The Ripple Effect | Volume I

Chapter 8: Lies in Limitation

(Nansei Junior High School – 7th Period/Engineering)

About an hour or two passed over the school day, leaving one class left before its end. Drawsah was situated in a much smaller room with less than half the students that were in the average classroom. Including Drawsah himself, there were only about ten students in the classroom.

Every seat was arranged in a circle. There was one short and stout, middle-aged man who sat in a rolling office chair in the middle of the circle. The man was wearing a grey collared shirt and khaki slacks, all accompanied with black loafers to complete the outfit. It was a pretty basic fit anyways.

The man cleared his throat and sat up in his chair after a few minutes of silence. "First thing's first, I need to hear everyone's names," he said. The man spun around in his chair about one eighty degrees to see the rest of the classroom. "Makes it easier if we all knew each other's names, right? There isn't too many of ya' in here.

"So, who'd like to go first?" the man asked the group. He spun back around and finished the full circle survey of his classroom.

"Hi. My name is Yato Hashimoto," one boy spoke up. He had short brown hair and some glasses. He was also two years older than Drawsah was, and that was shown through his height and frame.

The teacher glanced at him for a second and then bounced his eyes to the next person that sat beside the boy. He pointed at him. "Next."

"Renjiro Miura," the boy uttered after a short pause. He didn't look anything special either, but Drawsah quickly noted the pattern. He was in a classroom full of upperclassmen. He was in a class two years ahead of his own. Which didn't bother him, it was just a sight to see.

"I'm Fumiko Yoshida. Pleasure to meet you!" the only girl in the class introduced herself. She had an appearance that was less glamorous than the rest of the massive student body, but she definitely looked like an intellectual individual.

"Yo, I'm Yoshiyuki Ono." The next boy casually raised his hand. He looked the most laidback out of everyone in the group. The teacher moved onto the next person almost immediately.

"I'm Drawsah Brief," Drawsah stated blankly.

The teacher studied him for a moment. "Your father is Dr. Brief, correct?"

Drawsah looked a little peeved to be asked that question, especially in this classroom. He didn't want to be given unrealistic expectations that would set him apart from everyone else. He was already the youngest person in the class as it was.

"Yeah…" Drawsah answered him indignantly.

"Excellent! Then I expect that you'll stroll straight through my class," the man finished his thought with a smirk on his face. He went straight to the next person.

Almost everyone else shot daggers at Drawsah. Various side-eyes and glares were targeted towards Drawsah which made him slightly shrink into his personal bubble. He pulled his hoodie over his head to block out his peripherals and brought his clasped hands to his face.

"Zakuro Suzuki," a shorter boy with short dark red hair and brown eyes announced. He looked no older and taller than Drawsah.

Drawsah took notice of him pretty quickly.

He looks just like Cheri. Maybe she has a twin brother she hasn't talked about? At least I'm not the only junior in this class then.

His tense expression and body language relaxed a lot more now that he had somebody he could probably relate to. Considering the boy's age though, he was probably smarter than a high percentage of his age group. Other than Bulma, maybe he finally has someone he could have more thoughtful conversations with at school.

The introductions continued. "Akihiro Aki," a frail boy quickly stated.

"My name's Hikaru Saito," the next boy declared.

"Uhhh…" There was an awkward pause in the classroom. "Ishimo Yamamoto." This boy seemed to be on the timid side; It wouldn't be a surprise to see him avoid public interactions with other people.

The man in the middle cleared his throat. "Alright, that's everyone," he announced. "At least that's what we have on my attendance sheet…" He held his clipboard close to his face with reading glasses over his nose.

Considering that the class was advanced and only had less than a dozen students in the classroom, the class went by pretty quickly. That was the tendency with many advanced classes, they were more engaging, and task ridden than most.

Eventually, forty minutes would come and go. The bell rang throughout the school which signaled after seventh period was over, signifying the end of the day. Kids would flood out of their classrooms and head to their lockers to get what they needed to take home with them and once they did, they left the school building through the front doors or the back doors.

