed in pain as they were crushed against the glass,

Quietly, Momoko ducked underneath her table. She pulled out her compact/device and started up the transformation sequence.

A little red ring appeared on her finger, and she swiped it across the little device.

"HYPER BLOSSOM!"

She replaced the device onto its holder, and seconds later, her clothes melted away.

In their place was a red leotard bordered with black. Then a pink vest appeared, as well as a red skirt. Her shoes also changed, and finally a pair of fingerless gloves appeared on her hands, and a black choker emblazoned with the letter "P" wrapped itself around her neck. With a final flourish, she did a pose and shouted, "Loving fighting legends of science! Powerpuff Girls Z!"

Quickly, Momoko - now Hyper Blossom - flew out from her hiding place. Floating high in the air, she put her fingers to her mouth and blew a shrill whistle. "Hey everyone! Can I have your attention please!"

The crowd went silent; then someone shouted, "Hey look! it's Blossom!"

"We're saved!"

And the crowd started cheering loudly.

"Thank you, thank you!" Blossom said,"Please find your friends and family and get your belongings."

Then she turned and spotted an old man standing next to a side door. "You over their," Please open that quickly." She said to him, pointing to a side door behind him.

The elderly man nodded and did as he was told. Then Blossom pointed to three younger people, and said, " You...and you...and you, please lead them out safely. Everyone else please follow them in an orderly fashion, there no need to panic."

Obediently, the three men complied with her orders. Slowly but surely, the crowd trickled out after them. She spotted the couple from earlier clutching at each other for support. She was just pondering about the day's events when her little device started beeping and its front started flashing on and off.

Professor Utonium appeared in the little screen, looking concerned. "Is everything alright?" He asked, "I noticed that you went active, do you need me to send the others?"

"No it's okay," she replied, "I've got things under control."

Utonium sighed, "That's a relief. If anything else happens, please contact me as soon as possible."

Blossom smiled. "Got it!"

Once the crowd had left, Blossom closed and locked both doors. Then she flipped the signs to "close", and turned off the fire alrm (which was conveniently behind the front counter.

Will all that done, she deactivated her powers and turned back to Momoko.

While all that was happening outside, Akagi, soaked head to heel in coffee and milk, was busy mopping up all the mess with a rag. He hand only just stopping the machine, but the damage had already been done.

A uniquely complicated apparatus, the coffee machine dispensed brewed coffee directly into a mixing chamber. There, it blended with other ingredients such as cocoa powder and freshly steamed milk before flowing into the waiting glassware. The milk steamer was its own vessel, and interlocked with the wand to form a tight seal. Unfortunately, it was this steamer that had caused so much mess.

I think I know how this happened, Akagi thought, Nee-chan left it running too hot. The steamer couldn't handle the pressure; and so it's whole top blew off.

The steamer cup had turned into a flying projectile and had knocked into the glass collecting coffee. As a result, boiling milk and hot coffee were sent flying everywhere, along with the shattered glass. Meanwhile, the machine didn't shut off on its own. Instead, it kept brewing coffee, making a giant puddle near the entrance.

Something's still not adding up! He thought, even if the machine was running to hot, there's no reason that Nee-chan couldn't have noticed the abnormal pressure, unless...

"...Nee-chan, what have you been doing, not watching the machine?" He said, turning to glare at Sakurako. She was on her knees, wiping underneath the counter, so only her buttocks could be seen sticking out. Akagi noticed her phone peeking out from her back pocket. It was still making noises; someone was still on the line.

Before she could react, Akagi snatched the phone from her pocket and pressed it to his ear.

"...Sakura-chan why aren't you picking up, what's going on? did something happen? Answer me! hello? Moshi-moshi? Anyone there?"

It was a familiar voice...too familiar for Akagi. "Aniki?"

"Oh Akagi, is that you?" cried the voice, "Great! Listen can you get Sakura-chan? I'm worried something happened. Please, get me-"

Akagi hung up.

"Nee-chan," he said, turning ominously towards the shopkeeper, "Were you on the phone with Souichirou again?"

"What? no...no...no...masaka!" Kintoki stammered, emerging from under the counter with a wad of rags in her hands.

"Don't lie to me!" He snapped, "You've been talking to Souichi-ni again, haven't you!?"

Sakurako's cheeks puffed up. "Well what of it," she asked, "Am I not allowed to talk to my boyfriend? You're brother?"

"You know how distracted you get when you and Aniki are on the phone!" He scolded, "How could you be so irresponsible?"

At that moment, that cute red-headed girl came running into the kitchen, and before he could warn her, she slipped on the giant puddle with a shriek and landed right in the puddle. "Kyaa!" she cried as the murky liquid soaked into her clothes and soiled her hair and bow.

"Kuso," he facepalmed and groaned. "Another troublesome one." He turned back to Sakurako. "You're as bad as this girl! You're hopeless when some guy appears in front of you."

"You're one to talk!" Sakurako spat out, "I saw what you were doing earlier with her. Honestly, what do you see in her? Does she make you excited?"

"You think that was serious?" He cried, " I was just fooling around. Only and idiot would think that was for real."

"Well, it sure looked real to me," Sakurako retorted. "The way you two acted…the way she got so close to you…it was hard to watch." Without thinking of Souichirou! she thought, biting her lips.

Momoko frowned at that. "Hey! I would appreciate it if you guys don't talk as ifI'm not here."

Akagi rounded on her. "What are you doing back here? I hope it wasn't just to see me?"

"Oh please, you couldn't handle me, anyway," she said, getting up, "I came to help, and to tell you that I've taken care of the customers and closed down the store. You should be thanking me?"

"Should I give you hug or do you want something else?" He smirked.

"That act earlier," he went on, "Was that just for me? Or do you do it to all the other guys too?"

She scoffed. "For your information, I don't go gaga over every guy I see. Only the really hot one."

"I guess I should be flattered," he said dryly, "The way you threw yourself at me, I almost thought you were being serious. I mean, we've barely even met."

Momoko rolled her eyes. "Oh please, as if you could be serious with a girl."

"Hah!" he said, crossing his arms, "I can be serious if I want."

She crossed her arms and stuck out her tongue. "I don't believe you," she said haughtily.

"I'll prove it to you! Any time, any place."

There was a pause, and then both girls burst out giggled. Confused by the strange reaction, Akagi replayed the conversation in his head, and his face went scarlet after realizing what he just said. "Umm I mean that… uh… I'll just go get a mop?" He stammered at last, disappearing into a closet.

Sakurako sighed and scooped Momoko into her arms. "I'm sorry, Momoko-san, you're all wet, because of me."

She was carried Momoko to the back. when Akagi reemerged. "Where are you going?" he asked.

"Upstairs." Sakurako said. Then she muttered to Momoko, "Thank you for helping out. Let's get you cleaned up."

Momoko peered over her shoulder to take another look Akagi. She noticed a certain patch near his jaw, much lighter than his skin. The boy caught her gaze and stuck out his tongue. Momoko frowned and did the same right back.

"I see you've met Akagi-kun," Sakurako said as she turned a corner. "He's Shouichirou-kun's younger brother. They're both living with me now."

She climbed a long wooden flight of stairs and came upon a rather heavy white door. Above Sakurako's store was a little flat just for her and a few guests. Sakurako helped Momoko take off her shoes, and then carried her across a long hallway. Momoko could see two open doors on the left, leading to bedrooms, and one set of shoji leading to a tatami room and the adjoining kitchen. The hallway then turned right, and lead to a balcony where the clothes were hung, a bathroom with tub and sink, and a separate water closet. At the very end, nestled in its own niche, was a small washing machine. Sakurako set Momoko down in the bathroom and helped her out of her clothes.

"I noticed that bandage on his cheek," Momoko said as she pulled off her
shirt and training bra. "Do you know what happened?"