Drawsah walked out of his smaller classroom which was partially away from the main part of the school. So, the hallway he walked out into wasn't as busy and crowded as most. Two other kids would follow out behind him in a conversation of their own.

"See you later!" the frail boy said to Drawsah. He waived at him as he turned down the hallway.

"Yeah," Drawsah responded in kind. He waived back with a light smile.

The laidback Yoshiyuki patted Drawsah on the shoulder as he begun to turn the other way. "Thanks a bunch!" he exclaimed.

"Sure thing," Drawsah nodded, smiling back at the older boy.

Zakuro, who Drawsah assumed was Cheri's twin brother, walks in the middle of Drawsah's line of sight, catching his attention. They share eye contact as he walks by Drawsah, walking in the opposite direction. The boy looked at him in a critical way, making Drawsah feel a little confused at the unwarranted reaction.

What's his deal? He remembered Taiyo's pointed words from before and sighed. I'll ignore it.

He turned his head around and started down the sparsely populated hallway, towards his locker in the crowded main hallway. Despite saying that he'd ignore the kid's reaction to him, he still tried to piece together whether or not he's seen him before that day.

But after a minute, he couldn't remember his face from anywhere at all. Remembering faces that he didn't have to look at was a challenge and he thought he wouldn't have to learn that skill. Until now.

He turned the corner onto the main hallway and saw exactly what he expected. A heavily crowded hallway full of kids going in multiple directions. It was the worst at the end of the day because everyone was trying to go to the same place from different angles. Which is the worst way to make traffic flow.

Drawsah squeezed his way through the fast-moving crowd that went the other way out the front doors. Most kids already had their things and were moving out quickly. Since Drawsah's last class was situated in one of the far corners of the school, it'd took him a while before he got to the main hallway.

After some struggling and slipping between space and leeway, he got to about seven lockers away from his and he saw someone he wasn't expecting to see for the rest of the day. It was Kitsutsuki leaning up against it, and he knew exactly why she'd be there. She was waiting on him for some reason and he really didn't want to figure that out.

What the hell is she doing there…?

He sighed, closed his eyes, and rubbed his two temples. His relaxed mood quickly fell apart. After a couple seconds, Kitsutsuki perked her head up and looked satisfied to see he was finally there.

There he is. "Yo." She stuck her hand up.

"What did I do this time…?" he asked, wearily.

Kitsutsuki looked puzzled. "What?" Until she remembered why he'd bring that up. She felt guilty again and lost the puzzled reaction. "Oh…" She sheepishly waved it off. "You didn't do anything…" Kitsutsuki started. "I just wanted to ask you a few questions." She crossed her arms.

Drawsah dropped the weary mask and looked at her with a tilted face. "…Really?"

Kitsutsuki stood up off the locker and made space for Drawsah to get to it. "Get your things and walk with me," she said.

"Oka~ay…?" He shuffled to his locker and opened it up. He took out his backpack which sat at the bottom of the locker and put all his books inside. He closed the bag, put it on his back, and closed the locker, spinning the combination lock a few times. Drawsah glanced at Kitsutsuki and that was her signal to start walking.

She walked down the hallway, the opposite way from the exit which already threw Drawsah for a loop but after all that had happened today, he wasn't really worried at all. If anything, he was offput by her peculiar change in behavior.

Why is she acting…nice…? He frowned. Well, it's not 'nice'…more like…'not mean'…

After a few moments of walking down the hallway, they turned down a secondary hallway and this was reminiscent of the same path they followed when Cheri had taken him on her short campus tour. Realizing this, Drawsah glanced at her sideways.

"You're acting weird…" Drawsah commented.

Kitsutsuki uttered in broken coughs, "…Ironic…" She smirked in amusement.

Drawsah on the other hand wasn't impressed. He remembered the dark-red haired boy from before that looked a lot like Cheri in the face. Maybe Kitsutsuki knew something about him.

"By the way," Drawsah started, "where did Cheri go?"

"She went home," she answered. "She rides the bus, so she leaves as soon as school lets out." Kitsutsuki glanced back at him with a raised eyebrow. "Why'd you ask?"

"Uhm…" Drawsah scratched the back of his head and looked forward. That's none of your business… "I kinda thought that you two were sort of inseparable. My apologies."

"Lighten up," Kitsutsuki spat, barely letting Drawsah finish his sentence. Her voice gave off a nagging tone that Drawsah loathed. "What's with all that 'my apologies' bull crap?" she pointed out. "What are you, a robot?"

Kitsutsuki glared at him. C'mon…

Drawsah began to grow irritated and sighed. "Look, if you aren't gonna ask me what you wanted to ask me, I'm going home." He started to spin around to walk the other way.

"Cool your jets, we're almost there." Kitsutsuki looked ahead and crossed her arms. Drawsah followed her line of sight and recognized that they were going up a flight of stairs towards the second floor.

It really piqued his interest. Couldn't she ask him what she wanted to ask him outside? What's she plotting…?

(Nansei Junior High School – Roof)

The door to the roof opens up. Drawsah and Kitsutsuki step through the cracked door and let it close behind them. Drawsah walked over to the nearest bench and sat down, then looked at Kitsutsuki's face as she moved to the grid-protected AC vent she sat on earlier today. Nobody was on the roof, as usual. Which Drawsah thought was odd.

Kitsutsuki's change of attitude is what Drawsah really thought was strange. Because the last time they had conversed, it was through tolerance by obligation. They had to work together in order to get out of the predicament that they were in. But in this case, she didn't treat him rudely as she normally did. Drawsah didn't get used to it, he didn't want to, and he was sure that he'd never have to interact with her again. Yet he was willing to see what exactly was going on this time.

"So…? What is it?" he asked. "Is it something serious? What happened?"

Kitsutsuki ignored all those questions as she sat on top of the vent. She put her arms behind her to make herself comfortable at the very least. She sighed, "What exactly…are you?"

Drawsah's heart drops to his stomach but he didn't show it on his face. He crossed his arms and tilted his head in confusion. "… Huh?"

"You're weird," Kitsutsuki quickly added, which made Drawsah's face drop in irritation. He thought it wasn't funny. "But in a different way."

His face showed that he didn't take her seriously, but Kitsutsuki didn't change her tone of voice or the way that she spoke.

"You're able to do things that normal people, not even world-class athletes, can do. It's like you're superhuman." She leaned forward and crossed her arms, no longer propping her torso up that way. It might've been uncomfortable sitting like that on the AC fan grid.

"…Thanks…?" Drawsah uttered slowly. His skeptical face grew in intensity.

Kitsutsuki ignored his words. "You refuse to defend yourself by any means at all. If you couldn't avoid it, you'd force yourself to take it," she pointed out. "Why?"

Drawsah slightly frowned and slowly found the words. "I…can't fight—"

"—Wrong," she interrupted. "You can." Kitsutsuki's face grew more serious. She noticed pretty quickly that Drawsah's skeptical mask fell apart. There it is.

Kitsutsuki started, "When you fought against those upperclassmen in the hallway this morning, you danced around them effortlessly. You're a natural. And don't deny it.

…

"You weren't even tired after doing all that work. You didn't even break a sweat." Kitsutsuki leaned forward from her high postured position. "Care to explain yourself?"

Drawsah kept uncharacteristically silent. The boy who knew how to answer everything all of a sudden couldn't figure out how to convey his thoughts.

She saw that… He finally spoke after a moment, "What are you insinuating?"

"Dodging the question, huh?" Kitsutsuki crossed her legs and sat up from her leaning forward posture. "Alright, how about this?" she started. "When you ran out of the Ogesana Food Court, you knew you had to make up a lot of distance to catch up with us, right?

…

"How did you get there? It'd be impossible to get into that alley way because it makes a ninety-degree angle at the end. It doesn't connect to the street at the front at all."

Drawsah closed his eyes for a moment and reopened them, a beat of sweat ran down the side of his face. "You're over thinking this a little bit too much," he remarked. "…It's not—"

"—I don't think so." Kitsutsuki interrupted him again. "I've put a lot of thought into this. The only way for you to be able to get into that alley is if you went over and through multiple buildings," she lectured, "but that's impossible. Wouldn't you agree?"