Sakurako sighed, "The neighborhood he lived in wasn't what you call safe."

"How do you mean?"

Momoko took off her big red bow, and set it aside with its heart-shaped clip. Then she took out her phone, purse, and keys; and set those on a counter.

Sakurako sighed. "From what his parents said, there was a rowdy bunch of high school delinquents running around, making a lot of fuss." She said, "One day, Akagi was playing basketball with some friends when a gang of them showed up. The delinquents claimed the court as their own and forced the the other kids off. Akagi, stubborn that he was, decided to fight."

She sighed. "In the end, they cut his cheek with a dull pocket knife. The brave fool had to get thirteen stitches for his troubles."

"I'm sorry I wasn't able to prepare the furo for you," she went on. "Can you manage with just a shower?"

"Of course, It's no trouble."

Momoko slid the door close. She sat down on the plastic stool and dispensed piping hot water into a small wooden bucket. Then she upended the bucket over her head and let the water fall like a curtain over her body. Momoko sighed with pleasure and reached for the shampoo. She pumped out a generous dollop and worked it into her hair. As she began lathering, a certain song popped into her head.

"Hmm hmm hmm...Sunshine power...Bokura ni furu-sousa..."

…

The sun had already set by the time Akagi had finished cleaning up the mess. He had spent what felt like hours crawling through the cabinets to wipe off all the liquid. Dirty and dog tired, he put away the cleaning gear and stomp his way upstairs.

When he got into the flat, he immediately started shedding clothing. First to come off were his shoes and socks, which he left at the front entrance. Then he removed his apron, his polo shirt, his wifebeater, and his jeans. Last to come off was his underwear, and he deposited that last article in the hamper in his room. Then, wrapping a towel around his waist, he made his way towards the bathroom.

"Matsuka na hikari afure

Ookina ri chika naru toki

sekai ga donna iro ni somatte itte mo

Tatta hitotsu dake!"

The singing was loud and obnoxious. Akagi was so tired, he felt like his brain was turning into bubblegum.

"Nee-chan, can you keep it down, the neighbors will hear you," he groaned, too tired to shout. "I'm coming in."

Momoko heard the doors slide open, but was too into her song to care. She stood up and twirled. She grabbed the shower head and turned it on.

"Wow-wow Yeah! Sunshine Powaa!

Bokura ni furu-sousa!"

She held shower head to her face and sang into it like it was a microphone. Too much into her song, she spun like a figure-skater and leaped up onto the stool. She was standing before a crowd like a teen idol, and she was belting out the lyrics like it was her living soul.

"Saikouyuu presento

kirakira hikaro yo!"

The warm glow was intoxicating, and she raised her hands up to bathe in the glory. She nearly swooned, her head lulling back onto her shoulders. She opened her eyes, expecting to see if Sakurako was joining her.

Instead, she saw him standing there with nothing but a bath towel on. Those deep red eyes were now as wide as saucers, and his face was almost purple. He was gaping back at her, his jaw broken and fallen on the floor. His nose was leaking blood. .

Something-deep inside her- just died.

Everything happened so fast after that; it was like one of those out-of-body experiences that some people talk about.

He remembered her screaming; he remembered how it was really loud. He remembered that she had tried to twist away, but her legs tangled with the shower hose. Then she lost her balance and flew backwards off the stool.

He also remembered his own reaction, how he panicked and tried to leave, but as he turned around, his towel started unraveling. Then he stepped on a bar of soap, and went flying backwards.

He landed on the bathroom floor, with a sickening smack, and his head hit hard the tiles.

She landed on his chest-hard-and his diaphragm spasmed painfully.

"Hurk!" He gasped, trying in vain to breathed. HIs hand clawed the two soft tubes that suddenly appeared on either side of him. Except when he looked 'down', he realized that they weren't tubes at all, but her long legs. Then he realized what he was staring was her womanly center.

Before he passed out from blood loss, The last thing he thought was, "Wow, so that's what it looked like..."