I'm ending this immediately.

Drawsah yawned. He glanced over to his side, where the front yard of the school would be. There was a beautiful view of the business district in West City. "What's your point, Kitsutsuki?"

"You're a superhuman," Kitsutsuki answered quickly. "I brought you up here to prove it." She uncrossed her legs, crossed her arms, and hopped off the AC vent. Then she took off her bag and tossed it atop the AC vent. Her face looked as serious and determined as ever.

Drawsah looked at her confused. "…What?" His face grew slightly anxious.

"I respect you for protecting Cheri," Kitsutsuki emphasized," so I don't hold any ill-will towards you anymore." She then lowers herself into a martial arts stance. Crouched down slightly with one leg pointed forwards and the same side arm balled up into a fist parallel to her leg. Her other arm hooked back with a slightly open palm.

She glared at him right in his eyes. "Stand up, Drawsah."

The boy has definitely seen a lot and been through a lot today. He's even done some things that he already regrets. He has been in multiple fights, although every single one of them were unwarranted and were simply just failed attempts at peacemaking. He had also unintentionally created enemies. Those were things he would be able to live with.

But Kitsutsuki was a different deal all together. Somehow, Drawsah managed to mend the relationship between the two of them without even trying. As a matter of fact, he didn't want to deal with Kitsutsuki from this point onwards still and it was just bad luck that she managed to find his locker.

I shouldn't have ran into her in first period. The day probably would've gone a whole lot smoother… Now she's catching onto my abilities and I'm gonna have to figure out how to dissuade her somehow.

"I'm not going to fight you…" Drawsah slowly uttered. He didn't look nervous; his face turned up in confusion. He could tell she was being serious.

Kitsutsuki slightly lowered in her stance. "If you won't make the first move," she began, "then I will."

"You're definitely not going about this logically." Drawsah stayed seated on the bench. He crossed his arms and shook his head like a disapproving parent. He stuck true to what he was saying. I'm absolutely not fighting this girl…

"And you're not doing a good job convincing me otherwise," Kitsutsuki countered.

Drawsah sighed, lowering his head into his hand. "What are you trying to prove. If you beat me up, you're just going to be doing what you've always been doin—"

"—I'm not an idiot!" she exclaimed. Kitsutsuki's voice seemed to be getting a little irritated. "I've got you cornered! Show me what you're about and I'll walk away!"

She is an idiot…

Drawsah slowly stood up and groaned in annoyance. Maybe if I dodge the entire time, she'll leave me alone. And if she's tired enough, I'll be able to walk out.

"Fine." The boy finally accepted her petty challenge. He kept his backpack on as well. "But just because I beat you, doesn't mean I'm some 'superhuman' or whatever."

Kitsutsuki scoffed. "Who said you're beating me?" she barked. "Don't get cocky."

Drawsah lazily leaned over and sighed. He casually stretched his arms out. "Whatever." He strolled about five feet in front of the bench he was just sitting on and looked at the serious Kitsutsuki with a blank expression.

…

Kitsutsuki studied his stance. It wasn't a stance. He put all his weight on one leg lethargically with one hand on his hip. He didn't want to be there at all, and he definitely didn't take her seriously. She clicked her tongue in annoyance.

He's not even taking me seriously…

The girl took off, each step moved in quick succession in front of the other. She jumped up about half her height, which was around four and a half feet, and stuck her leg out, coming down with a diving kick. Drawsah's mood and posture doesn't change at all as he simply leans out of the way, causing Kitsutsuki to skid across the ground to and rebound.

Kitsutsuki ran back at him, spun around, and threw a roundhouse kick right to his head. But Drawsah casually leaned out of the way of the kick. The kick was too telegraphed. All the way from its speed to its trajectory. Kitsutsuki threw a fist at Drawsah's head again and it failed to land, initiating her to throw a flurry.

Drawsah weaved, ducked, and bobbed around her fists. Kitsutsuki's form was good as well, even her speed was effective enough for somebody her size. But to attempt to catch somebody even smaller than herself proved to be a much bigger challenge than she had at first thought. Regardless, she still smirked at the results.

I was right!

Kitsutsuki ended the flurry of strikes with a spinning heel kick to the head. Her eyes widened. The kick wasn't obvious at all; it'd catch anybody.

He swiftly and casually ducked. It was an insane reaction from somebody like him, even Kitsutsuki didn't expect that whiff and it showed on her face. Drawsah crouched down low enough to be able to put his hands flat on the ground if he wanted to. In the middle of her motion, Drawsah lightly kicked her grounded foot and made it slide several inches back the ground.

Kitsutsuki fell flat on her back and groaned with the sudden impact. "NGH—!"

Drawsah stayed crouched as he was at an eye-to-eye level with Kitsutsuki. "You're actually pretty good, y'know," he nonchalantly commented.

She snarled at what she felt like was a shot. She kipped-up off her back which made Drawsah stand all the way up in response, anticipating her next attack. "Shut your trap!" she exclaimed, throwing another punch at Drawsah.

But she whiffed the blow again. She tried kicking at him, but he effortlessly dodged. He barely had to move from the spot from which he stood. It started to get to a point where she started sweating bullets and her movements became sluggish. Eventually, every strike she threw and committed to caused her to move slower and slower.

"RAH-!" Kitsutsuki threw another kick which missed. "Fight back you coward…!" she barked in slow and broken breaths. She was getting tired and started huffing and puffing.

She was gassed. She knew it, and Drawsah knew it. She put her hands on her knees and since Drawsah didn't break a sweat like she anticipated, it unfortunately signaled defeat.

Drawsah's plan worked out accordingly. The kid examined his clothes to check for any dirt marks.

"Did you…hear me?!" Kitsutsuki yelled through heavy breaths.

The boy perked up and hummed in thought. A finger touched his chin for emphasis. Kitsutsuki thought he was rubbing salt into the wound. "Well…" Drawsah began, "I don't know how to fight back."

Kitsutsuki's eyes widen in annoyed anger. "Wha~at?!" she barked. "Stop lying!" She stood all the way up and pointed at him accusingly.

"I'm not," Drawsah replied sharply. "Like I said, I won't fight you…because I can't." He surveyed his wrists with open palms, more accurately, his metallic wrist bands that had percentage readings on them. He sighed.

Kitsutsuki watched him in silence as she let her heartrate and breathing slow down. She watched as Drawsah walked towards the door without a care in the world.

…

I can tell he's lying… Kitsutsuki peered at Drawsah's back as he left. She remembered his face during that match. I know those eyes all too well. Those dark…and cold, calculated eyes… Those are the eyes of a martial artist.

Kitsutsuki walked over to the AC vent in thought, she reached up and grabbed her backpack from the top of it.

That was just 'Plan A' anyways. I might've failed at getting him talk but making him clammed up with his words was good enough for me.

Before she walked off of the roof, she took a seat on the ground and laid on it with her back flat, looking right up at the clouds that floated above her in the sky.

If I was wearing something I could actually move in instead of these tight street clothes, I'd be able to move fast enough to hit the guy. I'll use the backup outfit I have in my locker.

A lightbulb goes off in Kitsutsuki's head again. Nansei Junior High School had a secure technological system where the personal information of every student was locked away behind many security checks.

If it was somebody else, I'd probably have Zakuro find his address for me, but luckily, I don't have to do that. Everyone in the city knows exactly where Capsule Corporation is located. I'll demand a rematch when I'm at my peak. Then I'll…

She sat up.

…I'll…figure out a plan later…

End of Chapter Eight.

A/N:

I took my last final this morning! I'm free for three months! But add in a summer job, a three weeks' vacation, and some summer flight school and I'd be right back where I started when it comes to writing time lol.

But hey, it's Thursday and that's one day away from Friday so I'm feeling good, and you should too! I felt good writing this chapter out and I feel like getting the next chapter squared away this evening actually. (it could drop this weekend—just a possibility tho lol)

Anyways, hope you all enjoyed the chapter and hope to see you back for the next update!